labrador park's extension

went to check out the yet to be officially opened 2 hectare extension to the labrador park at labrador villa and labrador port roads. rewarded with the capture of these wonderful sunset scenes.

although the extension has not been fully completed, anglers and other park users have already encroached upon the new grounds. the extended area offers sight of a villa, the club house at keppel golf club, the carribean housing project and, in the distance, sentosa.

petition to stop the building of
a pcf kindergarten at my block



yesterday, some residents of this block went around to collect signatures to petition against the building of a kindergarten at the void deck of block 544. lay bee was downstairs and so she put her name down on the list.


we all came to know that some construction was going to take place when they started erecting hoardings around the void deck on thursday. i had wondered what was going on. i had no idea that they would be constructing something of a permanent nature.


this evening, when i was walking along the corridor, someone whom i presume initiated the petitioning asked if i would be attending the meeting with the rc chairman that evening. to give my support to their cause, i told him i would.


when i walked to the lift landing area, there were about thirty residents standing around and the one who initiated the petition was talking to the rc chairman. he was quite agitated and his voice was raised. someone came up to me to enlighten me on what was involved.


i asked him if there was any suggestion or proposal for an alternative site/location for the kindergarten. his response was that that would be 'their problem', meaning the problem of the town council.


i support the cause because i feel that the residents should have been consulted before the go-ahead to build the centre was given. also, the residents have quite strong reasons to oppose the building up of the place. already the surrounding void decks have been used for the same purpose. although there is a community hall, it does not have enough space for holding wedding receptions and funeral wakes. they have always spilled onto the very void deck that they are going to take away.


the resident also argued that the space below the block serves as an access for residents from the surrounding blocks to get to the bridge, to the bus-stop and to the plaza. i pointed out to him that they could still use the covered passage by the side of the block.


i heard some residents questioning why the town council did not consider building it at the other nearby blocks. 'why must they pick this block?' it seems to me that it is a case of self interest over-riding everything.


i learnt that about 90% of the residents in this block had signed the petition against the building of a kindergarten at the void deck.


on the other hand, i can also understand why they pick this particular block. the proximity to the existing kindergarten, which is in the next block. blk 544 is next to the access road and it is at road level. it is convenient for parents to drop and pick up their tiny tots. there is also the safety factor as the little children need not have to climb stairs.

wah kee prawn noodles @ pek kio food centre

after our morning walk at macritchie on friday, we decided to head for pek kio food centre for our post-walk routine - makan, marketing and 'main judi' (gambling).

decided to try the wah kee prawn noodles that has got such rave review from dr leslie tay of ieatishootipost. the other day when i was at the same food centre, thai soon ordered prawn noodles from lai hiang pork rib prawn noodles.

the soup looked 'lemak' and tye thong also decided to have the same dish. from what i have gathered, the bigger, the portion, the better is the taste of the prawn noodles. wah kee sells $3, $5, $8 & $10 portions. we tried the smallest and it was already good. it tasted slightly different from your normal prawn mee noodles.

according to thai soon, 'ah wah' has been around for a long time, even before the pek kio food centre was renovated. although the stall is highly rated by ieatishootispost, it is not the favourite with the residents, so you do not have to wait too long for your order.

wah kee is open till 2.00 p.m. each day. it is closed on mondays.

passion fruit @ lim chu kang

saw this woody creeper on the fence of one of the farms at lim chu kang. could not really make out what the fruit was. it looks a bit like a tomato but then a tomato plant is not a creeper. found out today that it is a passion fruit.

the passion fruit is known for its beautiful white flowers with purple to pink crown blooms. the leaves are hairless and lobbed. the two main commercial varieties are purple passion fruit and yellow passion fruit. the purple passion is cultivated mainly in africa and india and the yellow passion fruit in peru, brazil and ecuador.

the juice but mainly the leaves of passion fruit contain the alkaloids, including harman, which has blood pressure lowering, sedative and antispasmodic action. the passion fruit leaves are used in many countries as medicine.

the flower of passion fruit has a mild sedative and can help to induce sleep. passion flower has been used in the treatment of nervous and easily excited children, bronchial asthma, insomnia, nervous gastrointestinal disorders and menopausal problems. passion flower is sometimes used as a mild hallucinogen.

the name 'passion' was given by catholic missionaries in south america. the corona threads of the passion flower were seen as a symbol of the crown of thorns, the five stamens for wounds, the five petals and five sepals as the ten apostles (excluding judas and peter) and the three stigmas for the nails on the cross.

