兩年後

在的還在，不在的不在，
想它在的不在，想它不在的在，
會在的始終會在，
不在了永遠不在，
其實，我们都已經不在。

Go Mad and Mark

看gigs已经成为我生命中不可缺少的一部分。每当沉淀的时候，没劲的时候，一场好的演出总能够给我精神一阵，继续冲刺的力量。看着独立乐队尽情挥洒着乐器演奏属于他们的音乐他们的声音，我都会有一股莫名的感动，然后觉得自己还在一个很渺小很遥远的位置，然后提醒自己还要继续努力，继续疯狂，为生命留下印记⋯

R.I.P

今天收到Champ的死迅，与他不算是深交，但他也不只是个陌生的学弟。 有点伤感，为何他这么快选择这条路， 每个人都会有低落沮丧想轻生的时候，到底是多大的压抑才让人决定走上这条路。没有想过这些事情会发生在自己的朋友之中⋯ 或许他终于找到令他解脱的方式。

曾经想自己也会很早死，痛痛快快疯狂地活，然后死而无憾，从来没有想过为亲人和朋友做些什么。所有事情都先为自己想的人，最后是寂寞和悲哀的。长大了开始怕死，不是怕生命的完结，而是怕不能再见到亲人朋友，和世上一切美丽的事。

从现在起要学会更加爱惜自己，然后才能保护别人。每天为心爱的人活着比起只为自己而活可能会更加幸福吧⋯ 生命本来就已经很短暂，无论发生什么事情，请把握自己仅有的生命，去爱惜身边和更多需要帮助的人。

Second week II

Start working on a flyer for Taiko master Sato Kensaku, then I realized that for the past 2 years I was only working on advertising campaign and web design, it's been a long while I never really sit down and think about a project from a graphic designer point of view.

In advertising agency, we're talking about big concepts, strategies, award-wining ideas, gimmicks, ambients, viral, viral and viral. In web design, we are talking about flash, action scripts, iphone apps, html 5, and all the techgy languages that I don't even understand.

Nobody will care about a tiny flyer's design anymore, how it communicates with the viewer better, how it tells the story, how to make the graphic form nicer, colors, typesetting, grids, paper usage till the print production. Suddenly I have a feeling that I never designing a design properly for a long time. After all I still prefer the insignificant, out-dated, tiny print design.

Fading Vision

然后我们一起奋斗过，

呐喊过疯过癫过笑过哭过，

然后沉淀，妥协，各走各路。

然后热诚不见了，

所以到处寻找，

不在德国，不在日本，不在哪里，

它在自己一直想逃避的地方，

不想面对的地方，

它在自己的心里面。

追求的东西像根羽毛，

越用力抓越抓不到，

等到有一天能真正停下脚步，

闭上眼，摊开手，静静聆听，

然后它就会飘落在手心里。

婚礼的祝福

2010是最多身边朋友结婚的一年，

摆酒加上只是注册的，至少十个以上。

首先是祥伟, Tian Xing, 然后Tara, 到启文，

Ellie, Janet, 君姐, Gen等等，

就连爆冷门的芳哥也竟然闪电嫁了出去。

结婚的结婚，生仔的生仔，买楼的买楼。

看着朋友们都纷纷踏入人生第二个阶段，

那令人羡慕的淡淡的幸福感,

没办法不觉得自己还像个小孩般活着，

无论如何祝福你们，

执子之手 白头偕老。

Everything unknown is beautiful.

Finally quit my job and I feel much relief nowadays, can't wait till my last day and get away from this uninspiring lifestyle, I find it's pointless when the job becomes a repetitive daily routines. Been working in the industry for few years and this time I decided to give myself a long break before I move on for next job.

Not sure what is going to happen being jobless, no objectives, no incomes, but I'm so happy to open myself to a totally uncertain future, somehow it is exciting in a way. We have enough of stupid politicians, materialists, conformists in the society. Life is too short for doing the exactly same things like everybody else does.

Let's breath some fresh air, do whatever we want to do, go wherever we want to go, spent all our saving, go wild, go crazy, go get a life and a fucking big television~

Let's find some beautiful place to get lost.

