I don't mean to unnerve you. You may not realise it, but if you'd just pause and think for a minute, you'll realise that you've inadvertently revealed a lot of private information about yourself (and your family) to the world in your blog space.
You don't think so? Okay, let's play PI (Private Investigator) on fellow bloggers whom I've met in the Net. Let's start with Victor.
Victor
Okay, Victor is a good pal of mine, who happened to be a colleague sitting in the cubicle next to me in the office. Let's pretend we've never met. Victor may be surprised to learn that I know a fair bit of details about him, not through our daily interaction in the office, but from his blog.
For a start, Victor just crossed the half-century mark, which reveals his Chinese zodiac sign as a Monkey. He's a wordsmith, extremely witty in his play of words.
He worked as a bank clerk in a foreign bank in the 1970s, and according to comments left by Chris (yours truly) in Victor's blog, he is now a consultant in the Civil Service.
At a towering 6 ft tall, Victor exudes confidence and charm wherever he goes (that's according to Chris again). He's courteous and has very little tolerance for sales-people with poor service standard. He has no qualms writing to establishment such as SingNet to grouse about the contractual dispute he suffered at their hands.
Speaking of hands, Victor is quite good with his hands, showing off his hand-made kite and the Mech Sumo Robot in his blog.
He first car was a Mini Clubman he owned in the 70s. He now drives a Renault Scenic which he purchased in November 05.
He has two boys, the elder of whom is studying in RI. Very "silent" on his wife - suspected both at loggerheads :O
Victor is obsessed with the "vanishing scenes" of Singapore. He moans about the loss of our national heritage such as the National Library and the National Theatre. It is something he has in common with another fellow blogger he met in the Net, Lam Chun See (who's next on my PI list, followed by Evan and ....). He's also passionate about antiques, especially old office equipment such as the Adding Machine.
He was a cheeky boy who grew into a cheeko pek. Victor describes himself as a "sex liberal" and likes to blog about SEX, the figure 69 and the Condom. He wrote that these are his "healthy hobby".
Victor, did I just make you piss on your pants? Okay, easy now ... just calm down, there is no reason to be hysterical.... Let's turn our attention to our friend, Chun See.…
Lam Chun See
At age 54, which makes him a Dragon, Chun See is a self-made man (possibly a self-made millionaire), having started a firm in 1977 called Hoshin Consulting specialising in Japanese-style productivity techniques like 5S and suggestion scheme.
He lives in District 10 with his wife and three kids, whom he called his "three joys"....
Oh dear, did I just freak you guys out and set your alarm bells ringing? Okay, I've made my point, I think I'll just stop this
The point I'm trying to make is that sometimes, we do get carried away in writing our blog and unknowingly ended up offering private and confidential information about our families in the net to total strangers.
I find this all rather unsettling and scary. Not too long ago, I read an article about the danger of uploading our kids’ photographs in the Internet, where pedophiles and perverts are known to be lurking. Photographs of our kids perhaps in their pajamas smiling happily at the camera, but we didn't realise that there was a landmark on the background of that photo....That gives the perverts an idea of where we're living... Then there's the fear of kidnapping if you're a millionaire or super rich or stay in district 10 ....
Be afraid. Be very afraid....
Category: Musings
34 comments:
Your PI skills not so good leh. 1st sentence about me already has 2 errors. Hoshin Consulting started in 1997. I am no millionaire. Just working class self-employed.
The reason I and probably Victor don't mention our wives much is becos they don't like publicity.
... and Chun See is not a dragon. He's a human.
How come you know my wife so well, Chun See? Hmm... I am getting suspicious.
Chris, I know where to draw the line when it comes to revealing personal info on the web. At least I don't reveal my ATM pin number... which is... oops sorry. Or my credit card number, which is xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx. Or my ex-girlfriend's name which is (you can fill this info in yourself, since you know who). Haha.
Chris, you are touching on a very sensitive topic (to some people, not me). At least I don't post photos of myself or people I love on the net. (Childhood photos and low-resolution pictures do not count.) You and I know of at least one person who does, but I am not naming him/her here. To each his/her own.
I really don't know, Chris. You are threading on dangerous ground. Your next intolerable ache may not come from your rotting tooth but from irate fellow blogger(s), you know. ROTFLOVVL.
Chris is always so contradictory. He can preach to us about the dangers of uploading our kids photos onto the Internet. But just look at the evidence I gathered by a PI I hired:
his younger son Jaden and
his elder son Daryl.
I rest my case.
Chun See - I'm just an amateur PI. Gimme some time to collect some more of your data... Heheh..
Victor - You too make a lousy PI, having mispelt my son's name.... Or is that another sign of old age?
Heh.
