Cruz

Saw this on Facebook. LOL.

在中国内地，商家炒作，把七夕包装为东方情人节。民俗专家不以为然。

谭汝为教授介绍，七夕也名“乞巧节”或“女儿节”，起源于汉代，过节时母亲都会在自家葡萄架下摆上小桌，端上时令瓜果和面点，一边为家中还未出嫁的女儿讲牛郎织女的故事，一边传授女红针线的技艺。“相传织女是巧手裁剪，天上织云锦的高手，所以这个节日也是对女孩子进行家庭、社会教育的最好机会，为古代女子的‘德容功貌’打基础，教导其成为家务好手。这才是民俗中这个节日的本来意义。生生套用西方的所谓‘情人节’不太妥当。”

谭汝为认为，“七夕”成为“中国情人节”的说法是因为“牛郎织女”的故事在我国深入人心，又被商业化炒作，从而与“西方情人节”产生了雷同。其实“做巧食”、“斗巧”等很多七夕节的风俗，更能彰显这个传统节日内涵，和包粽子、吃月饼一样，不应被人们遗忘，也是更应被商业运作广泛挖掘的传统节日元素。（摘自天津北方网）

重点是放在织女的针线活儿有多了得，不在乎这个可怜的女人一年只能见爱人一次。

昨晚在Twitter:

JoAnnaRainy：they will cry first.. like ths morning n late evening rain..

hocheechan： 织女会问牛郎为什么这么多年了，还不好好的找份工作，要出卖身体当牛郎。那不要紧，连寄钱也没！

xiaobrown：add me on twitter n fb~ said niu lang..

lovrainee：聊明年相逢的时候，喜鹊会不会来建桥；因为人类太不环保了！

AbsoluteJunkie：The guy will tell the girl: Times are bad, I am a giggolo now.

scarletscandals：YAO SI AH, U THINK I DUNNO? （新闻链接：花钱找牛郎　不少本地单身女郎竟动真情）

potatomusmaxmus：why so long never online?!

loraein：probably asking each other if they got the iphone? lol~

lamerhui：they might be discussing how expensive to travel to meet each other. erp + petrol & coe. lol.

When I said I was considering a trip to Tunisia, P exclaimed, “What? You wanna conquer all the places starting with T, is it?”

Hahaha. Turkey, Thailand, Taipei and Tokyo are some of my favourite places on the planet, but it wasn’t because Tunisia began with a T. I was looking for an exotic holiday destination. I like totally foreign locations, I like historical ruins, and I don’t need to shop till I drop or buy souvenirs for people. I’m prepared to sample food that is alien to what we usually eat here, and I don’t need chili to go with my meals.

Unfortunately, my deposit was returned with an apology note. Tunisia is so exotic that they couldn’t put together enough people to form a tour.

At this point, I am so hoping that a travel agency will have me lead a tour there next year. I mean, it’s not a place where you can easily do free and easy. And if no one does any extensive marketing for this destination, my deposits will always be returned. Can someone please bring me to Tunisia? Either that, or tell me that Tunisia is actually a so-so location and that I can set my sights on somewhere else. Heh.

I’ll be spending the next few days in Hokkaido. Mary carefully vetted the various options for me. There was an itinerary promising superb scenery. “No, I don’t like lakes. What? There are three lakes on that list? No!”

The Bosphorus (Turkey), Sun Moon Lake (Taiwan), Seven Stars Lake (Taiwan), Lake Ashi (Japan), Lake Taupo (New Zealand)… They all look the same to me! I don’t like lakes, or other assorted water catchment places. I like stones, ie mountains and other natural rock formations, or ancient manmade landmarks like castles, temples or churches.

I’ll be having many many bowls of ramen, topped with sashimi, tempura and crab. I hope all the extra calories will magically burn off in the onsen. That is vital, cos I’ll also be raiding the Ishiya Factory. They are the ones who are responsible for making Asia fat with the legendary Shiroi Koibito, otherwise known as 白色戀人.

In lieu of the lake hopping schedule, I’ll be at Chitose Factory Outlet Mall Rera. I just googled. There’s Hugo Boss. Nice. And there’s Tanuki Koji Shopping Arcade, the longest shopping street in Hokkaido.

