Rolling In Money? Do Some Good On Kickstarter

"Kickstarter is the world's largest funding platform for creative projects. A home for film, music, art, theater, games, comics ... " goes the Google search introduction. I ended up on the website in a less than direct way. A friend posted an image of someone on what looked like a Segway commenting that front-facing Segway-like personal transport devices looked dumb. I'm all for personal mobility as long as it doesn't get in people's way but never quite banked on style as a factor just yet. My friend replied "sideways more stylo" with a link to One Wheel on Kickstarter. I clicked through and lo and behold, it was true. One Wheel is a skateboard with a motorised single fat wheel that sweeps you off your feet and gets you moving. The intro video tells the story of a dream rooted in film. Marty McFly had a hoverboard in Back To The Future and it just made sense! The inventors of One Wheel wanted the same experience with current day less-than-levitational technology. Meditational yoga and maglev dismissed, the solution lay in a soft but solid fat wheel. With a motor. And rechargeable batteries. It's bloody brilliant. Watch the video. It's simple looking yet not dorky. It's got cool technology but perhaps is a little too heavy. But yes it's more stylo than a Segway.



I was convinced about three things then and there. One, sideways facing personal transport is more stylo. Two, there are technologies and ideas that will change our future for the better. Three, I had to give these guys some money. I donated US$10. They had garnered US$300k thus far, 200% beyond their target but every cent counts to an entrepreneur. Well if you want the real thing, you could donate US$1299 and get the first few One Wheels!

But look at the big picture – what Kickstarter is helping people do is give their ideas a chance. We can’t stop imagining and creating but sometimes reality bites and money to keep going really counts. Many an avid entrepreneur has succumbed. That’s why Kickstarter works I guess. It’s crowdfunding for superior products, stuff that changes lives, inventions that manifest what we sometimes see in sci-fi films and futurerama. It gives me hope that people are thinking and they have at least a platform that gives them a stage for acknowledgement and development. More people should get up on it. More people should spend time hobbying, playing and imagining. Not for profit or gain but to change the world. Very importantly, rich people with no clue what to do with their money should invest in these cool ideas. If their money can’t make things better for now, let it make things better for the future at least.

The Walking Dead Event in Singapore 11 Jan 2014

Some weeks I received an email from Starhub about a promotion. I took interest because it mentioned The Walking Dead. I have watched all 4 seasons, individual weekly episodes as well as a marathon weekend zombie blast, enough to have zombie nightmares. I had a chance to win invites to meet Andrew  Lincoln and Norman Reedus live. Say what? Me and Rick The Sheriff and Daryl The Redneck Robin Hood within eyeshot, standing on the same ground, breathing the same air?! Why hell yes thank you very much. I had to submit a question that if I had the chance could ask them in person. Hmmm. This had to be a good one, something intellectual and  thought provoking. Nothing like 'which co-worker would you shag on set?' or 'so is your character gonna get killed off?'. I came up with "The show deals with the end of humanity and how we cope with really awful things. Has it changed the way you live your life, perhaps a greater appreciation of everything?" And that got me the invites. Woo hoo!

Last Saturday I went to the event with a friend. She had watched all of The Walking Dead too, while alone and in a foreign country no less. I think that's why she came back to Singapore, to be around other zombies. We met in Little India for breakfast (We overdid it a little. Masala thosai, vadai, appam) then ambled over to LaSalle College Of The Arts, that black and white building with the funny shapes along Rochor Road. First time I was there. A crowd was gathered at the front foyer. I thought these people were here to partake upon the magnificence of television but they were staring at the window cleaners. (The building had glass walls at odd angles so washing them from the outside required men rappelling down from the roof. Quite a sight and quite hard work). We made it down to the basement to register and were given Fox Action Movies cushion as gifts. Hmmm. Soft but hard to walk around with. What to do, a prize is a prize. We then had to find the bathroom next and boy, was it difficult to locate.

