What's in a name?

Sharon Tan Xin Ni

You are an individual with high standards. You have a strong and stable character with a keenly analytical and logical mind. Preferring a practical and constructive approach to life you put your energies into activities which build material abundance. Your worldly success is an example to everyone of what careful organisation and determination can achieve.


try it out at this site

Random thoughts

Here I am.. stoning in front of my laptop at 1.30am on a Wednesday morning... it's quiet outside... and the radio is croning some really nice songs...

so much on my mind these days.. so much on my to-do lists... so much to settle, so much to think about... yet... don't feel like doing anything... why? irresponsible? tired? maybe... I dunno...

but tonight... seems the perfect night to do nothing.. to just sit back... enjoy the breeze (from my room fan), enjoy the song on radio ("tonight I need your sweet caress, hold me in the darkness. Tonight you calm my restlessness, you relieve my sadness...") and stone... to just blank out all the deadlines, the tasks... to just enjoy... to relish in whatever random thoughts running through my head... to relive certain memories trapped at the back of my head... to just indulge in the night air... to feel alive... to feel like me...

Good food and Good company = Satisfaction

What an evening... I don't think I have eaten so much good food in such a short period of time...

As a kind of send off thingy for Hwan Cui, Aileen organised a Food Night (after the on-the-spur idea after MAF that day)... basically, we meet up and travel around seeking out the good food of Singapore...

Randal, Jie An, Hwan Cui, Aileen and myself were the food hunters this time round...

1st Round
1st Round took place at Tiong Bahru Food Market... it might be a make-shift food centre but this is THE place to go for lots of good food.. a lot of the stalls there have already been talent spotted by various eating programmes as you can tell from the posters and newspaper clippings hanging at the stalls..

anyway, I was late so when I got there, this was all that was left...



Food covered:
- BBQ Sting ray
- 15 Sticks chicken satay with 3 ketupats
- Fish ball mee pok
- ICe Kachang
- 1 packet of Chee Kueh
- 1 oyster omelette

2nd Round
After the 1st round, we decided to head for the famous Milo Godzilla... where you may ask? to.. Spize - The Makan Place at River Valley Road... it's a muslim stall so get ready for a whole menu of prata varieties, bbq hot plate stuff, and interesting drinks...



Food covered:
- 1 Bee Hoon Goreng Ikan Bilis
- 1 Mutton Murtabak
- 1 basket of french fries
- 2 plain prata
- 1 apple cinammon prata
- 1 mushroom cheese prata
- 1 banana plus ice cream tissue prata: tissue prata with filling of ice cream and banana slices
- 1 bandung
- 1 Milo Godzilla: Milo with milo powder and ice cream
- 2 iced teh-oh


This is our spread of food for the 2nd round...


don't forget the tissue prata delight...

Till now I can't believe the 5 of us finished ALL that food... we were sooo bloated after the night... but man it was fun... =)

we should do it again guys... but not too often ok? I don't want to put on too much weight...

MAF 2005

For those who don't have the faintest idea what MAF is, it actually stands for Mid Autumn Festival.. yup.. my junior college holds an annual huge celebration for MAF and in typical Singapore fashion, the many generations of HCJC graduates have successfully made the acronym sound so cool and funky that it's now officially part of our JC tradition... *beams happily*

so what's so big about MAF? well nothing much, just that the council puts up decoration in the central plaza (think lights display), put up a fountain (for aesthetic purposes i guess.. traditions kind of make u forget the reason they do such stuff), there's a stage in central plaza, performances by performing groups, and about at least 8 generations of HC students.. no big deal... =)

ok well, the big deal about MAF is that wushu gets a performance slot every year, and every batch holds special memories of THEIR MAF... it's also kind of the 1st performance after the seniors step down so you know, you get those 1st-Big-Performance-on-our-own jitters and excitement... the main thing i remember about my MAF? playing with fire and gunpowder... man that was fun...

but reminscing aside, this year's MAF was kind of disappointing in terms of performances.. too many individual singers kind of performances.. i tell you this whole project superstar and singapore idol is NOT good for our society...

but the great part was seeing my batch mates again... crapping about our good ol days and breathing the air at the hui suo(albeit a bit stinky especially after the wushu performance) and in HCJC in general...

hanging out with them always rocks... and it helps that aileen DRIVES!! and Jie An eats a lot.. which justified a trip to Adam Road Food Centre for supper... after 2 weeks of India, it's no surprise how happy ice kachang, rojak and satay can make me...

