Splash of Art on Public Housing

These blocks of public housing flats in Teck Whye, Singapore, have been refreshed with an avant-garde splash of Mondrian-like artwork.

Too Big To Miss

Now this is what I would call a BIG Mac.

Incidentally, the Guinness record holder for the “Largest Hamburger Commercially Available,” is a 590 pound burger produced by Ted Reader and Napoleon Grills.

Click here to size-up this Napoleon burger.

With pictures such as the above-mentioned Big Mac being able to be transposed into wallpaper, the possibilities are mind-boggling of what you can adorn your wall with.

If you are short on decorative space, your computer screen is available and you can choose great pictures such as famous paintings to adorn it from reliable and safe sources.

Click here for WallpaperCave which is an online community of desktop wallpapers enthusiasts.

White Beauty

In a few lines on this marque, Ferrari has formed and brought forth a refined beauty with immense horsepower to boot.

"I have yet to meet anyone quite so stubborn as myself and animated by this overpowering passion that leaves me no time for thought or anything else. I have, in fact, no interest in life outside racing cars." -- Enzo Ferrari

Red Beauty

This red beauty is gleaming in the sun and waiting for its owner to fire it up to go on a spin and paint the town red by seizing the roads.

Classical Music - Formidable and Yet Accessible

The following is a formidable and robust performance of Ludwig van Beethoven - Piano Concerto No. 5 in E♭ major, Op. 73 by Krystian Zimerman together with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by the late Leonard Bernstein. 

The audience was so overwhelmed that they rendered a thunderous applause with standing ovation for over 3 minutes. 

Click here for Beethoven - Piano Concerto No 5 - Zimerman, Wiener Philharmoniker, Bernstein (1989).

As commented by Andrew Hall, "In this age, everything is so accessible all the time. We have Beethoven and Strauss and Minor Threat  and Miles Davis on a whim. But once upon a time, people waited, and anticipated for months, or even years to hear this kind of music. All the waiting, and anticipating created a space within them to fully receive it."

Photo by freestocks.org on Unsplash

And, for the love of music, the musicians have reached out to the masses in public spaces.

Click here for Flashmob Flash Mob - Ode an die Freude ( Ode to Joy ) Beethoven Symphony No.9 classical music. 

Refreshing with Classical Music

What is music? Music is vocal and/or instrumental sounds that is created and combined harmoniously to bring forth an audible form of expression that invokes our emotion.

In nature, the chirping or tweeting of birds is soothing to the ears unlike the grunt of hippos or the howling of wolves. The former carries a pattern of sound that is discernible whereas the latter comes forth as mere noise bereft of design. That said, if the hippos or wolves could make their sounds with some coordination, we could well sit up and pin that as music.

Much like food, what is music may turn out to be 'junk' by the next person. Some may be into the sounds made by cicadas, waterfalls or rustling of leaves while others are sold out on pop (popular) music that is hogging the Billboard.  

To each his or her own then. You decide what is your kind of music. 

For today, please allow me to prod you with a revisit to classical music which may kinda remind you of when was the last time you visited a museum of sorts. 

Photo by Manuel Nägeli on Unsplash

Mind you though, if pop music is likened to a yacht, then classical music is like an aircraft carrier with immensely more compact, layered, volume and richness of music. You might just be blown away and switch from beer to whiskey along similar vein.

Click here for Beethoven - Symphony No. 6 (Proms 2012)

Click here and start from the 8th minute (unless you have the patience) for  Gioachino Rossini: William Tell Overture (SAMOHI in Prague)

Click here for 50 Most Famous Pieces of Classical Music

Take A Walk Back In Time At Joo Chiat

Joo Chiat is located on the Eastern part of Singapore between Geylang Serai and Katong. The many variants of "Joo Chiat" roads there derived their names from Mr Chew Joo Chiat who was a plantation owner and philanthropist.

The buildings of Joo Chiat, comprising an eclectic mixture of houses and shophouses, have by and large been left in tact from yesteryears and some have even been spruced up to accentuate their rich heritage. 

In particular, you will be charmed by the Peranakan houses with their colourful facade and motifs.

The conservation of Joo Chiat is in good hands. It was designated by the National Heritage Board in 2011 as Singapore’s first Heritage Town. 

Here are some photographs to take you back in time at Joo Chiat:-

Strictly Come Dancing 2018 Final

According to Wikipedia:-

"Strictly Come Dancing (informally known as Strictly) is a British television dance contest in which celebrities partner with professional dancers to compete in mainly ballroom and Latin dance. Each couple is scored out of 10 by a panel of judges. The format has been exported to over 40 other countries, and has also inspired a modern dance-themed spin-off Strictly Dance Fever. The show is currently presented by Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman.

The show has run on BBC One since 15 May 2004, primarily on Saturday evenings with a following Sunday night results show (with certain exceptions) and with its high viewing figures Strictly Come Dancing has become a significant programme in British popular culture. The sixteenth series ended on 15 December 2018."

Photo by Isaiah McClean on Unsplash

Dancing is a physically- and emotionally-demanding art form that is not for the faint-hearted. 

