NYC Half-Marathon

The NYC Half-Marathon is a fundraiser organised by The Fresh Air Fund.

It is a a not-for-profit agency based in the Big Apple whose aim is to "provide free summer experiences" to kids growing up in the city.

A range of programs brings the city children to places across the U.S and Canada to get away from the typical city smog.

Last year's half-marathon managed to raise more than USD125,000. This year, they are still looking for donors and volunteers to join their Fund-racer team.

For more information, visit the organisation's website @ http://www.freshair.org/the-fresh-air-fund.aspx.

They welcome volunteers, host families, donors, children, and referrals.

This has been a public service announcement brought to you by yours truly at the request of Sara Wilson from The Fresh Air Fund.

Ca fait trop

Pour les dernieres semaines, j'ai dormi moins que 3 heures par nuit sauf les weekends.

Tous les jours, je faisais mes travaux. Toutes les nuits, je faisais mes travaux.

Chaque soir, je rentre dans une condition tres fatiguee. Je me repose un peu dans la salle de sejour et je m'endors involontairement. Chaque nuit, je m'empeche de dormir.

Tous les lundis, j'attend avec l'impatience l'arrive des weekends. Tous les dimanches, je prie que le lundi ne vient jamais.

La vie ne tient rien a mon coeur, sauf peut-etre toi, et toi, et toi, et toi, et toi, et toi, et toi. Il est pour ces gens que je me reveille tous les matins, meme j'attend rien d'eux.

S'ils n'existent pas, je m'en fous de la vie. Je m'en fous du travail. Je m'en fous de tous.

It has begun

And so the holidays ended as quickly as it had begun.

So I report to a new institution with new colleagues.

Then the practicum begins.

Now I hope it ends just as quickly.

Here's to ten weeks of lesson plans.

Students, observations, mentors and supervisor.

And not forgetting the Swine Flu.

Or the H1N1 virus as it is now called.

I was once told, to keep a life, outside of this life.

Let not the one life be the only life.

But I am already feeling the effect.

Of the Z Monster as early as 8pm.

This routine is so different from that,

Which I have been used to and always enjoyed.
The one where night is day and day is night.
Where the silence of the darkness is louder than the noise of the light.

Cabaret

Today I went to watch a musical at L'Alliance Francaise de Singapour.

I was invited by Pan Pan who was performing in the musical titled "Cabaret." It was a french musical, no less.

I am really impressed by her courage. For most people, or at least the ones I know, myself included, the idea of performing in a play would be daunting enough. She, however, went one step further by doing in a whole new language. It was performed by Pan and her classmates at L'Alliance Francaise. Their teacher had come up with a method of learning French through theatre and this was their final work.

I have to admit, j'ai peu compris. Although we were given a translation of the dialogues, we couldn't read it while the musical was going on as the theatre was dimmed. The various accents of the Spanish, Chinese, Indian and Vietnamese performers didn't help.

Still, we had a great laugh at the melodramatic and fumbles of some of the actors and actresses. And no matter how it turned out, I think they did a great job. I wouldn't be able to perform anywhere as well. Perhaps better pronunciation. Pan was one the few that really spoke like the French. The rest were still pretty raw.

The most enjoyable part of the show, has to be the songs. So many well known hits, including Edith Piaf's "Je ne regrette rien." Gotta love it.

Dayang 12 - 15th June 2009

Dive trip:1

Location: Pulau Dayang

Date: 12 - 15 June 2009

Number of dives: 5

Dive 1

Depth: 8.5m

R.T.: N.A

B.T.: 40 mins

The first dive ever underwater. We went through the drills of rigging up the equipment. 1 week after the pool session where we only did a minimal run-through of rigging up, I had almost forgotten everything.

Luckily the instructors were on hand to help with some reminders. After we were all ready, we stepped into the water one by one. As this was our first dive, we weren't allowed to do a free descent. Instead, the instructors had the trainees hold on to a descent line.

The max depth was only 8.5 metres. As we needed a place to test our drills underwater, we were brought to a shallow site with a seabed that resembled a desert. There were some corals left, but mostly, there were only debris, remains of corals trampled by repeated batches of open water learner divers.

All in all, this first dive took around 40 minutes. Much of the time was spent on demonstrating what we had learned in the pool out here one by one. As was the case during the pool session, the seven drills of exhaling without regulator, purging regulator, half-mask clearing, full mask clearing, mask retrieval, two methods of regulator retrieval were easily performed.

With some time left, Freddie the instructor told us to experience pivoting. It's basically lying face down on the seabed and try moving the upper body using just inhalation and exhalation. This was sort of a prelude to achieving neutral buoyancy.

Dive 2

Depth: 15.1m

R.T.: 11 mins

B.T.: 23 mins

Dive 2 was half leisure half practice since most of the drills were done during the first dive. Sadly things didn't go so well.

Firstly I had some trouble with mask clearing. As I was clearing my mask, I closed my eyes and finned continuously so as to not step on the corals below me. As I open my eyes after clearing, I noticed that I had ascended several metres. Fortunately we were still at a shallow depth and this did not cause any problems with regards to DCS or lung-expansion injuries.

Then I got split up with the group. I saw my dive buddy ascend and wasn't sure what to do. As the instructor signalled for me to level off, I misunderstood it as staying put. After a while I realised that I was alone. At this moment I noticed another group of trainees not far away and decided to join them. My unexpected gatecrashing led to some surprises as the instructor Noel asked me to stay with his group after surfacing to discuss with Freddie.

After I surfaced, I was told that my group had surfaced because two divers felt sick and were unable to continue. I felt bad because in a sense I did not take care of my buddy and had lost her. If this was a leisure dive with no instructor, the result might have been fatal. Dive buddies must always stay with and take care of each other. It was an important lesson.

