tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038Mon, 16 Jan 2017 09:01:43 +0000social mediabloggingpublic librarieslibrary eventmusicIFLAcreative commonssocietybookslibrarianshipmusingssingaporelibrariansconferencelearningNLBrole of the librarynew media educationfuture of librariesreadingartcollaborative musiclearning communityreading advocacyeducationnew medialibrariesmeetupsocial networkscreativitytalkblog advocacyblogging guidelinesweb 2.0.national library boardpodcastusflibrary promotionannual reading listheritageauthorbook reviewdisability advocacyillustrationinterviewnew media advocacypublicitysongcraftworkblog coursecustomer servicelibrarybloglandlifemarketingsingaporeanssongwritingvacationBridgingWorldscopyrightdigital medialibrary spaceteen servicesblog educationideaspoliciestechworkshopSCL Newsbloggerschinaebooklibrary techresearchMiscellaneousTSPdisabiiltydisability servicesfriendsfuturelibrarianprofessionalismremixedsecond lifesocial spacesstorytellingSingapore Memory Projectcollaborationcroatiacyclingdigitisationhkla50library resourceteaching resourceswritingLASadvisorydemoenvironmentexperimentlawmuseumonline engagementsingapore librarieswikiappsartsblogger featuresbook clubsexhibitiongreat wallhumourlibrary etiquettemacmainstream mediaoutreachphilosophyscience fictionsingapore librariansweb standardswebsgwlic2013QnASMPbarcampconversationscustomersdiscographyenergyfacebookforbidden citygamingglobal trendsgraphic novel reviewgroupshealth libraryhealth promotion boardinstructionaljobslibrary mannersmashupnational librarynational projectnatureopacpoemruby on railssecond life librariessenior servicessingapore politicssingapore social media directorystaff jamsuggestionsweb accessibilityACMPCNTSTbeijingbiologybrandingbrisk walkcanoncatchinese new yearcluetraincreative learningcrisisculturecustomsdigital literacyenquiryereaderesplanadefantasyfolksonomyfoodfreewareguidelinesguitarhobbyhomehow-toiin memoriamipadiphonekidslion city simlunar new yearmanagementmangementmetricsmooncakesnational identityonline storageopen accessopen letterpachelbelparticipationphotoshoprockrssskunkworksslidesharestrategytaggingteen fictionthink-aloudvirtual environmentsvolunteerswikipediawomenyouthRambling Librarian :: Incidental Thoughts of a Singapore LiblogarianI'm a former librarian, from Singapore. The postings were library-related (mostly). I tended to ramble. As with things in life, my thoughts were incidental (i.e. insignificant). DISCLAIMER - Views expressed here were strictly my own and did not represent the official stand of my ex-employer. But you know that already.http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)Blogger1079125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-8634490977772344173Sat, 15 Mar 2014 00:30:00 +00002014-10-06T17:19:14.224+08:00lifeworkStill rambling (probably) but no more a librarianHello World.<br /><br />Today's my last official day as a librarian. Today, 15 March 2014, is exactly 17 years and 5 months since I started work at the National Library Board. <br /><br />Slightly more than a year back, I reviewed where I was and where/ what I could be going/ doing. The conclusion was that the conditions (personal, external and so on) were right for me to pursue the creative side of things. Fulfilling <a href="http://myrightbrain.wordpress.com/2006/01/21/i-want-to-be-an-artist/">a childhood ambition</a>, perhaps. <br /><br />In August last year, I started a <a href="http://arcticfoxstudios.asia/">modest little media studio</a> with a friend (email me and ask me about it). I've moved from being a librarian to being an entrepreneur. Behind the initial sense of excitement of starting something new, there's a quiet anxiousness of not knowing how things will turn out. I take heart in the support of friends, colleagues and family. I've considered possible success and failure, and concluded that the only real failure is to not try at all. <br /><br />You could say my <a href="http://project365sketches2013.blogspot.sg/">Project 365 Sketches</a> was a pre-cursor to my career change, though I've been <a href="http://myrightbrain.wordpress.com">making music and art</a> for a long time now. The difference is that I hope to do it as paid work.<br /><br />I started as a Assistant Librarian and left as an Assistant Director. It's quite fitting, the "Assistant" designation. It's an oversimplification, but I'd sum up librarianship as a role that ultimately assists people in their search for connections -- connections to information, ideas and to some extent, people (authors, like-minded readers etc).<br /><br />In truth, I'm not particularly knowledgeable about library work, library technologies or library management. If anything, I was merely the first Singaporean librarian, who used my real name, and blogged a little about what went on in the library (but even that was largely public programming). <br /><br />For the folks who have left comments at this blog, or exchanged emails with me as as a librarian, I sincerely thank you all. Blogging has opened new vistas for me. We've largely forgotten why blogging was such a big deal then (leaving "comments" on a website was not the norm). Almost 10 years ago, Blogging had a bad name in Singapore (go search the newspaper archives). Later, people attended talks to understand what was a Blog. I remember a participant asking me (at the <a href="http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.sg/2007/02/post-course-reflections-session-1-w-h.html">very first public talk I gave</a>), after she said she understood what a Blog was, how one "crossed the line" to become a blogger. Those were pretty interesting times.<br /><br />Will I start another blog? Probably not. Or not yet anyway. I remember telling the journalist, in a <a href="http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.sg/2006/07/straits-times-interviews-this.html">2006 interview</a>, that I'll blog only if I have something meaningful to say.<br /><br />(Edit: I'll be posting at <a href="http://artistivanchew.tumblr.com">artistivanchew.tumblr.com</a> until I do start a new blog).<br /><br />So.<br /><br />All stories must come to an end, eventually.<br /><br />I'm still contactable via ramblinglibrarian [ at ] gmail.<br /><br />Keep Reading. Keep Learning.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2014/03/still-rambling-probably-but-no-more.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-1670599095221019661Tue, 04 Mar 2014 18:47:00 +00002014-03-05T03:03:30.804+08:00artcopyrightcreative commonsfacebookA Creative Commons rights infringement case study (involving my work)Last week, friends alerted me that <a href="https://www.blogger.com/myrightbrain.wordpress.com/2013/05/23/angry-civet-cat-143-project-365-sketches/">one of my online artwork</a> was used by a Facebook page owner without crediting me.<br /><br />The artwork was licensed under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">Creative Commons ATTRIBUTION</a> license. All the user had to do was credit me and he would be free to modify, repurchase, even sell the image. I did not specify any specific way for attribution. As long as the user made a reasonable attempt, it would have been fine.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8802005052/" title="&quot;Angry Civet Cat&quot; (#143: Project 365 Sketches) by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="&quot;Angry Civet Cat&quot; (#143: Project 365 Sketches)" height="320" src="https://v4s2.yimg.com/sm/5455/8802005052_65a03008a4_n.jpg" width="213" /></a><br /><br />But the page owner didn't credit me. My name in the image had also been cropped out. <br /><br />I wrote the FB page owner a private FB message. In it, I identified myself as the image creator and I requested (not demanded) that he remove the image. I explained that my image was created as a subtle protest against the commercial harvesting/ exploitation of <a href="http://projectluwaksg.wordpress.com/">civet cats half-digested coffee beans</a>. His Facebook page was, ironically, promoting the sale of "Kopi Luwak" coffee beans. <br /><br />There was no response after 2 days, so I left a public comment on the (modified) image he posted in his page album. I gave him the benefit of doubt that he might have missed my mail. My comment only asked if he had received my message. I did not want to embarrass him by publicly saying he had (inadvertently or otherwise) infringed on my rights. <br /><br />A day later the comment was deleted. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/12920457255/" title="case study - CC rights infringement #1 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="case study - CC rights infringement #1" height="320" src="https://v4s2.yimg.com/sk/3694/12920457255_f4ec846e4c_n.jpg" width="180" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/12920881764/" title="case study - CC rights infringement #2 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="case study - CC rights infringement #2" height="320" src="https://v4s2.yimg.com/so/7436/12920881764_c25cf63b30_n.jpg" width="180" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/12920906704/" title="case study - CC rights infringement #3 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="case study - CC rights infringement #3" height="320" src="https://v4s2.yimg.com/so/7313/12920906704_cf3d79a720_n.jpg" width="180" /></a><br /><br />Now, CC licenses <a href="http://wiki.creativecommons.org/Considerations_for_licensors_and_licensees#Irrevocability">cannot be revoked</a>. If the fella had credited me in a reasonable way, all would have been dandy.<br /><blockquote><i>Once you apply a CC license to your material, anyone who receives it may rely on that license for as long as the material is protected by copyright and similar rights, even if you later stop distributing it.</i><br /><i>Source: <a href="http://wiki.creativecommons.org/Considerations_for_licensors_and_licensees#Irrevocability">wiki.creativecommons.org/Considerations_for_licensors_and_licensees#Irrevocability</a></i></blockquote><br />Under CC (or CC-BY, in my case), even if I was uncomfortable with my image used that way, he still had every right to reuse it. I respected that right. That said, it was also within my rights to ask that I am not credited with the image if I felt strongly about it. <br /><br />The CC-FAQ covers this issue quite clearly:<br /><blockquote><i><b>What can I do if I offer my material under a Creative Commons license and I do not like the way someone uses it?</b></i><br /><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 9px; padding: 0px;"><i>As long as users abide by license terms and conditions, licensors cannot control how the material is used. However, CC licenses do provide several mechanisms that allow licensors to choose not to be associated with their material or to uses of their material with which they disagree.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><i><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">First, all CC licenses&nbsp;</span><a href="http://wiki.creativecommons.org/Frequently_Asked_Questions#Do_I_need_to_be_aware_of_anything_else_when_providing_attribution.3F" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #4374b7; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;">prohibit using the attribution requirement to suggest that the licensor endorses or supports a particular use</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">. Second, licensors may waive the attribution requirement, choosing not to be identified as the licensor, if they wish. Third, if the licensor does not like how the material has been modified or used, CC licenses require that the licensee&nbsp;</span><a href="http://wiki.creativecommons.org/License_Versions#Licensors_may_request_removal_of_attribution" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #4374b7; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="License Versions">remove the attribution information upon request</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">. (In 3.0 and earlier, this is only a requirement for adaptations and collections; in 4.0, this also applies to the unmodified work.) Finally, anyone modifying licensed material must&nbsp;</span><a href="http://wiki.creativecommons.org/License_Versions#Modifications_and_adaptations_must_be_indicated" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #4374b7; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="License Versions">indicate that the original has been modified</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">. This ensures that changes made to the original material--whether or not the licensor approves of them--are not attributed back to the licensor.</span><br /><br />Source: <a href="http://wiki.creativecommons.org/Frequently_Asked_Questions#What_can_I_do_if_I_offer_my_material_under_a_Creative_Commons_license_and_I_do_not_like_the_way_someone_uses_it.3F">wiki.creativecommons.org/Frequently_Asked_Questions#What_can_I_do_if_I_offer_my_material_under_a_Creative_Commons_license_and_I_do_not_like_the_way_someone_uses_it.3F</a></i></blockquote><br />Had he bothered to discuss with me, I would have explained CC to him, and what were his rights were as well. <br /><br />But his intentions was obvious by that time. I reported to Facebook with necessary details. Facebook took down the image fairly quickly.<br /><br /><blockquote><b><i>What happens if I offer my material under a Creative Commons license and someone misuses them?</i></b><br /><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 9px; padding: 0px;"><i>A CC license&nbsp;<a href="http://wiki.creativecommons.org/Frequently_Asked_Questions#How_can_I_lose_my_rights_under_a_Creative_Commons_license.3F_If_that_happens.2C_how_do_I_get_them_back.3F" style="border: 0px; color: #4374b7; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;">terminates automatically</a>&nbsp;when its conditions are violated. For example, if a reuser of CC-licensed material does not provide the attribution required when sharing the work, then the user no longer has the right to continue using the material and may be liable for copyright infringement. The license is terminated for the user who violated the license. However, all other users still have a valid license, so long as they are in compliance.</i></div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 9px; padding: 0px;"><i>Under the 4.0 licenses, a licensee automatically gets these rights back if she fixes the violation within 30 days of discovering it.</i></div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 9px; padding: 0px;"><i>If you apply a Creative Commons license and a user violates the license conditions, you may opt to contact the person directly to ask them to rectify the situation or consult a lawyer to act on your behalf. Creative Commons is not a law firm and cannot represent you or give you legal advice, but there are&nbsp;<a href="http://wiki.creativecommons.org/Frequently_Asked_Questions#Can_Creative_Commons_give_legal_advice_about_its_licenses_or_help_with_CC_license_enforcement.3F" style="border: 0px; color: #4374b7; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;">lawyers who have identified themselves as interested in representing people in CC-related matters</a>.</i></div><i>Source: <a href="http://wiki.creativecommons.org/Frequently_Asked_Questions#What_happens_if_I_offer_my_material_under_a_Creative_Commons_license_and_someone_misuses_them.3F">wiki.creativecommons.org/Frequently_Asked_Questions#What_happens_if_I_offer_my_material_under_a_Creative_Commons_license_and_someone_misuses_them.3F</a></i></blockquote><br />The version 4.0 CC license goes a step further to say:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><b><i>Modifications and adaptations must be indicated</i></b><i><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">In the 4.0 license suite, licensees are required to&nbsp;</span><a class="mw-redirect" href="http://wiki.creativecommons.org/Marking/Users#This_is_a_good_attribution_for_material_you_modified_slightly" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #4374b7; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Marking/Users">indicate if they made modifications</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">&nbsp;to the licensed material. This obligation applies whether or not the modifications produced adapted material. As with all other attribution and marking requirements, this may be done in a manner reasonable to the means, medium, and context. For example, "This section is an excerpt of the original." For trivial modifications, such as correcting spelling errors, it may be reasonable to omit the notice... ...</span></i>Source: <a href="http://wiki.creativecommons.org/License_Versions#Modifications_and_adaptations_must_be_marked_as_such">wiki.creativecommons.org/License_Versions#Modifications_and_adaptations_must_be_marked_as_such</a></blockquote><br /><b>REFLECTIONS</b><br />If you really, really want to protect your work, or the intent behind your work, against such IP violations, the surest way is NOT to share anything online. Or share it anywhere, for that matter. But that's impractical and also give rise to a false sense of security. For instance, if you licensed your work in a legitimate contractual agreement (e.g. artwork in a poster for public display), how can you possible ensure that others will not take handphone pictures of your work and make unauthorised copies?<br /><br /><b>The key issue here is really about discovery (or lack of) IP rights violation and subsequent enforcement. </b>E.g. costs of pursuing legal action. But such an issue existed long before CC came into the scene. You may not adopt CC for your work, and you would still face this issue when someone uses your work without your permission.<br /><br /><b>For me, the great thing about CC is that there is greater clarity of rights and obligations.</b> With CC, and of course the prep work done by the folks who maintain the CC FAQ and licenses, there's less room for ambiguous interpretations compared with the typical Copyright legalese. I was very clear on the steps to take, and confident that I had the CC terms to refer to (Note: CC is not an alternative to Copyright; CC is built on the foundations of Copyright).<br /><br /><b>Will this incident stop me from licensing my art and music under CC?</b> No, not at all. I'm reminded of these lines of poetry from the poet Rumi: "Do not burn a blanket because of a flea..."<br /><br /><b>Will I be uncomfortable if the said party reinstates the image, with credits to me?</b> Ultimately, no. Anyone who is that obtuse -- as to use a image that is AGAINST the business he/ she is in -- is either a genius or someone who does not warrant my time or attention. I believe there are enough people who have benefited from CC licensed works and are using them correctly. Besides, once I've made a decision to license a work under CC, I can and will only look ahead.<br /><br /><b>What if the said party re-posts the modified image, this time with attribution?</b> Doing it out of spite, perhaps.<br /><br />I've no problem with that. Because CC (version 4.0) allows the "violation"&nbsp;<a href="http://wiki.creativecommons.org/Frequently_Asked_Questions#What_happens_if_I_offer_my_material_under_a_Creative_Commons_license_and_someone_misuses_them.3F">to be rectified</a>&nbsp;within 30 days. Still, my rights do not change. I can accept the attribution, or ask for the attribution to be removed. If the user does not comply with that, it is a violation of terms.<br /><br />Knowing that such conditions are attached to CC-licensed works gives me that additional assurance on what my rights are, if I find that my intent (conveyed through the work) has been misrepresented.<br /><br />How I would pursue the matter is, of course, a separate decision.<br /><br />Increasingly, in a vastly connected world, there are also social norms to contend with. Enforcement is not always about the law. It will be obvious to people that someone's goodwill has been taken advantage of.<br /><br />As they say, (online) reputation is everything.<br /><br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2014/03/a-creative-commons-rights-infringement.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-7285121025144181395Tue, 12 Nov 2013 14:26:00 +00002013-11-13T09:32:05.323+08:00artsmusicsingaporeansEmail interview with Singaporean hobbyist-musician, "Su the Bandit"Another email interview with a musician (these days I'm into finding out what makes creative people tick). This time I interview a fellow Singaporean Carrie Chan, who goes by the online moniker "Su the Bandit".<br /><br />This interview comes five years later (an online longitudinal study of Singaporeans and their creative adventures? Heh). <br /><br />I've blogged about <a href="http://girls-night-out.blogspot.sg/2007/08/su-bandit.html">her</a> in my art-blog <a href="http://starfishstories.wordpress.com/2008/09/20/a-singapore-starfish-story-su-the-bandit/">here</a> and <a href="http://myrightbrain.wordpress.com/2009/12/29/song-fear-by-carrie-chan/">here</a>. My previous <a href="http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.sg/2013/09/interview-with-singapore-indie-band.html">musician-interview</a> somehow led me to wonder what my musical friend was doing lately in the creative space. I emailed Carrie to ask if she would be interested in an email interview. Here it is (maybe someday her kids would find this interesting):<br /><br />---<br /><br />[Rambling Librarian = RL]<br />[Carrie]<br /><br /><b>[RL] What were the five things that have happened, musically speaking, since this <a href="http://starfishstories.wordpress.com/2008/09/20/a-singapore-starfish-story-su-the-bandit/">2008 interview</a>?</b><br /><br />[Carrie] I have:<br /><ul><li>Performed <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aRFglcZU2Hk">in public for the first time</a> with the songcraft circle in 2009</li><li>Compiled a demo of 13 songs in 2010</li><li>Submitted <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrTezplzGPY&amp;feature=c4-overview&amp;list=UUc0l5dKEdd-avwg77Zyqlew">a song written on ukelele</a> for an NEA song competition in 2011</li></ul><br /><br /><b>[RL] I noticed your <a href="http://girls-night-out.blogspot.sg/2011/08/has-it-really-been-8-years-alix-never.html">last post on your blog</a> was dated 9th Aug 2011 (over two years as of this interview). Have you abandoned your blog? :) Why did you stop blogging?</b><br /><br />[Carrie] Blogging, like songwriting, brings you back to that spot of vulnerability where you are saying something private, to heal<br />yourself, with no audience in mind or anyone who would like to read. If a post or song makes that connection or a reader or listener responds, that is a bonus.<br /><br />I guess it takes a lot to dig deep and search yourself for the things which really matter; enough for you to express something creatively<br />about. Guess I've just been lazy about bringing myself to that spot of vulnerability and to dig deep to create an experience in words or<br />song. I used to blog or write songs late at night but lately, I crash out really early before 10 pm. Lao liao*!<br /><br />(*Dialect; meaning: "old already") <br /><br /><br /><b>[RL] Are you still making music? What are some of the new works you've done in the last two years?</b><br /><br />[Carrie] These are the recent works:<br /><ul><li>Love song for a vegetarian</li><li>Hide</li><li><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpeCr3bTdZA&amp;list=UUc0l5dKEdd-avwg77Zyqlew">Gabriel Garcia Marquez</a></li><li><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzeyraC3zgo&amp;list=UUc0l5dKEdd-avwg77Zyqlew">3 words</a></li></ul><br /><br /><b>[RL] I've always wondered if your family knows you've a blog and post music online. If the don't know, do you plan to tell them at some point? And do you see those pages as a legacy you're leaving for them?</b><br /><br />[Carrie] Yes, they know. I've made friends through these pages, and know them in real life now. I keep it for sentimental reasons, to archive and for enabling connections - gosh, that's how I go to know you!<br /><br /><br /><b>[RL] What keeps you busy these days?</b><br /><br />[Carrie] After work, which takes up most of my day, I try to squeeze in some exercise - run, swim or spinning. After that, I have an hour to run through homework with the kids. Then I crash out.<br /><br /><br /><b>[RL] What keeps you creative these days?</b><br /><br />[Carrie] I am hardly creative these days but if the inspiration hits me, I will pick up the guitar and sing about <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCUbMdN-sB4">potatoes and climbing up a volcano</a>.<br /><br />---<br /><br />Thanks for this interview, Carrie. Perhaps I'm biased but I really found it a fun interview to read. Love the potato song! For someone who was initially shy about letting the world know her real name, you sure have progressed and been prolific in your online appearances (I'm still chicken about performing in public).<br /><br />Incidentally, it would be awesome if Singapore TV programming had some documentary called "Singaporeans are Creative". I'm sure there are plenty of good reasons for creating such a series.<br /><br /><br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2013/11/email-interview-with-singaporean.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-2662111010986711889Mon, 21 Oct 2013 10:03:00 +00002013-10-22T11:15:43.781+08:00creative learningcreativitylearninglibrary eventmusicpublic librariesworkshop2013 workshop: Creating Digital Music 101: Using GarageBandThis is my "ECA"/ volunteer activity this year. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/10400215144/" title="2013 Creating Digital Music 101 - GarageBand by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3700/10400215144_c2fbf91f7f.jpg" width="285" height="378" alt="2013 Creating Digital Music 101 - GarageBand"></a><br /><br />From the <a href="http://golibrary.nlb.gov.sg/Programmes/Arts/50186/Creating_Digital_Music_101__Using_GarageBand.aspx">GoLibrary programme blurb</a>:<br /><blockquote><i>This programme will focus on the use of Apple's GarageBand, covering the basics of the software and how it can be used to unleash your creativity. If you are a beginner with no formal musical training and have not used any Digital Audio Workstation or software, this session is perfect for you. <br /><br />You should bring your own MacBook (preferably with version 11 of GarageBand). Participants should be familiar with using Mac OS X and above. Please bring along your own earphones. <br /><br />At the end of the session, you would have gained knowledge of GarageBand and learned the rudiments of using the software to create a music track of your own composition using built-in instruments and loops. <br /><br />Limited to 20 participants. The workshop is free but registration is required. Should the programme be fully registered and you would like to be placed on the waiting list, please email your name and contact number to Galvin_Soh@nlb.gov.sg with the programme title as the subject. <br /><br />This programme is part of the technological arts quarter (Oct - Dec) and is brought to you by "Fill Yourself with the Arts". Look out for exciting programmes during this period on the use of technology in the arts! <br /><br />About the trainer: <br />Mr Ivan Chew aka the “Rambling Librarian”, is a self-taught musician, amateur poet and artist, who has published five digital music albums together with his band Starfish Stories, all produced with GarageBand</i>.