Thursday, 26 July 2007

well, i think july is one of my luckiest month this year so far..
not only did i found a new job which offer better benefits and prospect,
i also strike Toto! but only win $30 la.. haha.. wx has his 3 leaf clover
too.. not only striking $60 Toto, he also strike 4-D for 10k! anyway,
he's always on his luck all year round..

tomorrow is my last day in ihpc.. and i have the favour of having a farewell
lunch treat from evelyn, our corporate service director.. and with lunch
treats throughout the week, i think i need to exercise more during the weekend
to burn off the extra calories..

the new work place so near to my house, i'll take bus to work since the
seasonal parking is quite expensive too.. i'm switching from Standard Chartered
to May bank since i no longer pump that much petrol.. for those who are not
aware of it, May bank have the highest interest rate for saving a/c..

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dreamed of racing on 10:44 am

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Friday, 20 July 2007

wx bought a new 40" LCD TV and an expensive jvc home theatre..
playing C&C3 on the 40" LCD is indeed unbelievable.. haha..
ya you hear it right.. playing the damn PC games and PS3 on the 40" LCD
with a 5k home theatre! even the gaming mouse he's using cost more then
a hundred bucks.. another wireless one when he feel like using his PC at the
corner of his bed.. now the good thing for me is he agreed to sell me his 1 yr
old 26" LCD and home theatre for a mere $500 which he called the
"friendship price"..

swei is coming back again.. this time for at least a week.. i'm clearing leave
on the 30th & 31st of july.. just nice for a meetup..

lately i have been paying more attention to unit trust.. china fund is
really on the bull run.. and i do earn quite a considerably amount from it..
alright, time to rest now.. gotta get up early morning for some blading
tomorrow..

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dreamed of racing on 11:30 pm

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Thursday, 19 July 2007

funny signs and notice..







































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dreamed of racing on 3:26 pm

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Sunday, 15 July 2007

footprints are history.. history always bring back memories..
i can't remembered when i first read about the jesus footprints story..
i was at Stamford Court yesterday and came across Faith Hope Love, a shop
selling all kinds of Christians product.. i bought two card, one is the
footprints card which i lost it with my wallet some times ago..
those who have know me long know that i was a christian as a child..
though i'm a buddhist now, i still love the story alot..

Footprints
One night a man had a dream. He dreamt he was walking along a beach with the Lord.
Across the sky flashed scenes from his life. For each scene he noticed two sets
of footprints in the sand: one belong to him and the other to the Lord.
When the last scene of his life flashed before him, he looked back at the
footprints in the sand. He noticed that many times along the path of his life
there was only one set of footprints. He also noticed that it happened at the
lowest and saddest times in his life. This really bothered him and he questioned
the Lord about it. "Lord, you said the once I decided to follow You, You'd
walk with me all the way. But I'd noticed that during the most troublesome
times in my life, there is only one set of footprints. I don't understand why
when I neded You most, You would leave me." The Lord replied, "My precious
precious child, I love you and I would never leave you. During your times of
trial and sufferings when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that
I carried you."

how touching this is.. and i feel touched everytimes i read it..
May God bless you..

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dreamed of racing on 10:11 am

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Friday, 13 July 2007

vyn and praba are also leaving ihpc.. market is good now and IT jobs are
everywhere.. and i'm really lucky to find the job i want which is also near
my house.. news spread like fire.. i actually didn't tell anyone in ihpc..
but the next day i tendered my resignation, everyone seem to know about it..

finally i received my mcp welcome kit.. it had been quite some time after
i passed my w2k3 exam.. w2k7 certification is already on the way..
a cert only last you for a few years..

my cpf investment yield quite a considerably profit with the china-india fund..
stocks are at booming high now 10 yrs after the financial crisis..

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dreamed of racing on 11:21 pm

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Wednesday, 11 July 2007

today is so call the 7-11 birthday.. its also apple's birthday..
anyway, today i'd signed an employment contract with Singtel and had also
tendered my resignation with IHPC.. but boss do not allow me to clear all
my leave.. he wanna hold me back till the end of the month.. i must really
thanks the HR manager pei san for employing me directly under Singtel contract..
initially, it was supposed to be under EPS.. and i'm only entitled to 7 days
of leave.. now i have almost all the benefit of a full time Singtel employee..
i think i really want to get a gift for her..

