MissyOng, My Life, My Way

Fabric of nation (SDC)

2010-09-22T18:34:00.001+08:00

Just attended a seminar at Spore Discovery Centre.

I'm amazed at some of the exhibits displayed there. It should be one of the Learning Journeys in school for P5 or P6.

The following exhibits caught my eye. There are a total of 3 gigantic blankets made from a lot of squares. Each square featured a different design and the message is clear: Loving Spore and what Spore means to you.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

My likes

2010-09-20T01:15:00.001+08:00

Anyone in love with Darkness Eyelashes like me? They last longer than other brands I've tried. I like the way the glue works. You apply it directly to the area where you want to stick the falsies to. So it works pretty much like an eyeliner..

I've just found a great deal at Far East Plaza, Level 3, near the escalator.

Buy 2 pairs of Darkness Eyelash at $10
Or you can buy the eyelash glue(clear/black) at $8.80 (can't remember it's $7.80 or $8.80) and get a pair of eyelash free.

Honestly, I think this is a pretty good deal.. If you have better deals, be sure to share the good deals!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

How's IPhone OS4.1?

2010-09-20T01:08:00.001+08:00

I've just installed mine finally for eons since it came up.. Not that I'm waiting for bad reviews, but the sudden death of my laptop in May has left me very much stranded and reliant on my iPhone. U kept thinking if I suddenly updated my iPhone with the new software, all my apps will disappear, including the ones I paid for. That'd be utter 'walking through the valleys alone' to the max.

Thank goodness, I'm in the right sense of mind to sign in with my Apple account, sync my phone to my laptop, check under iTunes that I've transferred my purchases from my phone to my laptop before downloading the new software.

This is a good reminder to all : not to do anything stupid by syncing your iPhone to your laptop before checking the necessary steps. One false move may lead to all your purchases lost and if you should need to install again, I.e. Install from app store, they will bill you as they consider this a new transaction.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

I have been neglecting this space..

2010-08-29T20:57:00.001+08:00

Just a few updates:
I just got my hair rebonded 2 weeks ago. It's been 4 years since I grew long hair. I had short hair for the longest time of my life.

I'm simply loving my long hair. Having rebonded my hair, my hair looks longer. Some of my kids thought I had hair extensions again.

I'm also into wearing falsies. Having worn them, I'm now a double eye-lid girl.. It makes my eyes bigger.. Woohoo .. I learn some makeup tips from YouTube and I'm like a manga character with 'large dreamy eyes'. I learn some makeup tips from @rice bunny.. She's a pro at makeup..

About school, finally I'm starting to love my dear present class. I have been missing my lovely class of last year and was unable to forget them. I will still remember them and give them special children 's day presents which I hoped to set to complete this Sep hols. It's going to be a rest-less Sep hols as I'd be bringing some kids for workshop, submit a report. After 9 Sep, I'd be officially more relaxed..

Hopefully I can get started on my mini project to establish a garden of plants frown from recycled containers..

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Yours truly

2010-06-13T19:55:00.001+08:00

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Creative photography with the use of iPhone apps live Effects

2010-06-08T15:45:00.001+08:00

Photos are taken at the Marsh Garden at West Coast Park.

A super duper adorable boy

2010-06-08T15:38:00.001+08:00

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Gucci, Marc Jacobs, Kate Spade, Coach, Jimmy Choo

2010-05-30T09:02:00.001+08:00

Did anyone go to the M Hotel Gucci, Kate Spade, Marc Jacobs Sale?

You would share the same sentiments if you were me, arriving 5 hours after the sale started to find that only Kate Spade was left and there's nothing else. You will also have an heightened sense of being cheated if you were to drive there. There's no grace period for carpark fees which is why I told the BF to have buffet breakfast there.

$2.50 gone. I think they earned quite a bit from disappointed drivers ..

After that , I went to the Isetan @ Scotts sale which feature Coach(up to 50%) and Jimmy Choo(up to 70%) sale. There's definitely more things to buy cos there are 2 brands. The sale is located at the ground floor beside Mango. The Coach sale is on the first level while the Jimmy Choo is on the second level.

Once a LV or Gucci, you will not look at Coach again. I can use my LV to bits but my Coach is ahhem left on the cold shelf..

I would love to get my hand on at least one pair of coveted Jimmy Choos in my life if not for the fact that there's a lack of opportunity and the price tag of $600++ after discount.

Written by a sad GSS shopper

Oh ya, all is not lost. Got 2 stylish necklaces or chains from Mphosis. They are having 50% sale in Isetan@Scotts.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Boredom

2010-05-23T19:45:00.001+08:00

Bored bored bored.. I thought by finishing my schoolwork, I can go out, leave the house and go shopping but alas... My BF is a killjoy.. No going out, stay in for dinner.. I haven't gone out in a while... :(

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Don't miss out on this gigantic Watsons Sale

2010-05-17T10:07:00.001+08:00

Unfortunate events

2010-05-11T00:45:00.001+08:00

No one can ever be as suay(bad luck) same. My laptop died on me after 2 years. I wonder if it can be repaired. Anyway, most likely I will utilize the LDS to buy a netbook.. Preferably a cheaper model.. I spent ard $2.5K on HP model and it died faster than my compaq model which lasted a good 5 years.. I will never buy HP again..

The suayest (most unfortunate thing) is I have almost finished my assignment when it crashed and the 'best part' is I did not save my work on my thumbdrives..

So I spent a good 4 hours to finish and I saved my work on the laptop and thumbdrives. If I am so suay again, I'm not going to do the assignment from scratch again. Can anyone just download from my brain instead?

I wonder how I should go about the repair part? Do I need to bring my receipt as proof as purchase? Wouldn't Challenger have some sort of a record?

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Something nice from iPhone apps

2010-04-16T07:04:00.001+08:00

Think the apps is called photofunia..

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Has this place collected cobwebs?

2010-04-16T07:02:00.001+08:00

I have been very busy with my work and my involvement programmes.. I hope to get a good rest this weekend and energize myself in time for the Earth Week ahead...

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Want to find out where your rubbish lands up

2010-01-23T11:24:00.001+08:00

Tune in to OKTO channel on Friday at 6.30 p.m.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Something to ponder over

2010-01-19T23:50:00.001+08:00

A blind boy sat on the steps of a building with a hat by his feet. He held up a sign, which said: 'I am blind, please help.' There were only a few coins in the hat.

A man was walking by. He took a few coins from his pocket and dropped them into the hat. He then took the sign, turned it around, and wrote some words.
He put the sign back so that everyone who walked by would see the new words.

Soon the hat began to fill up. A lot more people were giving money to the blind boy. That afternoon the man who had changed the sign came to see how things were. The boy recognized his footsteps and asked, 'Were u the one who changed my sign this morning? What did you write?'

The man said, 'I only wrote the truth. I said what u said but in a different way.'

What he had written was: 'Today is a beautiful day and I cannot see it.'

Do you think the first sign & the second sign were saying the same thing?
Of course, both signs told people the boy was blind. But the first sign
simply said the boy was blind. The second sign told people they were so lucky that they were not blind. Should we be surprised that the second sign was more effective?

Moral of the Story:

Be thankful for what you have. Be creative. Be innovative. Think differently and positively.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

My first blog wriiten via iPhone

2010-01-12T13:59:00.001+08:00

I have finally managed to blog using the blogpress apps to blog..

Anyone catching the partial solar eclispe on 15 Jan between 1530-1700 ?

There are some activities lined up at science centre, the obsevatory at omni theatre...

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Happy New Year 2010

2010-01-01T00:00:00.002+08:00

The young punks at the void deck started counting down.
Turned on the TV and saw fireworks decorating the sky

Blessings to all who read my blog. Wish you the best of health and have a smooth sailing career in the year 2010.

Friends come and go
but enemies accumulate....

Another year is going to be over

2009-12-31T23:43:00.003+08:00

As one of my msn buddies puts it, it's bye bye to the old decade and hello, new decade

What would the new decade hold for all of us?

For one, I was not aware that the year was coming to an end... On my workshop on Monday, I thought it's a week more before school starts.

I seriously thought there was 10+ days between 28 DEC and 4 JAN..

I am seriously not wanting to start school.

For one, I am going to have a brand new class, start loving from scratch...

I miss my ex P1 class almost every day during Dec Hols. I miss T's chubby face. Y's cute and childish tantrums, R's super cute face, JN's sweetness, S and I's sensible character..

I always hoped to see some of my children when I returned to school or in the neighbourhood or even shopping centres. So far, I have only managed to chance upon one of my boys...

Something on a happier note,

for those who remember my super cute darling's name, I have another girl by the same first name and last name...

Will this girl be as cute and lovable as my super cute darling?

Will I be able to learn to love again? Cheryl says I have too much love. Ha...

Love is blind.

Maybe I will learn to like them instead of love...

It was a weird dream...

2009-12-21T09:12:00.002+08:00

One afternoon, I had to get to town. My aunt called the cab company which offers cab sharing between strangers. I was heading Orchard. The cab number is SH 4494.. It was just across the road all this while.

I saw the other person sharing the cab with me. It is a petite young girl who's going to her friend's house in orchard, nearer to Jurong... As I wanted to alight at the MRT station, I was thinking of footing 65% of the bill as mine is a longer distance away from our starting point but then again, the other passenger was to alight later than me. Take note, it's a weird strange dream..

So I took out my bills, waiting to pay but the cab driver only wants exact change. So we stopped at a hotel that resembled Raffles hotel. Young students were raising funds for a unprivileged group in another country. I gave my ten dollar bill to one girl, telling her I want to donate 7 bucks and she gave me 3 bucks back.. Then, I hurriedly paid the cab driver and alighted. I had forgotten that it's a peak hour and there are surcharges and my 7 bucks bill should actually be $13.. The other passenger, supposedly a girl is now a boy, around 18 or 19.. HD had followed me and alighted from the cab. I was drawn to the museum located at the hotel. They were exhibiting stuff from the country whom they were raising funds.. The young man followed me, panting and saying I have not paid the full sum of my share of the cab.. I didn't have enough so I had to withdraw from an ATM ...

Something weird happened. I didn't know how he got my number and he started sending me messages. His pal??? Came to tell me he had fallen for me at the club. There's a 30% chance that my actions had misled him and his pal was telling me all these when I was shopping in an old-fashioned mall, no air-conditioning. It's the one I always visited in my dreams. It was my first time seeing him. I don't know what happened and the next moment, I was in a club looking at the contestants having this inprontu best dressed competition for guys. That young man was one of them and he was the first to be eliminated.. Oops.. His pal was sitting beside me telling me about the 30% thingy again.

End of dream...

A mini blog post from iPhone

2009-12-20T02:24:00.002+08:00

It seems like I can't blog in the HTML mode... Just back from watching 'Avatar' 3D at Tiong Bahru Plaza... It's a must-see show... The effects are really awesome.. No wonder the director needed to wait for 10 years to film the movie. Don't catch the show without the 3D effects...

I like the part where they show Jake exploring Pandora in the night after being chased by the wild dogs... The images are spectacular... Is there a conotation about how we as human beings are relating ourselves with the environment... The indigenious people sacrifice their lives to save their land from the sky people.. Will we do the same to save our earth??

Leave it to your highly intellectual beings to think about it...

Iphone

2009-12-15T23:55:00.003+08:00

Within 4 days, I had chalked up about 120 MB of data usage and downloaded 75 apps. Thank goodness to the free 12 GB data, othewise I'd be paying a hefty sum at this rate I'm going..

I'm seriously addicted to Iphone, in particular, the game on The Lost Children (Virtual Villagers). I played it before on PC but I was not addicted that time as the free credits ran out and if I were to buy the PC CD rom, it will cost me around $18.90. With Iphone, I merely paid $1.99 for the game. Since then, I have been glued to the game. I now have 35 villagers, up from the initial 7..

(Oh no, as I was typing this, my oldest villager, Bes died of old age at 65... Now, I have 34 villagers)

I am charging my phone every 12 hours... Do you charge your Iphone as frequent as I do?

I think I am 'psycho-ing' all my friends around me to buy iphone.... iphone is good.. I do not have to buy a PSP now. I can play all my fave games on the iphone!

Woohoo

2009-12-12T13:36:00.002+08:00

I have bought my iphone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

After my driving lesson yesterday. I headed down to West Mall to buy.. At first, I was a bit dumb, I wanted to get the iphone from M1.. But after looking the long queue that comprised about a few turns (30 people??), I headed down to the 'dragonhead',SingTel.. I painfully parted with my barely 13 month E71 and traded it off for $200...

At first, I wanted to get the 8GB - 3G.. I didn't realise that it didn't come with a 'S'? Anyway, what's up with the 'S'? I suppose 'S' mean 'faSt'.. so I got a 16GB White... Black means 8GB, White means at least 16 GB.. The queue at Singtel was quite empty. After 10 minutes, I laid my hands on the iphone.. Not wanting to scratch my iphone, I quickly headed down to Challenger to get a shiny red case. Same colour as my mouse..

Should I or should I not

2009-12-11T08:26:00.003+08:00

wait for a weekend to get the much-coveted iphone?

Seems like there is no change to the services offered... I wonder when the 3 telco will suddenly have a secret compromise to raise the prices or whether they will continue their advertising strategies to differentiate their services from the other telco...

Does anyone know how many units have been sold by M1 or Starhub?

So far, I have seen queues at the retail shops, there's even an extra external booth to handle iphone subscribers for starhub at PS...

Iphone vs Blackberry Bold

2009-12-09T23:29:00.007+08:00

I have been pondering over this difficult problem for the longest time - roughly 3 months? I was 'very very gian' - lured by the attraction of blackberry as one can blog from the phone with the data plan... Although I have blogged from Nokia E71 and Nokia 97, you can only do so within your house-WIFI or free WIFI zones... Plus, you can get your emails pushed to you...

But now, iphone users get free local data plans.. let's ignore Blackberry and keep it in the storeroom (attic)

Now with the 2 other telco on board, M1 and Starhub, they are offering huge discounts on the I Phone 3G S... You can take the I Phone 8 GB 3GS for free under the Take 3 programme, meaning you pay abt ~~$39~~ $36 (last updated) and get free local data plan of ~~10 GB~~ 12 GB... and the max bill charge for data is $30?? , changed from what it advertised in the newspapers.... Did I see it wrongly? M1 just 'upped' increased the free local data plan to 12 GB to match Singtel and Starhub... On Tuesday, M1 just announced it's giving away 10 GB and Starhub, 12 GB.. This morning, Singtel cannot contain its silence and announced that it's offering 12 GB of free local data plan...