</blockquote><br /><a href="http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.sg/2012/11/post-workshop-notes-creating-digital.html">Last year's workshop</a> worked out quite well, judging from the feedback forms. That participants were totally serious about learning how to use GarageBand was something I appreciated a lot.<br /><br />I felt the only hitch was that most did not have their GarageBand loops installed before they came. We'll be informing registered users ahead of time (my colleague, Galvin, would be doing that actually -- he's the unsung hero behind the sessions). <br /><br />The decision to design the workshop for Mac users only was a practical one. There are several nice Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) software out there, for Windows and Macs. Just that Macs already come pre-installed with GarageBand, and quite a few people started buying Macs. <br /><br />I'm looking forward to conducting the session again. One bonus is that I'll have <a href="http://chinpen.net/">Chinmay Pendharkar</a> helping me at the workshop. I got to know Chinmay some years back and he's always been generous with his time in helping with Creative Commons Singapore meetups, among a lot of volunteer activities he's involved on top of his day job. I asked Chinmay if he'd like to help share his experience in producing his podcasts for <a href="http://www.tech65.org/">Tech65</a>. Plus, he's a trained Acoustician. <br /><br />Pictures from last year's session (courtesy of Galvin Soh):<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/10400200185/" title="Creating Digital Music 101: GarageBand, 10 Nov 2012 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5518/10400200185_55b41fb2d0_n.jpg" width="320" height="240" alt="Creating Digital Music 101: GarageBand, 10 Nov 2012"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/10400198085/" title="Creating Digital Music 101: GarageBand, 10 Nov 2012 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5505/10400198085_5464d9b5f6_n.jpg" width="320" height="240" alt="Creating Digital Music 101: GarageBand, 10 Nov 2012"></a><br /><br />The course outline, the same as <a href="http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.sg/2012/11/post-workshop-notes-creating-digital.html">last year's</a>, is re-posted here for ease of reference:<br /><br /><b>SCHEDULE<br />Hour 1: Getting to know GB; learning the basics.<br />Hour 2: Composing your own track/ Some ‘audio production’ tips.<br />Hour 3: Continue + Showcase.</b><br /><br />The no-frills outline:<br /><br /><i>Demo of a track composed in GB - 20mins<br />Musical concepts - “Bars”, “patterns”, “Even counts”<br />Layering concept - like photoshop<br /><br />Pair up - check with a “musical buddy for the day”<br /><br />Opening a new GB project (file names, tempo) <br />The GB environment and controls<br />File menu, add tracks, LCD, Loops, Instruments<br />Shortcut Keys - Copy, Paste, Undo, Redo, Zoom in/ Out<br /><br />Preferences panel<br /><br />Using loops to create music - 20mins<br />Change tempo<br />Drag loops into workspace<br />Copy<br />Extend loops<br />Edit - Split/ cut/ copy<br />Layers<br /><br />Instruments - 20mins<br />Experiment with different instruments<br />Musical Typing<br />Changing MIDI notes<br /><br />Individual Track controls<br />Effects (“i” Edit)<br /><br />Audio Production tweaks<br />Compressor<br />EQ<br /><br />Export<br />Share</i><br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2013/10/2013-workshop-creating-digital-music.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-7490181904211967880Sun, 22 Sep 2013 14:51:00 +00002013-09-22T23:05:49.392+08:00authorbook reviewsocial mediasocietystorytellingtechPre-release book review: Age of Context: Mobile, Sensors, Data and the Future of Privacy/ Robert Scoble & Shel IsraelIt was a privilege to be able to review a pre-release copy of Scoble's and <a href="http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.sg/search?q=Shel+Israel+">Israel's</a> latest book, Age of Context (AoC).<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1492348430/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1492348430&linkCode=as2&tag=seedsolightam-20"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=1492348430&Format=_SL160_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=seedsolightam-20" ></a><img src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=seedsolightam-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1492348430" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1492348430/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1492348430&linkCode=as2&tag=seedsolightam-20">Age of Context: Mobile, Sensors, Data and the Future of Privacy</a><img src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=seedsolightam-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1492348430" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" /><br /><br />This was what I posted at Amazon.com, leaving in an extra part that I edited out from the Amazon.com post:<br /><br />Reading this book was like reading about technological possibilities in Scifi stories. Except, the technologies are already here and in use. By millions of people like us. <br /><br />I reviewed a pre-release copy of the book, at a time where my mind was distacted by other stuff. Tackling over 270 pages of text wasn't at the top of my list. I was worried I wouldn't be able to read this carefully and give this a fair review. But I need not have worried. <br /><br />Scoble and Israel did not just write a book. They told stories. That's what I liked about this one. The opening chapter has a title "Storm's Coming". It sets the tone that this book unabashedly seeks to entertain and inform. <br /><br />A quote from their opening chapter: <b><i>"Our perfect storm is composed not of three forces, but five, and they are technological rather than meteorological: mobile devices, social media, big data, sensors and location-based services."</i></b><br /><br />Smart homes and apartments, smart appliances; contextual, wearable systems that know our location, our current activities, our up-to-date preferences. Personal Contextual Assistants (PCAs) that, less than a decade ago, we would call it them the stuff of Scifi and Fantasy magazines. <br /><br /><blockquote>Google Glass - how it works (but it stopped short of describing why some people feel that it works). <br /><br />How one NFL football team/ stadium is progressively implementing tech & data to anticipate customer purchase behavior. Save time for customer, faster sales, superior customer experience. <br /><br />These tech combos work, because we are creatures of habit. <br /><br />How a company like VinTank harnesses and analyses data from social media conversations to identify high value consumers. Using data for its own target marketing.<br /><br />Data from not just buying or consuming but merely showing an interest it, like touching/ viewing something. <br /><br />The automobile as a AoC device.<br /><br />How some branches of government are utilizing data, computer simulations, visualization technologies/ 3D models to increase the level of engagement with citizens. <br /><br />A sand grain-sized sensor the works with a skin patch to monitor the patient's condition.</blockquote><br />That quote from the opening chapter made me wonder, at first, if I would learn anything new. None of those terms were new to me, since I read a fair bit of Science fact and fiction. Besides, we already have our Apples and Samsungs. We are no strangers to wearing computing devices on us. So what would be new to me?<br /><br />Quite a bit. <br /><br />For example, I now see Map apps with greater insights now. Specifically, the motivations behind companies like Google and Apple in developing map services. And what is needed to make such services and apps work. <br /><br />One chapter discussed what the convergence will mean in terms of business and marketing. It suggests that the real business application would be in information arbitrage; micro-commissions for making real-time, context-specific business referrals to customers. <br /><br />Like the Scifi stories that I enjoy, Scoble and Israel are able to make me relate to how individuals and society reacts to, or are being affected by technology, consciously or otherwise. <br /><br />For example, most people will choose to drive the car themselves, even when they know the machine can execute instructions with greater precision and efficiency. Or the discomfort some individuals feel after discovering how third-party services have decided, without their permissions, to share personal information -- even if that sharing appears to be benign. <br /><br />The book comes across as a result of "pragmatic field research", presenting information and facts not in empirical terms but as stories. There are real names of companies and individuals. Some chapters go deep into the subject, while some chapters profiled an overview of the technologies and companies. I liked that alternating treatment, between depth and breadth.<br /><br />While the authors do not hide their bias towards the benefits that this convergence offers, they are not blind to potential pitfalls. The final chapter talks about how the companies, covered in the book, deal with personal data they collect. The authors talk about what they call "the sneaky stuff".<br /><br />Overall, the authors seek to assure readers that 'the storm is coming' but we're not entirely helpless.<br /><br /><b><i>"We hope you can use this book as a framework to understand the contextual developments that will take place over the next few years. We hope you take it in context and that it will help you adjust to the changes in your work and your life."</i></b><br /><br />I think this book would enable readers to have a greater awareness of what is happening the next time we receive alerts or recommendations from companies, or from our social networks, or when we use apps. Not that the companies are trying to be insidious (though one would have a greater awareness of how they could be). It is always useful to know how things work. When things break, we might be better prepared for it or at least understand why.<br /><br />I enjoyed the overview and insights to technologies being developed in the USA, which will inevitably spill over to the rest of the world. A few were obvious to me while a large number were not. <br /><br />The writing is crisp and the pages flow. The writing style reminded me of magazine articles like Nature, and Popular Mechanics: informative, entertaining, and accessible without dumbing down.<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2013/09/pre-release-book-review-age-of-context.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-8007600859798619983Tue, 10 Sep 2013 14:01:00 +00002013-09-11T16:17:28.474+08:00interviewmusicsingaporesingaporeansInterview with Singapore Indie band, Pitch Feather (Part 2)[From <a href="http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.sg/2013/09/interview-with-singapore-indie-band.html">Part 1</a>]<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9723889156/" title="Pitch Feather - FB page by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7283/9723889156_027ec2d9d0_n.jpg" width="320" height="156" alt="Pitch Feather - FB page"></a><br /><br /><b>[RL] I don't know of any other SG musicians who've done any "how to" videos. Are there more tutorials <a href="http://vimeo.com/71949630">like this</a> that the band plan to release?</b><br /><br />[PF] We might, but no promises. =P<br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="281" mozallowfullscreen="" src="//player.vimeo.com/video/71949630" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="390"></iframe> <br /><a href="http://vimeo.com/71949630">How To Write A Song</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/pitchfeather">Pitch Feather</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a><br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] Says <a href="http://www.linkedin.com/in/albertaleong">here</a> you're a freelance recording artist since 2007 So you didn't just "pop out" on the music scene here, obviously. Have you always wanted to be a singer?</b><br /><br />[PF] Yes! Since young, I always fantasized about being the lead singer of a band. I think I have found my voice in singing, and I feel that I’m able to express myself fully through music. Singing is like an emotional outlet for me. I’m quite a reserved person by nature, but singing allows me to be anybody I want to be for that moment.<br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] And you have a bakery. Is that your day job of sorts?</b><br /><br />[PF] You can say it’s my day job. I started <a href="http://www.yokebakery.com/">Yoke Bakery</a> about 4 years ago after I quitted my desk bound graphic design job. I didn't want to waste any of my youth. Being able to plan my own time gave me flexibility to pursue my dreams.<br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] You're trained as a graphic designer? Will you be doing your album illustrations? Do you have your visual art portfolio where we can take a glimpse?</b><br /><br />[PF] Yup, I’ll be designing our album art. In fact, some of the photographs you will see in the album are actually taken from my travels with Chuan, which made it extra meaningful.<br /><br />I do not have an online design portfolio; I’ve been inactive in the design world for quite a while now. Maybe I should get back to painting or something.<br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] This <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pitchfeather/posts/676967928985891">FB post</a> was interesting (some one posted a fan art). What's the best thing any fan has said/ written to you?&nbsp;</b><br /><br />[PF] One of our very supportive fan shared on Facebook that “<i>Each song is a treasure. Each song has its own charm and irresistible draw to listen again. Pitch Feather is a band of musical depth and talent that you don't find very often.</i>” That made me cry.<br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] Can you give your fans a glimpse of what songs the album would have? Please tell me <a href="https://soundcloud.com/pitchfeather/lonely-ivory-tower">Lonely Ivory Tower</a> and <a href="https://soundcloud.com/pitchfeather/painters-symphony">Painter's Symphony</a> will be in!</b><br /><br />[PF] It will be a 12 track full length album. So most of the original songs we have soft-released on SoundCloud will be included (of course Lonely Ivory Tower and Painter’s Symphony will be in :)<br /><br />There will be 2 brand new songs in the album that you have not heard, so do stay tuned!<br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] As I listened and read the blurb of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pitchfeather/posts/671000439582640">Dear Jake</a>, I thought, "Let's do a reverse and have Pitch Feather talk about your friends". Tell us about the friends/ family/ strangers -- anyone -- you'd like to share, memorable people whom you've encountered in your musical journey.</b><br /><br />[PF] Along our musical journey, we have collaborated with 4 guitarists in the making of this album. They have been really kind to offer their help and artistic input. It was great fun working with all of them. Each of them have a distinct style, so this album is really diverse - a mixture of different styles, and we’re really proud of it.<br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] You issued <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pitchfeather/posts/652817898067561">a call for guitarists</a>. How did that turn out? (I would have responded but my 'live' guitar skills are pretty sucky)</b><br /><br />[PF] The response was really good. We had a few guitarist recommendations and eventually had the opportunity to work with Daniel Sassoon (his wife referred him haha!).<br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] You <a href="https://www.facebook.com/alberta.leong/posts/10151507680157694">mentioned that</a> "the ride was rather bumpy" in producing Pitch Feather's debut album. How bumpy exactly?</b><br /><br />[PF] As you might already know, Pitch Feather is mainly driven by Chuan and me. We both have to juggle running our small businesses and producing our debut album. Music is very important to the both of us, and self-producing our album is number 1 on my bucket list.<br /><br />It is hard work handling almost every aspect of the musical project ourselves, from composing to recording to mixing to designing the album art and website etc. Setbacks along the way are inevitable. We try to make each of our creative output as good as possible, and sometimes that resulted in sleepless nights.<br /><br />This debut album is very special because we put our hearts, blood, tears and souls into it. Also, I'm super grateful for supportive friends who have helped us along the way.<br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] How old are the three of you?&nbsp;</b><br /><br />[PF] I’m 26, Chuan and Hongliang are 30.<br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] Soundbites from the three of you? Well, the 2 guys anyway.</b><br /><br />[PF] “Hi Ivan, thanks for doing the interview! Let’s meet up for coffee one day ;)” – Chuan<br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] What's the most romantic thing Chuan has done for you? :)</b><br /><br />[PF] He cooked porridge for me when I fell ill, if you consider that as romantic. Haha! He is a down-to-earth guy and shows his love through his caring ways. And that’s what I like about him. I value sincerity a lot.<br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] Finally, what other things would you like to add here?</b><br /><br />[PF] Thank you so much for this fun interview! It’s always nice to do interviews as I think they are great for self-reflection. Sometimes I can get so caught up with my goals that I forget to stop and enjoy all the things I have accomplished so far.<br /><br />* <br /><br /><b>[RL] Lastly, a fact check: do I credit Pitch Feather as follows?</b><br /><br /><ul><li><b>Alberta – Vocals, Keyboards, Melodica</b></li><li><b>Chuan – Basses, Guitars, Backing Vocals</b></li><li><b>Hongliang – Drums, Percussions</b></li></ul><br />[PF] You can address Pitch Feather as just Alberta, Chuan and Hongliang for now. We are trying to shake off the “roles”. Being in a DIY band is pretty much being versatile – we fill in any gaps however and whenever we can. It’s important, almost necessary, to be multi-talented multi-instrumentalists. :)<br /><br />*<br /><br />[Ivan here] Wow, what was I doing at 26 and 30? Definitely not running my own business, let alone do that and self-produce a music album. Pitch Feather is a really talented bunch of folks. I enjoyed doing that little bit of research on the band, and especially enjoyed the smart responses from Alberta. <br /><br />As I'm tidying up this blog post, the band has been off to Brisbane, Australia, to <a href="https://twitter.com/pitchfeather/status/375771918034407424">master their album</a>. <br /><br />Look forward to buying their album when it's out soon.<br /><br />Go visit their <a href="http://www.pitchfeather.com/">official band website</a>.<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2013/09/interview-with-singapore-indie-band_10.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-3162808591019805103Tue, 10 Sep 2013 14:00:00 +00002013-09-11T16:23:03.434+08:00creativityinterviewmusicsingaporesingaporeansInterview with Singapore Indie band, Pitch Feather (Part 1)I've been following a Singapore Indie band, <a href="http://www.pitchfeather.com/">Pitch Feather</a>, on <a href="https://soundcloud.com/pitchfeather/">SoundCloud</a> and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pitchfeather/">FaceBook</a>&nbsp;soon after they made their presence known in the Internet in late 2012. You might have heard of them too, when <a href="https://soundcloud.com/pitchfeather/one-singapore-ndp-2013-theme">their remix of the 2013 NDP song</a> went viral and busted their soundcloud download limit.<br /><br />A few weeks ago, I got in touch with them (their lead singer, specifically) <a href="https://twitter.com/pitchfeather">on Twitter</a>. They were game to do an email interview. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9682385653/" title="Pitch Feather - Cover by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="Pitch Feather - Cover" height="320" src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3789/9682385653_8753924bde_n.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><i>All Rights Reserved. Pitch Feather.</i><br /><br />I looked around the Internet to see what I can find about the band. It was soon obvious to me the band had been busy experimenting and planting themselves online (some of the social sharing platforms were new to me).<br /><br />Here's what I found: <a href="https://myspace.com/pitchfeather">MySpace</a> | <a href="http://www.soundclick.com/bands/default.cfm?bandID=1258924">SoundClick</a> | <a href="http://soundcloud.com/pitchfeather">SoundCloud</a> | <a href="http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Pitch_Feather/">FreeMusicArchive</a> | <a href="http://www.undergroundmusic.fm/artist/pitch-feather">Undergroundmusic</a> | <a href="http://www.reverbnation.com/pitchfeather">Reverbnation</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/pitchfeather">Twitter</a> | <a href="http://pitchfeather.bandcamp.com/">BandCamp</a> | <a href="http://heartthrobproject.com/pitch-feather-something-to-hide/">HeartthrobProject</a> | <a href="http://www.last.fm/user/pitchfeather?utm_expid=44142428-14.Ks4XHXyTR7iSqjDJDz0q0g.0&amp;utm_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com.sg%2F">LastFM</a> | <a href="http://www.beat100.com/watch-video/pitch-feather---crumble_16359/">Beat100</a> | <a href="http://www.soft.com.sg/forum/showthread.php?295736-Original-Pitch-Feather-Goodbye">Soft.com</a> | <a href="http://bandsoup.com/#/artistSongs?artistId=2240">BandSoup</a> | <a href="http://www.youtube.com/pitchfeather">YouTube</a><br /><br />Get them a Wikipedia page to complete the list!<br /><br />These earlier interviews have already covered their origins: <a href="http://5minutemusic.com/post/31246568422/under-the-radar-pitch-feather">5minutemusic.com</a> | <a href="http://pandarocketship.com/2013/05/23/listen-pitch-feather-elderflower-fall/">Pandarocketship.com</a> | <a href="http://www.seaindie.com/blog/?p=4781">SEAindie</a> | <a href="http://moshinmag.sg/artistes/journey-with-pitch-feather/">moshinmag.sg</a>. Rather than cover old ground, I thought to find out more of the personalities behind the band. I had more than 20 questions. Their lead singer, Alberta, was nice enough to answer almost all.<br /><br />Here's Part 1:<br /><br />[Rambling Librarian = RL]<br />[Pitch Feather = PF, answered by Alberta]<br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] Let me state what I found from your <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pitchfeather">Facebook Page</a> and published interviews:</b><br /><ul><li><b>You are a 3-person band: Alberta, Chuan, Hongliang.</b></li><li><b>Pitch Feather was formed in Nov 2011.</b></li><li><b>“Pitch” represents your music while “Feather” symbolises freedom. Pitch Feather is the search of freedom through your musical journey.</b></li><li><b>In the 2000s, before you were Pitch Feather, you were a band that played covers and called yourself "The Eggheads".</b></li></ul><br /><b>Question: why The Eggheads?</b><br /><br />[PF] That was ages ago and I can’t exactly recall why we chose that name then. But I do vaguely remember having a requirement of having “The” in the band name because we wanted a name in that vein – we loved bands like The Beatles, The Cardigans, The Eagles, The Smashing Pumpkins. It was cool. As for “Eggheads”, I think maybe we were trying to be comical. Haha!<br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] Looking at past interviews, relatively little was mentioned about the band's origin, way back to The Eggheads. So how did the three of you meet? And how did you end up forming The Eggheads?</b><br /><br />[PF] Chuan and I met about 7 years ago through a casual jam session with mutual friends. One day, the both of us decided to form a cover band for fun, so we pulled in our guitarist friend, Roy Soh (whom we also collaborated with for two of our current original tracks - “<a href="https://soundcloud.com/pitchfeather/usual-day">Usual Day</a>” and “<a href="https://soundcloud.com/pitchfeather/lonely-ivory-tower/">Lonely Ivory Tower</a>") and Hongliang on drums, who was Chuan’s friend from their teenage school days. For a short period of time, Hongliang’s then and now girlfriend, Ccube, stood in as our keyboardist.<br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] How the three of you got into the music scene back then, i.e. a band playing covers. Could you do a little reminiscing about the good old days?</b><br /><br />[PF] We were not very active in playing gigs. We wouldn't consider ourselves to be deep in the local music scene, although we did perform at random events when opportunities came. They were mostly school organised events (Hongliang was from NTU’s hall band community, so he had quite a lot of lobangs).<br /><br />I remember we had the chance to perform at The Army Half Marathon. Performing in front of marathon runners was quite refreshing.<br /><br />The most memorial gig we had as The Eggheads was probably at Home Club -– the legendary Joe Ng invited us over. The main highlight of that gig was a closing Metal Medley we put together, and the crowd loved it. Sweet memories.<br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] What's the musical background, including mixing and sound engineering, for Pitch Feather? Any formal musical training etc.?</b><br /><br />[PF] I’m mainly a self taught singer-songwriter. I have close to zero formal music training. At 15 I bought myself an acoustic guitar and attended a brief beginner’s guitar course that only taught basic chords, instead of music theory and individual notes.<br /><br />If you talk to me about music theory, I won’t be able to say very much, to be honest. I do think theory comes in very useful when communicating ideas with musicians, and I'm still learning by the day.<br /><br />Regardless, I don’t think anyone needs to be a theory expert to write good songs. Most of my musical know-how comes from feeling and intuition, probably a result of me intently listening to and studying music albums that I like since young.