POTUS’s plans

Not sure if it’s true but I just saw a Fox News saying something to the tune of “Singapore basically took Trump’s Covid plans and implement it and that’s why we in Singapore have such a low an infection rate”... is this fake news to the highest degree? The lady who said it did so without bating an eyelid even!

“How can I help?”

I hear this a lot "Be strong" "Be resilient" "Be responsible"... etc. Right message but to me, not too useful. It's almost like telling someone who's loved ones had just passed on and you went up to say "Be Strong"... duh! What else can the person do? And you are certainly not helping cos you are not suggesting any ways to help. No?

I prefer:

• "How can I help?"
• "I'll be there if you need me"
• "Just wanna check in to know all's ok"...

You get the drift. These words sound a lot better to me. And the effect is all so much greater! But yeah, provided it comes from the heart. In times of crisis, empathy is most critical. So go on, reach out. Be supportive and empathetic. This is the time about "us" and not about "you" or "me" doing things alone.

Exposé

2020 is gonna go down history as the year the virus won.

Or wait, not so much won, perhaps gave human a stern warning. I have every reason to believe human will prevail. But certainly, human kind has, over the recent months, realised how closely knitted we are as a planet and how irresponsible we humans have been to nature and the environment. It also showed how we have, narrow-mindedly and in a whole lot of self-delusion, nominated and voted for stupid politicians to occupy high political offices. Politicians who are self-centred and highly egoistic. We saw how some suggested chloroquine as potentially a cure, and a day later, the news reported a couple died after consuming chloroquine.

And today, we see yet another politician from the same office blaming China for holding back information. And I was like - wtf, the epicenter today is not even in China! Perhaps it’s an excuse to draw people’s attention away from their own inadequacies. Then again, in the world of politics, things can be illogical and often populist in nature. Sighs... there are plenty of examples I can cite but I shall not. I certainly believe Mother Earth, and the world would be a better place today, and for our future generations, if these politicians did not exist.

Let’s not stress myself over such matters that is beyond me. Let’s have a laugh instead:

XYZ: it’s a China virus! (roll eyes... especially when I read how this politician corrected the script for him and cancelled out Covid-2019 and instead inserted China virus instead)...

ABC: it’s NOT a China virus! 

DEF: Yes it is! It comes from China right?

QRS: well you come from your mothers vagina, so why do we call you DEF?

How’s your health?

Now this is the question I get often from friends and colleagues alike. And frankly, I have to take a pause and ponder how to respond whenever I get this question.

You see, as a person with heart disease, I often have this chest discomfort or feelings of irregular heartbeat. I'm not sure if it's psychological but I do think there are many occasions where I feel my heart beating so strong I can almost hear it. Also, I frequently get this feeling of tightness across my chest or jabbing pains in my heart. But for some reasons, whenever I go for my regular check ups, the blood pressure would be perfect, the heart rate normal (or at most slightly elevated). There were no significant weird readings when I took the Holters test too...

I told the doctor about these episodes but he simply told me that there shouldn't be any cause for worries. So... I still think there's something no right, and perhaps I might just collapse from stroke suddenly sometime. It's quite unsettling I must say.

Am I paranoid?

Sinus amidst COVID-2019

I want to use this post to share some challenges that people with sinus face, especially during this period. And I will share my own story.

I have sinus. Every morning, I will sniffle quite a bit. The sinus usually clears off by the time I arrive at my workplace. These days, I get awkward stares from many people when I sniffle while having breakfast.

This morning, my sinus didn’t stop even after I arrived at work. By 9.30am, I started coughing. I went to see my family doctor and he said it was likely due to the sinus that refused to subside. He also explained that the constant back flow could have created the throat discomfort and resulted in incessant coughing. To be safe, I was given a days’ MC to monitor. I will have to head back for a reassessment if it doesn’t improve in the next couple of days.

So yeah, people with sinus face the challenges of physical discomfort every morning. And during this period, apart from the awkward stares, we also wonder if our sniffling is due to other reasons, including the virus. It can be quite unsettling psychologically.

So if you know anyone with sinus issues, reach out and say hi when you meet them. We can do with that little extra sunshine in the morning!

😊

PS: Pse see the doctor if you are unwell or feel unwell.

Opportunities amidst crisis

Crisis moments often translate into times of opportunities. Here’s a few that I can think of/ have manifested itself strongly:

• For companies to review their BCP, identify gaps, strengthen & execute it. It’s been in the drawer for too long! My company Singtel did so, and the machinery that came out of it is as great as it can be!

