29 Dec 2024: Ancient Apocalypse

Thu: HappyBoxingDay/StStephen’sDay/WrenDay on this 2ndDay of Christmas. Gledelig Jul and not God Jul as L&M’s Norwegian paternal-great-grand-mother would say after ChristmasEve is over. Nice way to spend her last day here shopping on this trip with her cousins Kiera&Isabella, girls of own generation, Purple and not being stuck with us the older Green&OrangeG – hahaha.

Fri: TGIF and a good last 2024weekend to all on this last 2024Friday – ending this trip at MT-Market 0530hrs with her favourite CheeCheongFunBfast 豬腸粉 on this dark&early morning before catching the 1stBus36 0559hrs to the airport. Her favourite so far is CCF@MTmarket and #6s favourite is 小龍包XiaoLongBao@鼎泰豐DinTaiFung, easy to remember…

Despite no water at JewelsRainVortex still beautiful&lush for my eyes – safe onwards journey to her. Impressed&proud of this fine beautiful young lady and all the best to her for her future onwards life journey whose goal is to be a neurosurgeon.

The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot – Michael Altshuler

Back in the neighbourhood where sprucing&tentage set-up for 2025’s-countdown. Cooking all day of duckbones from LuckyHouse’s dinner and feasting on tasty homemade congee&soup from the broth.

Sat: after a good night sleep and looks like a busy Sat in the hood with laying of new asphalt, time to close the windows and turn on the AC to continue watching movies while the laundry gets good drying weather on this 4thDay of Christmas. Enjoying thoroughly, finding these documentaries AncientApocalypse by GrahamHancock with much interest, do remember asking similar questions in my teens after reading ErikVonDäniken’s books – even more so now in my senior years when there is quiet quality time to read&reflect!

Amber-Trapped Tardigrades Unveil Ancient Secrets from Millions of Years Ago

Don’t wake me for the end of the world unless it has very good special effects – Zelazny

Sun: tkx to Les&Ivy for BirdNest&ChickenEssence and appreciations to Clement for bringing them. Nice to meet with Daniel and was rather surprised how as a tourist he managed to find his way to our local MT-market?? Delighted to know that there is still some adventurous young ppl – good luck to him for his stay here. Chilling in this lovely stormy wet afternoon – seize the day, then let it go on this 5thDay of Christmas.

On the fifth day of Christmas
My true love gave to me
Five gold rings…

Interesting read to take notes on

Internet use has the potential to slow age-related cognitive decline – do agree with this as long as used constructively! To be honest, do spend quite abit of time online for info,news,staying in contact,watching movies,etc

Researchers discover the hobby that cuts your risk of dementia in half | Daily Mail Online

25 Dec 2024 – Tanglin Club

Sun: as the saying goes, it does not just rain, but it pours go for a stiff neck on top of what is happening – definitely&literally a pain in the neck for me but hopefully not a pain in the neck to others – hahaha! Appreciations to Sue for this CCF-Brunch@MT-Market, finally they get to taste my favourite CCF and Ellie is grateful for an afternoon shopping@Chinatown. Tkx to Lee, she got her first taste of durian and according to her it kinda taste ok but with a weird aftertaste, like rotten!

Mon: appreciations to Shawn for arranging for her to shadow some doctors@MtE – she is indeed blessed&fortunate to be leaning from all these experiences.

Dinner with the family tkx to Theresa&CJ at this new location@Ion.

Good food but unfortunately the appetite was not quite there.

Perfect for Ellie who is a pescatarian – thanks to TingTing for this dress which fits her better any of us.

Tue:@DawsonMedical shadowing GPs for today – tkx to Shawn. Glad for the MRT TE-line which makes it easier for her to find her way around on her own especially with the condition I am in at present…

Appreciations with thanks to Les&Ivy@TanglinClub for our family annual gathering, Ellie’s first Christmas with family&friends in SIN.

She is totally blessed to be able to experience our annual gathering with our signature Poppers…

even Santa enjoyed our company, but I found him rather scary – hahaha. Pix credits to David&Lee. Special thanks to family&friends for helping out, have never felt so out of sort and hopeless to be a better grandmother as I would like to be and despite that delighted that Ellie is having a blast and only one more day tomorrow before she heads to Uganda/Africa for her mission trip to help a doctor who has started a hospital there.

