First World Problems

1. The longest phone call you have had in recent memory was with the iPhone helpline.
2. You feel creeped out that all your facebook friends had access to information on where you were at exactly what time when someone tags your location without telling/asking you first.
3. The restaurant you went to wasn't as great as the internet reviews made it seem.
4. Your conversations with friends consist of the various random things you all read about recently on the internet.
5. You get mad because someone can post pictures of their breakfast on facebook but can't reply your really heartfelt facebook message.
6. Going to the post office is almost as intimidating as going to the dentist.
7. All your mother's friends know who you are before you've even met them because she posts about you on facebook all the time.
8. You feel like your personal space has been invaded when the bus boy takes away your food before you've finished it.
9. You don't know how to use whatsapp when many people in your life have now moved on to it as the preferred mode of communication.
10. You've been wise with money and refused to upgrade your iPhone 3Gs but now it doesn't work because it can't support newfangled software updates.
11. You almost get a 3rd degree burn through your pants pocket because your iPhone overheated from running an app.

Kelley Cheng - Singapore

from hercampus.com

Your Unhealthiest Eating Habits and How to Avoid Them

uh huh her!

breathtaking time lapse video of cities

Timelapse - The City Limits from Dominic on Vimeo.

Music to Love: Songs called Animal

Music to Love: Covers

Music to Love: Theophilus London!

I like this ad (:

I like this australian telco ad.

The tagline!

supercool upcoming concert!

Florence & the Machine and The XX Live in Singapore

unfortunately i won't be here for this but whoever is should go! i wish i could (:

the XX is great! i really hope they come to northampton while i'm there.

i haven't heard any music from florence and the machine before but i keep reading about them so i'm going to check them out next (:

RUGS

These are some really cool rugs!

CARPET DIEM

LEAVE YOUR BAGGAGE AT THE DOOR

and

MAGIC CARPET (in training)

click to see! at UrbanOutfitters.com

Macarons <3

I was walking along in Holland Village when I stopped to admire this magazine cover:

It set my heart all a-flutter...

Mmmmacarons (:

Also, while looking for the picture above, I found this incredibly useful post by someone with a macaron obsession.

By the way, this month at Bakerzin macarons are S$0.90 and cheesecake is half off!

Harry Potter Widget

Be an alien.

1 Peter 2:11-12 (New International Version)

11 Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul.

12 Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.

Hebrews 13:14 (New International Version)

14 For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come.

***

I really liked this devotion below when I read it, and was just reminded of it by an email from a friend who asked that I pray for her because she gets quite disturbed by the work culture at her office.

Adapted from DailyCare June 28 2009: Aliens & Alienation: by Elaine Young, McGuire, Lilburn, Georgia

Alienation calls to mind feelings of separation, or of being misunderstood.

But being an alien as used in 1 Pet :11-12 carries a positive connotation. That is what we should be as Christians in this world. We should be disturbed by the content of many mainstream magazines and books, the language in the media, lyrics of popular music, the materialism promoted by advertising... the list goes on. If you don't fit in this respect, good.
It is good to be alienated from such a society that you grew up in.

As a Christians, we need to worry when we do fit. We need to be concerned when we feel too comfortable, too at home, too happy and content with our earthly surroundings and material goods. We need to remember the words of an old song, "This world is not my home, I'm just a'passing through."

Dear Lord, make me feel alienated in this terrestrial world, and put within me and deep longing for your heavenly one.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen

***

Maintaining a state of alienation is challenging. I find that I need to be on my guard and always checking myself to see that I am living according to God's standards and walking the straight and narrow path.

Romans 12:2 (New International Version)

2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

"Be Transformed not Terminated" banner in front of Orchard Road Presbyterian Church.
They always have interesting banners and a prime location to display them since they are opposite The Cathay which happens to be showing Transformers 2 now and just ended its run of Terminator.


Matthew 7:13-14 (New International Version)

13 "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

getting to where you want to go

This is a really useful website! : http://www.gothere.sg/

It has directions for bus (inclusive of waiting time), mrt, taxi (with approximated fare) and driving directions (sometimes with ERP avoidance routes).

It even gives tongue-in-cheek chastisement to not be lazy and walk if the place you are searching for is actually really near your starting point.

Sometimes I wish there were Wi-Fi on the street so that we can use this anywhere in Singapore.

Recently when I was walking around the area where I live I got asked for directions quite often from poor lost people including a sophisticated Indian business man, a foreign model and an out-of-breath person late for his appointment...

Stuck Tic Tacs, A Collection

The extent of other people's brilliant randomness astounds me everytime....

I really like tic tacs...
especially the orange-flavoured ones.
Another random fact... someone told me that they started making the boxes coloured and left the tic tacs white because it was cheaper.. but I think it's for health reasons too. I'm glad I don't have to eat orange dye anymore.

Oh and I love the extent of tic tac obsession in the movie Juno.

Our lives are not our own

James 4:13-17 (NIV)

13 Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money."

14 Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.

15 Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that."

16 As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil.

17 Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins.

RIP MJ

This is so sad... i saw someone had signed the memorial petition on facebook but it didn't fully hit me till I saw people's tweets about it on twitter. How the world has changed that I found out this way...

This is the first legend i grew up with to have passed away... it seems it's like when Elvis died...

I was so excited and happy to read a while back that he was going to make a comeback with his concert series in London. One of my friends was excitedly telling my other friend who was going to study in London that she might even get a chance to go see him perform...

I remember when he last came to Singapore in 1996, there was this concert thing that I don't remember too well, where my classmates and I were roped in to be the cute little kids doing something... and my best friend got to hold his hand.

That was amazing.

RIP MJ. You will always be the King.

gorgeous cookies

Stained-glass teardrops from Gourmet magazine.

This is possibly the prettiest cookie picture i have ever seen.

I really want to make these!

Things To Be Happy About

Inspired by yesterday's sermon on Living Thankfully and a book that was mentioned; 14000 things to be happy about, I have decided to make my own list of things to be happy about (:


when someone you've been hoping and hoping would come to Singapore and do a concert is finally slated to have one

planning a week ahead with your friends to buy tickets to said concert the moment they go on sale

red velvet cupcakes

finding a great website (in today's case, it's gourmet.com)

cooking Father's Day dinner for my Dad

spaghetti bolognese

cooking spaghetti using Jaime Oliver's special trick

taking a risk in cooking something new and having it pay off

sleeping in your own bed again after being away from home

catching up with friends

taking silly neoprints and having all the time you want to decorate them because no one is in line behind you