Spicy Mother - News and Entertainment

The Consumer Protection Commission (CPC) reported yesterday that in a random inspection of eight fast-food chain stores, oils in fryers were found unchanged and reused for several days.

The toxic chemical compound, acrylamide, made when carbohydrate foods are cooked at high temperatures via cooking methods such as frying, deep frying and baking, could lurk in oil that has been used heavily, said the CPC.

Acrylamide consumption is linked to cancer risk, but not proven, said health officials.

The chains that were audited included ubiquitous names such as McDonald's, KFC, Burger King, Napoli Pizza and Domino's Pizza, said local media.

All of the fryers examined at the aforementioned establishments did not undergo any oil changes after six hours of use, added media reports.

Source: ChinaPost

I don't know what is the situation in Singpoare as this inspection happened in Taiwan.

But I definitely wouldn't let my kid eat any more fast food. Trans fat is bad enough and now there is this report that the oils in fryers were reused for several days.

That is so, so disgusting.

Jay Chou, who is nominated for the most number of awards at the 20th Taiwan Golden Melody Awards, is said to be forgoing the ceremony for a commercial event. Chou expressed his views when he took on an interview in Taiwan.

He defended his intentions and said he could not pull out of the commercial event because a contract has been signed with the client. Chou added, "If the award is fair, I will win even if I do not attend."

Chou expressed that he has always taken the awards very seriously and would always be dressed in his best outfit for the event. The last time round, he even brought his grandmother, but did not expect to lose in all his nominations.

While he was disappointed with the results, Chou also felt disappointed for having failed to bring pride to the elder lady. Later, he wrote a song titled "Grandmother" in memory of this incident.

Source: InSing

I think only an established star like him dare to snub and challenge such a prestigious music awards.

Malaysia did not "overwelcome" Singapore’s Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew during his eight—day visit to the country earlier this month, said the country’s Prime Minister, Najib Razak.

The Malaysian premier was reported by the country’s official news agency Bernama on Monday as saying that Mr Lee was not accorded more than what he deserved.

Speaking to the media after opening the 7th Heads of Mission Conference at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre, Mr Najib also said he did not think Minister Mentor Lee wanted to interfere in Malaysia’s internal affairs when he made some comments during his visit.

Source - CNA

MM Lee keeps stressing about cooperation to attract long term investments. He has barely come back to Singapore and Malaysia is already arguing among themselves if they are too friendly to Singapore, whether MM Lee is treated like a little emperor, the unpopular third bridge, water contracts, etc.

Can we really have true cooperation? I think nothing much will change just because of one meeting, the political situation has been like that for so many years.

But at least the media did not pick on MM Lee statements and create huge controversies again.

Long—term commitment may be far from the minds of most people during this period of downturn but for some, now is as good a time to settle down.

28—year—old civil servant Grace Cheung and 30—year—old business analyst Jang Chee Ming started making plans for their wedding at the end of last year, just when the financial meltdown was taking effect.

Although they were a little worried about finances at first, recession or not, they are still going ahead with their wedding, to be held in January next year.

Source: Yahoo News

I thought economic downturn should be bad for families and marriages. Housing and stock market all go down. More people are laid off. Some people have to struggle with bankruptcies and foreclosures.

Fights over money become more common. I am not sure it is a good time to settle down? Unless it is a marriage of convenience??

WHILE there were fewer divorces last year compared to 2007, more marriages ended in divorces for middle-aged couples.

Statistics on Marriages and Divorces 2008 released by the Singapore Department of Statistics on Wednesday showed that marital dissolutions fell slightly from 7,241 to 7,220 last year.

Of these, 37.9 per cent of the men who divorced were aged 35 to 44 years, while for female divorcees, the largest group - 39.4 per cent - was aged 25 to 34 years.

The report showed that a growing number of divorcees aged 45 years and above in the last decade - for both men and women.

Source: Straits Times

And you thought divorces only hit young people who were not ready for marriage. Middle-aged couples are affected by this trend woh. Middle-aged people not reckless, impulsive or immature rite?

This is very sad to hear. It is no longer like in our forefather's era where marriages last all the way and couples go through thick and thin together. In the past, even if there are irreconcilible differences, couples still stick together because of the children.

