Month: February 2009

Categories
Diary Linguistic

Spanish Reloaded: Elementary One!

4th Spanish Film Festival

This morning I woke up with a clear vision on how my day was going to play out by the hour – like many other days of my life.  I was composing my next blog entry at the back of my mind while showering, while ironing – like any other morning of the week.  Little did I foresee my day being turned upside down, from curiosity to anxiety to desperation to joy.

Ever since Cynthia and I have passed our Spanish test we took last year, we were eagerly waiting for the next class to begin.  Cynthia did all the correspondence with the school Las Lilas while I watched the email messages flying from left to right, and right to nowhere.  One of the reasons why we studied so hard was to join the rest of our classmates, proceed to the next level, and not to be left behind.  Out of nowhere, one email from one of our classmates popped out and caught my attention.  What?!  E1 (Elementary One) starts today?!  I was curious as in why we were not invited.  Then I shot another email to another classmate and she shared with me that half of our class would be joining today’s E1!

Gosh!

So I was baffled, virtually bashing the gate of Las Lilas via my friendly electronic mail raising fists in the air asking why we were left behind (seriously, the feeling was kind of not that pleasant).  The class was full.  Oh no!  3 dropped out and we could join.  Yes!  Then I called up Cynthia and she preferred a Thursday slot.  Uh-oh.  But I highlighted that Tuesday is a good day to study Spanish because the World of Warcraft game server is down on Tuesday.  Ah ah!  Through my mass electronic communication to our classmates, some started to consider forming our own class (just need 5 at minimum).  Oh no!  2 hours before the class was due to start and the group was still swinging between (a) attending a confirmed slot tonight or (b) to wait for a new slot in March – via email.

Oh dear, what have I done?!

So I made an executive decision to commit to a Tuesday slot.  And it was a good decision.  This new class is a consolidation of three B2 (Beginner Two) classes and it is one fun class.  Statistically, that means two-third don’t make it eh?  We have a different Spanish teacher Natalia and she has such a cheerful personality, talking non-stop in Spanish.  I tried so hard to catch what she said.  Stress!  OK, good stress though.

I am so glad that it all works out in the end and hope that the rest from my previous class would be able to join our next lesson.  One thing I learn today is that taking myself out of a waiting list requires a little dose of opportunity, a little dose of reaching out to people, a little dose of a leap of faith, a strong dose of desire, and making a firm decision and stick by it.

Categories
For the Geeks

The New Linksys by Cisco Media Hub – One Is Enough?

Linksys by Cisco Media Hub

As I was shaking the hands of Jaimohan, Head of Product Management (Cisco), thanking him and his team’s time in answering my (rather dumb) questions raised during the blogger event of the new product’s launch, he smiled at me and asked, “So how many are you getting?”.  OK, that’s a private joke.  Throughout the event I kept saying that I need a farm of Media Hub to organize my media files and he kept reassuring me that if one is not enough, I can add more!  Very well.  Right now, as you read this blog entry, I am writing a proposal to Jaimohan to make my dream of Media Hub farm comes true, sponsored by Cisco.  I am not asking a lot.  Perhaps 8 to start with (with hard disk please, thank you!).  That will be a 16 TB of space on top of the 4 TB I am currently having at home split between two computers.  It’s not a lot to ask for, is it?

Who reads paragraphs of words these days?  So here is what you need to know about Linksys by Cisco Media Hub in point form.

What is it?

  • It knows where all the media contents are stored in your home network.
  • It acts as a single point of media access within your home.
  • It enables you to access your home media contents securely via the Internet.
  • It can be used as a storage device and can hold up to 2 hard disks.
  • It is small and beautiful.

Uh-huh.  Tell me more.

