Wednesday, October 28, 2009

3 years already?

28102009(003)Certainly it had been 3 years… :) Just called up your mother (and sent this pic to her via MMS) to tell her I had already picked up her present… she was ever so excited… no surprises here as I had already told her what I was going to get… :)

She certainly more than deserves it!!! :)

Whatever it takes… :)

IMG_7112The more you get older the more you like to play at the expense of sleeping and eating, sleeping seems to be the worst hit :)

So, your mother have been trying several ways of trying to get you to sleep, like orange juice in your milk, she had discovered that jumping into your cot really help :)

Last night I came in just a little too soon and as soon as you saw me, you wanted to play… I had to quickly make my exit with a scolding look on your mother’s face (sooooorrrryyyy) :)

We are now discussing our choices of kindergarten, the main issue is the area, either here near our home or whether it should be near the office? We can not believe how fast you have grown… :)

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

A Great Long Weekend :)

What a tiring long weekend this was, we took you to Dusit Zoo on the Friday, then Suan Lum Park on Saturday, however the real highlight for your mother and I was the Sunday trip to Siam Ocean World as we have been meaning to visit this aquarium with you for some weeks now.
 

IMG_7050 I had really thought you would have been in awe with all the huge fishes (probably magnified by the aquarium’s glass/plastic wall)… but you definitely were not, I think you are just too young at the moment, all you wanted to do is to jump in the water to be with the fishes and run around in the dark :), all in all you seemed to had a great time… While your mother and I sole task was to run after you and pick you up every time you felt down (which was a lot). We are so glad we had visited this aquarium, to give you new experiences each week, well it beats just sitting at home doing nothing :)
 

  

  
IMG_7061 

IMG_7074By Sunday evening your mother and I had nothing left in our tank… and had a small celebration once you felt asleep :) over these past few days you have also developed a new dance, nothing more than several quick stomp with your feet follow by a side to side twist… We have no idea where you’d picked this up, but it brings a huge smile to your mother’s face each time you do it :)

Your Gymboree teacher had warned us about ‘Terrible Two’ stage, and we are now beginning to understand this, you are now operating in 2 modes, 1st mode is like being in ‘neutral’ that is when you are asleep, once you wake up you are in 2nd mode which is like being 5th gear all the time! running, climbing, taking everything apart, emptying cupboards, putting things in your mouth (from slippers to the door keys). 
 
Another development that makes me laugh is when you argue with your mother, it would be less funny if you were able to speak comprehensibly, but to hear your mumbles & jumbles in reply to your mother’s scolding was fantastically hilarious … :) You are now at home with your mother and I am missing you all very much… only 3 more hours before it’s time to go home :)

Saturday, October 24, 2009

It has so much potential

Since forever, I have this feeling of un-comfortableness whenever I visit a zoo. This weekend is a long weekend, today (Friday) is the birthday of our beloved King Rama V. We didn’t have any thing planned, but on a whim decided to visit Dusit Zoo (Bangkok main and to my very limited knowledge the only zoo in BKK).
 
The last time I was here could be counted in years… and I remembered not being too impressed, and after arriving there this afternoon, my feeling hadn’t changed one bit (probably got worst).
 
IMG_7018 There were temporary food stalls on every piece of available space; the flamingos were so beautiful (and shouldn’t really be locked up, here is where my ‘un-comfortableness’ issues start to creep in) but there (virtually in the same cage) is a huge, fumes spewing, loud, smelly, wontons frying stall… Why??? The only thing I can think of is that the zoo needs the money because perhaps of low visitors, but surely having these stalls will just going to drive away more visitors …

As this isn’t a zoo review article there is no point to go moaning on any further, I only hope they are really taking good care of all the animals, who deserve so much, much more than what I’ve seen today.
 

This zoo has so much potential all it needs now is a huge miracle.

 

IMG_7016 IMG_7022

 
 











IMG_7015IMG_7002  












IMG_7027IMG_7025




Friday, October 23, 2009

Everything is in place…

Microsoft_Window_7_1505723c At last the final piece of the puzzle is here, Windows 7. I’ve been waiting forever to upgrade my very old PC, planning to change almost all components from power supply to the motherboard.