Makes it feel soooo good to be back in Singapore...=)

oh yah.. photos are up as well on my site... i'm too lazy to put the link here once again, though I just noticed that with all these words I'm typing, I should have saved the effort and typed the link instead.. oh well.. forgetful and lazy me...

The Taj Mahal

a sight to behold... 

The MC in Agra, India... at the site of the Taj Mahal....

Incredible India... all in awe... 

I'm still alive

Yes after a very long absence from the blogging scene, this post is to indicate that I am still very much alive... and honestly I don't care if you greet that comment with groans or cheers...

well much has happened.. for one, today is the last day of the first half of semester 1... which means effectively, I have gone through 6 weeks of classes and should be chocked full of engineering knowledge... unfortunately, a close scrutiny of my brain last night proved otherwise... instead of technical concepts and mini blueprints, I find, to not much surprise, the following things in my head:

- steps for 2 new dances from IC
- lots of acronyms, some of which include PD, @XP, SLP, IC, R&R... the list goes on
- playback images of cool parties and cool people and cool sessions...
- vague images of how a typical Singaporean driver will (or not) survive in the streets of India

and that's just a small part of my head.. the other parts are trying to unclog themselves from the cold/flu/fever streak that occured in IC as well...

and in case you're lost, yeah I just got back from a near 2 weeks trip to India for AIESEC International Congress...

I have no way of describing the whole experience... just two words: Eye Opening

oh and some photos are up already.. mainly those of India sights... yeah I forgot to mention I went to the Taj Mahal!!! another Eye Opener.. check them out at http://sharontan.myphotoalbum.com/

p.s. this is a very random posting... complain all you like... more updates next time =)

1st day of school

today was the first day of NTU Semester 1 of 2005/2006... it's back to the life of a student...

oversleeping before lectures... rushing for lectures... dozing off during lectures... stuck in the crowd in the crowded Canteen A (which looks nicer after the renovation but unfortunately the food quality didn't change much)... stuck in the crowd on bus 179 in and out of NTU... stuck in the crowd in the crowded Printing shop in LWN library (40 odd documents printing per printer and some guy before me printed 12.5MB worth of Word Documents!!! Can you believe it??? Man did he cause a jam... just like the rest of the people hanging around the other printers)... stuck without a computer in LWN libray just like the other 15 odd people lurking around waiting to pounce on any computer the moment it gets freed of use... stuck clueless in the lecture because the lecture notes are either not printed yet, or not uploaded onto our portal... oh and I'm also clueless as to whether that cockroach living in LT 1 has either died or moved out because of the cold (or lack of food during the holidays)... it better not make an appearance at our NTU AIESEC Welcome Tea...

Something interesting though... today, I actually saw a few guys from my batch in JC! yes they are out (finally) of National Service and are here to start a fresh life as a 1st year uni student...

congrats guys... you have officially entered the wonderful world of university... While there aren't any commando-sized mosquitoes on campus, do watch out for the lecturers that drone on like the equivalent of a Incredible-Hulk type mosquito...

While there aren't any vast forests (not in the vicinity of our lecture theatres and tutorials rooms anyway) through which you have to trudge for days and nights on end without bathing or sleeping, do take note that the same may occur near the month of November and that the "trees" you will be trudging through will come in the form of pressed, white sheets covered with words and numbers... at times, the road ahead may seem even more ardous than that night you spent digging trenches...

While you no longer need to stand in the rain in your flimsy poncho trying to bear with the cold without any extra layers of clothing, note that here in the harsh environment of the university, even with extra layers of clothing, the cold may be even harder to bear.. the only comfort you may get out of the cold in university is that at least you do not need to wear the ugly flimsy poncho, and that you're not wet... Also be warned that temperatures you will be subjected to are highly extreme, with conditions similar to the desert in Australia or Africa (or whichever desert you went to if you did for some Army Operation thing)... once you step out of the cold of the lecture theatres and tutorial rooms, you may very well experience a blast of air so warm and humid you would think you were standing behind an F16 when it starts to take off...

And if you thought you could kiss those mountain hikes goodbye, think again... NTU is built on a hill and the treacherous slopes are everywhere... be prepared to have classes in MLT (South Spine) followed by classes in LT 1A (North Spine)... when that happens, all you can do is tighten the straps of your backpack, take a deep breath, and make your way up the slope or the stairs...

And you thought university life was a good break... =)

Saturday was a Good Day...

