Update on H1N1 : An Epidemic of Stupidity
Everyone is blogging about the whole H1N1 saga of how a fellow SMU student who was “so dumb knowing that US has high infection,yet still decided to travel there.” (antiwisefc, The Straits Times online forum) and being a “troublemaker…should sue her for bringing in the virus!” (deritz, Stomp) It is indeed amusing to see the maturity level of our local news readers who target only on the victims and not the issue itself. I don’t want to be classified as “netizen” because of these people who make such comments. Trust me, I have seen worse on many blogs and other forums – is there a need to start a flame-war ? She did not ask for it.
“The affected student has requested that we not reveal her identity. We request all members of SMU to respect her request and her privacy.” – SMU President’s message on H1N1
I’m sure she is innocent and did not ask for the instant fame for bringing the virus in, who would have wanted to ? It is almost a fact that the virus will bound to land in Singapore any time soon – just a matter of time. Why these personal attacks ? Will it make you feel any better if she dies or be haunted for life because of this ? I don’t think she deserves these treatments. Neither did any of her friends or whichever H1N1 victims out there. Give them a break. Stop hunting them down for more “personal” information. It’s really none of your business of anyone else’s to know who the friend is or who the boyfriend is or what do other SMU students think about this. We want NEWS not GOSSIPS.
As much as I dislike school, I think SMU handled the situation pretty well. Onecentsworth (The Straits Time online forum) commented that “A common sense decision to cancel the trip by the school management would have prevented all the unnecessary consequences now, isn’t it?” A little too late for being the “Smart Alec” isn’t it? In the first place, if we were all to act paranoid and behave that way – why didn’t you blame the people for going overseas for their holiday trips, why not stop people from consuming rice since there is a high possibility for them choking to death…no? Let’s just say if the school did cancel the trip, do you think H1N1 will not happen in Singapore ?
It was appalling to see our local newspapers (namely The New Paper) ‘s articles on the matter. Maybe Ms Joanna Hor and Ms Geraldine Yeo, the newsroom interns did not quite understood the code of professional conduct for journalists. Not forgetting Ng Wan Ching, Veena Bharwani too. Take a look and be ashamed of yourselves. Are you sure you want a future career in journalism ? If so, I do think the future of newspapers is bleak.
Singapore National Union of Journalists’
Code of Professional Conduct
- Every member shall maintain good quality of workmanship and high standard of conduct.
- No member shall do anything that will bring discredit on himself/herself, his/her union, his/her newspaper or other news media or his/her profession.
- Every member shall defend the principles of freedom in the honest collection and dissemination of news and the right of fair comment and criticism.
- Every member shall realise his/her personal responsibility for everything he/she prepares for his/her newspaper or other news media.
- Every member shall report and interpret the news with scrupulous honesty.
- Every member shall use only honest methods to obtain news, pictures and documents.
- No member shall accept any form of bribe whether for publication or suppression nor permit personal interest to influence his/her sense of justice.
- Every member shall respect all necessary confidence regarding sources of information and private documents.
- Every member shall keep in mind the dangers in the laws of libel, contempt of court and copyright.
- Every member shall observe at all times the fraternity of their profession and shall never take unfair advantage of a fellow member.
How do you feel to have your names stamped all over the blog for something that you “never intended” to happen ? Terrible isn’t it ? Did you stop and put yourselves in the victims shoes before publishing the article or make those comments? Dear interns, not only did you published their names but you just had to mention the poor Sars patient after 6 years of some peace in her life. Great job on the research done !
I don’t think there’s anything for us to do right now but just pray that the victims will recover soon and the spread of virus will be under controlled. All i can say is that, I don’t think local newspapers are worth reading anymore if this is what journalism is to them. Oh, and I got all my news updates via Twitter since the official newspapers were down when everyone decided to find out what’s happening. FYI, netizens to me are the ones who broadcast information and news updates in a responsible and mature manner instead of “flame first H1N1 victim”.
End of story.
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good read(s) :
Daryl and his views on Why Singaporean Press Are Like Vultures
DK ‘s Shame on you TNP! Shame on you!
