Saturday, June 26, 2004
Barely after two months since I last left, I'm now back home again. Somehow... I'm not quite as excited in being back home as I thought I might be (don't get me wrong here... I am excited, of course, but just not as excited). Partly 'cos I know I'll miss the company I had while in London... I'll miss my hall and the time spent during the ungodly hours in others' rooms... and all those tripping and hanging out at night.
I reckon SIA is still the best. Hahaa... Jed went way over the baggage allowance for Air France... so to avoid paying a pricely fee for excess baggage he had to 'get rid' of some items - some went into the bin, and some ended up in my luggage space. I managed to get through with 40kg and the guy at the counter didn't say anything... even though the max, usually, is 30 odd kg. Maybe, like Jingye says, I'm of a smaller size and thus should be allowed more allowance... :P
Had a near-miss today when the screens showed 'Gate Closing' and I wasn't even in there yet... simply 'cos I forgot to check in my Swiss army knife... had to wait for Amar to get to the airport to pass it to him to pass it to Lionel to pass it back to me when he returns. Erm... hope it works. At least whoever's custody it ends up in, I'll have a better peace of mind knowing that it hasn't been confiscated.
Poor Cherlyn was too late for the check-in at Paddington and had to rush - all the way with her pieces of baggage - to Heathrow just before the gate closed. Said that she was one of the last 3 people to get in...
Slept heaps on the plane... only watched two movies - Twisted and Goodbye Lenin! (should've seen the latter while doing Russian history... it's apt).
-----------------------------
Currently on my to-do list, in no particular order:
- Jingye's pre-departure dinner
- gathering at Sungei Buloh
- school talk(s) at Sungei Buloh
- Sungei Buloh bird censuses and bird-ringing
- school talk at TKGS - for TKGS-SEC/GVN Project REAP 2nd July
- Project REAP - nature outreach/guided tours/field trips
- RMBR - actually start on gathering data and building the Exotic Species of S'pore database & website
- update APYEN membership database & other admin stuff
- SingSoc meetings - UKBound, Sojourn, Pre-departure talk, summer activity, Dept Rep briefings
- SingSoc website - add more features + images + members' area
- get the pre-ordered set of lens for my Nikon scope
- get a new tripod
- update firmware for my Nikon digi and remote cord
- theatre trip - Woman in Black
- go Sydney :)
- family holiday to... somewhere - first it was Shanghai and/or Bali, then now my mom's also thinking of Phuket... gahhh
- get Proact Asia-Pacific campaigns up running again
- intertidal trips
- fencing training
- training in Chinese swordsmanship
- meet ups with long-lost sec sch and pri sch mates
- work on 'detailed proposal itinerary' for the STB certified nature guide scheme (hmmm...)
- SEC/GVN trip - Taman Negara 6-11 Aug (should I??)
- and study (just in case...)
-----------------------------
And on a separate note (erm... if they are actually reading this lol... I never know)...
Thanks Alex for helping carry the boxes... hehe all those trips to and from both ends of the hall
Thanks Jingye for helping carry the stuff as well, and helping at Emperor's Gate..., for the use of your room space, and for carrying the heavy half-statue back
Thanks Jed also for carrying the stuff and coming along to Emperor's to help, and for the shipping-back thingo
Thanks to the above-mentioned 3 of you who saw me to terminal 3...
Thanks Lu for being my willing labourer especially for all the heavy stuff, and rummaging through the garbage container to salvage boxes, and for being my #1 regular punching bag
Thanks Amar whose "I wanna go early [to the airport]" actually saved my Swiss army knife
Thanks Charl for safekeeping the FRIENDS CDs :P and lending me the lamp... and for all the dinners and the wonderful black-peppered chicken
I reckon SIA is still the best. Hahaa... Jed went way over the baggage allowance for Air France... so to avoid paying a pricely fee for excess baggage he had to 'get rid' of some items - some went into the bin, and some ended up in my luggage space. I managed to get through with 40kg and the guy at the counter didn't say anything... even though the max, usually, is 30 odd kg. Maybe, like Jingye says, I'm of a smaller size and thus should be allowed more allowance... :P
Had a near-miss today when the screens showed 'Gate Closing' and I wasn't even in there yet... simply 'cos I forgot to check in my Swiss army knife... had to wait for Amar to get to the airport to pass it to him to pass it to Lionel to pass it back to me when he returns. Erm... hope it works. At least whoever's custody it ends up in, I'll have a better peace of mind knowing that it hasn't been confiscated.
Poor Cherlyn was too late for the check-in at Paddington and had to rush - all the way with her pieces of baggage - to Heathrow just before the gate closed. Said that she was one of the last 3 people to get in...
Slept heaps on the plane... only watched two movies - Twisted and Goodbye Lenin! (should've seen the latter while doing Russian history... it's apt).
-----------------------------
Currently on my to-do list, in no particular order:
- Jingye's pre-departure dinner
- gathering at Sungei Buloh
- school talk(s) at Sungei Buloh
- Sungei Buloh bird censuses and bird-ringing
- school talk at TKGS - for TKGS-SEC/GVN Project REAP 2nd July
- Project REAP - nature outreach/guided tours/field trips
- RMBR - actually start on gathering data and building the Exotic Species of S'pore database & website
- update APYEN membership database & other admin stuff
- SingSoc meetings - UKBound, Sojourn, Pre-departure talk, summer activity, Dept Rep briefings
- SingSoc website - add more features + images + members' area
- get the pre-ordered set of lens for my Nikon scope
- get a new tripod
- update firmware for my Nikon digi and remote cord
- theatre trip - Woman in Black
- go Sydney :)
- family holiday to... somewhere - first it was Shanghai and/or Bali, then now my mom's also thinking of Phuket... gahhh
- get Proact Asia-Pacific campaigns up running again
- intertidal trips
- fencing training
- training in Chinese swordsmanship
- meet ups with long-lost sec sch and pri sch mates
- work on 'detailed proposal itinerary' for the STB certified nature guide scheme (hmmm...)
- SEC/GVN trip - Taman Negara 6-11 Aug (should I??)
- and study (just in case...)
-----------------------------
And on a separate note (erm... if they are actually reading this lol... I never know)...
Thanks Alex for helping carry the boxes... hehe all those trips to and from both ends of the hall
Thanks Jingye for helping carry the stuff as well, and helping at Emperor's Gate..., for the use of your room space, and for carrying the heavy half-statue back
Thanks Jed also for carrying the stuff and coming along to Emperor's to help, and for the shipping-back thingo
Thanks to the above-mentioned 3 of you who saw me to terminal 3...