Even existing iphone subscribers can enjoy the increase in the local data plan... Double cheers..

So if all telco companies are offering 12 GB , where is the differentiation going to be? The product is the same... Even some of the services are the same... For e.g. per second billing for M1 and Starhub, free SMS/MMS for NSFs and students... (How I wish I was a student now!)

Now, the telco companies have to rely on the network signal and customer loyalty to see who will be the ultimate champion.. Starhub is offering free viewing of 12 TV channels on iphone and M1 is giving the phone free (with 2 yrs contract under Take 3)..What's SingTel going to use as the carrot?

As according to the news, Singtel has already sold 100,000 units...

I have been a loyal Singtel customer for 9 years... At first, I was lured by the other companies that's offering free data plan, of a whopping 12 GB.. Now Singtel is also offering 12 GB, I'm just waiting for the price to drop. The consumers will be the ultimate winners in the case of a price war..

Under the Cheapest plan for all Telco companies: 8GB. 16GB, 32 GB S phones cost (as accurate as 9 Dec 11.59 p.m.)

Singtel - $388, $518, $658

M1 - $0($398), $518, $658

Starhub - $388, $538, $668

Be careful on the roads

2009-12-09T23:05:00.002+08:00

I have just attended my 3rd driving lesson today... The feeling of driving is so exciting.. Each time before the lesson, I prayed that the instructor will not be those fierce instructors that you see.. I always get reminded of the radio commercial on TV: Listen to the good things, the one about this female driver who can't drive properly and she listens to the good things, that a perfect ............ formula .... one... driver.....

Oh well, I'm nothing like her....

For the first lesson, which was more than 1.5 months ago, I had driven the car round and round the circuit, learning to stop and go, stop and go in circles.... I have a problem going around curves as my car does not stay in the centre... Btw, the car is No. 47.

For my second lesson, the car is no. 40... The instructor was quite friendly, as the first instructor... He says that I must have observed my bf driving cos I can still remember how to operate the clutch after more than a month... Usually, I don't observe my BF driving. Why? He's too fast. If I ask him to tell me, or he tells me automatically, he does it too fast.... I am still doing circles.. But I get to go circles in the inner circle, turning right instead of left all the time...

For my 3rd lesson, the car is no.47.. Have you noticed that the number of the car always starts with a '4'???? Anyway, I like odd and prime numbers that people perceive as 'unlucky'... Anyway, after going 4 rounds in the circuit, and even doing 3rd gear for the first time, my instructor took me to drive on the public roads.. Woah woah.. so exciting.. I finally get to drive outside... It was pouring, raining cats and dogs... Though I drove 3-4 rounds around the neighbourhood, I get to practise stopping, before zebra crossing, traffic lights, going to 4th gear... Max speed is 50? or 60?, it's good exposure.. I must practise and remember to step on the brake pedal and not let go... always release clutch than brake...

I can't wait to go for my driving lessons... Hope to pass with less than 6 pts deducted... So I must pay attention when the instructor is talking... It's hard to concentrate if the person speaks too fast.. I guess it applies to me when I teach, I must speak slowly and repeat 2 - 3 times when needed more often...

I really wonder

2009-11-28T21:47:00.002+08:00

why my facebook account is always having site maintanence?

How come my BF's account is not affected. I do hope my tiki doesn't rot. It will be almost ready in 15 minutes (CafeWorld) and site maintance is at least a few hours.

Double sian

Another thing that is making me extra bored is the education email which is always asking me to change my password, so much so that I forgot the original password. What's wrong with the email? Why did they change to a new one and cause these login problems? I hope I did not miss any important emails.

Even when I followed their instructions to change the password, it keeps saying, failure to change password. It's simply a waste of time.

Can't acces email, can't access facebook, can't see my BF cos he's outstation.
No interesting shows on TV...

Arghhh...

Handwriting analysis

2009-11-24T20:37:00.002+08:00

We had this workshop in school today: How your handwriting can tell one about your character.

It was a most interesting session. We learnt more about ourselves through handwriting. For eg, vertical, right-slanted, left-slanted, roundness, spacing between letters, words and lines, the angularity, the height and width of your handwriting can tell tales about your character.

At the end of the session, some of us stayed back to ask him to help us decipher our handwriting. He was very accurate for all of us. After all, he had seen more than 200,000 different handwriting. Wow, I don't think I have taught 2000 pupils.. Hmm....I have taught 17 classes (including practicum, excluding en bloc classes), on average 30 pupils, that's only 510 pupils....

He says that I am very creative, besides teaching, I can go to do floral arrangement, anything that requires creativity, interior
design, individualistic, self-centered. I can work well in any workplace that has a systematic way of doing things, i don't like ad hoc things or surprises.

Hello Kitty jewellery collectibles

2009-11-22T19:49:00.003+08:00

Hello Kitty fans, rejoice! The highly anticipated jewellery collection is now in Singapore.

In conjunction with her 35th birthday, Hello Kitty, arguably the world's most famous feline has lent her "kawaii"(cute) prowess to Poh Heng's latest collection of gold and gem jewellery designs.

Promising signature modern quality finishings and craftsmanship, this partnership with Sanrio celebrates one of the most enduring pop culture icon of all time. The iconic cat with no-mouth says "Hello" in more ways than most, speaking to the adoring hearts of women of all ages.

Starlet Kitty (Pendant - $680)
The pendant of sparkling diamonds is set in 18K white gold (right).

Icon Kitty (Pendant -$460; Earrings - $460)
The attractive hue of 22K gold is enhanced by a pop of pink in this design, featuring a pendant (top left) and a pair of earrings.

Princess Silhouette Kitty (Pendant - $390; Earrings - $460)
This 18K white gold silhouette is set with precious pink sapphires (top right).

Every purchase from Poh Heng’s Hello Kitty jewellery collection comes with a unique Hello Kitty-shaped jewellery holder, enclosed in a charming pink box. Poh Heng is the exclusive local jeweller for Hello Kitty fine jewellery in Singapore.

Basic Details about Hello Kitty
Real Name Kitty White
Date of Birth November 1st 1974
Birthplace In the suburbs of London, England
Height 5 apples tall
Weight Weight of 3 apples
Siblings Twin sister Mimmy
Personality A cheerful and happy girl with a heart of gold
Blood Type A
Hobbies Baking delicious cookies
Favourite sport Tennis
Favourite food Mama’s homemade apple pie

Favourite collectibles Candy, star-shaped objects, goldfishes and kitschy
crafts
Treasures An alarm clock from her grandparents, a photo
album and a key she stumbled upon in the forest
Best subjects in school English, Music and the Arts

Oh oh, I'm so going to get these.. They are so cute.. But then again, there are some stalls selling it in silver and rhodium... And it's much cheaper.. hmm..

Thousands gathered to witness Leonid meteor showers

2009-11-19T09:26:00.001+08:00

SINGAPORE: Thousands of stargazers all over the world gathered on Wednesday to view what was said to be a spectacular show of celestial proportions.

The Leonid meteor showers were expected to rival the massive display of shooting stars in 1833 when the entire sky was lit up by thousands of meteors.

In Singapore, stargazers gathered for the show in the wee hours of the morning.

Some came prepared with telescopes, while others came empty handed but armed with wishes.

This year, the cosmic spectacle can be seen from all over the planet but astronomers say Asia has the best viewing spots.

But many parts of Asia, including Singapore, experienced cloudy weather.

Hence, instead of a massive fireworks display the sky gazers were expecting, there were sparklers.

Scientists in Singapore say that about 14 shooting stars were visible from 4.30am to 5.30am.

Yahoo news

A Themed Year End Dinnner

2009-11-15T11:25:00.002+08:00

We are going to have a themed year end dinner.
My gosh, should I dress up to the occasion or what?
Everytime, I ended up going up on stage but coming down empty-ended..
It's fun to play dress up but it's no fun when you win based on your popularity..
Blame it that I do not have much luck with people.
The judges should be the pupils. Pupils are more truthful..

Anyway, can you guess the theme?
Abba, disco tops, Afro wigs, hot pants look and Spandex tops. Shiny clinging Lycra stretch disco pants in hot strident shiny colours with stretch sequin bandeau tops were often adaptations of professional modern dance wear that found itself making an impact in discos as disco dancing became serious. Gold lame, leopard skin and stretch halter jumpsuits and white clothes that glowed in Ultra Violet lights capture the Disco fashion perfectly.

I shall reveal the answer in a while

Woo... Is it a month since I have neglected my blog?

2009-11-15T11:17:00.002+08:00

Oh well, a few updates about myself....

Just graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics... I wonder where is that going to take me to if I venture out of the current industry. Does it have more market value than those graduating with a degree from NIE.

Anyway, I've been pretty stressed up by pupils' results... Can they do well? Will they pass? How many Band 1 do I have?? So far, I think I have the most number of Band 1 in English and Math.... That day, we had a meeting in the morning. To move up en-bloc or not? If we band the classes into top 2, I have a third of pupils gone from my class. Even if I teach P2 again, it won't be my original P1 _ _ _ _ _ anymore.... The thought of that makes me feel sad. They always like to separate me from my kids and it's the 3rd time already.

I should not have invested so much of my emotions and love to the kids. A part of me dies away when I'm separated from my darlings... I will miss them a lot....

Yummy food

2009-10-19T21:23:00.003+08:00

Last Saturday, I went to the largest stone grill , steamboat and shabu shabu restaurant with my BF and his colleagues. Can you guess where I went??

It's at a super ulu ulu place, Punggol Marina.. It's so ulu that there is no direct bus to the place. The nearest bus stop is 500 metres away. I think the bus service is 82. Yet in such a ulu place, I chanced upon dear Caiying and another companion of mine chanced upon 2 of her friends who came with their own different groups... Imagine the coincidence.

Back to the topic,

Operated by Sakura, it's one of the many buffet outlets.
But this outlet is special. It has lots of items not found in most mid-priced buffet restaurants.
It has small flower crabs, scallops, whole squids and many varieties of hotdog, sausages, more than 20 kinds of different marinated meat, chicken kebab. One of my faves is the shisamo fish.. Imagine eating a mouthful of shisamo fish and its eggs.. Another fave of mine is the satay.. The chicken satay are simpply delectable. Yum yum..

Beside this, they give a token $10 bonus voucher to adult diners and $5 to child diners.
You can use this bonus dollars to purchase drinks. Yes, drinks are not-free flow. However, they offer a variety of drinks like juice bottled drinks, canned drinks, alcoholic drinks like Heineken..
Of course, the main attraction is you can buy fresh swimming fish, big flower crab, and the ultimate wagkyu beef and crocodile meat..

Despite all the good food, blame it on me... I think my whole squid is not cooked properly and I'm having diarrhea everyday. At least I lost 1 kg from this process.

I can't access Facebook

2009-10-19T20:56:00.001+08:00

They state my account is under site maintanence..

What would happen to my strawberry cheese cake in Cafeworld? Hope I can save them before they rot.

All happening on my birthday!

2009-09-22T17:15:00.001+08:00

Beary Cool Celebrations @
Science Centre

Date: 26 & 27 Sep (Sat-Sun)
1 Oct (Thur)
Venue: Annexe Auditorium, Science Centre

Fee: FREE! for Science Centre members.
Science Centre admission applies for non-members.
No pre-registration required.

To celebrate Children's Day, Science Centre invites your kids on a very important mission - to save the bears! And, have a lot of fun at the same time. Kids will learn about global warming through interactive plays, the IMAX movie "Bears" as well as other hands-on activities like bear puppet-making (using just paper bags)

Highlights:

Beary Super Cool Show
Date: 26 & 27 Sep, 1 Oct
Time: 2pm - 2:30pm
Join Mr. Polar Bear to explore a super cool world together with our two scientists. A guaranteed fun show with loads of science tricks dealing with liquid nitrogen!

The Teddy Bear Who Saved the World
Date: 26 & 27 Sep, 1 Oct
Time: 3:30pm - 4pm
Help Teddy defeat Planet Pollute by answering challenging science questions & win attractive prizes!

Science Fun with Uncle Jimbo
Date: 26 & 27 Sep
Time: 4:30pm - 5pm
Get set for mind-boggling science action and lots of fun & laughter!

The J Show
Date: 1 Oct
Time: 4:30pm - 5pm
Hold your breath as acclaimed circus artist, Jay, juggles sharp knives and makes crystal balls "float" in mid-air.

* Keep a lookout for other fun stuff like face-painting, tattoo art, balloon sculptures & more!

Losing thigh fats

2009-09-19T13:07:00.001+08:00

...

....

I have been looking around the net. Here's what I found

From http://ezinearticles.com/?How-To-Lose-Thigh-Fat-Fast!&id=542928 ,

Number 1, it can be done. It's not a Herculean task.

Number 2, the fat on our thighs is connected to one of the largest muscles in the body. The legs. And since the legs can be worked hard and often, losing thigh fat (and any fat for that matter) can be done quickly.

A good brisk walk not only gets the oxygen flowing, it gets your leg muscles prepped. It allows you to slowly integrate body's ability to do more physical activity. It stimulates your metabolism, which is what you need to lose the thigh fat you desire.

Once you've been walking (I always recommend 20-30 minutes a day to start) for a while, you should notice an increased ability to do more. At this point find a place where you can do small step-ups. If you stairs in your own house, use those, nothing fancy here. The goal is to just make sure you do them. Try 20 steps alternating each leg.

This should not be too taxing, but it will make those thighs work harder. You will begin to feel as if you can produce more results. That's the trick for how to lose thigh fat, or any fat. Set yourself up for success by doing small things first.

After several weeks prepping your thighs (and body) join a local health club and begin integrating the many leg and upper body machines into your workout regime. It doesn't matter how much you weight now. It doesn't matter how much weight you need or want to lose.

