turn left, turn right



after getting used to gigi leung's somewhat strange-sounding, slightly cantonese-accented chinese, and then takeshi kaneshiro's never-before-seen boyish smile, i actually found myself really liking the show "Turn Left Turn Right", when i was through watching it this afternoon..

based on the wonderfully-illustrated story book "A Chance of Sunshine" by taiwanese cartoonist Jimmy Liao, it proved to be more than just the soppy love story i thought it was going to be (soppy, yes - the woman behind us couldn't stop rustling her packet of Kleenex throughout the show, amidst her hushed sniffles..), the movie indulged us with some of the usual feel-good predictability, a bunch of cleverly added-in subplots, pleasing and arty cinematography throughout, a plot that moved along well from start to end, good chemistry between the leads and much much more..

and as with all fairy tales, it had a fairy tale start, a fairy tale middle, and a fairy tale ending that left us all feeling warm and fuzzy on the inside.. :)

i guess it helps that i am a 100% fan of Jimmy Liao.. hee hee.. i have five of his books! Sometimes, after finding myself becoming increasingly distant from the Chinese language for lack of formal usage (i.e. for academic or business), it sure is nice to have that really strong desire to read literature written in the language again. this is something that only a wonderful Chinese book like Jimmy's can achieve for me..

go pick it up from Kinokuniya book store soon! and go watch the show of course! :)

my first photostitch project

never one adept at the girlie craft of cross-stitch, i have nonetheless discovered the joys of one of the niftiest functions of all canon digital cameras ..

the panoramic photostitch!



click to see my first ever digital panoramic pic in detail..

watch out for more to come... :)

Canon G2



i've finally joined the big and growing Canon family after accidentally killing my faithful little Olympus exactly a week ago .. picked up a real cool bargain - a brand new Canon G2 (discontinued model) for $699 at Safe Superstore Jurong Point yesterday!

nice uncle on duty was really happy to sell it to me 'cos it was the last piece.

he didn't know how much happier i probably was than him! :)

what a sweet deal..

LEARN CHINESE IN 5 MINUTES...... (READ THEM OUT LOUD)

> > That's not right. Sum Ting Wong
> >
> > Are you harboring a fugitive? Hu Yu Hai Ding?
> >
> > See me ASAP. Kum Hia Nao
> >
> > Stupid Man. Dum Gai
> >
> > Small Horse. Tai Ni Po Ni
> >
> > Did you go to the beach? Wai Yu So Tan?
> >
> > I bumped into a coffee table. Ai Bang Mai Ni
> >
> > I think you need a face lift. Chin Tu Fat
> >
> > It's very dark in here. Wai So Dim?
> >
> > I thought you were on a diet. Wai Yu Mun Ching?
> >
> > This is a tow away zone. No Pah King
> >
> > Our meeting is scheduled for next week. Wai Yu Kum Nao?
> >
> > Staying out of sight. Lei Ying Lo
> >
> > He's cleaning his automobile. Wa Shing Ka
> >
> > Your body odor is offensive. Yu Stin Ki Pu

weird analogies

i've finally found someone with a greater penchant than me for analogies.. and really weird ones too.. :p

this morning, we heard a speech by an ex-Vice Principal of the school i am currently attached to for my one week "School Experience" (where we are supposed to get a feel of "reality" by observing real teachers in action and real students in "inaction"..) i shall avoid naming the school for fear of accidental offense .... i mean, you never know, right? besides, it's irrelevant to the story..

anyway, in a short speech of no more than half an hour, the straight-faced but very funny ex-VP told the students how they should not be one of the following 4 "things":

(a) a cabbage: a cabbage just sits there, in total inactivity, just like students who do not like to participate in physical activities and sports. These students start to "get wide at the equator and narrow at the poles". they have an absence of what we call the "waistline".. He said, matter-of-factly: "Girls, these are not people anymore. They are cabbages." we burst into fits of laughter.. the best part is, he didn't even blink when he said that!

(b) a sponge: another inactive creature, except this was more in the "mental" sense. sponges sit there, not contributing to the class. they just "suck and suck everything the teacher says" and then, when exams come about, they "just squeeze everything out".. - basically, these students are "brainless"..

(c) a coral: according to him, this type of student is even worse.. corals sit there, doing absolutely nothing. they do not even absorb. just sit there, pretty. one fine day, the "dynamite will come along and just blow them apart".. :O durrhhhh???? i think a lot of us sat there, pondering on what he was talking about.. and decided in the end it was just really funny..

(d) a jellyfish: but the worst of all?? jellyfishes are students who just float around lost and in their own existences, until they meet someone else along the way, like teachers and other students, and irritate them. they otherwise do nothing else.. their entire existence is to go around "irritating other people"..

hahahahaha...

that's one thing i've learnt about teachers.. a lot of them have the ability to make the most amazingly sharp and witty but non-sacarstic jokes about their students.. hahaha..

light cycle

I think this Light Cycle fireworks performance by artist Cai Guo Qiang in Central Park NY is pretty amazing...

there is even a corresponding visual arts exhibition of his drawaings using gunpowder..

reading English

Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at an Elingsh uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in what oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht the frist and the lsat ltteer is at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a toatl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae we do not raed ervey lteter by itslef but the wrod as a wlohe.

perety azamnnig, eh?

lifestyle changes

my recent bout of health misfortunes have made me seriously rethink my lifestyle... from the moment i wake, to how i go through my day, to what i eat, to how i sleep at night..

all these years, i've always thought myself fit and healthy, able to run, swim, walk and cycle for miles if i wanted to. Despite my less-than-totally-healthy living habits (which i have been trying to work on every year as part of my new year's resolutions, from as far back as i can remember..) - e.g. late nights, lack of fluids, overexercising on the weekends and slopping out on weekdays, health was never an issue, albeit the occassional bout of flu or cough..

yet, things appear to have changed..

pardon my dramatic and fatalistic tone, but somehow, these things have been sitting on my mind for the past few days like heavy pieces of lead, burdensome and distressing... maybe 2003 is indeed the year of changes..

at my (not so tender but rather) young age, i am told by my chinese doctor that i can possibly get rheumatism (cos of my ankle injury).. a condition which i've always associated with ah pehs and ah pors, rubbing odorous axe brand medicated oil on their aching joints when it rains.. moreover, my injured ankle ligament will probably put me out of running for another couple of months at least, which means that i will have to switch to another activity to keep myself physically fit. Although it is still too early to think about it now, it seems that even after i have "healed", i may have to be really careful and not overexert it, ever. facing the possibility that i may never be able to try running a marathon (since i cannot imagine not exerting any part of my body in a race like this).. makes the future take on some bleakness which i don't really know how to express..

then i encounter this worrisome eye infection that took me by complete surprise, threatening my lifelong interest in and dedication to photography - especially since the eye that was infected is the only one i've been using to take pictures all this while.. strangely, for some reason, i'm someone who's able to wink with only one of my eyes.. i haven't met anyone else like me.. some defect?? :O

maybe i should turn vegetarian. or take up pilates. or give up eating red meats. or coffee.

life definitely needs changes.

forbidden city: portrait of an empress

here's a postcard i picked up when i was at beijing's forbidden palace in 1997.. this is the real Empress Dowager... she looks pretty benign.. eh?



i remember once about a year back when i was asked in an informal survey: Do you see yourself first and foremost as a Chinese, an Asian, or a Singaporean?

i remember replying, after a slight pause, that i probably saw myself as an Asian, above the other more specific “identities”. Having traveled to quite a few Asian countries these last 6 years, i realised that when i meet other backpacking travelers on the road, I was straightaway recognized as an Asian, first of all. The quick mutual guess of how easily we would be able to “connect” with each other depended on whether they too came from this part of the world, the far East, the “exotic”, mystical Orient. Although some of you may disagree on why I should identify myself based on how I am “seen” vs. who I actually “am” (whatever that means..), yet, this to me was inevitable, as I saw them in the same way, as “Ang Mohs”, Africans, etc. or as "Asians, just like me", if they are Japanese, Koreans, Indians the first time we meet..

nonetheless, midway through watching the stunning singapore repertory theatre musical by Dick Lee yesterday afternoon at the Esplanade, I started thinking hard again. the stunning performance by kit chan and the (not perfect but definitely impressive) cast stirred the crowd with some amazingly written scores and lyrics- as i type this blog entry, the music is playing on my computer –

as 50 years of China’s tumultuous history was condensed into a 2 hour performance with singing, dancing and swinging, i was struck by how little i know about the history of our forefathers – our ah kongs and ah pors who came from the various provinces of China. To a typical third generation singaporean, it was as if our entire history began only after Raffles landed in Singapore, or when we parted from Malaysia 38 years back, or during British colonial rule. Suddenly, it dawned on me how my apathy regarding my ancestral roots has thus far denied me the knowledge of the amazing history and culture of the Chinese which stretches back some 3000 years, far beyond the 38 years we are familiar with.

