Ryan & Nicole :) :)

What a great weekend this is!! That's mainly because my brother Ryan & Nicole got married yesterday (27/9/2008). Well, they didn't have a ceremony as such. Rather, it was a registry wedding - so technically, they are now married. But the grand celebration (ceremony & reception) will come in exactly 3 months time. I'm really excited!!

The registry wedding took place in a marriage room at the Brisbane registry in George St. Those present were my parents, myself, my youngest brother Brendan, my sister Val, brother-in-law Andrew & Nicole's mum (Aunty Ivy). Just immediate family members. The registry wedding was short. The marriage celebrant impressed me with his handling of the wedding - professional yet with a personal touch, for he joked quite a bit. At the end, mum, Nicole & Aunty Ivy were a little emotional (just a little!). The registry thing finished very quickly. Then we left & took some pictures nearby. Everyone (except myself & BT) then headed to the University of Qld for more photos.

All of us then had a family lunch at Shangrila, that new-ish Chinese Restaurant in Sunnybank (the same place where I had Chinese NY banquet back in February). We were cramped in a so-called private room with other diners (it would have been nice to have had the room just to ourselves). We ordered quite a few dishes & were full at the end. But the food was quite enjoyable, & everyone was satisfied.

To continue the celebration, there was going to be more food at night - family dinner at Rydges South Bank. The place was really nice (& so happens Fi's cousin Alex works there). The food was pretty good, too - seafood buffet was what we had, & so I lost count of the number of platefuls I had of fresh mussels, oysters, crabs & the like. There was live jazz entertainment, too, to add to the atmosphere. And of course, I had lots of dessert. There's always room for dessert, no matter how full I might be. The fact that I have sweet tooth always helps. Rydges was really nice, & I would definitely return again.

I'm truly truly happy for Ryan & Nicole :) Of course!! What else can I say?? In 3 months time, we will celebrate big time!! May God bless this fabulous couple & their future!


PS: Oh yeah, it's my birthday today - which is why this weekend is truly meaningful for me. I had lunch with a few church friends at Song's Restaurant, & had family dinner at home (roti canai with curry & dhal). Everyone gave me birthday presents, which I'm grateful for.

Nicole & Ryan :)

Aunty Ivy with the lovely couple :)

It's about to start

Exchanging the vow

Taking pics after the registry

Absolutely fabulous!

Yes, the place is mine!

The couple with their parents

Family dinner at Rydges South Bank (errr, the flash is not good enough)

Congratulations, Nigel & Phuong!

My dear friends, Nigel & Phuong, got married today! A great day to savour for the lovely couple, their family & their friends. It was a nice day to have the wedding, for the weather was fine, though slightly too warm for my liking in the afternoon.
The ceremony was held at the Albert St Uniting Church. As me & BT were among the last arrivals at the church, we couldn't find a seat at ground level. Instead, we had to settle for seats at the upper level of the church & watch the ceremony from above. Yeah, the wedding was that big. But it was difficult take any pictures from the distance - I still tried but I don't think the pictures were great. Anyway, the one interesting feature of the ceremony was the lighting of the unity candle (which I really liked), by the newlyweds & their respective parents. The lighting took place after the exchange of the rings & proclamation of marriage.

We then had some nice refreshments after the ceremony concluded, mainly finger food. I managed to briefly catch up with a few people I haven't seen for a long while (including Johnnie & Cherie, whose baby I saw for the first time). The usual wedding group photos were taken. After all that, there was still some time to kill before the reception. So a few of us headed back to the Westside to chill out & have a few drinks. While walking towards the reception, we were joined by Ivan, who just flew back from Sydney (he couldn't leave Sydney before the evening, so unfortunately missed the ceremony).

