Grandpa's Thermometer

This may look like a dirty old room thermometer but I am sure that when my two cousins who are reading this right now, would know where this came from or at the very least find it familiar.

This is the room thermometer that sat in my grandfather's room when he was still alive. It has been there since my cousins and I were kids. It wasn't brand new when I first saw this during one of my many summer holidays in Taipei. That means that this thermometer is easily 50 years old or even more. I won't be surprised if this was Pre-World War II?

Anyway, this thermometer has been with me since my Grandpa's funeral in the early 90s. He passed away at the age of 93 and I swiped this from his room as a keepsake to remember him by when I brought it back with me to Singapore.

Now, it is safely with me in Spitland. It would be interesting to see a few more years down the road when I can show this off to my family and friends that I am in possession of a 100-year old room thermometer. How cool is that?

The aftermath of the funeral back then was pretty ugly. You guessed it, uncles and aunts fighting, quarreling and arguing over the inheritance.

I think I got the best prize of them all. This little room thermometer. It may worth nothing in the monetary sense but it meant the world to me.

Nevermind that I had to steal it but heck, nobody noticed it anyway and would probably end out in the trash, had I not taken it.

Well, there are 2 things that I nicked during the passing of my grandpa and this is one of them. Let me see if I can find the other one, for I can't remember if I brought it up with me to Spitland or I left it back in Singapore.

Give me a day to go look for it.

- Voxeros

1. aGentX left...

Tuesday, 5 June 2007 6:21 am :: http://agent-x.blogspot.com/

I remembered that my family has the same when I was a very little boy.
It was always there, at a wall somewhere and I guessed nobody noticed when it was gone - seeing that picture invoked many childhood images...thanks.

2. JayWalk left...

Tuesday, 5 June 2007 10:28 am :: 

aGentX: Welcome back. I guess my point that I was trying to drive across is that do not underestimate the value of anything even if it look mundane and/or humble. For all you know, a great unquantifiable value lies underneath. The same goes for people as well.

3. Everton left...

Saturday, 9 June 2007 7:23 am

That thermometer is at least 50 years old for sure and has a lot sentimental values. Please take good care of it.

4. JayWalk left...

Saturday, 9 June 2007 3:06 pm :: 

Everton: You remember seeing this when you were a kid too?

Time Out For Garuda

"The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has advised that the country of Indonesia does not comply with international safety standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). Therefore, effective immediately, Northwest Airlines has temporarily suspended its WorldPerks, passenger and cargo agreements with Garuda Indonesia Airlines." Source: http://www.nwa.com/asia/en/worldperks/earn/airfl.html#garuda

Was searching for flights on Northwest Airlines when I spotted this bulletin update. It was not really surprising considering the fact that Indonesia's recent hot streak of disasters for all land, air and sea modes of transportation.

To be shut out of the door by your fellow industry counterparts is not merely a slap in the fact but a slap in the face with a mallet.

That has gotta hurt.

Ouch.

- Voxeros

Photo Shoot - Part 2

... continuing from where we left off yesterday.... 

I decided to wander around in between shoots and I think this place looked more like a movie/tv set than a photography studio. The racks at the side housed the props from potted plants to wine bottles to tea sets to fake plasma screen TV, etc.

The boss was lamenting to me that the props have a limited lifespan. Granted they are quite durable and could last for years, they have to be replace them often as there are only some many times you can use the same props in the various shoots, before someone realised that you have been using it once too often. In their line, deja vu is a strict no no. And so to throw these props away when they are still in pretty good shape, he couldn't help but feel the heart pain with every spring cleaning.

After the break, it was time to do the second shoot. We had to take the photo from another angle to highlight another feature of the product. This time round we wanted to emphasise on the wood burl inlay that we applied to the parquet of the table top.

This is how the picture turned out from the high angle shot. Click here to enlarge.

And this is the final shot. It's been exactly a year since this design was first drafted and was glad to finally see it in its full splendour. Still, we are way ahead of schedule as we are only slated to launch this in January 2008. Click here to enlarge. 

- Voxeros

1. An left...

Saturday, 2 June 2007 10:08 am

Wooowww!! nice furniture. Can send over to my house? wahahahhahaha!!! =P

2. slurp! left...