Knowing the history of the Chinese was fascinating and made me realise every human being on Earth is unique also because of where their ancestors come from, many many years ago. More than being divisionary, i think any educated individual would realise that such diversity gives us all a reason to appreciate each other even more, and hence to want to live in peace, cos that's what makes the world such an amazing place..

go watch the musical soon if you can. it was impressive and worth every cent.

and i think you can easily guess where i shall be planning to go for my next BIG trip.. :)

amazing pictures

ever felt you saw a face (two eyes, a nose, something like a mouth) on a rock or a flower (see here a community photolog "face2face" dedicated to this) or felt that "that hill looks a bit like a woman/man/cat/dog.. sitting/standing/running/whatever.."?

someone sent me this "Amazing Pictures" powerpoint slide show that is truly fascinating.. take a look at it.. it shows bits of the world in a way that we may never have seen before. (there's more than one pic - click on pics, use your scrollbar to scroll or the arrow keys on your keyboard to see all the pics)

i'm not sure if some of the pics have been doctored in Photoshop (see expert "photoshopped" works.. this one is my favourite)... so don't ask me.. :p

mid-autumn greetings

oops! i just passed the mid-autumn festival without greeting everyone.. here it goes..



this year was real quiet everywhere.. mum says it's because everyone's trying to show their respects to the folks who died in the Sept 11 incident.

holga panoramics

my first holga panoramics are up!!

click here!



done with 35mm print film in the Holga 120S as described here

incredible light leaks.... artistic?? :p.. hahaha..

clever time wasters and distractions

This made me laugh.. silly signs - worth a click

if that didn't bug you enough, try this

oh no!!! :O

due to a horrid and most ridiculous error on my part (no, i didn't drop it into the toilet bowl nor out of the window, but it is a bit embarrassing to explain), i just killed my faithful 1.3mpx Olympus Digital Camera!! :,O

i'm not sure if it can still be fixed.. or if it is worth fixing, now that 4.0 to 5 megapixel digital cameras are the norm.. maybe fixing it will cost me hundreds, in which case i am better off just getting a new one.. or maybe the Olympus shop will refuse to repair it so i am forced to buy a new one..

boo hoo!!!

i don't want to buy a new digital camera!! i want my Olympus 1.3!! and they are not selling this model anymore!! :,( although i've had it for more than 2 years (which is "eternity" in computer time), it's been a pleasure to carry around and has never failed me..

to think that the lovely sunrise picture that it took this morning will be the last one that i will ever see... * sniff *....... :(

my heart's broken..

health care

my chinese physician gave me a bleak diagnosis yesterday when i visited him to sort out a troubling ankle pain. because of my recent eye condition, i put off treating the ankle sprain and now it seems that it has gotten a bit more problematic. this guy was excellent (from China) and even managed to diagnose other (more chronic) problems i have, such as with my knee and shin (i had an injury as a kid) - if you ever need a chinese acu-massage guy (touch wood!), get the contact from me...

i've had enough of bleak diagnoses for now.. :( so i'm not going to elaborate here - it seems like my only current option is to work at treating it and letting it rest for as long as possible.. since both running and swimming (cos of my eye) seem out of the question, i was thinking maybe i should take up cycling or something..

anyhow, about my eye, lots of good folks in the health line have given me tons of info recently. turns out that contact lens are really bad (just that docs don't ever say it lest they get sued by contact lens companies). for one, optometrists themselves don't wear it. idea is, we must let our eyes rest at least half the time - though i know many of us, myself included, are used to depending almost exclusively on our lenses...

hard lessons.. fortunately not permanently "damaged".. :) thank God..

it's a brand new day



whenever anyone posts a pic like this, it is likely they stayed up all night to finish their assignments?? :O

:p.. i'm almost done with my essay on teaching english to secondary school kids..

yawn.. haha...

mid-autumn cuteness



click here!

overheard in the background a digital camera-wielding man saying to his wife and children: "Quick quick, all must take one! Otherwise how can worth it??", squeezing his children in front of others standing around the pretty jumbo cloth lanterns from China.

and so, in the midst of the festivities and good cheer, kiasu-ism rears its ugly head, here in the sweet sweet world of love and care and hello kitty sweetness..

panoramic singapore

inspired by singapore master photographer tay kay chin's superb xpan panoramic pics, i went out with my seldom-used 20-35mm tokina lens and shot my first roll of panoramic shots last friday, using the "panorama indicator" function (camera blocks out top and bottom of rectangular viewer with checkered boxes) on my camera and a little bit of imagination..

still a lot to learn but came out better than i expected... hee... discovering new functions on my existing camera is like buying new camera equipment, less the expense! :P

click here!



>> stay tuned for the report of my mid-autumn saccharin "hello kitty" experience @ the chinese garden, which i visited earlier this evening .. will upload pics tomorrow..

nude photography

if you love photography
if you love nudes
if you love natural scenary

you'll love this hardcover coffee table book that's out in Kinokuniya now.. $26 plus.. only available in Singapore at the moment, if i'm not wrong..

Secrets of the Feminine: Sahara, Namib and the Jungle



it features multi-racial (female) amateur nude models in some of the most beautiful desert and jungle scapes in the world, e.g. Sahara, Gobi, Namib.. totally artistic, so don't buy it if you are just into porn.. :O

highly recommended. especially at (what i consider) an incredibly low price!

-------

haha...more book recommendations by hwee ling, a la "The Oprah's Show".. :p

digital foto fad

blogger was down for a large part of today.. and when it was finally up, i couldn't figure out what had happened .. very mysterious indeed..

Was at Comex @ Suntec yesterday and was amazed at the mad squeeze for the latest range of digital cameras, especially around the Canon, Olympus, Nikon and Fuji booths. Every merchant was in the price-slashing-free-gifts-game and the public was in a tizzy.

While I was there to ogle at them as well (the digital cameras, not the people), I realised that many people who were there did not appear to know anything at all about photography, or even digital cameras, judging from the kind of questions they asked. Some even sounded like they were trying to get a Photography 101 Course from the sales staff on duty! :O I’m sure it’s nice to imagine yourself getting into a new hobby and all that, but something tells me this, for most people, is going to be just another fad, like the skate scooter fad we saw just a year or more ago..

Remember the skate scooters? They were everywhere at one point (rolling into the path of unsuspecting pedestrians) and now they are a rarity to see on the streets .. a few friends of mine bought their fancy digital cameras (3.2mpx or more) some time ago and the last I heard, they “hardly ever use it” and “definitely don’t bring it out”.. If the whole point of digital is to “save on film” and “be able to take and take” without restraint, what’s the point of leaving it at home? Being a victim of consumerism myself, I fully understand the temptations of getting into the latest “in thing” – guess that’s what drives our economy anyway..

Anyhow, my baby pic is up at the babypicture fotolog - you can upload your pic there too!

and this lovely, crumpled pic I just found, taken more than two dozen years ago, of my daddy holding me proves (to me at least) that there is still unbeatable charm in prints vs digital.. :)

photography directions

i've been incredibly tempted to upgrade my existing digital camera to either the Canon Powershot G5, the Olympus C5050 or the Nikon Coolpix 5400.. after all, have you heard of anyone still using a 1.3mpx dinosaur?? :O not that i'm rolling in cash or that my digital camera is really that bad (most of the pics on my blog and fotolog were in fact taken with this cam), but i kinda wonder if a good digital cam can perhaps push my photography to a "higher level"..

but the following reasons hold me back:

1. which one??

