White Boats

This one is rather special with some light editing.
Simple subject yet very poignant or maybe it’s just me but I liked it.
Even before I snapped it I saw the image in my head and felt it was going to be special.

In the sky

This one is a rather unusual picture.
Feels a little eerie no?
Not sure why it evokes that emotion in me.

What you think?

Don't take pictures of people

What?? But that is what I do best and my love of photography comes from the fact that I can capture people when in their natural elements basically being themselves and going about their own business. Did I listen?? Well eventually but this was taken before I was warned. Perhaps not my favourite but one that I like a lot. Sometimes the best shots are the ones that looked posed but are not.

M

Online Again

A must in any hotel, is free wifi. Its just has to be. Come we are an online generation, so whatever same of form we should be able to get on the Net quickly and easily.

So I am glad to be back in St Laurn, where free Wifi is available with these Prepaid card. Not the best but it'll do.

M wified

Back in Hinjewadi

As the week starts we are back in Hinjewadi, which is where our Tech Park and our partner's office is located. This IT Park is the first of 3 phases were some ultra modern and stunning building housing 1000s, yes 1000s, of engineers. This being a relatively new place there is still quite a bit of development required so the usual contrast still exists where you see country against modernism. Another good thing is that my trip is at its tail end and I am looking forward to going home.

To make things worse, we had to make some last minute changes and are now waitlisted on the ideal flight and confirmed on the not so. Oh well the joys of business travel.

M waitlisted

Cheap but Good

Whenever I come to India there are only a few things that I buy to bring back home. One of the things I love to buy is books. It may be surprising but India has such a wide and large selection of cheap and good books. Best of all, there are books that you cannot find back home. Cheap you say?? Let me break it down for you. I bought 10 books, and I am talking full length novels here for SGD 65, all brand new and some are even new arrivals.

I have found that Indians being a literally expressive race have an unsurprisingly great selection of authors and the number of Indian Booker Prize winners to tantalize the avid reader. And of course there is R.K. Narayan who is one of my favorite Indian authors. My total selection was 15 books, yeah excessive you may say, at least I have got my reading for the next 2 years sorted out.

M Booked

Running on Empty

Initially I meant the above picture for my previous post on Glorious Food, but since I have not had Internet connection for a few days, I felt that I can use this picture better for this post. If you noticed something about this picture, it shows some of the glorious food that India has to offer and I feel fortunate to have this opportunity to travel for work. However, there is one down side here to business travel. If you have keen eyes, you can see amongst the savories there is an empty chair.

Many a times, meals are eaten alone. It can get lonely as one of my first posts motioned eating alone can be uplifting but if it is done on a regular basis it can get depressing. I apologies for the somber post despite the uplifting picture, but I miss my wife bottom-line, especially over the past weekend. She is my usual makan kaki, and this time the empty chair is a tribute to my one and only.

M missing you.

Food glorious food

Well to most outsiders when you think of travelling to India and food, the result is very often "Delhi Belly".

Yeah the foods dirty, it's not cooked properly, it's not fresh or it's not beef it's actually dog are some of the terms I heard being tossed around.

I disagree!

Food here is wonderful. The flavours are amazing and if you love Indian food then this place would be heaven. But strong ceaveat - EAT WITH MODERATION.

Overeating is usually the cause for stomach issues and if you ever do get food poisoning it's probably because you've drunk contaminated water. So stick with bottled water or what they call here as Bisleri. So travel without fear and enjoy.

M eating
(pics to follow as soon as I get a proper wifi; using illegal wifi at a shopping centre)

Fashion Faux Pas

I am no fashionista that is quite clear but I know what a clear violation is when I see one. Today I was that violation but this was more of a wakeup call. When on a business trip packing the right clothes for the right meeting is essential. So being one of those trips where there is a mix formal and informal events made the packing a little complex for me a light traveler. So when I got to India and needed to put on a tie, shirt and pants only to find my pants not being able to buckle, it was a conundrum of epic proportions.

I managed through the first day with my extremely tight fitting pants, but on the second day it proved too much and I resorted to this fashion faux pas. Yes pink shirt, black tie and grey Diesel jeans. I looked like Hunter, who was the lead role in a 80s police TV drama played by Fred Dryer but fat and minus the badge and gun.

