Technical Analysis on Capitaland

Capitaland:
Currently closed at 3.24, Stochastics and RSI showing strength and moving towards overbought levels. Now hovering just above resistance at around 3.15, not really a significant breakout due to the lack of movement in today's session. Based on candlestick analysis, a "hanging man" or "upright hammer" is formed today. MACD shows a weakened Bear at the start of this mini rally, confirming that the bear rally has arrived. However, no further divergences can be seen as of today. Power of the Bulls is still the same as the previous high on 20 October.

Possible outcomes:
1) Reversal imminent due to the presence of the "hanging man" and 3.15 has been proving to be a strong resistance.
2) Further move above resistance which may indicate strong upwards breakout will trigger a long signal, placed with a tight stop loss. Price target of 3.65, stop at 3.20.

invest? whats that?

most of us are unaware. but if we do not make our money work harder, they would eventually decay and succumb to the effects of inflation. when we talk about working harder, investments would be the natural course of action. however, many are unsure of how to go about investing their money, let alone classify and identify the risks of investing. those who are aware may be wondering: when is the right time to invest?

let me help you guys out. there are many ways to invest, and many sectors to invest in. think of it as a vehicle that brings you from point A to point B. the vehicle you choose determines how you are going to get to your eventual destinations.

high risk investments can be seen as a car strapped with rockets. or maybe a motorcycle. fast and can eventually lead you beyond your destination. the speed at which you reach your destination is in relation to the investment returns you are getting. of course, a car strapped with rockets isn't the safest form of vehicle you would want to ride on. furthermore, it may crash, and hence need some repairs (costs or losses) before being able to proceed an reach an eventual destination.

low risk investments are the opposite, and well, should be self explanatory.

of course you wont say "i want to invest in a rocket car", but you might say "i want to invest in an aggressive fund that carries a high weightage of equities and derivatives". the choice is yours.

now many people ask me about the right time to invest. honestly speaking, there's is no 'right time' to invest. investments ought to be viewed as a long term commitment that when you eventually foresee that you may need to cash in your investments, you have a significant amount of gains.

some may ask whether now is a good time to invest. i say why not. warren buffet may say why not. if you go to the jewellery shop one day and you find that the diamond rings go for one dollar a piece, would you tell yourself that you'd buy it another day because the valuation of diamond rings are so bad now you want to wait for the price to go up to maybe $100 then you buy them? well to put it simply, buy when something is cheap and wait for its value to appreciate, rather then miss out on the opportunity that lies ahead.

for more info, i'll be more than happy to share.

this week's TA

i know its abit late but i didn't really have over the weekends to do my analysis. i just had too much fun :)

anyways something different this week, i'll be focusing on 2 indices which i trade on, STI and HSI.

today STI opened 50 points higher, but slowly declined as the trades goes on. last week's trading session saw great movements and volatility within the day, gapping up and down and ranging over 50 points on certain days. one thing to note, because of the recent turmoil in the financial markets, the indices tend to follow suit. thursday and friday saw a slight correction after the 3 day slump, thanks to the US Federal Reserves. good thing for me, this would hopefully give the index some momentum to carry on moving downwards.

looking at RSI, it shows a divergence, having a slight downwards slope at the end of the trading week (even though there was a huge correction), stochastics are moving out of the oversold regions after crossing signal and MACD can't really show me anything clear cut yet.

my opinion on the movement this week: if the index today doesn't manage to sustain a positive movement, the trading week may be bearish. looking at the divergence from RSI, the index doesn't seem to have the momentum for a bullish move, hence, expect the bear to come this week.

now for our favourite index: HSI. same thing as STI, the index opened higher than friday's close, but moved downwards as the trading session moved on. last week, the index had huge movements, its 5 day EMA moving further downwards from its 10 day EMA, but the correction on thursday and friday gave the index some momentum to carry its move downwards this week.

stochastics are moving out of the oversold regions, while RSI is slightly positive in terms of gradient. and again, MACD can't really tell me anything much right now as i can't relate them to the previous 2 indicators.

since today seems bearish for the index, and if it manages to stay in the red, the week's outlook may be bearish, continuing its momentum from last week's session.

well, that's all folks. i'm still abit sleepy, if anything don't make sense, please comment. thank you!

back bear back

finally back after a long reprieve. gosh school is such a boring place because of the assignments and tests. if there were no assignments nor tests, i'd definitely enjoy going to school.

lets look at some short term technical outlook for this week. the past week had seen the market being trampled on by the bear due to various economic and environmental reasons. what's in store for this week? we'll just have to wait and see. but before we wait, we shall analyse the market's current direction and project next week's movement. ready? lets go.

for the case of SGX, i doubt next week's picture would be a pretty one unless something happens along the way which may change its course of direction. current stochastics shows a negative picture, indicating further downward movements while RSI remains below the 40% mark. MACD is already almost cutting the signal line (or has it already had a piece of the cake?) and is showing that yes down is the way to go. a technical picture from the charts shows that a support of 5.50 is likely after friday's close of 5.95. this would all depend on tomorrow. a negative session might carry the momentum further downwards through the week.

next up, Capitaland. current indicators show that it would be a good to short. with stochastics cutting the signal line negatively and RSI levels looms just above the 20% mark, the prices are weak. MACD is painting a sell portrait while it starts to cut the signal line again. a 3.80 may be calling? we'll just have to wait and see. technical charts shows that it may enter a short term consolidation before carrying on its momentum. moving down is the most likely option for the prices after the near term consolidation but the already weak prices may get hit even harder.

HSI has been pretty powerful these few days with its huge movements into the red. RSI is showing a slight diversion, making the near term outlook harder to foresee. however, sticking to current indicators, the downtrend is already present. stochastics and MACD are showing a likelihood of carrying the index downwards for the week. the index may consolidate tomorrow, but a sustained open below 20,000 would indicate the rather obvious.

