Armageddon 2011

Armageddon 2011 was in Auckland for the weekend. It was the equivalent of comic-con in US. This year we decided to dress up, and we couldn't think of better characters than Sam and Dean Winchester from the "Supernatural" tv show.We went to the "crazy chinese store" in town to source for our props - plastic guns and knives. We made our own EMF detector, and brought along house salt to ward off ghosts and evil!...We even had the "preventing-demons-from-possessing-you" tattoo. We think our characters were not too shabby as there were people who recognized what we were dressed up as, and even asked to pose with them for photographs!

The event was not as crowded as last year, and there wasn't as many people who were dressed up. This might probably due to that we went there on a Sunday instead of Saturday. There was the usual - comics, games, wrestling shows, alcohol station, food and trading cards. The reason we chose Sunday was to attend Mark Sheppard aka Crowely from Supernatural. He is exactly what we expected - humorous, sarcastic and talented.

Until next year... or when we are rich enough to attend comic-con. In the meantime, for those who never watch Supernatural, here is small preview (gag reel) of the a short "eye of the tiger" song by Dean Winchester. Happy Halloween!

Rugby World Cup 2011

Rugby World Cup is in its Semi finals now with New Zealand, Australia, Wales and France battling it off for the winner of this year's cup. Auckland has invested a lot of time, effort and money into making the city looking festive for visitors all over the world. One of the most prominent structure was "The Cloud" by the ferry terminal. It was named because it looks like a long cloud... representing NZ as the Land of the long, white cloud. It is THE location where every weekend there will be giant screens showing the teams playing against each other. As with any good New Zealand events, there are always good beer and wine to go with it. There are lots of stalls selling finger food, pizzas, pies etc.

As we got out early from classes today, Hannah and I took the chance to wander about "The Cloud". Inside The Cloud, there are exhibitions of local "inventions" from merino wool, to high-tech, environmental friendly bikes and of course, vine yards. We wandered around a bit, settled down by the side, and just like any good kiwis, we have a beer, a pie and chips. Chips is equivalent to fries in US. I think sometimes it makes sense to call fries chips instead.. we always say fish and chips, not fish and fries!  :P


One of the unique features of the event was the reuse of materials. Shipping containers were reused to display exhibitions, video screens etc. ATMS were even installed into some containers. TV screens were installed in huge gas containers to let the audience watched the live events. Concrete stabs were used to make playgrounds and structures.

The NZ rugby team is called the "All Blacks"... we are not a big supporter of rugby...we don't even know the rules!..Looks a bit like American football, except, they don't wear any protections, and they are violent!

Dinner and dessert

Tonight's main course - Mango curry with rice.
Tonight's dessert - Peanut butter kisses

Jet and Kaly ...what we do each day

Jet :
" I wake up in the morning, rush out to the yard to do my business (pee and poo). I hate to hold my pee or poo so I bark VERY loudly in the morning, and hope that daddy comes and opens the kennel! Come back to the house and I am all ready to create havoc. I see the tug hanging off the roof, and start my morning exercise. Nowadays, I can hang on the tug as long as 4 mins 30 secs. This is what daddy and mommy told me...they said they timed it :) . In about 30 mins, I get tired, drank whole bunch of water, and rest a bit. However, I do not need to rest too long..soon I am back to more exercise. I wish I can pull the tug off the bungy but it just won't snap! I will continue hanging off the tug until breakfast is served! After breakfast, I take a short nap in my kennel. When I wake up, I am ready to destroy anything, including bedsheet, rubbish in the trash when daddy and mommy are not watching. When they are watching me, I will revert back to sucking on my favorite pillow until it is wet and nice :P ! "

Kaly:
"I am  in no rush to go pee nor poo. I take my time to do anything and everything! My happiest moments in a day are meal time and lying in bed with daddy or mommy... I have no idea why Jet is constantly running around, pulling on the tug, making himself tired. My objective in life is to get as lazy and fat as possible. However, I know daddy and mommy are secretly trying their best to prevent that from happening! "

 

My love

The day when I came back from Singapore was my birthday. It was also the day when I proposed to Hannah. There was no big elaborate set-up, no hiding the ring somewhere, no roses, no candles, no on-on-my-knees move, just simple, direct message from my heart. I don't really remember what I said, but it was mostly about how much I missed her when I was in Singapore, and how much I love her. And one of the way I thought I can let her know my feelings is to ask her to marry me. I was more nervous than taking my exams, more nervous than submitting my thesis... mostly because I am worried her answer would be .."Are you crazy?....hell...NO!"

Well, my nightmare did not come true, and we are getting married! :)
20th January 2012 in Singapore.

Small diamond engagement ring (left).

Murano glass ring - gift from my best friend (Linda) in Singapore (right)