Bottom line is I need to get myself to a gym and get serious about getting back into shape. Yes wife, this will make you happy.

M weightwatching

St Laurn Suites

I have to say that this hotel, or service apartment is more than what I expected. As always, the outside part of the hotel and the inside part are worlds apart. But this hotel is quite far out. If you look carefully, behind the bed is a transparent wardrode which has the bathroom and toilets behind it. The left corner picture is the entrance way to the bathroom. Top right corner is the kitchen with bar counter in foreground. What's missing is the couch and coffee table - it's there but I didn't take a picture of it. Bottom right is the swanky lobby. Not my idea of an Indian hotel. Impressed.

M white out.

Oxymoron?!!

M Amused!

Mandatory Horn

Well one thing you will be hearing for sure in India are the horns. It's a must! Signs are painted on the backs of trucks which read "Horn Please".

When the lights go green at a traffic junction in a matter of milliseconds the horns sound urging the guys in front to get a move on. It's almost cultural than precautionary.

But not just that, there is a sort of a parade when the lights are red. All sorts of vendors come onto the streets peddling their wares. Magazines, books (I mean actual novels), whistles, rags, ballons, nick nacks and the occasional beggar are some of what's on offer; well that's what I've seen so far. Such contrasts of people. And when the lights go green the horns blare.

M astounded

Cinemathique up 10ks

Worker bees can leave
Even drones can fly away
The queen is their slave

Taken from Fight Club. This movie explores our inner Tyler Durdans. It's a very different movie which does not explore a standard Hollywood movie storyline.

Perhaps that is why it is one of those movies that can be watched over and over without getting old. Cult movie. Key take away is "Stop trying to control everything and let go!"

It was this or Mamma Mia. I tried and didn't get pass the first 15 minutes.

M Krisflied

India calling

Call it the motherland but as an Indian I have little affinity for the subcontinent to be honest.

Being someone who grew up ashamed of being Indian because of the stereotyping, as I have gotten older the heritage has hit a chord more so when I visited which I think every Indian should.

I love the country because of it's simplicities and chaos. The sense of calm and at the same time vibrancy. It's quite unique. I hope to capture that on "film" in the coming days when time permits. I am there on business you know.

M travelling

Whattha Bargain!

I have always wanted a pair of Asics that can be used for everyday use. I love the sports shoes and I have been using them for a long time.

Unfortunately, I can't bring myself to buying a pair of shoes for $200+. So just my luck that I managed to find a warehouse sale at Suntec, where I got these babies at 40 bucks! Whattha Bargain!

M Onitsuka

A day with the girls

So Sonia's birthday was last Friday and as promised, we brought her to Build A Bear on Saturday. Evelyn was along for the ride as well and I am glad she was there.

They had such a great time and for SK and me, it was great to see them having so much fun.

After the bears, they voted for Swensens where the fun continued, literally. Thinking that they were tired out they continued for a full frame of bowling afterwhich they persuaded us to sleepover at our place. For the two adults it was laughs all the way. Looking forward to the next outing.

M can't wait

Quality Time

After not travelling for work in almost two odd years I am travelling again after my week long trip to Aix, this time to Pune, India.

I love to travel don't get me wrong but I usually end up missing my wife terribly and almost miserable by trip's end. Well same for her as well.

So as I embark on my trip we have nailed down some quality time together. All day together doing well basically nothing much other than eating, a massage and just being with each other. It's cool when quality time equals to doing nothing but just being together.

M Loved.

F1 2008 at an end

So for the fourth year in a row the championship has gone down to the final race of the season. Well the first two years, 2005 and 2006 it, was not down to the wire. But last year's race at Interlagos was a cracker and I hope this year's one will be the same too. But as the season has progressed on I guess for me personally, I have been a little disappointed with Ferrari. They have given away the championship this year with their pit stop shenanigans and lopesided strategies. They are essentially one driver team, just like all other top teams as well. Problem is that this year the two drivers in their teams are doing pretty badly the same way.

But my revelation this year is Alonso. I mean I disliked this guy with a vengeance during the 2005 and 2006 season (read my old blog posts), and sort of felt pity on him in 2007 when it was clear the favoritism to Lewy. But this year I think he has shown his mettle and has delivered the results. Two wins in a row, in a lesser car. Previously only two drivers, I can think of have done that, Schumacher and Senna. Not many other drivers have done that consistently.

