Wu Wei Cai's 心写心

I always feel better after reading him. always.

“只有写作，才令我觉得我的一生是真实的，我这一生没有白活。”

Yatto!

Eric Amann's Cicada Voices. Finally found it. Still can't quite believe that I managed to acquire it, without having to pay through my nose. Granted, I was grossly overcharged for pre-paid shipping cost (US$10 when it was only US$4.40 in the end) but what the hell, the book was only US$10. Pity Dr. Swede (ed) did not include more of his poetry. I really like Amann.

Another Ueda publication

Modern Japanese writers and the nature of literature - This showcases the breadth and depth of Ueda's knowledge of and insight into modern Japanese literary history. Ueda's effort has helped readers to better understand and appreciate the literary works of 8 modern masters, from Soseki to Tanizaki, Akutagawa and Mishima.

Busy Busy

Went for Wu Wei Cai's talk on Friday night. He gave interesting insights on the cultural divide between Singaporean and PRC Chinese, mostly anecdotal. Funny man, he is: wicked sense of humour. And got my autograph hehe.

Sunday was ridiculous: attended two weddings lunch and dinner. Seriously overate. The Shang dinner was nice, as expected. Ambience and food aside, the deal clincher for me was the live band belting jazz numbers throughout the night, non-stop, which made the tubs of whole shark fin soup, baked lobsters and little round abalones seem even more yummy. (I was guilty about the shark(s), but ate it nonetheless - sorry Sherman, but couldn't do much since the deed has been done.) Another note was the wedding photography, which was done in NZ. The scenery was of course great but more important was the composition aspect which clearly demonstrated the photographer's talent. Techniques and all can be honed but for artistic flair, keen perception and creativity, you either have it, or don't. Robin photography hmm.

Juxtaposition

engaging more than one sense and crafting the transference link. Hmm. I need more practice.

Dancing outside the Law

This puts things in perspective: too much (media) hype over the impact of "sexy" crimes like drug, diamonds and weapon trafficking as opposed to less attention-garnering illicit flows like cigarettes, pharmaceuticals and food smuggling whose impact is more universal, especially on the vast numbers of the have-nots. While the topic is engaging, style-wise, however, I found this book rather slow. TM was asking me to check out this other read on international financial flows "Money makes the world go round" by Barbara Garson.

Haikus for Heron's Nest

Made 5 submissions to The Heron's Nest yesterday. *fingers crossed* Mostly compositions inspired by the Ubin trip. Now waiting for the Sep 08 online issue. haikusea.blogspot.com

偶像 - 06062008

六月六日，夜间７点半，茶渊，
讲题：新加坡与中国两地人文感触

Wu Wei Cai is going to speak this Friday, at Tea Chapter, a place we have not been since more than 5 years ago. Finally, am gonna see him for the first time. I hope it's going to be an interesting session. And 久しぶりのTea Chapter...懐かしいわ。

Office

siew khim, esther, franz, grace, nori

Ens' wedding

note to self: Four Seasons is an excellent location.

達屋

I have never posted my opinions on food places here before, although I have made an effort to spare time and compose some reviews at online food communities of 3-4 places that were highly rated in my point of view. (why waste time commenting on nondescript places or blasting lousy ones.) But this one - Tatsuya - deserves special mention. Went for their well-recommended, value-for-money set lunch on a weekday (Nori-san no okagede). Service was efficient and passable but that is no matter. The food and the makers of it were clearly the star. Had a $30 sushi bento, as illustrated. The impeccable details paid to the production of the food clearly shone through. The use of Japanese ingredients, down to the chopped slivers of spring onion (not in pic) whose purpose is to gently enliven the 6 pieces of sea-goodness on rice, demonstrates the chef's persistence and dedication to his craft. Those 6 delectable pieces were made-to-measure for the hito-guchi and as each bite went through, hints of yuzu zest started to envelope the palate - ahh, what a refreshing combination. Special mention also goes to the chawanmushi, which is one of my least favourite Japanese concoctions. But this one, ironically made sono-mama without any usual prawn/meat/gingko nut companions to lend flavour, was pitch-perfect. Again, the credit has to go to the yuzu for dressing up the steamed egg. After hitting the peak with the sushi, the tempura seemed almost mediocre. But I note the light batter and absence of visible swathes of oil, in contrast to the floury, oil-drenched crust that seems to be a common sighting at most establishments here.

Sex and the City

All girly pink and screechy fun. Love that hussy Cattrall.

Elaine's wedding

Photo at wedding, but no bride. Din realise then but the bow looks rather awkward. Hmm.

Avenue Q - episode 1

Countdown: exactly 5 (long) months more to go

Episode 2: the aftermath

Tea classification

To aid my aging memory....

Green Tea: Dragon well, Biluochun (light green brew)

White Tea (leaves with white buds): Shou mei, Bai mudan, Baihaoyinzhen (light yellow brew)

Yellow Tea: Huangyacha, Huangxiaocha (yellow brew)

Oolong: Shuixian, Tie Guan Yin (golden/orange brew)

Red Tea (English): Darjeeling, Assam (deep red brew)

Black Tea: Pu-er (e.g. Tuo cha) (brown brew)

www.tea-chapter.com.sg has a good summary of factors affecting a good brew (temperature, amount of tea leaves and water, and brew time) plus classification details.

floating world

Re-read this. This collection of premodern Japanese senryu remains accessible and highly readable a century after they were written. I find this concept of ukiyo ("floating world" is the best translators could muster and agree on) fascinating. It's a very Zen Buddhist philosophy that is closely linked to the perspective of "everything is nothing and nothing is everything". The Chinese call it 一切皆空. 既然是空，也就不必太介怀。