Oddly enough I'm not suffering from my characteristic post-trip depression. Maybe because it's overshadowed by booking in sian-ness.
Least I gained 30 mins because my brother-in-law's fetching me.
When I questioned my sister on why she didn't want my parents knowing about her scholarship, she responded that my mother would be boasting about it. Good point. Especially considering she wrote:
"Congratulations Sulyn and Hwa on your great achievement"
on the whiteboard.
But still doesn't vindicate not telling me :(
Kettle Stocklist:
250g
Balsamic Vinegar and Sea Salt x 3
Wood Fired Barbeque x 2
Seasoned Roast Chicken x 1
200g
Honey Baked Ham x 1
100g
Herb & Spice x 2
Balsamic Vinegar and Sea Salt x 1
Wood Fired Barbeque x 1
Chilli x 1 (For sister)
50g
Herb & Spice x 2
Total weight of Crisps: 2.3kg
Like an inexorable tide, people have been, slowly but surely, defecting to MSN IN. I'd attribute it to a generational thing, but now Yaoi Girl comes along and confesses her sin.
Micro$oft is evil. MSN IM is evil.
The only good things about MSN IM:
- low footprint, fast startup
- tells you when you've Hotmail
- tells you when the other person is typing
Some of the many bad things:
- no history
- forces you to sign up for a Passport account
- refuses to shut down when IE/OE/Outlook is running
- hard to shut down
- pre-installed in WinXP and removable only with adroit registry hacking
I hear "the opposition parties got up early one of the past weekdays and stood at the back gate [or RJC] handing out propoganda booklets"
Ooo. They know where to strike.
[On Chee Soon Juan] sometimes I suspect that the government hired him to make them look good. (MSN message)
HAHAHA.
250g
Balsamic Vinegar and Sea Salt x 3
Wood Fired Barbeque x 2
Seasoned Roast Chicken x 1
200g
Honey Baked Ham x 1
100g
Herb & Spice x 2
Balsamic Vinegar and Sea Salt x 1
Wood Fired Barbeque x 1
Chilli x 1 (For sister)
50g
Herb & Spice x 2
Total weight of Crisps: 2.3kg
Like an inexorable tide, people have been, slowly but surely, defecting to MSN IN. I'd attribute it to a generational thing, but now Yaoi Girl comes along and confesses her sin.
Micro$oft is evil. MSN IM is evil.
The only good things about MSN IM:
- low footprint, fast startup
- tells you when you've Hotmail
- tells you when the other person is typing
Some of the many bad things:
- no history
- forces you to sign up for a Passport account
- refuses to shut down when IE/OE/Outlook is running
- hard to shut down
- pre-installed in WinXP and removable only with adroit registry hacking
I hear "the opposition parties got up early one of the past weekdays and stood at the back gate [or RJC] handing out propoganda booklets"
Ooo. They know where to strike.
[On Chee Soon Juan] sometimes I suspect that the government hired him to make them look good. (MSN message)
HAHAHA.
Since my mother "cleaned up" my room, I haven't been able to find my alarm clock. Of course, she disclaims responsibility. !@#$%^&*()
As I predicted, my brother-in-law's new m130 has become my sister's Bejewelled playing machine.
My room has been invaded by my sister. Her rubbish is all over my room. Gah. "Since you're going back to camp tomorrow, leave my stuff there" (...)
As I predicted, my brother-in-law's new m130 has become my sister's Bejewelled playing machine.
My room has been invaded by my sister. Her rubbish is all over my room. Gah. "Since you're going back to camp tomorrow, leave my stuff there" (...)
Melbourne was fun. A bit short, both due to some bad planning and the evils of the SAF, but fun.
It was actually my fifth time on the continent, making it the continent I've visited the most (excluding Malaysia and Singapore from Asia). Time to go to Latin America and Africa!
It was the depth of winter, and the cold air was invigorating. Winter is always so fun. You can walk a lot and not sweat or smell much (except for your feet). And it's always nice to see the mist of your breath in front of you.
My family is in possession of many pullovers, stored in the cupboard. Most of them were bought in the 70s, some in the 80s. On inquiry, my father replied, "You tend to buy a lot of rubbish when you're young". So we have many ageing scratchy pullovers with designs that nobody would be caught dead in. I've got to get new ones before the next time I go overseas.
Supposedly, Australians are lazy. I don't know how true that is, but they are certainly more lively and bubbly than strait-laced Singaporeans. But then it's the culture.
I realise that, this trip, I took relatively fewer photos - less than 15 in fact. Unlike London, Melbourne doesn't have sights that I'd been dying to see half my life, and 19th Century (at the best) Gothic revival architecture cannot compare to Romanesque, Gothic, Baroque and Rococo (I'm not really sure about Mannerism).
On some streets, there were LCD signs indicating how many parking lots there were free in nearby buildings. Very useful.
The people in Melbourne mostly seem chubbier than over here. Hmm.
As usual, there were schoolgirls roaming around town. I think they were in "Winter Mode", though many of them surprisingly weren't in stockings. When Summer comes, they will switch to "Summer Mode", and their socks, hitherto rolled all the way up to the knees, will go down, and their hemlines, heretofore just above the knees, will go up.
Everyday, there were a lot of SIA people loitering in the lobby. I think the Grand Hyatt is their hotel of choice in Melbourne. My sister calls SIA "Sex In the Air", because supposedly when the SIA girls bend down, their Sarong Kebayas go floppy and you can see inside. I've never actually seen this, so I think she's just being prejudiced again. Though I think all SIA girls have red-painted toenails and too much makeup. Anyhow, their advertising campaigns nowadays focus less on the girl and more on the service, so.
Breakfast everyday was the same, so it was rather boring by Friday, but at least I got to try Eggs Benedict. Nice.
Tuesday
If you thought Singapore had weird fines, in Melbourne you can be fined $100 for not giving up your seat to an elderly or disabled person, and up to $500 for cheating on your tram ticket (not paying the fare, that is, since all tram fares are a flat fee).
Early in the morning, Andrew came down to bring me to his University, though he took a long time to get ready (his hair. What else?!). I got to meet 2 of the members of his quintet, whom I always hear about - Sarah and Chenyi, and I crashed a diabetes lecture, but didn't understand a thing, so I was just scribbling a line or two and examining Sarah's pencilbox to rate its "Screwed Up" Factor.
Some people are squeakier than I thought. :)
The thing about Melbourne, especially the University, is that there are SO MANY Asians, especially those of Chinese descent. It's even more than Sydney, though it's not as bad as Concord College, where Jessica Tay said 100/110 of her level was made up of Malaysian and Singaporean Chinese. Which kinda explains why they were offering scholarships, so. :)
Andrew brought me to Victoria Market, where we got sugar rushes from sharing Baklava. He then saw a picture of a rabbit above some stall and got very excited, until he realised, at the same time that I pointed it out, that it was a fresh meat stall, so that meant that they had rabbit mea... Yes.
