Sunday, August 26, 2007

Hokkien songs

I wasn't grown up listening to Hokkien songs. However, I came to like some of the songs lyrics of them while watching the local production "881".

Was watching this show with Guoqing on Fri night, it was a pretty late timing at TBP. Yes, Royston Tan seemed to have glorified our GETAI, putting alot of special effects, fanciful costumes into the show. What I liked about the show is the really authentic hokkien songs sang by the PAPAYA Sisters, "12 Lian Huey" (12 Lotus Flower), "Ji Lang Ji Bua" (Each takes half) and the improvised version of the hokkien song sang by Chen Wei Lian. I guess the lyrics really touched me alot, when Small Papaya sang the song of the dying child, yearning to see her parents (dead) soon so she can be relieved from the illness she is suffering from.

Some of the songs could be quite kinky and "low-class" like "Dance Hostess" however "catchy", talks about the the Mamasan working in the lime-light industry and she sounds really happy about her job as there is lots of money rolling in.






Heard of the original hokkien song "Lu bian de Ye Hua ni bu yao cai"? (You shouldn't pick wild flowers along the road). Well, here it is.

Friday, August 17, 2007

I'm going to let out Jay Chou's secret.... hehehe....



Watched the movie during National Day, actually Guoqing bought 2 tix to watch Hostel 2. Seeing it as gory, bloody, sick show and he bought the tix without consulting me, I went over to change into Jay Chou's "Secret".

Spoilers~~ Dun say I din warn you.








Well, Uncle Jay did tell us not to disclose the Secret after watching. However, I've already known what's going on when I saw the girl in the beginning. Well, it was pretty obvious, because no one seems to be talking or noticed her when she was in the classroom, only Jay, so I presumed that probably the girl was a ghost or something.


=) I'm very smart hor?



Well, the girl was actually from the past, 20 years earlier, at different zone, but same location. She happened to find a score under an old piano in the school's music room named "Secret" which has a whimsical poem written on it. And Jay Chou could see her because as stated in the poem, the first person she sees is able to see her and the rests dun. And if she wants to return back to her time, she has to play the score very fast...




well, here's the trailer.



An interesting piano contest...



....And a cute flirty way of playing piano together...

A must watch movie not only for its plot (well... not too bad from the first-time director, Jay), the music scores are also very well-composed. The soundtrack is greatly recommended. And everyone in the show can play musical instruments...hated the fact I can't play any. :-(

Need not say more, support my idol bah... his acting improved quite alot already lor.

Sunday, August 12, 2007

A review on Korean skincare and cosmetics


Korean wave has been stirring in Singapore since 2002 and still blowing strong currently. Thanks to korean dramas and most importantly its chain of beauty products that are pretty hot here.

Well, I felt all korean skincare and cosmetics are pretty similar, seemed to have come out from the same factory or manufacturer. The texture is pretty light, easily washable with gentle wipes/cleansing and the range of colours are kept to the korean skin tones. You can never find a colour that is suitable for dark skins because koreans are all very fair, thanks to their climate. Not to mention, you need 5 steps to maintain healthy skin, unlike the usual 3 steps, cleansing, toning and moisturizing, there are extra steps such as essence penetration and moisture locking.


From my korean trip and research done in Singapore, I would like to rant about a few popular beauty brands which I like, in some ways. (Note: all pics below are taken from Google Images)


MISSHA







This is one of the first korean brands that launched in Singapore. I personally like its range of mascaras, they aren't very expensive but work wonders for me. The iconic red and black flower on the label is very catchy however is a legalized copycat of UK brand MaryQuant.

The last visited shop over at Korea had a new look and it looked dashing!! Too bad I din take a picture of it.


SKINFOOD




You see them everywhere, it was well-known for its cute packaging. Stepping into the shop looks like entering into a fairy street and you are welcomed by the fairy dust (loose powder testers). They had this special liquid eyeshadow with glitters which is one of the unique features.

It has a pretty dazzling website, take a look here!



THE FACE SHOP



Yes, you definitely be screaming at the sight of your idol.

I was shopping along in Korea and was given free samples, even without buying anything. It shows how generous their marketing strategy is in luring people into their shops.

There are hundreds of products from The Face Shop, including Men's skincare. These shops are all over Singapore, Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, in fact, all over the world, including in Japan where they also rave about this brand despite strong competition from the other Japanese products. To me, they are just like Bodyshop, boosting about natural ingredients and prices are ridiculously jagged up over here.


