The Buangkok Bridge - a good shortcut to Tampines Road from Buangkok

This is a shortcut from Buangkok to Tampines Road. Get on to Buangkok Bridge and Buangkok Flyover and you will hit Tampines Road at the other end. You can even get onto KPE.

Heard of Concrete Jungles?

The two pictures provide a clear contrast between a green jungle and a "concrete" jungle. In Singapore, due to land scarcity, many greens have to give way to high-rise buildings and structures which from afar, look like concrete jungles. They might not look natural, but they certainly look civil and structural.

A huge Recycled Bag...

What a huge recycled bag used in the park to collect dried leaves, instead of the normal black plastic garbage bag! It is certainly a positive step towards environmental protection.

What a price to pay for a liability in the name of convenience!

Is a car an asset or liability? Many might think it is an asset, but it is actually a liability. An asset would grow in value. But, at the end of 10 years, the car is to be scrapped with zero value. In Singapore, maintaining a car costs about SGD$1,000 per month. Some say it costs as much as maintaining a wife! Isn't it true? Even then, why are many people still owning and driving a car? Besides the reason of prestige, convenience is what almost all motorists would cite as a reason for driving. It is incredible that people are willing to pay so much for convenience.

Generally, a car in Singapore costs at least three times that in the USA. Moreover, in Singapore, before buying a car, one has to first bid for a Certificate of Entitlement which could cost more than S$30,000 at times, excluding the price of the car.

I have many friends who wanted to give up driving, but so far, none has succeeded, even though the public transport in Singapore has been improving towards its goal of world-class standard. It is hard for those who have been driving for decades to stop driving unless they are being circumstancially compelled to do so! But, in all fairness, in my own experience, the public transport has improved tremendously over the years and it has become very convenient now.

Laptop Overheating...What to do?

Getting hot and even overheating is a common problem in most laptops. While there are many ways of cooling them down, such as raising the laptop above the surface with some raisers, using a cooling pad with built-in fans etc. you may like to try a USB fan like the one in the picture if the heat is not too intense. It costs just S$8.50.

If you do encounter overheating in your laptop, just type "Laptop overheating" and do a Google search, you can find many sites that offer different suggestions and solutions.

An IRONIC Leadership!

It is interesting to observe how some bosses or leaders manage their employees or subordinates. Some bosses would say, “ Be creative in your work, come up with new ideas”, but when the employees or subordinates make mistakes while experimenting with new ideas, they would get reprimanded or hammered right on. Isn't it ironic?

There are also bosses who would say, “If you have any problem or feedback, please come to me”, but when the employees come to them with problems or feedback, all these problems and feedback will one day be used against them in a very personal way.

Scenarios similar to those mentioned above are ironically common at workplaces. With such treatment from the bosses or leaders, do you think the employees or subordinates would be creative and willing to give feedback again in future?

Therefore, it is imperative that a leader be consistent and not ironic. He or she must always remember to synchronise his or her words with actions. This is fundamental to effective leadership.

A typical motorised TRICYCLE in the Philippines...

Most motorcycles in the Philippines are being used as a mode of public transport and the one in the picture is a tricycle, but a motorised one. The motorcycle is installed with a passenger-cabin on the side and a third wheel. It can be seen almost everywhere, especially on smaller roads for short distances into the villages, often on roads where jeepneys or buses do not operate. The engine capacity of the tricycle ranges from 50cc up to about 125cc.

How fair are the prices at the FairPrice Supermarket?

How fair are the prices at the FairPrice Supermarket?

Just take the Scott's Emulsion Cod Liver Oil as an example. FairPrice Supermarkets are selling it at S$7.50. The same item is available in some Chinese medical shops at S$6.50 and I have found one shop in my neighbourhood where the same product is sold at just S$6.10. It is S$1.40 or 20% cheaper! The interesting thing is, the shop owner is keenly aware that FairPrice Supermarkets are selling the product at S$7.50, and yet he is still happily selling it at just S$6.10. Is he making a loss? Obviously not. So, if he could make money at this price, imagine how much more the FairPrice Supermarkets are making!

So, if you want to get the best value for your money for the regular shopping items, do some homework and you might be surprised to get a price that is better than fair!

Wanton Noodles in dark sauce at just S$2.50

A simple meal of Wanton Noodles for just S$2.50 (USD$1.70). It tastes good in dark sauce. You can try out this stall in the Kopitiam just opposite the Punggol Park.

