tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62823262011-10-20T20:12:15.067+08:00Thirty PouncesA cat in the wild makes thirty pounces a day to catch preywahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.comBlogger5751100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-31980760965714118112011-10-20T20:12:00.001+08:002011-10-20T20:12:15.081+08:00Confucian ethics as you exerciseThe last place I'd expect to see a quote from Confucius: the jogging track.wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-58884834530092394332011-10-16T11:56:00.001+08:002011-10-16T23:56:38.060+08:00Black Swans and Old Lenses
I've always regretted that the switch to digital photography meant that my Voigtlander lenses sat in the dry cabinet, un-used. About the last time I used those lenses extensively was in Cambodia in 2004. Aside from a few weddings, they've seen little use since.
I've kept an eye out for various options for mounting them to a digital back, but since a Leica M9 is not really a viable option, wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-56219736946675894482011-10-10T22:03:00.000+08:002011-10-10T22:03:56.890+08:00Plumbing the past
A while back I thought of a great business idea: buy and mothball a computer system every 2 years, and then wait 20 years. Set up shop, and offer a service to help people recover their data from media which were no longer supported by current technology.
The first computers I used had 5¼-inch floppy disk drives (that really flopped), then saw the shift to 3½-inch drives (that no longer wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-16496239474252902992011-10-09T10:19:00.001+08:002011-10-09T13:18:00.365+08:00I used to blog: now I Facebook
I used to blog: now I Facebook. I used to spend hours editing, post-processing, and tweaking every photo: now I upload them 'as-is', or maybe with a few in-camera (i.e. in-iPhone) filters applied. I used to shoot on film, or large digital SLRs: now I shoot mostly on the iPhone.
I used to upload my carefully crafted images to flickr, and I used to post them in various groups for feedback,wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-32835151576254820752011-10-08T19:01:00.001+08:002011-10-09T13:07:24.521+08:00How to assemble a PC
No, we didn't really use the hammer. Or pliers. Or knife. But the screwdriver was used to short-circuit and start the computer when we were testing the motherboard. I spent the afternoon helping a friend put together a computer: good fun, and great catching up! :)
wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-50349824545066364682011-10-06T22:44:00.003+08:002011-10-06T22:50:51.255+08:00In Memoriam Steve Jobs <!--[if gte mso 9]> Normal.dotm 0 0 1 153 875 HCI 7 1 1074 12.0 <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]> 0 false 18 pt 18 pt 0 0 false false false <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]> <![endif]--> <!--[if gte mso 10]> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-44383539146014840782011-01-29T09:45:00.004+08:002011-01-29T10:17:17.098+08:00Showing versus TellingI've been following the Egyptian protests on the radio, and it's been an interesting experience.I grew up in the era of Television news, and I'm living through the age of the Internet press. I've been fed a steady diet of images and text, moving and still, broadcast and streamed, on-demand and pushed, collaborative and not. Recently, however, I've been so busy that the only news I've been able wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-83880551612496554082010-09-28T07:58:00.003+08:002010-09-28T08:29:31.932+08:00Every nuclear explosion from 1945 to 1998I find this visualisation (by Japanese artist Isao Hashimoto) of every nuclear explosion from 1945 to 1998 compelling for so many reasons.There's the strange video-game aesthetic to the whole thing, and not just any video-game aesthetic, but a particularly 1980s-arcade feel - the midi-like beeps and tones, the slightly jerky/stepped "zooming" effect, the crosshairs that extend to the edge of the wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-5694999650559472082009-11-03T15:16:00.005+08:002009-11-03T17:21:15.745+08:00"The best camera is the one you have with you"These are photos taken with my iPhone, with minimal processing.I view them in the same light as the photos I used to take with my Holga in '98 and '99: they are lo-res snapshots that capture a slice of life as I see it, walking around the city."The best camera is the one you have with you": I read this many years ago somewhere on the net (and now there's a book dedicated to it, as well as other wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-45951725122578758412009-08-26T14:44:00.003+08:002011-10-08T19:02:05.666+08:00Diver.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }
diver, originally uploaded by Wahj. This shot captures a lot of what scuba diving means for me - the sense of mystery and exploration, the alien landscapes (seascapes?) of coral reefs, and most of all, the fact that scuba wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-2875088144453563502009-06-11T22:59:00.006+08:002009-06-11T23:31:25.162+08:00Penang: it's the foodView over Gurney DriveSo our little trip to Penang is over, and we're safe at home with the cats. The verdict on Penang: it's the food. I hate to say this, but all the historical heritage in Georgetown couldn't drag us away from the food. Now, next time I visit Penang, I'll soak up the history in Georgetown till it comes out of my ears ... but this trip was for the makan.Not that that's all wewahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-26488641312639436812009-06-09T18:15:00.005+08:002009-06-10T02:08:55.472+08:00Fishing off Gurney DriveFishing Off Gurney DriveWalked around today, looking for an old address that my wife remembered. Walking around, you see a city from street level, and you see the small