Wednesday, July 29, 2009

兩週一聚 (十九期) 「大話小說」之【告語自困雛鳥】 / 2weeks1gather (#19): 「In Essence」【You Are Born Free】

前言
出題網友南杏解題曰: 『... 如果有「長話短說」,那麼也應該有「大話小說」。有很重要的事想講,但卻用最平淡最簡單最短小的文字寫出來,情況會變成怎樣呢? ...』以下是我的回答,拙作一篇,廖廖56個中文字,語重心長,大話小說,各位讀者請勿見笑。

告語自困雛鳥

未孵雛鳥自泣鳴
自困時空命倒懸
天地渾沌如雞子
佛剎微塵皆是緣
蝸途多曲無出路
內裏乾坤亦留彌
胚胎發育成雛鳥
破殼而出震羽飛

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

說文解字:

* 天地渾沌如雞子 Cosmic Egg
(Source:
http://zh.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=%E7%9B%98%E5%8F%A4&variant=zh-hk ) " ... 盤古開天的神話乃是三國時期 的徐整借了西南少數民族祖先神話的盤瓠之名所創造出來的;在此之前,並無盤古的文獻記載。徐整的三五歷記裡面是這樣寫的:「天地渾沌如雞子。盤古生在其中。萬八千歲。天地開闢。陽清為天。陰濁為地。盤古在其中。一日九變。神於天。聖於地。天日高一丈。地日厚一丈。盤古日長一 丈。如此萬八千歲。天數極高。地數極深。盤古極長。故天去地九萬里。後乃有三皇。 天氣蒙鴻,萌芽茲始,遂分天地,肇立乾坤,啟陰感陽,分佈元氣乃孕中和,是為人也。首生盤古。垂死化身。氣成風雲。聲為雷霆。左眼為日。右眼為月。四肢 五體為四極五嶽。血液為江河。筋脈為地裏。肌肉為田土。發為星辰。皮膚為草木。齒骨為金石。精髓為珠玉。汗流為雨澤。身之諸蟲。因風所感。化為黎甿。」..."

* 佛剎微塵皆是緣
(Source: http://zh.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=%E5%AE%87%E5%AE%99&variant=zh-hk )"... 佛經中,大的空間叫佛剎、虛空,小的叫微塵,統稱為「三千大千世界」。「佛教宇宙觀」主張宇宙係由無數個世界所構成。集一千個一小世界稱為「小千世界」,集一千個小千世界稱為「中千世界」,集一千個中千世界稱為「大千世界」;合小千、中千、大千總稱為三千大千世界。..."

攝影圖片Photo Credit:
Wikipedia

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Related Links:
* My other related blog article:
籠鳮有食湯鍋近,野鶩無糧天地寬 / Born Free http://lotusandcedar.blogspot.com/2007/05/born-free.html
*「每週一聚 2weeks1gather」第十九期的題目由網友
南杏出 : 寫「大話小說」! 請往 http://2weeks1gather.wordpress.com/ 處報名和參閱其它文章。

Monday, July 27, 2009

林煥光: 『當權者切勿「自我為主、以我為尊」』 / Lam Woon Kong: "Those in power must avoid being self-centred elitists."


以下是報載林煥光在7月25日在香港書展參加一個佛學論壇時,發出他对現時香港政府管治得失的意見。林煥光在回歸前丶後曾在港府擔任多個重要職位,对官場政界事物瞭如指掌,雖然他現已退出政壇,迴心向佛,但在理論上,林煥光的覌點角度仍可說是「曾經滄海」內行人的意見。

林煥光促港府勿以我為尊
2009/07/26 (來源:on.cc)

港府管治失當愈來愈厲害,前高官紛紛開腔斥責,繼前工商及科技局局長王永平及前保安局局長葉劉淑儀後,退休後絕少評論政事的前特首辦主任林煥光,昨日亦借一個佛學論壇首度向政府發炮,不點名促請「當權者」切勿「自我為主、以我為尊」,認為官員應謙虛聆聽市民意見和有氣量接受批評,若以為沒有反對聲音就等於和諧,「咁個社會就死得」。曾經擔任多個部門決策官員的他又炮轟本港老人政策不足,需要徹底改善。

林煥光昨日在書展參加一個佛學論壇,他表示,退休後有更多時間鑽研佛學,看事物不像當年狹窄,深感自己做官時太過自我。例如十多年前他負責就老人退休金計劃諮詢公眾,以保險銷售的手法推銷政策,但計劃本身缺點多多,引起社會很大爭議,然而當年上級壓下來,就算隱惡揚善都要繼續推行,最終不得人心而失敗收場。回想當年挫敗,林煥光認為為官之道,切忌「自我為主、以我為尊」。

他解釋,為官之道必須謹記官與民並不對等,切忌有「自我為主、以我為尊」的心態。他並說,一名普通市民因為不滿而上電台謾罵幾分鐘,過了幾日就無人記起,但高官行錯一步就影響深遠,所以為官者應「以大侍小」,謙虛和有氣量接受批評,「如果個個(市民)粒聲唔出就以為咁係和諧,咁個社會就死得o勒!」

