I’m open to any opportunity that comes along. I got scriptwriter jobs when I was a drama student at Chulalongkorn University, that’s how I ended up in entertainment.

I love everything about being a scriptwriter. But the workload is so huge and it was really low paid back then, so I had to quit. I took up acting and hosted game shows like Ma Tam Nad that ran for 11 years before it was taken off-air in 1995.

There are no real game shows on Thai TV these days. It’s all variety and comedy. Ma Tam Nad is a game show, pure and simple. I’m glad we’ve brought it back. The production team is the same as 20 years ago!

Don’t compare our entertainment industry with Hollywood. Their high-cost productions can be sold all over the world, while ours are limited to Thailand or neighboring countries. Do you think we could sell Baan Sai Thong [a famous Thai remake] to the world? Hell, no.

We’re too preoccupied with Thai culture. Thai entertainment can’t grow to an internationally accepted level, like Korea or Hollywood, because our censorship is really picky about details like cigarettes, booze and boobs. Their restrictions limit our creativity.

I started Pizza & Pizza by Yanee because my ex-husband [Sergio Armenio] is an Italian chef. What could be more perfect than opening a pizza place?

Fine dining is exhausting work, as I found out when we were partners in Scoozi. But running a gourmet fast-food restaurant means we don’t have to be open late into the night.

Having critical customers is better than having none. At least they help us know what we need to fix.

Good intentions can easily be mistaken for butting into someone’s business. When you try to be nice to someone, remember that they may not see it the same way. That’s why I only say what I really think to my close friends.

Every problem has a solution. I’ve endured lawsuits and a divorce, but everyone is born with problems; you just need to learn how to deal with them.

Approach your problems like you’re watching a boxing match. You will know how to fight once you take a step back and see the whole picture.

Don’t be negligent in your relationships. I was shocked when my ex-husband told me that he wanted a divorce. But then I realized that we were both neglectful in our marriage.

Don’t waste your life on someone who doesn’t want to be with you. You were born alone, you don’t need someone to die with.

Sometimes it’s better to hold onto the good memories rather than keep fighting. I maintain a relationship with my ex because, no matter how much we fight, he’s the father of my son. What’s the point in hurting one another’s feelings?

I love to touch. Sometimes you don’t need words; a pat on the back is enough.

There is no fixed formula for married life. It’s all about the chemistry between two people. 

I follow a strict diet. I eat only boiled vegetables and seafood. I could eat cauliflower and mackerel all day!

I’m addicted to music. I listen to it when I wake up, take a shower and get dressed. I take my iPod everywhere.

I hate techno. It’s not music. It reminds me of a theme park. I lean more towards jazz or blues. It makes me happy. 

Thais love to play the blame game. It’s in-built. When a kid bumps into a table and cries, the parents will question why the table is there. This is insane. You should tell the child to be more careful!

Teaching kids through actions is far better than through words. For example, I would always put away my shoes using my hands, not my feet. One day, my son, at the age of two, started following my lead.

We should foster people to say sorry. These days it’s rare to see Thais apologizing for their actions. To comfort someone they’ve wronged, they just give them gifts or money. It’s not right. We should say sorry so that we can be forgiven.

People should be valued by their virtue, not their degree or their status.

I don’t agree with the policy of increasing the salary for grad student to B15,000. Some of them barely have the skills of a high school student. We should value people for their abilities. My maid only finished sixth grade but she can do all sorts of things for me!

Forge your own future. I’ve always done my own thing and I encourage my son to do the same. I tell him to decide on things like what he wants to study. He must determine that, not me.

I’m a pessimist, or so my ex would say. I would explain that it’s better to expect the worst because then when something good happens, it’s a blessing.

What are the best and worst things about being on tour?
There is no worst thing about touring. I like touring a lot because I can meet our fans directly and taste delicious local foods.

How do you prepare for a show before hitting the stage?
We do stretches; I don’t listen to music before shows.

From your experience, are there any differences between audiences in the West and Asia?
There is no difference. Music has no frontiers. It’s a universal thing, but it depends on the city. For example, audiences in our hometown Osaka are more cheerful while in Tokyo people are more polite.

Shonen Knife have been around for over 30 years; where do you see yourself in another 30 years?
If I’m alive, I’d like to keep on rocking as long as I can.

How has your sound changed over that 30 years?
Early Shonen Knife is more primitive. Present Shonen Knife is more powerful, more pop and has a thicker sound.

To mark your 30th anniversary, you released Osaka Ramones comprised solely of covers of The Ramones; what other bands would you like to pay similar tribute to?
Judas Priest, KISS, The Beatles and Buzzcocks.