things - like this boy fishing off Gurney Drive.wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-50248566774556363642009-06-09T11:53:00.006+08:002009-06-09T14:03:03.433+08:00PenangThough I've never been to Penang before, I have been to countless Penang Hawker food events at various hotels in Singapore - so it's quite something to finally get to Penang, and actually sample that same food in its natural environment. Although I tried very hard not to let the context influence me unduly (everything on holiday just seems better because (a) you're on holiday and (b) you have a wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-15847897231716102022009-06-02T18:29:00.008+08:002009-06-04T20:07:23.338+08:00USAFlagsThe last time I went to the US, 11 years ago, it was my last big Journey as a student. It was the last time I traveled the way I traveled as a university student - you know: on a budget, dirt poor, hostels and backpacking and such. Everything after that was Vacations - because Vacations only exist when you Work, and indeed they are defined in contrast to Work. Vacations connote a minimum wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-51564683470979760442009-06-02T16:07:00.006+08:002009-06-02T17:46:03.164+08:00MelakaI have been reminded umpteen times by the wife that I haven't posted on this blog for quite a while, so I thought I'd finally post an update on few things that have happened - mostly trips abroad.Let's start with Melaka:Statue of St Francis XavierOur second driving holiday in Malaysia. There's something nice about driving yourself on holiday - besides the fact that it's cheaper, it keep you wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-67924008180295843282009-01-08T22:50:00.003+08:002009-01-08T23:19:26.242+08:004 Days to ChangeOur host described Jakarta was a city of juxtapositions. How true: driving through the city is like a cutting through a layer cake of society: slums next to gated luxury apartments. Our driver took us on a short cut through a poor district, where the houses crowded onto the road and I could literally wind down the window and knock on someone's front door and where 50 metres after I saw a littlewahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-32591305170051555112009-01-04T01:13:00.004+08:002009-01-04T01:22:15.739+08:00CenotaphPictures from a walk round the Padang.The Cenotaph, first in infra-red:then, for comparison, in visible light:While I like both photographs, I think the photos make it quite clear why I go to the trouble of shooting in digital infra-red: it affords the opportunity to see the world in (literally) a different light.wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-43554200110037422532008-12-15T22:51:00.006+08:002008-12-16T00:19:40.100+08:00Fraser's HillOr Bukit Fraser, as it is now known.A note to those driving up from Singapore, (as we did). If anyone tells you the journey will take 4.5 hours, or even 5.5 hours, don't believe them. We took 8.5 hours to reach the foot of Fraser's Hill. Admittedly, we did get lost a bit in Kuala Lumpur, and get caught in inner-city traffic, but I don't see how anyone can make the trip in 4.5 hours short of wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-33881751673002988352008-11-16T11:24:00.002+08:002008-11-16T11:26:13.013+08:00Laksa.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } Laksa, originally uploaded by Wahj. Nothing beats Laksa for breakfast. Except maybe prata. Or Nasi Lemak.But Laksa still edges, marginally, past them all.wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-87526420872504986652008-11-02T23:02:00.002+08:002008-11-02T23:10:42.433+08:00Chopin in the GardensA recent addition to the Botanic Gardens is this statue, donated by the Polish Embassy, of Chopin. It looks a bit strange at first sight - two figures in period costume at the top of the hill, and the piano keyboard is strangely abstracted, looking like some synthesiser, adding a slightly anachronistic touch to the whole thing ... as if the sculpture can't decide if it's traditional realist or wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-35493425998540650682008-10-22T22:19:00.004+08:002009-01-04T01:27:45.496+08:00Mac, fearless ...... and more than a little daft. If Macavity were living in the wild, he would be the kind of cat who would find himself up a tree, mewling piteously, while some poor fireman climbed up a ladder to get him down - because even in this small apartment of ours, he regularly finds a way to climb up to spots where he subsequently can't get down from.After a few minutes of meowing, when he figures outwahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-34104434708579594082008-10-12T22:26:00.003+08:002008-10-13T00:11:54.225+08:00More serendipityThis is one of those weird moments. I was walking along the Esplanade yesterday, and I realised that the construction noises from across the Bay were melding together rather nicely into an almost-musical pattern. I don't know what they were doing - piling works, some sort of hammering noise - but it came our rather tuneful and tone-ful, and more importantly, had a rather neat rhythm going on. wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-35129800985435327732008-09-20T18:06:00.002+08:002008-09-20T18:09:13.331+08:00Is your fridge too cold?... because, if it is, you might find what I just found: your eggs freezing to the container, such that when you open the box, the top half just comes away ...You have been warned.wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-13599750352173710492008-09-08T15:16:00.002+08:002008-09-08T15:17:13.830+08:00Wushu.