- Kyoto, 2010.

当日常生活中找不到任何意义，
旅行就突然变得充满意义。

到此一游

- September 2007


- February 2010

Tomodachi

Been promised Mari-chan that I will design a namecard for her about 2 years ago, and in return she will make me a Robonut plush toy! Apparently she had already made it and mailed to me while I was in Shanghai, but I never received it, it was long gone...

By having more time alone recently, I finally made a namecard for her. Based on the fact that all Mari's works are handmade and each of them are totally unique and different, I decided to make a stamp instead so she can DIY her own cards as well.



The Robonut's plush was lost, but in the end she gave me another 'nuts'! Really love these special peanuts. Kawaii! Arigatou gozaimasu.

500年前必有渊源

- photo taken in end 2008.

Dec 2008, I walked pass Suzhou Creek in Shanghai, and saw this stencil which stated: "Graphic Design, call 15926386911". Together with other typical stencil 'advertisements' at the back alley. I thought it was quite funny, that there were really someone out there selling design service like this. So I took a picture and uploaded to my flickr few months ago.

Yesterday, someone emailed me and told me that the stencil was actually done by him! That was his real mobile no, and he did that for an art show back then during summer 2008. By a very odd chance he was googling his mobile number and found a link to my flickr.


- the email.

Everything I Do Always Comes Back to Me. You never know what will lead to by some tiny things you did today, maybe life is still full of surprises... And the best thing is, we both share a same surname '卢' . Haha, like he said, maybe we have some affair in our past life ( 看来500年前必有渊源 ). Meet LuRui from Wuhan, China.



- encounter in 2010.

for those who are sleeping

Back then in W+K Shanghai office, there is a comfortable cotton sofa lies right behind my desk. Everyday there is people hanging around behind me, chilling out, chatting, resting, or even sleeping. I used to take pictures of all these sleeping people with my instant mini.

Before I left the company, I decided to compound all these photographs into a tiny booklet (I love book), and gave out as a souvenir for my lovely friends and colleagues during my last day at work.

Some of them told me that they were really touched after seeing the book, even their eyes were wet. I felt so warm indeed... that was the first time I truly felt that design could really touch someone heart... Thanks for all the beautiful memories.

I will always miss you all, hope we can meet again real soon...


上海的哥们，请继续牛B⋯

life is like roasting a chicken

突然想起麦兜，其实当年看第一部麦兜已经非常喜欢里面的简单朴素，幽默，亲情，伤感，还有那些生活上的一点点小哲学。尤其喜欢结尾林海峰旁白的那段话，原句不记得了，大概是这个意思:

" 烧鸡，材料是鸡，做法，拿只鸡去烧⋯⋯ 但是，如果你想只鸡好味D, 食完吾会夭心夭肺，甘咪拍烂挡⋯ 烧好D咯。"

其实做人都很简单，材料就是人，同埋得过做字。但是如果你想你的人生精彩一点，值得回味一点，甘咪拍烂挡⋯ 俾D心机咯。

This is a line that I kinda like long ago from the ending of My life as McDull. I can't recall the whole sentence but it sounds something like this:

Roasted Chicken. Ingredient: chicken. Method: roast..... but, if you want your chicken to taste better, and doesn't spoil your mood after the meal, please... roast it better.

random images from random occasions II

时囧火锅

当兰州遇上既白

i love panda, but she loves bamboos.

real spiderman, fake spiderman.

你看你后面

i know where the meats come from...

男女混合秤

an email from Mr.Jay

A Violinist in the Metro

Washington DC Metro Station on a cold January morning in 2007. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time approx 2 thousand people went through the station, most of them on their way to work. After 3 mins a middle aged man noticed there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried to meet his schedule.

4 mins later the violinist received his first dollar: a woman threw the money in the till and, without stopping, continued to walk.

6 minutes, a young man leaned against the wall to listen to him, then looked at his watch and started to walk again.

10 mins: a 3 year old boy stopped but his mother tugged him along hurriedly, as the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk, turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. Every parent, without exception, forced them to move on.

45 minutes; the musician played. Only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 gave him money but continued to walk their normal pace.
He collected $32.

