Direct Flights Only

I hear about swine flu daily and I am beginning to get worried.

Guess you are worried too so here are some FAQ’s.

WHAT IS SWINE INFLUENZA?

Swine Influenza (or Swine Flu) is a respiratory disease affecting pigs that is caused by type A influenza virus (Influenza type A H1N1 virus).   

CAN HUMANS CATCH SWINE FLU?

Swine Flu viruses do not normally affect humans.  However, sporadic human infections with Swine Flu have occurred.  Mostly, these cases occur in persons with direct exposure to pigs.

HOW DOES SWINE FLU SPREAD TO HUMANS?

Swine Flu spreads to humans mainly through contact with infected pigs, which shed the virus through their saliva, nasal secretions and faeces.  Human-to-human transmission of Swine Flu can also occur in   the same way as seasonal flu does, which is mainly through coughing or sneezing from people infected with the virus.

WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF SWINE FLU IN HUMANS?

The symptoms are similar with that of the seasonal flu which include high fever, lethargy, lack of appetite and coughing.  Some people with Swine Flu also have reported experiencing runny nose, sore throat, nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea.  

CAN PEOPLE CATCH SWINE FLU FROM EATING PORK?

No . Swine Flu viruses are not transmitted by food. You cannot contract Swine Flu from eating pork or pork products that have been thoroughly prepared and cooked.

HOW CAN HUMAN INFECTIONS WITH SWINE FLU BE DIAGNOSED?

To diagnose Swine Flu, a respiratory specimen would generally need to be collected within the first 4 to 5 days of illness (when an infected person is most likely to be shedding the virus).  However, some persons, especially children, may shed virus for up to 10 days or longer.  Diagnosis requires sending the specimen for laboratory testing. 

IS THE H1N1 SWINE FLU VIRUS THE SAME AS THE HUMAN H1N1 VIRUS?

No.  The H1N1 Swine Flu viruses are different from the human H1N1 viruses (seasonal flu).  Hence, vaccines for the human seasonal flu would not provide sufficient protection from the H1N1 Swine Flu virus.

WHAT MEDICATIONS ARE AVAILABLE TO TREAT SWINE FLU INFECTIONS IN HUMANS?

At this time, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends the use of oseltamivir (Tamiflu) or zanamivir (Relenza) for the treatment and/or prevention of infection with Swine Flu viruses.

TIPS TO PREVENT SWINE FLU :

1.  Thoroughly wash your hands with soap and water, especially after sneezing or coughing.

2.  Wear a mask to cover your nose and mouth if you are caring for someone with flu.

3.  Avoid visiting patients in hospitals.

4.  Stay at home if you are suffering from the seasonal flu.  Wear a mask if you need to leave home.

So lot of you may have heard of this contest launched by the Tourism board of Queensland, Australia.

Thousands have applied and they are now down to the final 16. I’ve seen most of their audition videos but thought I’d share one that I came across. Sadly, this guy from Canada didn’t make it to the Top 16. However, his clip is so artsy/theatrical that I can’t help but add more publicity to it by featuring it on my blog.

Ha. As if people read my blog.

One minute clip from You Tube.

Just checked the official site and learned that it will be on 23 August, 9PM US Eastern time (24 August, 9AM in Asia). Check local TV listings.

Bahamas will be hosting the pageant. “The worldwide telecast will highlight the warmth, beauty and hospitality of the Islands of the Bahamas as well as the world renowned Atlantis resort. “

Looks nice, doesn’t it?

Stage

Now if only Donald Trump will give me a free roundtrip ticket to the Bahamas and a good seat at the venue… especially since I’ve been watching each year since 1987!!

I’m sure the current Miss Universe Dayana Mendoza (from Venezuela) will enjoy this place during rehearsals and pre-pageant events.

Also tried looking up more info about this year’s event and came across this “Choose the Miss Universe Crown” poll. It’s legitimate so why don’t you make your selection? I already made mine a few nights ago.

http://www.choosethecrown.com/

I spent a few hours over the past two Saturdays catching selected entries in the Singapore International Filmfest. 

I bought quite a number of tickets (I think for 8 shows with at least two tickets each so I can invite one or more friends) but didn’t get to use all of them due to time constraints.

