6minutes
Friday, June 30, 2006, 09:19 p.m. #1138
Showed Mother to my form class today during RISE lesson (that's the Civics-&-Moral-equivalent in our school) and they loved it. Especially when I told them the background story after watching the film, about how the son despised and hated his mother when he was younger, and how he'd regretted only when he's in jail... Of course I wrapped up with some 'educational' talk about how we may dislike our parents for whatever reasons but we should always remember that they'll always love us unconditionally and we should always treasure them. Clearly the film and the talk struck a chord in them as I could see many solemn, guilty faces. In fact there was complete silence when the film ended and the students listened intently as I talked. One of the girls cried so badly that she had to go to the toilet to wash up as she had tears all over her face. Isn't it amazing how 6 minutes of film are able to touch people's hearts?
royston'sshorts
Thursday, June 29, 2006, 08:07 p.m. #1137
Bought the Royston's Shorts DVD. It's like a dream-come-true to have 11 shorts of Royston Tan, the maker of 15 and Cut, all in one disc. And his shorts were really great (hmm, this sentence just doesn't sound very right). Especially Sons (about the unspoken love between fathers and sons in Asia), Mother (a prisoner's heartfelt sorries to his mum) and Careless Whisperer (yep, starring that Singapore idol wannabe Patrick Khoo), which touched me a lot even when they were only a few minutes long. Hollywood movies seldom touch my heart at such an intimate level like local films do - maybe it's the language and local feel. Intending to show some of these shorts to my students - hopefully the films can inspire them to become better people...
thepencrushingstunt
Tuesday, June 27, 2006, 05:25 p.m. #1136
During the June holidays I conducted a few lab sessions for my Sec 3 classes. The attendance of one of the classes was quite bad - less than half the class turned up. Today when I was asking the absentees their reasons for not turning up, many of them gave lame reasons like 'not feeling well', 'not aware of the lesson', etc. On top of that, when I was asking these students, the rest of the class was chatting among themselves. I was so angry that I shouted very loudly at the class - they immediately fell silent - and then I felt something in my hand... the pen that I was holding has broken into pieces. Apparently I clenched my fist so hard that I crushed the pen. Very dramatic, I thought, and it surely yielded very dramatic results. The class was dead quiet and paid attention throughout the rest of the lesson. Not a very nice way of starting the term though.
schoolreopeningblues
Monday, June 26, 2006, 04:47 p.m. #1135
School holidays have ended. That means I have to: wake up when the sun hasn't risen, run around in school like mad without meals, stand in classrooms for long hours and talk nonstop, think of lesson plans, attend lots of meetings... again. Ahhh!!!... I especially miss the sleep. (I can hear the rest of the non-teacher working population cheering.) But next Monday is a Youth Day holiday! Yay! Looking forward to it. (I can hear the rest of the non-teacher working population jeering.)
Finally attended the BHCO practice yesterday after a long 6-month hiatus. Played the zhonghu, and this time I'm going to be an official string player for the upcoming NAC competition (last time I only played for fun). The practice was extremely boring. As usual, the turnout was pathetic, and the piece was ridiculously easy, even for a beginning zhonghu player like me. The instrument that I got was so badly constructed that it required quite a bit of conscious effort to make it sound decent - most of the time I was trying to get around the bad construct rather than focus on my (lack of) experience or technicality. And the instrument (zhonghu) really gets some of the most unexciting accompanying parts, which I'm not used to, because the liuqin always plays the melody (even the zhongruan gets to play the melody sometimes) and now I have to entertain myself with parts that nobody will notice - although some of my friends said I played quite well and it's been a while since they heard some solid sounds coming out of zhonghu. Yes, I know every tiny part is essential to the whole sound of the orchestra - I just need some time to get used to being secondary. I'm a Leo, you see? :)
thetruants
roamerinchinaparteight
roamerinchinapartseven
roamerinchinapartsix
roamerinchinapartfive
generationlout
Friday, June 23, 2006, 04:10 p.m. #1134
Attended Junb and Yingy's wedding dinner on Wednesday at Beaulieu House, a quaint restaurant by the beach. Quite a test to gauge the sincerity of the guests as the place wasn't exactly very accessible, but I guess the obscurity was nothing compared to the seabreeze, cosiness and quiescence. Wonder if anyone would come if I had my wedding at Tuas... The weather forecast predicted that there would be rain but the cumulonimbus clouds were kind to the lovely couple by moving away. Look at how Yingy couldn't contain her happiness in the photo!