Dive 3

Depth: 10m

R.T.: 37 mins

B.T.: 22 mins

The third and last dive of the day started off well. Having switched back to my original buddy, we basically swam around taking in the sights. After all the drama from the previous dive, we finally got some time to relax and just enjoy. Visibility was quite bad, though we still managed to managed to see some big fishes, particularly one that looked like a gigantic "Luo Han."

However, half way through the dive, my buddy felt sick again. He started ascending very quickly and I had to pull him back. Even in his discomfort it was potentially dangerous to surface quickly. Before I knew it, he vomited in my face. Luckily we were in the water and the stuff dispersed before it hit me. I quickly turned around hoping to inform the instructor of this predicament. But as we were lagging behind due to his discomfort, the instructor was too far in front for me to be able to inform him while Boon kept ascending. At that split second, I was at a loss. Should I leave him just for a while to inform the instructor or should I stay with him and go up.

Remembering the previous dive, I decided to stay with him. As we surfaced I tried to get him to do a safety stop of staying at 5 metres for 3 minutes, but he was too sick to do it. In the end we went straight up to the surface. After we surfaced I accompanied him and we swam to the boat waiting for us. Making sure that he was fine, I tried to descend to search for the instructor and the other two other trainees. Yet visibility was too poor and I had no choice but to surface and wait.

Soon after Freddie, Lydia and William surfaced. Freddie was glad that we were fine and told us that we gave him a serious fright when he turned around and found two divers missing. In the end, we were just glad that everyone was O.K and Freddie made sure he'd inform us of the lost buddy drill.

Dive 4

Depth: 15m

R.T.: N.A

B.T. 33 mins

After an eventful first day, we were all hoping that the second day would be better with the much needed rest. As we were in a little rush for time, the second day started out early as we were on the jetty ready to go as dawn was just breaking.

With all the problems of the previous day, we were left with one last drill yet to be completed; the Emergency Buoyant Ascent. This drill was left to the end of the dive as we began our leisure dives.

It was uneventful in the positive sense as we basically swam around just looking at fishes and corals. The most interesting part would have to be the encounter with a Trigger Fish. It's a fish that is highly territorial and is well-known to attack the odd diver that trespasses into its area. It took a bite of Lydia's fins as we tried to remove ourselves from its home.

As we moved around, Freddie tried to look for a suitable spot for the EBA drill. When we finally found a bald patch of the seabed, we carried out the drill one by one, surfacing and staying up since this was near the end of the dive. I was the last one to go up. As I waited for my turn, I used the opportunity to try out the "Seating Buddha." It's a maneuver whereby we sit cross-legged while floating in the water. Using breathing techniques as well as a perfectly inflated BC, this maneuver can only be achieved when neutral buoyancy is attained. That is to say you basically hover at a level, moving up and down only slightly, in tune with your breathing.

I was incredibly happy when I succeeded in attaining nirvana. Neutral buoyancy is an important skill in diving as it allows us to dive without having the need to fin continuously, saving energy, effort and most importantly the corals because one wouldn't run the danger of sinking and damaging the corals in a moment of concentration loss.

Then it was my turn to perform the EBA. It all went well until the last part when I forgot to manually inflate the BC at the surface. But other than this minor glitch, it was the best dive up to this point.

Dive 5

Depth: 18m

R.T.: 24 mins

B.T.: 36 mins

A check of on the dive table would reveal that our final dive of the trip and course surpassed the allowed no-decompression limits. Fortunately, using a dive computer allowed us to maximise our diving time.

The dive started out with one of the biggest bloopers of this trip; we left my dive buddy on land as we took the boat out to the dive site. I felt horrible. Though I didn't lose a buddy in the waters, somehow I managed to leave him out of the dive altogether. So much for lesson learnt. Luckily we only just moved off when we realised that he was missing so we went back for him.

With all drills truly finished, and most of the dives in shallower depth, Freddie told us that he would bring us to the maximum depth possible for open water divers. As we entered the water, we realised that the last dive was going to be slightly more difficult as we were experiencing strong currents both on the surface and, likely, under the water as well.

Still, other the hiccup at the beginning, the experience of the previous dive was still fresh as we looked forward to another great dive. By now we had been doing free descents and this dive was the same. After we descended to the bottom we started swimming around. We followed the gradient of the seabed and gradually descended deeper into the waters.

All the while, I was trying to attained neutral buoyancy but to no avail. Most attention was spent on trying not to hit the corals and following the instructor. I didn't lose out on much as it turned out, at a depth of 18 metres, the seabed was like desert, with some corals spread out sporadically, but mainly just sand and nothing else.

Then we realised what Freddie had meant when he said that he preferred diving at a shallower depth. Even so, the experience was worthwhile as we stay as long as the amount of air allowed us to, including having a safety stop. When we surfaced, I only had 30 bars of air left. That was almost an empty tank.

With that we concluded our first dive trip and open water course.

Dayang Trip

I'm back. In one piece. It turns out that I was overly-concerned. The diving trip had no noticeable effect on me.

It was truly an amazing and unforgettable trip. For one I was one of the few learners ever to get full marks on the theory test. But more importantly, the 5 dives that I did was indescribable.

Though the visibility was not very good, I still saw a whole lot of fishes and corals. Still as a beginner, most of my attention was spent on keeping myself neutrally buoyant, not hitting the corals.

Then again, I still managed to take in some of the sights.

There are so many things I can talk about, but words just won't do the sea justice. It has to be experienced.

Now that I got my openwater licence, I will take more specialty courses. And I will take my advanced course after clocking my 20 dives.

Pool Session

On Sunday I went to Outram Secondary for my dive class's pool session. Why the hell does a public secondary school have a swimming pool? First time I heard of it. Won't mind teaching there.


Well it seems like it's a pretty utilised place as there were three to four dive schools conducting classes simultaneously on Sunday morning.



Pool session was fun. We learnt, hands-on, how to rig the equipments as well as went through all the drills needed for basic diving. After watching videos and reading about it for the past weeks, getting to mess around with all the equipment and learning to breath under water was an unforgettable experience.


