10xSnaps For 2010: Andy Heng of TOYSREVIL
Here to share 10 Snaps to show my memorable times and/or milestones I had the chance to live through in the year 2010 - in quasi-chronological order, no less!
And what are YOUR 10xSnaps for 2010?
#01 REUNION DINNER
We started off 2011 with a Chinese Reunion Dinner last year at "Swis Ling" - amidst homogenous plastic chairs and gaudy auspicious-scarlet table-coverings, I was hesitant of the situation. But we ended up have a whale of a time being a family with swell food! Also one of the few times The Heng Family had eaten out. Tis memorable to me personally as this year we will be having our Reunion Dinner at home instead, with me hesitant to venture out into the wide world being pushed around in my wheelchair. What a difference a year makes though…
#02 BATTLESTAR GALACTICA
The primary reason why a DVD boxed-set would even enter this list, was (1) My fanatical lurve for the television series! I heart it to bits! And when I found out the final season was split into 4.0 and 4.5? My heart sank … Why? (2) There came a time that availability of this box-set was in question. I had started late on the series, and by then stock in Singapore had sold out, and I was about to venture forth online (something I swore off for years, ie. buying online), when I rediscovered it after a long while of waiting and pining, but alas…. (3) I realized I could not afford it there and then, and had to somewhat save for another month before I sprung the dough on it. What? You think toy-blogers actually make money? Well, this here dude scraps by, thanks for asking! :p
BSG made me smile, made me cringe, and made me tear many a tear - something which a sci-fi television series has yet to be able to so far, and I am not ashamed to admit it. To a guy spending loads of time indoors and at home, this is a treasure, IMHO.
#03 BLOG BIRTHDAY
The TOYSREVIL blog turned Five. The blog-birthday is actually a big deal for me. It shows that I had yet again survived a year's worth of posts. It showed that I had fortitude to complete that year. And somehow it also shows the amount of blog-lurving I received from folks and friends around the world who read my blog. Jack Hankins aka Horrorwood was gracious enough to do a slightly different take on the TOYSREVIL Calling All Cars papercraft - which he had earlier done exclusively for my 2009 appearance at STGCC, which I am quite proud of.
And seems I will survive yet again, this February, when the blog turns 6 :)
#04 CUSTOM TOYS
To be frank, I love customizing toys. I dare not claim to be an actual toy-customizer, but instead a "budding customizing enthusiast". Tis the joy of creation that tugs at me, very much like having control of your own blog, and having your efforts pay off in the most exciting or even mundane of ways! But this year was a tough year. Because at some points, I had actually run out of paints and/or materials, and couldn't afford to procure them, or even afford mailing off the item, all the while datelines pass, and the worse is, I didn't have the balls to own up to that. I was ashamed. And I dug a hole in the ceramic tiled floor and stuck my head in, no doubt losing "friends" along the way too ... I swore never to let this happen again.
On the upside, I actually had a couple of customs sold! Kudos to the kind folks who walked away with my Destroyer TRE02 (shown above) and my Sketchbot TRE03 (I wish I still had the pic sent to me by the buyer tho!). Unfortunately one of the customs sent off before my stroke had an issue, and got returned to me after my Stroke, for which I paid an insane both ways! Man, that is one memorable custom toy for me!
I had a "masterplan" for my customs, each bearing a specific color-scheme and theme, with a slew of customs in mind, to form the big picture. I certainly hope that big picture will be revealed, as I get better and hopefully work on some toys, although not necessarily for shows. I think shows know better to keep away from me now, innit? Heh.
#05 CLEA IN THAILAND
One of the main achievements of my efforts on the blog, had paid off. I was flown in to Thailand to cover the inaugural Character Licensing Expo Asia (CLEA) in early September 2010 (an event delayed since May, due to the country's political unrest). It was a wonderful experience meeting artists from all over the world, and the kindness of folks, and as well turned out to be a hard "learning trip". Needless to say, after endless nights of late-night struggling with internet-uploads and lost laptop-cables, I have learnt my lesson, and just go with the flow. Kudos to Napat for his bravery in getting me, let's score an awesome event in 2011 CLEA!
The image above is of a reader (actually there was another ;p) of my blog, who introduced himself! The family man with wife and baby in a pram in tow, he turned up, we chatted and we snapped. This was the single most humbling aspect of the trip, and of my entire year actually (pre-Stroke) and which put me firmly into my own headspace. This perhaps is also the first time I posted about my booth at CLEA in this blog (yes, I actually had a booth!). More to posted, in time.
#06 JAKARTA FOR MUNNY WORLD FESTIVAL INDONESIA
September was an awesome month for me. Earlier I went to Thailand, at the end, I found my way in Jakarta, Indonesia - being hosted by the awesome folks at Plastic Culture, as a guest for their Munny World Festival Indonesia weekend event, and it was sheer fun as I met with folks who read my blog, had a (co)-signing session (even if most folks in Jakarta didn't care for it) and a even a short on-stage talkshow session. Meeting the artists from all around was one of the highlights of the trip as well, with friends from Bandung, new friends from around Jakarta - and all geeking over art and toys! And did I mentioned I celebrated my 41st at a midnight eatery with the hosts? A very short few days of sin and abundance! Who could ask for anything more?
