A Bird's Eye View of Fashion, Food, Travel, Culture, Beverage and Curiosity

Lost in Puppydom: Rory Dylan Stephen’s Puppydom”: WHY IS BOB MUTTERING LIKE COLONEL KURTZ IN APOCALYPSE NOW?

WHY IS BOB MUTTERING LIKE COLONEL KURTZ IN APOCALYPSE NOW?

Aside from scoring human food like bits of bagel or today’s blueberry I live in anticipation of the next walk. After suffering puppy quarantine for not being fully vaccinated for the last three months it is 3-5 walks a day in mushy slush, powdery snow, freezing cold and nasty wind chills. I have a double coat and when it is 15 below I have a chic Eddie Bauer coat I wear. A pup of fashion and no longer do I try to tear it off…in those days I was unsophisticated.

As we were preparing for our morning walk in temperatures of minus 13 and a wind chill of minus 23 while Bob was putting on his boots just like Colonel Walter E. Kurtz in the movie “Apocalypse Now” which I saw on the couch last month I heard “Oh the Horror! It is viciously cold out there Rory!”.

Not sure what it means as I have only walked in snow and cold my entire walking career?

Out we head and in 3 minutes I am puppy fighting with a 10-month-old Cavapoo! Its mistress complaining about the nasty cold apologized and moved on saying, “Gotta keep moving so I don’t freeze!”

Then three more dogs clustered in a group. I puppy fought with a 6-month-old 95-pound Bernese Mountain dog however Bob kept pulling me back saying one swat of his massive paw and you’ll be out cold. Seems Bob is a bit obsessed with cold?

We made it home and what a groan of suffering when Bob walked in the door. What’s a little cold. I hear about spring and summer from Bob and how walks will be long and much more exciting. You mean they can be more exciting than they are now!

Onward we go with the temperature minus 23 the coldest day of my life!

“Lost in Puppydom: Rory Dylan Stephen’s Puppydom”: MY BIG DIG AND THE GREAT OPOSSUM SCARE

MY BIG DIG AND THE GREAT OPOSSUM SCARE

Golly gee, I love digging a speciality of West Highland Terriers. I live to hunt prey (and perhaps a crust of bread and cheese too!) and there was an apparent collision between hunting and digging last night.

Several days ago, due to global warming, we saw an opossum for the first time in the neighborhood trundling along the top of the fence. Juicy opossum meat has my prey instinct boiling.

Last night Bob was about to open the door for my late-night bedtime ablutions and I heard him say, “Is that an opossum?” causing my blood to boil and as I readied for attack Bob did not open the sliding door so I could do my business so in pajamas and boots in the bitter cold accompanied by Bob I did my business in the driveway.

You see I had been digging by the fence leaving a hole which in the moonlight creating the impression of an opossum. You had to be there to see it! The big dig is my work and not the reference to the Boston Big Dig years ago!

I was so excited upon hearing the word opossum I simply couldn’t go to bed so Bob played with me until 00:30 at which point I entered my crate and yelped to escape so I could get that opossum but after a big “SHHHHH” from Bob I fell asleep dreaming of a chase!

RKS 2025 Travel: Destination Southeast Asia (Short Attention Span Version):Singapore 11October2025: Eating With the Toiling Masses of Singapore

Singapore 11October2025: Eating With the Toiling Masses of Singapore

We are staying at the Shangri-La Singapore with five-star victuals. Who wants perpetual five-star food? I asked our tour director for a simpler locale where the toiling masses chow down. So for dinner a short walk down Orchard Street where the hotel is located then turn left to the 7-11 and walk down to the basement to a “low key” food court bereft of tourists but full of locals not working for major international financial organizations nor of the moneyed Singaporean classes. Well a dinner # 4 for me consisting of BBQ chicken and pork, a bowl of broth and a gigantic portion of rice. Food it was and not gourmet but for 6 Singaporean dollars who can complain. I also had a large TIGER Lager the only beer served in the food court by a young lady in Tiger logo shirt serving up the brew. She even topped up your glass when needed. What service! I’d give this a 2- star rating but a five for the “authentic” Singaporean experience!