Anyone who gets to the end of their life with the exact same beliefs and opinions as they had at the beginning is doing it wrong ― Sarah Bessey

21 Dec 2024 – 55thFloor@Atico,Ion/Orchard Road

Wed: Welcome #2 Ellie from SC/USA to SIN after 30+hrs in airplanes&airports, including 12+hrs layover in Germany. Grandmother here is soo touched&proud that this beautiful #2 grandchild has saved&worked all summer for airfares to spend her ChristmasHolidays with her family here.

17 Dec 2024 – Private Home Cooking Dining

Sat&Sun: getting gifts, etc ready before #2 arrives – has been quite a weekend with a nasty cough&runny nose, lousy night sleep+rashes but this too shall hopefully pass soon…

On this 3rdSunday of Advent, my favourite ChristmasLights has been and still is from RegentSt,London/UK tastefully done in my eyes – pix downloaded. When it is something as beautiful as this, do not need to change.

The lights inside WheelockPlace,OrchardRd clever way to use this building as a tree and nicely done with simple white lights. May your holidays be as beautiful as these Christmas lights.

I’ve learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way (s)he handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights – Maya Angelou

Mon: tkx to Les&Ivy for this delicious 8course tasting experience.

LuckyHouseCantonesePrivateKitchen 陶然居私房菜not sure you can call SamWong’s cuisine typical Cantonese but there is a lot of sincerity in the food. He uses charcoal fire for many dishes, including the boiled soups, reminding of where the cook used wood&charcocal fire for cooking in my childhood days. Marketing for fresh ingredients he cooks whatever he can find, thus menu changes daily.

OldHenSoup with sea coconut and cactus flower+many more other ingredients 霸王花海底椰煲鸡汤 – excellent natural taste without any trace of any artificial ingredients. RoastDuck 陶然烤鸭 marinated for two days, and then sun-dried for another day, unusual to get it served with pineapple&cucumber but a nice change.

Chicken – good flavours, SteamedPomfret 清蒸鬥鯧魚 again unusual to be served with ChoyPoh 菜脯 (Chinese sweet-salty preserved daikon radish, a preserved vegetables/pickles). After seeing the ChickenDish pix, JanS asked could they leave off the rooster head? My reply – food presentation is the art that whispers to the eyes before it dances on the tongue – but of course not all eyes see the same and as always beauty is the eyes of the beholder – hahaha

Quail鵪鶉. Crayfish Horfun 河粉, not crazy about the crayfish but one of the best HorFun tasted.

Pea pot shoots and dried bean curd sheets,barley,ginkgo nuts dessert 腐竹薏米白果糖水 delicious being not too sweet.

Lucky House Cantonese | Top 25 Restaurants – World’s Best Restaurants

Tue: NDCS&NHCS@SGH – these crossed my path on CantonmentRd while on the way to the hospital and was wondering if the chicken from last night’s dinner was perhaps a rooster or maybe the head of the rooster was used for presentation??

Another cracked tooth with more dental appts to follow up in Jan2025. AntiB was prescribed for the respiratory side as cough is still persistence and CTscan result is showing that there is a likely infection – another CTscan scheduled for Feb2025. Hopefully these AntiB will do the job to clear whatever that is not welcomed to be there… time will tell.

#2 arrives tomorrow and have never been so unprepared to receive anyone in my 4walls!

Edited Mar2025: Cancers that have previously been linked to radiation include leukemia, breast, colon, bladder, stomach, ovarian, lung and liver cancers, according to the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The team concluded: ‘Radiation doses from commonly performed diagnostic CT examinations are higher and more variable than generally quoted, highlighting the need for greater standardization across institutions.’ CT scans are life-saving medical scans, but they are not without risk.

‘Over-used’ medical test given to millions may be causing tumors

13 Dec 2024 – Innate Predisposition

Wed: passport renewedS$70 and this new one expires in Dec2034, hopefully do not have to renew again – cannot image traveling in my 80s!! SIN retained its title of having the most powerful passport in the world for 2024, with 5-other countries’ passports also joining the top rank of the latest HenleyPassportIndex.

Singapore tops another most powerful passport list! Singapore News

Airplane travel is nature’s way of making you look like your passport photo – AlGore

Man arrested for murder after knife attack on woman in Hougang – CNA

Thu: a knife attack in Hougang left one woman dead and 2others, including the suspected assailant, injured. All these violence, what is happening here in safe SIN??? Above pix downloaded – last time in or even near this area was…

Mar2021: The Owkang Chicken Sellers@Kovan

Mar2021: Stars of Kovan – newly designed condos without any sharp corners! (not good for fengshui according to some ppl), but with various eateries&services on the ground-level.

