Diary of A Coffee Addict

Awesome hoodies!

2010-03-30T23:58:00.001+11:00

Hmmm...hhehehe.. no posts at all in March :D

Was too lazy to post anything here... I like doing my research before writing anything and just couldn't muster enough motivation to do the homework last month.

But anyway...
I was inspired to write about this by a friend who got this really cool hoodie by Paul Frank and she put up a pic of her in it as her Facebook profile picture!

Monkey Ears Boys Fleece Hoodie
(Source: http://shop.paulfrank.com/store/productdetails.aspx?productid=2023&cs=1)

- Full zip fleece with standard screenprint . Has fleece Julius ears attached to hood.

Cute, huh ? Would make a good pressie for your 'monkey' siblings

Was fascinated enough with the hoodie to google for more info on it.... and the next minute I had a collection of images of some REALLY QUIRKY hoodies.

Just to feature a couple of the designs I found:-

1. The 'Monster'
(Source: http://www.monsterhoodies.com/)

'MonsterHoodies' are hooded sweatshirts with teeth sewn into the hood and some googly eyes glued on. They're made by Jen Dunlap and Zach Smith, and are modified/made from American Apparel Unisex California Fleece Zip Hoodies.

The 'monster' hoodie- it can double up as a Halloween costume :D

From top left, going clockwise: Dinosaurus Rex (the green one), Neko Gato, Shark Bite, and Monster Kun

2. The 'Ninja'
(Source: http://www.brianwoodonline.com/)

The ninja hoodie is part of the ‘We Shall Overcome’ Fall/Winter 2008 collection by Brianwood.The collection offers stylish yet edgy pieces for the fashionistas living in cold weather.

A 'convertible' fashionable statement- from a stylish jacket to a cool ninja hoodie... so cool right? XD

3. The 'Batman'

(Source: http://www.superherostuff.com/characters/Batman/images/batman-lot-29-hoodie.html)

There are many variations of Batman hoodies, but this one's the most 'impressive' (funniest) one I've seen so far.

From Lot 29, supposedly one of the leading urban street-wear fashion labels, this hoodie actually has muscles, a utility belt and even has Batman's face drawn onto it! You can zip it all up and peer out of two mesh eye holes (the type where you can see through without allowing others to see you), completing the look of one of the most popular comic characters of all time-Batman.

All shiny and sleek, would love to see any of my guy friends in one of these, lol =P

4. The 'Blow-up Doll'

(Source: http://gizmodo.com/tag/sander-reijgers/)

Can this be any weirder?

By designer Sander Reijgers, he explains:

"I customize existing tracksuit tops with parts of the blow-up dolls – the head, the breasts, the vagina, the anus. These dolls are so ugly and vulgar that turning them into something beautiful has become a challenge for me. The doll is a means to convey something else."

Hahahhaaha... what the...??!!!

I'm not convinced in any way that this is beautiful...lol

The idea of wearing the doll's skin as a tracksuit... blearrgh!

5. The 'Stormtrooper'
(Source: http://gizmodo.com/5056931/admit-it-the-stormtrooper-hoodie-is-a-little-tempting)

Huge fan of Starwars?

Then this hoodie is perfect for you. The Real Trooper hoodie from Marc Ecko has a “Storm Trooper” body and a hood that looks like a mask, zip welt pockets, rib knit sleeve cuffs and hem.

6. The 'Bunny' & 'Teddybear' (Source: http://cgi.ebay.com/)

Punk/gothic lolita style bunny hoodie/jumper

And if you are looking for the more 'kawaii' type of Jap-inspired hoodies, MinkyShop carries a wide range of funky and outlandish outfits.

Hmm... definitely find them more suited for cosplaying than casual wear though.

Top: Limited edition pink bunny ear hoodie/jumper

Below: Mocha coffee teddy bear hoodie, also available in blue

Awwwwww...

7. The 'Huff and Puff'

(Source: http://www.ahoodie.com/new-lrg-hoodie-the-huff-and-puff-zip-up/)

This hoodie also by Ahoodie features a well-designed, wolf head with scary fangs. The hood doesn’t zip all the way like the usual ones you get, instead it is made to appear as though you had cloaked yourself in the bloody carcass of a wolf.

Quote of the day:
" I love strange choices. I'm always interested in people who depart from what is expected of them and go into new territory. " - Cate Blanchett

'Qualified' coffee addict ;P

2009-02-24T20:20:00.007+11:00

Woooohoo! :) ... The coffee addict/lover (that's me) is now a certified

ba·ris·ta (source: Merriam-Webster)
Pronunciation: bə-ˈrēs-tə, bä-ˈrēs-tä\
Etymology: Italian, person working behind a bar

: a person who makes and serves coffee (as espresso) to the public

Can make a real cappuccino (my coffee) now *grin

What's Your Coffee Personality? Take the quiz here: Myspace Quiz

My results:

You're cappuccino! (p.s. that's true- this IS my fave coffee)

Easy-going and calm, you know how to have fun, but you also know how to buckle down and work. So go you! Your life is pretty well balanced, and so is your coffee habit, too. No worries about caffeine addiction here.

Quote of the day: (source: quotegarden)

'Behind every successful woman is a substantial amount of coffee. ' ~Stephanie Piro

The Sleeping Bear

2009-02-21T11:40:00.011+11:00

For those of you who are planning to go for a backpacking trip(s) and are currently looking to get a sleeping bag, check this out! :D

Featured in an exhibition in the Sandberg Institute in Amsterdam, this fantastic sleeping bag, ''The Bear" is designed by Eiko Ishizawa, a Japanese-born designer who has been living and studying in Amsterdam since 2000. (more on designer's profile here)

It's not only a great way to stay warm and comfy during camping trips, its also an ingenious way to scare your friends. (Pictures from eikoishizawa)

Quote of the day: (source: bizcommunity)

"I like nonsense, it wakes up the brain cells. Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living, it's a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope. Which is what I do, and that enables you to laugh at life's realities." - Dr. Theodore Geisel, a.k.a. Dr. Seuss

Great movie - Slumdog Millionaire

2009-02-20T23:27:00.011+11:00

Just watched 'Slumdog Millionaire' yesterday and LOVED LOVED LOVED the movie!!!

Its by far the best movie I've watched in a while. If you haven't watched this film yet, make sure you don't miss out on this one.

Critically acclaimed, this movie has won five Critics' Choice Awards, four Golden Globes and seven BAFTA Awards, including Best Film, and has been nominated for ten Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

The movie poster (source: here)

I'm NOT going to spoil it for you guys, but I'll provide a brief plot summary to entice you guys and girls out there to get movie tickets for this.

The plot:

The film centers around Jamal Malik, a Hindu-Muslim orphan from the slums of Mumbai. He is about to win 20 million rupees on India's " Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?". However, he is suspected of cheating and is arrested by the police. The plot develops from there, as he recalls how he managed to answer all the questions correctly purely by chance, with the knowledge he gained from his life experiences.

In a nutshell, the movie depicts of the extreme poverty of some people in India, and is a realistic portrayal of how people would do almost anything for money and to survive.

There were some scenes of the movie, where I just had to look away- too disgusting! ...also scenes of some of the practices in India, which were really shocking; all this adds up to make this movie such a memorable one.

Sounds interesting, right? Now go watch it!

To see more plot summaries, click here.

Quote of the day:

“Poverty is the worst form of violence.” - Mahatma Ghandi (source: Thinkexist)

Why design?

2009-02-19T14:16:00.026+11:00

" ...can you imagine, from the stupid bacteria, today we have become 'the supermonkey' with the microphone, with the computer, but we are but at half the story... as bacteria, we had no idea what we would be like today, and today we have no idea what we shall be in 4 billions years" - Phillip Starke on the human evolution.

Funny guy- Phillip Starke, a great designer and expressive speaker

For those not in the know, Philippe Starck is a legend of modern design, a French product designer who dabbles in everything to do with design- from designing clothes and toothbrushes to toilet seats! His work does not revolve around designing merely provocative and expensive single pieces. Instead, his product designs are of usable household items which is targeted towards the masses.

He's also known for his interior designs for several luxurious hotels around the world -- notably the Peninsula Hotel restaurant in Hong Kong, the Teatron in Mexico, the Hotel Delano in Miami, the Mondrian in Los Angeles, the Asia de Cuba restaurant in New York -- designing the total environment from layout to furniture to linens. (biography from TED blog & Wikipedia)

In essence, his observations on the purpose of design comes down to this:- we need to continue to create new stories for ourselves and leave our mark in history because this will help our next generation to create better tools and designs.

One of his best quotes, "Nobody is obliged to be a genius but everyone is obliged to participate...that's why I continue to work even it's for a toilet brush."

Watch him talk on his "duty of vision" here:- (source: TED blog)

I just loved the sound effects he made when he was talking about the evolution (or mutation, as he calls it) of man - absolutely hilarious! :D

Quote of the day: (source: here)

"Limitations live only in our minds. But if we use our imaginations, our possibilities become limitless." - Jamie Paolinetti

"Extreme" green buildings

2009-02-18T22:03:00.016+11:00

Green buildings are BIG in the architectural world, if you don't realise this yet...and will probably become even bigger as time goes by.