I know I just said that I don’t need to shop. That’s only applicable for places like Tunisia, and perhaps Turkey. Maybe I should just bring along one credit card.

I’m half way through the one month break. So fast?! I think I’ll have to take two months next year!

Jean and I hosted Marine Parade’s National Day event. If you had seen the media coverage, you would have realised it was a mini NDP of sorts. The residents were very enthusiastic in waving their flags and using the clappers, but they weren’t keen on doing the Marine Parade Wave. Hahaha. They featured a female Parade Commander, and the girls from CHIJ Katong Convent formed the Guard of Honour. The little boys and girls from Tao Nan and Ngee Ann marching in their Scouts, Brownies, Boys’ Brigade and Girls’ Brigade uniforms were so cute!

The finale was spectacular, with a medley and a four-minute fireworks display. I had a sore throat, and I wasn’t supposed to shout. But I was going, “SINGAPORE, SCRRRRREAMMMMM!”. I was imagining myself to be Gurmit Singh. Hahaha. And oh, it was such an experience singing the National Anthem beside Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong.

Thanks to the committee for having Jean and I at the event.

The sore throat worsened after all that screaming the night before. I had to see a doctor.

I was flipping I Weekly while waiting at the clinic when I saw my face in one of the pages.

Yes, I have many fond memories of East Coast. All that late night bonding. Awwww…

There I was, waiting impatiently in the queue. “Popcorn, sweet or salted. Hotdog, ketchup or mustard. Is it that difficult?” The other counter had completed four different orders, but this couple in front of me hadn’t quite decided what they wanted. Tsk. I didn’t tap their shoulders however, cos I suspected that Salt would be mediocre, and I didn’t mind missing the first few scenes. I was at the screening because I had nothing much to do anyway.

Angelina Jolie is gorgeous, even if she walks out with a broken nose from a North Korean prison. The poor girl injured herself while doing the action sequences. Uh huh. Salt is well, too bland for my liking.

I was at dinner with A and L, when V called. “I just saw your tweet! I’m at ION too! Can I hang out with you for an hour or so? My friend is late.”

Things can get interesting when friends from different groups meet for the first time. I become their common topic and it can get rather nerve wrecking when they talk about me right in front of me. “He was like that since secondary school.” “Oh you mean he does that to you too?”

It was our first time at The Nautilus Project. I saw a couple of negative reviews online, but decided to go along with A’s suggestion. It wasn’t that bad lah.

V’s friend was tied up at work and didn’t turn up eventually, so she joined us for dessert at Marmalade Pantry. My Old Fashioned Chocolate Fudge something something was really boring, and I couldn’t help but steal V’s Sticky Date Pudding. Yum!

After a heavy dinner, I caught a heavy movie with J. Throughout the movie, I was thinking, “Hey, this woman looks a lot like Mariah Carey! It isn’t her, right? The performance was wonderful. I thought Mariah Carey can’t act!” Well, it was Mariah Carey. Wheet!

Precious is an obese and illiterate African American physically and sexually abused by her parents. She often dreams of a better life- becoming rich and famous, and being loved, but is nowhere near her fantasies. Expelled from school because of her second pregnancy, she turns up at an alternative institution. That is where she learns to read and write, and finally rids herself of the monsters and baggage in her life.

Mo’Nique, who swept virtually every Supporting Actress award available, is hauntingly convincing as Precious’ good for nothing mother. Precious: Based on the novel Push by Sapphire is fully deserving of its accolades- 137 nominations and 80 won.

I was on leave, and I was still sick. I really shouldn’t be working, right?

Radio veterans often tell me, “Once you are in, you can never get out.” I laughed initially, “Very funny. I joined a national broadcaster, not some secret society.”

I have been drafting something for the morning show’s 5th anniversary in September. And I was planning a couple of other things- stuff that will go on air next year if I get my way.

As you can see, I have very humourous people keeping me entertained at all times.

My Facebook wall and Twitter feed were filled with posts from excited people. Oh yes, the long weekend was coming. I was rather slow in realising this. You would too, if you weren’t working like me.

We met for W’s birthday that evening.

Halfway through dinner, Andrew asked for ice cubes. The waitress blinked and told us with a stern face that ice cubes were chargeable.