  • You connect one of these sexy and tiny Media Hub into your home network and it will locate all the media files in your entire network.  That includes the wireless phones that are connected to your network and more.  Gasp, right?  I swear when the guys in the suite heard this, they all sat with their backs straight wondering if that picture or that video they took earlier on were being scanned by the Media Hub.  Didn’t mama teach you not to connect to stranger’s wi-fi network just because it is free?
  • Home users these day are all lost in our own digital jungles.  I have two computers, 5 internal hard disks, 3 external hard disks, a total of 4TB worth of capacity.  There are a lot, a lot of media files inside – pictures, music tracks, and video clips.  Imagine, no more prowling through the disk drives, expanding the file directories, just to locate that video clip of … Lust, Caution.
  • Think of it as a media directory of your home network.  And you can even access them when you are miles away from home, through secured Internet connectivity provided by Cisco.

What can you do with Media Hub?

  • If your TV is hooked up with your home network, you can watch the HD content stored within your home network (Community message – Say no to privacy).  Stream up to 3 separate HD signal within your home.  You can watch your family photo collection at your TV with the lovely company of your friends and families too.  Just make sure that the photos are rated PG.
  • If your audio system is hooked up with your home network, you can listen to your music collection without the need to change your CD (Note: I have 700+ CD as of 2007 and this will come in handy).
  • If  you are bored at work, your own personal collection of music and movies is just a click away provided that (1) you have Internet access and (2) your Media Hub at home is switched on.
  • If you go for an overseas holiday and wish to back up your personal photos into your home network, you can upload them to your Media Hub at home.  In fact, you can upload and download any type of files using the Media Hub as the storage device.  Think of it as your very own file server (or remote data storage).  And you can expand this storage capacity by simply adding more hard disks onto your home network.  Neat?

Is one enough?  Does it come in different color?  What’s the damage like?

  • Each Media Hub comes with a 500GB Western Digital (WD) hard disk (take my word, WD is one of the more reliable hard disks out there in the market) as well as an extra slot for an additional hard disk.  1 TB hard disk these days is pretty affordable.  And if you need to access more than 1.5 TB of media data, you can attach another storage device onto your home network and keep it switched on.  For lazy dude like me, I may go for multiple Media Hub.
  • According to the (very attractive) ladies from the Cisco sales and marketing team, Media Hub unlike other storage solution (such as NAS) is very quiet.  As an environment lover, I am happy to hear that Media Hub is designed with lower power consumption in mind too.
  • I asked if there are other colors such as orange, white, and pink.  And the friendly Jaimohan told me that after a global design initiative, all their latest products are designed with the same piano black and silver.  OK, I am starting a new business to design new stickers for these cuties.
  • S$499 for each Media Hub.  If you are willing to pay S$599, you will get a LCD as well as slots to plug in your various memory cards.

Where can I find out more?

  • You could drop me a comment here and I can follow up on your behalf.
  • Or if you are in Singapore, please drop by the new showroom at Funan DigitaLife Mall (5th floor) to experience Linksys by Cisco home networking products.  Do mention to the lovely salesperson that you heard this wonderful product from this infamous blogger who has been making all the headlines for the wrong reasons me.  I don’t have a kick-back from Cisco yet.  Maybe if more of you turn up at the showroom, my dream of a Media Hub farm sponsored by Linksys by Cisco may come true.

You know me, one picture is not enough.  I took this inside the Grand Hyatt Suite where the demo was held.

A Suite in Grand Hyatt

More News Release!

  • In Singapore, the products will be made available from 18 February 2009 onwards from the following authorized Linksys by Cisco retailers: Best Denki – Ngee Ann City and Great World City outlets, Challenger Superstore – Funan DigitaLife Mall and VivoCity outlets, Copernicus Interactive – Sim Lim Square.
  • The products will be officially launched at the IT SHOW 2009 and will thereafter be available at all authorized Linksys by Cisco retailers and value added resellers.
Categories
Country Folk & Jazz Music Reviews

Taylor Swift – Fearless – Less of Country and More of Pop This Time

Taylor Swift, Fearless

It is easy to forget that onto the second album, Taylor Swift is only 19 years old.  17 when she first released her debut that in my previous review, I have strong belief in her potential.  In 2006, she topped the US Country chart while attaining a 5th on the US Billboard 200.  “Fearless” topped all the major charts in US and Canada, which comes as a surprise to me in some sense, not a surprise in another.

