What's done is done

Treated my parents to their first Shakespeare in the Park experience where the Singapore Repertory Theatre was putting up a "modernised" Macbeth at Fort Canning. Overall play was well-paced and performed though some of the contemporary touches fell short, e.g. Macbeth using a gun (ok) but a mobile phone camera? Seriously.

The play took me back to my English class stint in Canada as a rather over-the-top Lady Macbeth.... and I just realised the OAC Grade 13 was phased out in 2005! In remembrance, here's quotes from Shakespeare's most tragic drama queen:

Look like the innocent flower,
But be the serpent under it.

Screw your courage to the sticking place.

Nought's had, all's spent
Where our desire is got without content.
'Tis safer to be that which we destroy
Than, by destruction, dwell in doubtful joy.

Out, damned spot! Out, I say!

What's done is done.

Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.

(For you smart alecks, yes, the last one was said by Macbeth)

Trust His heart

All things work for our good
Though sometimes we don't see how they could
Struggles that break our hearts in two
Sometimes blind us to the truth
Our Father knows what best for us
His ways are not our own
So when your pathway grows dim
And you just don't see Him
Remember you're never alone

God is too wise to be mistaken
God is too good to be unkind
So when you don't understand
When you don't see His plan
When you can't trace His hand
Trust His heart

He sees the master plan
And He holds our future in His hand
So don't live as those who have no hope
All our hope is found in Him
We see the present clearly
But He sees the first and the last
And like a tapestry
He's weaving you and me
To someday be just like Him

He alone is faithful and true
He alone knows what is best for you

Asian aging

Haha, so tongue in cheek but true! (Click on original post to view)

My father died for Pakistan

Shehrbano Taseer, a fellow Smith alumna, wrote this New York Times op-ed in memory of her father, Punjab Governor Salmaan Taseer, who was assassinated on January 4, 2011. Excerpt below.

My father believed that the strict blasphemy laws instituted by General Zia have been frequently misused and ought to be changed. His views were widely misrepresented to give the false impression that he had spoken against Prophet Mohammad. This was untrue, and a criminal abdication of responsibility by his critics, who must now think about what they have caused to happen. According to the authorities, my father’s stand on the blasphemy law was what drove Mr. Qadri to kill him.

There are those who say my father’s death was the final nail in the coffin for a tolerant Pakistan. That Pakistan’s liberal voices will now be silenced. But we buried a heroic man, not the courage he inspired in others....

Changed for the better?

Take time out to reunite with loved ones, reflect on this year and recharge for the year ahead. Have a blessed Christmas and happy holidays!

I've heard it said

That people come into our lives for a reason

Bringing something we must learn

And we are led

To those who help us most to grow

If we let them

And we help them in return

And now whatever way our stories end

I know you have re-written mine

By being my friend

Who can say if I've been changed for the better?

But I know I'm who I am today

Because I knew you...

I have been changed for good

See Sam Tsui and Nick Pitera's cover of WICKED's "For Good" below. Full lyrics here

Baby, It's Cold Outside

The latest cast addition to Glee gives me much glee! Here's hoping Blaine aka Darren Criss sticks around for a good long while (and the writers do his character justice...)

Doesn't this just warm your heart? Great vocals, adorable choreography. At least this redeems the awkwardness in the previous ep somewhat!


I didn't even LIKE this song till Darren and the Tufts Beelzebubs put their spin on it:


Get more Glee music here!
Updated: Dec 8 with BICO video clip.

Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard

"Why is it so hard to make lasting changes in our companies, in our communities, and in our own lives? ... The rational mind wants to change something at work; the emotional mind loves the comfort of the existing routine. This tension can doom a change effort—but if it is overcome, change can come quickly....

... The duo's tension is [best] captured by an analogy used by University of Virginia psychologist Jonathan Haidt in his wonderful book The Happiness Hypothesis. Haidt says that our emotional side is an Elephant and our rational side is its Rider. Perched atop the Elephant, the Rider holds the reins and seems to be the leader. But the Rider's control is precarious because the Rider is so small relative to the Elephant. Anytime the six-ton Elephant and the Rider disagree about which direction to go, the Rider is going to lose. He's completely overmatched.

The authors share some insights on overcoming this tension via this framework:

1) DIRECT THE RIDER: What looks like resistance is often a lack of clarity. So provide crystal-clear direction. (Think 1% milk.)

2) MOTIVATE THE ELEPHANT: What looks like laziness is often exhaustion. The Rider can’t get his way by force for very long. So it’s critical that you engage people’s emotional side—get their Elephants on the path and cooperative. (Think of the cookies and radishes study and the boardroom conference table full of gloves.)

3) SHAPE THE PATH: What looks like a people problem is often a situation problem. We call the situation (including the surrounding environment) the “Path.” When you shape the Path, you make change more likely, no matter what’s happening with the Rider and Elephant. (Think of the effect of shrinking movie popcorn buckets.)

Want to know more? Get the book! Meanwhile, here are links to a one-page summary of this framework and handy resources for work or personal use.

You keep us

You keep us waiting
You, the God of all time
Want us to wait for the right time in which to discover
Who we are, where we must go,
Who will be with us and what we must do
So thank you ... for the waiting time

You keep us looking
You, the God of all space
Want us to look in the right and wrong places
For signs of hope, for people who are hopeless
For visions of a better world that will appear
among the disappointments of the world we know
So thank you ... for the looking time

You keep us loving
You, the God whose name is love
Want us to be like you
To love the loveless and the unlovely and the unlovable
To love without jealousy or design or threat
And most difficult of all, to love ourselves
So thank you ... for the loving time

And in all this, You keep us
Through hard questions with no easy answers
Through failing where we hoped to succeed and
making an impact where we felt we were useless
Through the patience and the dreams and the love of others
And through Jesus Christ and his Spirit, You keep us
So thank you ... for this keeping time

And for now and for ever
Amen

- Iona Community, Scotland

Stay hungry, stay foolish

Making any new year's resolutions? Steve Jobs shares three life stories at his Stanford commencement address back in (pre-iPhone) 2005. (1) Trust that you can connect the dots in the future; (2) Keep looking for what (and whom) you love - don't settle; and (3) Your time is limited so don't waste it!



