Family Portrait

Today I just swallowed the most expensive steak of my life, a "Fillet Mignon single cut" set me back at SGD $79.00. The missus had a salmon with a price tag of $52.00. We skipped our Valentine's Day meal last Saturday as we were attending a friend's wedding dinner, so we thought we could celebrate on a separate day and at the same time do away with those overpriced commercial set meals.

We dined at Morton's Chicago Steakhouse this evening. They had this "impressive" method of introducing the restaurant's menu by putting forth a whole tray of raw meat and seafood in front of us as our dedicated server explained the courses (the poor sod was basically dictating a prepared script which I didn't catch on totally). And seeing the slabs of sliced up dead cow meat before ordering isn't exactly tantilising.. I half suspect I saw some chopped up crab legs moving as he spoke.. I am sure my mind was screwing with me after an entire week of OT and hectic workload. But alas I still managed to wind it down over a decent though overpriced meal with my wife and daughter.

As the week curtains down....

Alright this is a bloody boring post. I wish I have some wild escapade such as skinning a crocodile or something to brag about, which I haven't. Instead I have been cooped up with work and more work going for meetings and designing endless stuff for my clients. I did however spent some useful time on and off drawing a family portrait for our family of 3. So here goes, an illustration of the missus, baby Angel and myself attached in this post. Borrowing an art style I did for a current project, I created this pictorial. Not very polished yet as I didn't have the luxury of time to touch up more shadows, details, and possibly a background. Nonetheless its counted as completed although Angel's mum would like to see herself in a hip jeans and stylish sandals instead of an "ah soh" black skirt with horrific red color flat slip ons. I promised to work on it again some day once the client cut me some slack.

Lastly, Have Happy Weekend!

From Ken, Wife and Angel.

Angel Updates

And so the client said, "Take away this, minus that, multiply those and axe these."

"Your wish is my command.." was my reply, and I sent the ammendments over.

And then the client said, "Change this chunk and dunk those crap."

"Your wish is my command.." again I said, and sent the ammendments over again.

And then the client said, "Change again, change again another time, change again one more time, CHANGE CHANGE CHANGE!!"

"Alright you bitch, sod off."

I didn't really say that. Although I am so bloody tempted to. Well, this is just the regular life of a designer, adapt and make changes all the time.

Not complaining. Just taking a break from my work so that I can post some updates about my daughter. It relaxes me, just by blogging and talking about my daughter who is nearing her 4th month. How time flies, the day my wife's waterbag broke we were supposed to catch a movie, "Tropic Thunder", which we still have yet to watch. Today our little one has got more pattern than badminton, she pushes her milk bottle away during her feeding and attempt to drown us by crying a Singapore river. The moment the bottle tit is out of her mouth she chuckles and giggles non stop, that is until the tit is back into her mouth.

I recall a famous Mac Donalds ad on TV eons ago. Seated on a swing, the baby was laughing when she was swung forward, and then crying when swung backward. The clever editing showed in the perspective of the baby's eye, a big "M" logo appears whenever the camera heave upwards and then disappears when swinging downwards, and reappear again in another swing upwards. Our baby Angel is exactly like that, laughing and crying with the milk bottle in and out of her mouth.

Enough talk. Some photos of our three and half month old daughter uploaded here :)

Have a great week ahead.

From Ken, wife and daughter.

Dream On

I had the weirdest dream last night.

I thought I must share this.

Glimpse and bits still lingering in my head now. And it was weird. I get the occasional silly dreams whenever I had too much work and too many things hovering on a 34 year old brain trying to keep his tiny multimedia house alive amidst a screwed up economy. But I never had it this surreal. Trust me. Just keep reading.

The past weeks have already been a nightmare for me doubling up as a designer, art director, human resource manager, account servicing manager, toilet cleaner, and probably a sales man prick selling some design bullshit. In times of pressing datelines and creditors knocking at your doorstep, multi-tasking can make a man go crazy sometimes, and you desperately needed some cool headed advice. You need a figurehead, a consultant, a leader to guide you through. As a small time boss of a minuscule company, I had none of the above to look up to. And then it had to happen.

My jaws slammed on the concrete dragging a total of 100 feet because someone I so god damn admire came to my rescue. MR LEE KUAN YEW!! Singapore's Minister Mentor and founding father of our country. Gasp!! arhhmmp. I was bloody choking.

Well, in my dreams, literally of course, .

"Ken Poh?" asked a suave looking Mr Lee who looks like he was still in his earlier years, as he marked a tick in a list he was holding.

A stunned and fucking blur face me still looking at him in total disbelief. Am I dreaming? Is this for real? Or is this a joke? (well, hours later I woke up and slapped myself silly. Heck, its a bloody dream alright, what am I, Barack Obama?).

And in a mutter of confusion and excitement, I can still remember what I said. "Er yes, Sir.. I erh.. I bought this book, your latest book, can you sign your name for me please?" I was so excited I was like a teenager sissy chasing the boy band "Fahrenheit" because I added, "I am a big fan of yours."

I looked at him, I looked at the hard cover book in my hand with his face on it, I looked at his bodyguard with the grim face, and I looked at my daughter sleeping in her cot. Yes, even in my dreams, my daughter cannot spare me, and she looked like she's needing some milk in a bottle.
I cannot decide whether to feed my daughter or chase after my idol. This is driving me crazy like a teenage bitch.

It was house visit. The Minister Mentor doing his round of house visits in the night. And then the bodyguard grabbed my book. Before I could say anything Mr Lee said, "I'll come back to you." And then he left, with the body guards still tagging along. And I begged please, please have the book sign and return to me, while my daughter still wailed a trail behind me. A jump cut scene later, I was looking at the overwhelming crowd in the streets on top of a building. And I was still asking for the bloody bodyguard to give me back my book with Mr Lee's signature on it.

I never got the book. And Lee Kuan Yew never spoke to me again as he promised in the dream. But it was totally mind blowing, me speaking to Lee Kuan Yew, and seeing him face to face. But alas it was a dream only okay. Sigh..

I guess the heavy workload really screwed my brain. I figured out I needed guidance from someone on top which is why I had this really crazy dream. At least I think so. I am not a dream interpreter, I don't buy books like "101 dreams Interpretation", I had to find a logical explanation to this.

But dreams are not logical aren't they, because the great Mr Lee cannot be speaking to me, a saliva dripping twat with his mouth wide opened holding a Minister's Memoirs..