• For leaders in functions that are often perceived to be backend to stand out. This include HR leaders, Facility Managers, Crisis Managers, Security personnel, etc. And from what I can see of my colleagues in this functions, I want to shout out to all that you are all doing a fabulous job! jiayou!

• For all departments to review how BAU things can be done differently - to be creative and to ask very fundamental questions over why things were done the way it was. This may be from how we convene meetings to how we look at organising major events. Gonna be an interesting year ahead for me.

• And above all, this medical crisis is a perfect time for Leaders to reach out, to engage, to motivate and to inspire. Perfect conditions for engagement efforts to be done.

Everybody chin-up!

吃下面

We've always joked about the similarity in the sounds of 下面 and 虾糆 but today I actually heard a lady ordered prawn noodles by saying:

"Uncle, 我要吃你的下面..."

Lol!

Do, yet regret

Often a times we do things that are so boliao or useless but we still do despite knowing that at the end of the day we will regret doing... e.g. nuaing (lazing) in bed...

And then, we do again...

Aches & Pains

I am beginning to deeply appreciate what my mum meant when she complained of aches & pains years ago... and at that time, she used to say - you will know what I mean when you are old... I supposed I am old enough now.

Bad Rat!

On all account, this Rat year didn't start off too well for everyone. We have had the non-stop escalation of the Covid-2019 virus, first within China, then across Asia and now, worldwide.

As of today, I must say things have calmed down and this was after a short hiatus of hoarding and inconsiderate behaviour by many out of fear when the government decided to raise the alert status to DORSCON Orange. We went through something similar back in 2003 when we had SARS and again when we had swine flu and Ebola etc... but this time round, the presence of social media was really a killer as there was just too much fake news. It's good that we are finally able to control this and sustain a certain level of calm and objectivity in the country.

At work, we've gone into alternate workplace arrangements where we organise ourselves into two teams and work at different locations. This is part of our BCP arrangement to ensure business is not disrupted, even as we prepare for the worst. It's really crazy to have to set things up within a short period of time, brief people, update processes, etc. Thankfully, everyone cooperated and we have finally reached a point of balance where we are able to continue our daily work and tasks remotely. There seemed to be a certain level of acceptance that this arrangements will be the order of the day for sometime to come.

And these craziness doesn't include the many challenges at work - preparing for the closing of the FY, approval of the new FY initiatives, articulation of vision and strategic plans for next couple of years, busyness of Lunar New Year, etc. So yeah, this last 2 months was crazy and things simply seemed to go downhill as we transition from the Year of the Pig to the Year of the Rat. And much as I am not a superstitious person, I do want to say the new Rat year didn't start of well... let's hope things improve soon.

Aftermath of a meal

What your table looks like after your meal reflects your upbringing...

Agree?

Maturing

“When you mature, you don’t always insist you are right... even if you are”...

Why bother

Sometimes I wonder why I bothered to put in the efforts to text people and ask how they are, wish them happy birthday or for that matter just to say hi... when they don’t even bother to put in the efforts to keep in touch.

Lessons I Learned

Aimless rants of a couple of my learnings over the years:

• “When life throws you lemon, make lemonade” a quote on a little card on my ex-CHRO’s desk. Useful practical advice. Reminds us to be positive.

• “The teacher will appear when the student is ready” a simple quote read in a book by Robin Sharma (about a monk selling his Ferrari). Another useful quote that reminded me that there are lessons to be learned in most life’s situations. We just need to detach ourselves from the emotions that blind us, and the lesson will appear.

• “Be grateful, always give thanks” a simple reminder that one of my ex-boss and a friend lives by. It keeps her grounded and made her a really sweet and endearing person whom everyone can talk to and learn from, all the time.

• “Be happy” simple two words but not easy to achieve. It requires one to be very real and to acknowledge his strength and limitations wholeheartedly. This realization will make one humble and be able to manage one’s own expectations.

Over time, I learned that the four phrases are intertwined. They kept me grounded, humble and real. And they helped me be as authentic as I possibly can - as a worker, a peer, a leader and as a person.

Just another reflection on a Sunday evening.

Have a great start to the new week!

Chingay Parade 2020

Have the opportunity to attend the Chingay Parade 2020, much thanks to my friend’s offer of 2 tickets. Was indeed wowed by the kaleidoscope of colours that splashed in front of us. And of cos, was glad the classic Chinese traditional giant flags, lion dance, dragons etc were included in the parade. It was after all a celebration of the Chinese culture. There were also quite a few other performances that I felt didn’t really fit in. These include the performances showcasing international culture such as those from Thailand, Japan as well as from Russia. Including these performance really watered down the whole Chineseness of the parade (which was supposed to be for Lunar New Year).

