Mehly auditions for the Singapore Spirit mascot

So now we now there is such a thing called the Singapore Spirit. It is said to be anchored on "deeper things which we share" like multiracialism, meritocracy and respect for every talent, about shared loyalty and commitment to Singapore, shared responsibility for one another and pride in what Singapore has built together, shared memories, shared dreams, shared aspirations, the determination that makes us press on in the face of tough times, the trust that keeps us together when forces try to pull us apart, the competence, quiet pride and discipline that makes sure that things go right.

Okay, we really need a chim mascot to spread this chim Singapore Spirit.

Nyo and Mehly after YOG

Are these two poor things only good for a couple of months?


What if the trains are still crowded one year later?

Visit the Masjid Sultan Mosque this Hari Raya Puasa

Long long time ago, Sultan Hussein Shah signed the Treaty to hand Singapore over to the East India Company. In return, he was given a sum of $3,000 by the Company to build a mosque. With additional financial help from local Muslims, the Masjid Sultan Mosque was built. While the Masjid Sultan Mosque we see at Kampong Glam has been rebuilt, it is still one of the oldest mosque in Singapore.

With Hari Raya Puasa just around the corner, it is a good idea to tour around Kampong Glam and give the mosque a visit. All you need to do is to take off your shoes, put down any prejudice, and a guide will introduce you to the mosque and let you learn a little about Muslims.

There are some that only employ words for the purpose of disguising their thoughts

"An American has no sense of privacy. He does not know what it means. There is no such thing in the country." -- George Bernard Shaw, an Irish playwright, who received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1925

NSman grilled over blog (ST.com)
An NSman with the Singapore Police Force has been called up for questioning by his reservist unit over comments he made on his blog on the handcuffing of a photojournalist in July. Mr Abdillah Zamzuri, 26, disagreed with how the police handled the cuffing of Lianhe Wanbao photojournalist Shafie Goh, which took place during a flash flood on July 16. He also said that the officer 'acted stupidly' and that they should be sued.

"Oh! what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive!" -- Walter Scott (1771-1832), a prolific Scottish historical novelist and poet popular throughout Europe

'I didn't lose sleep' (ST.com)
Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports Vivian Balakrishnan said yesterday that negative online comments about the Youth Olympic Games did not affect him - a day after news broke that a 27-year-old man had been arrested for posting comments on Facebook that the police said 'incited violence'.

'Even the newspaper report, I didn't even know about it until I read about it in the papers,' said Dr Balakrishnan, who addressed reporters at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel during a round-up session on the Games.

'It shows that I almost didn't care. I had more important things to do, I had good feedback and good suggestions from so many people, and I focused on that.

"Better to write for yourself and have no public than to write for the public and have no self." -- Cyril Connolly, an English author, editor and critic

Everybody hates Bloggers (Xiaxue)
I was already pissed off when it first exploded, but I believed that after Lady Iron Chef clarified himself, everything will be resolved. In short, I believed that Singaporeans are smart, logical, and rational as a whole. Who am I kidding? They are not.

"There is no refuge from confession but suicide; and suicide is confession." -- Daniel Webster (1782-1852), United States Senator and Secretary of State

Embassy to help in probe (ST.com)
In the early hours of Thursday morning, a car bearing the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's (DPRK) diplomatic plates and the North Korean flag hit a parked car along Geylang Lorong 21.

"The belief in a supernatural source of evil is not necessary. Men alone are quite capable of every wickedness." -- Joseph Conrad, Polish-born English writer

8 HK tourists killed in hijack (ST.com)
The Philippines security forces stormed a bus packed with Hong Kong tourists to end a dramatic hostage crisis that unfolded live on global television, leaving eight people and the gunman dead.

Ah Fook the food blogger vs the restaurant

(Picture in courtesy of Pet Society)

Since Ah Fook was still jobless, he decided to be a food blogger and blog for a living... well, okay, at least blog for food. The lucky guy received an invitation from an up-class restaurant for food tasting, so he turned up for free meal.

