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29 March 2007

High Point Furniture Market


For those who have been following this blog for a year or more, you would know by now that I travel to High Point, North Carolina regularly to attend the furniture market.

At present, it is the world's biggest furniture market with over 2,600 exhibitors in more than 118 buildings, spanning over 12 million square feet.

Do click the image to get a better view of the map (PDF file). Our Singapore Expo standing next to this mammoth would be likened to that of a sesame seed.

- Voxeros

28 March 2007

Winchester Mystery House

Was browsing through the local travel brochures when this caught my eye. The Winchester Mystery House which is located right behind Santana Row.

The name Winchester comes from the famed Winchester Rifles where it has been around during the days of the Wild West, through the American Civil Wars and even to the more recent World War I.

The whole Winchester Mystery House came about when the widow of Winchester's 2nd President, William Wirt Winchester, inherited a cool USD 20 million dollars (a shit load of money in today's terms like what? USD 420 million?) and a daily income of USD 1,000 per day (per DAY! Again, agar agar USD 21,000 in today's terms) from her late-husband's ongoing Winchester Rifle Company. She was advised by a medium that in order to allay the spirits, she has to continue building a house without stopping. With the money available, she went ahead and started building non-stop 24/7 for the next 38 years. In the end, from a modest 8-room barn, it became a 160-room mansion.

Here's the funny thing about the house, there were a lot of weird stuff like a cabinet door that opens to a wall or a door that opens to the air outside on the 2nd floor.

I will post photos below and talk a little about them as I go along. As usual, images are clickable for enlargement or click here to see the Winchester Mystery House set .

Here is the front of the house and take note of the 2 statues at the foot of the steps. In the present day, the man statue is on the left while the lady statue is on the right. A very old photo revealed that the order was reversed i.e. lady on the left and guy on the right. Nobody knew how or when the statues were switched. Speculation has it that it was a prank by the local college kids but nobody was able to verify that till today.

This ornate window is located at the front door and was from Tiffany & Co.

Speaking of front door, it was told that in the house's entire history, only 3 persons have walked through it. They were Sarah Winchester and the 2 carpenters who built the door. It was sealed when the 1906 San Francisco earthquake hit them. It could have been 4 people when then-American President wanted to pay a visit to Sarah Winchester, having been a ardent fan of the rifle. Unfortunately, he was turned away by the gardener who didn't recognise him and told him to go round to the back and apply for a job like everyone else. President Theodore Roosevelt left in disgust.



As I have mentioned earlier, there were a lot of weird things going on. From staircase that lead to nowhere, to doors that opened to a wall, to a cabinet door that opened to another room.

Then there is this one a door that leads to nowhere. The famous "White Door". If you were to walk out the door from the inside of the house, you will find yourself plunging into empty space from the second storey. This is a view of the door from the outside of the house. The sign "Door To Nowhere" was added later on.



Another weird thing is the occurrence of the Number 13 throughout the house. From 13 candles on the chandelier, to 13 panels on the ceiling, to 13 palm trees along the drive way (4 of the trees had died, leaving only 9 standing today).

Here is a picture of the bell tower that used to ring every day at 12pm and 5pm to signal the workers to come in for their meals. Legend has it that it also mysteriously rang in the middle of the night when Sarah Winchester was having her seance sessions.

Today, in her memory, the bell tower is rung 13 times at 1300hrs every Friday the 13th. A supposedly favourite day of Sarah Winchester.


Perhaps this is the most expensive Tiffany window in the house with 13 gem stones. It was supposed to bring the brilliance of the colours when the sun shines through it. Problem is that the window was installed facing North and so direct sunlight never had the chance to realise the marvellous splendour of the window's potential. Another one of those weird things by Sarah Winchester.

- Voxeros

1. aloe left...
Friday, 30 March 2007 9:06 am
Why seal the house leh? Since the house is sealed, it means that people who visit the place, can only stare at the outside of the house? Looks interesting leh.


2. OLLie left...
Friday, 30 March 2007 7:50 pm
eh. I think this house is really the one I read about when I was young. Was it creepy? I loved loved loved it. The mystery of the occurrence of 13, and the doors that lead to nowhere. Ahhh.. I wanna visit the house! It looks so totally cool.