<br /><br />Chuan’s the main guy behind the mixing knobs. You can say he’s the most technical one among us. He didn't have much formal training in music too, but his hunger for knowledge is incredible. He reads about music theory and production techniques a lot, and I give him a lot of credit for making the songs come alive. Of course, the production is still a joint effort and we still contribute ideas and comments to the mix.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9682385613/" title="Pitch Feather - In the Studio by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="Pitch Feather - In the Studio" height="240" src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3740/9682385613_726a896226_n.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><i>All Rights Reserved. Pitch Feather.</i><br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] Chuan <a href="https://www.facebook.com/godchuanz/posts/10151788571862813">wrote about</a> the motivations for your adaptation of the NDP 2013 theme song. I thought it was fantastic publicity for Pitch Feather. You were featured at <a href="http://newnation.sg/tag/pitch-feather/">NewNation</a>, mentioned at blogs like <a href="http://blog.omy.sg/sgblogawards-finalists-2012/tag/pitch-feather/">this one</a>, even maxing out your Soundcloud download limit. What do you recall of that little episode? Did you get a sense there was a jump in the number of new fans/ mailing list subscribers?</b><br /><br />[PF] We were really excited to see an overwhelming response to our cover. And yeah, we did gain some new fans from it, which was encouraging.<br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] Did the guys appoint you as the social media manager? :) Does Pitch Feather have a social media strategy of sorts? How has the experience been, managing so many accounts, responding to fans etc.</b><br /><br />[PF] No, actually we each have our own roles to play. For example, I manage our Twitter and SoundCloud accounts and Facebook is managed mainly by Chuan. There are no strict boundaries, though. Each one of us is free to participate in any way we like – especially on Facebook where everyone has an account. We try to engage our follower/fans as much as we can.<br /><br /><i>[NOTE: RL - Pitch Feather is very prolific on the Internet and music social media sites, as far as I can tell. A Google keyword search for "Pitchfeather" showed like a ton of stuff about your band, I went as far as 40 search results listings and stopped there. Wouldn't be surprised if there were more.]</i><br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] Your track, <a href="https://soundcloud.com/pitchfeather/jolly-old-st-nicholas">Jolly Old St Nick</a>, seem to be your first <a href="http://creativecommons.org/">Creative Commons</a> licensed track (I blogged about it,&nbsp;<a href="http://creativecommonssingapore.wordpress.com/2012/11/19/cc-sg-adopter-pitch-feather">here</a>) Prior to this, you've had four All Rights Reserved tracks on your SoundCloud page. What's your approach/ thinking behind licensing your music online? Or specifically, would you adopt CC licenses as a way forward? Your thoughts?</b><br /><br />[PF] I think CC licenses are great, and we’d try to adopt CC whenever we can. For our originals, right now we still consider them to be “in production”, and wouldn't really want people to make remixes or go spread them around.<br /><br />In fact, even after the songs are fully mastered and finished with production, we’d have to consider carefully we want people freely download and share, so the songs from the album are probably going to be All Rights Reserved all the way. Regardless, we still like the CC licensing system, and would try to use it whenever we can.<br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] Says <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pitchfeather/posts/429032127139320">here</a> you're coding your own mailing list. Who's the IT geek/ coder in the band?</b><br /><br />[PF] Chuan. He was formally schooled as a computer engineer. He has a Bachelor’s degree with good honours from NUS, and runs a digital technology/marketing firm (<a href="http://www.techplusart.com/">Tech Plus Art</a>) with a few of his friends.<br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] Chuan seems to be a "closet rocker". I just had to point it out, since I'm partial to guitars and guitarists. LOL. What's the gear that Chuan uses?</b><br /><br />[PF] Chuan’s a metal head at heart! He brings a lot of metal influences into our music, and that’s also probably why we sometimes sound a bit different from normal “pop-rock”. You can hear a lot of minor keys and some “metal” chord voicings here and there. We’re a little bit like The Cardigans (my favourite band of all-time, by the way) – a pop band with a subtle metal twist. The guitarist is a metal head as well.<br /><br />By the way, those <a href="https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=677479788934705&amp;set=a.486974821318537.129408.389987154350638&amp;type=1">guitars</a> in the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=681249395224411&amp;set=a.390000804349273.111811.389987154350638&amp;type=1">picture</a>belong to the incredible, awe-inspiring Daniel Sassoon, whom we recently collaborated with for one of our more complicated songs that is yet to be released.<br /><br />*<br /><br /><b>[RL] I get a sense the three of you seem rather private. Even though you're prolific in social media, it's rather "business like", focusing on the music. Comments?</b><br /><br />[PF] Yup, you’re right, we’re rather private people. We enjoy being in our own private space, and don’t really crave public attention. Some people like to show off what they ate, what they did or saw on social media, and that’s cool, but that’s not who we are.<br /><br />We’re also mindful of the fact that irrelevant postings may put people off. For the random things in life, we have our own personal social media accounts.<br /><br />For Pitch Feather, we want to concentrate on sharing our musical creations and the production process. It’s a musical journey and we want our followers to be on it with us as much as possible.<br /><br />*<br /><br /><br /><b>[Read Part 2, <a href="http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.sg/2013/09/interview-with-singapore-indie-band_10.html">here</a>]</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2013/09/interview-with-singapore-indie-band.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-3190820607210727241Sun, 18 Aug 2013 13:30:00 +00002013-08-19T01:24:30.859+08:00IFLAwlic2013IFLA 2013: "Hello, may I help you?" #wlic2013"Where can I get spare printer cartridges?"<br /><br />"It's very busy out there... I need more people."<br /><br />"I'm tasked to assist the IFLA Secretary General... Nooo don't take my picture!"<br /><br />"A taxi uncle brought this back. Somebody left it in his taxi" (referring to a IFLA bag)<br /><br />"Where's the technician? I finally got someone to unlock the room!" <br /><br />"What's your role as a volunteer?"<br />"I'm a maid."<br />"A maid?"<br />"I look after (an VIP delegate)."<br /><br />"I'm sleepy. The delegate is sleepy..."<br /><br />"Waaaah! Uuuugh!"<br />(Exclamations and lamentations by some volunteers when told that the opening ceremony venue looked grand; their realisation that they have to man their posts.)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9537426123/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5518/9537426123_670ec3509e.jpg" width="395" /></a><br /><br />Volunteers are the lifeline of IFLA conferences. <br /><br />I dropped by the secret location of the IFLA volunteer HQ (just kidding about the secret location). It's normally out of bounds for delegates but my <a href="http://www.nlb.gov.sg/">NLB</a> colleagues let me in. <br /><br />I wanted to share a peek of what goes on behind the scenes. Obviously I'm barely scratching the surface. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9538858028/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7341/9538858028_cc808403ef.jpg" width="395" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9538848986/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" height="320" src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5529/9538848986_da990af59b_n.jpg" width="172" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9538850364/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" height="320" src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3728/9538850364_ce2667b175_n.jpg" width="173" /></a><br /><br />The official opening ceremony was about to start when I wrote this.<br /><br />3,500 delegates from 120 countries.<br /><br />I'm not sure how many volunteers were involved. <br /><br />Thank you to each one of you.<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2013/08/ifla-2013-hello-may-i-help-you-wlic2013.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-2134107095732573645Sun, 18 Aug 2013 04:30:00 +00002013-08-19T01:10:34.812+08:00IFLAwlic2013IFLA 2013: My Day-One #wlic2013Registration was a breeze. I'm wasn't sure if that was a setup particular to the <a href="http://www.suntecsingapore.com/">conference venue</a> (Suntec Convention &amp; Exhibition Centre). After registering, I just had one more step to do, which was to collect...<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9538867032/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" height="240" src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3692/9538867032_d0dd2bf3f6_m.jpg" width="180" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9536073529/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" height="240" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7380/9536073529_4236b00477_m.jpg" width="180" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9538864098/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" height="180" src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3753/9538864098_170ae5c901_m.jpg" width="240" /></a> <br /><br />...the official conference bag. Didn't look like the typical conference bag, did it? The only outward sign was a luggage tag with the conference logo. That was removable. The bag was sponsored by a home-grown fashion company, <a href="http://www.charleskeith.com/CK/about%20us">Charles &amp; Keith</a>. &nbsp;I <a href="https://twitter.com/ramblinglib/status/368910681296224257">tweeted</a> that it was probably the most talked-about conference bag in IFLA's history. I felt rather metrosexual carrying the bag around. Not complaining though.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9536066033/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" height="240" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7334/9536066033_1247802cb7_m.jpg" width="180" /></a><br /><br />The conference venue was a large one. Had to be. We were later told there were 3,500 delegates from 120 countries attending the conference.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9538854836/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" height="180" src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3786/9538854836_5a6f0e3b1f_m.jpg" width="240" /></a><br /><br />The opening ceremony opened with a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragon_dance">Dragon Dance</a>, featuring a souped up dragon in neon electric lights. I've seen plenty of Dragon Dances but never one with a jazzed up dragon like this. Two thumbs up.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9538846062/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" height="180" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7293/9538846062_13997c9d27_m.jpg" width="240" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9538847450/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" height="180" src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3830/9538847450_fd37765f09_m.jpg" width="240" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9538842192/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" height="180" src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5443/9538842192_5ba1dccaa6_m.jpg" width="240" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9536053463/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" height="180" src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3826/9536053463_5f46cec8e4_m.jpg" width="240" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9538835198/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" height="180" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7365/9538835198_d154d4e640_m.jpg" width="240" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9538833882/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" height="180" src="http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2847/9538833882_bcb3a936fe_m.jpg" width="240" /></a><br /><br />Next came a Malay-Chinese-Indian drums routine, ending with a short <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lion_dance">Lion Dance</a>. If I was told of such a routine without having watched it, I would have thought it a cliche. But it didn't feel that way. In the context of an event involving participants from all parts of the world, such a symbolic display of racial integration was quite appropriate (it's more than mere symbolism though; go read Bertha Henson's brilliant piece on what it means to be "<a href="http://berthahenson.wordpress.com/2013/08/17/i-am-in-singapore/">in Singapore</a>").<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9536050687/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" height="180" src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3690/9536050687_99572f5405_m.jpg" width="240" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9536049387/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" height="180" src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3810/9536049387_2b3fe8caf1_m.jpg" width="240" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9536045185/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" height="180" src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5448/9536045185_c4a50943e9_m.jpg" width="240" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9538831454/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" height="180" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7339/9538831454_15a7af3724_m.jpg" width="240" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9536042939/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" height="180" src="http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2820/9536042939_532a59ee76_m.jpg" width="240" /></a><br /><br />The speeches began next. <br /><br />I had to step out of the for a while. Saw a group of children preparing for the next routine.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9538829058/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" height="240" src="http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2845/9538829058_8065e26bab_m.jpg" width="180" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9538827172/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" height="180" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7429/9538827172_d0d9006152_m.jpg" width="240" /></a><br /><br />There's something special about a gathering of like-minded people. You just had to be there.<br /><br />I thought the conference was off to a great start.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9538868654/" title="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="IFLA World Library &amp; Information Conference 2013" height="180" src="http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2894/9538868654_12bd96be80_m.jpg" width="240" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2013/08/ifla-2013-my-day-one-wlic2013.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-8829572437180834157Wed, 14 Aug 2013 13:47:00 +00002013-08-16T08:57:57.015+08:00conferenceIFLAwlic2013IFLA 2013: Some links to help the first-time visitor to Singapore #wlic2013The last time I blogged about <a href="http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.sg/search/label/IFLA">IFLA</a> 2013 was <a href="http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.sg/2011/08/singapore-wins-bid-to-host-2013-ifla.html">almost two years ago</a>.<br><br>So it's finally here.<br><br>If you're like me, attending an event in an unfamiliar country, you would have questions like "How do I get around?", "Where to buy food?", "How much should I budget on a daily basis?", or "What to wear?"<br><br>And, if you also procrastinate like me, you might not bother to find out about local information until the very last minute. But then you might not do so because because your presentation is still not fully done and you're deep into panic mode LOL.<br><br>So I thought to share quick links to practical information, for the last minute prep.<br><br><b>General practical information</b><br>The <a href="http://www.lonelyplanet.com/singapore/practical-information/money-costs">LonelyPlanet</a> site has practical information. I like <a href="http://www.frommers.com/destinations/singapore/0077020157.html">Frommer's</a> better, as it has more details. I didn't verify all information on prices but the amounts wouldn't change that drastically. At the very least, you should know there's a cost.<br><br><br><b>Power socket and supply</b><br>Singapore uses the <a href="http://www.adaptelec.com/index.php?main_page=document_general_info&amp;products_id=222">'Type G' British design</a>. A universal adaptor socket would usually do the trick. The voltage is 220-240 volts, so you might want to check your equipment specs. Although I've never heard of any overseas visitors having their gadgets being fried by plugging in.<br><br><br><b>Internet Access</b><br>Most hotels should have WIFI. I'm not too sure if it's all free. There's always Starbucks and MacDonalds. <br><br><br><b>Maps: websites and apps</b><br>I recommend <a href="http://gothere.sg">Gothere.sg</a>. As a local, I use it myself. The site loads fast. I've found the information reliable. You can find out how to walk to places, in addition to taking the MRT system, public buses, taxis and private cars.<br><br>If you have an iPhone, you can consider the free <a href="http://gothere.sg/">Singapore Maps app</a> from Apple Store.<br><br>This is the <a href="http://www.smrt.com.sg/Trains/NetworkMap.aspx">map of the MRT</a>, i.e. public train system.<br><br><br><b>Weather</b><br>I refer to <a href="http://app2.nea.gov.sg/weather-climate/forecasts/3-hour-nowcast">this site</a> (from the National Environment Agency) all the time. You'll probably be staying in a hotel near the conference venue, so look for the square box that says "city".<br><br><br><b>Public toilets</b><br>Vast majority are free to use. You can find them in shopping malls. Plenty of public toilets, in reasonably clean condition, within walking distance.<br><br><br><b>Customs</b><br>I'm pretty sure librarians and information professionals will find they aren't going worry about the prohibited stuff (scroll to the bottom of <a href="http://www.customs.gov.sg/leftNav/trav/Controlled+and+Prohibited+Goods.htm">this page</a>). Information <a href="http://www.customs.gov.sg/leftNav/trav/Customs+Guide+for+Travellers.htm">on this page</a>, from the Singapore Customs, would also be useful.<br><br><br>-----<br><br>Singapore is a tourist-friendly place. I dare say most delegates can get by for the duration of the conference without too much planning. If you have your plane tickets, passport, credit card and some cash, you're good to go. <br><br>Oh, <b>don't forget to bring a copy of your IFLA conference confirmation email</b>. You would also have checked out the official <a href="http://conference.ifla.org/ifla79">IFLA WILC 2013</a> site.<br><br><br>The last time I attended a IFLA conference (more accurately, the IFLA World Library and Information Congress) was five years ago, in 2008. Had the privilege of attending IFLA in the years I served as the Information Officer for the <a href="http://www.ifla.org/publications/libraries-for-children-and-young-adults-section-newsletter">Libraries for Children and Young Adults Section</a>.<br><br>Preparing for a conference trip can often have anxiety-filled moments. I hope this post would be of some help.<br><br>See you at the conference.<br><br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9516129370/" title="Logo: IFLA World Library and Information Congress 79th IFLA General Conference and Assembly by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2831/9516129370_c0772044b2_t.jpg" width="100" height="68" alt="Logo: IFLA World Library and Information Congress 79th IFLA General Conference and Assembly"></a><br><br><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2013/08/ifla-2013-some-links-to-help-first-time.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-1972368956183021860Sat, 10 Aug 2013 17:52:00 +00002013-08-11T17:32:49.678+08:00artscollaborationcollaborative musiccreativityinterviewmusicInterview with a Contemporary Fusion musician: Tze<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9476126503/" title="2011 Results - The UK Songwriting Contest by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3826/9476126503_d86ee30066.jpg" width="101" height="500" align="left" hspace="10" style="border-style: none" alt="2011 Results - The UK Songwriting Contest"></a>Some years back, I got to know a Singaporean musician and composer from a <a href="http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.sg/2007/07/plug-for-songcraft-songwriting-circle.html">songwriting meetup</a>. Back then, I didn't really know what he did. But he seemed to know a lot about music. <br /><br />Then I gradually found out that <a href="http://www.tzetoh.com/tzetoh/Welcome.html">Tze Toh</a> (or Tze, as he likes people to call him), was an award-winning composer (first prize in the 2011 UK Songwriting contest, Instrumental category).<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9478898500/" title="2011 Results - The UK Songwriting Contest by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7390/9478898500_f8c13c5602_m.jpg" width="240" height="69" alt="2011 Results - The UK Songwriting Contest"></a> <br /><br />In one of our occasional online conversation, he shared a long term vision of forming his own orchestra. Pretty grand goals and it sounded immensely difficult.<br /><br />It wasn't all talk and no action.<br /><br />Last year, he put up a concert. With an ensemble! <br /><br />I bought a ticket and spent an enjoyable evening, at a musical show that was thoughtfully put together. Tze's music is a blend of jazz, with the piano and/ or asian-based instruments as centrepieces. That's my interpretation anyway. <br /><br />Tze calls his music "contemporary fusion" with a blend of "film score, jazz, Indian, Chinese and European classical music". If you've not heard his music before, here's a taster from his 2012 "Tze n Looking Glass: Return to wonderland" trailer video:<br /><iframe width="395" height="222" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/vtFlTaq57UA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br />Since his ensemble concert last year, Tze has put up one more show in early 2013. He's pretty prolific, for his third show is coming up just a few weeks from now, in September 2013. <br /><br />He agreed to an email interview, so here it is:<br /><br /><blockquote><b>Q: Fusion Jazz isn't entirely new. So what's unique about your music?</b> <br />The orchestra improvises as well. So each musician infuses their own vision and ideas. I feel that is the one truly unique thing about our orchestra - an ensemble where everyone has a his/her own voice. <br /><br />[<i>Ivan here: Folks, I'll let that sink in -- an ensemble that improvises. Not easy!</i>]<br /><br /><br /><b>Q: What sort of audience would you like to have at your concert?</b><br />I think our music have a broad appeal - from fans of jazz, classical, film music, world music (even some Jay-chou fans and people who don't usually listen to music!). We would like to have people who want to truly experience a journey, and listen to our stories. We always hope that the audience takes something home with them after the concert, hopefully a bit of inspiration, a smile, or a positive feeling that life is beautiful and will get better<br /><br /><br /><b>Q: For someone new to your work, can you give them a flavour of what to expect at your show?</b><br />Here's a 28min recording of highlights from the "Wonderland 2012" Concert <br /><br />[<i>Ivan here: One of my favourite songs from Tze's 2012 concert were the ones with the Indian Raga flavour, like this one <a href="http://youtu.be/_jD8A4m5tXo?t=4m17s">that starts from 4min 17sec</a></i>] <br /><br /><iframe width="395" height="222" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/_jD8A4m5tXo?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br /><br /><b>Q: What would you say to someone who ask, "Why should I attend?"</b><br />Haha. Because you may hear something not often heard. Different musical languages -- be it Jazz, Classical or Asian traditional sounds -- coming together to create new tapestries and soundscapes. Like how the Indian violin blends with bebop jazz saxophone like the coming of rain; the entire orchestra improvising collectively to sound like a forest coming alive; the acoustic bass sounding like a growling mythical giant that grows and pushes Heaven and Earth apart.<br /><br /><br /><b>Q: What goes on in your mind each time you prepare for a concert.</b><br />There's a lot of thought that goes into the conceptualization of each concert. I think the big question is always, "Why?". <br /><br />Why are we doing this concert, and why are we writing and creating this new music? <br /><br />Then comes the questions of "What do we want to explore and say with this music"? And "How do we say it?"; how to express what we want to using the instruments, melodies, harmonies, scales, sounds etc. <br /><br />There's many aspects to concert preparation, whether it's the technical, or the mental. Technical issues are straight-forward to solve, e.g. playing and rehearsing, working on details of music, but the mental side is tricky sometimes, because you need the musicians to understand what the concert/music is about, and to understand where it all comes from, in order to realise your vision. Often to understand something in depth, one needs to have gain certain experiences in life and it's hard sometimes, for say, younger musicians, concerning certain themes and issues. <br /><br /><br /><b>Q: What goes on after?</b><br />Usually after concerts, there's the (self) evaluation part, and some sort of celebration :) But mostly it's about just taking our minds off the music. It's intense, preparing for a concert. Because you eat, sleep and breath the music for a month or two. Your mind is never away from the music - always thinking, conceptualizing every day, while you are taking the bus/train, walking, having meals etc. The mind doesn't stop working. So after the concert you have to slow down gradually for a week, up to a month, before your brain learns to relax again. <br /><br /><br /><b>Q: Your shows are often accompanied by write-ups that describe the concepts behind your work. What's your musical philosophy?