AH FOOK: Hi, I'm here for the food tasting.

RESTAURANT MANAGER: Food tasting?

AH FOOK: Yah, I was invited by your restaurant for food tasting. I'm a food blogger.

RESTAURANT MANAGER: Oh... okay. Just to let you know, you have to pay for the food. We'll give you a discount voucher that you can use on your next visit though. A $10 voucher with a minimum spending of $200.

AH FOOK: Oh... okay... so... I get to choose what food I want to eat right?

RESTAURANT MANAGER: No. We'll decide what you can eat.

AH FOOK: Even when I'm paying?

RESTAURANT MANAGER: Yes. Because we choose which are the dishes you should review on, so we'll decide which dishes you eat.

AH FOOK: Oh... okay lor...

RESTAURANT MANAGER: So your order will be the Creamy Lobster and Scallop bisque, Cavier on Turkish Bread, Wagyu steak topped with Truffle and lastly a Yubari Melon Sorbet.

AH FOOK: Er... these are the most expensive dishes on the menu leh...

RESTAURANT MANAGER: Yes, these are the best of our chef recommendations and are all done with the best ingredients from all around the world, so they're expected to be expensive. Okay, tell you what, just for you, we'll give you a 5 percent discount, so your bill should not be over $300. Ah, one more thing. Please send us your post for review before you post it on the Internet.

AH FOOK: What?! You want to review my post before I post it?!

RESTAURANT MANAGER: Of course! We need to ensure that you don't write anything bad about our restaurant and the food!

AH FOOK: But I have to be as objective as I can be when food blogging! I need to be honest! How are my readers going to ever believe me again if they find me lying that a horrible dish taste fantastic just because the restaurant pays for it... okay, partially pays for it?

RESTAURANT MANAGER: Hey look! Our restaurant could have just paid for advertisements on magazines and what not, we don't really have to get a food blogger to advertise for us you know? We're just trying to be kind and give you people a chance to eat good food and do some writing, so don't push your luck and be grateful!

AH FOOK: WTH! That's it! I'm not going to blog about your restaurant! No wait! I'm going to blog about your restaurant, but not about the food, about your see-bloggers-no-up attitude!

RESTAURANT MANAGER: Tsk... tsk... tsk... some governing body should really set some regulations to control you food bloggers!


What's happening: Everybody hates Bloggers (Note: Source is coming from a popular blog this time round instead of the usual newspaper blogs because my readers deserve to know what is ACTUALLY happening.)

The Old Tanjong Pagar Train Station

The Prime Ministers of Malaysia and Singapore have agreed that the Keretapi Tanah Melayu (KTM) station currently in operation at Tanjong Pagar will be relocated to the Woodlands train checkpoint by 1st July next year.

Which means that the old train station is going to be torn down. While this could just turn out like our own National Stadium, which was planned to be torn down like... yesterday, I reckoned in order to play safe, I better take some of the old Tanjong Pagar train station with me before it is too late. Because one thing for sure, our country's way of preserving old buildings is to paint it with bright and colorful CMY-K, or convert it to another legalised gambling den.




Old school fence in an old train station


Changing route the manual way


Birds waiting for the next train?


Lives in an old train station


Crossroad on a railway track?


What's in a railway track?


Even the local grad can't help taking photo of the old railway track


Have a kopi, watch the train comes and go... that's relac life


Trolleys waiting to serve


When is the train coming again?


Eight-points flower design on arch doors. Very typical and traditional Malay design.


Kind of too quiet for a train station

The Taekwondo Kid - Winning the First Medal but No One's there to See

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjP71r_MsR0

100% Singaporean kid Daryl Tan won the first Bronze medal in Singapore 2010 YOG, but too bad his parents were not there to see him fight because of some gahmen number games that caused a half-empty venue to be sold out. That is sad lor.

Ah Fook cannot get YOG ticket, but the venue is half-empty!