Just to feature of a couple of interesting "green architecture" projects I've seen lately. These projects are not just eco-friendly, but they actually give back to the environment! (source: Trendhunter)

1. Miyi Tower, China by Studio Shift & SWA Group

I'm so in love with this 3D-render of the tower, pretty, right?! :)

This is a competition-winning project by LA based architects Studio SHIFT and SWA Group proposed to revitalize New South Town in the Sichuan Provence of China.

The above-ground portion of China’s Miyi Tower will be a community space which will feature educational, entertainment and community programs aiming to promote Chinese heritage and natural resources. There will be an auditorium, restaurants and exhibition spaces implemented throughout.

What is most impressive about the building, happens below this community space. It will feature the latest mechanical and natural filtration system in the southern portion of the tower will filter the heavily-polluted Anning River and thereby transform it into a habitat to support a thriving ecosystem.

2. Lilypad, a floating ecopolis for climate refugees by Vincent Callebaut Architects

This cool futuristic looking building is a prototype of auto-sufficient amphibious (both land and water) city. The project deals with solving the issue of water rising in the world today.

"It is a true amphibian, half aquatic and half terrestrial city, able to accommodate 50,000 inhabitants and inviting the biodiversity to develop its fauna and flora around a central lagoon of soft water collecting and purifying the rain waters.

This floating ecopolis takes care of the balance of the oceanic ecosystems by producing and softening itself the oxygen and the electricity, by recycling the CO2 and the waste, by purifying and softening biologically the used waters and by integrating ecological niches, aquaculture fields and biotic corridors on and under its body to meet its own food needs. " (source: link here)

3. Green 'Lungs' for urban area, Gothenburg, Sweden by Kjellgren Kaminsky Architects

Designed with the concept of a pair of green lungs, the project is designed to help the metropolitan area "breathe". It consists of 5,000 new apartments all outfitted with living green roofs on a block used for football fields and a parking lot.

The design forms "a series of gently flowing hills, a lovely terrain laced with pathways and plenty of perfect spots for picnics. These green roofs provide excellent insulation to the buildings beneath while absorbing rain that can be purified and reused as household water.

The project also includes plans for the local cultivation of fruits and vegetables, and after development the site will feature a much greater biomass than before."(kjellgrenkaminsky.se)

Quote of the day:- (source: here)

"A lot of people are under the false illusion that green building and energy efficiency is expensive and available only to the wealthy, but there are lots of examples of the economic opportunities that responding to climate change is going to give us." - Dee Eggers (associate professor of environmental studies at UNC-Asheville and a member of the state's Legislative Commission on Global Climate Change)

Happy Valentine's Day !

2009-02-13T18:16:00.023+11:00

Its 14th of February tomorrow, the most lovey-dovey day of the year,(and the most profitable to florists), also known as Valentine's day.

So HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY in advance to everyone!!!

Anyway, some random facts on Valentine's Day:- (source:Wikipedia, yes I'm a fan of Wiki if you don't know already)

I rather like the Japanese way of celebrating the special day.
Unlike the usual flowers/card and romantic dinner, in Japan, they do it a little differently. If you follow Jap culture -Jdoramas and animes, you would know :)

In 1960, Morinaga, one of Japan's biggest confectionaries, advertised and started the present custom of women giving chocolates to men and today, it has become almost a tradition associated with Vday.

"Giri-choko"/"obligation chocolate" is presented to their male friends (whom they are not interested in romantically), teachers, bosses, and colleagues, the "tomo-choko"/"friendship chocolate" exchanged between girl friends, while the "honmei-choko"/"true love chocolate" is given to their loved one.

By the way, the girls usually make the chocolate themselves as chocolates bought from the store are thought to reflect lack of sincerity (especially if they want to express their affection for their crushes/partner in this manner). So, they will get the ingredients and whip up a batch of chocs from scratch by themselves.

Japanese women are so hardworking, aren't they!

"Lucky Star" girls and their Valentine chocolates (Source: Kawasumi Hirito 's blog)

In reciprocation, the men return gifts to the women on March 14-White Day. This seems quite fair, a give and take system of celebrating Vday. I'm guessing the guys would really appreciate this "system" as usually, they are the ones making the romantic plans (and footing the bill?).

In South Korea, they have a similiar practice to Japan's - women give chocolate to men on February 14, and men give non-chocolate candy to women on March 14.

However, in addition to this, there is even a Black Day on April 14th dedicated to those who did not receive anything on either days, where they will go to a Chinese restaurant for black noodles, "jajangmeun" and "mourn" their single life.

HAHAHA.. i can almost imagine these "mourners" flocking to Chinese restaurants, and it turning into some kind of singles get-together event. :D

Quote of the day: (source here)

"I don't understand why Cupid was chosen to represent Valentine's Day. When I think about romance, the last thing on my mind is a short, chubby toddler coming at me with a weapon." ~Author Unknown

Summer heat driving people crazy??!

2009-02-08T01:16:00.006+11:00

So, I was chatting on msn with a friend just now, and he made an incredibly funny statement...one I find worth sharing:- ;P

Warning: Manglish and grammatically incorrect English has been used throughout, if this offends you, please do not read any further ;P

no internet = stress says: u know, summer very hot, a lot people break up

ing_^^ says: break up????

ing_^^ says: hah?

ing_^^ says: ahahahah

no internet = stress says: ya, already, 3 or 4 you know, strange

ing_^^ says: HAHAHAHA break up bcos hot?

ing_^^ says: what kinda stupid reason is that

ing_^^ says: he: eii u know its so hot.... she: ya, let's break up! lol
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and when I shared this story with my friend, callyn :-

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
ing_^^ says: so stupid right (note: the word "stupid" used here refers to situation not to any particular person/persons)

~ Callyn ~ I Is Idiot© says: HUH

~ Callyn ~ I Is Idiot© says: summer very hot = ppl break up?

~ Callyn ~ I Is Idiot© says: wat is the connection

ing_^^ says: THATS Y!!!

ing_^^ says: so stupid

~ Callyn ~ I Is Idiot© says: *menggaru kepala*

and the reason given:

" no internet = stress says: all like ended up with hot temperament one"
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ing_^^ says: wahhhaa

~ Callyn ~ I Is Idiot© says: bodohgila

ing_^^ says: bcos its 40degrees outside, so ppl breakup?!

LOL!!!

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just some random msn jargon used (for people who are not well-versed with internet language):

bcos = because

lol =laugh out loud

ppl= people

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Disclaimer: The information contained in this post is for general information purposes only. All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. :D

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Quote of the day:

Ah, summer, what power you have to make us suffer and like it. ~Russel Baker

Back from long-term hiatus

2008-11-19T12:26:00.012+11:00

I'm back!!!!

After a super long hiatus...and got quite a few complaints about it too...hehe.. feels good to be in demand :) So before I begin with my topic for the post:-

"Ahem ... i want to thank all my fans for supporting me all this while.. Thank you for your patience, I love you all.." (my syok sendiri speech) ;P lol

So anyway, for those who still don't know, I'm finally FRRRRREEEEE... free free free from architectural studies... after 5 years of study, I am now expected to join in the rat race, and make my contribution to society in my chosen field.

Too bad the times are so bad... D*mmit, heard so many stories of seniors being laid off work.. Scary!! sigh... getting a good job now isn't going to be easy... hmmm ...Well, things happen...going to try to be optimistic about it. :D

On another note, I was watching this recent movie starring Keira Knightley and Ralph Fiennes...

The movie poster (Source: Wikipedia)

The premise of the movie:-

"The Duchess, a film based on Amanda Foreman's best-selling biography of the scandalous, 18th-century English aristocrat Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire. Married young to the older, distant Duke of Devonshire, intimate of ministers and princes, Georgiana became a fashion icon, a doting mother, a shrewd political operator and darling of the common people. But at the core of the story is a desperate search for love. The film delves into Georgiana’s passionate and doomed affair with Earl Grey and the complex love triangle with her husband and her best friend, Lady Bess Foster."

OMG, I got so worked up because of it. How could women have allowed themselves to be treated that way. Treated like cattle and being mere possessions, used just to breed sons... argghh

There were so many characters to hate on the show.. Personally, I couldn't stand the Duke! Actually asking her(The Duchess) to take care of his illegitimate daughter.There was this scene when she was going into labour and he being the insensitive jerk, took lightly her cries of pain and continued to entertain at his dinner party.

ARGGGGGGGGGHHHH what kind of man is he? I wanted to strangle that guy so bad..

I thank God that I am living in the age of post-feminism, and I am forever grateful to the feminists who fought for women's rights.

A little bit of trivia on feminism for those interested. (Source: Wikipedia)

The feminist movement came in 3 waves. The first, (19th-early 20th century) was mainly for women's right to vote, the second, (early 1960s-1980s) more about women's liberation-fighting for legal and social equality, and ending sex discrimination, and the third, (early 1990s) was a response to the weaknesses of the second movement.

In the late 1960s, several symbols of femininity became targets of feminist activism. Feminists charged that these objects, reduced women to the status of sex objects.

A significant event in feminism, is the popular bra-burning culture, which was popularised during the now-notorious protest against the 1968 Miss America beauty pageant, seen as an oppression of women.