I stopped eating and looked up from my plate in disbelief. What? We have to pay for ice cubes?!

The waitress then took two steps and whispered, “Just joking!”

Hahahahahahahhaha!

Silly woman. But that cracked us up totally.

The food was average, and the ambience was totally unacceptable for a $52 nett dinner. But the waitress made our day. Hahaha.

I’m declaring my adoration for breakfast at Melt, Mandarin Oriental.

I had a very unpleasant experience a few years back, and I had been rather reluctant to step into the hotel again. But I had breakfast at Melt twice in eight days. Two simple reasons- the service was excellent, and the food was great.

I had just remarked the previous night, “They should send someone to to Melt and learn how congee should be done.” I like the Healthy Breakfast corner, where they had a wide selection of cereals and fruits, waiting to be soaked in milk- full cream, skimmed or soy. I didn’t take too big a serving, cos I had to try the prata and curries in the Indian corner, as well as the pastries which came with a decent choice of butters and jams. I had to skip the waffles and the Japanese offerings on both mornings, because I was way too full.

我朋友S的偶像很可能就是小丁當。不然怎麼解釋她的包包就像個百寶袋呢？

她以前是當唱片宣傳的，帶藝人跑通告的時候，有的沒的統統扛著上路。要紙巾？有濕的，也有那種超不環保的3ply。因為較薄的2ply紙巾讓化了裝的藝人用了後會殘留在臉上。在外頭，她是唯一一個會跟我說：”哎唷！你的鼻子很油咧！”，或是”你的臉hor，油到一個不行。你是做DJ還是賣炒粿條的？”，然後左手拿著吸油紙，右手拿著3ply紙巾，要我任選其一。

另外，她的包包里總是有各類糖果。跟她看電影的人在兩個小時內大致上可以嚐到四五種各類糖果。我每次只要無印良品的柚子&金柑糖。那是她介紹的。有一回，她說柚子&金柑糖吃完了，問我薄荷糖行嗎。我晴天霹靂，一幅無語問蒼天的模樣，質問她為甚麼沒有即時添貨。哈哈哈哈哈。

吃了那柚子&金柑糖那麼多年，這是我第一次走進商店自己購買。謝謝S的介紹，也謝謝她的長期贊助。

Stats from my Facebook Page.

34 year old Liu Qian began his magical journey at the age of 7, and was the first Taiwanese to win an international award. He shot to regional fame after performing in CCTV’s Chinese New Year special.

I had always thought that he was grossly overhyped and overrated. Then I began to feel sorry for this stranger, as his rivals began to unravel the secrets behind his magic, and called him a liar.

Come on lah, those are illusions. He obviously relies on a crew, and various props to deliver his stunts. Accuse him of conning the audience? How old are you? Five? Would it be a double blow to you if I tell you that Santa Claus isn’t real?

Anyway, I was won over by his brilliant performance at the Max Pavilion on Saturday.

As he prepared the props for the levitation segment, I whispered excitedly to my friend next to me, “He’s going to defy gravity next. I know how to do it too!”

Under the guidance of local magician Jeremy Pei, I too, “defied gravity” in front of a live audience at 933’s anniversary show back in 2007! I fumbled badly for the card tricks that required nifty finger work, but that finale stunt was a real winner.

While I had one chair to support Jiahui, who was in a horizontal position, Liu Qian took away both ladders and had the girl suspending in mid air. Ok, he wins.

I was totally amused by the uncle who went up on stage. For the record, he was not planted. Upon hearing Liu Qian’s claims that they were lovers in a past reincarnation, the middle aged man played along jovially. He was enjoying every moment on stage, and at one point, threatened to steal the thunder by directing Liu Qian, “Are you ready? 1-2-3 Go!”. The renowned magician was left as amused as the rest of the audience.

Very entertaining show.

Pictures by UnUsUaL Entertainment

This is Home truly
where I know I must be
where my dreams wait for me
where that river always flows…

Isn’t it great that Kit Chan will be performing again at the National Day Parade? I thought she would only appear at the Preview and perhaps one of the combined rehearsals. I was surprised to see her at the National Education Show a few weekends ago.