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } Wushu, originally uploaded by Wahj. The WuShu performance at the Mid-Autumn Festival celebrations.wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-63752453362279211752008-09-06T22:02:00.005+08:002008-09-06T23:38:04.770+08:00Windows: Hating every minute of itSome time back I gave in and bought a PC - a Windows machine - as a gaming platform. This was partly because it was increasingly difficult for my MacBook Pro to serve as an office work station, a repository of all my photos and music, as well as a gaming machine. It was partly also because most games can only be played on a Windows machine.While I wish I could say the PC is a great gaming wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-42728609505574708172008-09-05T22:56:00.003+08:002008-09-05T23:02:49.744+08:00SerendipityCoincidences:- in the morning, I read this XKCD cartoon, and am completely baffled (discussion thread on the comic here, for those who wish to read more). I make a mental note to myself to figure out what it could possibly be referring to.- in the afternoon, I stop by Borders and this book catches my eye on the shelf. I buy it from pure curiosity (and because the blurb reminds me of Nabokov's wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-4143694619070875772008-09-04T23:47:00.005+08:002008-09-05T00:06:11.906+08:00More media than you can shake a stick atI have more books than I have time to read; more DVDs than I have time to sit in front of a TV; more CDs than I have time to savour. I download podcasts from BBC's In Our Time and listen to them on the morning drive; I watch TED talks when I'm waiting around to meet people; I carry a book with me to the canteen when I have my lunch and coffee breaks. I still can't read, listen and watch faster wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-24930205903783606442008-09-02T22:29:00.004+08:002008-09-02T22:54:41.688+08:00Thoughts on the iPhoneFig 1: Self-referential photo - a photo of a photo of myself taking a photo(1) Singtel really needs to re-examine their concept of "reserving" an iPhone. I made my reservation a few months ago, and when collection day came around last week, I was told to select a one-hour time slot to collect it in, and I STILL had to queue to collect it. That's ridiculous. Reservations help the supplier: wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-68103340128379858932008-09-02T09:00:00.008+08:002008-09-05T00:04:16.987+08:00Omnivore's HundredI haven't come across a meme in a long while which interested me, but this one from Tym caught my attention. It's also one of the few memes where I've had to actively use Google to find out what the items were!The other nice thing about this meme is remembering the first (and in many cases only time ) eating some of the more exotic foods on this list - such as ...The snake, croc and frogs all wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-24307385551621743272008-09-01T12:11:00.001+08:002008-09-01T12:11:05.353+08:00Carrot seedlings.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } Carrot seedlings, originally uploaded by Wahj. This was a Teachers' Day present this year. I received them on Friday, watered them on Saturday, and was surprised to see them sprout on Monday. I hope they survive ...wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-49417374544490784512008-08-24T22:14:00.001+08:002008-08-24T22:14:36.613+08:00the heart asks pleasure first.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } the heart asks pleasure first, originally uploaded by Wahj. The heart asks pleasure firstAnd then, excuse from pain-And then, those little anodynesThat deaden suffering;And then, to go to sleep;And then, if it should beThe wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-18352077715889733202008-07-22T21:45:00.002+08:002008-07-22T21:46:03.349+08:00Singapore Museum Night Festival.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } fire dancer 2, originally uploaded by Wahj. Fantastic show at the Night Festival last Saturday. Part of me regrets not being able to photograph the magic, but another part appreciates the fact that moments of magic like wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-30377537594371083472008-07-01T23:07:00.002+08:002008-07-01T23:12:52.419+08:00Secret message.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } secret message, originally uploaded by Wahj. Spotted this funny scrawl on the note pad used to test pens at Muji. Probably some kid, judging by the handwriting. Equal parts banal and mysterious, and mildly disturbing ...wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-76230005236399530892008-06-26T17:10:00.001+08:002008-06-26T17:10:51.818+08:00Christian Moeller's "Daisy".flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } Christian Moeller's "Daisy", originally uploaded by Wahj. I've been to the new Terminal 3 at the airport quite a few times over the last few weeks, and each time I've looked at this kinetic sculpture I've wanted to wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-33162444783530390592008-06-16T19:46:00.002+08:002008-06-16T19:50:49.154+08:00thirty-one pounces?I've started a tumblog over here ... I'm not sure what to do with it, but for now it's mostly as a scrapbook of things, thoughts, photos and ideas. (not sure what to name it either ... thirty-one pounces anyone?)wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-9329850355097321422008-06-13T22:02:00.008+08:002008-06-14T22:11:41.520+08:00PC Show 08The PC fair at Suntec convention centre is one huge mass of geekery swarming over 3 convention hall floors. Here's the loot from braving the crowds yesterday and today:First off, the largest laptop cooling fan I have ever seen. Yes, that's one single, huge, fan - and, as a bonus, it's lit with blue LEDs. But here's a pet peeve: why do manufacturers believe that a sticker showing a series of wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-23726680993184355432008-05-20T21:10:00.003+08:002008-05-21T09:13:27.155+08:00forgetfulForgetful is when you get home after work to realize you've left your Macbook Pro on your table. This leaves you