The "Tyra Banks Show"- Bra Burning (Source: Popcrunch)

About 400 women from the New York Radical Women were involved in a demonstration at the Atlantic City Convention Hall shortly after the Democratic National Convention. Protesters saw the pageant and its symbols as an oppression of women (because of its emphasis on an arbitrary standard of beauty, and its elevation of its choice of the "most beautiful girl in America" to a pedestal for public worship and commercial exploitation).

Contrary to the popular urban legend, the actual bra-burning DID NOT OCCUR.

They prepared a "Freedom Trash Can", which was placed on the ground, and filled with bras, high-heeled shoes, false eyelashes, girdles, curlers, hairspray, makeup, corsets, magazines (such as Playboy), and other items thought to be "instruments of torture", but did not get a permit to light up a fire, so no burning was carried out!

Okay, thats a long enough post for now
Will update my blog again when I find something else interesting enough to write about :)

Quote of the day:

Because I am a woman, I must make unusual efforts to succeed. If I fail, no one will say, "She doesn't have what it takes." They will say, "Women don't have what it takes." ~Clare Boothe Luce

My daily routine at the moment....SOooooo busy

2008-04-26T03:01:00.016+10:00

Its 3 am in the morn. Thought i'd just share a quick update on what i've been up to lately...

...i finally managed to submit an essay assignment a while ago... am very very busy with the workload from uni and office...going to faint from exhaustion soon, if this schedule keeps up.

A recap of my daily schedule for the past week:-

Monday
6.30 am- wake up and prepare for work
7.30am -leave for work
7.30pm -arrive back home
7.30-8.30pm- shower/dinner
8.30pm to 2am-write essay

Tuesday
6.30 am- wake up and prepare for work
7.30am -leave for work
7.30pm -arrive back home
8.30pm to 12.30am- do studio work
12.30am-4am- zzzzzzzzZZZzz

Wednesday
4am-wake up/bath
5-7.30 am - do studio work
7.30am-7.30pm- Work in office
7.30-8.30pm-bath/dinner
8.30-9.30pm do work
9.30-10.30pm- nap
10.30pm -8.30am- do studio work

Thursday
8.30am-9.20am- nap
9.20am-3pm- studio class
3.-5pm rest/clean up mess from studio work
5.30pm-3.30am zZZZzzzzzzzz

Friday - [Was supposed to be public holiday (Anzac Day) ]
3.30am-4.30am - wake/bath
4.30am - do essay (with breakfast/lunch/dinner breaks)

Saturday
12.00am- still doing essay-
3.15am- done with work for the day...going to bed in 15 minutes time

Plans for today:
Go out and have fun ....(non-architecture related activity)! Will go crazy soon otherwise..:D

Quote of the day:

" Hard work is the key to success, so work diligently on any project you undertake. If you truly want to be successful, be prepared to give up your leisure time and work past 5 PM and on weekends. Also, have faith in yourself. If you come up with a new idea that you believe in, don't allow other people to discourage you from pursuing it." - Charles Lazarus

"Having once decided to achieve a certain task, achieve it at all costs of tedium and distaste. The gain in self confidence of having accomplished a tiresome labor is immense". - Thomas A. Bennett

I spy with my BLUE eye

2008-03-09T15:57:00.021+11:00

So, I was reading through my Trendhunter feed and came across this:
Eye colour tattoos

Colouring the cornea (Photograph: NY Post)

OMG!!!! Seriously sick.. arggh..

Why would anyone in the right state of mind want to look like they just walked off the set of Star Trek?

I mean, COME ON!! BLUE coloured eye balls?
Even if you're predisposed to attention seeking behaviour, why would you scar yourself for life?

THIS procedure, like tatooing, is just as or even more difficult to reverse once its performed, so you'd be stuck with blue eyeballs for the rest of your life!

I quote the New York Post, "You're nuts if you'd let a tattoo artist stick a needle in your cornea."

I can't agree more.....BBRRRRrr... just the thought of needles going anywhere near my eyes is giving me the chills.

The less extreme but equally startling trend is eye jewellery.

The heart-shaped stud...Cute? (Photograph: BBC News)

This type of eye jewellery is "inserted into the eye's mucous membrane under a local anaesthetic eye drop, at a cost of about £330.

It involves inserting a 3.5mm-wide piece of platinum - that the eye will accept - and includes designs such as a glittering half-moon or heart." - BBC News

Eye jewellery project by Eric Larenbeek (Photograph: Trendhunter)

The second type of eye jewellery (shown in above pic) does not involve going under the knife but is designed to hang from your contact lenses.

I wouldn't try it though... I mean, the "what ifs" and potential dangers are just too great to risk for the sake of "beauty". *(if this is your idea of beautiful)

P.S. Just to get things straight, I have nothing against people who tattoo their bodies... I honestly respect and believe in personal choice...but doing eye surgery for cosmetic enhancement is just too much (to me)...

Quote of the day:

"You put a tattoo on yourself with the knowledge that this body is yours to have and enjoy while you're here. You have fun with it, and nobody else can control (supposedly) what you do with it. That's why tattooing is such a big thing in prison: it's an expression of freedom—one of the only expressions of freedom there. They can lock you down, control everything, but 'I've got my mind, and I can tattoo my body—alter it my way as an act of personal will.' " - Don Ed Hardy

Russell Peters & friends

2008-03-07T15:41:00.014+11:00

Okay...so, my blog post count is down to once per month.. HEH...
(snicker *grin)... how wonderful!

Uni classes will finally begin again next week, after the long summer break...

I will be busy with my full time study workload and my part time job so I predict the blog count won't go up much either.. LOL

Anyways, I went for a stand up comedy performance by Russell Peters & friends held at the Hordern Pavillion, in Moore Park last Wednesday, and it was fantastic!!!

I laughed and laughed, till my sides hurt during the entire 2-3 hour performance.

Russell Peters (Photograph: www.russellpeters.com)

Their only two shows in Sydney were full house shows but fortunately for me, my friends and I managed to get hold of the tickets.

Russell Peters, if you don't know him yet, is an exceptional Canadian stand-up comic and actor. This guy is highly popular particularly with the Asian audience as his jokes onstage are inspired by the South Asian culture and his own family background.

Racism, sex, language and accents are among the topics of his comedy material and his parodies of them are unbelievably funny. =)

(Note: To preview clips of his older performances, look him up on YouTube. )

He brought two fellow comedians with him Ahmed Ahmed and Jo Koy. Both of them are very successful comedians with their own tours as well.

Craig Ferguson(left) & Jo Koy(right) (Photograph: http://www.myspace.com/jokoy)

Personally, I thought Jo Koy's performance was brilliant!!!

He's a Filipino-American guy who came highly recommended by Russell and was recently named as one of the “10 comics to watch” of 2007 by Daily Variety.

SOoo, my point to this blog post is ..if the Russell Peters show comes to a city near you, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND that you go.

Believe me, its worth every penny....

P.S. The language that they use might be unsuitable (read: offensive) for minors though.

Quote of the day:

"The most wasted of all days is one without laughter." - E.E. Cummings

An alien spaceship is landing in Penang :)

2008-02-02T08:00:00.000+11:00

Saw news of this project recently.. the Penang Global City Center project in Malaysia. Construction of Phase 1 of this building is scheduled to begin end of this year.

Designed by the popular contemporary architecture firm, Asymptote Architecture, based in New York city. The firm is well-known for their experimental, almost radical looking designs.

Some images courtesy of Asymptote Architecture:

"Sited on Penang Hill, the Penang Global City Center (PGCC) is a key component of the 256 acre development site that was formally the Penang Turf Club. The design is centered on the idea of creating a new and powerful image for the city of Penang and the new initiatives associated with the development of the Northern Corridor of Malaysia." - arcspace

Penang...powerful image?

Why would they want to establish a new image for Penang?

I like it as it is...developed enough yet retaining its strong nostalgic presence, with the old colonial buildings synonymous with Penang's architectural heritage.

I loved walking down the streets of the more sleepy areas of Penang/Georgetown with the "CRC Ping Pong gang" back then when most of us were still in Taiping. (which is only an hours drive away).

I am not convinced of how this alien spaceship/biological mutation of a building is going to create a "powerful" image for Penang....

BUT, I'll save my comments for later; when the building opens and I actually get to see it.

Quote of the day:

" One of the most wonderful things in nature is a glance of the eye; it transcends speech; it is the bodily symbol of identity. " - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Cofffee.. is ...BAD???!

2008-01-28T18:57:00.000+11:00

This was in the Sydney Morning Herald a couple of days back...

An excerpt of the article, High Society: The dangers of consuming caffeine may outweigh its so-called benefits by Steve Dow.

Photo: David Hancock

" Caffeine has become the new opiate of the masses as smokers are shunned and Sydney seeks to rival Melbourne's cafe and bar scene and turn everyone on to the coffee habit. Not only could we be wiring ourselves up for addiction, but monitoring our caffeine intake is more difficult than it appears.

This week a US study added to a growing body of evidence that high caffeine consumption - more than 200 milligrams a day - increases the odds of miscarriage. The study of 1063 women, published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, found double the risk of miscarriage.

There is extensive evidence that caffeine in the diet causes elevated blood pressure and is a "potential risk factor" for heart and other cardiovascular disease, James argued in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine in 2004.

