Cherish the past. Enjoy the present. Welcome the new year.
Wish all of you a splendid 2006. Have a blast and don't forget to blow your horns and whistles an extra second before the new year.
Tags: new year, new year's eve
From: rmaz_09@.....That's basically it! Cool huh. Oh ya and he is also nice enough to send me a photo which I think he took from my Flickr.
To: (my email)
Subject: You suck!
What a load of crap! Firstly, what kind of name is IZ Reloaded? You think you're some sort of Matrix hero shit is it? Your blog sucks. Asia Blog Awards runner up? Makes me wanna puke? Your blog is so boring that I wonder why people vote it in the first place. Anyone can blog like you. Just copy some lines from the link and done. It is a pathetic attempt to copy Boing Boing. Tsk Tsk. You can't even write well. Amateurish and pathetic!!! And don't try to blog personal stuff. You failed horribly!
And photobloggies finalist for Asia? Even my mother can take better photos than you. And there are other better photographers in Singapore. You suck man.
And stop boasting about your fans. What you call them?? IZ Rabid Fangirls? I duno why these girls will go goo-goo gaa-gaa for you. Reading their comments about you makes me wanna puke more. These girls must be blind. I think my butt looks cuter than you. Handsem my ass! You ugly fool!
Man, you suck! Your blog sucks! Just stop blogging!
They believe that early-human fossil discoveries over the past ten years suggest very different conclusions about where humans, or humanlike beings, first walked the Earth.(Thanks Gordon)
New Asian finds are significant, they say, especially the 1.75 million-year-old small-brained early-human fossils found in Dmanisi, Georgia, and the 18,000-year-old "hobbit" fossils (Homo floresiensis) discovered on the island of Flores in Indonesia.
Such finds suggest that Asia's earliest human ancestors may be older by hundreds of thousands of years than previously believed, the scientists say.
Having survived the Christmas shopping crowds once again, I was struck by the sheer amount of work it takes to walk in Singapore. The problem is that there does not seem to be a shared agreement about which side of the street to walk on, and so one is constantly forced to dodge and weave.
The situation is exacerbated by the government, which periodically puts out public education campaigns with catchy slogans like "Stand left, walk right" for the use of escalators. Trouble is, one can never predict whether the up escalator is going to be on the right or the left, and people generally do the opposite of government campaigns out of sheer bloody mindedness. (or more likely because they just don't care about impeding others...)
I'm no cock smeller...I mean cork. Are you?8. When the waiter presents the bottle LOOK AT THE LABEL! Sometimes waiters make mistakes. My bistro has several wines of differing vintages from the same maker. Sometimes a ’97 is a shitload more expensive than an ‘01! You drink it you buy it. Caveat emptor pal.
9. DO NOT SMELL THE CORK! - When I see someone do this I know I’m dealing with a complete amateur. Guess what you’re gonna smell? Cork! You want to feel the cork to make sure it’s intact. Is the bottom of the cork moistened with wine? Good. That means it was stored properly. Make sure the name on the cork matches the name on the bottle. Sometimes unscrupulous bastards put cheap wine in old wine bottles and re-cork them! Is there mold on the cork? That’s a bad sign. But smelling the cork, in the vast majority of cases, tells you nothing. (Full disclosure – I used to smell the cork before I was a waiter.)
If your throat tickles, scratch your ear!(Thanks Sab)
When you were 9, playing your armpit was a cool trick. Now, as an adult, you can still appreciate a good body-based feat, but you're more discriminating. Take that tickle in your throat; it's not worth gagging over. Here's a better way to scratch your itch: "When the nerves in the ear are stimulated, it creates a reflex in the throat that can cause a muscle spasm," says Scott Schaffer, M.D., president of an ear, nose, and throat specialty center in Gibbsboro, New Jersey. "This spasm relieves the tickle."
I bought the magazine and looked through the pictures. Honestly, she looked "real" in these pictures- similiar to her JC pictures from xlx blog site. Her skin is not Micheal Jackson white, her eyes are pretty but not ang mo, her face isn't so longish.
Perhaps, she has got great make-up and photoshop skills? I kinda realised that these are two basic yet essential skills to acquire to be famous as a female blogger. It's all about marketing and what guys wants (most bloggers are male)- see pretty faces.