The wedding reception was held at Brisbane City Hall. And what a huge reception it was - some 300 guests @ 30 tables! It was grand! Me & BT were seated at the 30th table (the "last"), & my name was the last on the list. So I joked with a few friends that I was probably a "sympathy invite". The hall was dimly lit - the bright lighting was saved for the bridal table at the front (just like a theatre, I guess). Because of the distance (our table was right at the back of the hall), it was difficult to get many pictures. Anyway, that didn't stop us from enjoying ourselves. There was much to enjoy, & not just the food either. There was that Chinese Vietnamese cultural performance from the bridal party, which I really liked. The speeches were good, but those delivered by the best man (Jin) & 2 of Nigel's groomsmen did not bag Nigel quite as much as I had expected. I suppose that can't be a bad thing:) Nigel's speech was eloquent, which didn't come as a surprise at all, knowing that he can show his "formal, cultured" side when the occasion warrants it.

Of course, the enjoyment was greatly helped by whom I was seated with. My table was filled with mainly Clayers plus Dennis who came from Melbourne. I reckon our table was by far the loudest, especially when it came to toasting the newlyweds ("yam seng") - a deliberate group decision to be the loudest! Not only we were the loudest, we possibly drank the most alcohol as well! I would have had at least 3 Crown Lagers, on top of the the 2-3 beers I had before the reception. Just as well the tab closed at 9:30pm, or else I might have really been carried away. That aside, there was much warmth & laughter at our table, as we enjoyed each other's company. It was a great evening.

All good things had to come to an end, so we bade farewell to Nigel & Phuong before they headed off to their honeymoon. I dropped a few people off before arriving back home after midnight.

Nigel & Phuong, I am so so happy for the both of u. Congratulations big time on your marriage. I pray that God will bless your future richly!

Exchanging the vows

And the kiss!

Lighting the unity candle

Just look at that

The newlyweds & relatives (Nigel's side, I believe)

Dennis & the newlyweds

Chinese-Vietnamese cultural performance - Phuong looking fabulous :)

Sherin, myself & Sylvia

Quite a few drinkers at my table (including myself!)

Ahh yes, the wedding cake

Worth another look....wow

The boys!

Me with Nigel & Phuong

Mr & Mrs Chan all set for their honeymoon :)

Terrific weekend!

Friday 12/9/08

I stayed back at work for a bit (past 5pm). Manager thanked me for all my hard work; I appreciated his compliment but mentioned that I stayed back this evening because I had a bucks nite to attend. Anyway, I left work just around 6pm & headed to Jojos at Queen St Mall, for the second part of Nigel's bucks celebration (first part was last Saturday). I arrived, followed very shortly by Terence. Then later, Dennis (who flew up from Melbourne in the morning) came along with Nigel. We ordered dinner. Me & Dennis each ordered beef sausage & chips. Everyone else either had pasta, pizza or Thai curry with rice. Of course, we had a few drinks too - me & Dennis shouted each other & Nigel some grog (why is it that everytime I get tipsy, Dennis is around??). Then Nigel's best man Jin arrived, together with the costume that Nigel was made to wear. And guess what it was? Buzz Lightyear from Toy Story! Yep, Nigel wear all that, body suit, wings, & all - the only thing missing was the space helmet. It was so so hilarious. The guys then took him out into Queen St Mall. Plenty of photos were taken (a bit of a shame I didn't bring my camera) - Nigel had quite a lot of pictures taken with random strangers who were drawn to the Buzz outfit! It was really funny. We went to a couple of nightclubs/similar places to have some fun & more drinks. Of course, Nigel was wasted. We stayed out so late, but of course some left earlier than others during the course of the night. I forked out some $33 for a cab home (there were practically no buses after midnite), & arrived home just before 1:30am.

Saturday 13/9/08

Yesterday was really full for me as I had spent most of the day in the Brisbane CBD - from arriving in bus stop just before 8am heading to work, to leaving CBD after 1am. So of course, I spent most of the day resting & recovering. I didn't do much. Still, I managed to go out at nite (with BT & Mark) - to Terence's place to watch Liverpool v Manchester United. Liverpool went a goal down, but hit back to win 2-1, & all in all, the result was probably fair. We were all happy. Terence was beaming from ear to ear, that his team won. For Terence personally, this would be a huge weekend - he is part of Nigel's bridal party.

Sunday 14/9/08

Wedding bells! Nigel & Phuong's big day! See next post for more details.....