STI took a hard hit as most of the companies took a blow. moving down 3%-4% over the past week is a huge feat, making me wonder where it would fit in on monday. in terms of a technical picture, indicators show signs of a continued downtrend even if it opens above friday's close. support at 2,600? indeed it was supposed to be but friday's session brought it a tad prematurely. if the movement sustains below this support level, then we could see a continuation of the trend for the week or so.

well thats all for me, my eyes are dead with the lack of sleep. enjoy the market week ahead and have an eventful trading session!

worry now or worry later?

where will you be 10 years from now? highly successful businessman? top remisier? world class hedge fund manager? a housewife? engineer, technician or architect? whatever your job may be, you would definitely be doing something to pass your time. however, from now till then, what will you be doing as you carry out your daily activities?

let me present you with some food for thought. how is your marriage going to be like? would you like to live in your dream house or just a simple 3 room flat? would you like to have a child, or a soccer team?

the needs are non-exhaustive. we all want things that we don't have, and yet, when the time comes for us to obtain our needs, we are set back by our budget constraint. the world, is made of money. all green and crumpled. money makes the world go round, and so does our head.

imagine ten years from now, you start to think back to the day when you should've start managing your finances well, instead of splurging on your LV bag or that zara tanktop. and what you have now, is practically nothing. you can't afford your dream house, you can't start a family and you are unable to sustain your desired standard of living.

the above scenario isn't made up. in fact, many singaporeans are facing the problem of having insufficient funds to sustain their standard of living. but wait! how come people still drive luxury cars, go shopping every weekends and dine in expensive restaurants? all this is possible to mr mastercard and mr amex. these 2 baddies put our poor souls in debt, by making it look as if we are in control. think again, it is not you who control the line of credit, but the line of credit controls you.

how do they make it affordable? simple. it is all in the "minimum sum". pay $100 a month for 3 years and you'd probably end up paying $1,000 more than what you purchased for. and well, that $1,000 in the future is definitely worth more today because of inflation.

too much to handle? well it is. the only way to get out of the rat race is to beat the credit demon, and manage your finances well. save for the rainy day even though the rainy day may not come. leverage your funds through investment vehicles to make your money work harder for you. protect your future income against uncertainty or risks. and once you are out of the rat race, you would naturally have a peace of mind for the rest of your life.

worry now or worry later? i say, worry only for today, and do something about it tomorrow so you won't have to worry anymore.

technical analysis

time again for another round of analysis. this would serve as a continuation of last week's analysis. let's first look at SGX's performance.

the stock closed in on friday at 6.68, just as i thought it would. the week saw a downtrending trading session, from 6.92 down to 6.68. currently the market may show a sign of a temporary recovery as H1 earnings are going to be reported (even though the earnings may be below expectations, an slightly higher than what was negatively expected could trigger a hiccup).

as we can see from this stock, share prices have been on a steady decline without any stoppages for consolidation or a correction, hence, most people would expect a slight correction coming up soon. however, in my opinion, since the market is still relatively quite, the steady downtrend is just an indication of how weak and 'lifeless' the market is and as far as anticipating a correction, i'm not too sure.

currently stochastics are still hovering in the oversold regions, where the last 2 trading days pushed the stochastics above the signal line with a green trading session. now with this, i would refer to RSI readings, but at the moment, the momentum of the stock is still weak, and i would need a convincing move above the 30% or 50% mark spark a long signal. as far as the MACD goes, i can't really get a clear indication from the readings as of late. however, if upcoming trading sessions shows a positive divergence, then i better keep my eyes peeled for an upturn.

my verdict: next week looks rather uncertain. i'm not sure whether there would be an upwards correction of the prices, but from the looks of it, prices may continue to fall. here are 2 scenarios. first, if share prices presents a lower open, and ends the day in the red, then just be prepared for a steady downtrend. second, if prices open higher and ends the day in the green, then keep eyes peeled for a correction. however, in my opinion, if prices continue to fall, it may fall down to the 6.50 level, where it should nestle and find strong support.

Capitaland shocked me with a rebound over the last 3 days of the week, closing on friday at 5.79 from a low of 5.57 on tuesday. i guess my verdict on the stock fell short on wednesday when the share prices shot upwards. i believe that it was a much needed correction before prices can continue downwards.

as it stands, stochastics shot way above the signal line and has cut above the 50% mark, a potentially good long signal. however, i would wait for my RSI reading to cross above the 50% mark before going long (currently just hovering below the halfway mark). the positive divergence on the low closing of 27th june and 1st july may have sparked the 3 day uptrend during the week. however, looking at the current readings, a sustained move above the signal line may indicate further uptrending for days to come.

personally i am still rather bearish about this stock at the moment, but something tells me to shed the bear skin and put the bull horns on. so far i have arrived at a number of conclusions regarding this stock.

my verdict: currently, it is the end of the downtrend (for the moment) and i would advise others to wait till the dust cloud settles and a clear trend presents itself before jumping on the bandwagon. a higher open tomorrow with a close in the green may signal an upward move. if the prices were to move upwards, i'd probably give an estimate of about 0.30 to 0.40 depending on market sentiments. it may move up to its resistance at about 6.20 and may drop back down to 5.70 mark. and when this happen, try and watch out for a reverse HNS. if tomorrow's session presents a lower open and ends off in the red, then be cautious over the next couple of days to establish a clear direction. i believe that the 5.50 level is still open for testing if the momentum carries the stock downwards. as of now, i won't be surprised if the prices were to move up for the next couple of days.

that's all folks, has been a busy week so far. enjoy and have a good trading week.

technical analysis for this week

wow the week has passed in such a short amount of time. and it is finally time for the euro 2008 finals. sadly, i'm not your punter so i won't be talking about odds, but let's assess my two favourite stocks and see how they would perform this coming week.

currently as it is, share prices for SGX closed in at 6.92, 0.08 below my defined support at 7.00. the week's session saw a general decline as volume of trading remains relatively low. as a result, the stock hasn't been very volatile in the current down market, but the positive thing about that is that the direction is certain, and so far it has been a clear downtrend for weeks.

as it stands, conditions for SGX are similar this week as it is to last week, however, the support at 7.00 may require a little bit of testing. RSI showing a negative momentum, and coupled with stochastics crawling in the oversold regions, seem to indicate a further downtrend in the next week or two. however, a couple of scenarios may likely emerge. firstly, monday's session may see an upside gap back above support levels (if 7.00 seem to prove to be quite a support) and that the trading session for the day would end in the red. secondly, the downtrend would most likely continue and keep heading down, down and down.

my verdict: if prices open up above 6.92 on monday, watch for price actions and get a sense of where the market stands with the stock. if there's a huge selling pressure, then by all means go long on your puts or short the stock. for those not really apt with market sentiments, a close below 6.92, or even below 7.00 may give the same signal. and well if there's a huge selling pressure and the market opened lower than 6.92, what are you waiting for?

as for Capitaland, the situation remains similar to that of last week's trade. for those with an eye for charts, currently, the share prices are at the consolidation phase, and there's a slight positive divergence that can be seen from the past 2 weeks. i emphasise, very slight. i can't really tell whether it'll prove to be any form of reversal signal, but my best guess is a definite NO.

as what was quoted last week, the stock didn't have enough downward momentum to carry it lower to the 5.50 levels. however, now it becomes even clearer to me because of the consolidation phase it is currently in. if so, the next week may see a continuation, mainly because stochastics are pointing down and RSI isn't really pointing very much upwards. it is somewhat likely that prices may fluctuate upwards, up to the 5.70 levels, however, a breakout would be needed and that would come from a lower open on monday. and in my honest opinion, the only way for the prices is down.

