Thursday, April 30, 2009

30-Apr-2009

<< 聖杯>>

This afternoon happen to when down Simple Toy , saw a "Indiana Jones Holy Grail" ,


so i got it , Somehow the Holy Grail has made it beyond the Great Seal and the protection of the Grail Knight, to make its way onto your desk at the office (even better if you work in a museum).
Although this reproduction does look exactly like the real thing from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, I wouldn't drink from it hoping for eternal life. Just stick to using its magical magnetic powers to keep your desktop free of paperclip clutter or you will have chosen poorly.



*** actualy is a Paperclip Magnet Desk Accessory ***



ok , now back to the oringal "Holy Grail" , below is photo take in Cathedral of Valencia .




The Grail plays a different role everywhere it appears, but in most versions of the legend the hero must prove himself worthy to be in its presence.

In the early tales, Percival's immaturity prevents him from fulfilling his destiny when he first encounters the Grail,and he must grow spiritually and mentally before he can locate it again.

In later tellings the Grail is a symbol of God's grace, available to all but only fully realized by those who prepare themselves spiritually,like the saintly Galahad.

In Etymology the word grial, as it is earliest spelled, appears to be an Old French adaptation of the Latin gradalis,meaning a dish brought to the table in different stages of a meal.

According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, after the cycle of Grail romances was well established,late medieval writers came up with a false etymology for sangréal, an alternative name for "Holy Grail."

In Old French,san graal or san gréal means "Holy Grail" and sang réal means "royal blood"; later writers played on this pun.Since then, "Sangreal" is sometimes employed to lend a medievalizing air in referring to the Holy Grail.

This connection with royal blood bore fruit in a modern bestseller linking many historical conspiracy theories.





The Grail was considered a bowl or dish when first described by Chrétien de Troyes.Other authors had their own ideas; Robert de Boron portrayed it as the vessel of the Last Supper,and Peredur had no Grail per se, presenting the hero instead with a platter containing his kinsman's bloody,severed head.

In Parzival, Wolfram von Eschenbach, citing the authority of a certain (probably fictional) Kyot the Provençal,claimed the Grail was a stone that fell from Heaven (called lapsit exillis), and had been the sanctuary of the Neutral Angels who took neither side during Lucifer's rebellion.

The authors of the Vulgate Cycle used the Grail as a symbol of divine grace. Galahad,illegitimate son of Lancelot and Elaine, the world's greatest knight and the Grail Bearer at the castle of Corbenic,is destined to achieve the Grail, his spiritual purity making him a greater warrior than even his illustrious father.

Galahad and the interpretation of the Grail involving him were picked up in the 15th century by Sir Thomas Malory in Le Morte d'Arthur,and remain popular today.

Various notions of the Holy Grail are currently widespread in Western society (especially British, French and American),popularized through numerous medieval and modern works (see below) and linked with the predominantly Anglo-French (but also with some German influence)cycle of stories about King Arthur and his knights.

Because of this wide distribution, Americans and West Europeans sometimes assume that the Grail idea is universally well known.The stories of the Grail are totally absent from the folklore of those countries that were and are Eastern Orthodox (whether Arabs, Slavs, Romanians, or Greeks).

This is true of all Arthurian myths, which were not well known east of Germany until the present-day Hollywood retellings. Nor has the Grail been as popular a subject in some predominantly Catholic areas,such as Spain and Latin America, as it has been elsewhere.

The notions of the Grail, its importance, and prominence, are a set of ideas that are essentially local and particular,being linked with Catholic or formerly Catholic locales, Celtic mythology and Anglo-French medieval storytelling.

The contemporary wide distribution of these ideas is due to the huge influence of the pop culture of countries where the Grail Myth was prominent in the Middle Ages.


Later legend:


Belief in the Grail and interest in its potential whereabouts has never ceased.Ownership has been attributed to various groups (including the Knights Templar,probably because they were at the peak of their influence around the time that Grail stories started circulating in the 12th and 13th centuries).
There are cups claimed to be the Grail in several churches, for instance the Saint Mary of Valencia Cathedral,which contains an artifact, the Holy Chalice, supposedly taken by Saint Peter to Rome in the first century,and then to Huesca in Spain by Saint Lawrence in the 3rd century.

According to legend the monastery of San Juan de la Peña, located at the south-west of Jaca,in the province of Huesca, Spain, protected the chalice of the Last Supper from the Islamic invaders of the Iberian Peninsula.Archaeologists say the artifact is a 1st century Middle Eastern stone vessel, possibly from Antioch,Syria (now Turkey); its history can be traced to the 11th century, and it presently rests atop an ornate stem and base,made in the Medieval era of alabaster, gold, and gemstones.