促認真推動老人政策

告別官場後,林煥光曾擔任奧馬公司行政總裁,早前政圈一度盛傳曾擔任特首辦主任的他是今次官場調動的特首辦新任人選。而林煥光在港府宣布特首辦主任人選一周後談做官感言,與他過去風格大異。

林煥光又說,現在對一般長者的難處亦感受較多,如他要由中環乘坐港鐵、再轉車返新界住所時,便體會到長者行長樓梯上落有多辛苦。他警告本港人口急劇老化,一般家庭對長者缺乏照顧,一眾政府高官又只顧處理眼前問題,未有認真推動老人政策,若再拖十年、二十年才解決,便可能已經太遲,要由下一代承受惡果。


攝影圖片: 林煥光当年在港府就任要職

附註:

1. 唐代詩人元稹的【離思】:

曾經滄海難為水,
除卻巫山不是雲。
取次花叢懶回顧,
半緣修道半緣君。


2. 【臨懸】

官場路埼嶇
澣林駿馬躍五環
轉好!轉好!


(Source: 漢徘,徘句 (續集) / Chinese and Japanese Haiku (Part 2) http://lotusandcedar.blogspot.com/2007/06/haiku-part-2.html)

Sunday, July 26, 2009

加拿大首都區的游泳好去處 / Open-Water Swim in Meech Lake, Gatineau Park, Quebec

Here is a map showing my favourite route for open-water swim in Meech Lake, Gatineau Park, Quebec. (Yes, it is the same lake that is associated with a part of Canadian history, the Meech Lake Accord).



View Open Water Swim in Meech Lake, Gatineau Park, Quebec, Canada in a larger map

Approximate total distance (from point #1 to #9 and back) = 2.88 km

Thursday, July 23, 2009

從【遠離非洲】到【登陸月球丶火星】 / From "Out of Africa" to "First Man on the Moon 丶 Mars"


The following article is inspired by Hevangel's July 20th article "One small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind" [1]. It also serves as a "Captain's Log Supplementary" to my previous two articles on the 40th anniversary of Apollo 11's lunar landing in 1969 [2]. So, hold on to your seat. ENGAGE !!!

I too have been fascinated by space travel, so much so that I bought the "technical manual" of the Starship Enterprise and read it from cover to cover (hey, what do you expect from an engineer, eh?) !! Unfortunately, at the time of writing, our generation has not encountered any pointy-ear visitor from the future to help us invent warp technology, there are no wormholes in the neighbourhood, and nobody knows how to "fold" our universe like a blanket (for heaven's sake, our male engineers are still learning how to fold their own shirts). So let's forget abt intergalactic travel, and focus on interstellar and interplanetary trips.

According to Wikipedia [3]: "... Five spacecraft are currently leaving the Solar System on escape trajectories. The one farthest from the Sun is Voyager 1, which is more than 100 AU distant and is moving at 3.6 AU per year (1 AU = approx 150,000,000 km, the mean distance btwn earth and sun [4]). In comparison Proxima Centauri, the closest star other than the Sun, is 267,000 AU distant. It will take Voyager 1 over 74,000 years to reach this distance ..." That is roughly equivalent to going back to the time when our ancestors decided to move out of Africa some 70 millennia ago (the first "Out of Africa" movie before Redford and Streep) [5]. So don't expect to crack open your champagne to celebrate any time soon.

As to interplanetary travel, I agree with Hevangel that conventional chemical rocket is too slow. It will take an astronaut six to nine months to make the once-in-a-life-time, one-way trip to Mars with no hope of coming back to Earth again [6]. There will not be enough fuel for a return trip. The good news is that scientists are developing nuclear rocket (with a higher energy-generation to fuel-mass ratio) that can potentially cut the trip to two weeks and perhaps save some spare fuel for flying home [7]. There are also other spacecraft propulsion technologies being researched that might bear fruit to interplanetary and interstellar travels [8].

As to intergalactic travel, your best bet is still at a cinema near you.


References:
[1] One small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind
http://www.horace.org/blog/2009/07/20/one-small-step-for-a-man-one-giant-leap-for-mankind/
[2] 太空人登陸月球40週年紀念 ∕40th Anniversary of Astronauts Landing on the Moon (Apollo 11 launching July 16; lunar landing July 20, 1969)
http://lotusandcedar.blogspot.com/2009/07/40-40th-anniversary-of-astronauts.html; 人類登陸月球40週年紀念感想 ∕ My Thoughts on the 40th Anniversary of Man's lunar landing July 20, 1969 http://lotusandcedar.blogspot.com/2009/07/40-my-thoughts-on-40th-anniversary-of.html
[3] Space Travel
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_travel
[4] Astronomical unit
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astronomical_unit
[5] Recent African origin of modern humans
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recent_African_origin_of_modern_humans
[6] Hohmann Transfer Orbit "... A Hohmann transfer orbit will take a spacecraft ... from the Earth to Mars in abt 259 days ..."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hohmann_transfer_orbit
[7] Nuclear pulse propulsion
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_pulse_propulsion
[8] Spacecraft Propulsion
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spacecraft_propulsion

