Every year around this time...

... they will close and clean the "lake" in HK Park. But this year, they seem to changing the landscape as well. Managing a park (even not a theme park) is a difficult issue.

No milk?

Just watched a TV programme about the down side of milk consumption (it happened that the producer is the one I worked with for the corporate video on CEDAW and HK women development two years ago). My first thought was "what would happen to the farmers due to this 'no milk campaign'"? Second image flashed across my mind was those "drink milk" commercials a decade ago across the US and Canada to encourage the youngsters to drink milk (they were shown mainly during cartoon time in Saturday morning). Third thing I remembered was the sudden drop of milk prices after Canada joined some free trade pact (WTO?) and the Canadian government had to remove its control to safeguard milk prices.

Very random thoughts.

Lately, I seem not quite comfortable with any types of coffee served at the Starbucks and Pacific Coffee, and very often I have a cup of hot milk instead.

Still very random thoughts... ...

Ching-ming and Easter Long Weekend

It's almost the end of the second day of the five-day Ching-ming and Easter long weekend. Before the holiday, you will be looking for it. When it's starting to leave, you are feeling very very sad.

May be I shouldn't have any holiday at all.

P.S. Feeling a bit moody after long walk from Arts Centre to the MTR station tonight.

"Colourful Lives of Women" TV Series

I suddenly remember that I haven't mentioned anything about the TV series I am sort of involved during the last several months. It's a series of 5-minuters on the contribution of local women's groups in women empowerment. Make sure you check out the archive:

http://www.rthk.org.hk/rthk/tv/colourfullivesofwomen/

Marathon Hot-pot

I had hot pot at a friend's place last night, from 7pm to 3am!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We had a fun time and talked about a lot of things. It sure worths the time and lack of sleep.

三月二十五日宜投票 一字記之曰：投

三月二十五日

忌：小圈，小則向商界傾斜，忌由八百人代辦，不穩。

宜：大眾，大則普及平等，宜親力親為，趨吉避凶。

吉時：上午十時至下午六時出門，往「全民投票實踐計劃」票站，化厄解困。

一字記之曰：投

投票日期：2007年3 月25日 ( 星期日，特首選舉同日 )
投票時間：上午10時至下午6 時

議題：
(1) 表決行政長官選舉候選人
(2) 支持或反對不遲於2012年由普及而平等選舉產生行政長官
(3) 支持或反對立法制定最低工資

選民資格：凡滿十八歲或以上香港永久性居民均可就每一議題投票一次；十一至十七歲香港永久性居民、十一歲或以上香港居民可就每一議題投一次意向票。

投票須知：請攜同身份證或特區護照或永久性居民身份證明文件到投票站領取選票，工作人員將在選民左手蓋上二十四小時內不褪色記印，以防止重覆投票，故此，工作人員在發出選票前亦須檢查選民左手。

香港島投票站：
香港大學 Assembly Hall 簿扶林沙宣道六號
高主教書院 香港羅便臣道二號
聖貞德中學 香港北角寶馬山道五十五號
香港教育專業人員協會 銅鑼灣堅拿道西十五號永德大廈閣樓
明愛莫張瑞勤社區中心　香港堅尼地城蒲飛路二十七號
柴灣翡翠道30號1LG 箤文道入，文理書院對面

九龍西投票站：
英華書院 深水埗英華街一號
麥花臣籃球場 旺角洗衣街五十九號
鴉打街籃球場 油麻地鴉打街與眾坊街交界
香港兆基創意書院 紅磡青州街二號
新婦女協進會 長沙灣李鄭屋村禮讓樓一百二十號地下
深水埗社區協會 大坑東村東成樓地下十號
中華基督教會深愛堂 石硤尾窩仔街八十號

九龍東投票站：
天主教伍華中學 新蒲崗彩虹道五號
明愛牛頭角社區中心 牛頭角安德道一號
慈雲山中央遊樂場(籃球場) 慈雲山中央遊樂場
康寧道五人足球場 觀塘康寧道
牛頭角八號足球場 牛頭角下邨第八座側

新界西投票站：
天水圍循道衛理中學 天水圍天富苑一○二區
迦密唐賓南紀念中學 屯門湖景邨
天主教母佑會蕭明中學 葵涌葵業街六號
明愛荃灣社區中心 荃灣眾安街一百四十六號
天水圍職工盟 天水圍天瑞路八十八號俊宏軒商場地下十號鋪
元朗安興街足球場 元朗安興街

新界東投票站：
台山商會中學 沙田圓洲角路十號
賽馬會體藝中學 火炭樂景街五至七號
Culture Shock 大埔舊墟直街四至二十號
上水石湖墟足球場 上水寶運路六號


全民投票實踐計劃　Project Civil Referendum
電話：2850 4060
傳真：2851 0874
電郵：info@civilreferendum.org
網址：www.civilreferendum.org
地址：香港上環孖沙街二十號金德樓四樓

贊助全民投票
支票抬頭：香港人權監察或直接存入渣打銀行戶口：317-0-012353-4

「全民投票實踐計劃」流動投票站宣傳活動

「全民投票實踐計劃」與21間中學，十多位學者及區議員攜手合作，訂定於2007年3月25日舉辦一個民間投票活動，對象是全港的市民，而是 次民間投票的議題為「行政長官候選人」、「2012 年由普選產生行政長官」及「立法制訂最低工資」。市民當天可於全港各區共25個票站進行投票。

為了鼓勵更多市民參加今次的全民投票，我們特別租用了一流開篷巴士作為「流動投票站」，於投票日當天駛往未有設置投票站的地區讓走上巴士內投票。

另外，我們亦會於投票日前一天(3月24日)，安排「流動投票站」巡遊全港多個地點作宣傳，故特邀各傳媒朋友出席，詳情如下︰

日期：2007年3月24日(星期六)
時間：中午12時45分
地點：中環愛丁堡廣場

Watch Out!

