Saw this when I was just going through my blog statistics:

68554

203.125.69.214 (F) (V)

2007-11-13 15:14:09

/2007/08/27/cheated-badly/ (F)

http://www.google.com/search?h l=en&q=myo+thwe+lin (F)

Internet Explorer 6.0 Windows XP

myo thwe lin

X

(Technical glitch earlier on…)

Hmm… is someone searching for Ryan again? Then again, it’s not the full name and perhaps Myo Thwe Lin is a common name in Myanmar. I was searching high and low for Ryan the previous time because he disappeared with my cats. True enough, I was first worried about my cats, then about him… then there’s this possibility that he could have disappeared wilfully.

Frankly I don’t really care now because I have already assumed my cats to be dead. Yup. Hmm… perhaps that’s the best way for me to move forward.

Sometimes I wonder if I’d end up facing the same situation as her and if I’d be able to move on. Only time can tell.

It’s not everyday that I get to meet my blog readers… so I guess today is a special day afterall! Lunch was supposed to be lazily tucked away in the concrete jungle of Shenton Way - but the jungle was so dense that I got lost in it! Can you believe it? Lost in Singapore?! I’d be a laughing stock if the whole world knows about it… (^_^)”‘

Anyway, I finally gave up trying to be smart and gave my lunch mate a call… so, instead of having it and the new and modern Icon (where’s that actually?), I ended up eating next to a petrol station! No kidding! I really ate next to the Shell petrol station… at the Han’s Restaurant next to it, that is.

The first comment that I got was… “wow, you are really tall!”. Oh well… haha… ya. Actually I am not the tallest amongst my friends… kinda considered short actually, but yes… So we headed into the restaurant, and the blur queen that I am, I just followed, not know if there’s going to be a seat inside and secretly hoping that it’d be full.

So, lo and behold, there was indeed a table that’s free and next to the window. I’d say that the seat was literally hard because it looked like unpolished granite that I was sitting on. Heh heh… Does it seem like I am complaining a lot? Nay, actually it was good… and I didn’t even take note of the restaurant when I walked past it early on because it looked too atas from outside, and as my blog reader put it “… and then you are so disappointed when you realise that it’s like that…”. Heh heh… I didn’t say that. =P

Being Han’s, it meant that we had to get our own menu and order our own food. I was torn between ordering Bacon Carbonara and Fish and Chips (because the latter is the safest thing around and it comes in a set). After much deliberation, I thought I’d just give Bacon Carbonara a shot.

While waiting for the food to come, we talked about the recent posts I wrote about Singapore, and whether I am anti-establishment. Well, to set the record straight, I’m actually not anti-establishment if the establishment is doing a good job. As per my previous post, I just feel that the government is a little detached from the people. I think the Chinese have a saying for this - it’s call 山高皇帝远, meaning the mountains are high and the emperor is far, denoting a situation where the people’s cries are not heard by the head that runs the country. I also shared my views about the ERP - where I think it’s just like Windows - a patch/hotfix job; where if it doesn’t work as well, or if it has some faults, all you have to do is to run a patch - like raising ERP rates or extending the hours or just simply building more gantries.

Of course, there was also the issue or fear of my readers knowing more about me than I know of them. Well, not really, I’d think, partly because the readers know as much as what we blog about ourselves - and there are still topics/issues that we can choose not to talk about. So, it’s does feel like, to a certain extent, there’s some control over this. Unless you are talking about a stalker - a physical one, then that’s scary.

Depressing topics, huh?

Well, thank goodness the food came in time to break the sombre mood. =P Mine… looks plain - very “han-ly”, but it looks good nonetheless. At least the bacon pieces were obvious, quite unlike, ahem, the one that I got from NY,NY. Actually the NY,NY staff/manager was quite nice, it’s just that the food… hmm… just can’t make it. At least for the aglio olio.

The carbonara was quite good. You could almost taste the sauce and cheese and the bacon! Woooo… the bacon was good! Nice, big and juicy! Every bite boasts the senses in your mouth as you crave for the next. Okie… maybe I was just exaggerating, but the food is really quite decent. More importantly, the company was good. =)

We also talked about other stuffs that was never meant to be blogged about - like the Nuffnang issue, Advertlets, how the bloggers are paid, how money is generated, and my personal opinion about putting up ads on my blogs and commercialising it. Well, for a start, the blog wasn’t meant to be a source of income, although *ahem* accidental sources of income is good to help defray the cost of hosting it. No one put a knife at my throat to register for a domain and neither did anyone threatening to slit my neck should I not host it. So, at the end of the day, having some extras is good, but I won’t say that I depend on it.

