i ve just finished packing for tomorrow 's trip to hong kong. as it is an early morning flight, i ll ve to wake up around 3 plus am. i m still thinking if i should just sleep in the afternoon & stay up tonight.

it s been sometime i get to learn those handy little tricks of my mum to solve seemingly simple problems. naturally, in a situation like packing my luggage, there ll be plenty of chance for her to demonstrate 1 or 2 of those up in her sleeves. today i learnt from her the efficient method of folding & storing large plastic bags. usually i would just anyhow stuff a few plastic bags into my travel bag, which wont actaully hurt but in my mum 's eyes, certainly very untidy. all she did is just fold the plastic bag into a long thin strip, then keep folding it up, such that it ll end up a neat flat little triangular piece. now i can slot them anywhere easily even if i need to bring a dozen.

as i struggle almost always in vain to keep up with the pace of advancement everyday, what never fail to amaze me is my mum 's wisdom in the smaller things of life.
:: daydreamer 10/31/2002 03:02:00 PM [+] ::
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update on my animation work. check out the babe!

:: daydreamer 10/31/2002 01:59:00 AM [+] ::
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the original Charles Perrault 's Little Red Riding Hood does not end the way we commonly know. it s turns out to be a frighening cautionary tale, in which the naive heroine is killed by the wolf.

no wonder the jap anime jinroh ended that way. i thought it is a modern re-interpretation but it s merely trying to hold true to the original.
:: daydreamer 10/29/2002 12:02:00 PM [+] ::
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Well said, but ideals differ from each individual... one wud rather see and experience then to jus stay put and listen to stories people say. depends what is your idea of life. depends how much you want to achieve. depends what is true happiness to you. no one is not allowed to dream, guess its jus how far you want to dream... (pardon my sudden appearance).... - submind


ahhh ... submind u r still around : )
something i read in paulo coelho 's 'by the river piedra i sat down and wept' gave the thought. but i m sure he s making the point on spiritual context. it s just some casual acquaintances of mine, who complained much, yet hardly put in much effort for they goals, that makes me feel they r exploiting those words. nevertheless, it s not directed at those pursuing great dreams & true happiness, like yourself.
i m sure a talent such as you would ve no problem making it here or anywhere.


:: wandering songtress 10/29/2002 02:06:00 AM [+] ::
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why would ppl believe that they must go far far away, or travel all over the world to experience life; & success or happiness can only be seeked anywhere but the place where they are borned?

does a country woman who has lived a 100 over years in her farm know any less about life.

would i make the entire society responsible for my being less successful, or reflect on myself.

if i cant beat foreign talent on homeground & can only cry foul, would i do any better at their place.
:: daydreamer 10/28/2002 08:23:00 PM [+] ::
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i just saw shakira 's mtv for objection, which has parts reminscent of the tango sequence in moulin rouge. it has a funny turn though, with a pretty neat transformation of shakira into an animated character beating up her unfaithful guy & deflating his new squeeze 's fake boobs. even batman & superman look-alikes come to her help too! quite an enjoyable one indeed : )
:: daydreamer 10/27/2002 03:40:00 PM [+] ::
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i read abt Life of Pi by yann martel, who has won the booker prize for it recently. it seems pretty interesting & was said to be an easy-to-read book, as are most booker winners. unfortunately, when i tried to look for it today, it was sold out in both kino & borders. last week before the review article in life!, i still saw copies of it on the shelves.

there i am hunting for this much-hyped new book yet i still havent made myself buy paulo ceulho 's warrior of light, even if there are piles of it at 20% in borders. jostein gaarder 's the ringmaster 's daughter hardcover version is also out. but i m only mildly tempted coz i cant finish (or should i say fail to start) reading his maya which i find dry.

it s good in a way i didnt buy any of them today. otherwise they ll be still sitting on my shelf for quite sometime before i can come to them. i ll just wait & hopefully my interest to buy them dont wear out so fast.
:: daydreamer 10/26/2002 10:44:00 PM [+] ::
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lomo wonderland will be held at esplanade on nov 15th 2002 to jan 5th 2003. saigonapple 'unintentionally' brought me to attention to her name on the list.
:: daydreamer 10/25/2002 11:07:00 PM [+] ::
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smallville pilot s on tonite channel 5. i find it an interesting that they ve chosen the story of superman before he becomes superman. though such story settings arent unusual in comics (no i dont think the term 'graphic novel' makes sense :P), i think it s very bold attempt to do it on tv series.