Related Links
* NASA spectacular photos and texts
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/
* Mars - Travelling There
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars
* Colonization of Mars
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonization_of_Mars

Photo Credit: Wikipedia

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

語言演變 / The Evolution of Languages

I read with interest Kempton's recent response to an article on language written by Silver back on April 27th. It just happens that the evolution of languages is one of my favourite (or favorite) discussion topics !! Here are the comments I left with Kempton (w/ minor editorial changes):

I would agree with you that languages evolve and that if the majority of users are using the “wrong” spelling for a long period of time, then the “wrong” will eventually become the “right”. For example: I still write「兩週一聚」and not 「兩周一聚」because in my opinion the former is “more” correct. However, I would not say the latter is incorrect.

I apply the same idea to French. Here in Canada, we say “la fin de semaine” while I was told in France, they use the anglicized form “le weekend”. I personally do not use the latter in any formal or informal communications with friends and colleagues. I have no objection if people use “le weekend” in casual conversations, as long as they don’t use it in any official publications.
Language is part of a society or country’s culture and users will always have strong opinions as to how much it should be preserved and to what extent it should be allowed to evolve. In the absence of state interference (such as language police), only time will tell.

I would strongly recommend that you visit Silver and Kempton's sites to read their original articles.

* Silver: 【正音與正字】 http://silvercable.wordpress.com/2009/04/27/replytokempton/#comment-1816
* Kempton: 【“對簿公堂” vs. “對薄公堂” 】
http://ca8hk.wordpress.com/2009/07/21/evolving-languages/#comment-1052

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

香港電台的兒童合唱團 / The Children's Choir of Radio Hong Kong

- 微豆: 『臥虎先生,您好!! 您对人類登陸月球40週年有什麽感想?』
- 臥虎: 『沒什么感想,不過看見你提起【小白船】這首歌時,倒令我想起在小孩子時,曾參加香港廣播電台的兒童合唱團,我們在招廣培先生監督,彭程(鵬程?)指揮領導下,排練學好了幾首中文歌曲,錄音後星期日上午在香港電台何穎琴姐姐的「空中小園地」節目播放。其中一首就是【小白船】,或許你能登上歌詞,和在網上YouTube找到的錄影片讓大家欣賞,也算是对登月Anniversary的一個懷念!』
- 微豆: 『【小白船】的歌詞,和劉韻丶 夏丹錄唱的金曲列登如下,請各位收聽懷舊!』



【小白船】歌詞

藍藍的天空銀河裡,有隻小白船;
船上有棵桂花樹,白兔在遊玩。
槳兒槳兒看不見,船上也沒帆,
飄呀飄呀,飄向西天。

渡過那條銀河水,走向雲彩國;
走過那個雲彩國,再向哪兒去?
在那遠遠的地方,閃著金光,
晨星是燈塔,照呀照得亮。


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

【小白船】(劉韻 夏丹)






Related Links:
*人類登陸月球40週年紀念感想 ∕ My Thoughts on the 40th Anniversary of Man's lunar landing July 20, 1969 http://lotusandcedar.blogspot.com/2009/07/40-my-thoughts-on-40th-anniversary-of.html
* YouTube 【小白船】posted by "comaco" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SmeFhUIZjZw

攝影圖片Photo Credit: "Headquarters of Radio Hong Kong 香港廣播電台 at Mercury House 水星大厦, Central District 中環, HK Island" Source: www.rthk.org.hk/broadcast75
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

後記:

我發覺網上有關戰後50丶60年代的香港廣播事業消息真是有如鳳毛麟角,可能是当年的藝人導演都已年近古稀,沒有寫回憶錄上網,又或是我不識門路,術語有限,未能在「谷歌」配上正確的鑰匙尋找那知識宝庫。所以在寫【香港廣播電台兒童合唱團】那一篇的時侯,真是感到非常吃力,內容要倚靠臥虎先生有點飄渺的童年回憶,和現在香港電台網上的陳年歷史。如果有悉知香港電台兒童合唱團消息者,懇請在此留言,時間不限。

Monday, July 20, 2009

人類登陸月球40週年紀念感想 ∕ My Thoughts on the 40th Anniversary of Man's lunar landing July 20, 1969


(Top)
月兒高照,
人隔萬重山 !!!