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dreamed of racing on 9:51 pm

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Tuesday, 10 July 2007

i think i'm quite lucky.. just when i reached home after the interview with singtel,
i receive an sms saying that i'm being offered a position.. oh today is really
a great day! lolz.. alright calm down sillyboy.. the 3 interviewers are really
nice people.. at least they laugh at my funny comments..

wow.. i'm so excited that i almost can't sleep last night.. anyway, i was having
a late night out with wx and zq after zq's mom giving wx a goood nagging.. keke..
wx bought some $60++ durians! and there're also durians selling at $0.50 each!
well, different in income thus different in lifestyle.. wx is going into stocks
and shares recently.. i was quite surprised that he had actually bought $30k
worth of US shares.. and he recommend me to open a mini trader a/c which only
need a capital of $3k.. haha.. well, he's not buying shares blindly.. he actually
do his homework as i can see books on stocks and shares..

i'm meeting my finance advisor next tue, maybe i should ask him about Walmart
shares which wx is trading..

i'm wondering how many friday the thirteen we have in a year..

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dreamed of racing on 1:53 pm

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Sunday, 8 July 2007

guess how much these King Boiled Crab at Oishii Hokkaido fair in TM cost..
$108 each!! this is the must eat crab if you ever visit japan..

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dreamed of racing on 10:06 pm

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Friday, 6 July 2007

had the 3rd interview with Xcellink during lunch time with another assistant
manager.. later he refer me to his HQ manager for another half hour session..
omg, its the 1st time i went thru so many interviews in one company!
hours later, stephanie phone me to offer me a contract and want me to sign
with them after work.. they seen so eager that they asked how about sat?
monday morning? finally, i told her i'm also waiting for a reply from another
company.. when i said the other company is offering me $300 more, she then
offer me the same salary.. so they actually can offer a higher salary, yet
they cut back on me.. anyway, i still hope to work with Singtel..
primarily because its so damn near my house.. its a five days week and
also, the working hour is shorter..

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dreamed of racing on 11:11 pm

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Sunday, 1 July 2007

当烦恼越来越多玻璃弹珠越来越少，我知道我已慢慢地长大了，红色的蜻蜓曾几何时，
也在我岁月慢慢不见了...

当年高歌这一曲《红蜻蜓》的三个少年已经渐行渐远，那自1988年到1992年的年少轻狂，
那唱红大江南北的青春的辉煌，那伴随我们走过年轻的骊歌声声，已经变作了云淡风清的记忆。
曾有三个少年，唱着歌，阳光般笑着走来。连同那些都一起被记忆抹去的名字——李子恒、
陈乐融、陈秀男、陈耀川、陈大力、陈志远... 若有一天，走过某个街头，阳光明媚春风拂面
风筝满天，不知从哪里传来口琴的前奏，三个年轻的声音在唱“梦是蝴蝶的翅膀年轻是飞翔的天堂
放开风筝的长线把爱画在岁月的脸上”，那些尘封多年的记忆会不会突然从风筝刮破的口子里
流水般倾泻出来？还是呆立在原地，脸上挂一抹释然的微笑，那年那月那人那光景。

小学的小虎队，初中的小虎队，高中的小虎队，每个人学生时代的小虎队，永远的小虎队。
青苹果的乐园1988年底的台湾乐坛，出现了三个取名小虎的少年，这个当初刻意模仿日本偶像组合
“少年队”的偶像团体，是流行乐坛上偶像组合的鼻祖。而这个团体，在1988年到1992年的
四年时间里，在所有学生歌迷的心目中，成了永恒的一个神话。每个人的心目中都会有关于“小虎队”
最初的记忆，这个记忆是关于一首叫做《青苹果乐园》的歌。那时候，苏有朋还留着学生头，
一副清水挂面的样子；吴奇隆穿高腰衣服加萝卜裤，不怎么笑地一味扮酷；陈志朋倒是笑得
灿烂得不行，可头发却奇怪地卷曲着。三个人从电视里面跳出来，大大的美体字滚动打出
“小虎队”的字样，开丽唱片的造星成就中就突然多了一项成果，小虎队在一夜之间，疯狂窜红。