Am aware that Wed29Jan2025/CNY will be the year of the Snake but seems like they are impatient and are making their appearance more than usual. Ophidiophobia – from the Greek words ophis(ὄφις)=snake+phobia(φοβία)=fear. Have not really given much thoughts to this fear but recently with all these snake news, am wondering why? No cause of distress or limitation to my activities but just dislike seeing or meeting them, thus no pix posting of real snakes. Ophidiophobia applies to ppl whose fear causing anxiety disorder and if

• ‌You have intense fear, panic, or anxiety that is unreasonable and difficult to manage.
• The fear of snakes is out of proportion to the danger.
• Your fear lasts longer than 6 months.
• Your fear starts to negatively impact your life. You may find it difficult to behave normally in work, school, or social situations.

What Causes Ophidiophobia? Symptoms, Diagnosis, and Treatment

Studies have shown that certain regions of the brain, such as the amygdala, are highly active when people see images of snakes, even if they are unaware of their presence. This heightened awareness helps individuals recognize and avoid potential threats.

Innate Predisposition – research suggests that humans are biologically predisposed to fear snakes, even without direct exposure or negative experiences. Experiments with infants have shown that they react more strongly to images of snakes than to images of other animals, such as birds or cats. This indicates that the fear may be hardwired into the brain, rather than solely learned through experience.

Why Are Humans So Instinctively Afraid Of Snakes?

Reading trying to understand and Innate Predisposition seems a logical explanation in my case!

‘Massive battle’: Large king cobra tries to eat smaller one at Windsor Nature Park, Singapore News – AsiaOne

‘It was knocking on my window pane’: Python rescued from Jurong West HDB flat | The Straits Times

Snake drama in Eunos: Python throws up a cat | The Straits Times

Singapore home to 64 native snake species, but roadkill a major threat to them | The Straits Times

Even snakes are afraid of snakes – Steven Wright

Fri: can always pick out my USflock like could always pick out my 1st&2ndBorn in any crowd in their school functions – call it a mother or grandmother instinct – hahaha! Thanks to 1stBorn for sharing these pix at their HighSchoolChristmasConcert with #3&4 at the cellos and the last ChristmasConcert@IrmoHighSchool for #3.

Paraskavedekatriaphobia and Friggatriskaidekaphobia describe fear of this supposedly unlucky day if you are superstitious! Another 13Fri another OysterEvening@FairPriceX/PP and this round with Ting&CH. Happy StLuciaDay on this last Fri13th for 2024 to those celebrating. If a black cat crosses your path… it means the black cat is going somewhere – hahaha.

Superstition is born of ignorance and fear, and thrives the most when reason is asleep – Zarathushtra

10 Dec 2024 – SIN Vs KL Public Transportation

Sat: family&friends+all affected by this weather, please take care to be warm&safe.

Despite looking like WinterWonderland do have vivid memories of the struggles to clear snow in Norway to open the main door! Pix downloaded, do have similar pix from Norway days but all in slides!

Power Outages Reported Along East of U.S. Due to Storm

Not only in NE-America, also in UK.

UK weather map reveals where Storm Darragh will hit hardest

Winter must be cold for those with no warm memories – Deborah Kerr

Thanks to CH&Ting for our annual catch up with CCFlunch@MTmarket&dessert in my 4walls introducing Ting to the underground walk here, now with a new Cheers to be opened – forgot pix but will meet again next week.

Sun: enjoying this 2nd Sunday of Advent chatting with 1stBorn in USA and having a relaxing lunch of leftovers FreshFigWrappedProsciutto, CreamCheeseSmokedSalmonRose and FreshFruitSalad.

Mon: reading&watching movies

Our brains usually see things better if there’s a comparison.

So, we can compare Singapore to KL, in terms of public transport.

When I was there in KL (I’m a Singaporean), I was struck by the many highways, expressways, lebuh rayas, flyovers etc; and different kinds of commuter trains. But I was even more struck by the big number of cars and traffic jams all over despite the amount of money poured into the transport infrastructure.

I was told that the train systems were built and run by different companies, and similarly the bus system too. There’s a great deal of “disconnections”, and poor planning.

I told myself that if KL’s transport infrastructure had been carefully planned and built, many people would not need to drive.

The KL chaos is a classic illustration of the English saying, “too many cooks spoil the broth”

Unlike Singapore.

