shot of things no.000001

i was updating my cameras firmware today. so i took some shots of things around the house to check whether i screw anything up.

rockin' in the radio-friendly world

the killers is the band i am listening today. hot fuss is their album. methinks all their songs are quite good albeit all super radio-friendly.

the rock/alternative bands nowadays, like maroon5, the killers, keane, jet, are churning out listenable and radio-friendly songs but not great ones.

probably, they will become artistes of the month. however, i don't think i will be listening to them after a year. They will soon be forgotten.

RIP, nine inch nails, nickelback, creed, goo goo dolls, incubus and, recently, hoobastank. you wont get a greatest hit album from these guys.

gone are the great bands of the 20th century. beatles, sex pistols, queen, rollingstones, thewho, led zepplins, eagles, aerosmith, the doors, metallica, u2, redhotchillipeppers, soundgarden, pearl jam, nirvana, radiohead (probably the last of these greats).

also, to mention some of those great individuals like jimi hendrix, bob dylan, bob marley, bruce springsteen, neil young, david bowie.

the thing about these names is they have been able to create albums with songs that are both memorable and radio viable.

how i long for something challenging. like the first time i experienced radiohead's ok computer. it simply blew my mind away.

i will love to have my mind blown away again. but i guess not today.

my sunday sports diary

i can't believe it. Get this: ah ming, ah hong, alex the king and yours truly are having a basketball game tomorrow.

three things why it is quite unbelievable:

first of all, this configuration of people have not met in months.

second, a basketball game! i haven't shoot the hoop since the army days and that's like, what, four years ago.

third, the enthusiastic responses from the guys. by enthusiastic, i mean no negative feedback. we haven't spoken a word about basketball for a long time now and to organise this spontaneously is quite exciting actually.

the sudden interest to play b-ball is inspired by manu ginobilli. watching him in the nba playoff is like... whoa.

however, we will miss the 9am live telecast of sun- spurs game 3. i figure, being out of touch for so long, it is best we play in the morning when there is a minimum crowd. If we play in the evening, the regulars will beat the crap out of us.

in any case, there is also a replay at 730pm. so it is cool.

this week

it has been another week of non-event: nothing but work and attending classes.

This is sick.

Next week, the only big event that is going to affect me is the migration of servers by the IT people.

Cant i have something exciting happened to me that someone have to do a movie about?

damn.

hamSTAR*

©2005 lee wee leong

you will enjoy the movie experience

how much does it really worth to watch a film in a cinema theatre these days? not enough to deter people from downloading from the net or buying bootlegs from across the causeway? are the cinema operators losing money to the advents of the modern technological bootlegging?

these days its really easy. the bootleggers have websites now. check out the titles. give them a call. they hand deliver to you. anywhere, anytime.

file sharing. slow connection, no problem. just wait a couple of days. no hurry to watch it anyway.

however, i must shed a light on these people who ONLY rely on these means of watching movies: they wouldn't go the cinema often even if there weren't any other ways to watch a movie .

for example, movies like Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind or Pi. these films amplify the effects of movies. it draws you into the film and the theatre environment induces a dream-like effect, teleports your mind into those charactors on the screen. it requires you to fill in certain details. it is really a fantastic mental experience.

if they simply don't see the differences from watching those films on the big screens and on the telly or the computer monitors. they probably are unable to appreciate a film like Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind and wont make the trip to the cinema anyway.

i used to download tons of movies from bit torrents and other file sharing apps. there used to be a time when you cant buy or watch certain movies or an uncut version in singapore.

censorships are loosening up now. so i dont do it anymore. besides, the quality of the bootlegs is horrendous.

it's actually a win-win situation for the movie producers and operators.

one day, people, who use bootlegs, may learn to appreciate movies thru the bad reproduction of the illegal version and chalk up the cash to the box office. and quality of films may improve to draw more people to the real thing.

with that, i believe there is nothing to be concern about. and you know what: the movie producers and cinema operators probably arent concern too.

just took a shower

Just came out of the shower. Was trying to figure out why our local television studios always hiring ABCs as presenters. Not trying to criticize their skills but just that the sheer number of them on tv is incredible.

Is there no one out there who happens to be a Singaporean willing to work as a presenter? Or, are they simply not good enough?

no, i dont fantasize about ABCs in the showers. i just like to think of the serious problems plaguing singapore while scrubbing my pinkys.

***

caught starwars with gabby et al on sunday. So obviously the best of the previous other installments.

***

Mahjong session at mr. yew’s followed. Lost 9 bucks but could have been worse. It is only when you lose you picked up lesson that are useful.

the thing with mahjong is that it is noisy no matter what. and it seems that when people, guest or not, are playing, they, without much awareness, automatically ignore the welfare of those not participating. Even though, it was well after twelve pm.

nonetheless, we carried on and finally finished at two am. Not much was said in the duration of the two rounds. our separate activities prior to the game worn us down and we stop after mr. yew, incidentally the session’s big loser, threw in the towel.

at two am, when going home was not financially smart and other activities were inhibited, we slept in the living room of mr. yew’s house. before that, we watched the nba western conference final between spurs and suns. my team, spurs, won. :)

woke up at around six thirty. took bus 86 back home.