不知怎么的如今说起小虎队的出场就想起了这两年红疯了的的F4广告标语——总有一款适合你。
原来台湾唱片业的造星历程，十多年来并不曾改进多少，旧瓶装了新酒，被时间晒一晒，
被记忆淡一淡，就可以重新大卖。也难怪，当今日的苏有朋被问到F4与小虎队的同异时，
意味深长地说了句“他们发育比较营养”。十多年后，不同的原来只是个子的高低与身体的质素。

《青苹果乐园》专辑在大陆引进版的名字叫做《今天看我——小虎队》。这盒引进版的卡带相信在
小虎队的歌迷手中几乎人手一盒，至今还记得卡带的价格，人民币8元。永远记得在1989年的春节，
新华书店的门口人潮涌动，售货员把装了这盒卡带的纸箱堆在柜台下，卖到断货。小虎队的热潮来了。
甚至仍然记得专辑中歌曲的排序，第一首是《青苹果乐园》，第二首是与忧欢派队合唱的应景歌
《新年快乐》，接着是《燃烧青春火焰》和《爱情变化球》最后一首是小虎队宣传歌《今天看我》
的伴奏。很怀念那时候的偶像时代，因为没有太多的选择，所以你可以喜欢一个偶像到很长时间，
时代让追星族变得专一，也就让唱片变得热卖。所以小虎队才可以在四年的时间里面将每一张
专辑都卖出好成绩而如F4就不能类比。时代愈显进步，选择好象就愈成了难题，凡事简单化竟是
如此之难。

《男孩不哭》专辑在89年9月推出，引进版马上也跟进了，按现在的速度，一年两张专辑
几乎是歌手们不太可能的奢望，而那时的我们，却已经开始嫌等得及久了。主打歌《男孩不哭》
的曲作者是陈秀男，在小虎队所有的专辑中，稍微关注一下就会发现他是小虎队歌曲常用的创作者。
而陈姓词曲作者几乎襄括了所有小虎队的名曲，也算是台湾流行音乐史上的一大奇观。与上一张
专辑一样，《男孩不哭》同样走青春骊歌的路线，情和爱的表露都很含蓄，快慢歌比例
大致相同，由此也可见小虎队作为偶像歌手的惯有商业性。

三个男生的声线基本合谐，苏有朋的声线比较低沉，吴奇隆的声线走高亢略带磁性的路子，
而陈志朋的声线比较接近中高音，和声部分整齐平滑，但无甚技巧。相比如今的另一支少女
组合SHE的和声，根本是遥不可及。但那时候，歌迷的口味还没有被商业造星计划惯坏，
容易原谅并且感激。就像现在心目中红色的蜻蜓如果没有记错的话，在1990年，《红蜻蜓》
这张专辑没有被引进。在很多人的收藏史上，这张专辑是个遗憾。然而遗憾的又何止是有关收藏，
专辑中的那首《红蜻蜓》是小虎队所有歌曲中的转折点，因为有了《红蜻蜓》，才会有后来的
《蝴蝶飞啊》和《骊歌》，小虎队的成熟，也就是通过那一首《红蜻蜓》开始的。

李子恒的词，唯美而感伤。歌曲站在少年的角度怀念童年，将岁月流逝细节到一只红色的蜻蜓。
多年后重听，才发觉，原来成长真是一场叫人无奈且感怀的电影，我们都已经长大，小虎队也
已经长大，逼不得已的是接受。过往，只会住在内心深处那个叫做回忆的处所，随着歌声，
一幕幕向后倒去，缅怀的那一刻，再也没有出现过。才发现，多久不曾见过夏日雷雨过后低飞的
红蜻蜓，多久不曾被生命感动过。年前同学会，一帮子人在KTV里面并成一排唱“我们都已经长大…”，
其中有人说，那时候小虎队多红啊，有人竟热泪盈眶。不太清楚到底是我们见证了小虎队的青春
还是他们见证了我们的青春。