Monday, 4 June 2007 11:08 pm :: http://slurplog.blogsome.com

OMG, and you already showing them here when they are to launch only on Jan 2008???!!
anyway, thanks for showing these spy shots kekekeke ... looks very European in design.

3. JayWalk left...

Tuesday, 5 June 2007 10:25 am :: 

An: Eh. I must warn you that this set is damn bladdy big. Can fit inside your house or not?

Slurp!: Yeah, I know it is kind of risky to show this to the entire world so early. I just hope none of the furniture people sees this as they are just not the blogging types. *fingers crossed*

Photo Shoot - Part 1

Just completed a new design and was sending it to the studio for a photo shoot. My modus operandi is that I will shoot the product in-house during the beta prototype stages. That way I would be able to have something to show my customers during the interim. The picture above was taken back in 2005 when I was ranting about Dumbass of The Week II.

As you can see, my in-house studio is a very spartan/generic/vanilla/no frills studio. Hence when the design is finally completed, it will be sent to a professional photo studio for a proper shot. However, I think the word studio is inaccurate granted that we are dealing with big sized items here. Perhaps a photo set would be more appropriate a term? 

Anyway, I went for the photo shoot yesterday as I have to *ahem* play the role of the director telling the photographer how I want the shot to be taken. 

Also, I thought you guys may be interested and seeing how we do a product photo shoot and so I took pictures along the way.

The set is about 40 minutes away from the factory and at the end of this alley. From the street side, it looked like I was heading to some underground gambling den. It was 3pm in the sleepy afternoon and not a squeak in the alley, as if the summer heat had lulled everyone in a comatose siesta. The blue roller shutters is the entrance to the set. It has to be big in order for our trucks to be able to reverse into it for easier loading and unloading of our items.

This is the staging area of the set. As stuff are constantly moving in and out, neatness was never a priority here. The actual photography is taken behind those silver curtains. See the white platform in the distance dangled in midair by a network of cables? We will come to that in the next picture.

The white platform is actually the ceiling of the "dining room". When it is time to shoot, we have to roll down the blue roller shutters to keep out the light from outside. What turned out at the end is a non-ventilated warehouse in the scorching heat of the summer sun. We were all dripping buckets inside this over-sized oven.

... to be continued 

- Voxeros

Glenmorangie Single Cask - Rare Limited Edition

We have entered a time where everybody is into wine culture as a sign of improved lifestyle sophistication. Problem is, while some are really into wine, others are sadly there to gek jeet eh lan jiao seh. Then again who am I to judge or comment?

As for me pertaining to the art of wine appreciation? I regret to report that this art is very much lost on me. My wine appreciation is very simple.

Either I like or I don't like. Period.*

Sure, I can name the various grapes and wines regions but if you ask if I can tell if there is a hint of chalk lime, as a result of the geo-composites of the soil from which the grape grew during that particular year in that particular region? I tell you that I would be better off answering you more accurately and with more confidence that I could taste the see hum and lup cheong in the char kway teow.

That aside, today's entry is not about wine. It is about my real passion.

Single Malt Scotch.

If anyone had been observant enough, my tag line above is a dead giveaway.

Blended scotch doesn't cut it for me. No Johnny Walkers, nor Chivas, nor Logans, nor Teachers, nor Black&Whites, nor Vat69s, nor Suntorys, nor Dewar's, nor Famouse Grouses (just to name a few!), etc will ever satisfy my taste buds. After you have tried the good stuff, it is very hard to go back down. Sure, I will still drink them at clubs & pubs to chase the buzz but it is only as good as what meaningless sex gets you. If you are looking for something beyond that, I'm sorry but you have come (no pun intended) to the wrong whisky.

Even amongst the Single Malts, I am very picky. From Glenlivet to Highland Park to Speyburn to Macallan to Glenfiddich, none come close to that of the Glenmorangie.**

For the past 47 years, it has been the best selling Scotland Single Malt and yet it is one of the smallest distillery in the country. If you ask me, I think these guys must be doing something right. And these guys numbered at 16 for they are known as the Sixteen Men of Tain. The entire production of Glenmorangie falls into the hands of these 16 men. God bless them.