There will be another ‘Commart’ in Bangkok at the beginning of next month, looking for some discounts there (probably won’t be much, but better than nothing at all).

Been researching about the best (customer service/price) place in Pantip (Pantip is a shopping mall (very famous in Thailand) for all things tech), and at least the consensus on the net kept pointing me towards  www.TKcom99.com, looking forward to visiting their booth at the show.

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Now I know…

IMG_6993 I was wondering why lately there were so many scratches on the car, especially on the front bonnet, and now I know… Late one night for some forgotten reason, I had to come down stairs and the answer was right in front of me… It looked so comfortable, the bonnet must still have been a little warm and I’d guess they just love that.

Right now there are 2 stray cats that we feed everyday, and from what I’ve heard the mother had just given birth to another set, so we are looking forward to even more visitors in the near future.

Saturday, October 17, 2009

Out of my league, and I didn’t win this month’s lottery

front-001Alas, the long awaited date had come and gone… As the time drew nearer it was certain there would be no appearance for the D700’s replacement :)

As expected Nikon had released the D3s, and a millisecond later, various photography’s Internet forums instantaneously burst into fiery flames…  as usual the ‘I like’ and ‘I don’t like’ camp were (and still are) having a good old time ducking and diving while making punches and counter punches, of course there is also a third camp, the ‘I don’t care’, and through their actions, appointed themselves as the forums’ referees.

Here is a link to my absolute fav forum;

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/forum.asp?forum=1021

 

Just talked to your mother on getting the replacement DSLR, it must be psychological thing as I found myself not wanting to go back to the D90 (stolen), instead somehow my mind is set on getting a higher spec. camera. Returning to the “par” or even a lower spec. unit just doesn’t feel right, it would just multiply my bitterness… “they came into my house took the camera and now I have to suffer with a lower spec. unit?” that must be it…

My heart was set on the D700’s replacement, and since I am not a particularly close friend of Nikon’s President thus I can not see it materialising any time soon. Here was the list we were discussing… D300s, 5DMkII and the D700, pretty short list isn’t it.

Well earlier on I said ‘discussing’, when in fact the conversation was pretty one way, your mother was kind enough to let me rumble on and on about things she down right finds boring (to put it mildly).

Still no solution, Nikon still had me at “FX sensor at a (kind of) reasonable price”, I am just another slave to one of the seven deadly sins, Greed :) so I am going to wait and wait until the next announcement (there is no point spending so much money on something you are only partially satisfy  (the rumour mills are beginning to once again, starting to spin, ‘Something in December? (may be)’, or ‘at the latest Q1 2010’).

Monday, October 12, 2009

Goodnigth P’John…

Early last Friday afternoon your mother called me while I was in the office, she was all fluttered, but the single sentence she said, was very clear… “P’John is no longer with us”.

Your mother went on to tell me all the information she had heard, and like all the others to whom I had later on spoken to, for a short while we were all in denial…

P’John (the letter P’ in front of a name means we treated him like an older brother/sister) came into our lives while your mother and I was still working at BMW (we weren’t even together then), he came to head up the Super Duper VIP Sales team, and that was where  your mother was working (while I was in the Dealer Network Development), after BMW, P’John was the one who asked your mother to join him at Nok Air…

In a normal Thai Wedding’s reception, the bride and groom will have an elder (each) to give a short speech and blessing… in our case I had chosen my boss (P’Papon) and your mother also chose her boss (P’John) (whom happened to be classmate so many, many, many years ago), as soon as they opened their mouths we knew they were the wrong choice… haa haa haa, they ripped us to bits… what a great night…

Just wanted you to get the feel that I very much respected P’John although I was not as close to him as your mother was (no where near). I certainly was more than glad to see him when our paths crossed, he was a totally sincere person, very wise and knowledgeable, especially in the field of photography.

