Friday, April 28, 2006

Patently Political Blog regarding the Singapore Elections

Thank you Uber Mommy, through the fab Mr. Miyagi for the pic.

As you know, the great Republic of Singapore will be conducting Elections on May 6. On April 3, 2006 CNA reported that podcasting by local Singaporean bloggers will not be allowed. According to the article, "The government's view is that people can have diverse views, but should not hide behind the anonymity of the internet, to manipulate public opinion."

God forbid we have anonymous manipulation of our thoughts. That never happens in Singapore.

Thank goodness I don't podcast, or else I'd be in trouble. I remember the first time I was able to vote. This was in 1997. I was thrilled. My constituency was Cheng San and it was a huge deal because the Worker's Party, including JB Jeyaratnam, was contesting. Of course, I voted, but the PAP still won and nothing changed in the status quo and I was so deflated.

I haven't been able to vote since that election because I haven't been in the country to do it.

But now, we have overseas voting! I can register to vote from overseas because :
Any overseas Singapore Citizen who is entitled to have his name entered or retained in any Register of Electors for an electoral division and who satisfies the qualifying criteria stipulated in section 13A(1)(a) and (b) of the Parliamentary Elections Act (PEA), may apply to be registered as an overseas elector.
Yay! I'm going to register and vote from overseas. Er, no actually I can't. I don't meet the criteria.
In addition to having your name in the Registers of Electors, :

(a) you must have resided in Singapore for an aggregate of two years during the period of five years of being away as of the cut-off date of the Registers of Electors; OR

(b) you are -

(i) on full-time training or full-time service abroad as a member of the Singapore Armed Forces, or as a public officer or an employee of a Singapore public authority;

(ii) on full-time training which is sponsored by the Singapore Government or any Singapore public authority;

(iii) employed outside Singapore by an international organisation of which Singapore is a member, or any other organisation designated by the President under the Constitution of the Republic of Singapore; or

(iv) the spouse, or a parent, child or dependent of a person referred to in sub-paragraphs (i) to (iii) above.

The above are provided under section 13A(1)(a) and (b) of the PEA.
What kind of nonsense is this? Such ridiculousness. I would have thought that the only criteria necessary would be the fact that I was born and raised on the island and am a pink IC, red passport carrying fool. Is it because I'm a Quitter and not a Stayer*? Am I being punished for being a PAP kindergarten dropout? (My activism started at a young age) Is it because I grew up in a damn ulu** part of Singapore that wasn't a flat and therefore couldn't be bribed by promises of upgrading and streetlights and MRT? Must be because I voted Worker's Party when I had the chance and therefore am a deviant. I'm such a Singapore Rebel.

Bah!



* from NATIONAL DAY RALLY ADDRESS BY PRIME MINISTER GOH CHOK TONG AT THE UNIVERSITY CULTURAL CENTRE, NUS, ON SUNDAY, 18 AUGUST 2002, AT 8.00 PM - "Fair-weather Singaporeans will run away whenever the country runs into stormy weather. I call them "quitters".

Fortunately, "quitters" are in the minority. The majority of Singaporeans are "stayers". "Stayers" are committed to Singapore. Rain or shine, they will be with Singapore. As we say in Hokkien, "pah see buay zao+"."
+meaning "indestructable"
Read the whole long speech here.

** ULU
(ooh-loo)
Malay term used to denote the remoteness of a place, with connotations of backwardness.
"Why you take me to Kranji this sort of ulu place?"

Friday Cat Blogging

Behold! Princess Mia Bella stalks the plastic ring thingie. Beware! Posted by Picasa

Thursday, April 27, 2006

oh my head. Part Deux


Dear Head,

I wish you would stop pounding. I've had a headache for 3 days. I think you've made your point and whatever it is, I concede. Thank you for visiting, and have a nice day.


Best,
Your brain.

Tuesday, April 25, 2006

oh, my head.


The Bridge,
originally uploaded by saracress.
DH and I had an interesting evening last night. We were invited by his dad to attend a dinner at Bayou Bend. We've never been to Bayou Bend before so we thought, why not and we got dressed up and we went. Bayou Bend is very cool! Once we arrive and park the car, the first thing you have to do to get to the place is cross this scary suspension bridge that is strung dangerously high over a ravine (the bayou). I felt so Indiana Jones in my 3 inch stillettos. The bridge would sway and bounce with each step and I was gripping onto DH so as to not fall and I was gripping onto my clutch and wrap so I wouldn't drop them into the ravine (bayou). At one point, we thought we saw a crocodile and we got very excited. As we got closer, we realized that it was a log. Of course. My heart was racing once we crossed the bridge as I stepped onto the lovely grounds of Bayou Bend.


