Reflecting on 2008

It is the time when we bid farewell to 2008 and welcome the new year.
Before the arrival of 2009,
I would like to take a look back at the things that had taken place in 2008.

In January,
I got so involved in collecting of
1/6th action figures, but apparantly, as more important things come into my life, this hobby was rather short-lived. Nevertheless, I was rather obsessed then and took plenty of pictures of these toys. But of course, I was very involved in my REVOLTECH collection! It is a committment to the series!

I also posted a small gallery of
Saphire when I met up with Nicole and Saphire on the 6th of January. We sure got really closer to this family in this year and we watch the adorable Saphire grow up.

And yes, not to forget the
Food Photography that I was busy with. I discovered Seoul Yummy restaurant at Novena Square 2, which I loved and later recommended to my bro, Laurens, which later became a restaurant with his first date and present girlfriend, Adele.

Towards the end of the month, one of my favourite show of the year Sweeney Todd makes it into the local theatres.

In February,
There is
Chinese New Year, Year of the Rat! On this day, I visited 3 temples where I got more involved in photography in temples! Sound weird but I do have this liking.

I bought the
OSIM NORO Max Relax massage chair after a day out at Pulau Ubin with GS (my Ph.D bro who returned from Melbourne for the festival). I was so proud of this score that I recommended and influenced many to grab this massage chair which shortly became out-of-stock!

My Cedric bro who introduced me to the joy of Vegetarianism, brought me to
Ci Yan. Those who know me, knows that I am rather into vegetarianism, but not a full convert as yet.


In March,
Cedric and I discovered more joy in Vegetarianism as we discovered The Whole Earth.

I also bought myself a
Casio Edifice watch. I really liked this watch because it had the weight and feel of a really good watch and yet it isn't pricy. I love the red and white color scheme, since I always wear red!

Nevertheless, the highlight of March 2008 is when I started to concentrate into my hobby of Photography, as I scored myself a pro Nikkor lens. I bought myself a fast
AF Nikkor 80-200mm f/2.8D ED Mk.III telephoto lens. However, I later sold this lens off to fund other things.

It is also in the month of March 2008, when I proposed to my wife and started to plan for our Registration of Marriage and Wedding Solemnization. Oddly, that thought came about during my 2-weeks reservist training. That is when I felt that I really love my wife and wanted to share a life with her!

In April,
I bought and reviewed
Nokia 5610 XpressMusic for my mum and LG KS20 for myself.

I had the best Bak Kut Teh in Singapore, which is
Outram Park Ya Hua Rou Gu Cha at PSA building.

I was delighted to be invited to be official photographer for
Charles and Fern's Registration of Marriage & Solemnization ceremony. This was not my first assignment for wedding-related photo shoots, but I am still not a pro. Nevertheless, I shoot with a Principle "Making Couples Happy Is My Greatest Satisfaction!"


In May,
I signed up for
SingNet Broadband on Mobile. It was performing well then until it became overly subscribed and slow in the recent months.
I helped Nicole bought and reviewed a budget
Fujifilm FinePix J10. Back then, there was no review for this new camera, hence I get plenty of plugs for being the first to give a hands-on review of the J10. This started an expensive interest in camera reviewing!! However, not many people know that I bought a Fujifilm FinePix F50fd as well! However, I sold it after a month or so, hence I did not complete the review.

My wife bought me my
Timbuk2 Classic Messenger bag. Since then, I had always been using this reliable bag even till now!

Hooray, I bought the
Sweeney Todd DVD! In January, I mentioned about this movie and four months down, I got the DVD!
Towards the end of May, my wife and I visited
Bangkok for our very first time!

In June,
when my wife and I returned from
Bangkok, I recorded our four days in "Bangkok: Shopaholiday in Thailand".

Another highlight of the month was the purchase and review of the
Casio EXILIM Z1080. This camera is the score of the year, since even till this day, this camera is never cleared at the price I bought it. I scored this camera during a mystery sale at 73% discount! Though it may not be a fabulously superb compact camera, but its is quite a good performer matching the FinePix F50fd. Most importantly, it made a cheap but great gift for my wife!


In July,
there was not much posts as I was busy preparing for my big day in a months time!


In August,
I started the month by scoring a pair of lovely
Adidas BORA II CMF shoes!

The highlight of August was when my wife and I got married! We had our Wedding Solemnization on "888" (8th of August 2008), which intentionally was the opening of the Beijing 2008 Olympics. We are very proud to be the First couple to hold a Wedding Solemnization event at New Majestic Hotel, the coolest and artistic designer boutique hotel in Singapore!

Shortly after our Wedding Solemnization, we rejoiced at the birth of Bernard and Sze Wai's daughter,
Kayla! In August, I became a husband and Bernard became a father!

This month I did a small review on mooncakes. The best D24 Durian mooncakes in Singapore at Goodwood Park Hotel!

I also reviewed the
mini-snowskin mooncakes from Sze Chuan Court.

Sadly, an uneventful thing happened in August when I lost my LG KS20, but blessed to find it back thanks to a kind Mr. Goh! Read about this event
here.

In September,
we took a flight on the
Singapore Flyer. We were lucky to have boarded it before it broke down recently. Thanks to Michelle and Puay Sim for the gift of the tickets!

Haven't had the time to do food reviews, I had done one at
Tung Lok Signatures at VivoCity during my wife's birthday!

I managed to secure and do a sponsored review of the
Canon PowerShot G9. It seemed like my interest in camera reviewing grew more intense as I started to try out more expensive compact cameras. Mind you, the Canon PowerShot G9 is no push-over camera! Read more about it here.

On my birthday, my bro Laurens gifted me with PlayStation Portable UMD "
SNK Classic Collection" so that I can "The King of Fighters 94". My bro knows best that I really loved that KOF series during my teenage fanboy days!

My wife and I had our birthday gifts exchange in this month as well! We also had a celebration dinner at Kim Choo's Kitchen (reviewed in October).


In October,
nothing much happened in October as I slowly tried to get back my groove at work after a busy August and September. Nevertheless, I posted a review on
Kim Choo's Kitchen, which serves undoubtedly the best authentic Peranakan food in Singapore.


In November,
I bought and reviewed the
Phottix BP-D200 grip for my Nikon D200. I later used this grip to help Michelle and Puay Sim shoot as a back-up Photographer on their wedding day (I have yet shared their photos, pending permission). Since I am keeping my Nikon D200 for good an holding any upgrades to my body, I ought to spice up my gear with this grip and a NEW PRO LENS!! I have yet posted about this lens but it is one of the "Trinity" lens in Nikon's arsenal of professional lenses.

My wife and I also visited
The Atrium at Pan Pacific Hotel for high-tea. Yes, it was my first high-tea, since I was never a fan of the sweets.

Towards the end of November, my wife and I started to contact a few housing agents. We just wanted to check out some HDB resale flats after having no luck at the HDB balloting exercises.

Coming up......
December 2008 is when the most things happen!

Comments

Anonymous said…
wats gonna happen to ur 1/6th collection?