3. JayWalk left...
Saturday, 31 March 2007 1:51 am :: 
Aloe: It could be for 2 reasons. 1) The earthquake has rendered the structure of that portion of the house unsafe and as such sealing it would be a better measure to preserve it. 2) Sarah Winchester perhaps believe that leaving that portion of the house alone would appease the spirits better.

Ollie: It more of bizarre than creepy. Although however, there are certain spots in the house that felt chilly and when you stepped into the next room, the temperature felt ok again instantly.

27 March 2007

Napa Valley


Was in San Francisco for a layover and decided to spend a day driving to Napa Valley to check the place out. The weather was beautiful. Sunshine, blue skies, cool breeze at a climate of 25 degress Celsius. Nice weather to pass out on the lawn after a heavy lunch. *yawnzzz... rubs tummy*

Went to V Sattui Winery as well as the more famous Robert Mondavi Winery.

Below are the photos. Click here for the Napa Valley Mar 2007 set.





- Voxeros

1. akk left...
Wednesday, 28 March 2007 10:37 am
wat are those balls on the ground?


2. JayWalk left...
Wednesday, 28 March 2007 12:21 pm :: 
Akk: Decorative sculptures.

26 March 2007

Viagra For The Dead


For the benefit of the non-Ch1nese readers, there is a Ch1nese tradition to burn joss paper for the dead. These joss papers are supposedly money that can be used in the underworld and the way for living relatives to be able to "send" the "money" to the dead is via burning, in the hope that the intended recepient would be able to "live" more comfortably down under.

However, in recent years, things really gotten out of hand with the inclusion of paper houses (equipped with paper airconditioning, microwave oven, plasma tv, washing machine, maids, servants), paper cars, etc. Even my late grandpa got a pair of paper helicopters!

And we know things got more and more absurd by the day when paper laptops, paper passports, paper credit cards starts showing up.

However, this recent news article really takes the cake.

Paper viagra, anyone?

- Voxeros

1. akk left...
Tuesday, 27 March 2007 9:55 am
*swallow swallow* Money makes the world go round. Have money can get anything, even the invention of paper viagra just for burning to ashes.


2. JayWalk left...
Wednesday, 28 March 2007 4:48 am :: 
Akk: After this, I wonder what else these people can think of next.

23 March 2007

Tomato Beer?


I landed at Narita airport and there was a 2 hour wait for my next connection to San Francisco. With time to kill, I headed over the the Northwest Airlines World Club lounge to grab a drink and a bite.

So there I was with my laptop plugged in and a drink at table-side, I spotted this guy with a beer and I sensed something amiss when he reached for the pitcher of tomato juice.

I grabbed my camera on this hunch and I was right, he poured the tomato juice into his beer? WTF??

I related this story to my aunt and she chided me for making a mountain out of a molehill for she said that there are people who drink this concoction. In fact, she just did it (Beer with V8) the night before.

If it were me, I confirm Lao Sai one.

- Voxeros

1. aurore left...
Friday, 23 March 2007 8:28 pm :: http://aurore.vefblog.net
I try if I can put a message... good day jaywalk..


2. JayWalk left...
Friday, 23 March 2007 8:37 pm :: http://jaywalk.blog-city.com
aurore: Receiving you loud and clear. :)


3. sunflower left...
Wednesday, 28 March 2007 3:57 pm
I think i Lao sai too.... and not only one round and is many many round of sai waiting for me to lao


4. JayWalk left...
Wednesday, 28 March 2007 7:48 pm :: 
sunflower: I was just talking about this with another friend and he too saw two other guys (Vietnamese) drinking this foul concoction happily on another occasion. Yuck!

22 March 2007

On The Road Again

I had this drafted in my head while I was sitting at the Grill below the Hong Kong airport hotel. While waiting for my Jack Daniel's Onion Soup, I am nursing my second Bombay Tonic in quick succession (er... 5 minutes?). Oh, by the way, I was having my breakfast, lunch and dinner all rolled into one. I hadn't eaten anything all day.