And, when you pair amateur dancers with professionals like in Strictly Come Dancing, it is a joy to see how the amateurs develop and progress in their execution of dance moves as all their hard work translate into a spectacle on stage.

Click here for Strictly Come Dancing [BBC] 15 December 2018 Series 16 The Final.

If you are short on time to watch the aforesaid finals over two hours, the following are some highlights for your quick viewing (be prepared to be blown off your seat):

Click here for Stacey Dooley & Kevin Clifton Paso Doble to 'Malaguena' - BBC Strictly 2018.

Click here for Ashley Roberts & Pasha Kovalev Show Dance to 'Keeping Your Head Up' by Birdy - BBC Strictly 2018.

Click here for Faye Tozer & Giovanni Pernice Theatre Jazz to 'Fever' by Peggy Lee - BBC Strictly 2018.

Click here for Joe Sugg & Dianne Buswell Charleston to 'Cotton Eyed Joe' by Rednex - BBC Strictly 2018.

Click here for Faye Tozer & Giovanni Pernice Show Dance to 'Lullaby of Broadway' - BBC Strictly 2018.

The Story Behind The Most Complicated Chinese Word

One of the best way to discourage anyone from leaning the Chinese language is to freak them out with "biang", which happens to be the most complex Chinese character to be assembled with 62 strokes of writing.

Image courtesy of en.wikipedia.org

That said for pulling their legs, the typical Chinese words are much less complex than biang.

Yes, it refers to Biang Biang Noodles which is famous in Xi'an, the capital city of Shaanxi Province in central China. 

Click here for THE HARDEST CHINESE CHARACTER by Lenaaround and watch it till the end for a takeaway on the history of biang.

Click here for a review of Biang Biang noodles by Miss Tam Chiak.

Meet Kimi Werner

People are fascinated with other people amongst other things. This is borne out by why movies, novels, literature and internet media channels such as YouTube and Instagram involving people have remained highly popular. 

While the machines such as BumbleBee and Optimus Prime as with anime such as Mikasa Ackerman and Roronoa Zoro may be catching up, they would not be able to displace our fascination with human beings.

Today, meet Kimi Werner who has a reputation for spearfishing and being a shark whisperer. Her fascination with outdoor activities amidst nature will infect you for good!   

Photo courtesy of www.kimiwerner.com

Click here for Harbor House Life: Kimi Werner. 

Click here for Variables with Kimi Werner.  

Click here for When you feel the need to speed up, slow down | Kimi Werner | TEDxMaui.

The Twelve Days of Christmas -- Hidden Truths Revealed

You would have heard "The Twelve Days of Christmas" song for the umpteenth time over the years.

However, do you you know the truths concealed in that song?

Click here for The History of the 12 Days of Christmas.

Know Your Nuts

Click here for more information on LeMed.

Shoe Candy

The following 'sweet' shoe is pushing new boundary and adding vibrancy to the competition for footwear.

This revolutionary shoe might just be what you are looking for, especially if you have a sweet leg.

The above looks like a signature side kick from the legendary Bruce Lee who would never have imagined ever giving an in-your-face view of the sole of his footwear as a marketing move. 

But, then, he aint' seen this new candy sole yet. 

Click here for Asics Gel-Quantum series. 

Click here for Bruce Lee's Signature Moves - Side Kick.

Are You Getting Smarter?

What has a tap got to do with whether or not you are becoming smarter? 

Read on. 

This used to be a pretty cool tap which is turned on automatically whenever the sensor detects your hands.

The following newbie version of a smarter tap has just been launched and could well replace the first generation of the good ol' smart tap as we know it.

So-called smart technology is encroaching quickly into our lives whether we like it or not. It has affected us in a myriad of ways such as taking an App-enabled alternative private hire car rather than hailing a conventional taxi, accessing entertainment (e.g. music and movies) via internet rather than CD and cable, or having our food cooked by a robot rather than a human (just as smart machines have been washing our clothes and cooking our rice).

And, when even the public toilet is not spared of this smart revolution, it would be worrisome if humans do not embrace a lifestyle to grow and keep learning so as to develop our thinking faculty besides just learning how to use new technology.

No doubt a dumbwaiter is small lift that is used to carry objects rather than people. But those dumb machines are getting smarter such as the aforesaid even-smarter tap.

Yes, there are talks of smarter nations, as well. The use of new technologies puts the spotlight on how much smarter machines have become and they are actually dumbing people. One fine day, people could lose their handwriting skill, and have lesser cognitive skills to solve problems and make decisions.

A smart nation is only as smart as the brainpower, artistic expression, vocational skills (including IT) plus the soft skills of its people.

Thus, it is high time for us to get smarter by accessing books, learn new stuffs online, attend accredited courses, hangout with your smarter contacts and find a mentor.

Btw, if you are smart enough, you could seize this golden opportunity to develop an App or online tool for people to learn something new regularly on an aspect of personal development with follow-through exercises and potentially provide a service that is useful and economically-viable.