Another revelation was Ferrari's President, Luca's criticism of the Singapore GP (my home GP) as a circus because of the safety car's usage. I guess the Italians have never really been good losers and Ferrari is the worst losers. So my love of Ferrari is waning as it did for Mclaren Honda when Senna left the team.

So ideal scenario will be,

1. Lewy does something stupid and Ferrari does a stuner and Massa wins as Kimi did last year
2. Alonso announces his move to Ferrari, with Kimi going on sabbatical
3. No sliverware for the British which is always good.

M Hopeful.

[picture credit: Getty Images]

Irony

It's funny how life works itself. My previous post was talking about how to not let our hearts be troubled and not let fear in but almost immediately after I posted this (well perhaps a day or so) some fearful news came my way. Thanks be to God that I was able to cling on to His promises and was able to ride through. So since last Friday I have been having a feeling like something was stuck in my throat. Not a bone that normally will have a piercing pain but more of a lump in my throat. It bothered me for the next few days and then the excessive hiccups started. When they came they were painful and my entire body would quiver, this was accompanied by more painful swallowing and heartburn.

Went to see a doctor on Monday after some scolding from the concerned wife and went on a course of antibiotics and told by Wednesday if no improvement a referral to a specialist would be prudent. So I patiently took my meds and waited for the recovery that did not come. So on Wednesday, I did what I NEVER do, but I was bored and in a long meeting. So I entered my symptoms "difficulty swallowing hiccups" into my Google Bar and stumbled into another colossal dumb move on my part. There it was "Symptoms of Esophageal Cancer". My heart sank as I read the article as out of the 7 symptoms listed I was experiencing 5 of them. Fear followed swiftly and my rejection of this "report" followed more swiftly after. I was not the same for the rest of the day but was putting my "preaching" into practice.

So on Thursday, after a quick referral and specialist consultation, from a guy who resembled Mr. Burns from the Simpsons, who I now affectionately refer to as "Mr. EEEEEEeeeee", the all clear was given. Praise the Lord! What I have now is gastro oesophageal reflux (acid reflux) which is easily fixed by eating smaller sized meals (should fit into my non existent diet plan).

So there you have it, life and its many ironies, but more inportantly God's favour as always being ever-present in our lives. So after this we know now that we are being prepared for something big and great. Hooray for the TWINS!

M expectant!

Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

In days such as these, there are so many things that can bring trouble to our hearts. No I am not talking about relationship causing heartache but everything. Stress, Anxiety, Anger, Frustration, Sadness, Sickness, Financial woes, etc, etc…the list goes on and on. There are more terms coined for negativities in life than there are positivity. As such the common result is we are fearful. Fear grips us in so many ways, when you know you are now going to have enough in the bank to pay the bills, when you think your partner is not where he/she should be or when you are heading for a deadline at work, but you have not started. What is more disturbing now is that the fear is gripping people who are even younger, it scary.

When such fear grips me I like to say to myself, "Peace…Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you… Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." It may sound rather simple but if you settle down for a minute and let these words sink in you feel a calm coming over you. It is as simple as that! Most of the fear that we face is self inflicted, step out of fear and into Peace… When fear normally grips you repeat these words and allow the words to overpower you and do not let the fear grip you.

Peace…Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you… Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.^J14:27

M not troubled. [Photo credit Getty Images]

Announcement girl

She's at it again. Announcement girl, I like to call her. Its 12.30am and she is analyzing away looking at some company's stock crafting the words to her report. My little tireless worker, who I admire so much. Don't work too hard, get good rest but she keeps at it till the day is done…

My old room

The other day I went back to Mayflower (my home since birth till marriage) to work on my parents’ computer and as I sat in my old room waiting for some files to be copied, I soaked in my old room. Although this was not always my room, it was the last abode I occupied till I moved out. Now, the room is clean and stark unlike how it used to be, cluttered and lived in. It was like my one room house. Everything I needed was there, I never had to leave this place, except for bio and food breaks.

It was a place of security where I shed tears, shared laughs with my friends and family, it was a place I ran to, my refuge. Do I miss it? Well no, not really. I am in love with my new home in Jalan Kayu. But I do love to reminisce of the carefree times that I spent in that room, discovering myself and becoming one with myself. It does not look much now, it’s a little brighter of course but it now looks almost clinical except for the curtains.