***

i totally bummed out today.

the one and only interaction with the outside world occurred just an hour ago. keith smsed me asking me where to print a magazine.

my correspondence with those guys, my best and oldest buddies, has reduced to this ephemeral state.

just a few days ago, alex the king jioed me out for movie however I had to decline for I was working. we rarely have chance to meet up these days. our working pattern really is the big problem. most of us work shift!

is that true or is that an lazy excuse?

nonetheless, i should organize something this month.

introducing robert k, mr. f, ms. h et al

mr. robert k (name withheld for obvious reasons) came to work late and drunk today.

the smell emanated from him isn't too dainty either. took about three hours for him to be actually worth a damn to the production line. beside that, he still dare to complain about his hangover.

what an idiot. don't he realise that he could have been a hazard not only to himself but to his fellow colleagues as well!... shake head... sigh...

anyway, all was forgiven when he gave me a ride home on his motorbike after work.

***

finally saw the ambiguously an item couple together alone: mr. f and ms. h. sort of. coz, i was there too and so was mr. robert k. however, i pretty much confirmed it with eyes now.

before that, mr. latio gan already blatantly make fun of them infront of us with mr. f in attendance.

now, i would like to take this further however it is better mind my own bloody business at the moment. perhaps when the situation changes, i will elaborate more on mr. f and ms. h.

***

planned to jog today but instead i blog.

i havent been jogging since i pulled my right hamstring a few weeks ago. would really like to resume again. however, i grew lazy.

nevertheless, i want to jog again and i will do so next week.

***

i want to post a picture of the hamsters but i guess i can only do so this sunday. so sunday then.

patchy and hamtaro

i was contemplating what birthday present to buy for my niece and today i finally decided: Hamsters!

i bought a pair of female pudding hamsters and she named them patchy and hamtaro. for obvious reasons: one of them has a black patch on her back and the other one, well, looks just like any other hamsters. if i am not wrong, hamtaro is one those cute japanese or korean cartoon hamster.

i thought it is kind of good for to her have a pet since she has no one to play with at home. sometimes she would just talk to herself pretending that she is a teacher talking to a class. that really reminded me of myself when i was her age.

okay, sometimes i would still talk to myself. but that's normal right?

of course, don't worry.

okay, glad to hear that. thanks.

sure thing, you hunky son of a gun.

anyway, i hope having pets will help her feel less lonely around the house. happy birthday, nella.

my camera's back!

my camera's back from the workshop yesterday. they replaced a fpc. flexible plastic circuit. i can resume my photographic quest once again. now all i have to do is pick another place to make photos.

last night

won $10.20 on a mahjong session at big head ong's house. james, the big winner, and sam were the other two legs.

my first wins at mahjong! i don't enjoy saying that it was luck however, considering that i had no strategy at all, lady of fortune was indeed smiling at moi. "zi mor" a couple of times. didn't gena "bao" a couple times. so it was all goooood.

big head initially planned to play overnight but sam had to work the next day and james girlfriend was sick. so we settled for about one and a half rounds.

it was at least two months since i met those guys.

james is with oriental hotel now doing what he describe as a "dys4" kind of job. the job title slip my mind. it was like assistant something house keeper something. its pretty big deal.

sam, as he last told me, was at ocbc. he was talking on the phone most of a time. some sia girl. we didn't ask. there is something about sam that i can't describle. we pretty much don't ask to much about his affairs. for example, we don't even know whether if he is still with the girl he was with when he was still a nsf.

big head ong is currently, being a sla scholar, an intern in sla. doing some research on "tri-ball-a-gy". friction and resistance he said.

anyway, it was a good night even though the winnings didn't cover my cab fare.

my sunday soccer diaries

today was my first game of sunday soccer for eon. hamstring injury due to a freak accident at work hampered much of my claim to a starting place at northventic fc.

so i started the game as a subsitute. replaced wenthai at right back when got himself injured. later, we were to discover his "injury" was actually a couple of tiny blisters on both his feet. lazy wimp.

it was still scoreless when i was introduced to the game. maybe the guys' confidence was boosted by my mere presence. or maybe the opponents were scared dickless at the sight of me. very soon we were three goals up.

although it end 3-2, i must say none of those goals (scored and allowed) had me involved. however, i am glad to have survived for slightly more than half an hour unscathed.

one major bummer though. my tan was less than even. lo and behold, ruodolph the red nose reindeer. :o(

this week

tiny brain
it has been one week after the exams and i am feeling the aftermath of the detoxification. it felt as if all the stuff that i squeezed into my tiny brain had suddenly imploded, created a vacuum and caused a niggling headache that would not stop.

i am, now, dumber than ever.

daniella's 7th birthday
my niece's birthday is drawing near. still haven't got her present yet. recently, she has complain to me that no one in school wants to talk to her. it broke my heart to hear it.

