Will Swinging get you Winning?

Kel and Joon, if you are reading this post, you guys have contributed much to my part in the last episode. The girls thought I swing both ways. Yes, they thought I swing both ways. So who in Melbourne thinks I swing both ways? Joon, we really have to straighten things out when I get back there. Promise me never to act gay again for entertainment purposes.

At least over here in KL, I have already made a national statement on TV: "But rest assured, I only swing both ways." I always wanted to give a Theodore Roosevelt speech on the media. Not exactly what I had in mind. That felt more like Clinton.

My sexuality aside, the last episode has been pretty stressful. More bitter truths dawned upon me as I was questioned about my personal facts being a hinderance to winning over the hearts of the girls. Things about myself that I can't change within 5 days, let alone the things I can't change at all. I can come up with tricks to impress the girls every week, but in the end, it is ones personality that will outshine all the other trivial deeds. So the question is.... will my personality pull me through? Perhaps its time to show the many different sides of Derrick...

Here is a photo treat for all the curious friends...


Photoshoot for our print ad. Top to bottom L to R, Paintball man Allen, Lawyer Tho Wei, Taiwanese Boyband Lookalike Melvin, Uncle Teoh, Comedian Jiggee Jon, and Playgirl Poser Derrick.

Getting ready for our grand entrance into Holiday Villa, where the gladiators will crush one another.

Personal photoshoot for print ad. I never new I looked so good doing the Boogaloo.

My pal Stephanie and the lovely host Jason.... i mean, my pal Jason and the lovely host Stephanie.

Pics of the other three gals next time, when family members stop hogging the camera.

Ode to Flare

Gawd I miss Flare. Everytime I browse through Shar's blog, Jel's blog, Am's blog, Ning's, Joon's and Ness's, I see photographs that I want to be in, and stories that I myself want to tell. The worse part is that I am not there to grow along with you guys, as dancers, as people, as we had for the past two and the half years. Over here, I have yet to find a bunch of people who are as dedicated as you guys. I still don't know anyone who would train and rehearse from 9am to 5 pm on their precious weekends, anyone who would let me experiment new moves and choreography on them, anyone who'd dance at a club and then suddenly break into a routine for our own pleausre, and anyone who'd perform what they were paid to perform at a party gig and then give another free performance just for kicks.

Over there, it felt like we performed as a team and live as a family. Over here, I feel as if though I am constantly doing a solo. And as much as I like to do solos, a solo without a team to cheer me on is just different.

When I think about it, I was truly born again in the Frank Tate Dance Studio. I became someone that I have always wanted to be, but never knew. And from there I grew: from Me Against the Music to Crunk'd, from Hard to Get to Pon De Replay, from Popping to Street Jazz to Milking. From talented to trained (although not trained enough). Without Flare, the dancer within me might have gone through a miscarriage. Jane Khoo, miss founder, you may have been a tad irritating at times, and we may bitched about you behind your back, but you deserve a huge thanks from us for starting this whole ensemble. Without it, we might have smoked pot or taken valium to get high. But now, we get high through the drug of dance.

However, as much as I love my home, our birthplace can only allow us to spread out wings that far. We need to go elsewhere for a greater span, and boy is it tough to fly further. I often forget that I am not as popular here as I was back there. Apparently I packed a suitcase of pride when I came back here, which made me forget that I need to start from scratch and build my reputation from the bottom onwards. I realize that I have to go through the whole free-gig self-marketing process that we went through a year ago.

As slow as it takes, I will get to the top someday in the near future. And whether I choreograph for Too Phat or Jolin Tsai or Chris Brown, I will always remember where it all started... Flare Dance Ensemble.

Learning in Reality TV

The past two weekends were nuts!!! It felt like being in a different reality. A reality seperate from that of our daily lives, a reality where we have different goals, a reality where "God" was constantly recording us on camera! Yeap, that's what Reality TV feels like. A whole new world, fantastical and magical, but it definitely ain't no magic carpet ride.

I'm not supposed to say too much coz it'll spoil all the suspense for viewers. But I'll say enough to keep my homies updated. If you wanna know more, watch the show!

The 15 eligible bachelors were all great people (myself included, hehe). We all had our own distinct personalities, styles and talents. There was a chef who specialized in desserts, a smooth-talking salesman, two comedians (unfortunately I'm not one of them), a sharp-looking lawyer, a Chindian student who was probably the best looking among us all, another student who taught music as a side-income, an aggressive and tactical paintballer, a guy who looked better than many Taiwanese boyband members, a financial consultant who was both smooth and sincere, an owner of an IT company who had a highly strategic mind, the most senior and salsa lovin' uncle, someone who looked like he just popped out from Young and Dangerous 4, and of course, me.