Yes, work has been pretty shitty these days. My clients all knew that I was leaving on Wednesday afternoon and so they jammed packed my schedule with as many appointments as they could muster. In my business, face time is critical. You just can't do business relying solely on communications alone. Perhaps, it's the old skool nature of my industry where modern techonology can only get you so far.

Anyway, it's 5:30am right now and I am awake. I asked for a 6am morning call but I guess I should called them at 5.59am to cancel that. Perhaps it was the aftermath of a dosage of fatique, 2 Bombays and a Sambuca? Apologies to the folks who were trying to get me on MSN. I fell asleep. Good thing I opted for the cheaper 3-hour wireless plan rather than my usual 24-hour.

I also hadn't slept a wink the night before as Gabe was sick (again) and was puking all night. Especially nasty when it's goat's milk being regurgitated. In fact, for some reason or another, my sleep throughout the week was never uninterrupted.

Hence, that explains my sudden appearance on the MSN at ungodly hours. Good thing I have friends who are night owls too. It's good to have chat company at 4am from time to time.

Come to think of it, this is my favourite part of the day. Peace and quiet. Ahhh.... finally some personal time to let my mind take a casual stoll down in the garden of intellect. I may be a manufacturer, but I could have sworn I am more of a fire fighter in a town, full of kids playing with matches, in houses made of tissue paper, doused with turpentine. Most of these fires are small but due to the nature of the fuel, it creates hell of a lot of smoke. Hence, making it incredibly difficult to deal with. With the smallest of fire, you still bladdy had to do a lot of shit work just to get it extinguished. You would be lucky if you are able to put out one before the next one starts. More often than not, you have 2,451 new fires busting into life right behind your ass while you are putting out the one in front of you.

Sibeh Dulan.

Oh well, that is over for now as I am in Hong Kong for a layover before heading out to the US in a few hours time. I enjoyed traveling alone as this is the only time, I can get a bit of rest. Air cabin is like the final frontier yet to be tainted by mobile phones. Enjoy it while you can for it's a matter of time before the asshole seated next to you start yakking non-stop during your 13-hour flight. It was once said that the Cantonese are the loudest people in the world. Guess where all my trips start from?

Hong Kan.

One of the things, I look forward to my business trips are the little R&Rs that I pencil in to keep me motivated coz there are only so many times you would want to go to the same place in the USA. Yes, even Las Vegas. My exhibitions used to start on Thursday and run through the weekend. That would mean R&R after the business stuff since I fly mostly on weekdays for economical reasons. In recent years, the exhibitions have shifted to start on Mondays and so if I were to fly straight for business, it would entail a more expensive weekend outbound itinerary. Hence, my shift of the R&R to the front, enabling me to continue to fly in on weekdays.

Ahh yes... 5:59am. Time to wake them up to cancel my wake up call...

Image Credit: http://positivesharing.com

- Voxeros

1. sunflower left...
Thursday, 22 March 2007 11:34 am
Aiyo poor thing... so busy har.......
Take care hor... must rest more


2. JayWalk left...
Thursday, 22 March 2007 12:41 pm :: 
Sunflower: Thanks dear. I am in Narita right now. Got my upgrades and had a good and peaceful flight. Looking forward to board my next sector.


3. akk left...
Friday, 23 March 2007 9:19 am
have a good trip siah.


4. zeenie left...
Friday, 23 March 2007 9:55 am :: http://zeenie.blogspot.com
Have a safe trip! Do take care eh, sounds like a pretty darned busy schedule.


5. JayWalk left...
Friday, 23 March 2007 7:22 pm ::
Akk & Zeenie: Thanks guys. Things are ok now once I left the Spitland madhouse. Totally slacking off now. Thinking of visiting either the Intel Museum or the Computer History Museum. I know, I know, damn geeky but these are the ones within a 10-mile radius mah.

14 March 2007

Lumix vs Exilim

VS
As I have mentioned, I recently sent my Panasonic Lumix FX-7 digital camera for servicing as the circuitry was finally going crazy after all the abuse that I lather on it so generously. It was my first digital camera in the ultra-compact category (my very first digital camera was a Sony DSC-F707 but it was more for work than for personal use).
I was very satisfied with it and did not realise how good it was until I used another camera when the Lumix was being serviced.

