A Little Something

2 Saturdays ago I did a little something for the environment. Something insignificant when compared to how much I have done to it.

I participated in the International Coastal Cleanup organised by the Nature Society. I was part of the BV contingent made up of teachers and students. Together, with participants from various other schools as well as organisations, we made our way to Pulau Ubin to help clear the Chek Jawa area of rubbish.

Alighting from the boat.

Seaside houses

View of the jetty

View of the coastline

It's been almost a decade since I last set foot on this beautiful island up in the north. I must say, it's still as beautiful. It looks exactly like it was 10 years ago, as if time stood still on the island.

Resting place in the town centre

Restaurant by the sea

Bicycle rental

Roadside shelter

The island has not yet lost any of its rustic charm as wooden houses and pavillions lined the muddy road, with bicycles lining up the side instead of cars after cars.

Hungry man caught on tape, notice the Sheng Song plastic bag

Because the programme started early in the morning, I did not have a chance to grab breakfast before going. Instead I bought some baos from a shop right on the island. Home-made wholesome baos that were still steaming hot as I bit into them. Interestingly, the plastic bag used by the auntie were Sheng Song bags. Everyone was surprised to see it and had thought that the supermarket chain had made headways into the island.

Briefing by NSS

Let's get started

Disposing off the body bag

Teamwork, recording finds while standing on lush green seaweed

Collection point. Look at all the bags filled. Always remember to hydrate.

More work to be done.

At the Chek Jawa area we quickly sprung into action after some briefing by representatives from the Nature Society. The amount of rubbish that we saw was shocking. Man-made items of all shapes and sizes were strewn along the coastline as regular tidal movements washed them ashore. More peculiar finds included tyres, car air filter, toilet flushing system, sleeping bag/ mattress/ jacket look-a-like thing filled with sand.

View of Singapore from Chew Jawa

Chek Jawa

Apart from the rubbish, Chek Jawa was a beautiful marshland. The view, the flora, and the fauna make it a treasure we should all learn to cherish. I'm glad that I came on this trip. Seeing Ubin again after so long is so surreal. It's amazing how the rampant development going on on the mainland has not spread its claws here.

On the way back we saw monkeys picking food out of a rubbish bag, a family of wild boars running across the road. Such scenes are lost in the concrete jungle of ours. We must preserve this last bit of kampung life.

A quote to remember:

15 KM uncompleted

It's been more than 2 weeks since I last ran. That's the thing about sports. It requires a lot of discipline to do it day in day out. Being the sloth that I am, I just couldn't keep it up consistently enough.

After some careful thought, I decided to try running 15KM today, instead of 10Km, which should have been the next run according to my plan. It's like the backlogged assignments that I used to have. If I keep on trying to complete what I missed, I will always be doing catch up. There comes a point when you should just try to keep to the schedule and do the backlogged work when the tasks at hand are finished.

To accomplished 15Km, I added Bedok Town Park to the route. If I made from there to ECP and back, It would have been 15KM and more. So I started running from my place to Bedok Town Park to Shi An's place and continued towards ECP along the Siglap Park Connector.

The lack of consistent running did not affect me in the beginning as I could still run without much difficulty. But on my way back I started feeling sick. Lips felt like bacons, dry and crisp. Blood was no longer flowing in me. In its place I felt that the liquid flowing through my body was more like molten lava. After the distance I was not feeling all warm and sweaty. Instead, on this supposedly warm autumn night, I could only feel a chilly breeze.

At this point I knew I could not carry on. I assumed I was too dehydrated. Sadly, I failed to complete 15KM. After some calculation, I only managed a weak 10.306KM. It was completed in 1hr13m.

Based on this calculation, 42.195Km will take me about 5hrs, plus an additional 30 minutes to account for the reduction in speed at the later stages due to fatigue. That would allow me to complete the marathon within 6hrs.

The next time I run, I'm going to bring some water along.

A moment to remember

I came across this video as I signed in to my MSN messenger. It's a part of the speech I made at Shi An's wedding, the beginning in fact.

Martha took it and sent it to me using the sharing function the other time. However, we had thought that it did not go through. Apparently it did.

That night was a moment to remember. My best friend of 12 years got married on this day. It was a real moment of joy and fatigue.

First time I had to make a speech of this kind. As you can see, I don't make a very good public speaker. Too much moving around for my liking. I can still remember the moment, with me trying desperately not to shake. And not to cry.

New Journey

Last Sunday was a step forward in a journey,
Out of the many that I took,
am taking and going to take.
Last Sunday I started my life-saving course.
Soon I shall be a certified lifeguard.
I am not that into swimming, nor life-saving.
I am however, into certificates and licences collecting.

My theory is, and always has been,
That skills follow you all your life.
They are much more reliable than credit cards.
And you'll never know when you'll need them.
Hence I begin my journey in life,
in the accumulation of yet another licence, another certificate.

My father said, "I have two sons. One who wants to learn everything, the other nothing."

Time flies

Time flies when you are not working.
Today is Tuesday, 9th September.

My first school holiday as a teacher ended,
As quickly as it started.
Just 6 weeks into my working life,
I had the chance to live it like it was.
Days ended at 5 in the morning or later,
Beginning way past noon or later.
Everyday I was blissfully rested,
With more than 10 hours of sleep.
In this short hiatus,
There was no work.
It was only me,
Doing the things I like,
Looking forward to some things,
Which never materialised.
Still,
It was a wonderful week.
In my wonderful life.