1°17' N, 103°51' E Island Slacker

This word came out a few times today.
Yeah~something happened.
I am not involved, but I will be affected.

Lesson learnt is temper management is really important.
Once the wrong tone is out, the wrong message would be sent out as well.
It's too late to feel apologetic or regret after that.

In the end, I am losing someone I can work with.

Haiz....

No.of Eps: 16
Yr/TV Stn: 2012/MBC
Cast:
Kim Sun Ah ~ Hwang Ji An
Lee Jang Woo ~ Park Tae Kang
Park Gun Hyung ~ Jo Eun Sung
Im Soo Hyang ~ Yeom Na Ri
Synopsis: (edited from Soompi)
Hwang Ji An is a successful career woman with a bright future ahead until she gets into an "accident" a young guy, Park Tae Kang, who has nothing to his name but a high-school diploma and works hard. Her life and career gets thrown in chaos upon learning that she has became pregnant with his child. Her strongest rival, Yeom Na Ri takes the chance to overthrow her company position. On the other hand, she meets Jo Eun Sung, a Gynecologist during their match-making session...
Review:
Actually the drama did not interest me as I am doubtful of Lee Jang Woo & Kim Sun Ah pairing. No doubt KSA is an established actresses, but LJW does not appeal to me. What's worse is the disappointing plot. It's just plain & boring. I do like Ji An and Eun Sung scenes though, and I found them to look more like a couple as compared to Ji An-Tae Kang. Tae Kang is just too immature for her!
I guessed without KSA, this show can simply be dropped from my watching list. KSA portrayed her role very well, and Ji An is actually a challenging character with ups & downs. Chemistry was clearly better with Park Gun Hyung, rather than our male lead.
I don't know why Mr. Park still can't be a male lead, but he has the calibre. It's a waste to see him as a friend by Ji An's side. Eun Sung is really a nice fella ya, just that he's not aggressive enough. Hahaha!
Im Soo Hyang is a rising star but her role does not have too many scenes. Na Ri does not leave me with much impression, but I believed ISH could perform more with better roles. Na Ri is just a plain support character.
I am reluctant to comment abt Lee Jang Woo, because I simply don't like him or Tae Kang. I guess he does not fits the role. Maybe I wld change my impression of him when I see him next time.

--CB Gang Gatheriing @ Raindrops Cafe--
Met up with my long time no see CCHS CO juniors for lunch. It's my first visit to Raindrops. It's a small cafe, pretty cozy, but we've to wait awhile for the food to be served as there is only 1 guy in the kitchen.
Their mains selections are ok, but if you like to drink, they got a wide selection of cocktails, wine and beer. For non-alchoholic drinkers like me, there are mocktails, coffee and tea to choose from. 
This is my Salmon steak, which I thought was not too bad.
Had a nice catchup with the guys. Realised they hardly catchup with each other as well. Some of them just graduated, while some changed their jobs.
--ION Orchard--
Left my juniors to meet up with E.W & Tuan. Bought a pair of shorts from Uniqlo, while the 2 women bought their leather bags from Rabeanco. I think this brand is another good choice for ppl who like leather bags. Price is definitely worth for full leather bags!
--Domani @ NAC--
Haven't pop by my favourite Domani for months. My Seafood sambal Marinara has gone into history, but I am glad I can still request for sambal sauce with other choices :)
Ordered their Tapas, Black Mussel White Wine. The garlic bread was delicious and the black mussels were very fresh.
My Golden Lobster New York spagh with sambal sauce. I missed the sambal!!! Unfortnately it's not spicy at all, but the combination is still great :)
--Giordano @ NAC--
Wanted to ask E.W to buy a "I love SG" shirt so that we can wear in Cambodia on 09 Aug. In the end, Tuan and I bought pants instead. Hahaha!
KH, wanna join the fun? Haha!

Have been coughing non-stop for 2 weeks?
Sometimes headache just come and go.
Really don't know what happened.

My room's air-con was not working yesterday, and the repairman is only coming tomorrow.
Tonight is camping night at E.W's room :)

Olympics is starting, and I don't think I have the time to watch the competition.
Hopefully Team Singapore can have new achievements in the games.
All the best!!!

Last but not least, 1 more week to my 2nd trip of the year!!!!
Angkor Wat (the fruit punch)....I am coming!!!!