It doesn't matter how many weight loss failures you've experienced in your lifetime. If you ease into a thigh reduction (weight loss) program, you can lose as much weight as you decide. Just get in there, head first, and give your best effort.

Weight loss is a decision you make. You make it everyday of your life whether you realize it or not. The great part is once you do realize that the way you look and feel is completely up to you, and not some outside source, then weight loss and thigh shaping becomes so much easier! Make a choice and begin today!

Will I be able to put heart, soul and body to losing weight/fats?

I should boast about it

2009-09-10T22:35:00.001+08:00

Today was the 2^nd time this week to the Science Centre. I was unable to experience the F1 simulator drive.. It's similar to the one at the arcade.. Only that your heart will start to pump real hard..

I managed to drive in not last position but 1^st position... I did better than the man before my students and I... Woohoo... I just knew I am a good driver. Hehe..

I do not have any holidays during Sept Holidays

2009-09-05T22:11:00.001+08:00

That is so sad a statement. Perhaps, I could have more. But a promise is a promise. I do not want to be a t'cher that breaks promises.

I have to be at somewhere every day, with the exception of Tuesday, it's a full day for me every day.

Hope I can still be rejuvenated for the last lap of the year.

I have been considering whether to skip a level and teach P3 instead of following up... Sometimes my dear little darlings do make me so angry, like not doing corrections, doing the wrong things at the wrong time. It makes me wonder why I should do so many things for them.

Teachers’ Day Dinner 2008

2009-08-31T23:20:00.001+08:00

I think I was pretty adventurous to dress up this way.

I will do better this year.

I think there’s something wrong with Blogger

2009-08-31T23:17:00.001+08:00

I can't seem to access the normal kind of web layout when I want to blog.

The html is all warped up.

Hmm... I want to blog about so many things.

First, I had a dream last night or 2 nights ago that I won something during the Teacher's Day Celebration.

There's this voting or polling exercise for pupils to choose a teacher that best matches the title:

For example: Miss Gorgeous, Most Creative Teacher, Most Sporting Teacher and so on..

So, since I knew I was going to win something, I decided to pick a dress to wear. At first, I wanted to wear a rather casual dress.... Then, I think I'd better not as the P will be there. So I picked this brown MNG dress.

Ho ho ho... I won the Most Friendly Teacher Award. And it's a tie between me and April dear..
Our pioneer P1 classes are in Pri 6.. Maybe that's why we won?!

My darlings were so happy that I won. 2 of them smsed me to congratulate me.

Mr Irfan won 2 awards, Mr Charming and Most Creative Teacher... Haha... He is the big winner. It's not easy to win anything as there are nearly 100 teachers in the school...

Okay, I'm the most friendly teacher... Does that mean I'm not fierce... Boo....I must be more stern.. But that's me.. I can't stay angry for long with my darlings.. If they show me their superb cute faces, my heart will melt and I will not scold them..

I feel so loved... One of my darlings hand-baked 2 muffins for me. When she passed it to me, it's was steaming hot from the oven... I am so so touched...

Happiness

2009-08-22T12:46:00.003+08:00

Happiness is being able to spend time doing the things you like and helping others in need.

I like the feeling of having high tea in a high place.
I went to Equinox after Thursday's duty. Imagine having hugh tea at the 70th floor. The last time I did that was at Baiyoke Sky Hotel in BKK..

Although the selection of high tea seemed to be little at first sight, when I get down to try every item, it's simply impossible. I like the oyster vegetables, the fab creamy pasta, the sorbets.. The only thing I do not like are the cold drink selections. I think they are made from cordial, not the fresh juices.

I like shopping.. I like to go shopping with girls or even alone.
Yesterday, Rachel and I helped 2 Jap girls who lost their way. We were standing in front of these 2 gals. They were looking anxiously at their map in Japanese a few times.... It was a map of Singapore in Japanese.. That's how we concluded that they were lost...

They wanted to go back to their hotel in Orchard. Instead, they missed their stop and were on a one-way journey to Jurong Extension. The most dramatic thing was they had to take their flight back to Japan that night. thank goodness their flight is at 11 p.m. and they only need to take the tour bus from their hotel to the airport at 8 p.m. I do hope they will reach their hotel in time. Rachel and I told the 2 girls to alight with me and board the buses that will head towards town. I waited for the bus with them and told the bus driver to alert the 2 girls when they reach Thai Embassy. This is the first time I helped lost tourists... Feeling proud of myself =)

It's a pity I can't speak Japanese well. Thank goodness, one of the girls know a little English. Otherwise we won't be able to help them at all..

Oh no.... Don't comb your hair too often

2009-08-12T09:17:00.001+08:00

Don't brush with baldness: put down that comb

JERUSALEM (AFP) - - Put that comb back in your handbag -- a study by an Israeli dermatologist has found that too much combing of the coiffure leads to hair loss, the daily Haaretz reported on Monday.

During a test 14 women recorded their daily hair loss and combing habits, with those combing more losing more hair, the research found.

"The women who combed twice a day lost three times more hair than those who combed once a day," the head of the study, Alexander Kirdman of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, was quoted as saying.

"I was surprised by the results, as in medical circles the comb is believed to improve blood circulation and reduce hair loss," added Kirdman, whose study was recently published in the Journal of Dermatological Treatment.

Perseid meteor showers heading your way

2009-08-12T09:13:00.001+08:00

Yahoo NewsPARIS (AFP) - - The night sky will sparkle with "falling stars" on Tuesday and Wednesday as Earth passes through a trail of dusty debris from the Swift-Tuttle Comet, say scientists.

The light show, called the Perseid meteor shower, kicks off each year in late-July and increases in intensity, peaking a couple of weeks later.

On a clear night in a dark sky "you should see dozens of meteors per hour," notes Bill Cooke of NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office.

East Asia is best placed to see the shower at its most intense moment, which is predicted for 1800 GMT on August 12, according to the US publication Sky and Telescope (skyandtelescope.com).

The meteors are also active for many days before and after this date, though the light reflected by a waning quarter moon may obstruct the view somewhat.

The Perseids occur when Earth runs into a trail of dust and pebbles deposited by the comet Swift-Tuttle in its 130-year orbit around the Sun.

This debris strikes the upper atmosphere at around 60 kilometers (37 miles) per second, a speed that causes it to burn up into a white-hot streaks. Bigger chunks can be seen as fireballs.

Meteor showers vary from year to year, depending on the amount of debris.

In the early 1990s, there were several spectacular Perseid shows, with bursts of several hundred meteors per hour.

Meteors are named after the constellation from which they seem to appear -- in this case, Perseus, a northern constellation lying east of Cassiopeia and north of Taurus.

I wonder whether we can catch a glimpse of it in Singapore. Peel your eyes open for this spectacle.

Are Glenn Ong and Jean Danker together?

2009-08-10T23:00:00.001+08:00

I just saw Glenn Ong hold Jean Danker's hand walk past the famous newspaper stand opposite Crystal Jade at Holland Village at 8.10+ p.m. today

I have a new hairstyle

2009-08-10T00:51:00.002+08:00

and i felt like a new person. Maybe the new hair on my head is working its ~~voodoo~~ magic... Anyway, I have hair that reaches to my waist..

I doubt I can every grow my natural hair to that length. The longest hair length that I have grown is till half of my back...

Hmm....it's worth spending that money. after all, I have ah hem finally become a graduate. After all those years of slogging..

On the other hand, a surprise meant for my BF turned into a nasty surprise for him. I thought he would welcome my new mane. Tsk tsk, he kept saying it came from a dead person.. Touch wood... anyway, I'm so loving it...

Rendevous in Orchard

2009-08-09T22:40:00.000+08:00

Now that BF is back from outstation. I can finally see him every day. I've been missing him badly.. Anyway, though he made me angry when he just came back from outstation, nonetheless, I still love him and miss every single moment he's not with me. It's terrible not to see him, hear his voice every day.

Anyway, I was superb elated when he suggested a date downtown. It's been a while since we went out as a pair and not in a group. He suggested taking a look at the newly-open ION.. Cool... Next time, I shall open a shop and call it ANION.. Hahaaa...

Anyway, I was superb hungry when we headed Orchard. I did not have my lunch so we went straight to MOS Burger to have a quick lunch at 5 p.m. Next we proceeded to purchase our movie tickets from Lido. I always get confused about Lido belonging to another. I always thought Lido is a one entity by itself and it doesn't belong to any company like Shaws Bros, Golden Village or Cathay...

Anyway, I was delighted that it belonged to Shaws Bros.. Cos I have a pair of complimentary tickets from my dear Huat's mummy... I have finally redeemed it... One less item from my wallet.

We redeemed it for a pair of tix to G.I. Joe.. It's a fabulous movie, very exciting and it's best to watch it in a big cinema cos ofthe sound effects and best still in Lido as it's digital and the graphics are very clear. This movie can be compared to Die Hard 4.0 and Transformers.. It's that exciting... Girls shouldn't dismiss it as another guys' movie... I used to think it that way but G.I Joe is not just for guys and for girls who like to kick ass.

After the movie, we walked over to Tangs. I thought it was open till 10. To my dismay, it's open till 8.30 p.m. on Sundays. Yah, Tangs is a family-oriented business. Of course, it does not open till late. So we headed to our next destination, ION. The place looks like a giant space shuttle ready to receive orders from outer space intelligent beings. just like the temple of Maya..

Anyway, it's all part of my imaginative thinking. Btw, do you know of the 7-eleven at the Orchard MRT that sells drinks at an extortbitant price. A normal 500ml drink sells at $2.50... Its way too expensive... To think it usually costs at least $1.70 or lesser in heartland 7-eleven..

Back to ION, we did not explore the entire ION. In fact, I think we walked less than 10% of it and got bored. After all, all shopping centres are very much alike. It needs more than just the duplex LV shop to attract customers.. Let's wait for all the shops be opened and then make a decision again.

Remember my fickleness about my mane

2009-08-02T23:33:00.002+08:00

Guess now that I can't be fickle and cut my hair short at whim.
I just ah hem lengthened my hair by drinking this magic potion.
My barely-shoulder length hair is now able to touch my waist...

Or maybe the distance between my neck and my waist is shorter, that's why my hair can touch my waist

Or maybe I just did a back-bend and my hair touched my waist

I'm not telling you...

Random pics at BKK

2009-08-01T13:13:00.002+08:00

On our way to the tallest hotel in Thailand

I always say that a city's development is determined by the amount of exposed wires in the streets.. Why can't they go underground?

Sometimes, it's overly taxed and I worry that there might be a blackout due to power failure.

My big burly BF lugging our empty suitcase.

All the better to bring loads of shopping goodies...

Yes, we 've finally made it after 1 hour of bus ride.

Our tour agency ferried us here in those mini air-con bus.

Thank goodness for the almost there air conditioning otherwise we can't endure the summer heat.

Here we come. Shopping (Window) We didn't shop here. Would love to shop in LV or Gucci becasue of the VAT..But Bf doesn't allow.

Anyway, we went to those shops like Lacoste. It's way cheaper in SG due to the huge discounts we can have on our credit cards.

After window-shopping at the high-end shopping malls, we went MBK shopping centre.. It's my first time there. The first time I went MBK area was 2 years ago. I didn't get to go to MBK Shopping Centre. Anyway, it's not a huge loss at Platinum Fashion and Wholesale mall beats them down... Nothing beats shopping at Platinum Fashion and Wholesale Mall. You get to say the infamous line, Wholesale price...

But I kinda like the techie section. They sell a lot of amazing stuff like the hello kitty phones which go for S$130... So cheap.. How I wish I got one then. Checking the online prices, it costs S$180...

I heart Hello Kitty.

I think like what caiying said, I am going through a regression, note regression, not recession. I bought a barbie doll pencil case and a camera pouch (authentic) . Oops.. They are so lovely.. Many of my darlings have barbie doll pencil cases and it just caught on me.

All of them are hello kitty. And they come in hello kitty carry cases...

Surprise Surprise, My friend's sis saw her idol, Elvin Ng and took a pic with him.

Isn't he cute?

(Not as cute as my BF of cos)

Our breakfast buffet

The view is spectacular. Imaging having breakfast at the 78th floor...

There's even chefs preparing scrambled eggs, sunny side up eggs .. Yum yum.. I ate eggs every day..

There's Japanese breakfast, Western Breakfast

The Jap version of soft-boiled eggs. I tried. I prefer eating the eggs when they are warm not cold.

This' the 2nd day . We had a city tour and a boat ride to the temple.

Look at those cat tail fish.. We fed them with the 20 BHT bread.. When these fish saw the boat coming, they came swimming to us. The tour guide told us it's good luck to spot a white cat tail fish..

I saw one white cat tail fish.. Yeah.

The majestic temple

I'm Godzilla and I'm going to eat all of you up. Oops

They have road side sprinklers to water the trees and grasses..

Look at the traffic jam on a Saturday morning. After crossing this overhead bridge, we'd be on our way to Platinum.. Wheet Wheet...

To be contd....

No blue Mondays, Tuesdays are the real blues

2009-07-13T23:13:00.002+08:00

I hate Tuesdays. It's my super long day from 9.30 a.m. - 11 a.m. , thereafter 12.30 p.m. - 4.30 p.m. then 1 h break before 5.30 - 6 p.m.

Though I have worst days before like 7 a.m. - 1 p.m. with no break... But it's tiring now.. Perhaps age is catching up with me.. I am speaking like a 60 yr old.. How I wish I can retire... less worries and just do ad hoc teaching...

Why am I daydreaming at this hour?

BKK and Me

2009-07-05T21:46:00.002+08:00

I have an urge to blog about my buys at Thailand. Then again, I need to concentrate on my assignments which I can't find by sitting in front of the TV the whole day.

Because of my trip to BKK, I was on Leave of Absence for 7 days of which I was not allowed to go out in public..

I think It was worth it.. I had not had the chance to really go overseas... Malaysia is not counted. So far, I had taken 3 plane rides and all the destinations are Bangkok.. It's really a nice place except for this girl in a shop I met at MBK.. She stared at me just because I was looking through the clothes.. Other than that, all the people are very polite.

I think my tour guide, Joy looks a lot like one of my friend, Sherline.. Even my BF says so.. Joy is a hardworking lady. Even though she is pregnant, I think about 6-7 months, she is still working and walking around...

