The Volvo S80

I never really liked Volvo cars in the past. I grew up with the notion that they are designed by artists who only understands straight lines and 90 degrees. A car void of soul and passion. Which perhaps explains the reason why Volvos are common as hearse cars.

Thankfully, the heads at Volvo had passion, soul and elegance knocked into their skulls. With that, Volvo started producing the S40. A cramped little sedan indeed, but one with soul molded into the design for once. The S40 is a handsome and charming gentleman. One different from the nerdy blockhead of a bookworm it once was.

Yet, the S40 is not what I want to talk about today. What I want to do, is to wax lyrical on the S80. If a well mannered teenager is to the S40, the S80 would be the charming, handsome gentleman in a tuxedo. I absolutely adore the S80. And no, I am not in my 40s, neither am I in my 30s.

In fact, Volvo has managed to win my heart, my 20-some-ish heart with a car that is meant for executives in their late 40s, complete with a bald patch and a beer belly. Do not for once question my taste for cars, for I am still very much in love with cars that has "speed" pasted all over; such as Volkswagen's GTi and Mitubishi's Evolution X. Yet, Volvo has managed to place the S80 into my arms. Amazing.

The 2.5T S80 retails at $138,000. It is a huge sum of money but when you compare it to a Mercedes E class which cost at least 70 grand more, the S80 starts to look like a total bargain.

I would love to own one. And now.

Of marriages, logic and emotions

We were discussing the intricacies of marriage. And like all things in life, there is no clear cut answer on whether marrying or not marrying a person is a better option. It is more of, maybe, perhaps, also can, depending on your priorities in life.

Well, i classify the decision to marry based on the following:

Emotionally : Yes, do get married, if you can find the "best fitting partner" in your life.

Logically: No, especially if you are a guy. The friggin women's charter u idiot! If you are a girl, what scientific proof is there to show that the current person is the best one out there for you?

So it depends, really, on whether you are emotional or logical on the day your other half decides to pop you the question. I won't say it's a 50-50 chance as emotions do not go by sound scientific principles. But if your current special one ever decide to pop you this question, think clearly(i'll come to this later), on whether you are more emotional or more logical. If you can't really decide, then you are logical as you must have done some thinking to reach that state of dilemma. So back off!

However, if you go all emotional and start to tear with happiness(i.e. cannot think clearly), I say, you are screwed if both of you are dead incompatible. So might as well enjoy being screwed - while it lasts.
So there!

This is not a post about cars (WRX vs old WRX)

By now, most of you already know what I have been doing, but if you don't, it doesn't matter. And like the picture, the trees and the grass that was captured along side the cars doesn't really matter. The focus is on the cars. No?

Actually it does matter. The grass and the trees. It matters to the overall composition of the picture. And like the picture, life is exactly like that. You can't have one without another. With out the tress and grass, the photo will look as dull as gray.

And life is colorful and all exciting, sometimes in the wrong way too. For me, life now is all about sacrifices and pain. And these are the "trees and grass" that decorates my life now. I've lost track of the countless times I have to ask myself if what I'm doing is worth it, or the tiredness I felt when I have to fight Jekyll.

I'm quite battered a soul, especially when I had just emerged from another bout of war. I do not know how much more of these battle that I can withstand before my sanity caves in.

But I have to believe in Hyde.

(for those of you who are curious; Yes, the old WRX is faster than the new WRX but the interior is so much better in the new one that you would think the old WRX had their interior manufactured by mountain trolls. The new WRX is more refined, like cappuccino while the old WRX is like kopi-o, totally in your face, with a brutal edge to it - IMHO, give me a GTi anytime)

Dreams

What do you dream?
I dream of Fear. Anxiety. Frustration. Unfairness.

Why do you dream?
Because of where I stand. Because I do not know.

What do you not know?
Myself. I need to know myself. And myself stems from others.

Stems from others?
Yes. I am who I am. Only because of others. Without others, I am not who I am. I need to know from others. This is me. Do you know?