The final day of his funeral will be this coming Monday… it will be a very sad day, all our hearts are now with his wife (P’Gai) their daughter… there is nothing else to say…

Friday, October 9, 2009

Giving it a rest…

Have been waiting and waiting for November the 15th, because that is the day when Nikon will be announcing their new products, and there have been so many rumours flying around on the Internet. Because of the D90 (which was stolen a few weeks back), I am totally hooked on Nikon and was hoping they would release a replacement to the D700 (I don’t want much, just a D700 with VDO).

From my latest visit to www.nikonrumors.com, it looks like there will be a no replacement to the D700 after all… what a disappointment, I was willing to go all out and jump into the realm of the FX sensor (and I even got the misses’ permission already).

Here is a small quote from the article I have just read (www.nikonrumors.com)…

 

Q & A session with Peter Giesen from Nikon Germany (no D700x/D700s in the near future)

On October 2nd, 2009 there was an online photo fair that took place in Germany. The fair included also a presentation by Peter Giesen from Nikon. He talked about flashes, wireless lighting, Capture NX 2, lens technology, accessories, etc. Here is a brief description of the Q&A session that took place at the end of his presentation:

  • On the question “will there be a 28-300 lens for FX cameras” he answered that at the moment this was beyond his knowledge
  • On the question “will Nikon bring more than 12 MP on a DX sensor” he answered indirectly by pointing the disadvantages of a bigger sensor  (noise, etc.)
  • On the question whether there will be a 24-70 VR II lens soon, he said that he didn’t know because no one would tell him before new products were released
  • When asked about the successor of the D3 he dodged the question by going to the next one
  • The only question he gave a definitive answer was about the D700 successor: “the D700 has been introduced only last year, and we won’t have a successor in the near future”

 

I knew it was wishful thinking to be hoping for a D700’s replacement, but after reading so many rumours and speculations, I was beginning to believe that there could have been a replacement, but only recently the speculations had suddenly shifted towards a D3s, and now it looks like that could be true…

What now? Canon 5DMkII is looking pretty good right now… but on the other hand, the article did say “in the near future”… I wonder how long that is… haa haa haa… 5 days? :)

I am going to give all these rumours/speculations/guesses a rest and just wait for the announcement, perhaps the D3s won’t be that expensive (oh… another wishful thinking again…).

Saturday, October 3, 2009

Bridge Over a River Kwai

IMG_6838It must have been late on Thursday when your mother had decided that all of us were going to skive off your usual Saturday Gymboree class (it was fine by me, and you didn’t object) to take a short trip up country.

After a quick debate, Kanjanaburi was where we were heading, only 129 Kms to the North West of Bangkok, as usual we were late leaving the house (can I hear you say “again?”), well, this time the gas stove wasn’t working so we had to find an alternative way to make your breakfast (we did at the end), which meant we hadn’t left the house until around 11:00.

Kanjanaburi will be a place that history will probably never forget, as one of the main highlights is the ‘Bridge on the River Kwai’…

 

“The notorious Burma-Siam railway, built by Commonwealth, Dutch and American prisoners of war, was a Japanese project driven by the need for improved communications to support the large Japanese army in Burma. During its construction, approximately 13,000 prisoners of war died and were buried along the railway. An estimated 80,000 to 100,000 civilians also died in the course of the project, chiefly forced labour brought from Malaya and the Dutch East Indies, or conscripted in Siam (Thailand) and Burma (Myanmar).”

Commonwealth War Grave Commission
http://www.cwgc.org/search/cemetery_details.aspx?cemetery=2017100&mode=1

 

IMG_6902

The drive took just a little over an hour and a half, after arriving in Kanjanaburi, we headed straight to the Bridge. Right before our port of call we had to drive pass a couple of the cemeteries for the POWs, and that had really put things in perspective.

The last time I was here, I must have been around 8 or 9 years old, and like so many other instances, somehow the bridge felt quite smaller than I remembered.

 

 

IMG_6855Guess what we did as soon as we got here… yes… we decided to eat (lunch time), the options were rather limited, there were 2-3 restaurants near the bridge, usually we would choose the busiest one (sign of having good grubs), but now that you are here with us, our first option is always to choose the least busy restaurant… :)

IMG_6848The food was decent (above our expectations), the service was rather slow but the staffs were really nice and understanding.