Dorothy’s Communication Thoughts Case #1: Crisis Comms & Mainstream Media
Blogging Blues
In case people are wondering if this site is dead…
Fear not ! For I have plenty of things to blog about :
- Internship
- Starhub Data Plan + BlackBerry Storm
- Movie Reviews
- Museum Events
- Book Reviews
- and probably many more…
I guess I’m really behind “schedule” this time, been too tired after work everyday and being such a lazybummer, I can’t help but to procrastinate. Will be back really soon ! =)
Meanwhile, here’s an up and coming male R&B group “Ahmir” that you should really check out ! I totally fell in love with their voices !
Here’s their cover of James Morrison and Nelly Furtado’s “Broken Strings” :
A Vision and Play Phantasy : Verner Panton
I was invited to view the Verner Panton exhibition at National Museum last Saturday, with a group of design enthusiasts. Despite being a museum junkie, the only museum tour I’ve gone on was in France (mainly because of how huge the Louvre is and how direction-blind I can be, I’ll probably take ages to find my way out.) I was rather skeptical about the tour itself since National Museum isn’t exactly “big” and how interesting can a curator’s tour be ? Oh boy, I was so wrong !
The group of 20 followed our curator (I’m sorry, didn’t quite catch her name) into this large room of Danish delights, I certainly made it sounds like some delicious snacks but no, welcome to a world full of color and futuristic style of 60s designs ! Verner Panton is known for his experimental designs and his wild usage of color that creates a 3D space/form. His designs encourage interaction between the user and the object, for example his “Phantasy Landscape” consists of various geometric shapes and textures. (You can even enter the area, hopefully you don’t have stinky feet because you gotta remove your shoes! *plastic feet wraps are provided*)
Phantasy Landscape
Even though I have taken alot of pictures, I shall not spoil the exhibition for those who wants to visit (you really should!). I thought the exhibition was well executed in the sense that the display was attractive and you feel almost like you’re in an IKEA showroom or Verner Panton’s villa itself. One thing that caught my attention was the interactive elements, such as the kiosks available at almost every other corner. 
It was a great way to engage the crowd instead of getting them to read the usual boring descriptions you can find on the wall (of course you can still find those on the wall). In fact, there are many workshops and additional programmes that comes with the exhibition. For example, on the 27th June, Jonas Ericsson of STYLE:NORDIC will be conducting this workshop called “Keeping it Real: The Art of Collecting Furniture”.
My personal favourite would be the “Flying Chair” as you can see in the picture. 
Verner Panton’s ideas are definitely beyond words (at his time,that is) and few designers can really capture the diversity of designs and contribute significantly to the history itself. I think this exhibition is indeed inspiring and a really fun experience for me. Although I have to say that I wish there’s a chance to really “feel” and touch the chairs, that’s probably gonna cost more than $6 admission fee ! HAHA (there’s discounts for NSF/Students/Senior Citizens/Family !)
Oh, one thing that really caught our eyes was this “how to undress in front of your husband” with the Panton Chair. (Raging Hormones? HAHA) It is a pictorial step-by-step how to guide…be sure not to miss it ! =)
Venue: |
Exhibition Gallery 2, National Museum of Singapore |
Date: |
FRI 15 MAY 2009 – SUN 12 JUL 2009 10:00am – 6:00pm |
We Are What We Do, Rubbish…”Designers”?
Without a doubt, I am a proud graduate of Temasek Polytechnic, School of Design. It was a well-spent 3 years because I have learnt alot about design , and myself as an individual. Being one of the pioneer batch of Design School Ambassador, I have been active in most school events and even though I have graduated (for coming 2 years), I dare say that my heart is still with the school. Because of the same reason, I am really disappointed with the juniors after hearing stories and looking at the current situation in school.
Take a look at these pictures (Thanks Moses for posting on facebook), they were taken in our school’s studio space which is a common ground for all design students to do their work/attend their classes. Back in my years, it was also a great hangout for us after classes and a place to work till wee hours for our final year projects. There is a rule for “No Food/Drinks allowed” but being “rebellious” students (as we once were) – nobody really cares about the little plastic signs on the doors.