Yet caffeine receives little systematic clinical or public health attention and James puts this down to two causes: one, scientists love drinking coffee and are biased about caffeine's benefits and blinkered to its harms, and two, there is a mistaken belief that coffee and cola drinkers develop cardiovascular tolerance to caffeine."

for the full article click here .

OooooooOo... So my beloved coffee is E. V. I. L. sniff~ :_( but i'm with the scientists on this one....i love my coffee too much and am therefore, i quote " biased about caffeine's benefits and blinkered to its harms" ... hehe

Quote of the day

"I believe humans get a lot done, not because we're smart, but because we have thumbs so we can make coffee." - Flash Rosenberg

My love affair with Google Reader

2008-01-07T16:02:00.001+11:00

I recently discovered Google Reader...and I am SOoo in love with it!

HAHA, i know, i sound a little geeky... so what if i do ;P

The reason I adore it is because the user interface of the Google Reader inbox makes navigation and scanning through the headlines very easy...you'll have to try it yourself to find out.

This is REALLY important since you know you don't have the time to read through everything. =)

Here is a video of Chris Wetherell, Google Reader Engineer, (he's kinda cute, *grin*) introducing the new version of the feed reading application.

Google Reader Introduction

In an effort to improve my general knowledge of world/political/

social/architectural news, I've added a bunch of subscriptions to my feed list.

What I have on it so far:

Architecture and Design :-

A Daily Dose of Architecture
Archinect.com
ArchitecturalRecord: Daily Headlines
ArchitectureWeek
Digg / Design
Metropolis Magazine
MoCo Loco
New Weekly arcspace Feature
TREND HUNTER Magazine
architecture.MNP

Finance:-

Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com
I Will Teach You To Be Rich
MarketWatch.com
TheStreet.com

General:-

Slashdot

News:-

BBC News
ESPN.com
Google News
New Straits Times
TIME: Top Stories

If any of you have any other interesting feeds to share, do let me know... thanks!

P.S. Had trouble embedding the Google Video, had to download the video to add it here. I copied and pasted the embed code into the HTML but the ID code kept disappearing... I'm guessing its some validation problems...any pointers?

Quote of the day:

"Reading is to the mind, what exercise is to the body. As by the one, health is preserved, strengthened, and invigorated: by the other, virtue (which is the health of the mind) is kept alive, cherished, and confirmed. "

- Joseph Addison, 1672-1719

Swedish rocks!

2008-01-06T11:26:00.000+11:00

So, I was talking to my friend, Nicholas (Mr. Encyclopedia) the other day and he told me about how the Swedish would just suck in air, mid-conversation.

According to Wikipedia, this is called ingressive speech.

"In human speech, pulmonic ingressive sounds are those in which the air stream is created by the lungs (pulmonic) inhaling and pulling air in (ingressive) through the mouth or nose. Several languages include an affirmative "yeah", "yah", "yuh" or "yes" made with inhaled breath which sounds something like a gasp. This is an example of a pulmonic ingressive. "

Here are a couple of sound files that include ingressive affirmations, the Swedish word “ja” (yes) which I got from Robert Eklund’s Ingressive Speech Page.

Click on the [wav] to listen to how they are used:-

[wav 1] Ska egentligen nåt annat komma där sen ja (... should really come something else there yeah)

[wav 2] Jamen då tar vi om den ja (well then, let’s do that one again yeah)

I think if I were listening to a Swedish conversation and they used this ingressive speech, I'd imagine that either he/she just got the most horrible news or they were having problems breathing!

I got interested in the language and got into learning some phrases as well.

Warning: May contain some offensive language. Do not view if you have a delicate countenance.

Mastering Swedish - Lesson 1 on You Tube..funny :)

Lesson 1 - Homographs (Words spelled the same but differ in meaning)

Ever wanted to learn Swedish? Here's a crash course in Swedish.

This material was written by Slaygon & Makke for Boz since he is moving to Sweden and they thought they'd help him get on track quickly!

Source: http://www.slayradio.org

Han är ute på en åker och åker - He is driving on a field

Ska vi ha sex klockan sex? - Shall we have sex at six?

Tomten stod på tomten - Santa stood in the garden

Det var tomt på min tomt - My garden was empty

Får man ha får på planet? - Are sheep allowed on the plane?

Far, får får får? Nej, får får lamm - Dad, do sheep get sheep? No, sheep get lamb

Var tog vägen vägen? - Where did the road go?

De spelade in sitt band på band - They recorded their band on tape

Ät inte filen med filen - använd skeden - Don't use a file for the sour milk - use a spoon

Är det vinden som låter på vinden? - Is that the sound of the wind in the attic?

Jag hörde stegen när jag stod på stegen - I heard the steps when I was on the ladder

Man lyssnar bäst på rock iförd rock - Rock is best listened to wearing a coat

Det är rena fasan att se en fasan - It is terrifying to see a pheasant

Anden förvandlades till den helige Anden - The duck turned into the holy spirit

Språkfascister kan komma när de ser ett komma - Language fascists can cum when they see a comma

Jag renar mina renar inför slakten - I clean my reindeer before slaughter

Bergsklättrare tycker det är toppen på toppen - Mountain climbers think it's great at the top

Det är botten på botten - It sucks at the bottom

Huset var vitt och vitt - The house was white and wide

Jag tar till en till mikrofon för att få in Makke i mixern - I'll use yet another microphone to get Makke in the mixer

Rocka med en rocka - Rock with a ray

Quote of the day:

"To have another language is to possess a second soul." - Charlemagne, 742-814

Whatever will they think of next??!!

2007-12-21T11:35:00.000+11:00

My top ten list of some fascinating/weird design trends found on one of my favourite websites of the moment: Trendhunter (and others from here and there).

In random order, we have:

1. Body Parts Bakery in Thailand by artist/baker, Kittiwat Unarrom

Bread made to form realistic body parts ....and all bloody looking too. :)

Imagine biting into one of them, gross! I wonder if he charges an entrance fee into the bakery :P

2. Dung doors and windows by Bindeshwar Pathak

This Indian sanitation specialist have found a way to make door and window frames out of sh*t...

Are they really THAT desperate for alternatives to timber/steel? This is really taking sustainability to a whole new level.

3. Hairbands of recycled condoms in China

One word: DISGUSTING!!!!

I thought dung doors/windows were yucky enough as it is, but this takes the cake!..
I mean, REALLY... how could they use recycled condoms? Brand new ones are one thing.. but recycled???!!!

4. Vending machine costume by Aya Tsukioka

LOL!!. The Japanese are just so creative/innovative and always coming up with things no one would think of.

The costume was designed as a response to Japan's growing fears of crime. With this disguise, women and children in particular can shake off and avoid attackers easily.. (yeah,right :P).

To read more, go to the The New York Times website.

Guess which one's the costume

5. Kawaii underwear

Another invention of the experimental Japanese designers: supposedly in support of the anti-global warming campaign.

Must watch this video, highly entertaining..guaranteed to put a big grin on your face.

For other equally wacky ones from Triumph, Japan: read it on Inventorspot.

6. Animal Poo coffee

I LOVE coffee, I adore it, I worship it, I live for it. Coffee has always been there for me, throughout the worst of times and the best of times....*(haha, I'm playing drama queen here)

But, there is no way I am going to try THIS type of coffee any time soon. Animal Coffee is processed in the digestion system of wild cats in Sumatra and further processed once the animals poo out the coffee solids.... and believe it or not, it's not only expensive, but strangely popular, so much so, it has spurned imitations!

OK, so maybe it tastes good... but I would have been better off without knowing about its origins.

7. Toilet bowl restaurant in Taiwan

This is something I saw in a travel documentary of Taiwan....with water closets (flush toilets) as seats and food containers in the shape of small squat toilets/urinals.

Imagine your order of chocolate ice-cream served in a toilet bowl container. Ick!

8. The most annoying toy in the world from Maniac World

Haha... I don't get why they would design such an irritating toy.

click on pic for link to video

9. Eco-boat fueled by human fat (Source: Geekologie)

This high-tech looking boat is designed to have a zero carbon emission using human-fat as biofuel.

Owned by Pete Bethune, he is trying to set a record for fastest eco-boat...and the guy actually had liposuction to contribute as fuel source.

and finally,

10. The Gold Pill by Tobias Wong (designer of cc phone: Iphone from Apple) and Ju$t Another Rich Kid

It's a pill dipped in gold and filled with 24-karat gold leaf and it costs $425!!! The way it works is to eat it "to increase your self-worth" and it will make your faeces glitter.

HAHA... who on earth cares if their sh*t is pretty or not??? LOL..

Quote of the day:
"Want, the mistress of invention. " - Susanna Centlivre, The Busy Body (act I, sc. 1)

Zaha Hadid's Opus

2007-12-20T21:50:00.000+11:00

I so want to go to Dubai !!! With the Hydropolis Underwater Hotel scheduled to open this month and the Dynamic Architecture project, by David Fisher -self-powered “dancing” green buildings that will constantly be changing shape and generating wind energy; its times like this I wished I were filthy rich and free to travel as I choose...

*Career ambition no. 47: go to Dubai :P hehe.. must think positive.. will get a chance to go in due time..

Saw pics of cousin bro in Abu Dhabi and recently found out that my housemate who just joined a large architecture firm gets to go on a working trip to the United Arab of Emirates...