Rushed to attend my keyboard lesson when the dinner was over, only to realise through SMS that my friends were also going to be late due to a terrible traffic jam. And so we made a decision which we teachers would be ashamed to declare - we gave the lesson a miss and adjourned to have a proper dinner at Ichiban Boshi (Novena Square). Not a bad decision after all since we would have been very late if we insisted on travelling to the music school, and we had a really great time chatting - that was our last chance before the new school term starts. The gang then went to my house to see my China photos and tasted the very delicious 茶糕 which I bought from China (it's a delicacy that melts in your mouth - before you ask me to bring it for you: it cannot be easily carried around as it crumbles with a mere touch).
Wednesday, June 21, 2006, 09:16 a.m. #1133
《第八天》
北京：雅秀市场（自由活动）
最后一天的自由活动，母亲与我决定在雅秀市场花光身上所有的中国钱币。那里的东西真的是便宜得不得了。妈妈在理发店里剪发、洗头、染发、修眉毛，竟然只花了45元人民币（9元新币）。我看中的一双鞋子，原本开价590人民币，竟让我杀价到70人民币成交（现在才知道原来我是深藏不露的杀价高手，我在新加坡是从不杀价的）。又买了双好漂亮的牛皮鞋子给爸爸，也是从590人民币杀到80人民币成交。但不是所有的店员都是那么容易妥协的。有一个店员，就在我们洽谈一个Samsonite行李箱的价格时，生气地把行李箱摔在我的面前，说那样的价钱是让他亏本的（我从600人民币杀到60人民币）。见到他那么没礼貌，我马上离开了那间店。刚巧让我在下一间店看到了同一个行李箱，这次便成功以60人民币成交。可见在雅秀买东西，店员们都是漫天开价的，千万别在讨价还价时心软，只要你抱着“我说多少就多少，你不卖，我就不买”的心态，其实都可以减几倍成交的。如果店员不肯，直接走开，他们大多会叫你回来的。
你是否也是杀价高手？
Tuesday, June 20, 2006, 09:48 p.m. #1132
《第七天》
北京：大观园、卢沟桥、石花洞、岳秀市场
膳食：石花洞（炸树叶）、大菜楼
终于等到了这次北京之旅的压轴景点——大观园。读了红楼梦小说无数次、看了红楼梦剧集好几遍，终于能够站在大观园里，也算达成了我的夙愿。这个现实中的大观园并不是很大，是在80年代为了拍摄红楼梦电视剧集所建，剧集中肯定用了不少摄影技巧让大观园显得更加磅礴宽大，因为其实在那里的房子与房子之间是很近的。以上照片便是“开辟鸿蒙”、掀开红楼梦序章的补天石。以下是处处翠绿的林黛玉的住所潇湘馆。潇湘馆的外面也是一片绿绿的竹林，就连灯罩也是用绿竹编成的，真正是好美、好美。当然也到了怡红院、蘅芜苑、稻香村、沁芳亭、栊翠庵、凹晶溪馆、凸碧山庄、花冢（黛玉葬花的地方）等地，更亲身体会了描述香菱（甄英莲）一生的那片生满荷叶的池塘（最后一张照片）——“池塘一夜秋风冷，吹散芰荷红玉影。蓼花菱叶不胜愁，重露繁霜压纤梗。”单单这个不是很大的大观园，就值回我往返北京的票价了。（大观园里有不少北京人，在那里下棋、看书、跳舞。原来北京人只需要花几十元便可以买到年票，随时进入大观园！好羡慕咧！）
中午历经了千辛万苦到达的石花洞，又是另一个值回票价的奇观。之所以“千辛万苦”，是因为需要长途跋涉，后来因为路上有限高（我们大型的旅行巴士过不了），我们又得绕道前行，到达后才听那里的负责人说其实通往石花洞的路正准备装修，因此石花洞已经好久没有旅客前去，我们应该是侥幸逃过了拦路的人员（他们大概是去吃午餐了）。既然到了，负责人让我们品尝了当地的炸树叶（好好吃哦！），并带我们游览了跨越地底好几层的石花洞。真庆幸机缘巧合让我们没有错过了亲身体验石花洞的机会。用了数千万年形成的石花，真是十分震撼人心，浑然天成的形态更是令人不得不惊叹自然界的奥妙。形态中有骷髅头、自由女神、下棋的人等等，个个栩栩如生，很难相信一切都是自然形成的。石花洞之旅，也算为这次的中国之旅画上了美好的句点（第八天是自由活动）。
Tuesday, June 20, 2006, 09:29 p.m. #1131