(Picture in courtesy of Pet Society)

To be a responsible citizen and more importantly, to support the kids, Ah Fook has decided to get himself some YOG tickets and go watch some matches. So he went to look for the Committee.

AH FOOK: Hey, I heard that there are still lotsa left over tickets for the YOG? Must be damn sianz right?

COMMITTEE: I wouldn’t say we are disappointed, I think we are quite happy with the ticket sales so far but I also hope more Singaporeans will also support the games and Team Singapore.

AH FOOK: Yah, I also heard that our kids are actually performing very well in the matches! I wanna go watch and support them! Can I get the tickets from you?

COMMITTEE: Oh I'm so happy that you're supporting the games and Team Singapore! That is the spirit that I'm talking about!

AH FOOK: Yah, so you think I can get the ticket to the semi-finals of 50m Butterfly swimming event? I heard our very own Amanda Lim is in it wor!

COMMITTEE: Oh yes, I heard as well! It was a good job by Amanda! Well done! I'm sure she'll go far!

AH FOOK: Yah! Amanda and also that Daryl Tan who won the bronze medal for taekwondo are kids who we should be proud of! Some more they're Singapore-born Singaporeans okay! They're living proof that we don't have to always buy outsiders to compete for us okay!

COMMITTEE: Ehem... yes, we want to groom these local athletes to make sure they are identified and put through the pipeline to train them... but we must also be practical... we must be realistic that we need foreign talents too...

AH FOOK: Yah yah yah, we still need more Singapore-China teams to win more China-China teams lah...

COMMITTEE: Ehem... anyway, you were saying you wanted to get the tickets? You know, Ah Fook, you will probably see this in your lifetime, once. And we are all making history together because the games is here, first time in the world! You should be so proud of Singapore!

AH FOOK: Har? Why only once in my lifetime? You mean after this first YOG in Singapore, no more already meh?

COMMITTEE: Er... of course there will be more, but it'll be hosted in other countries!

AH FOOK: Then? Good what! Then can go tour also mah!

COMMITTEE: Oh...

AH FOOK: Aiyah, anyway, can sell me the tickets?

COMMITTEE: I'm afraid not.

AH FOOK: Har? Why not?

COMMITTEE: The tickets are already sold out.

AH FOOK: Sure or not? I heard that most of the venues are half-empty only wor! Even the Hall 401 at the International Convention Centre at Suntec City, which holds a capacity of 840, was half-empty when our Daryl took on the Iranian taekwondo star!

COMMITTEE: Actually on paper, that venue was full. The seats were already allocated to the schools even though nobody turned up. So theoretically the tickets were sold out. That's why even his parents can't watch him fight.

AH FOOK: Walauz! No kidding! His parents didn't see him win the match and get Singapore's first YOG medal?!?

COMMITTEE: Nope, they didn't.

AH FOOK: That is sad lor...


What's Happening: 'Toughest fight of my life' - Daryl is Singapore's bronze-medal hero

What Ah Fook had to go through to get his refund from the bus company

(Picture in courtesy of Pet Society)

Like the rest of some 1/3 unfortunate Singaporeans, Ah Fook has been paying extra for his bus fare ever since the implementation of distance-based fare. And like the rest, he went to the ticketing office near him to get his refund. After queuing up for some time...

AH FOOK: I would like to refund all the extra 50 cents that I've been paying for my bus fares. Newspapers said LTA already checked and confirmed the bus company is overcharging us for the past one month or so, so I want my money back.

TICKETING OFFICER: No problem. You just need to answer these few simple questions. What is your name?

AH FOOK: Ah Fook.

TICKETING OFFICER: IC number?

AH FOOK: S8765432Z

TICKETING OFFICER: Contact number?

AH FOOK: 98765432

TICKETING OFFICER: Ez-link card number?

AH FOOK: Ez-link card got number one meh? But I got a few cards and I just use them randomly wor...

TICKETING OFFICER: Never mind one, it's just for record. Just give me the number from any one card. It's the 12 digits number on the card.

AH FOOK: Oh, it's 0900 0800 0700 0600. So the refund will be credited into this card?