So anyway, I was using a Casio Exilim Z1000, in the interim, and it touted to be Casio's top of the line ultracompact camera (at the time it was bought) and it boasted a 10.0 megapixels resolution capability. My current Lumix was a paltry 5.0 megapixels in comparison. Just when I was getting all exciting with a fancy smancy camera in my hands, I was devastated with disappointment when the picture quality came out absolutely crap.

Ok ok, so maybe I was a tad overboard with the choice of word i.e. crap. I supposed it is ok with the average photo but I would pride myself to be quite saavy with a ultra compact and would hence be able, even with limited functions, come up with pretty good pictures.

Even if the best picture that I can take with the Lumix is nowhere near Deek's Nikon D200, I would say given the limited features that the Lumix FX-7 offers in comparison, I thought it is pretty darn good already.

Just to give you guys a clearer picture (no pun intended) or what I am talking about, I brought the 2 cameras out for a showdown.

Both photos were taken intentionally under insufficient lighting conditions and both set to fully automatic without flash. I also stepped down the Exilim to 5.0 megapixels to even the playing field. Also, I left the photos as they were i.e. without any software touch-ups (except adding the text captions).

Normally, under good lighting conditions i.e. bright sunny outdoors, it would be harder to tell if a camera takes better pictures than the other. Hence, the intentional choice of picking an indoor evening subject as a test. The way, you would be able to see how each camera is able to process under less than optimal conditions.

I shan't say which camera is superior. I'd leave that for you guys to draw your own conclusion.

Click each picture for an enlarged view.

Click Here For Review of Panasonic Lumix FX-7
 
Click Here For Review of Casio Exilim Z1000
 
Click Here For Review of Nikon D200
 
Click Here For Review of Sony DSC-F707 
 
Image Credit: http://www.dpreview.com
- Voxeros

1. akk left...
Sunday, 18 March 2007 8:00 pm
z1000 only looks better because the pic 's brighter and I can see her dress better.


2. JayWalk left...
Monday, 19 March 2007 8:26 pm ::
Akk: That may be so but the little white spots as a result of insufficient lighting is unacceptable. Without the spots, there is still a chance to use photo editing software to rectify easily.

13 March 2007

Redbull Shit Or Red Bullshit?


Well, to prove that I such a great friend to nadnut hor, I begrudgingly agreed to do her Redbull meme. But hor, staying true to the epitome of JayWalk's endless pursuit of perfection, I had decided not to take the easy way out by simply grabbing a can and take a simple picture.

Where is the challenge in that?

Ahh... but all it took was a can, painstakingly tab-opened halfway to get the tail (and yes, I had to drink the bladdy redbull with a straw), some playdoh and a pinch of imagination.

Et voila! C'est magnifique!

p.s. Despite tagging it properly, the picture didn't show up when searching under the nadnutlovesredbull tag. Perhaps flickr takes a while to index it? I wonder.

- Voxeros

1. aloe left...
Monday, 12 March 2007 5:51 pm
U really very free hor!! wah raoz!!! LOL!
I clicked on the nadnutlovesredbull and it appeared liao leh.


2. JayWalk left...
Monday, 12 March 2007 7:07 pm :: 
Aloe: What very free? But bor bian. Chiobu ask me do, must give face right?
Ask for the tag indexing, it didn't show up for the past 2 days. Guess it finally decide to make an appearance on the 3rd day.


3. nadnut left...
Tuesday, 13 March 2007 11:45 am :: http://nadnut.liquidblade.com
 wah. laoniang become chiobu ah? hehehehee


4. JayWalk left...
Tuesday, 13 March 2007 4:17 pm :: 
nadnut: Abuden?!!


5. akk left...
Tuesday, 13 March 2007 5:40 pm
hmm...drinking redbull will never be the same after seeing where the crap came out from.


6. JayWalk left...
Tuesday, 13 March 2007 5:49 pm ::
Akk: Well, look on the bright side, it could have been worse. It could have been a cow.