my verdict: a lower open would signal a breakout, and a close in the red, a confirmation. need i say more? go long on puts, or short the stock.

that's all folks, and well all i can tell you is that it is possible to make money from both of these stocks now. hope you guys make lots this week to come.

happy trading!

money money money

money makes the world go round. and round, and round and round. money goes around the world too, at exceptionally high speeds that we, as consumers, simply love to ignore.

in a recent article on business times, it was quoted that there was about 77,000 high net worth (HNW) citizens in singapore. high net worth would mean that he or she has at least S$1,000,000 (that's one million for those who are bad with numbers) in liquid assets. liquid assets would generally mean basic cash in savings account, or even holding in equities, bonds and other financial instruments. wow. amazing isn't it.

then we look even further back in time and we can see how inflation rates within the country skyrocketed, reaching as high as 7.5%. and currently, the rates doesn't seem to be heading lower.

as compared to our regional neighbours, we have to thank the strength of our singapore dollar against others. despite such trying times, our currency value remains strong and there wasn't a very significant tumble.

with such major problems bogging us from all around us, how can we afford to spend so much and have so little? then it that case should we save too much and spend too little? how do we preserve the value of our money?

so let us talk about savings. now any tom, dick and harry should be familiar with how the bank works. put money with them and the money will grow. wow, grow, but by how much? now any tom, dick and harry won't realise that interest rates being paid out by banks are pathetic in combating the inflation. at an interest rate of 0.25%, you are below inflation by 7.25%! wait hang on, what is inflation?

lets look at it this way, just to put it simply. say you have one dollar today, and inflation rates are at 10%. say you tell yourself that you are going to put this dollar and bury it in your flower pot for a year, hoping a money tree will come out. then a year later, you take our the coin, but instead of a money tree, you have deposits of rust on the coin. bravo.

then, you take your dollar coin to the provision shop downstairs and you think that you might want to have a bottled soft drink since you have been hibernating for a whole year, together with your dollar. so you asked the store owner "hello uncle, this bottle of 100Plus costs one dollar right?" however, to your horror, the owner gives you an icy glare and says "ONE DOLLAR TEN CENTS!" and with that you go "WHAT THE FUDGE?!"

the above scenario, though may be somewhat inaccurate, shows the effects of inflation. as the value of money drops due to inflation, the dollar in the future may only cost 90 cents today. and to keep pace with inflation, prices of everyday things go up.

now what? how can we ensure our money don't grow mushrooms, but instead, grow more money. the answer is simple, but yet most people choose not to even give it a thought because they feel that the future is risky and uncertain. (well even any brain dead guy on the street knows that so what makes you think you are special?)

investment opportunities gives you the ability to keep pace with inflation, and at the same time, grow your money. the earlier you invest, the more money you will have in the future. this is simple math: compounding interest. a sound investment allows for a person to effectively grow his money over long periods of time, and hence when the future arrives at his or her doorsteps, he or she will have much more than what was being put in. a theoretical figure would be an investment of $4,000 per annum at a return rate of 7%-8% annually. in about 40 years, say when you retire, you'd probably be joining the high net worth people.

however, with returns comes risks as well. the thought of risk put many people off, because most of us live in fantasy-land where we think low risk can generate high returns. boys and girls, time to wake up ok? the risks involved in investments can be properly managed, and minimised through various means. hence, an investment portfolio usually has risk management systems to allow for investors to sleep with a sound mind and a clean smelling pillow at night.

at such times, the banks, are just like a safe box. spiders live in safe boxes. so start your investments early. for more information regarding investment opportunities, strategies and products, my msn channels are open.

technical analysis for this week

since i'm still currently being bogged down by tonnes of work and studies, i can't seem to find time to trade as of yet. but rest assure, i'll continue during the next week if the market permits, and at the same time, share my trading strategies as well as my profits and losses.

this time round, i'll give a more comprehensive analysis on the two stocks i'm watching. first up would be SGX.

from today's close, the share prices were at 7.19, down 0.96% from the day's open to close off in the red. for the past month, the stock has been trading below its 10, 20 and 50 day EMA, sparking a continuous downward movement since then. between the period of april 20 to may 20, a head and shoulders formation was seen, where the last shoulder triggered the downwards spiral from then on. a clear support can be seen at the 8.00 mark, where the share prices consolidated before the drop in the RSI triggered the breakout in support levels. the same can almost be said for the 7.50 support, where a short term consolidation was proceeded with another loss in momentum to carry the share price further downhill.

looking now at stochastic readings, both fast and slow stochastics a looming down on the oversold levels, and RSI readings shows a cutting below the 20% mark. can't really pick out much from MACD readings, just that it still remains below the signal line and would most likely remain so.

outlook for this week would be again, negative. 7.00 didn't seem to prove to be much of a strong support in the past, but this week may see a testing of the support. since the price is currently about 2% above the support, i won't advise going long for puts as of yet. for those who loves risks, you may consider going for a higher leverage on your instruments, or warrants, which has a high gearing and low conversion ratio.

now let us take a look at one heck of a volatile stock, and one of my favourites, Capitaland.

from today's close, the share prices were at 5.81, down 4.44% from the day's open to close off in the red. for the past month or so, the stock has been trading below its 10, 20 and 50 day EMA, sparking a continuous downward movement since then. between the period of april to early may, a triple top formation was seen, where the last spike triggered the downwards spiral from then on. last friday saw a huge upward spike in the share price, not sure what it reacted to but it was the much needed retracement for the continuation of the downward trend.

looking now at stochastic readings, both fast and slow stochastics a remains noisy in the oversold region, and RSI readings shows a downward movement, probably heading for the 20% mark. can't really pick out much from MACD readings, just that it still remains below the signal line and would most likely remain so. the spike in the stochastics is my much needed indication of a downward continuation. the stochastics react very quickly to price fluctuations, however, RSI still shows a downward movement. this would indicate that the stock doesn't have the momentum for recover, but the spike in the stochastics is actually giving the stock prices a further downward push for the week.

my verdict on this: very good! gong long on puts would definitely help during the week, as a further movement to the 5.60 mark and below is highly likely. now is the perfect time to go long on your put warrants, hopefully you'll make some money this week. i believe that the share price may retreat to levels of about 5.40 to 5.50, a good 10% drop or so from today's price.

Have a good trade week ahead guys, and hopefully you could make some profits on Capitaland.

quick update on stocks

ok before i got off for a 3-day retreat out in no man's land, i'll get going with an updated on my 2 favourite stocks.

