Stories of me and myself

This post is super super super backdated. Well, if you know me, this is nothing new. At least it is being posted! Haha!

Anyway, here are some of the photos taken. Since a photo speaks a thousand words, I'll have several thousands of words on this blog! I win! Hee.

This was the fog at our bungalow. Notice the little hut on the right? Pretty sweet, it was.

And of cos, I had to have my share of fun with dear HF jiejie. How could anything be fun without her to entertain me? Hmmm, okie, I would like to think the entertainment is neutral. Look at what kinda sacrifices I need to go through to amuse HF? Argh! She's squeezing whatever tiny duckie brain I have!!!

But luckily there's always Emay jiejie to sayang me... well, that is if she doesn't go "Huo2 gai1" (you deserve it), which she does at times. Heh. And informal surveys have shown that the probability of her having this response is increasing, especially if it involves HF! Haha!


And this is baby Joshua. He was the other "toy" at camp. The "communal toy who amused everyone with every move he made. All the hidden signs of motherly instinct in many of the gals emerged... Haha! It was especially amusing when he was fed Milo because no breast milk or powdered milk was available for the starving baby! Afterward, we just fed him whatever we wanted, and he was happy to be fed. Heh.

I wanna play BABY!! I like BABY!! If you are reading this, will you please produce a baby for me to play with?? *pretty pretty pleaseeeee*

This is little Nicolas. The one who goes "Doy-yer-fin" when he sees the jumping dolphin on my watch. The one whom I fell in love with when I first saw him. Cute right? I love man-handling him. Haha! And he doesn't usually look so... well, extraordinary. Miss him. And his brother, Peter.


Here is Peter, the little handsome boy who proununces his words so cutely that it always makes me smile. Won't he be the kind of boyboy you would be interested in when he grows up?? Hee.


This is my crazy cell, without Yixiang (Candy floss), Elaine and Eliza. What more can I ask for, when I have such a wonderful cell?


Oh, and not to forget my tree! This is my lamb chop! We had BBQ on the last day, and my lamb chop came like that! Yummy it was!

But of cos, church camp wasn't all about fun and games. (Though I'm quite sure my mummy enjoyed the games cos she cheong-ed so much for "Dog and Bone" that she toppled over several times, but each time, she won. That's my mummy! Hahaha!) It's not all about "going there and slack". Though I heard church camps are usually quite hectic...

I learnt alot... prayed alot and the worship was just truly amazing. (Not truly Asia.) I thank God for the time of refreshing He gave me... and the direction in which He pointed me towards. It was a tough time of struggling with certain issues, but I thank God that He guided me through it all, be it through happenings, or from guidance through friends.

God is good, all the time.

Kel told me something last night.

What happens in a parents-boyfriend/girlfriend tussle?

In an Asian society which prides filial piety, this is more of an issue than other more liberal societies? Hmmm... Apparently, our loyalty and priority should be on the future family which we are setting up. This is because God made man and woman (to go forth and produce?)... Parents should at this point of time learn to let go and encourage the son/daughter to set up his/her own family. However, with this in mind, we should not do it at the expense of our parents... like totally heck them or something along that line. We still need to honour our parents, like how God instructs us to.

Though it probably sounds like a rather thin line to tread on, I think it's possible. Let's just pray for understanding loved ones, and be understanding towards them. Afterall, we love them and they love us.

From Barney's theme song....
"I love you. You love me. We are one big family. With a big big hug and a kiss from me to you. Won't you say you love me too?"

A rendition of it....
"I hate you. You hate me. Let's go out and kill Barney. With a shot gun bang bang... Barney on the ground. No more purple purple dinosaur."

So which camp do you belong to? I'm the latter. =)

Gizmo FINALLY picked up my phone!!

I've been trying to call her for AGES! Like a matter of half a year, at least. Up to several times a day....
I ALWAYS reach her voice mail. You know, I figured that if I said a couple of words to the lady in the voice-mail each time I reached it, I would have become close friends with her! However, she only hears the phone click at her side of the world. Hee.

So yeah, elated I was!! Can strike lottery already. Lucky duckie.