7. nadnut left...
Wednesday, 14 March 2007 9:39 pm :: http://nadnut.liquidblade.com
u mean: abullden? hahahahaa


8. JayWalk left...
Wednesday, 14 March 2007 9:47 pm :: 
nadnut: Well done on the pun! Clever!

12 March 2007

Disaster - The Day After

Caught this article off the ChannelNewsAsia website and I thought I reproduce it here to share with everyone.
It looks like the Indonesian gahmen is finally doing something about transport safety. Unfortunately, I can't help but get this feeling of deja vu.

Zhun bor?

Didn't they just did declare to tighten up safety standards the tragedy before? And the tragedy before that before that? *rinse repeat*

Ok. So maybe this time it is for real and I shouldn't be such a wet blanketing sour puss. Instead, I should give them the benefit of the doubt this time. Like the previous time and the time before that and the time before that before that. *rinse repeat*

Another lip service? Well, that just waits to be seen.

For the sake of the Indonesia people, I hope for this is going to be the real deal.



Air disaster piles pressure on Indonesia to act on safety
Posted: 11 March 2007 1544 hrs
 
JAKARTA: Indonesia's second fatal airplane disaster this year has piled pressure on the government to act over safety lapses ahead of the publication of a key report later this week.

The report, following an inquiry ordered by the president after a passenger plane disappeared on New Year's Day, is expected to make recommendations over safety across the country's entire transport network.

Wednesday's fireball at Yogyakarta, when a Garuda Airlines jet skidded off the runway and erupted in flames after what witnesses said was a crazily fast landing, has led to calls for Transport Minister Hatta Rajasa to resign.

A total of 21 people - including five Australians - died in the inferno, which was filmed in grisly detail by a cameraman who survived along with more than 100 passengers and crew.

Rajasa said after special prayers Friday for the safety of the world's most populous Muslim-majority nation that key recommendations on transport were due in the coming week. He did not give an exact date.

The Yogyakarta accident "reinforces the view that the culture of safety is almost non-existent in Indonesia," said Shukor Yusof, an aviation analyst with Standard and Poor's equity research in Singapore.

"There is a long list of disasters in the air, at sea and on land, a large number of which are the result of negligence and an attitude of ignoring safety procedures and prevention," Indonesia's Koran Tempo said in an editorial.

The string of air and maritime disasters have killed hundreds of people and shaken confidence in the transport links that bind this archipelago nation of 17,000 islands.

Major recent air and sea disasters include:

- September 5, 2005: A Mandala Airlines Boeing 737 crashed on the island of Sumatra, killing 150 people.

- Last December 29, a passenger ferry carrying some 600 people sank in the Java Sea, with more than 350 dead or missing.

- On New Year's Day, an Adam Air Boeing 737 vanished off Sulawesi with the 102 passengers and crew now presumed dead. Its black box recorders were found on the ocean floor.

- On February 22, a ferry caught fire off Jakarta. The search for survivors was called off earlier this month with 54 confirmed dead and 23 missing.


Experts blame old, badly maintained planes and ships and lax safety for the death toll.

Rajasa has insisted that safety is being improved, and notes that passenger growth in Indonesia is second only to China.

One measure being discussed is to bar airliners from buying jets more than 10 years old, but Rajasa's job still appears under threat despite such moves, amid speculation of a possible cabinet reshuffle.

In a television interview, Vice President Jusuf Kalla said that the Garuda tragedy was embarrassing for Indonesia. "Of course we are embarrassed to be a country with a high rate of accidents," he said.

He said Rajasa was under huge pressure and did not dismiss the possibility he could be replaced.

"I think he's more than embarrassed... this is a matter of pride, he tries hard, he rarely sleeps," Kalla said.

Bambang Susantono, the chairman of the Indonesian Transport Society, urged the government to put together a convincing short-term action plan, including random checks whose results are published promptly.

"This is the easiest and fastest way to restore public confidence," said Susantono.

Akhmad Muqowam, a lawmaker who chairs a parliamentary transport commission, said a plan to replace senior workers in the transport ministry could restore confidence.

The safety recommendations should be comprehensive and cover all transport modes, he added.

Susantono said the recommendations must include "an honest portrait of the current condition. Only then we will be able to see the root of the problem."

But for some Indonesians, recommendations are not the issue. They wonder if God is punishing the country for the misdeeds of its politicians.