If the pool session was so much fun, I can't wait for the real thing.

Courting trouble

This is a microscopic view of a spherocyte. It's how my red blood cells would look like, for it's no secret that I have hereditary congenital spherocytosis.

Spherocytes are more fragile than normal red blood cells. Like me, they do not perform well under pressure. I am going for SCUBA. There's going to be a lot of pressure.

So exciting.

Wings

I saw this picture on facebook. It was from one of the many quizzes, specifically the "What tattoo should you have?" quiz.

It is exactly what I had in mind for myself.

I have been thinking of having a tattoo for the longest time. Over the years, other than not having the money, I could never exactly decide what tattoo to get. Over the last couple of years however, I finally settled on a pair of wings.

Many different kind of wings came to mind: metallic like machine, feathery like angels, leathery like demons.

But this picture, I love it the moment I laid my eyes on it. I will get one just like it. "When" is the question.

Wings

I saw this picture on facebook. It was from one of the many quizzes, specifically the "What tattoo should you have?" quiz.

It is exactly what I had in mind for myself.

Wings

I saw this picture on facebook. It was from one of the many quizzes, specifically the "What tattoo

Twenty Something

This song fits. Not to the T but close enough.

After years of expensive education,
a car full of books and anticipation,
I’m an expert on Shakespeare and that’s a hell of a lot
but the world don't need scholars as much as I thought.

Maybe I'll go travelling for a year,
finding myself or start a career.
I could work for the poor though I’m hungry for fame
we all seem so different but we're just the same.

Maybe I'll go to the gym, so I don't get fat,
aren't things more easy with a tight six pack?
Who knows the answers? Who do you trust?
I can't even separate love from lust.

Maybe I’ll move back home and pay off my loans,
working nine to five answering phones.
Don't make me live for my friday nights,
drinking eight pints and getting in fights.

I don't want to get up, just let me lie in,
leave me alone, I'm a twenty something.

Maybe I'll just fall in love that could solve it all,
philosophers say that that’s enough,
there surely must be more. Ooooh

Love ain’t the answer nor is work,
the truth eludes me so much it hurts.
But I’m still having fun and I guess that's the key,
I'm a twenty something and I'll keep being me.

doh dah duh dah, do duh dah dah dah
doh dah duh dah, do duh dah dah dah
doh dah duh dah, do duh dah dah dah
doh dah duh dah, do duh dah dah dah

I’m a twenty something.
Let me lie in, Leave me alone.
I’m a twenty something.

doh dah duh dah, do duh dah dah dah
doh dah duh dah, do duh dah dah dah
doh dah duh dah, do duh dah dah dah
doh dah duh dah, do duh dah dah dah

Johor Bahru

I went to Johor Bahru yesterday. It was an activity that I used to do quite often. But a check of my passport told me that I have not been there since 2005.

How time files and how things change. Gone were the days when we used to go in every other day at any time of the day. The checkpoints and the road have changed, so has the look of the customs. Yet some things remained nostagically the same.

The shops are the same. Same shops that we used to go and wash our bikes, same places we used to watch them get cleaned. Same petrol stations and same cheap cigarettes.

A simple affair yet at the same time strangely enjoyable.

Army Half Marathon

After half a year of inactivity, my beautiful running shoes are finally seeing action again.

I signed up for the Army Half Marathon. I skipped this step last year and Standchart Marathon was quite an experience.

After I finished with Standchart, I haven't been running. After the last time, I think I should train more. AHM would be a good start for me to start running again.

This morning I woke up at 6 to run. It was refreshing to run in the morning. The air was fresh and the weather cool. By the time I reached East Coast Park, the sun was just rising in the east. Such a beautiful sight it was.

Today was also the day of the Adidas Sundown Marathon. Along the way I saw drink stations, marshalls, runners. The 84 KM ultramarathon would be my next goal. I hope I will be fit enough to participate next year or the year after.

Open Water SCUBA Diving Class

I am going diving. After years of thinking about it, thoughts are finally going to translate into action.

This will be for my Open Water licence. The location is Dayang in the eastern side of Peninsular Malaysia.

The lessons will include one theory class and one pool session in Singapore, before we head up north on the weekend of 12th - 14th June.

I'll get to do 4 dives in the South China Sea. Awesome!

Thoughts

There are so many things going through my mind.

Just realised that I've lost 2 ATM cards and 3 debit cards. Haven't used them in a long time since getting the credit cards and using internet banking facilities. Now I need them.

Then there's the stupid bike seat that flew off and the 144 bucks plus 1-month waiting time for the replacement. The bike cover also got a big tear across rendering it useless.

2 months of bike installment still outstanding.

Next week I have 5 assignments due, all at the same time. 2 CPA lesson plans, 1 English lesson plan, 1 reflection for Ed Psy 2 and the presentation on dyslexia.

Last week got stopped by a TP for going 108 on a 90 PIE. Told me will get 6 demerits and a 150 fine though I wasn't 21kmph over the limit.

Over 1 grand of credit card bills due.

Kept pushing the Tuition Loan repayments back.

When it rains, it pours......

Beckett who?

Yesterday I went to watch a play - Precious Little: Brief Encounters with Beckett.

It was actually a set of 5 of Beckett's work. Before I went for this play, I had no idea who Beckett was. After I went for it, I still have no idea who he is.

And his work? Not a clue what happened.

Never a dull moment

With me around, there's never a dull moment.

Just when things start to get routinised, I'll come up with something hilarious to brighten up the days.

Yesterday, I lost a bike seat. In 6 years of my riding life, I have never heard of such a thing. Yet, amazingly, I did it. Such is my strength, which knows no bounds.

I didn't secure it properly and it simply flew off. So matter-of-factly. What can I say? I am good.

Masochism

I suspect that I am a closet masochist.