without access to the 'net, the wider world, and that part of yourself (the blog, the photos,your World of Warcraft character) which is not located within the confines of your skull and 3 feet of personal space. (forgetful is also somehow misplacing the money you drew from the ATM, wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-79350986579556208102008-05-14T00:18:00.002+08:002008-05-14T00:28:18.873+08:00Helvetica, it is not ...... but it is my very own font =)Fontstruct lets you design your own font, publish it, download it, and use it. The drawing tools are somewhat limited - but some people have managed some pretty amazing fonts with them (such as this one and this one, or how about this one).I can already think of several people who would jump at the opportunity to design their own font, so a word of warning: it wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-31832564918151605442008-04-16T15:40:00.002+08:002008-04-16T15:42:03.662+08:00flightless.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } flightless, originally uploaded by Wahj. Found this bird squashed on the pavement. The action of countless cars driving over it had mummified it so only yellow bone and a few feathers remained. It's funny that the wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-79147969649263584132008-03-13T08:29:00.002+08:002008-03-13T08:30:10.035+08:00Morning scene with cats.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } Morning scene with cats, originally uploaded by Wahj. This is what a holiday morning is like.On days when my wife and I don't have to get to work before sunrise, we sleep in, and the cats sleep in with us. All is generallywahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-41879707935480277052008-02-03T23:51:00.001+08:002008-02-03T23:51:54.550+08:00Victory.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } Victory, originally uploaded by Wahj. From the Army History Museum, Singapore.wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-2369851589384245742008-02-01T15:32:00.001+08:002008-02-01T15:34:03.146+08:00Shopping Centre DefibrillatorI don't know whether to be reassured or concerned..flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } Shopping Centre Defibrillator, originally uploaded by Wahj. Is the presence of a de-fibrillator in a shopping centre cause for reassurance ("What's that? A heart attack you wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-74452848680001668112008-01-31T16:33:00.001+08:002008-01-31T16:43:36.683+08:00Shriveled cherry.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } shriveled cherry, originally uploaded by Wahj. I found this sculpture outside the back entrance of the National Museum of Singapore. A gigantic, shriveled, cherry.Am I the only one who finds this disturbing?wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-46264485665989586302008-01-28T18:48:00.001+08:002008-01-30T08:54:32.313+08:00Happy things.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } happy things, originally uploaded by Wahj. My long awaited Amazon order arrived today, just in time to cheer me up on a typically lousy Monday.From top left:Stardust, widescreen DVD.Presentation ZenBlade Runner - the wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-49771526178669764782008-01-06T23:23:00.001+08:002008-01-06T23:25:34.655+08:00Belly in the sun.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } belly in the sun, originally uploaded by Wahj. We stayed at the K-hotel in Phuket for one simple reason: they have cats.Last year when we were there, one particularly friendly Siamese came to our room and slept on the bed wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-39766598885320627682008-01-05T22:03:00.001+08:002008-01-05T22:10:08.607+08:00Wine-dark sea.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } deck and sea, originally uploaded by Wahj. I've never spent 4 whole days on the sea before this last dive trip. I can't say I really got my sea-legs, though I puked but once - and that was mostly because the water was wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-53722619842927079262007-12-31T17:25:00.000+08:002008-01-01T08:32:00.668+08:00"This was a triumph"I stumbled across this song on YouTube the other day, and was so taken by it's quirky and offbeat humour that I went and bought the game the next day (the video is of the end-credits of Portal). This may be the first time I bought a video game just because of the theme song. Portal is one of the most inventive, original, and genuinely entertaining games to come out recently, not the least wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-3827710509350477592007-12-27T08:02:00.000+08:002007-12-27T08:37:26.636+08:00Green spotThe relentless grind of the holiday season has kept me from blogging about the dive trip to Phuket, but here's a little observation from the trip.2 years ago when I first spotted these green laser pointers for sale online, their prices were in the hundreds. Two weeks ago, I saw these in Phuket, being used by street hawkers to get the attention of tourists like me - they would fling a green laserwahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-80977663540290403302007-12-13T15:49:00.000+08:002007-12-13T16:46:30.014+08:00Our poor feline friendsI came across these two articles today:Scientists create Glow-in-the-Dark catsHypoallergenic CatsFollow the first link to see a cat that glows red in the dark. That's RED. RED.Why in the name of all that's good and holy anyone would do that is beyond me.Follow the second link to see how a company is marketing their line (yes: these are products) of hypoallergenic cats. What struck me was the wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-62361731516707427082007-11-12T11:51:00.001+08:002007-11-12T11:59:34.975+08:00Craning up.