Tuesday, March 06, 2007
Oh my. Is this a new record? Well, to start, a Happy (albeit belated) New Year to everone. I would think an excuse would be appropriate, but I don't have much of one. I have a metaphor though (kinda). It's like an ashtray my friend had, which said at the bottom "I'll Quit Smoking Tomorrow". I may as well have had the words in bold on my desktop wallpaper saying "I'll Update My Blog Tomorrow". Make sense? :)
Well, I'll just do a quick update on how things have been since my return from Japan. Like I mentioned in my last post, Germaine hooked me up with Lime magazine to do a couple of articles for them, which included a trip to Malaysia to interview the Pussycat Dolls, and a consequent interview with Stacie Orrico. In addition to a CD review I had done for Lime before, it would seem as if my writing career was heading in one particular direction...
Well, DJ Shadow had come down to Singapore on the 5th of August, if I recall. No, I didn't get to interview him, and worse, I didn't get to catch him at Zouk. Not to say that I hadn't intended to. Halfway through celebrations for Celia's 27th, I got a call from Laurence telling me that it was a FULL HOUSE. We had to contend with The Butter Factory, which wasn't such a bad thing. I must've had a good time, considering that I don't remember half the photos which were taken that night :)
What was really nice was September. Denise and I celebrated our first year (give or take a couple of weeks). We couldn't really pin-point an exact date, but we figured someplace around mid-September would be safe. Anyhow, we'd been dating for some time before that, so we had a buffer. We had a night which was ours alone, watched a bad movie on cable, and exchanged gifts. What did I get? Well, let's just say that mine ensured me a clean bill of health that night :) Wow, a full year. I've never had a relationship last that long before. The best part is that it hasn't felt that long at all really :) Hmm, I wonder if I could've possibly jinxed it then...?
In-between all this, I had started work at Paul's mom's stained glass workshop, Genesis Glass Arts. I must admit, I had a really good time learning how to cut glass, and create mosaic and stained glass pieces. And I've only lost about a litre of blood in the process :) I'm just happy I haven't developed any peculiar infections (yet)... The pay is minimal, but something's better than nothing, and I'm learning something people pay in the hundreds to be taught. Not to mention, it's a decent conversation topic. Quick, ask me about my scars! :)
Woo, November. MY month! :) All in all, there were three (count 'em, three) birthday celebrations in the first couple of weeks. The first was on the eve. It commenced with Denise bringing me out for dinner to a surprise location: BLOOIES ROADHOUSE! Oh sweet mother of GHANDI, the burgers were heart-stopping amazing. Before that, we started out with an appetiser of cheese-filled jalapenos, which I had not had in years! Before dinner was demolished though, she presented me with my gift: a brand new ZIPPO lighter! This was of great significance to me, as back in 2004 I had two of them, but by 2005, had lost them both. Actually, I'm quite certain one of them was stolen (along with a bottle of Absolut Vanilla) by someone I had considered a friend, but that's another story :) What was cool was that she had the lines "Leave the light on, for me too" engraved at the back. No, it's not from the song from Belinda Carlisle, it's from one of our favourite John Mayer tracks "Back To You". In addition to that, she had engraved my name on the other side. Now, I know it might sound cheesy (as Jonny might say), but after losing two Zippo lighters, Denise figured (and I concurred) that if I lose this one (touch wood), at least the guy who picks it up or stole it will look like a complete ass using that lighter if his name isn't Gene :)
After dinner (and a frantic search for Zippo fluid), we headed down to No. 5, and hooked up with Germaine and Shawn. Kasha, being the lovely DJ cum hostess that she is, decided to buy us a good variety of long island teas. If I recall correctly, stumbling slightly out of the bar (no thanks to Kasha), it was already a little past midnight (27 years old!). That's when we piled into a cab and headed down to Double O. Between chugging nasty tequila shots and whiskey cokes there, I was surprised I managed to make it home that night in one piece :) The experience was slightly worse off for Denise though, since she swore off alcohol after that night. She's been reasonably successful thus far, but I've been slowly able to bring her back into the fold :)
The second celebration was only made possible because Germaine was kind enough to lend me her house. It was for her benefit as well. Considering that her birthday was so close to mine, it was pretty much a joint celebration :) Paul did us a great favour by asking his DJ friend to come down to spin, and after much movement of furniture, the place looked primed for a great time. It was great that everyone that mattered managed to make it. I received some really cool gifts, like a red Volcom trucker cap, funky graffiti print T-shirt, Mitch Albom's "The Five People you Meet In Heaven", more hats (specifically, a fedora and a beanie), a limited edition Bling~Bling Absolut Vodka bottle casing, loads of alcohol, and a beautiful birthday cake baked by my baby :)
Oh my, the third and final celebration. This time it was held at one of my favourite pubs, Chips! You gotta love their $12 Wednesdays :) This celebration was just with the classmates. I thought it'd be a night of just chilling out and getting smashed there, till one of them suggested heading down to the Ministry of Sound. In my reasonably inebriated state at the time, I couldn't help but agree :) What rocked was that when we got there, one-for one madness had begun. It was a good way to end off the festivities, and needless to say, I was grateful to everyone who came to make it such a memorable success :)
Wow, considering how long this post has become, I guess I'll have to leave December's festivities till the next time. With any luck, it'll be before this December :) Honestly, I'm joking, but considering how erratic the posts can be, who knows? Oh, and the last major event for November? I finally finished the blog entry on my trip to Japan. I'll see you soon children :)
Well, I'll just do a quick update on how things have been since my return from Japan. Like I mentioned in my last post, Germaine hooked me up with Lime magazine to do a couple of articles for them, which included a trip to Malaysia to interview the Pussycat Dolls, and a consequent interview with Stacie Orrico. In addition to a CD review I had done for Lime before, it would seem as if my writing career was heading in one particular direction...