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
IMG_6849
After lunch we headed off to look more closely at the bridge, it is unbelievable how many lives were lost in building this line, it must have been so very different then, no real roads, no restaurants and certainly no tourists…
 

IMG_6878

There was this so called train running across the bridge, totally touristy :) and of course we had to get on it, 20 Bahts/person. 


 
 
 
 
 
 

 
IMG_6872Your face says it all here, this is hardly Disneyland, but for the historical value of it, it was certainly worth all of the 15 minutes of it. Of course we were feared for our lives, I had assumed it was just going to cross the bridge and come back… instead it just kept going.

While crossing the bridge it was at no more than a walking pace, but once it arrived on the other side it suddenly shot off, guessing at round 50-60 Km/hr and creaking all the way.

I was glad once it was all over… :)






 

IMG_6863My technique of one handed photo taking is getting better all the time :) Really missing the stolen D90, this G7 is woefully under spec for what we need. From the ever amazing Internet, it looks like Nikon will announce something within the next 2 weeks, all the rumours are pointing towards some new lens and a perhaps a D3s… a what? D3s? Where is my beloved D700s (or x)? I have this feeling I am going to be so disappointed, as often these rumours do come true… Don’t really have the budget for a D3 (s or x), and the incumbent D700 has no vdo… Oh what to do, perhaps the only alternative for a FF DSlr is the Canon 5DMkII… lets wait until October the 15th…


 

IMG_6892 2IMG_6908

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Besides the bridge there was a private War museum, your mother and I love galleries and museums, and this one was ok for a small private museum (meaning not free), there was a decent enough section that is directly connected to the bridge (with often the same photo posted several times), however the majority had nothing to do with the bridge. The best thing about the place is that it was quiet and had a great view of the bridge, a perfect place if you want to cool down have a break from the crowd of people.

One of the first thing we saw was this old Mercedes, your mother and I both started off in the automotive industry (BMW Thailand to be exact), so we have a soft spot for cars (your mother still wants a Mini)… and this was a rare one.

After the bridge we headed off further north to another popular spot, the Srinakarin Dam, approximately 60 Kms from the Bridge. It was a really nice drive, we all took a deep ‘gasp ‘ once we turned left onto the dam, what a view it was… Because of the left turn (up hill) the view of the lake (on our right) and the valley (to our left) was hidden, and it suddenly jumped out at us once the left turn was over… :)

 IMG_6913 IMG_6941 















IMG_6933IMG_6931IMG_6918 

 






  




IMG_6921

It must have been around 17:30 when we set off from the bridge, by the time we got to the main town of Kanjanaburi it had started to rain, and it kept raining harder and harder all the way home (20:00). All in all it was a great idea from your mother to take this break, and just to leave BKK (and our normal routine) behind, although for just one afternoon…

(Next trip, Siam Ocean World…) :)

 

Thursday, October 1, 2009

What a Morning…

Over the past few days South East Asia have been hit by the Typhoon (Ketsana), and now a new typhoon is brewing (Parma), Philippines seemed to be the most affected so far. As for Thailand, we have been fortunate enough to only be suffering from a very heavy downpour, especially last night.

When we woke up this morning, we discovered a couple of floods on two small balconies, so I had to spent some time clearing those out, which meant it was getting late in leaving the house, so we had to rushed around getting everything ready.

While carrying everything (4 huge bags and a note book) and making my way down the wooden stairs (with a pair of super slippery socks), I took a bit of a tumble. I must have made a real racket, because your mother rushed out from the bedroom thinking that one of the cupboard had fallen on you.

Just like in a cartoon, sliding on my behind down 7 or 8 steps, followed closely by all the bags must have made one amazing sight, because you were transfixed at my misfortune. Luckily I didn’t bang my head, but my elbow, ankles and bottom was and is very sore.

After your mother rushed out, I had discovered later that she was more concern with her notebook more than the bruise on my behind :)