What’s the music scene like in Osaka right now?
There are many interesting, very underground bands in Osaka but there is no strong sense of scene there. The disposition of Osaka people is too individualistic.

The clothing style for Shonen Knife has always been coordinated very carefully. How do you decide on the outfits?
My younger sister Atsuko, an original member of Shonen Knife, designs our stage costumes. She likes 1960s and 1970s fashion like Pierre Cardin, Mary Quant, Yves Saint Laurent and so on.

A lot of musicians like to show that they’re serious about everything; have you ever considered singing about more political topics?
I sometimes write songs about social problems, like “Economic Crisis” from our album Free Time (2010), but my opinion is that music should be a happy thing and I want people to be happy through our music. Even if I write about slightly serious things, I add some sense of joking. “Economic Crisis” became a fun hard rock song.

What are your expectations for your gig here in Bangkok?
I expect that our audience will get happy with our music. Let’s ROCK! I can’t wait to go to Thailand and see you there!

How did you become a wedding photographer?
I started working as a freelance photographer in Thailand, then I met Nuj Navakate, a New York-based Thai designer, who hired me to shoot for her look book. She liked my work and advised me to go abroad to advance my skills. But I didn’t have the money. I started doing all sorts of odd jobs, from graphic design projects to handing out leaflets in public. I managed to save about B1.2 million in a year and a half and packed my bags to study a photography course at the London College of Communication for a year before I landed a job with Julie Kim, a leading wedding photographer in London.

What struggles have you faced?
My first struggle came from my mom, who initially disagreed with my decision. When I arrived in the UK I faced discrimination due to being Asian. One guy even told me that, “Photographer is a job for people from civilized countries.” While hearing this hurt, I must thank him. It spurred me on to be a success. I did almost give up after having no jobs for eight months. I had only £9 left in my account. I cried but my girlfriend told me to fight for at least one more month, and then Julie contacted me. It was the best moment of my life.

How’s your situation now?
Much better. I charge about £1,500 (B70,000) per wedding either in the UK or Thailand. I also have various fashion and commercial projects, such as work for Harrods’ salon brand Touché’s 2012-2013 collection and HUF Magazine which is published in the US, UK and Canada.

What’s your one guiding principle for taking wedding photos?
Imperfect is perfect. The pictures don’t have to be neat to be beautiful. I want my shots to tell a story of their big day. I have grown to love listening to heartfelt speeches about how these people found love. It always makes me cry.

Have you ever encountered any wedding disasters?
Yes, there was one wedding where the bishop kicked me out of the church! It was a tight schedule so I didn’t have the chance to introduce myself to the bishop. At one point, he asked me over the loud speaker to leave. I was shocked and hid behind a bench at the back where I continued to take photos. The bishop later found out that I was the official photographer for the wedding. He thought I was just some tourist.

What are your dreams for the future?
I’ve grown to realize that being regarded as a world-class photographer is not the most important thing any more. I’m happier to keep challenging myself rather than compete with others. I want to branch out further into fashion photography and create more and more fascinating works.

The street is… full of stories.

Banksy is… a pioneer.

The Queen is… an icon.

Street art is… for everyone.

Art galleries are… cool places to visit.

Contemporary art is… evolving and exciting.

Life is… for exploring.

We Like Static is on through November 22 at Collectors Contemporary.

Directing or performing, which do you prefer? 
I love them both! Is that a cop-out? Performing is how it all began but directing allows me to create and I just thoroughly enjoy that, especially when it comes to directing something that is close to my heart.

What’s different about this year’s Crazy Christmas show?
We have newbies—Adrian Pang and Judee Tan!  They’re like only the two funniest people on the planet! Every year, we just keep dreaming it up bigger and bigger. Bigger band, bigger sets, bigger laughs and we now even have eight beautiful ladies dancing up a storm with us. We call them the Merry Miss'el Toes or the Merry Miss a Toe. It trips me up!

What’s the most challenging thing about putting together the show?
It’s trying to get the flow right. Well, that and to get the right spirit without alienating anyone.

Is Christmas your favorite time of year?
Yes it is! Growing up, I loved going to midnight mass and then running back to my aunt’s place (she always had the best tree) and opening presents. Nowadays, the roles are reversed and I’m the auntie who gets to give the presents. Christmas is the best time to remember to slow down and share the love.

What’s the wackiest present you’ve ever received? 
Last year, Robin Goh came up with a brilliant idea to play Secret Santa amongst the cast and one of my presents was KFC. Yum!

Crazy Christmas 2012 is on November 28-December 9 at the Esplanade Theatre.

