Wednesday, August 30, 2006

ILLEGALLY BOLD: the law-breaking dress sense of the NUS undergraduate. Written by Ali

Skirts so short, they look like a stretched hairband; the skimpiest fbt running shorts that look shorter than Marky Mark's calvins; the lowest plunging necklines that hide no valleys; bet you've seen at least one of these, being boldly worn by none other than your regular NUS undergrad. Enticing? Sometimes. Disturbing? Yeah, more likely! Find out what the innocent onlooker has to say about these visually-harassing "criminals".

I have butt cheeks and I cannot hide
If you are Gisele Bundchen, complete with flawless long legs of the Victoria's Secret Supermodel body, and you decide to enroll into a degree programme in NUS, we welcome you to wear your denim cut-off hot shorts with heels, with a mini tee, strut down the Central Library walkway, and leave the guys with their jaws dropped down and libido pumped up. But if you don't have anything close to "decent" looking legs, WHAT ON EARTH were you thinking when you walked out of the house in that pair of "shorts", short enough to show the beginnings of your butt-cheeks, cellulite screaming for attention, the overdue-gym-workout jiggly thighs and the scabs from last month's ingrown-hair pickings!?


There have always been quite a number of these less-clothed individuals around; you're bound to see them at least once a semester. Let's call them "minimalists", because perhaps they're into minimalism? No? Well, Singaporeans can be quite thrifty and practical, so the equation might be "short shorts + short skirts = less water used to wash + less electricity used for ironing".


The common reactions from girls seeing other girls in such 'minimal' shorts or skirts, especially when they're walking up the stairs, would be to just pretend they're minding their own business while letting their eyes trail the eye-catcher (or eye-sore). Of course there would be some in groups who would snigger at the minimalist or start whispering the usual "Oh my God.." or "wah lau.."etc. If the minimalist is wearing a skirt, let's just hope she wears nice undergarments. If not, my sympathy goes out to the one walking up the stairs behind them. My tip is to just look ahead before you climb a flight of stairs - the moment you spot a minimalist in a skirt, just look down and maybe you'd find a coin on the step or something else nicer than the sight of granny panties.

Macho Macho Man… I wanna be, a Macho Man
Fresh out of National Service, virile young men with taut bodies and deep set tans find themselves in a campus full of staircases, uphill climbs and of course, surrounded by many young women. Though they are able to adjust to the new gender balance, it's strange and quite amusing to see that some of them weren't able to adjust their dressing, or so it seems. I'm not referring to the uniform-clad men patrolling around campus with their walkie-talkies; I'm talking about the guys who look like they're about to take their IPPT tests.

Well of course it's totally fine if you're intending to go running in campus in a while. However, you'd often see guys attending lectures in singlets or running vests, shorts and slippers. The mentioned shorts are SHORT shorts - the FBT type that would show all the moment you take a step (hence the inner layer, ah huh..smart) and not to mention, quite translucent.

The usual reason behind it would be comfort, convenience, or just merely blaming the weather man. However, excusing the rarities, notice the guys wearing such attire and do you see any without showing some form of post-gym or post-sports muscularity? You'd often associate them with being actively involved in sports, and true enough, most of them usually are. So do ballerinas attend lectures in leotards? It's very convenient too, you know.


James (or so he'd like to be called), a year four FASS undergrad, attributes it to Napoleon Complex. So what is the Napoleon Complex about? His brief explanation of it is, "when you're short of something, you try to make it up somewhere else". What he thinks they're "short" of, you don't want to know. But he also thinks people have the right to flaunt it if they have it. Still, whether they 'have it', is quite subjective.


The disturbing factor about this 'jockish' dress sense is the rather unsightly things which are unintentionally (or the contrary, maybe? *chuckles*) revealed when the wearer executes certain movements.

For example, I once sat opposite someone wearing the exact attire I described above in the Arts Canteen. He was seated with his legs managerially-crossed, a bata slipper hanging off his elevated foot, and chomping away on his Japanese food. Firstly, it didn't help that he raised his elbows while using his chopsticks, revealing a dense crop of wiry armpit hair, which somehow reminded me of the shredded Japanese seaweed he just placed in his mouth. Secondly, his legs were crossed in a way that his knees were apart, wide enough to show something akin to the imagery of "a banana in pyjamas". Disturbing. Needless to say, I thanked the higher powers when his friend came shortly to sit in front of him.

