Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Live high...

Watch Jason Mraz sing his new song (which is brilliant btw) while walking down the streets of France. And here's a trivia for you: During the video, you'll notice that he's wearing a "I <3 NY" t-shirt but if you look closely enough, you'll notice that it reads "I RO NY" instead...

Posted by Jo at 11:44 PM

Friday, March 21, 2008

The tactless thief

In the spirit of Good Friday, I shall share about a character in the Passion narratives whom I find myself relating with: The unrepentant thief. For starters, I don't believe that he is unrepentant. I'd imagine the same pain that he and Jesus are going through and in a moment of desperation, he calls out to Jesus to save them both. Nothing wrong with that. When you have nails driven through your hands and blood trickling over your body, being tactful would be the least of your concerns. A poor misunderstood fellow. If anything, I'd say he is a believer of God, precisely becos he knows the miracles that Jesus is capable of performing.

So, the unrepentant thief, i.e. the tactless fellow who was calling out to God in his moment of desperation, is not as evil a character as people make him out to be. How would I know? Becos I too, am hanging on the cross and like the thief, I find myself uttering the same words to Christ: "Save yourself, and us too." Does that mean I don't trust in God, or think that Jesus is a fake? Not necessarily. But like the thief, I guess I don't see the light at the end of the tunnel, neither do I want to carry on with the pain of the cross.

Posted by Jo at 11:13 PM

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Updates from philanthropicjo

12 new items added on philanthropicjo...including a new thumb drive (the previous one has been sold!), wine opener, eye pillow and leather pouch. Can't afford a Porsche? Now you can own something which bears its name...

Click here to do your shopping.

Posted by Jo at 9:27 PM

Friday, March 14, 2008

If I fell...

Was listening to Jason Castro on youtube and stumbled upon the Maroon 5 version of 'If I fell' which led me to play the song incessantly today, to a point where I was so tempted to buy a ticket for their concert!

Pls do yourselves a favour and see this. You won't regret it!

And if you're a fan of unplugged music, check this out. It's audio ecstasy. Click here.

Posted by Jo at 12:59 AM

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Monogamy, ipod, AI5 and Britney Spears

I'm feeling random on a rainy Wednesday night so here goes...

- I interviewed someone last week who told me (and this was totally random on his part) that only 3% of mammals are monogamous...means that they only have one mate in their whole lifetime. I googled that to find out more and apparently, monogamous mammals are more likely to become extinct. Wait a minute, aren't humans mammals? Hmmm...Well, I guess we're not on the road to extinction anytime soon cos a good portion of the population sure ain't monogamous.

- While charging my ipod today, I accidentally clicked on the play count and these are the three songs most played by me so far:

1) Makes Me Wonder by Maroon 5 (19 times! I must be nuts!)
2) Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy by Jason Mraz (14 times. This is a shocker. I don't remember playing it that often...)
3) Everything In Its Time by Corrinne May (10 times. Yea, I definitely need to heed her advice.)

- I haven't been watching AI this season but after catching a snippet of it tonight, I think I've found a reason to start watching it again. Jason Castro! He's cute and has a soulful voice. Loved the rendition of If I fell. Actually I've never heard that song before, but I loved it the moment I heard it. Go youtube it and check it out!

- Much earlier in the evening, I was watching E! true Hollywood story while having dinner and they were featuring Britney Spears. And I think that we should all spend a moment to say a short prayer for her (I'm not kidding or being sarcastic). Her life is seriously screwed up right now. I feel so sad for her cos she has so much of money, talent, and two sons, and she's caught in a toxic world. Sigh.

Posted by Jo at 9:55 PM

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Going, going, gone.

Sold my first item on philanthropicjo! Raised $2 for charity! Yipee. Plenty more to go. Buy now before everything's snapped up! The thumbdrive seems to be a hot item...

Click here -> I want to shop and do my part for charity!

Posted by Jo at 8:50 PM

Friday, March 07, 2008

Check this out...really.

After working for almost a month, I must say I've really been blessed. Not only do I get to attend nice luncheons and have special admissions to cool events like the air show, I've also been showered with many countless freebies. It really brings out the auntie in me...but the realistic side of me knows that I don't use every single thing that I receive, and so I started thinking of how I could possibly make the best of the situation. Plus, my room is starting to load up real fast.

So, I decided to start a new blog to 'sell' these items at a good price. 100% of the proceeds will go to charity. I'm really excited about it and I hope you will support this cause by purchasing some of the items. Click here to view the items I have so far and do come back regularly for updates. The link can also be found under 'my space' on the left-hand side of this blog. Priced are fixed and non-negotiable. It is a first-come-first-serve basis and transactions will only be done at AMK central.

Happy shopping!

Posted by Jo at 11:24 PM

Thursday, March 06, 2008

Measure of a man

Today, I received an sms which totally spoilt my morning, but it led me to mull over this topic - Exactly how much weight does our word hold? The scary thing is, I realised that in the past few months, I've encountered so many of these 'light-weights' that I'm beginning to believe that nobody can really be trusted. Let's not even get to the serious commitment stuff yet. Say something as simple as 'See you there at 5pm'. How many times do we actually see that person there at 5pm? More often than not, the person is either late, has cleanly forgotten about the appointment, decided to attend a 'more important' function, or even worse, missed the appointment on purpose - on the basis of laziness or weariness or some other crap. It's scary because nobody seems to be keeping their word anymore. No one bothers. Gone are the days where promises are meant to be kept and come rain or shine, I'll be there, blah blah blah...Somehow, there's always something more important, of higher priority, which needs to be accomplished. Wouldn't we all be doomed if Jesus had decided to pull out from His end of the deal and wriggle out of His impending crucifixion? Wouldn't we all be doomed if, at this day and age, God thinks that we're all too full of shit and decides to stop loving us? If you say you want to do something, you jolly well do it. I guess I am starting to develop some serious trust issues, but with everyone being so easy breezy about their word, I don't see how I can be any more optimistic about it.