All good things must come to an end ya? As my blog reader said, he’s a salaried employee and had to get back to work. For me, I am a paying paid student and I have to get back to school. It was certainly quite an experience meeting up with friends who read my blog (yes, I’d consider my blog readers my blog friends - sounds nicer and less dividing), and even better to get their comments. I do look forward to having lunch again with my blog friends. =)

PS: Hmm… after this lunch blog, I wonder if anyone would still dare to ask me out for meals. =P

There is a new ruling from March 2008 onwards that everyone who wants to hail a cab would have to do it from a taxi stand, i.e. the taxies are not supposed to pick up passengers along the road because it is deemed hazardous to do so. Even if you decide to call for one, you’d have to get on the taxi from a taxi stand. This apparently applies to taking cabs in the city, including places like Shenton Way, Orchard Road, Suntec City - basically anywhere that you can define as “town”; yes, even Clarke Quay.

This is meant to force everyone to move to the nearest taxi stand to hail their cabs - however, how many taxis would actually go to a taxi stand is still an unknown. If you look at the taxi stand at Ngee Ann City, it’s really pathetic because not only are there no cabs, the queue is horrendously long.

This brings one question in mind though - if taxis are not allowed to pick up passengers from the roads, then are passengers allowed to alight from the roads? Or can they only alight at the nearest taxi stand? Hmm…

Passenger (P): Uncle ah, let me alight at the coffee shop behind the white house

Taxi Driver (T): Huh? Cannot lah… new gahmen ruling says cannot drop you along the road; must go to the nearest taxi stand

P: Huh? Then drop where?

T: *ponders* Er… International Plaza lah… very near one. Like walking from Esplanade to Carrefour.

P: Wah uncle, that one very far leh… just drop me at the kopi tiam lah… no one will catch one

T: Cannot cannot! Nowadays every where also got camera. That day drive in the KPE already kenne 3 points and don’t know how many dollars liao. You want me to drop you at the kopi tiam ah? You might as well kill uncle first.

P: Uncle, you like that say, you win liao lor!

T: Uncle never win, only the gahmen win.

Of course in reality, the taxi driver may really let you alight at the coffee shop at the White House (serious, there’s such a place in Singapore), but whether his taxi number plate will get recorded from J-eyes is a different story. =P

FROM March next year, commuters will need to find a taxi stand if they want a cab in the Central Business District.

This includes areas like Orchard Road, Shenton Way, Raffles Place and Suntec City.

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) yesterday announced the new rule, alongside stiffer new penalties for taxi drivers who do not stop for passengers, who tout or who overcharge. Misbehaving cabbies can lose their licence immediately in serious cases.

The ruling about taxi stands is meant to improve road safety, said the LTA.

With the introduction of more bus lanes within the city, it said, taxis are finding it harder to pick up passengers hailing them from the roadside. Plus, those who do stop in time for passengers may swerve in indiscriminately or suddenly, making it dangerous and disruptive to traffic flow.

So, instead of sticking their arms out and flagging a taxi from the kerbside, commuters will have to get one from a taxi stand - and even if you book one, it must pick you up at a stand.

The only exception is if residents within the city get taxis to pick them up within their private driveways.

The LTA will build 15 more taxi stands by the end of next month, bringing the total number to 95 in the city area.

Taxi stands will always be within a five-minute walk of any building in the CBD, LTA assured commuters yesterday.

Both taxi drivers and commuters seemed to welcome the new rule yesterday: Mr Adi Negara, 48, a taxi driver for the past 11 years, explained how stopping in the CBD can be a dangerous game.

‘There are many bus lanes and it is difficult to stop, and if we do, we have to swerve through lanes.

‘The taxi stands will help because commuters will know where to wait and we will know where to go.’

While commuters The Straits Times spoke to yesterday generally agreed that it would be safer, a bigger worry was if the taxis would come at all - whether at a stand or otherwise.

Mr Jeffrey Chan, 31, a wealth-management consultant who works in a building on Cecil Street, said that, already, most of his time at the taxi stand is spent watching the cabbies - with their ‘On call’ signs lit up - zip by.

He reckons seven out of 10 won’t stop. Which already equates to 30-minute waits every night for his taxi home.

His sentiment was echoed by people polled last night.

It is more about increasing the supply of cabs during the rush hour to meet demand, say commuters.

Or upping the flag-down rate for cabs so more taxi drivers will want to stop at the stands, say drivers.

‘If you charge passengers a one-time surcharge to take a taxi from the city, more cabs - after dropping passengers off in the suburbs - will be more willing to go back to the city,’ said cabby Dicky Ong, 53.

