US trip recap (part 1)

Note: This post is written during my 10 hour wait at JFK, so I'm slightly grumpy coz it has just effectively extended a 20 hr flight into a 30 hr one..... very productive indeed... This is probably the only time when I would be thinking 'I'd rather be working my ass off now!', & trust me, that doesn't happen very often to me at all!

You know how students always tend to be busy with so many stuff during exam, eg. Cleaning room & apartment (hey it hasn't been tidied up for half a year now, so it's high time to do it!), reading blogs (I've gotta catch up on my pals' stories!), stocking up junk food (it's called emergency rations, aka 'war supplies/comfort/anti-depression food', stupid!), long overdue run in the park (I haven't moved stretched my butt muscles for half a year, so it's IMPERATIVE that I do it today!).

The list goes on & on, and the common denominator of all those is of course that they are activities that you will NEVER, EVER do in normal free time. The only reasons we are doing those are:
a) because we ASSUME other people will be studying, so nobody will be interested to go out

b) Even if some DO want to go out, we will feel guilty if we don't 'study' at home when the exam is only 1 week away

c) So we end up staying at home, but definitely NOT studying. Activities listed above make us feel we are at least doing 1 part right, ie. Staying at home and cutting off any contacts with the world for the exam duration, so we will feel less guilty if we end up getting a F, or in the world of the uber-smart like Dee, Jel, Kel, & Ben, a 'H2A' ('it's the FREAKIN' first time ever I've got anything with the digit '2' in it for final results!!). Point taken guys....

Anw, slightly digressing from the point I wanted to make earlier. I've meant to say working, at least for me, is exactly like the exam period, only this time you can't run or hide from it EVER AGAIN. All the creative evasive maneuvres that I've come up with during uni days certainly can't be used anymore, coz it definitely doesn't work out in the long term. Anws, it's more of a question of survival now, so not working is unquestionably NOT an option. Plus all those skills learnt up to this point would really be wasted....

Seems like this post has NOTHING to do with the title at all *chuckle* due to my incessant rantings, so while I'm at it I might as well hammer home another one. It has to do with my business, and apparently for the duration of 1 month when I have been on hols, much of the world around me has pretty much collapsed into heaps, dragged down by the financial crisis and the resurgence of US Dollar. I've spoken to my European customers and both said the demand from their customers is basically nil right now, as much of Europe expects a recession so everyone is pulling back on their spending. Those are my 2 biggest customers and account for 60% of my sales, so to lose both at the same time is definitely quite a shock. I've had to make changes to my original plans and to shift my focus towards customers from other regions instead, such as Australia and Middle East, which are only mildly affected by the downturn.

Gonna have to re-configure the whole supply chain again and consider dropping previous suppliers due to their inflexibilities. Oh well, there's always challenges in biz, & in fact Jack Welch once pointed out 'the only thing constant in business is change'. Will have to work hard to put everything back on track again, but I'm up for the challenge!

All right I'll be signing off here coz it's almost flight time. Real post on the US trip recap in part II!

Rythm Of Life

My classification of anything in my surrounding area (in all aspects) is really simple: either I'm 100% sure, or anything below that threshold goes into the 'uncertain' bin. Admittedly, there would be very few things that I can put in the former, as those are the stuff that I believe would be able to stand the test of time, distance, & yeah basically anything that's put forward to it. It's a long process to move from the uncertainty to 'yeah, I know s/he will bail me out if I'm ever in trouble, NO doubts whatsoever, & obviously I feel the same abt it too' , so once I feel confident that I can lock it on, it's supposed to be as secure as a mountain. Supposed to be, anyway.....

It's definitely the comfort zone I thought I can lean on in times of trouble, & when the trouble is within the comfort zone itself, suddenly whatever order that was established had suddenly vanished. For me the idea of establishing close relationship would be celebrating the achievements of each other, while at the same time to be there to support each other in times of trouble. The basis of all this would be mutual respect, and learning to respect other people's achievements in their respective fields, while not looking to glorify your own.

