Memories of buses

It was only recently that I realized a certain bus model in Singapore has become extinct. After doing some research to confirm my suspicions, I am sad to say that the Volvo B10M Mark III model of SBS Transit will be missed by many bus enthusiasts like me.

I do not consider myself as an avid fan of the designs or engines of buses. However, growing up in a metropolis where public transport is easily accessible, bus rides have inevitably become a part of my life. Hence, observing buses is something I always do to kill time while travelling.

The Volvo B10M Mark III used to be one of the most commonly seen models on Singapore roads. Service 96, which ferries NUS students from Clementi central to their campus, used to have this model for almost all of its buses.

I also discovered that the last bus here had its swansong more than three weeks ago. These vehicles have been present on our roads since 1992 and boast a couple of unflattering yet memorable features which ring a bell in people's minds if you were to tell them about it.

The most prominent one has got to be the uneven seating at the rear. Those with tons of shopping bags or a luggage may have to take a while to adjust themselves before they can accommodate their bodies and baggage in that limited space between seats.

Also, these buses do not possess any standing area thus, making them less practical in a country with an increasing population. Scrapping them was the only solution to moving forward.

Speaking of which, I found out that another model, the commonly-seen Mercedes-Benz O405, has been scrapped too. It went into history since last year and heck, I actually didn't realize about it until now.

The Mercedes-Benz O405 was one of my favourite models. That distinctive heavy noise it makes when accelerating and the trademark wheels it spots are all the nostalgic bits that I have observed and still remember since kindergarten years.

My favourite model till today is still the Volvo Duple Metsec DM3500. It looks similar to the B10M Mark III except that it looks cooler. In my opinion, it gives off a cosy feeling that allows the passenger to enjoy his journey in tranquillity. A bus that allows one to look for inspiration while travelling in it.

Buses are vehicles, a form of transportation. But if you were to look at them from a different angle, they are more than just mobile machines, they are memories.

Euro 2012 final preview

In the end, two fellow sufferers of the Euro sovereign debt crisis, Spain and Italy, will be present at the Kiev Olympic Stadium in Ukraine this Sunday to battle it out for the right to lift the Euro 2012 trophy.

Financial woes aside, both countries have proved that they still have something worthy of praise in their football national teams. However, both entered the final via contrasting styles. Spain with elegance, Italy with confidence.

While Spain boasts an array of world-class players in their prime, Italy is made up of old guards who will rather pass than run with the ball as well as inconsistent youngsters. On paper, the Spanish seem to have the upper hand. The same applies on the field.

Rain or shine, Italy will certainly be chasing for the ball at most times as the Spanish players play their trademark passing game. If Spain opt for the 4-6-0 formation without a striker, things will surely look one-sided on the pitch. The thing is, are they able to convert those chances into goals?

Italy have at least three recognized forwards who have quality finishing. They also possess a pass-master in Andrea Pirlo. He sits in front of the defence, launches attacks from deep and plays an influential role in dictating the tempo of the game.

Pirlo attacks from a position that opposing players like David Silva and Xavi linger at. Ironically, it seems that an attacking midfielder from Spain will be tasked to mark the Italian veteran.

If Pirlo can drift around in the match more often, Italy might be able to lessen the damage Spain will inflict on them. If that and everything else fails, there is still Gianluigi Buffon, a tested and proven premium goalkeeper with many big-match experiences.

Man for man, Italy pales in comparison to their fellow finalists especially in the defence department. However, with good positional discipline and technical ability, they still have a chance to make it through. A bit, maybe a lot, of luck is required too.

Spain can pass the ball all they like to entertain the fans but it has to cross the line before they can even start thinking of being champions. Italy will likely be relying on dead-ball situations and long shots to crack a goal, that's where Pirlo and his teammates excel in.

Italy can win if they net an early goal to dent Spain's confidence and defend like mad dogs running about. I will go for the Azzuri. A slender 1:0 win for them.

Follow Me!

To all of you worshippers kneeling in front of me right now. You will officially be the pioneer batch of devotees of this newly created belief of mine. In this newly constructed temple of ours, we shall start the belief of Follow-ism.

We believe that a certain deity exist somewhere in the universe. We are unable to see him or her with our own eyes but we are very sure of its presence when we need him or her in desperate situations.

We will give our all, especially our hard-earned money, to help fund this mega temple as well as the efforts of spreading this belief. However, you will not question the purpose of the donations as you strongly believe in this belief and the deity.

You will believe that all donations collected are for meaningful purposes that is advantageous to Follow-ism and our mega temple. Whatever the others say, we act as if we did not hear anything and continue to promote our belief to them by going from door to door

Even if you were to discover that I was secretly using some money to fund the music career of my star-wannabe daughter, you will choose to continue supporting me because she is so magnificient like the Sun! Hohoho! It's not Merry Christmas yet!

