my ajumma notes

I hardly watch non-tennis entertainment on tennis courts (only remember the singing ballboy at Wimbledon one year during the rain break and bits of the emotional post-9/11 US Open opening) so I was pleasantly surprised by this year's US Open opening night (watch here ). What a treat to have Earth, Wind and Fire singing! And the little boys in the drum item were cute. Two things that struck me most during the parade of champions: (a) how great all the ladies still look (see below for example) and (b) some notable absentees. I would have liked to see Justine, Kim, Agassi and Steffi Graf, Jimmy Connors and Pete Sampras. Monica Seles - picture from here So, who will hold the trophies this year is the US$1.5-million question. It's so strange hearing 'Roger Federer, the number 2 seed'... Anyway, he is so poor thing this year I almost want to say just let him win it, lah. Djokovic has plummetted way down the 'cuteness' and 'nice kid' ratings so I'm not sur...

I agree with the views in this article 'When Being Content Is Not Good'. I don't know of any other country whose athletes take the semi-final as the final and the final as dunno what. I'm glad Nadal is mentioned in the article because taking the semi-final as the final (and the final as dunno what) is quite, quite different from playing each point like it is match point. As we arm-chair critics-cum-sports-fans know, you need a gold medal mentality to get a gold medal. Let me quote the man who was once my hero, Seb Coe, now Lord Sebastian Coe, chairman of London's organising committee, speaking about the Beijing opening : "Actually our guys weren't cowed at all... They looked at that and thought that's really good, but we can do something as good, set in a different context. They were more pumped up because it was so good. I think they were quite excited by the challenge." Never admit defeat before you even play your first stroke, run your first s...

In the midst of all this, I have been occasionally back on the Korean radar watching 1% of Anything . It's not the most brilliant of shows but I kind of like the whole premise of the story - that no person, situation or relationship is beyond redemption; even if there is just a 1% possibility, you can make things happen. I.e. not relying on miracles but through sheer hard work and doing what you think/know you have to do. Hence the title. But more on the show another day. The reason why I'm writing about it now is I think this kind of thinking (which is similar to Nadal's point-by-point, play-every-point-like-it's-game-point mentality) is applicable to today's momentous table tennis situation. And I believe there is more than a 1% possiblity, no? bear picture from here By the way, I think the rally should still be telecast live. The match is already going to be on Channel U in dual sound, what. Some people have no interest in sports and/or table tennis and there are...

When I first watched Nastia Liukin - and she was really quite beautiful to watch - I thought she was an East European gymnast, based on her physical appearance and style. Turns out that she is East European. Russian-born. But she's won the gold medal for the USA. picture from her website (Wonder if there's something in their Communist roots that give the Russians, Romanians and Chinese gymnasts a kind of grace, elegance and fluidity that I don't see so much in the others. I don't know what else these kids might have in common.) When I first saw the USA team coordinator, I also thought she looked like she was an Eastern bloc person. Don't know what it is about her - maybe her mannerisms and her hairstyle. Turns out she was from the Eastern bloc and her husband was Nadia Comaneci's coach. (And pots shouldn't be calling kettles black, okay? Their comments on the Chinese gymnasts here .) And I'm sure we all noticed the many Asian (and they look Chinese) co...

Great opening. Looks like they didn't need Mr Spielberg after all. Ha. Ferrer and Nadal enjoyed it And great swim, Tao Li. Well done! I read a number of catty remarks online about her "only" coming in fifth and about her being foreign-born. I must confess I'm not in love with foreign talent or anything but give credit where credit is due, okay? Think it's so easy to come in fifth ah? Getting into the final is already an excellent result. And if you think of it, she is still quite a rookie compared to top swimmers in her event and yet, she is the 5th best and she now holds the Asian record. I think people also forget that she is not the same "type" of foreign talent as some others. She was not handpicked or scouted and brought here to represent Singapore. She came because her mum got a job here. And she ended up representing Singapore. Same for Ronald Susilo who came in his teenage years as a student. And who also ended up representing Singapore. Anyway,...

There was a National Day feature about various places that people hold close to their hearts. I thought about it and I realised that most of the places that have meant anything to me are in or near that inner ERP ring, ha ha. These include: 1. Schools - CHIJ and SJI (no longer schools now) 2. National Library (gone) 3. Cinemas - Odeon (gone), Capitol (no longer a cinema), Cathay 4. Book and stationery shops - various second hand book stores along Bras Basah Road (gone), a couple along Victoria Street (Shanghai Book Co. and World - gone), MPH at Armenian Street (gone) 5. Churches - Cathedral of the Good Shepherd, St Joseph's, Sts Peter and Paul, Sacred Heart Church (if I'm not mistaken, they have been gazetted as National Monuments) Interestingly, the place where we stayed when I was in primary and secondary school, which is off the Orchard Road CBD area, is more or less still there as it was then, no major sign of en bloc activity, I believe.

First, I finally watched the Japanese ad from which our National Day video was copied. I was more astounded by the ethics of it all than the lack of creativity and originality exhibited by the creators of the N Day thing. Copying and localising the entire concept?? Of course it is not the first time anyone has copied and localised a concept. Not so many years ago, a movie that, I am told, was a copy of an acclaimed foreign film was lauded . Come on, blatant copying is just not on, okay? Especially in 'creative' industries. As for the rest of the video, the newspaper uncle taking part in the vertical marathon is okay but is that bit about the couple some kind of overt message for people to get on with it and start dating?? Anyway, shoe-giving is not entirely original either. I've seen it in K drama... I guess most of us are/were watching THE SPECTACLE (it's still going on now as I type this; so big scale, just like Curse of the Golden Flowers ; almost expect Jay Chou to ...

I forgot if it was the Straits or Sunday Times that got lambasted by some people for running the article on Orchard Road dress sense - whether people should wear slippers and dress down for Orchard Road, etc. It was followed rather quickly by Sunday's article about strollers - parents with strollers versus non-stroller users. Wah, I thought, really got nothing else to write about ah? Well, since the article was written and I am an ex-stroller user, I shall have my two cents' worth here. I think it is all about consideration for others and common sense. Obviously, some people have more of these and some people less. To me, poor stroller etiquette is similar to poor road manners, poor bicycle manners, poor pedestrian manners, poor trolley-pushing manners, poor aisle-walking manners, etc. I don't think there is much you can do if other people do not exercise the consideration and common sense you wish they did. To avoid getting into accidents and fights (road rage, bicyc...

This weekend's gospel reading was from Matthew 14:13-21 (five loaves and two fishes). Someone recently sent me Corrinne May's Five Loaves and Two Fishes , which I found very meaningful. This picture is from here , where there is a thoughtful reflection on the above as well.