Personally I prefer her debut “Taylor Swift” to “Fearless”.  I am in love with the song “Teardrops On My Guitar” and “Tim McGraw”.  The lyrics of her previous album are more emotional, the country ambiance blends well with her young sweet voice.  Her level of maturity exhibited in “Taylor Swift” fools me in believing that she is older than what she seems.  In “Fearless”,  the country sound is much toned down and her song topics while still evolve around love relationship of a young girl now go into the hearts of the mid teens such as the song “Fifteen”.

“Fearless” is a pleasant album to listen to.  No, there is no “Teardrops On My Guitar”.  What comes close, to me, is “You’re Not Sorry”.  Needless to say, the country-heavy upbeat “You Belong With Me” is another favorite track.  “Fearless” is a pop album with a tint of country flavor.  Taylor Swift may have overstretched her voice in some parts of the song and perhaps, it is this sense of genuine approach that draws the crowd.  It takes three consecutive solid albums – in my book – to have me converted into a loyal fan.  And I have high hope for her next album.

Speaking as such, in the name of Country, I have high hope for Carrie Underwood‘s third album too.  Below is the official video of one of Taylor Swift’s singles from this new album, “Love Story”.

Categories
Drama Movie Reviews

Beyond the Topic of Doubt Lies the Question of Compassion and Love

Doubt

How certain that you are right before you can justify the action of going all out to bring someone or something down?  Do the means justify the ends?  And in this pursuit of justice and goodness, where does compassion lie?

These are the questions that have gone through my mind since I have watched the movie “Doubt”.

The original play written by John Patrick Shanley in the year of 2004 has staged an interesting story against the timeline of 1964.  A brief look into being black, being gay, nuns and priests, against the reform of the Second Vatican Council in that year whereby the Christian dogma was being examined to make it relevant to the modern world.

Being a Catholic, I am often weary about yet another movie that exposes the negative side of the Christian faith.  And sure, at times, I wonder how much money has our Holy Father authorized just to settle all the child molest cases globally.  However, I still believe that Catholicism has a lot to go for.  Just because terrorism is bred in the name of Islam in some isolated regions of the world doesn’t reflect anything negative about the religion. 

I enjoy watching slices of Catholicism from within “Doubt”.  Thought it seems strange to me that without any opening prayers the movie dives right into the sermon that has little linkage to the Bible, some parts of the Eucharistic celebration are pretty authentic.  Like the turning of bread into the body of Jesus at the alter by the priest with the altar boy ringing the bell at each key prayer.  Also, it is interesting that the concept of doubt is being highlighted.  In my faith, at least how I internalize it to be, there is always this element of “God works in a mysterious way” and to bridge that, it is called faith.  But how do we believe in something when we cannot see it?  We all feel the emotion of love, but what is love?  How do we know love exists?  And in “Doubt”, the concepts of forgiveness, compassion, and confession are also explored.

“Doubt” is a joy to watch, even if purely from the acting point of view.  All four actors and actresses deserve to be nominated for Oscar – and they have – as well as the nomination for the Best Adapted Screenplay.  I personally would like to see Meryl Streep winning the Best Actress category.  She is that good.

Categories
Diary Photography

Auditioning Female Models for Upcoming Brüttal (Lingerie) Fashion Show in Kuala Lumpur

One of the African Models

OK, enough of serious blog entries these days and I need something sexy, something light to spice up my life site.  Believe me, it was a hard choice between:

  1. Staying in Singapore and accepting an invitation for a (free!) photo shooting session at the Singapore Zoo as well as to cover the finale of the River Hongbao event over the weekend
  2. Driving up to Malaysia and help out my friend Adeline to audition the female models down to their underwear with my … camera.