Oops!!!better watch what I am writing.
what??! i'm suprised at this post LOL. so im nx huh? ok good, lets see how much u know abt me, baking & cooking aside!
eh what kind of song r u playing on yr blog? some kind of funky english track which is more "me" than "you". its so unlike u seriously chris heh.
regarding the part abt making elaine or me your god-daughter, do consider ya? *winks* haha!
God-daughter? Can me 杆爹 first then say lah :P
Well, ok fair enough Evan, you're quite a hard nut to crack, I must admit. But u do come across as an extremely private and cautious gal. Which is a good thing. U can never be too sure of people u meet in the net... esp pple like Uncle Vic... wahahaha... Okok the last part was a joke. Uncle Vic is really a nice chap, just like me. What he wrote is not a true reflection of himself, unless he's also wearing a mask in front of me. Haha.
Oh.. that song ah... It's actually a song by Madonna called Paradise... but I edited and "butched" that song to play only the portion I like most. Nice right? I'm into pop music also you know. U think I so old like uncle vic ah? ROTFLVVL.
ok lor.... 干爹 *purrs* LOL
haha actually, i'm not a private n cautious person. i guess thats becoz we don't talk much, as in THAT much, so i didnt really tell u abt how i feel abt things n such. moreover, its pretty difficult since my blog is like more or less converted into a food blog, so i try not to "break" the momentum by posting other stuffs.
but hey remember that time i email-ed u abt the problem i was facing abt handling difficult ppl? haha that shows i'm not that private...i just don't hv the opportunity to let u (and uncle vic) on my "inner-most thoughts" thats all hehe.
how come u like to suan uncle vic so much? im beginning to pity him leh! hahaha! *like real*
我这个干女儿， 可真乖啊！哈哈。。。
Ya, you can email me your problems anytime... now that I'm your 干爹... There's always a solution in whatever trouble we have one... BTW, r u still working?
As for Uncle Vic, don't worry about him lah. That's how we usually "communicate" by "suan ing" lor. He's not about to become suicidal or gonna hang himself in the office toilet. I know where to draw a line when come to "suan ing" him one. Like no mention of father mother or $£"£$%*&^%. More importantly, I know when to stop. It's when he's all quiet and you dunno what's going on in his "scheming" monkey brain. Oh.. monkey bec he born in the monkey year mah. Nothing derogatery hor. LOL
haha! i was pondering for a moment if i shd make u or uncle vic my 干爹. as u know, older = richer. LOL. but then again i may be wrong. coz as the saying goes, older doesnt mean wiser wahaha. oh and uncle vic just promised me a $900 KitchenAid mixer if i were 2b his 干女儿. LOL!! anyway r u too young 2b my 干爹? coz afterall u r only like...15 years my senior! but then again, to father a child at 15 is not entirely impossible. heh.
oh actually the part where u wrote "....we do get carried away in writing our blog and unknowingly ended up offering private and confidential information about our families in the net to total strangers". it will never happen to me. coz like what u said, i'm very cautious n private, well in a way. i don't really like telling ppl abt my hubby, my parents etc etc. i've got relatives reading my blog oso. and i don't want them to know so much abt my "family matters". not like i hv anything to hide lah. i probably just don't feel very comfortable revealing lor, esp in a public place like a blog. but mother-in-law is another matter altogether. i will not hesitate to rant incessably shd she piss me off *grins* but then, i dunno what gave u the impression that im a cautious person lor. izit becoz i nvr put up my photos in my blog? i mean, u oso nvr mah. haha.
and, i'm not working there anymore. it was only a temp job. did i tell u that i teach piano? hv been teaching a few students for 1-2 years already. i only took up that temp job coz i juz wanna see how its like working in the office again. but it further proved that i'm afterall not suited for office environment. anyway difficult ppl exist everywhere. i guess u must hv a certain "level" of EQ to handle them. or thru experience maybe, i dunno.
Well, ok.. since u say so, then I'll break our god-father and god-daughter relationship this instance! You're henceforth DIS-OWNED!
No kidding, u teach the piano? Woa... you grade what hah? Or got degree izzit? I also play the piano leh... but play play only. Seriously, I learned piano when I was much younger.. No grade lah but I can handle easy pieces... My two boys learned piano too.. but alas, they've given up. My big boy has the talent - really large hands and got what you call the "perfect-pitch" ears. You play the flat or sharp and he can tell you the key. But he got no interest and very lazy. So I don't wanna force him. As what they say, u can't force the cow to drink water, right? At least we parents gave them a chance. I used to tell him, one day when he grows up, he would regret he let that chance slipped through his fingers. How do u motivate kids in piano hah? Btw, how much you charge ah? Do u accept uncles as student? I not considered beginner already... at least grade 3 already leh.
As for EQ... well u need EQ everywhere and not just in the office. U need it to handle your music students, and their parents too. All these need EQ wat. Do u agree?