It was early in the morning. I woke up at 5 a.m. to get ready to go to the airport. The flight is 6.40 a.m. in the morning. Anthony's dad is sending us the airport. At the airport, we didn't have time for any breakfast. We all wore our masks at the airport... At first, I wanted to buy the heavy-duty N85 masks at Guardian, retailing at $59. But Anthony'sis, Daphne had prepared enough masks for all of us.

It was a quick 2 hours ride to BKK. It used to take 4 hours to reach there, 11 years ago...Once we reached the airport, we walked around, hoping to find our tour guide. We walked from Gate 1 to Gate 6, to and fro.. A hotel guide told us to go to Gate 6. After walking there, we were duped, There was no one there. So we refered to the print-out. It says to go to Gate 3. Our tour guide was there. She saw us walk there... But none of us saw her... Nevertheless, we were still quite happy to see her.. It was a long ride to the hotel. We were caught in the infamous jams of Bangkok. We stayed at the tallest hotel in BKK, Baiyoke Sky Hotel. It's an amazing height of 83 storeys..

We collected our room keys, freshen ourselves up and got prepared to hit the shops.. We wanted to take the hotel bus to the shopping centres. But it was quite full and it's not moving.. So, we took this pink taxi who charged us 20BHT for the ride to Siam City.. He did not go by the rate. He charged us this low price because he wanted to bring us to Siam Centre, which is a jewellery shop. The retail assistants were bent on wanting us to spend $$. From gold jewelery to silver jewelry. From silver jewelry to those 100BHT souvenirs, they still want us to spend. Finally, I realised why the taxi driver charged us 20 BHT. He stands to gain if we spend.

When we reboarded the taxi again, the taxi driver wanted to drive us to another place so that he can collect taxi vouchers. But we signaled to him that we were hungry and that we wanted to find a place to eat.

Finally we reached our destination and went to the foodcourt at Siam Mall (or whatever) I can't recall.. The food are priced from 50 BHT to 100 BHT. A can of coke costs 20 BHT... I bought Tom Yum Seafood noodles at 75BHT.. Eating at this foodcourt requires you to use a shopping cash card. I didn't and had to quickly get one.. This shopping cash card is different from that of Kopitiam Card. You can't keep this card and according to BF, it expires that day but no worries, you get to claim whatever unused value you have in the card. But it's a bit of a hassle as you need to purchase the card everytime you buy food.

Anyway, we walked around the various shopping centres.. those housing the high-priced labels like LV, Gucci, Burberry, Loewe and so on.. Then we moved on to the mid-priced labels like Lacoste.. I think we are better off shopping in SG as it's cheaper in SG, considering the amount of discounts we receive with our credit cards..

So sensing that we are relatively quite bored, BF decided to go to MBK Centre. It was my first time there.

To be contd

Woohoo.. A very interesting course worth taking

2009-07-04T10:28:00.000+08:00

Taken from here..

Overview

Enabling Environmental Management and Practices

The Graduate Diploma and Master of Environmental Science Programme aims to produce graduates who will become effective career advocates of green energy and environmental sustainability. The programme is founded on an interdisciplinary framework that encourages exploration of the social, aesthetic, ethical, scientific, and technical aspects of environmental science, as well as the use of management systems and policies for regulation and control. Students undertake an Asian field trip in ‘Service Learning’ as part of the requirement for their Master’s project.

Objective

As part of its corporate social responsibility and with the future of the ecosystem in mind, SIM University (UniSIM) has embarked on an environmental initiative by gathering a group of professionals from academia and industry to put together the Environmental Science Programme (ESCI). The aim is to impart knowledge, skills and experience in various aspects of environmental science and practice so that there is a qualified understanding of the environment. The Master programme endeavours to produce graduates who can be more effective advocates for the use of green energy. It gives an interdisciplinary framework that encourages exploration of the social, aesthetic, ethical, scientific, and technical aspects of environmental science.

Differentiating Features

Focus on understanding environmental issues qualitatively and the use of management systems and policies to regulate and control them

Teaching pedagogy builds on the development of techniques and management systems for assessment and frameworks for sustainability

Project will lead to the formulation and implementation of a balanced environmental management system for a real environmental issue

Related Career Titles
Architect
Agricultural Scientist
Agricultural Technician
Air Pollution Analyst
Air/Water Quality Mgr
Biochemist
Biologist
Biomedical Engineer
Biotechnologist
Chemical Technician
Chemist
City Planner
Civil Engineer
Conservation Agent
Conservation Analyst
Conservationist
Consumer Safety Inspector
Earth Scientist
Ecologist
Engineering Technician
Environmental Analyst
Environmental Consultant
Environmental Educator
Environmental Engineer
Environmental Engineering
Environmental Health Spec.
Environmental Lawyer
Environmental Lobbyist
Environmental Nurse
Environmental Physician
Environmental Planner
Environmental Scientist
Forest Ranger
Forester
Fund Raiser
EPA Inspector
EPA Statistician
Fisheries Conservationist
Geographer
Geologist
Geophysicist
Hazardous Waste Mgr
Hydrologist
Industrial Hygienist
Journalist, Author
Management Consultant
Meteorologist
Microbiologist
Natural Resource Spec.
Ocean Technician
Oceanographer
Occupational Safety Spec.
Outdoor Trip Leader
Park Ranger
Pharmacy Technician
Photographer
Project Manager
Public Health Veterinarian
Range Manager
Resource Economist
Seismologist
Soil Conservation Tech.
Teacher
Urban And Regional Planner
Water/Wastewater Plant Operator
Wildlife Manager
Zoologist

I'm just wondering how by enroling in this course can I work in the jobs highlighted red. I have always been passionate about environmental issues.. Perhaps after watching Captain Planet and all those cartoons when I was younger had their effect on me...

This programme is definitely more interesting than Mathematics.. If I can further my studies, I will rather take this than any other course..

Michael Jackson, 1958-2009: The Talent and the Tragedy

2009-06-26T09:51:00.000+08:00

Click here.

The tragedy of Michael Jackson's death at age 50, reportedly from cardiac arrest, pales in comparison to the tragedy of his life. To understand all that Jackson had and lost requires wiping away three decades of plastic surgeries that deformed him, erratic behavior that made his name synonymous with the warping powers of fame, and a 2005 trial for sexually abusing a child that, even though he was spared of any finding of wrongdoing, made him a pariah to all but the most brainwashed of fans. (See pictures and listen to: "(Sort of) Celebrating Michael Jackson's 50th Birthday")

But if you can forgive or forget all that, underneath was one of the most talented entertainers of the 20th century. Quincy Jones who produced Jackson's quintessential solo albums was devastated by the news of his passing. "I've lost my little brother today," Jones said in a statement, "part of my soul has gone with him." Said Jones: "Divinity brought our souls together... and allowed us to do what we were able to throughout the 80's. To this day, the music we created together on Off The Wall, Thriller and Bad is played in every corner of the world and the reason for that is because he had it all...." (TIME reports: Mourning Michael on Twitter)

Jackson was born in 1958, the seventh of nine Jackson children, and before he reached age six he had joined his brothers in the Jackson Five. By the age of eight he had taken over lead singing duties with brother Jermaine, but there was no question who was the star of the group. Little Michael was the best dancer and singer of the bunch, but he also had the mysterious thing that record bosses and studio chiefs crave: star power. Michael appeared to be his best and most interesting self when everyone in the world was watching. (See the All-TIME 100 Albums.)

As Michael aged into adolescence the Jackson Five, renamed The Jacksons after their departure from Motown Records, inevitably lost some of its charm. A solo career followed, and after a steady stream of middling hits that attempted to milk the last bit of innocence from Jackson's voice, Jackson had the good fortune to hook up with Quincy Jones while filming The Wiz. The two shared a vision for what Jackson's career as an adult might be and on 1979's Off The Wall they executed it beyond even Jackson's dreams. With songwriting help from Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder, Off the Wall spun off four Top 10 hits and two number-ones - "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough" and "Rock with You." (Read TIME's 1984 cover story on Michael Jackson)

At 22, Jackson not only became one of the most admired pop musicians in the world, but one of the globe's most famous people. And his fame only increased with the 1981 release of Thriller, which was to become the best-selling album of all-time (until it was eclipsed in the late '90s by The Eagles Greatest Hits, 1971-1975.) Seven of the record's nine tracks made the Top 10, and the Quincy Jones-produced hooks remain awe-inspiring. In a cover story about Jackson and Thriller, TIME described him as "a one-man rescue team for the music business. A songwriter who sets the beat for a decade. A dancer with the fanciest feet on the street. A singer who cuts across all boundaries of taste and style and color too."

While Jackson had few ambitions at the time beyond global domination, it's worth noting that "The Girl is Mine" established interracial love as a pop music theme and "Beat It" (with Eddie Van Halen's guitar solo) bridged arena rock and soul four years before Run DMC met Aerosmith. On March 25, 1983, Jackson may have reached the very peak of his fame when he unveiled his signature dance move, the moonwalk, live on the "Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever" television special.

The years after Thriller, however, were marked by a slow descent into what was first dismissible as eccentricity. Jackson attended the Grammys on a triple date with Emmanuel Lewis and Madonna, purchased a chimpanzee named Bubbles and was diagnosed with vitiligo, a condition that he said was responsible for the steady lightening of his skin. But his songwriting genius remained undeniable. With Lionel Richie Jackson, he co-wrote "We Are the World," a 1985 charity single that raised an estimated $50 million for famine relief in Africa and ushered in the era of celebrity philanthropy.

After the release of 1987's Bad, a disappointing follow-up to Thriller, Jackson purchased the 2,800-acre Neverland Ranch in California, and his public weirdness became almost aggressive. In his biography, Moonwalk, Jackson wrote of childhood abuse at the hands of his father and multiple plastic surgeries, subjects he returned to in a 1993 interview with Oprah Winfrey that was one of the most watched non-sports programs in American history.

Shortly after, Jackson was accused of child sexual abuse in a suit brought by Evan Chandler on behalf of his then 13-year-old son Jordan. Chandler told a psychiatrist and police that he and Jackson had engaged in sexual acts that included oral sex; the boy gave a detailed description of Jackson's genitals. The case was settled out of court for a reported $22 million, but the strain led Jackson to begin taking painkillers. Eventually he became addicted.

To counteract the stigma that came with the allegations of pedophilia, Jackson married Lisa Marie Presley in a relationship Elvis' only daughter later dismissed as a sham. Two years later they divorced.

Given the tumult in his personal life, it's no surprise that the 1990s were a barren period for Jackson creatively. In 2001 he managed to pull himself together enough to release Invincible and stage two concerts celebrating his 30th anniversary as a performer at New York's Madison Square Garden. The shows, held a few days before Sept. 11, were a capsule of all Jackson had become. There were bizarre cameos from friends Marlon Brando, Liza Minnelli and Eliabeth Taylor. Macaulay Culkin sat next to Jackson in a royal box. But several hours after the proceedings began, when Jackson finally took the stage, all the years of Wacko Jacko melted away. Then in his early 40s, he could still dance and sing better than almost anyone in the world, and he still had star power. The Jackson on display in those concerts was one the world admired and the one that will be missed.

Here's the newbuzz

2009-06-26T09:41:00.002+08:00

Michael Jackson dies in LA hospital

By LYNN ELBER, Associated Press Writer Lynn Elber, Associated Press Writer – 4 mins ago
LOS ANGELES – Michael Jackson's brother says it's believed that the pop star died of cardiac arrest.

Jermaine Jackson cautioned at a hospital press conference Thursday that the cause of his death would not be known until an autopsy was performed.

He said Michael Jackson's personal doctor and paramedics tried to resuscitate him at his rented home in Holmby Hills. A team of doctors at UCLA Medical Center also tried for more than an hour.

Los Angeles police Lt. Gregg Strenk said at a separate news conference that police robbery-homicide detectives have been ordered to investigate, which is common in a high-profile case. Strenk says the coroner's office, which will handle inquiries into the type of death, is taking possession of the body.

OMG King of Pop, Michael Jackson has passed away

2009-06-26T09:39:00.002+08:00

Early in the morning, after being ~~rudely~~ pleasantly awoken by my BF, when I logged into facebook, all I saw was people posting that Michael Jackson has passed away in their shoutboxes..

I'm terribly sorry to hear that... He's only 50 and he has left this world..
May him rest in peace.

Face addict

2009-06-23T22:32:00.007+08:00

Ok, it's the June Holidays.. I was supposed to blog more often than normal.. Sighs.. I was too engrossed in facebooking, mantaining my pretty Farmtown. It took me a while to get to level 29.. Don't play play... I am very proud to be level 29 'cos no one among my friends is able to beat my record...

I also single-handedly mantain my BF's farmtown. Now he's level 25. Not an easy feat to harvest, plow and plant both towns at the same time.

I'm also playing Restaurant City..

This is how my Restaurant looks like as of now.

My workers happen to be extremely tired.. 30+ %

I can't wait to be level 20? 30? so that I can hire more staff and have a bigger restaurant space. Right now, I can't decide whether I want to operate a burger joint or a high-end restaurant. Anyway, I only receive $2 per dish collected. Sighs... Will this amount increase? $2 is not enough for me to buy all the nifty chic things in the shop...

Why did I start on RC?

After hearing how addicted Michelle and the castle of Keith, I was curious to see how did the castle of Keith's restaurant look like.

His restaurant is so big, I can't wait to expand my restaurant space..

This is how my BF's restaurant look like.

There's hardly any modifications. Sometimes "he" buys me stuff and I buy stuff for him.

June Hols and Me

2009-06-07T20:24:00.003+08:00

I think by my poor estimate, I may be going back to school everyday except for next Tuesday, all the Saturdays and Sundays.
Probably my break from school is not having to teach.

Perhaps, if I can finish the project by Thursday, I can get my Friday off for this week.

So far, I have spent the first 3 days of my hols at NTU doing a course on special needs, knowing and identifying kids with literacy difficulties.

The 4th day and 5th day are spent on collecting data.
Next week, I'm going back to pack the Maths room and do my project with my kids.
Hmm.. gotta source for pictures for the kids..