So, fellow Followists, do continue to follow blindly whatever I tell you to and never complain about it. You will gain more luck in your life if you continue to spread the belief. Please continue to knock on more doors and tell people to join you!

Yours faithfully
The magnificient King Kong aka The King

Outdo yourself the right way

The recent 100PLUS commercial centers on the topic of how to spend your every day meaningfully. The advertisement begins the day at 6:57am and comes to an end only at 3:58 the next morning.

It focuses on how modern office workers utilize the time they have before heading to work, people taking advantage of the free time they are entitled to throughout the day to do something beneficial and carrying out tasks which can improve your relationship with others.

In a whole, this commercial looks like a decent piece of work where different groups of people like students, co-workers and friends were featured. It gets people thinking have they really spent the 24 hours that they have each day well enough.

However, 100PLUS seems to be sending a wrong message about spending the day sufficiently. It is perceivable that the sports drink company is trying to convey that you should stay awake longer so that you will have more time to do more things.

Indirectly, one can point out that the ad is telling viewers that drinking 100PLUS will enable you to stay energized for a longer time. Hence, it is alright to sacrifice some sleep and utilize that period to make your day more enriching.

It would be catastrophic if students are influenced by the commercial and decide to lead an awake-at-night lifestyle so that they can "strike a work-life balance" by staying out late or "stir up friendly rivalry" by gaming the night away.

Sports drinks should only be consumed after strenuous activities like a marathon where electrolytes are lost and need to be replenished. Drinking a bottle of it after something casual like a morning 3km jog might actually backfire.

Most sports drinks contain about 4 teaspoons of sugar and finishing a bottle of that sweet beverage may actually see you consuming more calories than burning them at the end of the day (or rather the exercise).

If an insufficient amount of calories is expanded, drinking a sports drink may just be equivalent to having a can of the ubiquitous soft drink you can easily find on supermarket shelves. So, do think twice if you plan to have one next time.

100PLUS should issue a statement to educate uninformed consumers that its products should only be taken after vigorous activities and explain more about the role of isotonic sports drinks in the recovery process of the body.

A record set to be broken

A couple of days ago, I found out that my glorious 21-year record for not traveling overseas since birth will come to an end soon this October. The finalized list of people in my unit going for Exercise Wallaby in Australia includes my name. I will be heading to Queensland in mid-October all the way till late November, which amounts to more than forty days.

I was discovered that we will be part of the FSG (Foward Support Group). Well, I don't really know what is it about but it is definitely less taxing than what my seniors did last year. FSG is something similar to logistics support so I might end up honing my storeman skills. I think the main task for us will be to tear down the area since we belong to the later frame.

All in all, although I am disappointed that my record will soon be broken, I believe that this exercise will be the peak of my NS life. It will be something that is no doubt memorable during my time in the army, if not, my life.

Drama on a bus

This incident happened quite some time ago but I was only kaypoh enough to bother checking it out today. I watched the clip which was posted on Youtube by The New Paper twice and here are my two cents' worth about the entire issue.

1. The quality of the video, shot by TNP reader Dennis Lum, was commendable. Clear audio plus sharp images. Dennis also demonstrated good camera handling skills by not shaking the device too much. Would be better if he zoomed in so that I can see the old lady's face better.

2. Alex Ong, the main character of the drama, reminds me of ah guas. His high-pitched voice is definitely important in such a scene with such a crucial character in it. Should wear a pink shirt to better showcase the unique personality.

3. The scarf was no doubt a must-have accesssory for an individuality like Alex although it hardly suits him. Besides Bae Yong Joon who wears it stylishly and Pinoys who try to look cool, I don't think males should don scarfs as a fashion statement.

4. Both of them are silly to quarell on a bus. They should have met somewhere less crowded and fight it out. Maybe Alex can give his number to his potential opponent and sing "Hey, I just met you, and this is crazy, but here's my number, so call me maybe?" in his distinctive high-pitched voice.

5. Alex is such a coward, he should have also pushed the man and woman that helped the old lady to justify himself instead of going back to his seat. Well, but I guess such people will dare to do brave things only once and they do it stupidly.

The gap is too big?

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Enough of the frequent breakdowns that seem even more irritating than saving the Debtocratic Republic of Grease, the Slow, Mediocre and Recylced Trains (SMaRT) of Lion State have yet another problem to deal with recently.

Not too long ago, a woman who was boarding a train lost her footing and fell into the platform gap. Do not be mistaken, only one of her legs and the hands of a courageous stranger ended up inside. Since then, commuters, who find every possible way to attack SMaRT nowadays, have called for gaps to be narrowed.

Previous reports have claimed that platform gaps at train stations were as broad as 10cm, not very wide at all as long as you are not a slave to your smartphone whenever you take public transport. It is understandable that gaps are essential to accommodate vehicle movement.