M wandering.

ICB

So what do those acronyms bring to mind? Ice Cold Beer, well perhaps but recently I came engaged in this acronym with a very different expansion (by the way that is the correct term to use with reference to acronyms – not just entertaining but educational as well...SO FULL!)

It's the International Children's Bible and the one I am raving about in particular is The Illustrated Bible. I mean "WOW!" if I had this as a kid I think my life would have been very different. It's illustrated like a comic book but the words are in actual Bible verse with chapter and verse numbers. It's so cool and for people who really do not like to read from their Bibles or rather who are afraid to start becase they fear they might get lost, this is a great alternative.

Highly recommended, the Bible comes ALIVE!! Brilliant, I say!!

M Feeding!

[Picture courtesy of Thomas Nelson]

10 days in the life of Notsurestofnamus Floragrenplantis

Over the past ten days I thought it fun to catalogue the growth of one of our new plants. So for the past 10 days I have been snapping pictures of its growth progress every morning. Ok it's not edge of your seat kinda stuff but.... Quite amazing actually when you think how much it has grown in 10 days and it's now ready to sustain its own life and that of others.

M going green.

Breakfast on the run

Breakfast, yes the most important meal of the day but often the most taken granted for. I usually skip breakfast, but when I have the luxury of time, I will get myself something worthy to be called a breakfast. So this week I decided to make it a point to have a proper sit-down breakfast every day. An experiment, you might call it. Condition is that I should have to go out of my way to get it, something either on the way to work or nearby. So as you can see the test subjects are quite sumptuous. I really can't remember the last time had such hearty consecutive breakfasts topped off with a cup of coffee or teh tarik.

So what are my findings, well of course, I head to work a happier person that is for sure. Energy levels are much better and I do not feel that tired or exhausted during the midday. At night I get tired and sleep well, this is a huge bonus for me, as some people who participated in Sleepers Anonymous at Maccers would recall. All in all, that is the upside. Downside, hahaha, yes there is one. I did not go to the gym at all. Hmmmm…down side. Yes lah, downside. I feel that I have put on weight; yeah I think I am a little bloated, water retention maybe...

M wishful.

Saying Goodbye

I have never had the experience of having a family member or someone close passing. I guess what makes me fortunate but death is eventual and inevitable for all of us.

Today after my bereavement training I realized that my inability to empathise is indeed worse than I expected or even had known. Almost to the point of insensitive. But, I am glad I had this opportunity to be under such great spiritual leadership from which I can learn so much.

All in all it was eye opening, I always believed in celebrating life and a person who leaves us although mournful at first we should rejoice that person's life and his/her addition to our lives.

Just that this was my thinking and it's not what everyone thinks. I guess I am at times too presumptuous. Well I am learning each day how to be better, not just in this area but in all.

Praise God for the school of life and to all my companions. That means YOU!

M Journeying.

Nothing like a good cuppa of Kopi in the morning, it puts things in perspective especially when faced with the sometimes daunting challenges ahead. In any case, sit back enjoy that cup and sometimes LIFE is so good that coffee is one thing that makes it better. Okay talking cock liao....

M satisfied!

Where is the love?

Car crazy I used to be but now I have resorted to the car wash at SPC rather than sending the car to the detailer. The love of cars is there but I guess the expression is more one of understanding and driving rather than cleaning to be honest. I still watch every episode of Top Gear and when I go to the magazine section I look for Car and F1 mags first and usually skip over the Maxims, FHMs, and whatever cheesy mags with skimpy laides they are pushing.

I guess it will always be a guy thing.

M sideways!

-I like Picasa 3

Birthdays, bad news and Babylon 5

Today is one of those days with a mix. Some expected bad news is now coming to light but in retrospect I know all will be well.

My FIL's birthday was celebrated with simplicity but lots of smiles and laughs. So while one family braced itself the other was relaxed and in high spirits. For me, I am just thankful for all things and I know that He is in charge.

As the world passes by my Babylon 5 download is still at 47.5% after one month of downloading. YMGC!

M waiting

Sacred Food

Other than my Wife's and Mum's cooking, which I hold sacred, there is little else that I can call sacred.

