Sugar Frosted Flakes and Sarees

Choices...choices... Last week, I chose sugar frosted flakes over regular corn flakes. I know that corn flakes without sugar is the healthier option. But I decided against that and opted for the not-so-good-for-my-health bowl. Maybe life's monotony prompted me to make that decision. Yummy, sweet, and sinful. That would probably be the subliminal message conveyed on the shirt which says: Sugar Frosted Flake. I bought the shirt, finished the bowl, and continued with my life. Sugar frosted flakes added a dash of surprise to life's sameness and I think I needed that.

We'll never know but one day I might again be too tired of my so-called routine life. Who knows, maybe one day, I might probably wear a saree* instead of my usual jeans-shirt-sneakers attire.


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*saree - from the Sanskrit word 'sati', which means strip of cloth; a dress worn primarily by Hindu women; consists of several yards of light material that is draped around the body.

NOTE: The image above shows me wearing the shirt and asking for a demo on how to wear the saree.

Goodbye My Lover

Three months ago, I told myself I am not in love. Now, I have come to know you well and I have been addicted to you. I thought I will never say this to myself, but I think I have fallen in love with the city.

I missed Singapore's utopian facade, freshly-cut grass, diverse people, and almost-perfect environment. I took everything for granted and realized the truth in Janet Jackson's/Joni Mitchell's Got 'Till It's Gone lyrics --- don't it always seem to go that you don't know what you've got 'till it's gone.

I have said goodbye but I will still hold on to the memories which have touched my heart and my soul. As James Blunt has aptly defined it --- goodbye my lover.

First Day in Bombay*

Some unforgettable lines I have heard today:

Mumbaikar 1: I was looking at you while you were crossing the street and you looked so scared...
Mumbaikar 2: I don't get what you mean.
Non-Mumbaikar 1: Pilipino kayo?
Mumbaikar 3: Acha**
Mumbaikar 4: Haah***...Haah...

It was quite an experience for me, an enriching one I may say. It's a different world here and I need to master the art of tenacity.

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*Bombay - from the Portuguese word Bom Baia which means Good Bay; an old name for the city of Mumbai, a city in western India just off the coast of the Arabian Sea; India's 2nd largest city (after Calcutta).
**Acha - Hindi word for OK.
***Haah - Hindi word for Yes. (So pag sinabi ko na hahaha...yesyesyes pala yun dito...)

Collide's Sequel

A Waltz for a Night from the movie Before Sunrise.

***Got this from Ash.

Les Misérables

Even though you do a lot of good to others, you will still meet some people who try to destroy your day.

These are the ones who lead miserable lives and they cannot help but make the lives of happy people miserable. Hah!

It's a good thing someone gave me a lollipop. I'm eating it now and the sweetness melts away my frustration.

No matter how kind you are, no matter how many smiles you have given to others, something or someone may come and wash away that sunshine. But the good thing is there will always be a new day and it may even be a very sunny day.

Positive thinking is the key.

The Conversion

I have been converted. I have never really listened to Hed Kandi stuff before (well maybe except 2 or 3 songs). I never knew House music can have gospel songs. Last Friday, I watched Peyton live in the Ministry of Sound (SG) and I loved his songs. He sang I'll Rise, A Higher Place and one song (which I don't know the title) with some 'this little light of mine, i'm gonna let it shine..' lyrics. Awesome!

My curiosity led me to search for Hed Kandi stuff and eventually Peyton-related info. I found out he was one of the members of the Queer Eye for the Straight Guy (UK version), an artist, and a Preacher's son. I found out that I'll Rise was derived from Maya Angelou's poem Still I Rise.

Nice tunes + amazing lyrics = my sounds. Now I can't wait to get hold of his cds and mp3s.

Success or Greatness

Watching the film Elizabethtown made me think of the difference between success and greatness. If you read newspapers, watch TV, or just observe the world, you will realize that the world is more concerned with success than greatness. Schools reward the students who get the correct answers while companies measure an employee's performance if the actual result is equal to or greater than the expected outcome.

If you don't succeed, you might as well vanish into thin air because in the eyes of everyone --- you have failed.

What these people don't realize is that even though you failed, there is a thing called greatness which can never be measured. This intangible quality is the one that is almost always forgotten. We often forget to take note of a person's generosity, martyrdom, positivism, and kindness. If one possesses these characters, he/she can be called great because one does more than what is expected of him/her.

Should this really be a choice for us? Can we be successful and great at the same time?

As promised

As promised, here is one of the pictures taken while driving along Star Tollway.
The challenge: Taking a picture while inside a car cruising at the speed of 100kmh.
The result: Blurred pic capturing the sunset, coconut trees, and highway.
The caveat: Don't do this while driving. Ask someone to do it for you.

L-M-B

It felt good to dive in and take a risk.
It felt good to stay committed to one of my resolutions.

Now the time has come to set myself free.
Time to move on.