SGX closed off this week in the red and has a consistent downtrend for the past 2 weeks. nothing much can be said at the point of time, but the only thing that can be said is that it is a good time to put the puts into action. follow the trend until it faces a reversal. currently, a near term reversal seems unlikely, and this coming week will be downward trending.

my best guess would be that by the end of this coming trade week, the prices may close near the 7.00 mark. investor strength is weak and confidence doesn't seem to be at a high. my call: long over puts, or go short over mother share (for risk loving junkies).

now with Capitaland, the same applies. nothing much can be said. however, a close below 5.80 may signal a further downtrend to come for the week. and from what we've seen so far, a near term reversal may not be coming in pretty soon. so we shall just follow the downtrend and ride it till it runs out of steam.

the trade week may see the prices drop down to the 5.50 mark, or below. my call: long over puts or short over mother share (again, for risk loving junkies).

i just want to clear the air of mystery over short-selling. the main reason why people are so averse to the idea of shorting stocks is because of the relatively short cover period as deemed by SGX. usually, the position must be covered by the end of the day, and if not covered within 3 working days, SGX will cover your position at 2 ticks higher. however, shorting is nothing but the reverse of any long position for an intra-day traders. i guess we as singaporeans are still risk averse and finds the idea of shorting a taboo. personally, i've made money from all my short positions.

anyways, cheers and have a good trade week!

a story of dreams

dear. a house at the crest of the field. on the horizon are hills that rolls over an eternity. the gray clouds hang low on the sky's edge, cascading down a blanket of fog that seems to devour the curvy landscape.

the skies are gray, and tiny drops of rain strikes mother earth with a gentle touch. it is as though the heavens are crying, not because of sorrow but because of an overwhelming sense of joy. the pitter patter of the droplets keep in tune with our beating hearts, now, they beat as one.

loving each other's embrace we gazed deeply into each other's eyes. we forget. yes we left behind all that was attached, our families, our friends, and our lives. we started fresh, fresh from the day we ran away from the world. the world that shackled us and plays poker on our very existence. he seemed to be winning all the time, but now, he is at our mercy.

a house, and a life together, a dream that seems to always whisper in my ears and cast faint shadows that i can barely make out. a dream that was once a wish. but a wish that still is, a wish.

an excerpt from "a story of dreams" by ms demon in exit

technical analysis for week 02/06 to 06/06

back again with some analysis of the stocks of SGX and Capitaland this week. as always, let's begin with the stock that helped me made money from my first ever trade.

the market week began, well not surprisingly, with a very low trade volume. SGX began the week with a very weak start. throughout the week, the share price closed very near its strong resistance of 8.00. consolidation is definitely occurring here as the prices have no general direction and prefers to hover around the support levels. with a very weak market activity as ween with the relatively low volume of trading occurring this week, it is no surprise that the prices remain stagnant at the end of each day.

currently, analysis of the indicators doesn't prove to be of much use as there are no clear long or short signals. with almost a flat line this week, the trend for next week is as smoky as my camp's smoking corner. then again, no point predicting trends.

Capitaland did just what i had expected due to its lower open on monday, and that is retreating back to its strong support of 6.20. this is a rather strong support level . even when trading volume remained low, prices are still rebounding off this support level. again, the retreat to support was interrupted by a spike in price on thursday.

technical geeks may want to consider a possibility of a rectangle formation. if volume remains low throughout the trading range of 6.20 and 6.50, a spike in volume might result in the eventual breakout of the support. however, this is purely speculative and the trend should be monitored for another week or two. day traders for highly geared Capitaland warrants are still happy due to the volatility of this stock.

well, nothing much to say at least for the week. its 3 weeks since my last trade and i can't wait to get back in the hot seat.

PS: for those who are keen in investment opportunities, avoid the equity market for the time being due to the stagnant market and high inflation rates. speculation on equities via technical analysis is very risky and not for the risk adverse. for help on investment advice, feel free to approach a me or any trading representative.

outlook of this week's trade

both SGX and Capitaland didn't put up much of a show today, closing lower than the previous close. Capitaland dipped 3.1% to close at 6.35 while SGX dipped 0.2% to close at 8.02.

for Capitaland, 6.50 may prove to be quite a resistance that needs a great deal of strength just to sustain a breakout. the close up on last friday didn't have enough steam to carry the prices up, hence a fall of 3.1% is seen today. currently, there are no possible trend that can be seen except for a high chance of a retreat to support at 6.20, or a consolidation phase between 6.50 and 6.20.

SGX on the other hand seems to be very weak nowadays, with price difference between previous close and the days close not being too far apart. this is kind of rare to be seen from a somewhat volatile stock in my opinion. currently at the 8.02 levels, i feel that it would still linger around the 8.00 support levels. a breaking of support at this level would indicate further downside for the stock, however, nothing much can be said about how the prices may move in the weeks to come. traders who strongly believe that 8.00 is where strong support comes in may choose to buy, however, there are no signs of any upward trend at the moment.

and yet, i would say another bleak weak for the stocks today. i was thankful i didnt go long for Capitaland as my senses told me to hang on and read the telltale signs from today's close.

oh let it be when the upward trend comes, a gold bar would drop on my head, crude oil would gush out of my toilet when i press flush, and grains of rice starts pouring out of my shower head.

trust

we are all born as skeptics. as to how much skepticism we have in us, it varies. some of us tend to trust strangers better than others. i've learnt to be less of a skeptic, not that being skeptical isn't good, but at times, it can be damaging.

true, there are unscrupulous people out there out to trick you of your money. but some people are out there, just doing your job, probably needing your help in return. sometimes, we have to lower our heads, swallow our pride and trust these people.

trust isn't an easy thing, especially for those people who got their fingers burnt before. but that doesn't stop you from trusting.

sometimes a little risk in our lives is a good thing. risks let us step outside of our comfort zone to explore ourselves deep within. being skeptical is being overly risk adverse. asking dumb questions like "will i get paid doing this?" or "will he cheat me out of my money?" or maybe "what do i get out of this?".

i don't know. honestly, i'm a risk loving person, because i can assess risk very quickly. but for those who are afraid and continues to be skeptics in their own world, please buck up, and don't fuck yourselves up.

more technical analysis

at the close of this week's session, we see, just as i had expected, the two stocks to fall. first of all, lets take a look at SGX.

as a result of the weakening market conditions, SGX stocks continued its downtrend, breaking support levels on one of the days to close below the 8.00 mark. however, it managed a slight come back and ended of the week's session closing at 8.04. from this, we can see that 8.00 is a relatively strong resistance, and further consolidation around this mark may be seen for the week ahead.