- the three models compared side by side
- G5 or C5050? G5 is the latest model by Canon, which seems to be the most popular digital camera makers at the moment, while C5050 came out some time ago.. but based on this review, it seems C5050 is sharper..
- only C5050 has underwater casing (for about S$300 - i've seen the quality.. not bad..) - could allow me a quick taste of underwater photography..
- but if i want the funky swivel lcd screen, then must be either the G5 or Coolpix 5400.. once again, a hard choice..
- and there's this new Canon EOS 300D Digital Camera at 6.3mpx!! how much is it?? --> update: rumour has it that it will only cost $1600! but of course i don't have any Canon lenses to start off with.. durrhh..
- or should i wait (until the cows come home) for Minolta to launch a digital SLR so i can use my existing lenses??

2. what about the slr?

- my current slr is really rather decent and has served me incredibly well all these years. i still lack some fundamental lenses (eyeing a 100-400mm tele lens now) and maybe money should be spent on this camera first.. perhaps i should just continue to build up my basic slr equipment since this is the best camera i have and the one giving me my best pictures..
- i want to buy a dedicated flash too..
- and maybe other stuff..
- these things are not cheap.. and, once again, i don't roll in cash..

3. what about the lca?

- my lomo cam is already offering me all the possibilities for "artistic expression" and the so-called "random shooting" that i need to do every now and then.. besides, i guess my existing digital cam can do that too..

4. maybe spend on something else.. more meaningful??

- yes, i do think i already have enough different types of cameras to keep me very occupied, including my two Cheezels pinhole cameras..:p .. besides, i may get confused which camera to bring out or on a holiday.. haha.. oh well, it has happened before.. yes, maybe something else might come up soon that is more worth spending the money on..

the more i think about it, the more i think i shouldn't buy any high-end digital camera for now.. yes, challenge the digital trend and go film!! wahaha...

great! never knew i could use a blog entry to sort out my thoughts.. wow... cool... :) i suddenly feel strangely richer for having saved that $1000+ dollars.. for now at least...

desires... oh well, it's not wrong to have them, right?? :p

"One must not lose desires. They are mighty stimulants to creativeness, to love, and to long life."
- Alexander A. Bogomoletz

NDP 2003 Fireworks

hey, this enjoy-your-own-click fireworks thing is really fun and beautiful!

mid-autumn snack attack



more piglets courtesy of my sister.. filled with lotus paste.. yummy..

seen the lantern display at the Chinese Garden yet?? planning to go down next Monday! :)

school mag pic

this is a pic of my Sec 4 class taken eons back..

mind you, file is rather large - open only if you are on **whoosh** b r o a d b a n d like the rest of us.. :)

haha.. we looked so cute then..

just dug it up recently because of a "once-in-an-astrological-cycle" class reunion.. heh heh.. reminiscence you ask me?? hahaha.. we even forgot a few of the people in the class and couldn't agree on who was who already!! :O getting old getting old..

but someone during the dinner brought up the long-forgotten historical fact that our class once won, among the few "glories", the "Dirtiest Class Award"!!! wahahahah.. our chair(wo)man even went up the stage to receive the award of a nicely ribboned wastepaper basket!!!

hahahaha... the past can be so funny sometimes..

life-changing experiences?

i woke up this morning and scurried to the mirror. Something i've been doing every morning, without fail, for well over the past two weeks since my eye problem started.

i'll wake up, my left eye still sticky from the slab of eyelotion applied onto it the night before, dash towards the full-length mirror that hangs on the wall next to my postcard-covered wardrobe, without my glasses and all, and i will stare. Stare deep into my left eye - fist clenched, hopes high - i'll look at the white of my eye to see how much more or less red it has become, whether more or less blood vessels have started growing towards my eyeball. i'll stare at the white spot on my pupil that has become the source of my worries and fear to see if it has grown larger or smaller. everything else for me that morning will pause as i examine what has happened over the course of the night. and everyday, my eye has looked the same...

but today, this morning, it looked different!

the red has actually gone down! visibly! i am on the road to recovery. i am i am i am! :,)

for the longest time (at least that's how it feels), i have thought about what i would do once i am better and now everything seems possible again.. i am filled with renewed hope and vigour. with unaching eyes i look back at all the things i've learnt and the people i have spoken to these dozen days - the kindness i have received, the unexpected prayers from dear ones, not-so kind remarks from some others.

in some ways, this incident has been life-changing... and for that i am grateful.. i have learnt much and life has been kind to me..

yes, i guess in some ways, i am being rather self-centered now... war, terrorism, cpf cuts and global poverty - do i not care about them?... but just let me revel in the wonders of my recovery for a moment, no?

Are You Too Self-Centered?

someone told me yesterday, rather bluntly, that i was "self-centered"...

that certainly got me disturbed, and reasonably worried too, 'cos i hated to know i was that way and not actually know it, especially if it were true (the secret hidden personality trait that even i didn't know about)..

so i took an online test and got these results:

Ego-in-Check Chick:

You know how to do your fair share of giving and taking, talking and listening. Not one to overextend, you've learned that maintaining sensible boundaries is key when it comes to extending yourself. In the process, you avoid the pressure to put yourself second or third and easily tune into other people's emotions in ways the egomaniac can't. "You were taught early on that your needs were just as important as those of the people around you," says Pearson. As a result, you're a caring, reliable but non-doormat-y friend (and girlfriend). People are attracted to you because they know you won't demand their unflinching attention or be made to feel guilty by your generosity.

ya, that sounds a bit more like me.. my lovely sister was even more encouraging. she came right up behind me a minute ago and told me that she didn't think i was self-centered too and she agreed with the results.. she's sweet.. :)

i dunno, maybe sometimes, i just have to be more careful at dealing with certain people, especially the ones who are more sensitive.. i guess.. and maybe sometimes, what i do and say can appear rather imposing on other people's views and ideas..

ok, must be open.. O P E N!!!

this Hidden Personality Evaluation thing i found along the way was even more fun..

A faith to live by,
a self to live with,
and a purpose to live for.

The tragedy of life is what dies inside a man while he lives.
- A. Schweiter

In the game of life, it's a good idea to have a few early losses,
which relieves you of the pressure of trying to maintain an undefeated season.
- Bill Vaughan

"After a While"

After a while you learn
the subtle difference between
holding a hand and chaining a soul
and you learn
that love doesn't mean leaning
and company doesn't always mean security.
And you begin to learn
that kisses aren't contracts
and presents aren't promises
and you begin to accept your defeats
with your head up and your eyes ahead
with the grace of woman, not the grief of a child
and you learn
to build all your roads on today
because tomorrow's ground is
too uncertain for plans
and futures have a way of falling down
in mid-flight.
After a while you learn
that even sunshine burns
if you get too much
so you plant your own garden
and decorate your own soul
instead of waiting for someone
to bring you flowers.
And you learn that you really can endure
you really are strong
you really do have worth
and you learn
and you learn
with every goodbye, you learn...

© 1971 Veronica A. Shoffstall

speech accents

this speech accent archive site is rather fascinating..

pity they don't have one of a true blue singlish speaker...preferably a "Beng" or an auntie from the wet market..

anyone care to submit your voice sample? i don't think mine is so "native" anymore..

again.. again again...

there are doctors and there are doctors..

my usual (umm..) eye doctor was off today for my fifth hospital visit and i got this pretty multilingual female eye doctor instead. she was really encouraging and told me, with a friendly laugh, that my eye was not going to "blow up"..

now, you must be wondering why i ever thought something so morbid...

yes, because those were the EXACT words used by this other doctor who saw me yesterday!!

with a grim look on her face, this was how our conversation went (verbatim):

Doc: Your eye may "blow up".
Me: Huh? What dur yur mean?? (shocked)
Doc: Perforate. Your eyeball may perforate. If that happens, you can be blind!
Me: What?? (look of disbelief and grief)
Doc: I need to see you again really really soon.
Me: Tomorrow? (grim anguished look - still in denial)
Doc: If you suddenly experience severe pain, just come straight back. Doesn't mattter what time. 2 am, whatever. Go to A&E.
Me: oh... (dumbstruck).. ok...

I was in grief and terror the whole of yesterday. Absolute terror, waiting for my eye to "blow up".

today's diagnosis was more of "it looks good. nothing is happening, which is good..".. phew!!!

and i just realised, while i was walking back just now, that i wasn't being fair to my body in my blog entry yesterday. maybe the bug really is vicious and my body is already doing a great job keeping it from getting any worse.. sorry body.. :| ... and also to the medication. I was wondering out loud to my sister why my eyedrops and eyelotion Ciprofloxacin wasn't working, when a tablet form of it helped me the last time i got sick on my South American trip.

the doctor just told me that Ciprofloxacin appears to be the only drug that was actually doing anything..

