Super Sonic

It appeared like a beautiful day for skating this morning. As I was coming back from the Fort Road area one tall ang moh guy waved and shouted out to me "Berkeley!" and I was a little freaked out! Then I realised I was wearing my "all Cal" skating outfit today which probably explains the reaction. Didn't recognise him as one of the Cal alumni though his built looked a little like DH. I learned a new trick while observing lessons at the rink: sudden spin-stop. Basically its a variation of the standard spin-stop (or y-stop, eagle-turn to some people) except that you pivot on your left toe rather than the entire left foot. So basically your left skate flips onto an eagle stance real fast, and with a quick flip of your right foot you are now rolling on backwards voila! The key is catching your balance when you flip your right skate that quickly, or else you will end up on your butt (trust me on that one)! After skating a while though, the weather started turning on me and I got to tell you that your heart just sinks when you see those bearings soaking in all that rainwater......

All that rainfall called for some emergency skate maintenance to make sure those ILQ-9 bearings don't get corroded. And yes, they do get corroded even though they are "stainless steel"! So basically I had to take everything apart and dry out the bearings with a hairdryer. Sounds easy? Well, I got stuck on the first step, luckily I had some handy tools. Apparently all that grime and water made the bearings kinda stuck in the wheels. The K2 skate tool was of no use half the time. That's where the "Sonic Pro Tool" comes in handy! Pops out all the bearings all of the time with minimal effort! And I thought I had wasted good money on that tool.....

In the process of drying and cleaning out all those bearings I found that some of them didn't spin very well. I suppose some dirt got into them, there were no signs of corrosion though. With all that grease inside the bearings its hard to tell what dirt is in there, so I had to find some way to clean them out. Tried using napkins and all, but those were completely of no use, its just too difficult to get anything out from those bearings! Now that's where the "Sonic Turbo Bearing Wash" comes in handy. Basically I threw all the bearings in there, and voila, after 5 minutes, everything was perfectly clean and shiny!!! Even all the grease was removed, it was a miracle!!!! I didn't have to do anything but throw them into the fluid and shake a little!

So now that the dirty bearings are all cleaned and dried out, time to test the spin. Somehow the bearings seem to have a little spin resistance after being completely cleaned out though, as in you can hear some metal grinding or something. Not perfect, but I guess I could use it like that. That's when I found out that just a few drops of "Sonic Super Oil" makes a hella difference! Few drops of that magic lube and the bearings spin effortlessly! I think much less lube was required than the original ton of grease that was in there when I bought those skates.....

The whole process took me almost 2 hours. Probably worth the effort but I'd pay a skate shop 5 bucks if they could do it all for me haha! Somehow though I doubt I could trust someone else to put in as much effort to achieve the same standard.....

Kurt Wenner

Kurt Wenner is probably one of the most amazing artists around! He does chalk drawings on the streets that look so real that you'd think there's stuff rising out of the ground or something! And the best part is that he's right here in Singapore now, and that's him drawing! I wonder how many people know he's in town creating a masterpiece.....

California

We've be on the run
Driving in the sun
Looking out for number one
California, here we come
Right back where we started from

Well, hustlers grab your guns
The shadow weighs a ton
Driving down the 101
California, here we come
Right back where we started from

California
Here we come!

On the stereo
Listen as we go
Nothing's gonna stop me now
California, here we come
Right back where we started from

Peddle to the floor
Thinking of you more
Gotta get us to the show
California, here we come
Right back where we started from

California
Here we come!

Surprising Report on the Ethical Food Movement

I just read this article about the ethical-food movement (i.e. organic, fairtrade and local).

The aims of much of the ethical-food movement -- to protect the environment, to encourage development and to redress the distortions in global trade -- are admirable. The problems lie in the means, not the ends. No amount of Fairtrade coffee will eliminate world poverty, and all the organic asparagus in the world will not save the planet. Some of the stuff sold under an ethical label may even leave the world in a worse state and its poor farmers poorer than they otherwise would be.
-The Economist Dec 9, 2006

His Sheep Am I

In God's green pastures feeding
by His cool waters lie
Soft in the evening walk my Lord and I;
All the sheep of His pasture
Fare so wondrously fine.
His sheep am I

Water's cool... in the valley
pasture's green... on the mountain
In the evening walk my Lord and I;

Dark the night... in the valley
Rough the way... on the mountain
Step by step
Walk my Lord and I

News Channels

I just read this in the Economist regarding English-speaking news channels:

If there is heavy-handed government influence, viewers will notice, and switch off. "Russia Today", an English-language news channel from the Russian government, has had little impact since its launch last December; neither has Channel NewsAsia, started in 1999 by a firm owned by Singapore's government to challenge Western dominance of the airwaves.

