Face/Off, Face Book!!

Everyone is on Facebook or FB these days. Who is not? Well, Im not! FB is, as of now, the most popular, easiest, most convenient way of staying in touch with people that you meet every day, people whom you don't meet often, people whom you have not met for a long time..... or even people from your past!

Why has FB taken over the traditional/conventional mode of keeping in touch? Like calling a friend, meeting a friend to catch up? Well, the matter of fact is, most people (or should I say ALL) are busy and have no time to meet up for a cup of coffee, let alone a meal, or even a day out together. So, FB is a good way of keeping tabs of what's going on in lives of people whom we are concerned about, right?

Before you think that Im into FB, I really am not! Can you think for a moment, or calculate for a moment, the amount of time you spend on FB per week? Some may say... I dont spent a lot of time on FB, perhaps one hour a day is max. Hello? If you can spare that one hour on FB (or few hours a week), why cant you pick up the phone and call a friend instead? Well, FB provides other form of entertainment - games, quizzes, etc; it's fun! But, come to think of it, FB does not promote interpersonal skills. You dont really require communication skills to interact over FB. You need to be IT-savvy tho. What has happened to face-to-face interaction? Will a day come when everyone simply stays at home and stay in touch, knowing everything about some friends' lives, by just logging on to FB? That reminds me of the show...What's the title? A recent movie that everyone 'lives' by having their clones live their lives. Oh yes, Surrogates is the title. That way, everyone can live a life that you would like to have but will never dare to. For instance, I'd love to be a rugged, tomboyish rock gal. But, my personality is not that at all. However, with my surrogate, I can live that out by having my clone (a totally different 'person') living the lifestyle of a rock gal... cool man! That way, I can do all I want without anyone knowing that's me in actual fact! Scary, ya? You'll never meet a real human!

Hmm... coming back to FB. I know, I know, isnt blogging spending time on the PC too? Guys, take a look at my post dates... You will realise that I seldom blog. I dont really like to be 'locked' in front of a computer for a long period of time. See, checking/replying emails (work & personal) already takes about an hour or so. With maintaining a blog, maybe another half an hour? Oh, and to update myself with the lives of my loved ones, I read their blogs (not friends'). But that not often too! That will need about two hours on the PC. After using the PC at work, would I want to put myself in front of the PC at home? For about an hour or two, every day, just to maintain my blog, FB, etc? Hmm... no thanks!

Now is 10.10pm. And Im still not started on what I intended to do when I turned on the PC. Simply because I check/reply my emails, update my blog and oh, update my team on the EPL fantasy league. There goes my night.... and my intention of having an early night.

Oh well, friends, family, continue with FB, but Im out. Who knows I may be drawn in one day? But I don't think that day will come soon... (or may it??)

p/s: There were days when I did toggle between setting up an a/c.... Ok, set! and... hmm, perhaps not.... and Well, do it lah, for the sake of those who tag you... hmm... my precious time.... (the struggle continues......)

disclaimer: not that i often call people to chit-chat too. i too, am a busy person (ha!)

Going for Hols soon!!

Yipee! Counting down to a short getaway with my hubby! It's been quite some time since the two of us take a holiday by ourselves. Though it's gonna be only three days, Im really looking forward to it ;) The longer holiday will come, soon... three more months to go. If all turns out well, we'll be going to Harbin! It's gonna be real, real cold!! Burr....

So Early?!!

At work now... What? So early? Yup! I've been coming to school by 630am every day since the start of this semester. All 'thanks' to H1N1! No assemblies are allowed as schools are practising social distancing as much as we can. I reckon this to be one of the long term measures we gonna adopt. So, bye bye to sleep.... Zzzz.....

Be a Billboard Star!

Wanna your picture to feature on a billboard? Or on commercials? Go to the following website & select the effect you want! Try it!

http://www.photofunia.com/

I Passed!!!!

Yeah!!! I passed the driving test! Hey, take note - first attempt and it's manual car! Yipee!

Rainbow

Hey! These days it's been raining heavily in Singapore. Rainbows were seen after the downpour. This pic was taken with my new camera (yup, finally bought one!). Look carefully, it's a double rainbow ;)

Rainy Days are Here!

Dry season is over, rain has come!
Been raining heavily the past week,
Can barely see anything when it pours!

It's interesting to see how the withering, shrivelled grass
Can suddenly become green again.
Such is the wonder of nature,
That we cannot fathom.

What's Man's Greatest Desire?

Is it the desire to be loved?
Or is it the desire to be appreciated?
To be recognised?
To feel and know you're wanted?
Or is it the desire to be known?