:) i'm feeling better today.. my mood at least..

let me share a mid-autumn snack with you.. :)

what it is..

i went for my fouth eye check today and it turns out that while my eye isn't getting worse, it certainly isn't getting better... i cannot understand why my eye isn't responding to the medication.. even the doctors are puzzled, cos at the moment, i'm already on really strong and hourly antibiotic eardrops.. isn't medicine supposed to work?? i've never been in a situation like this when i'm neither getting worse nor getting better.. i'm wondering why my body isn't fighting this - the body i've always trusted to heal me in times of illness... why? why? why?? :(

problem is, i'm starting to feel some random jabbing pains which just get me down every time and the persistent redness isn't helping my morale.. yet, one thing that i've suddenly noticed is, when i'm feeling really really down and (at one point, while messaging a friend) start weeping out of desperation (something which doesn't happen very much - as far as i can remember..), the tears in my eyes actually made it a lot more comfortable..

being the random philosopher that i am, i'm wondering if this is just another one of Life's ways of reminding me of my vulnerability...

another checkup tomorrow morning to see if the new steroids are helping.. umm... i've never been on steroids before.. i hate to see the really long list of warnings associated with its use..

will see.. (no pun intended)

womad 2003

oops.. i realised that my last blog sounded really bleak.. ok, it's really meant to be seen in a positive way, if you know what i mean?

broke the monotony of the stay-home weekend at the very enjoyable and crowded Womad 2003 last night, braving the smoke, haze and midnight downpour to watch the funky fusion Afro Celts, melbourne-based mish-mash musicians The Cat Empire, latino band Los de Abajo, amongst others, attended a drum-dance workshop by the very fun Badenya les Freres Coulibaly from Burkino Faso, and saw the ultra-cool and ultra bo-chap Nitin Sawhney in person at the DJ Club set (wow wow!) There was a visible absence of "yellow-skin" performancers, as usual..

I think Fort Canning still remains one of my all-time favourite outdoor performance places..

sacrificed rollerblading today to rest my assaulted eyes..

pain as my teacher

"I am a student
and suffering is my teacher
I have learnt nothing
until I have suffered."

When Disease Maks Sense

growing fonts

no, your eyes are not playing tricks on you... yes, i've increased the font size of the text on my blog..

long overdued, eh? :p

weekend wonders..

thanks michelle for your kind prayers.. :)

i'm up at my computer again, cos i'm tired of lying back on my bright yellow conduroy beanbag all day, listening to spanish language tapes and thinking about life.. but what to do.. on and off, my eye will feel that sharp jabbing pain that reminds me that i am not ok yet, even though i think it already looks a little better than before.. :( i've been told to avoid dusty places and dusty people but an evil neighbour upstairs has, for some bizarre reason, started dispersing talcum powder out of his/her window and the wind has blown a whole lot of that through my room window - which means that i have to keep it closed.. evil, don't you think?

last night, i had a random dream.. i dreamt that i was about to deliver a speech and had it all scribbled down on this flimsy piece of foolscap. however, just as i was leaving the house, i suddenly couldn't find the piece of paper with my speech on it among the stack of papers i was holding in my hands. i started searching frantically around the house. Suddenly, as i lifted up this stack of papers, a giant snake (about 10 cm in diameter), looking distinctly like a yellow-margined moral eel, with yellow markings on a black body, shot up ala jack-in-the-box and hissed at me ferociously. i ran away in fright and it turned its attention to my mother, who was obliviously reading her Lian He Zhao Bao at the table next to it. i remember screaming to my mother and she screamed as well, waving her papers at the strange looking reptile.

we managed to frighten the snake and it dropped to the ground and slithered along the edge of the wall. i opened the door to let it out and, as it was leaving, it suddenly got stuck and began moulting, leaving a mighty big pile of skin on my floor.

this was the point when i woke up.

wonder what this dream means..

another day @ the hospital



today's diagnosis was better.. thanks everyone for the prayers and regards.. :) hope i'll be ok soon though will have to visit the Eye Clinic again on Monday for a further round of checks.. 4th day of MC.. wow, never been this ill..

sat waiting for almost 2 hours, eavesdropping on other conversations..

in one corner, an ah mah in a dark flowered blouse was telling her two old ah mah friends in Cantonese about her ordeal two years ago. In one particular two month period, she suffered one heart attack that left her hospitalised for three days, a stroke that paralysed her left side, and a fire at home that left her comastose from smoke inhalation. the fire apparently started from a leaky gas pipe that exploded. worse thing is, she happened to have a "couple of thousand dollars" in her handbag at that time and whoever came into the flat after the incident apparently took the money! anyhow, she looks fine now and her friends were visibly impressed.. well, i was pretty impressed too..

in one of the clinics, a medical intern/student (??) was grilled by two doctors for not knowing some complicated processes and medical terms.. they kept asking him question after question and the poor student started looking slightly flustered... i guess it really isn't easy to be a doctor. i mean, so much is expected of them and one cannot even imagine the consequences of a misdiagnosis.. gasp... at one point, they also had trouble deciding what my condition was. got me really worried too. doctors are really expected to know everything.. right..?

two seats behind, a mother was going back and forth educating her son about the importance of taking care of his eyes, and the difference between articles 'a' and 'an' - e.g. an owl, an apple vs a house, a cat.. suddenly, she paused awkwardly and confused after explaining to her son that 'an' is used for nouns starting with a, e, i, o or u and then realising that it is also used before 'hour' ... she was stumped as her son looked on expectantly at her... her solution? "er... ok, 'an' can also mean "one" so "one hour", ok? understand? ok, next word.."... so she glossed over her incompetency skillfully.. haha..

oh well, time to let my eyes rest again.. tata..

humble prayer request

i went to see the specialists at the hospital eye clinic today and i didn't like what i heard... :(

and it was really and horribly uncomfortable to get needles (i hate needles) swiping my eye ball no less than 4 times as they got samples into separate petri dishes for further tests in the lab.

am on hourly eye drops now, and they gave mc again for a third day tomorrow - need to go back to hospital for further examination..

it's hard to stay upbeat now even if i'm normally an optimistic person...

i don't normally ask but.... whoever you are...if you could..

i need some prayer right now... please... ?

:,(

Wash hand - Brush teeth

phew, turns out there is no reason to panic yet..

found this informative health brochure yesterday at the A&E dept on "How To Wash Your Hands" and thought i'll share it with everyone..

i'm not a hypochondriac, but i do believe that some of our daily habits are putting ourselves at risk of contracting unnecessary illnesses - which can cause our lives to come to a standstill - like my eye in this instance, which has definitely put me off running in this weekend's Nike Real Run, or worse still, to put us out completely and permanently..

as Dr. Chérie Carter-Scott writes in "If Life Is a Game, These Are the Rules: Ten Rules for Being Human",

The body you are given will be yours for the duration of your time here. Love it or hate it, accept it or reject it, it is the only one you will receive in this lifetime. It will be with you from the moment you draw your first breath to the last beat of your heart. Since there is a no-refund, no-exchange policy on this body of yours, it is essential that you learn to transform your body from a mere vessel into a beloved partner and lifelong ally, as the relationship between you and your body is the most fundamental and important relationship of your lifetime (see it here)

it's about respect and i'm beginning to learn more about it..