Thanks Lu for being my willing labourer especially for all the heavy stuff, and rummaging through the garbage container to salvage boxes, and for being my #1 regular punching bag
Thanks Amar whose "I wanna go early [to the airport]" actually saved my Swiss army knife
Thanks Charl for safekeeping the FRIENDS CDs :P and lending me the lamp... and for all the dinners and the wonderful black-peppered chicken
Friday, June 25, 2004
Funny...
Just received a call on my S'pore mobile from Shila, Sungei Buloh staff... asking if I was on duty tomorrow.
"Erm... I'm still in London!"
"Oh? I heard that you're down for tomorrow..."
"Funny... did Thiha or Jeanne tell you that?"
"You mean who told me ah? Oh, nah. They were saying that you'll be back at the end of this month. So you're still in the UK ah?" She didn't define the 'they', but she sounded disappointed.
Hmmm... news travels in weird ways. I haven't even told them that I'll be coming back to S'pore yet.
Anyway I did tell her that I'll be going down next week. :)
Just received a call on my S'pore mobile from Shila, Sungei Buloh staff... asking if I was on duty tomorrow.
"Erm... I'm still in London!"
"Oh? I heard that you're down for tomorrow..."
"Funny... did Thiha or Jeanne tell you that?"
"You mean who told me ah? Oh, nah. They were saying that you'll be back at the end of this month. So you're still in the UK ah?" She didn't define the 'they', but she sounded disappointed.
Hmmm... news travels in weird ways. I haven't even told them that I'll be coming back to S'pore yet.
Anyway I did tell her that I'll be going down next week. :)
EBE today was the best paper so far. Ecology and behaviour are still my fields. ;) Had a bio end-of-exams 'mini celebration' at the crepery.
England vs Portugal tonight in the Euro '04 quarter-finals was a draining match... ooo the tension! Watching it in the hall bar with a room full of patriotic, yelling, cursing Brits does make a difference.
Joined the rest of the gang in a 8/7-player LAN game of Starcraft just now. Got trashed, as expected... my first multiplayer game at Starcraft. Heh.
Busy packing now... full day ahead. Gonna be moving the stuff over to Emperor's Gates. Then haul the remaining pieces to Heathrow... shall be gettin' there earlier (actually, much, much earlier).
Till then... :)
England vs Portugal tonight in the Euro '04 quarter-finals was a draining match... ooo the tension! Watching it in the hall bar with a room full of patriotic, yelling, cursing Brits does make a difference.
Joined the rest of the gang in a 8/7-player LAN game of Starcraft just now. Got trashed, as expected... my first multiplayer game at Starcraft. Heh.
Busy packing now... full day ahead. Gonna be moving the stuff over to Emperor's Gates. Then haul the remaining pieces to Heathrow... shall be gettin' there earlier (actually, much, much earlier).
Till then... :)
Wednesday, June 23, 2004
One more... just one more to go. Biology of Organisms was a-okay today.
Darn... needa start packing already. 'Else...
Ending the paper at 5pm tomorrow and flying off 24 hours later doesn't leave me with enough time to sort out everything in my room into those I'm gonna move over to Emperor's Gate, those I'm gonna bring back, and those I'm gonna ship back. And get boxes. And actually pack. And move 'em. And re-arrange my notes which are all over my floor (and bed). And coordinate with the rest. Ooo... and celebrate. And enjoy these last days of hall life. I know I'll be missing Linstead, like how I'm missing McCredie and Hirst.
Mom's trying to get me to return on Sat instead of Fri. It's too rushed for me, she said. I don't want tooo... everyone's flying off on Fri... Charl, Lionel, Amar and Yi Shan are hopping onto MAS... Alex, Jed and Jingye are setting off a few hours earlier on Air France but we'll be arriving in S'pore at the same time. I'll be on the same SQ flight as Cherlyn and Jaymin (erm... I'm not sure I spelt his name right -_-")...
It's still early arvo; think I'll study a little first...
Darn... needa start packing already. 'Else...
Ending the paper at 5pm tomorrow and flying off 24 hours later doesn't leave me with enough time to sort out everything in my room into those I'm gonna move over to Emperor's Gate, those I'm gonna bring back, and those I'm gonna ship back. And get boxes. And actually pack. And move 'em. And re-arrange my notes which are all over my floor (and bed). And coordinate with the rest. Ooo... and celebrate. And enjoy these last days of hall life. I know I'll be missing Linstead, like how I'm missing McCredie and Hirst.
Mom's trying to get me to return on Sat instead of Fri. It's too rushed for me, she said. I don't want tooo... everyone's flying off on Fri... Charl, Lionel, Amar and Yi Shan are hopping onto MAS... Alex, Jed and Jingye are setting off a few hours earlier on Air France but we'll be arriving in S'pore at the same time. I'll be on the same SQ flight as Cherlyn and Jaymin (erm... I'm not sure I spelt his name right -_-")...
It's still early arvo; think I'll study a little first...
Tuesday, June 22, 2004
Monday, June 21, 2004
Some new pics (Emperor's Gate, Xiao on the bio dinner day, Swan Lake, last Mon's Les Mis) are up in the London exhibit... and here's a pic of the spider from that night:
Good news from Su Hooi:
"Now we have a new addition to Sungei Buloh's family : ) Yes, the wild boars!
The most often sighted one is a young fellow often hanging around the visitor centre area and even the car park! Going around sniffing people's cars : ) And the latest sighting was a family of 6 - 2 adults and 4 youngs seen from the Main Bridge. And they can swim : )
So, do look out for them when you are here. Do remember to look out for the crocodile at the Main Bridge too. It is still around. As for the otters, only 2 of them left. Hopefully the other 2 would come back with a new baby : ) "
"Now we have a new addition to Sungei Buloh's family : ) Yes, the wild boars!
The most often sighted one is a young fellow often hanging around the visitor centre area and even the car park! Going around sniffing people's cars : ) And the latest sighting was a family of 6 - 2 adults and 4 youngs seen from the Main Bridge. And they can swim : )
So, do look out for them when you are here. Do remember to look out for the crocodile at the Main Bridge too. It is still around. As for the otters, only 2 of them left. Hopefully the other 2 would come back with a new baby : ) "
My first exam's in a few hours' time.