Cynthia and I couldn’t cancel the hotel booking at the last minute so we stuck with the original plan even though the circumstances have changed.  I am actually glad that we went because:

  1. Our friend needed emotional support that evening and we were there for her.  Talked with her till 4 in the morning (and Cynthia insisted on waking up early the next day not to miss the breakfast).
  2. I did have a role to play because Adeline couldn’t have photographed these candidates as she was busy showing them what to do.  It is good to refer to the photographs after the audition.

Below are the pictures taken during the audition.

… Nah!  They are PG rated.  Wait till we go for the actual Fashion Show with the actual Brüttal products.  Super chick n sexy lingerie that Brüttal carries.

So how was the experience?  Broadly summarized as follows.

  • Stressful.  It is hard to frame and capture the moments.  It is even harder if the models are inexperience.
  • Nervous.  I was the only guy in the VIP room.  I was worried that I might be eaten up by the girls.
  • Exciting.  Actually only one moment of excitement.  It was when all the models stripped in front of me down to their underwear, at the same time.

Now, why Africans?  I don’t know why the club “China White” is a popular place for the Africans and why Adeline goes for such a theme.  Maybe Africa is in these days?  Think about the next World Cup hosting country, the current F1 champ, and the new American President …

I have no clue how Adeline is going to train these brand new models for her Brüttal Fashion Show in March.  I am keen to cover the event for Brüttal and perhaps I may need a telephoto lens when that time comes (any one wish to lend me a 50mm f/1.4G?!).

Categories
Announcement

Speaking Up Not As Secretary of Association of Bloggers (Singapore)

Ever since the local news is out after my interview with The Straits Times (scanned copy)  and Jayne’s with TODAY  (scanned page #1 and page #2), I have received numerous personal messages from my friends and families.  Thank you for your support and I hear your concerns.  This is not an easy time for me, nor is it an easy decision to make.  I hear your questions and I would like to shed some lights on my side of the story, in my personal capacity, for those who wish to know more, as a friend.  I will not address to specific questions on the association here as you may find more answers from the temporary website’s FAQ section.  This website is my personal space to share my thoughts and my hobbies with my families and friends and new friends from the online world.  I wish you could respect that.

  • Two Options, Period – I have two options.  Step down like the rest or step up and drive this legal entity forward.  Personally I feel that there is a certain level of responsibility when I agree to a role offered, when I have signed a legal binding document submitted to the government.  Beyond that, even if I were to step down, I would prefer to have a transition period to help the next team on board to come up to speed, to minimize the impact to this entity.  And given these two options, I choose to step up, institute change that will take the association forward.  I can only do so if I stay on.
  • Why the Rest Have Stepped Down – The Straits Times reported that it is due to the family and work commitment.  Some friends asked me how true it is.  While I cannot and should not speculate the reasons behind (as decisions are made more than the rationale mind, there are emotions and background involved as well), here is what I can share with you.  We were ecstatic as a team when we first announced the news publicly (you can trace back our previous entries) but what came next were pure stress for all of us.  Most if not all of us were actively monitoring the responses from the public, from the Blogosphere, and we have dedicated a team to be on the ground and address these responses.  The initial response was largely not good, I admit.  It was (still is) very draining and stressful if you may imagine and it added strain to work and relationship and studies, for those weeks of the Internet that never slept.  That much I can share with you.  I respect those who were in the talented team.  They are great people to work with.  I wish the working relationship could have lasted longer.
  • Guilt by Association – I am aware that Jayne does not have an unblemished record when it comes to how she has responded to the public in the past.  My sister has too approached me and offered her words of concern.  I wish we had a prominent unblemished Singaporean blogger who steps up and create an association for the blogging community while raising our profile through networking with valued partners, bringing in high profile projects, but there is none.  Association of Bloggers (Singapore) is first of its kind and if not for Jayne, there will still be no such entity.  But I am not a blind follower.  I will hold her words to see through a transparent AGM (annual general meeting) for the election of the most appropriate leader for the association.  And I can’t see that through if I am not in it.  Jayne, if you are reading this, just so to let you know, I am watching you!
  • A New Untested Platform – Personally, I feel that it is fundamentally challenging to thread the boundaries between strong opposing political views and commercial influence – both we need to stay away because of the Societies Act and the fact that AB(S) is a non-profit organization.  The guiding principle to me would be to mimic Singapore’s unique environment and to maintain the harmony guided by the government.  It is not easy because every decision the team faces has to go through rounds of debate in view of potential abuse.  We are still learning our way in this untested platform.
  • Random Thoughts – I understand we could have been much better off if we were to hold off our announcement until the association is officially launched; I understand we could have been much better off if Jayne didn’t have baggage from the past; but I also understand why we need to move fast because the upcoming high profile projects coming our way that demand us to be so.  I wish the general public has a better understanding on how an association is set up in Singapore; and I wish that the public is more forgiving and to give this entity a chance to grow and evolve.  I still want to help creating something tangible for the good of Singapore.  Besides this primary motivation, I am blessed and motivated with all these opportunities that will make me a better, stronger person.