Mars farce

just went out to see if i could see Mars, like every one else, as the world gazes at Mars.. but i see nothing! just clouds and a smattering of stars...

maybe it is really true that "cloudy weather in parts of the Asia-Pacific zone, where night falls first, prevented many from witnessing the spectacle" as the article says..

oh dear, does this mean i have to wait another 284 years???

it's not fair!!

related news: Soothsayers See Doom, Gloom in Closeness of Mars.. bleak.. very bleak.. anyone knows what the Feng Shui masters say to this?? :p

an eyeful update

truth is, my eye infection hasn't gotten better... in fact, it has gotten worse and i no longer have the heart to put up new pics of it on my blog lest i scare off my dear & ever loyal blog readers..

so i was referred to the A&E just now to get it checked - my GP is now pretty sure it's viral infection, rather than mere bacterial infection (cos if it was, it should have gone away by now..) and didn't have the medication to fix that.

as usual, the A&E wait is long...



and it turns out, SARS precautions at hospitals are back in place...



i was informed by this roving nurse that new SARS cases have just been identified in Hong Kong and China.. . darn...

i really hope to get my eye fixed soon. above all, it's because it happens to be what i call my "photography eye" - the eye i usually use to look through my camera.. :,( once i get this eye fixed, i'm definitely going to work on my photography ... times likes these really make me realise how important my eyes are to me in the pursuit of my dreams..

i guess crises tend to make people rethink their paradigms in life....

inquiry about geylang district

i was clearing my email box today and found this email sent to me last year.. i think this chap got my email through my Insider's Checklist Guide to Singapore)

To: hwee@asia.com
Cc:
Subject: inquiryabout geylang district
Date: Sun, 8 Dec 2002 20:54:31 -0800 (PST)

sir,

Im a traveller and i visited many parts of the world. Im originally from San Diego, California and i would want to spend x-mas in Singapore with some of my friends. a friend of mine who got there told me that clubs in singapore are really wild and crazy and the people there are nice and friendly. Aside from being a clubber, i have a thing for asian girls preferably japanese and filipino women, just merely thinking of them really drives me nuts. However, the present situation in the philippines(social, economic, etc) is the only thing that bothers me and made me change my mind in visiting their country. But i reallly want a filipino girl. Tommy, my english friend advised me that there are lots of filipino women in singapore but they work there as domestic helpers only, i told tommy that i want a foxy filipino not a nanny who scrubs the floor and clean houses everyday. Now, im seeking your help about this little dillema of mine regarding filipinos. Do you kno! w any filipino girl who is outgoing, adventurous, promiscuous, pretty, definitely not a maid, who is willing to go out with me during the holidays when i get there a week from now? Or if you're busy ( I assume you are) can you direct me to a place/ district where there are filipino girls i can choose from and go out with, you know paid girls or prostitute japanese and filipinos. Anyways, i'll be going now i just hope that you could help me with my inquiry and i'll be more than grateful should i hear from you this week. Thanks man!!

Don Andrews

hahahaha... yes, just in case you were wondering.. no, i didn't reply... and i'm surprised i am such a karang-guni to have kept this email in my mailbox for so long.. no wonder it is overflowing.. :p

Friendster

Lynn introduced me to Friendster over the weekend. It's the second time i've been invited by anyone, though i didn't give it much of a thought earlier, dismissing it as just another gimmicky fad..

Looking at it more carefully now, it does seem like it is actually a pretty good idea - a giant social-network helping users find dates and new friends by referring people to friends, or friends of friends, or friends of friends of friends, and so on... i guess it could technically go on forever! eventually, we are all linked up, even if only ultra-superficially.. the idea is, you can easily find someone who shares a similar interest and send them a message, and then hopefully end up knowing each other better. it's a way of linking up with long-lost friends as well.. the possibilities of this medium have yet to be fully exploited..

it has even spun off the new jargon: A friendster is not exactly a friend, but rather an online acquaintance about whom a lot is known, thanks to the degree of disclosure in their social resume, which, of course, may or may not be true.

it's an inevitable consequence of the growing web culture, no doubt..

i'm still a bit of a sceptic honestly, although i am someone who believes in the power of connecting with people..

reason is: although i'm technically linked up with some 860 people now (much less than the 250,000 acquaintances most people have, and one of the guys on my network looks suspiciously like a black NBA player.. :O) , only 3 are really my direct friends (cos i haven't sent out any invites other than a test one - so don't cry if you haven't received an invite from me.. i tend to procrastinate on stuff like this).. if you ask me how likely i am to contact the rest? umm... don't know... not likely i think.. especially since even the Giant Squid has got friendsters.. umm... actually, i wouldn't mind being the Giant Squid's friendster... haha... :p

nonetheless, check out Friendster's phenomenon growth

anyone wants to be my friendster? :p

Yuksam

yippee!! :D



just got a phone call a minute ago from guy from NIE-YEP team - i've been selected to join an expedition project team to go up to Yuksam area of Sikkim (India) end of this year to help out in a community project!

Project Details:

Project Yuksam: The small village of Yuksam, Sikkim is the base where treks up the famous majestic Kanchenjunga begins. The Kanchenjunga Conservation Committee (KCC) is set up to look into ways to conserve this beautiful mountain and make sure that responsibilities, sustainable ecotourism is carried out.

Our project aims to work with KCC in the following way:

1) Public education and exchanges: We are exploring into possibilities of educational exchanges in the areas of sanitation, waste management and natural conservation.

2) KCC: We would like to help the committee come up with a more informative and comprehensive website in which it serves to act as a one-stop trekking service where trekking services e.g. hiring of guides, transportation, trekking packages can be obtained. Possibilities of aiding them in the setting up a Visitors' Centre is being looked into

3) Logistic support: We are looking to provide them with technological support the likes of cameras, computers etc to aid them in the documentation of plant life.

4) Traning and educational exchanges: Exchanges aimed at equipping local guides with more skills, e.g. First Aid and Risk Assessment Management (RAM) skills so that they can provide top quality and safe guide services.

Join us if you want to help the locals in Yuksam in their efforts to preserve the natural beauty of Kanchenjunga and in turn make ecotourism a livelihood they can depend on.

haha..

got a bunch of these via email..

> BOY : May I hold your hand?
> GIRL : No thanks, it isn't heavy.
>
> GIRL : Say you love me! Say you love me!
> BOY : You love me...

some more here..

i've also uploaded a food cholesterol content chart and a nutritional function of fruit and vegetable juices chart..

Shiok!



Check out this new coffee-table style cookbook by Terry Tan (famous TV chef and author of several cookbooks) and son, Chris Tan (former editor of Wine & Dine).

it's a wonderful collection of some 100 classic and modern local recipes - from nasi lemak, laksa, hokkien prawn mee and hainanese chicken rice, to creative versions of roti prata and other equally yummy and truly "singaporean" dishes.. there is even a nice encyclopedic list of ingredients, detailed description of utensils and implements, and useful notes on techniques...

best part is, the food photography by Edmund Ho, is delightfully lomo-esque and buying it for the pictures alone already makes it worthwhile...

i'm getting one copy for myself.. :)

certainly a splendid buy for yourself or as a birthday gift for any friend of yours who is into good food - you can get it at kino..

love's lofty goals

I will greet this day with love in my heart.

I will love the sun for it warms my bones; yet I will love the rain for it cleanses my spirit.
I will love the light for it shows me the way; yet I will love the darkness for it shows me the stars.
I will welcome happiness for it enlarges my heart; yet I will endure sadness for it opens my soul.
I will acknowledge rewards for they are my due; yet I will welcome obstacles for they are my challenge.

I will love the ambitious for they can inspire me! I will love the failures for they can teach me.
I will love the kings for they are but human; I will love the meek for they are divine.
I will love the rich for they are yet lonely; I will love the poor for they are so many.
I will love the young for the faith they hold; I will love the old for the wisdom they share;
I will love the beautiful for their eyes of sadness; I will love the ugly for their souls of peace.

(from Og Mandino)

Jesus defined success when he was asked which is the greatest commandment. Jesus said

“Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” - Matt 22:37-39, Mark 12:30, Luke 10:27-28.

The first four of the "10 Commandments" instruct us to love God while the last six instruct us to love people.

in this dog-eat-dog world that we live in today, are these lofty aims or essential guiding principles for our lives?

You decide..

You must be the change you wish to see in the world. - Gandhi

i'm infected by an eye infection (try saying it)



scary pic eh??

ya, that's my eye now.. thought it was quite artistic, with the silhouette of the camera in the pupil... hee hee.. sorry if you didn't think so... beauty is in the eyes of the beholder... (pun intended)

doc says it will take about a week to heal.. so i checked Google to find out more about it. i discovered that there are actually several types of eye infections:

- Red eye with yellow eye discharge - "pink eye" or bacterial conjunctivitis
- Red eye without discharge and with a cold - viral conjunctivitis
- Red eyes with itching, watery discharge - allergic conjunctivitis
- Red eye with history of trauma or chemical in the eye
- Red eye with pain, watery discharge - possible foreign body in the eye or corneal abrasion
- Eye with redness of the skin around the eye and swelling of the tissue around the eye - infection of the tissue around the eye (periorbital cellulitis) **
- Eye discharge in a newborn baby - blocked tear duct (naso-lacrimal duct)
- Swollen lump near the lid margin - stye

i reckon mine is the one in italics though i can't be sure.... too bad doctors normally don't tell us more about our illnesses.. the eye is a fascinating organ indeed...



i also found out that "Eye Infection" is an ultra-cool 17-gallery exhibition at the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam... wow...

enlightening...

worm hoax





boo!

hahahaha!!!!