RKS 2025 Travel: Destination Southeast Asia (Short Attention Span Version):Singapore 11October2025: Kampong Glam: Muslim Quarter, Malay Enclave and Little India

Singapore 11October2025: Kampong Glam: Muslim Quarter, Malay Enclave and Little India

After lunch a further meander into Chinatown to see some restored traditional shophouses perhaps a unique Singaporean architectural feature. It is as it sounds a shop also housing its owners. Very few shophouses remain.

Then to Kampong Glam home of the Muslim quarter and Malay enclave. The quiet majesty of the golden domed Sultan Mosque dominates. A popular destination for Indonesian tourists and crammed with restaurants somewhat reminding one of Prince Arthur Street in Montreal. And yes a Greek restaurant!

Little India was jammed with Diwali festivities in gear. Saw a dance competition for young girls moving to traditional Indian music heavily adorned with jewellery and bright traditional garb. Preparations were underway for a huge Diwali fireworks display famous in Singapore.

Back on the bus all hot and steamy to the hotel. The temperatures so far are equivalent to a hot Toronto summer day at 35 degrees but the 90% humidity really exhausts you. Great weather for a cold beer!

RKS 2025 Travel: Destination Southeast Asia (Short Attention Span Version):Singapore 11October2025: Local Flavour Lunch With a Gringo Touch and Only Two Sodas Per Person!

Singapore 11October2025: Local Flavour Lunch With a Gringo Touch and Only Two Sodas Per Person!

The itinerary indicates a “Local Flavour” lunch which is at the tourist centric Red House Seafood restaurant. Our tour guide managed to pick up some real local flavour Singaporean Chicken at the best place for this dish (sort of a hole in the wall) as we walked towards the restaurant seemingly used to handling tourist buses so as to speak. Get em in and out fast!

In this blistering heat and humidity a cold beer was on the mind of most of the group but bearing in mind the parsimonious streak of ABC International, the tour organizers, NO BEER and ONLY TWO SODAS OR WATERS PER PERSON! Cheapo supremo! I paid for this trip in USD so I want a fair deal!

This place was so “local” no chopsticks only western cutlery which oddly the Americans in our group were happy with but we Canadians had to ask for chopsticks! The food was mundane and to cater to the gringos the Singaporean Spiced Crab was already deshelled. I mean why not ask for Dinner Number One – Dinner Number Four just like in a 1974 Chinese restaurant in Toronto. Much better than airline food!

The best dish was the Singaporean Chicken “smuggled” into the restaurant. A simplistic looking dish but oh so tasty. Our tour guide got shit for bringing it in. Very cold and unfriendly staff at the restaurant.

RKS 2025 Travel: Destination Southeast Asia (Short Attention Span Version):Singapore 11October2025: Hokkien Temple in Chinatown

Singapore 11October2025: Hokkien Temple in Chinatown

Away from the modern urbanity we head to a more rustic and “authentic” destination in Singapore, a Hokkien temple; Thian Hock Keng Temple located in the heart of Chinatown dedicated to Mazu, the goddess of the sea and protector of sailors, the temple was built between 1839 and 1842 by early Chinese migrants seeking a better life in Singapore. It was built using traditional Chinese methods serving as a place of worship for the Hokkien community. A prime example of southern Chinese temple architecture, it features intricate carvings, colourful tiles, detailed sculptures and imposing columns with the roof being adorned with mythical creatures and scenes from Chinese folklore its interior being decorated by porcelain figures and the temple’s vibrant colors and artistic elements make it a visually striking place. Often called the Temple of Heavenly Bliss it is not only a religious site-it continues to be an active place of worship but also a symbol of a rich cultural heritage of Singapore’s Chinese community.

We had half an hour to walk around Chinatown which is less vibrant and smaller than Toronto’s Chinatown but there is street life giving Singapore some soul.