But there is one dish from a paritcular corner of SG, which I have come to call sacred to me. Bar Chor Mee!

As you can see we have something special and unique here. Our weekend ritual brings us to this coffeeshop at Blk 85C, Lorong 4 Toa Payoh where this bowl of heaven can be found. It has become so much a part of our lives I think an entire blog post justifies.

M full.

“Peace, be still!”

This picture comes to mind when I think about the current situation in the financial markets or shall I say the world economic climate. Such tumult, such uncertainty and such anguish on people minds. It’s like these pictures of exhausted traders that are appearing on all news websites and front pages, it seems so orchestrated. Like a Symphony of Destruction playing its way down to your local bank or insurance provider. J

But for me being a converted optimist, I look at what happened after this picture that is important to me.

M Cool!

Lunch @ Sci Park

Lesson in making so-so food look good!

Here is one of my lunch staples. Well staple is going a bit too far, because it actually is Subway sandies. But when the Subway queue is too long and me being an impatient person will choose instead to get lunch from "So Fresh" which has somewhat become a little bit of an oxymoron when you have a look at what's on offer. So my favorite and basically the only thing I order when go there is Teriyaki Chicken Salad. Yes that is the official name on the menu. You may ask where the salad is, well it is hidden but believe me; the 2 sheets of lettuce, 3 pieces of broccoli and coleslaw is there.

So after eating this Teriyaki Chicken Salad, I thought why not photograph it to see if I can make it look nice so that it is more appetizing and appealing. You decide if I am making you hungry I succeeded. If you are turned off, well the conclusion is there is no way to make so-so food look good.

M eating.

Friday: Beautiful Day

What beautiful days Fridays are. Today is especially beautiful because indeed today is a glorious morning full of possibilities. So as Brad Pitt said in the movie Troy "Take it, it's yours!" It's rare to see cloudless skies in Singapore and when do I usually whip out my NV24HD camera (super camera by the way) to take advantage of the great photo opportunities. So here's one picture I just took on the way to work. Subject is boring, well being stuck in jam is boring, but the color tones are lovely.

Rejoice people it's Friday and make the best of what this day has to offer!!!

I know I will!!

M Lovin it!

Leakgaes, Leaves and Landownership

Sounds heavy ya?

Not so, our beloved house is leaking again well that was what we were led to believe. So in the preparation for some minor roofing works and some hacking on the wall, something happened. Further investigation by the guys from B4 Leakage, it was found that the water that is appearing on our study room wall is not a result of leakage from the roof but, if fact condensation. Praise the Lord there is no leakage but "Huh?"

Seems our neighbour has his aircon in the adjacent room on at full blast, at maximum cooling pointing directly at the wall and on the other side of the wall is our study room which is the room with the most sun. So as a result my wall is "sweating" like a glass Bombay Tonic on a Saturday afternoon thus, explaining the wet spots and fungus. Solution? Aside from asking y niehbour to turn off his AC, which might rather selfish, there isn't one actually. Just a stop gap measure of painting the wall with a special epoxy paint that is used on roads to in a sense "waterproof" the walls and prevent the formation of wet spots. Prevention not cure.

So another half day of leave down and another episode on the joys of Landowership. But, in all consideration I know deep down that despite all the issues and whatever, I still love my house, the place I call home, my refuge and the place I will raise my family.

Contented M

[Second try at this after my initial post from my iPhone ran away to some corner of Cyberspace]

Back home safe and sound - Dream Team Re-united

Yes she is back finally. Among the many silly things we have done, the
most recent was going for a holiday without each other. Yes I was out
of leave or so I THOUGHT but there were avoidable reasons that I
succumbed to.

Oh well she is back and in all honesty I am glad she had a good time,
aside from some challenging days, Praise God for technology! So other
than restarting this blog and getting hit on by a male waiter from
Stewhaus(this one will be another entry for sure), the events were
predictable.

Whatever the case; Maju is back! Yippee!

M glad.

Mobile blogging - Take 2

Okay first attempt was less than sucessful. Was it the usual mail
server problem or what?

Let's see attempto secondo.

Thanks,

Marcel

Ferrari and Lollipops

So Ferrari have done a U-turn, and ditched the traffic light system that has caused injury to quite a few of their fuel men and gone back to the trusty lollipop man. The traffic lights is in a sense a great idea, from a series of great Ferrari ideas but I think the system needs a bit of finetuning. But till they get this system sorted out, the manual method will have to do.