We went to the main entrance and lo and behold, a large crowd of TWD fans had gathered to wait for their heroes. There was an obstacle course with zombie actors roaming about. Now this was getting interesting. We waited, the crowd grew, it got hot. I met an ex-colleague who's a media strategist who was there because his client NERF was sponsoring the weapons of actors' choice. A bunch of taxis pulled in and out of the foyer entrance and each time the audience craned their necks and gasped. Nope. Then a white London cab shows and lo and behold, out pop Andrew and Norman. And the crowd goes wild. Screaming, clapping and shouting. Sheer terror for the actors I bet who were possibly expecting a milder and calmer reception. The heat probably got them faint already and now a few hundred fans were set upon them. Well not really. Adrian Pang, funny man and MC of the event took charge, welcomed them and quickly got them scared with the challenge of completing the obstacle course. I thought it may have been a little too harsh for the actors. They just off a plane, were jet lagged and probably hadn't had a decent breakfast and now had to pretend to be awesome for us. They took it in their stride. They also took every opportunity to take pictures and sign autographs. So nice. Especially Norman. He was practically throwing himself at the fans. Many a fan-and-I selfie was taken.  By the time Andrew did the course, I was sweaty from jostling for a good view. I stepped back into the cooler environs of no man's land, and let the scene play out. Adrian continued to be funny as he commentated on the proceedings. I bet the visiting angmohs didn't quite get the bits of Singlish and other local colloquialisms. Soon it was over. Andrew won, Norman didn't care. Everyone proceeded to mob the actors. Snap snap snap. Screams and cheers. The zombies however kept in character and ironically didn't ravage upon the masses. Maybe they were vegetarian.

We proceeded downstairs to the underground theatre to wait for the actors' interview. We waited a while. I bet the actors had food and drink. We on the other hand were hungry and thirsty. Good thing my friend and I had quite a big breakfast. Now we were hankering for a beer.

Rick and Daryl showed up on stage about half an hour later I think. Much cheering ensued and Adrian set about asking questions. The man is funny and quick on the draw with the comments and quips from the actors. Andrew and Norman were fooling around like teenagers. They got serious enough to answer deep questions about their acting philosophy and experiences, and expressed how lucky they were to work with each other and the other great actors on the AMC show. They talked about how difficult it is to be an actor and how different their individual styles are. There were LaSalle acting students in the audience and I think they got quite a lot out of this engagement. Both stars were down to earth and took a light hearted view to their success. They seemed grateful and sincere. They spoke about their families and how perhaps the show helped them realise their real priorities. It was heartwarming to hear.

The event closed off with open questions from the floor. Some were smart, others were plain dumb. Forgive me, but seriously, you can't ask Hollywood actors the plot of the new season and hope they've might reveal a smidgen of storyline. They'll get fired dude!

After about 3 and half hours it was time to go. We were exhausted enough to forget to collect the autographed promo card for the new season. The beer! We needed a cool drink pronto! Sigh.

I contacted Starhub and collected the signed card a few days later. Woohoo!I might eBay it for the retirement funds.

Now for the series to begin. I drool in anticipation.

A Morning With Willing Hearts

I forgot to talk about one thing I did over the Christmas period. Not sure why because it's quite significant.

I woke up early one morning 530am to make my way down to Willing Hearts, a volunteer soup kitchen that prepares meals for about 300 persons each day. The kitchen is a huge set up in a factory building in Genting Lane. When I arrived at 645ish there already the waft of cooking smells, the sharp kling klang of utensils and the noise of instruction being barked across the open setup. There were students from Hwa Chong who perhaps were 'forced' to volunteer for school credits, many aunties, some kids who belonged to some of the aunties, and several men. Some persons looked like permanent staff and not walk-in traffic like myself. Everyone seemed to know what their job was. Uncle Tony was the man in charge, a middle aged friendly face who was almost always smiling, and when my friend arrived, we asked Tony for placement of duties. 