</b><br />I think it's important for every concert to have an essence. For me, each concert is about discovering something. There is something inside of us that we often need to express, discover/ re-discover. I think music itself is a very interesting way of looking at the world around us, and also discovering what it means to be a sentient being; what humanity means. The expression of music itself is our way of sharing with the audience how we connect with the world around us. And how as musicians we connect with each other, to create this bond and special "place/journey". <br /><br />Every imagery, idea in your head has its musical equivalent. I see myself as a sonic painter, creating each piece as a means for audience to experience this world which I imagined. <br /><br /><br /><b>Q: Tell us more about your coming concert in Sept 2013.</b><br />In this upcoming concert, "The Longest Dream", we explore our perceptions of time/space, reality and dreams. Much of the music is inspired by Asian mythologies of creation like Pan Gu (盘古), as well as breakthroughs in Quantum physics like the discovery of the Higgs Boson. I think it's fascinating how science, mythology and philosophy have common themes. <br /><br />It features original music that I wrote, with new works inspired by the music of Ryuichi Sakamoto, Ennio Morricone, Keith Jarrett quartet, E.S.T trio, Ravel and Debussy.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9475957603/" title="The Longest Dream - 2013 concert poster by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5474/9475957603_fd00539695_n.jpg" width="236" height="320" alt="The Longest Dream - 2013 concert poster"></a><br /><br />The concert will feature the following soloists: Lazar T.Sebastine (Indian violin), Teo Boon Chye (saxophone), Joyce Poh (Chinese flute), Julian Li Yongrui (acoustic bass), Wendy Phua (e.bass), Thirunalini Balakumaran (dance). <br /><br />Audience can have a post-show dialogue with the artists after the concert.</blockquote><br />----------<br /><br />The concert is on 5 Sept 2013, 7.30pm, at the Esplanade Recital Studio. If you're interested in tickets, they are priced at $30 each. Tze says there's a package price of $90 for a set of four tickets. Students get concessions prices at $18. There's an Early Bird price of $25 if you buy before 12th Aug 2013.<br /><br />Tickets are at <a href="http://www.ticketmash.sg/thelongestdream">www.ticketmash.sg/thelongestdream</a> (note: A TICKETMASH booking fee applies for each ticket. Latecomers will only be admitted at suitable breaks. No admission of infant-in-arms and children below 6 years).<br /><br />[UPDATE: Tze tells me tickets are also on sale on the day itself, outside the recital studio]<br /><br />You can find out more about Tze and his orchestra at these pages:<br />Facebook: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/tzetoh">www.facebook.com/tzetoh</a><br />Official site: <a href="http://www.TLGOsingapore.com">www.TLGOsingapore.com</a><br /><br />Tze can be reached at tze.music@gmail.com. I'm sure he would love to know what you think of his show.<br /><br />p.s. I'm asking a few friends if they want to attend this show with me.<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2013/08/interview-with-contemporary-fusion.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-6454300374306398677Tue, 06 Aug 2013 13:01:00 +00002013-08-07T11:10:33.502+08:00exhibitionnational librarynational projectNLBSMPThe launch of "Hands: Gift of a Generation" exhibition, 6 Aug 2013Several of my colleagues at the National Library have been hard at work for the past few months, working towards this exhibition. The appointed exhibition vendor started the onsite set up slightly more than a week ago. It all came together for today's official launch (6 Aug 2013) of the "<a href="http://www.iremember.sg/index.php/2013/08/01/hands-gift-of-a-generation/">Hands: Gift of a Generation</a>" exhibition.<br><br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9447990589/" title="IMG_5722 Hands exhibtion by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3670/9447990589_a8745f555d.jpg" width="395" alt="IMG_5722 Hands exhibtion"></a><br><br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9447988263/" title="IMG_5723 hands exhibition by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5341/9447988263_9dc7977a67_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="IMG_5723 hands exhibition"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9447989533/" title="IMG_5694 launch by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7409/9447989533_c685eff079_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="IMG_5694 launch"></a><br><br>The two old couple were guests. I was told each was over 100 years old. The woman was featured in the exhibition's Gallery. More about her later.<br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9450771092/" title="IMG_5685 registration by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3791/9450771092_ed1a00aabe_n.jpg" width="240" height="320" alt="IMG_5685 registration"></a><br><br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9450772440/" title="IMG_5711 launch by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7376/9450772440_0b4d5ba606_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="IMG_5711 launch"></a><br><br><br><b>The Gallery</b><br>There were 30 Singaporeans specially interviewed for the Gallery. Having lived through the nation-building years (generally taken as 1965 to 1970s), their individual memories had the touch of familiarity and distance all combined. My colleagues did a nice job shortlisting the interviewees. A few interviewees have achieved national fame at some point. But most are ordinary folks, in the sense they could have been our parents or grandparents. Or you and I.&nbsp;<br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9450773408/" title="IMG_5686 the gallery by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3701/9450773408_aba1675d85_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="IMG_5686 the gallery"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9450774204/" title="IMG_5703 gallery by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7323/9450774204_1a0771f466_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="IMG_5703 gallery"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9447992379/" title="IMG_5689 Hands Exhibition by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3822/9447992379_a3ba5011bf_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="IMG_5689 Hands Exhibition"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9447993761/" title="IMG_5706 gallery by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5463/9447993761_16981c701f_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="IMG_5706 gallery"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9447996233/" title="IMG_5697 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5517/9447996233_98790dc58c_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="IMG_5697"></a><br><br><br>Here's the old couple I mentioned at the start of the post. The old woman was Madam Lim Beak. With her was her husband. I was told both were Centenarians. They looked amazingly fit for their age. <br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9450775318/" title="IMG_5701 lim beak by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5527/9450775318_2f522b4fd3_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="IMG_5701 lim beak"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9450775768/" title="IMG_5700 lim beak by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2869/9450775768_de7d319943_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="IMG_5700 lim beak"></a> <br><br>Reading her story, I learned that both Madam Lim and her husband were natives of Fujian, China. Madam Lim was born in 1908 and came to Singapore when she was 34 years old (around 1942). Her husband had come to Singapore years earlier, in 1939, to escape conscription (into the Nationalist army, I suppose). It was fascinating to read how she and her husband went about making a living in those early days in Singapore. Sounded like tough times.&nbsp;<br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9450885244/" title="IMG_5751 lim beak by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3678/9450885244_1b4b563621_n.jpg" width="320" height="240" alt="IMG_5751 lim beak"></a><br><br>More of her story will appear in the papers soon, I think. She was interviewed by journalists who were at &nbsp;the launch.<br><br><br><b>The Remembering Room</b><br>This was the central structure of the whole exhibit. If you have contributed your stories to <a href="http://SingaporeMemory.Sg">SingaporeMemory.Sg</a>, you might find yours being projected on the wall. <br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9447994857/" title="IMG_5707 remembering room by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3822/9447994857_3ee29c3858.jpg" width="395" alt="IMG_5707 remembering room"></a><br><br>Visitors could tap on the lightbox interfaces to search and browse memories, drawn from what has been contributed to the Singapore Memory Project so far. <br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9447995267/" title="IMG_5692 remembering room by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2865/9447995267_cc4c29018e_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="IMG_5692 remembering room"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9447994127/" title="IMG_5691 the remembering room by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3771/9447994127_f87491e20f_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="IMG_5691 the remembering room"></a><br><br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9447995781/" title="IMG_5693 remembering room by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7433/9447995781_c2714a9649_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="IMG_5693 remembering room"></a><br><br><br><b>The Memory Table</b><br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9450779794/" title="IMG_5699 memory table by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5511/9450779794_fa23fc4399_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="IMG_5699 memory table"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9447997047/" title="IMG_5698 memory table by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5528/9447997047_bcc1ab12ab_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="IMG_5698 memory table"></a><br><br>That was the area where you write your memories down (on a sheet provided), then walk over to the scanner to digitise the sheet. The scanner was activated by placing your hand over the surface. <br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9450778980/" title="IMG_5725 memory table by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5457/9450778980_c75f950c72_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="IMG_5725 memory table"></a><br><br><br><b>The Memory Recorder</b><br>For those who wish to contribute their memories via video or audio, check out the Memory Recorder. It's an enclosed space where you can record yourself or interview a friend.<br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9450780218/" title="IMG_5687 the memory recorder by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5544/9450780218_7b5e49caa0_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="IMG_5687 the memory recorder"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9450780620/" title="IMG_5702 memory recorder by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2807/9450780620_a238095322_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="IMG_5702 memory recorder"></a><br><br><br><b>The Memory Pool</b><br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9447999055/" title="IMG_5743 memory pool by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5441/9447999055_050ec0018f.jpg" width="395" alt="IMG_5743 memory pool"></a><br><br>This part was designed with the kids in mind. On the walls were mobile phone-sized touchscreens, where visitors could digitally pen or sketch something. Submitting the memory was a matter of covering up the touchscreen with your hand. <br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9447999791/" title="IMG_5714 the memory pool by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7289/9447999791_982104fc69_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="IMG_5714 the memory pool"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9450780952/" title="IMG_5696 the memory pool by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3684/9450780952_f66f18bc85_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="IMG_5696 the memory pool"></a><br><br>Then the 'memories' will appear in the 'light pool'. You could try scooping up whatever that has been submitted with your hands to take a closer look.<br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9447999995/" title="IMG_5716 the memory pool by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3796/9447999995_3c20e3104c_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="IMG_5716 the memory pool"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9450781660/" title="IMG_5695 the memory pool by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5327/9450781660_187cd53219_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="IMG_5695 the memory pool"></a><br><br><br><b>Mementos for guests </b><br>Guests received a programme brochure and also a special edition <a href="http://www.kalkitos.sg/">Kalkitos</a> game.<br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9448000655/" title="IMG_5708 launch by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2847/9448000655_2dd45b52eb_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="IMG_5708 launch"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9450783600/" title="IMG_5709 launch by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3717/9450783600_9ae3d3d2d1_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="IMG_5709 launch"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9450782828/" title="IMG_5710 launch by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3722/9450782828_0570c272a4_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="IMG_5710 launch"></a><br><br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9450783850/" title="IMG_5732 launch by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2860/9450783850_9c80eec33e_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="IMG_5732 launch"></a><br><br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9447989059/" title="IMG_5705 launch by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7375/9447989059_f370216e0f_n.jpg" width="320" height="240" alt="IMG_5705 launch"></a><br><br>The exhibition, organised by the Singapore Memory Project, would be open to the public on 7 Aug. It would be on till 13 Aug 2013 at The Plaza, National Library building. There would also be&nbsp;<a href="http://golibrary.nlb.gov.sg/programme/Singapore.aspx">programmes</a> organised in conjunction with the exhibition.<br><br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9450784458/" title="IMG_5738 Hands Exhibition by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7423/9450784458_2828c2ff07.jpg" width="395" alt="IMG_5738 Hands Exhibition"></a><br><br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9448036605/" title="IMG_5688 main Hands by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7312/9448036605_7d7a827e54.jpg" width="395" alt="IMG_5688 main Hands"></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2013/08/the-launch-of-hands-gift-of-generation.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-1276381601585620466Thu, 25 Jul 2013 07:56:00 +00002013-07-25T16:03:18.581+08:00authorbook reviewbookswomenBook review: Love! Live Dangerously! And Have Fun!: a mother's lessons on love, hope, loss and the gifts of lifeThis one came in the mail for me to review. The book, targeted at young female readers, was easy to read. The tone and style was very personable.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9364395282/" title="Book review: Love! Live Dangerously! And Have Fun!: a mother's lessons on love, hope, loss and the gifts of life by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="Book review: Love! Live Dangerously! And Have Fun!: a mother's lessons on love, hope, loss and the gifts of life" height="240" src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3706/9364395282_3354263ee2_m.jpg" width="160" /></a><br /><i>Cover from: <a href="http://catherinekhoo.wordpress.com/2013/07/03/write-your-own-inspirational-bestseller/">catherinekhoo.wordpress.com</a>. All Rights Reserved.</i><br /><br />My take-away from the book:<br /><blockquote><b>Crap will happen to anyone and everyone, at some point. No one is immune. The difference is how we choose to carry on.<br /><br />Taking risks doesn't always mean we will come up tops. But it also doesn't mean we will always fail.<br /><br />Exercise compassion. Life is not just about 'me'.</b></blockquote><br />Not entirely the way the author described, but I think not too far from it. <br /><br />The author shared selective episodes from her life, explaining how she realised that one should love and take risks in life.<br /><br />Right off the start, I sensed this was a woman who did not conform to conventional thinking, even as a teenager. Her mother had forbidden her to go on dates, and that the young Catherine should only focus on her studies. But she dated the boy anyway, even initiating the courtship rather than wait for him to act. The consequence was that her studies were affected, and so did the boy's.<br /><br />Before you wonder what sort of message the author is imposing on young impressionable minds, the truth is that many of our friends (perhaps you and I) went through the same, in different degrees. There may be more 'teen rebels' among us than we care to acknowledge.<br /><br />The key difference, I thought, was that a person like Catherine Khoo consistently applied her optimistic outlook towards life.<br /><br />She wrote in <a href="http://catherinekhoo.wordpress.com/2013/07/03/if-you-dont-try-you-will-never-know/">another of her blog</a>:<br /><blockquote>... I’ve lived this maxim since I was a teenager … and strange enough, it applies so much more as I grow older. Sure, sometimes I jump in without thinking of the consequences, and I fail, but how many times have I brushed off the blood and dust and moved on? Think of it this way, at least I figured out another way not to do it! Truth be told, though...I love this journey</blockquote><br />Can we truly have a happy life just by living our dreams? <br /><br />Cynics may say that there are those who have tried to do just that, and they end up being decrepit and miserable. <br /><br />Perhaps in anticipation of that, the author peppers her anecdotes about seeing life optimistically.<br /><br />Part of her credibility arose from her managing and growing her own business. I think it takes a feisty no-nonsense approach to do that, in addition to being a mother, a wife, and a daughter-in-law. If that's not enough, try starting a <a href="http://www.catherinekhoo.sg/awards/">writing scheme for teens</a>.<br /><br />I did not think the author suggests that one should one up-end our lives and gallivant halfway around the world. You get a sense that risk-taking has to be tempered with an underlying sense of responsibility first.<br /><br />Still, I would not have done some of the things she did, no matter what you tell me. For example, her episode with the illegal taxi ride in a foreign country, where she almost became a victim of a robbery. If I learnt my wife/ mother/ sister did just that (accept rides from strangers), I would be very, very angry. It seemed reckless. <br /><br />For the most part, I empathised with her stories. Like how she walked out on her husband one time, feeling that she was being unfairly put down by her spouse. As a husband myself, it made me reflect on my words and deeds towards my wife.<br /><br />One thing I felt the book fell short was that flow of the chapters can appear to be disjointed at times -- though this could be said to be the online-diary writing style. Also, I was left with the impression that there could have been a lot more interesting stuff to be told, but weren't. <br /><br />I would have wanted to read more was her trials and tribulations in starting and sustaining the Young Authors Club, for one. What went through her mind when she was asked to set up the club? Did she see a business opportunity first, or the social cause?<br /><br />So, here are a few things that I would be interested in reading, perhaps in her next book:<br /><ul><li>Stories, as told by other woman, whom she met along the way.</li><li>Interesting stories of the children and teens whom she have met, through the club she set up.</li><li>The challenges in running a business, never mind being a businesswoman.</li><li>What was it really like when she "shattered the traditional Japanese male enclave when she became the only woman editor-in-chief of two Japan-based magazines published in Singapore, a position she held for seven years" (see this).</li></ul><br />Overall, this would make a good book discussion for teens. Or among teens and parents (I guess the teens would have to be forced to attend such a session, lol).<br /><br />In a practical and pragmatic society like Singapore, some parents will not agree with the premise behind her book's title. The call to "love and live dangerously" was something that goes against conventional thinking when I was growing up, and in a way it's still very much the covert values most of us go by.<br /><br />This was Catherine Khoo's fourth book. It is currently available at major bookstores here, like MPH, Kinokuniya, and Times Bookshop.<br /><br />Her books are also available at the NLB libraries.<br /><br />Catherine also blogs at <a href="http://www.catherinekhoo.sg/the-meaning-of-education/">www.catherinekhoo.sg/the-meaning-of-education</a>.<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2013/07/book-review-love-live-dangerously-and.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-9152580373400668573Sun, 14 Jul 2013 04:34:00 +00002013-07-14T12:47:26.723+08:00authorgraphic novel reviewInterview with the artist/ writer: "Jack Doe: Anonymous"[Earlier post: <a href="http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.sg/2013/07/graphic-novel-review-jack-doe-anonymous.html">Graphic novel review - Jack Doe: Anonymous</a>]<br /><br />This post is two years late.<br /><br />In 2011, after I blogged about the graphic novel, the author/ artist, Shawn Yap, found my post and left this comment: <br /><blockquote>Hi Ivan! Shawn Yap here! Thanks for the review and feedback! My team and I appreciate it alot! I do have a second book out though – “Closets” (unrelated to Jack Doe though), if you happen to read that, let me know what you think.</blockquote><br />That led to an email correspondence, where Shawn agreed to an email interview. The interview took a while because Shawn was busy at that time. And then I got busy and procrastination took over. I never published the interview. <br /><br />I kept his emails in my inbox as a reminder. This week I finally got off my procrastinating behind, went to Shawn's website to find out what he's been up to (he's got a Facebook page now), then got in touch with him again to ask if he had any updates.<br /><br />He did. And here's the interview with 2013 updates:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9282209782/" title="Shawn Yap - www.shawnyap.net by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3810/9282209782_a679e06736_n.jpg" width="320" height="173" alt="Shawn Yap - www.shawnyap.net"></a><br /><br /><blockquote>[In 2011]<br /><b>Q: How did 'Jack Doe' get started? I'm aware that it was part of the MDA First Time Publisher initiative. And that you had other collaborators like Gabriel Chua, Nathan Peng, Daniel Barrett Lee, Xander Lee, Regina Lee, Amanda Yap, Beryl Kwok.</b><br /><br />It's quite a funny story actually. I had absolutely no idea of the First Time Publisher Initiative until my mother told me about it, after reading about it on the newspapers. <br /><br />I was still serving my NS in the Navy at the time, and the deadline were about less than a week away, if I remember. <br /><br />It was quite a rush to come up with a story for the pitch, so there was many stories I penned down and came up with while in camp. I ran the ideas through Daniel, who was my close friend from my BMT, and there was a lot of back and forth and eventually it led to "Jack Doe". I sent the draft out and we got the pitch. <br /><br />From there I got a team to work on the project together with me: Daniel, of course; Gabe - who wrote most of the great script in the book; Nathan - who was a major blessing, script-wise, in the later chapters; Xander - who came up with the amazing cover concept; Regina, Beryl and my younger sister, Amanda, who provided help in the coloring/toning department for the covers and the main story.<br /><br /><b>2) Could you share some insights into the process of making "Jack Doe"? As a reader looking at the final product, I'm curious as to some of the thought processes and physical work involved.</b><br />Oh, it was a really long process! <br /><br />But thankfully I wrote out most of the story before approaching Gabe, Nathan and Daniel with it, from there we had quite a lot of ideas and stuff thrown around to really spice up the story. The story evolved a little here and there while we were releasing it in issues, and that, while scary, was actually quite exciting because it still had room to grow and breathe. <br /><br />The team hardly had time to meet altogether though, so it was always only 1 or 2 of us at a time. <br /><br />The work itself, art-wise, was really one of the more taxing aspects of the book, due to deadlines and schedules. I was really thankful for the help I got from the colorists! I was really thankful for the prompt work on the script from the writers. Really helped to speed stuff up! :) I was also really grateful for the additional time given to improve on the trade paperback, there were quite a few improvements made from the story published in M.U.G.E.N.<br /><br /><br /><b>3) I read from the blurb that Jack Doe contains six chapters published in M.U.G.E.N. I've to profess my ignorance about M.U.G.E.N. Isn't M.U.G.E.N a game? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M.U.G.E.N</b><br /><br />Ah...It is! Well...I mean it is both the name of a game and a comic anthology (and a car modification company as well if i'm not wrong). I think the publishers didnt realise that when they came up with the name, but I guess the association helped us a little (well it worked both ways, haha).<br /><br /><br /><b><b>4) What was the easiest part in producing Jack Doe?</b></b><br /><br />Revisiting and revising the story for its paperback launch. That was much easier because the bulk of the story was done, it was also the most fun part, for me at least.