I like the way the National Day songs have been mixed into the Show segment. And the aerial flypast will be awesome. 20 aircraft presenting a four minute display. I peeked at the grandstand that day, and the military bigwigs looked very pleased. Hahaha.

With only five days to go before the biggest birthday event of the year, have you decided where you’ll be watching the NDP? Tickets are limited, but don’t cry if you can’t be at the Padang. You can be part of the action at one of the five heartland locations: Sengkang, Eunos, Bishan, Woodlands and Chua Chu Kang. Apart from the on-site celebrations, the Mobile Column, led by Singapore’s premier battle tank, the Leopard 2A4, will make its way to the various venues.

2010 hrs is the key moment for this year’s NDP. ONE VOICE, 2010- we recite the National Pledge, sing the National Anthem, and prepare for the finale fireworks. They’ve worked towards a 360-degrees surround experience. Other than lighting towers from within the Padang, there’ll be nine additional firing hotspots: Marina Bay, Suntec City, Pan Pacific Hotel, Ritz-Carlton, Maybank, UOB Plaza 1, UOB Plaza 2, Esplanade and City Hall.

This could possibly be one of the most exciting fireworks display ever. WOOHOO!

From left to right:
Serrazyme 10MG – 3 times a day after food.
Fenfedrin 64MG – 3 times a day after food. May cause drowsiness.
MAC Lozenges- As and when necessary. Not more than 10 per day.

It sucks to be sick any time of the year. And the sucky feeling is multiplied when you’re on leave.

“What a waste!”, some people exclaimed.

The sore throat has been bothering me since late last week, and it sort of exploded over the weekend. I tried to sleep it away, but this mass of thick and yellowish mucus had formed in my nasal passage. I woke up a few times, struggling to breathe. I finally decided to see a doctor when I found tiny traces of blood in the gooey matter. Yucks.

I’m going back to bed. Good night, world.

Time flies when you’re not sweating over anything in particular. One week down, three more to go. Only three?! Oh man.

I half expected Lianhe Wanbao to trash the interview I did with Miaoyin. She had called for the reasons behind my month long break. I didn’t have anything juicy to offer. There were no secretive reasons (eg. plastic surgery or liposuction), nor any scandals (eg. shotgun wedding). The truth is really boring. With Jay Chou in town last weekend, they had plenty of content and need not have allocated space to tell their readers that some silly person was overworked and therefore was taking a break. Well, thank you.

I vividly remember that night in Taipei. We had just attended Elva Hsiao’s concert and were sitting in a hotel function room in the wee hours of New Year’s Day. I offered Miaoyin some champagne, “Here’s to a great year ahead. In the event that any controversy arises (yet again), do not write about it. Only publish good things about me, please!” Hahaha.

I launched a podcast titled WOOHOO! Universe on Monday. The first episode was easy, but I sort of regretted starting this little CCA while working on Episode 2. I forgot that I wasn’t in a professional recording studio equipped with professional facilities. It was a tedious task to piece together movie trailer soundbytes and interview extracts using some amateur software.

The contents of this blog entry should have went into a third podcast, but I thought I would just stick to words and images for now. Speaking about pictures, you’ll have to put up with grainy photographs taken with my near-obsolete iPhone 3G (yes, 3G, not 3GS) for the time being. A friend working in one of the telcos had offered to put me on their VIP list for iPhone 4, but I’ve decided to wait for the white iPhone scheduled to be shipped here at the end of the year.

I stumbled onto a website a few days ago. It had my picture and a detailed profile. Someone must have been in a prankster mode.

Cruz Teng- Hobby: Blogging.

*weak smirk

No, my hobby isn’t blogging. Other than playing mahjong, my other hobbies include doing nothing, and sleeping (excessively).

A game of mahjong on Sunday night started the week of doing nothing and sleeping (excessively). It helps that I have friends with very flexible working hours.

I didn’t RSVP in time for the preview. I was glad they had some extra seats for After Shock. Feng Xiaogang presented a fine piece of work- powerful, emotional, and heart wrenching. I reviewed the movie in the podcast, so I’m not going to repeat myself here. You must watch this movie (once you’re done with Inception).

