Not so different after all...

ok this is so funny - not funny ha ha but funny funny

i saw this (picture of my dear colleague against a model's with a scribble on the side of it)

on the notice board of our Bangkok bureau.

Looks like this expression "Same Same but Different!" is pretty universal

i guess we're all diferent but same same in the end...

here they came a-gathering

There is a reason why they call this place the "Land of a thousand Smiles"

everyone is so calm and kind (maybe it's heat exhausion)

Even during protests

(:

on the lighter side of things: i found myself in this weird conversation

thai photographer (tp) : (raises voice above the rally shouting in background)

"so you are from Ap?"

maye : (thaksin Ork Bai! (Ork Bai means get out!) carries on in the background)

"yup."

tp : "so where are you from?"

(singapore ork bpai now in the background)

maye : "urmmm"

. pause .

"malaysia"

i'm sorry Singapore. "I still like you many-many."

On the sunny side of Singapore

So she came and she left.

Ever wonder what you'd say to Britain's Queen Elizabeth II if u had the chance to speak with her?

I always imagine it to go something like that :

"I SAY! What a Lovely Hat."

anyway to my friends whom i haven't had the time to catch up with,

this is the reason...

sorry for the down time. We had to many coverage points and too little time to do it in.

Work Rocks ; Rock Works - too

Sometimes work can be a drag. But this evening, it really rocked.

Placebo was in Singapore performing at the MTV Fashionably Loud showcase in conjunction with the Singapore Fashion Festival.

When i grow up...

(my car is on the left; and beside it.... something my money cannot buy - literally)

Say that again?

I'm so tired.

Have you ever felt so drained physically as well as mentally that you don't even realise that your 100% for that particular assignment or task is actually only 40% of what you can achieve on any other normal day?

You give it your best, even a little more but there seems to be your cap and momentarily you feel happy. You think that you broke your own record but a few hours later, when you a a little more rested you realised you could have done it all in a different, more creative or efficient way. Then the anti-climax sets in and you feel even more weary.

I'm so tired that i'm tired of hearing myself say that i'm tired.

And there's more to come. Thank God for backups.

Man.....

Endangered species

Our little friend is a classic.

"tomorrow i'm going for extinction"

(he actually meant excursion)

i realised that as he was saying this, he was lying on dino cartoon printed-sheets, in between a panda and barney, the purple dinosaur.

(maye scratches head in confusion as she finds it hard to reconcile the visuals, the intended meaning with what she was hearing...too much layering for a late monday night)

And if you still can't figure.

pardon the private jokes for a bit

but for all those involved in this one, here's one more chance :

> the same person we're talking about on the far right of photo<

and one more for posterity,

with owner's permission of course

(;

unbelivable huh?

so different; only thing remaining constant is the hairstyle

i also say.

Dis-ori-en-ta-ted.

"What we call human nature in actuality is human habit."

I didn't realise that for the past 2 years or so i have been running on auto-pilot mode. I know this because i recently changed something small in my life. It's not even alive. It was my cellular phone. Something which i rely on and use very avidly for work. My routine for the day was similar, plans that were made the day before were kept. So everything that had to remain constant was constant. But i felt so disoriented and the speed in which i took to do things plummeted a hundred fold. It just made me realise how easy it is to fall into habit. Which we sometimes then use the excuse of it being human nature. It seemed almost ironic. The device i bought was suppose to be more high-tech, with built-in windows and internet explorer and wi-fi etc. and hence allow me to be more organised and efficient, but it did just the opposite. So for the past 2 days, if i had accidentally called you, or mis-smsed you, i apologise. haha. padumpum. Then comes the next stage where we humans are known to adapt well. And i am adapting. So lets see how long this new interest lasts. Hopefully as long as my blog has.... (so far so good. i gave myself a week and now we're past a month)

Blast from the Past

Let's try something different:

If you can guess who this is, you're good.

Cause i had NO clue.

and if you can guess who the person on the far right is,

You are even better at this than I am!

No clues provided. Please click on the "comments" button to leave me your answers.

Good Luck

How big is your box?

please excuse the quality of this photograph. i took it with my mobile phone. I found these two entertaining themselves in what used to be a refridgerator box. Ethan had it all planned out. He's the kind of kid whose character becomes pretty evident by a certain age and when you see him, you can't help but stereotype : "Ah. This one. Sure to become a Supervisor, or Lawyer, or Doctor, Teacher or IT guy... etc." Before this house was constructed, a very "detailed" instruction was drawn out for mommy the "contractor". He even went on to add interior lighting, window panneling and furniture. But everything had to be done in accordance with his likings. After all that, our little house proud owner just sat down queitly like an old retiree feeling all satisfied with life. (: Life is funny isn't it? We spend most of our time living in a box-like-container in which we turn into our santuaries. We're born, live in a cradle, then a house, (box in box), then when we eventually kick the bucket, we'll be in boxes too. So Ethan, enjoy your life ahead, go build your future, learn all you can, fill your box with experiences and adventure, your box will only be as big as you make it to be, use selective hearing if you need too and go make the best out of everything. Even if its from nothing.

Ex-que mee, you look vely Kitsch. Tsk.Tsk

If there is one era i had to choose from to live in, I would choose the 80s. ***************** Well to say the least, i was born at the start of the 80s anyway. Tv shows, Care Bears, Big hair, Madonna, David Boey, Shoulder paddings, Eye-shadow in blue and green, Plastic Clip on earrings, 4 inch belts, Transit link card, Anchor Beer, Hungry Hippo. The list goes on and on. It seemed crazy but it was fun. I found a set of photographs i'd taken a while back which documented one crazy night organised by my pal Randy. Tribute to the "Obiang" - which in translation is to be very Kitsch or tacky. Those guys win an award being so sporting. All you guys, you're crazy but i love you. I really think you shouldn't share this link with your bosses or future wives/husbands though. >click on image to see "obiang night" pictures<