That's what sparked up my interest in Dubai/UAE if you're wondering about my sudden obsession with Dubai.

Hydopolis Underwater Hotel

First Dynamic buiding to be built in Dubai

And of course there's Zaha Hadid's recent proposal for the Business Bay area of Dubai - the provocative Opus building...

Her buildings are almost always aesthetically pleasing, but whether they work well, I am not too sure.

What I can be pretty sure though is that the civil and structural engineers working on this project will definitely have a hell of a time trying to construct the building. :

Some 3d renders from World Architecture News : (click on link for article)

Very sexy images, don't you think

Quote of the day:

‘For I dip’t into the future

Far as the human eye could see,

Saw the vision of the world

And all the wonder that could be.’ — Alfred, Lord Tennyson

The chain letter discrimination

2007-12-14T21:56:00.000+11:00

So, I was surfing the net and came across this funny news article on The Antisocial Club.

"Loner Sues Chain Letter Author for Discrimination

ORLANDO FL - A loner has sued a Florida chain mail author over allegations that she could not participate in the chain letter because she is unable to forward the letter to ten of her friends. "She does not have ten friends," her lawyer said. "Hell, she doesn't even have one."

Susie Wangenstein of Orlando sued Patty Freedman in U.S. District Court, claiming the author violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by not taking her Social Avoidant Disorder into consideration when authoring the chain letter that requires the recipient to "forward it on to ten friends OR RISK THE BAD KARMA THAT COMES WITH BREAKING THE CHAIN."

"Susie won't open ANY emails now. She's an emotional wreck and we will win," said her lawyer."

HAHAHAHAHAHA...OMG!! This is genius ... Maybe I could try it as well...*grin*.

Quote of the day:

"The poet, the artist, the sleuth - whoever sharpens our perception tends to be antisocial... he cannot go along with currents and trends. "

- Alfred North Whitehead, English mathematician & philosopher (1861 - 1947)

@ Bondi: Sculpture by the beach

2007-11-20T06:58:00.000+11:00

Went for an art exhibit at Bondi last Sunday (18th November 2007); sculpture by the sea which is held annually but my first time attending the event. Bondi was so crowded, it was like walking through a night market with people brushing past you as you walk....

Anyway here are some photos of the event since I'm too lazy to write.

Sculpture by the sea @ Bondi

The 'overly-crowded' beach: my friends spotted some girls topless ....grin*

Dogs (made of timber and steel)

A conch shell+Sydney Harbour bridge

Dunno what this is exactly, but it looks cool :P

Yellow ball on cliff edge

The giant spoon, i rather liked this piece against the sea backdrop

Defying gravity

The gang having ice cream

Group pic

It was quite a long walk and we didn't see all of the pieces...didn't have any strength left to walk .. hehe.. The show was definitely an event to attend at least once, so no regrets...and to think I'd wanted to stay in because I slept very little the night before...

Thanks SSheng for convincing me to go with you guys :)

Quote of the day:
You like it, that's all, whether it's a landscape or abstract. You like it. It hits you. You don't have to read it. The work of art-sculpture or painting-forces your eye. - Clement Greenberg

June's early birthday celebration

2007-11-14T21:54:00.000+11:00

Just got back from dinner with the girls at Takeru on Sussex Street, a nice little Japanese restaurant which I've only been to once before. The dinner was for June in celebration of her birthday in advance since she's leaving for Malaysia tomorrow. We got her a swiss choc cake from a cake shop on George Street called 89 degrees (or sth similiar in name)..

From left to right: SKuan, Adel, June and me

Ching and MinS

MinS trying to eat Ching and Jace laughing at them

Anyway here are some photos of the Malaysian gangs' final presentation of their grad projects...

Min S's presentation

Alv had 10 really nice AO boards for his final!

Alv's model that took 9 days to build, the central court is quite Zaha Hadid in style don't you think?

The model-making master, Sheng with his models for his train station project

WenL's train station project, reflecting the idea of a bridge with long continuous horizontal lines. This guy had 11 AO boards!

"Architects do it with models...and we finish on top" :P
- SONA (Architecture Student Organised Networks) Australia.

Freedom, at last!

2007-11-14T09:08:00.000+11:00

YAYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!.. I'm free at last for summer. aarghh.. seriously need to finish up my long delayed portfolio... must stop procrastinating and apply for a job asap

So..
Had my building services exam on Monday, a 7hour long paper ( 7hours continuously and still not enough time!!) . The architecture degree is one seriously "sick" program..

As if torturing us with studios is not enough...they make us put in long hours studying about toilets, sewerage disposal, water supply, electrical system, fire protection and etc...as if i care, haha

Ok, so I admit that we do need this component as a part of our studies but do we really need to have it as a 7 FREAKING HOUR EXAM!!!!!!!???? Who on earth came up with this kind of exam in the first place! ?A 2-3 hour exam would be reasonable but this?? @$%#$$&% cis...

Anyway , yesterday I sat in for my housemates' graduation project presentations. I think they did pretty well... the guest crits from Cox Assoc. actually tried to recruit WenL and Alv into their firm based on their work...

I am green with envy... but its not surprising considering the hours they put in...WenL even keeps archi mags for browsing in the toilet ...wahaha.. super "crazy passionate about archi" people who eat sleep breathe architecture...

Just looking at them the past year makes me a bit worried about next year for my own grad project... Their timetable for the last few months was just sleep, eat , work..

What a wonderful life archi students lead ...

Quote of the day:
“A man that has a taste of music, painting, or architecture, is like one that has another sense, when compared with such as have no relish of those arts” - Joseph Addison-

Hikikomori

2007-10-20T12:29:00.000+10:00

"Hikikomori ( lit. "pulling away, being confined", i.e. "acute social withdrawal") is a Japanese term to refer to the phenomenon of reclusive individuals who have chosen to withdraw from social life, often seeking extreme degrees of isolation and confinement due to various personal and social factors in their lives. The term hikikomori refers to both the sociological phenomenon in general as well as to individuals belonging to this societal group."

(Source: Wikipedia)

Solitude (from Getty images)

I think that's an apt term to describe me during the past two weeks (been swamped with work and such, and thus, too tired/lazy to go out).... and probably for the next two to three weeks till the semester ends...haha

Quote of the day:

"It is easy in the world to live after the world's opinions; it is easy in solitude to live after your own; but the great man is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude."

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Reason for Australian football

2007-10-02T22:01:00.000+10:00

Had dinner with cousin sis, Chi Hsen and her bf, Lloyd last Saturday night. Went for Japanese noodles at Ramen-kan, Haymarket.

Anyway, Hsen was telling me about this cute football player and Lloyd was teasing her about it (imitating her voice when she's squealing his name) ... so cute!

So, I looked him up and found this pic of him: (courtesy of AFL)

Jimmy Bartel, who plays for Geelong Cats, the winning team of 2007 AFL premiership

oooOOOoohh, he's hot!... Too bad he has a girlfriend... but I've found my reason to watch Australian football.. HAHA :P

Trip to Darwin

2007-09-29T13:56:00.000+10:00

Went for a 5 day trip to Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia to for my elective subject 'Technology for Tropical Architecture".

Had great fun although I'm feeling a little tired from it, signs of me getting old I think...hehe.I am so tanned now from walking under the sun past couple of days, a bit sunburnt as well.

We stayed at a backpacker's place- the Melalueca. I shared a room with 3 other girls.It was quite a nice place considering it was less than $30 per night- two double decker beds and an attached bathroom.

Thank God I don't have any major submissions due this coming week, am currently procrastinating as usual.

Really need to get my portfolio updated asap, otherwise I won't be able to get a job when I go back end of the year. Have been toying with it for a while now but I never seem to be able to complete it.. sigh

Some insights into my Darwin trip:

(photos taken by Min Sean & June, photoedited by me)

Day 1: Sunday 23rd Sept 2007

Arrived at about 1 to 2am on a shuttle bus we caught from the airport. Met my roommate Anne-lise who would be sharing a room with Min Sean, June and me.

Since we arrived at the inn in the wee hours of the morn, by the time we got up the next day, it was time for brunch... Here's mine.

Darwin feels and looks like some part of KL

Went exploring around town. Got some of our necessities and I hunted for an internet cafe to send some work files back to some friends in Sydney.

Met up at the Mindil Market which was set up near the beachside at about 6pm as planned by Graham Bell (our course lecturer). It was just like the "pasar malams" (night markets) we get back in Malaysia, except there were Aussies everywhere.

Lots of yummy Asian food available... not as cheap as in 'pasar malams' back home though :)

Watching the sunset over Darwin beach

Day 2: Monday 24th Sept 2007

Tour of Darwin, of the CBD area with Graham and visited some of Troppo's buildings around town. We dropped by their office in Darwin for a chat with the current owners on their projects.

The Parliament House (I think :P), reminds me of a Malaysian public library

Darwin Entertainment Centre by Troppo Architects: Rather nice detailing don't you think?

At Troppo's office: Jessica Freeman looking cute in her red hat

Also visited the pre-cyclone Darwin, Burnett house and the Darwin museum before dropping by Jackman Gooden Architect's office.