Some of the mundane things I did included:

- shutting off my phone completely when I slept. I used to snort, “Why this person always never pick up calls one? Don’t answer the phone, then carry the phone for what?!” I realised it’s really unnecessary pressure to rush to pick up the phone whenever it rings. Having a mobile connection shouldn’t render us to be on 24/7 standby.

- shutting off the office mail service on my phone. I’d be so tempted to open up the inbox when I see the number of unread emails. I decided I shouldn’t do so.

- dropped the idea of a Bangkok trip. I had wanted to book an air ticket on Tuesday and fly the next day. Then I reckoned that I shouldn’t spend unnecessarily, since I’m not working (and therefore has no income) for a month.

Met up with Lingzhi and a couple of friends that afternoon. She mentioned my name in her programme and prompted an influx of SMSes.

“你说的是那个933DJ吗？”

“他的脸看起来好欠揍。”

I was so pleased to know what listeners from a rival radio station think of me. Really.

I like breakfast food. But I don’t like getting up early. And if I do wake up early, it’s usually for work. I am so glad that Wild Honey serves morning food all day. The English Breakfast should be renamed English Breakfast-Lunch-and-Dinner. There were generous portions of mushrooms and potatoes hidden beneath the fatty bacon. Full as I was, I had to sample the Belgium Breakfast H. ordered.

Meiwen from I Weekly called when I was driving to Plaza Singapura. “We can chop chop finish this (interview) right? I’ve got a movie to watch in 10 minutes. It’s free seating, and I don’t want to end up in the first row.” Verdict: Her comprehension and dictation skills are excellent.

It was refreshing to see Jet Li in a movie where he doesn’t beat up anyone. And Wen Zhang gave a credible performance as Li’s autistic son. Note: Wen Zhang is the other guy you see in the poster. Not the Taiwanese singer.

I saw people tearing as they left the cinema hall. While the filmmaker’s intentions were good- raising public awareness of autism, I don’t really appreciate the cinematography and how the story was handled. And Gui Lunmei? Merely to up the glamour stakes?

Over coffee after the movie, someone dissed me, “You didn’t like the movie? You need a lot of action one is it? Don’t tell me your favourite movie is Anaconda?! Or Godzilla? Or King Kong?!”

Hahahaha. Shut up.

An hour later, I was at Marina Bay Sands. Contrary to popular belief, it was my second visit to a local casino, after Resorts World Sentosa during Chinese New Year. I haven’t quite got used to the notion of using Singapore Dollars to bet. Somehow, gambling with foreign currency gives me a sense of detachment, and less heartache if I don’t win.

We were at the Rapid Roulette section when I heard Jolin Tsai’s Love Love Love over the PA system. “Jolin! We must bet on 9 and 10.”

(I didn’t make that up ok. Remember I was at Beijing for her contract signing ceremony with Warner Music? The event took place at 9.10pm, because Jolin = 9,0 and 依林= 10.)

To our utmost astonishment, 10 was the winning number that round. Hahahaha.

Having made one visit each to the integrated resorts in Singapore, I think MBS does a better job in feeding their customers within the casino. Let’s not talk about the eateries outside. The last time I was at RWS, I had to put up with cold dim sum at 3am. I didn’t expect MBS to serve reasonably appetising carrot cake, siew mei and roast meat at that hour.

The above ticket isn’t mine. I did my best in convincing my friend NOT to redeem his money. “You don’t xia suay me, can or not?!” Hahahaha!

Because someone in the group won money, we had breakfast (overdose of breakfast food, as you might have realised) at one of the five star hotels along the bay.

By 6.30am, I was very sleepy. That simple bowl of congee, with (way too much) shallots, floss, peanuts, youtiao and spring onion was very comforting.

I listened to 933就是万人迷 on my way home. Hahaha. Please continue to tune in over the next three weeks.

I must have been the most rejuvenated person at dinner earlier. The gathering of 12 or so, somehow diminished to a cosy meet-up for 7. Well, we’re all busy with things. Uh-huh, not everyone has month long breaks right? Hahaha. It was really good to see them- people whom I knew since I was 16 (!).

Scroll through your phone book and think: When was the last time you had a meal with your childhood friends, ex-classmates, or former colleagues? Don’t forget the classic line- 时间就和乳沟一样，挤一挤就会有。