I also got to see "Mind Games", the shop from whence the Associate got his nickname. There was "Impossipuzzle" - impossible jigsaw puzzles. The worst one was of Baked Beans. I'd have gotten one for my sister and brother-in-law, but they're past their jigsaw puzzle phase.
We then went to Mekong for lunch. It was better (and cheaper) than all the Vietnamese restaurants my Viet-crazy sister and brother-in-law go to.
The Melbourne Museum wasn't bad. "The Italians", an exhibition of 3 Centuries of Italian Art, from the 16th to the 18th, was on, and it was rather good. Above, in the Life section of the museum, there were tons of pictures of naked people of varying girths in various poses.
Wednesday
Some men were running around in shorts in 10 degree Celsius temperature, but then they were mostly deliverymen, so I suppose they could stand it. There were also some women walking around in skirts - without stockings. I wonder how *they* coped.
I knew that Australia was a pretty informal country, but I was rather surprised when I saw 2 ladies wearing, with their skirted office attire, sports shoes.
I went to the Aquarium in the morning. I think, by now, I've seen enough aquariums to last me a lifetime. Anyhow there were 2 simulator rides inside, and I realised that I'd been on one before in Sydney. At the end, I was thinking of buying a plush dolphin, seal or shark but decided it wasn't worth it.
McFlurry flavour check: 3 - Oreos, M&Ms, Crunchie. Cf London: 3 - Dairy Milk, Smarties, Crunchie ; Sydney: 4 - Oreos, M&Ms, Milo, Nerds ; Hawaii: 6/8 - Oreos, M&Ms, Butterscotch/Butterfinger (I think), Orange Dream, Some Mint Concoction... ; Singapore: 2 - Oreos, Choco-Mint. Yeah, I'm an Oreo freak.
In the afternoon I went on a half day tour to Phillip Island. For some reasons, most of the tours from the various companies didn't include a visit to the Seal Rocks Sea Life Centre, to spy the seals from afar, not at that time of the year anyway (only from October to March). But that was a moot issue, since the roof of the place had been blown off by a mini-tornado the day before my tour.
The tour guide and the bus driver were the same person - a little odd, in my limited experience, and possibly unsafe, but it worked out quite well. Actually the job is rather daunting - not only do you have to drive and guide at the same time, you've to remain chirpy and cheery in the face of a mostly unresponsive group and conduct what amounts, most of the time, to a monologue.
The Grayline bus driver claimed that, for a few years in the 90s, Melbourne came out as the best place in the world, among 100 big cities, to live. Ooo.
Quite a few Melbourners have horses. I think it would be a fine thing to have a horse. Probably expensive, though. Apparently they don't keep sheep around Melbourne because the soil gives them footrot. Maybe I should've gotten a sample to get Ex-Footwear 2 weeks.
In the suburbs, I saw a petrol station run by 7-11, and in the city a Shell Select Convenience Store without an adjoining Shell station. Encroachment!
We stopped at a farm for about 40 minutes, and there I bought one of the few things that I got this trip - a "lucky" bag. A Kangaroo scrotum. Allegedly, these were worn by Aborigines for luck. I have my doubts about the veracity of this fact (and a few about the origin of the pouch), but I bought it anyway. Screwed Up Girl actually asked me to get her something, but I didn't in case Yechao got jealous ;)
After that was the Koala Conservation Centre, we got to the highlight of the day - the Penguin Parade. Basically, at sundown, the Little Penguins (I knew they were called Little Penguins, but I didn't know they were so... little) will come in from the sea and waddle back to their burrows. Photography (even non-flash) and video recording is forbidden there. Ostensibly, this is to "respect" the penguins, but the real reason is that they want you to buy the photos that they've taken, and buy their souvenirs. They already show precious little respect for the penguins by letting visitors see them, and charging a A$14 fee too. Furthermore, they've installed floodlights and built boardwalks so visitors can see the penguins better. They've already taken tons of pictures and videos - what's a few more? If they need the money, I'm sure many would be willing to donate, but resorting to such sophistry is really rather disappointing [NB: I actually left these comments on their feedback page. I wonder what the response will be]. Incidentally, the woman at the information counter gave me a brochure in Japanese - do I look Japanese to you? Gah.
On the way back to the Hyatt (after I went to 7-11 to get a small pack of Kettle and Fanta Passionfruit), I saw a shop selling crossbows and helmets. I want! I wonder if David still has the scythe I helped him bring back from Plaak.
Thursday
My father and I walked around for a while Monday morning, but we didn't really have time to go anywhere because I was going to meet the last of Andrew's quintet for lunch.
We happened to walk to St Patrick's. Although it was Gothic Revival, it was quite impressive. Much better than "St Paul's" (hah!) anyway. 2 schoolgirls were standing around a man playing with the organ, whom I presumed was the organist, so I went to ask some questions. It was rather interesting, using (something)-pneumatic transmission (the console was located a storey below the pipes). They've also put in brass instruments, making the organ even more versatile! There are also a lot of stops - apparently it has the same stops as the one in Leipzig, so you can get the "true" Bach feeling.
"Organ
The organ has 76 speaking stops involving almost 5000 pipes, 24 spanish trumpets and a four manual console. It was installed in 1962 to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary o the episcopal consecration of Archbishop Mannix and was refurbished in 1996-7.
The Cathedral Organ
The Cathedral Organ was built by George Fincham & Sons, Melbourne in 1962-64. It was refurbished with additions by Australian Pipe Organs, Melbourne in 1996-97. Comprising 81 stops spread over four manuals and pedals, the organ incorporates a substantial part of the instrument built in the West gallery of the Cathedral in the late 1870s by Robert Mackenzie and completed in 1880 by George Fincham."
At lunch, I met the last of the quintet - Jiaming, the *other* tall RGS prefect of the Class of 2000 (Albert I met over Chinese New Year before Andrew left). She claims that Act Cute 2 is okay. Right. And Thereis our future park ranger/botanist/kelp specialist was there too. :)
For dinner my father, Andrew and I went to "Shark Fin Restaurant" (sic). They gave us the [Old] Chinese Menu, which neither I nor Andrew could decipher, so it was left to my father to decipher the hieroglyphics. I went to steal a copy of the English menu, and there were some rather substantial differences. I do wonder why they wonder to do that - do they think that the Caucasians will be freaked out by seeing Monkeys' Brains on the menu, and not patronise the place anymore?
After that we went to watch the Wizard of Oz at the Regent Theatre. Earlier, as we were buying the tickets, this man/woman gamboled in, and started singing along in an alto/tenor voice to some music that suddenly started playing over the PA system. Later, we saw him/her at the door, dressed in a "Friend of Dorothy" T-shirt.