Diana Garden Fountain,
originally uploaded by saracress.
The event was held *gasp* outside under a tent decorated with lovely flowers and butterfly art hanging from the roof of the tent and little butterflies made out of feathers scattered around the place. Very pretty. I made a mental note to snag a couple but then promptly forgot. We got ourselves a glass of wine each and sauntered over to our table which was right next to the beautiful if rather noisy fountain. Of course, the humidity in Houston is just ridiculous. I could feel my face starting to get shiny and no amount of Frizz-ease could save me. Worst thing was I didn't have any blotters on me. Oh well. We listened to the music and sipped our wine.

After what seemed like forever, they finally brought out some bread. We were both starving, but we waited for the butter. Once the butter came, we scarfed down the bread and then waited for the next course. Waiting, waiting. Did I mention we were sitting by the fountain. Very pretty. Pardon me? Finally the waiters delivered something creamy looking in a martini glass. I asked our waiter what it was and he said that it was potato soup. mmmm. So as soon as I can do so, without looking like a beast, I dive into the soup. It's cold. Of course. Because it's Vichyssoise. I'm feeling so cultured. Very tasty. We await the next course. Chit chat. Laugh. Where's the food? Ahh, here comes the salad. Delightful greens with a scoop of chicken salad, a crabcake-like offering and an assortment of blueberries, tangerines, and strawberries. Oh yes, and two lovely artichoke pieces. I like artichokes. Very tasty. As you well know, Singaporeans love to eat and I was enjoying the dinner. I felt the courses were not delivered in a very timely fashion, the Singaporean in me was thinking, "hello, faster a bit, can or not?" but hey, at least they were bringing it out. So, DH and I start speculating as to what the main dish will be. Will it be beef, will it be chicken? Will it be fish? Or maybe lamb? Highly unlikely, I've never seen lamb served in the US. And what they call lamb...hmm, it's mutton if you ask me.

The waiter comes to take our salad plate away and he takes all the other silverware with him. I start to panic. I ask DH to ask him if there is more coming and the waiter says that that's it, there's just desert coming. Pardon me? This fountain is so loud. That's it? Very bizzare. We were not expecting that. Seems like we were missing a course here. Oh well. Beggars can't be choosers. The dessert was a supertangy lemon custard with which I was not impressed. But then, I've been told I'm hard to please. Pardon me?

All in all, I believe we had a good time. We would never have had the chance to attend a function like this otherwise. To leave we had to Indiana Jones it again, but now the ravine below us is pitch black so it didn't seem so scary, because you couldn't see how high up you were, and after 2.5 glasses of wine, who cares?

Sunday, April 23, 2006

MDSJ - wish you were here.


D.R.U.M. backs up the Neutral Sisters at the Houston International Festival on Saturday 4/22/06. Sadly no keyboard player (notice the empty keyboard stands). Actually there was a keyboard player exiled to the corner of the stage. He was um, so not like our favourite D.R.U.M. keyboard player.



Hot hot hot day.

The sun was blazing down on us. Posted by Picasa

Riddim ducks

Posted by Picasa
Even the ducks got into the groove. They came marching up the slope in perfect one-drop harmony. Lovely day.

Friday, April 21, 2006

Wet Friday Cat Blogging


Behold! Princess Mia Bella spots something of immense interest outside. I wonder what it is. Posted by Picasa

Thursday, April 20, 2006

Back to Normal Thursday

Yay. All back to normal now.

Plus, going to watch this tonight. Awesome!

Oops. I've given too much information. Does this mean there will be crazy stalkers at the venue? Doubtful.

Wednesday, April 19, 2006

um.

Poor DH. why? Because he's here. Right now. Oh dear. These are the kinds of adventures you have when you are a filmmaker. You just never know what to expect.

The Atlanta Journal Constitution allows people to post comments about the situation. Sounds like a great idea, though I think the need some human moderation...the up-to-the-minute posts include such revelations as

By George P. Burdell

April 19, 2006 04:23 PM | Link to this

Several policemen with canines have arrived and are searching through a pale blue suitcase. They have found doughnuts…many many doughnuts.

