17 Mar 2010 – Happy Bday to niece LEONG PatLyn

Saint Patrick (Sanctus Patricius/Latin, Naomh Pádraig/Irish) c. 387 – 17 March 493 was a Romanized-Celt, a who is the most generally recognised patron saint of Ireland. Patrick was born in Roman Britian. Calpornius, his father, was a deacon, his grandfather Potitus a priest. When he was about sixteen, he was captured and carried off as a slave to Ireland where he worked as a herdsman, remaining a captive for six years. He writes that his faith grew in captivity, and that he prayed daily. After six years he heard a voice telling him that he would soon go home, and then that his ship was ready. Fleeing his master, he travelled to a port, two hundred miles away he says,where he found a ship and, after various adventures, returned home to his family.

Pious legend credits Patrick with banishing snakes from Ireland, though all evidence suggests that post-glacial Ireland never had snakes! Legend also credits Patrick with teaching the Irish about the concept of the Trinity by showing people the shamrock, a 3-leaved clover, using it to highlight the Christian belief of ‘three divine persons in the one God’ .

Saint Patrick’s Day/Lá Fhéile Pádraig is celebrated on 17 March. It began as a purely Christian holiday and became an official feast day in the early 1600s. However, it has gradually become more of a secular celebration of Ireland’s culture and is now a public holiday in Ireland. This day is also considered the national day for Ireland and even in SIN we had the parade on Sun in pouring rain, just like 2009. My most memorable one was in Dublin/Ireland 1974 when I was in labour waiting for the birth of Linn.

Tonight, there will be a reception hosted by the Ambassador of Ireland in SIN. Looking forward to catching up with some of the Irish Graduates Association in SIN/IGAS members who did not get wet at the parade!

Lá Fhéile Pádraig Sona Duit. Tabhair póg dom, táim Éireannach

12 Mar 2010 – The Jack Neo Scandal

Jack NEO’s latest SIN-based movie Being Human/做人** is showing. Unfortunately or fortunately news of his 2-year affair came to light recently as well. This local news would not have made the news outside of the SE Asia region. Being human reflects on us all, but most of us are anonymous, unlike Tiger WOODS and all the other public figures whose affairs have been in the news. Did they not think of the consequences first if they did not want their private life out in the public? Having a difficult time to understand why they misuse & destroy their fame when they have either been blessed with a talent or have worked hard for their dreams.

The movie was just about to be released before his affair became public but I had already decided to see the movie before the scandal. Do try my best to see the local movies as long as no violence and horror. Most have been entertaining, especially Forever Fever & Singapore Dreaming but to really get into them, one must understand Singlish otherwise the gist is lost in translation and this one is no exception.

Have always enjoyed Mark LEE and he plays an unethical slimming centre owner whose unscrupulous business methods lead to a chain of consequences. The message here is that you reap what you sow, perhaps the director did not think that this also applies to him! It is interesting to see how the movie’s ending scene changed when fast rewinding back to the beginning scenario with a different twist resulting with a predictable ending. I thought for a second I saw Jack NEO in one of the scenes as a waiter! The Cantonese word for a waiter=four-gay and with a slight mis-pronunciation four-geir=turkey 🙂

Have a wonderful weekend!

Nothing is more pleasurable than to sit in the shade, sip gin and contemplate other people’s adulteries and while the wormy apple of marriage still lives, the novel will not die – John Skow

11 Mar 2010 – The Movie/のだめカンタービレ****

Happy Bday cousin Ken TAN

Cantabile in Italian means in the singing way, flowing & clearly. Was unaware that this Japanese cartoon character Nodame Cantabile is from some famous Japanese magazine, Kiss. The story line was not the reason I watched this Japanese movie which is a conclusion to a popular TV series based on a pianist. Nodame’s acting is exaggerated, but her cutesy image fits well in this modern-day fairy tale teeming with magic realism and quirky humour. She has to sort out romantic and professional issues involving her conductor boyfriend Chiaki.

The nearly 2hr movie was worth my time as the music in it is totally exquisite to the ears. Am not a musical/boardway fan but a great fan of good classical music and the opera. The performance of Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture is inspiring, not an easy work to conduct or perform well. The touching part is when the conductor narrated parts of the work in his mind as he was conducting. The firing of the canons added to the dynamics and if you know the history for the era, you might be able to relate this master work of war and peace in music.

Why I sectioned out this movie on its own? Is it because of my passion for music or perhaps a reminder for when I used to play the piano and won prizes, scholarships etc? Now that my arthritic fingers are not as nimble as they were but they still enjoy playing the piano when emotions need to be released, which is often lately!

Music is the mediator between the spiritual and the sensual life – Ludwig van Beethoven

9 Mar 2010 – Happy Bday to niece LEONG SueLyn

72 Tenant of Prosperity/72家租客** happenings from 1970s where HKG landlords try to evict 72 tenants. In this confusing musical comedy, only the singing is kept to Cantonese and the rest dubbed to Mandarin/Putonghua. Dubbing is a no no no for me. I like to watch movies in their original language and prefer to read sub-titles.