《第六天》
承德：避暑山庄（包括热河）、普宁寺
北京：岳秀市场
膳食：新五洲酒店（承德菜）、思味饭店（北京水煮鱼）
有没有注意到照片中避暑山庄的铜狮子有两种不同的颜色？那些鼻子、牙齿、爪子、臀部的地方，竟然是让千千万万的旅客给“摸”亮的。因为据说摸了这些地方会带来财运。
Tuesday, June 20, 2006, 08:00 a.m. #1130
《第五天》
北京：雅秀市场、大钟寺、北京地下长城
膳食：蕉叶（傣族菜）、新五洲酒店（承德菜）
如果万里长城是中国的一项奇迹，那么鲜为人知的北京地下长城，便是更大的一项奇迹了。地下长城是比地上的万里长城还要长的。它是毛泽东为备战所挖掘建设的防空壕，在地下遍布了整个北京。地下长城在地面上的入口，是毫不起眼的。但从这个地下长城，我们可以步行通往我曾经去过的各个景点（故宫、天安门、天坛等）。它也是地上建筑物的倒影：如果地面上有一个电影院，地下便是个电影院；如果地面上有一个警察局，那么地下便是个警察局；医院、工厂、学校等等亦是如此。为了让百姓能在战乱中在地下长久居留，这个地下迷宫宛然就是一个五脏俱全的城市、一个灰暗版本的北京。然而，始料不及的是，由于地下潮湿，战乱时期居住在地下长达一年有余的百姓都患上了风湿与关节炎的病疾。
至今，地下长城仍因湿气而天然地冰冷，好像有空调似的。想到当年百姓在如此不见天日的环境下生活，会有一种莫名的怅然。导游说这个地下长城的入口处可能即将被封死，入口处地面上的胡同也即将拆除，为的是建设迎接奥运2008的奥运城。（为了现在而洗掉过去，值得吗？）念旧的我当然在胡同里拍了不少照片（地下长城因为是军事基地，不能摄影），以上便是其中一张胡同里的生活写照。
在北京的最高楼、五星级的京广新世界饭店住宿了几天，午后花了四个小时路程到达的承德乾阳大饭店，可以算是“简陋”的了。但一路上的山水田园，真是让我叹为观止。在宽阔的天与巍巍的山林之下，我显得多么地渺小。我忽然明白为什么中国人会有那么强烈的民族精神——自然雄伟的风光绝对剧增了他们对国家的自豪。
Monday, June 19, 2006, 11:18 p.m. #1129
This article in Today expresses exactly what I feel (the writer is a retired teacher):
Has 'new thinking' created Gen-Lout?
Ho Kong Loon
The recent survey revealing that 9.5 in 10 pupils have been bullied at school does not surprise me at all. The writing has been on the wall for quite a while.
As a former teacher, I have witnessed the gradual but inexorable slide of pupil discipline in schools.
The rising generation of better educated, more liberal-minded and vocal parents is a powerful factor that has unsettled the equilibrium of traditional school discipline, and how it should be enforced.
New-generation parents condemn the traditional norms of strict discipline as cruel, breeding conformity and damaging to a child's psychological growth. They are an emerging force with well-researched, current views on how best to bring up their children.
The outcome? I have gasped wide-eyed as generally well-behaved schoolchildren metamorphosed into demanding, ill-mannered and self-centred louts.
Teachers are constantly reminded to handle their charges delicately and diplomatically.
They are, after all, the "customers" and, hence, never wrong.
Hell hath no fury like the aggrieved parents of a pupil who has been allegedly wronged - the offending teacher can expect no less than a royal roasting.