Who said I never put up my foto. Have ok? Search my army post. Sure can see me one. I said u r a cautious because u refuse to meet uncle vic and me for the dreadful "P" session mah. Hahaa. And u don't reveal much personal info in you blog mah.
Aiyoh, your dialogue here makes my goose pimples all 'stand up'. In any case, congrats to both of you on becoming godfather-goddaughter. So, initiation rights is what? A popiah party? Oops, sorry Evan.
I said that because Evan came up with the suggestion for me to sponsor her first mah. (So forthright hor?) Now no need already lor. You can ask Chris liao mah. (Wah, very expensive popiah).
I got used to Chris' suan-ing already. In fact, he also got a fair share in return from me. One day if he stopped suan-ing me, I might really hang myself in the toilet. Now, it looks like I got a new suan-ing partner. LOL.
Evan, you obviously didn't read my 10 Singaporean Things post properly. Please re-read points 1 and 2 again, especially the strike-outs. Chris is definitely richer. Very wise choice.
Just a kind reminder to you not to throw all caution to the wind. At 42, Chris is still as virile as when he was 15. Moreover, since his factory closed down years ago, he got a lot of old stocks to get rid of. Don't tempt him with too much "purring". LOL.
ahem...uncle vic, don't be naughty!!
chris, let me put it this way. when i don't meet up ppl, it doesnt mean i'm cautious, secretive or private. moreover, i guess i don't really know u that well to meet up, and i don't hv the habit of meeting ppl online. i mean, i hv enough friends in my life, so i don't feel like i hv the urge or need to make more friends over the net. and its like, if everyone asks me to meet after knowing me for a short time, then i very 'bo eng' leh. but i guess some ppl like u probably make friends easily n warm up to ppl quickly, so its no prob for u lor. judging from one of the post abt someone sending u the wrong sms and u juz went on replying n talking as if she's yr friend, it kinda shows u warm up easily to ppl. am i correct to say? i guess i'm different lor. if someone were to send me a wrong sms, the most i'll say, u got the wrong person. thats it. i won't go initate a conversation or reply 5-6 times more, that kinda thing. but of coz, i'm not saying you're wrong to do that lah. afterall, everyone's different :p i guess i do hv qualms abt meeting ppl, but thats not becoz i'm cautious or anything. more like i don't see the need ba. but of coz, i'm not saying i won't meet u. will see how it goes lor hehe.
ok back to piano. i'm doing my grade 8 now. havent pass, thats why cannot teach in schools like yamaha or cristofori. i'm teaching beginners to abt grade 3. in fact, my mum is a teacher too and she recommends students to me. when i reach a standard that im not able to teach, then i'll pass to her to teach lor. beginner, i'm charging $65/mth. 45 mins per session. grade 1 is $75, grade 2 - $85 etc. and my students come over mostly. if i need to go over, then i will hv to charge transport lor. abt $40 more. its good to hear yr boy got talent leh. but some ppl don't hv the interest, juz too bad. in fact i don't hv interest too, but no choice mah. at least its better than slogging in the office. moreover its pretty good $$ if can teach grade 8. it will be like earning abt $60/hr leh. where to find? as for how i motivate my students...juz find out what they like lor. buy them stuffs, give stickers for every assignment they complete. and must find examples and "stories" to make the lesson more interesting. i hv 2 adult students, which they are better in a sense that, won't throw tantrums, won't cook up stories as to why they didnt complete their homework, or last min call n tell u they're sick. but they often hv committment so they can be pretty slow oso. must teach at their own pace lah.
ya as for the EQ thing, i do agree. but maybe all these come with age & experience oso. i still feel that i hv alot to learn. but sometimes i feel i will still do things or handle matters in a way that i will regret later. maybe cannot forsee the circumstances and think maturely. i'm pretty hotheaded lah. and driven by my emotions most of the time LOL.
Ok, I'll be nice. *evil grin*
So one way to meet you is to take up piano lessons? So your place or mine? Heh.
>sometimes i feel i will still do things or handle matters in a way that i will regret later.<
Like asking Chris to be your 干爹? LOL.
no uncle vic, like getting acquainted to u! LOL.
no sorry, is with u. not to u. typo.
Aiyoh, so hurting.
Wala eh... stop it lah both of you... your dialogue here also made my hair stand... There's a word for this... and it's called "flirting", OK? (getting a bit jealous). So unbecoming of a 干爹and 干女 you know. tsk..tsk..tsk...
Evan - don't meet don't mee lor. U "bo eng", I lagi "bo eng", OK? Got a wife to entertain, two boys to scream at, and a horde of God-daughters waiting for me to "sayang". Uncle Vic is a wiser choice - MBA (married but available), rich, witty and so charming. Not only will he get the mixer for you, he would even gets into the kitchen to help u to mix your dough. LOL.