In the male toilet of the theatre, there was a sanitary napkin and tampon dustbin. Weird.
There were some ardent fans of the musical in attendance - one girl came dressed as Dorothy, and another was carrying a wand.
The lead role of Dorothy was played by Nikki Webster, whom some might remember from the 2000 Olympics. She was singing a bit poppishly, and no wonder because she's an Australian child pop star, with her own CD on the cover of which she was sitting semi-provocatively (which was being sold for A$30 outside, the same price as the Wizard of Oz CD. Not that expensive actually).
Toto was cute. Apparently the dog is named "High Spirits". What a name for a dog.
There were some modern touches made to "update" the production, like references, witticisms and inside jokes:
Wicked Witch of the West on recognising her sister's legs: Only my sister would wear red ruby slippers with those socks
Of course, they kept all the classic lines.
Walking out after the show, we saw a violin player. As expected, and as I'd predicted before the show, he was playing "Over The Rainbow". Horribly. If he was even half as good as the violinist I heard while entering a Tube station in London, I'd have donated a dollar, but he was just terrible.
I've enjoyed most of the musicals I've watched, except that I was really irritated by the Phantom of the Opera when I watched it in Singapore, because it seemed that the Phantom had lost his voice and was just groaning huskily on, and the time I and my sister were so pissed off by "Notre Dame de Paris" in London that we walked out during the intermission (I should've known that it would be bad, since all its accolades came from radio stations).
Friday
I spent most of the morning walking - to Queen Victoria Market, around it, and back. Melbourne's City Centre is quite small, and you can really get anywhere by walking. Or you can take the free City Circle tram, but I left too early to catch it, so.
I've never had the inclination, will, aptitude or heart to bargain. However, I did indulge in a little when buying fudge for the Fudge Slut at the "Fudge Factory" - I knocked $2 off the $35 price. Actually I offered $30 at first for 14 bars of fudge, and the man accepted but later he retracted his offer, claiming that he hadn't realised how much I was asking, and I let it pass and didn't press the issue. At one point, he tried to charge me $36 - $1 more than the stated price for the fudge. Maybe he was trying to cheat me with "Fuzzy Math" like the gold trader in the video that I saw in the Gold Museum on Thursday.
I tried Solo. I'm told my friend with the sister formerly of the orange hair gets a sugar rush from it. It was nice, but I didn't see how spectacularly intoxicating it was supposed to be. In its acidity/tangy-ness, it is comparable to Fanta drinks (Maybe Australians like drinks that sting the tongue and mouth).
I saw a sign advertising a place where you could have dinner with a vampire, billed as "The ideal romantic night for strange individuals". Sounds like my sort of thing!
In a shop window I saw a Mandolin for $199. I'd have bought it, but I didn't have enough money on me, nor space in my suitcase. And I don't know of anyone in Singapore who teaches the mandolin.
Aborigines are very prominent in Australia's psyche, perhaps obsessively so. This is probably for the same reason why the Holocaust is omnipresent in Germany's, but I don't think the government is treating the Aborigines especially well, and they are still grappling with alcoholism today.
[NB: The following is especially for a certain brown, curly-haired personage] Newater is Haram! And it's touched shit too. Not that I've a problem with eating with utensils that have touched shit, provided that they've been properly cleaned, of course.
It was actually my fifth time on the continent, making it the continent I've visited the most (excluding Malaysia and Singapore from Asia). Time to go to Latin America and Africa!
It was the depth of winter, and the cold air was invigorating. Winter is always so fun. You can walk a lot and not sweat or smell much (except for your feet). And it's always nice to see the mist of your breath in front of you.
My family is in possession of many pullovers, stored in the cupboard. Most of them were bought in the 70s, some in the 80s. On inquiry, my father replied, "You tend to buy a lot of rubbish when you're young". So we have many ageing scratchy pullovers with designs that nobody would be caught dead in. I've got to get new ones before the next time I go overseas.
Supposedly, Australians are lazy. I don't know how true that is, but they are certainly more lively and bubbly than strait-laced Singaporeans. But then it's the culture.
I realise that, this trip, I took relatively fewer photos - less than 15 in fact. Unlike London, Melbourne doesn't have sights that I'd been dying to see half my life, and 19th Century (at the best) Gothic revival architecture cannot compare to Romanesque, Gothic, Baroque and Rococo (I'm not really sure about Mannerism).
On some streets, there were LCD signs indicating how many parking lots there were free in nearby buildings. Very useful.
The people in Melbourne mostly seem chubbier than over here. Hmm.
As usual, there were schoolgirls roaming around town. I think they were in "Winter Mode", though many of them surprisingly weren't in stockings. When Summer comes, they will switch to "Summer Mode", and their socks, hitherto rolled all the way up to the knees, will go down, and their hemlines, heretofore just above the knees, will go up.
Everyday, there were a lot of SIA people loitering in the lobby. I think the Grand Hyatt is their hotel of choice in Melbourne. My sister calls SIA "Sex In the Air", because supposedly when the SIA girls bend down, their Sarong Kebayas go floppy and you can see inside. I've never actually seen this, so I think she's just being prejudiced again. Though I think all SIA girls have red-painted toenails and too much makeup. Anyhow, their advertising campaigns nowadays focus less on the girl and more on the service, so.
Breakfast everyday was the same, so it was rather boring by Friday, but at least I got to try Eggs Benedict. Nice.
Tuesday
If you thought Singapore had weird fines, in Melbourne you can be fined $100 for not giving up your seat to an elderly or disabled person, and up to $500 for cheating on your tram ticket (not paying the fare, that is, since all tram fares are a flat fee).
Early in the morning, Andrew came down to bring me to his University, though he took a long time to get ready (his hair. What else?!). I got to meet 2 of the members of his quintet, whom I always hear about - Sarah and Chenyi, and I crashed a diabetes lecture, but didn't understand a thing, so I was just scribbling a line or two and examining Sarah's pencilbox to rate its "Screwed Up" Factor.
Some people are squeakier than I thought. :)
The thing about Melbourne, especially the University, is that there are SO MANY Asians, especially those of Chinese descent. It's even more than Sydney, though it's not as bad as Concord College, where Jessica Tay said 100/110 of her level was made up of Malaysian and Singaporean Chinese. Which kinda explains why they were offering scholarships, so. :)
Andrew brought me to Victoria Market, where we got sugar rushes from sharing Baklava. He then saw a picture of a rabbit above some stall and got very excited, until he realised, at the same time that I pointed it out, that it was a fresh meat stall, so that meant that they had rabbit mea... Yes.