G'luck to all my bio (and biochem) mates.
G'luck too to my Aussie mates, whose exams also begin this week.
Ooofph... deep breath. Am still calm.
G'luck to all my bio (and biochem) mates.
G'luck too to my Aussie mates, whose exams also begin this week.
Ooofph... deep breath. Am still calm.
Sunday, June 20, 2004
From today's Spike column, SMH:
Surely you jest, Justin
Also lurking among the deadly serious celebrity journalists were Ashley Bradnam and David Lutteral, the resident jesters on Channel Seven's sports chat show 110% Tony Squires.
The pair have made an art of asking absurd questions of famous people and even caused the Formula One driver Juan Pablo Montoya to storm out of a conference at the Melbourne Grand Prix in March.
Here was their question to Timberlake: "It's a difficult one for you, mate, but I'd just like to talk a little bit about fame and the perils of fame. Who is the Justin Timberlake behind Justin Timberlake? You know what I mean? There's Justin Timberlake the person and, as Justin Timberlake the person, do you know yourself as Justin Timberlake the star well enough to know when that other person can see things through Justin Timberlake? Just to sum it up, is Justin Timberlake the person, knowing Justin Timberlake the rock star is that person, the person that is really the other person behind the rock star?"
Timberlake took the question seriously and his answer was even longer and more convoluted still.
Surely you jest, Justin
Also lurking among the deadly serious celebrity journalists were Ashley Bradnam and David Lutteral, the resident jesters on Channel Seven's sports chat show 110% Tony Squires.
The pair have made an art of asking absurd questions of famous people and even caused the Formula One driver Juan Pablo Montoya to storm out of a conference at the Melbourne Grand Prix in March.
Here was their question to Timberlake: "It's a difficult one for you, mate, but I'd just like to talk a little bit about fame and the perils of fame. Who is the Justin Timberlake behind Justin Timberlake? You know what I mean? There's Justin Timberlake the person and, as Justin Timberlake the person, do you know yourself as Justin Timberlake the star well enough to know when that other person can see things through Justin Timberlake? Just to sum it up, is Justin Timberlake the person, knowing Justin Timberlake the rock star is that person, the person that is really the other person behind the rock star?"
Timberlake took the question seriously and his answer was even longer and more convoluted still.
Saturday, June 19, 2004
Submitted my second-year options form yesterday... picked -
Animal and plant physiology
Ecology
Resource management
Parasitism and other life strategies
As for the humanities option, I went for Politics! :) No surprises there.
The warm - even hot - British summer seems to have heralded a number of unpopular denizens into our rooms... among the visitors I've had recently are numerous crane flies, fat juicy-looking black flies, and a two spiders. The first was very small and I hardly paid it any notice... just glanced at it and it disappeared after a while. The second one was found jumping from textbook-to-textbook on my bed when I returned from the dining hall (after having had enough of studying there till 3.30am). I have now placed it in a plastic container... I believe it's some kind of sac spider (Clubiona sp.). Will take a few shots of it and release it later. Hmm... it's a her. The thought that I might be harbouring some other creatures in my room isn't exactly scary... but it is a little troubling though.
Animal and plant physiology
Ecology
Resource management
Parasitism and other life strategies
As for the humanities option, I went for Politics! :) No surprises there.
The warm - even hot - British summer seems to have heralded a number of unpopular denizens into our rooms... among the visitors I've had recently are numerous crane flies, fat juicy-looking black flies, and a two spiders. The first was very small and I hardly paid it any notice... just glanced at it and it disappeared after a while. The second one was found jumping from textbook-to-textbook on my bed when I returned from the dining hall (after having had enough of studying there till 3.30am). I have now placed it in a plastic container... I believe it's some kind of sac spider (Clubiona sp.). Will take a few shots of it and release it later. Hmm... it's a her. The thought that I might be harbouring some other creatures in my room isn't exactly scary... but it is a little troubling though.
Friday, June 18, 2004
It's Friday. It's too soon too sudden. Less than 4 days to my exams. Less than a week till I'm back home again.
My sleep cycle is freaking me out - slept at 9pm on Wednesday, woke at 2am to study, slept at 4.30, woke at 7, slept again at 11, and woke again at 1pm after Charl came knocking. Thanks for the black pepper chicken! Haven't had such a nice lunch in quite a long while.
The medics were done on Wed. Only the biologists and biochemists are left now. Studied for a while in the bar tonight since Junsheng was on bar duty. The place turned noisy, so Lionel and I brought our books down to the dining hall. Studied till 1+ am, and then had a few bouts of fencing with Amar... it's been a long while since I last sparred... feeling energised now... and as before, I suppose I had an overdose of tea.
My sleep cycle is freaking me out - slept at 9pm on Wednesday, woke at 2am to study, slept at 4.30, woke at 7, slept again at 11, and woke again at 1pm after Charl came knocking. Thanks for the black pepper chicken! Haven't had such a nice lunch in quite a long while.
The medics were done on Wed. Only the biologists and biochemists are left now. Studied for a while in the bar tonight since Junsheng was on bar duty. The place turned noisy, so Lionel and I brought our books down to the dining hall. Studied till 1+ am, and then had a few bouts of fencing with Amar... it's been a long while since I last sparred... feeling energised now... and as before, I suppose I had an overdose of tea.
Wednesday, June 16, 2004
It's settled!
We secured the flat at 26 Emperor's Gate. Good location... ~10 mins from college, a few steps away from the tube, the supermarkets, the banks, and fast-food restaurants. Nice big double rooms... gotta sacrifice my wish for a single. Viv's gonna be me roommie, and Marvin's in with Fidel. Yep, it'll be the four of us. *Viv-style* whOoHoooOo!! And we're not alone in the block. Lionel, Charl, Lu, Lu's sis and Yi Shan will be taking the unit below us... in the basement. Yeah! :) :)
Now I can study in peace.
We secured the flat at 26 Emperor's Gate. Good location... ~10 mins from college, a few steps away from the tube, the supermarkets, the banks, and fast-food restaurants. Nice big double rooms... gotta sacrifice my wish for a single. Viv's gonna be me roommie, and Marvin's in with Fidel. Yep, it'll be the four of us. *Viv-style* whOoHoooOo!! And we're not alone in the block. Lionel, Charl, Lu, Lu's sis and Yi Shan will be taking the unit below us... in the basement. Yeah! :) :)
Now I can study in peace.