Keeping in mind the Singapore weather, what are the typical mistakes we make with our skin?
The typical Singapore weather is similar to that of a New York summer, which we're very familiar with. I think the common mistake is that people tend to use overly harsh cleansers on their face to compensate for the heat and humidity. By doing so, they strip their skin and actually force it to produce more oil. Use a gentle but thorough facial cleanser like our Grapefruit Cleanser, followed by our oil-free Vitamin Face Moisturizer, and your skin will never look better. 

Any plans for a MALIN+GOETZ spa in Singapore?
We would love to open a Malin+Goetz shop in Singapore. We are not a spa business; we create and manufacture a great line of skincare, body care, haircare and candles. We are happy to leave the spa business to experts like Strip and Browhaus. But we know that we could not manage this on our own from New York; so having a local partner would be imperative.  

What are some of your favorite places to visit in Singapore?
It's our second time here, and while we're always faced with a rather heavy workload, we always make time for some good fun. We absolutely adore going to the hawker center—that's a total blast for us. Chinatown and Little India are equally great experiences. Some of the other places we hit on our off hours are the Tippling Club, where we've had an incredible 10-course meal, as well as Open Door Policy, which has a super brunch. 

What’s on the cards for MALIN+GOETZ in Asia, in the next five years?
Both Matthew and I personally love traveling to Asia and look forward to developing business throughout Asia.  We have a really amazing business in Singapore and would love to one day have a Malin+Goetz Shop there some day.  Our business in Taiwan and Manila are also very strong. We need to further develop Hong Kong, Tokyo and Seoul.  Bangkok is also of interest to us.  As a small independent niche brand, I don't think we are ready for Mainland China just yet, but hopefully in the near future.

How would you desribe the MALIN+GOETZ brand if it was a friend?
Malin+Goetz is a true, honest really supportive friend. Always there to help you solve a problem.

MALIN+GOETZ products are available at all Strip and Browhaus outlets, as well as at Beauty Emporium.

What was the aim of the fair?
We wanted to be able to offer space to up and coming designers as well as offer free space for charities. We started off with 16 vendors. Today we have an average of 65 vendors and seven charities. The charities participate free of charge.

What was the most challenging part of getting this started up?

As with all startups, the biggest challenge was to get independent businesses to participate. Today we have an extensive waiting list.

What’s special about this fair?

It is carefully curated and provides strong support to charities. We also wish to encourage an independent business community in which everybody is involved in networking with one another. Chin Hui Wen

Boutiques at House on Dempsey is on November 19-20, 10pm.

As a resident of Brooklyn, were you affected much by Hurricane Sandy? A couple of media reports suggested that a recording studio you had been working at was destroyed?
Yeah, that's right! The recording studio we were working in got completely flooded. We had two days off in-between recording and it just so happened that [Hurricane] Sandy hit right on those days. The studio got destroyed; it was completely flooded. Luckily, the guy who ran the studio had backed up our session, like, two hours before it flooded. We almost lost everything and by that point we had already mixed the majority of the album.

How long is the recording process? How long does it take you to produce an album?
Well, we were in the studio for, like, 16 days but I had already recorded the entire album at home—the same way I had recorded everything else. I was happy to release it the way it was but I thought why not go into a studio, it would be cooler.

Did you enlist a hot-shot producer for the forthcoming album?
Yeah, we got this guy called Ben Greenberg. He's produced a lot of punk records and he plays in a band called The Men. I knew that he would do a good job because I'm really careful about that. I don't really trust anyone with my music but he had a really raw approach that I could respect. I think he did an awesome job.

So when did it all begin for you, when did you start making music?
I was eight or nine. My parents are musicians so there were always instruments around the house. The first song I ever played was on bass. It was some Beck song, something from Mellow Gold.

You've previously said that Beach Fossils was your first attempt at making pop music. Do you find it easier to work within a three minute pop structure?
Definitely! I think the shorter the song, the better. If you can fit everything you want to say, everything that you feel in under three minutes, that's pretty good. That's the aim. I really like how everything is so compressed. But hey, tell that to Coltrane…

So, I take it you'll be showcasing some new songs at your concert. Will they stand out from your existing material?
Well, our sound has matured a lot. It's come more into its own sound and it's more energetic and I think that it has developed its own personality. But mostly it's more fun to play and that's something you'd be able to tell that just by seeing us.

Nostalgia is a word often associated with your music; does this bother you? Why do you think this is so?
Sometimes I got frustrated by it just because people said it so much but it's also kind of true. I mean a huge inspiration for the album was thinking about how it felt to be a kid in my parents' back yard and it's summer-time and it's hot... and it's gross. There's just this feeling that you can't explain that you want to capture in a song. Maybe I got frustrated with everyone calling it nostalgic because it's true and I don't like them to know that. Dominic Hanratty and Chanun Poomsawai

I grew up in Emerald Hill, which was somewhat isolated.  Most of my time was spent at Oberon, a big house that was ruled over by my grandma, the matriarch of my extended family.  