will i ever be a gambling addict?

i can say for sure that i will not be one, even with the integrated resorts at our doorstep. i must admit that i do buy the ocassional 4-d and toto, but i am not one of those regulars who will place bets every weekend. i have also learnt to try my luck, once in a while, placing bets on soccer games.

if i was to be a gambling addict, i would have been one long ago. in my younger days, illegal gambling was rampant. in the kampong where i lived for nearly 30 years, there was organised gambling of some kind which went on for a number of years before the syndicate was finally busted by the police. they had lookouts, and there must have been someone providing the capital and also taking the lion's share of the winnings.

they would spread a piece of big plastic sheet on the floor outside the compound of one of the houses. on this sheet were the numbers 1 to 12. there was no shortage of players/gamblers. most were the kampong folks but there were also outsiders, people from the neighbouring kampongs and beyond. for all the time they were around, i had never ever placed a stake.

when i play mahjong, i treat it like what it should be - a pastime. whatever format that is used to play, i will always employ the same strategy.... to game as fast as possible. i do not play with the aim to 'build' as many 'doubles' as possible. with my strategy, i usually end up losing or winning a little.

all said, i am inclined to think that certain card games had helped me in (my) mathematics when i was younger. not all games are dependent on luck when it comes to winning, you still need to plan and to have a good memory to win in certain situations.

chap-jee-kee


my mother and my late father used to dabble in this form of illegal gambling known as chap-jee-kee. i think my mom was more into it than my dad, who was an occasional player. chap-jee-kee was widespread and prevalent in the 50s and the 60s. it was every housewife's pastime. runners were aplenty; they could be one of your neighbours or the proprietor of the neighbourhood provision shop.


unlike 4-d lottery, which was a weekend happening, you could bet on chap-jee-kee any day and every day. i do not think there was a rest day. even on the first day of the lunar new year, you could still play this illegal 12-number game.


i figure it was more popular than 4-d because the stakes were smaller. you could bet with as little as ten cents. also, your chances of striking were better. my parents had some luck now and then, however the winning sums were not something to be excited about.


although both my parents were illiterate, when it came to writing out the characters for the number game, they did not need any help from us. to place your stake, you used symbols to represent the amount. if i remember correctly, one circle represented ten cents, one circle with a stroke across it was fifty cents and one circle with a cross meant one dollar.


when the characters were written horizontally, it could be read in both directions. for example, if you placed your bet on ' 3, 8', you would win as long as the winning combination were 8 and 3. however, if you were to write '3, 8' vertically, then you would not be paid if the winning numbers were 8, 3 in that order. of course, if you got it correct vertically, the pay-out was more.


i believe there were at least two big operators in those days - tau por & siow por. today, this game, though not as popular as it was in its heyday, is still being played by some housewives and hawkers.

would i have enough money to live to 85?

when it was first mentioned by the prime minister during his 2007 national day rally speech, it was referred to as compulsory annuities. subsequently, the minister in the pm's office who has been tasked to look into the aging problem, mr lim boon heng, clarified that certain categories of people might be exempted. in such a case, it would no longer be compulsory; that's why the name has been changed to longevity insurance.

many singaporeans' savings will run out even before they reach the age of 85. with the high cost of living, housing and cars, singaporeans spend a large part of their working life in debt, servicing loans. the change in lifestyle exacerbates this dire straits. people are spending their future earnings. they buy things on credit, take loans to pay for big and small items and even go on holidays using borrowed money. what is there left to save?

nowadays, people do not have much attachment to their properties. on singapore roads, cars above ten years old are a rarity. in most cases, people trade in their car for a new one before it reaches five years old. they upgrade from a smaller government flat to a bigger one or to a private apartment. they do the same for many of the things found in their homes. upgrade from plasma to high definition. upgrade from pentium iii to pentium iv. upgrade their mobile every 21 months.

we have been led to believe that our money in the cpf will be able to see us through our twilight years. how myopic we have been! a lot of us do not have the minimum sum in our special account when we reach 55, which was the default retirement age 15 years ago.

with life expectancy going into the 80s, we will need to have a saving of nearly a quarter million dollars when we retire at 62. if you are to spend $1000 a month, it will add up to $12, 000 a year. multiply that by 20 years and you will have a figure of $240, 000. with the rate the cost of living is increasing, spending $1000 is not excessive for a retiree.

definitely have to compromise my lifestyle, travel less and tighten my already squeezing belt.

benefits of a walk in the park

a walk in the nature park in not just about physical exercise, it is more than that. it is about.....