I was first asked to scoop cooked rice out of a steaming tray into a large cauldron. What surprises most first-time volunteers I think the scale of output. The amount of food is enormous. I haven't worked at McDonalds or KFC and perhaps haven't been exposed to this much food before. Well maybe when we cleaned up the army kitchens we had an inkling of mass produced lunch. There were trays and trays of steaming hot rice. And more needed to be prepared. The next thing that perhaps got me was the heat. Not of the kitchen but the food. When you're scooping out kilos of cooked rice, it's easy to get scalded or burned. 

When the rice was scooped out, I had to bring it to the assembly line of food packers. I ended up joining the line too for most of the morning. It seems simple enough, scoop and place, into styrofoam packs. (The amount of styrofoam used sort of bothered me but I guess that was the most cost-efficient way to contain hot food.) I started off packing macaroni fried with mushrooms and vegetables. The next-in-line added a sliced of omelette to complete the serving. With everything one does, there's always a way to make the process better or deliver a better outcome. It may sound strange but I instinctively started to work out what the ideal number of scoops of pasta was that would adequately fill a packet. Turns out it's two full scoops. Then I adjusted the position of the empty boxes in relation to my arm length and approach. Then I kept a look out for balance and presentation. Was there enough vege? Enough mushroom? Was there too much gravy? Factors of success. I was optimizing processes. 

Some of the regulars kept reminding us to clean as we went, not waste food, not slack off mid assembly, keep out gloves on, always having that eye on things to ensure some standards were met. The eye was mostly on the teenagers who weren't that used to manual labour and adult supervision. 

When that round was done, it was time to continue with rice, vege, sardines and egg. Next we had fried rice, vege and ikan bilis. We packed over 200 servings. 

I went around to collect the rice from one station, return the empty receptacles, collect the vegetables and send utensils for washing. There were kids frying eggs, ladies cutting vegetables, teenagers washing up, aunties packing food, guys tossing and mixing rice with seasonings, everyone playing a part in the whole operation to get food ready by 10am. 

By about 11am, most of the jobs were done and breakfast was served - the excess food from the morning's rush. And we left after. Day done. People said "see you tomorrow" knowing also that most would not come back anytime soon. 

Willing Hearts (www.willinghearts.org.sg) is a registered charity that survives on the kindness of strangers. The food is donated and the help is made up of volunteers. I'm not sure how they keep the place running. Where does the money for water, electricity and the basics come from? I didn't ask Uncle Tony for fear of being nosy. 

I haven't gone back since this first stint. I should and bring a few more people along. I'm thinking bored retirees could make a difference too. The sense of community and even kinship among the regular volunteers was palatable. 

I realise I didn't give blood in 2013. 

Happy New Year Everyone

I am going back to work tomorrow. It's been 2 weeks on holiday staying at home. I have quite some leave days to clear so it wasn't difficult to decide when to put the application in for. The end of 2013 like the end of the last several eyes hasn't been terribly eventful. There's something to do around Christmas, maybe presents to buy, some to receive, and perhaps something to do around New Year's. Usually there's a lot eating. I told myself though that I would try to do something interesting every day if I could. Let's run down that list to the best of my memory. 

1. I went for yoga class four times I think. One class was a Pilates class where the instructor used me to demonstrate how not to do a push-up. I took it magnanimously, an instruction to the wider partly clueless audience. I still didn't get what the instructor was getting at. Was I not squeezing my ass enough? Were my hips too high? Was my chest not hovering above the ground low enough? It was an hour of pain. My core sucks. 

2. I had coffee crab at Majestic Restaurant at Gardens By The Bay. I keep mistaking the name of the place as Masterbay. It's a terrible misnomer. The crab is divine. It comes red and smothered with a light brown sauce. The server pours over a shot of liquor and sets the crustacean ablaze before salivating guests. The alcohol enhances the coffee taste and adds a lingering palate pleaser when licking the sauce. It is very very good. My friends also ordered the one other dish that is only served three times an evening, the seafood baked rice. In fact it has to be pre-ordered, reserved for discerning guests. Ahem. I know seafood baked rice sounds like something on the Swensen's menu but this is wonderful gargantuan re-invention. The dish arrived in a large metal pan, rice flavoured with curry spices chockful of scallops, prawns, mussels and baby abalone, all enveloped in a melted cheese crust. It was delish, the kind of cooking that warms you up inside. The whole thing was apparently enough for 4 to 6 people but it sufficed us hungry 3.