Michelangelo's David goes home to Italy

After a 2 year visit to the United States, Michelangelo's David is returning to Italy . .

His proud sponsors were:

Ecclesiastes coming up!

Last Monday, when my Clay study group decided on Ecclesiastes as the book that we will be studying next, I was pretty happy. Not only that, something inside me clicked - it's a sort of warm, positive feeling, & it's like something inside me say "hey, wow, that's really good". Strange, that - I can't remember ever being that "excited" over a decision to study a particular book of the Bible. I can't quite put a finger on what caused all those feelings. Maybe it was because one of the Clayers said she liked & was encouraged by Ecclesiastes (which she looked at in her own time)?

So just the other day, I decided to have a read of Ecclesiastes. Actually, I must confess that before I got on to Ecclesiastes 1, I read the "preliminary overview" to Ecclesiastes. Well, it was right there (I use Life Application Study Bible) so I had to read! The "preliminary overview" gave me a good idea on what Ecclesiastes is about, & what I can expect from studying it. Here is my summary in a nutshell of what I gathered from reading the "preliminary overview":
The author of Ecclesiastes, Solomon, is trying to teach us that life without God is empty & meaningless. He tells readers of the book that things like knowledge, wealth/money, pleasure, work or popularity will not lead us to find meaning in life. Seeking those things will ultimately lead to disappointment. Instead, true satisfaction comes from seeking a relationship with the Lord, & knowing God's purpose for our lives. All of that was based on Solomon's own experience, & Ecclesiastes reflects on Solomon's personal life journey. He was looking back at his life, & was trying to spare his readers from learning through their own experience that everything apart from God is empty.

The "preliminary overview" captivated & inspired me. It immediately showed me why I had been excited when Ecclesiastes was chosen for our next study. You see, I have been thinking a lot about my life situation, & where my life is heading. More specifically, I have been thinking (& even talking to some friends) about my work & career, climbing the corporate ladder, future aspirations, my future earning capacity, wealth-building ambitions, & how to get there. There's also some other things which I won't elaborate on here. I have also been reflecting on timeframes to achieve various milestones, i.e. thinking along the lines of what I want to achieve in X number of years, what I want to own in X number of years, what I want to accumulate by the time I am X years old. Those are all secular stuff. I have poured so much thought into all those secular things, & so very little thought to spiritual things. As times, I feel like my head is getting "messed up" the more & more I think a lot about all that secular things. Yet I keep thinking about them. But on the other hand, how much thought have I given into how I can read the Bible more regularly, how I can devote more time to prayer, how I can be an encouragement to Christian brothers & sisters, & how I can improve my relationship with God? Not much at all.

All that secular stuff that have been plaguing my mind are exactly the stuff that Ecclesiastes warn against seeking, as they will lead to disappointment & emptiness. That is why I was excited when Clay decided to study Ecclesiastes. Because I feel that here is something that can help change my mind & priorities. Because I feel that here is a book that can come to my rescue, & prevent my head from being further "messed up" by all those secular things. So one could say that given all that I said above, it is timely that we will be studying Ecclesiastes next - because I think I really need to pay heed to whatever Ecclesiastes has to teach. My hope is that Ecclesiastes could kick-start my spiritual life & start afresh. I hope that the book will help me recommit myself to God, & focus on Him & seek Him first instead of pursuing those secular things.

It's going to be very difficult, because it might be relatively easy for me to recognise my issues, but difficult to actually act on them. Because it is so easy to be tempted, & it is so easy to be sucked into not doing what is right. So I hope that tomorrow's study (the first) on Ecclesiastes will be the first step in the right direction. Roll on the Ecclesiastes studies!

By the way, I did read Ecclesiastes 1. It doesn't mean I know a lot about the passage or that I will be able to answer everything about the passage. But what I can say is that the tone of the passage does seem pessimistic. This is meaningless, that is meaningless - looks like it's saying all things are meaningless without God. Things happen over & over again, all of that is meaningless.....Hmmm, well, we can discuss this further at Clay tomorrow, yeah??? And I will see if I can post reflections on the Ecclesiastes studies as I go. We'll see what happens.....