<br /><br /><br /><b>5) What's the hardest?</b><br /><br />Definitely the deadlines. Towards chapter 5 and 6 the deadlines were getting tighter and tighter and it was really, really crazy.<br /><br /><br /><b>6) What are your collaborators doing now? i.e. Gabriel Chua, Nathan Peng, Daniel Barrett Lee, Xander Lee, Regina Lee, Amanda Yap, Beryl Kwok.<br /><i>[Interviewer's note: this was in 2011]</i> Most of them are working at the moment. We've hardly had time to meet up, sadly. They're all working different jobs at the moment - teaching, advertising etc, with the exception of Beryl and I, who are in the process of finishing up our University education. </b><br /><br />You can view some of their works online as well! - Xander has a site full of great works at http://www.xanderlee.com/<br /><br />7) What are you up to lately, work wise? (or your creative pursuits)<br />[Interviewer's note: this was in 2011] I published a 2nd book - Closets, about a year or 2 back. Apart from that I have been working on a few games. I had a card game "Crisis!" tested at Sporecon early in 2011, and perhaps 2012 too. I am currently working on a 3rd book, titled "Letters", which would probably see a release this year or the next, if all goes well, haha. <br /><br />Apart from that I have been freelancing and updating my site - http://www.shawnyap.net - constantly with new works and old. So watch out for that! :) <br /><br />I've also been working on some redesigns for comic book characters for leisure, which has been really fun as well.<br /><br /><b>8) Any other comments to add?</b><br /><br />For those who have read the books - Thank you so much for your support! Feel free to let me know your thoughts and stuff, I'm always open to comments! Huge thank you to you, Ivan, as well for this interview! :)<br /><br /><br /><i>[2013 July update]</i><br /><br /><b>9) Shawn, it's about two years later. How did those things you mentioned in the 2011 interview turn out? </b><br /><br />"Closets" my 2nd book, had a limited print run and the reaction to it was really positive! It was my first time self-publishing so it was really scary. I had no idea how people were going to react to it, but I was so thankful that people liked it! <br /><br />With my card game - "Crisis!" - the response to it at conventions thus far has been amazing and we are still looking to get it published. You know you've got something good when people are having fun playing it, so I'm really happy about that.<br /><br />As for "Letters.", I am humbled and honored whenever I hear that the story has touched someone's life or that it was something they could relate to. It is really a story very close to my heart, and so to see people, no matter how many, get something out of it makes me really happy I shared it!<br /><br /><br /><b>10) What keeps you busy these days? </b><br /><br />Mainly my full-time job - i'm currently working as a game artist. Apart from that though, I've been doing commissions, fan art and attending the occasional event/convention - meeting fellow artists and art appreciators has been particularly mindblowing.<br /><br />I published a new graphic novel - "Letters" (my 3rd and hopefully not the last book) digitally under ilovebooks.com, which unfortunately [the site] closed down recently. I am very close to finding a new home for the book, so watch out for it! This 3rd book really one of my proudest achievements to date and I really hope everyone will like it!<br /><br />Apart from "Letters.", I am also looking to port my other 2 books - "Jack Doe" and "Closets" over digitally as well - to make it available worldwide. <br /><br />Apart from that, I've been taking commissions and doing fan art whenever i can (it's great therapy!) <br /><br />You can check out what i've been doing on my website - www.shawnyap.net or my facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/13Wishes<br /><br /><br /><b>11) Do you have something to tell students/ young adults who are keen to pursue your line of work?</b><br /><br />If you believe in what you want to do, then soldier on, no matter how difficult it may get, and never ever let someone else dictate your dreams, it is YOUR dream, you decide how far it goes.</blockquote><br />Ramble: From his first comment in 2011 and our recent exchange, I have the impression that Shawn is a bright, passionate and steadfast kind of guy. He came across as being humble and open to critique of his work, and that impression has been consistent. I've never met Shawn. He's perhaps 20 years younger than me. I'm impressed with his attitude and work. I'm learning a few things from him.<br /><br />Go visit Shawn's <a href="http://www.shawnyap.net">website</a> or <a href="https://www.facebook.com/shawn.yap13">Facebook page</a>. <br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2013/07/interview-with-artist-writer-doe.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-8650608339976085212Sun, 14 Jul 2013 04:20:00 +00002013-07-14T12:43:15.214+08:00book reviewgraphic novel reviewGraphic novel review - Jack Doe: Anonymous[Next: <a href="http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.sg/2013/07/interview-with-artist-writer-doe.html">Author interview</a>]<br /><br />I discovered this work in 2011, when browsing the graphic novel section at Central Public Library.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9282116254/" title="Jack Doe ‹ Shawn Yap by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3714/9282116254_a38b1cbec7_n.jpg" width="150" alt="Jack Doe ‹ Shawn Yap"></a><br />"Jack Doe: Anonymous"<br />ISBN: 9789812769343<br />Shawn Yap (creator &amp; artist), Gabriel Chua, Nathan Peng, Daniel Barrett Lee, Xander Lee, Regina Lee, Amanda Yap, Beryl Kwok. <br /><br />The work was published under the Media Development Authority's <a href="http://www.mda.gov.sg/NEWSANDEVENTS/PRESSRELEASE/2006/Pages/16112006.aspx">First Time Writers and Illustrators Publishing Initiative</a> (scheme has ended, it seems). Its creators were a group of young people, with half of them as co-writers and the other half as colourists. Most of them seem to be between 25 to 30 years old at the time of publication. <br /><br />According to the blurb, the work collects all six chapters published in M.U.G.E.N. and includes extra pages and revamped artwork.<br /><br />The story takes place in a fictional city called Central City. The protagonist is a detective who comes from a mysterious anti-crime family/ clan. The clan leadership is a hereditary title passed from fathers to sons. Upon taking over as leader, he loses all personal identity and assumes the anonymous title of Jack Doe. He exists to "protect the city from the shadows" by solving cases that "no one else can". Jack Doe has no powers, other than possessing a pack of tarot cards as part of his crime-solving arsenal.<br /><br />The graphic novel starts with a murder of Jack's friend, the police commissioner. The mystery deepens when Jack is pursued by people intent on killing him. There's a sub-plot that attempts to delve into Jack's psyche, his past, and his recurring dream where he sees himself murdered.<br /><br />Interesting premise. Their work attempted to weave a mixed genre of plup-mystery and hardboiled detective story, presented in an almost film noir style.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9282108900/" title="Jack Doe ‹ Shawn Yap by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7446/9282108900_a72336e06f_n.jpg" width="239" height="320" alt="Jack Doe ‹ Shawn Yap"></a><br /><i>[Images courtesy of <a href="http://www.shawnyap.net/?cat=11">Shawn Yap</a> (All Rights Reserved)]</i><br /><br />The art work is good. What could be improved was the storyline, which had a few elements that were slightly distracting to the flow.<br /><br />For instance, being a detective with an office isn't quite anonymous. And with no apparent powers or abilities, the protagonist was pitched against super-powered beings. A bit of a tilt there for me. The hero never quite fights with any of the villains either, save one. Made me wonder what happened to the villains. <br /><br />A pleasant surprise for me was the twist at the end. They adapted a the "world within worlds" concept to set up for a clash between unexpected parties. I suppose they were working with tight deadlines, developing the story along the way. Which might have made the 'Reveal' a bit abrupt.<br /><br />Overall, the art and graphic flow was good enough for me to read to the last page.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/9279336599/" title="Jack Doe ‹ Shawn Yap by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3778/9279336599_5b6541203a_n.jpg" width="320" height="189" alt="Jack Doe ‹ Shawn Yap"></a><br /><i>[Images courtesy of <a href="http://www.shawnyap.net/?cat=11">Shawn Yap</a> (All Rights Reserved)]</i><br /><br />The artistic style used throughout the work was one of the more polished ones I've come across (kudos to the main artist is <a href="http://www.shawnyap.net/?cat=11">Shawn Yap</a>, and not forgetting the team that did the inking/ colouring). The panel designs came together very nicely. You know something is professionally done when you don't notice the 'technical' aspects of the graphic novel and can focus on the story. For what my opinion is worth, I thought the work was good enough to be placed against the work from international titles. <br /><br />As a first time work, I'll give them a second thumbs up. <br /><br />More important, I am keen to read more of what they have to produce.<br /><br />---<br /><br />[2001 draft of this post, <a href="http://roughnotes.wordpress.com/2011/07/20/jack-doe-anonymous-shawn-yap-gabriel-chua-xander-lee/">here</a>]<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2013/07/graphic-novel-review-jack-doe-anonymous.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-2523737873397554957Thu, 20 Jun 2013 17:39:00 +00002013-06-21T08:36:20.171+08:00cyclingfriendsPart 2 - Physical Prep & Post-Mortem: Pengarang to Desaru, and Back Again: Cycling Adventure 29 - 30 Mar 2013Super long rambly post. You should skip if you're not interested in cycling related information. This is a self-learning/ reflection post. Might be useful for other cyclists planning similar rides. Or experiencing similar pains.<br><br><ul><li>Part 1 - <a href="http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.sg/2013/04/part-1-tripping-on-two-wheel-pengarang.html">Tripping on Two Wheels</a></li><li>Part 2 - Physical Prep &amp; Post-Mortem [this post]</li><li>Part 3 - Post-ride Bike Upgrades</li></ul><br>The sweetest part of the trip was, perhaps unsurprisingly, the most painful part. <br><br>Sweet, because I made it back from Desaru to Tanjung Pengelih in spite of inflamed tendons on both knees. It wasn't a debilitating injury, because I recovered in a few hours time when I made it home. But the inflammation threatened to stop my ride. I had no idea how serious it might develop and it became more painful as the ride wore on.<br><br>The inflamed tendons was least expected. Whether it was 100% preventable, I'm not sure. Apart from that, I was quite pleased my preparation worked out.<br><br><b>WATER</b><br>Staying adequately hydrated was top of my list. <br><br>I brought my 3-litre hydration pack, with 2 spare bottles of water on the bike. From past longer distance rides, I knew that it was far better for me to take small sips continually than to rehydrate a lot at intervals. Hydration salts also helped to get the body rehydrated (though taking too much at one go may cause loose bowels!)<br><br>On Day-1, I finished all 4 litres just before we reached the resort. On Day-2, surprisingly I ended up with about 1 litre water to spare, even though the weather was hotter. When we stopped for lunch on both days, I ordered Coconut if it was available (best energy drink, imo) and isotonic drinks. <br><br><br><b>SUN</b><br>The sun will burn skin and sap energy. I brought my arm sleeves (UV rated), had a scarf that covered my head under my helmet, and I applied sunblock on my neck and face. I still felt heat radiating from my skin at the end of the ride, but I wasn't burnt. <br><br><br><b>WEIGHT</b><br>Keeping the packed weight to the minimum was part of the strategy. My 3 Litre pack could fit in the spare clothes, first spare inner tube, torchlight and batteries, bike pump (remember the pump, folks; no point having a spare inner tube when you can't pump up your tire), toothbrush and toothpaste, and that was about it. The resort would have other amenities.&nbsp;<br><br>The other stuff, I carried on my bike. Like the spare bottles, hydration salts, some pre-packed almond powder mix (for "instant" sugar fix if I needed it) and deep-heat rub (kept on a small bag for easy access from the bike), another set of spare inner tube and bike tools.<br><br>I realised the 3 Litre hydration pack added about 3 kilogrammes to my own body weight. It was like instant weight gain. Unless the laws of physics change, I'll have to deal with that (or lose 3 kg before I start?)<br><br><br><b>FOOD</b><br>Breakfast was essential. I would be asking for trouble if I were to skip this on the day of the ride (I learned the hard way once). During our bike trip, I made sure I ate rather than try to "lose weight". Not stuffed till I couldn't walk, but to make sure I listened to my stomach. <br><br>After Day-1, for dinner I opted for the buffet spread at the resort. My body seemed to crave for carbohydrates. I took two servings of pasta, made sure I included proteins and vegetables. I tried to avoid sugar when I can, but gave in to temptation that night by eating up a spare bowl of coconut milk dessert with Gula Melaka (in the land where Gula Melaka was made, if not invented, I could not pass that up).<br><br><br><b>SLEEP</b><br>The day before the trip, I consciously avoided caffeine in case I could not sleep. I made sure I had at least 6 hours of sleep. I was quite excited about the trip and knew I would have trouble sleeping. So the past 2 days, I woke earlier than my usual and that ensured that I was sufficiently tired to fall asleep fast.&nbsp;<br><br><br><b>ASSESSMENT</b><br>It all worked out. My hydration strategy must have worked, since I did not suffer cramps or headaches by day's end. I didn't feel exhausted so the food intake and sleep was enough.<br><br>Did I overeat? Hmm, I found that my metabolic rate kept up and 2 or 3 days after the ride, my pants didn't feel so tight around the waist.<br><br>The unforeseen thing was the inflamed tendons at the knees. I've ridden 80km plus and suffered leg cramps at worse. The sore tendons was very slight and not the sharp pain that I experienced on Day-2. <br><br>A fellow rider suggested it was <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iliotibial_band_syndrome">Iliotibial band syndrome</a> (ITBS). I looked it up after the ride and cross-checked against a few sites. It was ITBS.<br><br><br><b>THE PAIN</b><br>On Day-1, it was only after we finished our ride and checked into the resort that I discovered the injury. My room (shared with 3 others) had a staircase. As I climbed, my right knee (the tendon on the outer side) felt sore to the extent that I limped up the stairs. Walking on flat ground was OK.<br><br>I didn't pay much attention to it other than doing some leg stretches. Then I went for dinner, came back, washed up and forgot all about it.<br><br>Next morning, while still in bed, I found my entire right knee was stiff. Simply trying to move my right leg under my own power was painful. Acually, any sort of movement of the right leg was just painful. <br><br>I remember wondering, groggy from sleep, how much it would cost to hire an ambulance. Or take a cab all the way to the jetty. And then as soon as I thought that, I quickly resolved that I had to make it back on my two wheels, no matter what. And that I could make it.<br><br>It took me 10 minutes of stretching -- on the bed -- using some yoga poses I'd learned, to be able to move the knee. <br><br>Somehow, that assured me that things would be fine. <br><br>I went for breakfast, came back to gear up, applied deep heat, still felt slightly sore while navigating the stairs up and down. But I felt confident this was only a small problem.<br><br>Cycling the first 10 km was fine. There weren't steep hills to tackle and only slight rises. Yesterday's uphill was today's easy downhill. Some cyclists in my group asked how I was doing (I told them about my tendon over dinner). I said it was holding up.<br><br>As much as I could, I transferred weight to my left and pedalled more with it.<br><br>After 30km, our group rested for lunch.<br><br>I got worried when both my left and right tendons (at the outer side of the knee) became painful by then. Standing was OK but I experienced pain when I tried to do 60 degrees knee bends. Trying a 90 degree bend would trigger a sharp pain at the sore tendons, painful enough that my legs felt like giving way. I needed to support my body weight with my arms if I needed to sit down or stand back up from sitting position.<br><br>Uh oh. I had a problem. The point in the ride where I'm experiencing real pain.&nbsp;<br><br>For the remainder of the 20km, I couldn't enjoy the ride the same way a tourist would leisure take in the scenery. Frankly, the last two to three kilometres was a torture. I just focused on getting myself back.<br><br>I managed to complete the ride and made it to the boat. Ok, I thought. I can still stand. Not too bad.<br><br>It wasn't till I sat down in the bumboat for about 15 minutes that I discovered I could not get up without propping myself up. Both tendons near the knee were triggering a sharp pain. I didn't know it was ITBS then. Knowing what I know now, I would have done the related stretches every few minutes (see <a href="http://www.google.com.sg/imgres?imgurl=http://missjewelz.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/itbandstretch2.jpg&amp;imgrefurl=http://missjewelz.wordpress.com/2010/03/14/stretching-tips-inner-thigh-iliotibial-band-itb/&amp;h=378&amp;w=289&amp;sz=12&amp;tbnid=BiOTFG-nNvTNZM:&amp;tbnh=119&amp;tbnw=91&amp;zoom=1&amp;usg=__uPxSIaUpRA4iWxGAsZp3tjLB4Ho=&amp;docid=JGCkVvA3JAtVCM&amp;sa=X&amp;ei=lznDUZ7ZIsKzrgf1rICgBg&amp;ved=0CD4Q9QEwBA&amp;dur=1786">this</a> and <a href="http://www.anaerobic.net/runnersguide.aspx">this</a>).<br><br>The pain came when I tried to stand, or put weight (like climbing stairs). Otherwise I felt OK. Or so it seemed.<br><br>Back home, the longer I rested the knee/ tendon, the stiffer they were. Morning came and I couldn't move the knees without triggering a sharp pain. I took about 3 mins just to stretch out my legs before I can stand up. Had to prop myself up to stand. Then had trouble sitting cos knees couldn't be bent without experiencing sharp pain (and my pain tolerance was quite high).<br><br>Gradually my knees recovered. I didn't try to exercise my legs but I didn't remain stationary too long. By evening (almost 20 hours since the stiff pain) the slight swelling of the tendons are gone. I didn't apply any ice or compression. I seem to have recovered 90% after 24 hours thereabouts. <br><br>As I blog about this months after the ride, I have since learned how to effectively manage the ITBS. It's a matter of doing the right stretches before and after the ride. Should the pain come about in the midst of cycling, the same stretches could be done. Also, saddle and seat height adjustments helped (YouTube was instructive on how to adjust the bicycle). <br><br>I read one online article where the author suggested that ITBS shouldn't be treated with stretching. Well, stretching worked for me. Though, not all the various stretches. I employ two types of leg stretch postures that work well for me, so I think it depends on one's physiology. <br><br>I was mindful of risks in self-treatment. In this case, I had advice from a friend who's a physical therapist by profession. Another friend, who had experienced ITBS and recovered by applying stretches, advised me how to do it. <br><br>So far, since Pengarang, I have completed two 80km overnight rides and no serious ITBS.<br><br><br><b>THE REWARD</b><br>Part of why I'm blogging this is not to take for granted that we did this in a group. Friends helping friends out.<br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sivasothi/8603177132/" title="001_ZendogsDesaru-29_30mar2013 by sivasothi, on Flickr"><img alt="001_ZendogsDesaru-29_30mar2013" height="240" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8385/8603177132_0de1259b48_n.jpg" width="320"></a><br>[Image credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sivasothi/8603177132/in/set-72157633120280441/">sivasothi</a>, CC-BY-NC-SA]<br><br>Friends who take their duties seriously: making arrangements for the bumboat ride and feeling apologetic that the boat wasn't booked in advanced; helping a fellow rider with a flat; being the last Outrider and always stopping to make sure no rider was left behind; packing a medkit and taking notes on what to include for the next ride.<br><br>For me, the real reward wasn't the sunrise view like this:<br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8615906576/" title="Sunrise at Desaru by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="Sunrise at Desaru" height="241" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8538/8615906576_dbc564b8a8_n.jpg" width="320"></a><br><br>I surprised myself that I was quite 'zen' about the ITB pain. I've a tendency to over-think about stuff. Over-thinking sometimes leads to creating more worries and being stressed out before the actual fact.<br><br>Yet when I realised my right knee was super stiff, it wasn't a sense of doom that came to mind. Instead, it was a quiet resolve that I will get over this and I'll find a way to cycling back.<br><br>It wasn't climbing Everest. Still, I'm happy with myself and I want to remember that.<br><br>OK, I compared my list to <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1J7HzUuU62M6Q4VwogZs5aTBPZO6lVeP2ToL46ubBs0U/pub">Siva's Bicycle Prep List</a>. Hmm, I had everything. Except for powdering my spare inner tubes.<br><br>My packing list for the trip: Pengarang Ride Mar 2013:<br><br><b>ON PERSON</b><br>passport<br>Photocopy of passport (hardcopy)<br>Emergency numbers (hardcopy)<br>Cash<br>Wallet<br>Credit card<br>Pen<br>Phone + battery extension<br><br><b>BIKE GEAR</b><br>2 x spare tube + kit<br>Check batteries + cable + plug<br>Pouch<br><br><b>IN PACK (hydration pack)</b><br>Hydration kit (check parts)<br>Helmet<br>Arm sleeves<br>Gloves<br>Headscarf<br>Pump<br>Front light<br>Back lights<br>Chain lube + cloth<br>Rainwear <br>Spare specs <br>water bottle x2 (carrier bag)<br>Heat-rub<br>Hydration salts<br>Moisturiser<br>Energy bars<br>Optional: Spares (Arm sleeves, Gloves, Headscarf)<br><br><b>NIGHT KIT</b><br>toothbrush + paste<br>Moist tissues <br>spare clothes (t-shirt, shorts)<br><br>[Next: Part 3 - Post-ride Bike Upgrades]<br><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2013/06/part-2-physical-prep-post-mortem.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-2774464013952780121Sun, 14 Apr 2013 14:00:00 +00002013-04-16T12:57:56.711+08:00cyclingsingaporesocial spacessocietyFeedback on the Khatib Bongsu Park ConnectorOver the weekend, a few of my friends were discussing about Singapore's National Cycling Plan via email. One of our friends offered to collate our ideas and suggestions to relay to the right government agency folks.<br /><br />I love our Park Connectors. I ride on the Khatib Bongsu park connector most often (sometimes connecting all the way to Woodlands Waterfront, through the Admiralty connector). I've noticed minor improvements to the Khatib Bongsu connector in the last two years. There's still room for a better/ safer experience for cyclists and pedestrians.<br /><br />There was a suggestion that I should blog about my suggestions. It's fresh off my mind anyway, since my wife and I just completed an early evening 16km ride today, to the end of Simpang Kiri.<br /><br />Ideally I should include actual images of the parts I've described. But I didn't really plan to give a comprehensive list until after the ride. Hope the map screenshots, with the descriptions, would help. <br /><br />Well, I'd love to show the URA or NParks people first hand. Like a Ride & Review session. Wouldn't mind taking my vacation time on a weekday to meet them (wouldn't want them to work on a weekend). Ride along the path, point out actual situations. Also I'd like to be educated on why things were designed in certain ways or perhaps the constraints they faced.<br /><br /><b>Feedback on the Khatib Bongsu Park Connector</b><br /><br />1) From the junction at Yishun Ave 1 & Yishun Ave 2, there's a stretch of asphalt that seemed worn out. The painted speed stripes seemed particularly high. It appeared as if the asphalt on parts unpainted were badly eroded (I've seen newer paved bike paths and they are definitely smoother). Going over the stripes slowly, as designed, was extremely jarring. I suspect most cyclists will choose to ride on the smoother pedestrian path. Which defeated the purpose of having the cycling path.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8647882531/" title="Khatib Bongsu PCN - 1 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8404/8647882531_40c2e13e57.jpg" width="305" height="500" alt="Khatib Bongsu PCN - 1"></a><br /><br /><br />2) Along Yishun Ave 2, there's a side road for traffic to enter the carpark of Blocks 788/ 785. It splits the cycling path, though that's not the issue. The problem is that the sloped gradient (for a smooth transition from the path to the road, and then back on the path again) was only made for the pedestrian path. The sloped edge is for wheelchairs to easily transfer from pedestrain path to road, to make the crossing. The cyclist has to make a 90-degree turn to get to that sloped edge. Once I cross the road with my bike it's another 90-degree turn to get back to the cycling path and its a narrow turn. I consider myself quite OK on a bike but I don't feel confident making such a tight turn all the time. Cyclists don't want to get off and push the bike (be realistic!) so I noticed most cyclists go on the pedestrian path, which is more direct.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8648992232/" title="Khatib Bongsu PCN - 2 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8526/8648992232_2dd4f07e47_n.jpg" width="266" height="320" alt="Khatib Bongsu PCN - 2"></a><br /><br /><br />3) There's also more examples of 90-degree tight turns along Block 602. Then at the end of it (see the part marked 3.2) it's a dead-end for the bike path. You actually have to go on the pedestrian path to make the crossing to the PCN on Mandai. I find that part poorly-designed and inconvenient. I end up cycling on the pedestrian path leading to the traffic lights. <br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8647905181/" title="Khatib Bongsu PCN - 3 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8105/8647905181_50c331e146_n.jpg" width="320" height="137" alt="Khatib Bongsu PCN - 3"></a><br /><br /><br />4.1) At the stretch after the canal bridge (from Block 323) to the SAFRA Clubhouse: When the path was first constructed, I remember the asphalt part was designated as the bike path. But one day, the asphalt path became re-designated as a footpath while the concrete path (with iron grills for rain runoff) became a bike path. Pedestrians and cyclists get confused. Plus, the iron grills are not ideal when riding conditions are wet.