Paint the town brown

I mentioned in my previous post that there was a gathering of a group of people dressed in brown in support of Mr Brown, the humour columnist who had his column suspended because the Gahmen took offense with his article "Singaporeans are fed up with progress". Well, over lunch today, some colleagues and I decided we too would wear brown in a show of support for Mr Brown.

Then just this evening, I read in Singabloodypore about the Brown Freedom Movement which involves wearing brown and looking out for others similarly dressed and calling out some kind of code. The movement will go on till National Day. So I'm getting out all my brown clothes and fortunately I do like to wear brown so I have quite a number of brown pieces, and I'll be trying my best to go brown between now till National Day. If you believe in the cause, join the movement too and let's paint the town brown!!!

Last week's news

Before I get caught up with the happenings this week, I thought I would reflect on some news from last week that caught my attention. No sorry, not the World Cup. Didn't quite follow the World Cup this time. Congratulations to the Italians though.

Newsy news #1:

You know how I detest lavish show-off weddings. Well, this one takes the (wedding) cake!!! A $10m Indian wedding in Singapore between the only son of a Calcutta millionaire and the eldest daughter of a couple that runs a worldwide steel supply chain. The wedding took place at the Ritz Carlton where the groom arrived on a white horse and 300 guests were flown in from India and stayed at the hotel courtesy of the bride's family. The bride's mother said that she had been setting aside money for the past 10 years for the wedding so that they would not end up having to pull together the money at the last minute. I hope she also saved enough to pay for the wedding of her other daughter.

So anyway, I was reading about this wedding and wondering how on earth it was possible to spend $10m on a wedding. And of course I was thinking what a waste of money it was... oh how sinful... blah blah. And then I realised that hey these are the people that stimulate our economy!!! Because they spend, people have jobs, incomes, money to spend.... yes I almost forgot - money makes the world go round. We should be thankful for these rich people and their free-spending ways. In fact I think it is their social responsibility to spend money and not hoard it. This is what you call redistribution of wealth.

Newsy news #2:

This 2nd piece of news also involves money. Two months' earnings to be precise, that a fresh graduate of the Singapore Management University, Darren Lim is giving away to a scholarship named after his parents. This nice boy just started work and wanted to give his parents something special and also wanted to thank his university and hence the scholarship worth $4,500 which is about two months of his salary. And he will be supporting the scholarship every year for an indefinite period of time. I imagine that most fresh graduates would be happily spending their first pay check on themselves thinking they deserved it having studied so hard all those years and here you have this nice boy who gives his first pay check to a good cause and in his parents' name. His parents must be so proud of him!!!

Also in the news:

This last piece of news I found most troubling. The fact that it didn't feature very much in the news made it doubly so. A Today columnist who goes by the moniker Mr Brown had his column suspended by Today editors. The editors didn't want to comment on their action but it was in relation to an article that Mr Brown (his real name is Lee Kin Mun) had written about Singaporeans being "fed up with progress". The article was written in his typical satirical style. Unfortunately, the Gahmen did not take too kindly to it and got one of their guys to write a letter to the newspaper's Forum page chastising Mr Brown and boy they really didn't mince their words. And we are not talking about a trouble-maker here. Mr Brown's column is meant to be a humorous and light-hearted take on Singapore life. His other pet topic is his family, particularly his autistic eldest daughter. If this is the Gahmen's attitude towards a humour columnist, imagine what they would do to more serious writers.

So of course the Gahmen linked newspaper I suppose had no choice but to show their support for the Gahmen and perhaps it was also their way of apologising for allowing the article to be published in the first place. While there has been a strong show of support for Mr Brown online, there's hardly anything about it in the papers and no letters from readers. No prizes for guessing why this is so. But at least they did report in today's papers that a group of people gathered outside City Hall MRT wearing brown T-shirts to show their support for Mr Brown. They were just gathered there, no chanting, not carrying any placards or anything, and yet the police said "they are looking into it". Crime rate in Singapore too low izzit?!! Nothing better to do than to investigate a bunch of people dressed in brown!!! It really is a wonder how Singapore could be a first world country and yet still be in the dark ages as far as some basic freedoms are concerned. When will our people be truly free?

Phuket....again

This is long overdue but better late than never.

We got back from a short holiday in Phuket a few weeks back. It was the girls' second trip to Phuket in as many years. This time we went in a bigger group - 4 couples, 2 maids and 11 kids. We stayed at Holiday Inn where we had the Family Suite which is a standard room with an adjoining kid's room. The girls were absolutely thrilled with their room (and I was too) - it was a Treasure Island room with pirate ship beds, X-Box, DVDs.... and even the peep hole was child height. Unfortunately I forgot to take pictures of the room in the daytime so I only have lousy dark photos of it.

The hotel was near the girls' favourite beach - Patong which I don't think is great as the water is not clear but they just enjoy playing in the sand and having the waves crash on them. We did our nails on the beach and the girls also had their hair braided; it seems de rigueur for little girls to return from a holiday in Phuket with beads in their hair.

Unfortunately we didn't go jet skiing this time round. On our last trip, I brought Tai Pi out on a jet ski and she loved it. Pumpkin didn't want to try it as she was afraid she would fall off the jet ski "and the sharks will get me". She decided to give it a go this time but we didn't get round to it.

All too soon our holiday was over and I didn't even get a decent massage (the pathetic nudging and squeezing I got from the massage lady on Patong Beach doesn't count).

To anyone planning a Phuket trip, don't go to Khai Island and don't dine at Sabai Sabai Restaurant!!!
Khai Island is heavily promoted by tour agents in Phuket but I thought the place was quite pathetic - just a litttle stump of land, very hot because there are no trees lining the beach, lots of rocks along the shore, dead coral. We didn't go to any other islands so I can't say if there is some place better than Khai Island but I don't imagine they could be worse.
As for Sabai Sabai Restaurant, the lady there was grumbling and giving us such dirty looks when she saw that we had so many kids with us, we walked out of there.

I think I'm going to give Phuket a rest for now and consider Bali for our next beach holiday. In the meantime, here are some pics of our trip.