Others do not know. The pain. The sacrifices. The doubts. The worries. The struggle....struggle is never a stranger to me.

And what exactly are you struggling from?
From dreaming.

I'm pissed

OK, I know this is a little bit off considering the timing, but, perhaps because I am currently sick, which makes me all the more irritated when I re-looked at this 2 video clips





Now, noticed the similarities? I am pissed because this is a down right copying of ideas from the second video! And it has to be on one of our national song some more. It shows that we have no bloody sense of originality and creativity (why wear white and black like the australians?!?!?!? don't we ought to wear white and red????).

And to make it worse, want to imitate also must imitate to the level of grandness right? They have the entire army of Australian National boys and girls choir to film the entire advert spanning so many other countries and all we have are a handful of kids going around the CBD...

I'm outright pissed because they ought to come out with sometime more original for our national song! They (the producers) ought to have more national pride than that!

For those who do not know, the first ad. by Qantas was done back in 1998 while the Home video was done for the 2004 national day parade.

Island of life

I doubt many of you have ever heard of this song, Island of Life, sung by Jon Anderson and composed by Kitaro. I used to like this song because of the tune, the soothing feeling it gave me. But I had never really paid heed to the lyrics back then.

Now, after finding this song on YouTube and hearing it all over again, I realise that this song can be dedicated to a couple that I know. Perfect timing too!

Enjoy!

Island of Life

She sees me
She understands
She helps
With all of my fears
When we stand together for life
Who will hold a child
In her arms

She reaches out
So many friends
Who seek to live this world
When we stand together for life
She will hold a child
In her arms

Chorus:
Without woman
Earth would fade and die
Without woman
Who am I
Who am I
On this Island of Faith
Who am I
On this Island of Life
You are the Sea
You are the Sky
You are the Ocean
I am the Earth
I am the Island of your Love

She listens
Se understands
For those searching for truth
We will stand together for life
We will hold a child
In our arms

Chorus

She sees me
She understands
She helps
With all of my fears
When we stand together for life
She will hold a child
In her arms

Chorus

Dreams are the understanding of life
Dreams are the understanding of love

It's been a while...

I have this entry as "draft" for over a week already. I have so many things that I want to blog about. About happiness, sadness and everything in between.

Yet, every time when I want to begin to write, my thoughts just left me.

Sigh.

A nice dream that faded...

As I awaken gradually from my sleep, I distinctively remembered feeling happy. I must have had a good dream.

But as the realm of dreams ebbed away and the realities of life slowly seeping in, troubles and worries flooded away the happiness I felt.

Perhaps dreams are like sanctuaries, they shield you from the heat of realities when you are feeling down.


On a side note: snow has come to my blog, only if you are using IE, that is.

People do I also Do!

Lets101 Quizzes - blog quizzes

A feeble smile is still a happy smile

I turned out of CTE at Moulmein road only to see a group of 4 crowding around a frail old lady sitting on the road side kerb. The group of people was trying to flag for a cab.

Instinctively, I pulled over (to the detriment of traffic ) thinking that the old lady was injured and needed a lift somewhere (like to the hospital). And so, I was faced with a family of 3 Indians and a middle aged Chinese man trying to communicate with the old lady.

The old lady was clad in pajamas, having nothing with her except a plastic bag that contained a $10 dollar note. I was worried that the old lady might be suffering from dementia and wandered out of home to the detriment of her family members. The fact that she wanted to hail a cab to go to a place which I can't seem to find on the road map or heard before worried me further.

I told the group of people that perhaps calling the police would be the best option. While they attempted to get the police to drop by, I spent a good 5 minute squatting beside the road kerb, braving the onslaught of traffic to find out more from the old lady.

All I could gather was that she was tired from trying to flag a cab and that her hip hurt from a recent operation. But that doesn't matter. Because she was smiling a feeble but genuine smile despite the ordeal. And that made me happy. At least she wasn't in distress.