Things have changed. Could it be that people are more Westernised these days, they treat marriage as just a piece of paper or ceremony and do not take the vows seriously?

Or could it be that there are too many temptations, you know those Geylang China sluts who have now inflitrated into our neighborhoods?

Or could it be that people are now financially independent and do not want to give way to each other in a marriage? After all, a successful marriage is about give and take and both parties must make compromises.

What do you guys think of this trend?

Recent rumour has it that Lin Chi-ling's brother's cosmetic business has recently run into financial problems and is now in debt.

To show support for her family, Lin did not just invest money in her brother's cosmetic business but also endorsed the products. Unfortunately, the NT$50million (about S$2.5million) she forked out was unable to save her brother's business. The distribution rights of the cosmetics will be withdrawn in June.

Source: Yahoo News

You have to admire the Taiwanese media for writing about her relationship with Jerry Yan again. It is incredulous that the latter has provided financial support.

Why should Lin Chi-ling depend on Jerry Yen? It is not as if the sexy model is in any financial trouble. After all, she is the no.1 endorsement queen in Taiwan and is raking in the cash.

As for her relationship with Qiu, I think that will be a sounder prospect for marriage than Jerry Yan. They are more like friends to me.

Misako Aoki, 青木美沙子, is a well-known person in the Lolita fashion world because of her angelic and pretty looks.

You might have seen Misako Aoki, on tons of magazine pages, covers and online. She has the "innocence" of a child. No wonder she is one of the ambassadors for Japan's culture.

See Misako Aoki's cute video below.

Cristiano Ronaldo, the sexy football genius and soon-to-be Real Madrid star, has hooked up with Paris Hilton at an LA nightclub.

The pair then proceeded to Paris’ sister’s house around 3 a.m, presumably for another party to celebrate his night in LA.

Cristiano Ronaldo then left the house at 5 a.m, although the party seemed to go on after that.

I doubt Alex Ferguson will jump through the roof because of this scandal since Ronaldo has now left Manchester United. My husband is so devastated by his departure though.

By the way, in the two hours time, a lot of things can happen. Will we see the Paris Hilton-Cristiano Ronaldo-sex tape soon?

Felicia Chin will soon be taking up the challenge of playing a young unmarried mother but out of her reel life, she predicts her marriage will come after 30, with no plans for children.

Baby Bonus, which starts production in June, sees Chin playing Apple, a young rebellious girl in her 20s who gets pregnant and drops out of school. Without a job, she makes her living by playing billiards.

The young mother sees her son, named "Olympic", as a burden, and leaves him in the care of the neighbours before selling the child.

As for her own plans, the 24-year-old actress replied, "Honestly, I do not know if I will have children in the future. A child is a big responsibility. I'm not prepared now and it would be unfair to the children. But if I do want to have a child, I will think it through carefully."

"As for an early marriage," Chin continues, "of course, if the right man comes along, I will not reject the idea. I can only say that I will most probably get married only after 30."

Source: Yahoo News

Gosh, I wonder if a lot of young ladies think like Felicia. No wonder the birth rate in Singapore is on the decline.

Many girls don't want to marry and even if they do, they don't want to give birth.

It is true that a child is a big responsibility and needs careful planning but it is no good to wait too long. Ladies should try to avoid giving birth in their late 30s for health reasons.

So now, we must ask the government how... baby bonus, not effective leh!

Taiwanese singer Cheer Chen (Chen Qi Zhen) has been cleared from bad press all her career life until recently when she was implicated by her brother, who lost a great sum at the stock market.

According to Now News, a group of self-proclaimed victims, swindled by Chen's brother, set up a blog titled "Victims Online Self Help Group" where they wrote postings like "Cheer Chen's family killed me" and even posted her brother's particulars and contact numbers, claiming that he absconded with close to $500,000 of their funds in two months.

Source: Yahoo News

I love Cheer Chen. She has so much talents - a beautiful voice, can write touching lyrics, and play the guitar well.

Poor girl, I hate to see her being implicated in this scam. No matter what her brother did (or didn't do), Cheer Chen is not the type to scam people lah.

So don't think badly of her and continue to support her music.