Anyway here are the ones I found interesting (took the synopsis from the SIFF booklet):

Short films:

HUSH BABY (3 mins, Singapore)

(A sheet of paper, a pair of scissors, and a fussy baby in a battle of wits)

Director: Tan Wei Kong, Producer: Tan Wei Kong, Screenplay: Tan Wei Kong, Cast: NA

Overturning the popular association of animation with children’s entertainment, Hush Baby depicts a baby’s struggle against confinement and restriction. The many expressive faces of a baby are brought to life with dark humour and wit as the film imaginatively explores a different facet of animation.

MADAM CHAN (20 mins, Singapore)

(An elderly woman spends her entire holiday complaining about her family and irritating the friends traveling with her)

Director: Wilson Yip, Producer: Lui Wai Yu, Screenplay: Wilson Yip, Cast: Cheong Soon Foon, Ong Xiu Ping, Chiu Wai Yin

Filled with endless gripes about her familial troubles, Madam Chan joins her friends the Wongs on a local tour of Singapore, much to the annoyance of Mr Wong. As the group travels from one tourist spot to another, the truth behind Madam Chan’s complaints emerges, unveiling the vulnerability beneath her crotchety exterior.

SWIMMING LESSON (13 mins, Singapore)

(An overprotective mother gains new understanding from an old memory)

Director: Kat Goh Phek Siang, Producer: Kelvin Tong Weng Kian, Screenplay: Kelvin Tong Weng Kian, Cast: Kee Chiew Hiang, Cheong Ah Fong, Yeo Wah Lai, Wong Shu Lin

On the way to the airport, a mother frets over her daughter, who is leaving home for the first time. Suddenly, she finds herself on a curious detour that plumbs muddy memories, only to surface with a dazzling session in both life and swimming.

Full-length feature

INVISIBLE CHILDREN (85 mins, Singapore)

(A dreamlike film about ordinary Singaporeans struggling to find their joy)

Director: Brian Gothong Tan, Producer: Gary Goh, Tan Fong Cheng, James Toh, Screenplay: Brian Gothong Tan, Liam Yeo, Cast: Kimberly Chia, Kyle Chan, Lim Poh Huat, Chee Chuan Yang

Two children go on the run after a traumatic accident at home and find themselves lost in a monsoon drain under the roads of Singapore. A shy, obsessive-compulsive neighbor reluctantly helps his neighbor, only to let his heart get in the way. An air stewardess on Merlion Air returns home to a life without love and hope. An uptight army officer finds himself sliding steadily into the crack between his private and his military life, while his estranged girlfriend laments her life before a photocopying machine. Brian Gothong Tan’s debut feature film is a polyphonic fusion of quiet realism and flights of fantasy that bring into focus the regrets and disappointments that Singaporeans swallow everyday.

Turns out the films I liked were done locally!

My ear drums are still recovering from over a thousand honks that bounced off them while I was in Mumbai.

In such city and New Delhi (which I visited last year), the horn is mightier than the brake. Otherwise, poor car… it will be blemished with dents. Not kidding at all.

I actually thought my driving skills (developed, tried and tested through the very chaotic Manila traffic) would make me survive any traffic situation in Asia. I was terribly wrong. It was traffic almost everywhere and pedestrians pop out of nowhere. Perfect combo for a potential disaster.

I have this thing called “I will love a city/country on my 3rd visit” and this very much applies to India (1x New Delhi, 2x Mumbai) as it did to Australia and the UK.

I now have a better appreciation of India (I realised that in some aspects, Mumbai is fairly similar to most of Southeast Asian countries like the Philippines). In Mumbai’s case, the coastal area that stretches a considerable distance is very much appealing and adds to its beauty.

I have to admit though that I still get paranoid about safety, cleanliness, and poverty. Believe it or not, there was this young girl who was tapping my lower arm begging for alms for around 10 minutes while I was walking around.  I wanted to do the same to her so she knows how annoying it feels haha. I ended up not giving any loose change as I was told these kids are part of a syndicate.

I was also pleased with my impulse purchase — a Skagen watch with white leather strap which I have not seen in Singapore during my shopping rounds. Photo to be posted soon.

It’s good to be back in Singapore after 3 days in “Big India”. When I miss Indian food, I’ll definitely make a trip to “Little India” where I am guaranteed of minimal honking in the background during the journey.

I was not planning to buy a Mac this year (nor next year) but I don’t know what got into me.  I purchased one on a rainy Black Saturday.