News in Brief

Just got back from our holiday in Phuket. More on the trip when I have time to upload the photos into the computer. In the meantime, here's some news in brief:

Finally did the unthinkable and got a tutor to help Tai Pi with Chinese. What's good is that I don't have to worry so much about her Chinese anymore and no more feeling guilty about doing nothing. It's always the easiest way out - just pay for someone else to do the job for you.

Less than one week left of the school holidays and Tai Pi has not finished her homework, and not like she has much homework to begin with.

Oh and happy birthday to Kong Kong and Mama no.2!!!

Little Miss Fairy Tale

"It's the happiest day of my life!" declared Tai Pi today. She and Pumpkin have performed many times before at various school concerts but this was the first time in their lives they were giving individual performances. Taking part in the Little Miss Fairy Tale at the club's annual carnival, Tai Pi sang Trouble Sleeping by Corinne Bailey Rae - a very adult song and not quite the typical karaoke tune but she likes it and she does sing it pretty well. Pumpkin did a dance which she performed with her friends at her last school concert. They won consolation prizes for their effort and were very happy with their presents. Well done Tai Pi and Pumpkin!

Name game

You know how some housing estates get named after the road or area where they are located or they get named for their views. The condo where we live is named after a tree, pinetrees to be specific, and indeed you will find pinetrees on the estate grounds. Yesterday as we were driving off to Taekwondo class, I asked the girls how they think our estate got its name.

Tai Pi: Because there are many pinetrees. They didn't notice at first. Then when they were building the houses, they saw the pinetrees so they decided to name the place after the trees.

Me: You think the pinetrees were here first?

Pumpkin: They built the houses first and then they dig a hole and plant a little pine seed and put a bit of water and then grow grow grow into pinetrees. They look at the pinetrees and they said I think I will name this place Pinesville [that's not the name of our estate but Pumpkin keeps confusing it with Townsville where the PowerPuff Girls live].

Tai Pi is adamant that she is right, and well, it does make sense to name a place after the trees you see in the area. But Pines are not native to Singapore so most likely Pumpkin is right in saying that the trees were not already here. I guess we can't always name housing estates after what we see there before the place is built. If not, we would have condos like Swamp Gardens, Muddy Mansions, Kampong Tower and Mosquito Lodge. Don't think those would sell very well.

Time to panic?

Thank goodness I'm a bochap parent. Because if I were a kiasu parent, I surely would have suffered a heart attack today when Tai Pi showed me her mid year results. Just 6 months ago, she was graded Band 1 for English and Chinese, and Band 2 for Math. And now? Band 2 for English and Math, and Band 4 for Chinese!!! Band 4!!! I think that means she flunked Chinese. And she didn't do so well in English either, although she's actually pretty strong in English.

Me: Do you know Malay or Indian?

Tai Pi: No.

Me: Well, you're no good in Chinese and your English is also not so good now. So you know some other language or what?!!

Sigh... I'm not surprised really. Her results are very much reflective of the amount of effort we have put in. I guess you reap what you sow. What Tai Pi lacks is discipline and what's worse is that I'm also lacking in discipline!!! Although she has a home timetable, she doesn't follow it and I don't bother to enforce it. Nearing the exams, KK and I did get her to do some Math practice papers, but I dreaded it because once she was done, I had to mark them and then she had to do the corrections and then I had to check her corrections and then she had to do corrections on the corrections and then I had to.....what a pain.

I did try something easier, something requiring less effort on my part. I resorted to threats.

Me: If you do badly in Math, I'm going to have to get you a tutor and I can't afford to get a tutor so I'm going to have to cancel your Taekwondo class and use the money for a Math tutor and you will be a yellow tip belt forever.

Tai Pi: Nooooooo.......

It didn't help that we only had some idea of how badly she was doing in Chinese just a couple of weeks before the exams. Great. Now I have to worry about her Math AND Chinese. We knew her Chinese was rotten but she somehow still managed a Band 1 last year so how bad could it get, we thought. Then just before the exams, we were told by her teacher that she had to attend a weekly remedial class for Chinese. The others at the class have a good excuse for their poor standard of Chinese - one is European, another is a girl with an Indian name who claims to be Taiwanese, couple of Indonesians, etc. You know it's bad news when you get grouped with this bunch for Chinese remedial.

So now I'm thinking I really really have to instill some discipline into Tai Pi and myself or face the prospect of all her grades sliding to Band 4 by year's end. We'll start tomorrow. Or maybe day after.... or day after.....

Munchkin

The first drawing Sai Pi created at the age of two, KK and I couldn't quite believe that it was hers although one of her sisters said it was. It was of a face complete with eyes, mouth and other features. It seemed too advanced for a child her age. I kept the drawing for a few days and then threw it away thinking that it couldn't have been drawn by her. Later she reproduced more of such drawings which was when I realised my mistake.

Since then, Sai Pi has moved on from head-only drawings to head plus body drawings. And now I see she is a Edvard Munch in the making. Look at her drawings. Don't they bear a strking resemblence to Edvard Munch's The Scream?

The Mess

I can't take it any longer!!!!!!! I am fighting a losing battle and I feel about ready to throw in the towel!!!

I'm talking about the Mess in my home. I know I should pack up the place every night to keep things from getting out of hand but I'm just too tired after work to pack up and come the weekend, I pay for it when I am faced with a whole week's mess to clear.

It used to be that I could beat back the Mess but over time, the Mess has slowly gained strength and is now getting quite formidable. Look at how it threatens to overwhelm us.

Look at the Mess sitting on top of the shelves!!!

The Mess relaxing on top of the shoe cabinet. The inside of the cabinet is a more pleasant sight than the outside.

Interior decor tip: Do not waste your money on a B&B Italia dining table if you are going to hide it under a pile of rubbish. And look in the background - we believe in multi-functional furniture so the ironing board also acts as a side board for items such as bills, magazines, plastic bags, clothes that need mending, clothes that have been ironed, clothes that need ironing, etc. What happens when the ironing board is actually used for ironing? The Mess considerately shifts itself over to the designer sofa.