I should also mention our host, our eye-candy when the other girls weren't around, and our morale booster, Stephanie Chai (www.stephaniechai.com. Steph if you ever read this, you should be paying me for advertising). Suprisingly, she turned out to be Sharlenes Sarawakian childhood friend. What a small Malaysia. As I got to know these people better, I knew that it was gonna be one tough game to play.

I shouldn't say too much about the target because the many surprises and twists that are associated with her (no, the surprise is not that she is a man. Definitely a highly attractive and elegant womanly woman). But all I can say is that I wasn't very likable on the first episode. What I tried to do was something that I learned from a book that I read, which was to lower a girls ego especially when she already had high status. I think I went overboard because I was told that my words were really sharp. Lisa, if you are reading this, I am sure that you're laughing your ass off. Obviously I had to change my game.

On the second episode, I found out that by just being myself, I realized I had more potential than I initially expected. I could dance, I knew massage in more depth than just back rubbing, I could write simple poems, and fortunately or unfortunately, I am more sensitive and soft at heart than I'd like to admit myself to be. That was one of the things I have discovered by being in this show. But now that I am aware of it, I could use it to my advantage. However, competing with others who had such large and distinct personalities made just being myself insufficient. Apart from that, I was the second youngest person among all of them. So I figured that I had to be myself, but amplify it by 6 times.

No doubt I also learned several shortcomings within me. My conversational skills seemed to have deteriorated, or maybe it was just lousy since the beginning. Somehow I feel that it's caused by my preoccupation to say something original and witty instead of just saying something from the heart. Another thing I found out is that I can't capture peoples sense of humour and use it to make people laugh. The jokes I make is only appreciated by you peeps in Melbourne (most of the time, i hope) and a handful of guys and sometimes girls in the show. I wonder how the hell am I supposed to learn this skill.

I am gonna learn alot more about myself as the shooting goes on. But til the next episode, keep learnin!!!

Love, Perhaps?

It's 6.45 am and I can't sleep. I've got a photo-shoot in 2 hours and 15 minutes. I hope I don't look like a zombie in the pictures. What's this photo-shoot for? It's for a publicity campaign being run to promote a local reality TV show called Love Perhaps?. Yes, I'm gonna be in a reality TV show! Hahahaha... Un-freakin-believable!

About two weeks ago my mom stuck a sheet of newspaper in front of my face saying "Boy, you should get yourself recognized!" On the paper it said "In search of 15 very elligable bachelors to participate in reality show Love Perhaps?. $50 000 in prizes to be won!" (just go to www.ntv7.com.my/cornettoloveperhaps) Hmm... There's money, there's probably gonna be a hot woman, maybe some glamour, a chance to pimp myself since I am gonna start a dance company, and most of all, something interesting to do on the weekends! With those prospects in mind, I went to Sri Pentas at Bandar Utama for the audition.

I went there, waited for about an hour, had Cornetto ice-cream, then got interviewed on a stage, with judges sitting in the front like a toned-down version of Idol without the singing. They asked a hell lot of questions that I'd never expected from Malaysian judges! From my inquiries into my personality to intrusions into my bedroom, no corner was left uncovered. But 3 days later, I was called to be informed that I got in. Malaysian TV, here I come!

We had a briefing, which included them telling us that we should talk extensively about the show. This isn't very extensive, is it? Anyway, the show was as what I expected it to be. It's like the Bachelorette- 15 cavemen pit against one another to bring one glorious prize home: an object worth about 50 000 ringgit. Oh yeah, and the girl too. I met the rest of the participants, and I tell you there were some good-looking guys there. If they weren't that good-looking, at least seemed like smooth-criminals! But remember Derrick, seduction is a game of psychology, not aesthetics.

The producers also mentioned something about Footsal, Rock-Climbing, Go-Karting and Cooking challenges. I've never played footsal, I have weak lats and biceps, and I have always been a wee bit to heavy for miniature-automobiles. So, I guess I have to bank on the cooking challenge. Why can't they have a freestyle battle? Why serve food instead of "serve" rivals?

When I found out about the photo-shoot, I realized that I have some serious shoppin' to do! My precious clothes and the style that expresses my individuality has all been left behind in Melbourne! (Joon Win, my dear gay roomate, please send my clothes ASAP!!!) Thank Ti Kong that it's my birthday week, and thank Laughing Buddha that its the great Malaysian sale, so I had a good reason to use The Platinum Card. Out I went to Mid-Valley and 1 Utama with my mom, into Zara, G2000, Guess?, Armani Exhange, Hush-Puppies, Nike, MetroJaya... damned, I've never been so branded in my life. The producers really should re-imburse me for all this.

Now, off to my photo-shoot...