I also got to see "Mind Games", the shop from whence the Associate got his nickname. There was "Impossipuzzle" - impossible jigsaw puzzles. The worst one was of Baked Beans. I'd have gotten one for my sister and brother-in-law, but they're past their jigsaw puzzle phase.
We then went to Mekong for lunch. It was better (and cheaper) than all the Vietnamese restaurants my Viet-crazy sister and brother-in-law go to.
The Melbourne Museum wasn't bad. "The Italians", an exhibition of 3 Centuries of Italian Art, from the 16th to the 18th, was on, and it was rather good. Above, in the Life section of the museum, there were tons of pictures of naked people of varying girths in various poses.
Wednesday
Some men were running around in shorts in 10 degree Celsius temperature, but then they were mostly deliverymen, so I suppose they could stand it. There were also some women walking around in skirts - without stockings. I wonder how *they* coped.
I knew that Australia was a pretty informal country, but I was rather surprised when I saw 2 ladies wearing, with their skirted office attire, sports shoes.
I went to the Aquarium in the morning. I think, by now, I've seen enough aquariums to last me a lifetime. Anyhow there were 2 simulator rides inside, and I realised that I'd been on one before in Sydney. At the end, I was thinking of buying a plush dolphin, seal or shark but decided it wasn't worth it.
McFlurry flavour check: 3 - Oreos, M&Ms, Crunchie. Cf London: 3 - Dairy Milk, Smarties, Crunchie ; Sydney: 4 - Oreos, M&Ms, Milo, Nerds ; Hawaii: 6/8 - Oreos, M&Ms, Butterscotch/Butterfinger (I think), Orange Dream, Some Mint Concoction... ; Singapore: 2 - Oreos, Choco-Mint. Yeah, I'm an Oreo freak.
In the afternoon I went on a half day tour to Phillip Island. For some reasons, most of the tours from the various companies didn't include a visit to the Seal Rocks Sea Life Centre, to spy the seals from afar, not at that time of the year anyway (only from October to March). But that was a moot issue, since the roof of the place had been blown off by a mini-tornado the day before my tour.
The tour guide and the bus driver were the same person - a little odd, in my limited experience, and possibly unsafe, but it worked out quite well. Actually the job is rather daunting - not only do you have to drive and guide at the same time, you've to remain chirpy and cheery in the face of a mostly unresponsive group and conduct what amounts, most of the time, to a monologue.
The Grayline bus driver claimed that, for a few years in the 90s, Melbourne came out as the best place in the world, among 100 big cities, to live. Ooo.
Quite a few Melbourners have horses. I think it would be a fine thing to have a horse. Probably expensive, though. Apparently they don't keep sheep around Melbourne because the soil gives them footrot. Maybe I should've gotten a sample to get Ex-Footwear 2 weeks.
In the suburbs, I saw a petrol station run by 7-11, and in the city a Shell Select Convenience Store without an adjoining Shell station. Encroachment!
We stopped at a farm for about 40 minutes, and there I bought one of the few things that I got this trip - a "lucky" bag. A Kangaroo scrotum. Allegedly, these were worn by Aborigines for luck. I have my doubts about the veracity of this fact (and a few about the origin of the pouch), but I bought it anyway. Screwed Up Girl actually asked me to get her something, but I didn't in case Yechao got jealous ;)
After that was the Koala Conservation Centre, we got to the highlight of the day - the Penguin Parade. Basically, at sundown, the Little Penguins (I knew they were called Little Penguins, but I didn't know they were so... little) will come in from the sea and waddle back to their burrows. Photography (even non-flash) and video recording is forbidden there. Ostensibly, this is to "respect" the penguins, but the real reason is that they want you to buy the photos that they've taken, and buy their souvenirs. They already show precious little respect for the penguins by letting visitors see them, and charging a A$14 fee too. Furthermore, they've installed floodlights and built boardwalks so visitors can see the penguins better. They've already taken tons of pictures and videos - what's a few more? If they need the money, I'm sure many would be willing to donate, but resorting to such sophistry is really rather disappointing [NB: I actually left these comments on their feedback page. I wonder what the response will be]. Incidentally, the woman at the information counter gave me a brochure in Japanese - do I look Japanese to you? Gah.
On the way back to the Hyatt (after I went to 7-11 to get a small pack of Kettle and Fanta Passionfruit), I saw a shop selling crossbows and helmets. I want! I wonder if David still has the scythe I helped him bring back from Plaak.
Thursday
My father and I walked around for a while Monday morning, but we didn't really have time to go anywhere because I was going to meet the last of Andrew's quintet for lunch.
We happened to walk to St Patrick's. Although it was Gothic Revival, it was quite impressive. Much better than "St Paul's" (hah!) anyway. 2 schoolgirls were standing around a man playing with the organ, whom I presumed was the organist, so I went to ask some questions. It was rather interesting, using (something)-pneumatic transmission (the console was located a storey below the pipes). They've also put in brass instruments, making the organ even more versatile! There are also a lot of stops - apparently it has the same stops as the one in Leipzig, so you can get the "true" Bach feeling.
"Organ
The organ has 76 speaking stops involving almost 5000 pipes, 24 spanish trumpets and a four manual console. It was installed in 1962 to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary o the episcopal consecration of Archbishop Mannix and was refurbished in 1996-7.
The Cathedral Organ
The Cathedral Organ was built by George Fincham & Sons, Melbourne in 1962-64. It was refurbished with additions by Australian Pipe Organs, Melbourne in 1996-97. Comprising 81 stops spread over four manuals and pedals, the organ incorporates a substantial part of the instrument built in the West gallery of the Cathedral in the late 1870s by Robert Mackenzie and completed in 1880 by George Fincham."
At lunch, I met the last of the quintet - Jiaming, the *other* tall RGS prefect of the Class of 2000 (Albert I met over Chinese New Year before Andrew left). She claims that Act Cute 2 is okay. Right. And Thereis our future park ranger/botanist/kelp specialist was there too. :)
For dinner my father, Andrew and I went to "Shark Fin Restaurant" (sic). They gave us the [Old] Chinese Menu, which neither I nor Andrew could decipher, so it was left to my father to decipher the hieroglyphics. I went to steal a copy of the English menu, and there were some rather substantial differences. I do wonder why they wonder to do that - do they think that the Caucasians will be freaked out by seeing Monkeys' Brains on the menu, and not patronise the place anymore?
After that we went to watch the Wizard of Oz at the Regent Theatre. Earlier, as we were buying the tickets, this man/woman gamboled in, and started singing along in an alto/tenor voice to some music that suddenly started playing over the PA system. Later, we saw him/her at the door, dressed in a "Friend of Dorothy" T-shirt.
In the male toilet of the theatre, there was a sanitary napkin and tampon dustbin. Weird.
There were some ardent fans of the musical in attendance - one girl came dressed as Dorothy, and another was carrying a wand.