Day 3: Tuesday 25th Sept 2007

Caught a bus to Coconut Grove... and the four of us girls from room 14 and the three guys- Peter, Ryan and Frans in the room next to ours spent an hour or so looking for Martin Cres, where we were supposed to meet the rest.

We had to be rescued by Graham, who picked us up in his car to our meeting place. So paiseh... late, then lost! *blush*

Looked at a couple of Troppo designed houses, where the owners were really nice and showed us around.

Indoor outdoor living

Then, we had lunch break at Darwin's Westfield Shopping Centre before we walked to the Charles Darwin University, where Graham used to teach. Met up with a bunch of archi students and the guy who wrote our textbook for this subject, Acclimatisation by David Bridgman.

The university had quite a pleasant campus, a bit like the Malaysian Multimedia University Malacca campus.

After that, Graham drove us girls of room 14 to get mooncakes since it was Mid Autumn Festival...and he dropped us off at our accomodation.... HE IS JUST SO NICE! :) , one of my fave lecturers in uni.

Day 4: Wednesday 26th Sept 2007

Spent the morn exploring the Wharf/waterfront precinct of Darwin.

Visit to showroom: model of the waterfront development

Then, it was off to Hassell's office where they presented a powerpoint of their projects around Darwin.

It was Jessica Freeman's birthday, and all of us celebrated with her on a sunset cruise. Great experience especially since we had a good reason to go for it.

From left to right: Anne-lise, June, Min Sean, Jessica Freeman, me, Lina, Frans

From left to right: Jess, Lea, me, Tamara, Carol, Belen

Just to share something funny while on the cruise. I was talking to Graham and he mentioned that his grandchildren were staying with him, that his son works irregular hours

... and out of the blue, he offered to send me a copy of his son's cv and said that I could be sure that I'd have great parent-in-laws but with 2 kids attached!

WAHAHAHA.. Graham is such a joker!

Day 5: Wednesday 26th Sept 2007

Trip to Kakadu National Park , about 3-4 hours drive from Darwin.

Some park reserve we stopped at mid-journey

We dropped in at this crocodile shaped hotel... freaking hilarious! All of us were trying to figure out which was the head or the tail when we were walking around the hotel....

And our lecturers keep telling us that we should never design a building which is too literal in concept .... and here you have this prime example of literal; a reptile of all things! LOL

Aerial view of the Gagadju Crocodile Holiday Inn ( photographed from image on inn's wall)

Bowali Visitor Centre by Glen Murcutt & Troppo Architects

Guided tour of Ubirr Rock

Back to Darwin after that, and caught the 1am flight back to Sydney....

There you have it...the entire 5 day trip in one long post.

Quote of the day:

Travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living." –- Miriam Beard

Studio preliminary submission

2007-09-21T17:16:00.000+10:00

Had a submission for studio today, got less than 3 hours sleep in the last 48 hours , have had caffeine & carbs overload from instant noodles, bread and junk for the past week (my eating habits are crap when stressed)

Got some useful feedback from Dijana and am planning to model it up in Sketchup to work out my design better.

I think she was okay with my conceptual idea of a kind of "parasitic injection" to rejuvenate the war-torn building but still have quite a couple of things to work out.

According to Mike (my tutor crit), my concept is like the movie Alien, where aliens take over the core of system and mutates it ...or something along that lines...
Hmmm.... a good excuse for me to go watch the movie... DESIGN INSPIRATION... :)

I am rambling because I'm dead tired... No shut eye last night and still need to face toilets and drainage pipes for my building services project.

I know my life is sO enviable right now.... NOT!

I LOVE Zaha Hadid

2007-09-14T17:19:00.000+10:00

It's 5:23 p.m. I'm blogging this after my studio class in uni. Have had slow internet connection for the past week, therefore haven't felt like posting anything.

I've been thinking about my design project and what I want to do for the redesign of the post-war Sarajevo Town Hall/Library.

Some concepts I'm considering: (definitions from Merriam Webster's Dictionary)

frame

1. (a) something composed of parts fitted together and united;

(b) the physical makeup of an animal and especially a human body

2. (a) the constructional system that gives shape or strength also: a frame dwelling; (b) such a skeleton not filled in or covered

3. obsolete: the act or manner of framing

4. (a) a machine built upon or within a framework; (b) an open case or structure made for admitting,enclosing, or supporting something

mutation

1. significant and basic alteration: change

2. a relatively permanent change in hereditary material involving either a physical change in chromosome relations or a biochemical change in codons that make up genes.

And since all those books on post-war architecture seem to mention deconstruction somewhere or other, I've been looking at key figures of deconstructivism in architecture such as Peter Eisenman, Frank Gehry, Zaha Hadid, Coop Himmelblau, Rem Koolhaas, Daniel Libeskind, and Bernard Tschumi; just to name a few.

I really admire Zaha Hadid's work. For those who have no idea who she is, she's among the few great female architects; an Iraqi-British deconstructivist architect who is often referred to as a visionary.

Zaha Hadid

Her style of architecture seems driven, by streamlined shapes, free-flowing forms, silhouettes that strives to achieve instead of order out of chaos, chaos out of order.

And that's exactly what I love about her designs.

Some images of her work: (from Arcspace.com)

Center for Contemporary Art, Rome

Guggenheim Museum, Taichung

Cagliari Contemporary Arts Centre, Italy

Guangzhou Opera House

Phaeno Science Centre, Germany

AAh.. so beautiful...

Ok, enough raving about her projects...need to go back to my OWN design now.......Sigh... if only I had her brain.

Funny quote I got off the web:

Architecture is easy: you just stare at the paper until droplets of blood appear on your forehead. - Unknown

Haha... how true :P

The Natto Obsession

2007-09-05T20:51:00.000+10:00

Ever tried natto before?... or you don't even know what it is?

Well, let me tell you. To me, it's probably the most disgusting snack around...a lump of slimy and "gooey" beans, with a strong smell that makes you want to hurl.

However in Japan, there is quite an obsession with natto:-

"Nattō is a traditional Japanese food made from fermented soybeans, popular especially at breakfast. A rich source of protein, nattō and the soybean paste miso formed a vital source of nutrition in feudal Japan. " (Source: Wikipedia)

How to eat natto

It is popular as BREAKFAST??! ewwwwww...how can they eat that stuff.

There was even a time when it was food fad in Japan...

From the The Japan Times:
"The natto fiasco is still fresh in our memories. In January a Kansai-TV variety show presented it -- with just enough scientific-sounding backup to make the claim sound credible to nonscientists -- as a surefire dieting aid. So many people rushed off to buy the stuff that the ensuing shortage caused the price to rise. Only then did it emerge that the program's producers had fabricated test results and distorted scientific conclusions."

And there are also Natto Eating contests held:

In Ibaraki, birthplace of natto

You know it is big when there is even a band named after this delicacy:-

The Natto Brothers Band (Japan's tribute to the Allman Brothers Band; consists of a bunch of middle-aged Jap guys)

Performing the song, "Jessica" (haha!) at Kiba Stock 2005

I'd heard of natto before but never tried it . So the other day, I gave it a try with a couple of friends after our dinner of shabu shabu - Japanese hot pot.

(photo and video courtesy of Jane)

Dinner at some Jap place in Circular Quay

And this is our take of those food review shows you watch on TV....(it's in Cantonese)

Our "Natto" show

P.S. Pardon my limited Cantonese vocab. Started picking up the language seriously only beginning of last year.

Quote of the day:

"Part of the secret of success in life is to eat what you like and let the food fight it out inside."

-Mark Twain (1835 - 1910)

Reading Michel Foucault

2007-09-02T13:14:00.000+10:00

Went to the uni to return a book yesterday (Saturday) and was shocked to see so many people in uni.

I believe there aren't that many people on the main walk even on normal weekdays! For a second there, I thought I might have got my days wrong and it might be Friday.

Turned out that it was Careers and Courses Open Day. Most of the food spots-Quad, Badabagan were opened as well. Saw many people carrying around these red bags, so I "kay-po" and went to check out the exhibition booths before heading to the library....

Got myself the latest brochures and a free pen :P

Brochure featured my current Sarajevo studio and Glen Murcutt's studio which I did last year.

Our Faculty of Built Environment had probably the nicest brochure there, design wise :)

Anyway , I've been looking at Of Other Spaces (1967), by Michel Foucault.

An excerpt from his lecture on heterotopias :-

"First there are the utopias. Utopias are sites with no real place. They are sites that have a general relation of direct or inverted analogy with the real space of Society. They present society itself in a perfected form, or else society turned upside down, but in any case these utopias are fundamentally unreal spaces.

There are also, probably in every culture, in every civilization, real places - places that do exist and that are formed in the very founding of society - which are something like counter-sites, a kind of effectively enacted utopia in which the real sites, all the other real sites that can be found within the culture, are simultaneously represented, contested, and inverted.

Places of this kind are outside of all places, even though it may be possible to indicate their location in reality. Because these places are absolutely different from all the sites that they reflect and speak about, I shall call them, by way of contrast to utopias, heterotopias..."

OMG, is this English? Have read this over ten times already and can hardly make out what he's saying....