In less than 2 hours, trip-savvy trio Alex, Jed and Lu will be setting off on their Brussels & Amsterdam trip. *jealous* The Force didn't bend me over for that 'un. Don't think I'll attempt anything as crazy as what Viv did for Brownsea. :P
The sky's turning light blue. Returned a couple of hours ago from Amar's room after studying a few chapters there - I'm better off where my laptop is not in sight. The next few evenings shall be quieter when my usual nightly companions are not around... it'll be full-focus mode then.
Really hope everything's gonna go well today. Can't afford to be pulled away from my studies anymore. As for now, g'night.
The sky's turning light blue. Returned a couple of hours ago from Amar's room after studying a few chapters there - I'm better off where my laptop is not in sight. The next few evenings shall be quieter when my usual nightly companions are not around... it'll be full-focus mode then.
Really hope everything's gonna go well today. Can't afford to be pulled away from my studies anymore. As for now, g'night.
Tuesday, June 15, 2004
I seldom ever cuss so much in one night, if I do it at all, mild though the words may be. I am darn pissed. Sick of people... sick of irresponsible people... ignorant people... sick people, taking flak, handling matters that don't even directly concern me anymore, trying to make sure that everyone's happy, playing the middleman, tired of worrying, annoyed with myself for all the above... and heck, I'm gonna have my exams next week, and my whole day today has been eaten away, and not by the bookworm.
Arrggh. It's housing matters. Situations change, we adapt, we sacrifice some. Everyone has to... everyone should learn to. I know... we know... nobody wants it to end up this way. But that's the way things go.
Spent £7 on outgoing mobile phone calls today. Mobile phone alone.
You can't live to please everybody. You gotta be mean once in a while.
Settled, then. I've had enough. Made enough calls. Talked my mouth dry. Wasted enough time. Seen the flat, talked over dinner, talked after dinner, talked into the night. Gonna sign the contract tomorrow. Period. Case closed. Yay.
Everyone - take a deep breath. All's fine now, and should stay fine. I'll be damned if it doesn't.
I think I'd have gone truly mad whacking my bed with my sabre and growling and yelling out and my next-door neighbour would seriously be annoyed. Thanks guys for the little help and support - being the outlet for my stress, being my punching bags or otherwise.
Arrggh. It's housing matters. Situations change, we adapt, we sacrifice some. Everyone has to... everyone should learn to. I know... we know... nobody wants it to end up this way. But that's the way things go.
Spent £7 on outgoing mobile phone calls today. Mobile phone alone.
You can't live to please everybody. You gotta be mean once in a while.
Settled, then. I've had enough. Made enough calls. Talked my mouth dry. Wasted enough time. Seen the flat, talked over dinner, talked after dinner, talked into the night. Gonna sign the contract tomorrow. Period. Case closed. Yay.
Everyone - take a deep breath. All's fine now, and should stay fine. I'll be damned if it doesn't.
I think I'd have gone truly mad whacking my bed with my sabre and growling and yelling out and my next-door neighbour would seriously be annoyed. Thanks guys for the little help and support - being the outlet for my stress, being my punching bags or otherwise.
Sunday, June 13, 2004
Bio dinner with Marvin and Xiao at the Lebanese place at High St Ken today. Yeah, Cherlyn and Chin couldn't make it. Wanted to go to some Polish restaurant but ended up at 'that Lebanese place' again. Ate a lot. Stuffed myself.
Everyone's stressing out. Marvin's more twitchy and unsettled than normal. Xiao's well... pretty normal. Had calls from a panicking Anna. Saw Roanna today... to get my notes back... she's very anxious and worked up. Cherlyn's self-compiled notes are freaky. Ugh. Scolars. Only Xiyu seems composed.
Distractions oh horrible distractions. Lots of things on my mind. Too many things. Accommodation issues... housemate re-arrangements. Storage and packing issues. Me turning nocturnal. Among numerous other issues.
Ee-wen, Jingye, Lu, Junsheng and Soha are back from Lake District. Saw some of the trip pics while de-stressing and bumming in Amar's room.
Had too much tea. Amar fixed up some exotic kinda fruit tea, and then I had lotsa Jap tea when I returned to my room. Am on a high... can't sleep... yet. So I did what Xiyu calls past-papering. I'm not alone - she too, over at Beit, sleeps only when the sun rises and the birds start singing.
Edit: Yar, so I cheated. I didn't type this at 11+pm. I actually did so hours later. Doesn't matter - I'm an owl now. We all are. Back to connexins.
Everyone's stressing out. Marvin's more twitchy and unsettled than normal. Xiao's well... pretty normal. Had calls from a panicking Anna. Saw Roanna today... to get my notes back... she's very anxious and worked up. Cherlyn's self-compiled notes are freaky. Ugh. Scolars. Only Xiyu seems composed.
Distractions oh horrible distractions. Lots of things on my mind. Too many things. Accommodation issues... housemate re-arrangements. Storage and packing issues. Me turning nocturnal. Among numerous other issues.
Ee-wen, Jingye, Lu, Junsheng and Soha are back from Lake District. Saw some of the trip pics while de-stressing and bumming in Amar's room.
Had too much tea. Amar fixed up some exotic kinda fruit tea, and then I had lotsa Jap tea when I returned to my room. Am on a high... can't sleep... yet. So I did what Xiyu calls past-papering. I'm not alone - she too, over at Beit, sleeps only when the sun rises and the birds start singing.
Edit: Yar, so I cheated. I didn't type this at 11+pm. I actually did so hours later. Doesn't matter - I'm an owl now. We all are. Back to connexins.
In one word, Swan Lake was simply beautiful! Went to watch it with Jed and Yan Xi (and her aunt) after a BK dinner last night. Performed in the round arena of the Royal Albert Hall, and viewed top-down, the symmetrically-synchronised movements and choreography of the ballet dances were spectacular. Tchaikovsky's pieces were also played to a high standard by the orchestra of the English National Ballet. :)
Saturday, June 12, 2004
I uninstalled four games from my laptop a few days ago, and just last night I found myself inserting the Starcraft CDs into my drive. Don't ask.
The evil temptations of games and the unbending Force of Peer Pressure...
And the fact that I seriously needed a break (again, one might be allowed to say).
Oopfh. Feeling contented. Dinner yesterday... two slabs of baby back ribs and nachos + guacamole + ceviche, brownie + fudge + ice cream... at Texas Lone Star at Gloucester.