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } craning up, originally uploaded by Wahj. It seems we're always building. Progess is construction, progress is under construction, progress is never getting there but always trying. We're a nation that wants to arrive but wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-2265190038283470022007-11-09T12:25:00.001+08:002007-11-12T12:01:01.481+08:00Gandhi memorial.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } gandhi memorial, originally uploaded by Wahj. Spotted in a recent jaunt through Little India: a memorial to Mahatma Gandhi. As far as I know, this memorial isn't mentioned in any history, tourist brochure, or any text wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-71580028399217588422007-10-07T22:06:00.001+08:002007-10-07T22:21:03.877+08:00The light at the top of the canopy.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } The light at the top of the canopy, originally uploaded by Wahj. Hard to believe this is Chinatown: this was behind a block of HDB flats, near the car park and the garbage collection area. If you looked down you'd see the wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-23018858940978583782007-10-06T22:23:00.001+08:002007-10-06T22:40:02.155+08:00Feeding timeWhat do you do when it's a been a lousy week at work? You go out and buy a carnivorous plant for your little high-rise garden, that's what. When we first moved into this house, I had a pitcher plant that did quite well, but it died when we got our first cat. It's been 5 years since my last attempt at carnivorous plants, but I now have a Venus Fly Trap. I also bought a nice flowering pot, but wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-86187489619254261912007-10-06T18:15:00.001+08:002007-10-06T18:21:56.440+08:00Lion doorknocker.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } lion doorknocker, originally uploaded by Wahj. Back door, facing the alley, where no one would ever see it.wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-82443385835214742252007-10-04T20:54:00.001+08:002007-10-04T20:58:47.935+08:00Bush.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } Bush 2, originally uploaded by Wahj. From our recent jaunt in Chinatown (perhaps I should call it a photowalk? - a term someone introduced to me recently, though it strikes me as being a bit excessive to come up with a wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-72487760313112423572007-10-01T23:41:00.001+08:002007-10-01T23:50:54.410+08:00Red roses, red shoes.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } red roses red shoes, originally uploaded by Wahj. Remember those roses I mentioned earlier? Well, this is what they were used for. The play was called 'Ophelia', by my wife's colleague Nick, and it was pretty intense wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-48402151864225709912007-09-23T00:20:00.001+08:002007-09-23T00:23:22.441+08:00Roses are Infra-Red.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } Roses are InfraRed, originally uploaded by Wahj. I never thought red roses would be so IR-reflective as to turn alabaster white. Shot of roses floating in water (see previous post for explanation).wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-59249345588676805162007-09-18T23:13:00.000+08:002007-09-19T15:05:46.178+08:00Sandpaper and RosesMonday night was sandpaper and roses.My wife is helping out as stage manager for a play, and the director wants roses floating (stem down) in a fish tank. The stem-down part is easy: screw in a screw or a nail into the bottom, and it weights the rose enough that it floats straight (getting the right mix of buoyancy and weight does require some experimentation though).The roses on the other hand wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-81973470403948982092007-09-14T11:07:00.000+08:002007-09-14T11:08:02.417+08:00My most popular photoThis is apparently my most popular photo on flickr: Lone Tree.Apparently, this image made it to the top 25 of flickr's "explore" pages, which is not bad. This is also the one image which has received requests from various people to use - for posters, in a magazine, and for some book (which it is totally unrelated to). I've mostly told them yes, since I'm not a pro and I don't make money from mywahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-13160410614511236802007-09-12T19:38:00.000+08:002007-09-13T14:55:18.543+08:00Indonesia Rocks Our WorldI was sitting in front of my computer when I thought I was feeling dizzy. Then I realised the room was moving - an inch to either side, a gentle but rapid swaying. And then I was running out the door and downstairs as fast as I could.7.9 scale quake in Indonesia. I couldn't feel it when I got downstairs, but at the 17th floor, the swaying was enough to terrify me.Random thoughts as I was wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-42853616529513501652007-09-10T17:45:00.000+08:002007-09-12T19:58:41.331+08:00How I Got My First Parking TicketI blame World of Warcraft, wikipedia, the Internet, and George Bush.It all began with Warcraft. After levelling a Hunter to 70, I got bored and started to level a Shaman. I got bored with that and started on a Warrior. And then I saw the Light and decided to level a Paladin (we shall conveniently forget the Druid for the moment). And after rolling female Night Elves and male Draenei, I wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-21965120517249151572007-09-10T11:11:00.000+08:002007-09-10T11:31:19.969+08:00Random iTunes shuffling thoughts on a Monday(1) I did not know there was a poem called “Why I Take Care Good Care of My Macintosh Computer”, or indeed that I had a recording of it. By Gary Snyder. Nice poem. Link to words and recording here."Because I have let it move in with meright inside the tentAnd it goes with me out every morningWe fill up our baskets, get back home,Feel rich, relax, I throw it a scrap and it hums."