Fine city living up to it's name

Guess what? Besides being fined for pressing unnecessary buttons, eating, smoking, littering, possessing explosives, not flushing...etc The Singapore Mass Rapid Transport (SMRT) thingie has decided to pose a fine for drinking mineral water in the train station. So all you thirsty people out there are going to die of thirst if you travel from one end to the other end of this not too huge island. Officials of SMRT said that it is difficult to ascertain if the water is really mineral water or flavored drinks. That is why, if you consume anything that looks liquid, you will need to pay a toll...fine, I mean.

The reason for this restriction is because they are afraid that any water spills would cause hurt to passengers. If that is the reason, then what about aircon leaks where water drips from the aircon vents at the ceiling of the train? Do we, the public, fine SMRT for that? It's still liquid...although not mineral water. Can't have double standard right?

They even hired more people (those in red uniforms) to perform guard duties to summon you if you act against their wishes. Then again, with the increase in hires....I foresee increase in fares soon....very very soon.

When they earn enough from water fines, there might be new ones instilled. Who knows, you might get fined for talking loudly in the train or not giving up seats to those who need it or even for phones not set on vibration mode. Oh and what about fines for those who stand right at the entrance of the train and not "move to the centre of the car". Or those who are trying to rush into the train while poor passengers are trying to alight....eeeks...I think I gave too many ideas.

Then again, compared to all those fines you see in the train stations, drinking is still the cheapest...only cost $30.

Welcome to Australia

I got this email some time ago and thought it was really interesting and hilarious. The FAQ were said to be posted on an Australian Tourism website and the answers are the actual responses by the website officials...not sure how true but they did manage to make my day...

Q: Does it ever get windy in Australia? I have never seen it rain on TV, how do the plants grow? (UK)
A: We import all plants fully grown and then just sit around watching them die.

Q: Will I be able to see kangaroos in the street? (USA)
A: Depends how much you've been drinking.

Q: I want to walk from Perth to Sydney - can I follow the railroad tracks? (Sweden)
A: Sure, it's only three thousand miles, take lots of water.

Q: Are there any ATMs (cash machines) in Australia? Can you send me a list of them in Brisbane, Cains, Townsville and Hervey Bay? (UK)
A: What did your last slave die of?

Q: Can you give me some information about hippo racing in Australia? (USA)
A: A-fri-ca is the big triangle shaped continent south of Europe. Aus-tra-lia is that big island in the middle of the Pacific which does not...oh forget it. Sure, the hippo racing is every Tuesday night at Kings Cross. Come naked.

Q: Which direction is North in Australia? (USA)
A: Face south and then turn 180 degrees. Contact us when you get here and we'll send the rest of the directions.

Q: Can I bring cutlery into Austrlia? (UK)
A: Why? Just use your fingers like we do.

Q: Can you send me the Vienna Boys' Choir schedule? (USA)
A: Aus-tra-lia is that quaint little country bordering Ger-man-y, which is...oh forget it. Sure, the Vienna Boys Choir plays every Tuesday night in Kings Cross, straight after the hippo races. Come naked.

Q: Can I wear high heels in Australia? (UK)
A: You are a British politician, right?

Q: Are there supermarkets in Sydney and is milk available all year round? (Germany)
A: No, we are a peaceful civilization of vegan hunter/gatherers. Milk is illegal.

Q: Please send a list of all doctors in Australia who can Dispense rattlesnake serum. (USA)
A: Rattlesnakes live in A-meri-ca which is where YOU come from. All Australian snakes are perfectly harmless, can be safely handled and make good pets.

Q: I have a question about a famous animal in Australia, but I forget its name. It's a kind of bear and lives in trees. (USA)
A: It's called a Drop Bear. They are so called because they drop out of Gum trees and eat the brains of anyone walking underneath them. You can scare them off by spraying yourself with human urine before you go out walking.

Q: I have developed a new product that is the fountain of youth. Can you tell me where I can see it in Australia? (USA)
A: Anywhere significant numbers of Americans gather.

Q: Can you tell me the regions in Tasmania where the female population is smaller than the male population? (Italy)
A: Yes, gay night clubs.

Q: Do you celebrate Christmas in Australia? (France)
A: Only at Christmas

Q: I was in Australia in 1969 on R+R, and I want to contact the Girl I dated while I was staying in Kings Cross*. Can you help? (USA)
A: Yes, and you will still have to pay her by the hour.

Q: Will I be able to speak English most places I go? (USA)
A: Yes, but you'll have to learn it first.

Glass doors on MRT

Suiciders will have to think of newer and more creative ways to commit suicide coz glass doors will be installed on all non-underground train stations. I guess there's just too many people trying to see if they have super powers by jumping onto the track to try. Sad to say, it wasn't a really bright idea to test water.

I took those photos when I was in Hong Kong earlier this year. This should give you an idea of what the glass doors are going to look like. Nope, it won't be full panel. The doors will be about the height of your waist or even higher if you are not too tall. Suiciders can still jump but it'll take more efforts and planning.

Then again, why commit suicide when it is just a permanent solution to a temporary problem???

Fried Hokkien Mee - 抢摊大行动 (Buzzing Cashier)

After watching 抢摊大行动 (Buzzing Cashier) on channel 8 , I decided to try out the winning Fried Hokkien Mee. In a way, I want to lend my support to the single mother and another, because I'm a fan of Chef Eric. A chinese paper reported that the mother didn't want to take up the offer initially when approached by the TV station because she didn't have the confident. But a few coaxing later, she decided to give it a try. I'm glad she did.