As I have mentioned to RUOK, drink Glenmorangie 18 years (Duty-Free HKD 460) and above. As much as I love Glenmorangie, I am afraid that the cheaper 10, 12 and 15 year olds are not drinkable.

ANYWAY, I was at the HK Airport when I spotted this little treasure. The Glenmorangie Single Cask - Rare Limited Edition (Duty Free HKD 1150) and there are only 635 of these babies in the world. Each bottle is individually numbered and bottled at cask strength which explains the 56.7% alcohol level.***

Taste-wise? Spicy yet extremely smooth. I would rate it slightly above the Glenmorangie 25 year old (Duty Free HKD 1350). This Glenmorangie Single Cask - Rare Limited Edition was produced in 1990, that makes it 17 years old as at today and given that it tasted better (IMHO) than the 25 year old brother, I would say this one gives a better value for money (VFM).

However, better VFM does not instantly translate into being cheaper for the 25-year old version is a 1-Litre bottle while this Single Cask version is 0.75-Litre. If measuring litre for litre, then a 1-Litre version on the basis of linear extrapolation, would price it at HKD 1533.33

We did a horizontal taste test pitting this against 2 power houses: The Glenfiddich Caoran Reserve and the Glenfiddich Special Reserve. The Glenmorangie Single Cask - Rare Limited Edition blew both of the challengers away by a mile! As good as the 2 Glenfiddiches tout to be, they were no way near.

Click here to see the photo set which include the Tasting Notes.

• Interesting tidbit extracted from Wiki on "Whiskey":
  
  "The spelling whisky (plural whiskies) is generally used for whiskies distilled in Scotland, Wales, Canada, and Japan, while whiskey is used for the spirits distilled in Ireland. A 1968 directive of the ATF specifies "whisky" as the official U.S. spelling, but allows labelling as "whiskey" in deference to tradition; most U.S. producers still use the latter spelling."

* Click here to see my "level of wine competence".

** Click here for the Wiki of Glenmorangie.
*** Most Whiskies are commonly distilled at 40% alcohol.

- Voxeros

1. slurp! left...

Monday, 28 May 2007 11:10 pm :: http://slurplog.blogsome.com

so what's a good single malt to start for newbie. hope I don't need to fork out HKD1350 *cough cough* to try one =P

2. JayWalk left...

Monday, 28 May 2007 11:27 pm :: 

slurp!: Try Macallan. It is fairly easy to drink. However, I would advise you to try all at least once. That way you will be able to make comparison and draw your own conclusion as to what you like best.

3. KingMeng left...

Tuesday, 29 May 2007 12:27 am :: http://kingmeng.liquidblade.com/

Yoz! I know you know already, but remember to change the link on your blog to http://kingmeng.liquidblade.com/
Thanks! :D

4. JayWalk left...

Tuesday, 29 May 2007 8:36 am :: 

KingMeng: Thanks for reminding me. I forgot about updating you on my blogroll. Update liao. :)

5. Pam left...

Tuesday, 29 May 2007 4:54 pm

My father-in-law's a big big fan of Glenmorangie too...! I've never tasted it - but he always gets one very expensive bottle for christmas. the easiest pressie to buy that time of year! (expensive, but easy).

6. Ruok left...

Tuesday, 29 May 2007 11:21 pm

Jay!!! I cannot afford this lah!!! Why tell me this kind of thing?!!!! Unless... unless... u r inviting me to try it out. *wink wink* *hint hint*

7. JayWalk left...

Wednesday, 30 May 2007 9:16 am :: 

Pam: Speaking of popular whisky in your part of the world, ask your FIL about Caol Ila. Apparently, it also very popular in the UK. I tried it and it was NASTY!! Still, it is a just a case of unilateral perception on my part. For all you know, it is supposed to be really good but just that I am not knowledgeable enough to appreciate it. I thought it smelled like hospital's surgical alcohol. You know, the smell that hits you, the moment the hospital's glass door opens as you step in?