1. fresh air and sunshine


2. birds chirpping and cicadas calling


3. meeting squirrels and monkeys


4. sighting the occasional snake and monitor lizard


5. being close to nature


6. appreciating the beauty in nature


7. enjoying peace and quiet, most of the time

i have come to realise that it is more than all the above. on days (mondays, tuesdays, thurdays and saturdays) when i walk alone, it is about reflections. i have time to reflect on past events and happenings and also on current issues. on the other days (wednesdays and fridays), when i join my former colleagues from balestier and his colleagues from bendemeer, it is about socialisation and inteaction and reminiscing about the past.

i also look forward to my monthly walks with my former students from balestier secondary. other people are always curious to know how we manage to build this kind of bond that ties us together after all these years.

i am also beginning to realise the other benefits of my daily walk. it not only keeps me in good physical shape (may be i should use the word 'condition' rather than 'shape') but it also calms me down. i have a calmer disposition and i do not get irritated so easily by errant drivers when i am on the road.

ivy's whirlwind visit to s'pore - eat, eat, eat


ivy is back for one week and already, she has had five rounds of makan at food centres, coffee shops and restaurants with friends and relatives.

on friday, it was the ah kim's treat at hong kong street food court, next to the aia building at alexandra village. there was a good spread of food ordered by the yee poh. we had rojak, satay and ketupat, otah, buttered prawns, steamed fish-head, sambal kangkong, stir-fried kailan, pork ribs and yam basket.

on saturday, we went to different taste at frankel avenue to eat with soon boon eng and millie. had about the same kind of food - prawn paste chicken, ngoh hiang, fish maw soup, tou meow and sambal kangkong. after dinner, dropped in at nah's chuan for a short visit.

today, after attending the 9.30 a.m. service at wesley, drove her to the jewel box at mt faber for flora's marriage solemnisation ceremony. she had lunch at the glass bar. we had lay bee's siblings over for dinner. food like fish head curry, tandori chicken, fried fish and begedel was bought from karus.

on monday, in the late morning, i took her to blk 722 to eat the red wine chicken mee suah. this is also the coffee shop that sells the popular tip-top curry puffs. after lunch, she met up with yvonne at the amk hub.

tuesday's lunch was with jolene - her rjc schoolmate - at the food republic at wisma atria. for dinner, we opted for home-cooked food. we had stewed chicken, special omelette, kong bak, hae bee hiam and soup.

looks like the main purpose of her return home is to eat as much of the food that she has been missing in australia.

meeting ex-colleagues eating at seafood paradise

we wavered between gluttons bay and seafood paradise. eventually decided to go to the latter since ivy had been wanting to eat the creamy butter crabs. gluttons bay, right next to the esplanade, it would be our choice if we had wanted oyster omelette and satay.

after i had parked the car at the back of swee hin building, i went to look for ivy and lay bee. they were not at the outer part of the restaurant. when i called ivy on the mobile, she told me that they were in the room. when i entered the room, i was greeted by a tableful of former colleagues.

tsai ling, lay kim, wee kiat, rachel and eileen ho were seated around a round table. they were there to celebrate tsai ling and lay kim's birthdays. it was they who pointed out to me that my daughter and my wife were at the table after the next.

we ordered the signature dishes - creamy butter crab, baked honey ribs - the one dish that my former colleagues did not order - and homemade tofu. instead of rice, we had a plate of hor fun. even on a weekday, we had to wait more than twenty minutes before the dishes arrived.

picking up guitar playing

we have an acoustic guitar lying around the house. i have been thinking of picking up guitar playing. used to strum, not very correctly, when i was in the company of mc wong, tsung kok weng, fasalul rahman and tan tye thong. among the four, mc plays and sings well.

i remember when we went on camping trips to changi beach or jason's bay in malaysia, we would lug the guitar along. very often, it was mc who would strum the guitar as we sang along. those days when we were teaching in balestier, we would stay in school, often till past midnight, eating and singing, with guitar accompaniment.

i did try my hand at playing the basic chords and scales. i also taught myself to play a couple of songs that require the few basic chords. but, i always felt that my strumming was not smooth or rhythmic enough.

