Evo!!!

I don't know what it is about the Evo. Its one of the few Jap cars that I admire. Hmmmmm... could it be the name? Could it be the shape? I don't know... still can't put my finger on it.

Au naturel

I find that I get the best results photography-wise when I don't inform friends that I'm taking photos of them. Its more natural and less artificial when people don't pose just for the camera. Though I like taking pics without prior notice... its a definite no no for incriminating photos. Here's my long-time friend and bball buddy. Hahahahha... yes, its in black & white ;p

Police Academy

Kim Cattrall was in Police Academy!!!!!!!!! I caught a glimpse of her in that movie while I was at my auntie's place for CNY. Hahahahhahah... I'm still in shock.

CNY

What's CNY without a pic of Chinese lanterns? Here you go ;p

Marketing

Apple is the epitome of marketing. I don't think Creative's products are any inferior to them but they lose out in branding and the consumer "experience". The "i shop" is this new spiffy Apple shop that just opened in Orchard Cineleisure. Check out the swanky chair. The chair really caught my eye with its intense lime green fabric and hahahahaha... I coincidently was wearing a Nike T-shirt that was in the same shade. Niiiiiiiiiicccee.

Perfect example

Folks... this is an example of how any piece of equipment is never useless regardless of its age. This is my friend's old laptop which is practically falling apart at its seams that he has to secure it with masking tape and avoid moving it for fear that something would fall off!!! However, it has been running as his personal webserver for years without requiring servicing. Amazing... kudos to you brudder... you win the "Barcajax Resourcefulness Award".

Gong xi fa cai!!!

Have a properous new year... my loyal readers. And in the Singapore tradition, must have Fa Cai Yu Sheng!!! Hahahahahah... its not CNY yet but I've already had it twice.

Nia liao lor

I've watched two clips ("I want it that way" and "As long as you love me") from the guys known as "The Dormitory Boys". Hahahahahaa... I didn't realise that they had released so many others. I will have to get down to watching them. Don't know about you... but I find them entertaining with their expressions and gesturing.

I love sports!!!

I have to admit that I'm a sports junkie. I memorise statistics, names, faces, facts, the lot. But its not just watching the games that fascinates me... its the drama that goes on off the field as well. Take Sven's problems in keeping his mouth shut or the sensational news that Fowler has returned to Anfield!!! I just can't get enuff.

How can anyone be so lazy?

I've witnessed many things in my lifetime on earth but what I witnessed today really takes the cake. I entered the lift with a mother-daughter pair. I pressed the button for my floor and so did they. Guess what??? They live on the 2nd floor!!!
We are not talking about senior citizens here... the two of them were healthy, energetic and mobile individuals. I am puzzled and still reeling from that encounter. Can anyone explain this to me?

Disturbing news

I have been sourcing for unwanted laptops that people don't want and don't mind donating to me. *gasp* but to my dismay, it turns out that friends and family have been disposing them without a second thought!!!
People... people... people... laptops are just like pets... somewhere... someone is willing to "adopt" them. Ask your techie frens and I would be pretty sure they wouldn't mind taking them off your hands. I am one of them so if anyone reads this and has a laptop they want to donate to me, please please please contact me. I feel depressed after receiving the above news so I hope someone can make me happy soon.

Wierd

This has to be one of the strangest quotes that I have ever come across.
"He is 6ft 4in, has a big head and great spring, so there is no reason why he shouldn't get more goals."
- Alex Ferguson commenting on Rio's winning header against Liverpool

Can you imagine... ?

I couldn't make it without accessing the Internet on a daily basis... let alone years. This guy got barred from using the Net for three years!!! Ack... *shivers*

Prerequisites

Here is an entertaining list* of prerequisites/conditions you need to meet before you can be taken seriously as a security professional/whitehat.
Rule 1: Strike 1! Hahahahaha. I don't have a choice because my office laptop is running on Windows.
Rule 2: Yup. I definitely have a healthy disdain for authority especially managers ;p
Rule 3: Hehehehehe. Weak in the area of coding.
Rule 4: I dress normally so another strike 4 me.
Rule 5: Yup got recognition for something I posted on a security mailing list for me. One up for me.
Rule 6: Let me get back to you on this one.
Rule 7: I'm always working on some new experiment. Yup I would say I meet this criteria.
Rule 8: Ahhhhhhh. I met this one hands down. My boss and fellow Security Engineers have problems comprehending which I'm trying to say most times resulting in me having to repeat myself.
Verdict: Borderline.