It is taboo to criticise a child for his laziness, poor work attitude, bad conduct and even defiance.
Remarks in the report books are often euphemistic references to a child's overall behaviour and relational difficulties.
Some schools even provide their staff with a list of politically correct comments as reference.
Detention class and writing of lines are frowned on. Trained personnel counsel an errant pupil if his misconduct seriously hampers his studies and that of his classmates.
The descent into the acts of bullying is in tandem with this decline in the overall discipline in many schools.
Teachers are hampered by the reluctance of victims to be forthright. It is a tediously protracted process to interview the pupils involved.
The parents of the bully can be uncooperative, resentful, even abusive. Retribution against the victims - not all easily detectable - compound and derail the investigations.
I can detail numerous instances when irate parents raised a stink over minor infringements of their children's rights. Teachers, they insist, must love their children passionately.
They must be extraordinarily patient and doggedly committed to their profession.
And daily, secondary school teachers of normal-technical classes struggle to manage teenagers who defy them, use abusive language, disrupt lessons, and so on.
My generation was brought up the tough way: We were caned, had our ears pulled and were slapped.
My secondary school principal terrorised us: There was absolute silence when he walked around the school. Even the teachers feared him.
Once, I saw him stop his car along the road outside the school. He chanced upon two pupils who were smoking at a bus stop. They had their ears pulled. The following day, they were publicly caned.
I am, of course, not suggesting a return to such days of yore.
But mind this: In the 1970s, an entire generation of American parents castigated a renowned psychologist who had advised them against the brutish parenting methods of the past.
He had suggested love instead of hatred and patience in place of anger. They misunderstood him totally: They molly-coddled and pampered their children in the name of love.
The end-result was a generation of defiant, selfish and self-serving youth who drove their parents, teachers and the authorities up the proverbial wall.
Once, a father came to see me because I had told him about his son's poor conduct and attitude.
He grabbed a feather duster and began whacking his son ferociously. I had to intervene. That child not only became a model pupil, he also topped the class for the mid-year examination that year.
I have advised parents to exercise their parental rights to discipline their children, even to the extent of caning them.
Do it out of love, concern and discipline, but do not overreact and abuse the process.
It is far better to cane the errant child judiciously (for example, a stroke on the palm or behind) and correct him, than to have him caned at Changi Prison when he breaks the law as an adult.
I have come across many instances of children who screamed, threw tantrums, littered defiantly, used abusive language and behaved loutishly towards their parents and maids.
The parents looked on with casual indifference and, at times, resignation.
These youngsters hold their parents to ransom: "You don't love me!" is a popular rejoinder when the despairing parents try to assert their rightful authority.
