More Photos at Kusu!

I feel so bad chasing after my friend Michelle for the photos which we had taken at Kusu Island.

Here's one taken near the entrance of a Chinese temple. I was surprised that this statue is still available. Wow... it has almost been 16 years (and perhaps more)...

Getting a rest after the walk... Phew!

Posing with Michelle...





Returning from Kusu Island...

Reefwalk at Kusu Island!

Last Saturday, 12 August, I went to Kusu Island with some NIE friends. It has almost been 16 years since I last went to the island with my mom and siblings, and perhaps my relatives. Anyway, I did not really feel like turning up for the reefwalk when I got to know that I had to report by 5.30am at Pasir Panjang Ferry Terminal. Because it turned out that I had to wake up an hour before! But what shocked me most was that the cab fare for the journey from my place to my destination cost S$ 19.20!!

Fortunately, I reached the ferry terminal without any mishap. My friends had a hard time convincing their taxi driver that he had driven them to the wrong place! I laughed with amusement when they said that the driver expressed his anxiety because they had brought him to a strange location. What an encounter! Perhaps taxi companies should spend more time and effort thinking of how to improve their service standards and not immerse themselves in finding ways or excuses to make the customers pay more for unacceptable service.

The journey to the island was approximately 20mins. Upon reaching, we were briefed by the person-in-charge and introduced to our island guides. There were 7 groups, with about 15 persons in each group. Our guide was Freddy, a skinny and humorous man. He told us that the walk could only be conducted at the North Lagoon, as the South Lagoon was too filled with silt. Frankly speaking, there was not much for us to see, except for some sponges, corals, crabs, seaweeds and sea stars. Sea stars? Freddy emphasized the umpteenth time, "Yes, they're called sea stars, not star fishs! Sea stars!"

Here is a picture of the Common sea star (Archaster typicus) which I had taken with my N80:

Yawn. Yawn. Yawn. I am getting tired now. I will probably post some more pictures when I get the images from my friend. That's all for tonight. Yawn.

This Is My Home...

Me, Frugal or Stingy?

I read with interest an online article "Are you frugal, or stingy?" by Liz Pulliam Weston. The article contains interesting examples of how often the things we do make us cross the line between frugality and stinginess. Now, I am beginning to wonder if what I had done in the past is enough to label myself a miser or spendthrift. Like love and hatred, frugality and stinginess is blurred by a thin line, for what I think.

"Mai Giam* lah," a female friend of mine said to me in Hokkien just recently, when I told her of a present that I had given to a girl on my first 'date'. I had contemplated for some time before I finally decided to do it. Not that I could not bear to give it to her but I had my concerns. "Would she think that I have some ulterior motives?", "Would I scare her away since it is just a 'normal' meeting and not any special occasion?" - these questions daunted me.

Mai Giam* - "Don't be stingy" in Hokkien

Kaira's "My Island Home"!

This year's NDP theme song "My Island Home" is sung by Kaira Gong (龚寺嘉). Unlike last year "Reach Out For The Skies" which was sung by Singapore Idol Taufik and singer-cum-actress Rui En (芮恩), the 2006 theme song could hardly be heard on air or seen on TV. Not that I like Kaira, but I think she should deserve the same amount of publicity as compared to other singers. I believe many people could still remember the incessant playing of "...reach out for the skies..." in McDonald's last year. Well, I did save a lot on Big Macs then.

Anyway, I feel that NDP theme songs nowadays are getting less popular. They are no longer appealing, as compared to "Count On Me Singapore" and "We Are Singapore". Their lyrics are less heart-warming. But I do appreciate Kit Chan's (陈洁仪) "Home" and Stephanie Sun's (孙燕姿) "One United People" and "We Will Be There". Hmm... Who will be singing next year's theme song? Ah Du? I just hope the song gets better.

Lyrics for "My Island Home"

This is my home

She's everything to me

Grace and beauty

In all that you see

My island home

Wherever I may be

I never will forget her

Nor will she forget me

Chorus ^

And I will sing

A song of home

A land of peace

Where dreams are born everyday

My home

Wherever I may be

I believe

You will always be a part of me ^

My island home

Home of my family

This is my future

Where I want to be

(This is my future

This is my home)

Repeat Chorus x 2

My home

Wherever I may be

I believe

You will always be a part of me

A part of me

Note: To watch the MV, visit NDP website http://www.ndp.org.sg/index.php?id=17

School Break Is Ending!

After nearly two months of holidays and 5 weeks of Teaching Assistantship, I am looking forward to start school soon. Most importantly, I enjoy being a student. As a student, I find that there are fewer things for me to worry about. And all I have to do is to ensure that I put in my best efforts in my studies and surpass my own goals and expectations. Well, that's easier said than done.

At present, I consider myself doing relatively fine in my studies. I am not a smart person but I have the determination to work hard (not smart because I am not) to achieve my goals. At times, I do procrastinate a little. Hey, there's a Chinese saying "休息是为了走更长远的路" (to rest is to embark on a longer journey) to support my claim (and not a lame excuse)!

Do I Enjoy Teaching?

My Teaching Assistantship ended just last Friday. And now I am missing the kids from classes 3.1, 4.2, and 4.9. I could always remember the smiles on their faces, the little things they did, the questions they asked, the answers they gave, and of course, the joy and laughter they brought me.

And I asked myself "What did I bring with me when I was with them?" Anxiety, boredom, excitement, happiness, bewilderment, amazement... I guess it could be a combination of all these. The very first feedback that I received from a class was that my lesson was boring. I was quite disappointed.

"Hey, I'm sure my pupils don't always find my lessons interesting," my Cooperating Teacher was quick to assure me. My other friends said, "Oh, it is a dry subject. It's hard to be interesting." These words were quite soothing but the remark continued to plague me for days.

Somehow, it did not follow me into the classrooms. I continued to put in my best efforts to inject excitement in my lessons. For English, I tried games, online quizzes, role plays and even music. For Science, I used KWL (Ker Wee, Lim?), websites*, and concept maps. 4.2 seems to enjoy brainpop very much.

On my last day at SVPS*, I received numerous farewell cards from the lovely 3.1. They are a bunch of super-smart and adorable children! I was so overwhelmed by their thoughtfulness that I nearly broke into tears. Two little girls bravely sang the whole class a song. Wonderful! Encore! Our future stars!

In return, I made each of them a bookmark. I hope they like the bookmarks and when they see the bookmarks, they think of the time that they had with Mr. Lim.

websites - www.brainpop.com and www.lead.com.sg

SVPS - South View Primary School (www.southviewpri.moe.edu.sg)