first, i must get the guitar tuned properly. if the guitar is not tuned correctly, playing it will be akin to singing off-key all the time.

famous beef noodles (goo bak hoon) in johor bahru

after topping up petrol at the last petrol station along woodlands road before the causeway, we drove into johor bahru to look for the goo bak hoon stall. discovered an easier way to get to the coffee shop at jln lumba kuda. no need to go all the way to pelangi. just travel along tebrau and make a u-turn to hit the new road, parts of which are still under construction.

had one bowl of dry hoon with mixed meat each and 'tarpau' four packets. total cost: rm$36. confirmed with the seller that the stall was closed on mondays. found out that he closes the stall at 2.00 p.m. on the other days.

we have been eating goo bak hoon from the same stall in jb for more than thirty years. have introduced it to a number of our friends but not everyone has taken to the taste. there are those who do not fancy beef. those days, each bowl cost rm$3; today, the price is double that.

drove to city square and parked in the basement carpark. it looks quite safe as they have cameras at the barriers. i always try and park the vehicle near to a place where there is more human traffic and i don't leave the ticket in the car.

ivy bought two pairs of shoes from padini. i bought two smooth skin double-yolk moon cakes from seasons and we also got two slices of chocolate banana cake from secret recipe.

dinner @ 7th mile upper bukit timah

ivy is back for a one week visit. her flight sq218 was scheduled to touch down at changi t2 at 6.45 a.m. but at 6.20 a.m. she called to ask where i was. told her that she should have asked the pilot to take his time. thought she would like to eat prata but she wanted to get home to rest. must be jet lag, i thought.

turned out it was not a case of jet lag but a case of missing her mates in australia. the moment she got into the house, she asked me to connect the router so that she could use her apple laptop to msn her dear housemates ruth and rachel. the other housemate swee is in europe attending some conference for her phd course of study.

managed to get her to leave the flat to go over to bukit panjang plaza for a tour of the place. wanted to impress upon her the dynamism of s'pore as opposed to the sedateness of clayton. took her to the food centre behind mayspring condo for lunch.

in the evening, again persuaded her to leave the comfort of the home for a visit to qian hu where i showed her the nibbling fish at the fish spa and the expensive arrowanas on display and for sale. later, brought her to hausmann at lim chu kang to see the giant arapiamas - world's largest freshwater fish - and giant fresh-water catfish.

had dinner of prawn paste chicken, sambal kangkong, deep fried squids and ngoh hiang at long choo's parents' stall at 7th mile upper bukit timah food centre. the squids were really crispy but the prawn paste chicken did not taste as good as before.

my mom's 'birthday' - 16 september


my siblings' children decided to celebrate their ah ma's 85th birthday on sunday, 16 september. (the same day that the minister mentor celebrated his birthday at raffles hotel.) i was told it was initiated by cindy chiang. we do not know her actual birth date and choice of a sunday was more out of convenience as it is the day we normally gather at my third sister's place at upper serangoon. my mother stays with my fourth sister most of the time.

when i checked with my sister, she told me that the celebration was from lunch to dinner. we decided to drop in for lunch. the lift broke down after i had used it. the others who came after me had to use the stairs.

alvin and three of his medical coursemates were having a game of mahjong. i teased my mother, saying that she should have picked up mahjong, then she would be able to recall our names. my aged mother is afflicted with dementia; she can recognise faces but cannot remember names.

it was a pot luck kind of party, each of my sisters contributed some items. my 1st sister cooked ngoh hiang and bought a braised duck. there were popiahs and some fried stuff, which i had for my lunch. my brother's contribution was the 'siew tor' - the traditional chinese birthday paus.

rarely see my mother smile - must be extremely happy that her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren remember her birthday. she is happy whenever she sees the whole 'clan' under one roof.

snippets of history of bukit panjang

today, three of my walking kakis came to visit. okay, not exactly visit but they came all the way to bukit panjang to pick me from the bus-stop next to the plaza. two of them laid claim to this place as being their old territory.

tye thong had taught at bukit panjang government high school about forty years ago. it was his first posting. he also remembers collecting his first pay pack from the standard chartered bank at hillview. he is actually more familar with the old bukit panjang, which i remember visiting when it was still a kampong but i was just passing through and so did not get to explore the place then.