It was the official papal chalice for many popes,and has been used by many others, most recently by Pope Benedict XVI, on July 9, 2006.

The emerald chalice at Genoa,which was obtained during the Crusades at Caesarea Maritima at great cost,has been less championed as the Holy Grail since an accident on the road,while it was being returned from Paris after the fall of Napoleon, revealed that the emerald was green glass.

In Wolfram von Eschenbach's telling, the Grail was kept safe at the castle of Munsalvaesche (mons salvationis),entrusted to Titurel, the first Grail King. Some, not least the monks of Montserrat,have identified the castle with the real sanctuary of Montserrat in Catalonia, Spain.Other stories claim that the Grail is buried beneath Rosslyn Chapel or lies deep in the spring at Glastonbury Tor.

Still other stories claim that a secret line of hereditary protectors keep the Grail,or that it was hidden by the Templars in Oak Island, Nova Scotia's famous "Money Pit",while local folklore in Accokeek, Maryland says that it was brought to the town by a closeted priest aboard Captain John Smith's ship.

Turn of the century accounts state that Irish partisans of the Clan Dhuir (O'Dwyer, Dwyer)transported the Grail to the United States during the 19th Century,and the Grail was kept by their descendents in secrecy in a small abbey in the upper-Northwest (now believed to be Southern Minnesota).

any way don't drink from my this "Grail" is not Holy yet!



Wednesday, April 15, 2009

14-Apr-2009

Do you all recall during 80's those of some scary hell movies ?

Hellraiser



Today just got my 1st Hellraiser puzzle Box from a mystery puzzle maker , i wish i can open the portal to other side of the world, may my wish come ture!




Here is the History for the Lament ConfigurationHellraiser Puzzle Box:

Philip LeMarchand was a French architect, artisan, and designer who is posthumously credited as possibly one of the most prolific, if undiscovered, mass murderers in the history of the modern world.

He first became known for his creation of bizarre, intricately designed music boxes which quickly became the rage of Europe.


The boxes, known in some circles as LeMarchand Boxes, were each one of a kind creations which were also puzzles, with the answer to one's ultimate hearts desire as their solution.

At the height of his career, Paris was besieged by scandalous multiple disappearances of noteworthy individuals, a number of whom had purchased LeMarchand's puzzle boxes. Suspicions, though unconfirmed, fell upon the sculptor / architect, especially inasmuch as LeMarchand's apprentice,the son of a respected clock maker, was one of the first to disappear.

Amidst this notoriety, LeMarchand fled Europe without selling his home. Apparently certain that the authorities were closing in on him, LeMarchand discarded his already floundering career. In certain circles,the name LeMarchand is synonymous with dread and horror.



This "architect of the damned" served agents far more sinister than those served by Hitler's own architect, Albert Speer. The atrocities performed by LeMarchand made him one of France's most infamous figures,rivaled only by the DeVincouer family and Gilles de Rais.

It is believed this genius constructed more than 270 of his puzzle boxes before he vanished. These boxes change hands rapidly, as is expected, though there are a few collectors, who are interested in the boxes as objects of admiration, and have no interest in working their wonders.

One of LeMarchand's boxes has even appeared recently on the album cover of the Goth rock group,The Cult of Joseph, showcasing a release entitled Chain of Souls. The agency representing the band recently announced that the band's tour bus had mysteriously disappeared between engagements in Muncie and Gary, Indiana.

Who knows what the consequences of solving it will bring? We know that in order for LeMarchand to create his boxes, he needed human fat, lots of it, so therefore he had to murder a great deal. This he must have done quietly,taking only people whose absence would go unnoticed, for we have no records of any European manhunt during the time he returned to France.

LeMarchand was 94 years old when he checked into L'Hotel D'Arnais. He was never seen checking out. When the hotel management finally entered his room they found it empty except for the furnishings, and one of LeMarchand's own boxes which sat on the floor amongst a great deal of blood.


*** you all don't wish to know the price i pay for , beacuse eternal pain is priceless ! ***

12-Apr-2009

Today goto Market Place , saw a bottle of "Mateus Rosé" it only $27.90 , here is the detail :




Mateus Rose was launched in Northern Portugal in 1942. It is made from a blend of carefully selected Portuguese grape varieties, namely Baga, Bastardo, Touriga nacional, Tinta Roriz and Tinta Pinheira - sourced primarily from Portugal's premium Douro and Bairrada DOC regions.

