Thursday, December 31, 2009

Happy New Year 2010!

Should old acquaintance be forgot

and never brought to mind?

Should old acquaintance be forgot

and auld lang syne?

For auld lang syne, my dear,
for auld lang syne,
we'll take a cup of kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.



Again, it's the ending of another year & the beginning of a new one. May all old acquaintances be not forgotten & always brought to mind.
So, Cheers & A Happy New Year to you, my dear friends! My heart-felt thanks to all who had supported me during the years. May all your Wishes & Dreams come true in the upcoming year! Bless You All!

Warmest Regards,
Nikita Hengbok

Friday, December 25, 2009

Sundown Festival Seoul'd Out 2009

12th Dec, 2009 ~ Annyong Hasaeyo! Saranghaeyo!
Haha... that's 'Hello' & 'I love you' in Korean. Hengbok, my online nick, is 'Happiness' in Korean. It all started coz I used to love Kpop, that's Korean pop songs for those not in the loop. Beside, many mistook me for a Korean. Certain people had mistaken certain pics of me for Lee Hyori, a Korean singer. Even my dad, when saw a pic of BoA, thought it was me! xD
Anyway, my Kpop era was of the 90s' & my favorite group was H.O.T. Favorite singer is BoA. I used be fanatic over them, collecting all their albums, MTV & concerts. However, my interest in Korean music had waned as I don't quite like the new changes in Kpop.
Then out of the blue, Jan, one of my FaceBook friend, a German guy working for a company based here, contacted me, asking would I like to attend the Sundown Festival Seoul'd Out 2009 at Fort Canning? I knew about the event from the news, but had no plan for attending as there's an entrance fee. Furthermore, as mentioned, I've not much interest in the current Kpop. But Jan told me he knows the event's main organizer & can get me in for free, as VIP. So I thought, why not? =P

Sundown Festival Seoul'd Out 2009


Met up with Jan whom, beside me, brought along 2 other girls, Jae & Sha. Together, we went up Canning Hill & upon nearing the event venue... Oh my! The queue was nearly a kilometer long from the entrance! No problem, as Jan assured us that we will get in long before them. We went all the way to the front of the queue & waited for Jan's organizer friend at the entrance. Jan's friend brought us to the VIP tent nearby in which we were each given a paper wrist band & thankfully for that, we sort of 'jumped' the queue. Envied by those in the long queue we were! Heehee... =P

VIPs by default xD

Hamster celebrity @Seoul'd Out 2009 =P



I was quite surprise by the huge turnout of thousands of mostly teenage fans. Back then in my time, Kpop had only a tiny following locally compared to the more popular Jpop(Japanese pops). I had much difficulties in getting my favorite Korean music albums. Had to specially ordered from the few specialize Korean product shops. Glad to see that things had changed.

Stage Front

Kpop Fans



We settled down far from the stage, away from the crowd. Why? Because we are not exactly fans & do not want to mess with the tightly packed crowd & chiefly, Sha wanna be near the liquor tent where she intended to get drunk! LOL! =P

Preparation for drunkenness! xD


We were joined briefly by Jayce, an online friend of mine who saw me while she was queuing.

From left to right: Jayce, me, Jan, Jae with Sha in the front.


With some drinks in her, Sha was eager to learn some Korean words & I taught her a few. Only problem is, she kept forgetting. So she wrote the words on her fingers & you know what? Whenever someone who looks vaguely like a Korean passed nearby us, she would takes a quick glance at her written fingers, approach the unfortunate victim & with heavy accented or worse, complete mispronunciations, shouted "Annyong Hasaeyo!" or "Saranghaeyo!" at him/her! You should see the looks of some of those who are Korean! They dunno whether to be angry, puzzle or laugh! LOL! =P
A couple of those who Sha tried her abused Korean language on were 2 little Korean kids. They mistook us for performers of the show & not to disappoint or shatter their illusion, we took a pic with them. =P

Fan's service for Korean kids xD


Sha is such a funny fun-loving gal! She told us her survive kit consist of a toothbrush which she promptly took it out of her handbag & started brushing her teeth on the spot... with vodka! We always knew which cup is hers. The 1 with the toothbrush in it! LOL! xD
She is very mischievous too. Earlier, while waiting for Jan's friend at the entrance, we saw a fan who is holding a big placard with a cellphone number on it. Upon seeing that, Sha immediately called that number & when it was answered, she said "Hello sir, your Indian curry is ready. Please collect it." & "You ordered Indian curry, right?" OMG! We had a good laugh over that! =P



Jan was also having a fun time, drinking & making cheeky passes at a lady. So much so that the poor lady had to bring her boyfriend to show Jan that she is not available & after she caught Jan kissing Jae, game over! I guess all is fair at love & war. Back off, loverboy! xD
Truth to be told, it was all in good clean fun. Jan was just being playful & wasn't serious in making any unruly advance towards that lady.