Saturday was a good day because of the 6th National Wushu Display in the evening... Not just because there were some really cool performances at the display, but also because I got to hang out with my wushu batch mates again. Like I pointed out to them, it feels different hanging out with them and with uni friends... Somehow, only they seem to understand and appreciate corny humour... and I can freely say and do crazy stuff with them without worrying that they will freak out... =)

anyway, for more information on the 6th National Wushu Display and what went on, check out http://hcwushu.blogspot.com/... This blog was started up by me and a couple of my batch mates to keep everyone updated on the latest happenings in wushu (and HC wushu)

For those more into visuals, photos are available at My Photo Album... Videos might be coming soon as well... =)

Nostalgia...

Dunno why but everytime I hear this songs, it sounds so nice... and feels so nostalgic.. of what I have no idea... (karaoke perhaps?)


Sometimes Love Just Ain't Enough
Patti Smyth | Don Henley
______

Now, I don't want to lose you
but I don't want to use you
just to have somebody by my side.
I don't want to take you,
I don't wanna take you
but I don't want to be the one to cry.

That don't really matter to anyone, anymore.
But like a fool I keep losing my place
and I keep seeing you walk through that door.

But there's a danger in loving somebody too much,
and it's sad when you know it's your heart they can't trust.
There's a reason why people don't stay who they are.
Baby, sometimes, love just aint enough.

Now, I could never change you,
I don't want to blame you.
Baby, you just have to take the fall.
Yes, I may have hurt you,
but I did not desert you.
Maybe I just want to have it all.

It makes a sound like thunder,
it makes me feel like rain.
And like a fool who will never see the truth,
I keep thinking something's gonna change.

But there's a danger in loving somebody too much,
and it's sad when you know it's your heart you can't trust.
There's a reason why people don't stay who they are.
Baby, sometimes, love just aint enough.

And there's no way home,
when it's late at night and you're all alone.
Are there things that you wanted to say?
And do you feel me beside you in your bed,
there beside you, where I used to be?

But there's a danger in loving somebody too much,
and it's sad when you know it's your heart you can't trust.
There's a reason why people don't stay who they are.
Baby, sometimes, love just aint enough.

Baby, sometimes, love... it just ain't enough.

Friends...

My JC classmate William is leaving for USA in August for university and today, I went out for dinner with him... I guess it sounds like a very early "farewell" dinner kind-of (1 month in advance) but I don't wanna deceive myself with the thought that I will definitely be able to catch him again before he really flies... with school starting soon and recruitment and AROC just round the corner, I do foresee a very hectic August...

But that's not the point... I just feel like saying some stuff...

It definitely isn't true that you find good buddies only in Secondary School. Even though JC is for 2 short years only, it's amazing how much fun we had together back then... And what really gets to me is that even though in the time of these 2 years since graduation, we haven't been in touch as often as both of us had hoped for, it's still that easy to relate to each other, and relive those wacky moments in JC...

Perhaps this is really friendship? Perhaps friendship isn't just about always keeping in touch, always chatting on the phone, always meeting up... Perhaps friendship is about still being able to connect even after a time of absence... that even after not seeing each other for months, upon meeting, no one feels uncomfortable or feels like we're all such strangers...

I won't say I'm the kind of person who is good at keeping in contact with people... and perhaps it would seem that I would rather move on and not keep up with the past... but to all those out there who matter to me (you know who you guys are), know this that you will always remain a friend in my heart and that I won't forget those wonderful moments we shared together...

Letter from the Dean..

Dear Sharon

I congratulate you on your excellent results. You have done brilliantly well.

We hope that you will continue to find intellectual simulation in your studies. At the same time, the School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering will do its best to provide the necessary support for you to develop your talents to the fullest.

I wish you great success in your studies and your future career.

With warmest regard

Acting Dean of School


I was very surprised to receive such a letter. Why?

• Because some weirdo of a lab technician gave me a C for my lab module and I didn't think a C would warrent results as excellent
• Because I got a C also for my business module called Risk and Insurance (yes I have to admit I totally screwed up that paper) and even though its not a core module, it still doesn't look pretty on the results slip
• Because I don't remember ever getting any "necessary support" from the school. As a matter of fact, the school has been the main cause of many of my complaints
• Because it sounds like they only want to support me now because I have thus far achieved grades excellent enough to warrent their praise. (Notice they don't say "continue to provide" So if I screw up my grades next year they won't provide anymore? How practical and pragmatic!)
• Because they didn't tell me how they want to support me. (If the letter had come with an offer of $3,000 stipend to my school fees, this posting would have taken a whole new direction)

And because they did not provide suggestions of concrete actions on their side to support me, I now deem this letter and the envelope a waste of money, a way of unnecessarily depleting our Earth's precious resources and a misappropriate usage of the school's privilage of sending mails without paying for postage. Oh and also for wasting the efforts of dear Mr Postman who works so hard so that we can receive our mails.