Don’t get me wrong, these performances were really great except that I felt it didn’t really fit in into the context. I’ve had this huge debate with a friend a couple of years back and she defended Peoples’ Association (PA) (the organiser) approach. After all, she was from PA. So... anyway, I do understand PA’s agenda to need to bring people of different cultures together. Perhaps if organised this way, it should be better done as part of the National Day celebrations. As for Chingay, they should then let some Chinese-based organisation organise it to celebrate the Chinese culture in its whole glory. But let’s leave this to the organizers, I’m sure they have their reasons. I’m just here to enjoy the parade.

Here’s some photos to share.

武汉加油！中国加油！

Amidst all the fear, panic, bitching and all sorts of things being thrown at Wuhan, I thought it’s necessary to put into perspective some things. This include the fact that no one wants this to happen. And putting myself into the shoes of the millions quarantined and living in fear in Wuhan and generally China, my heart goes out to them all. There is nothing much I can offer except the following words:

武汉加油！中国加油！

我们大家一起加油！

It’s times like this that we must band together as a human race, to help and to support each other. It’s not the time to bitch, blame, and utter useless words.

nCoV - Wuhan Virus

The situation has escalated over the last couple of days and it’s unprecedented to see China closing down and isolating city after city. And online, I see people blaming Chinese people and saying a lot of unpleasant things. I even see people suggesting some conspiracy on the part of the communist government to use this virus to attack some foreign governments yadda yadda yadda... these comments reflect on the individuals more than anyone else. Not helpful at all. I’m glad the Chinese government is working hard to arrest the spread of this virus.

At home, I have people politicizing this whole virus thing and blaming the Singapore government on everything from causing the virus to spread to Singapore by having an open economic policy and tourism to implementing measures that they felt were not effective. Quite sickening especially when I can sense some of these posting are deliberately made to cause panic and to discredit the local authorities. To make matters worst, I also see people simply forwarding messages and WhatsApp wantonly and exclaiming “OMG” repeatedly without first verifying the authenticity of the information or the credibility of the source... signs of panic. And not helpful at all too!

Lunar New Year 2020

This is the year of the rat and it’s supposed to be a bad year for me. Direct clash with the rat. Then again, it simply means I have to be more careful, put in more efforts and do more good things. What choice do I have right? Hehe...

Happy Lunar New Year everyone!

Cloths vs Clothes

Darned...

I just realised I got myself all confused between the two words Clothes and Cloth. One is a fabric and the other something that is worn over the body. Now... ok, which is for what again?

hmmmm...

Darned! Darned! Darned!

Volcanoes & Climate Change

I’m a big advocate of going green to slow down climate change and I am happy to see so many people coming out to voice their support for it. This is especially so given the many extreme weather that we’ve witnessed repeating itself and at greater frequency and intensity over the last decade. 

Lately, I am beginning to see people confusing effects of climate change due to human behaviours with natural disasters. And I say so because I see people posting in social media about volcano eruptions and tsunamis and attributing these natural disasters to human behaviours. 

Hmmm... am I missing something here? 

Tight clothes

Am having my breakfast and where I’m seated (along a walkway facing the people traffic), I get to see people walking towards me. Most looked glum and sleepy. I supposed this is a norm as not many would look forward to heading to work. Especially on a Friday where the toll of the workweek would have shown.

As I observed, I noted that quite a few guys in their 20s and early 30s tend to wear clothes that are rather tight and body hugging. They are definitely eye candies and I’m certainly not complaining. But some thoughts went through my mind as I scan their image (some would call it visual rape... hahaha). After all, it’s a trend amongst many younger men to wear such tight fitting clothings. It is great if they have the body to flaunt. Regretfully, and frankly, some don't. And they can’t carry the fashion. They end up looking like a walking dance pole. And I do have some fashion advice - don’t wear light coloured tight (as in very tight) pants if you don’t have a decently sized content to flaunt. You just end up looking totally emasculated and uncool. If you really must wear tight pants, choose a dark coloured one. Or make the efforts to wear padded underwear... 

Ok, just some aimless writings on an Friday morning. Been a long while since I did this.

:-)

Delayed... hopefully just so

Am not about to make second guesses and hoped it’s just a delay due to lack of documents.