Ruok: Eh. Not asking you to drink this everyday lah. Once in a long long time is affordable lah. See how lah. I come back Dec time, see whether to have stock or not. I have quite a number of friends (from the night of the horizontal tasting session) planning to fly up to HK to buy it.

Eh, if I jio you for the good stuff hor, what's in it for me? *wink wink* *hint hint* *nudge nudge*

8. Pam left...

Wednesday, 30 May 2007 4:48 pm

well, alot of this stuff smells real bad to me!! :) have you guys tasted Magnus/Magners? It's an Irish cider (made from apples). They drink it with ice (like a soft drink) and it's getting v popular, not just in the summer too. Tastes like apple juice - wonder if it's popular in sg?

9. JayWalk left...

Thursday, 31 May 2007 9:22 am :: 

Pam: No. I have not heard of Magnus/Magners. The closest is probably Magnum which is a) an ice cream, b) a pistol, c) a TV Show with Tom Selleck in it or d) Champagne in 1.5L size but no. No apple cider.

Speaking of apple cider, there is this computer game that I played when I was a kid. Apple Cider Spider where you help the spider travel against the conveyor belt production flow of an apple cider factory to "get to the other side" but I digress.



Anyway, I believe your so called Magners are classified under alcopops (alcohol soda pops) and has been under fire of late as a ploy to entice the young to drink.

Peking Duck Pizza

Was at the Hong Kong Airport last week on the way back to Singapore. It was a 2pm departure and it means spending my lunch time inside the airport.

Instead of the usual Burger King or Popeye's Fried Chicken cravings, we decided to go somewhere a little quieter since we have Gabriel along.

The menu in there was quite interesting and this particular dish caught my eye.

Peking Duck Pizza.

I like Peking Duck and I like Pizza. Quite a no brainer that I should just point my finger at the menu to the approving nod of the waiter.

The pie arrived shortly as I sank my eagerly awaiting teeth.

Verdict? Well, the duck skin wasn't as crispy but I kinda expected it for after all this is an ang moh restaurant. I mean how good can their Peking Duck be, right? The meat however was very good. Juicy and disintegrates at first bite. The only downer was perhaps the plum sauce that they lathered all over the pizza pie that it ended up more sweet than savoury.

Personally, for me I like my pies savoury. Hence Hawaiians are not exactly my first choice.

Speaking of pizza, I notice the difference between pizzas here and in the US. Over here, we have every single damn thing on the top while the American counter parts are the simple straight forward pepperoni and cheese.

Ironically, the latter being the simpler, gets my vote on the yum yum count.

- Voxeros

1. Zhe Bin left...

Saturday, 26 May 2007 10:41 pm

Okay this dish looks interesting leh. Hear you describe I also want to eat. I had my dinner at 6+ and now is half-past 10. Feeling damn hungry now. I think I won't mind trying duck pizzas at all. You know quite a while ago there was this aloe vera craze? Seems like it's a must that everything must have aloe vera in them. Then much earlier they had the green tea craze. I'm so glad they never taint the good old pizzas that I like.

2. JayWalk left...

Sunday, 27 May 2007 9:19 am :: 

Zhebin: Not a big fan of Aloe Vera (the plant, not the blogger) myself. The only Aloe Vera I used is the sun repair gel after getting sunburnt.

3. sirennights left...

Monday, 28 May 2007 11:06 am :: http://sirennights.blogspot.com

I had to transit at HK airport last month didn't see this Peking Duck pizza thingy. Ended up eating at this Taiwanese Beef noodles place that sells Hong Konger food ...duh. I find the new Hong Kong Airport a bore, and they don't sell the good brand "lao po bing" (Hong Kong puffs), only the touristy lousy ones.

4. okiedokie left...

Monday, 28 May 2007 4:10 pm

I think this peking duck pizza can be found in Singapore too; i read it somewhere on the newspaper before. personally i prefer duck over chicken. wonder if there's fried duck selling somewhere in the world...btw, is there cheese in/on the duck pizza?

5. JayWalk left...

Monday, 28 May 2007 7:38 pm :: 

sirennights: The pizza is located (air-side) at this restaurant called Wildfire. It is located opposite the row of food stalls (where they have Ajisen, Burger King and Popeye's).

okie dokie: Yes, there is cheese on the duck pizza. As weird as it may sound, it tasted pretty ok, surprisingly.