Damn... I'm such a cynic when it comes to education... *grinz*

How many of us can be like so?

Some People

Some people come into our lives and quickly go.

Some people move our souls to dance.
They awaken us to new understanding with the passing whispers of their wisdom.

Some people make the sky more beautiful to gaze upon.

They stay in our lives for awhile,

Leave footprints in our hearts,

And we are never ever the same.

The conspiracy continues...

How right I was... Talent VS popularity... and "bought" popularity at that... *shakes head*

________________________________________________________________

From: Sub Dean-Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering (Alumni)
Sent: Fri 1/07/2005 4:28 PM
Subject: Our very own MAE student on Channel U "Project Superstars" - VOTE VOTE VOTE!

Dear MAE Students, Alumni and Colleagues,
You have received a previous email to support our MAE student, XXX , who is participating in the Channel U "Project Superstars". Well, he has made it to the next round (thanks to you!!) and this will be televised on the 6th July at 8.30pm on Channel U.
Once again, it will be greatly appreciated if you can support this MAE STAR in the making - voting commences from 8.30pm to 11pm on the same evening.
For an insight into life as a contestant - please see XXX's email below.

Thanks and Kind Regards
Sub Dean (Alumni)

______________________________________
-----Original Message-----
From:
Sent: Friday, July 01, 2005 5:20 AM
To: Sub Dean-Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering (Alumni)
Subject: RE: Our very own MAE student on Channel U "Project Superstars"
Importance: High

Good morning!

Just had a meeting over at Mediacorp. We've all been re-paired up. I'm no more with YYY, my buddy for the previous quarter-finals. In the next round, I've been paired up with ZZZ, the tough competitor with good vocals.

My recording will be on the 4th July (this coming Monday; gosh! left only 3 days to practice!!) and it'll be televised on the 6th July, 8.30pm over Channel U. Same as the previous rounds, voting commences from 8.30pm to 11pm.

The results show today proved something: Power of the voting system. Anyone with the lowest judges' score, can still secure a place in the next round so long as he has a huge support base. The contestant with the highest score was still booted out from the competition. The lowest score stayed up.

Sir, would be gratified to you if you broadcast the message to everyone again to support me on the 6th July. I'm sorry to trouble you whenever it comes to this. I'd do my best, deliver my best.

Take care and best regards.
=)
XXX

Lessons learnt...

Yesterday was my House Warming plus Family Gathering plus my very early birthday celebration (almost 2 weeks in advance!) Actually my mom was using my birthday as a reason/excuse to invite all my family people down la... hehe

well it was truly a happening evening... 3 generations in the house: My grandma and my granduncles, my uncles and aunties and my cousins... all from my mother's side... it lasted into the night... 3am plus i think... haha... and i think i've learnt quite a lot of stuff...

1) Kids nowadays are very familiar with computers
My bro was hogging the computer outside in the living room with his warcraft games and stuff... so naturally the guys were hanging outside as well.. in the meantime, the youngest cousins (a pair of twins who are 9 this year) were in my room and they knew pretty well how to handle my laptop (should have turned it off man.. haha) they were looking for games on my desktop, browsing the internet for their game sites (whose URLs they keep in their wallets)... amazing... maybe i should hang out a bit more with the younger kids... so different from us back then =)

2) Moms are always watching the backs for their kids
My mom was sitting around the dining table talking to my uncles and aunties over beer... there was still food left from the buffet catering and no one really wanted to eat anymore... i went into the kitchen to find my grandma rummaging through our cupboards looking for pots and containers to keep the leftover food... so that when the caterer comes to collect the stuff, they won't take all the food back as well she says... and all the while my grandma's kids (my uncles and aunties) were chatting over beer... =) yeah man.. Mom's watch our backs for us...

3) Frankness is good... but too rare in our generation...
My mom grew up in a family of 8 siblings.. last night, my 2nd uncle, his wife, my 3rd aunt, my youngest aunt and my parents sat around and talked about all sorts of things over beer... they talked about their marriage, about their childrens, about the past, about each other's personalities... it was frank... but everyone was comfortable.. i was impressed... there should be this kind of frankness among siblings... not some unspoken rift and political correctness we see more often nowadays...