Now, if I could go back to my happy-go-lucky life and focus on making babies my photography and music and writing, I would much appreciate that.  Thank you for listening to my side of the story.

Categories
Photography

(Perfectly) White Balanced Portrait Photos of Cynthia at River Hongbao

Cynthia loves this picture the most, not sure why ...

Though I have received one good suggestion from a good friend of mine that I shall host my photo albums elsewhere until I am good enough to have them hosted here in my website, I thought it is good to show y’all my journey thus far.  Besides, I treasure constructive feedback from the seasoned photographers on areas that I can immediately improve upon.

Almost immediately.  As I do have to wait for the White Balance Reference Card to arrive from US.

One of the (many) tips my (mentor) Mathew has shared with me is that the white balancing is off in my photos.  What it really means (I think) is that the white color is not quite white from the photos I publish.  Fair enough.  Getting the properly balanced white color in digital photography can be a challenge under different lighting conditions.

Especially at the River Hongbao where there were lots of yellow and red and strange color cast onto the lovely face of my model.

You know, it took me a while to convince Cynthia to be my model at the Floating Platform.  I was there just days before this shooting session doing a media coverage for the opening ceremony.  I know all the angles and backdrop.  And I desperately needed a model to fulfill my dream.  Below are the photos taken to demonstrate the white balancing effect.  For high quality photos, visit my photography page.

This is extreme white balancing in action.  All but one photo showcased above or in my photography sub-site are individually white balanced.  See if you can tell which one is the odd one out.  Most of them are shot as-it-is with standard touch-up.  A rare few I have used a film effect to accentuate a certain artistic viewpoint.

Here is how I did it.  Because it was pretty crowded, I have to be creative in finding a right spot to take photo.  Having a wide angle lens help because the distance between my camera on tripod and my model can be pretty close.  Noticing the direction of the human traffic helps too.  Need not to say, it is better to align with the flow and not perpendicular from it.  The last thing I want is to have someone knocks onto my tripod or get in between my camera and my model accidentally.

Composition with tripod is hard.  Some say that shots with tripod is pretty boring.  It is of course not as flexible as hand held composition.  But hey, if I want to expose the photo for up to 1/2 second, I don’t really have much choice, do I?  I would take one photo with Cynthia posing in front of the camera and another one with her holding a White Balance Reference Card close to her face.  That latter photo I would use to take the reading for white balancing.  Extreme white balancing in action, why?  Because I did it for every photo – one for real and one for the card.  I keep the first one and throw away the second one.

I reckon I can still do a much better job with better flash lock for off-centered composition and perhaps a faster shutter speed (1/8 sec or faster?) compensated with higher ISO sensitivity.  Oh well, till the next time I guess.

