Urban Dream Capsule

Has anyone checked out Urban Dream Capsule? They're a group of 4 guys who've willingly locked themselves up in the Esprit shop window at Raffles city in order to become a living shop display from 30 May to 13 June, as part of the Singapore Arts Festival.


Don't worry though, 'cos all their basic amenities have been provided for in the shop window. I mean f'godssake, the furniture they use looks so damn funky I wish I could decor my house the same way. They cook, sleep, and bathe in full public view. Yes, I said bathe. The shower cubicle they use has a leaf pattern tactfully painted to hide *cough cough*

The picture on the left shows their kitchen area. It's so bloody colourful and funky! But what I don't get is where they get their food from. Do they call Pizza Hut or something? Do they deliver food in through a slot in the door? Er......

The guys can also communicate with passerbys through paper or sign language. This passerby happened to have a writing board in her bag.


Busily writing away...


"Ooh! So THAT'S what char kway teow is!"

Ok, that's probably not what they wrote to each other.... I didn't see it...

But anyway, the guys are pretty friendly, for a group of budding exhibitionists. It's pretty interesting to watch them in their 'house' and see how they suan each other and make fun of passerbys. Hee. It's kinda like reality TV but more... real. =P

You can email the guys at udream@starhub.net.sg or you can just go down to the Esprit window to ogle at them. You can't miss it. It's the only window with all the oglers standing in front of it.

2 of the guys:



One week before I fly off to London. Sigh... still got a buncha shopping to do, and it's all necessities for the trip. [wish it could be a new wardrobe or new comics or something but...] At the same time, my 'needs' list for the trip keeps expanding, and the number of questions just keep popping up. Like, laundry, underwear, crime, cash, insurance blah blah blah......

ARGH! On the one hand, I REALLY wanna get outta here. On the other, I'm starting to dread all the [potentially major] problems I could face when I get there! [in her best Dorothy voice] I AIN'T GONNA BE IN KANSAS NO MORE! Er, not that I ever was, but I think you get the reference...

Gods it's gonna be a whole new COUNTRY, a whole new CONTINENT, and a wholly different CULTURE from the one I've lived in ALL MY LIFE. How will I survive???? BWAAAAAAAH.......... I suddenly have an urge to bring my fatso, stuffed Chubbyhugs cat along just so I'd have something to hug if I have to. Then again, if I bring him and I lose him over there... BWAAAAAAAAH...........

*Plays "Leaving on a Jet Plane" on the com*

Wah say ah, nebber know Singlish can be so cheem cheem one... dunno whether they talk cock only one or trying to act smart, but damn funny to read.

Click here hor

Vesak Day Slack...

A public holiday is a day to kick back, lay back, and slack off. There's no other explanation for it.

I went to a chalet that my relatives booked, about 10 minutes walk away from Downtown east. Pretty ulu chalet, right at the end of the road, after leaving the bustle of people going into DE. Which is good, because then it's quiet and peaceful and you won't hear screams of terror from Escape while you're barbequeing.

Anyway, I always thought that my dad's side of the family was the crappy one. Turns out I inherited a fair amount of crappiness from this side too. Nibblets:

1>
DuaYi [loosely translated as "Big Auntie". the following takes place in a mixture of very animated English, Malay and Hokkien]:
"We go to jacuzzi, wearing our t-shirts, and the jaga there tell us cannot like that. I tell her, then those Malay boys wearing shorts neh? How come their home clothes are clean and ours not meh? Don see us orang tua orang kecil then bully us ok!" while gesticulating wildly and slapping her palms.

Uncle to Aunt and Cousin:
"We're going now. This place, full of gangsters."

DuaYi:
"I tell you, we not happy, pee in your pool then you know! See whether clean or hygienic or not like that!"

Dad, muttering:
"I don't think I'm going swimming today."

2>
JeeYi [loosely translated as 2nd Aunt] to me:
"You going swimming?"

Me:
"No, I didn't bring a costume."

Jeeyi:
"Never mind lah, just jump in in your bra and panties and tell them it's a bikini."

Me:
"........."

Anyway, I was saved from the potentially polluted pool by going skating with my dad. And let me tell you, the guy who designed Pasir Ris Park? Hates rollerbladers. I'm convinced. Horrible, rough road for bladers, with those irritating breaks in the road, and then come to a bridge with a 40deg slope, struggle up, clawing like crazy over the speed stripes, [speed stripes on the upward incline?? what the heck for???] and then pray to Lord Jesus Christ to keep your ass safe on the slope on the way there, zoom down screaming, and then thank His Goodness that you didn't break your neck zooming down.