4) As much as they trust us, they still worry
After my cousins and i got bored with mahjong, we were "invited" to join their table and conversation.. and the topics that came up were about boyfriends and girl friends, getting a driving license to drive parents home (especially after drinking sessions.. heh), about lesbians and gays and how open they are today comparatively, about us not being feminine or masculine enough (haha)... yeah.. they trust us a lot.. but parents will be parents.. they worry too =)

all in all, i think my family rocks... they brought us up to be independent, to be close among the couins in our generation, to have that kind of frankness and honesty with our parents that not every youth in Singapore has nowadays...

They rock.. =)

Self defence mechanism??

Today is 25th June 2005, Saturday...

I have a few deadlines to meet by 1st July 2005, a few more meetings to attend till 1st July, and what seems to be quite a lot of things to settle by Mid July as well...

Strangely, things seem to be going quite ok... maybe is a self defence mechanism.. some people freak out when they have lots to do... some get so stressed and pissable at almost any little thing... some get aggressive, some get depressed...

What about me? hmmm... I don't really know... but it seems that when things start to pile... I get a bit more relaxed (if that is even possible.. ) I imagine this invisible shield around me that's protecting me from the many pissable things around us in life... and all over the shield all these words "when there's already that much to do, anything else adding on to the list won't make much difference anymore"

i dunno... so weird....

For the sake of it

here i am still up and settling stuff at 3.38am in the morning... hooray...

The real deal on being 'real'

Nov 14, 2004
The real deal on being 'real'
By Janadas Devan

THE 'real' as an adjective is puzzling. Whatever do people mean when they say 'real world', 'real life', 'real thing', 'the real McCoy' and so on? Why are we so anxious about the 'real'? Surely, the real, if it is real, ought to strike one as obviously real. Does our anxiety about it suggest a certain uncertainty about the realness of the real?

Let's begin with 'the real McCoy' because there really was a real McCoy - a Joseph McCoy, to be precise, a rancher in the American Wild West in the mid-19th century.

Ranchers in those days butchered their cattle primarily for local consumption. McCoy decided to do something nobody else had thought of doing: He drove his cattle across hundreds of miles to railway stations, from where they would be transported to cities in the east, to be butchered and consumed there. McCoy, not surprisingly, became a very rich man.

And not surprisingly too, he soon had competitors. Rustling cattle on horseback is not rocket science. If one cowboy can do it, so can others. In desperation, McCoy began calling himself 'the real McCoy' so as to distinguish himself from his imitators.

Coca-Cola adopted a similar strategy in the cola wars of the 1960s, when it took to calling itself 'the real thing'. 'The real thing' was merely imitating 'the real McCoy' - who of course was not unique either, for he turned out to be eminently imitable.

This provides one clue as to why we are anxious about the 'real': Market economies are wondrous mechanisms for churning out a multitude of the same. If a new product proves economically successful, it is bound to elicit imitators; if a new fashion in clothing catches on, it is bound to create knock-offs. Our anxiety about the 'real thing' is a reaction to the sameness that characterises life in industrialised societies.

The other examples of 'real' - 'real world', 'real life' - cannot be so easily explained. Teachers often tell their students of the 'real world' they will face when they leave school. Businessmen are often scornful of academics because they allegedly know nothing of 'real life' and have never been 'in the trenches'. And soldiers in war - literally, not metaphorically, 'in the trenches' - often refer to civilian life as the 'real world'.

(And not only in war, I might add. I remember hearing this phrase, 'real world', during national service in Singapore. There we would be, camped in some soggy and dank field, slapping mosquitoes, trying to keep the rain from seeping through our ponchos. It's not possible to get closer to reality than that, one would think. And yet, at precisely those moments, someone would pipe up about his plans in the 'real world' after leaving NS.)

What makes working life more real than school life, economic life more real than intellectual life, and civilian life more real than military life? Why is the 'real world' 'always being defined as where we are not', as Harvard University don Barbara Johnson once asked.

Her answer was that 'these differing perceptions of the real are nothing other than perceptions of the boundaries of institutions. Whether one is in the university or in the army, the real world seems to be the world outside the institution'.

Institutions, she theorised, created boundaries between the unreal and the real so as 'to assure docility, paradoxically, through the assumption of unreality' within institutions.