<br /><br />4.2) According to the map, it looks like a continuous PCN. But in reality, that stretch is a pedestrian footpath. Not a problem sharing the path, though it is rather narrow.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8649040802/" title="Khatib Bongsu PCN - 4 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8101/8649040802_596995bc5e_n.jpg" width="309" height="320" alt="Khatib Bongsu PCN - 4"></a><br /><br /><br />5) At Yishun MRT station, the hedges have gown quite tall (near the NTUC part). Pedestrian paths intersect the bike path and the hedges tend to prevent both pedestrians and cyclists from being able to spot each other far away. I try to ring my bell but not all the time. BTW, the same limited visibility issue affects some points along the Khatib-Yishun-Sembawang MRT tracks, where the cycling paths intersect with bus-stops/ overhead bridges pathways. Instead of plantings, the concrete columns are the ones preventing a clear view of oncoming pedestrians/ cyclists.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8647991943/" title="Feedback on Khatib Bongsu PCN - 5 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8123/8647991943_7466dddaaf_n.jpg" width="184" height="320" alt="Feedback on Khatib Bongsu PCN - 5"></a><br /><br /><br />6) Outside Yishun Emerald Green condo, ideally the bike path and pedestrian paths should be switched. I've seen condo residents coming out the gates and naturally walking on the asphalt path, with is more immediate than the concrete footpath. My point is the bike path should be made further away from the gates, not the nearest. <br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8648000075/" title="6Feedback on Khatib Bongsu PCN - 6 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8398/8648000075_1ffab10314_n.jpg" width="320" height="299" alt="6Feedback on Khatib Bongsu PCN - 6"></a><br /><br /><br />7) The stretch along the Canberra Sembawang PCN: the asphalt seems badly eroded. Ride is very bumpy. Cyclists often avoid it and go on the pedestrian path instead. <br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8649112612/" title="Feedback on Khatib Bongsu PCN - 7 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8239/8649112612_14672ab396_n.jpg" width="320" height="284" alt="Feedback on Khatib Bongsu PCN - 7"></a><br /><br /><br />8) On some park connectors (like Simpang Kiri), the bicycle symbol has been painted on the left and footsteps painted on the right. I've noticed cyclists, runners and pedestrians naturally ride/ run/ walk on the left side when heading towards the same direction. And it's usually the left side. If I were to cycle back the opposite direction AND adhered to the designated cycling side, it means I'd be cycling on the right side now, going in the forward direction (or the left side to the opposite cyclist/ runner/ pedestrian). If another cyclist were to head towards me, we're headed towards each other on the same side. It's currently not clear who has right of way -- should I go left or the other move to their left? A game of 'who brakes/ moves first'. In the end, I find that most cyclists/ runners/ pedestrians ignore the marked designated paths and naturally adopt a "keep left" position. In my view, just sticking to a "keep left" principle for everyone would be clearer. Paint a "Kept Left" on the asphalt.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8649323906/" title="Feedback on the Simpang Kiri Park Connector by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8401/8649323906_36b4ef08c4_n.jpg" width="320" height="178" alt="Feedback on the Simpang Kiri Park Connector"></a><br /><br /><br />Alright. Finally managed to 'dump' all the observations that I think can be resolved in the near term. It's not exhaustive of course. Maybe there are budgetary or infrastructural reasons that prevent more significant improvements to be made. In any case, I hope the feedback would be of use to the authorities (NParks? URA? LTA?)<br /><br />Would be great if there was a dedicated Singapore Government website on the National Cycling Plan. For now, one can refer to the <a href="http://www.mof.gov.sg/budget_2012/expenditure_overview/mot.html">2012 Budget website</a> (near the end of the page). Or see this post of Mr Lui Tuck Yew's (Minister for Transport) <a href="http://cyclinginsingapore.blogspot.sg/2012/03/speech-by-mr-lui-tuck-yew-minister-for.html">parliament speech on 7 Mar 2012</a>, where he mentioned the National Cycling Plan and <a href="http://www.lta.gov.sg/content/ltaweb/en/green-transport/integrating-cycling-with-public-transport.html">Cycling Paths</a>.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8649161750/" title="Singapore Budget 2012 - Expenditure Overview by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8116/8649161750_6d503f4ec5_n.jpg" width="305" height="320" alt="Singapore Budget 2012 - Expenditure Overview"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8648049871/" title="Integrating Cycling with Public Transport | Green Transport | Land Transport Authority by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8533/8648049871_9bb1ffa61d_m.jpg" width="240" height="170" alt="Integrating Cycling with Public Transport | Green Transport | Land Transport Authority"></a><br /><br />I'm glad to see that cycling was once again part of the <a href="http://www.straitstimes.com/breaking-news/singapore/story/budget-2013-road-cycling-paths-increase-road-cycling-studied-20130313">Budget in 2013</a>.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8649170980/" title="Budget 2013: Off-road cycling paths to increase; On-road cycling studied by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8392/8649170980_5dd3b84f30_n.jpg" width="198" height="320" alt="Budget 2013: Off-road cycling paths to increase; On-road cycling studied"></a><br /><br />I've <a href="http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.sg/search?q=PCN">written about</a> how I appreciate our Park Connector Network. If there was one on the National Cycling Plan, I'd love to be part of it. <br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8649213014/" title="Our SG Conversation by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8117/8649213014_45c82f3eb3_m.jpg" width="186" height="240" alt="Our SG Conversation"></a><br /><br />ASIDE: I can now better appreciate the usefulness of having a National Conversation framework. Previously I've not been that enthusiastic about any of the National Conversation topics. But thinking about the National Cycling Plan, I'd like to listen to the official views, their thinking behind the plans, and also be able to constructively provide feedback and ideas. <br /><br />(Thanks to <a href="http://otterman.wordpress.com">Siva</a> for the idea to blog my suggestions, and for reposting at the <a href "http://cyclinginsingapore.blogspot.com/2013/04/ivan-chew-suggestions-for-khatib-bongsu.html">Cycling In Singapore</a>) blog. <br /><br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2013/04/feedback-on-khatib-bongsu-park-connector.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-2122618370589162555Tue, 09 Apr 2013 11:24:00 +00002013-06-21T01:46:19.350+08:00cyclingfriendsPart 1 - Tripping on Two Wheels: Pengarang to Desaru, and Back Again:Cycling Adventure 29 - 30 Mar 2013Total time on the bicycle: 10 hours, thereabouts.<br /><br />Total distance covered: about 112km over 2 days (51km each way).<br /><br />Total energy burned: pretty sure it's 1,800 calories at least (extrapolating from my own 40 km rides in Singapore).<br /><br />Total energy consumed: Won't be surprised if it's more than what I burned, so I don't really want to know.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/acroamatic/8605505911/" title="2013-03-31-21.47.48-tanjung-pengelih-desaru by acroamatic, on Flickr"><img alt="2013-03-31-21.47.48-tanjung-pengelih-desaru" height="261" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8247/8605505911_53de8fccd3_n.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />[Image credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/acroamatic/8605505911/in/set-72157633137328656">Kenneth Pinto</a>, CC-BY-NC)<br /><br />My first post for 2013 would be a post about my first real ride for the year. Quite apt.<br /><br />This post is a recap of the 1.5 day ride.<br /><br />The "Good Friday" some two weeks ago was literally great for me, as 10 of us embarked on a day-and-a-half, Out-of-Singapore cycling adventure. From <a href="http://www.virtualmalaysia.com/destination/tanjung%20pengelih.html">Tanjung Pengelih</a> to <a href="http://pulaidesaru.com/index.php">this resort</a> in Desaru, and back. <br /><br />We were a motley mix comprising of 20 year-olds to mid-40s, on Foldies and mountain bikes.<br /><br />The day's adventure started at Changi Village. The jetty was packed, given it was a holiday. While we waited for our turn to get a boat and to clear customs, Kevin's super-sized Pugsley earned easy conversations from strangers. He's the original Aunty-Killer. "Got motor or not?" must be the most frequently asked question about his <a href="http://fat-bike.com/">Fatbike</a>. <br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sivasothi/8603176102/" title="018_ZendogsDesaru-29_30mar2013 by sivasothi, on Flickr"><img alt="018_ZendogsDesaru-29_30mar2013" height="240" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8404/8603176102_e8d0974d44_m.jpg" width="180" /></a><br />[Image credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sivasothi/8603176102/in/set-72157633120280441/">sivasothi</a>, CC-BY-NC-SA]<br /><br />When my friends first planned for the trip, I thought Pengarang sounded familiar. Then I remembered it was <a href="http://wildsingaporenews.blogspot.sg/2012/09/malaysia-10-big-questions-to-ask-about.html#.UVlHpRdmiSo">in the news</a> in late 2011 over the Malaysian government's plans to build petrochemical projects there.<br /><br />On our way to Tanjung Pengelih, we saw Singapore's attempt <a href="http://infopedia.nl.sg/articles/SIP_1009_2010-05-14.html">to create</a> <a href="http://wildshores.blogspot.sg/2011/05/massive-reclamation-at-pulau-tekong.html#.UVlVGhdmiSo">more land</a>. Our bumboat chugged past silent monster rigs, some in the process of turning sea into land. We passed stretches of massive sand banks on both sides, stable enough to support several heavy vehicles on them.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8603429038/" title="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 018 by inju, on Flickr"><img alt="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 018" height="240" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8390/8603429038_28f22e47a0_n.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />[image credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8603429038">Kevin Lim</a>, CC-BY-NC-SA]<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8602326493/" title="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 016 by inju, on Flickr"><img alt="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 016" height="240" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8252/8602326493_847221d50b_n.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />[image credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8602326493">Kevin Lim</a>, CC-BY-NC-SA]<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/acroamatic/8605560213/" title="2013-03-30 15.02.34 by acroamatic, on Flickr"><img alt="2013-03-30 15.02.34" height="320" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8532/8605560213_0f243ea9fd_n.jpg" width="240" /></a><br />[image credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/acroamatic/8605560213/in/set-72157633137328656">Kenneth Pinto</a>, CC-BY-NC]<br /><br /><br />When we reached Tanjung Pengelih, things felt slower and more idyllic. Probably the absence of human traffic at the jetty. We were the only ones clearing customs.<br /><br />As we geared up to start our ride, Dinesh provided timely advice on general safety. He also prepared a set of walkie-talkies for the lead rider (him) and last Outrider (Kevin). I was quietly impressed. Talk about being professional.<br /><br />Being a naturally cautious (i.e. overly pessimistic) person, I kinda surprised myself by feeling rather calm when we set off. I'm chicken-crap when it comes to new places. But this group had plenty of experienced and steady riders. Plus, I trusted my bike and that helped a lot. I'd stopped cycling for about three months, and only put in maybe 5 km worth of riding time a few days before the trip. It was enough to assure me of the ride-worthiness of my foldable bike though. Would have wanted to put in more kilometres for physical fitness (but maybe that turned out to be a blessing -- more of this in Part 2). <br /><br />We rode through quiet paths with uncut grass waving on either sides; past houses at one stretch, and then hitting open roads with relatively few cars. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8603437964/" title="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 032 by inju, on Flickr"><img alt="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 032" height="240" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8544/8603437964_48bce34380_n.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />[image credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8603437964">Kevin Lim</a>, CC-BY-NC-SA]<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8602331671/" title="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 027 by inju, on Flickr"><img alt="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 027" height="240" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8536/8602331671_0d8195207c_n.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />[image credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8602331671">Kevin Lim</a>, CC-BY-NC-SA]<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sivasothi/8603173626/" title="069_ZendogsDesaru-29_30mar2013 by sivasothi, on Flickr"><img alt="069_ZendogsDesaru-29_30mar2013" height="240" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8529/8603173626_82b0cddc4f_m.jpg" width="180" /></a><br />[image credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sivasothi/8603173626">sivasothi</a>, CC-BY-NC-SA]<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8602359145/" title="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 085 by inju, on Flickr"><img alt="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 085" height="240" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8104/8602359145_cd948d1999_n.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />[image credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8602359145">Kevin Lim</a>, CC-BY-NC-SA]<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8602560623/" title="Along the expressway to Desaru, a few of us were mystified by this scene we rolled by. What we thought was a trained monkey was actually a child in brown clothing being directed by his father to pick up something from the roadside. What that be? by inju, on Flickr"><img alt="Along the expressway to Desaru, a few of us were mystified by this scene we rolled by. What we thought was a trained monkey was actually a child in brown clothing being directed by his father to pick up something from the roadside. What that be?" height="240" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8265/8602560623_93e71ff442_m.jpg" width="240" /></a><br />[image credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8602560623">Kevin Lim</a>, CC-BY-NC-SA]<br /><br /><br />There's a certain zen when one rides under one's own power: hearing the hum and whirs of the bicycle, our own breathing, the wind in our faces.<br /><br />This was a leisurely ride. The 20-somethings in our group had the benefit of youth. They easily kept up on their bikes. Actually the second (maybe third) oldest guy in our group used to run triathlons.<br /><br />The Pengarang highways, perhaps being such long stretches, had the inevitable potholes. A few of us had bottles pop out of their bottle cages when they went through deeper potholes. <br /><br />I had trepidations taking my foldie over a path with sharp chunky gravel. It was one of those "mind-over-matter" moments: tell yourself you might lose balance and you would. I had split microseconds of doubts when traversing the rough patch, but told myself to keep focused and stay balanced. And I did. <br /><br />The sharp gravel probably got my front tire wall torn (see Part 3). But no puncture.<br /><br />Riding in Pengarang was vastly different from cycling on <a href="http://www.nparks.gov.sg/cms/index.php?option=com_visitorsguide&amp;task=parkconnectors&amp;Itemid=74">Singapore's PCNs</a>. The lack of urban noises created a different experience. In Singapore, there is no escaping the signs of urban constructs -- pedestrian paths, roads, traffic lights, street lamps. But that's just a fact. I suppose if one craved for open spaces, then a place like Pengarang would be superior to the cityscape of Singapore.<br /><br />As we rode through kampungs (do they refer to their collective homes as kampungs in Pengarang?) the kids seem to be quicker to say Hello, and the adults more generous with their smiles. <br /><br />Well, we didn't meet that many kids or adults, to be fair. But I've to say the drivers we passed by in Pengarang tended to wait for you to ride past before they made that turn. I sped up to make sure I didn't waste their time, but I didn't feel panicky. It was nice to wave them an acknowledgement, and seeing them wave back in return. Cars went fast on the highways, but most provided a wide berth between their cars and us.<br /><br />Fact of life, I suppose: having ample space tend to create an air of generosity. It's the place that affect the vibes. Now THAT, I am envious -- of the vast land that Malaysians have. <br /><br />Speaking of vibes, Siva <a href="http://otterman.wordpress.com/2013/04/02/desaru-and-back-over-two-days-of-cycling/">blogged</a> that he found it depressing in seeing large tracts of land cleared for timber, and basically left bare with no plans for development.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8602354171/" title="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 072 by inju, on Flickr"><img alt="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 072" height="240" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8392/8602354171_377d9de51c_n.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />[Image credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8602354171/in/set-72157633125569522">Kevin Lim</a> (CC-BY-NC-SA]<br /><br />Siva observed that traffic conditions will change and will affect some of the village detours. Meaning, the rides may become less idyllic and there will be an increase in traffic.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8602368423/" title="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 106 by inju, on Flickr"><img alt="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 106" height="240" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8246/8602368423_141ae9a87a_n.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />[Image credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8602368423/">Kevin Lim</a> (CC-BY-NC-SA]<br /><br />Ah, meals. <br /><br />The favourable currency exchange rates for Singapore dollar meant we ate like 'royalty' there. <br /><br />Lunch, on both days, was in the town centre called <s>Pulai</s> Sungei Ringgit ("money town"?). <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8603446408/" title="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 052 by inju, on Flickr"><img alt="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 052" height="240" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8386/8603446408_33b63001b1_n.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />[Image credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8603446408/">Kevin Lim</a> (CC-BY-NC-SA]<br /><br />They still have old-style hawker carts plying the town, like this beancurd seller who came by on our return leg. But her product has been modernised. She offered Hong Kong-styled beancurd pudding rather than the traditional type (much to the disappointment of one young rider in our group):<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8603496140/" title="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 166 by inju, on Flickr"><img alt="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 166" height="240" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8265/8603496140_f03bf9fed4_n.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />[Image credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8603496140/">Kevin Lim</a> (CC-BY-NC-SA]<br /><br /><br />The entire trip was largely problem-free. Maybe <a href="http://deadpoetscave.com/2012/07/mtb-lessons-at-t15/">Kenneth</a> (who opted for his Foldie rather than a MTB for this trip) would disagree. His foldie had a flat on day-one. But I thought the flat was resolved rather easily and in relative comfort. Understandably, he was frustrated with getting a puncture (seemed every ride to Pengarang he would get a flat). Still, the flat was discovered just as we set off after lunch. It would have been worse if the flat happened on an open road. <br /><br />And then Kenneth discovered his spare inner tube had an inherent flat! I was glad I could help by giving one of my spare (the advantage of having similar sized tires, woo-hoo). Kevin even found a bicycle shop that sold tubes a few metres down the coffeeshop. Good to note for future rides.<br /><br />Kenneth managed to fix the problem in the shade at a kopi tiam. The iced coffee was pretty good too. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8603448594/" title="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 057 by inju, on Flickr"><img alt="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 057" height="320" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8536/8603448594_121296503e_n.jpg" width="240" /></a><br />[Image credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8603448594/">Kevin Lim</a> (CC-BY-NC-SA]<br /><br />Several Firsts for me in this trip:<br /><br /><ul><li>Bringing my own bicycle on a boat</li><li>Travelling out of Singapore with it</li><li>Visiting Pengarang and Desaru</li></ul><br /><br />My last visit to Malaysia was about 10 years ago. It was quite telling because on Day 2, when I passed a Five Ringgit note to a shopkeeper, he didn't accept the note instantly. He looked at me and said, "Ringgit". I thought I'd brought Indonesia Rupiah by mistake. But no, the note said Ringgit and I pointed that out to him. The guy did a double take, as if he'd never seen the note before. Maybe he hadn't. The note has been out of circulation for years, I was later told. <br /><br />The pace the group set was comfortable. Properly prepared (e.g. individual strategies to stay hydrated; physical preparation before the trip) this was/ would have been an easy ride.<br /><br />Distance-wise, each day's ride was about 10km longer than my Yishun-Woodlands Waterfront PCN rides. One big difference was the hills in the last 20 km to the resort. They weren't the Killer Slopes that I thought they would be. I've found the NTU slopes were a lot more challenging. But I suspect my relatively lack of cycling fitness, with the 3-litres of water on me, gave rise to an inflamed tendon near the knee (I'll blog about that in Part 2). <br /><br />I had looked forward to this cycling trip with the ZenDogs. I wasn't disappointed, even with the sore tendons. Very glad I went. Next time, I shall have to sacrifice the welfare of my dog and get my wife to join me (if you're a dog owner with a namby-pamby dog, you'l know what I'm talking about).<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8603491406/" title="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 156 by inju, on Flickr"><img alt="ZenDogs Desaru Adventure (112km, 29-30 March 2013) - 156" height="240" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8105/8603491406_936c765e0a_n.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />[image credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/8603491406">Kevin Lim</a>, CC-BY-NC-SA]<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inju/sets/72157633125569522/">Kevin's photoset</a> | <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/acroamatic/sets/72157633137328656/">Kenneth's photoset</a> | <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sivasothi/sets/72157633120280441/with/8603177132/">Siva's photoset</a><br /><br /><br />Part 1 - Tripping on Two Wheels [This post]<br />Part 2 - <a href="http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.sg/2013/06/part-2-physical-prep-post-mortem.html">Physical Prep &amp; Post-Mortem</a><br />Part 3 - Post-ride Bike Upgrades<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2013/04/part-1-tripping-on-two-wheel-pengarang.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-2065208409765157740Sat, 10 Nov 2012 13:00:00 +00002013-09-28T23:16:08.158+08:00musicpublic librariesworkshopPost-workshop notes: Creating Digital Music 101: GarageBand[Sat, 10 Nov 2012]<br /><br />Nine people turned up (there was a cap of 12; heard it rained heavily so maybe some opted to stay home?)<br /><br />Nine was a nice number. I sensed the average age was around late 20s to early thirties. Heh, it's nice to know as an 'uncle' in my 40s, I'm teaching the young'uns something.<br /><br />What the session covered:<br /><blockquote><br /><ul><li>Hour 1: Getting to know GB; learning the basics</li><li>Hour 2: Composing your own track/ Some ‘audio production’ tips</li><li>Hour 3: Continue + Showcase</li></ul><br /><i>Demo of a track composed in GB.</i><br /><i><br /></i> <i>Musical concepts - “Bars”, “patterns”, “Even counts”</i><br /><i>Layering concept - like photoshop</i><br /><i><br /></i> <i>Pair up - check with a “musical buddy for the day”</i><br /><i><br /></i> <i>Opening a new GB project (file names, tempo) </i><br /><i><br /></i> <i>The GB environment and controls</i><br /><i>File menu, add tracks, LCD, Loops, Instruments</i><br /><i>Shortcut Keys - Copy, Paste, Undo, Redo, Zoom in/ Out</i><br /><i><br /></i> <i>Preferences panel</i><br /><i><br /></i> <i>Using loops to create music - 20mins</i><br /><i>Change tempo</i><br /><i>Drag loops into workspace</i><br /><i>Copy</i><br /><i>Extend loops</i><br /><i>Edit - Split/ cut/ copy</i><br /><i>Layers</i><br /><i><br /></i> <i>Instruments - 20mins</i><br /><i>Experiment with different instruments</i><br /><i>Musical Typing</i><br /><i>Changing MIDI notes</i><br /><i><br /></i> <i>Individual Track controls</i><br /><i><br /></i> <i>Effects (“i” Edit)</i><br /><i><br /></i> <i>Audio Production tweaks</i><br /><i>Compressor</i><br /><i>EQ</i><br /><i><br /></i> <i>Export</i><br /><i><br /></i> <i>Share</i></blockquote><br />Before we started, I asked what were they wanted to take away from this session. Most had their Macs for a while but never quite learned how to use GarageBand.