I first tried this wine almost eighteen years ago when a girl I worked with couldn't believe someone who had been drinking (legally) for eleven years hadn't tried what was her favourite wine, so she bought me a bottle for my birthday.

I duly took it home and had a couple of glasses whilst watching T.V. and from what I remember it was quite pleasant. Until I got up the next morning with a terrible hangover, I moaned all day that the wine must be a lot stronger than I thought, after all I had only had two glasses, the rest was still in the fridge.

After that I never tasted it for years, (you know like when you have too much to drink on a Friday or Saturday night and have a kebab on the way home and then are sick, it puts you off kebabs, well the sickness had kinda put me off the wine even though it had nothing to do with it) then last year when I was stressed out with work, I started to like a glass of wine on a Friday night to chill out after a hard week. As I only really like one Glass and usually only on a Friday, a big bottle of wine was a bit much, theni discovered some cute little bottles of around 250ml. He bought me various varieties and then one day he brought in a bottle of Mateus Rose, I was a little dubious at first but I tried it and I am so glad I did as it is absolutely delicious.

It is a slightly sparkling light bodied wine, with a fruity aroma, it is fresh and fruity with a subtle sweetness, although personally I can't smell the alcohol, my daughter who doesn't drink says she can smell that it is wine so I would say there probably is a slight smell of alcohol. This is a very pleasant drink served really chilled, it certainly chills me out after a hard week at work.

The back of the bottle suggests it is an aperitif or a perfect accompaniment to Italian, Chinese, Salads, Barbecue and Shellfish. I just like a glass on its own, or if I'm being really naughty with a bag of crisps.

The bottle is green and has a very distinctive style, it's round with a small neck, for those of you who remember from the seventies, it is the shape of bottle people used to stick shells on and make table lamps from! For anyone else as it is hard to describe so I have added a picture.

Although this wine is not as strong as I thought it was eighteen years ago it is 11% so if you try it, take it easy as it does go down rather well, and you could finish off a bottle quite easily, which is one of the reasons I stick to the small bottles, the other being the small bottle has a screw cap and is much easier to get into!

Some of this information was sourced from winesoftheworld.com
Thanks for reading :-)

Sunday, April 12, 2009

11-Apr-2009

Lat Night , have brought a bottle of "Nederburg late harvest 2007" , it cost $28.50


Here are some detail from the WEB :

NEDERBURG THE WINEMASTERS RESERVE SPECIAL LATE HARVEST 2007

TASTING NOTES
2008 Michelangelo Awards - Silver Medal2008 Old Mutual Trophy Awards - Silver Medal (80/100)
Colour: Lemony-yellow with hints of green.Bouquet: Complex honeyed character with rich aromas of dried fruit.Palate: Delicious with apricot and raisin character supported by fresh acidity.

IN THE VINEYARD
The grapes were sourced from trellised vineyards in Stellenbosch and Paarl. Planted between 19 84 and 1988, the vineyards grow in Clovelly, Hutton and Glenrosa soils, and are situated at altitudes of 50 m to 100 m. Grafted onto nematode-resistant rootstock Richter 99, the vines received supplementary irrigation from a micro-irrigation system.

THE HARVEST
The grapes were harvested by hand between 24° and 27° Balling from the middle of March to early May.

IN THE CELLAR
They were crushed and then cool-fermented in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks for three to four weeks at 13°C. The wine was not left on the lees, but instead put through the separator to prevent fermentation occurring once the desired sugar level had been reached. Skin contact was allowed for approximately four hours.

BLEND INFORMATION
44% Chenin Blanc, 26% Weisser riesling, 13% Muscat d’ Alexandrie, 10% Semillon, 7% Gewürztraminer

FOOD SUGGESTIONS
Enjoy as an aperitif or with mild spicy dishes, dried fruit or baked puddings.
ACCOLADES

2008 Michelangelo Awards - Silver Medal
2008 Old Mutual Trophy Awards - Silver Medal (80/100)

TECHNICAL ANALYSIS
Winemaker : Tariro Masayiti
Alcohol : 13.98%vol
pH : 3.21
RS : 81.40 g/l
Total Acid: 7.43 g/l
Appellation Coastal


CHARACTERISTICS
Type :White
Style : Sweet

VINTAGES
Nederburg The Winemasters Reserve Special Late Harvest 2008
Nederburg The Winemasters Reserve Special Late Harvest 2007

Friday, April 10, 2009

10-Apr-2009

Today , buy Jolin new CD "花蝴蝶" , i select the Big Box package, is only $28.50 from Popular Book Store.

in side got ,花蝴蝶 BUTTERFLY CD + MOUSE PAD + Note PAD + cushion + poster




The anticipated follow-up to her best-selling 2007 album Agent J, Butterfly is Jolin Tsai's 10th studio album, and her first after signing with Warner Music. Always updating the visual style of her music, the trendy Taiwan pop diva previously incorporated yoga and pole dancing elements into her performances.