Us with Jan's target, her boyfriend at present. =P


Later, a friend of Sha, Philip came & have a few drinks with us. He's a Serb working at a local Italian restaurant. Told us he was lured to this country by a local girl. They had broke up & he was now stuck here. Anyway, we formed quite an international group with a quiet Hamster, a spunky Indian, a cheerful Chinese, a heart-broken Serb & a rowdy German. With us gathering at a Kpop concert which almost all of us do not understand the language, making us quite the crazy bunch! xD
*If the people mentioned above were reading this entry, a personal message from me: It's a pleasure meeting you! You guys ROX!

Victory to the Crazy International Bunch! =P


And now, let the real show begin! The concert started off with some Korean cultural performances.

Korean Culture Show


Followed by a musical art performance which artists do amazing paintings in conjunction with high energy music.

The Drawing Show


Next on the list is the acclaimed JinJo Crew - B*Boy Dancers doing their highly intricate style of dancing.

Complex & gravity defying performance


After which, came on Mario& singing duet with Park Si Nae.

Singing Duo


More Kpop hits followed, sang by T-Max, an all-male trio. Guess they are very popular by the calls of encore which they obliged.

Maxing to the T


And it's the turn of the band known as F.T Island to belt it out.

Korean Rock & Roll?


Finally came what I'd been waiting for! A group which I have a little idea about regarding the current Korean pop music scene, the immensely popular Brown Eyed Girls! They consist of a quartet of pretty girls singing hybrid Hip-Hop music. Even though I might not have much interest in the current Kpop, I definitely loves seeing pretty girls performing on stage! =P

The Brown Eyed Girls


Seoul'd Out? Judging by the crowd, the concert was a sold out. It was quite an refreshing experience for me as well, a nostalgic link to my early teen years when Kpop rulz! xD

Fort Canning sang to the sound of Kpop


I didn't stay for the ending of the concert. Jan, Jae & Sha had left before the last performance. And I do not want to rush out with the crowd, so I left after watching some part of the Brown Eyed Girls' performance.
Before that evening, I'd planned to meet up with Nath at the SupperClub which is quite near to Fort Canning. We took a stroll as the night was cool & the X'mas street displays is nice to look at too.

X'mas Lights


Turned out that Nath had went to a friend's birthday party & will only be back after midnight. To my disappointment, SupperClub is smallish, with a tiny dance floor & very smoky. Only thing of interest was an amateurish fire bottles juggling performance at the bar counter with some beginner jugglers burning their hands when catching the bottles at the wrong fiery end. Ouch... =P

Playing with Fire


Went outside to wait for Nath & she showed up after 1am with some friends. Together we went back inside Supper Club, this time into VIP rooms Not much happening, not my kind of music. We split soon after. What an anti-climax to the earlier sexcitement of the evening.

High & Low Cuts xD

Thursday, December 24, 2009

Merry X'mas 2009

Wishing all my readers A Merry X'mas & A Happy New Year!

Love came down at Christmas;
Love all lovely, love divine;
Love was born at Christmas,
Stars and angels gave the sign.



Facebook Graphics Myspace Fairies Gothic Angels Mermaids

Wednesday, December 09, 2009

Sun With Moon Japanese Dining & Cafe

5th Dec. 2009 ~ One of the national hobbies of Singapore is eating. Many locals love to eat. All over the country, food courts, hawker centers, restaurants & cafes are almost always crowded with diners. Inevitably, food will always be 1 of the main topics in conversations & I hate it! Eat, eat, eat makes more & more fat, overweight people. Fatso lumbering around with walking pace like snail, blocking doorways or escalators & occupying 2 seats in public transports. In clubs, I'd seen herd of dancing elephants on rise-up dance area. What a horrible eyesore it was! And horror of horrors, there were these 3 pigs squeezed into a small dance cage meant for 2 slim girls! Monstrosity! Some of those fatso love to eat & yet keeps complaining about getting fat! They don't even want to do anything about their condition or have the determination of trying to lose weight. Worse are those who consoled themselves or telling each other that it's ok to be fat & fat is cute or hot/sexy even! OMFG! Talking about taking self-denial or delusion to the highest point! Sorry, I just have to say that. Now that I got that out of my system, lets go back to food. LOL! =P

First of all, I'm NOT a 'food person'. Secondly, I rarely blog about food & this entry is NOT a review of food, just my personal experience. With food, once in a blue moon, I like to indulge myself. Of all the food, my favorite are Japanese cuisine. Sashimi being my top favorite & I love beef too! xD

My favorite - Sashimi & beef!