tye thong was able to provide some interesting snippets of the history of the place. where sheng siong now stands was the site of the old bukit panjang primary school. bukit panjang government high school was located further inside, where pioneer junior college is today. he used to hail a pirate cab from the rex theatre, and was charged 50 cts for the trip to jalan teck whye. he usually had no problem getting to school on time except on days when the train crossing/barrier was down.

according to tye thong, the red uniform of the school posed a problem when a student was in mourning. the chinese could not wear red when they were in mourning, so when you saw a student in a blue attire, it would mean that someone in his/her family had passed away.

siong chia said that when he was studying at nanyang university, he used to frequent the shops and hawkers in this area. he also rekindled my memory of this area when he mentioned the eveready factory at hillview. there was also storage tanks for petroleum in the same vicinity.

my luck must be changing for the better

the signs are there - my luck is changing for the better. i have never struck big sweep (4-d) or toto before. the only time i got some money was when i struck the singapore sweep about two decades ago. i remember i had to go down to cecil street, had to present my identity card before collecting my winning - a paltry $100 for a 3 digit consolatory prize.

the first sign of a change in my luck happened on sept 3 when i participated in the teacher's day golf tournament held at palm resort in johor. in term of skills, i failed miserably but in the luck department i collected two complimentary tickets for a round of golf at palm resort on a weekday.

the second sign came today when i received a call on my mobile from someone at community chest. the person asked if i had taken part in the heartstrings walk held at marina bay on 18 august. i was told to go down to the community chest office at ghim moh to collect the second prize - two tickets for a two-day cruise to melaka/kuala lumpur on board the superstar virgo.

told my walking kakis that i should buy 4-d or toto more regularly. my wednesday and friday walking group has this routine: after the walk, we will head for a food centre for breakfast or post-breakfast. this will be followed by buying of fish or/and vegetables at the wet market. finally, a visit to the nearest s'pore pool outlet to place our bets.

pitcher plants at macritchie's water edge

found these pitcher plants growing by the water edge not far from the bandstand at macritchie reservoir.

the nepenthes plant, commonly known as the tropical pitcher plant captures its prey by means of the pitfall method. nepenthes are strikingly different in appearance from other passive varieties of carnivorous plants. pitchers are located growing from the ends of some leaves by what could appear to be an umbilical cord, called a tendril. nepenthes pitchers also contain water and digestive enzymes like the sarracenia and darlingtonia.

the prey is attracted to the pitcher in much the same manner, by colour and odour. downward pointing hairs inside the pitcher also make it very difficult for the visitor to escape.

some species of nepenthes can grow pitchers large enough to capture small animals such as frogs, etc. for instance, the pitcher of the n. rajah can grow to be as large as a rugby football!

the dizi and the erhu

although i may walk at the same park on numerous days, every walk is a different experience. of course, there are walkers whose sole purpose is to walk (exercise) and they are oblivious to the things and changes around them. but i enjoy observing flora, fauna and people at the park. today, during my walk at bukit batok nature park, i came across two musicians playing two different chinese musical instruments in two different parts of the park.

the one playing the erhu was at one of the pavilions nearer to the car park. he had two supporters with him. these two were keeping him company but they were not with any instrument.

the one playing the dizi was bare-bodied and he was performing at the abandoned quarry. think he could not have chosen a more suitable spot to play the dizi as the sweet melody resonated and wafted through the air around the granite cliffs.

the dizi

because it sounds great, is easy to learn, light to carry and inexpensive, the dizi (chinese bamboo flute) is one of most popular chinese instruments in asia. the dizi is a side blown wind instrument made of bamboo. the dizi has a very simple structure: 1 blowhole, 1 membrane hole, 6 finger holes, and two pairs of holes in the end to correct the pitch and hang decorative tassels.

most special about the dizi is the "mo-cong" (membrane hole), which is located between the blowhole and 6th finger hole. what makes the mo-cong special is its thin membrane covering. some people mistake this membrane for rice paper, but it is actually made from the inner tube of a bamboo or reed plant. when the dizi is played, the membrane vibrates with the dizi, producing a sweet, bright tone. in addition it helps to deliver the dizi sound far away. you can also adjust the membrane to get the just the "right" tone for the specific musical mood.

the erhu

the erhu has only two strings but just listen to what those two strings can do - from playing the earliest classic, "the sound of agony," to imitating perfectly the voices of peking opera singers or even the music of bird chirping.