Father's Day 2008

Ohhh, & it's Father's Day today. We had a very quiet dinner at home - we got some Vietnamese takeaway.

Happy Father's Day, pa. I thank God for saving u & electing u to be part of His Family. Thanks for being a good, godly dad, & for looking us all these years. I thank God for looking after u & for blessing u with much. I pray that He will continue to bless u richly in years to come.

Nigel's bucks day (6/9/08)

My good friend (Nigel) is getting married next Sunday. Of course, we are all excited & happy for him. So yesterday, some of us took him out for the first instalment of his bucks day/nite. (The second instalment is this coming Friday nite, when more people will be available to catch up with Nigel).

We kicked off yesterday with lunch at the Little Taipei foodcourt in Sunnybank. We mostly ordered either Korean or Taiwanese-style steak. My Korean dish was ok. I also shouted Nigel a taro milk tea. All up, about 11-12 or so guys turned up for lunch. After lunch, most (but not all) of us then headed to the Gold Coast. We went in 2 cars. Melvin took Nigel, Winston, Jay (who didn't join us for lunch) & myself in his BMW 4-wheel drive. Wong drove Sean, Kwang & BT - these 4 would head off to Byron Bay later in the evening for Maria's birthday celebration. Melvin's car arrived first near the Surfers Paradise Boulevard.

We arrived at a place called Sling Shot/Vomatron - basically motor-powered devices designed to give passengers a fun/amusement ride by spinning & propelling in the air, creating the sort of "adrenaline rush" that is not too different what u would get from roller-coaster rides. Nigel got worried when he saw the slingshot & vomatron, & protested his reluctance to take the rides. We watched as some of the other riders in the vomatron screamed & screamed as they Wong's car then arrived. Eventually, after much persuasion, Nigel relented after Wong agreed to accompany him to the vomatron ride. It was fun watching both of them spin clockwise a few times, then anti-clockwise a few times. And we can't forget Nigel's facial expression when both he & Wong were up in the air, as well as how tight Nigel gripped the bars while Wong appeared calm & had both his hands free. Fortunately, neither of them threw up, although Nigel said he might have had the vomatron ride carried on for a few more rounds. But both of them looked clearly hammered.

After that, we walked over to King Tutt's Putt Putt just a few minutes away, for a game of miniature golf. Part of the place had ancient Egyptian theme, the other part had Jurassic Park theme. We had to settle with the outdoor mini-golf course, as the courses inside were already taken. We had an 18-hole course, so that meant 1 game of 18 rounds. Some of the guys displayed flair for golf (Sean & Jay being among them). There was much laughter all round, especially with the various putting bloopers (at one stage, Wong & BT managed to put their balls out onto the road!) & botched attempts to get the ball into the hole. It was quite windy, so that made it a tad more difficult for us to putt as well as we want. I yelled at my golf ball a few times, telling it to stop at times when it kept moving (at the final round 18, I let slip some expletives as I was frustrated that the ball didn't go well). Anyway, Sean ended up winning the game after the 18 rounds, with the lowest score of 56. Jay & myself were tied on 58 (but Jay is definitely better than me). BT had the worst score of 104! (At one stage, a fake crocodile's head protruded out of a small cave at the side of one of the course & gave Nigel a scare.)

We managed to get a group photo together, in front of the dinosaur at the entrance of King Tutt's Putt Putt. Then we headed out separate ways, with Wong, Sean, Kwang & BT off to Byron Bay to join Maria & friends. The rest of us returned to Brisbane, to play poker at the Woollongabba home of Kris, one of Nigel's groomsmen. Jay got dropped off (he didn't/couldn't join us), & Nigel & Melvin went straight to Kris's place while I grabbed my car (which I had left at Jay's parents' place) & headed with Winston back to his place. We rested for a bit, & after Eilen came back, me & Winston left in separate cars to Wolloongabba.

