The hype over Will and Kate

 

Don't worry Kate, you're prettier than those orchids

Thousands of people gathered, shouting, waving and snapping photos. A mega star's arrival is about to take place. No, it's not Jackie Chan, Usain Bolt or some PRC pandas. There is more of a royal touch here. Enter the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William and Kate Middleton.

A few lucky ones got to shake the royal hands of the royal couple, others could only continue raising their heads in an effort to witness a pinch of British royalty. So, what's the big deal over two human beings whose greatest accomplishment so far was being born as and fated to be a member of the royal family?

Maybe it is due to the British roots that Singapore long had since Stamford Raffles landed here almost two centuries ago. Maybe it's got to do with the popularity of the English Premier League in the country. Or maybe it's just that William and Kate will probably not visit us again for the next twenty years?

The reason for their overwhelming popularity is probably not about royalty. When the Sultan of Johor visited Singapore, I don't remember seeing people holding placards of his face while shouting slogans.

It was hard for me to fathom about all the fuss but when you have so many people recognizing and welcoming you, it can only mean that you possess celebrity status or rather celebrity value in their eyes. Appearing in front of these people will only further enhance your legacy.

Precisely, Prince William is no ordinary celebrity like Justin Bieber where people will have a big reaction (be it positive or negative) when they hear his name or hit songs. And the Duchess is not the typical trend-setter who will make an occasional mistake; she fits perfectly in all her clothes, from colour to cutting to design.

No matter how Justin Bieber sings or what hairstyle he spots, he is just a celebrity, one who has a lot of glamour. Enter William and Kate and you have an extra touch of royalty which makes seeing them in real life all the more exceptional.

Supposing that the royal couple's stay in Singapore was not stated in detail as reported in the newspapers, less people would have turned up to catch a glimpse of them. However, this group of people will still find ways to read up from the media or internet.

Seeing a celebrity of a different sort is not something that one can get to experience every month or even every year.

Oh yeah, Bieber has been offered to join a hockey team on trial. Bet William will never get this chance in his life ever.

Tan Cheng Bock & Tan Jee Say win at last!

Finally, Tan Cheng Bock and Tan Jee Say win! The wrong contest, unfortunately. Two out of the four Tans who contested in last year's presidential election clinched the most sexist behaviour award by Aware, that women association which had a big saga three years ago.

Both Tans received more than one third of the total votes on Aware's website and Facebook page. TCB, when questioned about the role of women in politics, said “The political arena is a difficult area for women in Singapore because the commitment is really very heavy. So you got to get the permission of your husband."

On the other hand, TJY replied “I would like to go back to the days when women can afford to be housewives.” when he was asked to give his opinion on the Baby Bonus. Both TCB and TJY are also the first politicians to be handed the award.

Other nominees included London Weight Management, Shape Run, PA aka People's Association and Focus on the Family. London Weight was nominated as one of its TV ad featured an exaggerated story where a woman's weight caused numerous troubles to the people around her.

Actually, Tan Cheng Bock doesn't deserve the award. What he said was sensitive but not entirely inaccurate. Why is it that political parties always have a "women's wing". The presence of a "women's wing" only serves to justify that there is a lack of women in politics and more should step forward to participate.

Awesome name for a toilet paper brand!

Enlistment: One year anniversary

One year ago today, I was sitting in a bunk in Pulau Tekong with a bunch of unfamiliar faces. My head was freshly shaved botak, had my first taste of cookhouse food and kept waking up and going back to sleep during that very first night.

Fast forward one year and I already have some of the toughest and most memorable, physical as well as mental, experiences that NS has to "offer". They include six days of field camp, cleaning never-ending amount of rifles and having a needle pierced into your arm and moving around your flesh during a live IV drip lesson.

Every night, during the Tekong days, when I was getting ready to go to sleep, I always thought that time passed very slowly in the military. I guess I was wrong after all. After one year of sweat, blood, mud and rain, I am left with another year before I officially return to the civilian world.

The time now is 9pm. Last year at this time, I was sitting in the parade square with my company, handphones in our hands, waiting for the green light to be given to make our first call home. The night snack then was some ordinary bread which tasted wonderful while savouring it under the moon.

I am getting sleepy now, time for light's out soon.

Singapore football: Lies and dreams

The national football team will have plenty of work to do before the 2012 Suzuki Cup arrives in November. Going down 0:2 to the Philippines on home soil in a friendly match yesterday makes one wonder if the Lions still have the ability to regain the title of Southeast-Asia's best.

The local media was quick to shift the blame away from Raddy Avramovic, coach aka the main culprit behind Singapore's downfall, by pointing out that the Filipinos have a few players plying their trades in the top tiers of European leagues.