Article obtained from straitstimes.com on 13th November 2007

Oh, don’t say that I am biased when writing on ERP rates - that I only write about the bad stuffs and not the good ones. So here it is - ERP rates will be reduced by 50 cents on the following roads/expressways in the respective time slots below:

• Ayer Rajah Expressway: 8am to 9.30am  
• East Coast Parkway (Ophir Road): 8am to 9am
• Central Business District on weekdays: 8am to 10am, 12.30pm to 2pm, and 3pm to 7pm
• Handy Road: 8am to 10am, 12.30pm to 2 pm, and 3pm to 5.30pm
• Bendemeer Road: 7.30am to 8am
• Dunearn Road: 8am to 9am
• Thomson Road: 7.30am to 8am

All other charges will remain unchanged. This is effective from 17th November 2007 (Saturday) till 1st January 2008. The next review will be in February 2008.

Come to think of it. Is it really good news? Ok… maybe just relatively good news. =P

Yes, many many moons ago, a girl was born - born to change the world that one day, there would be world peace! =P

Today, she’s doing just that! By blogging. Well, not really change the world yet… but just hoping that she’d be able to. One day. Just like the characters in the show Heroes!

Thanks for all the well-wishes so far! I heard from the little bird in the vineyards that there is a gathering at Geek Terminal today (13th November 2007)  at 7pm. Do come down and join us if you can. =) No need to bring anything but I can’t pay for your drinks though. Kekeke… You know lah… students are very poor. Kekeke…

See ya guys there!

PS: Okie… I feel quite funny posting this portion up but since a few people asked… if you really want to get something… erm, birthday cards would be nice… hehehe… ya, and if you feel that it’s not sincere enough, please write more stuffs inside the card =P Haha…

PPS: And oh… since it’s my birthday today, this post shall remain sticky for 1 day =P

I was planning on the route to the Indoor Stadium from town and decided to go via AYE, ECP and exit from Fort Road. The journey was rather smooth, and all was well… until I was approaching the Fort Road exit.

Suddenly, there was not 1, not 2, not even 3 road signs (did that sound familiar?) There were 5 road signs - Fort road, KPE (PIE Jurong), KPE (PIE Changi Airport), something Road and something Road; and I got totally confused. In the end, I drove into the dreaded KPE.

Driving into the KPE is so surreal. Firstly, everything was so new, I wasn’t even sure if the road was even open. However, as I began my descent, my suspicions were confirmed - the road looked like it was never meant to be opened! Thank goodness I spotted a slow moving vehicles in the distant with some other cars and taxis. Now, we all know that slow vehicles are good “targets” for overtaking because they are notoriously slow; but I noticed a really strange phenomenal. All the cars were almost as slow as the slow vehicle!

Ah! Eureka! Welcome to the KPE!

Do you remember about LTA boasting of the 3,400 speedsters who were caught in 6 days? Well, yes. Perhaps after that incident, more people were afraid to drive at any speed about 60km/h! I kid you not. Do you remember of all those speculations that there is a tolerance buffer in speed cameras? I was told that for a 70km/h road with a speed camera, you can probably travel at 80 km/h safely without worrying about being caught. However, since the LTA is using laser cameras in the KPE, many were not sure if the tolerance is still there. In addition, people like myself got a little paranoid and wondered if my tachometer is faulty.

Yes, I belong to those people that drives 65 km/h on a 70 km/h road. *bows in apology*

Anyway, as I was saying, the drive through the tunnel was surreal. I was looking high and low for the speed limit sign as well as the speed camera sign. After travelling for what seemed like 1/2 the journey into the tunnel, I still didn’t see any sign, nor camera. Then it came - in BIG ORANGE LEDS! Please Do Not Speed.

Heh. I think they are just being too courteous. I don’t really think they need to say please. They just need to say “Do Not Speed” with an implied meaning of “else you would be fined and given demerit points”.

Still… there was no sign. Yet.

As I was approaching the light at the end of the tunnel, I finally see it. The Sign. The sign that has the ability to slap you with the fines and points. However, since I was driving, I couldn’t snap any picture of it, although I saw a lot of suspicious looking cameras - not know which is for what purpose.

I finally drove out of the tunnel but didn’t have much time to think if I should head towards PIE Jurong or PIE Changi. Phew! It was a very scary experience, and frankly, driving at 60 70km/h is really too slow for the tunnel. Maybe they should really consider it.

Meanwhile, don’t speed ya? That’s a lot of money we are talking about. =P