Every home should have some conversation pieces. I have some on the TV cabinet that would inspire conversation such as, "Er, why do you have a big ceramic peanut on your TV cabinet?". Keeping the big ceramic peanut company are - a ceramic rabbit, a bronze tortoise, two Narnia snow globes, two tael-shaped nian gao, a clock, a bonsai plant made of wire and stones and a scattering of ang pows. I owe my eclectic taste in TV cabinet decor to well-meaning relatives who take it upon themselves to improve the feng shui in my home. Despite putting up with the eyesore, I have yet to be rewarded with a lottery win.

The Mess likes to hide behind bedroom doors but here you see that it has grown so much that it no longer confines itself to dark corners. Look at how the Mess unabashedly displays itself like a hideous piece of installation art.

HELP!!!! Get me outta here before the Mess swallows me up!!!! I need to move to a new home and start all over again!!! I promise to be good this time. I promise not to underestimate the unstoppable force that is the Mess. I promise to appease the Mess and build lots of storage cabinets for the Mess to reside in comfortably. Yes, that is the only way we can hope to achieve peaceful co-existence.

Opposition Politics 101

Note: This posting is about the kids and is not political in nature. As I mentioned in my previous post, I am refraining from posting persistently political content on my blog.

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On our way home today, seeing a Worker's Party poster on a lamp post reminded Pumpkin of the "TV programme" last Saturday night and she commented, "Aiyah, why always Worker's Party, Worker's Party", in reference to our sporadic chanting during the telecast. (At this point, Sai Pi starts chanting "Worker's Party! Worker's Party!") I explained to the kids that last Saturday's show was a coverage of the results of the election where we would see which party wins.

Tai Pi: So did Worker's Party win?

Me: They won in Hougang. There are many different parts of the country. Worker's Party won 1 seat. In many other parts of the country, it was the PAP who won.

Tai Pi: So who was the winner?

Me: PAP

Tai Pi: So why do you support Worker's Party?!

Daddy: You can't always support the winner.

Tai Pi: [Pause] I cheered for ALP (her best friend) on Sports Day even though she can't run very fast.

That's opposition politics lesson no.1 for you:
If you intend to run for elections as an opposition candidate in Singapore, be prepared to lose. That's what Mr Low Thia Khiang says to his team and that's Tai Pi's introduction to the world of opposition politics in Singapore.

GE 2006

Yesterday, between 11pm and 1am, as I witnessed the TV coverage of General Elections 2006 results, I experienced such as range of emotions - anxiety, excitement, jubilation, disappointment, disgust. Now the day after, I don't know what to think or to feel, still numb from the thought that the number of opposition representation in Parliament is as miserable as it was for the past 5 years.

But the following are for me the most memorable moments of GE 2006:

Lee Hsien Loong's slip of the mind/tongue -
"What is the opposition's job? It's not to help the PAP do a better job ... because if they help the PAP do a better job, you're going to vote for me again and they're going to be out of a job for a long time. So their job is to make life miserable for me.
Right now we have Low Thia Khiang, Chiam See Tong, Steve Chia. We can deal with them. Suppose you had 10, 15, 20 opposition members in Parliament. Instead of spending my time thinking what is the right policy for Singapore, I'm going to spend all my time thinking what's the right way to FIX them, to BUY my supporters votes, how can I solve this week's problem and forget about next year's challenges?"

"FIX" the opposition? "BUY" supporters votes?
When I heard him say that, my first thoughts were, my oh my, he is going to get a thrashing from his daddy for being so unpolished. Having enjoyed walkovers the last three elections perhaps made him a little rusty and maybe he made that slip under the pressure and stress of campaigning. He later apologised or I should say clarified what he meant by "fix" the opposition. But he neglected to explain what he meant by "buy my supporters votes". I would be very interested to know what the deal is, although my vote is not for sale but I want to know what it is worth anyway - how many millions worth of upgrading works, or abalone porridge perhaps?

At one of the WP rallies I attended, Sylvia Lim, referring to a "I love Sylvia" poster held up by supporters, said, "If 2 or 3 of you love me, it's OK. But if 10 of you love me, I can't concentrate" - a joke in reference to Lee Hsien Loong's comment that he would be distracted if there were more opposition MPs in Parliament. That's another thing I will remember of this GE - the Worker's Party was really back in form this time, with candidates who not only appeared credible but also displayed a sense of public spirit, humility and graciousness I felt was lacking in most of the ruling party candidates. Led by Mr Low Thia Khiang whom I hold in great reverence, they did not resort to name-calling or mudslinging while the same cannot be said of the ruling party who looked like they were out to smear the opposition candidates when really they should have concentrated their energies on more important issues. While the ruling party and the media continued with the circus act, the WP touched on issues of concern to the everyman. And in contrast to the PAP's colourful brochure filled with smiling faces and vague statements, the WP had a 52-page Manifesto (available from their website) with concrete proposals on a variety of issues.

And what about the people of Potong Pasir and Hougang? I am so proud of them and also grateful - I'm sure they know that many people across the island depend on them to keep the hopes of opposition politics alive. They proved to be people of integrity, refusing to be bought over by the multi million-dollar upgrading works promised by the ruling pary and even gave the incumbent opposition MPs Mr Chiam See Tong and Mr Low Thia Khiang a better margin than at the last GE. And we're talking about serious piles of money here - $80 million upgrading for Potong Pasir, a ward that consists of only 8,000 households which works out to $10,000 per household! Chiam See Tong's daughter said, "We really worked hard and we managed to beat abalone porridge and that $80-million carrot," referring to the abalone porridge the PAP candidate organised for residents. Similarly, the residents of Hougang did not fall for the tempting $100-million carrot that the PAP dangled before them. In any case, Goh Chok Tong had already said that $100 million was earmarked for upgrading works in ageing Hougang. So let's see if they keep their promise.