(2) Sylvia wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-47246288335156623562007-09-05T14:09:00.000+08:002007-09-05T14:24:03.292+08:00about those dive photos ...Although I didn't take any underwater photos of the dives, at least one person did: Mathieu Meur was on this particular dive trip, and his photos can be seen at his flickr site here. He has some incredible shots. How incredible, you ask? Well, he wrote the PADI manual on underwater digital photography ...wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-64196173366144039932007-09-04T12:29:00.000+08:002007-09-04T13:51:01.346+08:00A dive trip post without dive photosNo, no photos this time. I really must get myself one of those waterproof housings, but until I do, we're stuck with wordy descriptions.Highlights: I'm finally comfortable enough with the diving to stop consciously thinking about the process, and enjoy the diving. Buoyancy is right, gear is ok, so I spent most of the dives indulging my curiosity. Since there weren't many big fish around, I wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-77312293094404743802007-09-03T23:51:00.001+08:002007-09-14T10:35:54.747+08:00Spider web.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } spider web, originally uploaded by Wahj. Towards the end of the dive trip (more about that in a later post), I disassembled my dive knife to clean and dry it, and left it on the table to dry. I hadn't left it for more thanwahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-71996990117784372272007-09-03T22:13:00.001+08:002007-09-03T22:14:45.501+08:00"The peasant river".flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } clarke quay, originally uploaded by Wahj. "The peasant river was untempted by the fashionable quays"- "In Memory of W.B. Yeats", AudenWhen I first read those lines by Auden, the Singapore river came to mind, winding past wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-87827924325229618132007-08-26T23:44:00.001+08:002007-08-26T23:47:11.999+08:00Shooglenifty.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } shooglenifty 1, originally uploaded by Wahj. A few days ago I didn't even know who Shooglenifty were. I kept trying to find out what the name of the band was in between songs at WOMAD, but that was hopeless - it was eitherwahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-4736604749386017082007-08-25T13:45:00.001+08:002007-08-26T23:47:42.258+08:00WOMAD 2007.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } WOMAD Lion, originally uploaded by Wahj. Took this photo at WOMAD last night. The styrofoam lion logo was nicely backlit as it stood in the bushes, making a nice shot.More about WOMAD to follow.wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-62069145288785636102007-08-21T20:46:00.000+08:002007-08-26T23:48:12.785+08:00Sushi bar philosophyDecided to eat at the sushi bar tonight since I thought dinner would be late, and I was in town anyway. Tried a little experiment: I decided I'd pick a random number (as usual, 7) and simply count that number of plates that went by, and eat whatever it was ... just for the heck of it. It could've been worse - I ended up with egg sushi, and something that looked like chopped fish of some vague wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-13360003111500647942007-08-17T11:01:00.000+08:002007-08-17T11:55:39.755+08:00Really large pencils. And a wallFriday afternoons strain the limited resources of the imagination as far as inventive post titles go. So this one is stubbornly literal.For all my wanderings round Fort Canning Hill, I'd missed this particular monument. Perhaps it is more accurately described as a non-monument. The plaque at the bottom of the picture reads:The Fort WallThis fragment is all that remains of the strong wall whichwahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-44846812895619053782007-08-16T18:53:00.000+08:002007-08-16T19:03:39.647+08:00Return to Fort CanningOne of the nice things about finally getting a car (more about that in another post) is mobility. When I started this current job almost 2 years ago, I found I no longer had the time for my photography that I used to: the working day would simply end too late for me to get any meaningful photography done.I took the camera out yesterday, and drove off to Fort Canning Hill after work. The car wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-10753788075304834512007-08-14T22:21:00.000+08:002007-08-15T22:08:29.159+08:00Recent ReadingInterviewing a job applicant the other day, I saw on the list of modules she had studied in her Literature course "Sci Fi and Fantasy". If only that option had been available when I did my degree in Lit.I was just thinking how ironic it was that I completely missed out on the rise of William Gibson and cyberpunk. I started reading fiction seriously in 1984, with Asimov: this was when Gibson wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-20183503457098310852007-08-13T19:45:00.000+08:002007-08-13T20:02:52.632+08:00Object Lessons in CookingNumber 134: Check your spicesTonight we bring you another installment of "Object Lessons in Cooking".This one begins with me deciding to cook up some potatoes and bacon. The plan was simple: laboriously chop - nay, dice - 3 potatoes into a heap of fine cubes, then fry in a pan with the bacon bits. 15 minutes of chopping and dicing later, I have said pile of potatoes ready.Spices. Yes - wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-32092578774816070992007-07-31T19:48:00.000+08:002007-07-31T20:09:14.114+08:00D.I.Y. Mask RepairOn our last dive trip, I used a spiffy new HydroOptix mask, bought from the local distributor. I took it down to a max depth of 35m over 6 dives, and it leaked from the first dive onwards.At first I thought it was a poor seal at the edges, but towards the end, the mask would flood dramatically, especially on ascent. It wasn't till all 6 dives were over that