Henry was at Kris' place when we arrived. Long time no see, Henry. He seems to be well, which was good. Most of those present at Kris' place were Nigel's high school & uni friends. They were extremely loud & boisterous. We played a round of poker (about 12 people took part), with me & Winston being the earliest casualties. We only had finger food (some dips & nibblies), & I left relatively early (around 10pm-ish), without getting to have the pizza dinner that we all thought we would have. Nigel would later tell me (earlier today at church) that he stayed on till 4am & that the only thing he did after I left was play Risk.

Anyway, it was a good bucks day. But that is just the first instalment. The second instalment on Friday nite will see a lot more people turn up, & promises to be significantly more wild! But not if Nigel has it his way - because on Saturday, he has to do arrangements at the church where the wedding ceremony is held. It will be interesting to see how easy (or not) people will go on Nigel this Friday nite!

Kevin Keegan resigned!

Alas, Kevin Keegan has resigned as manager of Newcastle United. The man, dubbed King Kev, had been in charge of the English Premier League club for only 7-8 months since he returned to the club earlier this year. Frankly, I'm shocked & very sad - & I'm not even a Newcastle fan!! I'm sure most Newcastle fans would be extremely depressed by the latest developments at their club. Who could blame them for feeling down in the dumps?

Keegan left because he was at loggerheads with Newcastle's billionaire owner Mike Ashley, & the club's managing directors, over what he feels to be a lack of control over player transfers & other football matters. Keegan feels that the owner & managing directors are interfering with his job as a football club manager. Recent developments have served to undermine Keegan's authority at the club. Basically, Ashley & the managing directors told Keegan which players he should sign, & they are having a say in which players should come & go at Newcastle. Recently, the club sold promising young midfielder James Milner to Aston Villa. He's only 22, is a key player for Newcastle & is expected to play for the senior England team sometime soon. The decision to sell him might have been for financial reasons, most probably not for football reasons, & it certainly was not a decision made by Keegan - after all, Keegan is a known admirer of Milner. Not only that, some players that Keegan has never heard of, nor want, have been recommended for him to bring to the club. And to top all that off, it has recently been revealed that the club has been trying to sell a couple of key players behind Keegan's back. How could Keegan work in such circumstances, when there are people trying to interfere & undermine his authority?

I find all of that appaling, & I just don't get it. Why were they doing all that to Keegan? Why can't Keegan be allowed to do his job the way he sees fit? Newcastle fans don't get it, & are upset by all this. Some have demonstrated against Mike Ashley, voicing their disapproval of the club owner. I don't blame them for that, & I have much sympathy for the fans. As football manager, Keegan knows the strengths & weaknesses of his squad. He should be the one who decides which players come & go to improve the squad. He should be the one who makes team selections & decide on tactics. The club owner & board should have no business interfering with such matters - they are not football managers & shouldn't try to be one. They should stick to their respective jobs, & let Keegan do his - let him be the football manager that he was paid to be. As Keegan rightly pointed out in a statement he issued on the day he resigned, "a manager must have the right to manage & that clubs should not impose upon any manager that he does not want". Very well summed up. With everything that has happened, Keegan felt he had no choice but to leave the club. His decision marks a sad day for Newcastle United, neutral football fans (including myself), & for football. He is a nice guy, never arrogant, very emotional perhaps, but I appreciate him for always trying to get his teams to play positive, attacking football.

Mind you, Keegan is not the only manager to have left in such acrimonious circumstances. Just a few days before Keegan's departure, Alan Curbishley resigned as West Ham manager for the same reasons. I don't think Newcastle or West Ham will find it easy to get a replacement. Who in their right mind would want to manage a club where its owners & board of directors interfere in footballing matters? Prospective managers will think twice before considering an offer to manage Newcastle or West Ham. Not a good situation for the clubs to be in. I hope both clubs eventually find the manager that can lead them to better things - & I hope that the "powers that be" at both clubs leave well alone & let the managers do their job without any undue interference.

Hard to keep sport & politics separate

This weekend sees World Cup qualifying action around the globe in the race to be at the big stage in South Africa 2010. Plenty of matches, promising lots of goals, excitement & drama.

Among the list of qualifying matches are 2 intriguing ties: Cuba v USA, & Armenia v Turkey. Intriguing because the matches had meaning beyond just a sporting contest - the nations involved in the respective ties have a deep history with each other, off the field. In the lead up to the matches, internet articles have been talking about all the history. It seems that it can be difficult to separate football & politics.