The marriage formalities that was to have happened last week got postponed on the eve of the event as the groom didn’t have his original documents. He only had duplicates and originals have to be produced before the marriage can be formalized. And he couldn’t produce it quickly cos he’s European and need to head back to his country to get it. So the whole event and the reception that was arranged were cancelled. A new date has yet to be arranged. My heart went out to the bride when I received her text. I was concerned how she was. It was an event she was really looking forward to. 

Separately, and to be honest, many of us has our doubts about the guy. But to be fair, we do not know him well enough to make any conclusive judgment. Let’s hope this incident was merely a simple oversight and not something more.

Buffet

In Singapore, it seemed like eating buffet is increasingly becoming a norm, and associated with this trend is more and more people getting overweight/ obese... is this an acceptable conclusion?

And here I am, eating shabu shabu buffet today cos I have a crave for it for whatever reasons. And I cannot help but noticed that everyone in the eatery has their table filled to the brim with food and at least half of the people inside here are obese...

Hmmmm...

Jay Chou

We attended the Jay Chou concert at the National Stadium last evening. The last time I attended such a mega concert was some 2-3 decades back at the old National Stadium (Michael Jackson performed in the old stadium in the late 80s and I attended it with BS, my bff). 

Was indeed a really entertaining event. To be frank, I almost expect it not to happen. You see, I had purchased the ticket in May 19 through an agent. I was to subsequently learn that this is a secondary agent - meaning to say, it is an agent that sells tickets that people don't want. I started feeling a little dodgy about it when I still haven't gotten the tickets last week, after the promised date of delivery. Thankfully, the tickets came 3 days later.

While I'm not a big fan of Jay Chou, I certainly enjoyed the performance. 

First fortnight 2020

Its the end of the first fortnight of 2020 and it's been superbly productive so far, both at work and at home. Getting loads of stuff cleared at work and crossing a major hurdle early in the year certainly makes a good start. Let's hope the rest of the year is similar too.  I know this year is gonna be a superbly challenging one with one mega event after another. But yeah, let's be positive about them and charge ahead! I'm pretty certain things will work out ok. Just need some detailed and advanced planning.

It's coming to the Lunar New Year period soon. Chinese all over the world will be celebrating the arrival of spring on the 25th of Jan. And naturally, and routinely, all of us are doing our spring cleaning these couple of weeks. And I've taken the opportunity to donate or to discard quite a bit of things from the home. It feels a lot lighter frankly. The predictions for me (born in the year of the Fire Horse) for this coming year is anything but good. No luck in health, career, romance, every thing. It's like all Horses are condemned to hell throughout the year. But hey, I see it as an opportunity to adapt and to learn. Just need to be careful.

:-)

2019 - uneventfully fulfilling

It actually took me a while to think about what I want to christen 2019. And it was not because 2019 was a difficult year for me. Rather, when I thought about it, only one word came to mind and it was  work, work, work, work and more work. But to be fair to myself, I had to take other aspects of my life into my thoughts and so, I concluded tentatively on the term “uneventful".  Frankly, even as I am typing this now, I am wondering if there are other terms that could be used. But well, let’s use this for now and see if my thoughts shift as I write. For this blog, I will use a slightly different format. I will write about the key themes/ happenings that defined 2019 instead of the usual themes of family, personal life, friends, and so on that I had used in previous years. Here goes, and in no order of priority... 

1 - My heart procedure & health

I went for my stenting procedure in Jan 19. It was a second heart procedure for me, the first being the ablation procedure that I did in Oct 18. The procedure was rather straight forward - puncture a hole in the artery at my groin area, insert the tube to the heart, insert the stent, balloon it, extract the tube and patch me up... The months that followed were uneventful, almost routine. And this was due to the need to be compliant with my medication. Really, I have never been more compliant about taking my meds until this year. On the flip side, 2019 was also the year where my presbyopia got worst, my memory seemed to get worse, I increasingly felt the effects of nerve compression, etc. and  I crossed  85kg. It occurred sometime in the middle of the year. I had slowed down my activities tremendously after my heart procedure. Anyway, I decided I should manage my weight better and I am glad to note that I ended 2019 at about 82kg. This is about 20kg above my ideal weight based on my BMI. Let’s see if I can bring down this further in 2020. 

2 - Organising major events at work

I had assumed a new port folio at work since Dec 18. One of the key responsibility for me was in the areas of asset activation.  Thus came the tasks of running and managing a newly renovated facility and organising of events as part of the broader plan to strengthen engagement and promoting collaboration. This responsibility became a major pre-occupation through the year and it culminated in my organising of 3-4 major events concurrently between the months of Sep - Nov 19. It was really exhausting but at the same time very fulfilling, considering I had a new team and we were all grappling with our new roles. I can expect more of such events to come in 2020. It’s gonna be scary yet exciting. Hopefully my heart can take this stress. 