next resistance is coming in at around 8.50 levels if the stock can break out of its consolidation. a few factors may be needed. one would be investor interest. currently we can see a low trade volume over the past week, with a peak at about 12 million shares traded during one of the days. a surge in trading volume, or to better put it, buying volume, would cause a significant mark up in share prices, and help to reverse the downward trend. this is at least till it reaches its 8.50 resistance, where i believe a more significant influence is required to push the prices upwards. secondly, we might need to have a strong sentiment across the board of investors. currently the STI has been fighting the bear for the past couple of trading days, and that SGX is somewhat lagging. However, i do believe that the somewhat bullish feel in the market may be short lived and i'd be cautious about going long at the moment, at least until the consolidation phase is over.

as for trend indicators, the RSI is showing a growing strength, and an upwards gradient. fast stochastics are eagerly cutting above the signal already. however, a sustained positive from the RSI and a confirmation from the slow stochastics would be what i need before going long on the stocks. one thing to also look at is trading volume. historically, surges have been accompanied with a spike in trading volume, about 17 million shares to be traded in a day to indicate a bullish movement in the prices.

eagerly bullish investors may want to keep a close eye on this stock so as to not miss the upward trend. for the bears, you might want to get the bull costumes ready.

next up, we look at Capitaland. the trading week saw the prices testing out its 6.20 resistance level but did not close below that. the few days before the end of the week saw the share prices climbing up, closing on friday above its 6.50 resistance at 6.55. i wouldn't say that the prices are going to continue its uptrend yet, because if 6.50 proves to be a resistance, consolidation may appear at this stage.

next resistance after 6.50 would come in at about 6.80. however, trading volume has been rather week with an average of about less than 10 million shares traded each day during the past week. the stock may not have enough momentum to carry it on upwards in my opinion. however, RSI and stochastics shows the contrary. both stochastics showing a positive cut in the signal line, and RSI is showing a positive gradient and creeping up slowly to the hovering 50% mark.

having retreat below its 50-day EMA, i would feel that the next week may be a good week for the stock. a clear indication of stochastics surging above the 20% mark would certainly indicate a buy signal, and a sustained open above 6.50 would make the week's trading session an interesting one.

in my opinion, a positive open in monday's trading session would indicate a buy signal for me. prices may surge up to the 6.80 mark during the week, but in order to have a convincing surge above that resistance level, an increase in trading volume might be needed, along with a positive investor sentiment with regards to the property, the stock, and the broad market. this is another stock the bulls may want to get their eyes on.

also, do keep up to date with the market happenings. with US likely to hit a recession (according to alan greenspan) and the moody sentiment of the local market, a slight uplift may not necessarily be a sustained one.

for the weight watchers

to date i've lost about 2.5kg since 2 weeks ago. i guess that was when i really started watching what i ate and trained a little bit harder. for those of you keen on knowing how, i can share a few pointers.

firstly, watch what you eat. cut down on oily food like chicken drumlets deep fired in batter (wow), too much read meat, chicken skin (every body's favourite when it comes to KFC), and probably avoid fast food too. focus on eating greens (avoid frying vegetables in too much oil), white meat (fishes and chickens are good) and a suitable amount of carbohydrates from bread and rice. generally i'd stay stay off rice (or eat less of it) and substitute it with bread. note that if you caloric expenditure per day of training is around about 3000cal, you may try consuming lesser calories per day.

here's a site that gives you a rough gauge of how to calculate daily caloric intake:
http://www.hpathy.com/healthtools/calories-need.asp

next, up your caloric expenditure. eating less does help your body to not store excess calories that are unused into fats over time. however, do train hard and smart. for me, i'd go with HIIT, high intensity interval trainings. one way of doing this is that you could sprint or run at 80%-90% max effort for about 5 minutes, and then jog at 30%-40% max effort for the same period of time. depending on your threshold and tolerance, you may adjust it to suit your threshold. in conjunction with that, regular visits to the gym would also help. for general workout, go for about 60% of 1 repetition max with about 10-12 repetitions. 1 rep max means that the maximum mass you could do with perfect form, but only for just one repetition. for bigger muscles, go for lower reps with 80%-85% 1 rep max.

lastly, the most important key to losing weight and sculpting that perfect body is discipline. sure, at times you are just plain lazy. you'd tell yourself that you would maybe go for a 10km run instead of a 5km interval training. and you may also say that there's another day to train since i'm rather tired today. and you may say that "oh i didn't eat much yesterday, so i'd reward myself with a nice drumstick from kfc". or maybe you would say "just abit of that char kway teow won't do me harm". bullocks!

enjoy boys and girls. i still have about 2.5kg to go.

it's a monday hey

it seems that singapore's GDP is slowing down and inflation rates are up to 7.5%. in addition, oil prices are very unforgiving. imagine, $2.10 per litre of fuel, with a full tank of 50 litres that would equate to about $105 (or about $80-$90) per refuel. and with a fuel consumption of 10km per litre (sometimes even as low as 8km-9km per litre), driving just got a little bit scarier.

outlook for stocks this week as i've mentioned are not optimistic. it is highly likely that most would be suffering from a correction, maybe down as much as 10%-20% from this year's high.

enough of that, i'd just like to point out the importance of customer service, especially here in singapore where people tend to cut you no slack. having worked in sales, some customers are nice, and tend to chit chat with you at times. but i guess i was the one initiating the chit chat cos i was bored.

now switching to the customer's perspective, i would definitely not like to be bothered when i'm browsing. actually, i won't mind if you were to talk to me about other stuff, rather than "these are going off at 20% off its usual price" or "these ones are imported from pakistan, which were previously made in china, shipped by the indians, blah blah blah". come on sales people, know how to approach your customers because no two people are alike. probably some jokes would lighten the mood, but i don't think it'll work well with an old auntie that has the look of a bulldog suffering from rabies.

apart from retail, selling your products such as insurance, investment funds, or being a recruitment consultant, also require good customer service. recently i was being contacted by a recruitment consultant that was going to schedule an interview for me, and guess what, never heard from her since yesterday evening after confirming with her the time of my interview. best of all, i don't have a damn idea where to go! bravo!

well i guess screw that. i'm kinda bored so i'm looking for jobs instead of watching the market all the time. and of cos muay thai and my upcoming fight which i think i'm gonna get my leg chopped to bits.

sleep time.

some technical analysis

focusing on SGX stocks this week, we see a relatively poor performance, dropping around about 6% to 7% since it opened on tuesday. looking at the 6-month and 3-month chart, the 10-day EMA line has barely cut the 20-day EMA downwards, and quite possibly cutting the 50-day EMA as well. on chart analysis, i can see that support level at 8.50 has been breached as the shares closed at 8.38. next support level would probably come at the 8.00 mark. very strong resistance can be seen at the 9.00 mark as the share prices tested this level on 3 separate occasions.