of course, it doesnt mean an interesting premise would promise a marvellous show, let s just be hopeful for the time being. but for sure a must-watch for all superheroes & self-imagined superheroes, like myself (i m gatchaman, G-force!). a hero never forget his humble beginnings!
:: daydreamer 10/23/2002 11:00:00 AM [+] ::
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i went to the esplanade in the late evening to finish up the remaining shots in my film roll. i was also hoping i would get some god-send inspiration for an unique shot to participate in the Merlion on the Bay competition. however, as it gets dark, i realised history has repeated itself, or rather i ve repeated it on myself, by not having a tripod with me.

i managed to get a few shots before it s really dark & wasted away the last few anyway using my army rifle-shooting technique. as i was on my way back along the bridge, i saw this garang-looking photographer with his sophiscated equipment all up & aiming at the bright full moon. what s interesting is that he was adjusting this black card right infront of his camera lens for a shot.

although not always true, i assumed him to be more pro, judging from his equipment. hence i sneaked closer behind him & observed that he s got a hole on the black card. i remembered seeing alyee 's photos of the full moon against a solid dark sky, which really impressed me. now, this set me wondering if this s the way he did it too.

probably one way to find out is to try it out myself. my ixus lens is much smaller, it s gonna be a tough time making that small hole in it. nevertheless, i ve got from now to the next full moon. that should do.
:: daydreamer 10/20/2002 11:19:00 PM [+] ::
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an australian postpro & animation house SURREALWORLD has got some impressive works. check out the CGI feature, dragonland they r working on.
:: daydreamer 10/20/2002 11:34:00 AM [+] ::
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i went to gusu island (the turtle island) today. most of my frens went in couples & sincerely wanted to pay their respect to whatever gods residing on the island (but i think it s not turtle god for sure). as for me, it s my 1st time there. i merely wanted to see if it s any good for photo snapping.

initially, i was still undecided if i should just burn a few joss sticks for the sake of it, before going on with my snaps. but when i saw the crowd & all that smoke, & worst of all, the super thick bundle of joss sticks they sold there, i decided against it. imagine how long i d take to finish going around poking every one of those joss sticks somewhere, without a gas mask.

the whole trip s quite enjoyable. i seemed to find more interesting subjects to snap than my last visit in ubin. there was this old couple who asked me to help take their photo, & they ve exactly the same camera as mine. but i like the return trip most when we sat at the top of the ferry. not sure if i get any good shot then, but i sure enjoy the nice sea breeze.
:: daydreamer 10/20/2002 12:04:00 AM [+] ::
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i got our air tickets for HK in the afternoon. it s the 2nd country after japan which i always want to visit. the initial reason for that is kinda simple, because both places are heavens to anime/comic/collectible lovers such as myself haha! now that i m no longer that crazy abt those things, they just remain as some kinda longing too deeply rooted within me to be fulfilled, one way or another : )
:: daydreamer 10/18/2002 10:14:00 PM [+] ::
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my bro told me his fren 's husband just died while reading the papers at home. even autospy cant tell why. last time i used to ask why whenever something unexplainable happened, probably because i really like to believe that everything happens for a reason. of course, a person like this must ve spent an awful lot of effort looking for a meaning in everything, & maybe justifying himself merely for the sake of others.

i suddenly think of some lines those old characters in HK serial drama like to say: everyday they re still alive, it s another one they ve gained.
:: daydreamer 10/18/2002 09:36:00 PM [+] ::
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some recent snapping i did one night, feeling adventurous. i think i ll ve more great shots to put up now if i ve brought a tripod along. on 2nd thought, even if i m given a second chance, most probably i would still be too lazy to bring one :P
:: daydreamer 10/17/2002 11:20:00 PM [+] ::
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i just learned magpie pro for 3D characters lipsynch, here s my experimentation (~ 377kb zip of avi file) with the head model & morph targets by Marc Tan.

it s not very refined but good enough to give me a grasp on the program : )
:: daydreamer 10/15/2002 12:32:00 PM [+] ::
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after watching the news, i feel so heavy. it s the bomb attack in Bali. all these things just dont feel right at all. senseless.