Yep, so I managed to talk to her for awhile... until she became too drowsy to speak to me since she has to wake up at 4am. Poor gal.

Anyway, her "Thank you for not giving up on me" made me day, and made all the countless attempts to call her worthwhile. *grin*

1) During church camp, you do not sleep with your family. The wife and the kids are separated from the husband, to bunk with the ladies and the men respectively.

2) The wife will have to prepare the bed for the husband by laying out the mattress on the tatami floor. After she does so, she will return to her room to lay hers. (Apparently it's a labourious process. I don't know cos I can't picture it.)
What do the guys do while their wives are labouring away? They are soaking themselves in the hot spring outside, under the snow. What a beautiful way to relax. But at the expense of your wives?? Help her first, get it over and done with, then soak together lah! (But men and women soak themselves separately in Japan. Heh.)

3) While the husbands are in service, the wives will be in the kitchen preparing a feast. The men will be served their food. By the women of course. They dine separately from the ladies too. The ladies will have a tray where they collect their food, and feed their children/babies as well.

4) Husbands do not participate in looking after the baby. There was once when this Singaporean lady couldn't cope anymore cos she had to feed her second child and her baby's nappy was soaked. She gave her husband the LOOK... "You'd better come over here, or else..." So he came over and carried the baby to a corner where he changed his diapers. All the Japanese men looked on in horror. One commented that men need not do that in Japan. The husband replied, "But men in Singapore care enough to help out." Aww... so sweet right? (No wonder these sweet men are all taken... Heh.)
The funny thing is... 2 years later, the guy who commented that men need not do this in Japan actually changed the diapers of his newborn baby! Yay!! =)

5) Pastor's wife in Japan must do 2 things. Play the piano and cook. Heh. An informal survey was carried out and most of us in church can't be pastors' wives! We can either play the piano or cook, not both! Haha! Oh well...

Maybe that's why men like Japan. Go marry a Japanese wife then. I'm proud to be Singaporean. Heh.

So let me continue to blabber on.

Due to the extreme weather in Sapporo, her 2 little boys (1 1/2 years and a 4-month old) contracted pneumonia. Their left lungs were clogged up at the same time. They were rushed into hospital, but could not afford to be hospitalised and placed on the drip for 24 hours, even though it could be fatal. She told the doctor and nurse outrightly that she had a God, and she was going to trust in God to save her kids. The doctor and nurse were concerned, but agreed, and instructed her to take the boys back for a scan the next morning.

They returned home and sent a fax to their church in Singapore to get everyone to pray. They spent the entire night seeking God's healing and mercy. The next day, when they underwent the scan, the doctor and nurse were astonished to find that their lungs had been miraculously cleared! They had totally recovered! Praise the Lord!! In the end, the doctor brought his whole family and attended their church!

God really works wonders, and He is very much alive. We just need to seek Him faithfully. Our God is faithful, and He will never take away anything that He knows is good for us. But it's our own ignorant selves who create trouble for ourselves when we refuse to trust in God and acknowledge that He is the God Almighty. We always rely on our own means, thinking that we have the very power to handle all things. We need to become fools, fools for the Lord, in order for Him to work in us and do wonders through us.

We had 2 visitors to church yesterday. SIngapore missionaries who spent 8 years in Japan.

Let me focus on the lady. She had a conviction in her heart when she was 13 years old, that she was going to be a missionary one day. Therefore she tried to prepare herself by joining all sorts of ministries in the church and went on short mission trips whenever possible. However, God never spoke to her again about her becoming a missionary for the next couple of years. Until she married a pastor and had 2 little boys - a toddler and a baby.

One day, she was packing her bag, ready to accompany her husband to Missouri, USA for his Master's in Theology. God spoke to her then. "You are going to be a missionary in Japan." Her life came to a full stop. She couldn't fathom the idea of becoming a missionary in Japan! She couldn't stand the culture! Especially the men! So she laid a fleece before God, in order to convince herself. She told God that she needed confirmation. That if He would send a Japanese couple to Missouri, which is a rather ulu place right in the heart of USA, and that the Japanese wife would teach her Japanese! So on they went. Hah! She thought that was too difficult for God.