Chockfull of handy references, definitions, explanations and quotes, THE CATHOLIC GIRL'S GUIDE TO SEX includes such helpful tools as the Penance Chart, useful for instance if you're wondering what the House of the Lord is expecting from you if you slip up --- or slip him the tongue. For example, if you have gone to third base with your boyfriend of three years, you need to recite 1 Hail Mary and 2 Our Fathers. If, however, it's the "I-can't-believe-I-finally-had-my-chance-to-be-with-him" guy that you rounded third base with, then expect no less then 12 Hail Marys, 6 Our Fathers, and no meat on Friday! And then there's the "edited" list of sexual euphemisms designed to improve your slang vocab. It offers alternative lingo for having sex (all varieties) and body parts, such as buttering his bread, banana split, nooner, satisfying King Solomon (which sounds religious to me, so why is it bad?), gagas, headphones, love whistle and the Pointer Sisters.Don't have to thank me. Just get the book.
Ladybirds are remarkably promiscuous. As many as a thousand individual ladybirds have been observed aggregating, apparently for the purpose of having sex – and it seems just for the hell of it. During these aggregations the beetles copulate often, but no ovipositing (egg-laying) females or larval ladybird beetles can be observed. Incidentally, ladybirds have the highest prevalence of sexually transmitted diseases of virtually any insect. And London ladybirds are top of the STD league, with more than 90% being affected.Ladybird and STDs! Somehow I can't imagine these two together.
The child was initially named Muhammad Tsunami, but after advice from neighbors, Nadiah changed the name.(via Metafilter)
"Muhammad Tsunami is such a bad name. If you are stuck with that name, the child could be haunted by bad luck in the future," said the neighbors.
Nadiah, whose husband was a small-time fisherman before the tsunami and now works in a recovery project, said she hoped little Rizal could contribute to the community.
This year's leap second will be implemented by adding an extra second to atomic clocks at NIST in Boulder, Colo., and other sites around the world. Normally, the last second of the year would be 23:59:59 UTC on Dec. 31, 2005, while the first second of the new year would be 00:00:00 UTC on Jan. 1, 2006. The leap second will be added at 23:59:59 UTC (06:59:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time) on Dec. 31, so that atomic clocks will read 23:59:60 UTC before changing to all zeros.Great! We can blow our horns an extra second before 2006 comes.
Evelyn Rodriguez was one of the many who experienced the tsunami on Phi Phi Island, Thailand. She wrote in her blog Crossroad Dispatches saying she was slammed by tidal waves but she is ok. She said she was on the beach and was too slow to react when the tsunami hit. Soon she was floating in rapids containing debris, wood and other building materials. In her latest entry she wrote:Today, she is back at Phi Phi Island, the place where she was nearly killed last year. From Crossroad Dispatches:
Things are absolute madhouse here. Looks like a marketplace with tents and booths - but nothing is being sold just given away. Thousands of people here sorting through embassy stuff here. The government of Thailand and the people here have been absolutely wonderful providing free clothing, water, toiletries, food, accomodations, flights back to Bangkok and on and on.
Glad to know you're safe Evelyn.
We stood for a minute of silence at 10:15 a.m. this morning.Over at a BBC newsforum, people who are affected by the tsunami are sharing their views and experiences. From BBC:
Later after the deputy prime minster has spoken, we file towards the bay. A six or seven-year old blond girl with a white sundress gently bows and places her palms into a triangular wai.
She lays a white orchid given to each surviving family member at the ceremony by the altar ledge fringed with flowers, photos, incense sticks and remembrances circling the banyan tree wrapped in rainbow colored sashes. Her mother stands behind with the jeweled bay stark in the background.
My wife and I went to visit Thailand during the weeks following the tsunami.It was Chinese New Year and many chinese people visit Phuket at that time but did not do so in 2005 as they were afraid of ghosts.The Thai people need the tourist to come back more than donations.Many jobs were lost due to the devastation but you could see the rebuilding effort starting even then.The Thai people have never been conquered and the tsunami and its effects will soon be defeated.Ernest Rodriquez (not related to Evelyn above) also survived the tsunami. He was in Phuket when the tsunami hit. I did an interview with him on January 4. This is the post taken from my old blog.