this s not the 21st century i ve always longed for. i m full of anticipation for this century coz so many of my fav childhood animes/comics/sci-fi have been set in this age. there is always so much technological wonders & longing for the future in those stories. even there ll always be villians, science & technology never fail to aid the heroes to clean out their evil acts. i ve awaited the year 2001 with much curiosity & interest, even i ve known for sure it wont be half like the world in 2001: a space oddessy, 1 of my fav movie. but forever my memory for that year is tarnished by that single tragic event. here we are celebrating the opening of the esplanade, over there a tourist heaven s turned into hell.

this question has been on my mind: is the world getting better or worse?

maybe i ve a bit too much fantasies for the reality. should ppl like me just pretend to be living in another world until i die. for the time being, i m protected in a man-made heaven here, but even as i breathe in the burnt smell of the air & look into the misty view outside my window, it s pretty clear there can be no permanent shield against the turnings of the global tide.
:: daydreamer 10/14/2002 12:53:00 AM [+] ::
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i ve been waiting for the opening of the esplanade today to snap photos. unfortunately, another freelance job came in & required me to attend some briefing tonite. but i read that later in the nite, some DJ is gonna spinned to production I.G. latest anime, mini-pato & digital, which are yet to be released here. however, i think they d only be clips of the actual thing, dun supposed japs are so kind to show much. nevertheless, hopefully the briefing d end earlier so i can get down to take a look.
:: daydreamer 10/12/2002 11:30:00 AM [+] ::
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when i do ve a full time job & boxes of namecards, i dont seem to find any means to give them out. when i m no longer working full time, every animation event or socialise-socialise kinda gathering i went, i was often asked for namecards. initially, i never give much thought abt it & always replied honestly i dont ve any. slowly, i realised that i never really did convince anyone with the truth, & they always reacted with awkward surprise, most probably thinking that i must be so proud (?) for not willing to exchange contacts with them. i can never understand why i m expected to have namecards & distributing them like bronchures by the mrt escalators.

of course, it s always good to exchange contacts with new frens, esp those in the related field of profession (& also attractive member of the opposite sex). although i love the philosophy of the little prince so much, more often than not, i would obediently comply to social norms. & well, many times, in the wrong way too. like in this namecard situation, i ve unwittingly decided that since they dont believe me when i told them the truth, i may as well lie to them that i forget to bring any namecard today. better to appear forgetful & apologetic than proud huh. true enough, most of them buy it. they just never fail to prove a cynic right.

however, i know i ve to put a stop to this. even i give no second thought about lying when i ve to, i find this stoopid. yesterday, i finally finished my namecard design & printed 60 over of them myself. i have been cutting out them & my thumb hurts now from pressing hard on the metal rule too long. yet i m very please to resolve such awkward social situation once & for all.

thus lesson learnt: lie only when absolutely necessary. nah ... what i really meant is: there is always something we can do about it. really.
:: daydreamer 10/11/2002 12:03:00 AM [+] ::
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forbiddenroute, a webzine by a local group of 7 on the arts stuffs. well, i m not very well-informed on such, but i thought it s great spirit for them to pull this off, as their passion.

on a more personal thought, it must be hard enough already to get a fren with a common goal to work together on something; to have 7 must be a real blessing. i m no batman, my tagline is not 'i work alone', but somehow i end up doing so most of the time ehehe! ahhhh ... the things Man does to pursue his vision :P
:: daydreamer 10/08/2002 09:45:00 PM [+] ::
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WORLD PRESS PHOTO EXHIBITION

Asian Civilisations Museum, EMPRESS PLACE
1 Empress Place
(by the Singapore River, next to Victoria Theatre)

9 October to 30 October 2002
Opening Hours: 11am - 5.30pm from Mon to Sat
Closed on Sunday

See over 200 photographs capturing the best of press photography. The exhibition showcases images captured by photojournalists, agencies, newspapers and magazines from all corners of the world. These thought-provoking pictures bear out the power of the photograph to transcend cultural and linguistic frontiers.

:: daydreamer 10/08/2002 09:01:00 PM [+] ::
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1 of my fav read online, red letter day has not only moved but also changed in look. i dont usually care abt such things with blogs but since i frequent it often, & got used to how it used to look, now i do need some adjustment.