But one day, her husband returned home and told her that a couple had invited them for lunch. She went, and when the couple welcomed them at the door, she almost died there and then. Why? Cos the couple was Japanese! She couldn't believe it, so she asked how they had arrived there. The lady replied that she had taken the plane. Hahaha! Anyway, jsut before the dinner ended, the Japanese lady asked if she was free. She said she wanted to teach her Japanese!! *grin*

And to top it all off, she was approached by another Ang Mo lady who asked if she was willing to allow the angmo lady to practice her Japanese on her! Haha! How much clearer can the sign be? Clearer in fact, as we learnt.

Several days later, God spoke to her again. "You are going to be a missionary in Japan." She once again laid the fleece down before God. "Dear Lord, if it is to be true, You will have to talk to my husband as well. Because the husband has to lead, and the wife will follow." (So you see, she hadn't talked to her husband about her struggle with Japan as yet.) That night, when her husband returned, he asked her if God had spoken to her. She suspiciously said yes. He then asked if it was regarding the country with which they were to enter. Bingo! She asked how in the world he knew! He answered that when God speaks to the husband, He will also speak to the wife. There will always be confirmation, double confirmation....

So on they went to Japan... to help bring the Japanese to Christ for the next 8 years.

Just out of the blue, I decided that it had been a long time since I last cooked.
So, with the help of a capable assistant chef, we set out to prepare an unforgettable dinner spread.

Here are the memories.

Sausage, baked potato with herbs and mushroom steak.
The cheese sausage was yummy... the cheese oozes out when you bite into the fat sausage! =)


Shitake mushroom steak.
A self-concocted mushroom sauce... more on the red wine side.


Garlic bread with herbs and bacon wrapped asparagus. Oh, and don't forget the mushroom soup with mushrooms in it. =)
The presentation was decorated by our dear assistant chef. Got potential right?


Yep, so it was a fun day of preparing and cooking and eating.
Stuffed pigs.

My mummy made me a lunch box.
There was peanut butter sandwich, chilli tuna sandwich, and best of all, a B-A-N-A-N-A Banana! *grin*

And last night, there was a delivery boy outside my door who delivered dessert!
Funny thing was, he called my place, but didn't mention that he was already outside!
So he patiently waited until I received his SMS saying that he was outside! And I had to scramble to open the door, afraid that he would get kidnapped or something.

Sweet.

Chapel in school was good today.

There was a group from the island of Samoa on their mission trip to Singapore. Did you know that 97% of the people in Samoa are Christians?? I didn't know that! In fact, from an informal poll done with the JC1s, only less than 20 of them had heard of Samoa Island prior to this visit!

They performed their dances, which were really entertaining. Why? Cos they would make strange noises throughout their dances and watching them dance was really joyful. You could tell that they had this joy in them, and the joy came from within them, from the Lord. There was this dance which they performed which made me tear. It was a dance which praised the Lord, about giving glory to our Redeemer. It wasn't exactly the lyrical kinda dance of the like in "So you think you can dance", but it was emotional enough. How do I know? Cos I wasn't the only soul who felt like tearing. Other teachers were already tearing! I knew God was speaking to me. I need to prioritise.

Even within the stressful period that we might all be going through, there is always an oasis of peace and joy in our Lord Jesus. And I thank God for His grace.

The Lord says, "My grace is sufficient."

And an aside which I plagiarised from Pengy jeijie....
"To log in to the wireless network, please plug in the LAN cable."

Possible comments for students from tutors just before parents-teachers-meeting:

"Dreamer. Lost."

"She is not interested in earthly matters. When twilight zone beckons, she should leave this world."

"Brillant! His grades this time round are an anomaly."

"Regular attendance achieved (physically only)"

"Her attention span is but a split second."

"Hardly engages in any intellectual discussions, critical thinking or productive activity. Blank most of the time."

"Hollow. Empty."

I love it when students come look for me for consultation or make-up lesson (even if I instructed them to come look for me).

I love it when they seek clarification in class cos it means they are thinking and that they are interested in learning.

I love it when I ask for their attention and they give it to me.

I love it when their faces light up when they understand something I have explained.