I took a good look at the mask and wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-82407414902303026122007-06-24T21:54:00.000+08:002007-06-25T08:58:03.957+08:00PerambulationsAn industrial estate is the last place I'd have expected to find a baby goods emporium, but there it was. And not one, but two megastores full of prams, diapers, and everything else a baby could possibly need. Also full of (I might add) pregnant women; pregnant women with children in tow; pregnant women with husbands, fathers, mothers and mothers-in-law in tow ... you get the idea. Very wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-50375607967247218952007-06-23T23:26:00.000+08:002007-06-24T21:04:56.844+08:00Stream of Consciousness: Clipper Tea"1872 Clipper Tea Co." As a child I had one of those picture books that had a picture of the Cutty Sark. For some reason I read that one little factoid over and over again - the Cutty Sark, tea clipper, fastest merchant vessel in the age of sail.I have too many Patrick O'Brien books and not enough time to finish reading the whole 20-book series. The last time I read one was in Cambodia - in wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-58463688354874259882007-06-20T20:40:00.000+08:002007-06-20T20:50:37.399+08:00Running along a beachThe photoshoot for our wedding was done on this beach, 6 years ago. I remember how the photographer (wes) made my wife and I run along the beach so he could get a shot of us ... um ... running. Along the beach. Multiple times. It was tiring.So when I saw these footprints there yesterday, I thought immediately of that time.wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-74107252443342860522007-06-20T15:58:00.000+08:002007-06-20T16:01:56.095+08:00All about MacI have decided that the creature called Macavity has only two operating modes: awake and naughty, and asleep and cute. Here are two more photos of him in inexcusably cute mode.wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-77989495000943086992007-05-02T00:14:00.001+08:002007-05-02T00:19:11.701+08:00This is how we spent May Day.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } Macavity ponders, originally uploaded by Wahj. Actually, this is how our cats spend all their days. And at night, they become hyperactive. Or rather, Macavity becomes hyper. Patch, Iffy and Twinkle are mellow.wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-20630147276453500642007-04-28T22:17:00.001+08:002007-05-02T00:19:55.794+08:00Random thoughts.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } Loom, originally uploaded by Wahj. Signs you've been reading too much Tolkien:- you write "one hundred and elven" instead of "one hundred and eleven" on your cheque.Signs you've really been reading too much Tolkien:- you wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-16312327765771841532007-04-09T13:48:00.001+08:002007-04-09T13:52:17.052+08:00Macavity at rest.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } macavity at rest, originally uploaded by Wahj. For all his kittenish energy, Macavity has to sleep sometime. When he does, he looks like some kind of wind-up toy that's temporarily wound down, or a little steam engine wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-47254401440865327172007-03-21T15:42:00.001+08:002007-03-21T15:53:41.344+08:00Macavity Fights.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } Macavity Fights, originally uploaded by Wahj. Macavity is like a toddler - except the same boundless energy is packed into the body of a miniature tiger and fuelled by cat food, water, and occasional naps. These past few wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-47167039104867353292007-03-05T00:18:00.001+08:002007-03-05T00:21:16.570+08:00Macavity.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } macavity, originally uploaded by Wahj. He's quite the little terror.The vet had advised us to keep him quarantined for 3 weeks, but he meows every day to be let out of the toilet. We finally let him out last night, and he wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-25173815444080660682007-02-27T22:02:00.001+08:002007-02-27T22:04:53.820+08:00Number 4 (?).flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } Number 4, originally uploaded by Wahj. Not a very good shot, but better ones will follow. My students rescued this kitten after its mother was hit by a car. They told me the other siblings were adopted, and this was the wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-43660852699403907982007-02-20T21:23:00.000+08:002007-02-20T21:36:26.858+08:00Kids say the darndest thingsI was watching the Fantastic Four with my nephew the other day, and at the end of it all, he turned to me and (in reference to the Human Torch) said:"Why does he use fire? Why can't he use pencils?"Utterly flabbergasted. For once, I had no rejoinder. He does have a point, you know.wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-588440155818317312007-02-12T21:52:00.001+08:002007-02-12T21:52:52.355+08:00Limited edition toilet rolls.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } Limited edition toilet rolls, originally uploaded by Wahj. Some things are almost too ridiculous to be real - yet they are manifestly there before our eyes.Such as these Limited Edition toilet rolls. I'd wax sarcastic wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-11648737782568777132007-02-12T16:13:00.001+08:002007-02-12T16:13:54.448+08:00Mannequin Murder Mystery.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } mannequin murder mystery, originally uploaded by Wahj. Exhibit A: One mannequin, cruelly dismembered, the pieces spread over the shop floor. The Mannequin police are rounding up the usual suspects.wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-55993407857791167212007-02-11T19:46:00.001+08:002007-02-11T19:46:57.168+08:00And then there were 6.