Is it the desire to have enough money to buy anything you want?
Or is it the desire to pursue the dream of your life?
To do what others have not accomplished,
Or is it the desire to achieve what few have gained?

Is it the desire to know you're competent?
Or it is the desire to be affirmed?
To know you belong?
To know you're not left out?
Or is it the desire to simply be carefree?

I suspect there isn't any one single great desire.... for we all long for most (if not, all) of the above... It's just a matter of the intensity of the desire, and the motivation that compels us to action.

I wonder....

What have become the people of the Little Red Dot? Have you observed our fellow countrymen lately? It seems that wherever I go, I never fail to notice some selfish behaviours demonstrated by the people around me.

For example, technology has advanced and handphones have evolved from being more than a handset that can make/receive phonecalls, to one that can play your favourite music. People (and I'm not just talking about the youth) seem to have forgotten that there are others travelling in the same transport as them, and they play and 'share' their favourite piece of music with the entire MRT cabin or SBS Transit bus! Regardless of whether you're able to understand (& appreciate) the language at all! A few days ago, I sat next to this Indian man who was happily choosing and playing Hindi music off his handphone! Or the youth that I encountered in a bus, watching a 'live' recording of an event he's just been to (though it was a funny one, but who cares?!).

Or the many examples of reckless, selfish drivers who seldom signal their intention to change direction; or squeezing into your lane when it seems almost impossible and risk YOU knocking into their rear; or simply going against traffic rules, at the risk of causing danger to the other motorists.

Have we become too oblivious of our surrounding that we thought we were living in some lonely planet that people can actually sieve out unwanted noise, and adjust themselves to suit people's actions; or have we simply become too self-centred to be considerate? In this new generation of seeing just "me, myself & I", have we subconsciously or deliberately chosen to do things at our own convenience, thus adding to others' inconvenience?

I'm honestly sad and disappointed to see such behaviours, even in our young ones, as they imitate the adults' behaviours. They are simply not aware and do not comprehend what is their surrounding (people and environment) and how their actions can cause disturbance or inconvenience to others. No wonder the Ministry of Education is now advocating Social Emotional Learning/Competencies in our classrooms. The students need to learn about Self-Awareness, Self-Management, Social Awareness, Relationship Management and Responsible Decision-making. We need to be taught how to be responsible people who aren't living in our own private planet.

What has become our society?

Windy Singapore....

It has been rather windy and dry these few months. As I travel around the island, I notice that the grass has become shrivelled as days go by. So poor thing! I wish I have a water hose with me so that I can start sprinkling water on the grass as I go.

I've actually prayed for rain to water the earth... It's been drizzling a little these two days. I hope it will pour heavily during the night. I hope to see greenery again, soon.

Thru' this, I realise that the trees must have roots growing deep into the soil, for most of them are still green and full (not bare). Water is available deep down in the ground. Trees have to grow roots all the way down in order to have water to survive. Deep roots also help trees to anchor themselves to the ground so that they won't be uprooted in times of storm or strong winds.

I'm Promoted!!

I know I've havent been blogging for quite a long while.... MIA-ing.

Well, I've just been promoted to an aunt on 4th Feb!! Baby Chloe is now finally born! I've become a "gu gu" now....Sounds so old! Anyway, won't be able to see baby Chloe as she's in UK. Got to wait till a few months later..... From the pics, can't tell who she looks like yet. She should look quite different by the time I see her.

My First Driving Lesson

Last Thursday I had my very first driving lesson. It was great!

Prior to that, as the day of the first lesson drew nearer, I began to become fearful of the prospect of learning to drive. "Would I crash the car?" "All those things that I have to look out for when driving - pedestrians, cars, traffic lights, signs, etc..." "Would I be able to master the gears?" (BTW, my Darling advised that I should learn how to drive a manual car so that I can have the choice of driving an auto or a manual car next time.) All these thoughts started to haunt me the weeks leading to the lessons. And it doesn't help that sometimes I hear negative comments about female drivers - "Aiyo, driving so slowly, must be a female driver!" "Aiya, so kayu in parking, must be a female driver". Oh no!! What if I'm the subject of those comments? I can't deny that sometimes those irritating behaviours come from female drivers, but, are all male drivers perfect motorists?

I shared my fears with my cell group sisters the day before my lesson and they prayed for me. I also reminded myself to be positive about learning on the day itself. I prayed for a kind and patient instructor. Knowing that I can't stand smokers, God also answered my prayer in sending a non-smoker as my instructor for the day. Hey, that's extremely important to me as I can't be trying hard to hold my breath thru'out the 2 hours, right?!

