Weird Hitchhiker

I had a really strange encounter today.

As I stopped and waited at the traffic light round the corner of my house towards the main road, a woman came and knocked on my window (passenger side). I was taken by surprise and wary, but nonetheless, as it was still red light, I grabbed my bag in the seat (you'll never know) and wound the window down slightly to hear what she was saying.

And she actually asked me if I were driving towards Serangoon, Ang Mo Kio or even Thomson. Of course I said no! And wound up my window. It was the truth, but even if it weren't I would still say no. Seriously? Why would I let a stranger into my car, especially in this circumstance? Who knows what she would do? I may sound paranoid, but it was very weird, when the main road was just there, and she could have taken the bus or taxi. What if she whipped out a knife in the car or was some crazy woman? Her mannerism was a bit weird (ok, maybe I'm thinking too much), but IMH isn't that far from my house... And if she were trying to save money, sorry, no way. I didn't even know the person. Very weird.

I'm very selective in whom I give a ride to, especially after a bad experience.

I was glad my doors were locked. Who hitches a ride in Singapore?

Mosaic Music Fest 2013

Due to my school commitments, I only selected a few shows that I could make and fortunately, I felt that both were good choices, though I would have loved to catch more.

Acid House Kings (8 March, 10pm)

There's something about Swedish bands. I heard of this indie pop band from a friend and they were a fun group that had us dancing to their music with their tunes and lyrics. Songs featured included "Say Yes If You Love Me", "Sunday Morning", and "This Heart Is A Stone". Unfortunately, Julia Lannerheim had a bad throat that night and couldn't really sing, but she still went on, drinking a bottle of special mixture (枇杷膏 drink maybe?) in between songs. There were actually 2 sets that evening, but I heard our session was the more hyped show with a more lively audience. Yeah!

Anyway, in the midst of the show, I suddenly felt a sense of liberation. I felt like I had been missing out a lot these days (probably because of my studies) and very deprived of these chances of relaxing and soaking in arts. Ah, music is the best medicine and I miss basking in it.

World's End Girlfriend (16 March, 10pm)
This was a random choice. Maybe it's the name (or the publicity with it being the last few additions to the programme). Or I liked their Starry Starry Night album when I did some research, but I'm glad I chose this. It was quite different from Acid House Kings.

It was a pretty amazing experience. They started off slow, followed by a complex layering of music and tones. There was a gradual build up and before you knew it, they have drawn you into their music, just like that. How do I describe the effect? I was listening listening, and then I realised I became unwittingly "in" the music and it just encapsulates you, like in a universe of music. The music felt so much bigger than oneself, and I felt quite small in the music, like a drop of water in the sea (that's what I meant by being "in" the music).

It was also interesting observing the crowd. Everyone just stood there, enraptured in the moment, fixated on the band, almost like everyone was holding his/her breath. Maybe also it was almost a whole hour of non-stop playing, with the most a 2 or 3 few seconds break in between.

AND THEY NEVER SPOKE A WORD! Well, maybe if they did, it would have "broken the spell". The band just came out, played their music, bowed and went back in, without an encore. The audience hung around for a while, to see if they came out again, but no. They were an all-string band with 3 guitars, 1 cello and a violin, except 1 set of drums plus laptop; an interesting set-up for a band. Believe it or not, I was quite inspired to pick up my violin again after this performance.
And yes, the lead had long hair that he flipped from time to time.