Visit Thailand
-roger eldridge, hong kong
I was in Bangkok on 26/12/04 . In response to the horror that unfolded during that day, the hotel in which I was staying sent around a notice asking guests willing to donate blood to gather the next morning to be taken to the Red Cross.Well, there must have been 200 people there...all nationalities, religions,races, ethnicities.In the midst of the tsunami horror it gave me a strong and quite moving sense of being part of a world community
-Paul, Melbourne
There were many people who witnessed the tsunami and live to tell their story. Ernest Rodriguez is one of them. Ernest is teaching at a private school in Bangkok. He was in Phuket to celebrate Christmas when the disaster happened. He talked to me recently about his experience.Tag: tsunami
"I was at Patong Beach Phuket, Club One Seven, a small gay owned B & B when at 8am I felt a small tremor," said Ernest. According to him, it was only until 10am did the tsunami hit the beach. "There was no warning. The water moved in at a VERY quick pace. It first receded about 3/4 of a mile then returned in about 15 seconds," he explained.
Ernest was having breakfast on the front patio of the B & B. When he saw the wave crossed the street, he ran yelling for his boyfriend and his friend to run up the stairs to the 4th floor of the building. The water, he said, reached the top of the second floor. He saw 3 people- 2 Thais who had gone out to the beach after the water receded to pick up all the fish that were flopping around on the sand and 1 female tourist who had been laying on a beach chair- washed away in the first wave. When I asked him if anyone knew there was an earthquake, he said,"Around 9:30 am, a friend of mine in Bangkok sent me an SMS Text message asking if I had felt an earthquake."
Ernest and his friends survived the tsunami because of his quick thinking. He will forever remember that fateful day after Christmas.
When Donald meets Donna - MacDonald's & Madonna
With any value meal purchased, you get to choose from 6 one of its kind Madonna Confession dolls! One available each week! There is the "Mad About Yoga" Doll - limbs all disjointed for maximum flexibility and free play. The "I’m No Longer A Virgin" Doll - clothes tainted and torn emblazed with words like “Slut” and "Whore”, comes with removable undies. The "I Love Making Out with Britney" Doll - featuring ensemble worn at the MTV Music Awards with pouting red lips that stamps “Britney” on every possible surface. Lip ink is refillable. To find out more, log onto www.mcdonna.com/dolls
Grandma: Wah…good leh… AH BOY AH! You wan to eat Madonna or not har? Got flea thing leh!
Ah Boy: Eee..dounch wan, she looks like a man.
James Kouri's "Coeur a Corps" featured a dance floor around which a black curtain would swing every half hour. People hidden behind the drapery could then take part in or watch sex acts...I heard that after the ruling, the two clubs gave special memberships to the judges. Nah, I'm joking. Really! (Thanks xXx)
Members of Labaye's club could enter a locked room where they could participate in or watch any kind of sex act.
"It's a commercial establishment where people reconvene and practice swapping or swinging, even orgy gang-bangs," said Labaye's lawyer, Robert La Haye.
"It does not contaminate society. It does not hurt, it does not do any harm to society and to the public in general."
Andrew Tang Li-Hern, a 10-year-old boy from Singapore, has clinched the Asian Karting championships title in Macau.I'm going to take you on Andrew! Name your track, time and date.
It's the region's leading karting championship and was held over the weekend.
The student from St Michael's School may just be Singapore's answer to Germany's Michael Schumacher.
"I walked out on that dark beach thinking I was going to hook up with the girl of my dreams," the rattled bachelor later admitted. "And there she was, wearing white shorts and a pink tank top, just like she'd said she would.Kids, becareful who you date from the internet. LOL.
"But when I got close, she turned around -- and we both got the shock of our lives. I mean, I didn't know what to say. All I could think was, 'Oh my God! it's Mama!' "
Facts and FiguresTT Durai is a bad man, most of you would say. Hey wait a minute. He did turn down a salary of $30,000 a month to accept only $25,000. Awwww. Ain't that a nice gesture.
• In 1995: TT Durai's pay was increased from $12,000 to $18,000. The promotion was back-dated six months, so he received another $36,000. Durai also received a $30,000 bonus "top-up" based on the revised salary.
• In 1997: Durai was offered a salary of $30,000 a month but he chose to accept only $25,000, a $7,000 increase over his previous wage. The increment was backdated 11 months, amounting to an extra $77,000.