My favorite food is also my soulmate's choice. We had heard quite a lot about the Japanese restaurant called 'Sun With Moon' & thought we give it a try. Went to the 1 at Wheelock Place. He be my Bright Shining Sun & I'll be his Cool Darling Moon. LOL! xD
From the menu, we ordered:

Sashimi Mori

Foie Gras Lettuce (Teriyaki Foie Gras canape).

Kaki Bacon Yaki (Teppan grilled oysters with spinach & bacon).

Wagyu Karubi Aburiyaki (Grilled sliced Australian Wagyu Kalbi beef).

and for dessert, Pumpkin Tiramisu.



Had some apprehension regarding the Foie Gras. I dislike eating offal. Even the thought of eating them gives me the creeps. Was once 'forced' to eat a piece of goose liver at a business dinner in China & OMG! I nearly vomited! This time, I was persuaded by my soulmate to try the Foie Gras at Sun With Moon. Was told it would be different. When the Foie Gras came, I looked at it with utter suspicion. Seems fine. Doesn't look like the 1 I nearly vomited out. Crispy fried on top of a piece of bread & lettuce. Alright, here goes nothing...

Eating Foie Gras With Apprehension xD


Gathering my courage, I bite into Foie Gras & bravely, I managed to swallow it all even though I had to drown it with lots of ocha. Didn't really taste as bad as I had expected. LOL! =P
My soulmate told me I ought to try the French version. According to him, it taste like nothing in the world. We shall see about that. xD
Foie Gras, I might be wary about, but Tiramisu is another story. I love Tiramisu & the one at Sun With Moon didn't disappoint.

Keep away from my Yummy Tiramisu! =P


All in all, Sun With Moon was a delightful experience with great ambience & wonderful food. However, I have 1 complaint. The delicious sashimi for 2 pax is too little for the price! Only 2 slices for each of us! Simply NOT enough! I want more! LOL! xD
If it's not for the place being a little too pricey, I would like to dine there more often. xD

Thursday, December 03, 2009

The Lecher & The Troll

This is a joint entry by my soulmate & me in reply to what a lying scheming troll had posted in it's blog accusing us of spreading rumors. Yes, we referred to her as 'it' or 'troll' cos she has no respect for even herself. She had lost her dignity as a human being, thus cannot be treated like one. In the beginning, we have no wish to said anything about all that had happened. However, we were forced to retaliated to protect our reputation when the guy, a lecher who was involved in the whole episode, started lying about the whole thing to a friend of mine, Felicia. I'd blocked the lecher from all my sites, so he contacted Felicia & thinking that she dunno about the whole thing, started lying to her, telling her that we were out to cheat his money. He is so stupid in not knowing that Felicia is in contact with me. My soulmate put up a pic & a write-up in his FaceBook as proof that the guy was lying.
This is the pic posted:

From left to right: Me, Felicia, the lecher, Nath & the troll.


The guy in the center of the pic is the lecher I mentioned. His name is Stavros Nicholas & this is his Flickr page: http://www.flickr.com/people/lifes__too_short__to__drink__cheap__wine/
This is his FaceBook: http://www.facebook.com/stavros.8

After the pic & write-up was put up, the lecher stopped bothering Felicia. We let it passed as a bad experience. Now come the troll's turn, with insults in its blog. We use screen caps in case the troll delete its own entry, start denying & lie as it habitually does. It had deleted 3 blogs as far as we know cos too many people hated the troll too much due to its bad habits & characters. This is the entry that was put up. It's in 2 parts as the original pic is too big:

Please click for larger view.


Please click for larger view.



The troll name is Chua Ying Ling, the large one on the far right of the pic above. This is its blog: http://mdmboss.xanga.com/
If you bother to read the entries, you will notice that what's being stated, claimed, proclaimed were so contradictory. The troll is a seasoned bare-face liar, a backstabber & a schemer just to state the least of all its worst personality.