My cup runneth over
Just like the minimalists, there are girls who choose to be minimalist on the top only. Well, some might say that if they're well-endowed, why not? However, it begs the question of whether it is "appropriate" to stun the academic crowd with your La Senza corset-look-alike top, showing enough cleavage to enact the parting of the Red Sea.

Surely the guys aren't complaining; the straight ones at least. But one does wonder if the girls who wear such bold clothes are actually comfortable with the stares they get from it. For example, I once had to perform booth duty for publicizing a CCA, and a fellow member of my CCA was giving out flyers to those passing through the Central Library walkway. A very well-endowed girl in a very low-cut top happened to walk his way. So he did his usual - outstretch his hand, smile, say "Hi there, we're having a concert, do come and watch..," - all while staring down at her chest. The girl seemed quite unbothered about it, took the flyer and smiled back.

The girls at the table beside me seemed more bothered though. One of them, who looked like a cross between an alternative rocker and a smarty, said quite articulately though with a sprinkling of singlish, "seriously I don't understand why people dress up so well to come to uni, granted, don't be a sloppy mofo who doesn't bathe lah. But then wah lau, this is NUS lor, not SDU. Evidently some people think so.."

One really does wonder what these top-minimalists think of people judging them at chest-value; flat ones included.

A final note...
Taste in fashion is subjective. But ultimately, one would scream for criticism when taking a step further and showing more than others, in wearing less than most would. Shorts, short skirts, sports attire, etc. are all fine - but perhaps with moderation of how revealing it is, whether it complements your appearance and considering that you are in an academic compound?

Seriously, if I had a say in rules and regulation, I'd set up a Fashion Police squad. And trust me, many would be charged under section Fashion 2101 - Outrage of Visual Modesty. HOOKED

Bob Smurf at 12:40 AM

Wednesday, August 23, 2006

blase me..

Dark blue by jacks mannequin

I have
I have you breathing down my neck
Breathing down my neck
I don't, don't know
What you could possibly expect
Under this condition-so
I'll wait, I'll wait
For the ambulance to come
Ambulance to come
Pick us up off the floor
What did you possibly expect
Under this condition, so
Slow down
This night's a perfect shade of

Dark blue, dark blue
Have you ever been alone in a crowded room?
When I'm here with you
I said the world could be burning, burning down
Dark blue, dark blue
Have you ever been alone in a crowded room?
Well I'm here with you
I said the world could be burning
'Til there's nothing but
Dark blue, dark blue

This flood
This flood is slowly rising up
Swallowing the ground
Beneath my feet
Tell me how anybody thinks
Under this condition
So I'll swim I'll swim
As the water rises up
Sun is sinking down
And now all I can see
Are the planets in a row
Suggesting it's best that I
Slow down
This night's a perfect shade of

Dark blue, dark blue
Have you ever been alone in a crowded room?
When I'm here with you
I said the world could be burning, burning down
Dark blue, dark blue
Have you ever been alone in a crowded room?
Well I'm here with you
I said the world could be burning
Dark blue

We were boxing
We were boxing the stars
We were boxing
You were swinging for Mars
And then the water reached the west coast
And took the power lines, the power lines
And it was me and you
And the whole town under water
There was nothing we could do

It was dark blue

Dark blue, dark blue
Have you ever been alone in a crowded room?
When I'm here with you
I said the world could be burning, burning down
Dark blue
Have you ever been alone in a crowded room?
Well I'm here with you
I said the world could be burning
Now there's nothing but
Dark blue

If you've ever been alone
You'll know
Dark blue
If you've ever been alone
You'll know
You'll know

Bob Smurf at 11:04 PM

Wednesday, August 02, 2006

be it the last glance?

im in stalker mode... hahaha where i tend to make lifechanging decisions for the one i wanna be close to.. even if they may not suit me or may affect my long term goal.. as long as im near the one i want to be with...


sigh~.. this sucks. maybe someday ill see him again..

those i consider friends.. please pray he asks for my number.. he looked slightly interested.. but maybe thats just me.. but im hoping .. and wishing..


i love u all!! sigh.. today will officially be the end of me having a reason to be near him.. even when im separated by 3 or more boards.. he still is in the vacinity.

QUICK PPLE!!! PRAY FOR ME!!! hahahah muackzz


ana

Bob Smurf at 11:40 PM