My instructor was patient to answer all my questions. He gently reminded me the things I forgot to take note before driving. He also gave careful and step by step instructions for me to follow, without imposing on me. So far, I managed to grasp the idea of the "biting point" and when to release the clutch and to accelerate so as not to stall the engine. By the end of the first lesson, I could go staight, reverse and turn left, going round and round the circuit and change to the second gear. It boosted my morale greatly! I'd like to think that I'm doing well for a beginner! Heh heh.... All in all, I had fun and I enjoyed it.

Over the last weekend, while on a retreat with my cell in Bintan, I actually drove a 6-seater buggy! Great fun! A driving licence is actually needed to drive it as it is like an auto car, but my friends were so encouraging to place their trust (& lives) in my hands to urge me to drive! Well, of course they got a dear sister who can drive to sit next to me to direct me. At first, I was wobbly in my driving. As i went on, I became more comfortable in controling it. (My first instructor said "Control the machine, don't let it control you.") Gradually, I could manoeuvre over humps and gentle slopes. I guess I have a special talent in driving! Hahahaha.... well, let's see how it goes. I'm gonna have my second lesson today! ;p

Finally!

Finally I've graduated! Last Thursday was the convocation. I've finally earned a degree after going thru' 5 years of part-time studies.

It had been 5 tough years of balancing work and studies, and in the midst of it, dated and got married. Those were the days of rushing for assignment deadlines and doing last minute revision for exam. Though I'm enjoying more free time now, I somehow miss the times that were spent writing the assignments. Studying at this age is really for myself. Not about getting academic qualifications so that one can get a job in society. I mean, yes, of course it's for the prospects of receiving a higher pay. Yet, it's truly something that I can do for myself, accountible for my own results, not having to answer to any boss. If given more time to read the texts and spend more time in writing the assignments, I'd enjoy those 5 years better.

Do I hear doing Masters? Ney, that hasn't really crossed my mind.... yet ;)

Southern Ridges Walk

Last Sat, Darling and I went for a nature walk with our churchmates. It was our second time there, the first was in Aug this year. This time round, we started from Mount Faber instead of Hort Park. Our destination for this walk was Kent Ridge. It was a pleasant day even though it drizzled a little after we walked through Henderson Waves.

We took about 2 hours for the entire walk. It was a leisure walk, so I reckon it should be shorter. This trip was not as vigourous as the Macritchie walk. But I prefer the Macritchie walk as I like admiring nature and sticking to the same kind of path?? Hmm... I'm not sure why I still prefer the tougher route. Maybe it's closer to nature, eh?

A mosaic wall at Hort Park

Stunts That My TEDDY Can Do

My cute Teddy that I bought in Jeju Teddy Bear Museum!! He's only 5.5 inches if he's standing up! Isn't he tiny and terribly adorable?

Teddy can stand on 1 hand and 1 foot! Isn't he smart?

Teddy leaning on one side!

Teddy standing on his left ear!! He sure has a fantastic balancing sense!

Teddy standing on his head!! He can be a talented gymnast!

Teddy balancing on his right ear!

I'm so proud of my Teddy!!! I love my Teddy! :-)

Olympics 2008

Did you watch the recent 2008 Olympics? It was one that I followed more closely than all the rest. Not an avid fan, just anxious and excited over the results of the few sports that I had watched.

I've never really liked or enjoyed watching sports - tennis, soccer, track and field, etc. But this time round, I sat on the edge of chair as I watched the Singapore women team challenged and fought ferociously with the Korean women team in table tennis. I was staring hard at the loopholes that the China men team had in their defence in basketball. Not to mention the anxiety I felt over how a 0.2 or 0.5 mark in the 3m / 10m dive can determine if the diver could return home as the holder of a Gold, Silver or Bronze medal.... or none at all.

Each athlete had spent thousands of hours over these last 4 years (after the last Olympics) just to qualify in competing with international sportsmen (& sportswomen) in their specific field. All for that one moment of performance, which can determine if there's chance of qualifying for the finals before fighting to bring home a medal, thus bringing glory to the nation and home.

I must say that I salute each athlete, whether a medalist or not, for his/her hard work, time and sacrifices made to represent the nation at this Olympics. Not forgetting those who had worked hard backstage, making it possible for everyone, anyone around the globe to be able to sit in the comfort of home, enjoying each event, put up by these dedicated and talented sportspeople.

Well done!

Having Babies....

Did you watch / listen / read what PM Lee said during the National Day Rally?

One of the issues he addressed was the birthrate of Singaporeans. In case you're not aware, the birthrate of Singaporeans is around 1.29 per person. That's pretty low, isn't it? So, the government is trying their best to encourage more couples to have babies, through incentives such as (increasing) baby bonus, ang bao for first-time parents, more childcare leave, etc.