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } missing fish, originally uploaded by Wahj. Two more of the big(ger) fish died over the weekend. One was spotted looking sickly on Friday, and sank to the bottom on Saturday. The other was found today, jammed headfirst wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-15286913827469551692007-02-07T14:00:00.000+08:002007-02-07T15:28:48.308+08:00Un Lun DunUn Lun Dun is China Mieville's latest novel, his first foray into that increasingly misnamed genre called "young adult", and one of the most intelligent approaches to the well-worn path of adventure and fantasy.Un Lun Dun is the Un-Eragon and Un-Harry Potter. It takes the tried (tired) and tested cliches of fantasy and subverts them. Yes there is a heroine, and yes she is prophesied, the "wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-9335108850246312942007-02-07T10:55:00.001+08:002007-02-07T15:26:42.901+08:00Where did the PC go?.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } where did the PC go?, originally uploaded by Wahj. Like most mac users, I have to contend with a workplace that's locked into a Windows/PC paradigm. I have a work-issued laptop that sees reasonable use when I need to wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-19862894074294586462007-01-29T11:45:00.001+08:002007-02-12T16:15:08.298+08:00Still building.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } still building, originally uploaded by Wahj. Another shot from that rainy day, taken through the window of a taxi. It would've been nice to have had more than one building in the shot - to have had a skyline instead of wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-76197089826904029142007-01-20T23:22:00.001+08:002007-02-12T16:15:59.064+08:00Life in the rain.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } cyclist and car in the rain, originally uploaded by Wahj. Took this photo from a taxi, waiting for the queue to move. I'd been watching this cyclist for a few minutes as he struggled to put on his hood in the rain. It mustwahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-12295781465104250522007-01-06T13:49:00.000+08:002007-02-12T16:16:26.809+08:00AttritionTwo of the fish in our iMacAquarium were found dead this afternoon. I came home, and there they were, belly up, with fuzzy stuff on their gills.Sigh. We've never been very good at keeping fishes. At least I didn't have to euthanize them like tscd did hers.wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-51748351327120897212007-01-03T18:12:00.001+08:002007-05-02T00:21:38.492+08:00Iffy gets into bonsai.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } iffy gets into bonsai, originally uploaded by Wahj. My wife bought me a bonsai plant as an anniversary present. I didn't have the chance to bring it to my office during the hols, so it was at home the past few weeks.My cat, wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-70807648106823594712006-12-30T14:05:00.001+08:002006-12-30T14:09:58.968+08:00"Yes you can, Yellow Coward".flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } yellow coward, originally uploaded by Wahj. The photo about says it all really. This was a mousepad I spotted in a shop, and its the kind of idiosyncratic use of English typical of Japanese products. No doubt the designer/wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-87189030038875068892006-12-30T00:04:00.000+08:002006-12-30T00:26:10.338+08:00A Tale of Two (or More) DoctorsChristmas eve is a very bad time to fall sick. In my case at least it wasn't life-threatening, but a very frustrating case of conjunctivitis, coupled with and preceded by a mysterious swelling of the lymph nodes 2 days prior. Mysterious because there were no other symptoms: no fever, no pain - just a swollen preauricular node by the ear, and then two days later the eye goes red in pain and wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-5834029759502133862006-12-28T15:58:00.000+08:002006-12-28T16:02:42.685+08:00'net blackoutUndersea cables damaged in an earthquake. Internet access severely limited. For one whole day, I can't reach Google, Blogger, or any site outside of Singapore.And yet I still receive spam in my email.What is wrong with this picture?!?!tags:singaporewahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-10096447145115739742006-12-15T21:17:00.000+08:002006-12-15T21:39:34.833+08:00Geeky Dive Watch VideosAs mentioned earlier, I haven't got any underwater photos to share from this dive trip because I haven't got into underwater photography. (Yet)I do have something analogous, and far geekier: the playback from my dive watch of my two favourite dives.The watch in question is a Swatch Scuba, which shows depth and time underwater, and allows playback of the last dive. I use a Suunto Mosquito for mywahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-34162716064450606382006-12-15T08:54:00.000+08:002006-12-15T09:09:58.353+08:00Cutest Baby Ever On a Dive BoatThis, surely, must be the cutest baby ever seen on a dive boat:She was on the dive trip with us for 3 days, and I've never met a baby so incredibly adorable and good-natured: if you can imagine, she was on a boat for 3 days, in the company of many strangers, loud noises and with all the rocking and swaying and engine rumblings, and she was smiling like that all the time. She never cried, or wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282326.post-1165796670438109352006-12-11T08:24:00.000+08:002006-12-11T09:14:44.024+08:00Arriving at the Phi Phi Islands.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } Arriving at the Phi Phi Islands, originally uploaded by Wahj. We're in Phuket now, but the past three days were spent living aboard the good ship White Manta, as we dived around the Phuket area. More pictures will follow (wahjhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10271216752725133010noreply@blogger.com0