(Bottom)
The same Moon, witnessing the coming and going of lives on Earth for the last 4.4 billion (4,400,000,000) years.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
新加以下貼堂佳作,排名無分先後:

作者: 新鮮人
情愛心存,
天涯若彼鄰。

作者: Space
月兒高照,
疑似銀河。
舟轉千百彎,
人隔萬重山。
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Photo Credit 攝影图片: Wikipedia "Moon" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moon

Related Link: 太空人登陸月球40週年紀念 ∕40th Anniversary of Astronauts Landing on the Moon (Apollo 11 launching July 16; lunar landing July 20, 1969) http://lotusandcedar.blogspot.com/2009/07/40-40th-anniversary-of-astronauts.html

Friday, July 17, 2009

加拿大私隱保護督察調查Facebook / Canada's Privacy Commissioner Investigates Facebook

Here is the News Release issued on July 16, 2009 by Canada's Privacy Commissioner concerning Facebook. You may also find similar info from the media under headlines such as: "Facebook violates privacy law"; "Facebook fails to comply with privacy law, Stoddart says"; "Privacy commissioner hints at legal action if concerns aren't met", etc.

If you are a Facebook (or other social network) user, I would strongly recommend that you read the News Release below and take appropriate measures to address the Commissioner's concerns.

Haricot

(Updated: I have highlighted some of the key findings in red below)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++



Summary:
Facebook needs to improve privacy practices, investigation finds. Privacy Commissioner recommends steps to ensure social networking site better protects the privacy of users and meets the requirements of Canadian privacy legislation.


News Release:
OTTAWA, July 16, 2009

In order to comply with Canadian privacy law, Facebook must take greater responsibility for the personal information in its care, the Privacy Commissioner of Canada said today in announcing the results of an investigation into the popular social networking site’s privacy policies and practices.

“It’s clear that privacy issues are top of mind for Facebook, and yet we found serious privacy gaps in the way the site operates,” says Privacy Commissioner Jennifer Stoddart.

The investigation, prompted by a complaint from the Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic, identified several areas where Facebook needs to better address privacy issues and bring its practices in line with Canadian privacy law.

An overarching concern was that, although Facebook provides information about its privacy practices, it is often confusing or incomplete. For example, the “account settings” page describes how to deactivate accounts, but not how to delete them, which actually removes personal data from Facebook’s servers.

The Privacy Commissioner’s report recommends more transparency, to ensure that the social networking site’s nearly 12 million Canadian users have the information they need to make meaningful decisions about how widely they share personal information.

The investigation also raised significant concerns around the sharing of users’ personal information with third-party developers creating Facebook applications such as games and quizzes. (There are more than 950,000 developers in some 180 countries.) Facebook lacks adequate safeguards to effectively restrict these outside developers from accessing profile information, the investigation found.

The report recommended a number of changes, including technological measures to ensure that developers can only access the user information actually required to run a specific application, and also to prevent the disclosure of personal information of any of the user’s friends who are not themselves signing up for an application.

The investigation also found that Facebook has a policy of indefinitely keeping the personal information of people who have deactivated their accounts – a violation of the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA), Canada’s private-sector privacy law. The law is clear that organizations must retain personal information only for as long as is necessary to meet appropriate purposes.

Recommendations to Facebook included the adoption of a retention policy whereby personal information in deactivated accounts is deleted after a reasonable length of time.
Facebook has agreed to adopt many of the recommendations stemming from the Privacy Commissioner’s investigation or, in some cases, has proposed reasonable alternatives to the measures recommended. However, there remain a number of recommendations that Facebook has not yet agreed to implement.

“We urge Facebook to implement all of our recommendations to further enhance their site, ensure they are in compliance with privacy law, and ultimately show themselves as models of privacy,” says Assistant Commissioner Elizabeth Denham, who led the investigation on behalf of the Office.

“Social networking sites can be a wonderful way to connect. They help us keep up with friends and share ideas and information with people around the globe. It is important for these sites to be in compliance with the law and to maintain users’ trust in how they collect, use and disclose our personal information.”

The Office of the Privacy Commissioner will review after 30 days the actions Facebook takes to comply with the recommendations. The Commissioner is empowered to go to Federal Court to seek to have her recommendations enforced.

“The privacy issues stemming from social networking sites are still relatively new. All of us – social networking sites, users and data protection authorities – are only beginning to develop the appropriate rules of engagement in this new world of online communication,” says Assistant Commissioner Denham. “The findings of our Facebook investigation are an important contribution to the development of these rules.”

While the investigation recommendations are aimed at Facebook, Assistant Commissioner Denham said users of social networking sites also have responsibilities.

“We asked Facebook to clearly advise users about its privacy practices, but it’s still up to the user to actually read it and use the privacy tools to control how their information is shared,” she says. As a result of the investigation, Facebook has announced a new privacy tool for its site, which is aimed at giving users more control over who gets to see each item on their Facebook page.

A detailed report on the Facebook investigation is available at http://www.privcom.gc.ca/. The website also includes information about some of the other work the Privacy Commissioner’s Office has done on social networking, including guidelines for employers and public education materials.
The Privacy Commissioner of Canada is mandated by Parliament to act as an ombudsman, advocate and guardian of privacy and the protection of personal information rights of Canadians.