The wall of trust was breached because the base of respect wasn't there, and truly, if it isn't repaired in time, even the slightest prodding would make it collapse next time, let alone the storms and gales that are forthcoming....

BROADWAY!

After 2 days of street-wandering and factory outlet shopping, it's time to sit back, relax and enjoy the city life in Manhattan. What better place to start than:



Have got to say, NYkers love their theatres, musical and plays! The atmosphere is really upbeat as long queues formed outside more than 30 theatres, each waiting to get his/her prized ticket and eagerly anticipating its twice-daily perfomance. Billboards and ads are everywhere at Times Square.

Disney Broadway shows:

Lion King:

All great shows, I'm sure. However, I'm one of those sceptics who needs to be convinced of the value of anything I buy, & theatre ticket definitely falls into the list of 'To Be Evaluated'. So to be sure we're getting our money's worth, we bought the tix to the Phantom of The Opera (longest running Broadway shows: 20 years & going strong!) since it's supposedly the most well-known Broadway musical EVER!

Yes Phantom, take us to your lair tonight!

So we arrived at the Majestic theare (where Phantom has been/is still showing), and saw this:

Had to stand at the end of the queue around 50 metres from the entrance! The line moved pretty fast though, and we were inside within 10 mins.

Pre-Phantom chatters:

The famed Phantom stage:

With a bit lighting twist to make it feel more Phantomy:

& for the next 2.5 hours, we were taken into the amazing world of theatre performance. Magnificient performance/singing by the stage actors, out-of-the-world stage settings, & extravagant costumes filled the night as it brought priceless entertainment to the audience. No amount of superlatives would be sufficient to convey my appreciation for the show that was put on before us that night, & there was not a single moment when it did not carry us emotionally with it throughout the show. The music featured in the show was so touching and apt that I still have it ringing in my head right now! In a fitting ending, the audience gave a standing ovation to the great actors that gave us immense pride to just be there and witness the world-class performance, which is nothing more than what they deserve.


Particularly loved the perfomance from Marni Raab, who played the role of Christine Daae, the lead female role in Phantom. She looked so guile & vulnerable, yet possessed the strongest vocal the role asked for. Phantom has got to be the biggest stage she could ask for to display her talent, and she fully deserved to be there.


Went back that night thinking how crazy it'd be not to catch another Broadway show when we were still at NY, so we decided to get tix for either Mamma Mia or Chicago the next evening. In the morning while we were walking to the theatres to get the tix, I suddenly had a thought, 'hell, if both are gd, WHY NOT BOTH??'.... and that's what we ended up doing!


Mamma mia in the afternoon session:


Mamma Mia is a comedy/musical play, and although it lacks in the stage setting, it makes up for it it in the entertainment value. Enjoyed the show as the atmosphere was really uplifting, and definitely felt like back in the disco 70s!

& Chicago in the evening!:

Chicago on the other hand is a darker show with a classic feel. Again there wasn't much of a stage setting, as most of the stage is taken by the orchestra, which left the performers with little space to move about. Dark humor through & through, and definitely a must-watch for technical performances.

.... & that concluded my Broadway weekend. 3 different shows of 3 different genres in just 2 days! Undoubtedly, picking Phantom as my virgin Broadway experience has got to be a good decision because it really ignited the passion to watch more and more theatre plays, even though it did set a really HIGH bar for future shows.

.......... & if I forgot to mention it, YES BROADWAY IS WELL WORTH IT!

New York, New York!

After an arduous 22 hour flight from Singapore to NY (via Frankfurt), I finally arrived at NY! Immigration dude hasn't been exactly friendly, and I was called into office for bringing USD 10k cash. I reasoned that I had to pay for accomodation etc etc, and stuff at his country isn't exactly that cheap to begin with, so 10k is a perfectly reasonable amt to bring. I guess he finally saw the point, but didn't let me go before asking why 10k and not any other amt, to which I replied that's just a random sum I decided on when I went to the bank! How many questions on the 10k do they need to ask b4 they could let me go???

