The mask used by Michael Myers in the original “Halloween” was actually a Captain Kirk mask painted white, due to low budget.

after much ado I finally bought the sofa bed! it was quite the ordeal getting it into the car. The bed frame itself could barely fit into the rear seat without me having to place it diagonally and collapsing the front passenger seat and making the driver seat as far forward as it could go. and then there is small matter of the mattress. after much squeezing and pressing, I found no other way but to put it in the car boot. so i ended up in a situation with an oversized mattress in my boot and a long box taking up all the available space in the cabin. as it was I had no rear vision as the mattress forced the boot lid upwards (not unlike those taxi's with bicycles or wheelchairs in their boot) and had limited vision on the left side of the car due to the box encumbering my vision. the above coupled with my limited mobility due to the awkward placement of the seat and the way the box somewhat obstructed my gear changes, made the trip from IKEA Tampines to the flat quite an event. it is a wonder no cops pulled me over for dangerous driving. and thankfully I had no close calls enroute home.

Then once I got to Bedok I had to get all the stuff up to the flat. I had to make 2 trips up and down first for the mattress and then for the bed frame.

The next day I was off (we were supposed to be in Bangkok that day), so went to the flat and started to set up the sofa bed. It was fairly straightforward until I was attempting to screw in one of the joints. The screw could not go in!! Apparently the hole was not drilled properly or something. Being that the bed frame was made of metal I was unable to make the hole big enough for the screw to enter with the tools I had on hand. After about an hour of trying in vain, I had little choice but to rush to the nearby hardware shop where I purchased a set of files, in the hope of filing off the obstructing metal piece. When I had gotten home and tried to file the hole but it was an exercise in futility. The metal was so hard that the file even started to wear down with no discernible difference to the hole made. so it was off again to the neighbourhood centre. this time I purchased an even more fearsome looking single file and a drill-bit set. Then it was back to the flat to try out the stuff I bought. after some improvising with the electric drill, I finally managed to widen the hole enough for the screw to enter.

so here is the result of two days of hard work:


the bed in it's sofa state


the sofa after it has been transformed into a bed.

The bed is fairly comfortable despite appearances, at least for me, although Agnes may have a slightly different take on the matter. I opted for the softer mattress of the 3 densities sold. so hopefully it proves to be the right buy.

When we have time, Agnes and myself will head down to IKEA again to buy a set of covers for the sofa-bed. we are also looking for a couple of bedside tables and tables for the living room for the broadband modem and telephone.

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We plan to watch Wall-E (Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth-Class)sometime this week. It is one movie I been really looking forward to seeing this season. Pixar has hit another one out of the park with this heartwarming tale.



ahem ahem

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just watched the highlights of the MTV Music Video Awards. Britney is back, b****!
I guess just about everyone wants her to redeem herself after the last couple of years that her every detail had become fodder for tabloids. and especially so after the debacle last year at the same show. so good on her to show everyone that she is well on her way to reclaiming her crown as the pop princess.



but what were they thinking making Russell Brand as host. He is crap!



no idea what he has ever done in his un-illustrious career to deserve the accolade of hosting the biggest show in the MTV universe.

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As far as our Bangkok trip, by the looks of things we will only be able to go in October. The air tickets have been cancelled and the money put into a credit account which is to be used by December. And regarding our hotel stay prize, which is due to expire at the end of September, I wrote in to the hotel and requested an extension, which they kindly agreed to until the end of october. So all is well. Here is to hoping that the conflict in Thailand is resolved sooner rather than later so we may proceed for our trip.

I do not quite get the issues involved in all the protests. But it seems obvious that a vocal minority is responsible for it. The loose coalition of PAD (lol!!) seem to be motivated by self interests, although they claim the protest are being held under the guise of protecting the King. Funny how the name of the King gets drawn out of a hat everytime some moron wants to stage a coup, with both sides proclaiming their allegiances to the King.
This latest round of political instability has only served to damage the economy and tourism industry of the wonderful and friendly Land of Smiles. by the looks of things there is still some ways to go before anything gets solved. The Prime Minister and his cabinet have refused to resign, and the PAD have declared the protests will continue as long at Samak Sundaravej remains in office. The army has so far not intervened despite a state of emergency being declared, and the King himself has not made any public comments. So until one of the parties involved makes a decisive move the impasse will continue.By all accounts the King should say something...soon..

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Sunny's road tax expires in December, so before then we are gonna have to decide pretty soon what car to get next. COE prices are lower for category A cars in September than they have been for quite some time, so now is as good a time as any to get a 1600 cc and below car. The one car I have my eye on is the Chevrolet Spark. The other one I quite like is the Hyundai Getz. And then there is the whole gamut of China, Korea and Malaysia cars that fit within my budget.
The other way to go is to buy a 2nd hand car. A second hand saloon costs about as much as some of the other cars I mentioned above. So it is tough to make the call as a new car and a 2nd hand car come with their own pros and cons.

vs

if I could I would try to keep Sunny forever, but Sunny is getting on in years and the wear and tear is starting to show. Issues Sunny has to date:

- air con seems buggered. it goes off once in a while so i have to turn it off and then back on to get it back to running.

- the front passenger seat window is inoperational. decided against it as I figured I was gonna be changing cars anyway, but it has been over a year since...

- the cigarette lighter does not work. means I cannot attach portable vacuums or other electrical powered devices in the car.

- various hand hold are loose and could come off if anyone hangs on them too hard.

- engine oil tends to leak. so has to be topped up ever so often. the alternative is to do a complete engine overhaul and repair whatever is causing the leak.

- the window washer is spoilt, so I cant spray water/soap when the windscreen is dirty.

- the engine needs constant tuning. frustrating when you can't pass vehicle inspections the first few times and probably the biggest reason why I need a new car.

- the car alarm key is spoilt. both of them. so now i have to manually lock the car every time I park it.

- the glove compartment is falling apart. not sure why. so it tends to fall down sometimes when someone does not latch it close properly.

- as with all older cars it is not fuel efficient. and considering the amount I travel in my work and personal life , my petrol bills are high every month.

- the lights on the left side of the dashboard are spoilt. so at night I cant see the fuel gauge and the lower speed range (0 to 60 km/h) on my speedometer.

- not to mention rust on various joints and exposed parts.

- the rubber seals around the doors and such are starting to wear out. so on very rainy days it is not very advisable to drive at full speed through puddles.

overall the main reason we need a new car is that the cost of running a car on a day-to-day basis is currently too much. Sunny's fuel cost is more than most cars of similar capacity. and the cost to repair the problems listed above is too much to justify considering what has already been spent and how much longer he can continue on.

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