Mobile Observations [March08]

[ain't she pretty?]

[try reading this sign, written in "Scottish"]

[strange fruit... or is it a veggie?]

[com'on, you know that's funny]

[accidentally came across a Manhua exhibit in an art college...
I didn't think chinese comics were big enough to be recognized like that?]

[caught some band named Kap Bambino with Buff the night before he left...
essentially a DJ and a screaming chick... the 300 hipsters in the pub approves]

[butthead: "uh-huh-huhuhuhuhuh"
beavis: "bunghole! bungholio!"]

Tron 1.2

I'm a big fan of Tron. I might be the only fan of Tron. Tron was made in 1982, and was probably the very first blockbuster movie to be made with computer graphics. Way ahead of its time. Without it to pave the way, we wouldn't have Pixar, Terminator 2, or The Incredible Hulk.

By the way, my cousin did the texture art for The Hulk and Abomination in the movie.

Uh... where were we. Ah yes, back to Tron. I found this wicked stop motion tribute to a true pioneer. Bask in it's glory. Bask!!

Tron
Uploaded by freres-hueon

Spontaneous Combustion

Crazy day yesterday, I promise you it's worth the read:

10:00: Met with outdoor advertising company for freelance graphic work
10:10: Phone rings during meeting, ignored it
11:00: Meeting adjourned, secured freelance work
11:05: Checked voicemail, headhunter called with news of a second interview with TV station at 16:00 the very same day
11:06: Call back headhunter, secured second interview and was assured that going in jeans will be ok
12:30: Met a friend from ClearChannel for lunch
16:00: Met with TV station, simultaneously interviewed by 3 managers
16:15: Phone rings during meeting, ignored it
16:30: Meeting adjourned, felt very positive about the interview
16:35: Checked voicemail, movie/gaming promotions agency which I had interviewed with twice previously called to see if I wanted to meet for a pint. I was just down the street so I called back and agreed.
16:50: Met with director of the agency, secured offer for a job. Thinking about offer, will get back to him on Monday about it.


Crazy huh? For those keeping count, that's 4 meetings, 3 interviews, 2 of which were spontaneous and unplanned, and 1 job offer.

Cool. =)

Child's Play

On the bus today, a ruthless battle between two young siblings ensued:

Sibling1: Mummy! Make him stop!
Mother: (sounding annoyed) What is it?
Sibling1: He won't stop copying me!
Sibling2: I'm not copying him!
Sibling1: (voice progressively gets higher and whinier) Stop copying me! You're doing everything I'm doing!
Sibling2: (now equally as whiny) No, you're copying me!


Ah, the Copy Cat. I bet we've all faced off with one of them before, always so devious when mimicking our every action and every phrase. Too bad it wasn't a punishable crime, I would have sent a few behind bars myself. How sweet would it have been to hear the judge say "you are hereby sentenced to life behind bars for copying"?

Surprise, suckas!

... and the first overseas visitor award goes to... Buff?? Whoa, didn't see that coming! He's teaching at a school for highly privileged children (i.e. rich) in HK right now and as a field trip, 30 kids got to go to London for a week to brush up their English and experience the British culture. My high school took me to Quebec once. My french still sucks.

Buff and I go way back, from Grade 4 or so onwards. It was really good to see an old friend, especially when it was pretty much a surprise visit. Good timing too, drinks were cheap on St.Patrick's Day weekend!

7 Down

'Nuff Said

I <3 my 3Skypephone

I'll admit it, I had an unhealthy emotional attachment to my phone in Toronto. The Moto A1200 is an excellent phone, did just about everything except make you bacon for breakfast in the morning, and it isn't readily available in North America. It brought me much bragging rights, and beeped at me when I have important things to do. Like buying concert tickets at 10 in the morning.

When I got to London, I had a dilemma. I wanted to go on the 3 network with my A1200 because their plans really were the best for me. Unfortunately, only 3G phones could get on their network. The A1200, as amazing as it is, is NOT a 3G phone. Dammit.

After a brief greiving period for my old phone (5 minutes), I decided that it's best to buy a new phone. Man, am I ever glad that I did. I got the 3Skypephone, a meek looking phone which packs a surprising punch. It's like the Luke Cuomo of phones.

It came in handy several times already, here's how:

• For about $10 a month, you get unlimited internet access. This made my near 10 hour bus journey to Edinburgh much more pleasant
• I'm able to keep in touch with friends and family over MSN on the road
• Downloaded Google Maps on the phone and saved me several times from losing my manhood (i.e. ask a stranger for directions)
• FREE Skype to Skype calls directly from my mobile. I was talking to friends in HK and (not) Detroit with a press of a button
• With a bit of hacking, I can call my family on their phone for next to nothing without sacrificing any of my precious mobile minutes

I feel like a gold digger, now completely attached to my new 3Skypephone simply because it can offer so much more to me.

Moto who? Never heard of her.

Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting

Yesterday night, Jules took me out to my very first MMA live event. The day started off with a meal in our new favourite restaurant, followed by a beautiful walk from Greenwich through to Blackheath. Then it was off to Wembley for the fight.