But the one thing I will remember the most of GE 2006 is the recitation of the National Pledge at the WP rally at Serangoon Stadium on the night before polling day. I am not naive and I know that this was a nice touch by the WP to move the crowds but it was pure genius anyway. Saying the pledge that night reminded me of my duty as a citizen to work towards a "democratic society based on justice and equality"; it was exactly what the WP was preaching. And yet ironically the pledge was written by one of PAP's founding fathers, the late S Rajaratnam, which served to remind the crowd that night of how far the PAP had veered away from what they had set out to achieve for Singapore so many years ago. I can see Mr Low Thia Khiang's political savvy and this is going to help him do well against all the odds that are stacked against any opposition member in Singapore.

This is my second consecutive post about politics and it will be my last at least for a while, because if I go on like this, the powers that be may decide that I "persistently promote political views" and I may be asked to register with the Media Development Agency and who knows, maybe they will ask me to change my blogname to better reflect the content, but I like "Road to PSLE", I don't want to change it to "Road to Political Freedom" leh.

If you are interested to read more about GE 2006, I would recommend these websites:
Singabloodypore
Yawning Bread

So it's back to the regular broadcast. But before that, I leave you with a glimpse of my own "renewal process" of raising the next generation of pro-democracy Singaporeans. Majulah Singapura!

I have a choice

Today, I have the privilege that not every Singaporean is lucky to have. I have the privilege to vote for my representative in Parliament while many wards in the country go uncontested, leaving the ruling party to bring in more yes men to fill up the backbenches in Parliament.

Last night I attended the Worker's Party rally at Serangoon Stadium. As with all Worker's Party rallies, the crowd was a huge swarm like an army of ants, with the crowds spilling out to the surrounds of the stadium. And as with all their rallies, the closing speech was made by the charismatic Mr Low Thia Khiang. But last night's rally ending was especially emotional, not just because it was the last rally before polling day, but because WP closed the rally by saying the National Pledge with the crowd. This is the same pledge that everyone recites, PAP supporter or opposition supporter; it is a pledge we make as citizens of Singapore, committing ourselves "to build a democratic society, based on justice and equality, so as to achieve happiness, prosperity and progress for our nation."

With the National Pledge in mind, when I go to the polls today, I will use my vote wisely, for my future, my children's future and the good of our country.

Bank of Mum and Dad

It was just crying out to be blogged about - page 14 of yesterday's Sunday Times - "All grown up... and still getting handouts from mum and dad". The article describes young adults who are gainfully employed but depend on financial assistance from their parents to sustain their lifestyle.

Meet some of our parasite singles (names have been withheld to protect the guilty):

1) A 24-year-old pupil at a law firm whose parents pay for her $340 monthly parking bill and extravagant purchases such as a $3,000 Chanel handbag and $600 Ferragamo shoes.

2) A 23-year-old PR executive who uses supplementary credit cards from his mother to indulge in shopping at Hugo Boss and DKNY. Mummy Dearest also pays his mobile phone bills which can reach $600.

3) An auditor who received $1,000 spending money from Daddy when she went to New York for a holiday and also has her bank account topped up occasionally (hey, a bit like our Gahmen).

Says the auditor, "Everyone wants to be independent but I don't think I can support my current lifestyle on my pay. If he is willing to give, I'm willing to take."

And this is very funny - the father of one of these kids says that he sees giving his daughter financial support as a way for them to bond. Wah ha ha!!! How absurd!!! Giving money as a way to bond!!! Wah ha ha!!! (Eh, maybe our Gahmen also thinks this way, that's why they give out money now and then to everyone whether you need it or not).

Don't these kids have any shame?!!! But you know who I blame? I blame the parents!!! Parents who allow their children to think that their parents owe it to them to give them the good life.

I reckon that these kids were already enjoying a certain standard of living as they were growing up - eating out at nice restaurants, designer clothes, the latest gadgets, etc. It is a lifestyle that they have grown accustomed to and are loathe to give up and it is a lifestyle that Mum and Dad funded all the while. So really this is the reality that these kids grew up with and therefore perceive as the norm. Who's fault is it that these kids see this as the norm? The parents!!!

That brings me to the question of whether parents should indulge their children in their growing years. I think a little treat now and then is fine, but too much of the good life courtesy of Mum and Dad and the danger is that the child may

1) develop a materialistic outlook and become a slave to material possessions

2) become depressed or suffer from low self-esteem when he can no longer enjoy such luxuries either because his salary does not enable him to, or his parents' financial circumstances no longer allow for it

3) experience financial troubles and in turn marital problems as a result of an inability to manage his expenses

4) choose not to have children (which means no grandchildren) as that would mean cutting back on extravagances; in any case, I don't think such people would want any children since they know they can't even take care of themselves so why would they want to take care of someone else?

5) realise at the age of 40 that he will have to keep working till his dying day as he has neglected to put money aside for retirement

6) dump his parents when they are old and have run out of money (financial drain caused by selfish kids of course) and need him to pay for their medical fees. "But I thought you were supposed to give and I take?! How can you now expect me to do the giving and you do the taking?!! It's not fair!!!"

Many adults of my generation grew up in humble circumstances and only experienced a more indulgent lifestyle when we started work, also the time when Singapore's economy enjoyed strong growth. As we enjoy a higher standard of living, our children too get to come along for the ride. It is all too easy to forget that children who grow up with a very comfortable lifestyle will find it hard to adjust to something less. They have to realise that either they make do with less or they make sure they land a very well paying job (or a rich husband!).

As for me, to save my children the pain of possibly adjusting to a lower standard of living, I make a conscious effort not to indulge them too much and to always remind them how lucky they are. Yes we live in a condo and go for overseas holidays, but no extravagances (well ok, there's the occasional luxury holiday villa) and no giving in to their whims and fancies. But maybe I am not doing enough. Maybe we should switch from Ben & Jerry's to Meadow Gold..... gee that's hard... very hard.

Tai Tai for a day

"You need money?" asks the husband this morning and offers me his wallet. Very fitting start to the day, for today is "Tai Tai" day!!! Charm, Jan and I would be ladies of leisure, doing Tai Tai things like visiting the spa and chit-chatting over hi-tea.