Ok, I exaggerate... hee.....

But I did land on my bum again. Ow.

So after that, all hot and sweaty, Dad n I take a walk to Downtown East. We saw the new Water Park! It was open to the public, though not all the facilities were fully complete.



but dammit, it's EX! Admission for adults, if you rent a float and a locker, comes up to almost $18!!! Wah freak!

I'd rather go for a cheap, simple form of entertainment, like slacking on a beach mat facing the beach like this:



aaaahhh......... suang..... and ignore the hairy-looking legs. I haven't installed Photoshop on this PC yet.

Look up and you see this:



But no, I didn't spend the whole day slacking. Walked to the end of the beach and found a mangrove swamp hidden away, and at its entrance, a fenced off... tree?



If you can see the words, this is why:



The amazing part about it is that it looks like any old ordinary tree, until you see the sign and then you realise there's something special about it. Otherwise you could just walk by n not notice anything.

And the sad part is that the mangrove swamp became a sorta trash grounds for people. Durian husk, plastic bottles and bags, food, and misc types of trash littered the entire area. Like geez people. Just because a mangrove swamp isn't the picture-perfect scenery you think all nature should be doesn't mean you have to treat it as trash as well.

So largely spent the whole day just being one heck of a bum, which felt good. My mind went blank of everything that could possibly worry me, concentrating instead on the cool sea breeze, the warm sunshine, the palm trees swaying, the kids playing in the sand, and the best camera angle for snapping these shots. In a way, therapeutic, after all the crap I've been going through these past few weeks.

A horoscopic thing? Pisceans and water? Or a pleasant change from the cityscape?

Whatever. It worked. That's the main thing. Next stop: East Coast or Sentosa. Mwahahahaha......

I can't believe I'll be flying off to London in less than 2 weeks. It seems... surreal? Unreal? The guys and I have been talking about this for about 4 years odd now, and to think it's less than 2 weeks away. I almost can't believe it's happening. I've been out of Singapore before, but always to Asian countries, discounting Australia to visit grandparents when I was in primary school. Once I hit adult age, my parents couldn't bring us overseas anymore, cos they'd have to pay for 3 adults, so the only trips I took were to Malaysia.

And this time, I'm going to another continent, another culture, almost 180deg away from ours. I almost can't believe I'm actually pulling this off. That my flight is booked, my accomo is done, and that I have to worry about packing for a long haul trip and all the stuff I need. I'm constantly confirming with Juls about whether the transport is booked, about whether the accomo is done, about the insurance, about the stuff we'd need, about, about about...... hoping and praying that nothing screws up before then, hoping all goes well, hoping we don't get kidnapped over there or blown to bits by terrorists....

Ok, banging my head with block of wood now. *BANG* *BANG* *BANG*

So the final date of departure is Sunday, 13th June, 11pm and the date back is the 5th July. I'm hoping that means by the 6th I'll be fully recovered from the jet lag...

In Stockholm I'll also be staying in Turtle's hostel room, so I'll try to update the blog then.

*sigh* Almost there, almost there...

Nibblets... munch munch..

Went out with Necrokz tonight [er, did I spell that right this time?] due to an impromptu desire of her mother to not cook dinner.

But dinner wasn't the interesting part. That was later in Dome Cafe where we had a Sex In The City Moment, 2 single gals, complaining about love, life and men.

Excerpts from the conversation:
[for which she would smack me hard on the arm for]

N: Every morning, these 2 perverted, gwailan guys would come to my desk for a quick fix.
Me: ...... BWAHAHAHAHAHA!
N: Ok, that sounded really wrong...

I laugh, she whacks me hard on the arm. Ow.

Next, we start talking about hellbound. [she reads my blog, so she's seen your nick on the tagboard]

N: It would be interesting to meet Hellbound. 2 single women, Necromaniac and Hellbound. We could start a relationship together.
Me: ...... BWAHAHAHAHA!
N: That wasn't quite what I meant!!!!!

Whack my arm again. Ow. [don't panic, Hellbound, that's really not what she meant. Hee.]

Thirdly, concerning Dragonfly:

N: I read an article in Her World, which talked about the girl taking the initiative in the relationship. Women should just drive up to the guy's block, call him up and tell him to come downstairs, and then drive him to a secluded spot where they can start making love.
Me: [with one eyebrow raised] so basically you're recommending I drive up to his block, call him down, drive him to a secluded spot, and then...? GET REAL!
N: No!!!!! That's not what I meant!!!

