Sunday, April 08, 2018

Geologic Electronic Dartboard (ED 310) from Decathlon - Affordable and Nice to Have at Home!

Following the visit to the Live Turtle and Tortoise Museum at Singapore's Chinese Garden, i brought my dad to shop at Decathlon Joo Koon where he was most pleased with the purchase of a pair of walking shoes! 

Anyway, i was exploring towards the end of the retail section and was about to make a u-turn back to the entrance when something attracted my attention. 

Dartboards for sale! And they ranged from the kiddish ones that used balls surrounded by Velcro and the more legit ones; I was of course pulled by the pricing of S$14.90 as it's definitely well within my budget. 

I saw the same one at my uncle's place in the lunar new year celebration two months back and Jovyn appeared to show some talent for darting! Hence, i thought it would be good to buy one for the kids so that they can have more things to play with when they drop by my house. 

As i was about to grab the bestseller (the S$14.90 one) from the rack, the corner of my eye caught of the dartboard that's one display. With a simple electronic display, there were holders for the darts and it even has the ability to factor in multi-players and dart games like 301, cricket etc! 

Even though it was priced at close to S$45, i took it instead of the bestseller as i personally feel that it's a steal; i recalled Alex wanting to pay about S$200 for a similar one a few years back. 

Remember, you need nails to hook the dartboard on your wall and i sought the good advice from a staff at HomeFix Northpoint for the proper nails. After which would be the inevitable damage on my beloved wall due to my inexperience and the constant hammering which got my next door neighbour knocking on my door! 

Six soft-tipped darts were included in the box! Oh, before i forgot, you do need to buy 3 AA-sized batteries to power the dartboard for the display and the sound for the games. 

Done and super pleased with the Geologic dartboard! 

At the moment, i put it up at the empty wall next to the kitchen door; a temporary location as the space is reserved for a full height cabinet that shall house my growing collection of absolut vodka

Time to play and i must say that in the almost one month since we got the dartboard, my house mate and i competed almost every day! They said practice makes perfect right?

Not for me as i am like mr random capable (Gary from Running Man); i could sometimes hit bull's eye three times in a row but most of the times, the darts flew all over the place! 

Did i mention that you can close the dart board? 

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Where to Buy
You can buy from either the physical stores of Decathlon or visit their website to order the dartboard for delivery (minimum S$60) or self collect. Their most centralized store is at City Square Mall in Little India! 

Website

Pricing
Geologic Electronic Dartboard (ED 310) - S$44.90

Saturday, April 07, 2018

Almost Burned Down My Kitchen! #cavinkitchen

Yes, i almost burned down my kitchen this morning and as i was in a haste, no picture was taken until things have somewhat settled down; appended above was a photo of my stove with a fire blanket and a wet table cloth over a sauce pot.

The pot continued to spew out smoke which was unbearable to breathe in and i half suspected neighbours opposite my block were about to call 995 if it were to thicken!

melted butter was still boiling after 15 minutes
Background - i needed melted butter for a bake and totally forgot about the fire on the stove when i returned back to my blogging. Thankfully, i didn't switch on the music and heard the loud pop that got me dashing out of the bedroom to investigate!

Due to the butter, the pot had also started burning up (yes, flames were surrounding the corelle bowl) and that's when the training i took as a member of my workplace fire safety committee kicked in; i threw the fire blanket over the sauce pot.

Condition of the sauce pot afterwards. Just a note - throwing water on a burning pot can be disastrous; hence, eliminate the fire by removing the oxygen via a fire blanket and wait for everything to cool down.

Amazingly, i managed to do a decent job scrubbing the pot and it actually looked no difference from before the fire! I actually used it to boil eggs after its cleanup and thank god; no leak!

And i still need my melted butter. p.s. turned out the recipe was asking for room temperature butter which means i have utterly wasted my time!

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Fire blanket is for one-time use which means i have to purchase another one! Do invest in one for yourself or for your family. It was a blessing for me obviously and to think that i used to say kitchen fire will never happen to me since i don't do heavy cooking! 

Bibi River behind Log House Wagyu Bibi Restaurant - A Snake Encounter! @ Hokkaido [Japan]

After a scrumptious meal at Log House Wagyu Bibi Restaurant, i thought it would be nice for us to just chill out at this beautiful spot behind Hokkaido's best steak restaurant.