Well, DJ Shadow had come down to Singapore on the 5th of August, if I recall. No, I didn't get to interview him, and worse, I didn't get to catch him at Zouk. Not to say that I hadn't intended to. Halfway through celebrations for Celia's 27th, I got a call from Laurence telling me that it was a FULL HOUSE. We had to contend with The Butter Factory, which wasn't such a bad thing. I must've had a good time, considering that I don't remember half the photos which were taken that night :)
What was really nice was September. Denise and I celebrated our first year (give or take a couple of weeks). We couldn't really pin-point an exact date, but we figured someplace around mid-September would be safe. Anyhow, we'd been dating for some time before that, so we had a buffer. We had a night which was ours alone, watched a bad movie on cable, and exchanged gifts. What did I get? Well, let's just say that mine ensured me a clean bill of health that night :) Wow, a full year. I've never had a relationship last that long before. The best part is that it hasn't felt that long at all really :) Hmm, I wonder if I could've possibly jinxed it then...?
In-between all this, I had started work at Paul's mom's stained glass workshop, Genesis Glass Arts. I must admit, I had a really good time learning how to cut glass, and create mosaic and stained glass pieces. And I've only lost about a litre of blood in the process :) I'm just happy I haven't developed any peculiar infections (yet)... The pay is minimal, but something's better than nothing, and I'm learning something people pay in the hundreds to be taught. Not to mention, it's a decent conversation topic. Quick, ask me about my scars! :)
Woo, November. MY month! :) All in all, there were three (count 'em, three) birthday celebrations in the first couple of weeks. The first was on the eve. It commenced with Denise bringing me out for dinner to a surprise location: BLOOIES ROADHOUSE! Oh sweet mother of GHANDI, the burgers were heart-stopping amazing. Before that, we started out with an appetiser of cheese-filled jalapenos, which I had not had in years! Before dinner was demolished though, she presented me with my gift: a brand new ZIPPO lighter! This was of great significance to me, as back in 2004 I had two of them, but by 2005, had lost them both. Actually, I'm quite certain one of them was stolen (along with a bottle of Absolut Vanilla) by someone I had considered a friend, but that's another story :) What was cool was that she had the lines "Leave the light on, for me too" engraved at the back. No, it's not from the song from Belinda Carlisle, it's from one of our favourite John Mayer tracks "Back To You". In addition to that, she had engraved my name on the other side. Now, I know it might sound cheesy (as Jonny might say), but after losing two Zippo lighters, Denise figured (and I concurred) that if I lose this one (touch wood), at least the guy who picks it up or stole it will look like a complete ass using that lighter if his name isn't Gene :)
After dinner (and a frantic search for Zippo fluid), we headed down to No. 5, and hooked up with Germaine and Shawn. Kasha, being the lovely DJ cum hostess that she is, decided to buy us a good variety of long island teas. If I recall correctly, stumbling slightly out of the bar (no thanks to Kasha), it was already a little past midnight (27 years old!). That's when we piled into a cab and headed down to Double O. Between chugging nasty tequila shots and whiskey cokes there, I was surprised I managed to make it home that night in one piece :) The experience was slightly worse off for Denise though, since she swore off alcohol after that night. She's been reasonably successful thus far, but I've been slowly able to bring her back into the fold :)
The second celebration was only made possible because Germaine was kind enough to lend me her house. It was for her benefit as well. Considering that her birthday was so close to mine, it was pretty much a joint celebration :) Paul did us a great favour by asking his DJ friend to come down to spin, and after much movement of furniture, the place looked primed for a great time. It was great that everyone that mattered managed to make it. I received some really cool gifts, like a red Volcom trucker cap, funky graffiti print T-shirt, Mitch Albom's "The Five People you Meet In Heaven", more hats (specifically, a fedora and a beanie), a limited edition Bling~Bling Absolut Vodka bottle casing, loads of alcohol, and a beautiful birthday cake baked by my baby :)
Oh my, the third and final celebration. This time it was held at one of my favourite pubs, Chips! You gotta love their $12 Wednesdays :) This celebration was just with the classmates. I thought it'd be a night of just chilling out and getting smashed there, till one of them suggested heading down to the Ministry of Sound. In my reasonably inebriated state at the time, I couldn't help but agree :) What rocked was that when we got there, one-for one madness had begun. It was a good way to end off the festivities, and needless to say, I was grateful to everyone who came to make it such a memorable success :)
Wow, considering how long this post has become, I guess I'll have to leave December's festivities till the next time. With any luck, it'll be before this December :) Honestly, I'm joking, but considering how erratic the posts can be, who knows? Oh, and the last major event for November? I finally finished the blog entry on my trip to Japan. I'll see you soon children :)