"It is a test, not a punishment," Kalla said. "God is testing us." - AFP/yy


Image Credit: http://www.channelnewsasia.com

- Voxeros

09 March 2007

Fried Lives Paradise

Just when I was done with lamenting about Indonesia's transport safety about a week ago, another one bites the dust.

How many more lives do we need to sacrifice before the Indonesian gahmen finally wake up their bladdy ideas?

My earlier entry thrashing the Indonesian gahmen, with regards to safety, was met with a lively debate, in the comments section, arguing in their defence. I guess I no longer need to carry on the debate anymore as the facts are stacked in my favour with yet another Garuda meeting its maker.

As you are aware, Garuda is Indonesia's national airline. It represents Indonesia in the world of aviation and often regarded as a benchmark for many things, including safety standards, in its home aviation industry. If the safety benchmark of Garuda, the national flagship carrier, were to be dismal, I really hate to think how much worse the rest of the domestic and private airlines would fare. Again, being the national flagship carrier, there is nothing above that already. So in a morbid way, I would have to say that being doomed is the best one can expect when taking an Indonesian airline, at the rate things are going.

Some may blame it on the age of the planes. It is a fact that 80% to 90% of Indonesia's planes are between 10 to 20 years old. This is in contrast with SQ's fleet never beyond 5 years old. The way I see it, planes can go up to 30 years in active service as long as there are regular and good maintainance. So the fact that planes are more than 10 years old is not really an issue here.

Indonesia airlines have reportedly bribed pilots to fly the plane even if the plane has been declared non-air worthy and fly them for months at a time. Those who attempted to blow the whistle on management, often find themselves grounded or docked pay for some reason or another.

Anyway, the question beckons if the Indonesian gahmen would start to take positive action from hereon? Would this crash be finally the one to wake everyone up? Forgive me if I continue to be skeptical as I for one, would rather see results than simply relying on empty promises.

At best, I would see investigative committees being set up and all sorts of new policies being introduced and implemented. But guess what? After a few months, when the memories of all these disasters have faded into a distant memory, the safety breaches will all return and everything would revert back to the "good old days" of "carefree flying".

Good luck, Indonesia. Good Luck.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome aboard. In the event of a crash, we will try our best to do it on land. That way you do not have to worry about the absence of life vests, no long under your seats. Also, fastening of seat belts are now optional. You are screwed either way. Thank you for dying with Garuda."
 
- Voxeros

1. sunflower left...
Friday, 9 March 2007 2:31 pm
I am shocked with this news as well... well in my opinion, Indonesia will never wake up their idea for this........... let us pray for our neighbour!!!!


2. James left...
Friday, 9 March 2007 5:17 pm :: http://sgblogs.com/s/garuda
If planes really can go up to 30 years in service then how come SQ one all newer than 5 years? Hmmmm....


3. JayWalk left...
Friday, 9 March 2007 6:01 pm :
Sunflower: As gloom and doom the whole situation may look, there is always hope. While I am deeply saddened and disappointed, there is still that sliver of hope that the situation gets a turnaround.

James: Welcome to the blog. SQ's young fleet is more of a financial strategy than anything else as it involves resale to other airlines. This is something that only the financially strong are able to undertake. Kudos to the management of SQ to be able to do what other airlines can only dream of.


4. ihawk98 left...
Monday, 12 March 2007 2:12 pm
It is true that one of SIA's strong selling points is a young fleet. On their website, it says their fleet averages 6 years old. Do note the words "averages 6 years" meaning that some of their planes can be older than 10 years. But on average, since the airline always adds new planes, the fleet is 6 years old.

Having said that, a plane that is well maintained can be used for a long time.


5. JayWalk left...
Monday, 12 March 2007 3:57 pm ::
ihawk98: I believe I read it off a luggage sticker (back in the old days, it is quite trendy to paste stickers especially destination related ones) where it says that SQ planes are never older than 5 years old or something to that effect. That was way back in the early 80s.

I guess they revised that to averaging 6 years?

Anyway, that's not the point here. My point is that with good, regular and stringent maintenance, a plane can last a very long time.

08 March 2007

Fresh New Look

I am sure most of you would have been taken aback when you load this blog only to see something entirely different. Gone are the traditional blue and orange colour scheme as previously done up by Jettykey aka Willowink aka Anna Neo Chee Nah.