This weekend will be the first time in over 60 years that the US soccer team play in the Cuban capital. America still has a trade embargo on Cuba (which has been running for about 50 years), which means that there will be no American fans in Havana to cheer their team on. So that will be a new experience for the US squad. One could say the US team will face hostility from the Cuban fans, given the (non-football related) history between both nations. But then again, another viewpoint is that any hostility from the Cuban fans simply represent normal behaviour of home fans wanting their team to win - it's normal that they would be against the visiting team. Some of the Cuban footballers downplay the political aspect of the fixture, saying that their rivalry has nothing to do with politics & that Cuba doesn't like losing to USA in any sport. The US coach, meanwhile, says he is aware of the extra attention the game is bringing, & wants his team to take the opportunity to show what it can do.

As for Armenia & Turkey, their history run all the way back to era of the Ottoman Empire, & alleged atrocities committed by it against the Armenians. Both neighbours have been at odds over the extent to which the Ottoman troops were responsible for the deaths of Armenians during the Ottoman period. (I'm not taking any sides, by the way). That aside, there have also been various regional & territorial disputes between the nations. I won't go into the details. But anyway, the Armenian president has invited his Turkish counterpart to attend the football match in the Armenian capital, Yerevan. The invitation has been accepted, as both nations look to establish relations. Unlike the US team in Havana, the Turkish team will enjoy support in Yerevan. About 5,000 Turkish fans are expected, after Armenia relaxed the normal visa restrictions for the match as a goodwill gesture. This has raised concerns of possible violence between both sets of supporters. Turkey's coach, Fatih Terim, tried to diffuse such concerns by appealing for calm, saying: "This is only a football game, not a war. We cannot carry the weight of history on our shoulders".

Well, all I would like to say is that I hope all the World Cup qualifying matches (including the above 2) go ahead without trouble. Hope the fans enjoy the action on the field, & not think too much about the political stuff off the field.

Chinglish at its worst!

Those of u who speak Chinese, & are from Malaysia or Singapore would understand & appreciate this!

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Lim Ah Lek was asked to make a sentence using 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9 and 10.

Not only did he do it using 1 to 10, but he did it again backwards from 10 to 1. This is what he came up with......

"1 day I go 2 climb up a 3 outside a house to peep. But couple saw me, so I panic and 4 down. The man rush out and wanted to 5 with me. I run until I fall 6 and throw out. So I go into 7 eleven and grab some 8 to throw at him. Then I took a 9 and try to stab him. 10 God he run away. So, I put the 9 back and pay for the 8 and left 7 eleven. Next day, I call my boss and say I am 6. He said 5, tomorrow also no need to come back 4 work. He also asked me to climb a 3 and jump down. I don't understand, I so nice 2 him but I don't know what he 1".

The cost of parking in Brisbane

A few people have asked me why I don't drive to work (I work in Brisbane CBD). Well, if they read the article below, they would immediately know why.

The parking rates have become absurd, there's no way I'd pay the ridiculous money. Even Brisbane City Council parking passes (which cost less than those charged by those money-grabbing private car park operators) are not cheap.

So the survey says it costs $604 a month to park in Brisbane. That's one MONTH. More than the big names of the world like New York & Tokyo, so that's saying something. And that's parking cost alone. Imagine if fuel costs are factored in......

I parked at the Wilson Parking car park at Comalco Place during the past Saturday's Riverfire. I left my car there for some 5 hours, & forked out $15 for the privilege, but that is the Riverfire parking fare. Parking at Comalco Place would normally cost the following:

0 - 0.5 hours $11
0.5 - 1 hours $17
1 - 2 hours $25
2 - 3 hours $33
3 - 4 hours $40
4 hours + $45
Max per day $45

That's why I catch public transport to work. I know it can be a pain - buses often running late & noisy schoolkids on the bus & all that. But I rather put up with that than "giving away" $604 per month to "charity".