Server Down? Server Up? User Cockup!

The first thing I did when I got back was to check on my servers. While I was in Singapore, I was informed of a black-out over the weekend and both servers going down as a result. While one was back online the moment power was restored, the other got stuck at the CMOS check and had to wait for my return to resolve.

So there I was sitting in front of the computer and instinctively pressing the reset button. Again, it got stuck at CMOS check. My initial suspicion was that of a motherboard burn-out. Perhaps the chipset got fried as a result of the power outage?

The good news was that there was still something on the screen and the message says something about "Incorrect OverClocking Settings..." and "... press F1 to enter setup or F2 to restore to factory defaults..."

So all is not lost but merely crippled?

That was the good news. Now the bad news is that there was no reaction when I pressed F1 and F2.

I starting to despair liao as I am at wits' end to coming up with a solution.

Then it dawned on me. I using the wrong keyboard lah!! Of course F1 and F2 no reaction lor!! iBlur.

The thing about my setup is that I have 2 sets of everything except the monitor which is shared by both servers by way of a switcher. With the Server2 keyboard parked discreetly in the keyboard drawer and the Server2 mouse hiding behind the monitor, it led me into thinking I had just 1 computer.

Blur like sotong. Gabra like zebra.

Anyway, as you would have noticed there is a strange wooden board in front of the servers. That is an anti-Gabriel-Itchy-Finger device. It all started when Gabriel began to be able to stand and walking all over the place. For a one-and-a-half year old and being inthe 97th percentile in terms of height, the servers were within easy reach. Boys would be boys as anything that is a button and blinking would prove to be almost irresistible.

More often than not, we would be working at the office when suddenly we lose connection to the servers. A quick call back home and sure enough, the answer was always "Gabriel pushing buttons again".

Haiz.... this boy very the chiew jian.....

- Voxeros

1. Zhe Bin left...

Saturday, 26 May 2007 10:44 pm

Aiya he will soon move on to try to push right buttons as he grows up lah. ; )

2. JayWalk left...

Sunday, 27 May 2007 9:48 am :: 

ZheBin: Somebody comment here got double meaning, hor? kekekekeke....

Nescafe Gold

I sputtered my coffee all over the table this morning.

"What da hell is this?" I asked in exclamation.

"No more Vietnam coffee liao." came the reply.

Dang.

Anyway, I went into the kitchen to find the source of this foul concoction only to come face to face with this spanking new bottle of Nescafe Gold.

Hmm.... isn't this supposed to be good? I mean the local coffee shops charges extra over the regular coffee and so surely the premium paid over-and-above the humble house-pouring Java must equate to that of a more superior product?

Well, it was bad as it enters my mouth but I still drank it for this is the only coffee in the house. My next batch of Vietnamese coffee is only arriving on the 18th.

I supposed it doesn't really matter lah. I think it is just a case of my taste buds being pampered and spoilt rotten liao.

As the saying goes. Once you've gone up, it's hard to go back down.

Besides, it is only one more morning of this weak coffee to go before I board the plane and head home for the weekend to the fabulous Kopi-O Gao Gao.

And by the time I get back to Spitland, the Vietnamese beans would have arrived and waiting.

In the meantime while in Singapore, Kopi goo yew anyone?

- Voxeros

1. aloe left...

Thursday, 17 May 2007 9:18 am

Dun wan! Kopi-gao-yew super fattening loh..... =S
u is high class lah... LOL!

2. Skates left...

Thursday, 17 May 2007 10:52 am :: http://www.flickr.com/photos/skates/

Kopi ? Sure.

3. Pam left...

Friday, 18 May 2007 1:36 am

I don't drink coffee ... I didn't know you drank Instant though??!

4. spellbound left...

Friday, 18 May 2007 11:35 pm :: http://verniceloy.blogspot.com

hey, did you know that NESCAFE gold is FAT-FREE now? I drank that when my illy coffee went out :p but nothing compare to my KOPI SIU DAI back home. Have fun in SG!