I love it when they go away from the lesson having learnt something, and thanking me for it.

I love it when students approach me at an ad hoc basis after lecture just to clarify some issues.

I love it when students are amused by my silly expressions or antics.

I love it when students understand or appreciate my stoopid jokes, and not try to humour me.

I love it when students crack stoopid jokes that make me laugh.

I love it when students tell me they are beginning to like Geography.

I love it when students are happy to be in my class.

I love it when students say "hi" to with a big grin when they see me along the corridors.

I think it makes everything so much easier. I am willing to put in more effort to build on my knowledge so as to better guide students, mark more assignments for their sake, meet up with more students even though it eats into the free time, plan stuff for them including fieldtrips, etc. It makes it all worthwhile when I look forward to class, enjoy the hour and emerge feeling accomplished and happy.

Doctor to patient: "Your x-ray showed a broken rib, but we mended it with Photoshop."

You know, you always wanna reward yourself after a trek, especially when you feel a sense of accomplishment. But this time round, I think we were just greedy… hungry ghosts we were! Hahaha!

We arrived in Malacca in a Mercedez cab. High-crass right? But it’s so old I bet the Tungku used it for his campaigning before Independence! Heh. We checked in to our budget hotel before proceeding to savour nonya food. We ordered sambal kangkong, sambal sotong, ayam buah keluak (yum!), assam fish, otah-otah, fried egg (stooped order), soft-shell crab (which was over-fried). Happy. We went to Mahkota for some shopping before 2 of them ended up eating Mac’s and the rest at KFC! My gosh! Hahaha! We proceeded to Bamboo Hut Bistro for some drinks, where we snacked on lots of potatoes and were entertained to no end by a Filippino singer, who sang all-time favourites and had a good sense of humour.

After a good night’s rest at the hotel (we were lucky cos the room beside us had a worm in the tandas and bed bugs), we had simple English breakfast before setting off. We walloped Baba laksa, chendol, pineapple tart samples, chicken rice balls (one each for the girls! Haha!) and kampong chicken of course (though I still insist that Thomson’s chicken is still the best!), A&W (Coney Dog, Large Root beer float with 2 scoops of ice-cream, curly fries, and waffle with ice-cream). And I peng-san-ed. I was done for the day. No more food for me for the rest of the day, but my counterparts still went on to Ramli Burger! Wow. Singaporeans.

I thank God for all His provision and the hands that prepared all the food for us, for providing me with good Christian company who soon became fast friends, and for keeping us all safe and sound throughout the trip.

I went on a wonderful trip to Malacca over the National Day holiday, with ODAC. 5 of us teachers, a mentor and ex-ODACers. A full strength of 16

We took the night train (with the sleeping bunk) to Tampin Town. It was a cosy little bed, just snug for me… with privacy from the drawn curtains and I was in my own little duckie world. We arrived at Tampin Town, where the girls went to reccee and found the toilets locked. After a while of snacking and realizing that we really needed to pee, we resorted to asking the train station master for the key, to realize that the toilet was opened all the time! The girls had mistaken the prayer rooms for locked toilets!! Hahaha! The ladies’ had no taps screwed on at the basin (a move to save water maybe??), so we used the gents to wash up. Gender bias!!

We loaded ourselves and our backpacks onto taxis which took us to the foot of Gunung Datuk, where we took a light breakfast from our supplies (Raisin bread’s the best-seller!) before warming up and applying insect repellant. (I recommend Johnson’s and Johnson’s!) Afterward we ventured to conquer Gunung Datuk!

Looking back, it’s one of the best climbs I’ve had. It’s not too long, not too short. Not too easy, not too tough. It’s got its challenges, especially the parts where you have to resort to climbing (my favourite!!). And it’s all worth it cos the view was spectacular! Quite worth it, given the amount of time spent climbing it. The whole climb up only took us 2 ½ hours. An awesome peak overlooking Malaysia. My favourite part was the scaling of the rocks at the peak. It was exhilarating with a tinge of danger and excitement. I love it! I just scampered up the rocks before turning back to help the others up. Then I just stood on top of the huge rock with my hands wide open, welcoming the wind and admiring God’s creation, before I started shivering from the chill.