*Brought to my attention by The Sushi Man. Had to place this disclaimer here or else there would probably be hell raised in the office ;p

Time

Love it... hate it... some value it... others don't... time passes quickly when you're having fun... it is painfully slow when you're bored... we can manage it but can't control it. If it doesn't move forward, we would be stuck in a moment forever. There would be no concept of the past, present or future without it. Time is the perfect oxymoron.
Btw, this was taken while waiting for the train at Raffles Place this morning though I was supposed to be in the office by 8 ;p

Huuuuuuuuungry eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeyyyeees

Hahahahahahahaha. I blame "Hungry Jacks" becoz of this campaign they had in Oz when they had this amazing commercial featuring juicy burgers, crispy fries/onion rings and refreshing Coke with the song "Hungry Eyes"* playing in the background.
April and I had Carl's Jr for din today. Mmmmmmmm. Check out the tantalising Sourdough Bacon Cheeseburger and Chilli Fries. *drool* Crazy stuff ;p

* Sung by Eric Carmen

Kobe goes one up

Kobe has done it again!!! He previously scored 62 points against the Mavs earlier in the season to outscore the entire opposition in 3 quarters. Now he's notched up the second highest points total in a single game!!!
Insane!!! He's scored 81 points in a game. Wilt Chamberlain scored a 100 to post the highest points total ever but Wilt was a monster of a man in an era where it was less defensive and more about scoring points. I'm pretty sure its harder to score points in the NBA now so in all fairness, I think Kobe's achievement is phenomenal.
Imagine going up against this mug... scary! Wish I had 1/10th his ability. Denis!!! We have to practice more dude.

The obsession continues

More B&W pics.

New change

Its the New Year and CNY is fast approaching thus I felt that it was appropriate to introduce a refreshing enhancement to my blog. I have replaced the paranomic background of the Roman Forum with the Miracle Square in Pisa. Enjoy.

Black & white pics

There's something about taking pics in black & white. It could be any object/scenery and it would look amazing. Here's a pic I took of a fren in Orchard. Niiiiiiccce. I'm looking for more subjects to take. Suggestions anybody?

Another fountain

Ahhhhhh another fountain that caught my eye. My future home would probably have one. Something for me to gaze at and listen to the calming sound of flowing water.

Rare

In squeaky clean Singapore, its practically impossible to see graffiti thus I couldn't resist when I saw this. Check it out!

Pot calling kettle black

The government is always encouraging Singaporeans to think out of the box but they aren't exactly good role models in my opinion. What do I mean you say? Take the prior incident regarding bus passengers who cheat by not paying the correct fare and the recent furor over Singaporean males who default on National Service (NS)... what did the government suggest to tackle both issues? Ohhhh they suggested their standard draconian actions of implementing heavy fines and jail terms... wooooooo so original!!!
Let's zoom in on NS defaulters. What do I suggest? How about finding what's the main reason(s) that prompts them to run away from Singapore to skip NS? Once we find out the rational behind their fear, find ways to encourage them to perform their national and offer incentives instead of punishment. Stop thinking negatively all the time and find positive ways to targeting root causes.

Black mouse down... black mouse down!!!

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrggghh!!! My expensive gaming mouse is not working !@#$%^^&*. The frustrating thing is that its quite new and only the left mouse button doesn't work. This is irritating becoz I don't think there are warranties for mice. Grrrrrrrrrrrr.
I feel like I have been forced to downgrade from a flaming Lamborghini to a Toyota AE86 (without Takumi's engine and horsepower). Its quite apparent which is which *sigh* Anyone going to take pity on me and get me another Lambor?

Not bad

I watched "Green Street Hooligans" aka "Football Hooligans". I give it 4 out of 5 stars... I like it not becoz of the violence in it but becoz it does have a morale at the end of it. It taught me that love is important and to stand up for what I believe in. STAND YOUR GROUND!!!
Was watching "Love and Basketball" on Channel 5 this afternoon. Buay pai also. I always find movies with sports themes fascinating.

Insane

This is what I have to go thru some mornings to get to my office. See the queue starting from this guy in front of me snaking all the way to the front. Insane!!!

It's happened again!!!

Nothing demoralises me more than having a twist or new development revealed before it actually happens. It happened to me before when I was told Bruce Willis' character is actually dead right at the beginning of "The Sixth Sense". Last nite it happened when Jim revealed to me that Takumi's dad got a WRX and chased him in the anime. *xianzzzzz*

Pretty liiiiiiighhts

Passed by "The Balconey" and was captivated by this. Water and lights... my two weaknesses... wooooooooooo.

Fuuuuuunky

Woooooow. I was enthralled by this lamp made up of tennis balls. This is a marketing tool used by Tag Heur to advertise their line of watches sported by Maria Sharapova.
I wouldn't mind having this lamp in my room. Hehhehehehehe. April is going to kill me. I'm such a sucker for marketing exploits... I can hear The Sushi Man snickering now.

Footbaaaaaaaaaaaalll

If I weren't an IT Security professional or photographer, I probably would be a football hooligan. Yeah rite!!! I'm not violent enuff or am I? Jim and Fenn... you guys interested in catching "Football Hooligans"? The original title of the movie is "Green Street Hooligans"... not sure why they chose to rename the movie when they screen it here. Still on the football theme... took a photo of Adidas banners hanging off Taka. It is an ad with Frank Lampard touting their new boots. Frank rocks!!! One of my fav players... too bad he plays for Chelsea though. I always try to buy him from Chelsea when I play Football Manager.

Kebab!!!

