Bobbing along to MJ

I think I'm on a roll these days. I'm coming back to my musical roots.

And it's been MJ.

After watching "This Is It" and seeing what a perfectionist he is, I've been so inspired. I went out right after the movie and bought a 2-disc album that contained his string of hits. And I've been listening to it every other day.

And I've had the luxury of having the songs loaded into my phone so I can listen to it. It's been a real adventure: breaking down the beats, bass, guitar riffs, the strings, and all the other sfx. This man was a GENIUS!

I'm actually contemplating doing some kind of a thesis on the movement and impact of MJ's music on pop. I've been hearing stuff I've never heard before, partly cos I haven't been paying so much attention to detail. Sometimes, I hear little beats or bass lines and think, "Hey...that sounds familiar." Before you know it, you hear an extended version of that beat or bass line, or something that evolved from the original, simpler version on another song much later. The feeling is like... "Wow!"

So I'm definitely intrigued. But if I'm really serious about it, I will need to do A LOT of research on MJ and his music. I will need to boost my musical knowledge and learn all about the history and his roots and how they evolved.

Okay, this may start to sound boring as it becomes a bit more academic rather than fun trivia. I am really excited though. I wonder if this has been done before. It probably has. I don't think I'm the first to be in awe of MJ, neither will I be the last.

Wow.

i wanna sing song.

i have this habit when it comes to music. songs, in particular.

recently heard these 2 songs: 掉了 and 我不是你想象那么勇敢. and i just felt in my heart that i need to learn how to sing these 2 songs. they sound like something fun to do.

in case you haven't noticed, i have a bit of a sadistic nature.

anyway, so i've been looping these 2 songs on my comp at work today. over and over and over again.

now THIS is my habit. i tend to listen to songs over, and over, and over again if i decide a song is nice enough, difficult enough and challenging enough, and i wanna master it. not learn. MASTER.

this is the process:

the first few times, listen, mostly just the melody.

next few times, start humming to the melody, pick up a few words.

then, think: why don't i just find the lyrics and learn the song properly? so, find lyrics, and for the next few times, sing along.

then, just loop the song a few more time (more like the next few hours) and try to get the melody, phrasing, ad libs, turns, techniques right.

and almost the last few times, but not least, listen to the song carefully. no need to sing it. just listen very carefully. listen for the breathing, the intonations, feel, movement.

i don't think there is a right or wrong way to learn to sing a song properly, but my way oughta come pretty close. i mean, by the time you start to take up the mic and sing the song, u would have at least heard the song 100 times!

i wanna go karaoke so i can practice the 2 songs!!!

Back to the 70s...

i'm very late (as usual) on the photos-front of things. so just to make it slightly more coherent, i'm gonna post up pics in a chronological order.

first up, was the "Psychedelic 70s". it's our annual year-end party! we all dressed up to the sevens and the girls and i did a little somethin'-somethin'.

started our day with last-min rehearsals at mdc.

memorise lyrics, memorise steps, memorise places...aiyo...

then we headed down to mimolette to watch the people dressed the place up!

and of course, we dressed up too...as witnessed.

and started taking photos..

us girls (the mimolettes) with our sifu jeffrey!!

and...let the show begin...

presenting...

MIKE

and the Mimolettes!

we did a grease medley. there's mike with his orange ass-tight pants and leather jacket.

and us in our super psychedelic look!

(i like my outfit very very much!!!)

capping off with the last song: we go together!

and our final pose!

it was a grand night, a great night. i enjoyed myself loads! it's been a while since i performed, and it looks like it may be a while before i'll be able to do this again.

good times, girls, good times. =)

Fall in Singapore

I joked about with various people that it's been so cold in Singapore that you can take out your fall season styles and wear them.

Of course, cold is relative, but at 23-28 deg C, this is almost like air-conditioning the whole of Singapore. Plus the rain. It is really not a normal sight...people are wearing boots! (Then again, people were ALREADY wearing boots even when the sun was up and scorching at 30+ deg C.)

I like the weather. Not so much the rain, which I can handle as long as I don't get caught in it. Otherwise, the weather is just fabulous. I would love for it to be just like this all year round. I don't think the people at Bukit Timah will be very happy though, with all their washed out Ferraris, BMWs and Porsches parked at the flooded basement carpark of their high-end condominium.

Duncha feel that the air is just so much cleaner and fresher with the rain coming oh' so often?

It makes one sleepy too...

Very sad, I always blog when I'm feeling sleepy.

And when the boss isn't around.

Teehee...

Enjoy fall, people!

blogging noob

i still remember my first foray into the blogosphere.

actually, i can't remember much of it except that my first blog was hosted on OpenDiary. i do remember spending hours a day experimenting with html and learning it all online. now of course, it is so much easier to "personalise" your blogs. just a click here and a click there. and if you wanted something more special, you just search for skins and download the html script or something.

my next-cubicle neighbour recently (today) decided to start a blog of her own. her first blog. she isn't new to the blogging scene since she reads tons of fashion blogs and blogshops, but she had not been tempted to the dark side. till today at least. today, she decided to take the first step to world domination...erm...to start a blog.

so after sussing out which platform suits her best, she went ahead and registered her blog. the next few moments, however, were typical of a noob (or maybe it's just her).

she: *whines* how to choose a background? there is supposed to be some to choose from but i cannot choooooose!!!

me: huh? just choose and click on it lah...*walks over*

she: cannot! see...there's supposed to be like 75 to choose from but how to choose? i cannot click on it.

me: (already by her desk) err...*looks at the screen* scroll down...down...

she: see...cannot click!!