the erhu is a simple instrument that has a drum-like body made of ebony or sandalwood. the front opening is covered with the skin of a snake and the back is left open. the functions of the body is to resonate and amplify the vibrations of the strings.

the neck of the erhu is about 81 centimeters long and is made from the same materials as the drum. the top of the neck is bent for decoration. the two strings of the erhu, which is usually tuned d and a, are made of silk or nylon, but nowadays metal strings are commonly used.

the bow is 76 centimeters long and is manufactured from a reed which one curves by steaming and is then arched with horse hair in the same way as the bow of violin. however, in the case of erhu, the horse hair runs between the two strings so one cannot take the bow off the instrument unless one of the two strings is taken off or broken.

indicators of earthquakes in indonesia (on 12 sept)

i visited my old friend tye thong's bachelor pad yesterday at potong pasir. when i stepped into his flat, i thought i was entering some museum or art collection centre. his living room was filled with souvenirs that he had accumulated over the years from all his travelling abroad, mainly to asian and south-east asian countries. there were a number of wind chimes hanging from the ceiling of his flat.

he had also two fish tanks, one housing black goldfish -referrred to as black butterflies- and one, small oscars. during the walk at treetop that morning, song chia - his bendemeer colleague - had teased him about buying fish every other week. he suggested to tye thong that he should get a net and catch the barbs in the stream at venus drive. when i went into the kitchen, i saw another five tanks of varying sizes filled with fish.

tye thong told me that his wind chimes and fish tanks were better than any instrument for indicating tremors. every time there is a strong earthquake in the region, the wind chimes inside his flat will make a lot of noise and the water in the fish tanks will move in waves. the louder the chime and the higher the waves means the stronger the quake.

i asked if he had any of those experiences lately and was told that there had not been any the last few months. however, some tremors could have occurred while he was not in the flat.

as if to answer my question, that same evening i came home to hear on the news that two strong earthquakes had hit indonesia. when i checked with tye thong, he told me that the quakes had to be very strong because the water in the fish tanks spilled onto the floor at both ends.

a retiree is someone who.....

1. carries his own shopping bag to the ntuc supermarket
2. hops off the bus or mrt train at any point/stop which suits him
3. prefers to take public transport, excluding the taxi, although he has a car
4. knows enough about stocks and shares to tread carefully
5. sleeps and shits at any time he wishes
6. knows which bank offers the best interest rate for his deposits
7. has an umbrella & a bottle of drinking water in his haversack all the time
8. upgrades to get a free mobile phone
9. goes for the cheapest phone plan
10. uses a mobile phone which someone in his family has discarded
11. does not bother about the day of the week and the date of the month
12. has a simple wardrobe - tee shirts and bermudas
13. has a pair of good walking shoes
14. knows about special offers, especially those from budget airlines
15. has a purple ezlink card
16. travels during off-peak periods
17. has no qualms about taking the seat on the bus nearest to the door
18. knows many places where he can enjoy free parking
19. sees no difference between long weekend and short weekend
20. understands the expression 'let the money work for you'.
21. goes to the barber three or four times a year

returning to s'pore from larkin

on my trip to johor bahru today, i tried out the self-service immigration clearance. you insert your passport into the machine, then the barrier opens, ahead you have your thumb scanned before the gate opens to let you through. went through the same procedure on my way back.

took bus service 160 from the bus stop outside 10th mile junction's sheng siong. met victor after clearing customs on the malaysian side. walked to victor's regular news vendors to get the newspapers before going to take a bus to taman sentosa.

had hokkien mee at rm$3.50 a bowl at a coffee shop near taman sentosa. victor has been patronizing this stall since the 70s when he first moved to woodlands. the ownership of the stall has been transferred from father to son.

from jalan tebrau, we took a bus to larkin bus interchange. a wet market is located next to the interchange. sbs service 170 which originates from queen street terminates at larkin. the other 170 service which originates from kranji ends at kotaraya, like services 160 and tibs 950. the causeway link buses also terminate at both places.

when you are returning to s'pore by sbs bus from larkin or kotaraya, it is cheaper to pay in malaysian currency. pay cash, do not use the easylink card. when you tab with the card, deduction is made in s'pore currency.

early celebration for ida's birthday

one evening, last week, i got a call from jill. she said she wanted to come over to celebrate ida's birthday. was wondering how to celebrate a birthday when the birthday girl was in another country. thought maybe these IT savvy people would set up something to do video conferencing with ida.