Anyway, my day was saved, ironically, by a stranger. I was interviewing one of the most influential property developers in Europe. He's rich certainly, but not just in monetary terms. The great thing about him is that he knows that he's blessed and he credits the right people for it. And he's so down-to-earth that I didn't feel, for a minute, that I was talking to a billionaire. I went into the interview feeling rather jittery, and left feeling like I've made a connection - something real and sincere. There was something so substantial about him. I can't pinpoint it now but he has undoubtedly made my day.

Speaking of billionaires, Warren Buffett has taken over Bill Gates to be the richest man in the world. That's a long reign of 13 years but nothing lasts forever, Mr Gates. And just so you know, there are currently five Singaporean billionaires on the Forbes list.

So, what's the measure of a man, or (wo)man? Does money make us who we are? Do our words and actions make us who we are? It's easy to pick out the right textbook answers but when it gets down to crunch time, I most definitely hope the latter will still stand victorious.

Posted by Jo at 10:32 PM

Monday, March 03, 2008

Where is God?

Frank Silecchia was a construction worker who volunteered with search and rescue at the 9/11 wreakage seven years ago. Instead of finding any survivors, all he found were crosses, literally. Apparently, when the buildings crashed and crumbled, some of the metal beams were joined by the heat and welded together.

Where was God in the midst of the terrorism?
He was there, right in the middle of it.

The heavy rains beat down on the boat and the disciples were cold, wet and frightened. Then Jesus appeared, walking on water, and Peter called out to Him. Come, said Jesus, and Peter stepped out of the boat. He defied the laws of nature and walked on water, like the Lord. But the winds blew, Peter panicked and started sinking.

Where was God in the midst of the storm?
He was there, right in the middle of it.

Shit happens. Sometimes, we know how to deal with it. Sometimes, we don't. Sometimes, we pick ourselves up and move on. Sometimes, we struggle to a point where we feel so intoxicated by our pain and misery. Like Frank, like Peter, we ask the same questions...

Where is God in the midst of the pain and uncertainty?

Well, to be honest, I don't see Him right now, but I'd like to believe that He is here, right in the middle of it.

Posted by Jo at 9:42 PM

Saturday, March 01, 2008

Welcome to Taiwan!

So, I was in Taiwan for a good part of last week. In Kaohsiung to be exact, which isn't the most happening city to be in since it's more of a business port, but then again, who's complaining? I spent a grand total of S$100, and that's just for shopping alone. Everything else was FREE. Lalalala...Well, it wasn't all fun and games really. I was there for business and my business was to view (and test) a mega-yacht which was freaking 130ft long and 4 decks high.

The minute we arrived at Kaohsiung, we were whisked off for a press conference and given a tour around the shipyard where we saw how yachts are being constructed. When they've made sure that everyone was crystal-clear about the processes (*yawns*), we went to the Splendour Hotel, the tallest hotel in Kaohsiung: my home for the following two days. My room was located on the 66th floor of the building so you can imagine the breathtaking view from the window. After settling down, I met up with the rest of the folks for buffet dinner, hosted by the yacht company. The spread was a good mix of chinese and western dishes. And it was my first time tasting Taiwan beer as well, and let's just say it won't be my last. When dinner ended at 10pm, I headed back to my hotel room to rest and watch the Oscars.

The next day, we were taken to the harbour where the 130ft baby laid. After the official ceremony, we had to sit through another press conference before we finally set foot on the mega-yacht. It's called Miss Rose, named after the owner's mother-in-law. Hmmm, I wonder why. "Boy ah, you better name that yacht after me. Otherwise...." When everyone was on-board, the yacht made its maiden journey out of the harbour and into the seas. Well technically, we didn't go into the open seas because it was the end of winter and the waters were still choppy. So the yacht sailed along the (very wide) river and we got a tour of the city area along the way.

By the time we finished the work itinerary, it was almost 5pm and we headed back to the hotel to freshen up. At dinner time, the hosts brought us to the streets of Kaohsiung for authentic Taiwanese food. We went to this place called the Liu-Ho Night Market (which is something like Chinatown). There, I ate a popiah-like thing which contained duck, veggie, and some crispy stuff. I also ate beef kway teow, mee sua with oysters, crispy chicken, and bubble tea. The food's probably loaded with tons of msg but once you take a bite, you'll forget about all those health tips you'd hear from HPB. Once our stomachs were filled, we had to do some workout, naturally. The shops had quite a limited array of items, but somehow, we still managed to grab several good buys. To cut the long story short, we spent about 2-3 hours shopping that evening, shuffling between two night markets (which btw, opens till 4am!) And since it was our second and last night in the city, we made our way back to the hotel and enjoyed a couple of Taiwan beers. By the time I got back to my room, it was 3am and I made myself pack my luggage before sleeping.

The next morning, we had buffet breakfast at the hotel restaurant. And since we still had some time to kill, we drank more Taiwan beer! Just kidding. We took a separate uber-fast elevator from the ground floor to the top (77th story I think). Paid S$5 for that, btw. Unfortunately, it was quite hazy that morning and we couldn't really see much anyway.

So ya, that's about it: My first overseas work assignment, although seriously, I didn't feel like I was working at all. Here are some pictures: