Author: Vera Leng

As visitors slowly begin to stream into grounds of Izu Shaboten Zoo in Shizuoka, Japan again, social distancing measures still have to be adhered to. The zoo has responded to this in the most adorable way I can think of—social distancing capybaras and red pandas at all tables! Trust the Japanese to always take the kawaii route. The use of stuffed capybaras is not just a cute coincidence however, as Twitter user @Johnny_suputama has let us in on the true significance of these cuddly creatures. The cafe at Izu Shaboten Zoo in Shizuoka, Japan uses stuffed Capybaras to enforce social…

As the war against COVID-19 wages on, life for our local ministers just doesn’t appear to get any easier either. Fighting both critics and the coronavirus, our leaders can’t seem to catch a break with press conferences and other urgent ministerial duties in tow. Particularly in the spotlight is our Minister of Manpower Josephine Teo, especially since recent events have shone a light on the less-than-desirable situation surrounding Singapore’s treatment of our migrant workers. Earlier this month, Josephine Teo responded to the pandemic and had this to say when questioned whether there would be an apology issued to our migrant…

From the title, you would have probably guessed that this article is about teachers and the varying degrees of sacrifices they’ve had to make during the Circuit Breaker so that your precious children don’t suddenly turn dumb overnight at home. They, if I dare say, deserve to stand shoulder to shoulder with nurses and frontline healthcare staff and have an 8 pm slot dedicated to them where we sing Semoga Bahagia at our windows for them, lead by a group of racially diverse local singers on television. I spent a good part of my day yesterday reading the Facebook comments…

Much curiosity, and even conspiracy, arose when Lil Miquela—a virtual influencer created from computer-generated imagery (CGI)—first popped up on Instagram back in 2016. She now boasts a 2.3 million-strong following on Instagram, paving the way for more of her kind. Enter Reyme Husaini, a Fashion Media and Industries student at LASALLE College of the Arts, who has created Singapore’s first and very own virtual influencer—Ava (@avagram.ai)—for his final year project. Ava is forever 22 and loves to be dressed up for the ‘gram. She’s known for her gender-fluid style and holds firm to her motto that style should be a…

Influenced by the likes of Childish Gambino, Kendrick Lamar, and J. Cole, Axel Brizzy is unabashed where pushing boundaries and stretching limits are concerned. He is extremely dedicated to his craft, through which he hopes to showcase his versatility as an artist. A rapper and songwriter by nature, Axel dropped his first radio single, “Thursday”, which is a catchy R&B/Pop number alongside local singer Marian Carmel. “Man on a Mission” is where he unveils his flamboyant side—contrasted against his usual charismatic nature. Axel has performed at numerous festivals such as SHINE Festival, Sundown Festival, and he was also 1 of…

Last week, pictures surfaced of a potential 7-11 Nike SB Dunk which would be limited to only 711 pairs. The team at Ox Street—our own Singapore-based marketplace to buy and sell authenticated sneakers—has very quickly revved up their creative game too and churned out a concept for a Sheng Siong pair. Ah, finally a Sheng Siong item I’d love to own. “Long before the current worldwide situation made supermarkets the panic buying gladiatorial arenas they’ve become, the supermarket was already a cornerstone of modern human existence,” said Ox Street. Like a long-held institution that saw seas of people move in and…

It’s day 39 of Circuit Breakers I think, I’m not quite sure—the vision’s a little hazy. At this point, if you have yet to trawl the weird side of YouTube, consider yourself one of the lucky ones. Unsettling videos aside, YouTube can be an incredible treasure trove of educational and informational resources if you learn to use it wisely. Take this, for example: a video entitled “Singapore awakening in 1983” which was uploaded back in 2012—how long ago was that even, am I right? The YouTube user @MichaelRogge, who uploaded it, has well over 258,000 subscribers on his channel which…