<br /><br />About a third played some form of instruments. Most were piano players (interesting!)<br /><br />Going round I saw everyone actively building their tracks. <br /><br />What I tried not to do was overwhelm them by whacking all I knew from the past seven years and seven albums, since I picked up a Mac (woah, seven already?)<br /><br />I let each participant copy a GarageBand sampler (composed the day earlier) and let them attempt a remix. The sampler (aptly titled TenElevenTwelve) sounds like this:<br /><iframe style="border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/track=252763784/size=small/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/transparent=true/" seamless><a href="http://artistivanchew.bandcamp.com/track/teneleventwelve">TenElevenTwelve by ArtistIvanChew</a></iframe><br /><br />They didn't seem overwhelmed. Plenty of time to play around. Nice arranges tracks too; these folks have good musical timing. <br /><br />Three hours was a good duration. Class size of ten was excellent; probably 20 would be fine with an assistant. <br /><br />One tech problems:&nbsp;The rental MacBook didnt have the latest GarageBand version. Wasnt able to drag and drop loops. Luckily while the software update was in progress, one participant readily volunteered his Mac until the update was completed.<br /><br />Planned for everything (extra power extensions, making sure we nailed down the screen resolution; a 'live' dry run with my colleagues before this public session) except that one. Must make mental note.<br /><br />When I was mulling over the session on the train, I asked myself why I liked to share and teach.<br /><br />On one hand, it means putting myself in the firing line, where participants have a range of expectations. Even of the session is a free one, I don't believe it's an excuse to waste people's time. <br /><br />On the other, there's something immensely satisfying in seeing people give that nod of understanding, or outwardly thanking for having gained insights.<br /><br />I wonder if it's an affirmation of my own self worth. Maybe, though I can find other ways to satisfy my ego.<br /><br />Oh, I ended up conducting this workshop because the Public Library was running a series of Arts related programmes. Mooted the idea of a digital music workshop to a colleague, she liked it, and I volunteered to run it.<br /><br />Coincidentally it was held on a 10.11.12<br /><br />Hmm, if nine people turned up, that meant 9.10.11.12.<br /><br />lol<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8167215673/" title="Creating digital music 101 - using GarageBand by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="Creating digital music 101 - using GarageBand" height="240" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8205/8167215673_db6b813bd5_m.jpg" width="174" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2012/11/post-workshop-notes-creating-digital.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-3072472802767981046Wed, 24 Oct 2012 18:03:00 +00002012-10-25T02:20:05.227+08:00creative commonshobbymusicmusingsSoon-to-be-released: My 2012 Creative Commons project: post-rock themed digital music albumMy band mates, with a guest collaborator, started working on a few tracks around Jan this year. Through the usual (for us) way of passing ideas and MP3 files over email.<br /><br />Last month, when it sunk in that 2012 would be the <a href="http://creativecommons.org/weblog/entry/34254">10th global birthday celebrations</a> for Creative Commons, we wanted our album to be a gift to the movement.<br /><br />Our DIY digital album will be published over this weekend. <br /><br />This evening, we completed the final piece of the musical project: the album cover. <br /><br />Here are the designs I developed over two evenings: <br /><br />1. "deca"<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8119431370/" title="&quot;deca&quot; by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8196/8119431370_12027b9661_n.jpg" width="320" height="320" alt="&quot;deca&quot;"></a><br /><br />2. "TEN"<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8119421859/" title="&quot;TEN&quot; by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8194/8119421859_076a0f77bf_n.jpg" width="320" height="320" alt="&quot;TEN&quot;"></a><br /><br />3. "DEKA"<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8119445506/" title="&quot;DEKA&quot; by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8329/8119445506_8effb7a2a2_n.jpg" width="320" height="320" alt="&quot;DEKA&quot;"></a><br /><br />A few hours ago, the band -- with our <a href="http://ccmixter.org/people/urmymuse/profile">guest collaborator, urmymuse,</a> who is from halfway around the globe -- have agreed on a majority vote on design No. 3, "DEKA".<br /><br />The album has 10 tracks, for CC's 10th birthday this year, slated for October.<br /><br />A 10-10-10 combo.<br /><br />So what's with the title and "tens"?<br /><br /><strong>The Backstory</strong><br />My first album design looked like this (created two nights ago):<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8116248178/" title="My amateur attempt at a #CreativeCommons 10th Birthday logo by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8323/8116248178_a7b7148d89_n.jpg" width="320" height="320" alt="My amateur attempt at a #CreativeCommons 10th Birthday logo"></a><br /><br />It was passable as a symbol or logo. But somehow it didn't quite cut it as an album cover. Looked too cold; too detached. The opposite of what our music represented.<br /><br />So I wondered about the etymology for "decade". That led to my discovering the term "deca", which was Latin for "the combining form for 'Ten'": "decapod", "decasyllabic", "decathlon", "decametre"...<br /><br />Multiples of ten. <br /><br />Bingo!<br /><br />But I wondered if it might be too subtle or indirect for people to catch on. <br /><br />No harm in posting the question in Facebook. Kind of expecting zero comments, so I was really surprised to get plenty of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ramblinglibrarian/posts/10151193965139280">good ideas and useful comments</a> from my Facebook contacts. Thanks folks!<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8119513705/" title="AdobePhotoshopExpress_20121025003627 by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8468/8119513705_645aac0590_n.jpg" width="237" height="320" alt="AdobePhotoshopExpress_20121025003627"></a><br /><br />All things considered, "deca" was quite appropriate. <br /><br />I used Keynote on my iPad to piece together a few ideas. Ended up using Keynote as my "photoshop"! <br /><br />Within hours of the Facebook comments and doodling in the iPad, I managed to churn out design No. 1. <br /><br />Emailed that off to <a href="http://lekowala.wordpress.com">Adrian</a>, <a href="http://myvanillaworld.wordpress.com">I-Ling</a> and <a href="http://ccmixter.org/people/urmymuse/profile">urmymuse</a>. Explained the concept to them. And hoped they would agree. Or at least, no violent objections from them. <br /><br />Adrian was first to give "deca" his approval. Next was urmymuse, who added that the Greek spelling (deka) was preferred but it wouldn't be something to "die in a ditch" for (LOL).<br /><br />By that time, I also preferred DEKA over DECA. Particularly after considering the Facebook comments. For one, "deca" might lead to some people subconsciously associating it with "decay" or "decadence" -- unrelated words, no doubt but still might prove distracting rather than adding to the album's intrigued.<br /><br />I churned out designs no.s 2 and 3, and emailed to the band. Promised this would be the last iteration (any more options and it would be counterproductive).<br /><br />Our vocalist, I-Ling, liked DEKA too.<br /><br />So that was that.<br /><br />All ten tracks have been mastered, bounced; the uncompressed files sitting in my hard disk (backed up, for sure) waiting to be prepped with metadata (I use iTunes for that).<br /><br />It'll be a public holiday this Friday. That would give me time to <a href="http://starfishstories.bandcamp.com">publish</a> the album this weekend.<br /><br /><strong>Musical Musings</strong><br />The album will be pretty niche. Limited audience etc.<br /><br />It's perhaps best described as "almost progressive meditative pop post-rock". <br /><br />Whatever it might be called, it's our labour of love. <br /><br />A musician friend once asked me if I composed music for others or for myself. I guessed as much that it was his polite way of saying my musical compositions didn't quite fit a certain accepted standard or norm. <br /><br />It was an excellent question that he'd asked. <br /><br />Made me reflect. <br /><br />It reinforced in my mind that I choose to create music for myself. <br /><br />That's not to say I'll refuse to learn and improve or accept constructive criticisms. For sure I'd like to perfect this particular craft. <br /><br />But I don't have to set undue pressure for myself, on when I should "reach perfection". When much younger, I used to think that. For instance, I felt I needed to be able to reach a certain level of technical prowess on the guitar. <br /><br />Decades later, my views have shifted. It's less about what I can make the guitar do.<br /><br />It's not about one particular instrument anymore. <br /><br />I'm interested in making music, using whatever skills and abilities (and equipment) that I have incrementally gained from each musical project; from creating each musical track. <br /><br />If the world cares to listen to what I share, that's a bonus. <br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2012/10/soon-to-be-released-my-2012-creative.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-7645215533515169241Tue, 16 Oct 2012 13:42:00 +00002012-10-21T12:08:38.558+08:00singaporeSingapore Memory ProjectsingaporeanssocietyWhat would be the 50 objects that represent Singapore to you?Back in September, a friend pointed me to <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2012/09/02/nyregion/a-history-of-new-york-in-50-objects.html?hpw">this NYT article</a> about a project in New York City that asked historians and museum curators to name 50 objects that could "embody the narrative of New York".<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8093628978/" title="A History of New York in 50 Objects - NYTimes.com by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="A History of New York in 50 Objects - NYTimes.com" height="240" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8334/8093628978_519ef96cbb_m.jpg" width="179" /></a><br /><br />Top of the New York list was a Mastodon tusk. The 50th item was something called a "Meng Political Sign, 2012".<br /><br />The former referred to the first recorded discovery of mastodon remains in 1858, in a borough in New York city.<br /><br />The latter turned out to be a political campaign poster of a Ms Grace Meng. She won the Democratic Congressional nomination in Queens borough. That tidbit was a segway to how the city's residents of Asian origin exceeded one million for the first time, as recorded in the 2010 Census.<br /><br /><br /><b>Inspired by the British Museum's 100 Objects</b><br />That project in New York was inspired by the British Museum’s BBC radio series and book, “<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/ahistoryoftheworld/about/british-museum-objects/">A History of the World in 100 Objects</a>". <br /><br />Item One on the British Museum's list was the <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/ahistoryoftheworld/objects/sogITE3FSKStlk12qd2W3w">Mummy of Hornedjitef</a>. The 100th item was a <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/ahistoryoftheworld/objects/lvsof-uPTpeh-VRmmywHIw">Solar Powered Lamp and Charger</a>.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8093633950/" title="BBC - A History of the World - About - British Museum - 100 Objects by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="BBC - A History of the World - About - British Museum - 100 Objects" height="240" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8332/8093633950_1ff2ae7b9e_m.jpg" width="122" /></a><br /><br />Detractors might say that was rather presumptuous of any institution to claim that their collections definitively represented "The World's" history. Equally arguable would be that the 100th item should have been a MP3 player or Xbox (dare I say, iPhone?) rather than a solar-powered lamp and charger.<br /><br />BUT...<br /><br />I found the concept of a "100 objects" listing -- one that symbolically represent a certain perspective of the world -- a refreshing one. Got to give it to the Brits for such a simple and innovative way to curate and present items from their Museum's collection (notwithstanding the joke about Colonial British plundering and shipping back treasures from all around the globe).<br /><br />The British Museum has also created an <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/ahistoryoftheworld/explorerflash/#/contributor/137/">interactive visual browse</a> page (Flash-based), based on time and filtering by other facets.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8093574953/" title="BBC - A History of the World - Contributor - The British Museum by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="BBC - A History of the World - Contributor - The British Museum" height="229" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8186/8093574953_1052e6b7f7_n.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><br /><br /><b>People's History</b><br />The New York example wanted to make their's "a people’s history", to allow for individual perspectives rather than form a definitive list (as implied by the British example):<br /><blockquote>The “History of the World” was limited to objects in the British Museum’s collection. Like that list, ours “can only be a history” and “not the history.” And because it is a people’s history, we are inviting participation. Tell us what objects represent New York City to you in the comments section.</blockquote><br />The New Yorkers invited public comments after an initial list from historians and museum curators. The British Museum didn't solicit public contributions it seemed.<br /><br />I think to truly make it a "people's list", everyone should be given a chance to create their own right from the start. <br /><br /><br /><b>A Singapore "100 objects" list?</b><br />The article instantly captured my imagination, since the Singapore Memory Project occupied a large part of my work time (and maybe off work too). <br /><br />I wondered what a "50 objects that represent Singapore's History" would look like. I posted <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ramblinglibrarian/posts/10151122834254280">this on Facebook</a>, inviting FB contacts to also name 50 objects they consider to be representative of Singapore's history.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8093568474/" title="What &quot;A history of Singapore in 50 objects&quot; might look like by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img alt="What &quot;A history of Singapore in 50 objects&quot; might look like" height="240" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8476/8093568474_bb16c18651_m.jpg" width="148" /></a><br /><br />Didn't get very far with that. For what it's worth here's the list, thanks to the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ramblinglibrarian/posts/10151122834254280">contributions</a> from some FB friends (objects are not in any order of importance):<br /><ol><li>Ivan Chew - <b>Rubber seed</b> (I'm thinking of Sir Henry Nicholas Ridley)</li><li>Walter Lim - <b>A pair of spectacles</b> since we're the most bespectacled nation in the world.</li><li>Chon Hsing Ng - <b>Air conditioner</b> to symbolise how SG has had to artificially creates my things eg beach, jungle, water, etc</li><li>Low Hei Chin - <b>Four stones</b>.</li><li>Hikaru Teo - the <b>rediffusion tabletop radio</b></li><li>Dex Khor - A <b>rotan</b>.</li><li>Bernadette Daly-Swanson - Definitely Pierre Balmain's iconic <b>kebaya and sarong for SIA</b>... Had one made when I was there in 2009. I need to come back for IFLA!</li><li>Ivan Chew - <b>Adrian Tan's Teenage Textbook</b></li><li>Adrian Tan - <b>Chicken rice</b></li><li>Dex Khor - The <b>Ultimax 100 SAW</b>. Sold to Bosnia with pride!</li><li>Alec Ng - Add the <b>merlion</b>...</li><li>(Alec Ng)... <b>newater</b></li><li>(Alec Ng)... and the <b>document on the proclamation of independence for Singapore</b>.</li><li>Bernadette Daly-Swanson - <b>National Library Board Singapore</b></li><li>Ivan Chew - <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sintercom"><b>Sintercom</b></a></li><li>Low Hei Chin - ... Stamps and coins from that represent significant events / moments in our history? First day covers? I can only think of <b>dinky toys or toy soldiers (Deetail) that depict WWII.</b></li><li>Hikaru Teo - Well the <b>banana note</b> would be a notable representation of life during the Japanese Occupation.</li><li>Ivan Chew - The <b>POSB logo</b>!</li><li>Regina De Rozario - I've just gotten into reading excerpts and commentaries on the correspondence between Raffles and Farquhar and I would add <b>the letter written by Farquhar after he was dismissed by Raffles </b>(for not following the latter's town plan and vision to a T).</li><li>Low Hei Chin - Our <b>national flower</b>!</li><li>Ivan Chew - The <b>Tembusu tree</b>. Cos it appears on our $5 note.</li><li>Ivan Chew - <b>Teamy the Productivity Bee</b>.</li><li>Ivan Chew - <b>Singa the Courtesy Lion</b>.</li><li>Ivan Chew - The <b>SAF Reservist Booklet </b>(now defunct).</li><li>Low Hei Chin - <b>Singapore Sling</b></li></ol><br />Ok, 25 items isn't bad. Some items were totally off my consciousness until others mentioned it. Like the Singapore-made <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultimax_100">Ultimax 100 Section Assault Weapon</a> (SAW). <br /><br />Some objects -- like the 'rotan' (i.e. cane) -- encapsulates so many things past and present: parental methods in bringing up children, school discipline, criminal code and the penal system, a national event (remember <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_P._Fay">Michael Fay</a>?). <br /><br />I'm sure each of us can come up with our own list of 50 items. Or at least 20 items easily.<br /><br />New items would make it to the list, as per recent events. I can think of <a href="http://sg.news.yahoo.com/police-report-filed-against-amy-cheong-over-racist-facebook-post.html">Amy Cheong</a>. Ok, technically not an "object" (I'm sure you know I didn't mean to say she's an object) but what the heck, it's a 'people's list'. We could flexibly cover Events, People, Places in the same list or separately if we choose.<br /><br />If there's a representative number of people creating such a list, what I'm really, really interested is to analyse the choice of items on the combined list. The list could reflect the success of certain national brands or campaigns. Missing items might shed light on what else we might need to do (e.g. what if no artwork or artist make it to anyone's list?)<br /><br />Analysing an aggregation of lists might reveal the psyche of individual citizens. And quite likely our psyche as a nation.<br /><br />***<br />Update - New items to the list:<br /><br />[18 Oct 2012, items 26-29]<br />26. Low Hei Chin - Meant to write this earlier but did not get around to doing it. How about those <b>khong Guan biscuits with a colorful icing sugar on top</b>?<br /><br />27. Adrian Tan - I wanted to say, "<b>Kelong</b>!" I think it is unique to Singapore.<br /><br />28. <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ramblinglibrarian/posts/294393914007893">Peter Pak</a> - Interesting read- can I add <b>Singapore Chinese girls school</b> as an one. It was the first girl school at a time when more forward looking men wanted to reform the social education of girls beyond being home bound<br /><br />29. <a href="https://twitter.com/justinzhuang/status/258205680685707264">@JustinZhuang</a> - <b>Anti-Littering man</b>!<br /><br />[19 Oct 2012, items 30-32]<br />30. <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ramblinglibrarian/posts/10151122834254280?comment_id=23733685&offset=0&total_comments=42">Dave Chua</a> - I think it's also important to pick out items that show key moments of Singapore in transition. The <b>last copy of the original New Nation newspaper</b>...<br /><br />31. ...A <b>citizen pass for the casinos</b>. <br /><br />32. ... <b>WP 2012 flag</b>.<br /><br />(Folks, feel free to add to the list by commenting. Even if it exceeds 50)<div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2012/10/what-would-be-50-objects-that-represent.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-14796161947707942Sun, 23 Sep 2012 15:24:00 +00002012-09-24T13:09:38.011+08:00Book review: "Praying to the goddess of mercy: A memoir of mood swings"There is power in knowing a name.<br /><br />When it comes to an illness, knowing what it is called allows for some measure of rationality. We can start making sense of it and adopt ways to cope.<br /><br /><b>Praying to the goddess of mercy: A memoir of mood swings/ <br />Mahita Vas</b><br />ISBN: 9789814358910<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8015398384/" title="Book cover: Praying to the goddess of mercy: A memoir of mood swings/ Mahita Vas by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8459/8015398384_a73a23d0b6_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="Book cover: Praying to the goddess of mercy: A memoir of mood swings/ Mahita Vas"></a><br /><i>Cover image - All Rights Reserved: <a href="http://www.monsoonbooks.com.sg/">Monsoon Books</a></i><br /><br />The term "<a href="http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/manic-depressive+psychosis">Bipolar Disorder</a>" (or the cruder term, "Manic Depressive Psychosis") has always been merely words to me. I mean, I understand what it is from reading definitions and articles. But I think nothing becomes real until we associate it with someone or something that we can relate.<br /><br />If I come across the term again, I would think of this 200-plus page story, and a woman named Mahita Vas.<br /><br />About a month ago, a representative of Monsoon Books Publishing emailed me to ask if I would like to review a copy of "Praying To The Goddess Of Mercy". The mail briefly described what the book was about:<br /><blockquote>"Diagnosed with bipolar disorder at the age of forty-two, Mahita survived suicidal mood swings, flourished in her career and raised a family while battling the mental disorder.<br /><br />Throughout her career as a flight attendant with SIA, then as a high-flying advertising industry executive with companies such as BMW, Ogilvy, Four Seasons and L’Oreal, the author led a volatile life: sometimes blissfully and enviably contented, at other times screaming like a lunatic.<br /><br />Set in Singapore, Praying To The Goddess Of Mercy charts Mahita’s journey from chaos to stability. Ultimately, the memoir is about being true to oneself and having the courage to take charge in the pursuit of happiness."</blockquote><br />I was intrigued and said OK to the book review request. The book came in the mail. I took about three days to read it from cover to cover.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8015506633/" title="Book cover: Praying to the goddess of mercy: A memoir of mood swings/ Mahita Vas by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8305/8015506633_74bcc93c83_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="Book cover: Praying to the goddess of mercy: A memoir of mood swings/ Mahita Vas"></a><br /><br />The short-take: It's pretty good stuff. As a memoir, the author came across as credible and honest, without being self-indulgent. As a book about Bipolar Disorder, it's insightful with specific and personal examples of discovering and coping (or at times, not being able to) with the illness. The writing is crisp. The flow was good, such that I was easily led from page to page all the way till the end.<br /><br />Here's a longer take:<br /><br />From reading similar works about people living with mental illness (biographical or otherwise), there seems a rough pattern to their experiences: Normalcy, Uncertainty (of what is plaguing them), Diagnosis/ Discovery, Rejection/ Fear, Acceptance. <br /><br />In a way, I expected this book to be no different. So what could be new or insightful, I wondered.<br /><br />After the first few pages, it was clear there is always something new, something different and insightful when it comes to reading about another person's journey in living with an illness.<br /><br />It also occurred to me that most of us would ONLY bother to find out more about a medical condition when it directly affects us, or a close family member or friend.<br /><br />In a way, this book has personified Bipolar Disorder for me.<br /><br />It came across as a coming-of-age personal story about discovering and living with that medical condition.<br /><br />As the author writes: <i>“It was a life changing revelation to learn there was an explanation and a name for my unusual behaviour.”</i> (Chapter 13, p232)<br /><br />In some ways, I thought her story was also of how others in her life -- particularly her husband and her children -- have had to deal with her illness, before she was diagnosed.<br /><br />By the end of the book, I had the impression this was someone who had come to terms with her situation and herself. Bipolar Disorder, as explained in the book, is not something that can be cured. It cannot be prevented but it can be treated. <br /><br />Back in the 1980s, when the author was in her teens, mental illness was something that was even less discussed or publicly acknowledged. The stigma of having a mental disorder was a much stronger one.<br /><br />Her symptoms of Bipolar Disorder included extreme mood swings -- periods of energy, happiness and invincibility and then inexplicably of sadness, over-reactive outbursts and rages. Even feelings of being unconcerned about death.<br /><br />She described several specific incidents where she raged out of control, for situations that did not seem to warrant the severity of the anger. After the violent outburst, she would feel a sense of guilt and remorse. She described episodes of self-loathing for not being able to control how she has acted.<br /><br />Those episodes were initially accepted as part of her personality (bad temper and unpredictable nature) and a normal life cycle.<br /><br />A breakthrough came when she decided to consult a psychiatrist. Things did not go smoothly for her. The demands of work, family and managing an illness took its toil. It did not help that she decided to adjust the dosage of medication on her own.