On a better note

2009-06-05T21:46:00.004+08:00

I realised one of my colleagues is quite fun to be with. This is the first time I spent so much time with her. We even wanted to do quite a stupid thing. Ha..

After meeting, we went for lunch and shopped for shoes together. I bought 3 pairs of shoes. Consider that retail therapy.. I love the shoes I bought. Quite classy and unique..

I'm just in love with buying shoes. Well, I have a new member card for buying shoes. One more card to add to my black wallet of discount cards, membership cards. Oh oh, I get 30% on my birthday month. Charles and Keith do not offer any discount for birthday months and sometimes, their shoes hurt when you first wear it. But the shoes I bought from Pablo do not hurt. In fact, I have bought in total, 6 pairs of shoes from them. I absolutely dig the retail assistants. They are very friendly. =) Plus point for customer service.

If you feel things are not fair,

2009-06-04T21:34:00.000+08:00

just tell yourself in life, things are never fair.

Sometimes I feel like leaving bcos of this, seek greener pastures instead of staying there and do so much things.

But sometimes I will feel bad cos I will let my P down. Considering the fact that she has never scolded me and has been very nice to me even though sometimes I did not do things well. Maybe I am shielded by my dear RO. But I do know certain things.

I am very confused. I have been telling myself to persevere to see my very first batch of P1 to receive their PSLE marks.. I am looking forward to that day. I don't know if I can persevere 2 years later, or 3 years later of 5 years later to see all of them graduate.

I don't follow up my students. I don't feel a sense of ownership. Even though I miss my kids very much, but they are now other people's darlings.. Not my own.. =(

Even if they do very well in PSLE, it's not my credit.
I merely did the very basic foundation.
Some people might say that if the foundation is not stable, the whole building will collapse.
But if you think it another way, a single story building is definitely stable than a skyscraper in times of a earthquake.

Anyway, this is another of my rambling posts.
But still, I still want to say, LIFE IS NOT FAIR.
I HATE TO DO SO MUCH WORK AND PEOPLE STILL SAY I DON'T DO MY WORK.
HMMMMPPPPPPPPPPPPPFFFFFFFFFFFFF

Btw, don't speculate. There are more than one unfair incident/event/whatever.

Wagkyu Beef

2009-05-31T21:54:00.004+08:00

I finally had my first bite of Wagkyu beef yesterday at Shabu Shabu. We ate it at the grill restaurant of Shabu shabu.

Nothing can every describe the sweet, tender succulent taste, texture of the beef. It's truly worth every penny.

We would not have eaten this if the queue at Marche at Vivo City was terribly long.. None of us were willing to wait any longer except for Shui Yuan who wants to eat the rosti.

The damage $50.20 each for 7 persons.

School holidays are here

2009-05-31T21:42:00.002+08:00

Yes, the long-awaited school holidays are here. Finally I can have a good rest... Something important is happening in July. Probably, everyone will feel more relaxed after that major event.

Meanwhile, I have no plan to go overseas. Maybe I will just pop by the Science Centre, see that Da Vinci exhibition.. Attend some courses at NTU... and apply for workshops at MadeWithLove once I have finalised my schedule for the month.

Yesterday was another major event... We had our I and E day.. We were busy and tired the whole day. Our Miniature Terrarium workshop was a sell-out and we ran out of materials after 2 hours.. Hopefully, the terrariums made will last. We should have seen this website first.

Keep our fingers crossed that everything will be fine

CIP

2009-05-18T08:21:00.003+08:00

Have you ever wondered what exactly is CIP @ the airport?
Does it mean airport staff doing CIP or people who are actively doing CIP (Community Involvement Project) having an exclusive lounge?

No, all my guesses are wrong

As seen from streetdirectory
It had to happen sooner or later. We already have VIPs, then VVIPs and now, get introduced to another social status that just seeks to make us go green with envy. Known as Commercially Important Person or CIP in short, this new title will be adorned by those who can cash their way through to the JetQuay lounge at Changi Airport . Totally exclusive, this standoff lounge will provide all the amenities equivalent of a spa retreat and a suite in a 5-star hotel, all rolled into one.

Taking a concept of exclusive lounges for heads of states and commercialising it, the rich and famous will be able to buy pass securities and long immigration queues for a fee. From the moment they arrive at the gate, they will be whisked away into the exclusive lounge by a chaperone and enjoy whatever their hearts please. Bags will be taken care of and security clearance will be settled within minutes. And while these CIPs wait for their flights, they can indulge the luxurious offerings available within the two-storied lounge. Comfort will be of top priority as well with their plush sofa chairs being placed here. Spa? Check. Gym? Check. A limousine to carry you off onto the tarmac where your plane is waiting for everyone else? Check! Naturally, there will also be a business centre for those important minutes that can amount to millions of dollars for those who are credible enough for this stature. This insanely rock-star lifestyle costs more than $ 10 million to realise for those in the joint-venture.

Fees will be predominantly membership-based. They are said to be cheaper than upgrading from an economy class to a business class seat, in the long run. While the business class enjoys the lounge provided by the airlines, those with a Jetquay membership get to enjoy this overtly opulent waiting area, also available in other states like Hong Kong and Shanghai . For those who value their privacy and their time, a CIP status will be the new tag you want to carry onboard. Only for the travelling elite, the social barriers have just been set up higher now. So, if you’re hoping to catch Elton John the next time he is in transit here, then be prepared to fork your cash out. Now all that’s missing is a group of scandal-crazed paparazzi to heighten you to that lifestyle of the rich and the famous. Don’t forget the air kisses!

Jet Quay Lounge
Tel: 6262 2220

So how any of us are CIPs?

Study: Obese young men have less hope of marriage

2009-05-10T14:04:00.002+08:00

AFP - Friday, May 8AMSTERDAM (AFP)
Men who were grossly overweight at the age of 18 had nearly 50 percent less chance of being married by their 30s and 40s, an international conference on obesity heard in Amsterdam on Thursday.

The findings, which held true regardless of the men's intellectual performance or socio-economic position, could suggest that women rank a man's appearance higher than other traits when choosing a partner.

"Yes, that may be one explanation," researcher Malin Kark of the Swedish Karolinska Institutet medical university, told AFP on the sidelines of the four-day gathering hosted by the European Association for the Study of Obesity.

Kark's study was conducted among more than 500,000 Swedish men born between 1951 and 1961.

It found that men who had been obese at 18 were 46 percent less likely to be married in 1991, when they were aged between 30 and 40, than men with no weight problem, and 45 percent less likely by 2004.

For men who were overweight but not obese at 18, the chances of marriage were somewhat higher -- 10 percent lower than for men of normal weight in their 30s and nine percent lower in their forties.

"We think this shows that there is stigmatisation of obese young men that continues into adulthood -- in their working life and also in inter-personal relationships," said Kark.

While no information was available on the men's adult weight, other studies have found that obese adolescents were likely to become obese adults, she added.

Obesity for the purposes of the study was qualified as a person with a body mass index (the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the height in meters) of more than 30.

The World Health Organisation estimates that in 2005 about 1.6 billion adults were overweight, of which at least 400 million were obese.

How about for ladies who have the same problem as the guys? I think they are afraid of publishing the study results for fear of social unrest..
Therefore parents should not give in to their children's whim and whine and feed them on fast food or outside food. I have seen parents eating out with their children every day. It's simply not healthy.

Happier

2009-05-08T08:03:00.005+08:00

I felt happier today even though I came to school later as usual because I overslept... Maybe the lack of sleep made me moody..

When I saw the newspapers today, it was a full-page coverage on the $1 Million Fugitive Mas Selamat. He had been captured in East Java, Johore Bahru...

A question dawned upon me, how come he didn't try to escape further north or further south?
Maybe it's easier to escape in those trucks or walk or swim across the causeway than take a boat to Batam or even to swim to Batam... Anyway, the newspapers didn't report how he escaped. All that I know was, he was captured on 1st April 2009... April's Fool Day... OMGoodness, I think most people who heard the news would think it's a April's Fool Joke...

And about that $1 Million, I don't think anyone can lay claim to it..

I was upset

2009-05-07T07:58:00.002+08:00

I was upset till I saw my class.

I felt left out till I saw my class.

My class is the only reason why I come to school happily.

Wednesday, I really dragged yself to school. There was no floating lessons in the morning. It's not the Contact Time.. I don't know why I dreaded coming to school. Not even seeing my cute lovables like ReTe could make me happy.

When I came to school, as usual, I saw the class registers. I took all that's left and distributed. Others had come but mine is still there.

After distributing, I realised my workdesk is under siege by the black worker female ants. It mus be the sticky residue of the Vitagen bottles that were left on my table. I failed to remove the big patch of sticky residue properly. As I marked my books, I had one free hand to crush the ants...... Don't you think it's pretty creepy crawly for things to climb all over your table and books...

Okay, base statement: I was unhappy yesterday. Period

Photoshop Video - harsh reality

2009-05-03T23:15:00.003+08:00

Before you watch the video, the photograph used belongs to this girl.

Taken from comments:

The girl in this picture is a 12 yr old child who was abducted and raped in 2003. (Shevaun Pennington - Google it). She didn't choose to have her pic on the news, in the papers or on the net in the same way she didn't choose to be abducted & raped. Imagine how she would feel if she saw this vid and read comments from people on how ugly she is. Don't you think she's suffered enough? The guy who made this vid should have used a pic of himself.

Read on (I googled for the girl's name. Kids out there should be careful of who you meet in online chat rooms. She met the fiend in Neopets. 'Xue-te' And I thought Neopets is a pretty safe place. Prevention is better than cure. Don't meet anyone you know online.)

Bits and pieces

SHE was just an innocent child of 12 when she was whisked abroad and sexually violated by evil US Marine Toby Studabaker-sparking an international manhunt.

And only now, five years later, does pretty Shevaun Pennington, feel strong enough to talk of her terrifying ordeal for the first time.

In an exclusive interview with the News of the World she told how vile paedophile Studabaker, now 36:
GROOMED her for a year by internet chat room
DRAGGED her from one sordid hotel room to the next
PLIED her with vodka and
CAJOLED her into sex.

Bravely waiving her right to anonymity, Shevaun, 17, said: "It began as an adventure and for a long time I felt I was to blame. Now I realise what an evil pervert he truly is.

"If I ever saw him again I'd shake his hand and thank him for making me the strong resilient person I am today.

"Then I'd turn around and knee him where it truly hurts-so he'd feel what it's like to trust someone and then have it all ripped apart and abused."

Widower Studabaker, who was with US forces in Afghanistan, is now serving 11 years in America for abduction, child sex and possessing kiddy porn, after completing a 4-year sentence in Britain.

Rihanna Umbrella in Hokkien

2009-05-02T21:19:00.000+08:00

Getting more worrried as I see more of such news.

2009-04-30T09:10:00.001+08:00

WHO raises flu alert to five as pandemic 'imminent'
AFP - Thursday, April 30GENEVA (AFP) - - The World Health Organisation on Wednesday raised its flu alert to phase five out of six, WHO chief Margaret Chan said, signalling that a pandemic was "imminent" following the swine flu outbreak.

"I have decided to raise the influenza pandemic alert from phase four to phase five," the WHO director general announced after an emergency meeting of the UN health agency's pandemic experts.

"This is a signal to governments, ministries of health... to the pharmaceutical industry, that certain actions now should be undertaken with increased urgency," she told journalists.

"All countries should immediately now activate their pandemic preparedness plans," she added.

She underlined that the threat following the swine flu outbreak focused on Mexico and the United States "must be taken seriously."

Phase five, one step short of a full pandemic or phase six, is characterised as a "strong signal that a pandemic is imminent and that the time to finalise... the planned mitigation measures is short," according to the WHO's global emergency planning.

Chan explained that experts had decided to raise the alert as not only were there "sustained" human to human transmission cases in Mexico, but also in the United States.

"When we see two countries in one WHO region providing evidence to that effect, we are moving into phase five," she said.

A Mexican toddler became the first person to die in the United States of swine flu on Wednesday, as US health officials said the number of infections recorded reached at least 91 in 10 states.

Mexico meanwhile on the same day nearly doubled its number of confirmed swine flu cases to 49, including seven deaths from the virus.

Chan said that while it is understandable that people are "anxious," the issue needed to be managed in a calm manner.

"It's important that we do not overkill. We need to maintain a level of calmness so that we will continue to manage this in a rational manner," she said.

She stressed for instance that the WHO does not recommend the closure of borders or restricting the movement of people or goods.

"Pork can be eaten safely if cooked properly. There's no reason why people who love to eat pork should stop eating now," she said emphatically.

Thanks to preparations made following the avian flu outbreak, countries were also better placed than before to deal with a pandemic.

"Preparedness measures undertaken because of the H5N1 influenza was an investment and we are now benefitting from this investment," she said.

Chan said that while the spread was established, "the biggest question right now was how severe the pandemic might be."

Indeed, the WHO fell short of ordering production of a pandemic vaccine, a move which has been described as a significant decision as it would mean disrupting the production of seasonal flu vaccines.

"We don't have enough evidence to push the pandemic vaccine button," she said.

Meanwhile, she urged help for developing countries, warning that they faced a potentially greater threat from a flu pandemic than wealthy nations with developed health systems and funding for drugs.

"We know that influenza may cause mild disease in affluent countries, but more diseases with higher mortality in developing countries," she said.

"The international community should treat this as an opportunity to ramp up the response. After all, it is really all of humanity that is under threat during a pandemic," she added.

The first three WHO pandemic alert phases are triggered by the emergence of a new flu virus that jumps from animals into humans.

But the subsequent levels are largely dictated by the geographical spread of the new virus, rather than the strength of its symptoms or mortality rates.

Under the rulebook, phase six, a pandemic, would be reached if or when the swine flu virus was found to be passing in a sustained manner among humans in towns or the wider community in at least another continent to the Americas.

Swine flu and its implications

2009-04-29T22:40:00.004+08:00

With the coming of Swine Influenza, Singapore has raised the alert to yellow alert. At first, I thought the problem was just in Mexico and other countries out of reach of Singapore. As I watched the news yester-night, I realised that the problem is reaching SEA soon and that we should be careful not to catch it.