The lead role of Dorothy was played by Nikki Webster, whom some might remember from the 2000 Olympics. She was singing a bit poppishly, and no wonder because she's an Australian child pop star, with her own CD on the cover of which she was sitting semi-provocatively (which was being sold for A$30 outside, the same price as the Wizard of Oz CD. Not that expensive actually).
Toto was cute. Apparently the dog is named "High Spirits". What a name for a dog.
There were some modern touches made to "update" the production, like references, witticisms and inside jokes:
Wicked Witch of the West on recognising her sister's legs: Only my sister would wear red ruby slippers with those socks
Of course, they kept all the classic lines.
Walking out after the show, we saw a violin player. As expected, and as I'd predicted before the show, he was playing "Over The Rainbow". Horribly. If he was even half as good as the violinist I heard while entering a Tube station in London, I'd have donated a dollar, but he was just terrible.
I've enjoyed most of the musicals I've watched, except that I was really irritated by the Phantom of the Opera when I watched it in Singapore, because it seemed that the Phantom had lost his voice and was just groaning huskily on, and the time I and my sister were so pissed off by "Notre Dame de Paris" in London that we walked out during the intermission (I should've known that it would be bad, since all its accolades came from radio stations).
Friday
I spent most of the morning walking - to Queen Victoria Market, around it, and back. Melbourne's City Centre is quite small, and you can really get anywhere by walking. Or you can take the free City Circle tram, but I left too early to catch it, so.
I've never had the inclination, will, aptitude or heart to bargain. However, I did indulge in a little when buying fudge for the Fudge Slut at the "Fudge Factory" - I knocked $2 off the $35 price. Actually I offered $30 at first for 14 bars of fudge, and the man accepted but later he retracted his offer, claiming that he hadn't realised how much I was asking, and I let it pass and didn't press the issue. At one point, he tried to charge me $36 - $1 more than the stated price for the fudge. Maybe he was trying to cheat me with "Fuzzy Math" like the gold trader in the video that I saw in the Gold Museum on Thursday.
I tried Solo. I'm told my friend with the sister formerly of the orange hair gets a sugar rush from it. It was nice, but I didn't see how spectacularly intoxicating it was supposed to be. In its acidity/tangy-ness, it is comparable to Fanta drinks (Maybe Australians like drinks that sting the tongue and mouth).
I saw a sign advertising a place where you could have dinner with a vampire, billed as "The ideal romantic night for strange individuals". Sounds like my sort of thing!
In a shop window I saw a Mandolin for $199. I'd have bought it, but I didn't have enough money on me, nor space in my suitcase. And I don't know of anyone in Singapore who teaches the mandolin.
Aborigines are very prominent in Australia's psyche, perhaps obsessively so. This is probably for the same reason why the Holocaust is omnipresent in Germany's, but I don't think the government is treating the Aborigines especially well, and they are still grappling with alcoholism today.
[NB: The following is especially for a certain brown, curly-haired personage] Newater is Haram! And it's touched shit too. Not that I've a problem with eating with utensils that have touched shit, provided that they've been properly cleaned, of course.
"A camel in distress isn't a shy creature. It doesn't hang around in bars, nursing a solitary drink. It doesn't phone up old friends and sob at them. It doesn't mope, or write long soulful poems about life andhow dreadful it is when seen from a bedsitter. It doesn't know what angst is." --- Pyramids, Terry Pratchett
Oh, I don't mind subscribing to the OED - if it weren't what, $550 bloody USD?
Besides, a bit of web searching usually digs up whatever word you really want.
And believe it or not, my choice of "word of the day" often has some thematic relevance, and they are words I do use on occasion, if pressed.
Although I can't remember when was the last time I used "omphalocele" in conversation:)
Besides, a bit of web searching usually digs up whatever word you really want.
And believe it or not, my choice of "word of the day" often has some thematic relevance, and they are words I do use on occasion, if pressed.
Although I can't remember when was the last time I used "omphalocele" in conversation:)
A melange of a conversation I had a long time ago and a conversation I read in a book.
Me: "So you weren't interested in all those things I talk about?"
Someone Else: "Well, yes. A bit. And more so then than I am now. That's life though, isn't it?"
Me: "But you see... . That's all there is of me. There isn't anything else. If you've lost interest in the books and the writing and the ranting and the technology, you've lost interest in everything. What's the point of us?"
Someone Else: "You really believe that?"
Me: "Yes. Look at me. Look at the flat. What else has it got apart from games and books and VCDs?"
Someone Else: "And do you like it that way?"
Me: "I don't know. I don't think so. I wish it hadn't happened that way, but it did, and in your words, "That's life though, isn't it?""
Someone Else: "You know what the sad thing is? You have potential. As a human being. You have all the basic ingredients. You're really very likeable, when you put your mind to it. You make people laugh, when you can be bothered, and you're occasionally kind, and... it's just that most of the time you can't be bothered."
"You just.. you just don't do anything. You get lost in your head, and you sit around thinking instead of getting on with something, and most of the time you think rubbish. You always seem to miss what's really happening. You know that expression, "Time on his hand and himself on his mind"? That's you."
Me: "So you weren't interested in all those things I talk about?"
Someone Else: "Well, yes. A bit. And more so then than I am now. That's life though, isn't it?"
Me: "But you see... . That's all there is of me. There isn't anything else. If you've lost interest in the books and the writing and the ranting and the technology, you've lost interest in everything. What's the point of us?"
Someone Else: "You really believe that?"
Me: "Yes. Look at me. Look at the flat. What else has it got apart from games and books and VCDs?"
Someone Else: "And do you like it that way?"
Me: "I don't know. I don't think so. I wish it hadn't happened that way, but it did, and in your words, "That's life though, isn't it?""
Someone Else: "You know what the sad thing is? You have potential. As a human being. You have all the basic ingredients. You're really very likeable, when you put your mind to it. You make people laugh, when you can be bothered, and you're occasionally kind, and... it's just that most of the time you can't be bothered."
"You just.. you just don't do anything. You get lost in your head, and you sit around thinking instead of getting on with something, and most of the time you think rubbish. You always seem to miss what's really happening. You know that expression, "Time on his hand and himself on his mind"? That's you."
Early morning. Word of the day is: "dysteleology"
Well, it's part of our social conditioning. In our eastern culture, we see mental illness and depression as terrible, karma-induced misfortunes that being shame and dishonour to the family lineage. *sardonic smile* We don't have a culture of glorifying insanity and adolescent worship of misery the way modern Western society does; although, much to my conservative distaste, it's starting to leak over into this generation en masse. *insert hypocrisy tags*
In any event, there are genuinely happy people out there; and they're terribly disturbing in their own right too. I mean; I think it's safe to say that even to an objective observer, this world is, for 99.9% of the population, a vale of tears. I suppose the key is not to get obsessed to either extreme.