No.of Eps: 30
Yr/TV Stn: 2011/TVB
Cast:
Bowie Lam ~ Liu Jun Xiong Joe
Moses Chan ~ Song Yi Lang Angus
Kenny Wong ~ Zheng Zhen Xuan Ronnie
Charmaine Sheh ~ Ye Zi'en Hazel
Maggie Shiu ~ Weng Zhuo Tong Emma
Synopsis: (edited from idlemindsehseh.blogspot.sg)
Due to an accident, radio DJ Ye Zi'en re-encountered her good friends and ex-band mates from her youth; Joe, Angus & Ronnie. Not only this re-encounter made them reminisce their innocent youth when they were in a music band 18 years ago, it also evoked a painful memory everyone has been trying to suppress all these years. Zi'en detested them for not rescuing her boyfriend Jia Ming in a mountaineering accident back then, following which she was constantly lost in relationships and unable to free herself. While the 3 friends feel pained for Zi'en, they are also struggling to survive in the real world. Due to the hidden knot inside their hearts, the four of them were drawn into a complex and turbulent relationships, waiting to be liberated...
Review:
This is a revolution of TVB dramas. It's plot is very dark & heavy, fulled of mixed emotions, truth and lies. Honestly, I watched with some expectations as it's very different from typical TVB plots, but the execution of the drama made the drama a little hard to follow. Perhaps I am not someone who appreciates dark plots, as I found some storyline redundant. The plot lacks a punch, the "pull factor" in order to keep viewers keep wanting more.
The whole drama tackled various themes about people, with one of them being very "glaring". The 3 guys ate up their best friend in order to survive. Is it really wrong? Are we in the position to say they are wrong? In the name of "survival", I guessed it's only normal that humans would end up like this. This is a very daring topic, and I am not surprised that many people wld be disturbed by this idea.
How they punished themselves for survivng was shown throughout the drama. Maybe they wanted to redeem their sins, but covering the truth for so many years proved to be nerve-cracking. They clearly knew they could not keep it a secret forever.
The other big theme is how music could liberate our lives. I thought that's a pretty idealist way of thinking, but one can convey and achieve things through music. I am not a rock & roll fan so I could not relate with their thinking. Haha! 
In terms of characters, none of them are perfect, and I don't like all of them. Haha! Bowie's Joe has the biggest change, from someone fighting for workers' welfare, to someone who played tricks in the cruel business world. I always said Bowie's acting was boring, though he had proved me wrong with his last few dramas. I guessed "Joe" is going to be his next classic character.
Like Bowie, Moses' performance was restricted in his older roles. So he also had a "revolution" via Angus. Angus is outright bad, unlike Joe, who pretended to be good but in fact he's not. Angus played his games well with the Weng sisters, and Joe, who became his rival.
Kenny's Ronnie pales in comparison, though Ronnie is the only one who is acting bad. He has his own set of problems, but he is willing to pay the price for it. He's the middle man between Joe and Angus, who are always on the opposite side of argument. Kenny looked emo and frowned most of the time, but I guessed that's the best he could offer as Ronnie is just more plain than the other 2.
Charmaine's Hazel did not appeal to me. She's probably the only one who has not moved on with her life. (Yeah she did got married and had an affair, but that's just to bluff herself) She did not knew the truth about Jia Ming's death, and she isolated herself. A very passive method. Anyway, she finally opened her door to her friends again, and that's how she grew, facing the truth, accept it and used music to embrace them. Well, Charmaine's acting was quite "ground-breaking" too, though to a smaller extent. She had good chemistry with the 3 male leads, though no romance came out from them :(
Maggie's age is not too easy to act as the naive Emma. It was unconvincing at first, but I slowly got used to it. Emma is not as complicated as the rest. Her main line is between her sister and Angus. She's like the fresh air in the drama as she's not related to the tragic. I guessed she's better in handling "truth" as compared to Hazel somehow.

Have been working OT everyday ever since I returned from Shanghai.
Looks like 3 pairs of hands are not enough...ha!
It's ok. I don't mind earning more for my upcoming trip!

2 more weeks to go!

No.of Eps: 15
Yr/TV Stn: 2012/TTV
Cast:
Johnny Lu ~ Meng Ke Huai
Janel Tsai ~ Li Xiao Yang
Darren Qiu ~ Cheng Shao Yu
Li Wei Wei ~ Yuan Jia Lin
Patrick Li ~ Meng Ke Wei
Synopsis: (edited from Dramawiki)
Meng Ke Huai is a popular romance novelist who suffers from writer's block because he no longer believes in love. When a crazy fan trapped him over night with an innocent bystander, he found the inspiration he needed to finish his book. The bystander was Li Xiao Yang, a senior flight attendant who desperately wanted her boyfriend to propose. They became fast friends over the incident. As time pass by, he found himself attracted to this woman who he knows but not that familiar with.
Review:
I guessed TW idol dramas are lacking good original plots with a fresh & mature cast. I am glad that other time slots are coming up with good dramas. "In Between" is quite a trendy & chic drama, though the story was a little flat somehow. It's good to see characters who are independent and knows what they want in life.
First time watching Johnny Lu and he's surprisingly not too bad. I enjoyed his performance as the impefect Meng Ke Huai. Johnny is not handsome, but he got the hunk's body...haha! Very matchable with model Janel. Liked their chemistry.
I've watched Janel before, but most of her roles are minor. It's goot to know that not only Sonia & Bianca (other model-turned-actresses) can act ya! Janel is very convincing in her role, and her acting is very natural.
Darren is not too bad in his role, though I found Shao Yu rather typical as he's the usual rich guy cum boss. His romance scenes with Li Wei Wei are alright, though not convincing to me.
Li Wei Wei's Jia Lin is the most complicated character. She's not a bad person deep down, but she acted like one. She's selfish, but she's honest with herself too. I am glad she ended up with someoe who truly loves her, but it's a hurtful process for Mr. Shao Yu.
Patrick Li is back with a support role, and he's slightly more serious this time round. Too bad he started on another drama towards the end of "In Between", hence we cld hardly see him. Hope to see him in more serious roles next time.