when i opened the door, i was surprised to see tim among them. besides jill, there were shingyi and rong choo. they had bought a birthday cake from bengawan solo. tim had arranged to meet them at bukit panjang plaza before coming over together.

jill said they were going to do a video clip of the home celebration. tim would do the editing and then send it over to ida in the form of a compact disc. we lighted the candles, sang the birthday song for ida and got tim to blow out the candles. after that, jill recorded our well wishes for ida.

that was also the day when we broached the subject of letting tim take care of tammy. tim agreed readily, saying that there should not be any problem with his parents accepting the dog. he said that his sister would definitely welcome having a dog at home.

growing lemongrass in a pot

each time i go to kok fah technological farm at sungei tengah, i will seek out this senior citizen who is in charge of the potted plants section. he is an old hand at gardening and he is always dispensing tips and pointers on how to take care of certain plants or how to grow them.

today, he showed me how to propagate lemongrass in a pot. i had actually wanted to buy a pot of lemongrass but he taught a cheaper way of getting it. he told me to go to the vegetable section to buy a bunch of cut lemongrass.

you peel off some of the leaves so that more the base is exposed. next, you cut off part of the top of the stalk. loosen the soil in a pot and plant the stalk in it. water only the base and no the top of the stalk.

lemongrass is believed to have good effects on the body. it can help significantly in detoxifying the organs in the digestive system like the pancreas, kidney, bladder and liver. this is made possible because the lemon grass aids in cutting down the cholesterol, uric acid and toxins in the system. at the same time, this helps in stimulating digestion and blood circulation.

lemongrass can be used in the bath for a soothing aromatherapy experience by placing a mesh bag with a handful of leaves under the running bath water, then letting the bag soak in the water with you as you bathe. it is very relaxing.

lemongrass is safe for use in moderation, but should be avoided by young children, pregnant women, and people with kidney or liver disease.

tanglin village, dempsey hill

wandered over to tanglin village after my morning walk at the botanic gardens. the place is now quite hip, being home to stylish f & b outlets like oosh, hacienda, ps cafe, cchang korean charcoal bbq restaurant, the wine company and wine network.

still around are the antique, furniture shops and carpet dealers. most of the furniture stores located here deal in teakwood furniture. unique antiques and quaint artefacts are offered by the antique dealers. the carpets sold here are the plush, high quality types.

heard that ps cafe is a popular haunt for celebrities. oosh is reputed to be the largest alfresco bar and restaurant in singapore. it houses several bars and restaurants, including a specialty japanese restaurant.

on dempsey hill, i came across familar names like ben & jerry, dome and margarita's, a mexican restaurant. there are at least two shops which will are due to open soon, one of which is a grocery shop.

someone raved about the ice cream at ben & jerry. must visit the place to try the ice-cream.

suffering from motion sickness

when i was young, i was plagued by motion sickness. i dreaded taking long journeys either by bus or car. plane rides were also no comfort too.

in those days, the rickety buses were not air-conditioned and the fumes that the bus and other vehicles emitted would find its way into the bus. if i had the luxury of choice, which more often than not i did not have, i would sit at the rear of the bus because i was told that i would not get sick so easily.

car or taxi rides were slightly better but i could still end up feeling queasy at the end of the ride. i was advised to look out and far while travelling in a vehicle. it helped to some extent but when the vehicle was crammed and the ride not so smooth, i could still end up looking pale and feeling lousy.

i remember taking bus rides and getting off the bus before i could reach my destination because i was going to throw up. i would go to the roadside and vomit into the monsoon drain.

from my bad experiences, i have learnt that i should not travel on a full stomach and i should choose a seat where i would experience the least motion. in a plane, the middle of the plane over the wing is the calmest area. on a ship, the lower deck near the middle of the ship is the most stable. in a car, sitting in the front seat and looking straight ahead may help.

as i grow older, my sense of spatial orientation seems to have become better - i do not suffer from motion sickness anymore.

prime ribeye @ aston specialities

daniel had wanted to buy me dinner at clementi's botak jones at 5.00 p.m. suggested 6.30 p.m. as i normally have my dinner later rather than earlier. came to a compromise: 6.00 p.m. but, before setting off for his place, i managed to persuade him to go to east coast road to try the steak at aston specialities.