90年的第二张专辑是《星星的约会》。时隔一年，小虎队的热潮未减，以一年两张专辑的速度
继续攻占市场。这一年，因为小虎队的关系，带动了台湾流行组合歌手的成长，红孩儿、红唇族、
少女队等组合纷纷组建，但都不及小虎队的风头，不过是昙花一现。李子恒和陈乐融的搭配造就了
一首好歌《叫你一声MY LOVE》，这首歌是小虎队歌曲中最温柔抒情的一首慢歌，也是难得一见
的一首情歌。不知为什么唱红这首歌的却是张智霖和许秋怡这对情侣档，根据这首歌改编的
《现代爱情故事》是当时在卡拉OK点唱率极高的歌曲，也许是因为小虎队一直以来都以健康的形象
直面学生歌迷，为了赢得学生家长的支持，所以放弃了情歌的路子。但想想总觉得很莫名其妙，
小虎队和张智霖、许秋怡的对台戏？完全不在一个范畴。

是不是无论什么东西都需要累积？是不是无论什么东西都像浪花，需要在推动前行的过程中出现
一个最高点？还是因为知道光芒是短暂的，所以在消失之前要绽放最好的那一面？91年的这张《爱》
的专辑，对于大多数人来说，是小虎队留下的记忆中最后的辉煌。李子恒，又见李子恒！
这个从小虎队成立以来就一直静默在歌曲背后的功臣，终于在《蝴蝶飞呀》这首歌里向人们展示了
他的才华。在《蝴蝶飞呀》这首歌里他包揽了词与曲的全部创作，他看着小虎队一路走来慢慢成长，
他知道什么才是属于他们的歌，他知道什么才是自己跟他们最好的磨合。这首歌里有了分离的前兆，
从来没有单独献声的三只小虎，开始在《蝴蝶飞呀》里面分开各自演唱，在给了人们一个惊喜的同时，
也揭示了小虎队以后命运发展的预告。前奏里悠远的口琴声，再一次将听歌的人带回童年，
歌词里面关于海风、白云、毛毛虫和小河的梦想纯净了所有的浮躁，无可否认，这首歌是小虎队在
全盛时期最具代表的作品。专辑主打歌《爱》，用了独特的创意，三只小虎在MTV里用手语表达歌词，
想要把自己的歌声带到一个无声的世界里去。一时间手语开始在各大城市流行，每个听小虎队的孩子，
都牢牢记得那些简单的手语，也许已经歪曲了手语原本的用义，偶像的力量，原来可以这样？

相信再见了以后还会再见。1992年1月，是个悲伤的季节，因为兵役和学业的关系，小虎队暂时解散。
《再见》专辑面世，算是所有流行组合歌手解散时煽情煽得最厉害的一个组合，因为原本不是悄悄地来，
所以不可以悄悄地走。专辑封面上煽情的文字安慰人们——相信再见了以后，还会再见；陈大力和
李子恒协力打造的主打歌《再见》中唱到——请相信我会再次回到你面前，唱起我们无悔的青春。
这张专辑是一个约定，小虎队跟人们约定他们会再次回来唱这场青春，可是，青春是不等人的，过了，
也就散了。所以在1993年三人单飞后按约定发行了《星光依旧灿烂》而反响不佳之后，小虎队，
便永远地成了大多数人心头的回忆。没错，他们是回来了，可是光阴已经不在，是谁说过，我们再也
回不去了。于是，便真的回不去了。

永远到底有多远？有这样一个口号，叫做“永远的小虎队”。那三只蹦跳出来的年轻的小虎，
从《青苹果乐园》走到《红蜻蜓》再到《蝴蝶飞呀》，渐渐脱去稚气，露出成熟来。当蜻蜓不再飞翔，
当蝴蝶不再流浪，心也已经告别青苹果，年轻就不在。青春是一场化学方程式，从量变到质变也许
会各有不同，但相同的永远是那一点，席幕容说过了，每个人的十六岁，只有一次。

苏有朋走过青春，告别了学生哥，做了五阿哥；吴奇隆走过青春，告别了电单车，做了十一郎；
陈志朋走过了青春，告别了兵营，影踪难觅。他们回不去了，我们也回不去了。那么“永远的小虎队”
到哪里去了呢？也许，只能在你我仍能忆起的青春岁月里，那一首首伴随我们一路走来的骊歌，
在各自的人生旅途上，海阔天空。

0 comments
dreamed of racing on 12:15 am

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