Hot Summer Days/全城熱戀熱辣辣*** shares six entwined stories in which people strive to discover the meaning of love, where the heat ignites emotions and changes lives. The movie is done in both Cantonese and Mandarin, depending on the situation and where the location is. For me it is charming to hear the different dialects as long as there are sub-titles, even if it means to be sometimes lost in translation 🙂

Life is short, make full use of it.

Dear John*** a young soldier, John on home leave and falls in love with Savannah during a spring vacation. The couple is separated by his dangerous deployments. They stay in touch by continuous steam of love letters. Henry Thomas who played John, hmmm… quite a feast to the eyes 🙂

There are many Johns in my life and the best so far is grandson John W. No more Dear John! but sometimes what we want is NOT what we get. Fate has strange ways to remind us that we are not always in control.

I’d learned that some things are best kept secret.

Nine** a famous film director struggles to find harmony in his professional and personal lives. Was not aware that it is a musical; would not have watched it if I knew, even with such great stars; Penelope Cruz, Kate Hudson, Marion Cotillard, Nicole Kidman, Sophia Loren and Judi Dench.

You’re a world class liar, darling. Go out there and lie for Italy!

7 Mar 2010 – Visitors from Florida

Janice TUBBS and I go way back to Linn’s Middle & High School days in Florida where she roped me into the PTA!  Scott & Linn were classmates and have been friends ever since. My first meeting with the TUBBS was an exciting one… Linn’s bday party when I dropped her bday cake, no joke! Linn reminded me of it when they celebrated my 60th with two cakes incase I drop one of them and also 60 candles could not fit onto one cake 🙂

This is the TUBBS first visit to SIN and I have not met up with them since I left Florida nearly 12 years ago. They are here on route to their 2 weeks cruise around this region. So delighted to be able to catch up and show them around… real sport of them to walk the East Coast Parkway the first evening after landing. One of May’s favourite chicken dish here , Samsui Ginger Chicken is also Janice’s favourite plus Yak Kun’s Kaya toast. Janice asked what is the official language of SIN. The answer is in the picture with intimidating gun pointing to the official languages 🙂 🙂

The first time I saw anyone off a cruise was at the exact same sport in 1956/57. Brother Lawrence was on his way to London to further his studies and the only means of transportation was by ship then. We were able to board the ship to see his cabin and also to see where how he would be living for the duration on board, about 1 month. The ship sailed and colour streamers were thrown down to us who were waving our goodbyes; the bagpipe band was playing and mother was in tears.

A picture is worth a thousand words – Napoleon Bonaparte

4 Mar 2010 – Marine Parade MP/马林百列…

in SIN is a town and an urban planning area east of the central business district. The public housing/HDB comprises 58 blocks here and over 85% of SIN 4.99million population live in HDBs including me. MP is served by MP Town Centre, which consists of several neighbourhood shops and a major commercial complex Parkway Parade  that houses offices and a shopping centre. A popular seaside weekend getaway for leisure, East Coast Park is well-known to locals and about 5mins walk from my place.

MP Community Building was completed in 2000 where MP Community Club & Library are located. Other facilities within the three-storey complex include a 263-seater theatrette, gym, basketball court and sports hall. Politics of MP is also a component division in the much larger MP Group Representation Constituency, a group representation constituency which elects six members to the Parliament of SIN. Senior Minister and former Prime Minister GOH Chok Tong  is a Member of Parliament for MP.

This area is in demand due to all the reasons above including good schools and private condos with a view. Bought my HDB 10 years ago and it has doubled its value since, not that I have any plans to sell! The only missing element for a movie buff is a cinema in the neighbourhood!! There used to be one by Parkway Parade many years ago. If there is no traffic jam, it will take about 10mims by car to the airport and 20mins to the center of town, add 5/10mins if by bus or heavy traffic. Now that I am a senior citizen, the bus ride cost 69cents from one end of the island to the other and watching a movie on the big screen for S$4 is rather enjoyable and affordable 🙂

Every man is surrounded by a neighbourhood of voluntary spies – Jane Austin

1 Mar 2010 – More deaths

What’s with Feb… tremors, storms & deaths! Exactly a year ago, I was the mistress of ceremony for Shakib’s memorial service. At a wake last week for Violet’s, (walker buddy) mother who died at age 81. Then I received this shocking news-a friend of a friend’s kid died in his sleep last week, Auckland/NZ. He was age 15. A day after the funeral, they got burgled and lost the computer with all the photos too. In the newspaper article, the owners begged the thief to keep everything but to mail them back the photos. This is so sad.

Early yesterday morning I heard from a friend in Kuching, Sarawak/Malaysia that his daughter was in coma. Was thinking of her all day as I was hoping to see her end of the month; later in the evening, she died. My deepest condolences to Chuan & AnnChee for the loss of Kelly JiaXuan who was only 5years young. The dead do not feel but we who are left behind will feel the loss and will miss them. As Chuan said, they will be holding mass on CELEBRATION of her life and that is the best way to remember her and to deal with her passing.