I must remind my kids to wash their hands thoroughly. Tomorrow is temperature-checking. I have already told them to bring the thermometer a day earlier to check. But there were still some children who did not bring. 2 of them told me I did not issue the ODT to them. How could that be when I issued the whole class the thermometers and the sticker with their names to be pasted onto the thermometer?

One of them told me the thermometer is spoilt, the button came off. Well, replace it with another thermometer. I have already told them to take good care of their ODT. If it gets damaged, they have to buy a new ODT.

All these are excuses. ~~I hope that the~~ The whole class better bring the thermometers tomorrow. I want 100% thermometers to be in. If they could do it in the previous ODT check, I don't see why they can't do it. Anyway, they are supposed to bring their ODT to school every day.

I think my June trip is going to be cancelled. I don't think I can go to BKK or HK for shopping.
I'd better stick to online shopping. It's the safest way.

I just saw the night news. The masks and anti-bacterial handwash are selling like hot cakes in Taiwan. What used to sell for NT8 for a mask is now selling at NT13 for a mask and people are still buying. I think those pharmacy businesses always profit from such crisies.

Swin Influenza

2009-04-26T22:21:00.000+08:00

What is Swine Influenza?

Swine influenza (or Swine flu) is a group of influenza viruses that regularly causes influenza in pigs. Usually infections in humans are uncommon. The current swine flu which is infecting people is a new strain of influenza A/H1N1. It is not certain how it developed. It's genetic makeup shows parts of human flu, avian (bird) flu and swine flu.

What are the symptoms of Swine Flu?

The symptoms are expected to be similar to that of regular human seasonal influenza. These symptoms include fever, lethargy, loss of appetite and coughing. Some reports indicate individuals also present with runny nose, sore throat, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.

Is there only one type of Swine Flu virus?

No, like all human influenza viruses, swine influenza viruses also undergo constant change. There are four main influenza type A virus subtypes which have been isolated in pigs: H1N1, H1N2, H3N2, and H3N1. The most common strain found in pigs is the H1N1 virus. However, sometimes pigs can be infected with more than one virus type at a time. This allows the
possibility for the genes from these viruses to mix and "reassort" to form a new virus.

Is Swine Flu transmissible to humans?

Yes, usually infections in humans are uncommon but infections have occurred in the past. Human infections with Swine flu is more common in individuals who have direct exposure (close contact) with pigs.

Can Swine Flu be spread from human-to-human?

There is historical evidence to prove human-to-human transmission of swine flu has existed. In 1988, in Wisconsin USA, multiple human infections were reported after an apparent outbreak of swine flu in pigs. However, no community outbreak was ever officially announced, there was serological evidence to show that the patient (who had direct contact with infected pigs) transmitted the virus to the treating health care workers.

How does Swine Flu spread?

It can be spread from pigs to humans, and from humans to pigs. Typically swine flu is more likely to occur when people have close contact (or are in close proximity) with infected pigs. If a swine flu virus mutates to a form that is transmissible between humans, the mode of transmission is likely to be the same as any other type of influenza virus which infects humans.

Human-to-human transmission of flu viruses can occur by “droplet” spread - when an infectious individual coughs, sneezes, talks. These infectious droplets can be depositied in the mouth, nose eyes of a non-infectious individual. It may also be possible that influenza spreads via “aerosol”
transmission, where the where the virus floats in the air and infects people (particularly in crowded places). Individuals can also become infected by touching surfaces that have the flu virus on it and then touching their nose or mouth. Humans can transmit influenza to pigs.

The H3N2 virus was initially introduced into the pig population by humans. There is a close genetic relationship between the Human H3N2 virus and the Swine H3N2 virus.

Can I catch swine flu from eating pork or pork products?

No. Swine flu viruses cannot be transmitted by food. It is safe to eat pork and pork products that has been properly handled and/or sufficiently cooked. Cooking pork to an internal temperature of 160°F (or 72°C) kills the swine flu virus as well as other viruses and bacteria.

Are swine H1N1 viruses the same has the human H1N1 viruses?

No, the swine H1N1 viruses are not the same as the human H1N1 viruses. Swine flu is genetically different from the human H1N1 strain. It is unlikely the human seasonal vaccine will provide protection against swine flu H1N1.

Sent by Hong Wei

Simply fantastic

2009-04-11T00:00:00.000+08:00

I like the ones on 'All Men Are Created Equal, One Step Below Women' and PMS (Punish Men Severely)

Actually I like a few more, In fact, I like all of them hence I copied the images..

There's another classic. God created men first. You need a rough draft to create a masterpiece.

Oh no, I do sound like a feminist or a sexist. Oh whatever, I Bitch, Therefore I am.

Anyway, aren't these car bumper stickers cute? Got them from prankplace.com

You know you are getting old when

2009-04-10T23:55:00.002+08:00

Your friends tell you that you are no longer 21.
Your shortsightedness is improving and congratulations, you are on your way to farsightedness. Too bad, it's not equal to foresight.
Lines of wisdom are appearing on your face.
Your legs get tired after walking a few steps.
You do not have a problem with painful problems due to wisdom teeth. Your problem now is how to retain your teeth in your mouth.
Your problem is not about pimples (youthful beans) on your face but about age spots (old people zebra)
You get tired easily.
You sleep at 10 a.m. instead of 1 a.m.

Guess what, I am having Pt 1, 2, 7 and 8

I can't imagine myself sleeping at 9,30 or 10.30 a.m. during school days. The only reason why I am still awake is, I woke up at 11 a.m. tonight. Gone are the days when you go clubbing till the wee hours and yet still able to climb out of bed at 8 a.m. to go for your 8.30 lectures/tutorials.

At first I thought my eyesight is improving and my myopia degree for both eye is reduced by 0.25 in my left eye and 1.25 in my right eye till my BF says that I am on my way to getting long-sightedness. Dratz. and now he says he allows me to go for lasik when just a year ago, he told me that lasik is bad for my eyes and I will go blind faster if I undergo the operation. He's forever changing his mind.

Mane problems Part 2

2009-04-08T23:06:00.000+08:00

Everything is alright. It makes me think it through that I am not going to settle down so quickly. From the look of things now, he's controlling me too much. What will happen after marriage? He can't say that everything he does for me is because he loves me.

I am not a bird in a cage.

Mane problems in my life

2009-04-05T22:07:00.002+08:00

I must admit I was in a superb lousy mood over the weekend.
So much so, I was depressed about my hair and my relationship with my BF.

I just merely wanted to get a haircut which I have not been getting any for 4 months, My hair looks like a flop of limp dry grass or rather hay...

So you can say I was in my PMS mood. I was angry with my BF for not allowing me to get a haircut. He says my hair cannot be touchedlet alone cut/shampooed by guys.. So last Friday, I really wanted to trim my hair.. but my hair stylist (female) was not there... So I did not have a haircut there and then. So I went to buy things from Watsons as he asked me to get his hairspray.. I also got a few other items and I spent 80 odd bucks at Watsons.. And a good 120 bucks at BodyShop and 23 bucks at Giodarno.. When I told him how much I spent, he got angry again. I just don't understand. I was getting my daily necessities like facial foam, makeup remover, eyeliner pencils.. why did he get so upset? The stuff I bought from Giodarno is for me to wear while teaching PE...

Anyway, that's that on Friday.
On Saturday, he woke me up early at 8.30 a.m. saying we need to accompany his mum for breakfast .. I thought I could get some sleep after the breakfast, but no, I have to accompany him to get some of his stuff from his office. He said he would bring me to Tampiness Giant to get mu cupboard, which I refused. In the end, we went to a plaza after the office and on our way home from the plaza, he brought up the issue of my hair being blow-dried by guys last Dec. He told me not to bring up old topics again but he did. He also drove dangerously, scaring me..I was already not in the best of moods.. I was on the verge of a breakdown. Why did he do it to me then? Why must he drive me crazy?

On the drive home, I thought about a lot of things.. I decided that I will cut my hair myself when I got home. He doesn't allow me to go for a haircut on Monday when the hairstylist(female) will be there. He has to go for consultation lessons at night and yet he doesn't allow me to do my own things? I am really fed-up.

When I got home, I took all the hair-cutting scissors and chopped off my hair. I started cutting the hair on my left side of my head. At that time, It looked like the haircut of the zai nu show.. I even used a pair of layering scissors to make it look better.. I washed away all the stray hair and went up to show him. I told him I was crying as I cut my hair. He always wanted me to keep my hair long.. But no, why should I do whatever he say? I was upset about the haircut.. I got home again.. lay on the bed and tried to sleep all the bad emtions away... But I couldn't.. Unwilling to show my students my haircut on Monday, I decided to go for a professional haircut.. I made an appointment. The hairstylist did not express or say anything about my cut hair. Maybe she knew that I was in a bad mood... When she started talking about helping out as a parent volunteer in a school excursion, I thought about how well-behaved my kids are in comparision to the ones she took care of...

After the haircut and the icespa, I truly felt better..

Now, I ponder and wonder what would my kids think when they see me on Monday?

I have no answers for their questions.

Will you pay $239 for 8 tiger prawns?

2009-03-19T22:32:00.002+08:00

For me, I definitely won't. Even though I am a huge fan of seafood, paying $239 is simply extorbitant. Are the prawns gold-plated?

The stall hawker at Newton Circus apparently overcharged some tourists with a ridiculous price of $491 for 2 crabs, 8 tiger prawns, and some common zhi char food items..

The stall owner really ~~gives Singapore a bad name.~~smeared Singapore's reputation. I wouldn't patronise Newton Circus for my late-seafood cravings even if they are the only place to open 24 hours. To think I used to go there for supper after clubbing... Weren't I scared of being over-charged? Anyway, I dun think I was overcharged before.

Anyway, that stall hawker was slapped with a 3 month suspension of its license and that stall helper was also barred from working at the Newton Food Circus for a year.

Hopefully, this will deter other hawkers from over-charging/over-pricing their food.

Read below.

SINGAPORE: Stall No. 43 (Tanglin’s Best BBQ Seafood Stall) at Singapore’s Newton Hawker Centre has had its licence suspended for three months for overcharging.

The National Environment Agency (NEA) said it had investigated the incident of overcharging of American Michael Rigby who was billed a total of S$491, including S$239 for eight tiger prawns.

NEA said it suspended the licence because the stall has breached licensing conditions.

The stall assistant involved in the incident will also be debarred from working at the Newton Food Centre for a year.

Effects of Sleep on Weight Loss

2009-03-17T12:48:00.000+08:00

Hi folks! I'd like for you to meet leptin and ghrelin. No, those are not refugee orcs from "Lord of the Rings". Leptin and ghrelin are hormones, and research is indicating that, while they didn't have a role in the movie, they DO seem to have a role in weight gain and weight loss.

Two studies, one at the University of Chicago in Illinois and the other at Stanford University in California, indicated that sleep deprivation tended to alter the levels of these hormones in such a way that they did not efficiently fulfill their normal functions of controlling feelings of hunger and fullness. The short answer from these studies appears to be that being short on sleep, generally less than 8 hours a night, interferes with the work of these hormones, and that people getting less than 8 hours a night tended to be fatter than those who got the appropriate amount of sleep.

Here's a couple of important points:

1. Just getting more sleep is not the only answer to the weight loss problem. While getting more sleep can improve the body's ability to function in many ways, exercise and proper nutrition should still be components of any weight loss program. In fact, looking at it another way, some researchers have opined that getting a good night's sleep might help some people feel more energetic and this may cause them to become more active as well, thus aiding in weight loss and overall feelings of well-being. One researcher also pointed out that those short on sleep may resort to high calorie, empty carbohydrate snacks and meals to help them get through the day.

2. The number of hours of sleep may be important, but so is the quality of that sleep. For example, sleep apnea, a condition which tends to be more common in those who are overweight, can interfere with the quality of the person's sleep, so that even after what seems like 8 hours of sleep, they still are tired and worn out.

SLEEP, CORTISOL, AND WEIGHT LOSS

Cortisol is another hormone associated with appetite and weight loss and weight gain. Surely you have seen the ads in which it is referred to as "nasty". In actuality, it is nothing of the sort any more than blood is "nasty". It serves a purpose, in fact several purposes, but it is out of place in many of our modern situations, and the over production of cortisol can influence weight gain, and hamper attempts at weight loss.

The problem is that high levels of cortisol tend to help people pack on pounds. An elevation of cortisol commonly occurs when a person is physically or psychologically stressed. It is not enough that modern society produces a string of stressors which tend to kick the body into cortisol production mode. This is partly due to the body's inability to distinguish between a caveman being attacked by a bear, and a modern office worker being attacked by a "bear" of a boss! The roar of an attacking lion can produce an effect similar to the honking of angry drivers in road rage situation...particularly if you are the target.

Failure to get the proper amount, and quality, of sleep tends to increase the production of cortisol, contributing to the body's mistaken attempt to compensate for what it sees as an attack. Most real attacks would require vast expenditures of energy which would need to be replaced, so, cortisol signals the body to ingest large quantities of food to help replace the missing energy and perform repairs to the body. The problem is that if no energy has been expended, and you are merely suffering from lack of sleep, the body is going to get the same message as if you had escaped an attack, and the food taken in will just be stored as fat rather than being used to replace missing energy stores.

Lack of sleep also tends to produce its own state of agitation, which can induce the production of cortisol, and, to make things worse, worrying about your tiredness and inability to get a good night's sleep can initiate its own cycle of stress, thus...you guessed it, encouraging the body to produce more cortisol, which makes you want to eat more...

While this seems like a vicious cycle, and it is, it is not unbreakable. No one immediate action is likely to have you waking up tomorrow fit as a fiddle and twenty pounds lighter, but you can take steps to slow down the hamster wheel and eventually get off for good.

Plan to get more sleep. Plan to get more exercise. Plan to eat a healthier diet. Once you have planned, however, you must implement these steps. Do not expect to change everything all at once. Make a small change here, and, once that has taken hold, make a small change there. Trying to do everything all at once sets you up for failure and creates another stress in your life at the very time you are trying to reduce stress.