Other than getting myself in pain on a regular basis, I also like it in an ad hoc manner. Today, I did what I did a couple months ago. I scraped off another piece of my skin.

When the previous time was against the edge of my couch at home, today was against the edge of a computer table in school. As I sat there working, my friends asked for my help. Me being me, always eager to lend a helping hand, responded without hesitation. I was slouching in my chair, with my legs extended under the table. As I jumped up to get to them, the only thing I felt at that instance was pain.

Darn. I knew what had transpired almost immediately. As I looked down at my feet, all I could see was this area about 1 inch long, half an inch wide of white flesh. Shit, an abrasion that took the whole layer of top skin.

As I limped to help my friends, blood started oozing out. Ouch. I ignored it and continued messing with the Dreamweaver program till I realised that I should at least apply some pressure as the blood continued to flow.

As I went back to my workstation to continue with my work, Desmond appeared with an antiseptic cream and band-aid. He had gone off to get them from the school bookshop after I hurt myself. Thanks man. You are a kind friend.

I later found the piece of skin still dangling from underneath the table. Talk about yewwwwww. So now I am once again left with a wound that's gonna hurt me bad later when I take my shower. And then worse still when I apply "青草油" afterward.

I somehow have that talent, to hurt myself. I should join some talent show.

A long way home

As a teacher we are supposed to teach narrative writing as one of the genres in school. Last week I got an assignment to write one, with the title "A Long Way Home." The tutor wanted us to know that we can write it before we can teach it. Narrative is not my thing. It is so difficult as I find myself being less than imaginative. So came the following piece of work.
----------------------------------------------------


A long way home

The year is 2006. I have been in this foreign city for over four years. It seems like only yesterday when I waved good-bye to my family at the airport, and began my life all alone at this end of the world. “You’ll have lots of fun!” “Take lots of pictures!” “Call us when you can!” “You be back before you know it!” They all said. These very words still echo in my mind.

When I sent in the application for the University of Paris, I never thought that I would feel this way. It was something new. I was going to begin my life, an independent life, studying abroad. The only thing in my mind was the independence. For the first time, I was going to have an apartment all to myself, cook my own food, with nobody to nag at me to clean up the room, do my homework, wash the dishes. I would have to do all these anyway; it was just the thought of not having someone constantly breathing down my neck asking me to do it that was so intriguing.

I had also been learning French for the past two years and would finally have a chance to put it to good use. Even though I could get French movies and books here, and have some French friends to talk to, I knew it was never the same as engulfing myself in a place where I could wake up to French music, have French breakfast and communicate in French in all aspects of life.

As the speakers called out for the passengers of Thai Airways TG419 to Paris, I said my last good-byes and looked forward to my new life in the “City of Lights.” I can still remember the smell of the plane. A slight tinge of detergent mixed with the refreshing fragrance of air freshener and the perfumes of the crew and passengers. The trip to Paris was a long one. Sixteen hours of flying halfway around the world, six time zones away. As the plane flew in the night sky, things started to quieten. As I sat there contemplating my new life, a sense of poignancy swelled inside me. Barely into my new life, I was already missing the old one.

My first step onto Parisian soil was as scary as it was electrifying. All around me people were buzzing around shopping at the duty-free shops, clearing immigration, collecting luggage, enjoying silent moments of love with their families. I quickly passed through immigration, trying my best to understand the questions posed by the officer, amid familiar sentences like “Pourquoi venez vous en France?” “Vous habitez où?” Rather clumsily I survived his inquisition and hastily I collected my belongings, ready to begin my new life as a Parisian.

The Parisian weather was not as welcoming as I had hoped for. I felt like I had just stepped into a refrigerator. Every breath I took mimicked a steam engine, as puffs of warm air escaped my lungs, forming clouds of steam in the cold Parisian morning. With the directions researched before my departure, I made my way into the city and found my apartment. It was on the top floor of a typical Parisian building, the architecture remained the same since the 1800s. Also typical was the lack of elevators, meaning I had to climb six flights of stairs to reach the floor of my apartment.

The next two weeks went by quickly. I registered myself at the university, opened a bank account, applied for a student permit and began my undergraduate studies as a student of one of the oldest university in France. By the end of the two weeks I already began to miss Singapore. Despite being one of the most modernised countries in the world, France was still awfully backward in some areas. All the registrations were done in person, meaning I often had to queue up for hours to do something as simple as filling in a form and submitting it. Plus, Internet connection was also not as readily available. It was one of the first instances that made me realised how easy things were in Singapore.

Still, I managed to settle down and could finally look forward to enjoying my stay in this land rich of culture and history. I took long walks down the streets, along the River Seine whenever I could. The architecture was old and I felt like I had travelled back in time. There were no skyscrapers and the Parisian night sky was visible for miles from atop the Montmatre district. Weekends were spent lounging in cafés and visiting museums as I slowly learnt the French way of life. Interestingly, tables in the cafés were all arranged facing outwards though I never understood why. And it cost less to drink standing at the bar than sitting at a table, as service at the bar was not as good.

As my stay continued in this land, beautiful as it is, I began to miss home. Yes, it was fun and exciting in the beginning to finally live independently. Yes, it was great to try out cooking and meddling with the washing machine. Yes, it was refreshing to finally not have the scorching hot sun and humid weather to deal with. Yes, it was enriching to learn about all the culture and practice my French with real French all around me. But after a while, there’s nothing like home.

I missed all the people that love me. Calls and messages just could not substitute the presence felt everyday at dinner. I missed the food and being able to find food at anytime of the day. Geylang with its beef hor fun and dim sum, Simpang Bedok’s roti prata, Katong’s laksa, all of which are delicious and available twenty-four seven. Speaking French was fun amusing but I missed the “lah’s” and the “loh’s” and Singlish with the mixture of all things familiar. It was then when I realised that there is no place like home. Everything I ever loved is here.