Ouch! I think Channel NewsAsia has a pretty good well-updated website, but otherwise they appear not to be as popular in the region as they claim to be....

Beautiful weather for skating

The weather this morning was absolutely perfect for skating!!! It has been raining almost every afternoon for the last week and a half. And unfortunately I usually can't wake up to skate in the morning, and by the time lunch is done, the sky turns dark. I woke up early today, and it was just right, not too hot, and the sky was not threatening either. Neither was it crowded at East Coast Park, cos most people are staying away for fear of the impending rain!

I did the entire trail twice, back and forth. I suppose that brings it to a total of about 20km? Okay to some of you that's no big deal, but its my first time going the distance on skates and it was a pretty darn good workout! And I thoroughly enjoyed my favorite sights on the way: the amazing view at bedok jetty, eucalyptus trees near the yacht club, catching a glimpse of some cable skiing. I used to like skating as a substitute for skiing, which is the one sport I really love. But now I think that skating on its own is fantastic, especially if you have the right scenary and conditions to go along with it. ;)

Living by the sea has its advantages and disadvantages. It takes a long time to get to work, and the commute really sucks as the train station isn't nearby. Most buses take surface streets which takes hella long to get anywhere on the other side of the island. For this reason alone many people dread staying by the east coast. The other big disadvantage is that developers are always eyeing your property! Everybody wants to buy up that plot of land and replace it with a ridiculously expensive condominium (unless u are staying in hdb of course)! And you know that once you move out and sell that land, you will never be able to afford staying in this neighbourhood anymore.....

But of course the greatest thing is that you have 10km of untouched beach at your doorstep! Okay, 10km is not a lot compared to Los Angeles, but if you are staying on an island only 40km across, it sure is paradise! Not to mention that there really hasn't been much development along the beachfront, so it does look a lot more natural than LA (though it isn't!). And with the weather changing all the time towards the northeast monsoon season, it's good to have the park at your doorstep so you can judge when's a good time to go skate. ;) Rain here normally lasts only an hour or two and are unpredictable. So if you lived further away you'd probably not even head to ECP during this season....

Global Cost of Living Index

Here is the ranking from the most accurate and updated cost of living index out there. Once again proving that Singapore is indeed a VERY expensive place to live in, so please stop saying that I'm living like a king in Asia!!!

1. Moscow
2. Seoul
3. Tokyo
4. Hong Kong
5. London
6. Osaka
7. Geneva
8. Copenhagen
9. Zurich
10. Oslo
11. New York City
12. St. Petersberg
13. Milan
14. Beijing
15. Istanbul
15. Paris
17. Singapore
20. Shanghai
28. Taipei
29. Los Angeles
34. San Francisco
38. Chicago
47. Toronto
56. Vancouver
76. Houston
84. Boston
93. Perth
102. Seattle
114. Kuala Lumpur
I think Perth or Seattle would be a nice place to retire.....

Chinese Cars

Chinese cars have become very popular in Asia lately for one reasonly only: they are dirt cheap! But when it comes to quality......

According to the latest China Automobile Customer Satisfaction Index, the number of faults per 100 cars made in China rose from 246 in 2005 to 338 this year. Four out of five cars now experience a problem in the first six months of ownership. But with average retail prices falling by $1,250 a year, producers are racing to cut costs, not improve quality. Intense competition is also forcing them to accelerate development cycles. Carmakers acknowledge that this means they are being forced to use lower quality materials and spend less time on testing. So reliability is likely to deteriorate further. -- The Economist, Nov 25 2006

The statistics are from China itself. As we all know, China is notorious for covering up stuff like inflation rate, economic growth etc, so if the authorities say the situation bad, it must be REALLY bad! The Cherry may be cheap, but it won't be worth the money if it gets out of control and becomes a squashed Cherry!!

Most bizarre news!

A Thai Buddhist monk has refused to reattach his penis after he cut it off with a machete during meditation, Reuters reported.
The monk, 35, reportedly severed the organ because he had an erection and only allowed hospital doctors to dress the wound. He said he had renounced all earthly cares and had "abandoned everything", the hospital chief told Reuters.

The Bush

Many ppl think George Bush is quite ignorant of foreign affairs and really makes a big mess of the whole show. I just read this in a book:

"....George W. Bush had to apply for a passport after becoming president of the United States, so he could travel overseas."

Gosh, and he became president.....

DAPS 2006

If you are wondering what I've been busy with, I just presented a paper at DAPS 2006.