Upon reaching Blk 127 Toa Payoh Lor 1 #02-19 at 3pm, I queued for 30mins just to taste the Fried Hokkien Mee. The queue was never-ending....people just kept coming so much so that the drink stall ran out of sugarcane juice (from serving the customers who turned up to try the noodle).

I ordered beehoon. They didn't look like the one on the signboard...I guess I turned up too late...they must have ran out of la la or mussels. I love the yummy chili sauce and the dark sauce in the beehoon. There's fresh seafood taste yet not over-powering, not too saltish nor blend. This is indeed Fried Hokkien Mee with a twist. I'm not sure about you...but I'm going back for more :p I heard that they open at 7am but start selling at 8am....go early if you want full ingredients. You can order the $3 or $3.50 plate (I went for the $3.50).



Address: Blk 127 Toa Payoh Lor 1, #02-19
Opening time: 8am
Price: $3 or $3.50
Take bus 231 from Toa Payoh Interchange


View Larger Map

The Ang Pow Calculation Table

Someone posted this on facebook and I thought it was really useful. Click on the image for a bigger version.

I spy with my little eyes

Was at Tampines Singpost earlier to pay bills. Why didn't I use the SAM or AXS? Well, I had too much time on hand so decided to join the horribly long queue instead. The queue was really long and moving at snail's pace....I'm not exaggerating!

There were 8 counters altogether and 2 of them were not open. I would think that with the crowd, they would at least open the 2 counters but it didn't happen. It's not as if they didn't have enough employees. There were about 3 squeezed in the tiny little office. One of them was busy with the display items...for goodness sake, be a little smarter, don't meddle with the displays with there are so many people...help out a bit doesn't kill. The displays should be settled before the crowd comes in.

While queuing, I happen to witness a shift changing at around 4pm. And it got me wondering. Why can't the lady from the next shift takes up a non-servicing counter? Why must she take a servicing counter, close it, go through the shift changing procedure (which means one counter down for a while) and waste time? I could never understand how they work.

Anyway, the interesting part comes...this new lady sat at her position (counter 3), press the bell for the next customer to proceed to her counter. And there she was giggling and laughing asking her colleagues next to her if she wanted her extra baskets while the customer stands at the counter and wait. When she realizes no one wants her baskets, she turned to face the customer and almost instantly, the smile was gone. I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me. So I watched further. Again, she turned to her colleagues and started laughing and like a motion detector, the moment she turns to the customer, her face went straight and black.

Maybe I was missing something. Maybe she really love her colleagues very much. But I always thought that the customers are the ones you should be smiling to. By all means, smile at your colleagues but it's the customers who are paying you...not your colleagues. I guess the only customer service you can ever find in Singapore are in the high-end boutiques...and that is dependant on what you wear. For real customer service, I would suggest Thailand...genuine smiles, genuine helps....fake goods :p

More abstracts

Tanlin had decided that the competition be extended so I have more time to come up with abstract aka. confusion pictures. Even when I was in Bangkok, I didn't forget about the competition. So here's what I caught.

Abstract Competition - Day 1

In the hope to improve our skills, Jarod came up with this really difficult competition. For this week, we are suppose to take pictures of something abstract. In order to take it, we must first understand what abstract actually means. In my knowledge, abstract is probably anything that looks cool but you have absolutely no idea what it is or something that looks really confusing and that you're probably going to have a big headache just by looking at it. If you can name it, it's not abstract enough.

So I tried my first. You could perhaps tell what it is from first glance...but I thought it's a good start to something more confusing.

Demise of the King of Pop

Michael Jackson died on Thursday at the age of 50. He is said to have a cardiac arrest while rehearsing for his comeback concerts.

I'm not particularly a big fan of him but I do feel the lost. It's kind of wasted that he didn't even has the chance to perform at least once in the 50 comeback concerts. Oh well, as a friend has said, he is not dead...he is just abducted by the aliens for experiments...just like Elvis (!!!!).

In a more realistic viewpoint, he is dead but his spirit lives coz he left behind loads of memories and a legacy. He has become a legend and will live on in the hearts of people who loves him.

Preparing for H1N1

I have been reading http://www.moh.gov.sg/ on updates of the H1N1 infection (Note: It is no longer known as Swine flu because they've got a really cool name for it now). Just like any complicated password that has a combination of numbers and alphabets, the H1N1 in itself is complicated.

I have also done alot of reading on how to protect myself from the virus - actually, I do believe that when you gotta go, you gotta go - but it's still good to take precaution. Come to think of it, I wonder if they have those kind of "In case of emergency, break glass" kind of solution for this virus. It has come to the point where the virus is no longer containable. While reading, I watched really educational DVDs to prepare myself for the outbreak too. Yah, I was watching 28 days later, 28 weeks later, Quarantine....the lot! Now I'm really prepared to run if the virus mutates into god knows what!

LG Secret...shhh....

Got a new toy, another collection from the LG Black Label Series. I just love how flat the phone is and the fact that it comes with buttons (so much for touch screen phones)! The games in there are motion detactable and it really created some attention when I was playing the dart and fishing game in the train. People must be wondering why I was flinging my phone. Well, I was throwing darts and harpoon! It's abit heavy though. When I slip it in my arm band for runs, it always goes slipping down. There's nothing much in the arm band except for my ipod nano (with the Nike plus device attached) and my mobile phone....oh and $10 :p