we can see that the RSI are just kissing the 50% mark, and haven't really made any significant movement downwards. coupled with fast and slow stochastic readings just cutting below the 20% mark, and a weakening MACD histogram, i would probably need a significant indication from my RSI to ring my bell.

relatively bullish and risk-adverse investors might want to wait till the downward trend sees its demise probably after testing the 8.00 support level. eagerly bullish traders might want to get a significant indication from stochastics and RSI. however, in my opinion, the share prices are basically lost and confused (side-trending) and would probably favour the risk-loving intra-day traders.

moving on to Capitaland, as with most of the other stocks this week, the volatile stock closed down about 7% since its open on tuesday. its 10-day EMA already showed a convincing downwards cutting of the 20-day EMA, and by the looks of it, would probably cut the 50-day EMA. this is a relatively good indication for all the bears out there. historically over the past couple of months we can see supports coming at around about 6.50 and 6.80, and resistance at 7.10. last week, it could not sustain a convincing move over its 6.80 resistance after moving down and testing the 6.50 support early this month and hence, has a high chance of testing its 6.20 support.

RSI levels are looming below the 50% mark, showing no direction at the moment, and coupled with fast and slow stochastics below the 20% mark, prices look bleak for this week. for followers of the MACD histogram, it just moved into negative territory, giving more indications that the 6.20 support may be coming.

bullish investors can sleep awhile longer as i cant really foresee any upward movement of this stock this coming week. as for traders, the current price is relatively close to its 6.20 support and my guess is that it might be consolidating around the current price for this coming week.

i guess that if sentiments were to play a huge part for the market next week, both stocks may see a short term upward rise. however, with the gloomy world news circulating nowadays, slowing GDP and all, i'd probably stay as bear.

wow and all psyched up

today's training was madness. but i guess that was how i was feeling. energetic during the pre warm-up 3.2km run, tyre jumps and skipping. then it came to some bagwork, some padwork with alvin, more bagwork, more padwork (till my calf cramped up), then bagwork again, and to end it off, clinch techniques. and now my neck hurts like mad.

what got me all psyched up was that alvin opened up an invitation for a fight coming up at the end of june. apparently they have it every end-of-the-month but not for this month. gosh i'm pretty much psyched up right now. 28th june! its kick or be kicked...

however, i seem to be at a slight disadvantage: weight. yes boys and girls, if you guess my weight, you'd only get it wrong. it's been hovering about the 71kg mark like a volatile stock market, even going up to 72kg last week. but thankfully i managed to drop some of it, and currently at 70kg. imagine if i were to go up with another 70kg plus guy, i think i might be knocked senseless cos no beginner weighs that much. but my ultimate goal is either 67kg or 68kg, and i think that's probably the max i can go before the body fat levels drop to below 8-10%.

well, i guess it's gonna be a challenge, a fun one at least. anything too tasty is bad. and if i don't want to get killed, i better shed my ass off.

product review: mentalk

normally i won't ever think of doing any product review (since they may be controversial in nature) but i guess it is worth a shot.

mentalk is an all natural herbal candy that boasts significant benefit with little or no side effects for its user. at first glance, i was taken aback because i never tried any candy that has ginseng in it, let alone any candy that isn't meant for a child. i decided to test this candy out during the span of one week of my muay thai training, hoping to either get a kick or get kicked.

the first day of consumption (saturday):
in the morning i had a game of football. an intense 2 to 3-hour session with intervals of sprints and stops. i had suffered from a few minor injuries after the session: aching of my right knee, aching of my right ankle (probably due to the torn atfl) and sore feet. i consumed the candy in the afternoon after my nap but of course, effects do not come that quickly.

second day of consumption (sunday):
as a disclaimer, i was told that it was going to "awake the ache". meaning i will tend to feel sore on parts of my body that were previously injured. the day went by normally, no new aches or pains apart from the sores i got from football the day before. i ate the candy in the afternoon.

third day of consumption (monday):
training day. i ate the candy about an hour before my training commenced. training began with warm-up: 2.4km run (10:30-11:30), static tyre jumps (5:00), skipping (10:00) and bagwork (10:00). then we went into 5 sets of 1-minute bagwork, 100 kicks on each leg on pads, and some padwork punching. that was intense. somehow i felt that my energy levels were somewhat moderately normal during my bagwork and padwork, but endurance levels during the run was certainly greater than the previous week of training.

fourth day of consumption (wednesday):
i skipped tuesday cos i wanted to see if the candy would give me the boost for that day's training. one thing i noticed when i woke up was that the sore on my right knee felt horribly worse than before. i couldn't even walk properly for most parts of the day. it hurts as though it had been hit by a jackhammer.

again i ate the candy about an hour before training. this time for warm up i did 3.2km run, skipping (15:00) and bagwork (10:00). then we had a 45-minute long session of bagwork: 3 sets of 1-minute combo punches, 50 single roundhouse kicks per leg on bags, 30 double roundhouse kicks per leg on bags, 10 continuous roundhouse kicks per leg on bags, 50 knees per leg on bags, and to end it off, 3 minute of alternate knees on bags, continuous. yes, very intense indeed but amazingly i wasn't at all gasping and crawling on the ground after the whole session. my energy levels were pretty much still up and i was able to do some more.

now to summarise the effectiveness of the candy, i'd keep it short and sweet.

pros:

• increased energy levels during training (at least that's what i felt)
• for guys, it is really quite good (if you know what i mean)
• doesn't make you thirsty (because supplements usually make you pee like a dog and you have to drink like an elephant in order not to dehydrate)

cons:

• aching and headache (though i only felt the aching on the 4th day and headache on the 6th day)
• the taste of ginseng (for those who can't stand the taste of that dreaded root)

my personal opinion:
different people may react differently to external stimuli and supplements. i can safely say i'm quite a hardy beast and can handle high levels of potency. however, for some of you who are weaker, you may feel the full blow of the side effects way earlier. and as for the benefits, trust me, whether you come from ocs or commando, doing the routine i did may just floor you (unless you've been doing it for a few months). for those who are open to natural herbs as a form of supplement (be it for sports or for other activities), you may want to try this out.

for more infor, visit http://www.mentalk2u.com/

a dull day for kindness

i seem to can't wait for mondays and wednesdays to come. cos i get to punch bags and pads of course! and sheesh its only half past three, another 2 more hours till training starts and i just can't wait. sometimes i wish i had training 3 or 4 times a week, at least that'll give me something to do in the evenings. i just can't stand staying at home, doing nothing and essentially stoning during most of my time spent.

recently i had an unpleasant encounter of the worst kind. a rude old inconsiderate lady who refused to hold the lift for me. sheesh. i was fuming mad after i realised she was holding on the the "door close" button from inside. and i must say i looked like a fool pressing the "door open" button repeatedly from the outside.