Wan, Y. K. and Ng, P. H., “Numerical Analysis of Close-In Blast Effects on Reinforced Concrete Columns”, Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Design and Analysis of Protective Structures, pp. 343–351, 2006.

There's a new world somewhere

They played this song at my aunt's wedding when I was a kid. I'll always remember it because I was the page boy at that wedding, the cute little kid carrying that pillow with the rings! I've never really heard this song since then, perhaps only once or twice in church.
What's so special about this song is that it's a church song, and the "Someone" is supposed to be Jesus. But when played at a church wedding, it kinda refers to the husband/bride too! So there's actually something in it for everyone!
So why do I bring this up now? Well, it just came to mind when someone was talking to me about finding the right someone. I guess if I ever do find the right one, I'll have this song at my wedding ;) .....


There’s a new world somewhere they call the Promised Land;
And I’ll be there someday if you will hold my hand;
I still need you there beside me, no matter what I do;
For I know I’ll never find another you.

There is always someone for each of us they say,
And you’ll be my someone, forever and a day;
I could search the whole world over, until my life is through,
But I know I’ll never find another you.

It’s a long, long journey, so stay by my side,
If I walk through a storm, you’ll be my guide, Be my guide...

If they gave me a fortune, my treasure would be small;
I could lose it all tomorrow, and never mind at all;
But if I should lose your love, dear, I don’t know what I’d do,
For I know I’ll never find another you!

Sam Adams with Blooming Onion

Did you know they serve Sam Adams at Outback Steakhouse? Well, now you do! A bottle of classic Sam Adams toasted over Blooming Onion is something I'd die for! Oh, and they give you free dessert if you pay with a UOB card! Though I'd rather have a discount instead 'cos there's no way you can finish all that food..... Outback used to be rather quiet with dim lighting, quite a romantic location. But business is booming now, more noise and even a line outside! But Blooming Onion still tastes as good, and the company makes it even better I guess ;) !

Had a late night out at Butter Factory. This place is really in the middle of nowhere. You tell the cab driver you wanna go to Butter Factory and he might send you to the Tuas industrial estate! You tell him you want to go to Robertson Quay most probably he will drop you at some condo or hotel in the neighbourhood and you got to find your own way there. Robertson Quay was supposed to be the next "happening" place in town, but it's pretty dark and half the world doesn't know where it is.... Still, I had a great time though! I didn't know R could groove so well to hip hop! Somebody really got it moving huh? Somehow the crowd didn't dress very hip hop. I saw a lot of the "scholarly" crowd who were dressed in work attire. And some Ah Lians but dressed in classy (ballroom?) attire! What happened to baggy pants, caps and chains? Even J was not in his classic funky get go! And hardly anyone smoked! A surreal hip hop experience.....

Denise Richards, aka fish lips, from Wild Things. Remember her? Well, she threw a laptop at the papparazzi but it landed on an elderly disabled woman instead! Bummer!

Democrats have won control of both the house and senate! Okay, they don't exactly control the senate outright, but who cares? Victory for mankind? Possibly....

In other news, the LTA is giving a huge discount on ERP rates during the festive season. Now I take big offence at this. Didn't the minister just say that too many people are driving and it is congesting up the city? Especially during the festive season when people are driving everywhere and clogging up the city center, that's when you should double the ERP rates and encourage public transport! Okay, some people who drive are gonna shoot me...... Anyways, Orchard Road and the City Hall area are gonna be very very congested come Christmas! So they say they want to encourage shopping, tourism etc. Maybe waive the ERP for taxis, but not for cars???

Fat free? Maybe not...

I just watched the documentary of the week on channel news asia. This week's topic was on dieting. According to a noted professor, fat-free foods attain their fat-free status by substituting fat with carbohydrates. And many of these fat-free foods actually have the same amount of calories in the form of carbohydrates that their non-fat-free cousins have in the form of fats (e.g. fat-free oreos and fat-free ice cream)! Which means that you are not gonna lose ANY weight at all eating these fat-free foods! What's more, fats actually make you feel full, but carbohydrates make your body produce more insulin which makes you feel hungry, and thus you end up eating more. So eating fat-free food actually makes you eat more and gain more weight!! When I was in the US some girls told me they feel disgusted when they saw me drinking whole milk. Guess what? They probably gained more weight than me by drinking non-fat milk!

So whats the best way to lose weight? Eat in moderation and exercise the equivalent of walking 10,000 steps a day. Now, thats a lot! I think most office workers barely manage 1000, so I guess we have to hit the gym to make up for the lack of exercise!

In other news, Saddam Hussein has just been sentenced to death by hanging.....