Guess it must be popular as a bench was purposely placed there. The stream in front is known as Bibi river and it runs across one of Hokkaido's three great plains; Yufutsu plains. If you have the time, you could even canoe down the river. Read here for more information. 

I am just happy to be in the peaceful environment despite the fact that our location is just a mere two kilometers from New Chitose International Airport! 

Bibi River is known to be shallow and we can clearly see the arm-length fishes lurking in the pretty clear water. By the way, Bibi means beautiful. .

A surprising splash of colour in the water.

Lucky golden carp? For all you know, it could be a rarity in the area! 

I noticed a wooden staircase descending into the river and was about to step closer when i heard some rustling to the side. Taking a glance to my left side, i froze.

What the hell?!?!?! A snake?!?!!? :( Given my deep set fear of snakes, my mind went blank although i could still manage a few pictures. To be frank, the poor guy / gal was as shocked to see me too. 

It made the first move by slithering away while i continue to freeze on the spot for a few more seconds. Honestly, i don't know what i would have done if it crawls towards me. 

By the time i got to my senses, i was already this far from the spot! Given my penchant to attract unfortunate incidents when i am overseas, i really thought this would result in a snake bite! 

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Wednesday, April 04, 2018

Bangla Street at Night - Happening, Lively, Vibrant @ Phuket [Thailand]

Compared to the day, Bangla road is a lot wilder at night with an electrifying vibe that's definitely an eye opener for someone like me who isn't into the clubbing / drinking scene.

Having heard so much about Soi Bangla, i honestly didn't want to shock my dad; hence, i ventured out with Alex on my second night in Phuket to the popular walking street as it's only about 10-minute stroll from the hotel we stayed at. 

I walked along the street three nights in a row and the pictures shown in this posting was across two nights; Saturday was the most crowded whereas Monday was the most boring with not much of a crowd.

Pictures were taken using my iPhone 7 plus; not exactly a good choice as quality was relatively compromised but i think hauling a huge ass DSLR might attract too much attraction and maybe result in a violent expulsion from the street of vices! 

Remember the floor to ceiling metal poles i mentioned here? They were used exclusively by pole dancers when the sun sets and on a busy night (like Saturday), all the poles were 'taken'! 

The iconic Tiger Night Club was bathed in artificial lighting that appeared to reduce its ferociousness. The felines looked so much better in daytime.  

Moulin Rouge - the glass compartment had a person dancing around the pole in skimpy wear; sure to attract lingering stares from many men! Bewarn that the place didn't have a favourable review on TripAdvisor.

Russian beauties accosting the men to step into their 'arena'.

You may also bump into flamboyant characters with eye-popping attire; from my understanding, you can take a picture with them for a nominal fee! 

An erotic club - what goes behind the doors? I have no idea but my research on Phuket had taught me to steer clear of places behind closed doors as there's a high chance of being scammed and / or being charged exorbitant prices; p.s. high doesn't equate to definitely.

Crowd on Saturday; past 10 pm.

Bangla road again on Sunday which featured a much reduced crowd; the situation worsened on Monday, i personally feel although it could be because i went too early at about 8 plus pm. 

However, the lack of crowds made it easier to have a drink! The one thing i can't stand is the loud music where i can't even hear myself talk! 

An empty glass enclosure on the second level. I actually didn't notice the logo on the glass until i came back to Singapore and zoom in for a better look; it's a sign for no-camera. Shit! 

Those not into the scene would be glad to know of better alternatives; like McDonald's with its mascot making a Thai 'wai' and burgers that consist of pork burger patties (i.e. Samurai Burger).

You can enjoy a VR for 100 baht or have your portrait drawn. 

A shop selling bags; i am unsure if it can survive as i don't think a partying person would want to get a handbag. Maybe they would if they are drunk. Anyway, purpose of the picture was to show you the pull up bar game that cost 100 baht an attempt; hang on for two minutes for a bar and you get a bottle of whisky! 

Party away with these cute, plastic head-gears! 

Catch a performance by this group of break dancers! This used to be quite popular when i was a teenager but i think the authorities didn't quite like it when the dancers attracted people to crowd around; line dancing (for the older generation) was way more palatable. 

Next up shall be jungceylon shopping mall right across the main road bordering the end of Soi Bangla. Those who wish to do some shopping should pay it a visit as it has the Big C supermarket! 

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Location
Soi Bangla, Patong, 
Kathu, Phuket 83150, 
Thailand