And so, I left the group to wait for the police to arrive and continued on my way (my car was beginning to hinder traffic)

I hope things will be fine for the old lady. I'm sure it will.

BMW X5 4.8i - A Journey within

I had a small dream once. To be able to drive a BMW. And I achieved that dream today. I drove a top of the line model from BMW. An X5 with a 4.8l v8 engine. And so, you might be thinking, "you lucky chap!". But I beg to differ. I rather have that dream remain just a dream.

This car is for the riches. If it isn't obvious from the snob appeal of the badge, then you might be interested to know that the road tax cost a whopping $12k a year and that the car drinks petrol in gulps.

I do not think most of us in our lifetime will be able to afford this car. It cost a whopping $383,000. And getting a taste, a tantalizing one at that, only sharpens that fact. Why would I want to be able to experience driving something that I can never be able to afford in my life time? I would definitely be better off not knowing what it feels like, driving this car.

This car sets everything into perspective. That, if you make it "there", the rewards are rather sweet.

Jetta! Jetta!

(picture courtesy of Amery)

If the VW Golf GTi is the wild child, then the VW Jetta 2.0T FSI is a gentlemen's car. It's charming good looks complete with the trademark chrome grille warms the heart of women. Gawd, it is that gentlemanly.


Yet beneath those handsome looks lies a wild child at heart. A 2.0l turbo engine, similar to the GTi's, lurks beneath the bonnet. This engine is mated to VW's awesome DSG transmission which proves to be a very lethal combination if you are a speed junkie. Think of it as a tamed down GTi, complete with a boot, a more comfortable ride and a subtler sounding exhaust.
















Despite all the engineering tweaks, the Jetta brutal edge is not blunted. Leaving the transmission in "S', which by the way, stands for "scream your lungs out" and flooring the accelerator induces both fear and awe at the same time. You fear for your live and at the same time feel awed at all the power that is in your hands (or right foot to be technically correct) . Before you know it, the world passes you by in a blur, the tacho spins towards the red line and your speed is already enough to get you on your way to the moon.

Being a FF, you would expect the Jetta to understeer. But try as I might, I can never get the car to do just that! Even when the front tyres give up and screeches along the bends, the Jetta continues to corner like a stubborn old mule.
















Brakes are progressive and hauls the charging wild beast down without much drama. But what really amazes me is the accelerative prowess of the Jetta. It warps straight to 60km/h from standstill. It is that mind blowing. In the span of the hour that I was driving it, I invented a game to amuse myself with this warp speed ability of the Jetta. I would intentionally be the last to move off the line at traffic lights and believe me when I say the drivers of the other cars were totally awed when i floored the pedal and over took them at 60km/h while they are still changing gears to climb past 30km/h. Yes, it is a childish thing to do but still, it sure is fun looking at their surprised face!

This car is a wolf in sheep clothing. It is a well build, comfortable luxury sedan which transforms into a competent sports sedan at the prod of the accelerator. It is totally awesome. I'm so sold for this car. Period.

I want one!

Mr & Mrs Penguin

I am happy and proud to see my close friend of 9 years getting married. I have never seen her so beautiful before. Maybe it is true. Ladies look their best during their wedding day (and it will all go down hill after that, me thinks *grins*).

May I present to you, the wedding couple





















hee, ok ok. I wasn't the photographer for the day and i was busy carrying the roast pig (and eating it afterwards) and video taping the event that I didn't have time to take much pictures. But anyhow, here is a shot I've taken after the entire event was over.















Beautiful.

Part of everything

I like the warmth of the sun. It makes me feel alive and spirited, soaking in these glowering streaks of gold.

I am part of all things good on this world.

Yet, when the curtain of darkness draws upon this land, and with the cold, lonely winds whispering across my face, I wish I could reach out and tear away at the darkness that conceals the sun.

But.

I am part of all things bad on this world too.

This is the world that I live in.