DID I JUST GIVE YOU A SCARE???

ok.. childish senseless prank...

comedy of misfortunes

today was a day of funny misfortunes.

first, i woke up in the morning with a sore irritated (infected?) left eye from the night before, probably from too much time spent in front of the computer as well as atmospheric dust. red and sore with clear reddish veins running all over my eyeball. no good.

decided to wear my glasses to school instead.

but just five minutes after trooping out of my front door in a hurry, one of the spectacle lenses fell out.

fortunately (and this is really fortunate), i had my pair of contact lenses with me and managed to put the one for my right eye in.

half-blind. but at least i could still see.

then midway through the day, while walking to a lecture theatre for a briefing, the sole of my right shoe fell completely off. suddenly.

fortunately (and this is again really fortunate), there was a random bazaar in school and these chaps were selling funky sneakers at one of the bazaar stalls. some brand from China but surprisingly well-designed and at half price. these two chaps showed me a pic of NBA star Yao Ming wearing it and tipping a basketball into a net.

wow, maybe i should start playing basketball. good buy. very pleased.

rest of day went pretty ok, except that the lecturer training us for English teaching thought my suggestion of using Little Red Riding Hood for teaching Reading to Secondary 2 students was a good idea but a tad bit unrealistic for a 20 min lesson. He felt it probably would take me one full hour, so i can't use it for teaching the bunch of kids this Saturday.

I like Little Red Riding Hood but I guess it is more important to be realistic. Bye bye Reddie..

have to head home now to rest my poor overtaxed eyeballs.

no computer for a while.. must be because of unlimited broadband... evil. very evil.

The Lurker's Guide to Stomatopods - Mantis Shrimp

Stomatopods!

what a lovely find.. :)

i also like tunicates very much.. yes.. very very much... and nudibranchs.. and mola molas, of course..

all so cute.. all so marine..

deadly bug

someone just sent me an email saying that these bugs are deadly...



the email said:

"For your info:

Have you come across this insect?

Pls be very careful with this particular insect. It seems to be attacking quite a number of people these days. It is quite poisonous too.

Consult a doctor immediately as if not the infection will spread very fast.

This insect does not sting or bite. It is its urine that is extremely acidic which causes the infection.

If you touch the wound, you must quickly wash your hands or else it will spread to the next place you touch."

it came with an attached .jpg pic of an arm covered with pink scabby sores as well, which i shall not put here to avoid grossing everyone out..

while i appreciate emails like that, i hate to have to start avoiding little bugs as well, when there is already so much stress and paranoia going around..

oh well, if you do find one, catch it in a transparent (Fuji) film canister and show me, can? :p

woman turns vegetarian

she sat down for lunch at the hospital canteen and ordered her favourite plate of goulash and began to take a few bites of the meat.

Matala said she found the meat slippery and could not cut it with a knife. She then placed it in her mouth but the meat was so tough that she could not bite it.

She then took the meat out of her mouth and inspected it with her colleagues. To her horror she found that it was a piece of penis....

Matala was so traumatised that she vomitted for the rest of the day and from that day was put-off by meat. She had since become a vegetarian.

see story.

:O

choose your own adventure

found this site while looking for materials for my teaching.. it is so darn funny!

the way i am

just had dinner with tireless terence and kooky kai and had an amazing and amusing self-revelation, one of those things that don't happen very often till someone points it out to you.... it's like suddenly discovering you have BO.. (oh no, i'm doing it again! :O .. ) ok, well, the self-revelation was:

I can't speak beyond two to three sentences in a lively conversation without using any one of the following:

- analogies/epitomes: .. i mean, i can't think of a better way to describe someone who's flexible than by using the analogy of a grass that bends in a strong wind vs a tree that gets blown down because it is stiff and refuses to yield..

- metaphors: my brain has "hung" (one of my favourites - when my brain suddenly stops working, inexplicably and embarrassingly, and there's nothing i can do about it except "reboot" - i'm sure you know that feeling...)

- ironies: this is always by accident, almost never planned... life itself is an irony... Life Is a Fatal Disease

- similes: wah... the laksa is as spicy as.. err.... a plate of thai chilli padi mixed with japanese wasabi??

- tautology: unnecessary repetitions.... repeat again... widow woman.. either it will rain tomorrow or it will not rain tomorrow

- cliches: (as the saying goes) time and tide waits for no man..

- oxymorons: blue movie in full colour (??)

- alliterations: christopher columbus caught captain cook cooking curry chicken containing cancer-causing carcinogens.. err... geddit??

- sibilants: (the) short slippery snake slithered slowly south

only someone as pedantic as terence could have spotted it.. i tried to explain something after that without using any one of the above... err.. figures of speech (??) and found myself totally paralysed! i couldn't continue speaking and explaining what i was saying cos that appeared to be the way i was used to talking, and hence conversing... funny no one ever pointed it out to me... short of old pals like Lynn who slams me on and off for using "platitudes" in my speech :p

hey, i just can't help it! <--- (think Dove shampoo ad as you read this)

BENT

watched Bent last night at the Toy Factory. It was so C O O L!!

amazing how Beatrice Chia went about getting the cast into their roles and working together.... reminds me of German movie Das Experiment..

go watch it if you're into males with good bodies with non-singaporean accents plus solid script and fab acting... :p .. oh well, don't go if you have issues with homosexuality.. i guess..

Mars closest in 60,000 years

the story.

the exact date: August 26 2003

the extract:

Mars hasn't had as close a brush with Earth since September 12, 57617 BC, when Neanderthals still ruled, but modern man had begun to make inroads

still not convinced??

It will be a last-chance proposition for all alive today: Mars won't be as close again until August 28, 2287.

wow!! doesn't that make you just want to see it?? no matter how irrational the feeling?? :p

reminds me of Halley's Comet when it last went by in 1986. with its next return scheduled for AD 2062, which many people at that time didn't think they will live to see, there was a mad scramble for telescopes, though almost none of these layfolks knew about this particular comet (or even comets, for that matter) prior to the news reports.. haha..

dewormed and speeeeeding along...

wheeeeeeeeee..... the joy of * * b r o a d b a n d ** u n l i m i t e d * *... :D x 100 welcome to my first weblog entry with my new 1500mbps SCV cable broadband access.. :)

glad i got rid of the blaster worm yesterday evening, else all this speed will be pointless.. shocked to hear that "at least 230,000 computers were infected by Blaster, according to a sample by anti-virus vendor Symantec Corp, while Moscow-based anti-virus provider Kaspersky Labs put the number closer to 300,000"!

Asia Grapples with Variants of Blaster Worm...

this number includes "a (Korean) mother (who) complained of being unable to buy diapers for her toddler online." oh dear.... funky mother... wonder if it will occur to her to go downstairs to the supermarket to get it instead.. hahaha.. oops.. so mean... :p

ok, if anyone needs help, please email me. I've helped one dear friend yesterday so she could chat with me online.. :) i think i've become an "expert" of sorts after getting rid of the one in my computer... :) hee hee.. no shy... :p

hooray! i'm un (mblast)ed



some help from a friend and sheer tenacity on my end.. i've blasted (pun intended) away the bug!

i don't think i've ever appreciated my computer that much.. even when the internet is running on a 56kbps modem..

Here's the basic steps of how i did it:

1. Enable your built- in Windows XP Internet Firewall (how?)

2. Update Windows with the patch. Download and install the latest operating system patches from Microsoft Corporation (how?)