On a typical weekday, I would barely have time for breakfast, but today I had 2 breakfasts. The first with KK at Chin Mei Chin at Katong. We love the nostalgic charm of this old confectionary and the food is very good too - half boiled eggs half boiled to perfection, good balance of kaya and butter on the toast, yummy luncheon meat bun, etc. Later in the morning, I had breakfast with Charm at Moomba Tuckshop located at the Bank of China Building. I'd been wanting to have breakfast there for the longest time. The Tuckshop is inspired by Bill's Cafe in Sydney, said to serve the best scrambled eggs in the world. I had scrambled eggs with roasted mushrooms and tomato on toasted brioche, and a glass of Earl Grey - only $4, very good value (but of course we Tai Tais don't concern ourselves too much with price, ahem). The food was pretty good and the place unpretentious and quite charming.

After breakfast, Charm and I went around the banks to see if there were any interesting investment products, but we didn't find anything to excite us big time investors (where oh where to park our millions?).

Then it was off for some shopping. We stepped into a luxury watch shop and the sales staff behind the counters all rose from their seats. Wah, like I was royalty or a First Lady or something!!! Charm, with her big hair, looks more the part of a Tai Tai, so she assumes the lead actress role and asks to see a Chopard Happy Diamonds watch. She puts it on her wrist and shakes it about so that the diamonds dance and spin about. The happy diamonds work their magic on Charm. She looks happy; she has a lustful look in her eyes; I sense a longing growing in her. The salesman offers her a 20% discount and she asks if they carry the oval face model. Aww, they don't have the oval face model so we walk out empty-handed.

And now for the main event - a visit to Amrita Spa. This is supposed to be quite a high class spa so I was eager to see how good it really is. The reception counter looks like an over-staffed hotel front desk; why do they need so many people there?! And after we sign in and settle the bill, there is no one to lead us into the spa - not very high class leh! Charm and I are early so we make use of the hot and cold pools, the steam room and sauna. Jan joins us later at the relaxation lounge and then we have our massages. I had the hot stone treatment; quite good. Overall, I would say Amrita Spa is not as good as my regular spa at the Laguna National Golf & Country Club in terms of ambiance and service.

My stomach was growling during the massage so I was very glad that there was a hi-tea buffet to look forward to. The buffet spread at Orchard Hotel was alright and with a credit card promotion, we only paid the price for two (not that we Tai Tais are concerned about price, ahem). But what we were really there for was the chocolate fountain. Yum!!!

After all that pampering and indulgence, I was feeling tired. So after a little bit more window shopping, we parted ways. I made my way home in a most unglam, un-Tai Tai way - by MRT. What was even more unglam - I forgot to suck in my tummy and got offered a seat. Urgh!!! I have got to remember to use the Trimax!!!

First grading & first sleepover

This weekend, Tai Pi and Pumpkin experienced two firsts - their first Taekwondo grading and their first sleepover. Tai Pi would have already been a Yellow Tip Belt if she hadn't come down with chicken pox and miss the grading in January. Not only did she miss the grading that time, the girls also missed the slumber party (actually not really a party, just a sleepover) at Auntie D's. But not this time. As soon as their friend BC called to invite them, Tai Pi, who just loves the idea of slumber parties, went into a packing frenzy for the girls' very first sleepover. Woohoo!!! I was almost as excited as she was. They were just staying over for 1 night but were bringing with them 3 bags; it's a girl thing.

After the grading practice session at the Taekwondo school yesterday afternoon, the kids headed for Auntie D's for the sleepover. Auntie D and Uncle LW would then pack the 6 kids into the MPV and ferry them to the Taekwondo school for the grading the next morning.

The kids had a great time together - playing , watching TV, going for a swim. For dinner, we called for pizza for the kids while the adults went for crab at this place in Ang Mo Kio called Mellben which is supposed to be really good but we had to wait more than an hour to get a table so we went to a similar place just at the other end of the carpark. No need to wait for a table and the crab with creamy buttery sauce was fabulous, simply fabulous!!! I'm drooling just thinking about it.

When we got back from dinner, the kids sat us down for a performance of some sort but they couldn't quite get their act together. I think they were supposed to be a group of martial arts exponents, each with the power of an element - wind, fire, earth, etc. Look at the kids posing for the camera before the grading exercise - I call them the Taekwon DoDos but they prefer to be known as Shaolin Showdown... "we're not birds" said BC.

Pound foolish

I read something in today's papers that I found most appalling. No, not the news about the pervert caught filming up women's skirts, sick as it is. Something even more unimaginable - couples blowing unbelievable sums of money on their weddings. Sorry I can't provide a link to the article because the Straits Times started charging for online access and I am not so silly as to pay for subscription when I can read Today for free online and off.

It seems the Singaporean obsession with keeping up, or I should say outdoing the Jones has spread to weddings. The article said that more and more couples are spending a bomb on elaborate wedding ceremonies and overseas photo shoots. There was this couple, a 32-year-old shipping firm CEO (so young already CEO, must be family business) and his 28-year-old product manager bride, who blew a cool $330,000 on their wedding:
- Wedding banquet at Ritz Carlton with 85 tables and a customised menu which included two whole abalones for each diner, premium shark's fin and suckling pig ($200,000)
- Two Vera Wang gowns and a Francis Cheong cheongsam ($50,000)
- Four bridesmaids' dresses ($800)
- Louis Vuitton shoes from New York ($2,000)
- Ballroom floral decorations ($60,000)
- Jazz band ($5,000)
- Photo shoot in Sydney ($15,000)

The couple said that at first they wanted a simple wedding but changed their mind because they "didn't want to look back and regret." What makes them think they will not look back and regret spending a sum that could buy you an apartment?! They said they would not have had such a big wedding if they were not comfortable in their careers, because "we believe in living within our means". I hope they are multi-millionaires. I don't know... it just doesn't make sense to me why couples would choose to start their marriage in debt over a wedding.

Another bride-to-be who was planning to have a Carribean-style wedding on Sentosa with steel drummers, salsa dancers, etc, said "I want something special for my wedding. I want my guests to enjoy themselves and I don't mind paying a bit more for that." Aiyoh young lady, your friends and family will be happy for you on your wedding day because they love you; it is the company that matters so spend time with your guests on that day instead of distracting them with all that entertainment. Anyway they can get that sort of entertainment at their company D&D.