Communication is what I believe to be the fundamental problem to this issue. Announcements in trains as well as train stations should be broadcasted in a variety of languages in order to benefit travelers. That is because the honorary leader of Lion State, Shadow Elder Lee, loves importing foreign talents.

Besides the four main languages spoken by four smooth-spoken women, languages of foreigners living here and maybe fluent male speakers like myself should be added. However, announcements would have to begin as early as four minutes before the train arrives.

The new list of languages that should be added are Mandarin spoken with a distinctive (or annoying) accent, regional languages of India like Angika, Bengali, Chhattisgarhi etc., Tagalog, Burmese and last but not least, Vietnamese.

SMaRT should also ban smartphone slavesusers from stroking their devices' screens when they are going into or out of a train.

New blogskin

Phew! At last, I have completed changing a new template for this blog although there are still a few loose ends to tie up. Anyway, I am quite satisfied with this new blogskin and I admit that I like it more than the previous one. Both the current and previous designs are completely different.

The previous blogskin gave a slightly darker image as it consists of a picture during dusk (you can argue that it is dawn), making the overall look a little laid-back and relaxed. As for the one which you are seeing now, it is obviously the opposite. Bright, energetic and youthful. That is exactly what you need to suit the hot summer.

It has never been easy to scout for and switch to a new blogskin. I had to screen through countless of potential designs before narrowing down to a few which look suitable for me. Now I understand why Ken Lim always looks like he's been owed money on Singapore Idol.

A brand new look for this blog but, like always, the sarcasm and criticism will be present to spice up your reading.

The art of vandalism

I pity the young woman who was recently arrested for vandalising painting (cancelled that for the sake of all the so-called artistic people) public roads but I pity those who are making a fuss out of this matter even more.

Many netizens aka people who hide behind their computer screens to support her in the virtual world have been speaking out in support of Samantha Lo. These people claim that their heroine should be granted leniency and charged with a less serious offence.

This group of hypocritical overnight fans explained that Miss Lo's artwork, which includes using a stencil to paint roads and pasting useless stickers on traffic lights, brought a smile to their faces. Take note, it's only one smile and they did not elaborate how long it lasted.

I tried very hard to understand the text in the stickers and the three legendary words "My Grandfather Road" found on roads by staring at them for more than five minutes. Fortunately, my facial expression was still the same as before or else I would really look like an idiot, smiling at random Singlish phrases.

Maybe we should get a hundred Diablo 3 players (since they are probably busy fighting in dungeons and can't be bothered about any news or current affairs) to stare at the stickers and see how many of them actually smile within ten seconds.

I bet no more than seven will flex the muscles near both ends of their mouths. Out of the seven, five of them are likely to be entertaining you and can't wait to get back and continue killing monsters.

The art or vandalism topic aside, there is one very crucial thing which everybody seems to have missed out on. It is the language. I am sure that all of us are sure that the correct phrase is "My Grandfather's Road" with that apostrophe and "s" but everyone is sure that they neglected it because they were more focused on whether they can smile at it.

It is clear that drawing, painting (and whatever artistic verbs artistic people can come up with) on Singapore roads is illegal even if you are writing a poem that praises bootlicks the government. Using stencils is a fashion but not an exception.

So, if loansharks were to use stencils to paint "O$P$" on HDB corridors, should they be given a lighter sentence because it looks neater than spray paint? Or to make it more convenient, they can just use stickers instead?

Art is meant to improve society and better a community but I just don't know how the words "Press Until Shiok" have a positive impact. It is not as if you are playing with your smartphone to escape from awkward situations.

Heck, it might even result in spoiling a traffic light, disorganizing road traffic and endangering drivers and pedestrians. This would be even more catastrophic if the sticker was pasted at Rochor Road.

Maybe the authorities should declare a new public holiday called Art Appreciation Day where self-proclaimed art enthusiasts can apply for a permit to legitimately carry out any form of artwork they want at a designated public spot for the day.

However, they are required to clean up the mess that they have created the very next day at the expense of their own resources. Only then will they be able to empathize with the effort and time required to erase such valueless artwork that only exists to deface public property.

*Under construction*

This blog is currently under construction. Please be patient and look forward to a brand new look. Thank you!

Scoot

Singapore's first long-haul budget airline, Scoot, has finally joined in the fun. In case you don't know, it is a subsidiary of the big and powerful Singapore Airlines.

Scoot is the latest company to compete in a competitive market which includes Jetstar that is endorsed by Best Actress erhem, Joanne Peh, the arrogant Tony Fernandez-owned AirAsia as well as Tiger Airways, better known as the one with never-ending screw ups.