This is the whole story. The lecher, Stavros, is from San Francisco, USA. He was one of my Flickr contacts, a causal online friend. A couple of months ago, he came here to meet me. Before that, he messaged me saying he will be staying from the evening of 30th Sept & flying off on 6th Oct. He also told me he will pay for all expenses for my trouble & time for guiding/showing him around the place. He also mentioned that he loves clubbing & so I roped in 1 of my female friend, Nath, to help out coz I'm not exactly a clubber myself.
On the evening of his arrival, my soulmate & me met him at his hotel lobby. Upon seeing us, Stavros again reassured us that he will be paying for everything whenever we are with him, showing him around. He did not want to impose on us cos we are really just strangers. He also told the same thing to Nath too.
On his first night here, we brought Stavros to a club where Nath had arranged to meet us. We went in to party & the troll(Chua) was there too. Nath introduced troll to us & from there onward, troll attached to our group like a leech. Soon after, I learned from Nath that troll loves ONS(One Night Stands), especially with Caucasian. Not rumor. The troll even proudly proclaimed it in its blog.
Here's a screen cap from troll's blog:

Please click for larger view.


Despite troll's promises to itself as in its blog, it continued with its old shitty lifestyles. It claimed that was all in the past & had changed, but it's still happening in the present. Back to the story...

Upon seeing Stavros, troll commented to us that he is not cute nor handsome. Upon hearing that, I was thinking to myself, "What a cheek. She was so FAT & UGLY and yet commented so badly on Stavros who is not exactly that bad looking." Ok, never mind. I mind my own business. Over the next 4 days, Stavros paid for everything & troll stuck to us. We did not invite her, but since Stavros seem fine with her coming along, so we left that issue alone. During those time, Stavros was trying to hit on me, but I rejected his advances cos I'm not interested. He kept trying & I kept rejecting. He also tried his luck on Nath, but she too has no interest in him. Now, all this time, troll was trying to hit on Stavros despite her proclamation of him not handsome. We saw troll hugging him, kissing him, really throwing itself on him. At one occasion, the troll was using her fat body to rub against him, front to front & grabbing his head with both hands, forcefully kissing him on the lips. Troll was desperate, lusted for him. As Stavros was more interested in me or Nath, he ignored her advances at first. Who could blame him... troll is really FAT & really UGLY! On the 4th evening, after trying for 4 days which Stavros couldn't get me or Nath, he succumbed to the troll. They had sex that night. On the 5th day, we noticed Stavros reluctance to pay for many things whenever troll was around. Before this, my soulmate had paid for certain things voluntarily. We both took days off from work to show Stavros around not to mention the cab fare that costed us double returning home after midnight every night cos Stavros loves clubbing so much. When Stavros bluntly stopped paying & with troll backing him, wanting my soulmate who is the only other guy in the group to pay, we walked off. The next day, Stavros text me a lie, claiming that he is flying off now. I text back that he's lying. He tried calling me, but I refused to answer his calls. We knew it was a lie cos Stavros' schedule was fixed, not changeable. We believe troll had a hand in creating the lie. This lie was exposed when troll boasted to Nath about having dinner with Stavros on that evening at a classy restaurant. This very dinner which troll is so boastful of, is suppose to be my birthday dinner with Stavros & everyone.
The whole issue was not about troll having sex with Stavros. I couldn't care less about that. I wasn't interested in Stavros anyway. Beside, I've my soulmate already & am not a flirt. Troll apparently thought I was jealous of her. LOL! What a joke! It has no chance, like a snowflake in hell, if I am interested in Stavros!

What pissed us off is the despicable actions of the troll for its selfish greed of wanting Stavros all to itself & cut the rest of us off. The troll isn't Stavros' friend in the first place. It's an intruder who schemed from the day it met Stavros to get him for its own selfish lust without any consideration for anyone. The troll influenced Stavros not to honor our arrangement in regards to paying for all expenses so that he will use all his money on it. And Stavros was stupid enough to go along with troll's scheme. Troll's selfish motives cost me a friend, a friend not worth having anyway, but still 5 days of time, effort & money wasted! All because that FAT & UGLY BITCHY TROLL wanted to FUCK him every minute of the day & did despiteful things just to get it! Such a desperate fat slut! We wanted to put all that behind us, but the troll won't let it go by putting up an insulting entry in its blog, thus this entry comes into being with my soulmate's direct answer to the lecher & the troll:

This is Mouse writing now, same as the SiaoMouse troll mentioned in its recent blog entry.