Now I'm having my first bowl of instant noodles since the beginning of this term. Been surviving mainly on my imported stock - udon, zoba, Jap rice - for the past two weeks. My food basket still looks surprisingly full though. :|
The evil temptations of games and the unbending Force of Peer Pressure...
And the fact that I seriously needed a break (again, one might be allowed to say).
Oopfh. Feeling contented. Dinner yesterday... two slabs of baby back ribs and nachos + guacamole + ceviche, brownie + fudge + ice cream... at Texas Lone Star at Gloucester.
Now I'm having my first bowl of instant noodles since the beginning of this term. Been surviving mainly on my imported stock - udon, zoba, Jap rice - for the past two weeks. My food basket still looks surprisingly full though. :|
ST article: Legacy of Abu Ghraib may haunt US
"THE Bush administration has yet to accept much responsibility for the torture at Abu Ghraib prison...
The question of guilt or innocence will most likely remain a political one... Nonetheless, legal principles can affect politics. If voters begin to believe that President Bush or Mr Rumsfeld is legally responsible for the torture, it could affect the President's re-election chances in November. Yet, if US officials are not held legally accountable, the damage abroad could be even more severe....
Part of the terrible legacy of Abu Ghraib may be that the US will find it difficult to prosecute foreign war criminals if it refuses to accept for itself the legal standards it accuses them of breaking."
Darn right.
"THE Bush administration has yet to accept much responsibility for the torture at Abu Ghraib prison...
The question of guilt or innocence will most likely remain a political one... Nonetheless, legal principles can affect politics. If voters begin to believe that President Bush or Mr Rumsfeld is legally responsible for the torture, it could affect the President's re-election chances in November. Yet, if US officials are not held legally accountable, the damage abroad could be even more severe....
Part of the terrible legacy of Abu Ghraib may be that the US will find it difficult to prosecute foreign war criminals if it refuses to accept for itself the legal standards it accuses them of breaking."
Darn right.
Credits to Vincy for sending me this link! Hehe, Sydney Morning Herald always has more of this kind of articles... perhaps I should read *that* more often.
Who's a clever dog - meet the dog with a 200-word vocabulary.
Who's a clever dog - meet the dog with a 200-word vocabulary.
Friday, June 11, 2004
Sigh. Here I am chewing my dried mango strips forcing some virology terminology into my head, while Jingye, Lu, Ee-wen, Junsheng and Soha are somewhere up north, off to the beautiful, scenic Lake District in the Cumbria region near Scotland. The mathematicians and all the engineers are now officially free to go, and us biologists, biochemists and medics are still twiddling our thumbs, waiting for our exams to come. A few days later, some lucky people *ahem* will be off to Europe, and even then, we'll still be twiddling our thumbs. Aww. This is depressing. Lament with me, my fellow biologists, and let's chant to the name of E.coli...
Thursday, June 10, 2004
After having -temporarily, mind you- surrendered the set of F.R.I.E.N.D.S. CDs to Charl, and deleted my games from my laptop (ouch), and spent almost the whole day studying, I thought I could spend some time... just a little time... having some fun in Amar's room last [mid]night. Alex and Lu got ready some breadcrumb-baked chicken for supper (yummmm...), and once again we entertained ourselves watching a bit of Family Guy and playing video games - Neo Geo, that kinda stuff. Well of course we weren't gonna just sit quietly and obediently on the bed and watch the laptop... so... out came our wilder sides, the camera and the videoing. Hilarious stuff...
It's the London and European Parliament elections today, and my hall's dining hall has been turned into a polling station for the area. (Yeah... one day we found polling cards and envelops sitting in our pigeonholes - citizens of Commonwealth nations are eligible to vote. Huh... we could vote as 'Londoners' for London and Europe but were still considered too young to vote in our own countries!)
Today's also the day when the fire alarm went off twice. Grrrr.
It's the London and European Parliament elections today, and my hall's dining hall has been turned into a polling station for the area. (Yeah... one day we found polling cards and envelops sitting in our pigeonholes - citizens of Commonwealth nations are eligible to vote. Huh... we could vote as 'Londoners' for London and Europe but were still considered too young to vote in our own countries!)
Today's also the day when the fire alarm went off twice. Grrrr.
Wednesday, June 09, 2004
I got this in an email from Sandy:
THE 15 SHORTEST BOOKS EVER READ BY [American] BIOLOGISTS
THE 15 SHORTEST BOOKS EVER READ BY [American] BIOLOGISTS
- Career Opportunities for Wildlife Majors
- Amelia Earhart's Guide to the Pacific Ocean
- America's Most Popular Environmental Laws
- One Hundred and One Spotted Owl Recipes by the EPA
- The Nation's Best Smelling Fisheries Biologists
- An Entomologist's Guide to Picking Up Chicks
- Chemical Reaction: The Lab Chemist and the Art of Dinner Conversation
- Managing grazing for perpetuity: Bureau of Land Management technical bulletin #16
- How to cut project costs by using environmental consultants
- "Environment First!" by Rush Limbaugh
- A Republican Party Guide to Environmental Awareness
- "Coots are waterfowl, too" by Ducks Unlimited
- Gun Control for The New Millenium: NRA Handbook
- "Towards More Colorful and Picturesque Writing" by the editors of The Journal of Wildlife Management
- The Engineer's Guide to Fashion
It disgusts me.
In recent history, we have witnessed the US pull out of almost every international organisation and/or treaty (even those which it initiated) except those that please it. All of them... including the UN... are merely tools... to be stepped over or taken advantage of by the US whenever their policies do not agree. Even if the US does not pull out, well... it finds a way round it.
The US Department of Justice had in the beginning of 2002 prepared a memo which dictated that the Geneva Convention on the Treatment of Prisoners of War does not apply to those involved in its conflicts in this "war on terror", for the sake of national security. And the Bush Administration -in its madness for pre-emption- has applied this broad doctrine to whenever it sees fit, including the interrogation of prisoners. Thanks to this memo, American personnel guilty of human rights abuse cannot be charged under the War Crimes Act (not that the existence of this memo actually *really* matters anyway... think of Guantanamo Bay's POWs).
One of the implications of the 'ticking time bomb' has become reality:
ST article: US Justice Dept memo 'gave justification for torture'
" Administration lawyers had concluded... that Mr Bush was not bound by either the Geneva Conventions prohibiting torture or by a federal anti-torture law because he has the authority as commander-in-chief to approve any technique needed to protect the US' security."