Maybe it’s the agony of a PC that has dramatically slowed down and been painfully killing my precious, limited online hours in the evening. Maybe it’s the broken links that make online ticket purchases and banking transactions frustrating. Or maybe just a need for a change of environment.

I’ve been a PC user since my secondary school days — from a gigantic machine with green screen (eew) to a lighter, modern notebook.  My current notebook now needs to go on semi-retirement or at least undergo a major surgical operation (like a bypass surgery) to get it up and running again. I don’t have the time to back-up, reformat it and set up stuff though. Now that I have a 2nd computer, I can do a phased migration and I expect this to happen over the next couple of weekends.

I’m still adjusting to the shortcuts, tapping and clicking required under the Mac environment. I’ll get there somehow. Being the occasional geek that I am, I bought two (2) books on the same day I got the unit. Hope I don’t fall asleep on the 2nd page (I’m better off reading magazines than books while at home).

I’ll be a fence sitter for now by saying I love both the PC and Mac. I owe a lot of good memories to the PC (yes, I am being emo and nostalgic here) but I see an exciting future with Mac.

Now I just have to think of a nice name for it.

For documentation and re-sale purposes, here are the specs :

Macbook 13″ Aluminum , 2.0 Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo

- 13.3-inch (viewable) LED-backlit glossy widescreen

- 1280 x 800 pixels 

- 2GB (two 1 GB) of 1066 MHz-DDR3 SDRAM

- 160 GB 5400 RPM  Serial ATA HD

- Double-layer SuperDrive

- NVIDIA GeForce 9400M with 256MB of shared DDR3 SDRAM

- 10/100/1000BASE-T (Gigabit)

- USB 2.0

- Combined optical digital audio in/out

- Built-in iSight camera

- 60W MagSafe Power Adaptor

- Multi-touch trackpad

—

Accessories bought at point of purchase:

- Screen protector

- Keyboard protector

- Notebook sleeve

- Microsoft Office for Mac (Home & Student Edition)

- Wireless Mac mouse

- Notebook cooler

Pending actions:

- Buy trackpad protector (ordered already)

- Get extended warranty

In my simple mind, “rojak” has two (2) definitions:

1)  An art & design sharing session in Singapore featuring 10 local creatives held quarterly. See  http://www.farm.sg/rojak/

I’ve attended two of these sessions previously and found the collaboration among artists quite impressive.

and

2) A fruit and vegetable salad dish available in Malaysia, Indonesia, and Singapore. Ingredients:  fried dough fritters, bean curds, boiled potatoes, prawn fritters, hard boiled eggs, bean sprouts, and cucumber mixed  with spicy peanut or sweet and spicy chili sauce. 

I’ve tasted this a few times (the last one was several months ago over at the East Coast food center) and loved it.

Singapore food centers are highly regarded for their quality and cleanliness but there were recent incidents that could affect such good image, at least in the Geylang area.

Someone became unconscious and eventually died after eating rojak from one of the Geylang Serai market stalls a few days ago. Another woman had a miscarriage after eating rojak from the same stall. 

A few customers also claimed they experienced food poisoning after dining in Shu RenJia, a steamboat restaurant in Geylang. The National Environment Agency (NEA) had collected food samples from such resto and said there were no hygiene lapses that could lead to food poisoning.

I think I will need to be more conscious of the hygiene rating of the places I buy food from and be more careful about trying funny looking dishes. As someone who doesn’t cook, I also need to know when to consider an ingredient as “fully cooked” whenever I try steamboat.

I’ve attended several parties and gatherings since I moved to Singapore. However, I knew almost everyone in those events.

What makes Ben’s party last Saturday different from the rest? I only knew around 10 people out of the estimated 30-40 who turned up. It also had a catchy title/theme : “BENasty, BENaughty, BENice”. If Ben gets to read this entry, he should let me know which category he falls under. Haha.

Ken, one of Ben’s friends, hosted the party over at Icon condo in the Tanjong Pagar area. I’ve always been intrigued how that property looked like whenever my bus passed through TJP. I initially thought it was a hotel.

South of Singapore

This one leads to the Chinatown area

Party in the common area ended around 1130ish (to the delight of security). Spent a few minutes with some of Ben’s guests who moved to Ken’s unit shortly thereafter. As I had church the next day, I decided to head home around 1230am and did not attempt to go clubbing til the wee hours.

Happy birthday, Ben! May the Lord continue to shower you with His abundant blessings!

Cake greeting says, "Chocolate for our chocolatepistol"