12 Dec 2010 – Illusions with Lights

Toys Games Comics Convention@Suntec. Still looking out for a light sable but not quite the full size.  Care Bears bring me precious memories of Linn&May from 1985@LAX/USA immigration with May clutching tightly to her pink Care Bear. Handed all our passports to the officer, Linn/Ireland, May/Norwegian and me/SIN. The officer smiled and asked if her Care Bear also had its own passport and from which country. Poor May! She looked apprehensive as she did not quite speak or understand English then, but after Linn‘s translation, came this big smile on her face.

Thanks to nephew Clement for a piece of the sinfully delicious chocolate from Sins and a yummy steak dinner@Outback***at Millenia Walk. Must be synchronicity as will usually go for local food when in SIN, that same night, Linn was also enjoying her Omaha steaks!

A Page of Madness/狂った一頁 a 1926 Japanese movie, would be unfair to rate as it is a class of its own. Takes place in an asylum and tells the story of the asylum’s janitor and his wife as one of the patients. The music was deafeningly loud and distracting. The film does not contain subtitles nor any titles, difficult to follow and I was really lost… felt like I was going mad!

My desk, total chaos (after watching the movie!) over the weekend. Snail-mail seasonal greetings to USA & EU are done and out in the mail, they are getting less after the existence of email and Facebook! But there are some who are not online and some who like receiving hard copies. Next week to get the snail-mail for Asia out and the email messages drafted before pressing the SEND button! How did we ever managed over hundreds of seasonal greetings out in time before email I will never understand 🙂

Illusions commend themselves to us because they save us pain and allow us to enjoy pleasure instead. We must therefore accept it without complaint when they sometimes collide with a bit of reality against which they are dashed to pieces – Sigmund Freud

11 Dec 2010 –  Island Getaway

Fri: Changi Village/posting 14 Sep 2009 Time & Tide wait for No one! where one of the best Nasi Lemak stalls is located- a hearty breakfast hit the spot before getting on the boat at Changi Ferry Point on this hazy day. For those who have the luxury of time (slightly under 2hrs!), No 2 bus from town will take you all the way to Changi Village Terminal for less than S$2.

About 10mins ride on a bumboat is Ubin, an island where SIN has stood still since 1950/60s (Pulau=island in Malay). As you get off the boat head for a lesson of tropical fruits, herbs, vegetables etc. Bicycle rentals are abundant, unless you bring your own which will cost an extra S$2 on top of your S$2.50 fare on the bumboat!

For S$4 but you will need at least 6 person to fill the small van, a driver will drive you to Chek Jawa, 10mins drive/1hr walk. There is a coastal & mangroves boardwalk, seagrass lagoon, Jejawi Tower 20m (highest point on the island) and a viewing jetty where there is a charming cottage.

The Tudor architecture style was built in the 1930s as a holiday retreat and probably where you can find the only working fireplace in SIN!

This 10.2sq km island is largely a series of undulating granite hills and the picturesque abandoned granite of Balai Quary is still visible. Did not have the time to check out Noordin Campsite where the National Police Cadet Corps Campsite is and four other quarries but will certainly return to do so another day. Remember to bring mozzy repellant, you will need it! Appreciations to Audrey MOH and her ESL class for including me on their field-trip.

If all mankind were to disappear, the world would regenerate back to the rich state of equilibrium that existed ten thousand years ago. If insects were to vanish, the environment would collapse into chaos – EO Wilson

9 Dec 2010 – Ajahn Brahmavamso

Wed: paid respects to my parents at Mandai Crematorium/posting 27 Apr 2010, the mystery of the missing rose is no longer a mystery. Both roses are in place and let’s hope that they will remain so after the repainting job which is ongoing when I was there. Will check on that before I take off from SIN early next year!

Nearly 2hrs by bus with a change at Ang Mo Kio to another bus. Met with Siong Yin at AMK Hub for lunch and bought a new pot, always wanted one of these multi cooker with steamer. Can look forward to cooking my Cantonese clear soup and steam fish or whatever I feel like eating at the same time.

Thu: first heard of Ajahn Brahmavamso when I returned to SIN in 2000. An English monk with a degree in Theoretical Physics from Cambridge University and a monastery in Australia is not your usual monk. Very impressed with his talks as it is NOT about religion but more about attitudes and ways to live. Ajahn Brahm is one of the very few people I admire and respect! Will try to catch his talks whenever he and I are in SIN at the same time! Inspiring, sincere, logical, realistic talks with humour are easy to follow. His first book Opening the Door of your Heart*** was published in 2004 and now his new publication Simply this Moment. Looking forward to reading it.   http://www.ajahnbrahm.org/about.html

Grant yourself a moment of peace and you will understand
How foolishly you have scurried
Learn to be silent and you will notice
You have talked too much
Be kind, and you will realize
Your judgement of others was too severe –
Chinese Proverb

7 Dec 2010 – Dinner, Temple, Lunch & Movie

Congratulations to Evelyn & Andrew who were married on 2 Oct when I was en route from NY to SC, thus missing this wonderful wedding. Met Eve in 2003 when I was working in Marina House and she needed orchid pictures for the Times Publishing Group cooperate calendar. We finally caught up for dinner Mon night and had the chance to see the pictures. What a lovely wedding outfit with real orchids and Lily of the Valley in her hair… the perfect combination to match SIN colours. Wishing them the very best of luck for their future.