I hope Colin Powell will do something; he spoke out against it afterall.
People are still humans, for goodness' sake. One shouldn't be surprised at the amount of hate being targeted at America. It's becoming too arrogant... competent... it's becoming a dysfunctional nation. And no, America is not the world.
In recent history, we have witnessed the US pull out of almost every international organisation and/or treaty (even those which it initiated) except those that please it. All of them... including the UN... are merely tools... to be stepped over or taken advantage of by the US whenever their policies do not agree. Even if the US does not pull out, well... it finds a way round it.
The US Department of Justice had in the beginning of 2002 prepared a memo which dictated that the Geneva Convention on the Treatment of Prisoners of War does not apply to those involved in its conflicts in this "war on terror", for the sake of national security. And the Bush Administration -in its madness for pre-emption- has applied this broad doctrine to whenever it sees fit, including the interrogation of prisoners. Thanks to this memo, American personnel guilty of human rights abuse cannot be charged under the War Crimes Act (not that the existence of this memo actually *really* matters anyway... think of Guantanamo Bay's POWs).
One of the implications of the 'ticking time bomb' has become reality:
ST article: US Justice Dept memo 'gave justification for torture'
" Administration lawyers had concluded... that Mr Bush was not bound by either the Geneva Conventions prohibiting torture or by a federal anti-torture law because he has the authority as commander-in-chief to approve any technique needed to protect the US' security."
I hope Colin Powell will do something; he spoke out against it afterall.
People are still humans, for goodness' sake. One shouldn't be surprised at the amount of hate being targeted at America. It's becoming too arrogant... competent... it's becoming a dysfunctional nation. And no, America is not the world.
Tuesday, June 08, 2004
This little passage was in an email that Thiha sent me ages ago... I've no idea where he got it from; searches on Google generate no results.
"And we play on with one string less
And again one string less
And some strings that break will not be mended
And some are mended and again they sound
And this song can never stop
And we're forced to play on, play on... ..."
It's not exactly representative of what I'm feeling right now but there's this feeling that I can't quite bottle up.
"And we play on with one string less
And again one string less
And some strings that break will not be mended
And some are mended and again they sound
And this song can never stop
And we're forced to play on, play on... ..."
It's not exactly representative of what I'm feeling right now but there's this feeling that I can't quite bottle up.
Monday, June 07, 2004
Checked up SISTIC Singapore out of curiousity. A few notable upcoming events:
Linkin Park (22 Jun 2004)
Sigh... Ee-wen... you'll be too late.
Kevin Kern - The Winding Path Tour 2004 (09 Jul 2004)
The Woman In Black (14 Jul 2004 - 04 Aug 2004)
Direct from London's West End. Ha! Anyone who's interested in this one - let me know. I'll be organising a trip to the S'pore theatres... most probably in July. ;)
Mardi Gras RA(18) (28 Jul 2004 - 01 Aug 2004)
I find it amusing... that in Sydney where it's an all-out open public event, people hardly give a twitch. But here in S'pore, a show of this name, accompanied with a "RA(18)", raises eyebrows.
Sammi Cheng World Tour 2004 (27 Aug 2004)
Hmmm... is my mom interested?
Mamma Mia! (23 Sep 2004 - 03 Dec 2004)
Bwahaha... watched it already...
Linkin Park (22 Jun 2004)
Sigh... Ee-wen... you'll be too late.
Kevin Kern - The Winding Path Tour 2004 (09 Jul 2004)
The Woman In Black (14 Jul 2004 - 04 Aug 2004)
Direct from London's West End. Ha! Anyone who's interested in this one - let me know. I'll be organising a trip to the S'pore theatres... most probably in July. ;)
Mardi Gras RA(18) (28 Jul 2004 - 01 Aug 2004)
I find it amusing... that in Sydney where it's an all-out open public event, people hardly give a twitch. But here in S'pore, a show of this name, accompanied with a "RA(18)", raises eyebrows.
Sammi Cheng World Tour 2004 (27 Aug 2004)
Hmmm... is my mom interested?
Mamma Mia! (23 Sep 2004 - 03 Dec 2004)
Bwahaha... watched it already...
Transit of Venus - 8 June
Hey folks, check this out. You wouldn't want to miss this.
For those in London (I can only hope that we *will* be able to see the sun tomorrow):
University of London Observatory's page
BBC's page
transit-of-venus.org.uk
For those in Singapore:
Session organised by the Astronomical Society of S'pore
S'pore Science Centre events and resources
And for those in Sydney:
The Sydney Observatory (did you know that the Observatory's just at The Rocks?)
ABC's page
Boy am I unfit. Maybe I just lack stamina. Or perhaps it's the London air. I went jogging again in Hyde Park yesterday with Lu, Jed and Jingye, and I had a hard time catching up with them guys... stopping oh-too-often to catch my breath. Maybe... I went jogging with the wrong gang. :P But it's always fun.
The ducks paddling on the Serpentine (and those flying above it as well, though Jingye and Jed would argue that ducks simply cannot fly... but instead by some Pekingese suicidal feat find their way onto a hook at Four Seasons and become what we call a roasted duck) always become an unavoidable topic of conversation. Which reminds me of this article: Some ducks quacker than others (thanks Tania for the link).
We had been planning this for a while now, but never got round to actually doing it till now: take-away Four Seasons' roast duck for dinner. Mwahaaa... a whole half-duck to each person. After a 5.3-ish km jog cum walk... I daresay we deserved it. ;)
The ducks paddling on the Serpentine (and those flying above it as well, though Jingye and Jed would argue that ducks simply cannot fly... but instead by some Pekingese suicidal feat find their way onto a hook at Four Seasons and become what we call a roasted duck) always become an unavoidable topic of conversation. Which reminds me of this article: Some ducks quacker than others (thanks Tania for the link).
We had been planning this for a while now, but never got round to actually doing it till now: take-away Four Seasons' roast duck for dinner. Mwahaaa... a whole half-duck to each person. After a 5.3-ish km jog cum walk... I daresay we deserved it. ;)
Sunday, June 06, 2004
Tribute to Ronald Reagan
While I was studying modern history in high school, I came to know of former US President Ronald Reagan and his legacy. A conservative Republican and an effective anti-Communist, he was a well-loved leader, an extraordinary person, and the world shall mourn his passing. 'God bless him.