• Sept 1997 - Oct 2003: Durai claimed overtime pay amounted to $187,000
• May 1995 - Nov 2003: Durai encashed his leave entitlement which brought in another $350,000.
• In 2004: Durai chalked up an average bill of $32,952 per month on his corporate credit card.
• In 2004: $70,000 spent on "study trip" to Las Vegas for six of NKF's staff, including Durai, to get fresh ideas on doing charity shows
• In 2004: $430,000 spent on movie and concert tickets to be given free to "nurture" donors
• Staff recevied pay increments as many as four times a year. Former director Matilda Chua's salary rose from $1,300 to $12,500 over nine years.
• Staff were given exit payments of up to 10 months' salary.
• In 2004: NKF made profits of $993,677 from drug sales. Although the NKF claimed it helped its patients save over $3.5 million in treatment costs, it had charged its patients a premium for certain discounted drugs, instead of passing the savings on to them.
• Feb 2004 - May 2005: $322,000 spent on travel, mostly first class for Durai and his former board and senior volunteers
Q: Aside from the motion capture, were your facial expressions transferred as well?Previous: King Kong Island is fantasy
SERKIS: Absolutely. ... The main difference between Gollum and Kong was that with Gollum, my performance was done on 35-millimeter and the animators copied my facial expressions. But with this, we used facial motion capture, which was wearing 132 dots all over my face. The animators had to do work on the lower mouth area because the muzzle of a gorilla is slightly more immobile than a human mouth. But in terms of the expression and the transferring of emotion through facial features, all of the acting is transferred, particularly through the eyes, onto this (computer-generated) puppet.
Widespread flooding has crippled agricultural centers and killed dozens as heavy rains continue across Southeast Asia.Previous: Reporting the floods in Malaysia
Nineteen people were killed in southern Thailand in the past week, raising to 35 the death toll in the region's worst floods in nearly 30 years, the Thai Interior Ministry said yesterday.
Relief agencies rushed food, clothes and blankets to nine provinces, including three bordering Malaysia, where more than 700,000 people have been affected, the ministry said.
In Malaysia, six people have died in Kelantan, the worst affected of four northern states hit by floods since Friday, the government said.
About 30,000 people were evacuated in the four states, but many have returned home as floodwaters receded in some areas.
In Happy Days, Morita was balding, graying and goateed. In The Karate Kid, he was bald, gray and goateed. In Stars & Stripes, though, he was 35, clean-shaven, dark-haired and beatnik cool in a fishing hat, mock turtleneck and lit cigarette—he couldn’t have accessorized better if he’d brought Sammy Davis Jr. along for the photo shoot.
Since when did Morita get so, in a word (mine), cool? About the same time I recognized he wasn’t just a face, an actor or an icon.
The truth is, up until the day I wrote his obituary, Pat Morita was one of those people about whom I never imagined writing an obituary, chiefly because I never imagined Pat Morita dying. Dying means he would have lived, as a living, breathing person. Dying means he would have been mortal, no matter how many years he carried on henceforth in the cable universe. Above all, dying means he would have been human.
Everything was covered by yellowish water, I couldn’t see the road, and was not sure whether I would fall into a drain, praying to GOD to take good care of me, when my car was almost stuck in the middle of the flood area.Part two of his report:
Fortunately the engine didn’t stall but was emitting lots of smelly smokes, something was burning and I had no idea, I had no other choice but to keep going, “life of Journalist, what else can I expect”, don’t even think your company will pay for the car damages, SUCK!
This is the most serious in last 30 years, but why the water LIKE to come in the end of the year? Last year I was sent to Indonesia right after Christmas on 26 December,Withnessed the outcome of TSUNAMI.
This year before I leave for my Christmas holidays, I have to cover the story of the most serious flood in the region.I think Christmas next year I shouldn’t plan any holiday, just in case!