[photo credit to Jamd]

Foilage

As gardens go, ours well not the best in the world but it is ours. Not like we are going to get feature in Garden Weekly anytime soon but, I think there is something to be proud of here. So recently we got ourselves some more plants. Yes it was time to spruce up our waning garden. But I must say I like the new plant (pictured) reminds me of an elphant ear. When we first moved into our "green" home, I was thinking to myself "Yes! I shall become the gardener who will be spending hours tending to my plants." But of course, that was just a little too ambitous for someone who detests getting his hands dirty a bit of a stupid contradiction really. Yeah I have an obessive complusive syndrome of washing my hands when they get dirty or smell. I just can't stand to get my hands dirty. Probably, the reason why I am one of the few Indians who does not like to use his hands to eat food, even Indian food for that matter. Another blog post here, me thinks!

M

Dinner for ONE

So the wife is away and usually when that happens the question dawns on me. What do I do after work? Go straight home, most often the choice. But then the dreaded question pops. "What's for dinner?"

My gosh this is painful question when you are solo. So as I was on my way home, I got stuck in traffic at Portsdown Road. Being the impatient sort I decided to check out the new joints that have opened there. So overtaking everyone I headed down the road and landed at Pietrasanta.

"Table for one" I said much to the amazement of the maître d'. As I later reported, having dinner in a nice restaurant by yourself, surrounded by crowded tables and the occasional confused look is a rather empowering feeling. It’s like telling everyone “Here I am, alone and I am cool with it!” I used to do this quite often for lunches and found it very therapeutic. But I think this was my first dinner alone in a long time. Of course, one cannot do this sort thing too often it gets quite pathetic and sad.

So had a Peroni, Nastro Assuro beer, so-so Lamb chops and this wonderful Italian dessert (pictured). So there; answered my daily dreaded question but with a twist.

M

F1 in Singapore? Pinch me!

And the next stop on the F1 calendar is Singapore. Eh? Tell me that one year ago....or maybe two years ago I would have laughed. Tell me that 10 years ago when F1 became more popular in the region with the opening of Sepang race track it would be impossibility. But it here, in all its decibels. The Singapore GP is a reality, I was excited yes but just one week away from the race it all hit me. Being a F1 follower since 1984 when I used to watch races on RTM 10, with commentary in Malay to now where there are F1 themed bar and events in Singapore. Just pinch me.

Of course when I got to the track on Friday, the hairstanding feeling was there. But it was not until the cars started around in anger that the hairstand feeling really came. Overall it was an excellent GP. I was very proud that my country, Singapore put up such a great show. Much to Mr Luca’s disagreement, another blog entry altogether.

M

Flowers of Peyrolles

So on my trip to Aix, which is in the Provence part of France, so somewhat in the middle of nowhere, what could I possibly find round about 30 minutes away? FAMILY! Yes indeed the family tree that stretched itself to a quaint place called Peyrolles en Provence. Which incidentally most of my colleagues in Aix had no clue where it was.

For my sole weekend in Provence, when I could have been flying to Belgium to watch F1 on favourite Grand Prix track in Spa, I decided instead to chill out in the French countryside with the family. And to be honest, I am glad to have made that decision.

I was greeted by flowers. Yes many in the garden and 3 flowers in particular, Claudia, Chloe and Andrea who are my nieces. They were a bunch of fun, after the initial shyness evaporated. Daughters of my cousin who I have not seen in almost 25 years.

Communication was a challenge as they did not speak English and my French was much to be desired after only a few classes at Alliance. But we managed with the trusty French – English dic and then later when we got lazy, www.reverso.com to aid us with those lost in translation moments.

M in Peyrolles

The love of Photography

I am probably the most "cannot make it" photographer around. A passion that started many yonks ago has slowly fizzled out to the point that I am so lazy to take pictures I recently did not even bother to take a camera on my trip overseas and settled on just using my iPhone to take pictures.

So recently I invested in a small camera that is extremely portable after the one my wife got for me, in an attempt to revive the passion, died suddenly while in Europe.