I was reading this article on Time; and it occurred to me that it would be .. pleasing .. if my current mental and social condition was the result of a neurological disorder beyond my control. A sadly misdiagnosed one - for a long time in high school I operated under the assumption it was classic manic depression - and it appears that some of the rather disorder-specfic pharmaceuticals I've been guzzling all these years aren't really the best thing for bipolars.
Was looking up old acquaintances' icq numbers through icq search. Again, am disturbed at the number of people who have passed through my life, left, or been deliberately shut out of. Went through a rather naive moment when I looked up some of my ex-'es numbers on icq; stared at the details for some moments, then hastily switching off the PC before I did anything (more) stupid like messaging some of the past's emotional detritus.
"I find these long-lost boyfriend calls rather unnerving... I think men go through this, you know, some kind of "what-does-it-all-mean" thing after a while."
In any event, what DOES it all mean? I wish there was some clarity as to what's going to happen; and sometimes as I think about my life, there's a spark I want to cherish; a sputter of life in the flat battery; but just at the wrong moment (ie. everyday) I catch a glimpse of the night sky behind my future, and I can see that there's nothing out there at all.
On that thing that gives life meaning:
"It is something else; something that is clearly not important enough to me, in both senses; it should be more important to me than it is, because I miss it, and yet life is clearly not impossible without it, because I have been managing to survive despite its absence."
And on coping:
"It is the act of reading itself I miss; the opportunity to retreat further and further from the world until I have found some space, some air that isn't stale. My room seemed enormous when I moved into it, enormous and quiet, but this book is so much bigger than that. And when I've finsihed it, I will start another one, and that might be even bigger, and then another, and I will be able to keep extending my mental house until it becomes a mansion, full of rooms where they can't find me. And it's not just reading either, but listening, hearing something other than the chatter chatter chatter in my head...
I don't want anyone else to hear what I am hearing, and I want to be able to block out every last trace of the world I inhabit, even if it is just for a half-an-hour a day. Maybe I can't live a rich and beautiful life, but there are rich and beautiful things for sale all around me, and they are not an extravagance because if I buy some of them then I think I might be able to get by, and if I don't, then I think I might go under. I need a Discman and some CDs and half-a-dozen novels urgently, total cost maybe three hundred dollars. Just thnk how long it would take a twelve-year-old Asian girl to earn this amount in a sweatshop.
Can I be a good person and spend that much money on overpriced consumer goods? I don't know. But I do know this; I'd be no good without them."
[Ed: The above is extracted from Nick Hornby's "How to Be Good". Thank you to RWC for pointing this out.]
Well, it's part of our social conditioning. In our eastern culture, we see mental illness and depression as terrible, karma-induced misfortunes that being shame and dishonour to the family lineage. *sardonic smile* We don't have a culture of glorifying insanity and adolescent worship of misery the way modern Western society does; although, much to my conservative distaste, it's starting to leak over into this generation en masse. *insert hypocrisy tags*
In any event, there are genuinely happy people out there; and they're terribly disturbing in their own right too. I mean; I think it's safe to say that even to an objective observer, this world is, for 99.9% of the population, a vale of tears. I suppose the key is not to get obsessed to either extreme.
I was reading this article on Time; and it occurred to me that it would be .. pleasing .. if my current mental and social condition was the result of a neurological disorder beyond my control. A sadly misdiagnosed one - for a long time in high school I operated under the assumption it was classic manic depression - and it appears that some of the rather disorder-specfic pharmaceuticals I've been guzzling all these years aren't really the best thing for bipolars.
Was looking up old acquaintances' icq numbers through icq search. Again, am disturbed at the number of people who have passed through my life, left, or been deliberately shut out of. Went through a rather naive moment when I looked up some of my ex-'es numbers on icq; stared at the details for some moments, then hastily switching off the PC before I did anything (more) stupid like messaging some of the past's emotional detritus.
"I find these long-lost boyfriend calls rather unnerving... I think men go through this, you know, some kind of "what-does-it-all-mean" thing after a while."
In any event, what DOES it all mean? I wish there was some clarity as to what's going to happen; and sometimes as I think about my life, there's a spark I want to cherish; a sputter of life in the flat battery; but just at the wrong moment (ie. everyday) I catch a glimpse of the night sky behind my future, and I can see that there's nothing out there at all.
On that thing that gives life meaning:
"It is something else; something that is clearly not important enough to me, in both senses; it should be more important to me than it is, because I miss it, and yet life is clearly not impossible without it, because I have been managing to survive despite its absence."
And on coping:
"It is the act of reading itself I miss; the opportunity to retreat further and further from the world until I have found some space, some air that isn't stale. My room seemed enormous when I moved into it, enormous and quiet, but this book is so much bigger than that. And when I've finsihed it, I will start another one, and that might be even bigger, and then another, and I will be able to keep extending my mental house until it becomes a mansion, full of rooms where they can't find me. And it's not just reading either, but listening, hearing something other than the chatter chatter chatter in my head...
I don't want anyone else to hear what I am hearing, and I want to be able to block out every last trace of the world I inhabit, even if it is just for a half-an-hour a day. Maybe I can't live a rich and beautiful life, but there are rich and beautiful things for sale all around me, and they are not an extravagance because if I buy some of them then I think I might be able to get by, and if I don't, then I think I might go under. I need a Discman and some CDs and half-a-dozen novels urgently, total cost maybe three hundred dollars. Just thnk how long it would take a twelve-year-old Asian girl to earn this amount in a sweatshop.
Can I be a good person and spend that much money on overpriced consumer goods? I don't know. But I do know this; I'd be no good without them."
[Ed: The above is extracted from Nick Hornby's "How to Be Good". Thank you to RWC for pointing this out.]
Why do people like to pretend that they are happy so much?
Supposedly it's so others don't get depressed and feel bad seeing that you are unhappy.
But it seems a lot of people like to pretend. Then everyone is depressed and sees others happy and decides to act happy. But then everyone gets more depressed.
Supposedly it's so others don't get depressed and feel bad seeing that you are unhappy.
But it seems a lot of people like to pretend. Then everyone is depressed and sees others happy and decides to act happy. But then everyone gets more depressed.
Back.
I've just come up with a theory - all SCGS girls have boyfriends. Older than them.
Forthright's Phrontistery: Dictionary of Obscure Words and Word Lists
phrontistery fron'tis-te-ri, n a thinking-place [Gr phrontisterion from phrontistes a thinker, from phroneein to think; applied by Aristophanes to the school of Socrates]
NB: I couldn't find the meaning of "phrontistery" on Dictionary.com even, so.
CNN - Pornographer says he hacked al Qaeda
I've just come up with a theory - all SCGS girls have boyfriends. Older than them.