My message is: Get back to the basics.
A solid foundation rooted in respect for elders, good manners, use of temperate language and diligence ought to be laid during the formative years.
Teachers ought to be accorded parental and societal support whenever correctional measures are taken to discipline an errant pupil.
It is basically a mindset revolution all round. Dare we take the first step?
roamerinchinapartfour
Monday, June 19, 2006, 07:36 p.m. #1128
《第四天》
北京：德胜门、雍和宫
天津：文化街（包括泥人张）、食品街
膳食：Hard Rock Cafe（海南鸡饭）、川成酒家（天津狗不理包子）
以上照片是从德胜门城楼顶往下照的，会不会觉得历史文物与现代都市的景观显得有点格格不入？但世上仍有不少事物是恒久不衰的，其中便包括了宗教与迷信。德胜门经过了历史的冲击，现在却“沦落”为貔貅的贩卖处。
貔貅是中国三大神兽之一（念“皮修”，其他神兽为狮子与麒麟），据说想要发财的人，只要供奉貔貅，一定会财源广进。狮子因为太过凶猛，一些人可能会经不起它的煞气，因此不适于大多人供奉；麒麟只保佑正义、发正财的人，对于想要发偏财的人（如以横财、赌博发达，或用手段做生意的人），却是会唾弃并诅咒的。至于貔貅，由于它是一种“光吃不拉”的神兽（嘴巴张得老大，却没有排泄的出口），所以它是正财、偏财都通吃的。
在德胜门上听了貔貅的故事之后，那里的负责人说貔貅的五大功能为招财、聚宝、镇宅、辟邪、保平安（真是“包到完”啊！），并侃侃地介绍了各种各类不同大小品种的貔貅，希望我们会买几尊回家，且举出了不少在那里买过貔貅发达的名人（其中包括了新加坡的某位政坛人物，在此不便透露），又说貔貅越大，效用越大。在我听来，全都是天马行空想要诱骗人的话，但许多人都听信了，个个排队购买了一尊尊价钱不菲的玉貔貅。难道他们不知道有机率与巧合这回事吗？几万个买了貔貅的人当中，当然一定会有几位真正发达了。如果拥有貔貅便能发达，那大家是不是都不用努力工作了？那位负责人怎么还需要打工卖貔貅，而不干脆放一只貔貅在家，等待钱财从天而降？虽然我不赞同这种没有根据的迷信，但如果那些买了貔貅的人能因此换得心安，那其实也还无妨，只怕一些人只仰赖貔貅的“威力”而整天抱着发横财的梦，那便有点可悲了。
午餐是硬石餐厅（Hard Rock Cafe）的海南鸡饭。在中国的美国餐厅吃一道中国的菜，感觉有点ironic（中文里似乎没有能够完全诠释这个字的词汇，最接近的也只有“矛盾、讽刺”）。但那是题外话。硬石餐厅的海南鸡饭确实好吃，那里琳琅满目的吉他更是令我趋之若鹜。这些名人用过的吉他我自然买不起，便只能买了两件T恤做纪念咯。
饭后驱车前往天津。两个小时的路程。在北京的公园里便常见到有许多人喜欢吹葫芦丝，我在几天内便爱上了它委婉忧郁的音质，终于在天津的文化街里碰到了一个卖葫芦丝的商贩，当下买了一只2块钱新元的葫芦丝，实在得意得不得了。最近玩起recorder和葫芦丝，忽然有了着手学习管乐的冲动。但我想我还是停留在拨弦乐、拉弦乐和钢琴吧，应该适可而止呵。:)
thematrimony
Sunday, June 18, 2006, 09:07 p.m. #1127
It's Father's Day today. Attended Jas and Shux's wedding lunch at Swissotel - one of the most hip and relaxed weddings I've ever attended. For one, the dishes were special and delicious - fish steamed in soya bean drink, fried ribs in coffee sauce, etc. The photos were all very light-heartedly taken - not the conventional smile-embrace-kiss kind of pictures - but we got to see the couple sucking their thumbs while sleeping in bed, hugging each other in a bubblebath, ordering food in a restaurant... and even the way they entered the ballroom was different: the bridesgroom carried the bride to the stage. But the atmosphere was solemn when the bride tearfully explained why they chose today for their wedding (they didn't even check whether the date was auspicious). Her father passed away two years ago when the bridesgroom entered her life, and she felt the best present for her father was to let him see her getting married to a trustworthy man. So happy to see these two very wonderful people getting married. :)
roamerinchinapartthree
Sunday, June 18, 2006, 08:14 p.m. #1126
《第三天》
北京：同仁堂、天坛、慈禧水道、颐和园、茶博士家、国家运动员保健中心（足底按摩）
膳食：杭生记酒楼（杭州菜）、中月楼（广东菜）
喜欢看到别人享受生活的样子。你看，照片中在天坛怡然自得的老伯伯，是不是让你心情轻松了许多？
看了一天怡人的风景，最令我难忘的，却是夜晚的足底按摩。按摩的舒服暂且不提，让我印象深刻的，是帮我们母子俩按摩的两个女孩儿。他们都是中医学院里的大学生，白天上课，晚上便以按摩来实习他们对于穴道的认识。原先会注意到他们，不可否认是因为他们都长得很美，后来和他们交谈之后，更觉得在困苦中历练生长过来的人的确更加成熟。他们朴素的生活虽然不如我们新加坡人来得富裕，但他们对生活的态度却是十分地积极。而且与他们说话，完全没有掩饰、做作的感觉。虽然那是他们第一次与我们接触，他们却是直接以真诚的关心对待我们，令我颇为感动。一小时余的免费按摩后，我们彼此祝福了对方，离开时竟是有点依依不舍的。
roamerinchinaparttwo
Sunday, June 18, 2006, 07:48 p.m. #1125
《第二天》
北京：玉工厂、万里长城（居庸关）、景泰蓝工厂、神道、十三陵、宝树堂（宝肤灵）
膳食：金鑫苑（北京菜）、饺子宴
猜猜以上照片中的足球是用什么做的？
哈哈，我想你绝对想不到，那是用玉雕成的。是不是有点浪费？为了迎合世界杯的热潮，竟然有人雕了个玉足球，而且还是个中看不中用的近800新元的摆设品。真有人会买下吗？
roamerinchinapartone
Sunday, June 18, 2006, 08:26 a.m. #1124