The island is 225 acres in size, 1 mile long by 1/3 mile wide and 150 feet high, with numerous caves and tide pools to explore. It was an operating coconut plantation in the 19th century; therefore the entire island is littered with coconut palms. It is surrounded by a 5,000 acre plus lagoon which almost completely encircles the island, offering protection from extreme tides and providing the island with calm tranquil waters ideally suited for water sports. The crystal clear water has up to 200-foot visibility and is a comfortable 80 degrees Fahrenheit most of the year.Sounds like heaven! The island is available for US$25m. Time to start saving. (Thanks Peter P)
The island is home to rare coconut crabs, giant clams, leather back turtles, doves, and many other birds and marine mammals. The island has instituted a strict conservation program to ensure the preservation of all marine and wild life. Guests will marvel at the pristine ecosystem while indulging themselves at a luxurious five star resort.
Then, in early December, while Howard and Grazer were in Paris auditioning actresses for the film's female lead, they got a call from the office of French President Jacques Chirac inviting them to swing by and say bonjour. "We thought it was going to be a five-minute thing, like a trip to the Oval Office—a photo and a handshake," says Grazer. But Chirac asked them to sit down and get comfortable. Coffee was poured. They ended up staying close to an hour. Chirac insisted that his guests alert him if their request to film at the Louvre hit any snags. Not only that, he offered them some ... pointers. He suggested they cast his daughter's best friend—an actress of some acclaim in France—in the role of Sophie Neveu, the elegant young cryptographer at the heart of the book's mystery. And he wondered aloud, half seriously, if they could sweeten the paycheck for actor Jean Reno, who'd already been cast as the relentless French detective Bezu Fache. "That was hilarious," says Howard. "Fortunately the deal was already closed."(Thanks Duffie)
NKF (sung to the tune of Jingle Bells)
Flying in the air
On a first class plane
Over the clouds we go
Laughing all the way;
Money from public calls
making spirits bright
What fun it is to ride and sing
A fucking song tonight
NKF
NKF
Durai all the way!
O what fun it is to ride
On a first class plane
Now the truth is out
Escape before you're caught
Take the peanuts along
And sing this fucking song;
NKF
NKF
Durai all the way!
O what fun it is to ride
On a first class plane
Yesterday, I blogged about the hidden items in the Da Vinci Code movie website. Reader Ray Barsa thinks he may have found another hidden item. He says, "In the beginning, there is what looks to be a fleur-de-lis in the clouds!" (Thanks Ray)
1. the main dance arena in the centre, playing signature MoS techno and might I add rather disappointingly too.. may be if I was off my face, I might have enjoyed it but that kinda leaves ;Aze says MoS Singapore rawks! From AzE's pLaZe:
2. Pure, the white room which plays lounge. Hmmm not sure why, but it felt very Velvet-esque except that everything was so bright.. the floors were white, but not for long - clubbers do not have clean shoes!;
3. Smoove, the hip-hop/r'n'b room, with a rather kinky cage surrounding the dance floor. I do like my r'n'b but sad to say, I couldn't get my groove really going to the music they played;
4. 54, yes as you may have guessed, disco music and lit-up dance floor. Think John Travolta. No further comment.
5. Various VIP rooms/sections.
the door host is reallly friendly..just like Ning at Momo..enter and head to the baggage counter..super friendly counter staff..even wished me an enjoyable nite as i turned to walk off..enter the club..whoa..a caged arena..this was the RnB room..bits of graffiti..very ghetto la..cool..but the space pretty much reminds me of Coccolatte..reaffirmed by the fact that much later into the nite when i revisited the room..the dancefloor was so packed it brought me back to my experiences at Latte..at 10pm..the door were flung open and we were allowed to access the rest of the rooms..entering the main room..i immediately was reminded of MOS Taipei..the layout was damn similiar..it was uncanny..well..cept for the grand staircases leading up to the other levels were replaced with a unnoticable spiral stairs and get this..AN ESCALATOR!! WTF!! an escalator in a club in Sg..tt is so unheard of la!!Kelvin Chung rates and compares both MoS and Zouk. Guess who wins. From Kelvin Chung:
MUSIC:
zouk 6.5
mos 8
ORGANIZATION:
zouk 8
mos 5 (perhaps due to the fact that it's opening day? we shall see)
INTERIOR DECOR:
zouk 6
mos 8
BOUNCER EQ & IQ (whatever.... anything's gotta do with bouncers):
zouk 8
mos 4 (so sorry but that particular cb bouncer failed this)
DRINKS:
zouk 8
mos 6
SERVICE:
zouk 8
mos 7
zouk 44.5/60
mos 38/60
* Every dollar Australians spend on new clothes consumes 20 litres of water and requires 3.4 square metres of land. Last Christmas, Australians spent $1.5 billion on clothes, which required more than half a million hectares of land to produce.(Thanks Ju)
* Approximately 42 gigalitres of water (or 42,000 Olympic sized swimming pools) were used in the production of our Christmas drinks last December. Most of this water was used growing barley for beer and grapes for wine.