Learn to live with imperfection!

A family friend gave us these two used appliances about two years ago, with some minor defects, but till now, they are still in proper working conditions. So, it is a matter of learning to live with imperfection in life.

Why strive so hard for perfection in a world that is inherently imperfect? My personal experience suggests that a perfectionist is a perfectly-stressed and usually relationship-strained person. Is it worth your life and energy?

Could it be a BLESSING in disguise?

Sleeping at the void deck of an HDB (Public Housing) flat when a gang fight broke out and having tatoos on both his hands got him four years behind bars and six strokes of the cane. This young man claimed that he was sabotaged and implicated. But, I am not sure why he still pleaded guilty.

Incidentally, he told me that when serving his jail sentence, there was a period of time when he was feeling very down and depressed and a prison officer passed him a copy of my motivational book to read. I am encouraged to hear that. By the way, he has recently been released.

He has turned over a new leaf. In fact, he even asked me where to have his tatoos removed. Out of teenaged ignorance, self-pleasure and peer pressure, he did the tatoos, but now he knows that the tatoos are not serving him any good at all. He has also come to a self-realisation that he has often been perceived negatively and disadvantaged in many ways because of the tatoos. Knowing such negative consequences, he is now telling his friends not to repeat his mistake. He will soon be enlisted into the two-year National Service.

I encouraged him to put the past behind him and move on in life, set new directions, work hard and live a decent life. He nodded in humble agreement. The eagerness to move on was so sincere that I could see it in his eyes. I gave him a good handshake. He was greatly appreciative. I am glad he is changed.

Whether justice was done in his case or not, it is a thing of the past now. There is no point brooding over it. Leave the baggage behind, get up, move on and soar to greater height. Whatever had happened happened with a purpose, the price has been paid, it could even be a blessing in disguise!

Are we too busy or too lazy to be GRACIOUS?

What does such a big poster displayed at the bus-stand tell of Singaporeans? Do we need to be told to be gracious? Are you too busy, or are we too lazy to be gracious? Are we so caught up in our work and study that we have no time to be gracious? Does being gracious take time? Does it take time to offer a seat, or to let someone else alight first? It appears to be just an attitude of indifference or "Bo Chup" in Hokkien dialect.

A decent home-cooked meal for S$2 per person

The picture above shows a simple home-cooked dinner comprising three dishes, i.e. Fried Red Snapper, Pumpkin with Prawns and Steamed Minced Meat with Eggs, to be served with rice.

The basic ingredients cost SGD$8.26, and taking into consideration other items such as soy sauce, pepper, garlic, cooking oil, water, gas etc. the costs might just add up to S$9. Assuming the rice costs S$1, the total cost for this meal is S$10. It is a three-dish dinner good for five persons.

Ma-cho Temple in San Fernando, La Union, Philippines

I was tour-guided to a Buddhist Temple named Ma-cho Temple located at the City of San Fernando in La Union in the Philippines, and was told this temple and its surroundings were once captured and used as parts of a movie there and it gave the impression that the shots were taken in China.

Buddhism in the Philippines is largely confined to the Filipino Chinese, Chinese, Japanese, Indian, Korean, and Vietnamese communities. There are temples in Manila, Davao, Cebu and other places. It is understood that less than 0.1% of the total population is Buddhist; 80% of Filipinos are Roman Catholics.

Click on the image for an enlarged view.

A REFLECTION from Mimosa Pudica or "Touch-Me-Not"

During my childhood days, we used to see Mimosa Pudica growing wild on road side and barren land in the countryside. In fact, the above picture was taken along the sidewalk of the Buangkok Flyover in Singapore. In the picture, you might notice that some leaves have already folded. Those days, we liked to tickle the leaves and watch the very quick folding movement and they would magically reopen shortly after.

Mimosa Pudica is a very unique plant that would feel "shy" and its leaves have the folding capability when touched or exposed to heat or being shaken! That is why it is also called "Touch-Me-Not", "Shy Plant" or "Sensitive Plant". In Malaysia, it is called "Semalu". Don't try to pull them with your bare hands, it pricks because it has thorny stems. Mimosa Pudica is well known for its rapid movement. In the evening, the entire leaf will fold together and droop downward. At sunrise, it will reopen.