Welcome to Ida's News Updates! Make sure you scroll down for more updated news, as from now till 25 March, I will put posts related to the CE election and the civil referendum on the top. And of course, please scroll down and say hi to my blog pet "Ida" and feed her ice-cream!

3月25 日人人要投票

「全民投票實踐計劃」

3月25 日人人要投票

政府在3月25日於機場會展舉行特首選舉，市民不能入去投票， 800選委亦無問過你選邊個好。「全民投票實踐計劃」聯同21間中學，社會服務團體提供公平、公正、獨立的平台，在港九新界準備25 個投票站！邀請市民一齊投票，由公民社會選舉行政長官，及表達對政治民生政策的期望。我們的票站一定無機場咁遠，更接近民主。

投票日期：2007年3 月25日 ( 星期日，特首選舉同日 )

投票時間：上午10時至下午6 時

票站：遍佈全港各區25個票站的位置，在 3月15日於「全民投票實踐計劃」網站公佈

議題：

(1) 表決行政長官選舉候選人

(2) 支持或反對不遲於2012年由普及而平等選舉產生行政長官

(3) 支持或反對立法制定最低工資

選民資格：凡滿18歲或以上香港永久性居民均可就每一議題投票一次 ;11-17歲香港永久性居民、11歲或以上香港居民可就每一議題投一次意向票。

投票須知：請攜同身份證或特區護照或永久性居民身份證明文件到投票站領取選票，工作人員將在選民左手蓋上24 小時內不褪色記印，以防止重覆投票，故此，工作人員在發出選票前亦須檢查選民左手。

Fatigue... ...

Good old friends

Except dinner with my family, I still haven't had any b-day meals with anyone this year as I was so terribly busy last couple of weeks.

***** *****

This afternoon, I had this g-talk:

XXX: wei wei...eat what Weds?

Ida: if you are not buying me dinner, i would like to go Nambantei of Tokyo. we can then ask YYY to buy us ice cream :P

XXX: i think we should be buying you dinner...together with ZZZ...3 of us can share the cost...should be OK

***** *****

A similar conversation went more than 10 years ago, during university time:

XXX: where do you want to have b-day dinner this year?

Ida: Spaghetti Factory

YYY: (yelling from the back of XXX) if you want to save money, let's go to your place to have pork-chop pasta with cream source!

***** *****

Sometimes it's good to be seen through.

136 exhibition boards

I am going to set up an exhibition of 136 exhibition boards this coming Thursday on 8 March, and I only started proof reading last Friday...

So you can imagine how I am going to achieve this -- stayed in the office till 2:30am on Friday and 1:10am on Saturday (not to mention I stepped into the lift lobby of the office building at 8:57am on a Saturday, and only sneaked out for two hours for an Arts Fest show)...

There are still thirty something boards not ready for output on Saturday mid-night, but I am glad that colleagues came back to offer a hand, or I would still be in the office now.

But now, when I can go to bed early, I don't want to sleep! May be due to the two-hour nap in the afternoon.

P.S. Watched the drama version of 1984 tonight. Don't really like it. I don't like the presentation style. I find the book is more dramatic and shocking.

Sunny Sunday

After being cloudy for quite some times, we finally saw some sun shines today. When I walked into the Arts Museum this afternoon, the sun shine simply went straight through the big windows, and you could feel the warmth and the happiness inside your heart.

B-day month is shopping month

Because of different kinds of credit card promotions during my b-day month, I went crazy shopping these few days, and this afternoon with my sis. I think I have already stocked up all the clothes I need for summer and all the beauty products I need for the whole year!!!!!!

Bye-bye holiday :~

The four-day Chinese New Year holiday is coming to the end. It's a holiday I was long looking for, not because of the festive season, but because of the many days away from office.

Unfortunately, I was stuck with work and study. I only squeezed some time to do some meaningless things (like watching a not very good movie and knitting) till this afternoon, and I am back to work now.

The next long weekend is Easter. Two months away. Something to look forward to.

Wishing You a Meaningful Piggy Year!

I am sick from throat to knee

Well, at least not from head to toe.

From the top, I keep coughing these two days and my throat is really hurt. The worst thing No. 2 is I kept talking on the phone with a "hyperactive" voice in the office, as I needed to liaise with almost every sector in the universe this week, and this kind of "inter-space" liaison will continue till at least 8 March. And the worst thing No. 1 is...I have my Mandarin exam tomorrow!!!!! Not only that I didn't study, I might not be able to speak tomorrow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

At the bottom, my knee is the usual problem + wrong posture during physical therapy session last Saturday!!!!! It hurts a great lot, and extend to the problem to the waist. OUCHHHHH!!!!!

I had tried Chinese doctor on Tuesday. It gets a bit better the following day, but it gets worse these few days. I think I will need to see a specialist again next week.

Seem like they don't scare you enough...

...they put the ugly slogan as ads at MTR stations. I saw this at the Taikoo MTR station this afternoon.

To balance the "media" coverage of the two CE candidates, let me shows you the following:

"I'll Get the Job Done" VS "Competition for CE"

These are the slogans of our two candidates of the Chief Executive Election in March. I can write more on these slogans alone, but, basically, I see no hope here. One only wants to get things done, no heart, no passion, no commitment (not to mention "vision"). The other is not hoping to win, but to run only.

We really are the Asia's World City.

My favourite sayings

The latest one -- 我就快痴線 (I am almost crazy)

Up to last week -- 十級忙 (Busy to Level 10; with 10 being the highest)

Two weeks ago -- 忙到癲 (I am too busy that I am at the edge of being insane)

These statements reflect my latest physical and mental states. I need holidays!