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Parking cost tops NY

From: The Courier-Mail
July 17, 2008

BRISBANE is one of the most expensive places to park your car in the world, according to an international survey.

Brisbane was one of five Australian cities to make the top 12 in the survey, beating the Swedish capital Stockholm, Russian capital Moscow and downtown New York.

The international survey of monthly parking rates found Brisbane was fifth at $604.02 a month, between Sydney ($790.99) in third and West Australian capital Perth ($526.78) in eighth position.

London's City and West End areas - costing almost $1200 a month - topped the list, compiled from 138 cities around the world.

Victorian capital Melbourne is not far off in 11th spot at $503.10, while parking in South Australian capital Adelaide appears to be a comparative bargain at $216.26.

Brisbane Lord Mayor Campbell Newman yesterday again accused private operators of "price gouging" and appealed to them to "have a heart" and cut rates.

"This unfortunately is one of the side-effects of not addressing traffic congestion, but to say that people of Brisbane should pay as much as the biggest cities in the world is a bit extreme," Cr Newman said.

This echoes the blasting that Cr Newman gave private car park operators in February, after it was revealed one was planning to almost double its monthly rates.

Secure Parking lifted its rates from $420 to $750 a month at its Festival Carpark in Charlotte St. It blamed the council for the "price pressure", saying that the CBD had lost about 3000 car spaces in the past two years.

The Colliers International survey was conducted in metropolitan areas in North America, Europe, Asia and Latin America last month.

"Australia's booming resource-based economy and surging currency is the primary driver of these high parking costs," said Colliers senior vice-president Ross Moore.

Australian cities dropped down the list when it came to daily rates, with only Sydney in the top 10 at $55.58 a day.

There are more than 40 private car parks in Brisbane's CBD and another two operated by Brisbane City Council.

The council-operated King George Square and Wickham Terrace car parks have monthly parking rates considerably less than the average detailed in the survey, at $420 and $350 for a monthly pass respectively.

Daily maximums are $25 and $23 respectively, compared with private car parking which ranges from $32 to $50 for four hours or more in the CBD.

Frustrated motorists could consider moving to Delhi in India, where the daily rate is $1.78.

Premium places:

Top 12 expensive parking cities in the world (monthly rates):

1: London (City) $1191.44

2: London (West End) $1159.67

3: Sydney $790.99

4: Hong Kong $757.95

5: Brisbane $604.02

6: New York $597.39

7: Tokyo $563.35

8: Perth $526.78

9: Stockholm $519.55

10: Dublin $518.36

11: Melbourne $503.10

12: Adelaide $215.85

Mark Driscoll, good luck with your ministry

Alright. Readers can tell from a previous blog post that I had big issues with Mark Driscoll from his men’s talk last Thursday. The talk did bring out the worst in me – I reacted in an extreme manner & some readers who know me personally might have seen my “unpleasant side”. Well, a few days have gone, the dust has settled, & at this stage, I still stand by much of the views that I aired.

Everything I said in that post had to do with what I think of Mark Driscoll the person. Now a thought just recently came to me that perhaps it’s a “good idea” to look past Driscoll the person, & find out more about his background – u know, get some idea about what he does, specifically the ministry he is involved in. With that in mind, I’ve done a bit of research (just a bit). I’ve found a few things, & for the rest of this post, I will try to be as objective as possible with what I say.

I found out the following things about Mark Driscoll’s work:

He is head pastor of the church he founded in Seattle, called Mars Hill Church. (well, I already knew that….)
He ministers to young people.
He authored a few books.
He co-founded a network of pastors (Acts 29 Network), which is established to assist church leaders in church-planting efforts.
He writes to the “Faith & Values” section of the Seattle Times.

From what I gather, Driscoll has planted churches at various places, & has reached out to many people. He seems to have some sort of a cult following – lots of people are drawn to him.