Straits Times article: Former US president Reagan dies at age 93
--------------------------------
Can You Hear the People Sing
Every now and then we find that a great leader comes along
One who has greatness that we celebrate in poetry and song
He grew up in the Midwest and he had learned his lessons well
But how far he would go nobody could really tell
His accomplishments were growing but he’s not one who would boast
He learned that a man’s character is what is valued most
And he’s led his life with an honor that we can admire
Ronald Reagan we love you…and you are loved around the world
Thanks to your vision flags of freedom everywhere have been unfurled
We will all raise up our glass, here’s a salute from one and all
Long live your legacy – The Man Who Brought Down the Wall
There’s a natural right of men…that right is all men shall live free
Because freedom makes each person all the best that he can be
One president knew that much better than anyone else
Ronald Reagan we love you…and you are loved around the world
Thanks to your vision flags of freedom everywhere have been unfurled
We will all raise up our glass, here’s a salute from one and all
Long live your legacy – The Man Who Brought Down the Wall
Ronald Reagan we love you…and you are loved around the world
Thanks to your vision flags of freedom everywhere have been unfurled
We will all raise up our glass, here’s a salute from one and all
Long live your legacy – The Man Who Brought Down the Wall
You’re loved by all
~ Song parody by Doug from Upland (2000)
60th Anniversary of D-Day - 6 June 2004
60 Years Ago Today...
60 years ago today, upon the high waters' wings they came,
60 years ago today, searching for the unknown the paths to pave,
60 years ago today, shrouds of mist scorched by heaven's flame,
60 years ago today, invisible hands split open the beckoning waves.
60 years ago today, from within themselves they rose, facing their fears,
60 years ago today, soaked screams stilled by silent prayers of despair,
60 years ago today, vague silhouettes of men, surrendering silver tears,
60 years ago today, washed away the horros carried on that morning air.
60 years ago today, thousand brave hearts, seamlessly melted into one,
60 years ago today, condemned childhood hid deep within the crimson sand,
60 years ago today, tousled signs of hope lay heavy like ancient stone,
60 years ago today, sculptured from deep inside by freedom's hand.
60 years ago today, sighs of desperation became victory's battlecry,
60 years ago today, sentiments of determination grew with each life that fell,
60 years ago today, weary eyes relating tales that lips learned to deny,
60 years ago today, tender tears sealed the remembrance of images they tell.
60 years ago today, memories loom up in their heartrending gaze,
60 years ago today, remembering those left behind, sets the heart ablaze,
60 years ago today, forever seduced, falling into the beach's embrace,
60 years ago today, upon their memory, a white rose I shall humbly place.
~ Frank Everards (2004)
---------------------------------
D-Day picks:
World leaders in Normandy for D-Day ceremonies (ST Online)
Normandy D-Day Anniversary
The National D-Day Memorial
And for those who're interested... D-Day, Normandy and Beyond contains a wealth of first-hand accounts and photos of the WWII and D-Day experience. Those of you who've seen or read the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers, based on Stephen Ambrose's book, might be able to find some familiar names as well.
I'm too full from last night's dinner (Amar whipped up tandoori chicken and dahl and naan with ghee, and I had a late, late lunch) to bother with breakkie. It's lunchtime and I'm not even feeling a wee bit hungry. Not feeling focused either. Am trying very, very hard to block out all distractions and just... study...
Saturday, June 05, 2004
Six awarded for their environment protection efforts (the inaugural Singapore Green Plan 2012 Awards)
Congrats everyone, and especially the S'pore Environment Council. I'm sure Joe and Grant would be proud... :) Well done, all at SEC!
Congrats everyone, and especially the S'pore Environment Council. I'm sure Joe and Grant would be proud... :) Well done, all at SEC!
My movie-going mates... a poor attempt at a recreation of the 'boy band' photo (Lionel's missing from this one):
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban was better than what I had expected it to be, though some said that the previous one was better. Aww I don't know... I've forgotten the actual story (how many years ago was that when I last read it??), and I remember the first one as a let-downer. Didn't catch the second, and I've no intention to (unless it conveniently comes by my way). I'll stick to the books. This third installment, directed by a largely-unknown Alfonso Cuarón, was a tad too long and set in the glooms. The graphics and effects were excellent, though... brings out the dark 'magic'.
Again I find myself outnumbered in the company of guys. Sigh. That was the case for the last movie too. Val's gone touring Europe with her parents, and Viv's back in Singapore. Ee-wen's having exams, Charl didn't go, and Soha and Fong May... they're nowhere in sight. Kinda getting used to it now though... can't help it. This is Imperial after all. Just to steal another phrase, "grrraaarrr"!
Again I find myself outnumbered in the company of guys. Sigh. That was the case for the last movie too. Val's gone touring Europe with her parents, and Viv's back in Singapore. Ee-wen's having exams, Charl didn't go, and Soha and Fong May... they're nowhere in sight. Kinda getting used to it now though... can't help it. This is Imperial after all. Just to steal another phrase, "grrraaarrr"!
Friday, June 04, 2004
32 new accounts registered for at www.apyen.org, and a total of 20 new members in just these 2 days. Just seconds after I update the membership database, I get another incoming email with a new member's details. Bah. I give up. I'm gonna wait until the end of the day to update the stuff... 'else this would go on non-stop and I'd be jumping off my bed and over my notes scrambling to my laptop every time I hear the new mail notification.
I suppose this is all in anticipation of the World Environment Day's Live Chat at APYEN - Do join us if you can, you're more than welcome:
==========================
APYEN celebrates World Earth Day: Online Chat - 5th June 2004
As part of enacting the APYEN vision of shaping a sustainable future for the Asia-Pacific region through the hands of youths, APYEN is running an online chat session on the WED theme "Wanted Seas and Oceans: Dead or Alive" : Guest Speaker Mr. N. Sivasothi will talk about his conservation and research involvement in Chek Jawa, a marine park in Singapore.
Date: Saturday 5th June 2004
Time: 3am UTC (=> Sydney 1pm; Singapore 11am; Shanghai 11am; Jakarta 10am; Bangkok 10am; Mumbai 8:30am)
Venue: APYEN online chatroom
==========================
Ps. Why not sign up as a member too? ;)
I suppose this is all in anticipation of the World Environment Day's Live Chat at APYEN - Do join us if you can, you're more than welcome:
==========================
APYEN celebrates World Earth Day: Online Chat - 5th June 2004
As part of enacting the APYEN vision of shaping a sustainable future for the Asia-Pacific region through the hands of youths, APYEN is running an online chat session on the WED theme "Wanted Seas and Oceans: Dead or Alive" : Guest Speaker Mr. N. Sivasothi will talk about his conservation and research involvement in Chek Jawa, a marine park in Singapore.