All the Geography I saw… the weathering processes from observing the rocks both big and small… the mass movement processes both involving consolidated and unconsolidated materials… from fall to flow. Incredible!

The descending part was fun, lots of climbing. The beginning was very fun as I scampered down the slope. However, the momentum was lost when it became really steep with loose rocks. We really did wonder how in the world we managed to climb up! Haha! I think in trekking, one really needs to have the courage to take the first step, cos once you take the first step, you have no choice but to keep going! Experience does count too, cos then you’ll know where to place your footing and how to balance. All in all it was just a thrilling experience.

The outdoors always make me feel at home… trekking with my backpack makes me happy… being in the forest/jungle, amongst the trees, roots and soil gives me a feeling I yearn for. With good company, the trek is just awesome! I know why I’m in ODAC. =)

For national day celebrations at school, we tried to make it more meaningful by havng another mini Service Learning Day. I remained in school, where the Minds children came to play. The others proceeded to become karang guni men/women or went to Toa Payoh to entertain the old folks. Anyway, I just wanna relate an incident.

The Arts classes were all performing for the Minds children, so they were seated in front, facing the entire cohort of Minds children and their student mentors. There was this cheeky fella (from my class) who blew a kiss to this Malay girl. She reciprocated and blew another kiss back to him!! But what was astounding was, she fell in love with him! She was all girly (imagine the fluttering of eyelashes) and started writing "I love you" and drawing hearts in the air! And then she resorted to kissing him, instead of blowing kisses.

My boy was so freaked out! And his classmates, including myself and a fellow teacher, were really amused. But inside of me, I felt really uneasy. I didn't think it was right, but there was nothing else we could have done. And he was only being cheeky, without evil intentions. Things worsened when he went to hide behind the whiteboard, because we thought that if we distracted her, she would get over it soon. However, she got upset and started tearing. She whipped up a tissue from her back as the tears swelled up in her eyes. Then she buried her face in her hands and lowered her head into her legs, looking reallty pitiful.

I couldn't take it anymore. I went over to sit beside her. The objectve being to distract her, make friends and cheer her up. I succeeded to some extent. But she cried not too long after... (no fault of mine!!) She was scared by the loud blast of the music.

Learning points:
1) Always be true in our feelings, and to be sincere to others. Never toy with others' feelings.
2) Be considerate and thoughtful, and be sensitive to others' needs and wants.
3) Minds' children really have mentality of a child. They are innocent and in their own uncorrupted world. In fact, thank God for that because they are blissful in that sense.
4) When dealing with the less fortunate, we should be more enthusiastic and forthcoming in out gestures, actions and words. They appreciate it.

I am still a firm supporter of Service Learning, but only if the kids bother to put in effort and initiative.

It was late. The back gate was locked with a thick metal chain coupled with an intimidating padlock. The alternative was to exit from the main gate and make a roundabout tour around PP to arrive at the bus stop.

I was lazy. Like a thief, I surveyed the surroundings for human figures. I spotted one in white. A passerby. Oops! I caught her glance! What an amateur! I acted nonchalantly. When she proceeded with her steps and disappeared from my sight, I surveyed the surroundings again. I took the chance and climbed over the gate, as swift as a dove, even though I was in heels.

Hmmm, all the years of practice in college paid off!

I was in exhilaration! Why? Cos I felt oh-so young again! All the nostalgic feelings came flooding back to me! All those late nights. The peace. The thought of just me and maybe a friend for company while studying into the late hours in school. The returning to school on holidays to find the school locked, but no qualms! The skill was put to good use. =) Good times.

No change in me. I'm young as ever. I'm happy.

I launched a paper plane over the cubicle to N's seat. She picked it up and a cheeky grin emerged on her face.

N: Don't, Daffy! No... no... no!!! Don't do it! *launches the plane over the cubicle to the English department*
D: *Stares at N with her eyes opened wide in disbelief*
N: *Saunters over to the next cubicle to pick up the plane*
N: (From behind the cubicle) I told her not to throw already, but she wouldn't listen! *Saunters back with a satisfied look on her face*

What to do?! Sabotaged.