BUT it certainly makes a difference when individuals do not abide by regulations and do not have basic courtesy/social responsibilities . We (perhaps except a few black sheep) do clean up our mess after using the studio. Especially when it comes to sneaking in food – Who in the right mind would leave their “evidence” behind ?! Sure, I agree that working late in school can be tiring and food is definitely a good way to keep us awake. However, I also believe that we should be responsible for our own mess and not rely on the cleaners of the school. They are not your personal maids.
I think the school has been really lenient when it comes to rules and students’ rights, it’s been said that “There are no rights without responsibility, and there is no responsibility without rights.” If you wish for people to respect you as an individual, respect yourselves and behave like a mature young adult. I don’t see how difficult it is to pick up these rubbish and throw them in the bins that are available on every single level of the school. We can be great “designers” AND good citizens of the school at the same time.
IF you can create a “cause” on facebook,which I must highlight that the description has been changed after much debate on the way this was handled. (You can still view some of the rather rude comments and silly suggestions on how to deal with our canteen problems.) I just have one thing to say about this – it really reflects and says alot about the students to see something like this happening. Immature ? Selfish ? No comments.
Why not create another “cause” – “Save the Design School Studios” ? Hah ! I hope the new batch of Design School Ambassadors/Design Studies Club can look into these matters. Why wait for the school to take action on this when YOU have the right and say in how you want the school to be like – it’s YOUR school afterall. We are what we do, I don’t think “litterbug” is ever on my CV and it is certainly not how we “designers” should be like. Bad habits are hardest to get rid of ?
With this post, I just hope that juniors reading this will reflect on their own behavior and stop creating disappointments for the seniors/alumni. Not forgetting the lecturers who have to deal with this every day.
Sure, all seniors have things to say about their juniors – but I don’t think I was being unfair to voice this out, especially when I’m taking the risk to “wash the school/my dirty linen in public”. If you have any feedbacks/solution to this matter, feel free to leave a comment.
#sgtweetup- All Twisted Up ?
I had an interview earlier on this afternoon and my interviewer was asking where I’m heading to after the interview.
I told him about #sgtweetup, like how it is supposedly the first/official meet-up for Singapore Twitters. He chuckled and mentioned that he went for the “official” one last week (which one ? That’s one !?!) but anyways, I have to agree with him that there are just way too many people claiming that their event is the “first”/”official”/”exclusive” – which is the real thing ? And does it really matter ?
I personally don’t really give a damn about it, I’m here for the content/meeting more (new/old) friends - not so much about being “in the scene” or “active” in the community. Let’s just say I’m more of a passive user of the social media platforms. (HAHA)
Back to the topic – I was half expecting a bunch of geeky people, whipping out their gadgets and twittering away while being in the same room (Sorry, anything related to technology is just being stereotyped as “geeks”/”nerds” with no life ! HAHA) To my surprise, Geek Terminal was filled with people – mostly high on alcohol and laughing away in small cliques, nothing like what I’ve imagined. We were actually following #sgtweetup while on the way there and the word “models” popped out from nowhere. So what is the relationship between “models” and a sg twitter event ?
Apparently, the “hidden agenda” behind this event (not very hidden afterall) was to introduce the girls from supermodelme.tv ! Since we were late, the main “show” was already over and people were just mingling around while the models had to break into the small cliques in order to introduce themselves, giving away their “name cards” which has their Twitter ID and the show’s Facebook group+website address on it. I mean, I’m fine with checking out the show+girls and I’m quite sure the guys in the room were not complaining either. But is there a need to keep this as a “surprise” ? It certainly was not a pleasant one for most of the attendees, as you can see from the -ve feedback on twitter.
To keep things short and simple, here’s my own opinions about the event :
1) It is #sgtweetup, right ? I was expecting more than just a “hi-bye-here are the models” session. Where’s the social media/Twitter element ! But yea, it sure did create a buzz on Twitter.
2) They are models for a reason – they don’t tweet. You don’t go up to a person at #sgtweetup and asked if they are on twitter or not *roll eyes*. And I noticed they do not approach the girls first – but the guys instead ! Way to go, very clever and *duh* ! (HAHA, I’m NOT acting jealous here)
3) It was a “neither here nor there” event. I am ok if it’s like a “sponsored” event by supermodelme.tv and the models are introduced as part of the marketing campaign but it was not stated ? In the end it felt like a nightout with random people with bad alcohol breath, happy hours after work huh ? I won’t mind if it is like how plurk outings are being organized – purely chill-out sessions.