Date: Saturday 5th June 2004
Time: 3am UTC (=> Sydney 1pm; Singapore 11am; Shanghai 11am; Jakarta 10am; Bangkok 10am; Mumbai 8:30am)
Venue: APYEN online chatroom
==========================
Ps. Why not sign up as a member too? ;)
Thursday, June 03, 2004
Yes, yes... blame it all on a lack of follow-up and shoving responsibilities to and fro and the half-hearted effort put into a long-distance collaboration. Youth Day 2004's Project REAP programme for TKGS was cancelled. Or, more accurately, the whole thing went down the drain. No word from the TKG side, no word from the SEC side... I did some emailing before I came back to get everything in place... and calling up and stuff, but there was no progress. :| Grrrr.
So yesterday, instead of giving a school talk, I went for a hair cut. Hung out a bit, returned home, watched a little Naruto, then headed to Raffles City for the SingSoc ExCo meeting. Mmmm... BK... mushroom swiss... they really should have it over at London; it'll do well. SingSoc activities... deadlines... more dates in my calendar are being marked down.
So yesterday, instead of giving a school talk, I went for a hair cut. Hung out a bit, returned home, watched a little Naruto, then headed to Raffles City for the SingSoc ExCo meeting. Mmmm... BK... mushroom swiss... they really should have it over at London; it'll do well. SingSoc activities... deadlines... more dates in my calendar are being marked down.
I'm not sure if this is a psycological thing or what, but after watching The Day After Tomorrow with Jingye, Jed and Lu, we thought that the night had kinda turned cooler. Heh. Anyway... it was a typical Hollywood 'it's the end of the world. one man can save them' plot. Disaster strikes the hearts of New York and Los Angeles once again. Well actually, the story was better than most, and the effects were... hmm... chilling. The good thing that can be said about this movie is that it *is* the sort that's supposed to be watched on the big screen. And I do believe that the film has a stronger message... that which concerns global warming.
An irony I found in it was that the Americans had to illegally force their way through the shut borders of Mexico... to seek refuge in the South. It's a reversal of what happens in reality. Sweet justice... I chuckled when they portrayed that, but the cinema was quiet. Bah... all these 'world politics' stuff.
Anyway, back to studying. Extracurricular work and playtime's over.
An irony I found in it was that the Americans had to illegally force their way through the shut borders of Mexico... to seek refuge in the South. It's a reversal of what happens in reality. Sweet justice... I chuckled when they portrayed that, but the cinema was quiet. Bah... all these 'world politics' stuff.
Anyway, back to studying. Extracurricular work and playtime's over.
Wednesday, June 02, 2004
Crazy crazy nights...
After 5 days of post-midnight-activity-less, I've finally succumbed.
I
don't know how we can manage to spend 5 hours in Amar's room doing
nothing in particular besides lying on the bed and yakking and singing
and watching silly Flash animations and taking random vids of each
other, but that's what we do. And we sing anything from Queen to
Eminem... or from Hollywood films to anime soundtracks... or from Pinky
and the Brain to the Pokemon theme... or Stephanie Sun's songs to the
now-classic Guan Huai Fang Shi.
But it's all with good reason - it's Viv's last night in Linstead; she's flying back to Singapore today!
Show me... show you... Ki-ko-man!
Arghh... I seriously need to study.
After 5 days of post-midnight-activity-less, I've finally succumbed.
I
don't know how we can manage to spend 5 hours in Amar's room doing
nothing in particular besides lying on the bed and yakking and singing
and watching silly Flash animations and taking random vids of each
other, but that's what we do. And we sing anything from Queen to
Eminem... or from Hollywood films to anime soundtracks... or from Pinky
and the Brain to the Pokemon theme... or Stephanie Sun's songs to the
now-classic Guan Huai Fang Shi.
But it's all with good reason - it's Viv's last night in Linstead; she's flying back to Singapore today!
Show me... show you... Ki-ko-man!
Arghh... I seriously need to study.
Tuesday, June 01, 2004
I must've broken some kind of record, even if it's only my own.
15 hours... and a sleepless night... and I got this done from scratch!
Just had a spur of the moment feeling... to get the whole thing done and over with before my exams... before I have to tend to my other tasks... but I didn't expect it to be complete this quickly. In contrast, the current APYEN website took me 2 weeks to perfect it and dig up all the programming errors. I've another project now... somehow the Asian Otter Newsletter project got abandoned... so it's not that one. Gonna be working with Siva and a couple of other RMBR chaps in coming up with an 'exotic species of Singapore' database... prompted by that animals-release issue that's brought about by Vesak Day. From an email from Siva - "This project is to provide information about alien species in Singapore. This resource will help students and the public learn about the origins of exotics, about native species and related issues..."
Now if only I can apply the same enthusiasm and determination in my revision for the exams...
15 hours... and a sleepless night... and I got this done from scratch!
Just had a spur of the moment feeling... to get the whole thing done and over with before my exams... before I have to tend to my other tasks... but I didn't expect it to be complete this quickly. In contrast, the current APYEN website took me 2 weeks to perfect it and dig up all the programming errors. I've another project now... somehow the Asian Otter Newsletter project got abandoned... so it's not that one. Gonna be working with Siva and a couple of other RMBR chaps in coming up with an 'exotic species of Singapore' database... prompted by that animals-release issue that's brought about by Vesak Day. From an email from Siva - "This project is to provide information about alien species in Singapore. This resource will help students and the public learn about the origins of exotics, about native species and related issues..."
Now if only I can apply the same enthusiasm and determination in my revision for the exams...
Went jogging at Hyde Park yesterday late noon with Jingye and Lu. Well erm... more like walking-jogging anyway. Had a late lunch and it didn't feel quite right somehow.
Not wanting to go through the burnt patties and dry loaves of an English (Linstead-English, mind you) barbie, we ate out last night. Went to Stick and Bowl. Their hor fun is top notch! Not bad...
Not wanting to go through the burnt patties and dry loaves of an English (Linstead-English, mind you) barbie, we ate out last night. Went to Stick and Bowl. Their hor fun is top notch! Not bad...