PS. This is not a sponsored post on WhiBal.

Related Links: High Quality Photo Album of This Entry, WhiBal Card (external link)

Categories
Announcement Whacky Thoughts

Wrath! And the Pebbles Bouncing on the Marble Flooring of the S’pore Sphere – A Metaphor

A photo taken at a zoo in Hong Kong ... these animals have a very nice "voice".

To my readers who may have heard recent shocking news with regards to the brand new Association of Bloggers (Singapore) , well, I am still the secretary who intend to see this through (read my new theme for 2009) together with EastCoastLife.  I believe that challenges and obstacles are there to propel us forward, setbacks are there for us to see how badly we want that something, and if we want it bad enough, the entire universe will conspire to make it happen.  These are borrowed ideas from Paulo Coelho and Randy Pausch.  Those who have worked with me know my style.  Some see a wall and they stop.  I see a wall and find a way to crash through it.  Mark my words: AB(S) is re-grouping for round 2.

Democracy Comes with a Price

Recent events in my life trigger a recollection of an episode that happened last year, in a different setting, rather unrelated to these recent events.  Nevertheless, it has been in my to-blog list for quite some time.

In as much as I wish to see myself as a coffee boy, I am not.  But somehow, during those weeks of working with an International crowd flying from all over the world and into Malaysia, my priority then seemed to evolve around coffee in the morning and the food that we served.  Noises on the ground seemed to have a life on its own, an infectious fire that moved from the topic of workshop logistics to the aggressive inquisition on the leadership’s decisions previous made (read previous blog entry, quite a funny read).  Everybody wants to make decisions, but who is going to do the work?

One evening, my then project director of an African origin looked at me with his usual fatherly eyes, a look that has calmed many turbulent situations throughout the course of our project, and he shook his head and said, “Democracy comes with a price”.  I concurred.  When everybody is talking and nobody is working, when the directions and decisions set by the leaders are in a perpetual cycle of questioning and debate, nothing moves.  [Too much] democracy hinders progress.  Like most established organizations, a good level of chain-of-command is good.

One Message Different Delivery

Recent observation in life triggers my thought on how one single message can be delivered in different ways that has such a high contrast of shock and awe versus nurture with hope.  Hypothetically, I could make a sweeping statement saying that, “Singaporeans complain a lot, too much for the good of our progression of […]”.  I could hypothetically quote examples from my personal experience working overseas, perhaps add on my friend’s true story as well.   This good old friend of mine leads teams within a call center located in Malaysia handling calls from the region.  Let me tell you, he dreads calls from Singapore.  Specifically, Singapore.

That statement probably won’t sit too well with the public.  Hence, the hypothesis.

Alternatively I could quote the late American professor Randy Pausch’s Last Lecture and promote the idea of “Don’t complain, just work harder” (somehow there is an unspoken rule saying that whatever you write is less credible than quoting from other people).  And hope that someone listens.  Hope that people realize that they can be much stronger without being consumed by the negative energy of complaining just a tad too much.

Whether it works or not, at least I have done my part.  Share this with someone: don’t complain, just work harder.

On the Photo in This Blog

When I was studying in Hong Kong, I enjoyed studying at the Zoo located just a stone’s throw from my school in the morning and in the afternoon.  The serenity has its charm.  Once in while, animals from one cage would start to – for lack of a better word – make a lot of loud noises and that would trigger animals from another cage to do likewise.  The next cage, and the next.  Soon, there would be a symphony of animals’ calling that I could immerse into.  Suddenly, the zoo seems alive.  Some noises are just music to the my ears.

I took this photo during my trip to Hong Kong last December.  I wish the animals were not caged like those in Singapore Zoo.  Here is a close-up of that photo with high key effect.  If you see some shadow at the foreground, you are not seeing things.  It’s the cage.

A Close-up