Go to bed a little earlier. Turn the TV off sooner. Learn a little bit about meditation. Take a walk. Lift that bag of sugar a couple of extra times (in each hand) before you put it in the cupboard. Park a few feet further away from your office or the grocery store than you did last time. You learned to walk one step at a time, and you fell down a lot, but you didn't let it bother you and you kept on until you finally achieved your goal and tottered a few feet on your own (and slept like...well...a baby). Don't let this get in your way either.

by: Donovan Baldwin

About The Author

Donovan Baldwin is a Dallas area writer. He is a graduate of the University of West Florida, a member of Mensa, and retired from the U. S. Army.

http://cinch-weightloss.web-home.ws/

Middle Name

2009-03-16T22:43:00.000+08:00

Do you have a middle name?
Do you find it rather disturbing or amused that 3 others had the name first and last name as you?

This is not a rare occurance as Singaporean Chinese have limited Chinese surnames and the English names they give themselves are rather limited.

For myself, I have come across so many people having my name in the internet.

Maybe when I am sick and tired of having another person with the same first and last name, I may go and add an English name in the middle. A name I used after a girl friend jokingly gave me so that we can go by different names in club.. i even had an emil address for that name..

For now, only a limited pool of people know this name and it shall remain like this for now...

Desperate Housewives Season 5

2009-03-15T23:03:00.002+08:00

I have finished watching the whole of Season 5. I wonder what would happen to Mike... Why are there only 10 episodes in each season? Why must they whet our appetite. I can't wait to know what would happen... Indeed I was very kinda happen when that old lady Mrs Hilderman put Gaby and Carlos in her will. I thought that they would get a chance to have their old lifestyle back then Gaby would not look so frumpy all the time... I prefer her when she is glamed-up fashionista...

About Bree, she does not look successful even though she appears to be.. and I feel sorry for her when her friends seemed to have drifted away from her due to her little success in publishing her cook book.. For Susan's case, she just needs to have confidence to give Love a second chance. The saying, once bitten, twice shy doesn't always work. There's a Chinese saying that the first time, you are distant, the second time, you are familar with each other...

That man, Dave Williams is really the hypocrite.. He is the no 1 hated person in the show.. He's very scheming and resorted to ways and means to make his brother's alleged killer trust in him and then he will make his move to kill his enemy. I shan't divulge who the killer is. You have got to watch the show yourself.

I can't wait to watch Season 6...

School's out

2009-03-14T11:57:00.002+08:00

But I'm still in.. I still have school activities that occupy me from Mon to Thur from 8.30 or 9 to 4.30 or 5 in the evening... Why am I not in the same session as those ECs.. I find it hard to find time to train them or hold meetings with them...

Let's just say I am generally more relaxed this year. My workload/responsibility has somehow somewhat been taken over by another person... Then again, I think I still do the same amt or lesser with reduced stress..

I just want to enjoy teaching, enjoy time with my kids... But sometime exams stress me out.. What would happen if they do not do well.. I have one kid who did way too poorly for English and Maths and the reason : the mum doesn't help out or coach the child for the first 2 months.. You can see in the spelling when a child who gets 9 out of 10 in the first spelling getting a 1 or 2 or 0 for the subsequent spelling till I write a note in the spelling book.. I may try to be scarcastic.. If your child can't attend remedial classes, then do something to help him/her. At first , after seeing the spelling mistakes, it's not even phonetically correct.. The beginning letter is wrong.. How could it be? I even thought the child has a serious case of learning disability.. her letters like to fly off the runway... I hate the way the letter 's' and 'g' is written.. I have to ask the child to do the corrections again and again..

After a while, after I wrote the note, the child scored 9 out of 10 for the spelling.. and for the exam spelling, where you need to learn 20 words, she scored 7 out of 10.. Pls I think hers is just a case of laziness.. The child needs to buck up and not go to toilet all the time...

No one can save you till you save yourself first..

I have continued to be an absolutely good gal by not logging into FB at work for the first term..

simply bliss

2009-03-13T23:34:00.000+08:00

I am happy for my lil Jenny..

She scored 78.5 for her Maths CA1 (PSLE) and it's a jump by 20 marks from her P5 SA2 marks..
I'm glad that her hard work paid off.. She says that she will tell me her English and Sci marks when she receives them.

It's good to know that the student whom you taught 5 years ago still remembers you.. Seriously, I think I'm staying on just to see their PSLE results.. Be there for them when they receive their PSLE results in November...

Last year, I felt goose bumps when I attended the PSLE results day. I think I will most likely 100% cry for my students if they do not do so well, laugh for my students if they do well... I wonder whether my students like Jia Le and Priscilla will continue to do well....

Don't give up and continue trying....

Neglection

2009-03-13T23:10:00.003+08:00

Sometimes I am just too lazy to blog. I wonder whether my defeating Diablo and Baal in the first level of Lord of Destruction be of any interest to my blog readers, i.e. if there is any.. For the longest time, approx since Oct last year, I have been contemplating whether to attack Diablo and advance to Act 5. Finally I did and that took place when my BF went to Thailand for a week... Maybe I was so depressed that my BF is not with me and I focused my attention on defeating the diablolic force.. So from a level 36, I am now at level 54.. Isn't that amazing how much time I actually spent to proceed on to the next level.

Or I am actually club-free for more than 1 and a half year which is actually very very long...

Or that I have not used my NIKE arm pouch since buying it cos BF doesn't want me to wake up early to run in the park ...

Or that I seriously thought that the Heavens is playing a trick on us when it started to have a heavy downpour for hours and our Sports Day is held in the school hall instead of the stadium.. There goes the money for the booking of stadium.. But hey, we managed to get the Milo truck down to our school red brick area and I was one of the first few to drink some cuppa of ice-cold refreshing life-saver Milo...

Or that I am still waiting for my by-now-should-have-arrived UniSIM examination/graduation transcript that will allow me to be emplaced onto the next scale...When is it going to come> It's 2 months late.... Argh...

An one hour interview on CNBC with Warren Buffet, the second

2009-03-12T12:39:00.000+08:00

There was an one hour interview on CNBC with Warren Buffet, the second richest man who has donated $31 billion to charity. Here are some very interesting aspects of his life:

1. He bought his first share at age 11 and he now regrets that he started too late!

2. He bought a small farm at age 14 with savings from delivering newspapers.

3. He still lives in the same small 3-bedroom house in mid-town Omaha that he bought after he got married 50 years ago. He says that he has everything he needs in that house. His house does not have a wall or a fence.

4. He drives his own car everywhere and does not have a driver or security people around him.

5. He never travels by private jet, although he owns the world's largest private jet company.

6. His company, Berkshire Hathaway, owns 63 companies. He writes only one letter each year to the CEOs of these companies, giving them goals for the year. He never holds meetings or calls them on a regular basis.

7. He has given his CEO's only two rules. Rule number 1: do not lose any of your share holder's money. Rule number 2: Do not forget rule number 1.

8. He does not socialize with the high society crowd. His pasttime after he gets home is to make himself some pop corn and watch Television.

9. Bill Gates, the world's richest man met him for the first time only 5 years ago. Bill Gates did not think he had anything in common with Warren Buffet. So he had scheduled his meeting only for half hour. But when Gates met him, the meeting lasted for ten hours and Bill Gates
became a devotee of Warren Buffet.

10. Warren Buffet does not carry a cell phone, nor has a computer on his desk.

His advice to young people:

"Stay away from credit cards and invest in yourself and Remember:

A. Money doesn't create man but it is the man who created money.

B. Live your life as simple as you are.

C. Don't do what others say, just listen them, but do what you feel good.

D. Don't go on brand name; just wear those things in which u feel comfortable.

E. Don't waste your money on unnecessary things; just spend on them who really in need rather.

F. After all it's your life then why give chance to others to rule our life."

Ah Beng - NEW STUFF jokes

2009-03-11T12:50:00.000+08:00

Ah Beng bought a new mobile.
He sent a message to everyone from his Phone Book & said, "My Mobile No. Has changed.
Earlier it was Nokia 3310. Now it is 6610"

====================================
Ah Beng : I am a Proud, coz my son is in Medical College.
Friend: Really, what is he studying.
Ah Beng: No, he is not studying, they are Studying him.

==========================================
Ah Beng : Doctor, in my dreams, I play football every night.
DR: Take this tablet, you will be ok.
Ah Beng : Can I take tomorrow, tonight is final game.

===========================================
Ah Beng : If I die, will u remarry?
Wife: No! I'll stay with my sister. But if I die will u remarry?
Ah Beng : No, I'll also stay with your sister.

=========================================
Ah Beng : People consider me as a "GOD"
Wife: How do you know??
Ah Beng : When I went to the Park today, everybody said,
Oh GOD! U have come again.

===========================================
Ah Beng complained to the police: "Sir, all items are missing, except the TV in my house."
Police: "How the thief did not take TV?"
Ah Beng : "I was watching TV news..."

=========================================
Ah Beng comes back 2 his car & find a note saying "Parking Fine"
He Writes a note and sticks it to a pole "Thanks for complement."

=============================================
How do you recognize Ah Beng in School?
He is the one who erases the notes from the book when the teacher erases the board.

===============================================
Once Ah Beng was walking he had a glove on one hand and not on other.
So the man asked him why he did so. He replied that the weather forecast announced that on one hand it would be cold and on the other hand it would be hot.

==================================================
Ah Beng in a bar and his cellular phone rings. He picks it up and
Says "Hello, how did you know I was here?"

================================================== =
Ah Beng : Why are all these people running?
Man - This is a race, the winner will get the cup
Ah Beng - If only the winner will get the cup, why others running?

================================================== =
Teacher: "I killed a person" convert this sentence into future tense
Ah Beng : The future tense is "u will go to jail"

================================================== ===
Ah Beng told his servant: "Go and water the plants!"
Servant: "It's already raining."
Ah Beng : "So what? Take an umbrella and go."

================================================== ===
A man asked Ah Beng why Ahmad Badawi goes walking in the Evening and not
in the morning.
Ah Beng replied Ahmad Badawi is PM not AM

HEALTH QUESTION & ANSWER SESSION

2009-03-10T12:43:00.000+08:00

Q: Is chocolate bad for me?

A: Are you crazy? HELLO . Cocoa beans! Another vegetable!!! It's the best feel-good food around!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Q: Is swimming good for your figure?

A: If swimming is good for your figure, explain whales to me.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Q: Is getting in-shape important for my lifestyle?

A: Hey! 'Round' is a shape!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Q: Should I reduce my alcohol intake?

A: No, not at all. Wine is made from fruit. Brandy is distilled wine, that means they take the water out of the fruity bit so you get even more of the goodness that way. Beer is also made out of grain. Bottoms up!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Q: How can I calculate my body/fat ratio?

A: Well, if you have a body and you have fat, your ratio is one to one.
If you have two bodies, your ratio is two to one, etc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Q: What are some of the advantages of participating in a regular exercise program?

A: Can't think of a single one, sorry. My philosophy is: No Pain...Good!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Q: Aren't fried foods bad for you?

A: YOU'RE NOT LISTENING!!! ... Foods are fried these days in vegetable oil. In fact, they're permeated in it. How could getting more vegetables be bad for you?

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Q: Will sit-ups help prevent me from getting a little soft around the
middle?

A: Definitely not! When you exercise a muscle, it gets bigger. You should
only be doing sit-ups if you want a bigger stomach.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Q: I've heard that cardiovascular exercise can prolong life; is this true?

A: Your heart is only good for so many beats, and that's it... don't waste them on exercise. Everything wears out eventually. Speeding up your heart will not make you live longer; that's like saying you can extend the life of your car by driving it faster. Want to live longer? Take a nap.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Q: Should I cut down on meat and eat more fruits and vegetables?

A: You must grasp logistical efficiencies. What does a cow eat? Hay and corn. And what are these? Vegetables. So a steak is nothing more than an efficient mechanism of delivering vegetables to your system. Need grain? Eat chicken. Beef is also a good source of field grass (green leafy vegetable). And a pork chop can give you 100% of your recommended daily
allowance of vegetable products.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Well, I hope this has cleared up any misconceptions you may have had about food and diets.
The above is completely fictious.

I didn't want to wake up early today but..

2009-02-21T17:45:00.003+08:00

Yes... on a Saturday especially when your batteries ran dry the day before.. All your energy is zapped up by the cute angels...

I still woke up. Though I could not make it for the morning exercise at 8 a.m., I manged to be just in time to register and go for my yoga class, line dancing, yoga class again and then cheering for the guys in the soccer penalty shoot-out.. We also checked in by taking photos as evidence that we were there.. Hehe..

It was fun sweating doing yoga and doing line-dancing..

Where ~~the hell~~ on earth I was?

I was @ SP for the Wild Wild West Sports Carnival where all the west cluster schools gathered to have friendly telematches or maybe not for the table soccer game.. Overheard> Pls play gently.. this is not wrestling..

Thank goodness, there was no stage cheerleading...

Oh..
W7 did not win.. It was W6 who was in the first position at 60 points. W7 was in the 2nd place at 56 points.. Dratz. The winning cluster schools walked home with a box of Wii game for their school and it included a Wii game as well...

Some random updates

2009-02-17T08:33:00.002+08:00

I looked through facebook and some one of my practicum students in JC now... I taught her when she was Pri 5.. So counting the ~~donkey~~ years, it's been 6 years. Maybe that didn't sound a lot.. My first batch of kids are prob ard her age. Taught them when they were in P2 eight years ago...

Anyway this student of mine is in the same JC as I was.. I wondered whether my own teachers are teaching her. Can't imagine grand-teacher teaching grand student.. Wahaha..

I went to JP with Rachel and April last Friday for some Kushin-bo lovin...Pre-Valentine Day...
Don Don Don was what Michelle told us. At first we didn't quite get it.. It's only when we heard the Kushin-Bo song that we realised what Michelle was talking abt.. This goes to show I have been cutting down on my Jap buffets...

On Valentine-Day itself, I went for the EEA Networking session at Nanyang Girls High with Michelle and Jeanette.. Fancy attending a course on Saturday and it falls on VDay.. Nevermind as the food served is always fabulous.. I think it's my 3rd or 4th time eating...
After workshop, the three of us cabbed down to Noble House or is it Nobel House for some educational purchases to decorate our classroom or for teaching... I spent only $33 while Jeanette spent $80 more than me... the purchases are going to come in today , delivered to my school..