Whack on the arm again. Ow ow ow.

So basically, I go home tonight after a lot of laughs at Necromaniac's expense, a red arm from all the whacking, and an interesting nibblet on my blog.

For which she'd probably whack me again after reading this.

I have the most sadistic friends sometimes.

More Nibblets

Out with jcsz on Sunday nite, sitting at Coffee Club Xpress flipping through an old issue of Cleo. [Supposed to be helping him in marketing, but both got bored and tired and found Cleo to be much more interesting.]

After flipping through fashion, ["This dress is nice!" "No, doesn't suit you" "I didn't say I wanted to wear it, I just found it nice." "Still doesn't suit you." "Bah..."] Cleo's (then) 50 most eligible bachelors ["Where got cute???" "Yah lor! All of them suck!" "Hey, aren't these the guys from Eye for a Guy?"] and a section on penises, ["Hey, check out the micropenis... 1cm when erect..." "......"] we come to the horoscopes.

Excerpt from Horoscope for Miss Pisces for the year:
Expect new guys and new romances around July! Your creativity will be much enhanced during this period, so don't be afraid to embark on long term projects!

Me: "New guys? New romances? What new guys??"
J: "Maybe you'll go to Europe and meet some Arabian sheik."
Me: "......"
J: "Or some hunky European prince"
Me: "Ok, die. Now."

And who said we could trust the Bible?
Typos in the Good Book

I want my Preciousssssss....

Yupz yupz, if you don't know what that refers to... I dunno what planet you've been living on...

I finally went to the LORD OF THE RINGS exhibition on Sat with Necroz. Like FINALLY! Note to all going: If you want more value, present your matric card and pay entrance of $16 as opposed to $20 adult price. Also, before you buy your ticket at the annex, go to a counter next to it, say, "I want my precious...." in your most Gollum-ish voice, and get a free LOTR keychain! Talk about squeezing all the value outta your dough...

And people in Aussie: Sorry, but no word on extensions yet. They've had all kinds of ticket promotions but no extensions. Exhibition ends on 4th June.

Didn't manage to take photos, cos er, as usual, photography not allowed, and they even added camera handphones to the list. Damn! Busted! But the props are really cool, and the attention to detail is really amazing. They have everything from belt buckles, scrolls, books, to the model of Boromir's body in the funeral boat in Fellowship. Wah lau eh! We basically walked through all the exhibits ogling at everything and admiring the workmanship.

There's also this part where they demonstrate how they make hobbits look so small. They have a bench, split in 2 pieces, and at 2 ends of the booth. The benches are set against a green background.

Each person sits at a bench. Then the image is recorded and glued together to make it seem like both are sitting at the same bench against the background of the Shire.

The thing is, the person sitting on the left is amazingly smaller than the person on the right! When we tried it, I looked like a midget next to the gigantic Necroz, which is amazing, cos she's shorter than me!

Then after the LOTR there's an entry into a SFX exhibition, which demonstrates how they do all those fancy-schmancy special effects in movies. Like, you stand against a green background, do some movements, and you're recorded on a TV screen outside against a superimposed background. For $6, you can also record your own movie at the stations. [no I didn't... decided not to... hee] Lots of chances to ham it out here... hee...

We also went into the Science Centre itself, and checked out some of the Physical sciences exhibits and fooled around with the stuff. The most impressive display is the Tesla coil. This is in the atrium, and is something like a huge doughnut generator. When they switch it on.... Good god! Strikes of lightning, crackling with power suddenly shoot out from the coil! Impressive!

No, they didn't shoot out and blast the screaming audience. Rather, they're kept within a bounded area. How they did that..... I dunno. Science was never my strong suit. Hee...

We tried to check out the other exhibits, but got hungry, tired, and stoned from all the stuff. Finally, hopped on a bus to town for shopping. Hahahaha!

Some of the shops have some pretty good sales for the Great Singapore Sale. Sigh... And I realised the shitty thing about my trip is that I CAN'T SPEND A DIME!!!!! I have to save for my trip! While Necroz is happily zapping her ATM card away! ARGH!

When I come back...... I swear......

Anyway, pix:

Display board at the entrance
Sort of like a LOTR Snakes and Ladders.


The 2 statues at the entrance of the exhibit itself.


The 2 statues, after adding some text...