"Touch-Me-Not" seems to be the way many of us live and behave in a fast-paced and advanced society. When we come home from work, we just shut the door and lock ourselves within the four concrete walls, in fact, many don't even open their windows! Wait a minute! I am not talking about Microsoft Windows which I know most of us do. Do you know that through such a behaviour, we might be telling our neighbours, "Touch me not! Leave me alone, don't come and bother me, I am too stressed by my work, my bills are piling up, my children's education fees are not paid yet, I am facing some health challenges" and a host of other problems.

I think it will be good if we could learn to open up our hearts and even our home, be more neighbourly and more cheerful. At least, "Touch-Me-Not" opens up its leaves shortly after they close. Even though they close in the evening, they would open again at the next sunrise. Perhaps, Mimosa Pudica could give us some insight into how we can live and behave better!

The BENEFITS of having PROBLEMS...

This blog is intended for Christians and those who are open-minded to Christianity.

Yesterday, we were privileged to hear the personal testimony of Rev Michael Ross Watson at Living Sanctuary Brethren Church. If you would like to know more about Rev Michael Ross Watson and his ministry, just do a Google search with his name.

Among other things, he shared the FIVE reasons why God allows us to go through problems in our lives, citing his personal experience and spiritual walk, from the perspective of a Christian. He said God uses problems to:

1. Direct us,
2. Inspect us,
3. Correct us,
4. Protect us, and
5. Perfect us.

This understanding would help us face problems with great confidence, positive mindset and enduring faith. All of us face problems everyday, and the problems could be quite similar in nature, but the outcome of the problem might be very different depending on the attitude we have towards the problems.

Why is Sulphur powder being sprinkled along the fence?

Yellow-coloured Sulphur powder is seen sprinkled on the ground along the perimeter of the fence of a school in Serangoon area. Do you know why? That is to prevent snakes from coming into the school compound. For those who don't believe, ask your parents or grandparents! I don't think it is being taught in the school Chemistry class. By the way, when sulphur is burnt, it produces Sulphur Dioxide which has a bleaching or whitening effect.

A breakaway from stereotyping...

Notice how the word "Serangoon" is being unconventionally written! It is a simple breakaway from the stereotyped writing. A good attempt!

Business Thoughts - "Li Yong" or "Hup Chok"?

One day, I was introduced to a businessman who is interested in anything and everything that could help him make money. He was enterprising, creative and business-minded. He might not be highly educated but he is obviously street-wise and street-smart.

We spoke about many things and throughout the conversation, he would intermittently utter some phrases in Hokkien dialect. There was a phrase that impressed me a lot especially when he talked about negotiations for business partnership.

He said that if it is a Win-Lose partnership, it is called "Li Yong" in Hokkien, which literally means one party exploiting, making use or taking advantage of the other party. On the other hand, if it is a Win-Win partnership, it is called "Hup Chok" which can be literally translated as working together, collaboration or cooperation.

I am OK, you are NOT OK!

We tend to be more lenient and kind to ourselves than to others when it comes to words. We would usually use words that are more positive and gentle to describe ourselves or our actions, but use words that are mean and crude for others. Think about the following sets of words to understand what I mean:

• Firm and Stubborn
• Careful and Risk-adverse
• Confident and Boastful
• Thorough and Slow
• Efficient and Impatient
• Thrifty and Stingy
• Slim and Skinny
• Overweight and Fat
• Fair and pale
• Kind and Hypocritical
• Flexible and Inconsistent
• Complying and Rigid
• Tactful and Crafty
• Career Planning and Job Hopping
• Strategic Withdrawal and Defeat as in military troops
• and so on....

In all these sets of words, the first and the second word could be referring to the same behaviour, but when we talk about ourselves, we tend to choose the first one which is more positive. We tend to be more inclined to use the second word which carries negative connotations, to refer to others and their behaviours. This negative thinking lies largely in our inherent prejudice towards others and it gives rise to such a mentality as "I am OK, you are not OK!" or "I am right, you are wrong!".

"Ya lo lucky no jail" ... This is SINGLISH - Singapore English!

As a follow-up of my blog dated 24 May 2009, with regards to that lady who committed the criminal offence, the sentence was recently passed and she was fined. However, she was spared the jail term much to her delight. The above message together with a couple of other messages, was sent to me soon after her court session. I am happy for her. I am sure she has learnt her lessons.

By the way, the English used in the message is what we typically call SINGLISH - the Singapore brand of English. In some sense, it is a literal translation from the Chinese Language. Hence, it does not make much grammatical sense in English. It is not commonly understood by people outside of Singapore.

Alternative meanings to some common abbreviations...