Forthright's Phrontistery: Dictionary of Obscure Words and Word Lists
phrontistery fron'tis-te-ri, n a thinking-place [Gr phrontisterion from phrontistes a thinker, from phroneein to think; applied by Aristophanes to the school of Socrates]
NB: I couldn't find the meaning of "phrontistery" on Dictionary.com even, so.
CNN - Pornographer says he hacked al Qaeda
Friday, August 16, 2002
We is dedicated to the nerd aesthetic. Hyuck hyuck hyuck.
It's a tough calling, being a nerd, but it is a profession only a few are equipped to master. Amongst other things, one must deal with celibacy, the complete absence of social skill ("The mark of the true nerd is not that he is unaware of his social awkwardness, but truly does not care"), and the constant unending distractions from the pursuit of trivia, knowledge, wisdom, and erratically time-consuming interests. These distractions include family, the leprous call of normality, and the constant temptation to pick up this thing lesser mortals have called "a life."
It's a tough calling, being a nerd, but it is a profession only a few are equipped to master. Amongst other things, one must deal with celibacy, the complete absence of social skill ("The mark of the true nerd is not that he is unaware of his social awkwardness, but truly does not care"), and the constant unending distractions from the pursuit of trivia, knowledge, wisdom, and erratically time-consuming interests. These distractions include family, the leprous call of normality, and the constant temptation to pick up this thing lesser mortals have called "a life."
Word of the day: "phrontistery"
Dilbert: Maybe I should be a teacher so I can educate the leaders of tomorrow.
Dogbert: Maybe you should educate the morons of tomorrow so they'll stop believing the leaders of tomorrow.
Dilbert: Maybe I'll just eat this donut and go to work.
Dogbert: Do you have any more dreams I can crush?
Dilbert: Maybe I should be a teacher so I can educate the leaders of tomorrow.
Dogbert: Maybe you should educate the morons of tomorrow so they'll stop believing the leaders of tomorrow.
Dilbert: Maybe I'll just eat this donut and go to work.
Dogbert: Do you have any more dreams I can crush?
Tuesday, August 13, 2002
Word of the day: "steatopygia" (that means YOU, Gabriel)
Believe it or not, that little experiment two days ago had... bizarre results. As of lunchtime, the shareprice that we had picked on was approx. RMx.00 (details distorted so as to avoid potential litigation from the Securities Commission). As of 4:15pm today, the price has shot up 35 cents!
Our attempt was inspired that day when we saw an ambassadorial car outside our target company's corporate headquarters. Immediately, we speculated on whether they were being bought out by a major overseas MNC, or, even better, ACQUIRING a major overseas MNC:) (if Proton can buy Lotus, any damn thing's possible) The experiment basically entailed us talking very loudly about the various share options we would gain, staff having to learn a new foreign language, speculation about how much the chairman and other majority shareholders would rake in, etc. etc...
As a result, some of my fellow colleagues have seen a substantial jump in their portfolio values. We shall try to replicate these results with other counters.
Actually, on a mildly boring note, I've started considering my financial future with some dismay. I realise that I have virtually no practical scheme in place for investment or other related opportunities; part of that is due to the terrible market conditions in Malaysia, but a larger part of it is due to my general crashing ignorance of matters financial, as well as any absence of a budget or planning mechanism. I really should rectify this; as soon as I finish off paying all my debts. And I definitely should save more; all of those little indulgences add up to large credit card bills.
I've already worked out a scheme where I can live comfortably off the capital gains from a substantial amount of money. Unfortunately I need at least 2.5million to start my "no more work"-life. Tricky.
My neighbour at work is currently developing a model for collaborative investing in Nikkei 225 futures as traded on the SGX-DT (Singaporean derivatives exchange). Any one
want to take a flyer?:)
Someone asked what dictionary I used. Well, I used to have access to the Oxford English Dictionary 2nd. ed. ALL FREAKING 20-VOLUMES OF WONDERFUL WORD LORE!!!!! swoon of ectasy* Too bad the uni library didn't have the 3-volume Additions series.
(To those people who wave their genteel Student Edition or Compact Edition OEDs, I say fuck off - a dictionary is indeed like a dick; no matter what people say, bigger is better. A dictionary isn't a dictionary if you can carry it without grunting)
However, having fallen on sad, horrible times (ie. returning home to live with family), I have been forced to downgrade to a feeble Collins English Dictionary (Aus. ed); which only weighs in at 8kgs. Depressing. But at least it has the decency to include a basic etymology for each word.
Believe it or not, that little experiment two days ago had... bizarre results. As of lunchtime, the shareprice that we had picked on was approx. RMx.00 (details distorted so as to avoid potential litigation from the Securities Commission). As of 4:15pm today, the price has shot up 35 cents!
Our attempt was inspired that day when we saw an ambassadorial car outside our target company's corporate headquarters. Immediately, we speculated on whether they were being bought out by a major overseas MNC, or, even better, ACQUIRING a major overseas MNC:) (if Proton can buy Lotus, any damn thing's possible) The experiment basically entailed us talking very loudly about the various share options we would gain, staff having to learn a new foreign language, speculation about how much the chairman and other majority shareholders would rake in, etc. etc...
As a result, some of my fellow colleagues have seen a substantial jump in their portfolio values. We shall try to replicate these results with other counters.
Actually, on a mildly boring note, I've started considering my financial future with some dismay. I realise that I have virtually no practical scheme in place for investment or other related opportunities; part of that is due to the terrible market conditions in Malaysia, but a larger part of it is due to my general crashing ignorance of matters financial, as well as any absence of a budget or planning mechanism. I really should rectify this; as soon as I finish off paying all my debts. And I definitely should save more; all of those little indulgences add up to large credit card bills.
I've already worked out a scheme where I can live comfortably off the capital gains from a substantial amount of money. Unfortunately I need at least 2.5million to start my "no more work"-life. Tricky.
My neighbour at work is currently developing a model for collaborative investing in Nikkei 225 futures as traded on the SGX-DT (Singaporean derivatives exchange). Any one
want to take a flyer?:)
Someone asked what dictionary I used. Well, I used to have access to the Oxford English Dictionary 2nd. ed. ALL FREAKING 20-VOLUMES OF WONDERFUL WORD LORE!!!!! swoon of ectasy* Too bad the uni library didn't have the 3-volume Additions series.
(To those people who wave their genteel Student Edition or Compact Edition OEDs, I say fuck off - a dictionary is indeed like a dick; no matter what people say, bigger is better. A dictionary isn't a dictionary if you can carry it without grunting)
However, having fallen on sad, horrible times (ie. returning home to live with family), I have been forced to downgrade to a feeble Collins English Dictionary (Aus. ed); which only weighs in at 8kgs. Depressing. But at least it has the decency to include a basic etymology for each word.