3. I took my nephew to the office for him to play and meet people. He likes meeting adults and he loves the view of the city. Given the season, almost every one of my colleagues he met gave him a sweet or chocolate. Much to my detriment of course. I ended up lugging a bag of confectionary home. 

4. I baked for the first time. I mean I have put in stuff into my oven to defrost and cook, like frozen pizzas. This time I had to prepare food for a Christmas potluck party and I decided to do too much - a pumpkin pie and two vegetarian lasagnes, eggplant and spinach. My mum of course frowned at this expression of free will in 'her' kitchen. I nonetheless had to pull my weight and venture forth into the gastronomic unknown. I have watched many many cooking shows, Jamie Oliver, Rachel Allen, Anna Olson, Gordon Always Angryface, the Italian dude, the 30 minute meal lady. What could go wrong? I managed to surprise myself. With some help from the Internet, the food turned out not bad. The pumpkin pie could have done with a thicker crust and more sugar but it was alright. The lasagnes perhaps could have done with a bit more salt and a little more time in the oven. I bought square sheets for a rectangular pan. So that was a time waster. And I put cheese at the top when I shouldn't have. But it was a lesson in experimentation and planning. The results were edible and didn't induce hospitalization. Well done. 

5. Following item 4, I baked chocolate cake yesterday. Not too bad either. I wanted to follow the pound cake recipe, ratio of 1:1 for everything. Problem was I didn't have a scale at home so I eyeballed everything by using a bowl. My mum reminded me to add vanilla and I forgot the salt. I added coffee because the Barefoot Contessa lady said I should and I added some brown sugar for 'character'. I also didn't quite do the wet before the dry, a mistake that would give my cakes a not unappetising partly caramelised crust. My mum was worried that I'd splatter the mix everywhere when I used the electric beater. I didn't. The results were interesting. The cakes were fudgy rather than spongy. I shared them with friends over mahjong and they finished everything. An above average success. 

6. I played mahjong twice. It's fun because we eat, talk, drink, laugh, watch TV and joke throughout the whole affair. There was a baby present on both occasions and we took turns to entertain the little tyke. 

7. I saw The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug and American Hustle. Both good films. I caught the first Hobbit film so I had to catch this one to continue the story. American Hustle was interesting. Christian Bale should get an award for pulling off the 1970s pudgy look. 

8. A bunch of us had a roast pig for dinner. Not quite the Hawaiian or Balinese pig on a spit. Ours came in a cardboard box. It wasn't bad. We accompany the meat with zhichar offerings from a nearby coffeeshop. There was a chye poh tofu dish and a 4 vegetable fry named "4 heavenly kings" that impressed greatly. Yum yum. There was much intoxicating beverage drunk and also frozen durian eating. A Singaporean Christmas dinner to remember. 

9. I had two meals at Jerry's Barbeque at Club St in two days. They sells these awesome chicle wings smothered in the sauce of one's chosen hotness. Day 1 I had level 2 chilli then level 3 on day 2. I survived both. The barbequed pork is awesome. I had the ribs then the pulled pork sandwich. Delectable. Jerry's makes a mean margarita too.

Over the two weeks I had meals with three groups of friends. I am grateful I have these friends, a diverse bunch from different stages in my life. 

On the not so good side, my MacBook has decided to not cooperate. Second time this year. What's going on dear Apple? I may have lost all my Korea holiday pictures! 

Also, Schumacher hurt his head and his now in a critical state. May he and anyone else who's hurt be ok. 

Happy new year everyone.