Heartlanders

I've made quite a few interesting findings in my hometown Ang Mo Kio lately.

After the appearance of an UFO (Unexplained Fireworks Object) out-of-nowhere in the night, the next day I spotted 'Quirky Monster', S'pore Idol 2 contestant - Paul Twohill!

Yes it's him, all right. With his signature floppy hair that left one his eyes wide shut, black-eyelinered eyes and two-toned striped-shirt, how can I have miss him? Apparently he is staying somewhere very near my place.

After quirky comes looney. There's this lunatic old uncle - I called him 'The Whistle Mad Monk' - who is always hanging around at one of the bus stops in Ang Mo Kio Central. Whenever a bus stops at the boarding bay, this uncle will go up the bus, take out his whistle, blow it for no reasons, then get down from the vehicle again. Meanwhile passengers on the bus, me included, will get shocked by that sudden loud whistle blow and being clueless of what's going on. Either that or he will blow his whistle at every passing buses whenever he likes it.

How to tell if residents of AMK are a bunch of karaoke fanatics? You know it when two K Box outlets are being opened in AMK Central; When a group of aunties and uncles - some called them the "lao hiaos" - are trying to turn the coffeeshop downstairs my house into the next K-venue, by setting up a mini HIFI system that they brought on their own and belting out Hokkien tunes which nearly got a few spilling out their coffee.

If you notice, AMK is also fast becoming an one-stop station for providing free shuttle-bus services to a few local haunts. Ikea, Turf City, Night Safari, Chinatown, Thomson Plaza ... But why no trips to Pasir Ris and Sentosa?

Now lastly, while most will either do it in the early mornings or late evenings, there's this freak who has been spotted running around the tracks of Yio Chu Kang Stadium in the middle of a bloody hot day at 12pm.

... ...

And that's me.