This time, she employs some stunning acrobatic ballet routines in expressing the album's motif: Be the brave and beautiful butterfly that you are!

Songs on the album include the titular dance anthem "Butterfly", and other main plugs like "Real Man", "My Reliance" and "Parachute".

Title :

01. 花蝴蝶
02. 愛引力
03. 影舞者
04. 妥協
05. 大丈夫 Real Man
06. 降落傘
07. 愈慢愈美麗
08. 我的依賴
09. 你快樂我內傷
10. 熱冬 Hot Winter

here are the "花蝴蝶" MV from youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-SKbfwI14lQ&feature=related

09-Apr-2009

Now my new Best Wine is "Nederburg Rose " , here are the detail from some web site:





Nederburg Rose 2008 South African Rose Wine.
Grapes: Cinsaut / Pinotage / Syrah (Shiraz)
Style: Dry
Year: 2008
Description: A blend of that includes Cinsaut, Pinotage and Shiraz, its bouquet says strawberry at first whiff. Lively with a clean palate.
Country: South Africa


From- NederburgVarietal- PinotageRegion- Paarl / SouthAfricaNederburg is South Africa’s leading, most decorated winery, winner of more international and domestic awards than any other in South Africa. Nederburg commands a reputation for classically styled wines with fruit rich flavours.

The growing success as a global lifestyle brand is the result of an extensive infrastructure that includes ongoing viticultural research and the implementation of pioneering vineyard practices.



With their hallmark of finesse and fruit, Nederburg wines are made for people with an appetite for discovery Nederburg specialize in the sourcing of top quality grapes, state of the art cellar facilities and a network of the best growers. Crafted exclusively from 100% Pinotage, the grapes are sourced from vineyards in the Durbanville and Darling areas, planted between 1985 and 1995. Vines are grown to decomposed granite soils, between fifty to a hundred and fifty metres above sea level.


Fruit is hand harvested between 18° and 19° Balling in mid February. Grapes are crushed, receiving four to six hours skin contact, the juices are cool fermented in temperature controlled stainless steel tanks for two to three weeks at 13° C, followed by a short rest on sedimentery yeast lees for a day. Alcohol 12.0% Lovely pale orangey rose. Soft fruity aromas with an abundance of strawberry, an inviting spicy nose displaying alluring apricots and marmaladey, sour cherry, white chocolate and some piercing lime notes. Stylish and suave, a lively light to medium-bodied wine with a clean, fruity and refreshing finish. Serve with your favourite faire and best friends.


"A well heeled Rosé without the bubble gum characters that plague the churls, it harbours some lovely summery fruit and is full of berries, but is kept serious by omnipresent tannins, characters of bitter chocolate and spice, cupboard like elements of nutmeg, wormwood and briar, all supported by some punchy, curranty acids!" -Wineweekly.com.au



Here the brife of Nederburg Winery:





Built in 1800, the Nederburg homestead was first owned by Philippus Bernardus Wolvaart who turned 57 morgen and 300 roods of uncultivated land into a flourishing concern with some 63,000 vines. Over the years, Nederburg way to change hands many times, increasing in size, winning prestigious awards and witnessing the transformation of its cellar into a state-of-the-art, world class operation.





But it was the arrival of Johann Georg Graue that was to really herald a new era in Nederburgs history. Implementing his theory that good wine has its origins in the vineyard and aided by the skills of his son Arnold, he introduced to Nederburg the process of cold fermentation, by which the destructive effects of high temperatures on wine-making are overcome.



Unfortunately, tragedy was to strike and Arnold was killed in an aircraft accident. Three years later, Graue handed over 50 percent of Nederburgs control to Monis Wineries and Gunter Brozel arrived from Germany as cellar assistant. Together with Dr Nino Costa he developed and perfected the work begun by the Graues. By the time of Johann Graues death in 1959, Nederburg had become South Africas most renowned wine producer, its trophies increasing in importance and number into a truly proud collection.










