brain Is your like this? functioning

9 July 2009 by frabjousdays

bunny blossomReport from the front. Thanks to the project I’m working on, I’ve not left the confines of my office much recently. The times that I do, it is to go out to shoot stuff or partake in project-related fieldwork.

Have not had much of a chance to savour the pleasures of retail therapy. Or participated in anything remotely resembling physical activity. Or even eaten a proper meal.

In fact, I’m eating so badly these days, I would faint if I weren’t me.

(Apparently the ability to make sense or even speak in coherent sentences has been lost as well. More than once, my brain ceased to think and simply cruises on auto pilot. I may be still at work, but I’m reduced into a writing drone, so to speak. Just write, not much thinking required.)

Okay, maybe not eating that badly. But a lot more badly than I normally would eat. And, of course, I need sleep. (So, what’s new?) I would be so grouchy, if I weren’t so darn tired.

Conversations with me nowadays have a 3-second response lag time. Sometimes it might involve me saying a bunch of words in broken order, and you having to string them into sentences on your own. The later in the night it is, the more jumbled up the words are. On top of that, I’m also lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua.

Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur.

Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.

bunnyEnough whining. Me tired. And me still got three departments left of an eight-department store promotional advertorial to fill with drone writing and descriptions of bolstercases.

A Fourth of July post

4 July 2009 by frabjousdays

MtRushmore

This picture intrigued me because I’ve never really seen Mt Rushmore like this. Not just not against a sky of stars, but from this distance. Or probably I have but I just forgot.)

You know how if you see a picture of something many times enough, it becomes a bit of a blind spot? The quintessential shot of Mt Rushmore was probably like that for me — the four presidents, up close and carved out in rock.

Perhaps because this shot is different, it suddenly jolted a new alertness. And it never occurred to me what was beyond that classic Mt Rushmore shot, what might have been cropped off (like how those advertising types like to do. Sheesh).

It was nice to see that it wasn’t a car park and a lodge selling souvenir tee shirts, fridge magnets, shot glasses and nuggets of mineral.

And it is quite grand, seeing the whole mountainside and its size and scale dawning on you. That ain’t no plaster monument. 

And the stars and constellations are so beautiful. (Sorry, geek comment. I know.)

Have a good Fourth of July. Peace.

Imagine me and you

2 July 2009 by frabjousdays

Not so long ago on an island far, far away, three girls sat on a deck overlooking the sparkling blue sea. Seconds ticked by and minutes melted away, and they spoke nothing for a long time. Until suddenly…

Girl 1: “Is there a band called ‘The Turtles’?”
Girl 2: “I don’t know. Never heard of them.”
Girl 3: “There’s a band called ‘The Monkees’, but I don’t know about any band called ‘The Turtles’.”
GIrl 1: “They sang ‘Happy Together’, I think.”
Girl 3: “I know that song. ‘The Turtles’ sang it? Come to think of it, I have no idea who sang it. You would think they would be quite famous if they sang that song.”
Girl 2: “But it never occurred to me who sang it.”

Coming up for air

30 June 2009 by frabjousdays

Touched down last Wednesday morning at 3.30am, was back in office at 8.30am. And then it was work, work, workworkworkwork, go home at 1am, eat, shower, hit the bed, wake up, be back in office on Thursday morning at 8.30am, work, work, workworkworkwork, go home at 1am, eat shower, hit the bed, wake up, be back in office on Friday morning at 8.30am. Chat briefly with colleague about the death of the King of Pop. Wonder what’s the point of it all. Chat briefly with friend about parachute pants. Smile. Go back to work with smile on face. Go home at 12am, go back to work on Saturday.

Saturday was the dragon boat festival, but somehow I’ve managed to meld my project into the festival as my colleagues came down to the Marina Barrage. I drummed for one race, then we rushed off to the beach for the client’s event proper. I don’t even have any photos this year; anything I shot was for work. Saturday night, around 9pm, I sat down for a moment to see what was on TV, blinked, and pretty much fell asleep till Sunday morning.