Truth to be told, this wasn't voluntary. I still prefer my old layout but it had to go due to a version upgrade of the Blog-City engine to version 6.0.

Right now, I am having trouble figuring out how to put my chalkboard back. It was a fun piece of widget for me to do my little doodles and special messages here and there. However, due to my lack of knowledge as far as CSS editing is concerned. My hands are pretty much tied.

Still as the old saying goes during the dot-com (not dot-gone) era.

Content is king.

Let's get the entries out first and I'll tweak the rest later.

Feel free to give me feedback as to how to make this place a better place.

Thanks.

- Voxeros

1. heather left...
Thursday, 8 March 2007 9:46 pm
actually I like it, it's a clean and new look :) and the combat spam thingy is hilarious. 8+ 2 = errm. 82? *lol*


2. JayWalk left...
Friday, 9 March 2007 12:16 pm ::
Heather: Thanks for the vote of confidence but I need to get use to seeing so much white. Need sunglasses. 8)
The combat spam thing ok lah... Lucky they never set it to be = ?


3. zeenie left...
Friday, 9 March 2007 2:32 pm :: http://zeenie.blogspot.com
Looks not bad! I know how you feel, since i recently switched the presentation of mine as well. =)
Just to satisfy my curiosity, what is the answer to the equation you posted? There's no answer right?


4. JayWalk left...
Friday, 9 March 2007 6:05 pm :: 
Zeenie: Eh Brudder. If I know the answer hor, I won't be stuck in Spitland making furniture liao. X(


5. barffie left...
Tuesday, 13 March 2007 11:48 am
Nice what more modern. The old one a bit the... ermm... old lah. But your header needs some working leh...
What do you mean you'll need help with that? *runs away*


6. JayWalk left...
Tuesday, 13 March 2007 4:19 pm :: 
Barffie: I like the retro look mah. Simple and also you don't get many orange websites right? Oh well, that's history liao.

What should I do with the header? Any suggestions?

06 March 2007

Hong Kong Disneyland

It was the Lunar New Year holidays and we met up with Troy's family in Hong Kong and decided to bring the kids to HK Disneyland. It was a trip for everybody. I was eager to revisit the land of magic after 25 years where I visited both Disneyland in Anaheim and Disneyworld in Orlando. I was also curious how the HK version would turn out and as the same time wondering how much has changed since my last experience.

Anyway, this entry is not about my thought on the park. I shall save it for tomorrow. Today is all about the kids. Troy and Faith. We left Gabriel behind as we felt that he is too young to understand Disneyland. Besides, he wouldn't have remembered anything years from now.

Ideally, the age of 6 would have been perfect as Faith and Troy just barely made the minimum required height for most rides. Both kids also freaked out when we took them to ride the Space Mountain.
Little Chickadees.


Enjoy the pictures here and they are all clickable for enlargement.

 - Voxeros

1. aloe left...
Tuesday, 6 March 2007 5:06 pm
wah!! so cute!


2. OLLie left...
Tuesday, 6 March 2007 5:44 pm :: http://ooohlah.lah.cc
ahhh.. I wanna go to Disneyland too!
More pics leh. Put your hamsum face mah.


3. JayWalk left...
Wednesday, 7 March 2007 12:41 am :
Aloe: Too bad all the kids all don't want to look at camera that day. I take picture until I damn pekchek.

Ollie: My yandao pics har? Must wait for Deek to send me the shots taken from his camera.

05 March 2007

A Picture Speaks A Thousand Words


'Nuff said.

- Voxeros

1. Everton left...
Tuesday, 6 March 2007 3:43 am
Was Faith pointing at you, old man? :-)


2. JayWalk left...
Tuesday, 6 March 2007 9:15 am :
Everton: Ok ok.. I was just kidding about Faith flipping the bird. It was a "peace sign" taken at an awkward angle. But you'll have to admit that she does have a pretty good bird expression on her face. No?


3. OLLie left...
Tuesday, 6 March 2007 5:46 pm :: http://ooohlah.lah.cc
Haha. She's posing for the cam even when she's eating ice cream? Ever-ready for the cam! Just like me! hahahahhaha..