So when u gonna get your grade 8? Is it very tough? I'm surprised you said you don't enjoy piano. Then why picked it up? Did yr mum force you to learn by pointing a gun at your head? I dunno... I feel that one must truly be passionate about music, if not why bother? Just like my boy, he's got no passion, so I stopped his lesson when he asked me to. I'm passtionate about it... so u haven't answered me... U teach Uncles type or not? But I don't want later on you pass me on to your mum one ah. Where got such thing one? I'm not a basket ball or a commodity, you know? LOL.
Victor - fyi, I'm more "virile" now than I was when I was 15, ok? My secret? "I swallowed"... vitamins pills lah.. what you thinking? I'm no Zoe Tay hor...wahahahaha....
Eh, you gay ah? Who swallowed what?
*looks innocent* but i really did NOT flirt with uncle vic!! he's the one who initiated everything. he did the flirting, not me hor. and, i tot u oredi disown me? so no more 干爹干女 rite?
ya, i agree with u. u r definitely lagi "bo eng" compared to me. so pls do your job of entertaining the slim lady, scream at yr kids and sayang-ing your god daughters well. don't distract yrself by wanting to meet ppl up all the time ok! juz a well meaning advice :p
im doing my grade 8 now. ya of coz its tough lah, wat u expect? composing from scratch is the most difficult part leh. they give u a requirement eg. a baroque period sonata for two treble instruments. now compose the piece of music. that means now u not only compose for piano, u also need to do transposing for other instruments coz the pitch is different. haha anyway i dunno if u get what i mean. but ya its tough and definitely not fun. why i wanna go into it? starting is interest. then later on, i lost interest at grade 5. but already come so far, so continue lor. at least a skill is something ppl cannot take away from u mah.
as for yr qn, i can teach anybody, no prob. provided is beginner to abt grade 3. coz i dun hv any confidence of teaching higher grade. so ya lor, if i cannot teach, i gotta pass u on like a basket ball lor. but then again, i dun think i will take in anymore students. sorry to shatter your hopes hor!
Sigh, instead of popiah, I end up with a dead cat (死猫) which I must eat. 冤枉啊！Evan, seems like you also have a tendency to put the blame squarely on others, just like Chris. Like godfather like goddaughter. The two of you surely make a matching pair, LOL.
Composing music is really so difficult meh? I thought now anyone also can compose music quite easily using a PC? My friend Ivan Chew used garageband to create impressive compositions quite effortlessly on his PC. See example 1 here and example 2 here. The music pieces sounded like they were played by a whole orchestra!And Ivan probably spent less than an hour to create each of them.
oh? so i hv the tendency to put the blame squarely on others huh? u referring to that kenn's incident? well, i'm certainly disappointed u couldnt see it at my point of view. anyway u must be thinking i couldnt see in ppl's point of view too, and i'm like a selfish and self centered bitch rite? blaming squarely on others while ppl hv good intentions hor. yalor, thats what i am :)
as for the composing music thingy, i think i don't hv to answer u. you're so smart, u shd know the difference lah. pls lor, don't be so tidak apa can?
Okay lor. :p
BTW, I wasn't refering to the Kenn incident lah. You said I started the flirting first mah.
Evan, why should my hope be shattered? Learning piano is not my priority at this point in time. U wanna teach me, I also must consider. Hahaha. All the best to your grade 8 exam, Evan. Nothing is too difficult for a smart gal like you. And I mean it from the bottom of my heart.
hmm, chris, i feel like u like to twist your words. u wanna meet me so many times, then i say dun want. u said, dun meet dun meet lor, u lagi 'bo eng". then from your previous post, u keep pestering me n asking "u never answer my question yet. do u teach uncles?" then i say, maybe not. then u say, wanna teach u, u oso must consider. pls lor, why u like to win so much? unless u tell me what i "read" is wrong and i misintepret your words. u really sound like u don't wanna lose lor.
ok lah, this conversation is getting pretty long. not gonna continue anymore.
:X
i'm just saying u really 死要面子 leh. then one day if i say i dun wanna treat u eat popiah how? den u sure tell me "dun treat dun treat lor. u wanna treat i oso must reconsider. i afterall only had popiah yesterday". right? LOL
I'm just horsing around lah. Lighten up girl. Ok,I can take your nonsense, why can't u take mine? Oopss... horsing again. Hee!
Ok...干爹坏，干爹该骂。。。。
i'm oso joking mah. i AM taking your nonsense ok wahhahaha
Evan said:
>chris, i feel like u like to twist your words.
Chris is always very contradictory one. I have mentioned this so many times before in my comments here. Evan, now then you know meh? Anyway it's not too late. LOL.
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