Fortunately, fours year were over soon enough. Now that I have finished my studies here, it is finally time to go home. As I sit here in the lounge waiting for my flight on the same airline back to where I came from, I can still vividly remember the day four years ago, when I stumbled my way through that gate, eager to step out and explore the world. These four years have been quite a ride, I have learnt a lot and I would never exchange it for anything. Most importantly, I have learnt how much I love my home, back in Singapore. So as I sit here, pondering about the four years that have passed, I am glad to be finally going home. This flight back would be a long one, longer than the one I took to leave; it would really be a long way home.

Adolescence

Today was a day when I felt like an adolescent again.

My closest friends arranged for a dinner and some drinks at Timbré @ The Art House. Afterward we went to Brewerkz and had a few drinks. Because my goddaughter Scarlett and her mom needed rest. We switched to a regular kopitiam near their place.

While we usually behave like responsible adults, today was a day when we reverted to being adolescents. As the drinking continued, we started taunting each other to drink. One followed another as we came with the weirdest arugments why the other should be drinking.

The result? I regurgitated my very nice dinner. I've always had a weak stomach when it comes to drinking. The gag reflex is just so strong that I always end up making friends with the toilet bowl before my senses give in. However, over the past months I had managed to prevent this from happening. For some time, food only went in and not out from the top cavity. But no, not today.

Sigh, what is it about birthdays that rob mature, responsible adult males of their sensibility. Why do we do this year in, year out. I really appreciate everyone celebrating my birthday for me. It's nice to know they care even though my own birthday is not really that much of a deal to me.

But guys, can we just drink to our hearts' content? Minus the vomiting. If I ever taunt anyone again, just remind me of what I said.

Pain

Ouch. It hurts. There were times when I wondered why people put themselves through physical pain for the sake of looks. Now, I am guilty as charged.

I have been going to my aunt for acupuncture treatments for the past month or so. Every weekend I spend around twenty minutes looking like a hedgehog, with needles all over my face.

She had claimed that she knew of a treatment used for improving complexion and removing acne scars. She had a couple of successes with patients and would like to continue trying out the treatment. I gamely volunteered to be the guinea pig in her clinical trials.

Whoever said that acupuncture doesn't hurt, lied. It hurts. Especially on the face where flesh is scarce. Still I go to her almost every week to get myself poked at. It does work. So much so that my brother is doing it too. We are skeptical about the degree of her claims, but the improvement is undeniable.

Then, apparently, getting poked at is not enough for me. I now have braces fixed. I have been wanting to do it for a while and finally got down to it. I thought the worst was over when the dentist extracted four good, healthy teeth. But no, that was just the beginning.

Today I got the actual brackets and wire in. It was fine when it first went in. However, it got worse as the day went by. By dinner time, I couldn't eat. Minor biting actions were enough to send a dull but unmistakable pain through me.

Can someone please tell me why I am spending good money to put myself in pain? I cannot fathom it. Is it for the sake of looks? But I never thought I was bad-looking to begin with. Is there a certain notion of beauty and perfection in my head, that I feel I am not up to?

Heat-Injury

Yesterday I experienced for the first time clammy skin.

Throughout the courses that I went through, during NS, as a teacher, or whenever, I have heard about the clammy skin but can never quite understand it, until yesterday.

Yesterday was one of a series of hot days. I believe the temperature was well over 30 degrees. It was one of the weekly sessions of football. We started the day with eleven man, just enough to form one team without substitution. It was going to be a difficult day and we all knew it.

I had expected the sun to make things difficult but I didn't know it was going to be that difficult. By half-time I was gasping for air, breaking out in cold sweat and in a daze. I knew something was not right but wasn't sure what.

After a while, it got better. And I began to realise what it might be. I was severely dehydrated and also felt a bit nauseous. It dawned on me that these were familiar symptoms. Symptoms that I had heard of more than once; I could be getting heat-related injury. Not wanting to risk it, I sat out the beginning of the second half.

I'm glad that I did. Even though it might be a misdiagnosis. It was better safe than sorry. Heat-injury is potentially fatal. So I would like to share some information here about it:

Some common symptoms:
Cold sweat
Dizziness
Nausea
Clammy skin

Basic first-aid:
Hydration
Shade
Removal of clothing
Cooling using fan or water.

Prevention:
Adequate hydration
Adequate rest
Not engaging in outdoor activities during midday

These are some of the things I remember off-hand. They are not hundred percent accurate and not exhaustive. Please read up and take care everyone. Have fun, but do it safely.

迷

好久沒用中文寫東西了。我的中文已經因為太久沒用而退步了。前幾個星期是好忙的幾個星期，三份作業讓我感到好累。

相比之下，這幾個星期可就輕松多了，只有三天需要來到學校。加上一直到牙醫那兒復診，所以又多了幾天病假。接下來地幾個星期又有幾份作業到了交貨的期限。還好，時間並不是很緊稠。

轉眼間，在教育學院的日子已經過了將近五個月。可是我還是不清楚自己到底學到了什么。這幾個月過得是那么的矇矇董董。我並不覺得來了這裡之後，自己更有信心做一名教師。

Come quick!

Everyone, come quick! Take a good look at my room now! Before it's too late!

Feeling the inertia, I haven't written a thing for my ICT assignment. Instead I cleaned up my room. Yes it is taking me that long to clean it up. But at least now it is really clean, no longer just a figment of my imagination.

No it's not completed. There are still some drilling and arranging to do. But it looks really neat for the moment. It hasn't been like this in years. And seriously, I don't know how long I can keep it up, seeing that I love to only clean up other people's places.

So come quick! Come now! Before we lose the floor again!

New High of Stupidity

Today I recorded a new high for my level of stupidity.

After I reached home from work, I walked away from my bike, without switching off the engine nor pulling out the keys.