4. Gary left...
Tuesday, 6 March 2007 9:38 pm
"knn.. eat ice cream also want to take.. here is a new version of the international sign language..!!"
hahaha...


5. JayWalk left...
Wednesday, 7 March 2007 12:39 am 
Ollie: Aiyoh... pose is one thing. To get her to look at the camera is another miracle altogether. iTired.

Gary: Read my translation on my Chat Pad.


6. ihawk98 left...
Wednesday, 7 March 2007 1:31 pm
I wonder where she learnt THAT from....


7. JayWalk left...
Wednesday, 7 March 2007 9:26 pm :
ihawk98: Apples don't fall far from tree. Hur hur hur.....


8. Zhe Bin left...
Sunday, 18 March 2007 12:45 pm
I like her straightforward and in-your-face style.


9. JayWalk left...
Monday, 19 March 2007 8:28 pm :: 
Zhebin: 上梁不整, 下梁歪. Hahahahahaa

02 March 2007

Family Outing



Not going to be blogging much this weekend as we are taking Faith to Hong Kong Disneyland! The added bonus would be that Godpa, Godma and Troy will also be there for the weekend.

See you guys on Monday. Hopefully, I will have more pictures to show.

Have a good weekend!

- Voxeros

1. akk left...
Friday, 2 March 2007 11:14 am
have you been there yet? trust me- half day can finish liao, one day if you include q-ing for the pics.:) oh yah, pls go ride the space-intergalactic looking ride. it's in total darkness...nice....


2. Heather left...
Saturday, 3 March 2007 2:55 am
have a good weekend with the kids :) will be looking forward to the pics!


3. hiaoauntie left...
Monday, 5 March 2007 11:08 am
i've been visiting hk so often becoz my brother lives there but seriously, i haven been to the disneyland there.. i will some day... hope you and family enjoy going there and tell us abt it k


4. JayWalk left...
Monday, 5 March 2007 1:10 pm :: 
Akk: You are referring to the Space Mountain. I felt it was milder than the original in Anaheim and Orlando. Also, there were missing two other rides i.e. the Matterhorn Bobsled and the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. I believe there should me many more rides given that the last time I've been to Disneyland was more then 20 years ago.

Heather: Well, I'm back and a few pictures to share too. Stay tuned.

HiaoAuntie: My opinion is that Ocean Park would be a better deal in HK and you should save your Disney experience to that of the US sites.

01 March 2007

Golf In Spring


Spring arrived pretty early this year or is it that Winter never came in the first place.?

Ahhh. The evolution of the man where we are born to be playing with balls. As we grew old from young, we play bigger and bigger balls. From marbles to ping pong to squash to basketball. However, as we move even higher up the age ladder, our balls starts to shrink from football to tennis to golf. I guess by the time we are as old as ancient relics, we have only mothballs to play with then.

Anyway, the weather was beautiful as the fog just lifted leaving behind lush greens and clear air. Temperature was at a nice 20+ degree Celsius. Cool enough not to break a sweat but yet warm enough to be clad in bermuda shorts.

Also glad the Lunar New Year is almost over as the club staff have all disappeared into their corners. It was harrowing to be playing golf during the new year period when all the staff would suddenly appear with a cheery smile, wishing you a Happy New Year AND they will linger around and chat with you until you finally relent and give them a red packet to shoo them away. Suddenly the word Remoras jolts to minds when I think of them. Wiki that if you don't know what a remora is.

Then I reach the first hole of the West Course and I was stopped in my tracks by the presence of a very beautiful tree. It was a Cherry Blossom tree. Who says you need to goto Japan to see this?

"Eh? Since when we have cherry blossom tree here?" I blurted.

"It's been there since day one!" came the answer amongst the snickering caddies.

Indeed it was there for more than a decade, judging from the size of the tree. I must have passed this tree for a thousand times over the years and it finally caught my eye in its full splendor.

What did I say about slowing down and taking in the sights around you?

 
P.S. Pictures were taken using a Casio Exilim Z30 (3.34 Megapixels) and seriously did not do justice to the photos. I can't wait to get back my Panasonic Lumix FX-7 from the service centre later this week. 
- Voxeros