Report of Findings
Backgrounder
Remarks by Jennifer Stoddart, Privacy Commissioner of Canada, for the release of the Report of Findings with respect to Facebook
Remarks by Elizabeth Denham, Assistant Privacy Commissioner of Canada, for the release of the Report of Findings with respect to Facebook

The Privacy Commissioner and the Assistant Privacy Commissioner will be available to discuss the investigation report at a briefing for media at 11 a.m. ET today (July 16, 2009) at the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, 112 Kent Street, 3rd Floor, Ottawa, ON.

Out-of-town media may access the briefing by teleconference call. To participate in this call, please contact Valerie Lawton at vlawton@privcom.gc.ca.

For more information, contact:
Anne-Marie HaydenOffice of the Privacy Commissioner of CanadaTel: (613) 995-0103E-mail: ahayden@privcom.gc.ca

(Source: http://www.priv.gc.ca/media/nr-c/2009/nr-c_090716_e.cfm)

Thursday, July 16, 2009

太空人登陸月球40週年紀念 ∕40th Anniversary of Astronauts Landing on the Moon (Apollo 11 launching July 16; lunar landing July 20, 1969)

其一: 40年前

後生仔: 『阿姑婆,妳快d嚟睇,电視播映太空人登陸月球呀!好嘢!!好嘢!!』
阿姑婆: 『啋!你撞鬼咩?做乜咁緊張?乜鬼嘢月頭呀?』
後生仔: 『妳夜晚咪見到個月光嘅,有人坐火箭上咗去, 嗱!电視係度播緊,實係無假喇!!』
阿姑婆: 『你都儍嘅!人講你就信。登陸乜鬼月球呀?係阿觀音大帝變塊爛地俾佢地企咋!!』
後生仔: (激到氣頂,但係無声出!!)

其二: 40年後

助手: 『老總,我唔係黐線呀,我打鑼咁搵,都係揾唔到登陸月球嘅原本錄影帶呀!!可能俾人洗咗囉!!』
老總: 『唔係呀嘛?乜我地太空署d友仔都会咁離譜擺烏龍,咁我地都有副本啩?』
助手: 『有就係有,但阿Sir您都知道啦,如果無咗原本錄影帶,出便d契弟就会話我地出假狗,話根本就無登陸月球嚟件事!』
老總: 『頂佢個肺!呢單嘢真係濕滯!!唉!登陸月球40週年紀念,太空署一定要有嘢做吓樣慶祝。咁啦,我地搵荷里活d觀音大帝幫手,出套數碼質量提高嘅副本,我冧d盲丙都唔会分得出啩!!』
助手: 『搵荷里活?』
老總: 『做乜X嘢呀?你係咪想孭鑊呀?搵觀音大帝都唔係第一次喇!!』
助手: (嚇到侄哂,唔敢出声!!)

其三: 电視螢光幕前

後生仔: 『阿伯父,妳快d嚟睇,电視播映太空人登陸月球呀!好嘢!!好嘢!!』
阿伯父: 『我40年前細個過陣睇咗啦,人講你就唔好一定信晒o架!!!』
後生仔: (見到伯父好似若有所失,回憶佢40年前嘅往事。)

电視繼續播放登陸月球新聞 .......






YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76p8IOH0Oz8

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References / Related Links:

* "NASA lost moon footage, but Hollywood restores it!!"
WASHINGTON – NASA ... said Thursday that it must have erased the Apollo 11 moon footage years ago so that it could reuse the videotape. But now Hollywood is coming to the rescue. The studio wizards who restored "Casablanca" are digitally sharpening and cleaning up the ghostly, grainy footage of the moon landing, making it even better than what TV viewers saw on July 20, 1969 ... NASA senior engineer Dick Nafzger ... "You can now see the detail that's coming out." The first batch of restored footage was released just in time for the 40th anniversary of the "one giant leap for mankind," and some of the details seem new because of their sharpness ...
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_SCI_MOON_VIDEO?SITE=ORLAG&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
* NASA restored video: http://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/hd/apollo11.html&usg=AFQjCNHsHdC-_Dj8QNij99KZcUB-oPg8Jg
* The Guardian: Apollo 11 Moon Landing (Articles, photos and videos) http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/apollo-11-moon-landing

** UPDATE ** Please see photos posted with my next blog article: "人類登陸月球40週年紀念感想 ∕ My Thoughts on the 40th Anniversary of Man's lunar landing July 20, 1969"
http://lotusandcedar.blogspot.com/2009/07/40-my-thoughts-on-40th-anniversary-of.html

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

貪污: 監守自盜,私飽中囊!! / Corruption: Now you see it ... Now you don't !!