Quote of the day:
"In the next few years the struggle will not be between utopia and reality, but between different utopias, each trying to impose itself on reality ... we can no longer hope to save everything, but ... we can at least try to save lives, so that some kind of future, if perhaps not the ideal one, will remain possible." ~ ALBERT CAMUS, Between Hell and Reason

Happy birthday to Xiao Pan

2007-09-01T09:25:00.000+10:00

Been feeling like crap for the past few days.

Bad back aches, nausea, impossible mood swings and food cravings, and feel a headache coming on.....

Add that to work-related stress, and I'm a total wreck. ARRRRghhh @$%#*#*, hormones driving me nuts.

OKAY, enough with rantings of physiological abnormalities.

My housemate, Jan Wei's (more affectionately known as Xiao Pan) birthday was on Thursday, 30th August so we went out for dinner to celebrate last night...(31st August -Selamat Hari Merdeka, to all Malaysians)

Xiao Pan, the star of the night (dressed in the style of Saturday Night Fever :P)

Had a table booked for the us at this Chinese restaurant called Shan Zhen Hot Pot Restaurant on Sussex Street. The 13 of us squeezed around 2 tables with the built-in stoves in the centre.

Crowded since its a Friday night

Ordered two servings of beef, chicken, lamb, pork, fish and beef balls and vegetables. But since, some of us don't take beef, and we couldn't tell lamb from beef... almost all the meat went to one table and the other, took most of the vegies.

Of course, most of the girls sat on the side where we had the "almost-vegetarian" steamboat... and the guys happily indulged in their meat-fest (they had 4 plates of meat for each type of beef & lamb we ordered)...hehe..

Not the usual steamboat we get back in Malaysia

House specialty: Spicy hand-made noodles

Overall Ratings:

Food: 3.5/5, Ambience: 4.5/5, Service: 4/5, Value: 3/5

Group pic

4 left and then there was 9.
Went to Vbar after that for drinks...a nice place with comfy seats and tasteful decor. We were early (was only around ten plus) and there weren't that many people yet... the crowd started coming in only close to midnight.

@Vbar, Liverpool Street

Browsed through the drinks menu with Nicholas before I decided on the best drink there, WATER! ...Hey, I was feeling crappy enough as it was, didn't need alcohol to make me worse

Beers, cocktails, and my glass of water :)

From left to right: Birthday boy:Xiao Pan, Min Sean & Shu Sheng

Left about 12 am..

About 5 of the group (xiao pan included) went for a session of karaoke at Green Box. I picked sleep over karaoke this time...I was tired and decided to leave with the others. Busy day ahead!

Quote of the day:

"Life is something that happens when you can't get to sleep." ~ Fran Lebowitz

Hey, the Library isn't some salad bar!

2007-08-29T21:25:00.000+10:00

Today, I went to the library in the afternoon and was in the lounge/reading area looking at some books for design studio when this tall guy plopped down on the sofa seat behind me.

I noticed him because he was carrying these large food containers, but after a second glance, turned back to my books...

Then,.... I heard the lid coming off, and I heard some noises, so I stole another glance in his direction..... He was by then, sprawled out on the seat with his legs stretched out on top of another seat, shoes and all..

AND, I almost laughed out loud at what I saw.... There was this huge container with about 4-5 whole raw carrots and a couple of large celery sticks in one container, and another container of dry almonds/peanuts...

Must be some healthnut!....if he had brought his own knife, then it would look as if he was going to prepare salad on the sofa seat in front of him...

He started eating them whole...
MUNCHH!!! chomp chomp,!!!CRUNCH!!!! (trying to imitate the noises he made)

wah, SOOOOOOOOOOO IRRITATING!!

Hey, it WAS the library....and I expected some peace and quiet, not funny noises when I'm trying to focus on my reading materials...

SHEEESH!!..., if you want to eat, go outside... or at least, eat something "quiet" like a sandwich...

Anyway, here's some food for thought... got this from my ARCH 1381 Professional Practice class today:-

"Why does the university expel plagiarists while the community accepts that politicians don't write their own speeches or attribute anything they say?" ~ Graham Bell

Love for commercials

2007-08-28T12:27:00.000+10:00

I really love GOOD tv commercials....

Was inspired to blog about commercials after I watched this cute Rejoice Shampoo cf from HK...its supposedly banned over there. :)

Hehe, poor guy...:P

(check out the other commercials in thumbnails at the end of video as well)

So,what's so great about commercials?

Commercials are amazing BECAUSE:

It's nothing extraordinary if u have all the time in the world to talk about your design; to sell your product...designers can go on and on about their design if given the chance.....

BUT to do it in under a minute! ....well, that's quite a feat..
There are funny commercials, smart commercials, very artsy animation/multimedia-based commercials and downright horrible commercials...

But what makes a good cf (commercial film)?
I think that if the advertisers are able to get people talking about their 30 sec airtime... then they have made a good commercial in their hands...

Celebrity endorsed cfs don't necessarily make it a better commercial than others (although, it does help).... I think that if u see too much of a certain celebrity, somehow the product becomes overshadowed by the celeb....

Remember this old cf with Ji Hyun, from when they played it before movies in cinemas

A bit tired of cfs by those i dub Queen of CFs - Aya Ueto(Japan), Jeon Ji Hyun(Korea)-the girl from My Sassy Girl, and Malaysia's very own Amber Chia...(kept appearing in ads after she won the Guess Model competition....she was even advertising for RICE!!!!)......

But then again, there is no right or wrong in advertising. I mean, there was this cf on Malaysian TV a while back, advertising Japanese Gatsby hair products ...and I remembered thinking how idiotic it was...

And, many were of the same opinion, and it got people talking..... and not long after, it became so popular that everyone (at least, all of my friends) had heard of Gatsby and their silly commercial....

They dubbed it in English for Malaysian TV... went sth like:

If you're happy and you know it clap your hair....

Either the advertising ppl are really really smart, or they're really really retarded

LOL! ....still can't understand how they came up with such a concept.

And then there are the ones which are soOOoo WRONG!...

If you haven't read the post by kennysia on the Shanghai Bank commercial yet.... go read it at his blog here....so funny...

The mascot with a bad name

If they ever screened this in Malaysia, everyone would go mad with laughter... (esp. the Chinese)

What I learned today: Embedding videos in Blogger

Bodhi Nite 2007

2007-08-27T22:54:00.000+10:00

Was invited to this event in uni which was organised by Unibuds, the University of NSW Buddhist Society (mum will be pleased if she knew, since she's always asking me to participate in religious activities).

I'm actually more of a free-thinker..............................................believe that any religion which helps turn people into better people is good, don't really need a lable on my beliefs. :)

Ticket to Unibuds bodhinite 2007, in conjunction with the society's 27th birthday

So anyway, it was held last Saturday night from 6-10pm, at the Sir John Clancy Auditorium, with a vegetarian dinner included in the price of the ticket. Min Sean went with me, and we met Kris and Alvin at the event.

The food was pre-packed and was quite good, considering the large amount that was prepared at one time. Heard from Kris that each of the 100 volunteers for this event (100!!!, yeah i was surprised too) all lent their rice cookers from their homes to cook the rice that morning.

Wahhhhh.. so many rice cookers... so if 1 rice cooker = 10 servings of rice, then 100 rice cookers = 1000 servings!... that makes it about right since the society actually managed to sell that many tickets (over a thousand in fact ... i was surprised to see so many people at the event and lining up to collect their food).

The queue was so long, it went around almost in a circle along the perimeters of the lobby

The programs for the night were well-organised; with the ahem, less exciting bits-the dhamma talks (some ppl nodded off during this part :P) scheduled between the more interesting programs for the night.

Lots of song performances by the Unibuds choir... one could see that they'd had many rehearsals to get ready for the show....they actually composed some of the songs performed.

The choir in colourful ensemble for performing "Colours of the Wind"

The highlight program for the night would have to be the sketch which illustrated the theme for the event... "The Invisible Grasp"....examines the concept of clinging, whether they are material, intellectual, mental, sensual or even spiritual... quite a good msg here....

Professor and students in class, World Creation 101 (cute, hah?)

Mix ingredients together, put vial into black box, and wah-la!..you get Earth

There were 3 (or was it 4?) parts to the sketch, with different underlying messages to each... The one I liked best was about this boy, who came from a long line of doctors in the family, and was promised the "best gift in the world" by his mum, once he graduates with a medical degree....

I think the moral of the story was to treasure every moment of your life, do things you actually WANT to do,..... and to be living in the present IS the best present..

The boy-playing-Streetfighter-game scene

The happy/sad graph, quite an interesting concept

All in all, had an interesting night...really applaud the effort that the members put in into making the event a successful one....

My Quote for the day:
"We suffer when we cling to "me and mine", Thinking impermanence will last. But we can only receive with open hands, So loosen that Invisible Grasp" ~ Unibuds 2007

TVB Mr. Hong Kong 2007

2007-08-21T04:20:00.001+10:00

I watched this "TVB Mr. Hong Kong 2007" video I got from Albert last weekend........and almost laughed myself to death.

Photo credits: TVB, Asian Fanatics, & Sina

Dodo Cheng and Anna Yau paired up with special guest MC, Maggie Cheung as the MCs of the night. Many seriously gorgeous TVB actresses were part of the panel of judges.....