A colleague has been mulling over registering her firstborn in a primary school for the coming year. As I realised, this is one of those stages that as parents, you tear your hair off and crack your brains and have sleepless nights. Yes, it's the P1 registration. The dilemma of deciding which school to register your child in, the agony of the 3-day waiting period to see if the school of your choice / registration has to go through balloting due to overwhelming response, and so on, so forth. She has difficulties in planning childcare arrangement too. So, when I heard the PM talking about helping the parents with the various challenges, I instantly SMS her. We continued with this topic in the office today. At the end of our conversation / discussion, she said this "Those who want to have children, will do so with or without the incentives. Those who do not want to have children, will not, even with these incentives. Having these incentives as the dangling carrot does not help at all."

Hmm... well, I thought at least the incentives are a positive factor in the decision process.... Or are they not? Parents, married couples with no children yet, what say you?

Should We Recycle?

To recycle or not to recycle? Have you ever thought of this question before?

In some countries, like Japan and Korea, recycling is part of their life. In Japan, there's special days for collection of recyclable items (containers and wrappings) and rubbish. At home, you need to separate the recyclable items from the rubbish. As the waste company doesn't come every day to collect the recyclable items, one has to make sure the items are cleaned, otherwise you'll find pests coming to your home. For the times that I stayed in Japan, I had to remember to have a few plastic bags to dispose the various items (rubbish), so that on the day of collection, I didn't have to separate them. For more details on recycling in Japan, click http://www.jcpra.or.jp/eng/index.html

In Korea, the government charges the waste that you dispose by weight! The more you dump, the more you got to pay. Therefore, Korean shoppers bring their own shopping/grocery bags to minimise the waste that they bring home. Also, they dispose of whatever packaging that comes with the products for the very same reason. You can always find unwanted cartons (big and small) outside the supermarkets in Korea. And if you have forgotten to bring your own shopping bag, you will have to pay about 20 won to purchase a plastic bag or 100 won for a paper shopping bag. To read more about recycling in Korea, click http://www.abanet.org/environ/committees/intenviron/newsletter/feb03/korea/

Even though it sounds rather troublesome, I find that it's a good habit for a worthy cause. Can you imagine the world our children (or our future generation) will eventually live in? More lands will be used as dumpsites or landfills. Lands that are supposed to have houses built on have rubbish (mainly non-biodegradable) buried in them. And the water that's from the ground? Can you imagine that one day we might not have clean water at all?

It is a huge and important issue that we need to think about. So, is recycling worth the effort? I think Singapore should and can do much more when it comes to recycling. I wonder how many plastic bags are used in the supermarkets each day.... and how many years will it take for 1 plastic bag to actually decompose (it doesn't really decompose anyway!), so, what's more about the thousands of plastic bags we use daily. Start using biodegradable and reusable shopping/grocery bags now!

Global Singapore

Have you realised that there is a sudden surge in the number of foreigners in Singapore in the recent years? Just the other day I was out with Darling, we were in the MRT when he made an observation - that we were surrounded by foreigners in that cabin.

Even as Singapore's population hits 4 million and still climbing, more foreigners are coming to make up that increase in number. What does that mean for the locals? Does it affect us in any way? Foreign workers are a great help in building our nation. They build our houses, they provide us with medical services, and now, we see them more in the retail and F&B industries. Without them, we cannot even move on with some of our daily routines! Yet, as they enter our homeland, they bring with them their culture and traditions. Some may ditch what they grew up with, while most of them bring it along with them.

In a way, I realise, that Singapore is truly becoming a global nation. In the midst of all this talk about equipping our young to be ready for globalisation in the near future, do we know that globalisation is already at our doorstep?

Old Times

Having lunch in school, and yes, blog-reading time too.

Read Jas's, DNA's and Juliet's blogs. By the time I finished reading them, I don't know why but I started to tear. As I read DNA's blog, I miss times with my brother (he went for hols with my mum & daisie!); and I know how Joy and Juliet felt after a family gathering.

Each time when I'm feeling down, I'd miss home. Well, don't mistaken the word "home". Where I am staying now is my home. But the "home" I'm talking about is "home" where my own family used to be...when Dad was still around. I miss having my family with me, all the time. I miss Papa.

When I was in China, I passed by the men's department and saw polo tees. The thought of getting a few for Papa just came naturally....before I caught hold of it and reminded myself that he's no longer around. It hurts, my heart aches. I dreamt of Papa several times these recent weeks. Maybe it's because Father's Day was just over, maybe it's because it's going to be a year soon... . And, this time last year, we were preparing to go UK, isn't it? Time flies so quickly.

I must learn to treasure what I have now and not keep looking to the past.

Mama, I love you. Didi, I love you too.