I only realised it 6 hours later when I wanted to go down and put the canvas over. As a result, the battery is flat. The bike can now not be started. Even after I enlisted the help of my very strong brother to push it. We almost succeeded, but almost is the operative word.

Now I can only let it rest for the night and try again tomorrow. If it still fails to start, then I'll have to call a tow truck and send it in to change the battery.

Sigh. Stupidity knows no bounds.

Update: It's one of those Mastercard moments. Tow truck: $25, New Battery: A FREAKING $165, Tuition lessons cancelled: $89.25, A packet of cigarettes to ease the unhappiness: $11, A lesson to remember to shut down the engine and take the key: Priceless.

雖然我原意

Gratitude

Last month a kid from the class I taught during contract teaching texted me. He asked if and when I am going back to teach them.

I told him I don't know. My course is 1 year but I might not go back to the same school. He replied dejectedly saying that by the time I go back, if I do, he would have graduated. I told him that if he studies hard enough, he can get transferred to 4NA. In that case I might get to teach him in his last year.

He replied positively and without hesitation that he will do his best. Still he doubted his chances, attributing to the lack of good teachers. I assured him that the teachers are good and rebutted him in saying that it is his own responsibility to do well. If the teachers can't help him then he should help himself.

Surprisingly he responded well to that too. So we had an agreement; if he truly tries his best for the 'N' Levels, I will try my best to go back to teach him again.

I am glad. At least one is inspired.

Moving Around

In anticipation of the coming Chinese New Year, I did something that I have not done for quite a while; I redecorated my room.

It's nothing like Dan's refurbishing of his room. There were no paint jobs, no new furniture. It was just a whole lot of moving things around and throwing things away.

I never knew I had that much stuff. Well I did but it didn't seem so much. I'm only halfway through and already out of shelf-space.

Chinese New Year's not the only reason why I started this project. You see, in recent years, due to my brother's marriage and my sister's moving out, my room has sort of become the de facto storeroom. There are so many of non-Wee Loon artifacts in here that everytime I wanted to clean it up, I didn't know where to start because I couldn't just throw out their stuff.

As a result, after much brainstorming, I came up with the idea to partition a part of my room as a storeroom. So today I set out to do just that and at the same time do some spring cleaning.

It turned out great. I have a bigger room than I thought. When the mess gets out of the way I should get quite a roomy and comfortable space to call my own. Plus I got reconciled with quite a few CDs that I haven't listened to in a long time. Now I'm enjoying Craig David's first album.

"Six o'clock in the morning wiped the sleep off my eyes.... Felt just like an ordinary day... Just around the corner such a surprise... Beautiful angel materialised..."

2009

Like a flash of lightning, 2008 flew by. Before I know it, the second week of 2009 is over.

During these past week, things looked a little different. Just like the movie "Yes Man", I have become somewhat different recently. I was for the past few years - I can't remember what I was like further back - less spontaneous.

Recently i have been going out a lot more. I do things more readily, went out more with my friends, accept movies invitation more often, been drinking every other day. I swim and play soccer every week. I finished a marathon. I went for NCC course when i wasn't even a confirmed education officer. I look forward to joining more stuff. Things just seemed different. I even made donations to NUS for people that I don't even know.

Of course these things come with a price. My credit card bills are higher, I am even more short of money. I can't get a lot of things done cause I'm already always doing something. But these are beside the point. The point is there is something different. And I can't quite put it down as good or bad. It just feels weird.

School Life

Barely six months out of school and I'm back in again. I know people have said this many times but I have to repeat it again; being in school is way better than being in work.

First week of orientation's over and NIE seems to be a nice enough place, the distance not withstanding. 36KM is a long distance to travel on any day.

The timetable's out and it's pretty relaxed so far. At first glance my days are almost filled. On a closer look the classes are staggered and the two halves of the semester are quite different.

One of the course that I have to take is GESL (pronounced guess-tle). It's short for Group Endeavour Service Learning. It's basically a community involvement project where we try to do something for a selected beneficiary. When we went through the briefing, they said that we have to learn to do something altruistic. I wondered how altruistic is GESL when we're all made to do it. Food for thought.

Next week lessons will start. Pretty exciting as I have almost forgotten how it is like to be a student, short as the time is since I graduated from NUS. Can't wait.

HCMC Trip Lookback

After many travels to the far away land of Europe, I finally made it last month to the neighbourhood.

Ho Chi Minh city is a vibrant city in the South of Vietnam and one of the largest Vietnamese city. The pity is that I did not get to see the city like I wanted to. The stay was restricted in the main tourist district of District 1 and activities were down to mundane stuff like the Big Market meant for the locals to extend their hands into the pockets of rich tourists.

The highlight of this trip was no doubt Raymond's wedding. I am proud and honoured to be, in his words, the only friend who can attend his weddings to his Vietnamese bride three times.

The ride to Long Xuyen was long and bumpy. We passed by villages and towns filled with students on bicycles, more canals than there are in Venice and roads damaged by the seasonal flooding. In the bride's hometown, we tasted firsthand Vietnamese hospitality and food, witness Vietnamese customs and basically had a lot of fun.

In HCMC itself though, it wasn't that much fun. It was partly due to the travelling crowd. I had originally intended for this to be a small family trip with my parents. They having sponsored and supported my previous trips to faraway Europe. It was my way of treating them back; to show them how I travel and to let their hair down.

In the end it became a trip of six, with my aunt and her husband and my uncle as well. Not that it was not nice to have them along; more adults meant that it was easier on my pocket. However, it also meant that more accommodation was needed. Uncle Chun has high blood pressure and was a little big. This meant that we couldn't go very far. Aunt and her husband were more interested in shopping. Not to mention that he's difficult to please.

As a result I never got to see the whole city. I wanted to just walk around the city and explore the nooks and crannies. Sit down and have a coffee, or beer and just people-watch. Visit museums and take in the history and sights. All these were not possible.