By VAN

April 19, 2006 04:26 PM | Link to this

$50 says the “suspicious device” turns out to be one of the following:

A) A half-eaten ham sandwich B) A bag of soiled undergarments C) Cynthia McKinney’s fright wig

By Dufus

April 19, 2006 04:38 PM | Link to this

I was there and saw the whole thing.

It seems they’ve found a reporter being smuggled in a piece of luggage. The Atlanta based TSA official, understandably not knowing what a real reporter looked like, reported the finding to the proper officials.

Well, there you have it. Man on the street reporting. Here's the rest of them.

::update 4:24PM::
DH is about to board da plane, yippee!

Tuesday, April 18, 2006

Random Tuesday

A lot of thoughts are swimming around my little head. I'm still wrangling with how much to reveal of myself and my life through this blog. Of course I want to be real. I have always been truthful my whole life. Almost to a fault. If you ask, I tell the truth even if it hurts. Conversely, I don't always tell all.

I know that I should not give too much information away because the internet is not safe. The world we live in is not safe and I could have crazy stalkers in a minute and if they had any sense they could find me. I think this because I know how easy it is to find information about someone on the internet. For free. That's a scary thought.

I miss the dog. Big hulking 120 lbs deep bass hawroofing in your face. He was a good deterrent to stalkers. Now we have the cat. She is also a good deterrent. To insects. This cat can catch a damn mosquito in midflight in her paw. She's a wizard. She will also scratch your eyes out if you rub her belly 1 second too long, but she tends to hide under the bed when unknown men enter the house. Not so good on the stalker tip, then. But she did save me from the awful cockroach that was threatening me from the dining room while I slept on Sunday night. And then, last night, she sourced the origin of the horrible cracking noise that was happening that sounded like someone had taken a hammer and chisel to the window frame. The noise was coming from the mysterious glass objet d'art that we recieved as a wedding gift which decided to collapse onto itself one popping crack at a time. This is very unnerving when you are watching Medium on the TV by yourself. I cannot watch that show by myself. It scares me. Sometimes. But it's such a good show.

So as you see, it's hard for me to know just how much to give away. Perhaps I should worry and write about it less. Still getting the hang of this blogging thing.

Friday, April 14, 2006

Good Friday Cat Blogging


Behold! Princess Mia Bella partakes in the yummy and delicious tongue dancing delight of tuna juice.

Thursday, April 13, 2006

Make Yours Chocolate



Happy Easter y'all and remember



Tuesday, April 11, 2006

Tax refunds are nice.

It's tax season in the U.S. & I like getting my tax refund. Apparently being married means you get more money! Bwahahahahaha. DH got himself some new glasses because he's getting old(er) and going blind. Poor thing. I allowed myself to spend money on such frivolities as clothing (gasp). I got myself a new "outfit" including shoes (!) which I haven't worn yet, hence no pix. This may sound like run of the mill stuff, but not in my household. Apparently we have been living like these people but just didn't know it, so for me to spend money anywhere other than Kroger is a big deal for me. We allowed ourselves a little treat and have tucked the rest away to be doled out to one creditor or another at a future date. :P

Sunday, April 09, 2006

Don't forget

Go see Electric Purgatory on Monday, April 10, 2006 at 9 PM
Goethe-Institut
163 Penang Road, #05-01
Winsland House 2
Singapore 238463.
Admission is FREE

My Dear Husband directed this amazing documentary. You should go see. It's free!

Friday, April 07, 2006

Late! Friday Cat Blogging

It's Friday. Where's the CAT?


Behold! Princess Mia Bella going for the catnippyspider on a string. Go Ms. Mia!

Tuesday, April 04, 2006

My true identity

Yes it's true. You may know a few things about me such as I'm from Singapore. I live in Texas now. I have a cat. I have a new husband. But I've never revealed my real name. Well, here it is...
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.
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.
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Wait for it.
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I am....


:: insert evil maniacal laugh here:: Bwah ha ha ha ha!

Monday, April 03, 2006

Is it bad?

How bad is it to eat two slices of apple pie in one day? Well, the box said to consume within 3 days of baking. Yes the box. You didn't think I actually made something from scratch did you? I make a mean frozen pie. Today is day 3 and I still have half a pie left. I'm the only one in the house that will eat apple pie. I can't eat half a pie. That's just too decadent. Well, I suppose if I had no choice, I could eat half a pie. But only if I have enough ice-cream.