Anw, first step out of the airport, I was greeted by an illegal taxi touter that I absolutely had no idea of at first. While we were walking to his 'taxi', an airport security rushed after us and shouted at me to stop. I was thinking 'ok, what now?' and stopped for him to catch up. He showed his security pass and told me to avoid those scammers & to take the metered yellow taxis instead. Thank God for him or I wouldn't know where I'd have ended up now instead of being in my hotel room!

Place I'm staying at currently is at a smaller suburb 15 mins away from JFK, as I'm waiting for my cuz to come from Atlanta before we 'upgrade' to Holiday Inn @ Manhattan. Haven't explored the area yet as I'm dying from the lack of sleep (grand total of 1.5 hours in the 22 hr flight), so I figured I'd catch a wink b4 heading out to explore whichever place tonight.

Add to that I'm also suffering from pretty serious jet lag. I found it quite amusing we never got out of darkness during the flight until the last part of Frankfurt-NY leg, as I started from midnite at SG and went backwards in time. That's also the first time I went into the plane clean-shaven and emerged with stubs!

More updates to follow after I figure out the geographic details of this area!

Depression (Merriam- Webster Online Dictionary):
Main Entry: de·pres·sion
Pronunciation: \di-ˈpre-shən, dē-\
Function: noun
Date: 14th century

dejection (2):

'a psychoneurotic or psychotic disorder marked especially by sadness, inactivity, difficulty in thinking and concentration, a significant increase or decrease in appetite and time spent sleeping (CHECK), feelings of dejection and hopelessness (CHECK), and sometimes suicidal tendencies c (1): a reduction in activity, amount, quality, or force (2): a lowering of vitality or functional activity (CHECK)'

So I tick quite a few boxes in the definitions of the feared 'D' word... Does that mean I'm on the verge of sinking into one, or are they just random symptoms for anyone having an off day?

Too many things not going my way recently.... Actually nothing has ever gone right for me before. Lost my freedom ever since I came back, & on top of that I also had many personal problems related to work and family. I don't even know if I'm depressed anymore, coz it seems this is the permanent state I've been in since .... I can't even remember when. That's definitely a bad sign....

Nevertheless, I'm not gonna be passive and let it control me. I'm going to bounce back STRONGER than ever

More... & more sytycd!

Can't get enough of these talented dancers! Season 3 has to be the BEST so far as there are so many potential winners! I know I definitely won't qualify as a technical judge for the contestants, BUT I definitely know entertainment when I see one!

Here's another of my favourites: Sarah Von Gillern (Bgirl who's also the most versatile in the show! Did I mention she's HOT too?)

Sarah & Neil Disco (THE ABSOLUTE BEST Disco routine so far in 3 seasons! Check out Neil's CRAZY backflips!)



Sarah & Pasha West Coast Swing (Coached by the American swing king, Benji Schwimmer, who's 'coincidentally' the winner of season 2 as well =)



While Sarah's & Pasha's was pretty good, check out the REAL DEAL (Benji & Heidi's West Coast Swing!) below:



Now onto Neil Haskell. He's the most technically gifted in season 3 without a doubt! & add great play-acting to his long list of talents too!

Neil & Lauren Hip Hop



Neil & Lauren Contemporary by Mia Michaels (Emmy winning choreographer)



Next, the Russian Sex-appppeeeaalll, as Nigel likes to call it, Pasha Kovalev! Christened the best Russian HeepHop dancer in the show, he was certainly one of the favourites early on. Somehow sytycd always managed to find a really hot Russian hunk to be in its show every single season, which obviously doesn't harm the TV ratings!

Pasha & Lacey Hip Hop (mannequin routine)


Neil & Lauren

Pasha & Lacey Smooth Waltz (expect this to be REALLY GOOD coz both are acclaimed ballroom experts!)



Pasha & Lauren Transformer!



All right that's all for now! Enjoy and hope all of you like it! These guys are awesome, & that's all I can say coz I'm still trying to pick up my gaping jaw from the floor after witnessing their talents!