Sunday morning, I turned my Mac off and was about to go out when I got a text from the office. My team needed something urgently. Less than a minute later, my room filled with the familiar chime of the Mac turning on.

Anyway, I would go into this week, but it would be repetitive, save for the “chat with friend about picking grapes in Spain” and “can’t help smiling” bits. And the part where my girlfriends keep asking when I’m gonna put up the pics. So here’s a post and a pic. I felt compelled to put it up because I would find it too depressing if I can’t take a few minutes away from work to upload a picture of a flying turtle.

fly, turtle fly

Okay. Back to work.

Moments every five minutes (or in 140 characters or less)

17 June 2009 by frabjousdays

Chanced upon this today on the feed of my recently downloaded still-fresh and minty TweetDeck (I caved and got it). I’m not big on updating my Facebook status every five minutes like the rest of the world. (In fact, I tried not to go in more frequently than once a fortnight.) I’ve got other things to do, like work. But when work moves into social media and micro-blogging… Oh, well…

I like McSweeney’s, I like lists, and I like Greek Mythology. I thought the style of humour here was funny. I knew FUG, BFF, MILF and but not FML. (Well, I knew the sentiment, I just didn’t know it had been abbreviated.)

And I also like sleep, so this is gonna be a short post.
 

FML MOMENTS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
by Jon Mitchell Edge and Tim Caine

Aeneas
After the Greeks began to burn down my city, I was ordered to leave. I was hurrying out of Troy with my son, my father (who can’t walk), and my household gods. The one thing I forgot? My wife. Now she’s dead. FML

Icarus
Today my father made wings out of feathers and wax so that we could escape the king’s castle. But I flew too close to the sun and the wings melted. I then fell into the ocean below. I can’t swim. FML

Odysseus
Today I came up with a plan that helped my country win a 10-year war. But, because I forgot to pray to Poseidon, I won’t get to go home for another 10 years. FML

Polyphemus
This morning, I came home to find a bunch of guys sitting around my cave, so I locked them inside to teach them a lesson. Afterward, I got drunk and passed out. I woke up with a horrible pain in my eye. Those men had poked my eye out with a huge sharpened stick. I’m a 50-foot-tall giant and they were 5-foot-tall humans. Oh, and did I mention I was a Cyclops before I met them? FML

Oedipus
I’ve been really busy. I solved the riddle of the Sphinx, gained entrance to the city of Thebes, killed the king and took his place, and then married his wife and had several kids. As it turns out, the guy that I killed to become king was my dad. And the chick that I married and had kids with was my mother. FML

A month ago and worlds away

15 June 2009 by frabjousdays

parkWas it just over a month and a half ago that my friend and I were in the Big Apple? It seems so long ago.

Chie Ayado – New York State of Mind

This is why good food photography is important

11 June 2009 by frabjousdays

Maybe it’s because the foods are badly shot. The lighting’s all wrong. The styling… what styling? Maybe it’s because many of the foods here are half-eaten. Maybe it’s because meat is hard to photograph.

Maybe it’s because a lot of the foods are fried. But I like my fried chicken. I like ice cream and the occasional chocolate cake.

Still, these pictures make me lose my appetite. Maybe it’s because I don’t like bacon, and a lot of them have bacon. They are funny though. They’re from thisiswhyyourefat.com.

bacon cheese pizza burgerpork fat meat skin deep fried twicedeep fried pizzadeep fried twinkie choc syrupheart attack sandwichpeanut butter banana bacon donutwaffle fries gravy mozarellatriple bacon cheeseburger deep fried patty as bunskrispy kreme bacon cheddar cheeseburgerdouble bacon hamburger fatty meltpotato chips cheddar bacon onionsdeep fried smores stick

Food and photography, two topics I like. And when combined well, it can trigger serious cravings, not just in me but any foodie out there (or anyone that eats).

But food styling and food photography is an art. The lighting has to be just right. The styling/setting/props, meticulously done well yet looking natural (most of the times). Like something that you’d want to see sitting on your dining table and that you’d want to put in your mouth. That plate of vongole? Every clam was positioned in the right place to look random.