i parked my car along chapel street and walked to aston specialities which is located opposite the katong mall. when daniel saw the queue outside the shop, he commented that the food had to be good. see how easy it is to form an impression. i explained to him that customers are not let into the shop until and after they have placed their orders at the reception counter.

anyway, there were about twenty people ahead of us. however, our waiting time was about 15 to 20 minutes. we were ushered into the restaurant to begin another wait. again, we did not really have to wait very long, i think, about 10 minutes before the food came.

daniel's verdict was that he was glad that he had come all the way from clementi to try the food. he also found the prices, reasonable.

after dinner, i drove to sunset way where we had one single scoop of ice-cream each at daily scoop. i noticed that the owner, melissa, was smiling and trying to get mr lim's attention. it turned out that she was a pupil of mr lim in nan chiao primary school back in 1988. we did not get an extra scoop but we can expect better attention the next time we visit the place.

the demolition of the facade of monk's hill @ 12 winstedt rd

when i drove past the school along winstedt road, i looked in and saw that demolition work on the facade of the school had taken place. what a waste! a 20 million dollar building, which is slightly more than 10 years old, has to go under the wrecking ball so quickly. the admin and staffroom block, the hod block and the technical workshops have all been torn down. it looks like only the teaching blocks were spared.

the small amphitheatre, just behind the office block, where plays, skits and musical performances used to be staged by the students now exists only in memories. it was a unique feature of the school although there was some flaws in its design. on rainy days, it was of not much use as a venue for gathering students.

i started teaching at monk's hill during the time of mrs neo bick yin. then, the school was housed at 10 winstedt road. the old building, unlike the one built in the 1990s, is still standing today. i think the saving grace is that it has some historical significance.

in 1993, when the new building was ready, mr toh entrusted me the task of taking charge of the 'big move' - moving from the old premises to the new. moving was relatively easy and cheap because we did not need many lorries to transport the stuff. i remember mrs violet lee, then the teacher in charge of home economics, providing the school with thousands of packing materials.

having settled nicely into the new school, we soon got down to preparing for the grand official opening, which was held in 1996. 10 years after the official opening, monk's hill official ceased to exist in 2006 when it merged with balestier hill secondary.

from the information on the boards outside the school, i gather that anglo chinese junior will take over the site.

teacher's day golf tourney

@ allamanda, palm resort

i have been involved in the teacher's day golf competition organised by and for ourselves at palm resort in johor for the past six years.. this year, my involvement was a bit different; instead of helping with the logistics and prize presentation, i became involved as a participant. and as a lucky first-timer, i collected a (lucky draw) prize.

my friend nai ah, vice-principal of chai chee secondary, came to pick me at 5.45 a.m. from bukit panjang, he drove to yu mei to pick cheryl, another friend of his. cheryl, who works in ntu, has been a regular participant in our tournament. we had breakfast at a coffeeshop in senai before making our way to the golf course.

this year's tournament was organised by low aye, fomer principal of first toa payoh secondary, assisted by his friends shamugam and thurai from fuchun secondary. the number of participants this year was a record high. we had a shotgun or siren start, with flights starting simultaneously at all the 18 holes.

the siren was sounded at around 8.00 a.m. i teed off at hole 4 with tien choy and his former colleagues, kwan and cheong. we managed to complete our game before 12.30 p.m. the weather was very kind of us.

after lunch and the prize presentation, we left the place. as we were heading for home, it started to pour.

stream at nee soon road

if i had lived in an earlier era, i think i could have been an explorer, discovering new places and new land.

i have ventured into this area a few times in the past. today, i went back to have another look. the wooden bridge is still there but i think they have re-inforced it with steel girders. the stream - sungei seletar - has not changed much over the years.

this stretch between sembawang road and springleaf road is quite popular with anglers and bird watchers. in spite of the presence of private housing units (of springleaf estate), there is still a lot of greenery and the secondary forest remain intact.

in 2002, the urban redevelopment authority (ura), wanted to develop this area into a public park with cycling trails or running trails, which met with mixed responses from the residents of the area. being an unassuming rural road, many preferred letting the charm of nature here remain at its natural best.

in 2002, the ura also came up with plans to realign the road through a new park near sungei seletar. however, in 2003 these plans were shelved due to environmental concerns. the road is a rare place in singapore where one could see yellow parrots and owls.

did not see any any parrot or owl but saw big water snails, tadpoles and four men gathering either aquatic plants or clams from the bed of the stream.