4) Kudos to the organizers who planned this – but it could have been (much) better ? Not easy to plan an event I must say, but next time – clearer agenda needed please. Felt alil “cheated” in a way as a participant.
I really pity the girls who are being bombarded with negative feedback because of this “surprise” twist to the event – they are definitely the innocent victims here. BUT I don’t think I’ll follow them because this is just part of the marketing stunt for the show and to be honest, I’m not exactly blown away by this tactic/the girls.
Sure, it was a “successful” event because of the attendance but I’m not impressed (by the quality and motive).
P.S : Happy to put some faces to the names I’ve been following/followed ! If you were there tonight…”Hi,I’m @iammyy on twitter/plurk aka Ingrid” 
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Links :
Daryl – Singapore’s “First Ever” Tweetup (#sgtweetup) : Shill Or Social ?
(and he added in why the “surprise” may not be a “surprise” like what @sgbrands tried to explain to me after reading my entry)
Claudia with some event pictures and Ian with his views on the event too !
Movie Buzz : Star Trek – Spock On !
I came to the movie from the perspective of someone who has never watched a (full) single episode of Star Trek in my entire life and a strong dislike for the show itself. I associated Star Trek with words like “boring”,”dull”, “predictable” (which I’ll come to that later) and “weird”. I am not a big fan of Sci-Fi films but I gotta say that JJ Abrams has it “Spock on” for me this time. (Sorry, just had to be cheesy there. Haha!) **slight spoilers**
I thought the movie was quite well done in the sense that it chose to appeal to the wider mass audience instead of just Trekkies alone. For someone without knowledge on the whole Star Fleet and Star Trek characters, I found it quite easy to follow and the script was nicely put together by Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman.Parts of it was witty enough to make me laugh and the characters were likeable because of their optimism and hi-energy. A good mix of CGI and SFX, especially the use of “dead air” in some of the scenes, it really captured my full attention and gave me a fright when the audio blasted off ! I liked the movie so much so that I might just watch the next one that hits the big screen.
I mentioned earlier that Star Trek has always been too “predictable” for me, this time round it is not anywhere better. The story is great but you can almost predict Kirk’s next decision or the future Spock being on board. And Spock, like all the nerds in movies, gets the hot girl while Kirk continues his father’s career/dream. Not forgetting the blossoming friendship between the two leads. Come on, it’s just like everyone dies in the movie except James Bond,walking away with the hot babe(s).
With Spock dominating almost 90% of the movie, I thought the casting was reasonably good. Can you imagine Chris Pine being Spock ? (and here’s my very badly photoshop-ed version of him being Spock incase you have a poor imagination) What a waste of drool-worthy looks right? Sheesh, wassup with the weird hairdos in Star Trek anyway ? 
Can someone please explain to me ! Anton Yelchin as Chekov was a good pick, he kinda lifted the mood and makes you wanna go “awww, what a cutie pie” with his funny accent. Chris Pine as Kirk is definitely loveable ,charasmatic, charming and immature enough to believe that he’s Han Solo reborn (as some of the Star Wars/movie goers mentioned). Simon Pegg as Scotty added comic relief for being the most realistic “human” in the show. Oh, Dr. McCoy (Bones) the character is quite funny too.
However,with a low attention span, I find the movie quite slow paced and the combat scenes (not the black holes and space battles) were really disappointing. I liked the opening sequence, great backstory with an emotional touch (like Kirk’s mom having to go through labor herself while the heroic dad decides to end his own life to save the rest of his crew) This movie is bound to gain a new generation of Star Trek fans !
Overall, I would say it’s a good movie but not my favourite pick in the box office. Watch it if you have time – else, I’m sure there are better movies out there ! (unless you are a Star Trek fan of course !)
Not ONE but TWO All-Time-Fav Rock bands !
In response to Daphne‘s question “What’s your favourite rock band of all time?”
I really had a hard time deciding since there are really alot of good bands out there (which I love equally), but I guess I shall not be too greedy and just settle on these two – Coldplay & Travis.