The airline utilizes Boeing 777 aircraft and currently flies passengers to Australia, Thailand and China. Interestingly and unlike its parent company, Scoot adopts a laid-back and carefree image. Its slogan "Get Outta Here!" should be adequate to give you an impression.

Furthermore, the first aeroplane will be named as "Goin' Scootin", which sends a casual yet energetic message to potential holiday-goers. The choice of yellow, the main colour of Scoot, says it all about being spontaneous and informal.

Although it is part of Singapore's premier airline, one can hardly find any traces of SIA within Scoot. I think it is commendable that the staff of this low-cost airline took the effort to differentiate itself from its well-known parent company.

I foresee Scoot to be a strong player in the budget airline market since it possesses SIA roots. It should easily knock off Tiger Airways and pose a great challenge to AirAsia and that haughty Malaysian CEO of theirs.

Maybe they can get Jeanette Aw (since she also likes to act funny and carefree, although terribly, in that Channel U drama) to star in their commercials and give Jetstar and Joanne some headaches. But no Rui En please. People might think air stewardesses are stern people.

Brendan Rodgers who?

Truthfully, I was a little shocked when I discovered that Brendan Rodgers (who?) was the new manager of Liverpool. By sacking Kenny Dalglish and appointing Rodgers to suceed him, the Reds' owners have effectively swapped a legendary player for one who has yet to play first-team football in his life.

Fenway Sports Group, the owners of the Merseyside club, view it as a long-term replacement. I view it as a desperate attempt to get any Roberto, Andreas or Brendan to fill the void vacated by King Kenny. Dalglish will always be remembered as a great player but as a manager, he was screwed up. That's why sacking him was the right but painful decision.

Rodgers' face an uphill task at Anfield. His style of play is sort of Barcelona but people like Andy Caroll may be frustrated at having to run around while on the field. Maybe FSG believe that Rodgers will be the next Pep Guardiola, from nothing to literally everything (that can be won in club football).

Swansea, Rodgers' former team, did defeat mighty Manchester City as well as Liverpool last season. Oh, and they did it with a cheap team with playing staff getting the cheapest wages. Compare that with the twenty million Daglish splurged on a Stewart Downing who contributed zero goals in the league.

Being able to achieve success with a budget squad at Swansea, it is logical for fans as well as neutrals to believe that Brendan Rodgers will pull off something bigger with his new employers. Firstly, it will be interesting to see which are the players he will dispense with. Downing looks like a wise choice.

NTUC Foodfare's Rice Garden: Wayang?

I was reading this article about NTUC Foodfare on page 3 of The Straits Times today. It was reported that NTUC Foodfare's social project, Rice Garden, is extending its $1.99 meals to more than a hundred stalls by 2015.

The article also mentioned that a tasting test for reporters was conducted at its pioneer outlet at Aljunied Hawker Centre yesterday. The picture in the article showed several meal sets, all of which contain rice, meat or fish, egg plus vegetables and are priced at $1.99.

So is it really worth saving that 50 cents or one dollar for Rice Garden? Let's take a closer look at those cheap meals that Foodfare has to offer.

1. Rice. Fried fish fillet. Fried egg. Miserable veggies.

2. Rice. Pork Chop. Fried egg. Pathetic veggies.

3. Rice. Fried chicken. Fried egg. Dull veggies.

4. Rice. Curry chicken. Fried egg. Messed up veggies.

5. Rice. Braised chicken. Braised egg. CMI veggies.

As you can see, other than number five, the rest of the 1.99 meals are calorie-laden where the food are cooked with lots of oil. Not to mention that the veggies were also soaked in oil when they are being cooked in masses.

Instead of steamed chicken or steamed minced meat, Foodfare has decided to come up with unhealthy dishes in the name of helping people to save money. And in case you don't know, the 1.99 price tag only applies to certain groups like senior citizens and NSFs.

The pathetic amount of veggies also won't make much of a difference whether you consume them or not. Plus, all the nutrients would have been killed since the veggies are cooked under pressure in bulk.

Talking about senior citizens, Foodfare doesn't seem to give a damn about their health and only wants to boast that it is some hero trying to help people during tough financial times.
NTUC Foodfare, one of the two commercial cookhouse operators of SAF, is also the culprit behind the nonsense food which is served in army camps and hated by many soldiers, whether regulars or NSFs.

If you are thinking about having your meal at Rice Garden, think again. Is it really worth saving that 50 cents for something that is not beneficial for your health? Might as well eat fast food, the calorie intake is around the same and you get to enjoy it more.

Speaking of which, does the stall really sell the food at a weird price of 1.99? If so, then they have to prepare a ton of one cent coins for every single customer. I don't think there will be anyone out there who is so dumb (maybe Ch!n@ people) who will bring exactly $1.99.

I say, this is just another gimmick by NTUC Foodfare to make the public believe that "we serve we care we share". Pui!