--Harry Potter: The Exhibition--
Went to check out the exhibtion with the gang earlier. The ticket costed $20 and it showcased the costumes and props that appeared in the Harry Potter series. Seriously speaking, the exhibition does fall short of my expectations, and that's partly because I'm not a Harry Potter fan.
I guess only Harry Potter fans would appreciate the stuffs ya. Haha!
We finished the whole exhibtion in lightning speed...guessed less than an hour! 
That's the only photo I could snapped outside the exhibition. No photography inside ya.

Had a good time catching up with the girls. KH shared her Tibet trip stories with the girls, and it's really funny listening to her. Hahaha!

Hi all!
Day 1 trip report is up! Check it out!

http://daslackertravelogue.blogspot.sg/

Back to office feeling sick. 

Away for a week plus, and I definitely missed the sunset back home.
Glad to see an awesome sky this evening :)

at 6.55pm
at 7pm.

HM recommended me to watch the drama versions of "Liar Game", but I never watch as the genre does not interest me.
On my flight home yesterday, SQ's KrisWorld showed the 2 movie versions at the same time. "Liar Game: The Final Stage" is the finale of the drama version, while "Liar Game: Reborn" is the 2012 sequel.
Even without much background of the drama version, I watched "The Final Stage" with ease. The game itself is very simple - players have to strategise and choose the gold, silver or red apples. They have to go through this time for 13 rounds before a winner emerged. Every stage got the players to think of a new strategy to win, and it was pretty fun to watch them being fooled by the mastermind. However, the movie still fell into the usual Japanese set-up, a very smart & very naive lead actors.
I was halfway through "Reborn" before I was forced to stop as plane prepared for landing. Haha! The style of the movie is similar to the rest, just that the game is more complicated.
Toda & Matsuda were the leads from the drama to movie version. However, they dropped Toda from "Reborn" and put in Tabe, whom I thought was not that suitable for this movie. Lolz! I now can understand how disappointed Liar Game fans were when the lead character in the manga (Toda's Nao) is not in the sequel.
I don't think I will watch the drama versions, but for those who are interested, go ahead and start of with the 2 dramas first :)

Returned home last night.
I had a bad tan and I felt so ugly now. Hahaha!
Actually I am fine with a darker skin colour, but the colour looks so odd now. OMG!

Need to put on whitening mask le.

No.of Eps: 10
Yr/TV Stn: 2012/TBS
Cast:
Takenouchi Yutaka ~ Miyamoto Haru
Wakui Emi ~ Miyamoto Kanako
Yamamoto Yusuke ~ Tanimura Yuki
Kurashina Kana ~ Yoshiki Katsura
Synopsis: (from Dramawiki)
Haru and Kanako have been married for four years. They don't have any children, but they both enjoy their job and are happy together. However their lives are suddenly disrupted when Kanako faints from subarachnoid hemorrhage. After the operation, it becomes evident that she has lost some of her memory...her memory of the five years with her husband. She decides to return home to her parents. Her younger brother takes care of her. Meanwhile, Haru's colleague notices that there is something troubling him. Life without his wife makes Haru realize how much his wife means to him and vows to propose to her once again...
Review:
I expected this drama to be very touching, but somehow it falls short of my expectations. I continued to watch for Takenouchi and Wakui, though the plot became boring.
The way Haru and Kanako reconciled was done with hardly any feelings. It was a  little abrupt to me as I don't see any signals that Kanako wants to be with him beforehand. Haha! Maybe gotta thank to her diaries where all her missing memories were written down.
Takenouchi looked old with his hairstyle and moustache, but I still like the actor. Haru is not a very expressive person, but he is straightforward and honest. It pains him to let Kanako go, but he proceeded for her sake.
As much as I like Wakui, I did not quite like Kanako at times. I am "forced" to forgive her as she lost her memories. Lolz! It's a pity that chemistry between the 2 leads was not very good, sort of disconnected. That's the problem with most Jdramas actually. The drama was too short for them to build anything deeper or further.
Support cast Yamamoto and Kurashina were ok, but nothing impressive. How I wished Yamamoto can shed his idol image and go for more mature roles. Haha!
Last but not least, theme song "Tadaima" by JUJU is awesome...as usual :)