Back from China after 8 days! The history and stories of various places are so rich that I took notes throughout the trip, with the intention of making detailed annotations in my photo album. However, knowing that nobody will be interested in reading lengthy descriptions of the sights and sounds online (there're too many better travelogs around anyway), I shall try to keep this entry short by only highlighting the more special experiences. Will only be showing a few pictures too to minimise the loading time (although I took an average of over 100 pictures a day), and I'll avoid using pictures of landmarks since they're readily available online and in print. Lastly, since it was a China trip, the following entries about the trip are, of course, going to be in Chinese:
《第一天》
北京：景山公园、北海公园、天安门广场、故宫（紫禁城）、胡同（三轮车游）、梨园剧场（杂技表演）
膳食：全聚德（北京烤鸭）、御膳饭店（御膳）
北京比我所想象的清洁（是否是因为奥运2008，就不得而知了），道路上没有一点垃圾，路旁更是种满了各种颜色鲜明的花卉。可惜的是人与车都不遵守交通规则，脚踏车肆无忌惮地在车子间穿梭，车子也不会在斑马线前停下来。人要过一条较宽的马路，就必须分几段来过，有时便得停留在马路中央，在车子来往川行之间等待时机穿越。每当红灯的时候，更有人窜行在车子之间卖报纸。是因为中国人口太多了吗（中国人口14亿，单在北京便有1600多万），还是因为形势所逼？马路上的情景会让我觉得人命在这里似乎比较微贱。我的旅行巴士在第一天便路过了一场交通事故：道路上躺着一部脚踏车、溅了一地鲜红的血，一位大嫂在警车前痛哭，看了真让人心酸。
公园里却是另一番光景。老人们悠哉地做着自己喜欢的事：在地上用水挥春、打太极、踢毽子、集体跳舞、玩牌、唱歌、下棋——在新加坡绝不可能看到这副景象。公园里缓慢的生活步伐，与公路上人人拼命的情景形成了强烈的对比。甚至有点讽刺。
tonightisthenight
Friday, June 9, 2006, 02:45 p.m. #1123
Tonight's the night that I've been waiting for. First is the John Williams & Richard Harvey's "World Tour" Concert, in which they'll be playing pieces representing every continent, some of which are brand new guitar concertos. Immediately after the concert I'll be flying off to Beijing, Tianjing and Chengde with Mum. Have been wanting to bring my family out with my own money (as my parents have never gone further beyond Malaysia) but never managed to due to school commitments and reservist. This time I've finally fulfilled my wish, although Dad and Sis didn't want to follow for some reasons. Won't be updating for the next 8 days! :)
euphoricramblings
Thursday, June 8, 2006, 11:28 p.m. #1122
Yes, my bond with MOE has ended without me realising it until Jon asked me the other day. Three years ago, I was still afraid that my passion might die off and that I might have to live a miserable life since I wouldn't be able to pay the compensation if I were to break the bond. It seems my worries were unnecessary - those three years passed really quickly and I haven't regretted choosing teaching. Sure, the job doesn't exactly pay very well, the prospects aren't promising and efforts aren't always acknowledged or appreciated (by superiors and students alike), but I still personally find teaching an extremely satisfying job which I'll continue to pursue for at least a few more years. The teaching profession is undeniably an environment which is very negative (or maybe it's just my school) and full of push factors (75% of the PE department in my school has quit, one by one, what do you think?), but every time when I think of how I have positively influenced some kids (even if they may not realise or appreciate it), I feel gratified. And that truly is all that matters. Of course there're plenty of setbacks and letdowns, but at the end of the day, I feel a deep sense of personal achievement, and it doesn't matter if nobody in the world understands it. I'm not sure if several years later I'm going to think that the present me is so foolish to give up all the other better-earning opportunities to do this "dirty job" of being a teacher, but right now, I'm happy that I survived the three years, with joy.