me: (still looking) did u log-in?

she: yah...i logged in just now ma.

me: *looks closer* click there...*points to homepage icon of platform; she clicks and it reaches the homepage; i look again*

me: YOU DID NOT LOG-IN LAAAA!!!!

she: (laughs sheepishly) oh yah hor...haha...okok...

me: *pulls hair out* argh...

she: okok, don't stand here la!! and don't write about me on your blog.

me: sure...



ya right.

when is it my turn?

i always read other people's blogs and feel so inspired by their words. they way they describe something even as mundane as their day, their week, or just something they feel at the moment.

and when i write in my blog, i come up with...crap!

maybe it's the weird conversations i have at work, which is where my sanity is usually tested. for example, we'll have the fashionista beside me asking if she should get a pair of coloured doc marten's boots. why, for crying out loud, would you want a pair of pink doc marten's boots?!?! and then the perpetual-dreamer on the other side will be saying something silly about some guy she can't have. in fact, they are ALL not eligible (maritally and orientationally speaking).

(nevertheless, i would like to disclaim that they do bring some entertainment to an otherwise mundane and rigid work-life.)

so i'm really quite jealous.

why do people give off the warm-fuzzy feeling thru their blog postings but mine doesn't?

mine give off gas.

hrmph.

sleepy times...

the usual la. post-lunch syndrome.

meet my current 2 best friends: full and sleepy

my 2 colleagues are out enjoying the time of their lives (on course) while i'm stuck in the office battling heavy eyelids amongst other mundane stuff otherwise known as work.

i...want...my...bed.......

i had coke, which is usually my perk-me-up since it makes me hyper, but it's not working......

weather is too nice.

air-con temperature is just nice.

mood in the office is also nice (nobody around, not even the boss[es]).

it's all niceeeeee...

sleepy la.

zzzzzzzzzzz.................

fddl;ooooooooooooooool;;f;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;oloddffffffffffffffjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjddddddddddddd

*falls on keyboard*

a weekend of celebrations

Tis been a busy week!

At work, we've been cooped up in a conference room, cranking our brains trying to think of good ideas, better ideas, indexes, tables, shapes and sizes...it's been super productive, but also super exhausting.

On the life front, there has been tons of birthdays. i hate it that there are so many october babies. it makes me feel...not very special.

Except for my granny of course. I adore her, and we had a yummylicious dinner on sunday to celebrate her birthday. Went to the ulu-est of ulu places - sembawang bottletree. I've been there once with the cjgals and gang, so I know the food is not too bad, but BOY did we have a spread! We had lobsters, crabs, prawns, fish, squid, sambal kangkong, vege, pig's trotters, noodles and rice. Damn good I tell you!

But the day before, on saturday, was Surin's wedding dinner. I say dinner loosely because it's more like a wedding party! It was the most chilled out wedding ever, and the earliest to start (the minute you arrive, actually)!! I had a good time, though the weather was a tad humid. Better than the rain, I say.

Thinking of all the food is making me quite hungry. Haven't had breakfast this morning coz no time for our usual morning break. In fact, we haven't had a break for a loooong time.

Foooood..!!

Doggy Season

I'm really not good with a camera. As in, I can take a decent picture, but the main bane of it is uploading it to show the world, or even the decency to send it to those whom you took of. Even after you said you would.

Yeah, I'm one of those annoying people. I take photos and I don't send them, I don't load them, and in recent times, you can forget about developing them.

I'm terrible.

Louis, my pet, my beagle, my baby (although now not baby anymore), and some (my mum) say my son...has proudly turned 2! On 4 Oct. He shares his birthday with my dad. But since I'm not very enthusiastic about celebrating birthdays, I didn't even think much about throwing him a birthday party. I just let it slide. He's a dog for crying out loud. He doesn't even know it's his birthday.

Side note, remember in primary school, where you were taught to refer to pets or animals as "it" rather than "he"? Look how fare we have come. Never discount heartware.

So anyway, I have done the near-impossible and uploaded some photos from my camera to my computer in the office, much to the chagrin of my colleagues (cos i owe them tons of photos). So to make up for my dismissiveness of louis' 2nd birthday...

Behold! Louis Vuitton Lee Lu Yi.

his favourite "dolly-dollies"

he thinks the $2K massage chair is his.

he loves to look out of the window and he does this everyday, for a couple of minutes each time.
as to what he really see or is looking at, i still don't know. so we watch him look...

very intently.

his current fav sleeping position when we're not looking.

but most of all, he craves constant attention.

taking a breather

the colleagues and i have decided we'll take a short break after lunch to recover from the lunch trip out.

i'm so full. had this seafood crayfish soup that is quite yummy. and i didn't even know it was just around the neighbourhood. my neighbourhood, that is, at the 'end of the world' (according to chriz).

woodlands la...

so anyway, everyone is suffering from some form of post-lunch syndrome. kinda need to shake it off by not doing any work for a while. we've decided to start doing proper work at 2.45pm.

i have trouble opening my eyes. long story...but my point is, i can't open my eyes properly. they're quite heavy, my eyelids. baaah...

oh yes, the colleagues and i have laid down some ground rules so that we can all save money, or rather not spend unwisely. we'll only eat out at most once a week. every fortnight, we'll have a Bring Your Own Food (BYOF) Day. and we put a cap on the amount we can spend on junk food supplies in a month. we even have a fund for it. cool eh?

save money people. it's always good to start saving. i really wished i'd started saving money much earlier. imagine if i had started saving just $100 a month from the time i started teaching tuition...i would have had about $9000 by now!!! woah...

so start saving.