三個貪污的落後國家元首及其心腹聚在一起,吹噓他們治國的「豐功偉績」。

酒過數巡後,第一個元首說: 『我用聯合國送來的100萬美元救助金,為國家開辦了一所設備完善的大學,委派我妻子為教育部部長,又封我大舅為校長,送了我們和所有親戚丶朋友丶官員的子女入讀,栽培下一代,保証國家後繼有人。』

各人聽後大為讚賞,鼓掌說: 『真偉大!』『有遠見!』

大家乾杯之後,第二個元首說: 『我用世界銀行送來的200萬元免息貸款,為國家起了一個全新丶有超時代設施的國際机場,好讓各位的私人飛机有最安全的跑道升降上落,迎客廳有最名貴的美酒丶最秀麗的美人來招待外賓。』

众人聽後大為感動,舉杯齊聲說:『愛名酒!』『愛美人!』

喧鬧了数回,杯盤狼藉之後,第一丶二個元首对主人家說: 『您是我們中經驗最深滑的老手,最近对國家社会有什么建樹呀?』

第三個元首撚著鬚子,慢慢地說:『我收了聯合國100萬元教育金,收了世界銀行200萬元基建金infrastructure fund,都全部用來起了平民大學和貨運机場,您們入總統府時沒有看到嗎?』

兩位客人迷惑不解,不明白主人家說什么,搔頭皮答曰:『一點東西也沒有看見呀!』

第三個元首陰陰笑地說:『Exactly !!!』

Monday, July 13, 2009

兩週一聚 (十八期) 「笑話一則」之【海關申報】 / 2weeks1gather (#18): 「Just for Laughs」【Customs Declaration 】

以下是發生在我身上的真實故事:

I was returning from a business trip abroad and was going through the Canadian Customs at an airport. It was late at night and I was tired.

Officer: "How long have you been away?"
Me: "Oh, about four weeks."
Officer: "Do you have anything to declare? Cigarettes? Alcohols?"
Me: "No. Just odds and ends souvenirs."
Officer (eyeing the box I am carrying): "What's in that box?"
Me (getting anxious): "Which? Oh, this one? It's my pair of push-up bars!" (putting both hands on my chest and doing push-up exercise motions)
Officer (grinning): "Oh, is it for your own PERSONAL use?"
Me (sweating now, why is he so interested): "Yes, I use it all the time. It makes my chest big."
Officer: "Yes, my wife has a pair too."

To make a story short: He broke out laughing when I opened the box. By then, my face was beet-red.

攝影圖片Photo Credit: Wikipedia (free push-up lesson if you know who she is)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(Update) Just in case the joke goes over some people's heads, here are some explanations:

What I was talking about ....

http://images.google.ca/images?hl=en&num=10&lr=&ft=i&cr=&safe=images&q=push-up%20bar&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wi

What he thought I was talking about ... (and his wife had a pair)

http://images.google.ca/images?hl=en&lr=&um=1&sa=1&q=push-up+bras&btnG=Search+images&aq=f&oq=

++++++++++++++++++++++++

Related Links:
* 「每週一聚 2weeks1gather」第十八期的題目由網友Zero出 : 寫「笑話一則」! 請往 http://2weeks1gather.wordpress.com/ 處報名和參閱其它文章。

Sunday, July 12, 2009

兩週一聚七月專題:接龍估香港街名 / 2weeks1gather: Guess Street Names of Hong Kong

*** THIS IS A REPRINT ONLY ***

Please go to the original link to play the game !!!

++++++++++++++++++++++++

Original link:

2weeks1gather: 七月專題:接龍估香港街名, 大家一起留言玩!http://2weeks1gather.wordpress.com/2009/07/10/%e4%b8%83%e6%9c%88%e5%b0%88%e9%a1%8c%ef%bc%9a%e6%8e%a5%e9%be%8d%e4%bc%b0%e9%a6%99%e6%b8%af%e8%a1%97%e5%90%8d/

(1) Haricot's July 11, 2009 submission (already played):

請任選下列謎語, 貼登上您的猜想:

1. 旺角區街名: 『開門七件事!!』
2. 香港島亍名: 『上氣唔接下氣!! 』
3. 紅磡區街名: 『官樣文章!!」

答案在這裏: http://strongcedar.blogspot.com/2009/07/2weeks1gather-guess-street-names-of.html

Friday, July 10, 2009

攝影皆作: 夏日綺夢 / Photo Story: Snow White still looking for Mr. Right



夏日綺夢

心如白雪情如水
美人如玉劍如虹
神女有心姿身獻
襄王無夢陌路逢



(欢迎加貼詩詞)






貼堂佳作,無分先後:

作者: Space

美女名字 Snow White
雲英未嫁待在歸
今回公開求佳婿
俊男猛男 all Invite


作者: 新鮮人

心如柳絮隨風飛
風吹樹動花滿地
地上殘影星月晞
落葉歸根影自悲


作者: 跟白雪溝通過,由風子代筆

白雪待在公園為賦閒,
煦日弄姿騷首不為難!
無故引得三子作弄神?
搬詞又寫詩把吾心憤!

