My first ever BEST DRESSED Award. Woohoo! Bioskin’s Annual Dinner & Dance was held last Tuesday. Along with four ladies and three other gentlemen, I was shortlisted for the Best Dressed Finals. While the other seven contestants tried their best to win votes from the floor with their dance movements, et al, I merely stood there and said, “Erm, I can’t pull up my trousers and expose my leg hair like what they did because I have an image to maintain.”
It was very kelong lah, cos they made sure that I won the $500 gift. Muahahahha. I promptly went back on stage again though, to conduct an additional draw to give that away.
The first opposition Member of Parliament to break the People’s Action Party’s stronghold in 1981 passed away in Tan Tock Seng Hospital this morning.
Political views aside, you’ve got to respect this man who went against the tide and was passionate enough to start a political party at the age of 82(!). From the treatment the former lawyer was accorded in the last two decades, I gather that he must have been seen as a formidable opponent in the eyes of some.
The blogging speed on www.cruzteng.com declined a little last week cos I was firstly busy with www.cruzporkcast.com. I had to transfer the audio files elsewhere because my webhost pointed out that you people (haha!) had caused some server problems having exhausted close to 4GB bandwidth in the first 24 hours.
Apart from getting a haircut and highlights (which I dislike and will cover up with a new coat of blue black tomorrow), I didn’t venture out unnecessarily last week. Because I have outdoor events every weekend in Sep and Oct, I was trying to get as much sleep as possible to ensure that I don’t run out of steam on air or on site.
As the new month approaches, I was shuttling from place to place this Monday afternoon to complete errands that were due last week.
Bioskin’s dinner and dance will be held on Tuesday night, and it would be a total disgrace if the brand ambassador doesn’t follow the Shanghai Night theme. I wanted to turn up as a triad boss clad in a trenchcoat, holding a huge ass rifle, or perhaps Tony or Leehom from Lust, Caution. Then I decided I don’t want to risk sweating like a pig with the various layers of clothings, so I’ve grabbed something light from No 1 Costume Costume earlier. My personal sub theme for the night will be Cheena Bling. Hahaha!
Other than My Favourite Hits Concert on 01.10, A*Mei Star Concert on 04.10 and Sandy Lam 2008 Concert on 18.10, we’ll be storming into Singapore Indoor Stadium for Singapore Hit Awards 2008 on 25.10. We’re in the final stages of confirming the cast, so you might want to tune in for first hand updates.
Two days after the local extravaganza, I’ll be flying to Hong Kong to represent Singapore at the 8th Global Chinese Music Awards. You don’t have be a genius to guess that I’ve already sought permission to extend my trip. I might just count on The Venetian Macao to cover my expenses, and perhaps convert my economy ticket to a first class boarding pass.
Nearly 10 months after the commercial release of the song, I’ve yet to receive a single cent from my CCA.
*thunder and lightning*
Put down those pig heads, people.
The songwriting fees are actually with Taz (陳台證）, who stays an apartment block away from my mahjong kaki. Getting the money would be easy if not for the fact that he’s frequently out of town, and that I only remember the collection bit two rounds into my zap sa yeo efforts. In addition, I’ve yet to register myself with COMPASS, who’s supposed to help me collect royalties from radio stations, karaoke joints, etc.
(While we’re on this, I would like to point out that I will personally call the police if I discover anyone illegally downloading the [one and only] song I wrote. And on a cheerier note, I would appreciate if you would put this song on repeat mode at the K places once you’re done with your usual Jays, Leehoms, Stefs, et al. Alternatively you could dedicate this song on air again and again and again. Then again, it would be too shameless of me to ask for something like that. Ignore that part please.)
Perhaps I should submit the registration form- that has been in my drawer since last Nov-, by the end of the week, especially when the university has just sent me a provisional offer of admission. Although Louis Vuitton doesn’t have pencil cases in their stores (yet), I’m rather sure they’d consider making one in Paris for me if I hand over the right amount of money.
The reason why I’m suddenly blogging about 路人甲 is because I’ve just seen the music video for the first time tonight. Again, it just highlights how interested I am about this music making business. I ought to be ashamed.
Oh man. If only I was on the creative team for this shoot.
No, there shouldn’t be any crying. No tears (or blood, or any other body fluids) were spilled in the entire process. No offence to the MV actress, but the green nail polish is a major distraction. I like the part at 1′37″ though. The way she faded away was totally in sync with the 路人甲 message. The male lead should have be seen driving around aimlessly late at night- at a reasonable speed which corresponds with traffic flow and risks of getting frisked by the traffic police at that hour. Bottles of red wine would be appropriate too. (Not in the car scene. Squatting in Queensway Prison is hardly the best way to move on.)
Anyway, about my CCA… I’ve recently sent a piece to a very very very popular composing artiste for consideration. And erm, I think it will be thrashed. Ok, I’ll work harder. For pride and satisfaction. And for a brand new pencil case I need for school next year.
There’s no need for me to elaborate on the melamine scandal. Those scoundrels will punished sooner or later.
As I wanted to do something relevant, but not overly depressing; something interesting, and not merely regurgitation of the information that’s flooding all the various media platforms, we talked about the history of WHITE RABBIT CREAM CANDY 大白兔奶糖 this morning.
A few decades ago, they made this delicious candy in Shanghai. With reference to the ever popular Cash Cow of Disney, they labelled the candy “ABC Mickey Mouse Creamy Candy/ ABC米老鼠奶糖”。In my opinion, no sane marketer in the 21st century would agree on such an unimaginative copyrights infringing name. Anyway, that was then. It was a huge success, probably because of the Mickey factor and that it was priced lower than similar imports in Mainland China.
When the time came for a revamp, they decided the branding was too westernised. “Big Panda Creamy Candy/ 大熊貓奶糖” would be most apt, I think. But they eventually decided on “White Rabbit Creamy Candy/ 大白兔奶糖”。Having evolved into a prestigious brand, despite the humble pricing and packagaing, the candy was presented to US President Nixon when he called on Chinese Premier Zhou En Lai in the 1970s.
Instead of guarding the brand and striving to turn “White Rabbit Creamy Candy/ 大白兔奶糖” into a global name, those disgraceful scumbags had to mess around and tried poisoning us all with melamine.
Unlike the Shiroi Koibito白い恋人 scandal, where the Hokkaido company fraudulently extended the expiry date by a month, the people behind White Rabbit would require a lot more time and effort to regain consumer confidence around the world. Shame on them!
If I have the capital and expertise, I would certainly launch a new candy, complete with an edible paper wrapper, in response to the collapse of this legend. If.
5 October 2008