come to think of it, many of us would experience this quite often. and to be honest, i've always held the lift for someone who seems to be rushing for the door. i can't imagine why the old lady couldn't do the same. maybe she thinks i'm a robber?

so much for the friendly lion that wears a red shirt:

maybe we are still at this phase:
when will we ever learn to change...

addiction of the next order

yesh muay thai is like my drug. seriously. i was truly in pain for the whole of today's training session. my shoulders felts like they had daggers sticking out from them and my triceps felt like they had been cut up into shreds.

i even had problems holding up the kick pads high enough. it felt as though they weigh as heavy as a freaking medicine ball. and when i held up the focus mitts as they were being punched, goodness how my shoulders would scream "AH F*@%!!!" i cant even put my guard up properly... sheesh.

and in the end we did pushups. on a fine and dandy day i can do up to forty in one shot. no kick. i did one today and had my face smacked onto the floor.

yeah, just like a drug. you are hooked, but you just gotta bear the pain that comes after.

thanks for the burpees

bah. yesterday's training was the toughest so far.

it began with a total body warmup, 2 minute interval with as many superman burpees as possible. come to think of it, i should have just done 10 per interval. but i wanted to push, so i did about 25 each.

then came bagwork. by then my shoulders were screaming "NO NO STOP" and i could've swore the bag was laughing at me saying "Is that all you got?" 3 sets of the 3 minute drill.

next was the kicks. my favourite, until it came to "OK, we'll do 100 kicks per leg." i thought it was alright, but by the time we finished with the right round houses, something new was given.

now it was doing punches. 2 sets of 3 minute double jabs, 1 set of 3 minute jab plus hook, 1 set of 3 minute double left hook, and finally ended off with a set of 3 minute straight punch plus uppercut combo. at the end of it all, i had trouble trying to scratch my damn nose.

and eventually, training ended with a kick exercise, kicking each other's arm, gently... right kicks, left kicks, switching kicks...

however i decided to stay on and do an additional 10 minutes worth of bagwork, left jab right hook, left jab straight right, left jab right roundhouse. and now, come to think of it, i shouldn't have done that.

i woke up today, barely able to bend my arms at the elbows. yes, pain, thanks to the superman burpees. gosh i can barely lift up anything even now. so please children, take care of ye hands while they still work fine, who knows you may need then to scratch ye nose or the back of ye neck.

thanks for the burpees ah.

on a lighter note

yes finally it rained today! a good day to laze and daydream but i had to go to NUS for a medical checkup. yes, waste of precious lazing time but oh well...

anyways i got myself new gloves! and wraps too!

who works for free?

all around the world, people are working round the clock. non-stop business meetings, corporate objectives, data entry, computing, and the list just goes on and on. people want to go to work. they want to, and it's not a joke. why would someone want to spend their life away being a slave to the macintosh or notebook, sipping coffee to keep the sleep fairies away, and at the 5 o'clock mark, start rushing home for dinner?

the answer is money.

honestly speaking would you work without money? let's say work for free? if you say yes, i say screw you boy.

it apparently seems that i have issues with many things these days, but the reality behind this is scary but true. there are 3 groups of people in the working class (instead of the blue collar and the white collars and what people normally interpret).

the lowest band are those who never wants to put in any effort in working (i.e. making money) and are contented with trying to eke out a living, support a family and probably do this till they finally expire (by expire i think you know what it means).

the middle band are made up of most of us, those slaves that sit in front of machines, telling machines what to do and earning an average income. average, i emphasise. probably with the average monthly household income of about 6.8k a month, each head would probably contribute an average of 3.4k. wow 3.4k is alot... probably seemed alot when i was in kindergarten but not anymore.

the sad truth about some of these people are that they are contented with their jobs, because they have a steady (and safe) source of income. like any typical singaporean who are afraid of ventures and risks. job security is prime due to the need to raise their children and maintaining a family. in my honest opinion, some of them really do want a pay increment, but just cant be bothered to look elsewhere for opportunities because they have been sitting down on their lazy assess on the comfort zone couch.

and of course the crust, the creme de la creme, made up of top executives (top, i emphasise), CEOs, directors and the list goes on. these are people who work hard and rise up the ladder because they don't want to get pooped on when they have someone else higher up the ladder. either that or it is just a family business that has been handed down. competitive, determination, dedication, hard work, you name it.

and of course i'm looking at us young adults nowadays, probably teens that are entering adulthood. wasting our lives away on short term materialistic ideals and baloney dreams that are thought off on the couch watching serials. i believe that there cannot be any time sooner than now.

sick sad little world

in this modern day and age, singaporean parents are spoiling their children. gone were the days to corporal punishment, throwing of books out of the window and temporary body arts from the scars of the feather duster on the bodies of their children. true, society is evolving, but are we more socially intelligent than our ancestors? in singapore, well... its up to you to decide...

lately i've been having problems finding students to tutor. to increase my chances of getting a student, i applied through 4 agencies, hoping to increase the "strike" percentage (of cos, this is simple math/probability) but the results are abysmal. 3 months running and no "strikes". sigh... maybe i'm just running out of luck...

when it comes to tutors, males are seen as sex predators. so generally, old fashioned simple minded parents (simpletons) prefer female tutors over male tutors because well they think their 9 year old kid looks like those from america's next top model. personally, i rather take 10 glances and drool over the models than a 9 year old. and to all you sick bastards out there, have a life (i mean the paedophiles).

also when parents are fine with male tutors, they quote another specific requirement: chinese. not being racist but what about those not born chinese? is it God's cruel fate? why does this requirement even exist? it would be understandable to have the requirement "chinese speaking" but segregating us by our skin colours is crossing the fine line of equality of all races. and no i'm not trying to stir the harmony of the nation, i'm sending a wake up call to tuition agencies that this isn't the way to do things.

oh what am i saying. nothing gets trough the mind of a traditional typical singaporean.