To Stavros:
Know why I tagged you as lecher? Think I dunno what's going on during those few days? Didn't you even read Niki's Flickr profile? You're a bigger fool than I thought so. Niki & me, we're soulmate & have no secret between us. Whatever you said or did to her, she told me. Yep, she told me you wanna bring her back to San Francisco with you. She also told me you sneaked up behind her & kissed her the night the group of us were walking along the river. Oh... I saw that myself too. And the time on the dance floor, you were rubbing your groin at Niki's back & she had to begged Nath to change place with her. The way you secretly tries to hug Niki? Think I'm blind or stupid? Anyone tries to do any funny business with Niki, I can feel it. Forgotten what I'd told you in your hotel room? Think I'm lying or boasting?
At that time, Niki did not want to make a fuss cos she's a nice girl & you are supposed to be her friend, but that does not mean you can impose yourself on her, you lecher! Niki might be a little playful once in a while, but she won't go far in teasing a guy & won't even do it without me around. Remember the night when she got tipsy? When she is in that condition, she won't let any guy to come near her, except me. Niki's not the type of girl you & many people thought of as. She's no flirt. You should have paid more attention to her write-up in her Flickr profile. I'm not the jealous type. Am telling you that you did not behave like a gentleman, lying about what happened, after we had shown you courtesy. In return, you abused our trust & yet you dare lied to Felicia? No surprise you have no girlfriend at your age. And no wonder you succumbed to the troll's sexual advance. What a disgusting thought that is! You are an undignified piece of shitty scum!

To the FAT & UGLY troll:
That pic in my FaceBook was posted in response to Stavros' lies. If you had stayed silent, all these wouldn't surface. But no, you have a big ego with huge inferiority complex. Since you wanna declare war, then lets begin.
To refresh your lousy memory, lets view a few entries from your blog:

Please click for larger view.

Holy Moly, I am FAT!


Now, what did you said in your entries? You called yourself FAT & UGLY & is disgusted with yourself. Can you blame anyone who called you what you had labeled yourself? You accused us of spreading rumors? What rumor? There's no rumors, only facts! You wanna change what had happened by lying? You forgotten that we were there & there are witnesses? Do your stupid pea of a brain know what's called 'rumor'? We were stating facts! Prove it otherwise, you stupid fat troll!
You called me a tiko pek dirty photographer. Now, that's spreading rumor, unfounded allegation of me, slandering my person. What proof do you have that I'm a tiko? Did I touch you? Other than Niki, did I anyhow touch any girl? You are the one spreading rumors, troll!
Oh, you're full of shit too. You stated that you couldn't be bother about the pic I put up in my FaceBook. Why then bother to write that entry in your blog referring to that pic? It bothered you a lot, doesn't it?
You stated that FAT is HOT. Haha! Look at what you posted above? If fat is hot, why did you bother to try slim down by stating "wait for the day i become slim okay?" You should try to be as fat as possible, like a hot air balloon! Well, that's really an unfair comparison, an insult to the balloon. At least the balloon is light for its size, can float, travel silently & gracefully while you are a big heavy lump of ugly fat, loud & ungainly. Guys told you that you are hot? ROFL! What a joke! You are giving away freebies & there are many desperate guys out there. Free sex freebies? Why not? What you picked up are actually the losers, guys who were rejected by all the girls. That means you are just a trash collector. It fits your image, you know? Those guys who are willing to bed you are desperadoes. And of course any guy will tell any girl that she is hot just hoping to have sex with her. What's new? And what kind of girl goes to sleazy Thai disco regularly anyway? Only trolls who wanna get laid any which way by whatever. You are having a BIG delusion of grandeur matchable to your size & ego.
You think I am one of those little kids that you hang out with? Easily fooled & lord over? Think I didn't see through all your shallow lies? You visualized yourself as boss, but to me, you're nothing. Just an ugly kiddish troll out to do evil mischief. Think I can be blinded by your schemes? When one keep silent doesn't means one is a fool, you know? Tell you something. I dislike you the first time I saw you at Nath's birthday when you were doing the BBQ. I can read you already without even knowing you. I felt the evil in you. Wear a mask you said. Of course I did! It's for Niki's sake I did or I won't even tolerate your presence. Niki is a kind-hearted soul, always giving people benefit of the doubt & chances. She told me to back down. You will never be in the group with Stavros if I had my way & all this won't happened. And yes, the rest of the girls in that pic are angels compared to you. It's not about looks nor size, but about personality. You are a disgrace, a curse to your family, especially to your grandfather. After you told me, I'd seen pics of him. If he knew what you are up to outside your home, he will definitely gets a heart attack! Not that I wanna curse him or your family. It's you at fault. Remember my words to you in Stavros' hotel room? What I told you are not advices, but in actual fact, a warning. You blame everyone for what had befallen you, but did you remember what your brother told you? You wanna laugh at others? Take a good look at your own countless flaws first. You have more to be laugh at, loser.