1 hour; he finished playing and silence took over. No one noticed. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.

No one knew this but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the best musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, with a violin worth $3.5 million dollars. Two days before Joshua Bell sold out a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100.

This is a real story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste and people's priorities. The questions raised: in a common place environment at an inappropriate hour, do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize talent in an unexpected context?

One possible conclusion reached from this experiment could be:

If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing some of the finest music ever written, with one of the most beautiful instruments .... how many other things are we missing?

everybody loves crocodile

I was walking around Nanjing XiLu, and realize that crocodile is one of the Chinese's favorite animal besides panda...
有天路经南京西路发现中国除了熊猫之外，也钟爱鳄鱼⋯⋯

Our neighbour designers

Stumbled upon a list, a damn long list of Singapore creative and design studios. I was so impressed, and at the same time i do feel ashame...

Honestly, I can't even think of more than 10 Malaysia design studio which is really great in quality and pioneer in the industry. Those who know how to promote themselves and act to be famous usually cannot do good works; those who are doing good works are never exposed and also never have their website updated. There are many young and passionate designers around but only selling their works in flea market. And we got some established studios but are just too old fashioned and not energetic enough, we also got very good advertising people, but they usually only care about their awards and fuck care the design industry.

Is there something to do with our market or uneducated clients? I don't know... of course there are tons of talented Malaysian designers around, I don't know why our design industry is not moving any forward. We check many good stuffs everyday, we know what is good and what is bad, but why we can only produce so-so works most of the time. Maybe we're not trying hard enough, maybe we should stop doing 'good, but not good enough' stuff, maybe it is due to our country leader don't have any art sense, maybe we Malaysian only want to be relax... I don't know. Maybe I'm not even qualified to talk about this, of course I'm blaming myself too.



- werk magazine by workwerk



- high and dry by &larry



- 20/20 movement by black design


- brill by couple



- chocolate research facility by asylum



- a catholic view on marriage+sexuality by H55


Damn... you should check out the Singapore's creative list.
Never able to see every single one, but some i do really like:

http://www.workwerk.com
http://www.andlarry.com
http://www.theasylum.com.sg
http://www.phunkstudio.com
http://www.equus-design.com
http://www.kinetic.com.sg
http://www.blackdesign.com.sg
http://www.h55studio.com
http://www.10am-asia.com
http://www.couple.com.sg
http://www.silnt.com
http://www.jonathanyuen.com (this is Malaysian)


If you have any good suggestion on really kick-ass local design studio/ individual, please send it to me, maybe we should compile one Malaysia creative list too (atleast 1-10). We still have a long way to go...

random images from random occasions.

整理电话里的照片时发现的:


－ 单车碎路牌


－ 我的衣架在街头


－ 靓Font


－ 我爱装书厂 a.k.a 企业是我家 发展靠大家


－ 你的狗仔在街尾


－ 在某公园的贩卖机发现避孕套(左上角)竟然与零食摆在一起卖

a good week

This is a pack and interesting week for me.
Quite inspiring and meaningful:

---
Wednesday:
Caught the performance by the multi-instrumentalist - Otomo Yoshihide
大友良英. Been expecting something more noise or experimental Jazz, but the show turned out quieter than i expected, feeling more like Minimal Tech. It was also the first time in my life seeing a gig that the organizer shouted at the crowd: "Be quiet!". I was once wonder that am I in a cinema or what...

In fact, should called this an art performance instead of a gig.



---
Saturday:
Attended exhibition of the photographer - Yasumasa Yonehara 米原康正, the one who famous for taking sexy hot babes' photos. Yes, I hate Japs! This is a crossover exhibition with the graffiti artist Reach. I was slightly late for the opening, and missed the live painting on model's body. Damn~





Found some more event pics here.

---
Sunday:
I've been living in 番禺路 for almost half a year, but just found out few days ago there is such a huge sculpture gallery nearby. The Red Town, which is located in the opposite direction on my daily route to my office, and only takes 10 minutes walk from my place. It is kinda like the sculpture version of M50. And there got bookstore that sell design books too! Woohoo!




Sometimes good things might just beside you and me, we just need to wander to the other direction...