For over 200 years, Nederburg has stood proud at the forefront of South African winemaking. Situated in the heart of the beautiful and fertile Paarl winelands, the Nederburg homestead is a classic example of a history and heritage as deep as the roots of our vines. Nederburg traces its origins to 1791 when the deputy Commissioner-General at the Cape to a German immigrant named Philippus Wolvaart who named the farm in honour of his Commissioner-General, Sebastian Nederburgh.



Nederburg changed hands several times until a new tradition was founded in 1937 when Johann Georg Graue took over the reigns. This innovative winemaker was succeeeded by the legendary Gunter Brozel and later by Newald Marais until an innovative new winemaking team was appointed prior to the 2001 harvest. Rumanian born cellarmaster, Razvan Macici, is currently assisted by Elunda Loubser and Andrea Freeborough and the new team will ensure that quality wines are created as associated with Nederburgs proud heritage.



Nederburg offers a broad range of products to the consumer and is divided into three tiers: an image range which consists of Auction wines, a Reserve range of exceptional wines made of specially selected grapes, and the Standard range consisting of 17 wines. The Sparkling wines and newly-released Nederburg brandy add the finishing touches. Nederburg is associated with fashion, arts and culture, and community involvement and is indeed the proud leader of the South African wine industry.


*** If you Drink , Don't Drive , but you may FLY!!! ***

Monday, April 6, 2009

06-Apr-2009

After work , goto citylink , wow saw pet shop boys new album YES (+ bonus etc.) ,



and it only S$19.95

just think , their have been in the band for 25 years !!!

Here is the review from BBC :

BBC Review

Yes is a wonderful vindication, and their finest album in many, many years.

Jaime Gill 2009-03-13

Like greatest hits albums, outstanding contribution awards are often last rites for a music career, proof that the recipient's finest work is long past. But for anyone who has followed the Pet Shop Boys' unlikely, dazzling journey, it will not be a total shock that these canniest of pop operators have used their Brits recognition as the springboard for their most vivacious, consistent and adorable album since 1993's Very.

Kicking off with the wondrous lead single, Love Etc, with its tingling electronic sheen and ravishing melody, the Xenomania-produced Yes is as inventive and flamboyant as the strained Fundamental was falsely rumoured to be.

There are fumbles - notably, the closing ballad Legacy, which aims at grandeur and profundity, but unravels over six long, long minutes into a dog's breakfast - but for every mis-step there's another where the boys sound on their old sure-footed, imperial form.

The most insatiably poppy numbers, all echoing Very, are the irrepressible Pandemonium, the lavish All Over The World and the sugar rush of Did You See Me Coming?. The latter, destined to rub up in their back catalogue against the similarly innuendo-ripe So Hard, Rent and Love Comes Quickly, is a joyous reminder that Neil Tennant is one of the few middle-aged men still able to tap into the inner teenager at the heart of great pop.

But few bands are as equally at home in a pool of stately introspection as in a fizzy hot tub of hedonism, which is where the sumptuous King Of Rome and heartbreaking The Way It Used To Be come in. Built on a fluttering synth hook, over which Chris Lowe piles his trademark orchestral flourishes and electro squiggles, this last song joins Love Etc as the most perfect fusion of Xenomania and Pet Shop Boys sensibilities here.

The Pet Shop Boys needed neither the Brit award nor this album to cement their status as one of the finest pop acts of all time, with their remarkable combination of thrilling pizzazz and searing intelligence. But for us grateful fans, Yes is a wonderful vindication, and their finest album in many, many years.

Track listing
All songs written and composed by Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe, except where noted[1].
#
Title
1."Love etc." (Tennant/Lowe/Higgins/Cooper/Powell/Parker)
2."All over the world" (Tennant/Lowe/Tchaikovsky)
3."Beautiful people" (Tennant/Lowe)
4."Did you see me coming?" (Tennant/Lowe)
5."Vulnerable" (Tennant/Lowe)
6."More than a dream" (Tennant/Lowe/Cooper/Higgins/Resch/Jones)
7."Building a wall" (Tennant/Lowe)
8."King of Rome" (Tennant/Lowe)
9."Pandemonium" (Tennant/Lowe)
10."The way it used to be" (Tennant/Lowe/Cooper/Higgins/Coler)
11."Legacy" (Tennant/Lowe)

Limited edition bonus disc "Etc."
1."This used to be the future (written by Tennant/Lowe)" (featuring Philip Oakey)
2."More than a dream" (Magical Dub)
3."Pandemonium" (The Stars and the Sun Dub)
4."The way it used to be" (Left of Love Dub)
5."All over the world" (This Is a Dub)
6."Vulnerable" (Public Eye Dub)
7."Love etc." (Beautiful Dub)