Your brother's wise words to you.


You swore upon your family's name not to post up my pic. You can try post it if you dare. I'd been trying for more than 10 years proving & testing myself wrong, but it never happened. Wanna prove me wrong? Post my pic & see? I don't care if you want to accelerate the process of your inevitable downfall. Perhaps you should ask your grandpa about what I am. You dunno anything about me, nothing at all cos you have never encountered anything the likes of me. You will regret having me as your enemy, troll. C'mon, bring it on, make my day, punk!

Saturday, November 21, 2009

Cutie Caterpillar

19th Nov ~ While walking along Orchard Road on one Thursday morning, from the corner of my eyes, I caught a striking sparkling colored tiny object moving on top of a dustbin. Went for a closer look & OMG! What's the furry little cutie thing crawling towards the ashtray?!? It's a Caterpillar! I sounded like a country bumpkin... no, correction... a city girl who had never see such a sight, but I really haven't seen such colorful pretty caterpillar before! All I'd seen are those fat green, yellow or brown ones, some with polka dots, some hairy, but nothing this fascinating! Its back looks like it's carrying 4 stacks of bright orange furs with black strips in between, looking like a bumble bee. There are even 2 eyes-like projections protruding from those stacks. Its head is a bright purplish-red with 2 black furry feelers nodding forward & backward when it crawls. The tail end is a grey blueish-green with black & red dots. All over its body are covered with fine long white silky strands of hairs. Isn't it cute? xD

Cutie Caterpillar on a dustbin top


Seems nice to touch, like a plush toy, no? NO! I might be a silly city girl, but I knew that in nature, especially with insects, reptiles, amphibians or certain marine creatures, anything that colorful or showy are the most dangerous & poisonous! I believe this caterpillar's bumble bee-looking back with false eyes is a bluff, a defense against predator & it's bright fanciful colors, a kind of warning sign. No way this little Hamster is gonna touch that little guy! =P
As it looked so lost on that dustbin, so my friend, using a leaf, carried it & put it on a bush nearby.

Caterpillar Leafy Highway


It doesn't seem to like it, so it was transferred to a tree which we thought it might had fallen from. This suited it better as it happily crawled up the trunk. We said good bye to it & went on our way.

Bye-bye Cutie Caterpillar! xD


Spent about 20mins trying to take good pics of this little guy with my cellphone camera as I didn't had my usual camera with me. Those above pics are the best ones. What a pity, coming across such beauty without my camera!
Even took a video of this little guy. The way it moved with its nodding feelers was really cute. You just gotta check it out. xD

Video of Cutie Caterpillar:


Was wondering what kind of caterpillar is it that looked so cute & beautiful. Thought to myself that it might morph into some brilliantly colored butterfly. Got home & search online for it. To my utter surprise, I was wrong. It's an Ugly Duckling story, in reverse! LOL! xD
It's a caterpillar of a dull Tussock Moth.

But I'm correct on 1 thing. These little critters are very poisonous.
Introduction to Tussock moth caterpillar poisoning:
A hairy, bright-colored caterpillar which can cause skin symptoms on contact with the hair. Inhalation of the hairs can cause respiratory symptoms and eye exposure can also result in symptoms. Patients with pre-existing asthma or atopic allergies may suffer more severe symptoms.

Symptoms of Tussock Moth caterpillar poisoning, mentioned from various sources, includes the 10 symptoms listed below:
* Urticaria
* Skin rash
* Conjunctivitis
* Wheezing
* Bronchospasm
* Itchy skin
* Red skin
* Skin swelling
* Respiratory problems
* Blistered skin
Reference: http://www.wrongdiagnosis.com/t/tussock_moth_caterpillar_poisoning/intro.htm

Now, that's scary. Cute & pretty, but deadly! So, unless you are very knowledgeable, please do not touch or handle anything that's cute, pretty or colorful in nature, especially of insects, reptiles, amphibians & some marine creatures. The prettier they look, the more dangerous & very poisonous they will be. Sounds like some females of the human species too eh? Get the drift? LOL! =P

Have a Great Weekend. xD

Friday, November 20, 2009

Leonid Meteor Shower

18th November ~ 3am on a cold Wednesday night, I eagerly went down to a park nearby. The park was quite brightly lighted & I wished for a darker place, but it will have to do. On the other hand, the sky was quite clear of clouds. Am I crazy or what? No, there was a reason for my crazy behaviors. First off, I'd a bodyguard with me & secondly, I'm sexcited with anticipation. I'm watching for the Leonid Meteor Shower.
Info about Leonid Meteor Shower: Link 1, Link 2.