I was never an English music fan till secondary school days – yes, the glory girl/boybands days and pop music from Aqua, Toybox etc (Gee, I’m embarrassed)
Following the bands came Justin Timberlake (whom I still consider a rather good performer) , problematic Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera.
It was till later years when I developed a liking for bands like Bon Jovi , Death Cab for Cutie, Snow Patrol,Yellowcard and of course the mentioned two.
Then again, I’ve always preferred to look into the songs rather than following one band solely when it comes to music. Lyrics is a more important factor when it comes to liking a song.
Coldplay is definitely one of my favourite since polytechnic days with their hit singles such as “The Scientist”, “Yellow”, “Speed of Sound” and “Fix You”. I never quite like their music initially till I saw their live performance on TV. Chris Martin is a charming performer, his voice just has this strange magnetisim that draws you to him. The lighting elements in the live performance? Always spectacular, great use of visual aids ! Their latest album “Viva La Vida” is not my favourite as compared to the previous albums but their songs represent so much emotions and meaning in them. Plus, alternative rock is always good music !
According to their twitter, the band is releasing a live CD of their Viva La Vida tour, “LeftRightLeftRightLeft” as a free download from their official website from 15 May ! I’m looking forward to that !
Here’s my all time favourite from them (despite being overplayed), “Yellow” live in Sydney 2003.
Not forgetting Travis, another of my favourite ! Songs like “Closer” and “Love will come through” are the top of my list.
As well as the following song, ” Flowers In the Window” Acoustic version !
You can definitely hear alot of Coldplay and Travis on my campus radio show (totally biased when it comes to music selection. HAHA), although now I try to feature more local bands and talk about the local arts and music scene more. Speaking of which, I hope to start on my “project” soon..stop procrastinating, Ingrid Mak!
So repeating Daphne‘s question : “What’s YOUR favourite rock band of all time ? “
Bravo,Christian Lacroix the Costumier !
Ping, the boyfriend and I headed over to the National Museum of Singapore to check out the Christian Lacroix the Costumier exhibition. The museum was rather empty, probably due to the H1N1 outbreak or the fact that the museum closes at 6pm. We got our complimentary tickets at around 5.30pm (on the dot for last entry) and we had the whole exhibition hall to ourselves ! 
I was really looking forward to immerse myself in this whole charming French fashion history – the amazing costumes and sketches by the genius designer Christian Lacroix (which the boyfriend laughed and called me a “Fake French” because I have no idea how to pronounce his last name properly. haha) The exhibition was alot smaller than I imagined it would be but the decor sets the mood and I have to admit (randomly) that I really liked the chairs in that display hall. I wish I have one of those at home ! If I’m not wrong, the museum decorated the display to look as though you’re in a theatre blackbox with the red lighting and moving mannequins.
Design wise, you will definitely be impressed by the details and depth of his work. His sketches were stunning to begin with and I love his dramatic use of color and fabric. In case you have no idea, he first began with ready-to-wear designs to the displays you see in National Museum which are his works for operas, theatre and dance. For example, you will probably know “Carmen” and Shakespeare’s “Othello”. I think it is quite a rare opportunity for Singaporeans to be in touch with this aspect of the Arts since Opera is not a very “hip” thing in town.
It was quite spectacular if you enjoy fashion or you’re someone like me, who thinks “anything French is awesome” (HAHA). I had fun at the hands-on area where the museum provided paper (of really good quality, to my surprise) for sketches and paper dolls for dress-up games. There are 4 wooden dolls for you to place fabric over and create your own masterpieces as well ! The boyfriend and I had a go at it and there’s a reason why we’re both from a management university ! (hur)
So what do you think ? Who do you think have a better sense of fashion (HAHA) ! If you think you can do a better job, go down to the gallery and snap a picture of your magnificent costume for me to see ! 
This gotta be one of the biggest fashion event of the year, so don’t miss it ! The ticket is priced at $8 but you get to enter FREE if you’re wearing RED from 9-10th May ! 
Your own radio station ? Holy Blip !
I’ve joined blip.fm since 17th Sept last year and so far, I’m really loving it.
I meant to blog about blip ages ago and go into details but let’s just keep it short and simple.