So why did Singapore’s MRT system go everywhere? — this is largely because of central, unified, careful planning of the whole public transport system, intricately connected to provide optimal transport solution to the people of Singapore.

By the way, I have stopped driving to work and instead take a bus and train to work — with the 3 Cs – Cool, cheap, convenient – TC Quah/QuoraDigest 

Tue: cruising on a ship around the world for 4yrs, tempting as it may sound but will really be a torture for me as I get seasick. Ppl who enjoys cruising, especially those in USA who want to get away for the next 4yrs, here is your chance for real…

Retiring on a cruise ship in Singapore for $4.4k per month: Does it make sense?, Lifestyle News – AsiaOne

6 Dec 2024 –  Gallivanting Vs Walking 

Tue: annual CT-scan@NHCS – like this high ceiling for the outdoor eateries providing a nice a bright open spacious feeling. Without the GovtS$560.98+MerdekaS$60.10, the scanS$801.40 would have been digging a hole in my budget despite having to payS$180.32 during this giving season! Bus166 to Camper’s to check what is needed for Fri’s FruitCocktailDessert.

Wed: tkx to Clement for getting me out to try this HokkienMee@OldAirportRd – practical&smart to be provided with a buzzer making 30mins wait not an issue. No sweat or problems when you can sit down to enjoy a cuppa, despite spilling half of it – senior moments when forgetting to bring my own solid cup vs the lightweight easily topple-over disposable plastic one!

Decathlon@StadiumBoulevard(pix downloaded) – like the outdoor vertical garden wall and the idea that I can scan my feet, to check what is new+what is on sale to manage to find some needed non-flimsy sturdy underwearS$32.

Vertical gardens are often highlighted for helping save costs by cooling surface temperatures and reducing the need for air-conditioning; but those who live or work in such buildings are quick to point out that the benefits go beyond dollars and cents – ST-23Jun2014

Hardly recognized this area today(ariel pix downloaded) where once upon a time working @NetballSingapore~20+yrs ago without all these new sports activity hubs then. Had to take a break to check out the new TennisHub and to rest from the outside high humidity – unlike not long ago when I could keep up the pace, poor nephew! has to now slow down…

Good to still see the familiar LeisureParkKallang, 1stMall in SIN to offer an under-one-roof leisure(bowling still there) and one of the existing recognizable landmarks for me in this area. The view as you get out of the StadiumMRT station to KallangWaveMall  is still one of my favourites, another open spacious feeling, ie as long as no crowds!

CCL-Stadium, still my favourite MRT station – today’s joy ride from here to MarinaBay changing to TEL-MarineTerrace with the luxury of the feeling of being in a private train all to myself. ~15,000steps and happy to be able to put in those steps – if gallivanting or walking is considered a sport would probably get a medal for it – hahaha!

The miracle isn’t that I finished. The miracle is that I had the courage to start -J.Bingham

Condolences to the family of TAN HoweLiang(91) SIN1stOlympicMedallist/1960 – pix downloaded.

Thu: the kebaya has been officially added to a list of the world’s intangible cultural heritage following a joint nomination by SIN,Brunei,Indonesia,Malaysia&Thailand. Do like this outfit and will use it fully or part of it for special functions.

https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/kebaya-inscribed-unesco-intangible-cultural-heritage-list-4786996

Read this from QuoraDigest /TC Quah on What Is Life Really Like In Singapore?

Fri: Camper’s’CornerSeason’sGathering and my usual contribution.

Thank you to Calvin&CC-Staff+Friends for 2024Season’sGathering with drinks,yummy foods,etc – nice to catch up with so many.

Belated Bday greetings to Bill, congratulation to SengHock&Joy for their marriage and to PengHann&Maggie for their new additional. Appreciations to EthanSoh for driving me back to the EastSide – remember him as the little boy and now driving&dating!!

2 Dec 2024 – Hello December

Fri:  TGIF for this last Nov2024Fri – Happy 18Bday to #3 from a lovely cool wet SIN morning. A few more blinks and he will be graduating HighSchool and joining #1@UofSC. What I like most on days like these is having the sidewalks to myself!

Basic health screening for hearing&sightS$2@Blk15MT – a new experience but will probably be the first&last…

Thankful to Gel for getting me to try oysters@Fairprice/PPS$17.50 – nice way to start the festive holiday mood after getting the overseas snailmail out and great for me with hardly any crowds despite it being a Fri.