While the girls were at Taekwondo class today, I hopped over to the Library and borrowed a few books for them including this one - Whatever Wanda Wanted. It is about a girl who was spoilt rotten by her doting but busy parents who gave her whatever she wanted. One day she gets her hands on a mystical kite that carries her far away and drops her onto a desert island. There she realizes what is really important - "I don't miss my fancy clothes or TV, or any of my toys. I just really, really miss my mom and dad." Maybe that's what we all need to experience - losing everything in order to see the difference between our needs and our wants and come to really appreciate that the most important things in life are not things.

Pasir Ris Park

I had the afternoon off today and spent the early afternoon at the spa with KK, after which we picked up the girls early from the childcare centre and brought them to Pasir Ris Park. We love the huge playground there with the great variety of equipment - slides, swings, climbing nets, spinning dishes and balls, etc. I remember a friend telling me that gym classes are great for building self-confidence in children and I did consider enrolling the girls for such classes until I realised that hey they could also challenge themselves and develop self-confidence at a place like Pasir Ris Park and it doesn't cost me a cent and they get some fresh air too!

After the girls had their fun, we went looking for a place for dinner and ended up at Gobble, a new restaurant at one end of the park. I am so glad that we discovered this place as it is a real gem! It offers alfresco dining on a lovely unpretentious wooden deck overlooking the park and they screen soccer matches on a big screen (whoopee for KK). The food is great too and very reasonably priced. We had the 7 dish special where you select any 7 items from the ala carte menu for $19.90 but the portions are three quarters of the regular portion. This was perfect for us as we love to have variety and with the smaller portions we don't have the problem of not being able to finish the food. Gobble is definitely going to be one of my regular makan places from now on!

Nostalgia

I had been checking out a blog set up by the National Heritage Board, yesterday.sg and got nostalgic; also because Kong Kong came for a visit and as usual, told stories of his childhood and our family's history.

Times have certainly changed. One of the biggest difference is that the world is so much more dangerous now. I'm not even talking about terrorists, just people you might meet if you take a walk in the neighbourhood, what with the newspaper reports of perverts and other shady characters. When I was little, I used to play with my siblings and cousins at the void deck of the block of flats we lived in or at a field nearby. I also walked to school by myself, a good 10 minute walk away, even early in the morning before the sun was up. Maybe I am just paranoid but I'm not ready to let my kids play outdoors by themselves, not just yet.

Anyway, as I was feeling nostalgic, I decided to reflect on what stuff from my childhood survived to be enjoyed by my kids today. This is what I found at home -
1) Colourful paper ball - you spend as much time blowing air into these things as you do hitting them about.
2) Biscuits with white/green/pink/yellow icing - I used to like to bite the icing off before popping the rest of the biscuit into my mouth.
3) Rabbit milk sweets - the only candy I know of with edible wrapper.
4) Square shaped candy with nut picture on the wrapper - I was never crazy about these but we didn't have a very wide variety of candy back then.
These are today exactly as they were when I was a child.



Another thing I am very pleased has survived to this day - battery-operated cars and bikes. When I was a kid, I would always choose a car, and when the time was almost up, I would ride the car as far away from the vendor as possible so that it would take a while before he would catch up with me to take the car back. Now it is a routine for the girls to ride these battery-operated vehicles whenever we have dinner at Changi Village. Of course it costs a lot more now than back then, but you can't put a price on nostalgia.

Birthday card

Last night, Pumpkin slaved over a birthday card for one of her classmates. She wrote "Happy Birthday", she drew a birthday party scene with a birthday cake and children with party hats on and she used different colour markers to colour the picture. We put the card into a party bag together with some sweets and a little toy. And then what happens? When she gave the boy the party bag today, he was very happy with the toy but didn't want the birthday card and gave it back to her.

In the car on the way home, Tai Pi discovered the card and said, "Hey, you forgot to give him the card!"
Pumpkin said sheepishly, "He didn't want it."

He doesn't want it, fine! I'll give this lovely card a permanent home on my blog.

Let's play.... restaurant

Hello and welcome to our restaurant!

We have a very wide variety and we cook our food in many different ways.
You want potatoes? We have spisy patatoes, smash patatoes, boiled patatoes, hard patatoes and roust patatoes.
You prefer corn? We have spisy corn, roust corn, boiled corn, cold corn and hot corn.

And you will love our desserts. How about a Rainbow ice cream cone? or the all time favourite here - the Fear Factor ice cream cone with toppings of cockcroaches, catepillars and ants. Yum!!

Fun with inflatables!

If there is anything Singapore needs more of, it's indoor playgrounds so we don't have to get hot and sweaty and burnt. And last weekend, we had a ball of a time at an indoor playground. There was a fair taking place at the Singapore Expo where there were stalls and at one end, there was a big area occupied by many different types of inflatables - bouncy slides, bouncy playhouse, obstacle course, etc. It cost just $5 for half hour or $10 for unlimited play. Woo hoo!! We first went there on Friday night and then again on Sunday. The kids played for some 3 hours on Sunday, climbing, crawling, jumping; it's amazing how much energy kids have. After 3 hours of standing around, my body was aching! Unfortunately, the playground is not a permanent fixture so I can only hope that such fairs at the Expo will be a regular event.

Don't strain your brain sweetheart. Mummy & Daddy will do the thinking for you.

Am I too bo chap or are some parents in Singapore too involved in their children's lives? Today's newspapers had a letter from a reader writing in to say that the Ministry of Education should provide more information to help parents and students in their decision-making in regards to the choice of junior college.

You can read the full letter here.

I might be wrong but from the letter, I picture the writer to be a high strung control freak of a parent. Here is an excerpt from the letter:

"Helping your child choose a new school, in this case a junior college (JC), is a stressful process.
It is a balance of knowing her abilities and the right JC for her. When our daughter did reasonably well in her O levels, we thought she might have a chance of getting into the top JCs. We were also concerned that the order of her choices might be a factor in her final posting.
We therefore pored through the Ministry of Education (MOE) information booklet and called the hotline."