If I spent that much, my BF would probably nag at me...
I must try to cut down on spending.. Anyway, I've saving my bonus since last Dec... Can't help as I have been financing my part time studies myself and that's where my bonuses go to, leaving me no money to splurge... So far, even since I bought that LV Bag in 2007 and the 2 bags from Thailand.. I've not bought a single bag.. So I tell my friends around me to get a LV Bag.. In that way, you wouldn't even think about buying bags made of synthetic leather.. I bought some bags made of synthetic leather, even brands like Sembonia.. But it just wears off... So now, if I want to buy, it'd be LV and when? Hmm.. when I struck lottery and btw, I don't buy those lottery, 4D and toto.. So maybe the chances of me winning cash in a lucky draw will make my dream of owning a second LV bag come true..

The above paragraph does not suffice for you to label me as materialistic.
A material girl would probably ask guys to pay for her.
I don't and I support girls who buy luxury stuff with money earned via clean means.

Happy Valentine's Day

2009-02-14T16:37:00.002+08:00

Happy Valentine's Day to all.

I'm spending my Valentine with my baby precious.

Wishing all the couples and my friends Happy Friendship Day!

I feel sad

2009-02-12T23:37:00.001+08:00

I thought there's America's Next Top Model Season 11 tonight. Turns out that it's an American show alright.. America Idol Season 8..

Bleahs.

Zimbabwe unveils 100 trillion dollar note

2009-02-11T09:54:00.000+08:00

HARARE (AFP) – Zimbabwe will introduce a 100 trillion dollar note, in its latest attempt to keep pace with hyperinflation that has left its once-vibrant economy in tatters, state media said Friday.

The new 100,000,000,000,000 Zim-dollar bill would have been worth about 300 US dollars (225 euros) at Thursday's exchange rate on the informal market, where most currency trading now takes place, but the value of the local currency erodes dramatically every day.

The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe is introducing three other notes in trillion-dollar denominations of 10, 20 and 50, the government mouthpiece Herald newspaper said.

"In a move meant to ensure that the public has access to their money from banks, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe has introduced a new family of banknotes which will gradually come into circulation, starting with the 10 trillion Zimbabwe-dollar," the bank said in a statement quoted by the Herald.

Just last week, the bank had introduced billion-dollar bills in denominations of 10, 20 and 50 with the same goal, but those notes are no longer large enough to keep up with hyperinflation.

The last official estimate put inflation at 231 million percent in July, but outside experts now believe it is many times higher.

When Zimbabwe's leader Robert Mugabe first took power in 1980, following independence from Britain, the local unit was worth about the same as the British pound.

With the local currency in freefall, everyone from streetside vegetable vendors to mobile phone service providers are pegging their prices in foreign currency to hedge against losses.

Zimbabwe's central bank has licensed at least 1,000 shops to sell goods in foreign currency in a move aimed at helping businesses suffering from a chronic shortage of foreign currency to import spare parts and foreign goods.

Other shops and service providers have followed suit although they have not been authorised by the government and have done so despite warnings that those arrested for flouting foreign exchange regulations would be prosecuted.

Even basic commodities are scarce in Zimbabwe, driving up their prices in US dollar terms and making life here more expensive than in neighbouring countries, while an estimated 80 percent of the population has been driven into poverty.

The crisis has left Zimbabwe's health services in tatters, with government doctors and nurses on an indefinite strike to demand higher wages after hyperinflation turned their salaries into pittances.

Even if the doctors were on the job, public hospitals and clinics have no money to buy medicine or equipment, no clean water, and often scant supplies of electricity.

Most teachers have left the classroom to eek out a living elsewhere, and end-of-year examinations taken in November have yet to be graded after the markers demanded their wages in foreign currency, the Herald said Friday.

Schools were supposed to re-open this week for the new academic year, but government has already pushed back the start of classes by two weeks since students don't yet know if they passed.

The breakdown in the national infrastructure has allowed a cholera epidemic to spread across Zimbabwe, claiming more than 2,100 lives, according to UN estimates.

Meanwhile chronic shortages of food are starting to bite again this year, as rural households' supplies from last year's harvest are running out months before the new crops will be ready.

The World Food Programme says five million people -- nearly half the population -- are dependent on food aid.

The crisis shows little sign of abating with government deadlocked after disputed elections last year. Mugabe and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai signed a power-sharing deal four months, which has yet to be implemented.

I must remember it's not just a trillion note but 100 trillion note..
A topic I touched on when teaching economic defence

I feel accomplished

2009-02-10T23:31:00.000+08:00

I finally took my first run in 2 years.
Yes, I'm an unhealthy girl who is teaching P.E.

I realised that stamina can be lost if you do not run regularly..
To think I can run 2.4km under 14 minutes..
Now...

I just slow jogged 3 rounds around my neighbourhood park, 1 round brisk walking and 1 round fast run before I headed home to bathe to get ready for school.

I want to keep up the exercise regime.

On Wed, I arranged a badminton session in the morning . We played in the hall..
I am still not good at badminton. The 45-min game left us perspiring. Siti says that her arm ached after the game.. I think my legs' muscle ached from the 3km run/walk on sat and the almost 3km exercise walk/jog/run..

Hope to lose inches around the thighs/butt area..

Nine-year old whiz-kid writes iPhone application

2009-02-05T21:30:00.002+08:00

Reuters - Thursday, February 5
SINGAPORE, Feb 5 - While most children his age sketch on paper with crayons, nine-year old Lim Ding Wen from Singapore, has a very different canvas -- his iPhone.

Lim, who is in fourth grade, writes applications for Apple's popular iPhone. His latest, a painting program called Doodle Kids, has been downloaded over 4,000 times from Apple's iTunes store in two weeks, the New Paper reported on Thursday.

The program lets iPhone users draw with their fingers by touching the iPhone's touchscreen and then clear the screen by shaking the phone.

"I wrote the program for my younger sisters, who like to draw," Lim said. His sisters are aged 3 and 5.

Lim, who is fluent in six programming languages, started using the computer at the age of 2. He has since completed about 20 programming projects. His father, Lim Thye Chean, a chief technology officer at a local technology firm, also writes iPhone applications.

"Every evening we check the statistics emailed to us (by iTunes) to see who has more downloads," the older Lim said.

The boy, who enjoys reading books on programming, is in the process of writing another iPhone application -- a science fiction game called "Invader Wars".

SImply adorable

2009-02-04T22:32:00.009+08:00

These are the some of the kids that I miss... Despite spending only a year with them, I have seen some of them grow more mature and responsible...

Aren't my kids cute? After going to see them during their recess, I always have a happy mood...

Or when passing by their classroom, I will also see if they are behaving well... whether they are paying attention... Oops... sorry to the other teachers...

I always wonder why I am not allowed to move up with my class. It has happened 3 times already.. It's sad when you devote so much love and time to your kids and you can't continue teaching them and seeing them grow...

Maybe the saying, there's no never-ending banquet.. All good things will come to an end... Be happy that it happened before.

Of bliss and joy

2009-02-04T22:27:00.003+08:00

Yees..... I have finally received my first dress bought online...
It's arrived in good condition ... And I bought it at a steal price of $10, and that's inclusive of the $1.50 postage.. I took a few pics, still in my camera...

Hmm.. It looks too grand to be worn to school.. I shall wear it to my Unisim friend's wedding... So far, I am notified of 3 weddings to attend... 1 in March, 1 in Oct and 1 in Nov/Dec... I am so excited about the Oct wedding cos my friend's getting married... Hehe.e.... I am sohappy for her... I want to be her jie-mei but it's a school day and I need to float at an unearthly 8.30 a.m. Hiakz, I hope I can reach the wedding dinner on time...

I'm so happy...

2009-01-31T11:23:00.002+08:00

I thought my dear pupil Huat would forget me cos he always call me his teacher's name when he sees me.. And a record of 7 times in a period of 30 minutes... Then again, I recieved a sms from his grandmother that Huat has something for me. It turns out that he had a mini pomelo, 2 oranges and some of the delicious pineapple tarts made by his mum... The pineapple tarts are so-so nice... I feel so loved.... My dear Huiyu also gave a CNY card...

Yesterday, I went to recess to find them again and brought along my seaweed snack Tae Kae Noi... My dear Yuan Zheng can't resist it and took a few pieces.. HaHa... so cute.. I asked him about his behaviour.. He told me he's trying to be more well-behaved... But there are times that he failed.....

Other children were more modest and took 1 -2 pieces... Some didn't like the snack and did not take any... I thought the seaweed original flavour is more suitable for young children cos it's not spicy... anyway, I miss-miss my children..

Don't blame me for my lack of posts.

2009-01-28T21:12:00.002+08:00

I'm just scared that BF will be angry.

Anyway, I just bought a dress for $10 online.. Now waiting for it to come. It's $10 inclusive of postage...

Can't wait for it to come and I'd be wearing to school on my no-PE days. Come to think of it, I have to think of cheers for the House Practice. I'm pretty out of ideas till I googled 'Cheer routines' and I found some clips on cheerleading and some on ntu hall cheerleading.... I miss the days when I was being thrown cos I weighed ard 42 or 44 kg at that time. Now, I'm 2 heavier. Dun think anyone can throw me...

Enough of the spastic. I'm going to teach them some basic dance moves, incorporate new steps and ta-dah... For the cheers, hmmm......I think I'd get SL to find suitable ones... Oh ya, enough of those thunderation... After cheering that since my JC years, I think it needs a revamp.....

Happy Chinese New Year to all

2009-01-25T16:20:00.005+08:00

Happy Chinese New Year!

Do you feel the festive spirit?
I don't.

Is it me only or what?
Somehow the mood of Chinese New Year has not infected me... Some of my kids do not know what Chinese New Year is and what we were going to celebrate last Friday.

Things that reflect the lack of CNY spirit

I did not spring-clean my room. Did that during dec holidays
I did not buy any new shoes or new clothes for the festive holidays. Did aimless shopping in Dec too.
I did not get any new bag since my LV buy in 2007. Cos all bags that are made of synthetic leather does not last long and besides, I have 3 big boxes of bags...
Did not cut my hair cos BF says I am balding.... Is he kidding me? I have decided not to use the special shampoo for permed hair.. Used a normal shampoo to thoroughly remove the remains of the hair products on my hair. Time to let my hair breathe.

Maybe I will feel some tinge of festive spirit if my BF allow me to buy some stuff like that L V that I always hint... He would always say loukee vuitton... He sure knows how to dampen one's feelings.

My darlings of 2009

2009-01-21T08:06:00.003+08:00

And I'm refering to my class for this year.

I'm blessed to have superb handsome and cute children in my class every year.
As usual, I have many international pupils in my class. I must get a chance to ask them to teach me their home language. Too bad, I don't have any Thai or Jap kids in my class.

No matter how cute this year's darlings are, it...it.............

It won't be sufficient to make up for the loss of my kids last year.. I miss them so-so-so much... After collecting the developed photos, I nearly cried, seeing the class photos we had taken.. I was glad to be able to spend quality time with them going to the zoo, sci centre, snow city and escape theme park. I couldn't bring the whole lot as it's not an official sch excursion... Plus, I will get kinda sick if I go to science centre more than 10 times. I have gone to sci centre for 7 times in December and I can basically rattle off the things you'd be able to see.

One of my kids from last year has given me a CNY card.. So sweet.... Her class is in my classroom in the morning .. So sometimes, when I put things up, I will always see her. When I walk from the staffroom to my classroom, I will sometime 'peek' into my classroom to see my last year darlings to see if they are behaving themselves in class...

How to stop missing my yester-year adorables?

I'm always very confused

2009-01-17T08:01:00.000+08:00

When I see girls with short hair, I kinda admire them for being able to cut their hair short. It's much cooler and fuss-free to mantain short hair. Especially, I see my colleague with shirt hair, I'm so tempted to get short hair.

Look, these hair-stles are so nice-nice.....

But at the same time, I also want to have long hair... When will my barely-shoulder length hair grow long if I am so fickle-minded?

Tsk Tsk, to think I just permed my hair last month. It's barely 2 months and my hands are itching for another hairstyle change.

Must keep myself away from those hair salons. I'd never know when I'd take the plunge to do something to my hair.

Work

2009-01-10T21:10:00.003+08:00

I have been a good girl at work.
I only access my emails in school.

Other than that, I just print and make things for class.

FB is losing its lure over me.

Sick 2009

2009-01-10T21:07:00.002+08:00

I am now having sore throat, fever and runny nose... It is a horrid feeling to fall sick..
I wonder when I will get well.....

I hate ebi tempura. I think that is the reason for my sore throat which led to my throat infection, the fever and runny nose.

Remind me not to eat that again.

New level, new responsibility

2009-01-07T08:16:00.003+08:00

Even though I felt sad at not being able to follow up my class, I was glad that I was able to teach some of my previous previous batch of students social studies. I promise to make social studies lessons interesting for them.

Somehow or rather, when I see these P4 kids, I see them as my P2 kids.. Afterall, I was their 'mummy' in P1 and P2. To me, they are always my little darlings..

This year, I am teaching a brand new batch of kids. I have 1 child crying on the first day and second day. After that, it was all fine.. I'm now trying to teach them how to line up for dismissal.. Hopefully, they remember what I taught them yesterday. I think they need lots of practise. plus I'm gonna to give them another number for dismissal. Hopefully, they can remember the 2 numbers...

Some of my kids are superb cute.. I managed to take some shots of them during recess with their buddy. In this way, they can get to remember their buddy. I just need to upload photos to computer, edit and then put it up in class.

There are so many things to do and I have very few periods with my class. I do not get to teach them Music and social studies.. Hopefuly, I can finish the orientation week with them this week...

Welcome to school.

Backdated post about the Dentist's Chair

2008-12-28T08:09:00.000+08:00

I came back safe and sound.
Even though there was blood bled, I was spared the agony of being wisdom-toothless...

It turned out that my wisdom teeth located at the bottom jaw are not to be blamed for my tooth pain.

I had sensitive teeth / gum, plus my gums are not healthy.

I had teeth polishing and filling in the decayed parts of the 2 wisdom teeth.. My wisdom teeth are actually decaying becuse I did not manage to brush all the way in...

Any better suggestion?

Everytime I tried to brush my wisdom teeth, it triggers my vommiting action..

*MissyOng, My Life, My Way*