So armed with my camera, I flew to Paris then to Marseille and then a taxi to Aix en Provence primarily for business. But I guess I was not expecting what I experienced when I was there. A revival!!! Yes the shutter happy boy was back and not just taking snaps but, working for the shot.

Of course it helped a great deal that Aix was a place that was easy to fall in love with and that I did. It was truly a walk back for me to the old days when what was most important was getting good shots to bring home and show all. This trip resuscitated that. For a viewing of more pictures from Aix head to my Facebook photo thingamajiggy @ http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=34663&l=02c7a&id=603519964

Let’s hope the passion lives on ya

M in Aix

Restarting something that should not have stopped

It has been a year, well actually more than a year. But, the momentum of writing a blog evenutally died. But I guess since the year has gone by, ....

Okay at this point I stopped again and another year went by

....but now after another year, I am picking up from where I left off and should not have ever stopped. I got demoralised that no one was reading my blog, but was that the reason why I started it in the first place. Of course not!! So here is the re-start of the less know "Marcel Blogs" blog.

About Me

A 30 something, who loves life and is always looking for ways to enrich it. Before the onset of my 30s, there came a point in my life when I said there has to be more to life than work and sleep so I set up on looking for more.

This search brought me first to me to photography; this was an obvious choice since I love to travel. My pictures eventually caught the eyes of my wonderful wife who was so impressed that she graced me with a date and she eventually married me and I am super blessed for that. After her, she helped me to find my way back to God and have decided to make Him a permanent part of my life. Our mutual love for kids and God has us serving in our church’s Children’s Ministry. Food is another passion of mine although I am a “not fussy foodie”.

 

About Blog

Blogging is something new that I have started and it has been really good to me. Many people have told me to write a book about my life and past adventures so this is meant to be a way for me to keep track of my life and adventures, so it is a very much a ME thing. But, I am always willing to share my new discoveries and am hoping that my experiences can impact someone out there as I am sure there are many people who have stood where I have. Even if it doesn’t have a great impact, if I caused a smile, then my mission is accomplished!

M writing history.

One title race is over, another one to go

After a magnificent season and one of the most exciting races of all time at Estoril, the 2006 MotoGP World Championship will go right down to the wire. The final race of the year, the Gran Premio bwin.com de la Comunitat Valenciana, will welcome what will surely be a sell-out crowd gathered to see either Valentino Rossi or Nicky Hayden take the ultimate accolade in motorcycle racing.

Rossi leads the championship for the first time this season, and could not have chosen a better race to enter with an 8 point advantage. The Italian has made an outstanding comeback against all odds after a series of DNFs gave him his worst ever start to a premier class season. Since his last mechanical failure at Laguna Seca, the reigning World Champion has been on a run of five consecutive podium finishes, his last victory coming in Malaysia at the start of the triple flyaway. If Rossi can make it six wins this season at Valencia, or finishes above rival Nicky Hayden in the race, then he will take a sixth consecutive premier class title and become the only champion of the 990cc era. All this sounds too familiar does it not?

Well the F1 championship has ended and I guess the best way to sum things up is like this: Massa wins, Schumacher shines, Alonso Champ! So the season is over and let look forward to the last race of Moto GP in Valencia and after let mope around till it all starts again next year!

M

Luck?? Perhaps not!!

I guess in all fairness FA might have just won the WDC 2006. He may not be the best champion but he will be the champ nonetheless. Of course no one can fault his driving; he is a great driver, just wished he let his driving do the talking.

It was one of those times when you’d wish to have all the action on the race track but engine failure is a very real problem and that’s F1. This is something that MS fans and Tifosi know only too well, a-la-early MS-Ferrari days. Of course many would argue that it is not over yet, and yes it is not over yet. MS can still win it but that would be quite out of the ordinary as FA just needs one point in the next race to win. But then again Brazil is a race where just about anything can happen. Let’s hope it is an entertaining race to cap off a great season.

I guess the real fight will be down to whom finishes 3rd in the WDC, Massa or Fisi..It’s anyone’s game this one, with only one point separating the two. And of course there is the WCC to play for as well. Which I think can only be done with a Ferrari one-two.

It is unfortunate that the media has spun things around to make it sound that MS entire career is dependant on this one championship and that if he fails to clear it he is not that great after all. Well as media goes sensationalism is their way. Well I guess the 7 world championship and the name all over the F1 record books should remind the press.