As for meat or half-eaten meat, aside from the standard fast-food chesseburger shot, I’m sure it can be photographed nicely, even if it’s by amateur photographers or food bloggers or simply foodies with a good eye and a half decent digital camera.

burgerburgerburgerburgerburgerburgerbontonfreshnessrelish burgerburgerhominy grillspruceburgerburger

I still don’t like bacon, though. Even if it’s is nicely shot by Martha Stewart. (Mmm… vongole…)

vongolevongole

Banana pancakes

9 June 2009 by frabjousdays

Yesterday was my day off. (Yay.) My day of giving the local economy a boost (while I still have a job and still can). And giving myself a treat (I figured what the heck). And I was off to a good start. Yummy banana pancakes (didn’t count on there being sausages though; that tipped the meal over to the “too much” scale) for breakfast. Okay, it was more like brunch coz I didn’t have lunch. It was such a yummy meal though.

banana pancakes

Like the Jack Johnson song, only without the whole world that fits inside of my arms bit. Dammit.

Today, I’m trying to work banana pancakes into something I write. Just for fun. And I actually have. Watch this space to see if it makes it all the way to print.

The First Ever World Oceans Day

9 June 2009 by frabjousdays

World Oceans Day was officially declared by the United Nations as June 8 of each year beginning in 2009.

The concept was first proposed on 8 June 1992 by Canada at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (I remember that Earth Summit; there was a lot of publicity about rainforests, and celebrities rallied together and sang songs, and kids got together to write letters or send postcards in the shape of a leaf, all of which did absolutely nothing because look at where we are today) and it’s had been unofficially celebrated every year.

But, no more. It took 17 years but it’s official now. About time.

And of the 365 days a year, they could not have picked a better day than June 8. It’s a great day. Actually, it’s the perfect day. Sometime in the middle of the year, not too early or too late. Summer’s kinda here, yet it’s not hot like July or August. Kids are on their school break. The mood is generally upbeat. Lots of cool people were born on June 8, like Frank Lloyd Wright, Scott Adams, Kanye West, Nick Rhodes… and many other exceptional and remarkable individuals, for sure. And that “8″ thing is so popular with the Chinese and all. In fact, there’s no more perfect day than June 8. (Yes, I just said it’s a cooler date than Christmas. Or at least I think so.)

mola molaJune 8. World Oceans Day. All creatures great and small in the oceans thank you. And so do I.

Good call, World. (And Canadians, too.) Good call.

To sleep, perchance…

7 June 2009 by frabjousdays

sleepWho needs an alarm clock when you’ve got a family commotion on a Saturday morning? I could hear my mother going on about something my younger brother’s girlfriend did to my youngest brother’s room — a sensitive topic especially since my youngest brother is coming back next week.

Anyway, if wouldn’t have mattered. Ten minutes after that, the new neighbours upstairs started some drilling work. It was time to get up (it wasn’t that early…).

It’s been hot, but yesterday was especially so. We’d look up and there wouldn’t be a cloud near the scorching sun at all. Still, turnout for training was good — we had 21 rowers and two small boats (so someone had to take turns).

Dunno why, but I was stuck in the competition boat, even after Shufen and Nic got swapped to the other boat. Actually, that could be a good thing — the sets are gruelling but the rowers are rowing harder and faster. The other boat had the water-tapping newbies.

Then I went and pigged out on Japanese food. Alas, not of the healthy sort. Three words: mentaiko, cheese, rice. (To think I was doing so well on my mentaiko pasta cravings.) I even had dessert, because my mum wanted dessert so I had to order something to keep her company. Honest.

trainingAnd now, I can’t move. But really, that’s also because everything hurts. (If the yoga teacher says bend your knees if you have back pain, does the aching from Saturday’s training count?) But at least I made up for Saturday morning by napping most of Sunday away.

(That’s two deadly sins in one post. Not bad.)