What price Vanity?

My initial excitement about vanity plates in Singapore may be short-lived :(

I always thought there was only one way to own vanity plates.

You create your own alpha-numeral combination within the maximum allowed and submit it to the relevant authorities. If the combination is not already in use, it's yours for a fee till you give it up.

Then I hear friends using words like "bid", "can be expensive if popular". My curiosity is aroused. Some checking around revealed that indeed there are bidding/auctioning systems.

I am not so sure I will want to bid for my vanity plate. It just doesn't sit right with me. Yet I am not able to articulate what is wrong with it.

I know I will be able to present my case against the auction system on another day.

Vanity be thy Name

I can hardly believe what I read in the Straits Times.

Personalised or Vanity Plates to be available
in Singapore as early as this year!

I love vanity plates.

They give insight into the
personality-profession-proclivity of the owner :)

My vanity plate in California read SINLADY.

Yes, it was loads of fun to keep people guessing.

Music of the Night

Touch me, trust me, savour each sensation
Let the dream begin, let your darker side give in
To the power of the music that I write
The power of the music of the night

I did not plan to see the Phantom of the Opera this time around. I saw the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical a number of times already in its 21-year run. I have exceptionally fond memories of the show when it played in historical theatres in San Francisco and Los Angeles where Box No. 5 was perpetually left empty for the exclusive use of the Phantom.

That is, until the publicity blitz began. First, a behind-the-scene/the-making-of expose on Central, followed by a 2-page write-up in the Straits Times.

And I am reminded why the Phantom holds the record for the longest-running, highest-grossing, most-seen musical in the history of musical theatre.

Phantom has everything going for it:

A simple timeless storyline of a love triangle
told against a background of lavish staging
and spectacular special effects,
supported by haunting arias and moving love lyrics.

I love this musical. I will see it one more time. And I will again be spellbound by its magic.

There is just this one thing I do not like about the romantic entanglement of Erik (the Phantom), Christine and Raoul.

Are you ready for this?

I STILL THINK CHRISTINE PICKED THE WRONG GUY !!

Magical Bali

Lush and languid, Bali beguiles with its beach-side charms ... Lonely Planet

Mention Bali to someone. Anyone. Then watch the smile that washes over the face, the delight that shines in the eyes, and get ready to hear a favourite story unfold about that most magical of tropical vacation islands.

Mention Bali and several images are evoked: stunning sunset, miles of white sandy beach, dramatic mountains, rich culture, luxury living, hip night life, romantic nights.

And not the least of all - the warm, gentle, hospitable people.

Bali sits 8 degrees south of the equator. For most of the year, Bali is stiflingly hot and humid, or else it is rainy, hot and humid.

But during the months June-September, a different weather envelops the island. Onshore winds are cooled by the antipodean winter. And for just these few months, the days are breezily cool, the nights are sometimes chilly.

I was in Bali five times last year during those months. I did the Kuta Beach, Nusa Dua, and Seminyak scenes. But the most perfect holiday was at my girlfriend's home in the Bukit.

She has now put the home up for holiday rental. I have precious memories of the place. I love everything about this home with the stunning view nestled in the hills of the Bukit.

I want only good people to use this place. So that they too may experience the magic that is Bali.

Lost-Found-Lost

It stormed today - a frightful tropical thunder storm - with high winds, claps of thunder and flashes of lightning.

I hesitated at the door. Then decided I would not leave my wet umbrella outside like the last time.

I shook the umbrella as dry as I could and strode into the dance studio. I went over to the corner where everyone left their umbrellas opened to dry. And did a double take when I saw my old umbrella! With the unmistakable red, white, black and peach check pattern. There. On the Floor. Left opened to dry. Right there. Before my disbelieving eyes.

The spurious new owner gave me her usual friendly smile and walked over to retrieve the Burberry. MY BURBERRY my brain screamed. How could this woman, my purported friend, have stolen MY Burberry and now acted like nothing was amiss? I wanted to confront her, wanted to call her a thief, wanted to yell obscenities in her face. But I did nothing of the sort.