DODO CLUB





Has been trying to google for some shop frontages of Dodoclub, only managed to find this. (It wasn't closed, fortunately) . You can get to see dodoclub shops in those korean supermarkets (Cineleisure and Novena Square2). Dodoclub products could also be found in Sasa, Watsons.

The packaging looks mediocre, and some of the items looked like they are kept on the shelves for quite some time. However, I've heard the magical theatre powder is pretty effective in covering blemishes. You could jolly well take a look. The black butterfly mirrors (they are pretty!!!) looked splendid for a vain girl, however another legalized copycat of the dolly theme designer Anna Sui.


BEAUTY CREDIT





So what are the credits in beauty? This shop name makes no sense at all. It should sound, "Credits in Beauty". You get to see these shops in Vivocity and IMM (there was a counter). Products are more the less the same as the rests, however, it has a best seller called the coenzyme Q10 series which made their products special.

Plus, they managed to get handsome boy to be their spokesperson!!




Hyun Bin was in "My love Sam Sun" the drama really garnered alot of fans.




THE ETUDE HOUSE








Which girl will never stop to take a look inside? It looks like a HELLO KITTY house, having a "Princess" theme.

I enjoyed shopping inside, fiddling with the princess combs, mirrors, pink-themed dressing tables. To my disappointment, The Etude House was the only brand I mentioned here that doesn't have this cute shop in Spore... yet. I really hope there is one soon, cos it is too cute to be true.


LANEIGE





This is one of the Laneige dedicated shops in Korea which are not common some of the drugstores above are selling Laneige products too. Unlike in Singapore where counters are found in big departmental stores, Laneige products are pretty hard to find in full range. So if you are keen to purchase them in discounted prices, you really need to keep a look out for them. They are usually sold bits and pieces in random shops.



Being a loyal fan of Laneige, I wouldn't say it is the best brand so far, but it did work some wonders for me. They are usually water-based and they won't dry up your skin or clog your pores.

I like the whitening series as they are not really oily, but they really burn a big hole in the pocket. Laneige was one of the top-notch brands as marketed in Singapore, standing side by side with big players like Shiseido, Kose. However back in Korea, the product was not so of high-range which there are better and more expensive ones. I managed to get a couple of the whitening series while shopping in Korea which prices were about, 30% cheaper than in Spore. Most interesting of all, they gave out samples of the new products generously. I once tested on the day-night dual eye cream and it was pretty good. But have to wait for a few months or NEVER to see it launch in Singapore.

Well, I could be tapping on you guys if you are going to Korea.... :-) Anyone going so far?

Friday, August 10, 2007

I had the same dream last Sunday


I dreamt I was on an adventurous vacation, somewhat like OBS camp or something, but it was by air. It wasn't on an airplane or anything, it was a ride high above the sky, like sitting on a hot air balloon. But the feeling was more like sitting in an airjet. What I've remembered was there were few other people with me, whom I dunno.




It was a journey taken place at night and looked something like this.






and slowly, the dawn drew in, like a new morning arrived.Publish Post






I felt amazing because it was rare that you would dream the same dream twice. And this time round, it felt so real that even I've woke up from it, I was still mesmerised by the beauty with the thought of it.


Guoqing was saying that we could try out the hot air balloon (the DHL logo one...) next to Parkview to fulfill my dream. Well, perhaps the more ideal one could be trying out the hotair balloon ride in Australia. =)


So some planning has to be done... well, not yet.

Thursday, August 02, 2007

My colleague Elaine left our organization to pursue her dreams in Shanghai.

I drew this for her after her new haircut.


It wasn't something new or unexpected cos she had this intention in the first place after staying 1 mth in govt body. It was the pace and the non-value added tasks she was asked to do. She was not quite a task-driven person but rather a person who was more motivated in seeing things built and done and results seen after meetings/discussions.

Not only a loyal lunch-mate, she was one of the best colleagues I've met during my 6 years working life. She offered advices when I was moving house that time, and generously offered me an electric iron and a hairdryer for my moving in, understanding the financial difficulties I was facing that time.


btw the above are the gifts we bought for her as farewell.

Will miss her terribly.... hope to visit her in Shanghai soon. I've told her to reserve a bed for for me there just in case I come to visit.