Mar Family Dates

9 Mar – Happy Bday LEONG Sue Lynn

11 Mar – Happy Bday Ken TAN

14 Mar – Happy Bday Ellie HALL

17 Mar – Happy Bday LEONG Pat Lynn and Happy St Patrick’s Day

18 Mar – Happy Bdays Linn HALL & LAM Yi Sun

21 Mar – Happy 40th Wedding Anniversary to Ivy & Leslie LAM

31 Mar – Happy Bday Josephine LAM

Happy Mar Bdays to: Anthony CHAO, John LIM, Gel YEO & Natty TAY (SIN); Amelia POWER, Paul DRUMM & Steven KAO (Dublin/Eire); Alexander CHUA (Bangkok/Thailand); Thomas HEGGELUND & Hannah LEONG (Norway); Al SOSA, Cee WOREL & Janice TUBBS (USA). Amazing to know 20 people with bdays in Mar!

There are as many nights as days, and the one is just as long as the other in the year’s course. Even a happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness, and the word ‘happy’ would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness – Carl Jung

28 Feb 2010 – Last day of Feb

Feb has been quite a month ending with a 8.8 magnitude quake in Chile… where and when will the next tremor hit? Was listening to the internet BBC & CNN news and it was said that earthquakes do not kill people. Buildings etc which collapsed are what kill people. If you were in the middle of an open field, the chances of you surviving a quake is pretty good. Called cousins in Hawaii and good to know that the tsunami warnings were quite unnecessary but always better safe than sorry. For SIN, it has been the driest ever recorded with only 5.3mm rain recorded compared to 18.7mm last year. Staying in my quiet AC environment is the only place for me at present… not looking forward to receive my next electrical bill!

Busy busy busy weekend. First, an entertaining movie The Greatest Wedding On Earth/南北一家亲*** (black & white from the 1950s free screening by SIN Film Society) with AmyR at China Square. Yesterday, lunched with my blogger friends (Lucy, Ting & CH) followed with the best Lo Hei/撈起 by Ivy’s cousin. Thanks to Jessie & Frank for the 28 different ingredients Yúshēng/鱼生 dish. Abundance of fish, ikan parang/wolf herring which is what should be the correct ingredient and NOT any other fish. The Chinese calligraphy is for por-por’s 90th bday and the last sentence is so suitable to end the CNY celebrations for the LAM Heritage: LAM descendents good good good… a literal translation.

Met up with cousin CHEN WengKei & his wife today. We met for the first time over 2 years ago in Auckland/NZ and they are now visiting relatives in Borneo, Malaysia & Singapore. WK is from paternal grandmother’s branch CHAN/CHEN and he immigrated to Christchurch/NZ over 40 years ago. Do not have the capacity to cover that branch, just documenting that grandmother, CHAN Swee Ngor is one of 8 siblings. WK’s paternal grandfather was one of her siblings and he has info and has documented that  branch. Since it was the only day we could meet, Orchard Rd was the best place for them. Most who know me also know that I avoid going anywhere on the weekends but of course there are exceptions and this is one of them. Lucky Plaza on Sun is Philippine town! Tonight Chinatown will be having fireworks to mark the last day of CNY celebrations, the 15th day of the Tiger year. The thought of being there with the crowd and heat gives me a headache. Will decline the invitation and return to my quiet AC studio apartment…

Civilization exists by geological concept, subject to change with notice – Will Durant

26 Feb 2010 – Keiko

Captivity and cruelty to the defenseless innocence and animals upset me to the degree that is not healthy for me. The habitat of wild animals should be out in the nature and not in captivity to be ogled at or to perform tricks for humans. The movie Free Willy**** (1993) brought me to tears; like the first and only time I watched a bullfight in Spain (1966) with my father, not realizing then what it involved! He was embarrassed about my emotional outburst and I received a lecture and a scolding later that evening. He even complained to my older siblings who also gave me another reprimand.

The six-tonne orca, Keiko from the movie died in a Norwegian bay (2003) age 26years where he had been living out his days since his release from captivity. 30-50years is the normal life span of orcas in the wild. In real life, Keiko was a captive whale in Mexico sparking animal rights campaigners to raise funds to release him. He was eventually brought to Iceland, thought to be the orca’s birthplace, for rehabilitation and training for living in the wild. When released in 2002, Keiko headed for Norway’s west coast. Although he was moved to a more remote spot, it appeared he liked the attention of humans and no wonder, especially when he was captured and tamed since a baby!

Yesterday’s headlines… Whale kills trainer really irks me. Should it not be the other way round? Trainer provokes whale to self-defense. In the case of killer whale where killer is not even the appropriate word for these mammals who belong out in the ocean, have their own level of intelligence and are able to communicate among themselves. These whales, the orca (Orcinus orca), is the largest member of the oceanic dolphin family.

Please enjoy and see these magnificent wild creatures or any wild animals as they are, ie in their habitats, and the only time to lift your fingers is on to your camera. Have a good weekend.

Power is no blessing in itself, except when it is used to protect the innocent – Jonathan Swift