With the end of the motor sport season near, F1 is almost sewn up. Moto GP as always has been a cracking season. Can Rossi do it again? He is closing in on Nicky Hayden to take yet another title but he is still on the back foot. So that would be one to keep a close eye on.

With WRC, this one is interesting. Loeb is leading the championship with almost 30 points and around 4 races to go from Gronholm. So seems like any other championship, but if you could not predict a spanner being thrown into the works, here’s one: Loeb has fractured his arm in four places in a mountain biking accident effectively putting him out of the season for the next few races. He will miss Turkey for sure and Rally Oz but, he says he will try to be back for the last two rallies.

Not to make things further dramatic…his replacement for the next two races is none other than Colin Mcrae. Well have to see how that one plays out.

Verbal Diarrhoea : Knowledge Work in an Oblivious World

Ever looked at a candidate's resume and see that he has 10 years experience and only one job to boot and think hmmm this guy has got the right balance of experience and loyalty to the company. And then upon interviewing him, you find that his technical knowledge is a little rusty but you think; he can be developed. So you hire the guy only to find that actually the reason why this person was in that job for 10 years was nothing to do with loyalty. It was due to the fact that he was comfortable where he was and never chose to develop himself any further because the company just wanted to him to maintain status quo. So what went wrong here?

Another scenario, another Joe comes for interview, great resume as well. 10 years experience but 5 jobs. Hmmm..you raise an eyebrow, and are concerned that this guy could be a job hopper. So you decide not to invest in him, because you postulate that he may leave in yes you guessed it - 2years. So what went wrong here?

At this point you are probably wondering what the heck has what I have just said got to do with the title. Well the like hood is that the guy with 5 jobs will most likely bring more to the table than the guy with the one job. Of course it really depends on the industry in question. Are you in a knowledge industry or are you in an industry where throughput and turnaround time is the key.

Like our brothers in manufacturing, throughput and turnaround time is the key to being successful. However, banking on this type of industry might be the wrong way to go. Let’s take a page from the great American manufacturing industry. In the land where manufacturing began.....but ooohh wait there is China. A study was done and it concluded that no matter what the US manufacturing industry did to improve throughput and turnaround, no matter how many initiatives where put in place to bring "value" to the diminishing value chain, the manufacturing industry in the US has and will permanently migrate itself to China and it will not return.

So what do we in Singapore have to look forward to? We are sort of in between the tightrope where one end in the good old and reliable manufacturing industry where repeatability, turnaround and throughput are king. And then there is the other side where the knowledge industry beckons. Well we are most or less almost 3/4 of the way to the knowledge side as we abandon the quest of manufacturing supremacy. Even the government knows this, as can be seen in the change in education policy. No more technical classes or manual trade education in the top or mediocre schools. Those subjects are reserved for the non auditory or visual learners who end up in ITE. And the trend is to be more academically focused rather than creative focused.

So where do we go then? What comes of us, who have had the traditional education? Do we go find a company where you can get lost in your own oblivion within the company and become part of the furniture in the office? So the question of the two earlier scenarios comes back, two guys both 1o years of experience but one has got 5 jobs and the other 1 job, what do you do?

Well ask them the question about where we are heading and their opinion about Knowledge industry as opposed as to Manufacturing base....and the answer will show you the way...

Disclaimer: Whatever has been said here should not be taken against the author as this is a rant, a rave and a non-violent means for venting of human emotion. If the thoughts and the flow of the above verbage are erratic this too shouldn’t be taken against the author as the word “diarrhoea” implies a lack of control.

"Champion" now turning on his own team

Yes I am right Alonso has lost it royally. This guy has taken being a spoilt sport to a new level! I will be glad when he is forgotten and lost to history. Perhaps his age could be blamed for his lack of maturity but, whatever the case maybe even if by some chance he wins the 2006 title he would not be a great champ!

You can turn on your rivals, your teammate, your fans even, but your team? He said that they are more focused on winning the constructors title, maybe some one should tell him if he wins the title most likely the team will win the constructors as well.

Sigh!

We are in for a treat for next two races! Whatever the case maybe it will go down to Brazil as the decider unless Alonso manages to do something so dumb he gets points deducted. If that happens oh man will we ever hear the end of the whinge.

M