小汽车

感动这两个字不难写。但是，能让我感动的事件不多。

这个用木做的小汽车... 整整的让我感动了。。。

有真心朋友在身边是幸福的。

谢谢你!

The toilet bowl needs unplugging....

It's strange. In the past few weeks, I can't seem to put down in words, what I want to say, or feel about something. Everything just left me.

I'm currently feeling like a bird without it's wings. Something feels jammed up in my thoughts pipeline. And I know exactly what.

Sometimes, all i need are wings to uplift me. Anything.

I don't understand either but it's me. 100% me.

Cars I've test driven in 2007

A list for my records:

• Mercedes Benz A170
• Mercedes Benz C350
• Nissan 350Z
• Suzuki Swift Sports 1.6 (A)
• Suzuki SX4 (A)
• Suzuki SX4 Sedan (A)
  
• Kia Cerato Variant 2 1.6 (M)
• Land Rover Freelander 3.2 (A)
• Chevrolet Optra 1.6 (A)
• Mitsubishi Lancer EX 1.5(A)
• VW Caddy 1.9 TDi DSG
• VW Jetta 2.0T FSI DSG
  

Cemetry visit and real-time improvision cooking

Today's a hectic day of a Monday. Picked up the Cerato. It's very drivable really. Japanese saloons should shake in their boots and pee in their pants. The Koreans are catching up really fast, and they are only a plastic away (quite literally as i felt the interior plastics were the only thing that stops it from being on par with jap saloons.)

This is me in the Cerato variant 2 (means facelift), behind the Cerato Variant R (means ah-beng go-fast car, one and only in Singapore, and some say batam!) and the land Rover (which you can see our editor busy snapping pictures). Took a little spin in the land rover but not enough for me to comment on it (but it sports a 3.2L inline-6, which is the same engine used in the Volvo S80).

The place we had chosen our location was a cemetery and unfortunately for us, the Ah-beng car had a tyre puncture and we were kind of stranded there till around 7.30pm. SHeesh. I never been in a cemetery at such a late hour.

Just another day at the office, I guess.















This was our dinner last saturday. It was supposed to be baked pasta with mozzie cheese and pasta sauce but we ran out of sauce and I had to improvise.....using campbell soup! I tell you, those cans of solid stuffs are really versatile! You can throw them at people you don't like, eat it as a meal, make baked rice out of it and use it as a back-up for pasta sauce. it's can food equivalent of a swiss army knife!

But most importantly, the Campbell soup make the food I cooked look absolutely fabulous in this picture. =p

Mitsubishi Lancer EX 1.5 photo Essay

Okay, these are all the photos that I've taken during the test drive of the Mitsubishi lancer 1.5l 4AT which I have not used for the article (click here (yes the blank) to read the article).














This is me sticking out behind a VW Caddy van that goes at warp speed while wobbling it's ass. Mind you, it's a DSG gear box.














The radio display from the Lancer. It's funny, but the display is not bright enough that you can't see shit all the time.



















The 4AT is a joy to use but it moans when tortured.














Over-exposed shot of the lancer.














The new lancer uses a keyless-go key fob. It comes with a trunk release too. Picture shows the old remote with the new one.




















nice neat rear.

Wide eyed wanderer

If I tell you that I'm not afraid of the future, I must either lying or attempting to get the golden horse award. The truth is, I am afraid.

But I am afraid because i dared to take the first step. And that can't be a bad thing.

In my year stint at my previous company, I've come to learn a lot about myself. I wouldn't say my experiences are all smooth sailing. In fact, most of the memories I had in my previous company can be described as "dark". I had to get out of there before the environment encloses around me and suffocates me to oblivion. I'm only stopping short of saying "I hate that place" but that can only be attributed to my own biasness.

So here I stand. With my face to the wind. And the rain pouring down. I walk. A step at a time. Against all doubts and self doubts. I walk. For the future. For the me I want to be.

I walk.