My mother was an actress, who especially loved Shakespeare. She studied at London’s Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Because of that, I got very interested in stagecraft and production work.

I also started writing at a very early age. Before I could actually write, I was dictating the stories to my mum and she would write them down. 

Both sides of the family were the “enlightened” Straits Chinese who had moved away from the old Peranakan language and dress, and were English educated. The women went to university and were “liberated” from the confined roles of traditional Peranakan women. 

I was not brought up to speak the Peranakan dialect or cook the cuisine. I never saw any ladies sewing beaded shoes or patchwork quilts either.

I wanted to be a doctor, pilot or writer growing up—a pilot because I read a lot of boys’ books about aerial battles and a doctor because many members of my family were doctors. 

I didn’t make it as a doctor, but I still do some alternative healing stuff where I can help people with headaches. 

Inventiveness and creativity turn me on.

It was most enjoyable to have Oberon (the old mansion that I lived in) recreated for the exhibition Emily of Emerald Hill: Singaporean Identity on Stage at the Peranakan Museum. The curators sent their workmen to detach the antique bowl lamps from Oberon that were hanging in my current home. They also provided substitute lamps so I wouldn’t be in the dark when I was there.

I go to Mass on Sundays, meditate on Wednesdays, exercise a couple of evenings a week, but otherwise mostly work, play, and do what I like.

I collect books, mostly pulp fiction, but I try to clear out the shelves these days. I don’t want to collect a lot of stuff that my  heirs would have to sort out and throw away in the future. In fact, I try not to accumulate plastic bags and things like that.

Books inspire me, as well as local scenery or settings that are spacious and wide, like the new Bishan or Kallang Park. They give me the feeling that even in crowded Singapore, we can have space for our souls to breathe.

I treat myself for a writing weekend retreat from time to time. I will either check into a hotel or go to somewhere in Malaysia so that I can “quarantine” myself for a few days. If I have a big writing project on, that’s what I would do. 

Mindless racist vituperation makes me sick in the stomach.

There’s not enough money to live on from writing, so I must be doing it out of love.

At the end of it all, you try to live with love in the heart. After all you don’t want the last words to be “‘Basket’! That fellow didn’t pay me….

Since the old KTM railway line was handed back to Singapore last year, the sliver of land that cuts across the island from Tanjong Pagar to Woodlands has become a popular place for weekend walkers; and some more intrepid bikers and runners. It’s peaceful, it’s better for your knees than running on the roads and, come January 27 of next year, 10km of it will play host to the first ever Green Corridor Run. We spoke to organizer Ben Williams about what’s in store.

What’s different about the Run?
The course is very unique. It is beautiful, green and of ecological and historical significance to Singapore. It is incredible to think that in a city as large as Singapore, it is still possible to run along a 10.5km stretch of greenery that is uninterrupted by roads. By running in the GCR, participants are showing their support to keep this area as natural as possible for future generations to come.

Why now (or rather, why January)?
We wanted the Green Corridor Run to be early on the running season calendar for 2013. Getting fit will be high on many people’s New Year resolutions list and so this event will be a great place to start on that. It is also just before CNY, so people can enjoy their CNY celebrations without having to worry about an upcoming race. Also, a 10.5km trail run is the perfect distance to warm up the legs for some of the longer races that occur in the following months.

Anything people need to watch out for when they’re running?
The course itself is a mixture of trail, grass, gravel and clay, so runners need to be more alert than when running in a road race. Many people enjoy running on a trail because the variety distracts them from getting tired. Other things to watch out for are the many interesting bird and plant species that surround the course, particularly towards the finish. Also, the historical rail stations at Tanjong Pagar and Bukit Timah are an interesting glimpse into Singapore’s past.

How are people going to overtake when it’s mostly singletrack?
The course varies in width at different stages, but the race will have multiple starting waves to reduce the amount of people on the track at any given time.

If you had to guess, what do you think the winning time will be?
Every course is different, but there are many excellent runners in Singapore, so I would expect the winning time to be very competitive indeed. It will be really interesting to see what the winning time is in this inaugural year and will set the mark for future years.

Any plans for a run along the entire length of the Corridor?
Yes, the full length of the rail corridor from Tanjong Pagar to Woodlands is a half marathon distance. We are considering extending the course to the full distance in the years to come and it is quite an exciting prospect to think that you could run the entire length of the island in one half marathon. n

Registration for the Green Corridor Run is open now. Sign up before the end of November and it’s $48; from December 1 onward it’s $55. Find out more at their official website.