& i ve yet to find out how come redletterday is so black now hehe!
:: daydreamer 10/07/2002 08:45:00 PM [+] ::
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ADOLF taller d'art, homepage of adolf taller, whom i read abt in this painting magazine, international artist, i ve just bought.

besides realism, he s also known for his 'sequential painting', which i ll not try to explain here, very easily understood once seen. hey, just realised he even done a piece based on Eadweard Muybridge 's human in motion photography. long before we r playing with lomo supersamplers, he s playing with sequential photography too! & when i thought i was kinda creative to think of joining up my supersampler pics, he s got 200 photos of a gal he s chatting put together.

there s a total of 197 pieces of artwork on his page, amazing.


:: daydreamer 10/06/2002 09:51:00 PM [+] ::
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2 charcoal pieces i done in comic style 3 (or more?) years ago. i cropped both of them to improve the composition. but, yah, it looks really amatuerish now haha!

i like the left piece, assault! but scrutinizing it now, i find i failed to place some high light in some places. as for the right one, alley 513, i should ve put some high lights or build up some contrast at the guy surrounded in the middle. it s not at all established properly as the focus.

anyway, in my recent 'posting-to-forum' enthusiasm, i still posted them to some forums too! awaiting for more feedbacks : )
:: daydreamer 10/06/2002 02:42:00 PM [+] ::
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my posting at Sijun.com Forums of my KITE concept art. finally some positive feedback from this forum, as compared to none from my past attempts : )
:: daydreamer 10/05/2002 10:53:00 AM [+] ::
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i just finished watching the french film 8 women. i ve very lil idea of what kinda film it s initially, but it turns out a delightful surprise. i cant help being reminded of gosford park. this is like the more audience-friendly version of gosford park, & each of the 8 women has a nice, & sometimes fun song of their own to sing, even comes with some neat dancing.

there is 1 thing i ve forgotten to take note: who the director is. & more importantly, a male or female? in the film, the 8 women behind this man (whom the audience never got to see his face) drove him to suicide, so it would be rather interesting to know whether such a sad vision of man 's pathetic life, is that of a male or female director. my bet is male though.

i ve also got an interesting observation. 3 out of the 8 women in the film has lesbian/bisexual inclination, 1 of them is on the verge of being seduced into it. of the 4 left, 1 is an old granny, another is portrayed as the usual undesirable middle-aged single woman (i m mincing my words not to sound sexist, sorry if i still do, that s my best in english); there s a young attractive one who got herself pregnant, thus leaving a sole teenage gal who is straight ( as far as i know by the time the film ends). it s indeed an interesting demographic portrayed in the film, uncertain if it s intended by the director/screenwriter.

overall, i enjoy the film & love the songs & singing sequences most.
:: daydreamer 10/04/2002 12:08:00 AM [+] ::
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fleecircus, a nice webpage of polariods. reminds me of my polariod sitting in my drawer ... btw, dun seem to be able to see the cartridges for my model anymore. so they finally run out from stores since polariod aready closed shop?
:: daydreamer 10/03/2002 02:05:00 PM [+] ::
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todae s children 's day. it sounds rather silly that of all kind of days, i actaully sorta celebrate it today somehow ehehe!

i read on the front page news abt this 7-year old boy with dyslexia, who was the poster boy for Straits Times Pocket Money Fund last year. he has daily meals of $1.30 & his biggest buy to date is a $2+ marker, for his favourite art subject. he loves to draw, so i learnt, but would not dare spend much on markers, being a very considerate kid for his age to his parents.

i remember i ve this 2 box of copic markers lying in my drawer, which i bought during my design skool days. i m not even using them at all. i wonder how this boy would feel if he would ve 2 box of markers now.

i always whine to myself secretly abt how tough it s for me to do what i want. although i believe this to be 1 level higher than those who would whine to the whole world abt it (who usually whine much more than they try), somehow knowing abt what ppl like this boy has to go through & still try to do what they want, does help to set my perspective right again.

why is it always so easy to see all those ways in which this world is an unfair one, yet so damn hard to see that what really matters is what i can do about it?
:: daydreamer 10/02/2002 12:31:00 AM [+] ::
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Concept Design Forum - KITE concept art - The kite tree, my posting of my KITE concept art over at concept design forum.
:: daydreamer 10/01/2002 11:05:00 AM [+] ::
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