Author: Vera Leng

Whoever said that Avengers: Endgame was the greatest crossover in history has clearly not met the Virus Vanguard⁠—the 5-member virus-busting squad that our government has just introduced to the populace via the Gov.sg website. In what appears to be a “Gundam meets Thor meets X-men” situation, these five superheroes have been conjured, in good humour, in an attempt to boost morale during this trying period as everyone fights their personal battles that COVID-19 brings. Circuit Breaker The first hero, iconically named Circuit Breaker, boasts a Gundam-esque exterior, lauded as a biomorphic, solar-powered entity piloted by 12-year-old genius, Mini Moh. Her…

Lauded as the world’s ‘poster child’ in the global fight against COVID-19, Singapore has done extraordinarily well where cool, calm, and collected efforts are concerned. Even the legendary Barbara Streisand herself has commended PM Lee Hsien Loong for “speaking common sense” and doing “everything that’s needed to be done to be ready for this virus”. That, however, was two weeks ago, and a lot can happen in a span of a fortnight. Fast forward to 19 April 2020, the date of writing. Singapore has since seen a total of 11 deaths—eight more than what was reported at the time of…

A new face in the media industry managed by TCP Artistes, Shawn Thia has already earned himself the title of a trailblazer, scoring major roles on local television. Some of his works include playing the younger version of Peter Yu on Channel 5’s ‘Fried Rice Paradise’ and later moved on to his first major supporting role as Julian on Channel 5’s first multi-lingual series, ‘128 Circle’. In this week’s edition of Spotify Saturdays, Shawn tells us the 5 songs that make up his life. Tell us your name, and how you’d introduce yourself to someone whom you’re meeting for the…

It’s 17 April, the very date which PM Lee had hoped to see positive results of the Circuit Breaker measures according to this TODAY Online article after he had spoken with New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. Ever since New Zealand had implemented measures similar to what we are now going through, they had already seen their number of COVID-19 cases charting downwards by the 11th day. Going by that logic, PM Lee had hoped to see Singapore replicate results that are parallel to that of New Zealand’s, since similar remedies should produce similar recoveries, right? Not quite. In an…

Just like that, a week of Circuit Breakers have gone by, and you’re still in disbelief at how unfit you’ve gotten. That workout that you told yourself you’d complete ‘tomorrow’ never came to fruition, and it’s already been seven days of sitting at your desk, eating, and sleeping. If you need some discipline in your life and need to be held at gunpoint before you’ll actually pull out that exercise mat, I’ve got just the thing for you (sans the gun). Some might recognise NomadX as that quirky store in Plaza Singapura selling knick knacks of all sorts, but few…

It seems as though almost everything circulating the internet now is COVID-19 related—from new laws to statistics, and of course, memes. And like you, I am T-I-R-E-D. So, in true millennial spirit—which is to avoid confronting our worries and concerns about a problem at large and instead choose to make memes about it and laugh it off, I, too, have decided to tread on the lighter side of life just this once. With every passing nation-wide address, our beloved Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has gained favour with the populace through his collected, calm, and conscientious ways, but he’s not…

If there’s anything—anything at all, that can take away the doom and gloom of Circuit Breaker week, we can definitely count on Starbucks to give it to us. Despite the heavy clouds that have been forming over our heads with each passing day, Starbucks has still gone ahead in pushing out their Summer Collection, and here’s why we should rejoice. The answer is simple, really. Because everyone has been confined to their homes, the chances of you finally snagging that limited edition mug are looking positive, especially at your neighbourhood Starbucks outlets. But of course, don’t take this as the…

I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve written the phrase “circuit breaker” in the past week alone. If I had a dollar for every time I typed it, I’d probably be able to afford my BTO down payment in cash. Just kidding, unless? Anyway, I understand that everyone’s probably bored out of their minds at this stage of the Circuit Breaker (there I go again), and it’s only been a week. Now that you’ve caught up with whatever series you’ve been following, and there’s nothing left for you but jarring silence, allow me to suggest 6 heart-pumping, adrenaline-packed…

The first week of Circuit Breakers is barely over, and some of us are already counting down the minutes to 4th May—when we can finally bust out of our homes, prance about our neighbourhoods, and relish the freedom that we once took too much for granted. But until then, we have to be extremely disciplined about adhering to the measures set in place, lest the partial lockdown period gets extended if we do not see an improvement of the COVID-19 situation due to negligent Singaporeans. I hope that everyone has been socially responsible, playing their part, and staying at home…

Drawing strong influences largely from Hip Hop, Rap, R&B, and Lo-fi, Tahsh is a local independent artist who sets out to create music that marries all of his favourite genres. We sat down with singer-songwriter Tahsh for this week’s edition of Spotify Saturdays. Tell us your name, and how you’d introduce yourself to someone whom you’re meeting for the first time. I’m Tahsh! I’m a huge fan of living in the moment, loving life, and creating art. It started with Photography, then Music and Acting. The three passions of my lifetime. I was in an English/French Band called Retrospective for…

As the first week of Circuit Breakers come to a close, it’s already telling of who will emerge victorious after this one month of partial lockdown, and who will not. Different people are taking to this work from home situation very differently, and it shows. Well, if it’s any help, productivity advice always points towards having a purposeful work set up at home in order to put oneself into a work frame of mind. For some of us, we’re lucky enough to already have whatever we need at home prior to this mad Circuit Breaker rush. For others, the situation…

The past few weeks have been exhausting. You’ve been confined to the four walls of your home for god knows how many days and there’s been nothing on the news but upsetting COVID-19 updates. I get why morale is low. So here, watch me shove this all-new adorable The Coop Idea X Sanrio collaboration onto your feed to hopefully keep the doom and gloom at bay—even if it’s just for a couple of minutes. Last weekend saw crazy crowds wiping bizarre things like furniture and tech off the shelves. So now that you’ve got so many swanky new devices on…

We’ve come a long way since our DORSCON Orange days. We’re a little more rational, more sensible, and a tad bit smarter. We’ve left our panic-buying and hoarding ways long behind us—or have we? While the mad dash for necessities such as rice, toilet paper, and masks have thankfully slowed down, it seems like the introduction of the new Circuit Breakers has shifted urgency to other, more unorthodox items. You see, the thing with people who are in a stake of panic is that they will not sit still, even though that’s exactly what’s required of them right now. Once…

Since the Circuit Breakers were announced, it no longer comes as a surprise to Singaporeans whenever the Infectious Diseases Act is updated, or when new temporary measures are put in place. If you haven’t already heard, the latest update to the COVID-19 Temporary Measures Act disallows even private social gatherings of any size—be it at home or in public. While this comes as a blow to many who still intend on visiting their friends, it’s unsurprising seeing how affairs have escalated rapidly in the past fortnight. What does the new ban entail? Under the ban, individuals that do not live…

When the term ‘Barbie’ is mentioned, what comes to mind might be that of a tall, slender, white female doll with luscious, long, blonde locks—created to be the embodiment of beauty and fashion. For as long as anyone can remember, the idyllic Barbie Doll has always been lauded as a perfect embodiment of physical attractiveness, dubbed as possessing “just the right proportions”. Though, that has been promptly dismissed after studies have shown that if a real woman did possess Barbie’s proportions, it’d be impossible for her to walk and that she’d only have room for half a liver—which is not…