5. JayWalk left...

Monday, 21 May 2007 12:51 am :: 

Aloe: Aiyah... once in a while lor. Not say everyday drink goo yew kopi-O mah...

Skates: Welcome to the blog! Sorry sorry, have to take a rain check on kopi. Took too long to get back online after spending all my time out and about in SG.

Pam: Instant coffee is like a last resort. I would always go for a fresh brew if given a choice.

Spellbound: Didn't know about about Nescafe being fat free. But yeah, I have had a good time at YaKun kopi. Sedap!

6. slurp! left...

Tuesday, 22 May 2007 12:34 am :: http://slurplog.blogsome.com

the new Nescafe tastes yuck! i thought my office changed to cheaper kopi, but i found our later it's still the same Nescafe brand, and yet it tastes so different & yucky grrrrrrrrrrr

vietnam kopi? bought some & seems like my parents weren't used to the taste. did you try trung nguyen civet "poo" kopi? surprisingly smooth & nice. LOLz

they have lots of kopi blends there, may i know which you usually ordered? thanks!

7. JayWalk left...

Wednesday, 23 May 2007 9:39 am :: 

slurp!: I have heard of the civet cat pool kopi but I have yet to have the opportunity to try. As for what Viet kopi brand, I'm afraid I haven't the faintest clue. I have friends who shuttle up and down Vietnam and Ch1na and it's them who buys the coffee for me.

It comes in a brown paper bag with a red label affixed on it. The words on the label are in Vietnamese and so even if I know that that is the brand name, I still don't have a clue.

8. merryfeet left...

Thursday, 31 May 2007 11:06 am :: http://merryfeet.spaces.live.com

i think this is the one that slurp! was talking about?
The original version...

... and the very sweet, delectable, iced version.

9. JayWalk left...

Thursday, 31 May 2007 12:52 pm :: http://jaywalk.blog-city.com

Merryfeet: Slurp! refering to kopi luwak. This is where the civet cat eats the coffee berries and pass them through the digestive tract. Then we brew the coffee from the civet cat shit. Touted to be the most expensive coffee in the world at USD 600 per lb ?

Wiki it at http://en.wiki pedia.org/wiki/Kopi_Luwak

They Got It Right This Time

Remember this? Yeah, took this picture from my earlier entry when I went of Faith's school for their Children's Day celebrations.

Anyway, I went back again last Sunday as they were having an event for Mother's Day.

I am happy to report that everything is ok liao.

 - Voxeros 

A Gift Of Life (Part 7) - Doing Fine

It's been a while since I last contacted Chrissy. I drop her a few sms in the past but all were met with silence. Given that she has her treatment to undergo and stuff, I dare not disturb her further.

Also work has been really hectic for me and one of the items on my task list was to drop her an email to say hi and to find out how she it. Embarrassingly, the item sat there for the longest time. Whenever I was just about to sit down and draft the email, something would crop up, be it a phone call or an incoming sms, and the intended email goes back into the draft folder again.
Email is something that I dread to touch and that further aggravates things. In order to send an email, I have to open my Outlook Express and before you know it, hundreds of emails would come streaming in and I would be buried to my eyeballs trying to clear them.

Oh wait.... what was I supposed to do again? Send Chrissy an email? I forget.

Anyway, perhaps it was due to the fact that I was about to head home this weekend that finally gave me that extra push to finally write that email. Perhaps it was the cosmic forces or the alignment of the planets that finally gravitate my fingers to click send.

And what better timing that the eve of her birthday!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHRISSY!!! 

Not only was I glad to have sent out the email, I was even more happy to receive her reply bearing good news.

She has gotten her transplant back in Jan 2007 and is recovering well now. Her life is very much back to normal with a bit of golf here, yoga there and even cycling!

Again, on her behalf, I thank all well wishers who has supported her all this while and I am very happy to be the messenger of good tidings.
Thank you everyone! Thank you.

Click here to read past entries from The Gift Of Life Series.

- Voxeros

1. sunflower left...

Thursday, 17 May 2007 11:19 am

I was thinking how is she now as well.... thanks for the update

2. JayWalk left...

Monday, 21 May 2007 1:13 am :: 

sunflower: You are most welcome!