I have a feeling I have typed similar entries like this before. Oh well, the result of a still-don't-feel-like-sleeping night.
guesswho
Thursday, June 8, 2006, 10:22 a.m. #1121
Had dinner at 老北京 with Ed and gang yesterday before going for my keyboard lesson. Thought the food wasn't too impressive - just the standard of regular home-cooked food, but the restaurant was still packed with people - I guess home-cooked food is a rarity nowadays.
Then went for my keyboard lesson. Last week, the teacher Jane commented that I looked like one TCS actor. As she could not remember his name, the whole class started to stare at me from all angles and came up with TCS actors' names to jolt Jane's memory. In the end she settled on 唐育书 and 张耀栋 and couldn't decide which - both of them aren't very good-looking anyway. (-_-) Then yesterday, she said I reminded her of Jay Chou - another not-so-good-looking guy. Hmm. Don't know whether to feel complimented or insulted. (I don't see any resemblance with any one of the above, by the way.)
After the lesson, we went around to scout for a place to sit and chat - apparently not many places are open beyond midnight on weekdays. Tried Settlers' Inn, the renovated Changi Village Hotel (its neon-lighted balconies are sleazy), and eventually ended up at the Airport, where we chatted at Delifrance till early morning. Early-morning talks are addictive and unstoppable, but we decided we're too old to indulge past 2 am. :)
060606
Tuesday, June 6, 2006, 09:52 p.m. #1120
Been immersed in the early issues of the X-Men comics recently, where the X-men only consisted of Charles Xavier (Professor X), Jean Grey (Marvel Girl), Scott Summers (Cyclops), Warren Worthington III (Angel), Hank McCoy (Beast) and Bobby Drake (Iceman). Must say that the script and dialogue were really corny, but I guess that's only natural - it's the 1960's after all, things in that era defined corniness... And I wonder how long I'll take to catch up on the X-men stories up to the present day (3000+ issues for the past 40 years)...
P.S. Learnt a long word today: honorificabilitudinitatibus. It means "honorableness", and it's the longest word that Shakespeare ever used. The neat thing about this word is that its spelling alternates consonants and vowels. Try pronouncing it - 13 syllables will be quite a challenge. Guess the creator of this word really wanted to stress the difficulty of achieving honorificabilitudinitatibus.
spider'sweb
Sunday, June 4, 2006, 05:58 p.m. #1119
Addicted to Katie Melua recently, thanks to the recommendation by Mie.
Spider's Web
Katie Melua
If a black man is racist, is it okay?
If it's the white man's racism that made him that way?
Because the bully is the victim they say,
By some sense they're all the same.
Because the line between wrong and right,
Is the width of a thread from a spider's web.
The piano keys are black and white,
But they sound like a million colours in your mind.
I could tell you to go to war,
Or I could march for peace and fight no more.
How do I know which is right?
And I hope he does when he sends you to fight.
Because the line between wrong and right,
Is the width of a thread from a spider's web.
The piano keys are black and white,
But they sound like a million colours in your mind.
Should we act on a blame?
Or should we chase the moments away?
Should we live? Should we give?
Remember forever the guns and the feathers in time.
Because the line between wrong and right,
Is the width of a thread from a spider's web.
The piano keys are black and white,
But they sound like a million colours in your mind.
The piano keys are black and white,
But they sound like a million colours in your mind.
They sound like a million colours in your mind.
themousetrapdisaster
Sunday, June 4, 2006, 02:26 p.m. #1118
Remember the Sec 2 Project, which S kept changing her mind about the project title (see #1112)? Eventually she decided that the students shall make a mousetrap car - a model car which makes use of the stored energy of a mousetrap to make the car move. I raised a few potential problems then, but S dismissed them, saying that we should not underestimate our students. So Ed and I went on to brief the students just before the holidays so that they could start work during their vacation.