TICKETING OFFICER: No lah, we're not that advanced. Your refund will be in cash.

AH FOOK: Then why do you need the number?

TICKETING OFFICER: Told you already, for record only! Date and time of the trip?

AH FOOK: Last Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday morning.

TICKETING OFFICER: I need the exact dates and times!

AH FOOK: July 26 8:59am, July 27 9:01am, July 28 8:58am, July 29 9:02am and July 30 8:57am.

TICKETING OFFICER: Wow! You remember the exact time?

AH FOOK: For record only right?

TICKETING OFFICER: Oh... and what bus number?

AH FOOK: 161

TICKETING OFFICER: Boarding and alighting points?

AH FOOK: Innova JC at Woodlands to Hougang Ave 4.

TICKETING OFFICER: What color were you wearing on those trips?

AH FOOK: July 26 blue, July 27 dark green, July 28 white, July 29 blue and July 30 light gray.

TICKETING OFFICER: What did you have for lunch?

AH FOOK: July 26 nasi lemak, July 27 chicken rice, July 28 mixed rice, July 29 mixed rice and July 30... I think mee hoon kway...

TICKETING OFFICER: You're not sure? The information needs to be correct, you know?

AH FOOK: Hmm... I think it was mee hoon kway... yah, mee hoon kway.

TICKETING OFFICER: Okay, now you need to sign here, and then put up your right hand and swear that the information you have provided is the truth and nothing but the truth, and that you will not try to cheat the bus company. And after one week to one month, depending on how busy we are, you will get back your... $2.50.


What's happening: 13 errors in fare system spotted

Ah Fook went on a gahmen money spending spree

(Picture in courtesy of Pet Society)

Ah Fook was helping a ministry to organise a very important event and so he attended a management meeting in the Minister's office...

MINISTER: Ah Fook, this is a very important event and so I want you to do your best planning. Remember that money is not a problem as long as we can justify.

AH FOOK: Cool! Oh by the way, on the way in, I saw some cardboard boxes and shopping bags in the corridor. Seems to contain valuables and nearly $13,000 cash... is it okay to leave them lying around like that?

MINISTER: Oh, don't worry about it! Someone will look into it someday!

AH FOOK: Oh, okay... Hmm... before we start, I was going through the payment we have made to some of the staff working on the project and I found over 50 cases of overpayment of salaries, bonuses, over-time claims, medical and dental subsidies, as well as double payment of medical expenses.

MINISTER: Oh, don't worry about it! Gahmen got money lah!

AH FOOK: Then when I was entering the event budget into the accounting system, I accidentally found that over 640 end-user accounts were wrongly given access rights to it, and some of the accounts allowed users to modify programs or records in the system! And then I also suspect that someone is doing some unauthorised testing because I saw two invoices generated with incorrect amounts!

MINISTER: Oh, don't worry about it! I'm sure someone from IT will look into it. More importantly, have you covered up those excess meal orders?

AH FOOK: Yap, done that. Those 63 instances of excess meal orders are already settled through the falsification of meal consumption records. Don't worry, nobody will compare the number of attendees for the events with the number of meals ordered one.

MINISTER: Well done! Do we have enough sponsorship for the event now?

AH FOOK: Yap, in fact after accounting for all the expenses, we are still left with $440,450. Should we start to refund back to the sponsors?

MINISTER: No hurry lah, we can have a timeline of 41 days to 1,694 days.

AH FOOK: Wah! Can take so long to refund meh?

MINISTER: Don't worry, these people won't care about these money one lah! Oh, and you reminded me... here's another cheque of $34,907 to put into the event. Use it for anything, like ask some contractors to paint the roads leading towards the venue with "Give Way". This will remind other drivers to give way so that the attendees won't be late and we can start on time.

AH FOOK: Okay sure. But I thought these money is for those welfare homes?

MINISTER: Is it? Oh, don't worry about it. They can get other money by other means.


What's happening: Auditor-General takes some ministries to task