In Singapore, we have many abbreviations such as PWD, HDB, PUB, CPF to name just a few. I think PWD is no longer in use. Over the years, due to the different perceptions held by different people here, these abbreviations have been given alternative meanings.

PWD stands for Public Works Department, but it was perceived as Purposely Want to Dig (PWD) because sometimes, for reasons unknown to the public, the department seemed to be carrying out frequent digging work on and along the roads all over the city-state.

HDB stands for Housing and Development Board, but in the early days, many of these public housing flats seemed to have many defects and so people thought they were Houses Done Badly (HDB).

PUB stands for Public Utilities Board but many users find that the utilities rates are too high and paying the utilities bills has always been a great financial burden and many "Pay Until Broke" (PUB).

What about CPF? It is the Central Provident Fund which is a social security nest egg for Singaporeans. A certain percentage of the workers' salaries has to be deducted in a compulsory manner and deposited into the CPF accounts, many people didn't quite like the idea and so, CPF was emotionally perceived as "Curi People's Fund". Curi means steal in the Malay Language.

All these perceptions just reflect the sentiments of people on the ground and to a certain extent, the creativity of Singaporeans in giving different meanings to those abbreviations. As to how true they are, to each his own.

Shame on this guy with zero EQ !

I was told of a man in his early thirties, who visited a mobile phone shop in the neighbourhood several times, made enquiries and sought information. But, eventually, he bought a mobile phone and signed up a a two-year contract from another vendor elsewhere instead of coming back to this shop where he had benefitted from the information given and the staff has served him and provided him with information he wanted not just on one occasion but several. I personally feel that this guy needs to be told off about his bad social behaviour.

Worse, he bought a screen protector for his mobile phone from somewhere else and came to this shop that also sells screen protector and had the gut to ask the staff to help him paste the screen protector on his mobile phone which he bought elsewhere. Why didn't he buy the screen protector from this shop? I thought that would be the least he could do to compensate this shop somehow for taking up the staff's time. The staff was so obliging that he actually did it for him free-or-charge. But, I knew his blood was boiling inside him.

One day, when I was in the shop, a guy walked in and asked about one particular model of a Nokia phone, I was surprised that the staff was very indifferent and cold towards him. Later, this guy left the shop and the staff told me that was the guy he was talking about. Shame on him! This is a classic example of someone who might have high IQ (so what?) but ZERO EQ! In Singlish, we commonly refer to this type of guy as someone who "can study but has poor social behaviour"

Do you have a great mind to read this article?

Only great minds can read this This is weird, but interesting!

fi yuo cna raed tihs, yuo hvae a sgtrane mnid too Cna yuo raed tihs? Olny 55 plepoe out of 100 can. i cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno't mtaetr in waht oerdr the ltteres in a wrod are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it whotuit a pboerlm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Azanmig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt!

Interlocking Bricks

Interlocking bricks have been popularly used for most pavement and even roads, instead of those straight-edged type used in the past. They get locked in position more securedly than the traditional straight-edged type of design which makes it easy for the bricks to slide out of position. The interlocking bricks come in various shapes and sizes.

A typical HDB Flat in Singapore

This is a typical HDB (public housing) flat in Singapore. This particular block and those in the same cluster are made of red bricks on the exterior walls and this makes them different from many others that are made from concrete slabs.

A house or a home?

I saw this phrase on the front wall of a house and I thought it was meaningful...

"A house is where you hang your hat; a home is where you hang your heart." Talking about the difference between a house and a home, I think it is more appropriate to address the women who stay home to men the house as "Homemaker" rather than "Housewife". It is also said that a house is made by hands; but a home is made with hearts.

A special-looking Tree photographed by Eunice Yee

LED Torchlights are getting more common now...

LEDs (Light Emission Diodes) are very commonly used nowadays not just for traffic lights but also flash lights or torchlights. This small-sized torchlight uses only three AAA-sized batteries and has nine LEDs. It is extremely bright, but it costs only a few dollars.

Check if you are UNMOTIVATED!

A person who is unmotivated usually displays one or more of the following characteristics or behaviours:

• Has low self-image
• Has low self-confidence
• Has no goals or dreams in life
• Is not forward looking
• Likes to harbour negative thoughts
• Is not able to concentrate or focus well when doing something
• Finds it difficult to complete a task
• Is not interested in most of the activities
• Does not like to take on challenges
• Always blames others for his or her own failure or mishap