Since young, I have a fascination of watching the sky, especially at night. I love star gazing! When in primary school, most children opts for Zoology Club as an ECA(Extra Curriculum Activity). Me & a very few others joined the Astronomy Club. This interest of sky gazing have stay with me till today. However, I am no hobbyist astronomer. I can name a few stars, planets & constellations. That's all to my knowledge of the sky. Anything with too much scientific or technological details, my mind will freeze & eyes graze over. I'd seen the Milky Way at Tioman & that magnificent sight overwhelmed me so much so that I am scare of it even! Without much profound knowledge, I'm just a little hamster who love to watch the sky. =P

In a bright city, it's not easy to see shooting star, but I'd managed to see a few colorful ones. My first encounter with meteor shower was also the Leonid Meteor Shower. It was in 1999, a little young schoolgirl with a few friends went to East Coast Park to watch the night show. That night, I counted 13 hairline streaks. When I saw on the news a few days ago that Leonid Meteor Shower will be visiting Earth again, I was pretty sexcited about it. That's why I was up on a cold morning at 3am, in a park clanking my head looking up at the night sky. In spite of being in a place much brighter than my first encounter with Leonid Meteor Shower, it was actually a more spectacular experience.
I counted 7, much less than my first time, BUT they were fantastic! From my first experience, I expected only hairline streaks. This time, what I saw wasn't anything I'm expecting! At 3.30am, when I sighted the first one, it was like a thick long blueish-green laser beam flashing across the sky! I wasn't expecting that! OMG! It was so UNBELIEVABLE! I was so shocked that I screamed so loud I might had frighten all the frogs, toads & crickets in the field! LOL! xD

My little point-and-shoot camera is not up to the task of photographing shooting star, hence the following image used was taken by Alan Holmes of Santa Barbara Instrument Group.

Leonid Meteor Shower Fire in the sky


What an awesome experience it was, watching the display given by Leonid Meteor Shower. I love shooting star & hope to see more of them. Oh... I always make a wish whenever I saw one & hope all my wishes come true. =P
Here for the record, shooting stars I had sighted so far:
1999 ~ Leonid Meteor Shower @East Coast Park. Counted 13 hairline streaks.
2004 ~ Green shooting star sighted at Pasir Ris Park traveling towards the North.
2006 ~ Slow moving orange fireball sighted at Bedok North Ave. 4, Blk. 85 hawker centre.
2008 ~ Blue shooting star sighted at Circuit Road hawker centre.
2009, 18 Nov ~ Leonid Meteor Shower @brightly lighted park near MacPherson. Counted 7 big bright ones.

Saturday, November 07, 2009

Republic of Singapore Air Force Museum

27th October, Tuesday ~ This is an out-of-sequence entry. I'd meant to blog about this earlier, but other events took priority, like The French Stall official opening & Halloween which are previous entries in my blog. Nevertheless, I make up for this late entry with lots of fotos! xD

If you like aircraft, I mean military aircraft, not airliner, where would you go? You can station yourself near an airbase with camera at ready. Nowadays, that might not be a good idea. Most probably you will be arrested on suspicion as a spy or a terrorist. Haha... well, you can always wait for an air show to come by, but what if there isn't any at long period of time? The best course is to visit an air museum, like one which I went recently, the RSAF Museum or known as the Air Force Museum in Singapore.

Air Force Museum


I knew about the Air Force Museum for some time now, but couldn't find the time to visit it. Now, I can & frankly speaking, I'm sexcited! I love military aircraft! Ya, ya, ya... I know I am a weird girl. Many people thought so too! I love military stuffs, guns, tanks & best of all, those Big Bad Mean Warbirds! Not that I love war, but those tough fighting machines... something very macho about them, turns me on. I'm nuts! LOL! xD

Big Bad Mean Warbirds


The problem with me is I am not good at identifying them, except for a few types, like my favorite, the attack copter, awesome Apache. So every time I sees a military aircraft in the sky, I will go at my soulmate like 'What is that?" or "What does it do?" Luckily, my soulmate is quite the expert at ID-ing military aircraft. He is so good that he can ID an aircraft from just a glimpse of it's silhouette or from just its tail, wing or some other parts. He had tried to teach me, but I'm so lost with aircraft terminology. Therefore, the ID of aircraft in my pics are all by him.

Upon our arrival at the Air Force Museum, we were greeted by the marvelous sight of 2 aircraft in the air supported by pillar. WOW!