There’s no doubt that the hallyu wave is here to stay for a while, evidently seen from favourites such as Itaewon Class and Crash Landing On You taking Netflix by storm as of late. The appeal of K-dramas just keeps growing, as our South Korean talents continue to bring us entertainment of all genres and mediums. The latest to join the Netflix party is Mystic Pop-up Bar, a fantasy drama about a late-night bar owner (DanBam flashbacks, anyone?) and her young part-timer who embark on an unexpected, more-than-surreal journey together. They have the ability to enter their customers’ dreams to…

With Home-based Learning (HBL) in tow, parents, children, and teachers are not the only ones affected by the new arrangement. Many of the extracurricular instructors engaged by MOE are paid based on services delivered, and have hence felt the effects of the cancelation of co-curricular activities. In order to help these MOE coaches and instructors cope during this period, Minister of Education Ong Ye Kung has just announced a restructuring of contracts for such staff. Aside from benefiting from the Jobs Support Scheme (JSS) and the Self-Employed Person Income Relief Scheme (SIRS) through the Unity, Resilience and Solidarity budgets, these…

Horror fans near and far, gather ’round for this week’s witch- wait, what? This took a very different turn. I remember the very first time I jumped in fright while watching a horror movie through the meagre 13-inch screen of my laptop. Ju-on, the 2002 film, was one of my first loves in the horror scene. It had everything I looked out for back then—a gripping plot, some degree of realism, and an unnecessarily creepy-looking child ghost—in no particular order. Back then, it seemed like a film ahead of its time, with a clever use of subtlety, devoid of cheap…

It’s been five days since the fabricated story of NTU Student Zheng Jie’s experience with COVID-19 was reported by Lianhe Wanbao in an article that has now been taken down. In spite of that, you can still view the cached article here, as retrieved by a savvy Facebook user. At this point, it’s clear that news spreads quickly and furiously, and that anything that’s been posted onto the internet can and will be traced. In this time and age, it’s almost impossible to walk back on a statement even if it’s only been online for a mere minute. These two…

Five weeks into the Circuit Breaker, I think it’s safe to say that we’re all emerging from this quarantine as professional Zoom-ers, looking at our heavy reliance on virtual calling application Zoom. Whether you use Zoom for work purposes or more…carnal reasons, you know how the saying goes—there’s always a Zoom background for every purpose. Perhaps you’re incredibly active in the BDSM scene, and are fervently missing your weekly Saturday night affair. Or maybe you have the privilege of working in an extremely open-minded company, and would love to parade your coitus superfluous during your monthly meetings. Whichever it may…

I whine about this way too often, but if not for COVID-19, I would personally be on my flight home from Greece right about now. Air travel will not be the same for a while at least, many aviation sites predict. While that may mean that we might not enjoy flash sales on ticket prices for the coming months, at the very least, we will still get to visit the cities we’ve been dying to—but not without some essential measures in place. Face Masks & Safe-Distancing at All Times Effective of 11.59pm last night, all passengers of Singapore Airlines and…

Credit Inspired by the #ClapForNHS (short for National Health Service) Movement in the UK, Mr Martin Verga—who has lived in Singapore for 10 years—wanted to replicate the same show of appreciation for the frontline workers in our island home. Verga’s initiative garnered interest from 5,800 Facebook users, and many relayed their thanks and gratitude towards Verga’s thoughtfulness through comments. Come 8pm on 30 March, Singapore saw its first Clap for #SGUnited campaign in action, where people “clapped, cheered, sang Ole and even banged saucepans together” from their windows and balconies. The success of this led Verga to hold an encore…

Inspired by folk-pop, acoustic jazz and angsty indie-rock, Faith is a singer-songwriter based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. She writes music about matters close to her heart—every heartbreak, highlight, and quirk a reflection of her real life. Faith has played at venues like The Bee, Merdekarya, Russell’s KL and most recently, No Black Tie. She currently has two self-recorded songs on Spotify, amassing over 600,000 streams for both singles. In July 2019, she released her first EP titled ‘Letters from the Garden’, a raw account of different experiences in her life and her faith. This week, Faith tells us the five…