8 reasons why i love blip.fm :
- It is like the best bit of last.fm+twitter all rolled into one.
- It has a realtime feed of what other “DJ”s are listening to.
- It is personal/interactive because you pick the music for your playlist and you get to reblip others.
- It encourages “value-system” – it requires contributions from its members in order to benefit from the others in the society.
- It has an idiot-proof interface and system – just search and *tadah*, there you go!
- It has a built-in virality and a good feedback system.
- It has alot of “undiscovered” artistes, oldies and radio hits shared by others.
- It is addictive – it’s almost becoming a habit for me to share my music pick everyday.
What I really liked about blip is that it directly updates my tumblr and twitter to allow others to see what I’m listening to.
Most of the time I’ll also plurk about my blips as my “music of the day” plurk. I guess it’s a good way to share great music found online and so far I spend at least half an hour on blip.fm to look for good songs and am getting props/positive feedbacks on my music taste – which really is quite an ego booster. (HAHA) 
Sure, there are many music sharing sites out there and probably better ones. But Blip.fm is still my favourite as of now. Do give it a try (c’mon, it’s not like you don’t have 9867545122 different accounts out there already) and let me know what you think about it ? 
Speaking of music, I’m planning on adding a new “element” to this blog. Keep a lookout for my little project! =)
Now, who’s afraid of the Big Bad Wolf ? [Wolverine Review]
The boyfriend and I caught X-Men Origins : Wolverine yesterday. He, being a comics fan, had pretty low expectations for the movie. On the other hand, I have absolutely no clue what’s the “original” story behind X-Men or the characters…so I guess I went in without much expectations. (Except drooling over Hugh Jackman) Although I have to say I was really looking forward to the movie as Wolverine is probably one of the characters that I actually heard more of. (Disclaimer : This review is going to be based on a person without 0% knowledge of the story/wolverine/comic. Visit the boyfriend’s blog for a more indepth cover..lol) 
The opening credits was rather impressive, I liked the transitions and it delivered a great style of storytelling on the background/relationship between Wolverine and Sabertooth. What puzzles me alil is how they have this mutant power and where the hell is their mother ? Like they showed how they fought in the wars, but why would they be accepted in the first place if everyone thinks that they are freaks ? 
The romance part of it was rather boring though, Silverfox was incredibly hot nonetheless.
I can’t say the acting was impressive because it was mostly action scenes, which was handled quite perfectly. I was impressed by the use of CGI, not in a good way though. Will.I.Am’s character “Kestrel” was not as impressive as I thought he would be, it looked as though there was a slight “jump cut” instead of showing off his power. I liked “Blob” because he looked really funny and adorable. Gambit’s card-flipping action was abit showy but other than that, his action scenes were awesome. Sabertooth wasn’t that mindblowing and throughout the whole movie, I was thinking to myself “it’ll be funny to see him getting a manicure” (quite random thought because I was talking to the boyfriend about manicures) Deadpool should be interesting (according to the boyfriend) but I’m not so sure about that. The make up was cool enough. Oh, Cyclops was quite cute and it seems like he’ll be the next featured character I suppose.
Overall, I felt that the movie was more like a build-up for the next one. It has the right amount of subtle sarcasm and humor to balance an all-action film. It was alil longer than I wish it would have been, some parts were rather draggy. The introduction of characters were abit “huh, who’s that?…*swoosh* he/she is gone already?” for me/people who are not X-Men fans.Not all the scenes were very well-shot, boo for the cinematography and bad use of CGI. From the bimbotic side of me, I would say that Hugh Jackman is undeniably the actor for this role. How can the sexiest man alive look bad with almost every other scenes topless AND running across the field naked. (I bet they cut away a few shots of that scene !) It was quite a drool-worthy moment. HAHA 
I’m sitting on the fence for this, especially after reading about the flaws it has. I can’t say it’s a must watch but I’ll give it a 7/10 for the opening credits itself and the costumes/makeup. I guess it’s one of the better movies out there for now. There’s a after-credit scene, so do stay behind to catch it ! ( We were the only 2 clever people who stayed to watch it..MUHAHA)
To end this off, here’s a video which I thought was lame-amusing.
Why Having Wolverine’s Claws Would Suck — powered by Cracked.com