Students, listen up, the real world is a frightful place, so you had better concentrate on your lessons, otherwise you are going to founder in the real world. Soldier, listen up, the real world's rules don't apply here, this is a different world, you must abandon all your civilian delusions.

There is considerable truth in Professor Johnson's reading, but I'm not sure it is sufficient. Consider that strange phenomenon, the television 'reality show' American Idol (and its spin-offs).

The show's formula is simple: Ordinary people are given a shot at stardom. Judges assess each singer, and viewers vote two performers off the show each week until only two remain for the final competition. It can be a very cruel process - and for precisely that reason, exhilarating to watch - as faults are enlarged and blemishes exaggerated. It is also thrilling, for some remarkable talents have emerged - the 'real things'.

But a strange thing happened during last year's show. One William Hung - a Chinese-American nerd, a totally untalented singer, the most awkward, stiff and robotic personality ever seen on TV - emerged as the star. He became so popular, he now travels the world to show off his lack of talent. His website describes him as the 'Real American Idol'.

The Los Angeles Times thought Hung's sincerity was the quality that elevated him above the rest. The lesson to be learnt from his unlikely popularity, the paper said, was 'that talent is far less critical to winning Americans' hearts than honest effort'.

That surely is an exaggeration. How many Hungs will America take to its heart? Would America abandon its current stars for the galaxies of bad singers and bad actors out there? Surely not.
And yet, for a brief moment perhaps, Hung became the marker of the real. Not because the 'real' is always something else, as Prof Johnson put it, but because he failed so clearly to be that something else.

Perhaps we are so anxious about the real because modern society makes such incessant demands on us to be so many somethings.

The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein

Once there was a giving tree who loved a little boy.
And everyday the boy would come to play
Swinging from the branches, sleeping in the shade
Laughing all the summer’s hours away.
And so they love,
Oh, the tree was happy.
Oh, the tree was glad.

But soon the boy grew older and one day he came and said,
"Can you give me some money, tree, to buy something I’ve found?"
"I have no money," said the tree, "Just apples, twigs and leaves."
"But you can take my apples, boy, and sell them in the town."
And so he did and
Oh, the tree was happy.
Oh, the tree was glad.

But soon again the boy came back and he said to the tree,
"I’m now a man and I must have a house that’s all my home."
"I can’t give you a house" he said, "The forest is my house."
"But you may cut my branches off and build yourself a home"
And so he did.
Oh, the tree was happy.
Oh, the tree was glad.

And time went by and the boy came back with sadness in his eyes.
"My life has turned so cold," he says, "and I need sunny days."
"I’ve nothing but my trunk," he says, "But you can cut it down
And build yourself a boat and sail away."
And so he did and
Oh, the tree was happy.
Oh, the tree was glad.

And after years the boy came back, both of them were old.
"I really cannot help you if you ask for another gift."
"I’m nothing but an old stump now. I’m sorry but I’ve nothing more to give"
"I do not need very much now, just a quiet place to rest,"
The boy, he whispered, with a weary smile.
"Well", said the tree, "An old stump is still good for that."
"Come, boy", he said, "Sit down, sit down and rest a while."
And so he did and
Oh, the trees was happy.
Oh, the tree was glad.

Makes you wonder...

Opened my school email just now to find this in the inbox... Must say it's a very very interesting request...

makes u wonder doesn't it? Do our "winners" win because they have the talent, or do they win simply because they have more people behind them? People who don't even know them, but judge based simply on an impression through email, TV, newspapers, SMS even...

I wonder if a certain polytechnic did something like this during our Singapore Idol finals...

p.s. I deleted the name of the 'star' from the email, just so I don't do any publicity for this person by accident...
_______________________________________________________


Dear MAE Students, Alumni and Colleagues,

I reckon you may have heard and watched the trailers on the Channel U “Project Superstars”. It is a chinese singing competition, akin to Singapore Idol, with its sms and call-in voting format broadcasted over Channel U. One of our students, XXX, chinese name: XXX has emerged as one of the top 12 guys (there're top 12 gals as well), after 3 rounds of auditions from over 4000 contestants.

His first performance will be broadcasted on 22 June (precorded on 15 June) and the voting line (or SMS) will be open then.

The contestants will have many people rooting for them. As part of the MAE family, I am writing to encourage you to support our very own “star” XXX. Turn on the TV Channel U on 22 June and register your support!

Thanking you in advance!

Sub Dean (Alumni)