Hmm... i don't think i saw any men on the panel... must have been too embarassing for the guys....hehe The 12 finalists (divided into 2 groups: no.1- 6 = youth, no.7-12 = mature age group)......and I thought Jane was joking when she said that after watching, I might think that there were no good looking HK guys :)

Ok, maybe I'm being too harsh...a couple of them aren't too bad.

The guys dressed up all gladiator-like as they paraded out brandishing swords and shields with their red capes and all....HAHHAHHA!!!...

Somehow, these Chinese guys look SO WRONG strutting on stage in their gladiator suits... For instance:Look at contestant #11 here.....looks like a cute little boy playing with his toy sword, especially when you compare his photo to this photo of Russell Crowe in the movie "Gladiator".

Hehehe, Russell wins hands down... (on the manliness factor, at least)

Contestant #11 somewhat redeemed himself in the talent segment: he showcased his amazing dancing skills and got the highest votes for the performance.

OMGaaaawd! ... this is such a cliche...see-through white shirts clinging to their toned bodies in the swimsuit segment....not often that you'd get to see guys in this kind of situation...

... can't understand how they can maintain their composure and keep their eyes opened when water is pouring down on them...

From left to right: Winner of Youth group:#2 Micheal Chiu, Mr. Hong Kong 2007 :#7 Ben Yuen , Winner of Mature group #11 Wu Chi Wai

The most dashing of them all

The winner, contestant #7 Ben Yuen, the 26 year-old of the Mature Guys group. He was most deserving of the title, I suppose... IMHO, he's also the best looking of the group..

Quote of the day:

"Laughter is the sun that drives winter from the human face. " ~Victor Hugo

Studying Sarajevo Town Hall

2007-08-18T19:05:00.000+10:00

Yaaaaayy!!!, finally completed our study model for the Sarajevo Town Hall/National Library in Bosnia and Herzegovina. No more staying in uni every other day and weekend meetings to do work.....MUAHAHhahahahaaaA.....

Was in the structures team in creating the model of the structural elements of the national library before it was destroyed in the Bosnian war.

Currently in hibernation mode... Planning to stay in this weekend to recharge my batteries...tired-lar you know...

Not going to leave the house except if really necessary, ... need to catch up on my other work anyway....

Some photos of our model: (photos by jessica siow)

Sectional Study

Internal structure

Really like this photo (grabbed from Jane's blog)

Facade of building

Really glad we can move on from this ... now comes the hard part...proposing a new design for the building.

My quote of the day:

"To achieve the impossible dream, try going to sleep." - Joan Klempner

Getting to know gadgets

2007-08-16T22:53:00.000+10:00

I don't get gadgets...i never have...

when the guys talk about them, i usually just keep quiet and listen as they discuss above the latest hardware features, product specs and the like..... i nod my head and pretend to understand their technical jargon,

...and then i'll go home and check it out on wikipedia so i don't look like a total idiot when they bring it up again..Lol

i didn't even know what WII, PSP and NDS were till recently... (i know, how embarassing!) hehe.

Some info for people like me: (courtesy of Wikipedia)

" WII - fifth home video game console released by Nintendo with a controller that uses a combination of and infrared detection (from an array of LEDS inside the Sensor Bar) to sense its position in 3D space. This design allows users to control the game using physical gestures as well as traditional button presses....

PlayStation Portable - is a handheld game console released and currently manufactured by Sony Computer Entertainment.

and the only one I've tried my hand at, so far:

NDS - short for Nintendo DS. Features two screens, as well as a touch screen, with the two screens aligned vertically on either side of the hinge. The DS's lower screen is touch sensitive, designed to be pressed with a stylus, a user's finger or a special "thumb pad" (affixed to the thumb to simulate an analog stick). "

Anyway, the reason i suddenly thought about gadgets is a forwarded email I received from my friend regarding the new Mplayer by Iriver.

I've noticed that in the last two years, there's been this trend of bringing back everyth old school, and suddenly Mickey Mouse is a branded lable and a Mickey tshirt can run up to a hundred ringgit each in Malaysia.

Unbelievable!.... Now, Iriver has jumped on the bandwagon with its latest:

Iriver's Disney Mplayer - The Cute Mp3player (yes, that's what it's officially called) (images courtesy of Iriver)

wahhh... the advertising campaign seriously "pian gin-na" (in hokkien) : literal translation = cheating young children.

Each image just screams cute!!....definitely too "cutesy" for my tastes.
...can imagine hoards of teenage girls pestering their parents to get them one though

So... is this the next big thing? let's wait and see if it catches on.

Zombie-fied

2007-08-15T09:53:00.000+10:00

Its 9.54am as I'm writing this... am in uni waiting for a group meeting.
Feeling a bit cranky and craving for coffee.

Was supposed to have studiowork discussion via internet but my connection decided to play hide and seek with me all through last night.

I was waiting for a webpage to load but somehow or other found myself on the edge of my mattress about 11.30 pm last night... so if I had woken up at my usual time, about 7 then...

11pm-7am = 8 hours (PERFECT!!!),... but noOOOoo, my freaky brain decided to start-up at..wait for it,... 3:40AM......dammit.....and I'll be working till late at uni today for studio!

I mean who wakes up about 4am in the morn on a normal day.... ok maybe those aunties/uncles who work in rubber estates, or those who need to go to the market really really early....

Uh-oh.. does this mean I'm becoming an auntie???!! sob~ :(

SIIIIIIIIghhhhh... 3rd day with 4-5 hrs sleep....well, at least I did get some work done because of this. (must think positive! hAha)......

hmmmm.... Maybe I SHOULD try the wall..... (refer to previous post if u don't get what I mean)

ZzzzZZZs

2007-08-14T08:18:00.000+10:00

ARRRRRRRRRghh, I need to sleep more than 6 hours! This is my second day in a row with only about 4-5 hours of zzzzZZZZzs.

The other day I was telling my housemates about my inability to sleep for more than 6 hours during uni session. Its like my body is programmed to start up at about 7am each day. No alarm clocks needed. ...weekends included.

So anyway, when I told them about it, Mr. chicken goes,
" Hey, you know the wall in your room?"

Me: Yeaaaaaah? What about it??
(I was puzzled. Thought that he was going to say something like having some images which can help me sleep better on the wall or something.)

Chicken:Why don't you try running towards it?"

Cis! Evil chicken... and I thought he was going to give helpful advice :)

Note: Cis!= phrase to express irritation in Malay....something like WTF??!!... i think, hehe

Saturday night out

2007-08-13T23:58:00.000+10:00

Had been busy working on our studio model for the past week so I decided to take a break for the weekend...of course, that doesn't mean that I didn't do anything useful.. :)

On Saturday, I went to uni to do some stuff in the morn, then went to the city with See Kuan..Met up with one of her friends, Steven.

We had dinner at a place somewhere near Chinatown called Sun's Chicken. It was a little Korean restaurant which served typical Korean food and had some Chinese food on the menu as well.

Almost all the rest of the tables were occupied by Koreans, a fact that striked me as a bit weird (although its a Korean restaurant). I mean, take for example, Kura, although its a Japanese restaurant, lots of people from other countries frequent the place, right

Once we looked though the menu, I could see why. Most of the dishes (their house specialities, specials) were listed in Korean!!! How were we expected to know what to order? So, we called the waitress over and after great difficulty trying to interpret her English managed to place our order.

Yummy hotpot dinner...

On the point of menus, I thought the menu for this restaurant had a rather cute design ...too bad that they didn't think about making it more user-friendly for non-Koreans).

Restaurant rating: Service: 4.5/5, Food 3/5, Ambience: 3.5/5

After the dinner, we went for a walk in Darling Harbour. Coincidentally, there was an aerial photography exhibition on.

Aerial photography by Yannus Arthus Bertrand, held till 26 December 2007. It's worth a look.

The exhibition was an effort to create awareness of environmental pollution on earth. There were quite a number of thought-provoking shots on display. Can you tell what this photograph is of ?!! grin* :P

P.S. Sorry for the low quality of photos...sucky camera = sucky pics. Don't complain unless you want to sponsor me a new one :)

Quote of the day: "Time flies when you're having fun." ... How true!

Library should have more book copies!

2007-08-01T02:07:00.000+10:00

its 2:06AM and i'm still not sleepy... must be the coffee i had just now...

aarrghh... the book i borrowed from the library only yesterday has been requested... shucks. need to return it soon so i'm scanning it for useful info for the assignment i have for "Technology for Tropical Architecture"...

I really shouldn't be doing this now. :)

the art of blogging

2007-07-31T23:57:00.000+10:00

sigh... blogging is tiring...hhaha only after 1 post.. probably because I haven't set up the page properly- read: not yet to my satisfaction..

hey, i'm studying design ok?!! it's natural to be fussy and obsess over details and aesthetics... well, enough said...back to work!

another lazy blogger

2007-07-31T22:35:00.000+10:00

i'm not new to blog culture and the exisiting blogosphere....and i've been a loyal reader of kennysia and xiaxue like forever...and of course there's my friends blogs which i frequently visit like callyn's, lime's and shinsar's.

So....

Why did it take me this long to start a blog for myself?
One word, procrastination. (which by the way, happens to be my middle name).

Why now?
Because a friend of uni has been bugging me to get a blog of my own...so as is typical with me, with a bit of pestering and cajoling, I gave in. :P

Now, let's just see how often I'll be updating my blog, LOL!!