Isn't a 16-year-old fully capable of choosing a school for herself? I can just imagine it - this 16-year-old (my grandma was married at 16, for heaven's sake) sitting there while her anxious parents sweated over the information booklet (what, she illiterate?).

It's so tough you know, choosing a school for our baby. So many to choose from - 15, yes 15 junior colleges! Of course it is a much smaller number than the hundreds of primary schools and secondary schools that we had to pick from for our precious darling (oh, I can't begin to tell you the stress we experienced then), but still, it is a tough decision because the 2 years she spends in junior college could make or break her entire life you know so there's simply no room for mistakes.

Oh puh-lease!

When I was 12 years old, I made my own choice of secondary school and so did my friends. Same thing after the "O" levels and "A" levels. Pa only offered some advice at best; didn't pore over any information booklets, didn't call any hotlines. In having the freedom to make my own decisions, I learnt to be independent and to have confidence in my own judgement, and to accept the consequences of any mistakes or poor decisions I made.

And I thought a parent's duty was to bring up their child. Looks like some parents want their children to remain in their care forever - "you'll always be my little baby." Yeech!

Accepting myself

See lah, just one day after I resolved to pay more attention to Tai Pi's school work, we failed to follow the timetable (as usual) which says that she has to spend an hour on math revision (split into 2 half hour sessions to accommodate Winx Club - the timetable is built around a TV schedule) and an hour on Chinese revision on Saturdays. But at least I did make sure that she completed the corrections she had to do on some worksheets. And the good news is that she doesn't have any holiday homework. Looks like I chose the right school for her (and for me!).

So what were we doing instead? Tai Pi made a birthday card for a friend, the girls made jewelry boxes and in the afternoon we enjoyed a chocolate fondue with marshmallows. I also made this box thingy using a cereal carton, a button, ribbon and a piece of cord. It looks pretty good, doesn't it? but I'm not quite sure what to use it for.

So you see, there are so many better things to do than to study and I have too little discipline to follow the timetable (which I had set myself and it's a pretty unambitious one for that matter). So instead, I will be realistic in my expectations of Tai Pi and of myself. I will accept myself the way I am. The fact is that I hate homework and I never enjoyed studying. I realise now that those times when I turned into a monster while coaching Tai Pi, I was probably feeling resentful of having to deal with school work. And it really wouldn't be fair for me to demand more from Tai Pi than I demand of myself. So now I resolve to put in just enough effort for Tai Pi to achieve fair enough grades and the rest of the time, we will spend on activities that we really enjoy and which will give the girls happy memories of their childhood. There, I feel better already.

No poor people in Singapore?

At work, someone sent me a PowerPoint slideshow which compares the life of poor starving Africans with that of more fortunate societies like ours, such as how we might complain when we receive a pair of Addidas when what we really wanted was a pair of Nikes and in the meantime, the poor in Africa are using flattened PET bottles as sandals. It ends with the message to complain less and give more. I played the slideshow for the girls this morning and they were shocked at the images (maybe a bit too much for them) but they understood. Just this morning, Pumpkin was complaining because I had said we would have marshmallows in the afternoon but she had wanted them in the morning, but after watching the slideshow, she is thankful just to have marshmallows and has stopped her whining.

Later on, Pumpkin asked me "How can poor people be in Singapore?"
Me: "Why not?"
Pumpkin: "Poor people must be in poor country."
Me: "What makes you think there are no poor people in Singapore?"
Pumpkin: "Because I only saw one poor people in Singapore."
She was referring to a man we drove pass last Sunday on our way to Taekwondo class. He was walking along the roadside carrying a toddler and pushing a stroller in which sat 2 other young children. All four of them looked like they had not had a bath in weeks, their faces and clothes all grey with dirt. It was really sad. I was so shocked I didn't have the presence of mind to stop and give them some money.

Me: "What do you want to do next time we see the poor man?"
Pumpkin: "I want to help him, give him things to make him happy, like my old slippers."

I think we learnt an important lesson today.

4 years 3 terms to PSLE

It's been 5 months since I started blogging and I have been having so much fun I almost forgot how this blog was born out of my frustration and anxiety over Tai Pi's school work. Flashback - it is Oct 2005, Tai Pi's exams are around the corner and I only just discovered how bad she is at math because the irresponsible mother that I am I hadn't bothered to check her work all the while. So then came a period of intense coaching during which I turned into a crazed woman, screaming, crying, banging the table. Fortunately just before Tai Pi's exams, with Kong Kong's help, I came to my senses. So now I am back to being my old bo chap self; didn't even look into Tai Pi's organiser to see what homework she had till 2 months into the new year. But somehow, I have a feeling that closer to exam time, I'm going to turn into Mr Hyde again. Poor Tai Pi. But no, I cannot let that happen again. So today, on the last day of school term one, I resolve to pay more attention to Tai Pi's school work and not to resort to last minute mugging. My blog title will be a reminder.

Anyway, just a couple of days back, Tai Pi's teacher called to ask about some form that Tai Pi was supposed to hand over but seemed to have lost (typical of Tai Pi). At the same time, she told me that she considered Tai Pi to be a "high performing student" - fwah, my Tai Pi is a high performer leh!

Witness the joys of parenthood

After Taekwondo class this morning, I brought the girls for a haircut. We went to Suntec City where there is a kids section featuring kids related retail shops including a kids hairdresser. We had to wait quite a bit at the hairdresser because the salon was having a very difficult customer - a little boy, maybe 2 years old, screaming like a pig being slaughtered while the hairdresser took a little snip here and a little snip there. The little boy was being held by his mother, a hip stylish looking lady with blonde streaks in her hair. As I stood there waiting with Pumpkin, the lady, without looking at us, said "Can you all please stop staring." I suppose she could be referring to Pumpkin and I although I wasn't quite looking her way. I wanted to say to her "OK, we'll stop staring if your son stops screaming." But I'm not so mean lah and I felt a bit sorry for her (at least up until she made that very unnecessary remark). But maybe I shouldn't feel sorry for her - maybe her son's that way because he has been over-protected like many kids in Singapore. Incidentally, later on the salon had another screaming wailing customer and it was yet another little boy - what kind of men are we breeding in Singapore?