At the end it felt like I never step foot on HCM. I just can't strike it off my list yet. I hope I'll get to go there again. Of course the next time, knowing some Vietnamese will help. I kept getting mistaken as a local anyway. I really have no idea why.

Standchart Marathon 2008

It's over. I did it. I have completed my first marathon ever. Finally one more item on my to-do list struck off. I have to admit; I underestimated the marathon. 42KM is no joking matter. I only actually managed to run for 10 plus kilometres. From 10 plus to 30 plus it was run and walk. By the time I reached the last 10 plus kilometres, I could barely manage walking.

This would explain why none of the pictures show me running. These were taken during the last leg of the marathon. By then I could only walk. Running was impossible with the pain and fatigue in my legs. More than once I almost gave up, encouraged only by the presence of my friend Shi An who was walking with me and waiting for me.

This marathon was one of many firsts. It was, of course, my first marathon ever. It was also the first time that I had applied so much deep-heat rub on me. It was the first time that I laid down and slept on the road. Certain points during the marathon I was so tired that I just laid down on the road, not giving a damn what was happening.

It was, in Shi An's words, not a marathon. It was not even a Walk-a-Jog. I had brought it up to a higher level. We were doing a Walk-Jog-and-Sleep.

Fooled be not by the pictures. Though we look like we were "sashaying"; Though it looks as though we look like we were taking a stroll through town, a walk-in-the-park this marathon was not. Beneath the smiles and laughter, we were in fact in excruciating pain. Pain that got worse and lasted for 2 additional days after the marathon.

All in all it was a unique experience. Somewhere between 20KM and the end I started questioning my decision to join this in the first place. I exclaimed with conviction that I will not ever join this again. Now that it's over, I am beginning to think that I might do it again. Just to better my time. On the other hand, 7-and-a-half hours is not a difficult timing to beat. Maybe it's true; the marathon is addictive. I do, however, need to be better prepared.

NIE beckons

Yes! It finally came. After weeks of waiting and longing, at last I received the letter for NIE.

Starting January, I will go back to school; to learn how to teach.

The Office Party

In the words of Eunice, we have cultivated an "expensive habit". Indeed it is the third show I have seen recently and the tickets are not cheap.

The Office Party is a sexually-charged play about a group of people working in Chapman and Howard. It was basically about their relationships with each other, their individual problems and how it all interwined.

Overall it was enjoyable, though I sometimes got lost in the thick accent spouted by the Caucasian actors. Some of the jokes also required contextual understanding, which meant that I was left scratching away while the "ang mohs" in the crowd were laughing away. This meant that I wasn't able to enjoy the show as much as I would like to.

Pity. It would otherwise have been a rather witty and fun-filled evening.

Blogging

Blogging is an extremely time-consuming activity. There are just so many things to write about.

Everytime I come across something interesting, I feel like penning it down. Sometimes that can be a lot. So much so that I went the other direction and wrote nothing down.

How the hell do all these bloggers find the time to sit down in front of their computers and type away?

Singapore Zoo

I went to the Singapore Zoo yesterday.

The last time I did that was I think 15 years ago. 15 years is a long time. The only memory I have of the last visit was monkeys running away with my packet of tidbit.

It was quite interesting to visit the zoo after so long. There were many things to see. Best of all, it's free. MOE corporate pass, I like.

Regrets

Regrets, I've had my due.

I wish I could say they were few.

And everything was okay,

Because I did it my way.

A Day to Remember

On the second Sunday of every November, we celebrate Remembrance Day at Kranji War Memorial. In 25 years of my life, after countless history lessons about the war, I never knew this.

This year, I had the opportunity to be there. It was a day to remember. Early morning on the 8th of November, I was there in my army fatigue. It rained. It was an incredible feeling. What I arrived, everything felt so right, yet so wrong.

There were many people, mainly families of those that fell. The band played, giving the whole place an unmatched sense of poignancy. Raindrops felt like tears.

I didn't experience the war. Many present did, even more didn't. I dare not claim that I could understand how they felt. I could only guess - how I should feel. What captivated me more was the place. Everything just resonated, eventhough I did know what. Maybe it was the lush green field and the rows after rows of tombstones. Maybe it was the names inscribed on the walls. Maybe it was the occasion.

All I know for sure is, it made me not want to leave, and to want to come back next year.

The Technological Advantage

This is the M16. The version we use in Singapore is slightly different. I have been trained to use it since I was 13. It started when I first joined the NCC and continued when I was enlisted into National Service. Despite all the training and getting all the basics right, I was never a good shot.


This all changed with the SAR21. This is a rifle designed and manufactured in Singapore, if memory serves me right. For old-school trained people like me, the initial handling and familiarisation was not easy. In terms of ease of use and handling, the general consensus I got was that the M16 was a tad better.

This perception did not change although I did find something that the SAR21 is better at. I used the SAR21 during the Novelty Shoot at the NCC Annual Shooting Competition. Amazingly, I got all my targets. Using the scope built into the SAR21, aiming and shooting became so easy. I got the silver award only because I was slightly slower than the winner. All these from me, who used to barely pass my shooting tests.

Running resumes

I finally got myself to run again yesterday. Sometimes it's just difficult to make myself put on that pair of running shoes and get my butt out of the house.

It's hard to clock the distance. My original plan was to progressive increase the distance. The first 10Km was a breeze. Exceeded that on the second or third run. After that however, it was a steep curve. Every time it felt like we covered some good distance, it always turned out to be around 10KM still.

Like yesterday when we took a new turn and run towards Lagoon Food Centre before turning back towards Bedok, we only added 1KM to the total distance! According to the distance calculator, all that running only covered 11.408KM.

All these only make the final run on 7th Dec the more daunting. If we keep having problems running 15 20 KM, how the hell will we make 42.195?

Russell Peters

Russell Peters came to Singapore! I didn't go and now I regretted it. He has to be my favourite Indian.