哥兒公子的確很麻煩,
情愛愛愛情情那句真?
隻影皆雙各有各自煩,
倒不煦日下偷浮生閒?

Thursday, July 09, 2009

兩週一聚 (十七期) 「生命中的巧合」之【風塵女子】(續集) / 2weeks1gather (#17): 「Life is a fluke」【Fille de Dieu, Belle de Nuit】(Part 2/2)

我原本是不打算寫續集,但有網友想知道露漪絲下場如何,這點我是畧知一二,故此在這裏續寫【風塵女子】的下集,好讓我对各位讀者有一個交代。

話說露漪絲為情所困,那有婦之夫的上司不願離婚,又不想放棄她這個小情婦,歲月時光就在她眼前飛逝,轉瞬之間,她已由一個十八歲年青少女,變為一個花枝招展的少婦,常在週末与女友往燈紅酒綠的酒吧區「獵男」。她們最喜欢結識穿制服的俊男:下班警察丶消防員丶皇家騎警丶現役軍人等。我最記得有一晚我們路經加拿大總理住宅,她們就是要和当值騎警談天說地,幸好那几位穿制服的守衛非常友善,沒有把我們当嫌疑閒雜人等驅逐離埸。為什么女人喜欢制服的男人?制服是否代表男性的权威和魅力?或許,這是和男人喜欢有冒險性的 femmes fatales 有點相同罷。言歸正傳。

夜夜笙歌的生活对露漪絲個人來說不是問題,但支持那種生活方式在財政上卻愈來愈令她感到捉襟見肘,她那秘書的入息在扣除了租金伙食之後,實在是所餘無几,但在娛樂購物方面,露漪絲的支出卻是有增無減,在入不敷出的情况下,她便以信用咭付服裝店的賬單,跟著又用銀行戶口 line of credit 交付信用咭月結和近25%的利息,沒多久,無可避免的事終於發生了,那些專業收爛賬的 collecting agencies 開始施高壓手段,一天來數次电話追討欠債,又早晚派人來我們住処拍門講數,露漪絲走投無路,最後被迫要宣佈私人破產 personal bankruptcy。各位不要以為破了產就不用還債,信用咭和 line of credit 被銀行取消不在話下, repo 的「暗探」又虎視眈眈她的私人財物,陌生人上門問這問那,不勝煩擾,在這段黑沈沈的日子中,露漪絲和同屋們心裏都不好過,我們一伙人都好像被一層令人透不過氣的陰雲黑霧籠罩著。

但是有一天晚上,当大家在厨房吃晚歺的時候,露漪絲突然向众人宣報,她是要結婚了,這突然其來的新聞,令各人刀义停頓,口目瞪呆,餸菜懸在口中,在這尷尬的場面我是第一個打破了沈默,舉杯恭賀她定婚之喜,各同屋亦相計仿效。在飯後,我問露漪絲一個很簡單和關心的問題: 『Are you happy? Es-tu contente?』她用很堅定的眼神望著我說: 『Under the circumstances, yes!』跟著她嘆一口氣,用法語補充:『 他是破產公司的總裁。』

露漪絲結婚那一天,我因事沒有參加典禮,聽說那二十多歲的新娘子在夏日教堂十字架下風姿生采,与到賀嘉賓談笑風生,美妙的身材在雪白的輕紗下約隱約現。但是,在我心眼的夢想記憶中,在那粉紫色的塗唇丶漣漪蕩漾的微笑中,露漪絲總是帶有一點無名的憂豔。

(【風塵女子】劇終)

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Related link: (Previous article 上集)

兩週一聚 (十七期) 「生命中的巧合」之【風塵女子】 / 2weeks1gather (#17): 「Life is a fluke」【Fille de Dieu, Belle de Nuit】http://lotusandcedar.blogspot.com/2009/06/2weeks1gather-17-life-is-flukefille-de.html

Tuesday, July 07, 2009

My responses to your recently posted comments, with thanks !!

"旅遊加拿大魁北克省的塔伯拉山: 攝影圖片 (上) / Travel to Mont Tremblan...
"啤酒花™_J / StupidHollyWolly /新鮮人 / Space

"2009 年加拿大首都國慶日 / Canada Day in Ottawa / La Fêtes d..."
StupidHollyWolly

"名車与美人 / Nice Car and Beautiful Women"
StupidHollyWolly / Space

"兩週一聚 (十七期) 「生命中的巧合」之【風塵女子】 / 2weeks1gather (#17): ..."
Space / StupidHollyWolly

"健身男追女仔手册 / Gym-Jam Guy's Guide to Impress Women"
StupidHollyWolly

2009年渥太華國際爵仕音樂節 / 2009 Ottawa International Jazz Festival

The 2009 Ottawa International Jazz Festival started with a free concert on June 24 and drew to a close last Sunday July 5, 2009. This year's event was quite a success in terms of public attendance and calibre of the musicians. For several evenings, the wet weather drenched the audience but it did not dampen their enthusiasm. I usually do not spend a lot of money on night entertainment, but this year, I bought tickets for three evenings of open-air events and enjoyed every single one of them.