Monday, August 12, 2002
The word of the day is "boustrophedon."(not a bad way to do things, if it weren't for the damn carriage return on keyboards..)
"Tis pleasant, safely to behold from shore
The rowling ship, and hear the tempest roar.
Not that another's pain is our delight;
But pains unfelt produce the pleasing sight."
Gabriel should know where I lifted this from, but it's oddly apt, no?
"Tis pleasant, safely to behold from shore
The rowling ship, and hear the tempest roar.
Not that another's pain is our delight;
But pains unfelt produce the pleasing sight."
Gabriel should know where I lifted this from, but it's oddly apt, no?
I was just looking at, for the first time in full, the CD that my brother in law burnt on the day that I exchanged my Pink IC for my Green IC, and a rash of memories came flooding back and I went to hug Porky.
My brother-in-law sneakily took some photos surreptitiously that day. Evil.
Seen at Efem, Turkish Restaurant:
"About Turkey
Stretching out on two continents, Turkey is a paradise where one can experience the four seasons simultaneously... Whether be fond of art, history, archeology or nature, you will feel the happiness beyond desires and hopes during your stay in Turkey surrounded by the crystal clear waters of a shinning sea at four directions, Turkey generously offers her 8000 km long shores before your eyes. Turkey is rich in flora and fauna.
Twenty fascinating civilizations render Turkey the heir of 10.000 years old history, which has still been examined for further ancient secrets to be brought up into daylight. The lands inhales at any moment the mystery of the past through the existence of the statues of gods and goddesses, temples, theaters, agoras, churches, mosques, and palaces. Becoming a united whole of daily life and all other values, Turkey forms ideal circumstances.
Turkish Food
Turkish food has the elements of the culinary traditions of the wide variety of cultures that formed the Ottoman Empire; the origins of the recipes stretch from the Danube to the Persian Gulf, from the Balkans as far south as the Sudan. Regarded as one of the most favorable cuisines of the world, Turkish cuisine has superiority when compared to the cuisine of France and China. Exceptional richness of the various meals, methods of cooking, arrangement of the table, service and equipments used bring the richness in a way that never fails to delight."
--- As transcribed by me. The poor waiter thought I was interested in Turkey and gave me the website URL of the restaurant, as well as his website, and placed some brochures at the next table.
Zlycis was playing Canasta but refused to teach me. Bah.
Someone found my page by looking for "bcg scar nude girls". And searching that I found,
National Organization to Halt the Abuse and Routine Mutilation of Males
Male Genital Mutilation (Circumcision)
A Feminist Study of a Muted Gender Issue (Part 2)
Seham Abd el Salam �
Cairo, June 1999
B.Sc in Medicine, Graduate Diploma in Medicine, Graduate Diploma in Art Criticism,
MA Anthropology
Post masters Fellowship Research - Supervisor: Professor Cynthia Nelson
American University in Cairo, School of Humanities,
Sociology, Anthropology, Psychology and Egyptology Department
English Version translated by: Azza Ali (Ph. D) and Seham Abd el Salam
Conclusion.
Wow. Someone who shares my views! :)
I've been invited to join Yourself?
In other news, General Oura rounded off his portfolio some time ago with the last of the 3 Raffles bands.
My brother-in-law sneakily took some photos surreptitiously that day. Evil.
Seen at Efem, Turkish Restaurant:
"About Turkey
Stretching out on two continents, Turkey is a paradise where one can experience the four seasons simultaneously... Whether be fond of art, history, archeology or nature, you will feel the happiness beyond desires and hopes during your stay in Turkey surrounded by the crystal clear waters of a shinning sea at four directions, Turkey generously offers her 8000 km long shores before your eyes. Turkey is rich in flora and fauna.
Twenty fascinating civilizations render Turkey the heir of 10.000 years old history, which has still been examined for further ancient secrets to be brought up into daylight. The lands inhales at any moment the mystery of the past through the existence of the statues of gods and goddesses, temples, theaters, agoras, churches, mosques, and palaces. Becoming a united whole of daily life and all other values, Turkey forms ideal circumstances.
Turkish Food
Turkish food has the elements of the culinary traditions of the wide variety of cultures that formed the Ottoman Empire; the origins of the recipes stretch from the Danube to the Persian Gulf, from the Balkans as far south as the Sudan. Regarded as one of the most favorable cuisines of the world, Turkish cuisine has superiority when compared to the cuisine of France and China. Exceptional richness of the various meals, methods of cooking, arrangement of the table, service and equipments used bring the richness in a way that never fails to delight."
--- As transcribed by me. The poor waiter thought I was interested in Turkey and gave me the website URL of the restaurant, as well as his website, and placed some brochures at the next table.
Zlycis was playing Canasta but refused to teach me. Bah.
Someone found my page by looking for "bcg scar nude girls". And searching that I found,
National Organization to Halt the Abuse and Routine Mutilation of Males
Male Genital Mutilation (Circumcision)
A Feminist Study of a Muted Gender Issue (Part 2)
Seham Abd el Salam �
Cairo, June 1999
B.Sc in Medicine, Graduate Diploma in Medicine, Graduate Diploma in Art Criticism,
MA Anthropology
Post masters Fellowship Research - Supervisor: Professor Cynthia Nelson
American University in Cairo, School of Humanities,
Sociology, Anthropology, Psychology and Egyptology Department
English Version translated by: Azza Ali (Ph. D) and Seham Abd el Salam
Conclusion.
Wow. Someone who shares my views! :)
I've been invited to join Yourself?
In other news, General Oura rounded off his portfolio some time ago with the last of the 3 Raffles bands.
Sunday, August 11, 2002
gideon kairen chan, 5:57PM
do you know how tampons work?
gideon kairen chan, 5:58PM
oh god i think i missent an sms
He refused to tell me why he wanted to know.
Advice from people:
"hahha ..
basically it's very easy!
u just insert into your vagina and let it do its job then take it out when it's soaked!"
"in my honest opinion, i think they suck. (well absorb would be the word, but..)"
"maybe his Mac Gyver and wants to use it as a fuse"
Yeh.
Stanley on being in the Police:
"NO THEY DON'T SERVE PORK IN POLICE ESTABLISHMENTS"
do you know how tampons work?
gideon kairen chan, 5:58PM
oh god i think i missent an sms
He refused to tell me why he wanted to know.
Advice from people:
"hahha ..
basically it's very easy!
u just insert into your vagina and let it do its job then take it out when it's soaked!"
"in my honest opinion, i think they suck. (well absorb would be the word, but..)"
"maybe his Mac Gyver and wants to use it as a fuse"
Yeh.
Stanley on being in the Police:
"NO THEY DON'T SERVE PORK IN POLICE ESTABLISHMENTS"