"Wembley!", I heard you think. "That's the famous world class football (soccer) stadium that could seat 90,000 people! Awesome!"

Uh... we thought so too. But then the closer we got to the stadium, the more I wondered "how in the world could a fight promotion smaller then the UFC fill such a large stadium?"

Then we saw this and made our hearts sink a bit:

Turns out Cage Rage 25 was being held in an arena right NEXT to the famed Stadium. We checked out tickets again and it clearly says Wembley Arena, *not* Stadium. I didn't know Wembley had two venues... ah well, time for a re-pose.

Like a champ, Jules sat with me through the whole event and we had a great time. I highly recommend MMA fans to check out a Cage Rage event if you're ever in town, because our "cheap seats" were amazing. There's no way you can get that value with UFC events.

Here are some highlights:

• Almost all the pre-lim fights ended in the first round due to ground and pound
• As expected, football like chants were heard throughout the evening
• Crazy knockout by Tom "Kong" Watson on Pierre Goulette while on his back. Tom also wins the "best fans" award with a large section of fans bringing in inflatable bananas to support him. Kong, who comes out in a monkey mask for his entrance, also has a man dressed in a full body banana suit in his corner. Awesome.
• Ryan Shamrock, Ken's 19 year old son, looked pretty good in his fight but broke his hand and couldn't continue
• Ryan's old man, Ken Shamrock, looked better in his fight against British heavyweight Robert "Buzz" Berry then he did in his fights against Tito Ortiz. By that I mean he lasted past the 2 minute mark, then got knocked out silly
• Masakazu Imanari is your new hero

above: Robert "Buzz" Berry celebrates a historical knockout

above: the crowd on their feet after Berry buries Shamrock

Masakazu Imanari vs Jean Silva
Uploaded by uGotKTFO

Cage Rage 25 Ken Shamrock vs Buzz Berry-1
Uploaded by aurillia

I Suck

A few months back, Jules flew all the way to Toronto to visit me. Even though she doesn't quite enjoy it, she still came out with me to watch a UFC fight at a sports bar. She stood by me the entire time (literally, there were no seats), cheered with us as GSP demolished Hughes, and even kicked back a drink with the boys.

Last week, she showed me the Cage Rage tickets that she got for me as Valentine's Day gift. Cage Rage is the UFC of the UK, with majority of their fighters hailing from England. She's coming with me to a fight again, this time live at Wembley Stadium on the 8th. I'm stoked. I have a great GF.

A few nights ago, I tried to sit and watch The Notebook with her. This was part of the deal I made with her to get her to come to the UFC fight in Toronto in the first place. 30 minutes into the movie, she looks at me and says

"I can see that this is boring you. Let's put something else on."

She's going to watch 6 hours of voilence with me and I can't sit through 1.5 hours of chick flick with her.

I suck.

Blood and Guts

Instead of looking for employment, Jules and I decided to head up to Edinburgh for a few days. For those unfamiliar with the strange pronunciation of proper English, Edinburgh sounds more like "Edin-bra" then Pittsburgh, Duckburg, or Aki Berg. Don't ask me why, but since these guys invented the language,we'll just leave them to their illogical ways.


The first thing I would recommend to anyone travelling from London to Scotland is to NOT take the bus. While it was a total bargain (£13/person for return tickets), the 10 hour journey drove me crazy by the time we returned home. The train would only take 4-5 hours, and it should cost less then flying.


Scotland's capital greeted us with surprisingly cold winter winds, making me regret about forgetting to pack my hat. We caught a cab (Blackcabs, just like the ones in London) and made it to our hostel in one piece. The next morning, we joined a free walking tour hosted by Sandeman's New Europe. This was the same company that did the incredibly entertaining walking tour which my brother and I participated in Berlin two years ago, and the Edinburgh version lived up to my expectations. We walked for 3 hours and learned a lot more then we would discovering the city for ourselves, including facts about geology, history, and Harry Potter.

above: Harry Potter's a real draw for drunks

The city itself is incredibly fascinating as it is split into two by Princes Street. As the regions' names would suggest, Old Town is where the city began and New Town is the region where the city expanded into. The differences between these two parts are astounding, as Old Town's roads twists and turns in chaotic fashion while New Town was clearly planned out like a perfect grid. According to our tour guide, ever since the expansion began 250 years ago, the rich have continued to this day to migrate out of the old and into to the new. On the edge of Old Town lie the Edinburgh Castle, an imposing and striking structure which could be seen at any point of Old Town.

above: castle greyskull

Of course, no trip to Scotland would be complete without having some Black Pudding (made of pig's blood) and Haggis (made of a sheep's various intestines). I even discovered Macaroni Pies there, a higher level of Kraft Dinner. College students take note, this is an easy way to make something cultural for your next pot-luck... and chicks dig guys with culture.

clockwise: tattie scone, baked beans, tomato, bacon, black pudding, lorne sausage, and egg in the middle

Images From My Zoomed Journey

the FMPeeps sends me off with my final plate of Quarter White with Fries

the 300+ lineup for a hotel room

at last! I'm in London! (look ma, no winter jacket!)