3. Download Removal tool (either from Symantec or McAfee)

4. Set Windows XP System Restore to Off (how?)

5. Run Removal tool (go to Start Menu, Run, Browse)

6. Set Windows XP System Restore back to On (how?)

7. Update your anti-virus software (mcafee/norton antivirus) - new variants are appearing...

8. Done. Phew!

i'(m blast)ed

it never rains but pours...

with 6 assignments and 2 presentations to hand in next week, i can hardly find the time to maintain my sanity.. and then what happens?

my computer gets a virus (the now infamous mblast.exe) which shuts my computer down in 60sec every single time i log on.

i've been surfing around the net figuring out how to fix it and it turns out McAfee probably has the clearest solution, though Symantec was helpful in giving me a removal tool (which didn't totally work anyway..)

anyhow, i can't work from home now till i fix this. this is terrible.

and no more online chatting too :(

"LOVE YOUR JOB BUT NEVER FALL IN LOVE WITH YOUR COMPANY"

here's a piece of good advice for those of us finding ourselves burning out and under-appreciated by our companies. yes, i do believe in loving my job but in these difficult times, expecting the company to feel sorry for you or to guarantee you lifelong employment just because you sell your soul to them is really not realistic..

EXTRACT OF MR. NARAYANA MURTHY'S SPEECH DURING A MENTOR SESSION

I know people who work 12 hours a day, six days a week, or more. Some people do so because of a work emergency where the long hours are only temporary. Other people I know have put in these hours for years. I don't know if they are working all these hours, but I do know they are in the office this long. Others put in long office hours because they are addicted to the workplace. Whatever the reason for putting in overtime, working long hours over the long term is harmful to the person and to the organization.

There are things managers can do to change this for everyone's benefit. Being in the office long hours, over long periods of time, makes way for potential errors. My colleagues who are in the office long hours frequently make mistakes caused by fatigue. Correcting these mistakes requires their time as well as the time and energy of others. I have seen people work Tuesday through Friday to correct mistakes made after 5 PM on Monday. Another problem is that people who are in the office long hours are not pleasant company. They often complain about other people (who aren't working as hard); they are irritable, or cranky, or even angry. Other people avoid them. Such behaviour poses problems, especially in an area like IT, where work goes much better when people work together instead of avoiding one another.

As managers, there are things we can do to help people leave the office. First and foremost is to set the example and go home ourselves. I work with a manager who chides people for working long hours. His words quickly lose their meaning when he sends these chiding group e-mails with a time-stamp of 2 AM, Sunday. Second is to encourage people to put some balance in their lives. For instance, here is a guideline I find helpful:

1) Wake up, eat a good breakfast, and go to work.
2) Work hard and smart for eight or nine hours.
3) Go home.
4) Read the comics, watch a funny movie, dig in the dirt, play with your kids, etc.
5) Eat well and sleep well.

This is called recreating. Doing steps 1, 3, 4, and 5 enable step 2.

Working regular hours and recreating daily are simple concepts. They are hard for some of us because that requires personal change. They are possible since we all have the power to choose to do them. In considering the issue of overtime, I am reminded of my oldest son when he was a toddler. If people were visiting the apartment, he would not fall asleep no matter how long the visit, and no matter what time of day it was. He would fight off sleep until the visitors left. It was as if he was afraid that he would miss something. Once our visitors left, he would go to sleep. By this time, however, he was over tired and would scream through half the night with nightmares. He, my wife, and I, all paid the price for his fear of missing out.

Perhaps some people put in such long hours because they don't want to miss anything when they leave the office. The trouble with this is that events will never stop happening. That is life -- things happen 24 hours a day. Allowing for little rest is not ultimately practical.

So, take a nap. Things will happen while you're asleep, but you will have the energy to catch up when you wake.

food search

do I blog about food all that much??

most of the hits to my page from search engines are related to food.. for example..

- List+all+ya+kun+kaya+toast
- importance+of+calamansi+for+hair (*hahaha)
- lor+mee+calorie+count
- wan+tan+calorie

I don't even blog about strange topics like that!!

and hence I always end up totally amused.. :)

Happy Birthday Singapore!

It’s national day again! Happy birthday Singapore!

One cannot help but recall PM Goh’s provocative speech at last year’s national day rally:

Has the younger generation of Singaporeans gone soft? Look yourself in the mirror and ask, am I a "stayer" or a "quitter"? Am I a fair-weather Singaporean or an all-weather Singaporean?

Black-or-white. Pro-or-anti. You’re either with us or against us.

Can anything ever really be so clear-cut?

from all the political unrest and problems that have occured all around the world these past two years , it seems like many governments and politicians (and gullible everyday folks) seem to think so...

wonder what our PM will say at this year's rally speech ... umm...

birds





LCA's Day Out @ Jurong Bird Park

challenges of life

i was just reading my best pal kai's blog about the numerous daunting challenges that she is facing now and thinking about how overwhelming life is beginning to look for me (i've got five assignments to complete for next week and 2 presentations :O) and the people around me also at this moment..

and i started randomly surfing the net for "Challenges of Life" (talk about distractions..:p) ... and i found this fantastic website with some stunning photographs! On Humanity.. people.. the living, breathing, walking, jumping world we are trying to do something for (no matter how lofty-sounding that might seem in a rat-race world of money, money, money).. where we want to make a difference... to people, after all..

what do you know? :) it was encouraging and touching.. sometimes, we stumble across wonderful things on our ardous journeys that make us stop and smile.. and remember what we are doing all this for.. :)

oh well, back to assignments..

Grammar (noun)

I: Subject (S) - first person pronoun (subjective form)
I feel: S +Verb (V) – transitive verb
I feel nauseous: S +V + Complement (C) – object complement (adjective phrase)
I feel nauseous after: S +V + C + incomplete Adverbial (A)
I feel nauseous after studying: S +V + C + A
I feel nauseous after studying thirteen: S +V + C + A (with incomplete Object (O))
I feel nauseous after studying thirteen chapters: S +V + C + A (prepositional phrase)
I feel nauseous after studying thirteen chapters of:<><> S +V + C + A (with incomplete O)
I feel nauseous after studying thirteen chapters of Grammar: S +V + C + A (prepositional phrase)

Burp. (interjection)

I do feel sick…

It’s time for bed…

broadband

in this regard, i am indubitably a laggard..

thus far, i have been relying on StarHub's Surf-for-Free Internet Service and of late, it has become more and more unreliable... sometimes, i spend a whole night just trying to access my blog. even online chats can get cut off midway and phone calls to their tech helpdesk costs a hefty 30 cents a call! and believe it or not, all that has shockingly added up to a monthly phone bill of no less than what i get paying for broadband access!... guess nothing in life is really free..

i have finally decided to jump aboard the Broad Band bandwagon.. it is hard to decide between the Starhub, PacNet and SingNet plans (especially when i have to sift through all the gimmicky stuff and hidden costs).. i got all muddled-up last night figuring out the technical specifications of each.. but i can't wait anymore.. i have to get onto broadband, else i get left along the roadside on the Info Highway, or worse still get run over and left behind as road kill..

dramatic?.. yes, the sad facts of living in a highly competitive and high-tech world...

Working for a Living

more meaningful things come thru the email-box:

We were meant to work for a living...not a life. Yet, billions of us spend more than a third of each day, in places we don't want to be, doing work we don't want to do.

In the name of a "fast-track corporate career" or some such thing, we spend most of our lives buried in work...the kind we don't even enjoy...earning more money than we can spend...and still wanting more !! Many spend their whole lives chasing a dream that's not really their own, all the while, harbouring desires to do something entirely different. ....

see rest of article..

i especially like the bit from Thoreau who said most people "lead lives of quiet desperation"

... unfulfilled, unhappy and uncertain of what to do. Yet the lure of financial security and the fear of the unknown keep them from acting to change their lives, and their best energies are spend creating justifications for staying where they are or inventing activities outside of work that they hope will provide them with a sense of meaning. But these efforts can never be totally successful. We are what we do, and the more we do it, the more we become it. The only way out is to change our lives or to change our expectations for our lives. And if we lower our expectations we are killing our dreams, and a man without dreams is already half dead.

i can fully understand how hard it is to break out of a comfort zone.. i guess i wouldn't have changed jobs too if i wasn't literally "pushed out"... quiet desperation.. how apt..

Happiness is a journey, not a destination

"When you ask a child, “what makes you happy?” A child might reply, “clouds” or “petting my puppy.” As we get older we are convinced that happiness is some formula, an ingredient list that once combined will create the state of eternal bliss. We seek out temporary states of bliss through drugs, relationships, sports and sex. We psych ourselves up, convinced that this time, it will not fade. Realty kills the buzz every time. We wake up to discover: Pleasure is not always happiness, afterglow is not meant to be a 24/7 promise and no win is so big that it’ll be the last challenge we will ever have. No relationship will ever fill the void you created inside yourself. Happiness is acknowledgement of the world as it is today. ..."

by Crystal Boyd.. who also wrote this often passed around via email story which has these memorable lines:

WORK LIKE YOU DON’T NEED THE MONEY

LOVE LIKE YOU’VE NEVER BEEN HURT

AND DANCE LIKE NO ONE’S WATCHING.

marking school work

i'm marking the Dictation Passages of some of the kids from my Sec 2 English class on Saturday..