A-4S Skyhawk & Hawker Hunter


Look at all those fabulous warbirds! I can even walk up to many aircraft at the museum & touch them! Weeeeee... this is WILD! =P
And there's a BIG missile on display. My soulmate told me that's a SAM(Surface-to-Air Missile) used by ground force to knock down enemy aircraft. It's a Bloodhound & it's so very cool! Hanging from the ceiling are some small cute aircraft. I like to pilot those! Haha... but my aircraft guru said those are UAV(Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) or drones, flown by remote control, no pilot needed. Alright, alright... let me get my itchy little hands on those jet fighters! Correction, many of those are actually fighter-bombers or trainers as according to him! Grrr... let me have those copters there! xD

Jets & Props

Fixed wings & rotary wing

BAC Bloodhound

Ceiling display



After looking at the planes, my aircraft expert stated that quite a few of those aircraft were from the Vietnam War era. These are what he listed of aircraft currently displayed at the Air Force Museum:
Hawker Hunter F.74S
McDonnell Douglas A-4S Skyhawk
McDonnell Douglas TA-4SU Super Skyhawk
BAC Strikemaster Mk.84
Lockheed T-33A Shooting Star
Aermacchi SF.260
Aermacchi S-211
Cessna 172 Skyhawk
Bell UH-1B Iroquois or commonly known as the 'Huey'.
Aerospatiale SA 316B Alouette III
Eurocopter AS350
RQ-2 Pioneer UAV
together with 2 other UAVs or drones & of course the BAC Bloodhound missile.

Ok, lets get the technicality over with! I wanna play with those beautiful warbirds! LOL! xD

Hamster Crew Chief! =P


First, lets try out the choppers. Rewind back to Nam... watch out Charlie! Here comes Ride of The Valkyries! Gung Ho Hamster Air Cavalry ready to rock & roll! Birddog confirmed target. Gunships clear the field! This is a Free Fire Zone! Call in the air strike! I love the smell of napalm in the morning. Smells like victory! LOL! xD

Air Cavalry

Apocalypse Now!

DustOff!


And here comes the jets...

My Eagle Flights

HATO = Hamster Assisted Take Off xD


Time to bug out of Nam, Hamster! Get the hell back to The World. You have got a plane to catch. Props coming in. Props? Oh... propeller-driven aircraft are called 'props'.

To Catch a Flight! =P


Sigh... what an experience! With images of dogfights & firefights still fresh in my mind, I wandered around in a daze admiring strange items. What's this? A bomb, a missile? No, that's a fuel tank & that's a rocket pod. Over there hanging under a pylon is an air-to-air missile, a AIM-9 Sidewinder & stop grabbing the guns, silly girl!

Fire hydrant, engine trouble & my fat tank! =P

Lock on!

TopGuns!


What are those funny markings on the aircraft? Those are national insignia to identify friend or foe. Some are either nose art or squadron insignia or warning signs.

National Insignias, past to present

Nose Art Girl! =P


On the day we were there, a group of NCC Air cadets were also visiting the museum. I wonder what they thought of the silly girl who was running around those hardwares posing for pics like crazy. xD

National Cadet Corps group pic


Above the hangar, on the 2nd level, there's an indoor gallery.

Welcome!


At the indoor gallery, rows of uniforms & suits are on display. Displays include terrain maps, air control boards, ordnance & some other gizmo too technical for my Hamster brain. However, I do get an idea on how an air force operates & my training for fighter pilot started there. xD

First, the uniforms...

From office wear to flight suit


Learn the call-signs, use the radar & always check your 6!

Air control, there's something on my tail! =P


Get acquaintance with the ejection seat & training in a simulator.

Eject the pilot trainee! xD


After my training, my Flight Commander gave me my very first mission.

My First Mission! =P


Flight Commander told me to go to the hangar, salute those veteran warbirds, don't twitch their tail or they will kiss your ass goodbye! Well... I'm a stubborn Hamster & I put those oldies to the test!

Salute, Tail Twitched & Butt Kissed! xD


Oh manz, those old machines really kick ass! Not much of them around now, but it's nice seeing them. Old soldier don't die. They just quietly fade away. Hopefully, some might end their glorious days as display for the younger generations to admire, like this little Hamster for one. Really enjoyed the experience! I didn't say goodbye to them, but instead, I bid them farewell. Fare you well, my friends. You will stay in my memory for a long long time. May your glory last forever! Au revoir!

Operational Check


Note: More and bigger pics in my Flickr album.