Ethan having a spinning good time at the DBS Marina Regatta 2013
Do you know that I was once a varsity dragon boater?
While those days were long gone, I still enjoy canoeing and paddling. I’m also drawn to carnivals that promote sports and active lifestyles. Thus, it was a no-brainer for my family and I to check out the Bay Festival last weekend at the DBS Marina Regatta 2013.
From its first animated feature Toy Story to Finding Nemo, Up, and Cars, Pixar Animation Studios is probably the world’s leading producer of animated features. Renowned for producing cartoon movies that stir the imagination and touch the heart, Pixar’s ability to allow “artists and geeks” to flourish makes it one of the world’s most innovative organisations.
The secrets behind Pixar’s success is ably captured in “Innovate the Pixar Way – Business Lessons From The World’s Most Creative Corporate Playground“. Written by Bill Capodagli and Lynn Jackson of The Disney Way, the book relates how Ed Catmull, Alvy Ray Smith and lengendary animator John Lasseter created a company which captures the imagination of childhood while making dreams come alive. The terrific trio did this by embracing four key principles:
Courtesy of me & me photoes
Yes, we are off to the wintry weather of the Northern Chinese city of Beijing for a vacation. I hear that temperatures now are in the range of between -6 to 6 deg C, so you can bet that it is going to be quite freezing cold there. Of course, regular readers of my blog would know about our propensity for polar climes, so this isn’t surprising. My son Ethan in particular is very excited about the snow, and says that he is already dreaming of building snowman.
In the words of Dean Martin, “I’m dreaming of a White Christmas….” Or perhaps Chen Lei does it better in this classical Chinese hit “One Night in Beijing”:
See you guys in 2008!
After attending a staff seminar this evening, I walked along Boat Quay area and came across this unusual phenomenon at the base of OCBC building.
I liked the way the mirror image of the skyscrapers were captured in this dark pool. As I walked along, I gingerly strode on these granite planks…
Ethan recently had fun at our neighbourhood playground with two older kids Shaun and Amu who are brothers. Watching them leaping and laughing, slipping and sliding, and generally having a great time was pretty therapeutic for me too. If only adults like us can learn how to completely let go and have fun, I believe that the world will be a better place.
Here’s a video of him with Shaun and Amu chasing each other around the playground.
Female fly: “Hey there is this kid pointing at us at the playground. Errr…. don’t you think we should be more discreet?”
Male fly: “Who cares? I don’t think they are old enough to understand!”
Female fly: “Oh man…. the kid’s daddy is taking photos of us now! Aarrgh… we will be all over the National Enquirer, The Sun and other gossip pages in a jiffy!”
We recently went to VivoCity together with my parents, my niece Mandy and nephew Isaac.
While we generally enjoyed ourselves, the entire experience would have been a lot better if certain attention to customer details were made. For a start, the air-conditioning was butt freezingly cold, and exiting from the carpark took eons.
Our first stop for the night was at Earl Swensen’s for dinner.