I hate to be that irritating I-told-you-so kind of person, but the problems which I'd brought up earlier all came true, one by one. (Or maybe I have a hexing ability like the Scarlet Witch.) Firstly, the students could not find those conventional spring-type mousetraps required in the project, and they kept asking Ed and I where they could buy one. When Ed and I went in search for them, we realised such old-fashioned mousetraps are already obsolete, and in the first place, mousetraps aren't commonly sold since mice are not a big hazard in Singapore. Next, 'good news' came when one of the groups told me they'd found a place that sold such mousetraps. But they also added that many of their members injured themselves when they were experimenting, as the trap was easily triggered and it snapped so hard on their fingers that they bled. They now have a phobia of the mousetrap and dare not experiment anymore.
Told S and Ed about the problems, and S finally gave the verdict to cease the project, much to my relief. Took a while to contact 32 group leaders last night (8 leaders in each of my 4 classes) to inform them to stop doing the project before more injuries cropped up. Apparently some of the groups have also managed to find the mousetraps but they have not started experimenting, and some of the more kind-hearted mousetrap-sellers warned the kids to be careful with the device and even exclaimed that the school must be crazy to be letting small kids experiment with such dangerous contraptions.
This will surely become a subject for war when the HOD hears of it, and I worry for S. Anyway, this messy episode on the Sec 2 Project is still not over, as we'll be talking about another change of project title when school reopens. Sigh...
thefellowshipofthetorch
Saturday, June 3, 2006, 12:16 a.m. #1117
Had to go back to school in the morning as I was requested by Mrs O to take some video footages of Project TeachToReach at the last minute. (Yep, ever since I did the corporate video, everyone associates video-taking with me as if I'm an expert, which I'm not.) This project is basically a program for students to learn various forms of circus arts, from juggling to firedancing. It's quite interesting really - one of the better programs in school, I think, where students can actually learn some meaningful skills - and most of the students volunteered for it, unlike most other programs that usually force students to take part. The students were genuinely engaged, and I thought it's good for students to acquire these specialised skills and be able to feel a sense of achievement aside from studies.
Met up with Jon, Zhenx, Zhiz and Zew at night. Haven't seen most of them for ages, so it was great catching up with them and knowing that all of us haven't changed much (not that a change is necessarily bad). Had dinner at Bumbu, a Thai-Indonesian restaurant along Kandahar Street. The food wasn't too bad, and the antique decor enhanced the whole feeling of being there. The best dishes were the pomelo salad and the chendol (as pictured below).
Then adjourned to Samar, an Arabian restaurant nearby, for some light drinks. The ambience was even better, with elaborate and extravagant details, and there were people smoking out of some large, sophisticated Turkish smokepots. We even spotted Ann Kok smoking out of one of these things (yes, that TCS Ann Kok, and she was just inches away from us). Zew's pot of tea became a part of our conversation as the tea leaves looked like living lice wriggling in hotwater and the tea tasted... hmm... exotic.
It's good to hear that everyone is happy with their lives - or maybe we just didn't want to mention the less happy stuff since we only meet once in a while. But I believe we are generally happy - there's not much point in hiding anything when we're such old friends. Talking with old friends and knowing everyone is well can be quite therapeutic. :)
P.S. Just in case anyone is wondering, the 'torch' in the title refers to school logo of TCHS. Oh well, yes, a bit lame. :)
xmen
Thursday, June 1, 2006, 08:18 p.m. #1116
X-Men: The Last Stand was great! It may not be the best of the three, but it surely is a fitting end to the movie trilogy. While many may comment that the movie is too rushed and has too many characters who deserve more screentime (Angel, Juggernaut, Beast) but I thought that's okay since the main threads of the movie are really Jean Grey and Wolverine. I haven't read enough of the series to know how the Dark Phoenix Saga has been messed up (like some X-Men fans have lamented), but as an X-Men amateur, I feel that the fast-paced action of the movie is riveting enough to keep me glued to the screen throughout. Considering X-Men was originally written to reflect the discrimination of minority groups in America, the 'happy' ending of the movie has been quite touching (albeit cliched). That's probably an ending that the present world is still hoping for, even when it has been 40 years since the series first started.
P.S. Almost the whole cinema was bustling with stifled laughters when Richard Gere's that's-only-enough-for-one-bird Visa commercial came on. Mr Brown's podcasts must be really popular. :)