One of them is Stephan Schröck and the press was quick to state that he plays for German Bundesliga side Hoffenheim. However, it is not stated that Schröck has only made one, yes only one, appearance for his team. Another is Neil Etheridge who is a Fulham goalkeeper and hasn't make his debut after more than four years.

Indeed, the opponents which Singapore was facing aren't as superior as what the media portrayed them to be. On paper, Singapore is definitely on par with the Azkals player for player.

Injuries to the grand old Aleksandar Duric, whom I frequently see at the Clementi stadium these days, and Khairul Amri have been used as an excuse for the Lion's poor performance. The main reason is obviously Avramovic and his illogical tactics.

The Football Association should stop lying to itself and realize that the coach is the bottomline for the continuous downfall of a team. The Lions are all quality players at the Southeast-Asia level, it is the coach that is screwing up the entire squad.

It's just 2 pandas from PRC

Seriously, what is the big deal about Kai Kai and Jia Jia? It's just two made-in-china pandas coming to Singapore under a loan scheme; they are not even going to live here permanently.

The local newspapers are reporting about the latest PRC export to Singapore in their front pages today and hundreds of human beings actually gathered at the zoo to welcome two animals. No comments about the kids present but the adults? Can they stop making Singaporeans look so sua ku?

One of those sua ku adults who waited at the airport happened to be minister of state for trade and industry, Teo Ser Luck. This shows that PAP office-holders are quite idle after all since they can afford to spare time to welcome a foreign talent like pandas.

Only in uniquely Singapore can one witness a government flooding the country with foreigners and making the citizens here feel like second-class. Now, the damage has been increased as welcoming animals seem to be even more important than tackling issues facing the average man.

Oh yes, I also read that we will be wasting ten million bucks for the panda's decade-long stay here.

Do you still think the men in white are capable of governing the country? I bet even an animal like the panda knows the answer.

银色嘉年华

 Wow, check this out! I am actually watching this show on Channel 8. It is called 银色嘉年华 (Silver Carnival), an afternoon variety show targeted at the erm, silver clan if you are not slow enough to know what I mean. Clearly, it is meant to rival 黄金年华 (Golden Age), a similar programme which has been running for a long time.

银色嘉年华  is rather similar to 黄金年华. There is a singing/talent competition where contestants are all above the age of 50, recommendations of eataries for the retired who are finding ways to enjoy life as well as cooking and health tips.

Both programmes look likely to cancel out each other since none looks capable of distinguishing itself.

Prawning

This morning, I attended my unit's anniversary celebration at Hai Bin Prawning in Sin Ming. Needless to say, the main thing to do there was to fish for prawns. My catch amounted to eight, not bad for a first-time prawner.

I guess more or less everybody managed to catch at least one prawn. To me, it doesn't matter which part of the pond one is at, the most important factor should be the bait. I trimmed down the bait's size for one of my friends as he was having an unfruitful time and within three minutes, I managed to hook up a prawn.

There was also a competition to fish for the heaviest and lightest prawn. The heaviest one was unbeatable at more than 300 grams (heck, it looked like a lobster) while the lightest weighed an astonishing 7 grams, the type that looked more appropriate to feed fishes than humans.

Prawning was an interesting experience for me. However, I still prefer good old fishing as there is more freedom and creativity to it.

My humble catch for the day

Well done Singapore!

Congratulations to Laurentia Tan for winning our country's first medal at the London Paralympics Games. Never mind that she suffers from some kind of illness, at least she is a true blue Singaporean who was born on our soil.

iPads for animals?

The rise of tablet computers is so phenomenal that human beings are not the only ones who are using it. As part of a program known as Apps for Apes (what a silly name), twelve zoos from America and Canada are making use of iPad apps to teach orangutans.

It was evident that these primates have similar behavioural patterns to humans. The orangutans like stroking the screen  and even watching videos containing their own species. Apps utilized by zookeepers include memory games and Doodle Buddy. (Wow, amazing!)

It's been said that zookeepers are checking out how communication applications can assist animals in expressing themselves in a clearer manner. Like if an animal is hungry, it can use its hand, feet, tongue or whatever appropriate body part to tap on the iPad to inform people.

There is further indication that animals are hooked on spending time with tablet computers as an enthusiastic but armless orangutan from Florida was reported to be using the iPad with her feet. Will humans ever get so extreme? Maybe.

Not bad. In this world, some people do not even have access to basic communication devices like telephones and here we are letting animals have the luxury of playing with an iPad. What the heck is happening to the world?

More & More

First, the government urged people to have more

than we are told to let them have more

teachers will be getting 8% more

for foreigners, we were told to show more

although more and more of them

  

public transport

Comex has arrived and there are more and more

while Carrefour is closing down as there is more and more

 

last but not least, William and Kate are coming to Singapore

to the estate in

stown called Strathmore.