* Before we even plugged in the DVD players and coffee makers we bought last Christmas, they had created 780,000 tonnes of greenhouse pollution. A third of this was due to fuel consumption by the manufacturers of the appliances; greenhouse pollution embodied in steel contributed to a quarter of the pollution.
* If you spend around $30 on chocolates and lollies this Christmas, you'll be consuming 20kg of natural materials (even if the box of chocolates weighs only 1 kilogram) and 940 litres of water.
Memory Training: Brainteasers, crossword puzzles and memory exercises that emphasized verbal skills throughout the day.
Healthy Diet: Five meals daily included a balanced diet rich in omega-3 fats, whole grains and antioxidants. Eating frequent meals prevents dips in blood glucose, the primary energy source for the brain.
Physical Fitness: Brisk daily walks and stretching. Physical fitness has been found in other research to reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease.
Stress Reduction: Stretching and relaxation exercises. Stress causes the body to release cortisol, which can impair memory and has been found to shrink the memory centers in the brain.
Male lions "head-rub" and roll around with each other, while vampire bats develop erections during erotic same-sex grooming and licking. Whales and dolphins rub their bodies together and stroke each other with their flippers or tail flukes. Male giraffes indulge in prolonged bouts of affectionate "necking", often followed by mounting and culminating in apparent orgasm. Novel sexual postures and oral sex of various kinds are also commonplace, says Bagemihl, who notes that female long-eared hedgehogs are known to engage in mutual genital licking, while male orang-utans practice fellatio.Lions, whales, bats! They are all doing it. Wikipedia has a list of animals who are practicing homosexuality. Browse through the list and you will know what I mean. But there is one animal that practice homosexual sex in vast quantities. Presenting the Bonobos. From the article earlier:
"Nearly every type of same-sex activity found among humans has its counterpart in the animal kingdom," he concludes. His take-home message is simple: homosexual behaviour is as "natural" as heterosexual behaviour.
There is one species, however, in which pleasure and homosexual activity seem undeniably linked. Even the sceptical Clutton-Brock, when asked about this species, the bonobos or pygmy chimpanzees, agrees laughingly, "Oh them, well, they'd probably do anything".The bonobos. You've got to love 'em. Yeah, baby! Yeah!
"If you're looking for homosexual sex in vast quantities, forget humans, it's bonobos you want," says primatologist Robin Dunbar. "It's scandalous," he chuckles. "They'll have sex with anyone, never mind the sex or age." An observer doesn't have to wait long to notice females locked into a face-to-face embrace all the better to indulge in mutual genital rubbing, or spy males glued together via open-mouthed kisses with plentiful mutual tongue stimulation.
"The notion that dinosaurs could survive on a tiny mid-oceanic island is preposterous," said John Terborgh, a professor of environmental science at Duke University in Raleigh, North Carolina.I also found out something interesting from this article. Remember Gollum in the Lord of the Rings? The person who played Gollum is also playing King Kong. He provides the movement and voice for Kong. But don't expect him to say out his trademark word, "Precious". King Kong is now showing in Singapore cinemas.
"Islands, even moderately large ones, are notoriously devoid of large predators," he said. "The two largest predators on Cuba are a lizard and the red-tailed hawk. The whole notion of apex predators on islands is fantasy."
“It’s true that some experts, after analysing data, have predicted that the epicentre of (the next) earthquake in our region will be further north, towards the Andaman and Nicobar islands and that this will cause greater effect in the Straits of Malacca.(Thanks Chan)
“But it’s irresponsible to cause panic by spreading any message stating the exact time that a tsunami will occur,” he told reporters after launching a seminar on e-community by Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia here yesterday.
“Anybody getting messages warning of a tsunami over the next few weeks should ignore them. They're not true,” said Kong.
A flying ghost at Changi Hospital, a playful tree spirit at Bedok Reservoir and the ghost of a girl who died at the famous Yellow Tower at...