RKS Literature: Why is Frankenstein’s Creation so Malicious? (Mary Shelley)

“I am malicious because I am miserable. Am I not shunned and hated by all mankind? You, my creator, would tear me to pieces and triumph; remember that, and tell me why I should pity man more than he pities me. You would not call it murder if you could precipitate me into one of those ice-riffs and destroy my frame, the work of your own hands. Shall I respect a man if he condemns me? Let him live with me in the interchange of kindness, and instead of injury I would bestow every benefit upon him with tears of gratitude at his acceptance.

Mary Shelly, “Frankenstein”, 1818.

RKS 2025 Travel: Destination Southeast Asia (Short Attention Span Version):Singapore 11October2025: Singapore Panoramic Tour: Is Singapore Soulless?

Singapore 11October2025: Singapore Panoramic Tour: Is Singapore Soulless?

“Singapore Panoramic Tour” sounds a bit easy peasy just what the doctor ordered for haggard jet laggers. On a luxury coach (no WC facilities) at 09:15. First stop Merlion Park at the Esplanade Bridge. Right behind us one views the Singapore skyline with innumerable skyscrapers many with bank and insurance company signage. Is this Manhattan? Our tour guide, a former trader of financial instruments, notes Singapore is the third largest commercial centre in the world. Despite the urban nature of the city centre lush foliage plantings create an illusion of space. Is Singapore soulless in all its glitter and affluence?

Across the water from Merlion Park one can see a huge casino and hotel somewhat as imposing as the Sydney Opera House. I am not sure I expected such bland modernity and the wealth of Singapore. The only toiling masses I can see in the blistering heat and humidity are Bangladeshi construction workers.

The tourists, many Indonesians on this visit, flock to the statute of the mythical Merlion which possesses the body of a fish and the head of a lion. Its fish like body symbolizes Singapore’s origins as a fishing village. The statue’s head represents the city’s original name Singapura (lion city in Sanskrit). According to legend, Sang Nila Utama- a Srivijayan prince of Palembang- landed on Singapore’s shores amidst a tempest at sea. Near the mouth of the Singapore river, the prince spied a strange creature, which he identified as a lion, thus giving Singapura its name. This legend is embodied in the statute at Merlion Park.

Spouting water at its mouth, the Merlion statue stands at 28 feet high. It was designed by Kwan Sai Kheong, built by local craftsman Lim Nang Seng and unveiled in 1972 by then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew. It faces east which is believed to a be a direction that brings prosperity.

RKS Literature: How Can Frankenstein’s Creation Cease His Threats to Humanity?

“For some days I haunted the spot where these scenes had taken place, sometimes wishing to see you, sometimes resolved to quit this world and its miseries forever. At length I wandered through these mountains, and have ranged through their immense recesses, consumed by a burning passion which you alone can gratify. We may not part until you have promised to comply with my requisition. I am alone and miserable; man will not associate with me; but one as deformed and horrible as myself would not deny herself to me. My companion must be of the same species and have the same defects. This being you must create.”

Mary Shelley, “Frankenstein”, 1818.

RKS 2025 Travel: Destination Southeast Asia (Short Attention Span Version)

Singapore 11October2025: Cultural Enrichment Session on Singapore: Getting the Quietly Obscene Gesture from a Trumpist

Jagged sleep. Nightmare about giving a botched political speech. A portent of political mischief to come momentarily?

Given this is the first day of our tour and our group of 18 are Americans (5) and Canadians recently arrived suffering from 12-15 hours time difference ABC International has no pity in holding a cultural enrichment session at a hotel meeting room at 08:00. Fascinating session when fatigue wasn’t tuning you out. Ethnic composition of Singapore is 75% Chinese, 14% Malay and 9% Indian. A simplistic explanation of Singaporean history given. In a nutshell: Singapore a wealthy country, many expats including Bangladeshi construction workers, a financial centre, paternalistic democracy and no homelessness.

In a question session I asked if President Trump has rattled his sabre at Singapore as he had been doing to Canada calling it the 51^st state, insulting Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau and calling Canada the land of the igloo people. I was told one of the 4 Americans on the tour and present in the room gave a polite obscene gesture in my direction after asking my question. I should have worn my sealskin boots are these are what Canadians wear to ward off the cold 365 days a year!