While the girls were having their haircuts, I witnessed an argument taking place just outside a shop nearby. Now I've seen lovers quarrelling in public but here was an argument between a man and his maid. "You are lying. Where were you at 7pm?" "I was home already. sob sob"....."I know his pattern. He doesn't poo poo everyday. You're lying.".... The man had his toddler son (the one who doesn't poo poo everyday) with him and the boy seemed oblivious to what was going on; was probably used to it. If I were the shop assistant, I would have said to the man "Excuse me sir, please could you make a scene elsewhere? You're scaring away my customers."

While I was sitting there, I also saw a frumpy-looking lady walk pass me with a bowl in one hand and a spoon in the other. I suppose she was feeding her child and was walking about searching for her child. I will never understand why parents allow their children to walk and run about during meal times. They are raising spoilt brats I tell you.

Now I know why the mall has a section just for kids/families - so that the rest of the shoppers would be spared these horrors!

Where's the logic?

It was just in the news that the Singapore Gahmen or some authority or other is now thinking of making it mandatory for school buses to have seat belts. I think this may be a reaction to a recent accident where a school bus ferrying a busload of primary school children overturned on its side. No one suffered any serious injury.

If they do make it mandatory for school buses to install seat belts, that may lead to higher school bus fees which already have been increasing ever so often, much to the chagrin of parents.

Now my question is why the authorities bother looking into seat belts on buses when many children and even babies are not strapped in or using child seats when travelling in a car? A child or baby sitting on an adult's lap in the front passenger seat is not an uncommon sight here. I should think that the risk of serious injury and death is much higher in the case of a car accident than a bus accident. I doubt you could suffer any serious injury in a bus accident unless the bus falls off a cliff. So unless it was a bus travelling up Genting Highlands I really don't think seat belts are all that necessary.

Shouldn't the authorities first focus on safe car travel and strictly enforce the belt up and child seat law? It doesn't seem that they actually enforce that law so if they do introduce the bus seat belt regulation, it's likely they wouldn't enforce that either. Why bother passing laws that you don't enforce??!

Sai Pi turns three

We were planning to have a birthday party for Sai Pi but cancelled the plans when she fell ill earlier in the week. It was to have been a fairy party where the girls and their cousins would make their own tiaras and wands (see picture of Sai Pi with her home made tiara and wand). It was a blessing in disguise because I was so busy last week I wouldn't have had time to prepare for the party. Instead we celebrated her birthday with lunch at Spaghetti's and a birthday cake at home. Happy Birthday Sai Pi!

My hidden talent

Having children is the perfect excuse to be a kid again. And with that, I am indulging in something I used to do when I was little up till my late teens or maybe even older than that. I call it my hidden talent because it's something I'm good at but have always been quite embarassed about and I'm not sure even my closest friends know about this habit of mine. I'm talking about playing with stuffed toys.

I didn't just move them about, I gave them elaborate personalities and did voice-overs so real, the toys really seemed alive. There was Bowwow Bowzer Darling - only one to call Sis "Mummy", spoilt brat, liked to throw tantrums stopping only when given a potato chip, had a bank account with $1 in it, had a best friend called Fatty Chong Ah Boon. And my favourite - Wally, a little white bear in a clown outfit, very senstive and in touch with his feminine side, Sis's fashion consultant. There was also this other white bear who told the same joke over and over - "Are you hungry?" "No, I'm stuffed. Ha ha..".

Sis was my partner in crime. She did not animate the toys at all but she had a big part to play - the toys were alive only because she believed in them. At times she would tire of this childish nonsense and wanted out, and the toys would "die". Guilt ridden and perhaps missing the fashion advice from Wally, she would return to our make-believe world and all would be well again.

It wasn't easy having to animate so many stuffed toys. After the 20th one, you kinda run out of voices and personalities. And I didn't just animate our stuffed toys, even the bolsters were not spared - PoPo, PiPi and BoBo but they had very little personality those bolsters. The pillows were lucky to get away.

Lest you think I'm completely insane, I don't just animate any stuffed toy. I adhere to the Golden Rule of Stuffed Toy Animation. Look at the stuffed toys below. Two of them can be animated while the other two are inherently inanimate and you should not try to animate them. Figured it out yet? It's in the EYES!






*** Golden Rule of Stuffed Toy Animation: Animate only stuffed toys whose eyes comprise of only pupil and no eye white. Stuffed toys with eye white are completely lifeless and no amount of effort would bring them alive. ****

Some years ago, I saw an ad for a character voice-over artist for Disney Channel and I was quite excited until I saw that they were looking for someone with a Caucasian accent. Being the self-respecting Singaporean that I am, I don't put on a fake foreign accent; I speak proper Singaporean English ala Tommy Koh and Chan Heng Chee (well I try). Want me to talk like Ang Mo...? Cannot lah!

Kids say the darnest things

Last Saturday, I flew to KL for work. When I got home that night, Tai Pi showed me a story she had written for me. It was titled "Mummy the Exsporer". She wrote "One Saturday morning, Mummy was on a field trip to Kl. Mummy had to take an aroplane, because she could not drive a car. So she had to take an aroplane." Well, she is right... I don't have a driver's license.

My 3-year-old niece gave this valuable advice to her newly licensed-to-drive Mummy - "do not drive into another car." Kids really do say the darnest things!

Five Million Dollar Dream

I had it all planned out. I would share my fortune with my family, donate generously to charity and keep the rest in the bank to generate income and then quit my job and become a volunteer charity worker (so noble hor). But alas, it was not to be...

I pooled with a colleague to buy $104 worth of Toto tickets hoping to win the Hong Pao Draw top prize of $10 million. We did all we could to make it happen, like getting a lion to dance in my colleague's office and believing with all our heart that it was our destiny to win. Wasn't there this thing about if you believe hard enough your dreams would come true? Well, whoever said that never bought Toto! So here I am, my millionaire dreams shattered - instead of being $5 million richer, I am now $52 poorer.... *sigh*