:)

i'm chinese by the way.

the rain and his birthday

the perfect ambiance for a 21st birthday, or any other birthday for that matter. or for any lovely occasion. overcast skies blankets the world you know, wave after wave of rain pours down from the heavens above, and everything around you is given the gray tint. absolutely lovely i must say.

at times like this i would like to relive my inner childhood moments: standing and dancing merrily in the rain, getting totally drenched, enjoy a nice warm shower and lying down on a beach chair underneath a huge beach umbrella, enjoying a nice warm cup of espresso. well the espresso part wasn't very 'child-like' tough.

simple birthdays, simple life, and the next day would unveil the sick sad reality of this game called life.

wars and adventures

according to our most dreaded history books, the first world war was caused by many factors, some of which include the decades of antagonism leading up to the eruption of the conflict, and of course the assassination of archduke franz ferdinand (not the band) of austria-hungary. but i guess many of us would have overlooked the fact that the first world war was in fact, not between testosterone enriched men, but between men and women.

countless of wars have been fought, and till this day, much has been unchanged. from the flying pots and silverware, and the slurry of cuss words that propagate through the air like microwaves, these are the weapons of man's destruction. i truly wonder when this neverending struggle of who's right or who's wrong will cease, but i guess i just have to wait till the day finally comes.

on a lighter note, i feel the sudden rush for the need of an adventure. be it rock climbing, wall climbing, climbing buildings, trekking, the ourdoors... you name it, i crave for it. this symptom may probably be due to the fact that i've actually been growing leaves and berries on me for the past 8 weeks or so. and thinking back to the army days, gosh, i wish i was doing it all over again. all the physical torture (done to the trainees of course) and the outdoors, the trees never looked so green before.

anyways there's this great series on discovery channel that i honestly reckon most of you would enjoy. its called 'man vs wild' and it is about a man (edward michael grylls or better known as bear grylls) who puts himself in many of survival situations that you can possibly think of, and gets out of them alive. i especially love the parts where he catches trout or salmon from the river, and eat them straight out of the river, just like a bear (no pun intended). he says he loves sushi, so do i!

oh well i hope one day i'll be stranded somewhere out there, having to apply all that i've learnt from him and his show, and manage to get out of it in one perfect piece.

the locomotion

i truly wonder why the female gender has a tendency to spill over their troubles onto other people. well it is kind of like having your pants poured with iced water. oh well not really. but the point is, it is like those mini fengshui fountains you may have in your house that spills water from one level to another. but this time, instead of the good fengshui water, you get the water that pours down from a hurricane's storm. so to those guys out there who share the same fate, i truly feel for you...

on a lighter note, with my mum going away to KL, i have been given the opportunity to flaunt my culinary skills (since i don't have girls coming over to my house begging me to cook for them). i was rather proud of myself having made my 'sunshine toasts' this morning, well on saturday morning at least. simple to make and of course, simply delicious! here's a picture of them:

they're only nice when eaten while the bread is hot and toasted. i ate them when they were no longer hot though. a tad soggy but still tasted good. have i got your mouths watery?

anyways i still gotta wait till my brother gets back from thailand. and now i'm stuck in the airport with nothing to do but this.

cooking tips

do you put your soy sauce in your egg mixture before frying it, or do you add your soy sauce after you fry your eggs?

do you coil your earphones around your ipod, or do you 'orbit' your ipod around your earphones so that it the earphones are coiled up?

i tend to neither add soy sauce before frying nor after frying. and have no preference to how i'd like my earphones coiled. weird.

anyways, about the eggs, if you want to have them scrambled, you must first know how to make those scrambled eggs. scrambled eggs (those good ones) are generally not fully cooked. meaning that the egg proteins are not fully coagulated (or for those who are mentally challenged, it means to turn into a solid mass or to curdle as the protein structure changes). just like those eggs that you get from buying your big breakfast at macdonalds, i bet you are wondering how you could actually make them so delicious. right?

firstly, adding ingredients to your egg mixture will slow down the cooking of the eggs. you have impurities in your egg mixture which prevents quick coagulation of the protein. one way to best slow down the cooking process is to add ingredients a couple of seconds after pouring your egg mixture into your frying pan. and do make sure it is on low heat. say you wanted to add milk, what you can do is to pour the milk into the frying pan (lightly oiled) after having your egg mixture poured into the pan.

the above process 'shocks' the cooking, thus slowing down the rate at which the egg protein coagulate. and it doesn't just stop there. continue to stir, yes stir, the mixture in the frying pan so that you wont allow the protein to coagulate quickly. and of course, depending on your culinary skills, your eggs could turn out excellent, or equivalent to either a 20 year old yogurt or the rocks at the beach.

incubus, live in singapore

yes and indeed. after all these while. they might have missed us, a tiny red dot just off the southern tip of the malaysian peninsular. and as any die hard incubus fan, i just had to get the tickets.

actually to be honest i knew of their tour when a good friend of mine told me all about it quite some time back. i was pretty much excited when i heard about it. but well it had to be at fort canning, not that i don't like the venue, but i'd rather have the concert in a concert hall where i can choose good seats near the front. i wont even mind the deafening sounds from the speakers and amps.

i would really appreciate it if they'd play some songs from make yourself and morning view, of course morning view being my favourite album by incubus. maybe they'll play make yourself, nice to know you, pardon me, just a phase and all that. but i guess they'd be playing mostly from light grenades and a crow left of the murder.

and for those of you who don't already know, what are you waiting for. incubus, live in singapore. 7th of march 2008, fort canning park. tickets are out a long long time ago. get it in february and it'll be a bit more expensive.

see you there.

a craze swept wave

time and time again i see hordes of customers lining up to purchase their favourite doughnuts, or donuts as what most of you would know it by. it leave me wondering when, and where did the whole craze sprout out from. of course i couldn't be bothered researching it, but my hunches would say that it would have probably started with japan. or maybe one of the asian countries.

one of the reasons doughnuts became so popular is because we singaporeans are not exposed to a spread of fancy doughnuts that the americans indulge in every single day of their lives. also credit must be given to the advertisements and publicity. but this cannot solely be credited to one company alone. just like the bubble tea craze, many other doughnut-copy-companies are coming out of nowhere with their fanciful names and trademark recipes. its no wonder why singaporeans are so spoilt for choice.

it made me think again. doughnuts were actually introduced to this country more than a decade ago. for those of you who are at least my age or older, you would have remembered dunkin donuts. dunkin donuts were like the in-thing of the 1990s here, at least for me i guess. i still remembered gorging down those strawberry cream doughnuts, chocolate coated, rainbow rice and honey glazed. however, nowadays, we have cheese, kaya and whatever you may think of. to me, they appear scary and very experimental but has seem to struck a chord with the masses.

myself, although a food junkie, i'm not particularly crazy over doughnuts. so far, my doughnut count since the craze started still lingered at 1. i realise how very unhealthy those o-shaped deep fried dough buns are, plus all the added ingredients on the top that contributes to you slow demise. i've been constantly reminding others how unhealthy these things are, and of course, are as unhealthy as your favourite hawker food.

and of course you don't eat your hawker food that often, why should you eat these miniature life buoys as often? the queues don't seem to get any shorter and the fanaticism for doughnuts never seem to die. i guess i'll never know what it will take to level the situation.

then again, i'm still a fan of the bubble tea, but if you think about it, doughnuts are like cliche.