I just stood there, dumbed and numbed, rooted to the spot. Watched her blithely saunter over to the cluster of umbrellas, pick up my burberry, wave goodbye and walk out into the rain. Watched her take what was mine out of my life.

I felt bile rise in my throat. I felt the blood in my veins run cold. I wished evil things upon her.

But the moment to speak up, to act out, to right a wrong, passed.

And I felt only defeat.

The Sweet Life

I love getting my favourite people together for an evening of food, drinks, and conversation.

I prefer doing this at home because -

I have the place for it,
It makes for a more intimate evening, and
We do not have to watch the time.

The sweeties invariably want to help out with the dinner and would suggest we pot-luck it. I prefer to take care of the meal proper on my own, so I always say dessert will be appreciated.

Just over the course of the recent holidays alone, I have had the good fortune of having sampled the most divine of sweets:

Chocolate Truffle cake
More Chocolate Cakes
Tiramisu
Gelato
Chocolate
More Chocolate

Not to be left out are the impossibly great desserts made by the talented and skillful among us.

What about the 3 kilos I have gained? I think they are going to stay with me a while longer.

For I love this sweet life I have.

the 70's

The 70's was a really special time. All my "first's" happened in that decade. First left home, first lived on my own, first love, first marriage, first break-up, first job, first world travel. My highest and lowest moments were born and played out in those years.

I lived life fully. That is to say, I lived life on the edge. I hung out with the fashionable party crowd of the drug-fogged brain. I rejected conventional and societal expectation, and it showed in my attitude, my lifestyle, my job. My sense of self was strongly identified with the counterculture of the 70's.

Desiderata is the written expression of those times.

The visual form is best expressed by the bright kaleidoscopic and psychedelic flower motif pop art of 60's icon Peter Max. I have a few of his early posters.

And every time I look at them, I still smile. For in our hippy-trippy mind-altered state, we were so full of hope and love for everybody...

Desired Things cont'd

I was a teenager in the early 1970s when I first came upon a Desiderata poster. The words that speak of inspiration and hope, gentle forgiveness, sense of self in the universe, struck a chord with me. I remembered seeking out that poetry whenever I felt hopelessness, uncertainty and confusion threatening my young existence. I even had the 1971 singles hit of Desiderata recorded on 45 rpm

I knew nothing of the origin of this prose poetry. I never heard of Max Erhmann. Neither did I know that Les Crane won a "Best Spoken Word" grammy for his recording of the poem in 1971. There was no internet then to do any research.

I just loved the poem in written and recorded form.

I thought Desiderata is a distant memory of a by-gone era like the flower children who first popularised it. I am surprised that Desiderata the poem is still very much around today (look up Desiderata with any search engine). Yet I should not have been surprised.

For the beautiful quiet truth that Desiderata speaks of is timeless and universal.

Desired Things

Desiderata

Go placidly amid the noise and haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.

As far as possible, without surrender,
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even the dull and ignorant;
they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons;
they are vexations to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain or bitter,
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.

Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs,
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals,
and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love,
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment,
it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be.
And whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life,
keep peace in your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

Max Ehrmann, 1927

Till the Next Time

The last of our visitor friends left today. We miss them already.

Until the next chance we have to come together, each of us will carry fond memories of these past two weeks.

This is a special friendship. This has been an exceptionally special time for us.

This is my way of letting you girls know how special you are to me.

First to Loh Hei Then to 4-D

Oh wow. This is a first for me/us.

We had loh hei. A fortune cookie with a lucky 4-digit number came with it. We immediately headed for a Singapore Pools stall and bought all combinations of the lucky numbers for all the draw days of this week.

One of the combinations came through for us today.

Winning a consolation prize is not going to make any of us independently wealthy. But it boosts optimism and confidence that the year ahead is fortuitous. Especially when I am one of the animals mentioned here.

It is a nice way to start the year...