fake
my cousin went crossover to jb this sat and got me a fake tag. monza series of calibre 36. woohoo! :P cost around 60 bucks. said to me the quality is better than china even though the chronograph has been replaced by months and dates. have to see to believe.

blahdy hot sia

as predicted, i sweated like a piggy. and am still sweating like a piggy.

decided against taking bus and took a cab instead. stupid.

the cab drove straight for like one minute and took a left, then right, and we arrived at the camera service centre. $2.60 gone.

but all's well that end well. the service people decided to waive my service charge although my warranty expired two + month ago. have to wait a couple of weeks before i can get my camera back though. well, what to do?

after the service centre i decided to walk back to the mrt and sweated like piggy.

to do

will be bringing my camera to the workshop today.

something wrong with it, couldn't figure it out. put in the battery, just wouldn't power on. yellow led just kept flashing on and off.

i know it isn't the battery. tested it, or you might say tasted it, with my tongue. it is still tingling.*

the place is damn out of place. somewhere near bukit merah. here's how i will get there:

take mrt frm yck to red hill
take a bus (dun know what number yet. no cab, too broke) frm redhill
drop somewhere near the heck forsaken place
navigate my way to the workshop

will wear something airy, predict will sweat like a piggy.

probably will go to a job agency after that. i am getting tired of getting no reply. yes, i know most of the job i applied for were non-engineering post. but, that doesn't mean they shouldn't give me a chance. i am a hidden gem waiting to be discovered!

starting to sound really desperate on the coverletter. contemplating to beg for an interview too. i am a beautiful gem!

speaking of gem, i am hooked on bejeweled 2. gotta go clear the gems!!!

*don't try this on your own! always make sure there is an adult to supervise.

top 8 movies to catch

1<< SIN CITY
it's a sin to miss this...

2>> the hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy
hitch a ride to watch this if you need to...

3>> batman begins
you be a bad man (or woman) if you fail to watch this one...

4>> kingdom of heaven
flowers are blooming in orlando this time of the year... i think

5<< mr & mrs smith
miss angelina jolie...

6>> land of the dead
george a romero... he is not dead yet?

7<< screaming and kicking
will ferrell... i admit it... i ♥ this snl alumnus

8>> the longest yard
adam sandler, chris rock... more snl alumni

let the summer movie mayhem begin... and yes, they are in order of my preference.

headache

whoa... slept too much today... headache... had a dream... dogs...

count to ten...

encountered two confrontations today.

one, on the bus to work. a chinese sbs 97 bus driver and some malay dude. didn't understand what the spat was about- they were speaking in malayu.

at the end, the malay dude stepped off the bus and stepped INFRONT of the bus. at that point, it didn't much matter what he was talking about. it was inaudible!

after several minutes of pointless pantomime, the malay dude just walked off.

two, starring yours truly.

against this typical public enemy numero ono. fat, bispec, old, tasteless, curly hair, insecure, low eq & iq, backstabbing sonovabitch.

admittingly, i could have handle it better. i was a little too agressive in my opening. in the end, it was not as satisfying as i always fantasied about.

nevertheless, lesson well learnt.

not enough memory...

what the hell..? the last two weeks of my life was like a superduper crash course in mass communication.

finally, it is going to be over! at 5pm later today, i would have finished my last paper. :)))

regardless how it ends, i will be watching kingdom of heaven tonight. i will immerse myself in the work of ridley scott and forget that i been through hell...

questions

why are external cultures so pervasive in singapore? Western. Japanese. Taiwanese. Even Koreans.

Why is it not possible for us to foster our own culture within our own social milieu?

Are we really “kiasee” or just lack of ideas?

wee kim wee

i do not have much of former president wee in my memories as i normally don't bother much about singapore politicians. however, he appeared to have affected far more people then i would have expected.

perhaps it would be better to remember him as a journalist and a humble human being? as a president he probably would have been obliged to do certain deeds due to the establishment.

in any case, it didnt occurred to me to pay my respects to him even though i was having my exams nearby the istana. pity.

RIP professor wee kim wee.

world press freedom day

tomorrow is the world press freedom day. a day to remind us all that press freedom is key to democracy and development.

check out unesco's website:
http://portal.unesco.org/ci/en/ev.php-URL_ID=18597&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html

it is pretty fitting since tomorrow is also my print media exam. and i really should get back to the books.

odyssey

Main Entry: od·ys·sey
Pronunciation: 'ä-d&-sE
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural -seys
Etymology: the Odyssey, epic poem attributed to Homer recounting the long wanderings of Odysseus
1 : a long wandering or voyage usually marked by many changes of fortune
2 : an intellectual or spiritual wandering or quest

-- http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?va=odyssey

yes, i ♥ 2001: a space odyssey.

About The Butt

Butt interviews the Butt Interview style.

For the record, please state your name and alias.
Lee Wee Leong aka Hata aka Ichibutt.

So, why the blog?
I really love to hear myself talk. So, this blog just an extension of that wonderful hobby.

Your grammer really sucks!
...Fuck you.

Really, why is your grammer so bad?
Shut up.