Tue: annual expedition with 90yrs old por-por (Ivy’s mother) to Kwan Im Thong Hood Cho Temple@Waterloo St/posting 22 Dec 2009. Dim-sum lunch at Victor’s Kitchen***@Sunshine Plaza. When this HKG husband & wife team opened in a tiny corner with 6 small tables some years ago, the food was excellent for the money then. Today they have expanded to a larger area but their food is not as good as it used to be.

Hello Stranger/กวน มึน โฮ **** Thai movie inspired by Korean culture and entertainment that fluxed around Asia, the film tells a love story of a guy and a girl who destined to meet in Seoul during their private trip to Korea. Funny romantic comedy, light and entertaining with good laugh for 2hrs to forget whatever unhappy thoughts you might have 🙂

There are no strangers here; Only friends you haven’t yet met – Yeats

6 Dec 2010 – Woods Equestrian

Made a vegetarian lunch for Sam & Orlando to celebrate my Christmas lights (the ones bought at IKEA when actually only planned to get a bracket!) and to celebrate the nearly completed spraying the seed-pots Christmas decorations. Sam is the daughter of WONG Hong Sze. Sam and Orlando met during their studies in London where he is originally from and they got married in SIN Feb 2009. Great to catch up with this delightful young couple who are starting their life together. Appreciations to them for wanting to spend time with me! Sam is an avid rider and has her own horse. Lagos. For more info:

http://www.woods-equestrian.com

They have recently set up a riding school where one can even ride on a mechanical simulated horse, Totilas, to experience the feeling before actually riding the real animal. It is a good idea, especially for those who are apprehensive. This way one can try to feel and see if one is comfortable so as not get nervous being on the real animal. Horses are very instinctive and sensitive, they immediately sense if the rider is nervous or not in control.

The very best of luck to them and to their new riding school. Looking forward to the opening of Woods Equestrian. Have never been on a mechanical horse, can then try to ride on Totilas even thought preempt that my preference is to ride on the real thing as riding out in the nature is fun. Now if that is not already mindset about the preempt… what is 🙂

We all talk to ourselves
A major key to success exists in what we say to ourselves
Which helps to shape our attitude and mindset
Darren Johnson

4 Dec 2010 – Salad & One Amber

Thu: thank you Aileen for a most healthy and delicious lunch at Mescluns*** Salad, Sandwich & Soup@CityLink. The selection of greens are fresh and a good variety of extras and toppings. Freshly squeezed juice was like any other freshly squeezed juice and the soup was so-so. Did not try the sandwich. Will certainly return for the salad and their dressings.

Appreciations to Jane for a home-cooked dinner at her beautiful new condo@One Amber, another of SIN’s changing skyline on the East Coast.

Here is one we all can relate to in today’s tech-no world! Have a good weekend.

A little boy goes to his father and asks ‘Daddy, how was I born?’

The father answers, ‘Well, son, I guess one day you will need to find out anyway! Your mom and I first got together in a chat room on Yahoo.  Then I set up a date via e-mail with your Mom and we met at a cyber-cafe.  We sneaked into a secluded room and googled each other.  There your mother agreed to a download from my hard drive.  As soon as I was ready to upload, we discovered that neither one of us had used a firewall, and since it was too late to hit the delete button, nine months later a little Pop-Up appeared that said:

YOU GOT MALE!! (John W)

The real danger is not that computers will begin to think like men,
but that men will begin to think like computers
Sydney J. Harris

2 Dec 2010 – Two movies + Dec special dates

14 Happy Bdays Ingrid HUSTAD & LAM Cheng Chwab

16 Happy Bday Andy LAM

23 Happy Bday Minos LAM

24 Happy Anniversary May & Albert CHUA

25 Merry Christmas

27 Happy Bday Lisa XIAO

31 Bye-bye 2010

Winner of the coveted Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival 2009, The White Ribbon**** is set in the village of Eichwald, Germany just before World War I. A story of the children and teenagers, their families, a school choir run by the village schoolteacher, the Baron and his family, the pastor, the doctor, the midwife and the tenant farmers. Strange accidents occur and gradually take on the character of a punishment ritual but no one knows who is behind it…

B/W film to merge into 1913-1914 time frame. There is no music but the natural sounds of what is happening is a good way to keep the concentration. The ending is quite ingenious as the only conclusion is your own speculation! Somehow the character of the pastor reminds me of Brand, one of Ibsen’s play… another European up-tight religious character.

Bruce Lee, My Brother*** based on the memoir written by his younger brother, Robert. As a young man, Bruce Lee was often engaging in street fights with his buddies, Kong and Unicorn. Against his father’s wishes, Bruce studies the Wing Chun martial arts style instead of Tai-chi and tastes his first triumph by knocking out a Caucasian boxer at a tournament with his kung-fu skills.

On the eve of his triumph, he learns that Kong has become a drug addict and decides to rumble the drug lord’s den together with Unicorn. This renders him the target of both the triads and corrupted cops who want him in jail. To save his life, Lee’s father has no choice but to send him off to San Francisco to pursue his studies. Enjoyed seeing a less action flick of Bruce Lee in his growing years. The young HKG actor, Aarif Rahman is quite pleasing to the eyes! Only wished it was in Cantonese. For those expecting much action and kung-fu will be disappointed.

Success means doing something sincerely and wholeheartedly – Bruce Lee