Actual Sentence: Clung to the wire mesh

What I got:

1. Clang to the wiremash
2. Clung to the wire blash
3. Clark to the wire nash
4. Climb to the wire bench (????)

hahahaha...

reminds me of the names of the Fried Chicken stalls in Manado when i was there. Trying to differentiate themselves from KFC, they called themselves

1. Kentacky
2. Kentucy
3. Kentakcy
4. Kentuky

the new singapore education system

"Using what is commonly known as 'blogging' or 'online journalling' students from two top local junior colleges (JCs) are pouring their hearts out quite publicly (mourning the deaths of their college mates)".. see fully story here..

a heartwrenching reminder of the tremendous pressures of society on our younger generation...

i'm in school today discussing my group's presentation next week on the "Desired Outcomes of Education". we're supposed to present what has been done so far by the govrment to attain these outcomes and then lead a class discussion on the problems and obstacles that may hinder the Ministry's progress..

for those who don't know, the singapore education system has often been described as "ruthlessly efficient".. and not without reason.. other than the acquisition of skills and knowledge, the MOE website states and strives towards the following goals:

"the right values and attitudes to assure the livelihood of the individual and the country's survival and success. We must learn to be self-reliant, yet able to work closely with others; individually competitive, yet with a strong social conscience. We must be flexible in mind and outlook to adapt constantly to a rapidly changing world. We must have firm moral bearings to give us strength in a world of shifting values.

Pupils must know our common history, our vulnerabilities and constraints. They must develop a sense of shared identity and destiny, the instinct to defend Singapore's national interests, and the resolve and confidence to stand together as one people, to overcome threats and challenges.

Education helps to preserve our cultural roots. Our pupils ought to know their own cultural heritages and mother tongues. At the same time they must learn to understand and respect the different racial, religious, cultural and language backgrounds of their fellow citizens."

on top of that, IT literacy is emphasized, as well as the fostering of creativity and innovation..

sometimes, i wonder if all that change is necessarily good, and if berating those who are slow to change is fair... i look at what we have in store for our students in school these days - project work, critical thinking skills and creativity, entrepreneurship, knowledge-based learning (known as "knowledge inquiry") - on top of their curriculum, and i can understand the pressures they and their parents must face every day .. even primary school kids are exposed to genetics, robotics and bioscience, not just basic level science like pond life and roadside trees (remember??) we were learning in our time

ever wondered what the future looks like to them? a pressure vault? or full of hope and good things worth embracing..? i remember coming out of school fresh-faced and excited.. is there room for those who choose to take things at a slower pace? what about people who are late developers?

questions..

life and growth



I’ve walked by these critters on sale a zillion times but never thought of getting one. And then suddenly, last Thursday, I bought this cute hippo-shaped one from Majestic for $4 and it’s now growing quickly and beautifully.

They call it an “adorable grass monster”, and there’s something mysteriously nice about seeing something alive and growing, even if it’s just a plant, or grass for this matter. Especially if one’s own life appears rather stagnant at this point.. in one way or other.. maybe it’s like I can vicariously grow along with it.. I don’t know… as they say, the only indication that something is alive is when it actually shows that it is growing.. I always ask myself this too: Am I growing as a human being? Or is my life stagnant and wasting away..?

as my life's pace comes to a slowdown, i watch something grow to remind myself that i'm still alive..

weapons of mass destruction search

this google search thing is really quite funny...

1. Go to www.google.com, type in "weapons of mass destruction"
2. Press the button "I'm feeling lucky".
3. Read the error messages carefully..

how to make a singapore teacher (first semester)

basic stuff:

Module 1: using IT in education (following MOE’s Masterplan to “prepare our students for a different future” using computers, internet and all things fancy)

Module 2: the social context of teaching and learning (to learn the what, why and what else about the infamous “singapore education system” – a bit of propaganda here? :O)

Module 3: the psychology of pupil development & the learning process (the “educational psychology” course – aka “how to handle kids of all shapes, sizes, values & behaviours in your class” course)

Module 4: use of English in teaching (we learn to say “the stork ate the pork with a fork” – not the stock ate the pock with a fock)

for english teachers:

Module 5: grammar (nouns? verbs? adverbs?? interjections??? participles????), reading, writing, listening & speaking (oral communication).. stuff like that..

Module 6: language study (bit of an overlap here, but mainly to teach us how to teach english, so we say jargon like “the use of a pronoun here is inappropriate” vs. just saying “it’s wrong ‘cos.. err.. it’s just sounds wrong, ok???)

for economics teachers:

Module 7: basic approaches to teaching economics (learning how to make shifting demand and supply curves sound fun to a class.. umm… HOW IN THE WORLD DO WE DO THAT??)

this is for all the people who have been wondering what I’m doing in NIE.. there you go, that’s the stuff they want us to learn before allowing us loose in the schools.. :) .. umm... doesn’t look all that much, eh? but gee, quite a lot of assignments, no kidding!!

the color of my life



life always has a way of making me confront my greatest fears and worries. much as i've resisted feeling stressed or unhappy this recent past, mounting pressures in and out of school have forced me to concede that life at this point is far from 100% ok...yet, life isn't all bleak..

i conclude that the colour of my life now is like a slide film "cross-processed"...

experimental photography



taken with the LCA, but NOT with the Colorsplash.. hah! go figure! :)

durian, coke & overdue manado pics

i'm having D24 durian and diet coke for dinner. i suspect that's.. eh... 0% nutrition?? after all, according to the can, Coke Light has Energy (0.3 Calories), Fat 0g, Protein 0g, Carbohydrate 0g and durian.. umm... does durian have vitamins and minerals like other normal fruits?? i always felt durian was kinda savoury and just plain heaty... :p

ok, some long-overdue lomo pics from my dive trip to manado can be found here.. taken off Bunaken Island (where we did most of the dives), pilot whales and dolphins, the market scene, interesting tombs of the cemetery at Airmadidi, the volcanic sky as seen from the rural town of Tondano etc

homosexuality

i have found it, thus far, unnecessary to add to the debate on homosexuality that been going on in the local media, following PM Goh's statement on the "quiet change" by the govt on employing gays in the civil service. to me, the debate will go on, and there will always be a part of society which will find it hard to accept, or even try to understand, those who are different from them. i do not want to take a firm stand on this issue, for the very simple reason that taking a firm stand seems to run counter to my belief of being "open"..

nonetheless, this mass mail that i received from an old schoolmate today touched me tremendously, and i thought it apt to share it. i have deleted his name, not because i am ashamed of who he is (i am not), but because i take his email as a personal one, from a friend, seeking understanding from another...

"hi everyone.

it's been a while since we all met, and i guess it'll probably be one
of the upcoming weddings that we'll see each other.

you guys have known me for a long, long time. - at least 16 years,
more than half our lives, and though i've not interacted much over
the years (save for a few of you), you all have been part of my life.

the recent statement by the PM, and the media coverage following
that, as well as the reaction from the conservative Churches have
brought the issue of homosexuality to the top of a lot of people's
minds.

most of you already know that i am gay. some of you probably figured
that out, some of you probably suspected. it didn't really matter
because i think that my sexuality has nothing to do with our
friendship.

but me being me, i have to get involved with things - and i'm one of
the activists involved in the gay community and i'd rather come out
to you guys on my terms, rather than having you guys find out from
the media.

i also have to put my money where my mouth is. coming out to people
around me puts a face to the so-called homosexual threat, and i can
change perceptions of the heterosexual majority.

some of you may have issues with homosexuality. well, so do i. it
took me a long time to grapple with it - and trust me, it is not an
easy struggle.

i hope that this begins a process of understanding, and hope that in
doing this, i help people understand more about homosexuals - that
despite of our sexual preferences, we are at the end of the day,
human.

your friend,
xxx"

he's right.. it really doesn't matter at the end of it... not to our friendship, anyway..