Above is a snap of the vertical red blog banner that had traveled from Thailand, to Jakarta - with invited folks and artists doodling on it. This banner will travel with me whenever I go to have a presence or show :)
#07 A&W ROOT BEER
I had hankered for tall chilly mug if A&W Root Beer float for years, literally! Singapore no longer has them (and the last time they did, the Root Beer was served in a paper cup, in a pathetic frikin' foodcourt basement in Funan Center). And as especially hilarious was gulping down these cold ones (no, only one was mine ;p), was that I had "missed" my flight back to Singapore, and stayed in Jakarta for another day! I know I shouldn't be laughing about this matter, but otherwise I would not have had a chance to partake of this Root Beer! (Yes, I had seconds, and I had the waffle with ice cream too). A long-time delectable dream made real due to abject circumstances - C'est la vie, my friends, C'est la vie :)
#08 STROKE
On an afternoon, late-noonish October 18th, I contracted Stroke. I did not know it was Stroke at that time, and the next few hours in intensive care of Changi Hospital, was an absolute blur. I woke up having sponge-baths, peeing uncontrollably in my pants (but never did wear adult diapers), and even harder to utter a complete coherent sentence. Essentially through it all, it was a month of living humbly and being grateful to be alive. I was to spend yet another month subsequently at St. Andrew's Community Hospital across the road, but not before regaining my speech, and slight ability to move my stiff arm and leg (I stroked on the right side of my body - a "mild" stroke most folks say to my face), and had my long locks shaven off! After 4+ years of keeping it long, I decided to shave it all away, and went with a total crewcut look. It was the right thing to do. It was the healthy thing to do. It was also the thing to do so the nurses no longer had to braid my hair at night. Yes, they braided my hair LOL
Inexplicably life-changing, no doubt. But I am still in rehabilitation and continue to conquer the effects of this malady, a day at a time, a step at a time.
#09 SURVIVING STGCC
The Singapore Toy Games and Comic Convention in December meant a few things to me, in this list. (A) It was a chance to me to test my "outdoors-chops" by attending. Mind you, I did not get permission to attend the event from the hospital. For all the folks at the hospital knew, I had applied for "Home Leave" over the weekend (where sane folks of clear minds can actually apply to go home and rest, intend of sleeping in the hospital bed) and home was my one and only destination. But I had other plans, as I knew there would be (B) numerous friends at the event I would be able to meet. (C) It was close to my last days at the hospital, and frankly I was dying to go out, but I had wanted to test my own resolve and abilities, and the Saturday-trip to STGCC proved to be that test.
Needless to say it was an awesome day that double my planned time outside, and I arrived home with the bedroom spinning around me as I slumbered. It was a great day meeting friends, and even humbler day to find folks taking the trouble to say *Hi* to me. And to think I nearly did not get to go to the event…
Shown above is a snap of Eric, Pamela, Win and Joshua at STGCC (with me hamming it up in wheelchair lol). These folks also took the trouble to visit me at the hospital before the event started. Awesum Cool folks, indeed.
#10 XMAS-EVE
Not long after my STGCC breakout … ere… I meant "sojourn", I had felt "ready" to leave St. Andrews (hell, I was dying to leave the monotony) - which I did, right on the afternoon of Christmas Eve, December 24th. We actually went out to have Xmas-Eve Dinner at one of the local hotel (which was famous for porridge, imagine that) that night - where I attempted to walk around with my 4-Legged-Walker (the place was recced in advance for number of steps to take from car to restaurant, actually). It was a harrowing journey, but nevertheless satisfactory as I had my family around me. Snap above taken of The Heng Family at the hotel lobby, before leaving.
It is also one of the few times I remove my eye-patch for a snap (I have double-vision due to the Stroke, and most times wear an eye-patch to focus on one eye, like right now as I am typing this). This time I am outside the comfort-zone and care of the hospital.This time it was real. But this time I was out and with my family, and maybe that matters more than anything else, for the end of 2010.
WHAT TO LOOK FORWARD TO IN 2011
THis sole image was snapped to be used in a particular situation whereby I'd actually missed out on in 2009/10. Slated to be released in Spring 2011 is a situation I had not dreamt to be possible, to be part of something I had instead been a huge part of my life, back in the 90's. I am not trying to be coy with this, but once I have the actual product to show, is the day I will be able to share with you guys what it is, cool? Some of you might guess what it's for. And even some of you might not even give two hoots about it. But it means loads to me, and the one sole "tangible" thing I was looking forward to, when I left the hospital! LOL ~ yes, I live amidst geek-clouds most days :)
Of course there were many more memories to relish, folks and good friends from overseas, folks to love (and be unrequited), seeing my blog in print, dropping happening toys, folks who take care of me - incidents and the people I encounter, that made 2011 a full enriching year. I thank you all for your kindness and constant support.
Throughout the year, I had come to realize, all plans and intentions are good and well, but once the winds of change blow at you, everything else becomes an unspoken excuse, a news-nugget around the water-cooler, a unrelentless sob story no one wants to listen to, or read about forever. Do what you can, when you can. Live life the way you want to NOW, and never whisper "should-have-beens". If ever there was a resolution to 2011, that would be mine (post-Stroke, of course), but I realize I do not believe in resolutions - just need have desire to live my life the way I want to hope to wish to will to.
Cheers
Andy