Mmmmmmm... had Turkish kebab for dinner today. Yummy. It's this place on the 2nd floor of Far East Plaza if you guys are interested in trying it.

Damn funny!!!

I was on bus 851 heading home. There was this auntie sitting a few seats behind the bus driver who had just bought a mop and was holding it upright the entire trip. There were quite a few passengers who got on and kept mistaking her mop for the rail that we usually hold on to in the bus to keep from falling over. Her family and her kept laughing whenever someone did it.
I found it funny as well initially but it didn't strike her to not hold it so upright after it happened the first few times. Makes me wonder if she did it intentionally or that she just didn't have the sense to not continually hold it vertically.

Why don't Asians speak their mind?

The Sushi Man is always posing this question to me. I attribute it to:

1. Asian culture of being non-confrontational.
2. Chinese saying "Those who know much, talk little".
3. Being frank pisses people off/irritates them.
4. They don't give a damn because they feel that their opinions will not be accepted.

I can list an example by summarising an IM conversation I had with a friend.
Friend: "I'm thinking of quitting."
Me: "Why?"
Friend: "I feel that I am underpaid."
Me: "Ain't we all? I feel that I'm underpaid as well."
Friend: "I don't want to talk to you." *pissed*

I'm only happy when it rains

This is a line from a Garbage (the band I mean) song. Its the rainy season again. Personally? I only like it when it rains while I'm sleeping. I hate it when I'm trying to get to places or I want to ball.

Back at it!!!

Hahahahahaha. Back to my trigger happy ways. Here is this really nifty pic I took of this HDB block that is quite unique in its look. So much for Singapore being uniform... there!!!

My preciiiiiooouss

I finally got my custom-made case for Darth Vader. Check it ooooooooooooouutt. And yes... I resolved my Nokia software issues already. Anyone has a 40GB portable hard disk to lend me? Explain to you why I need to loan one if you do.

Ho eh!!!

Anaconda brought me to "The Prata Place". I ordered cheese prata x01 and kosong prata x01. Wah seh!!! Both super crispy... just the way I like it. The two prata plus two teh came to S$3.50... ho eh!!! Its near Nee Soon camp for those looking for it... recommended. Did I mention that it offers either outdoor seating or air-con?

Not sure if you guys noticed?

I haven't been posting photos for awhile in case you guys noticed. Well if you didn't, the reason I haven't been doing so is because I changed my mobile just this past week. I swapped my 6630 for an N70 ;p
The N70 has a "nastier" 2 mega pixel camera so why no pics u're asking? Well it all boils down to the fact that I can't install the new Nokia suite software to support my mobile because my Windows OS is messy so I have to find some time to reformat my OS in order to successfully do so. *sigh* will probably do so on Hari Raya.
Akan datang. Since I'm on the topic of OSs... please go update your Windows as M$ has released the patch for the critical WMF vuln ahead of their previously announced schedule of 10 Jan 06.

Ever wondered?

It's different visiting a foreign country as a tourist compared to working and living in one. Here is a lengthy but intriguing article written by my friend, Sleeping Dragon, about her experiences in Bangkok.

In trouble again

Sony's done it again. That's all I have to say... I'm keeping my comments to myself.

Not sure?

If you would like some verification to determine if your PC is vulnerable to WMF exploits, download this tool to test your system. This is a tool provided by the very same guy who wrote the temporary patch for this issue before M$ releases an official patch.

Dance music

Fenn commented that she can't imagine listening to dance music at home. Well I do it all the time.
Step 1: Pour yourself a huge glass of Bailey's Coke.
Step 2: Dim the lights.
Step 3: Play Paul Van Dyk (PVD), ATB, Moby, chill-out or Ministry of Sound (MOS) CD.
Step 4: Lie down or settle back into a cozy chair.
This is the epitome of hedonism.

We are saved!!!

A savior has arrived in the shape of Iflak Guilfanov. He has written a hotfix that serves as a temporary patch for the WMF vuln till M$ releases one. You can re-register "Windows Picture and Fax Viewer" if you had previously disabled it before applying this patch.

Its finally happened!!!

I've talked about securing your home PCs countless times and probably sounded like a raving lunatic but its finally happened!!! A close friend of mine's computer finally got compromised and he described what happened to his PC while he was using it.
OMG!!! It was scary listening to him describe it even though I'm a "seasoned" security professional. I've started writing a document on securing his PC as a favour to him. If any other friends of mine would like the guide as well, call me. You know the number.
Have a safe 2006.

OMG!!!!

I'm soooooooooo excited!!! 2 of the 4 entries I submitted to STB's Unique2Me contest made it onto the MMS gallery... wooooooooooo. The ones I submitted are the outdoor cinema scenery and the amazing Singapore skyline with the blue backdrop. My gosh... talk about tough competition... the other entries are sooooooooo amazing.
Dear friends... please vote for me from 5 Jan 06 onwards.

Happy birthday and happy new year!!!

We celebrated April's birthday and welcomed 2006. Check out this poor crab that sacrificed his life for us... mmmmmmmm