<br /><br />Chapter 9 talked about her suicide attempt. Her husband got to her in time. Reading about his response was a poignant and touching moment (hat-tip to Bob there). One of the best lines in the book was what her husband mildly reminded/ rebuked her of the consequences of taking one's own life: <i>“The minute you become a parent, you revoke the right to think about yourself.”</i><br /><br />There is frequent mention of the support from her husband and her children. Once again, this book testifies to the need and importance of support and understanding from family, friends and colleagues when one is coping with an illness.<br /><br />I appreciated how Mahitas Vas did not make excuses for herself nor subject the reader to a self-indulgent confession. Even after a confirmed diagnosis, she wondered just how much of her outbursts were due to her illness and how much was a lack of self-discipline. The last chapter of the book scratched just a little of the surface of this question.<br /><br />The book would be great for a book discussion. In reading this memoir, I had vague echos of Pirsig's "<a href="http://roughnotes.wordpress.com/2004/07/30/zen-and-the-art-of-motorcycle-maintenance-an-inquiry-into-values-robert-m-pirsig/">Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance</a>" going on in my head. In dealing with an illness, there seems to be natural themes of Consciousness and Choice. Something that I thought <a href="http://roughnotes.wordpress.com/2005/10/01/finding-ben-a-mothers-journey-through-the-maze-of-aspergers-barbara-lasalle/">Finding Ben</a> also dealt with.<br /><br />I thought this book was a good read.<br /><br />We read life stories like this, to remind ourselves that there is always some measure of choice over one’s ‘fate’.<br /><br />Monsoon Books is officially launching the book <s>on 24 Sept,</s> Oct 2012. The e-book is already out on ilovebooks.com.<br /><br />The author has a <a href="http://mahitavas.com/">website</a> and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/PrayingToTheGoddessOfMercy">Facebook page</a>.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/8015537007/" title="Monsoon Books - New title: Praying to the Goddess of Mercy by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8459/8015537007_80866b8aca_n.jpg" width="212" height="320" alt="Monsoon Books - New title: Praying to the Goddess of Mercy"></a><br /><br />[Note: this is an unpaid review.]<div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2012/09/book-review-praying-to-goddess-of-mercy.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-7240715055886063885Sat, 18 Aug 2012 15:07:00 +00002012-08-18T23:08:39.996+08:00readingRemixing Romeo & JulietCame across this graphic-novel adaptation of Shakespeare’s famous play.<br /><br /><a HREF="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1411498747/seedsolightam-20"><img SRC="http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1411498747.01.TZZZZZZZ.jpg" border="0" alt="cover" hspace="3" vspace="3"></a><br />Romeo & Juliet (No Fear Shakespeare Graphic Novels), by Matt Wiegle.<br />ISBN: 9781411498747<br /><br />I’ve never read Romeo & Juliet because it was not one of my literature text in school. Well... how many of us would voluntarily read Shakespeare?<br /><br />What I knew about Romeo and Juliet (other than them being the most famous couple in human lore) was that both lovers killed themselves in the end. One tends to get bits and pieces -- most likely the death scene -- from movie adaptions and mentions.<br /><br />This adaption was a fun read. Part of the fun was discovering different interpretative layers to this Shakespearean play. This play seem ripe for re-makes, remixes and adaptions (as Shakespeare no doubt <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romeo_and_Juliet">did the same</a>).<br /><br />The popular mental model of Romeo and Juliet is that they are star-crossed lovers, innocent in their affections and simply caught up in a family feud. <br /><br />However, a 'dark' version might go like this: <br /><blockquote>Romeo could have been a fickle knave and not that innocent a guy. He was simply fooling around with Juliet. His suicide was more of a self-inflicted accident, due to misinformation and bad timing. In a similar vein, Juliet might could have been a manipulative girl who hooked up with Romeo as a way to get back at her father, for forcing her on whom she could marry. Let's not forget Friar Lawrence, who are the lover's go-between in the play. Maybe he was being blackmailed into helping them. Romeo has a hold on him because of a certain scandalous matter, perhaps.</blockquote><br />Here's my slightly unorthodox look at the Romeo and Juliet story, with possible variations of a possible 'dark' backstory thrown in:<br /><br />***<br /><br />The Montagues (Romeo’s family) and the Capulets (Juliet’s) were two rich and powerful families in the city of Verona in Renaissance Italy. Basically, the two households cannot stand each other and fights would be started in the streets.<br /><br />The first hint of Romeo possessing that wishy-washy fickleness was his pandering over an unrequited love -- a Rosaline, who never quite appeared in person. Romeo professed how his life was a misery since he wasn't able to obtain Rosaline's favour. But he dropped Rosalind like she never existed, after he saw Juliet. <br /><br />Romeo and his friends had disguised themselves and gate-crashed a Capulet dinner party. That was how he met Juliet and she instantly became The One for him. Lust at first sight, or so it seemed to me.<br /><br />Romeo then started to woo Juliet by sneaking into the Capulet family home grounds at night, making his way to under Juliet’s balcony. <br /><br />What a charmer, that Romeo! Or perhaps Juliet was bored and sought a way to amuse herself. Just stringing Romeo along.<br /><br />Oh yes, there seemed to be a lot of sneaking around thereafter. <br /><br />Romeo and Juliet then got themselves married secretly, with the help of Romeo’s friend Friar Lawrence.<br /><br />But on that same day when they got married in secret, Tybalt (Juliet’s cousin) ends up being killed by Romeo in a revenge-fight. All because Tybalt picked a fight and sneakily killed Mercuto (Romeo’s friend). <br /><br />That very day, Romeo was banished by the Prince of Verona. Punishment for the clan duel and murder. Juliet was heartbroken to learn of the death of her cousin and the banishment of her still-secret husband.<br /><br />Prior to Romeo’s leaving his city, he managed to sneak into Juliet’s room and spent the night there. All with the help of Juliet’s nurse. After that, Romeo leaves for his place of banishment.<br /><br />The plot thickens when Juliet’s father made hasty plans to marry his only daughter to a nobleman, Count Paris. The father does not know of Romeo (or one could imagine he'd heard rumours of his daughter's indiscretions and was trying to control further damage).<br /><br />When he told Juliet about the marriage decision, Juliet gave him a seemingly smarmy response about non-marriage. She did not tell him about Romeo or of her secret marriage.<br /><br />Her father launched into a rage furious (Juliet came across as rather snarky). He issued an ultimatum: marry Count Paris or be disowned.<br /><br />That forced Juliet's hand. She sought Friar Lawrence’s help. The friar gave Juliet a concoction that would allow her to fake death. The dosage was timed such that by the time her corpse was interred into the family crypt, she would be revived. The friar would pass a message to Romeo, so that he could sneak Juliet away. <br /><br />As Romeo was out of town (banished, remember?) the friar got someone to deliver Romeo a letter.<br /><br />So, Juliet drank the mix (talk about guts) and appeared dead on her wedding day to Count Paris (poor man, the count). Her father spared no expense preparing for her wedding ceremony, only to find her dead (her poor parents!)<br /><br />Up till that point, the plan seemed a solid one. <br /><br />But then the first sign of a SNAFU -- the letter never made it to Romeo. Due to a quarantine from a suspected plague outbreak, the delivery person didn't pass the secret message to Romeo.<br /><br />What Romeo received was news from his family servant that Juliet was dead. He rushed off to see his beloved, not knowing what Juliet and the friar had planned. He bought poison, planning to die at her side.<br /><br />Unexpectedly Count Paris showed up at the tomb that night. He caught Romeo attempting a tomb break-in.<br /><br />They dueled.<br /><br />Romeo killed the Count. Wow, for a supposedly naive romantic dude, Romeo was quite the fighter!<br /><br />He then carried the Count’s body into the tomb, said his final words to Juliet, and drank the poison.<br /><br />“Thus with a kiss I die.”<br /><br />And so he died, that Romeo.<br /><br />The friar arrived and discovered the carnage. Juliet woke at that time as well (amazingly no ill-effects from drinking the pseudo-poison). The friar was unable to persuade Juliet to leave. He fled instead.<br /><br />Juliet famously plunged the dagger into herself: “Oh happy knife, this is your sheath! Rust there and let me die.”<br /><br />The friar didn't get very far. He was caught fleeing the scene. He spilled everything and revealed all in front of the Prince of Verona and both fathers of the two dead lovers.<br /><br />The two heartbroken old men, rebuked by the prince, made up on the spot. They swore their families would never fight again. <br /><br />A seemingly happy ending to a tragic sequence of events. <br /><br />Though, in the 'dark' version, I think there wouldn't really be a real reconciliation. Before the Prince of Verona intervened, there would be an all-out war between the Montagues and the Capulets (ala Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather). Total blood bath.<br /><br />***<br /><br />Might as well be consistent with a 'dark' theme, right? Oh, Hollywood what have you done to me? Heh.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2012/08/romeo-juliet-no-fear-shakespeare.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-5807628195976480297Thu, 28 Jun 2012 15:03:00 +00002012-06-28T23:03:00.177+08:00workHave you ever had the office go silent on you?It happened to me a few weeks ago.<br /><br />I was in meeting at an open area within the office floor. At first there was ambient noise with other colleagues in their cubicles speaking, typing. <br /><br />My meeting got heated. A few colleagues, including myself, got pretty loud in saying how a recent internal work process was making things less productive rather than more (details aren't important; I can't share them anyway).<br /><br />Moments later, I realised the office went quiet.<br /><br />I had mixed feelings of righteous anger and embarrassment. I guess it was the realisation that we had called attention to ourselves.<br /><br />The problem with verbal outbursts is that people around me won't grasp the full context. They are likely to remember that I was the one who got angry. Not good for my image, I thought.<br /><br />I once read that only passionate workers get angry. If they don't it means they don't care. <br /><br />When other colleagues have been rather exuberant in expressing their resentment (either at me or not) I take it in stride. In some case, I assure them it's OK to have that outburst, in private was preferred. The rationale is that it's a privilege, generally speaking, that co-workers are comfortable with me to speak or express emotions truthfully.<br /><br />But personally I try not to show outbursts at work (btw, I fail miserably at home as my wife would point out). Some colleagues thankfully remind me on those occasions, diplomatically. Justified or not, I prefer to play the 'emotion-less' administrator. <br /><br />Still, sometimes I forget.<br /><br />Have you ever been in this situation?<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2012/06/have-you-ever-had-office-go-silent-on.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7424038.post-8779699359401692642Sun, 10 Jun 2012 14:29:00 +00002012-06-11T01:01:59.507+08:00creative commonsebookideasCrowd-funding to buy a Creative Commons license for a book: Unglue.itYou might be thinking what a chockfull of concepts behind this statement: "Crowd-funding to buy a Creative Commons license for an ebook".<br /><br />Let me break it down for you:<br /><br /><ol><li>Crowd-funding: "Funding a project by raising many small amounts of money from a large number of people" (source: <a href="http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/crowdfunding">OxfordDictionaries.com</a>)</li><li>Purchase, i.e. owner is paid in return for granting a perpetual license for others to use the work</li><li><a href="http://wiki.creativecommons.org/FAQ">Creative Commons</a> as the licensing model</li><li>The work is subsequently released in a digital form (the source just needs to be 'already published' and may not be an ebook, if I understood it correctly)</li></ol><br />Sounds really innovative.<br /><br />From the Unglue.it <a href="https://unglue.it/faq/">FAQ section</a>:<br /><blockquote><b><i>What is Unglue.it?</i></b><br /><i>Unglue.it is a a place for individuals and institutions to join together to give their favorite ebooks to the world. We work with rights holders to decide on fair compensation for releasing a free, legal edition of their already-published books, under Creative Commons licensing. Then everyone pledges toward that sum. When the threshold is reached (and not before), we collect the pledged funds and we pay the rights holders. They issue an unglued digital edition; you're free to read and share it, with everyone, on the device of your choice, worldwide.</i></blockquote><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ramblinglibrarian/7357756262/" title="unglue.it by ramblinglibrarian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7072/7357756262_8568cf4b64_n.jpg" width="307" height="320" alt="unglue.it"></a><br /><br />As explained at&nbsp;<a href="http://lj.libraryjournal.com/2012/05/publishing/ebook-crowdfunding-platform-unglue-it-launched/">Library Journal</a> (17 May 2012):<br /><blockquote><i>"Unglue.it works by allowing the rights holders of an already-published book to set a funding threshold—generally between $5,000 to $25,000—and a deadline for a funding campaign. If supporters pledge sufficient funding prior to the campaign deadline, the book will be released as an “unglued” ebook edition, free of digital rights management (DRM) software, and free to copy and share under a Creative Commons license.</i><br /><i><br /></i><br /><i>Gluejar Inc., the company that developed Unglue.it, explained the motivation behind the concept in a release today, noting that “proprietary formats and [DRM] technology lock ebooks to specific devices and make it hard for people to keep reading their books as technology changes. Many ebooks cannot even be lent by libraries. Unglued ebooks solve these problems.”</i></blockquote><br />I found <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36o0o9aGbKc">this YouTube video</a>, where the president of Gluejar (the company behind <a href="http://unglue.it/">Unglue.it</a>) was interviewed about its platform and business model for eBook distribution:<br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="219" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/36o0o9aGbKc" width="390"></iframe><br /><br /><br /><b>Why Creative Commons rather than Public Domain?</b><br />With CC, the owner retains copyright while still giving a "free-to-use" license. This means the owner still has the ability to set other conditions, which could involve payment to the owner.<br /><br />Here's an example:<br /><br />Suppose I license my eBook under a "CC Attribution Non-Commercial" license. A movie producer wants to turn my work into a for-profit movie. He has to seek permission from me (or pay me) because I've only given permission for non-commercial use. Separately, I'm able to enter a contract with this movie producer (because he's commercialising it, I also ask for a fee) At the same time, this contract does not affect my earlier CC licensed work, even if it's the same work.<br /><br />Or, at the very least, I allow the movie producer to use my work without a fee but with very specific conditions on how I should be credited (hmm... I want my name to be at the start of the movie, and as a stand-alone mention at the end. Plus, it has to be on all publicity materials etc.)<br /><br />See how I would have retained control of my choice of licensing model in that sense? (Nothing in the world can prevent copyrights abuse, but that's another issue).<br /><br />Whereas if my work is in the Public Domain, the movie producer can legally use it without even mentioning my name. Btw, it's not quite as straight-forward in releasing one's work as Public Domain while one is still alive, i.e. before the Copyright term expires. Which is where CC also has a solution <a href="http://creativecommons.org/about/cc0">with CC0</a>).<br /><br />Personally, I think adopting CC makes a lot of sense. For one, CC has been around for 10 years and the framework (currently at version 3) has withstood the test of time and in a few cases, <a href="http://wiki.creativecommons.org/Case_Law">in courts</a> as well. CC allows the owner to retain copyright, unlike a Public Domain work where rights are given up absolutely. <br /><br />CC is seen as a fairly robust and flexible framework. It <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/">provides clarity</a> (to lawyers and non-lawyers alike). <br /><br />An example of flexibility is where a CC-licensed work allows for subsequent format conversions, unless the author opts for a "No-Derivatives" license. Which is also another instance of flexibility of licensing-choice being provided for the owner. The owner can opt for the various combinations of CC options.<br /><br /><br /><b>Does it mean the content owner's ability to make money is diminished?</b><br /><b><br /></b><br />The <a href="https://unglue.it/faq/">Unglue.it FAQ</a> anticipates this very important question: <br /><blockquote><b><i>"If I'm a rights holder and I unglue my book, does that mean I can never make money from it again?"</i></b><br /><i>No! You are free to enter into additional licensing agreements for other, non-unglued, editions of the work, including translation and film rights. You may continue to sell both print and ebook editions. You may use your unglued books as free samples to market your other works -- for instance, later works in the same series. You can use them to attract fans who may be interested in your speaking engagements, merchandise, or other materials. You absolutely may continue to profit from ungluing books -- and we hope you do!</i></blockquote><br />The 'control' is also put in the hands of the rights-holders. Only rights-holders (authors or publishers) can start campaigns:<br /><blockquote><b><i>Who is eligible to start a campaign on Unglue.it?</i></b><br /><i>To start a campaign, you need to be a verified rights holder who has signed a Platform Services Agreement with us. If you hold the commercial rights for one or more works, please contact rights@gluejar.com to start the process.</i></blockquote><br />One of the things I picked up from the video: the Unglue.it business model targets eBooks that aren't bestsellers.<br /><br />The Unglue.it FAQ also lists a few reasons on <i>"<b>Why do rights holders want to unglue their books?</b>":</i><br /><br /><ul><li><i>To publicize their other books, gain new fans, or otherwise increase the value of an author's brand.</i></li><li><i>To get income from books that are no longer in print.</i></li><li><i>To have a digital strategy that pays for itself, even if they don't have expertise in producing ebooks.</i></li><li><i>To advance a cause, add to the public conversation, or increase human knowledge.</i></li><li><i>To leave a legacy that enriches everyone, now and in the future.</i></li></ul><br /><b>A possible downside for authors?</b><br />There's the difficulty in deciding a fair value for the book to be crowd-funded. I can imagine the tussle between what authors think they can reasonably get in terms of longer-term sales Vs what's essentially an upfront fee to release the work under CC. <br /><br />In short: if they set a sum now and their book proves to be super-popular later, they can't recall the CC license and charge more. <br /><br />It forces independent authors, who may be inexperienced in price negotiations, to assume even more entrepreneurial risk. But that's not necessarily a bad thing. And the reality may be that many of such authors have no recourse to obtaining an upfront fee from traditional publishing models anyway.<br /><br /><br /><b>Unglue.it: Is it a viable business model?</b><br /><br />Paul Biba asked,&nbsp;<a href="http://www.teleread.com/paul-biba/can-unglue-it-succeed-quirky-initial-selections-raise-questions/">in this post</a>, why would anyone pledge money to an Unglue campaign.&nbsp;Even Eric Hellman acknowledges in the video interview that&nbsp;"everyone wants to see others go first".<br /><br />My own view is that a crowd-funding model, if pitched successfully (either in planned or unplanned ways), is likely to work for books whose:<br /><ul><li>author or content have <i>some</i> appeal in some way</li><li>readers understand, and are willing to participate in, a crowd-funding model</li><li>supporters have a sense of altruism at some level</li></ul><br />Let's say I'm the sort of reader who buys books:<br /><ul><li>There's a title that interests me and I don't mind paying $4 for it (let's presume it costs $4).</li><li>After reading it, I think it's great and that it's something the rest of the world should benefit.</li><li>I decide to support the book's Unglue.it campaign by contributing an amount that I'm comfortable donating. Say, $8. It's like I'm paying it forward for two other people.</li><li>According to the Unglue.it FAQ, I'm only charged if the campaign (which has a time duration) succeeds.</li></ul><br />Here's another possible scenario:<br /><ul><li>I'm the sort of person who doesn't buy eBooks. Or a book for that matter.</li><li>A friend tells me about this book. I may or may not have gotten hold of the book thus far.</li><li>I support the Unglue.it campaign and maybe put in $2. It's what I'm willing to pay if I buy the eBook. Only, in this case I'm buying for a perpetual CC licensed copy. Or I hope I do.</li><li>If the Unglue.it campaign succeeds, I'm charged for what I've pledged.</li></ul><br />The left-brained eBook bargain-seekers (nothing wrong with that, BTW) may also see the Unglue.it model as a way to crowdsource for discounts. If they are willing to wait.<br /><br />The Unglue.it business model makes participation almost barrier free by not imposing any upfront costs (again, from their FAQ):<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><i>... If you choose to support a campaign, you may pledge whatever amount you're comfortable with. Your credit card will only be charged if the campaign reaches its goal price.</i><i><br /></i><i>If you're a rights holder, starting campaigns is free, too. You only pay Unglue.it if your campaign succeeds. For the basics on campaigns, see the FAQ on Campaigns; for more details, see the FAQ for Rights Holders.</i></blockquote><br />I think the Unglue.it service might be very useful for small print presses. Or tie-ups with independent self-publishing/ distribution platforms like <a href="http://www.smashwords.com/">Smashworlds</a>.<br /><br />Maybe even libraries as business partners, where libraries help persuade authors to Unglue their work in some ways. The Unglue.it model could also be a model for libraries to be 'publishing' intermediaries in a sense.<br /><br /><br /><b>Altruism may be the key</b><br />I thought Gluejar's president, Eric Hellman, explained it well (see&nbsp;<a href="http://youtu.be/36o0o9aGbKc?t=2m16s">the video's 2:16min segment</a>) about the "heart's" perspective. I think it's this aspect of "giving from the heart" that might be how Unglue.it model will ultimately succeed.<br /><br />Their FAQ has clearly anticipated the question:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><i><b>"Why should I fund a book at Unglue.it when I can just buy it somewhere else?"</b>When you buy a book, you get a copy for yourself. When you unglue it, you give a copy to yourself and everyone on earth.</i></blockquote>How or when will Unglue.it be successful is anyone's guess. But the potential is definitely there, in my view.<br /><br />My sense is there's a definite trend towards self-publishing and self-distribution. Which means additional distribution and&nbsp;publicity&nbsp;platforms like Unglue.it, backed with a reliable and known rights-model like Creative Commons, will be given a second look by authors. Particularly authors whose works have inherent potential and appeal.<br /><br />A&nbsp;model like Unglue.it seems to provide an indirect incentive for readers to make some books cheaper and available in a digital forms.<br /><br />Plus, I believe the world can only become more altruistic rather than less.<br /><br />I don't think Unglue.it will take the book world by storm. But it's definitely welcome news.<br /><br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- SiteSearch Google --> <form method="get" action="http://www.google.com.sg/custom" target="_top"> <table border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"> <tr><td nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" align="left" height="32"> <a href="http://www.google.com/"> <img src="http://www.google.com/logos/Logo_25wht.gif" border="0" alt="Google" align="middle"></img></a> </td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <input type="hidden" name="domains" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com;myrightbrain.wordpress.com;roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <input type="text" name="q" size="20" maxlength="255" value=""></input> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search"></input> </td></tr> <tr> <td>&nbsp;</td> <td nowrap="nowrap"> <table> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="" checked="checked"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">Web</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="myrightbrain.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">myrightbrain.wordpress.com</font> </td> <td> <input type="radio" name="sitesearch" value="roughnotes.wordpress.com"></input> <font size="-1" color="#000000">roughnotes.wordpress.com</font> </td> </tr> </table> <input type="hidden" name="client" value="pub-1240851308780046"></input> <input type="hidden" name="forid" value="1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="oe" value="ISO-8859-1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:1"></input> <input type="hidden" name="hl" value="en"></input> </td></tr></table> </form> <!-- SiteSearch Google --></div>http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2012/06/crowd-funding-to-buy-creative-commons.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Ivan Chew)6
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