Now that I’ve watched the video, I realized that this is a very rare occasion where I attend Dot Com Pho but don’t actually appear anywhere on screen and you can only hear me on occasion. Obviously that makes this episode much less awesome than any of the previous ones but don’t worry, there’s still stuff going on.
This week, a man with no lenses in his over-sized glasses demonstrates a social media magazine iPad app, Michael eats something we hope is pork, we ponder why on earth Apple would put their logo on such a terrible case for the iPad and John learns to spell at a first grade level!
Although some were already marking the date off on their calendar, planning to take a day off work and line-up for it (I know several people who actually are…), I originally really couldn’t be bothered with Starcraft 2. Maybe it’s because I don’t really like RTS games as they require way too much planning and thought per second to be competitive and not being of Korean heritage, I never mastered the artform…and I hate not being good at things. I remember playing Starcraft ten years ago, finishing the single player and then hopping onto battle.net where I was promptly handed my ass on a platter.
It’s not the storyline, which is actually stellar and as good as that of the Warcraft universe but mostly my dislike for RTS games. However, as the day approached, I find myself actually wanting to play the game. Not to the point where I’ll line up for it at midnight…especially since I won’t line up for damn near anything but the trailers have made the game seem all the more epic. This might be another one of those games I don’t want to play but end up playing anyways because I want to see the story…much like all the Final Fantasy games. Hate playing them…would watch them if they were a movie.
Apart from ensuring that my blog streams there properly as well as ensuring that last night’s drunken debauchery doesn’t end up there, I spend very little time on Facebook. I mean, as the great Betty White recently said “In my day, looking at people’s vacation photos was a punishment.” so I have no idea how people can spend entire days on that site. People say that World of Warcraft is dangerous but hey, I’ve heard of people spending just as much time cyber-poking each other (…that didn’t sound right), visiting each other’s virtual farms and finding out what kind of sandwich they are. I don’t know about you but I’d rather kick some virtual dragon ass.
So you can probably understand when I was rather underwhelmed when I heard there would be a movie made about Facebook, despite the involvement of David Fincher (who directed such awesomeness as Seven and Fight Club), Aaron Sorkin (writer behind The West Wing and Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip) and a score by Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails. I mean, how interesting could a story about the founding of Facebook be when Facebook itself isn’t very interesting in itself?
But my interest is growing as we get more and more information and with the recent release of statements made by Mark Zuckerberg (who will be played by Jesse Eisenberg who I only remember from the excellent Zombieland) that paint him as, well, sort of a dick.
The movie is looking better each time we learn something new about it. I mean, it looks like a better way to spend two hours than…well, actual Facebook.
Portal is pretty much my definition of the perfect game. Not only was it just a load of fun playing with possibly the best game mechanics ever put into a video game but it had so much personality which is weird since the world, apart from the character you play, is populated entirely by robots and such. Companion Cubes are lovingly emblazoned with hearts, the machine gun turrets would playfully say “I see you!” right before they riddle you with bullet holes and GLaDOS…well, that voice is as frightening as it is strangely sexy.
And Portal had cake!
Now we’re on the verge of getting the sequel and it looks like we’ll have a friend to guide us through the Portal 2 world. Unfortunately, I hear the awesome English voice is a placeholder until they get to work on that part of the game.
I don’t know about you but seeing our old friend reassembling herself after the epic battle just looks incredible. Plus, it looks like we’ll have a lot more toys to play with in the second installment. 2011 can’t get here soon enough.
My first visit to Prata Man was when I moved into my house probably over 15 years ago. Exhausted from moving all of our stuff, my family and I couldn’t be bothered to go very far to get food and we discovered Prata Man, a small Singaporean restaurant located just a few minutes of walking from our house.
Prata Man is the very definition of hole-in-the-wall dining. However, it’s not like the place is a secret. I’ve mentioned it to a number of people and the usual reply is that they already know where I’m talking about. The restaurants popularity is probably not a result of the decor or the service. The interior hasn’t changed a bit since I first visited over a decade ago, including the tables, chairs and probably the dishes. The staff are reasonably friendly but will usually talk amongst themselves or read the paper after they’ve brought you your food so getting their attention for anything might take some effort.
That’s probably why most people get take-out. Whenever I sit down to eat in, at least five or six people will show up to pick up their take-out orders.
So that’s exactly how long I’ve been eating the mee goreng at Prata Man so you could imagine my surprise when my mee goreng at Hawker’s Delight was nothing like what I’m used to.
I’m no authority on Singaporean cuisine nor am I from Singapore so I can’t say whether this is authentic or not (I’m guessing not…) but this is what I know to be mee goreng: a mostly dry, pan-fried noodle dish with cubes of pork and tofu in a savory, almost curry-like sauce. It is sometimes a hit-or-miss dish as it isn’t as good if the noodles are too wet but when it’s right, it’s so good. Everything is packed with flavor and spice and comes with a bit of picked daikon and carrot to cool off.
While the mee goreng here is one of my favorite dishes, there are a lot of things on the menu you should just stay away from. The roti prata, for example, is terrible. For the most part, stick with the mee goreng, nasi goreng (fried rice), the Hainanese chicken (which is also very, very good) and the satays, which are a very good value at only $1 each. Pretty much everything is good value at Prata Man. The mee goreng is under $5.
A word of warning, though. While it doesn’t seem like it when you’re eating it, everything is actually rather greasy and you might experience the food coma afterwards. A common joke amongst people that enjoy Prata Man’s food is that it tastes great when you’re eating it but you’ll feel like dying later so this is a sort of once-in-awhile restaurant…not a place you should be eating everyday.
Yes, it’s amazing that despite the hole-in-the-wall decor, questionable cleanliness and the imminent “itus” that will hit you afterwards, Prata Man has remained in business and is quite busy on a daily basis after so many years. That should be an indication of how good the good dishes are.