If you're up for more advice, here's my shortlist of words of wisdom.

Stay tuned

Our next big product launch is coming to Singapore!

Here's a video snippet on the Nokia X6 Comes With Music edition - offering you "unlimited free music downloads, yours to keep" !


... and our Comes With Music 101 vid!


Early reviews are coming out, e.g. this unboxing overview from a UK user. Meanwhile, check here for the latest news from Rihanna :)

Rihanna Live!

Watch highlights of Rihanna's heartfelt live concert with Nokia at London's O2 Academy, Brixton, featuring songs from her albums, Rated R, Good Girl Gone Bad, A Girl Like Me and recent duets, Live Your Life and Run This Town. Download these tracks plus exclusive Rihanna content at a Nokia Music Store near you.

Madhouse montage and Wait Your Turn


Russian Roulette is growing on me...


Continual updates from this site so check back often!

The Bizarre Behaviour of Singaporeans

The outsider view is often the most perceptive - observations made by a German national who has lived in Singapore for 9 years.

44 years of economic and material success have spawned some very strange behaviours among Singaporeans. They spent so much to buy a house or flat, furnished it up like a palace, but spent their time outside, most of the time at work. And the maids are the ones enjoying the million-dollar or multi-million-dollar assets.

Then they pay so much, the highest in the world, for a car only to park at home. Too expensive to drive, too many ERPs and car park charges to pay. And they are encouraged to park their cars at home and take public transport, being cheaper and more convenient.

And when Singaporeans travel, instead of seeing the places, they went shopping. The best part is that they would head for the cheapest bargains, buying stuff that they could get in Chinatown or pasar malam, at even cheaper prices. But they are still happy that they got a bargain.

And while the heartlanders are busy trying to make a life here, being told to bust off if they are not happy, which they could not, the rich and presumably very happy and contented citizens are buying up properties overseas just in case they need to make that escape from this paradise.

While many Singaporeans are thinking of jumping ship, or preparing to jump ship, hoards of new immigrants are rushing in to take their place in this paradise.

And to top it all up, they keep complaining about the govt and all the policies that they found unpalatable, but come every election, they will vote and return the govt to power.

Strange Singaporean behaviour

The Wait Is Ova

Rihanna's new album after 2 years - Rated R - is out November 23! Lucky fans will get the chance to see her perform live (via online streaming or in person) from a "secret" London site on Monday, November 16, 8PM GST. Brought to you by Nokia. Connecting People :)



She's out of Disturbia and there's no stopping her music now.... Have a song from this good gal gone bad:

Rihanna - Take A Bow
Uploaded by Rihanna. - Music videos, artist interviews, concerts and more.

Happy Halloween!

Death Star, Gollum or Enterprise pumpkins, anyone?






There's even one for Obama!

See Fantasy Pumpkins for carving tips and more ideas.

Sigh, miss the US, esp. in fall - hubby is off on a solo trip this time....

Singapore Idols = boomz!

OMG. *headdesk*


PS If you look closely ~0:05, the publishers even misspelt "Mathetmatics!" (sp) *double headdesk*

Chronicles of Narnia

Thanks to a friend's referral, I can finally read CS Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia online, illustrated and free! As a big Tolkien fan growing up, Narnia never quite grabbed my imagination as Middle Earth did. To be fair, although the first two movies were box office successes, they didn't quite do the original books justice -- much like Harry Potter, His Dark Materials and other popular children's film adaptations. It'd be good to revisit Aslan's world with my (somewhat) older lenses.

Don't Stop Believin'

Fell in love with this song once again but can't decide which Journey cover/remix I like better - there's so many out there!

Glee's cover - when will this new TV series air in Asia?! Trailer here


Family Guy + classic Journey remix


Filipino Arnel Pinada's first show as Journey's new lead vocalist


Sam Tsui's cover of Glee's cover (your eyes are *not* deceiving you!)


Nick Pitera's cover of Glee's cover (he really is singing both parts!)


... and the 2009 American Idols

Bad day - 'nuff said

Superwoman

I'm needing some gal pep talk after this week. Count on Alicia Keys to bring out the real "S" factor in you!

Everywhere I'm turning
Nothing seems complete
I stand up and I'm searching
For the better part of me
I hang my head from sorrow
Slave to humanity
I wear it on my shoulders
Gotta find the strength in me

Cause I am a Superwoman
Yes I am
Yes she is
Still when I'm a mess
I still put on a vest
With an S on my chest
Oh yes
I'm a Superwoman

For all the mothers fighting
For better days to come
And all my women, all my women sitting here trying
To come home before the sun
And all my sisters
Coming together
Say yes I will
Yes I can

Cause I am a Superwoman
Yes I am
Yes she is
Still when I'm a mess
I still put on a vest
With an S on my chest
Oh yes
I'm a Superwoman

When I'm breaking down
And I can't be found
And I start to get weak
Cause no one knows
Me underneath these clothes
But I can fly
We can fly, Oooohh

Cause I am a Superwoman
Yes I am
Yes she is
Still when I'm a mess
I still put on a vest
With an S on my chest
Oh yes
I'm a Superwoman

Some days, I feel like doing this too ...

... but for very different reasons!