This video that I embedded is one of the shows that he did and the one that made me his fan. I have watched it many times and I still laugh at it every time. Support Russell Peters!

Return of the V

Sorry the picture is only half of the poster. It's suppose to read "The Return of the V". It was a hybrid between a play and a stand-up comedy I think. Not really sure what it was. All I know is that it was really funny.

From what I could gather, this latest installation by Fly Entertainment was a sequel to last year's "V Conference", which was about vaginas. This year's V was instead about Villians and Victims. Issues tackled included TT Durai and the NKF fiasco, rising cost of livings, homosexuality, among others.

Right from the beginning, Irene Ang came out spouting Hokkien saying, "Wa Si Guan Yin Ma." For ah bengs like me from working class background and not "jia kandang" one, it was hilarious! Poor Eunice was trying to make heads and tails of what she was saying. So sorry I had thought that it was something "ang moh".

Other than that little technical issue, I really thought that it was a funny show. Of course there were some cliches here and there but still, the fact that it was in Hokkien made it funny. Sadly, Hokkien could not escape its fate of being the crude language, as it was also because of that that it was comical.

In the end I really did enjoy myself. The fact that Tiger went out at $5 plus a mug made things even better!

Commissioned

The 54th NCC Officer Cadet Course has come to an end. 79 Cadets successfully completed the course and were commissioned as officers of the National Cadet Corps. From 14th November onwards, these 79 officers, including a Major, a Captain, several Lieutenants, and many Second Lieutenants, will carry on their shoulders the burden of grooming future leaders of the Corps and possibly the Nation.



These three and a half weeks were a fun-filled time of meeting new friends, bonding, and learning. Some things were useful, some things were not. All in all, the leadership and coaching courses that we went through were not as good as the real thing as demonstrated by some of the coaches, Course WOs and officers. Talk about leadership by example.

I finally got my chocolate bar. It's been 6 years and 5 months since I first stepped into OCS in June '02. Though it's not SINGAPURA, NCC will suffice for now.

Ho Chi Minh City

Yes! I just bought tickets for Ho Chi Minh City.

My Hardwired Report

I just did a psychological test of some kind. Anyone interested to know me better?

Preferred Style

Jobs you prefer

You enjoy jobs and activities that require attention to detail and a sense of urgency. For you, keeping information or things organized can be most satisfying, especially if your efforts lead to short-term results and rewards.

Jobs you find least rewarding

Wee Loon, you may become frustrated with jobs that constantly change without notice and fail to identify clear goals. Since accuracy is important to you, delegating to others can be challenging, especially if you’re responsible for the quality of their work.

You may also dislike jobs and activities where you’re not allowed to work independently and where your personal success is dependent on the actions of others.

Expectations

You were socialized as a child to think that people should follow the rules yet be open-minded, and communicate with a friendly, reserved style. These became your Expectations of how people should act and communicate, and they apply equally to your personal and work life.

You’ll feel these Expectations most when someone starts a conversation with you. If their communication style meets what you expect, you tend to listen. If not, you may stop listening or even get defensive – for example, if I am too direct or discourage your questions.

You may also become frustrated with people who regularly cut you off before you’re finished speaking. Doesn’t this communication approach frustrate everyone? Well, no. Some people actually prefer it. What would work better for you is being given information ahead of time and being encouraged to ask questions in open discussions.

Managing your Expectations

Wee Loon, you can’t control how people communicate with you but you can take charge of how it affects you. Remember that Expectations are not necessarily the same as needs. Don’t let what you think you “ought to do” override what you actually need.

People who are too impatient to listen and avoid group discussions will most often be the ones whose approach you like least. Let them know their communication style doesn’t work for you, and what does. Unless you tell them, they won’t know.

Instinctive Needs

Your Instinctive Needs

Wee Loon, you instinctively need to achieve understanding and organize thoughts before moving forward. For you, having a sound strategic plan is essential to your confidence and feeling of security. You identify more with people who avoid risk by thinking before they act.

Understanding instinctive differences

The Instinctive Needs graph affects business relationships more than any other dimension of your HardWiring DiagramTM. Since only 25% of people will instinctively understand what you need it’s easy for misunderstandings to occur.

Instinctively, you feel that encouraging people to slow things down and think through the implications will make them feel better, since that’s what works for you. For people who are wired differently, your efforts to show commitment may be seen as obstructing their progress. This is especially true for those who are more extroverted and instinctively keep things moving.

You may also assume that people have your same ability to pick up unspoken signals and therefore respond to what you need without you having to ask. For some, no news is good news and if you don’t tell them you have a problem they won’t know. In the absence of knowing how to deal with the people closest to us we turn to our own instincts for direction. Remember, 75% of the time our instincts will give us the wrong information. The goal to real personal growth is learning to give others what they need without giving up what you need in the process.

Becoming more effective at work

In the workplace, you have a strategic focus and an instinctive nature that thinks before you act. Not everyone needs as much information as you do before taking action. Since you instinctively evaluate the risks up front you may judge others for acting without thinking. They may feel you procrastinate. This right and wrong game is a no-win resolution.

Learning to show respect for people with different needs, along with having a clear understanding of your own, will allow you access to opportunities that would otherwise pass you by. For example, your risk averse, strategic nature may dismiss a tactical can-do approach as being too dicey, but being open minded to colleagues who take this approach can lead to better results as both your long-term and their short-term perspectives are factored into business decisions.

Beautiful people

If birds of the same feathers do flock together, then I must be a gorgeous person. :)

Sorry for the self-delusion, since I just realised I have not one, but two friends who are in the running for Female Magazine's 50 Gorgeous People. OK, one is and one was.

Littleboy is in the running for this year's contest. Great picture by the way. :) And while I was googling around, I came across last year's competition and found out that Esther was in the running.

How lucky am I to know so many beautiful people. Please vote for contestant no. 27.