1st time in a Scoop/PP, delighted to discover that they do have CacaoNibsS$4.90/100gr

Sat: appreciations for gifts&DIY PopiahS$28 薄餅+LaksaS$41 辣 沙 Such fun to be able to make your own Popiah and have only the fillings you wish to eat. FortuneFoods do a decent job with deliveryS$18 for both these set and it is worth the total of S$87 for min stress on me to get all the shopping&preparations.

By choice just had to get more prawns(not enough for me in the sets!)+fresh BeanSprouts,LaksaLeaf,Lettuce. Made Tiramisu for dessert and pleased to see&taste that am still able to do a good one, been a while ago since the last one made! Served most of the food in disposable tableware including BananaLeaf for placemats – min washing up.

One of the best parts of the holiday season is spending time with the special people in your life – Obama

Sun: 1stSunday of Advent – as we enter into the holiday season, remember to stay healthy&safe and take time to give yourself some quiet peaceful moments to get away from the rush&stress, also a reminder to all that we may have different religions, different languages, different colored skin, etc but we all belong to one human race

CCF+Congee-Bfast@MT Market with Helen.

BananaCakeDessert and introducing her to the Chocolate+ThankfulAdventCalendar and figs wrapped with ParmaHam.

Thank you for scrumptious dinner w 6medical doctors – definitely in good hands if medical attention is needed, hahaha! Delighted to meet LeLeAung from Myanmar to discover we have common friends in SierraLeone/Africa and that she is a classmate of YasmineFadluDeen who I babysat in the 1960s, Dublin/Ireland – small world! DeepFriedFlyingFish gets the presentation attention and lived up to its name. My humble starter contribution of a western style smoked salmon…

Being in ImperialTreasureSuperPekingDuck/Paragon, the duck is a must and consumed in 3different ways.

Short walk on OrchardRd to catch the bus36 getting the front seat instead of MRT to get into the mood for this festive holiday month which does not get easier as time goes by.

Mon: stomach needs to rest for a day before more festive foods ahead…

24 Nov 2024 – Frank Vs God

Thu: this is rather concerning to read, but there are also much happening in the news which are upsetting to hear or read and as I am writing now with the lovely melody by ChalieChaplin’s Smile@Symphony924; appropriate lyrics by J.Turner&G.Parsons went thru’ the mind in time to pull me out of the dark thoughts.

Speaking at a conference at the National Institute of International Finance, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon warned that a global conflict involving nuclear powers is imminent.

World War III has already begun. Battles are already being fought on the ground and are being coordinated across multiple countries,” Dimon said at the annual event in Washington, D.C., on October 24. Pix downloaded.

America’s largest bank warns: “World War III has already begun”

‘World War 3 has begun,’ Ukraine’s former military chief warns

Light up your face with gladness
Hide every trace of sadness
Although a tear may be ever so near
That’s the time
You must keep on trying
Smile, what’s the use of crying
You’ll find that life is still worthwhile
If you just smile

Fri: morning coffee at KithCafe/MilleniaWalk – really! S$7+for a regular Cappuccino, just goes to show how seldom I go for a cuppa at a cafe, S$1.60 for a cuppa at the local market.

2024-BoutiqueFairS$6@F1PitBdg – beautiful white CallaLilies looked too perfect to be real, looks can be deceiving and was rewarded one for trying to touch it, for real in all ways.

What a feast for the eyes but not for the budget!

Tkx to Audrey for yummy pastry.

Mushroom lunch.

Foods from OldChangKee(first outlet)&LE CafeConfectionery&Pastry@MackenzieRd.

Belated Bday celebrations for Chris & Sam and welcome Calvin back to SIN.

Takeaway ChickenBriyaniS$10 here, their single portion adding an extra piece of chicken is enough to last me for 4meals/TekkaMk + CitronellaIncenseSticksS$5 from LittleIndia on Bus48 back to the EastSide in heavy downpours – delightful day despite of the afternoon rains.

Sunshine is delicious, rain is refreshing, wind braces us up, snow is exhilarating; there is really no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather — John Ruskin

Sat&Sun: RY has a point regarding the above quote – No such thing as Bad Weather? Such BS… has that guy ever heard of hurricanes, tornadoes, typhoons and torrential rain? IDIOT His comment got me thinking about the movie FrankVsGod… not going to start on that to open another can of worms but KristyB has a good point regarding religion with the below link – pix downloaded

Bible lessons in Texas schools to get final vote | khou.com

The Bible belongs in private homes, in churches, and in Sunday schools, where learning it is a choice. Not in public classrooms, where it becomes compulsory – KristyB