Dude I think someone else has thought about it

CNA has a report of how local inventor Bob Teo has devised a new keyboard to replace the ole faithful QWERT keyboard, but there's been a whole host of alternative keyboard solutions, including the Dvorak layout that was developed in 1936. Bob might have a good product, but could someone at least mention these alternatives and why this new 'invention' goes where they haven't gone before?

Anti-death penalty graffiti in Jurong West

Graffiti appears to have assumed a more acceptable form lately, and there's even a display at the Esplanade devoted to it. Thought to be thoroughly defanged here, it did make a much applauded reappearance during THAT scandal, had left bite marks elsewhere before. Some graffiti against the death penalty had been seen at Jurong West (1, 2, 3, 4) and apparently quickly removed (1, 2) way back in May. Well it may be gone, but not lost.

The ground is as sweet as it can be

Prepare your voting slips. Those of you who reside in areas that would be contested, anyway. It appears early elections might be on the way this year, according to this Reuters article. Nice to see that political commentator Mr Sadasivan is capable of some poetry, though we don't recommend trying it out literally. To fine-tune your voting skills, you might want to try out this poll at Tomorrow.sg.

Heaven can wait we're only watching the skies

Few photographs can capture the glory and grandeur of fireworks, no matter how hard one tries. One has to be there. A static shot just doesn't carry the same feel as staring up at the sky and watching roman candles, fountains and comets painting the night. Best thing is, no chance for tickets to this event being auctioned off on eBay. The Singapore Fireworks Festival returns on the 6th of August, with teams from Portugal and France showing off what they've got during the festival's three week run. Of course, you can still catch fireworks tonight, as there's bound to be yet another NDP preview. Expect a tight squeeze, grab a beer and mark your territory early.

Ho Ching #30 on Forbes 100 most Powerful women list

Forbes has yet another list, this time featuring the 100 Most Powerful Women in the World. Temasek Holding's Ho Ching is placed at #30, dropping six spots. Yes, she is more powerful than JK Rowling, though most twelve year olds would disagree.

This week at the movies (July 29)

This week at the movies: Born Into Brothels, the Oscar winning documentary, has sold out the two original screenings for Indigo, the Indian Film Festival. However, you can still catch the additional 3 pm session on Saturday the 30th. Some find it manipulative, some find the filmmakers' reasons for helping out questionable, but you can decide for yourself. Of course, there's also Screen Singapore.

At cinemas, if you're avoiding that updated Top Gun clone Stealth or the Michael Bay disaster The Island, you can try the Japanese horror movie Marebito, whose poster has been pretty obviously censored in the local papers. If you're tempted by Hong Kong cutesy movie Bug Me Not, you might want to read what Kaiju Shakedown, Variety magazine's Asia film blog, says about it. They definitely don't mince their words.

But Palin, we hardly knew ya

I'm constantly amazed at what can be found on the 'Net, wondrous, enlightening, funny or insipid. One of the wondrous things that's really come to my attention has to be former Monty Python member Michael Palin's travel adventures, all available for free on the net for viewing, but not quite for download. Palin spends merely a few hours in Singapore on his round-the-world in 80 days trip, but does learn from a couple of Indian folks that Singaporeans "work hard" and that "nobody cheats". He does spend mere miliseconds in Singapore and - heavens - sees some litter and drunks, which he thought weren't allowed on our streets, before he boards a launch to continue his Phileas Fogg imitation. Not terribly exciting, and we hope when he returns he'll have more time for tea at the Raffles and reenact his Dead Parrot sketch at Jurong Bird Park.

Screen Singapore

The Nation's turning 40, and the number of events happening to celebrate the occasion are probably too numerous to count. Film buffs have it good though, as part of the celebrations includes Screen Singapore, a month-long festival dedicated to Singapore films. I had the fortune of previewing one of these films, the quietly-infamous Ring of Fury, which was banned in Singapore for depicting mob activity. The whole film has taken on a breast-pink glow over the years, and part of the attraction is looking at some of the long-lost localities they used. The martial arts and stunts won't be winning any awards, but there are a couple of nicely-done scenes, such as an underwater battle, and another scene of the Big Boss with a St Bernard vaguely reminiscent of Marlon Brando and the cat in The Godfather. And how can one miss out on Cleopatra Wong? "She purrs like a kitten...Makes love like a siren...Fights like a panther. This side of the Pacific, she’s the deadliest, meanest and sexiest secret agent!" And she dresses as a nun while wielding a machine gun. Anyway, what would one call the Singapore or asian equivalent of the blaxploitation genre? Singploitation? Asploitation? Will someone call Tarantino and ask him to do a remake?

There and Back Again

After the NKF scandal, Singapore has made the news again internationally for spending $400,000 in renaming, or rather retaining, the name of Marina Bay. The brickbats from the public flew hard, fast and accurate today, calling the whole sub-branding exercise ludricious, and that the whole area would not be a bay much longer, but rather a lake. Finally, the whole term 'Marina Bay' is hardly unique to Singapore. Do a search on google and you'll probably find it on the third page, at least, losing out to other similarly named developments in Florida and Berkeley. Ah yes, back to the drawing board. Round and round it goes...

That spanking new library

Yes, Singaporeans have tons of things to complain about, but one of the best things about the little red dot are the National Libraries. At the Esplanade library, you can borrow up to 4 DVDs (avoid the VHSes because they're like to have been butchered) for $21 a year. You might not be able to find the title of the moment or even the past year, such as Constantine or Son of the Mask, but there's a whole trove of classics and Criterion discs for you to loan, as well as television series.

Another great thing is the reservation system, which makes borrowing less hit-and-miss. Like most folks here, I have limited shelf space, and I've pretty much stopped buying books for eons. I've reached the age where I realise I probably won't be rereading books, so I just borrow them from the library and that's it. So it's good news to see the spanking new library near Bugis Junction. Yes, the old library at Stamford Road was quaint and had character, but this new library is definitely a beauty. Had a chance to tour the interior, and it's nice to know that the Reference section has moved back to the town area. No more trudging over to Jurong.

At the top of the library is a decent reception area, called the Pod. Furniture looks a bit too retro though, and probably will become the hippest place to launch a product/hold an event/have a press conference. Yes, this new library has charm. One definitely could grow to love it.