Driscoll might well be involved with other things that I haven't mentioned above. But as u can see, he is involved with quite a fair bit. I guess what I want to say is – when it comes to his ministry (as opposed to Mark Driscoll the person), I have nothing to criticize. How can I, since I’m a Christian. True, because of his extremely direct & provocative nature, he has offended some people (with me being the most recent!), & he may continue to offend more in the future. But the bottom line is, his work will continue to plant the seeds of the gospel. From what I read, it looks like God has made really good use of him & God has done wonders through him (churches have sprouted, people have received salvation). It shows that even those who offend or annoy us can be used by God to expand His Kingdom & further His purposes. At the end of the day, as long as Driscoll is serving God fervently & faithfully, & as long as people are won over to Christ, then that’s all that really matters – they matter far more than what I or others think of his personality.

Ok then, what I have to say to Mark Driscoll is: good luck with your ministry. Good luck. Good luck with your work, & all the best with your ministry & whatever your plans are for the future. Yes, u have offended me last week, & you might have offended many others in various places. But when it comes to your ministry, good luck. You might need all the luck u can get – because there’s always the risk that your confronting & provocative nature will not only offend people (some might even react worse than I did last Thursday), it might also actually turn some people away from the gospel. Now we don’t want THAT to happen, do we?

So once again, all the best with your ministry, Mr Mark Driscoll. And hey, a few final words: u are fat. So lay off those doughnuts already….....

Goodbye winter, hello spring

Winter is gone, for another year. And in some ways, I will miss the cold winter we've just had - felt like it was the coldest in many years. But anyway, we can always look forward to winter next year. And with how time flies (can't believe it's September already), that will arrive sooner than we think. But now, it's spring - first day of spring today. And it sort of feels like it too. So much so that I wore shorts to Southside Clay this evening, hosted by Ed & Edith (yes, if u haven't been paying attention, I now go to Southside Clay - switched over from St Lucia Clay at the start of the year).

This evening's Clay session was a dessert night. It was packed. Pretty much everyone (except for Nigel & Phuong) came. My brother BT came along with me, for a visit - he joked with the Clayers that he only came for the dessert. Most of us brought something to eat. I brought 2 Le Bon cheesecakes: chocolate bavarian & French cream. Besides the dessert, this evening's Clay was also to decide on our next study. At last week's Clay which I missed, the Clayers had talked about which Old Testament book that Clay shall study next, & narrowed it down to 3 books:

Ecclesiastes "Chasing after Meaning" by Bill & Terese Syrios (12 studies by A LifeGuide Bible Study)
Jonah "Warning Signs" by Andrew Reid (6 studies by Matthias Media)
Nehemiah "Renovator's Dream" by Phil Campbell & Greg Clarke (7 studies by Matthias Media)

The final decision was made this evening. Since no one had any burning desire to do anything else, we picked from 1 of the 3 above. We voted by a show of hands, & were asked to close our eyes before putting our hand up, so that our decision is not swayed by what others decide. By an overwhelming majority (which included me), we decided on Ecclesiastes. ^^

I'm happy with the choice of Ecclesiastes (once we finish this, we can always do Jonah & Nehemiah if we want). I look forward to the Ecclesiastes study. I've missed quite a bit of Clay this year (about 25-30%), & so I feel that I didn't get all that much out of the studies as I would have had with perfect attendance. I see the next study series as a chance to really "get my act together" & do something to improve my spiritual walk (I've been struggling for a while with my walk & relationship with God). I hope I will be able to attend every Clay study for the rest of this year.

Anyway, after deciding on Ecclesiastes, we spent some time praying (on various matters) & then had dessert & the usual chit chat with each other. Of the cheesecakes I brought, only the French cream was opened (& subsequently finished). That's because Wenny also brought a cheesecake (Sara Lee chocolate bavarian). There was so much food, that Ed & Edith got a couple of people to take some home.

It was a great night of fellowship, with Christian brothers & sisters having food & enjoying each other's company. And goodness, we were a loud bunch. We talked so loudly, that the place sounded like a Hong Kong fish market. But it's all good. I really love this bunch of people.


^^ Melina was at her classical best tonight with some funny one-liners which caused much laughter (ahhhh, Mel):
"Ecclesiastes? Yeah, I've heard about that book".
"Nah, I rather have one for myself". (in response to whether she & Jay would be sharing a study book; Jay just shook his head)