My favourites performers included, in chronological order: Trombone Shorty (young vocal, trombone and trumpet musician from New Orleans), Reverend Al Green (8-time Grammy Award winning Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Famer), Esperanza Spalding (young bassist and vocalist from Oregon with a beautiful voice), Chris Botti (worked with Sting, Paul Simon and Joni Mitchell, great trumpet showman crossing contemporary jazz with pop), Claudia Acuña (Chilean born vocalist now living in US, delivering beautiful songs in Spanish and English), and Chucho Valdés.(founder of the Orquesta Cuban de Musica Moderna in 1967, veteran Cuban Latin-jazz musician whom I saw in Cuba five months ago, a master pianist with unparallel speed, rhythms and ease).

The Ottawa event is the third international jazz festivals that I have attended in the last six months, the first two being the Cuba International Jazz Festival in Habana and the New Orleans International Jazz Festival in Louisiana. In the summer months ahead, I look forward to attending the Ottawa Blue Fest, the Chamber Fest and the Ottawa Folk Music Festival. If the weather cooperates, I will be spending quite a few nights out under the stars or in churches/studios, listening to some great music played by talented musicians from all over the world.

References / Related links:
* Ottawa International Jazz Festival June24-July5, published program pp. 34-46
* OIJF Website: http://www.ottawajazzfestival.com/
* Info on jazz festivals across Canada: http://www.jazzfestivalscanada.ca/

Upcoming music festivals in Ottawa:
* Blues Fest: July 8-19: www.ottawabluesfest.ca
* Chamber Fest: July 25-Aug 8: www.chamberfest.com
* Folk Fest: Aug 21-23: http://www.ottawafolk.org/

Saturday, July 04, 2009

旅遊加拿大魁北克省的塔伯拉山: 攝影圖片 (下) / Travel to Mont Tremblant, Québec, Canada: Photos (Part 2 of 2)

(continued - Part 2 of 2)

I go to Mont Tremblant downhill skiing quite often in the winter. But the place sure looks very different in the summer time. For one thing, the only white stuff I saw was the artificial plastic sheet of snow in the top photograph. Otherwise, everything was just green, green, green. Mind you I wasn't complaining and I sure enjoyed walking around in T-shirt and shorts while licking a deliciously cold gelato!!!

Friday, July 03, 2009

旅遊加拿大魁北克省的塔伯拉山: 攝影圖片 (上) / Travel to Mont Tremblant, Québec, Canada: Photos (Part 1 of 2)


我在六月中由渥太華坐長途巴士,往加拿大魁北克省 Province of Québec 的滿地可市 City of Montréal 旅遊,途經北部的塔伯拉山 Mont Tremblant,在那個叫小瑞士 Little Switzerland 的旅遊區停留約兩小時,拍攝了一些照片,在此供諸同好。

如相片所示, Mont Tremblant小瑞士旅遊區屋子是仿歐洲阿爾卑斯山的建築設計,顏色鮮艷奪目。夏日開放時間,遊客可乘吊車直往山頂,然後自駕小滑車沿指定渠道下山。這裏有很多歺館和食店,但如閣下喜歡節儉,您亦可選擇自携午歺,在樹蔭下啃麵飽和喝白開水。

... 續下集 to be continued

Thursday, July 02, 2009

2009 年加拿大首都國慶日 / Canada Day in Ottawa / La Fêtes du Canada


我在七月一日趁加拿大國慶假期,騎自行車往渥太華市中逛逛,在早上十時到達國会山莊,亍上已是人頭湧湧,男女老幼,各色人種,臉上都掛著笑容,或圍覌看亍頭賣雜技人表演,或繞坐聆聽業餘音樂家獻藝,整個首都都充滿了節日的氣氛。我映了些攝影图片和視頻 video,前者我在此放数張上網給大家共享,但後者卻要在有時間才可以上載 YouTube 播放。Enjoy !!!

Click here to see more photographs taken on Canada Day 2007 and 2008:
* 2008 加拿大首都渥太華國慶日 / Canada Day in Ottawa the Nation's Capital
http://lotusandcedar.blogspot.com/2008/07/canada-day-in-ottawa-nations-capital.html

* 2007加拿大國慶日 / Canada Day / La Fêtes du Canada
- http://lotusandcedar.blogspot.com/2007/07/canada-day-la-ftes-du-canada-2007.html
- http://lotusandcedar.blogspot.com/2007/07/canada-day-la-ftes-du-canada-2007_02.html

Wednesday, July 01, 2009

名車与美人 / Nice Car and Beautiful Women



I came across this Sexy BMW Commercial on YouTube (it's European humour :) !!!

Source: YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWz1jwCaDXA&NR=1
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