3 - Meeting his friends

Ever since getting together with PZ in Dec 18, I had accompanied him back to KL quite regularly, often to meet his friends whenever any of them celebrated their birthdays. And all the time, he will leave me alone whenever he met up with his friends. As for me, I will end up being alone wilding my time either in the hotel room or walking around aimlessly at shopping centers. During the last visit that occurred end-Dec 19, I was surprised when he asked me to join him and his friends for dinner. This was perhaps one major highlight for me for the year and, I supposed, for him too, considering how secretive he was when I first knew him. 

4 - I'm Singaporean - Proudly

In 2019, we both lost our passports. It happened in Malaysia during one of the drive up to Kuala Lumpur. The process we had to go through to to report the loss and for him to get a replacement was nothing short of a nightmare. Thankfully, it was a lot easier for me given the backing I had from the Singapore overseas mission in Johor Bahru. It was then that I appreciated the efficiency of the Singapore system. When shit happened, I bitched big time about the inefficiencies and the horrible mindsets of the Malaysians. But to put in perspective, I had to also remind myself that Singapore went through the same some decades ago. Perhaps they will take some time, but for now, I can only say I am glad I'm Singaporean.

5 - Traveling overseas

2019 was a year of travels for me. I started off telling myself I wanted to at least be able to travel once a month. I acknowledged that to some, such a target would have sounded quite nonsensical. But to me, it was something I wanted to achieve since the previous 2 years following my mum's demise. In a way, I supposed, it was my way of playing catch-up. And I am glad to say - I managed to eventually clock an average of 4 trips overseas a month in 2019. Of these, 3-4 were rather major ones - Osaka, Xiamen, Jakarta, Taiwan. But targets aside, what's most important was the fact that these traveling gave me the much needed break away from work and  kept me sane and sorted through the year.

6 - Meeting my aunt

Over the past couple of years, I had come to acknowledge that my parent's generation is slowly fading away and that in no time, all of them would be gone. And I said so especially for my mum's side where almost all of her siblings have passed on. And it was a really nice surprise to be able to chance upon my 3rd aunt (my mum's sister-in-law) one day early Dec 19 when I went for lunch at Tanjong Rhu. I learned from her maid that she's 90 this year and is suffering from dementia. She couldn't recognise me when I called out to her. But she was able to recall my mum. Elated to note that her dementia is the "happy" type where she's constantly cheerful and smiling. And through the hour of my chatting with her, she kept forgetting who I was and I had to repeat again and again who I was. Sadly, when I met her again in the last week of Dec 19, her memory had deteriorated and she couldn't remember even my mum... I supposed she was stressed by the fact that her maid will be leaving for home on 31 Dec. 

7 - Re-settling my grandma & uncle

It was a promise I made to my mum - that I will re-settle my grandma and my uncle when the time comes for them to be exhumed from their graves. Their exhumation was eventually completed in Nov 19 and their new resting place is within the same block of niche that housed my parents remains too. And I had to thank my cousin (who kept my grandma's burial records) for keeping me in mind when it was time to do so. I reflected on this and came to the conclusion that after my generation (or rather, me and a couple of my cousins), no one else would be doing due diligence to upkeep the niche, nor to pay respects to my grands. And such thoughts simply reinforced my desire to just get a sea burial when my time comes and not leave anything behind other than memories for people who know me.

8 - My family outside my family

2019 was the year where all my friends from my previous company had finally moved out of the company and joined other companies. In a way, it was a milestone for us all cos our departure from the company started some 3 years back when the company was acquired by the SIA group. We all had it bad following the acquisition. Some of us left earlier whereas others bit the bullet and stayed (either to build their resume or to await better opportunities). What's significant for me was the fact that this was the group of friends who stayed together, and bonded well through these 3 years. And during this time, each of them had had their respective life's defining moments (passing on of parents, grandparents, marital issues, partner issues, etc, etc etc) and everyone were there to support the affected one when it happened. With time, many have come to treat each other like a family and a couple of them now call me "baba" quite affectionately too. 

9 - Marking a decade in corporate life

2019 marked a full decade out of the military for me. I have grown much during this period. I recalled wondering how I would ever survive the corporate world when I was preparing to leave the forces. But the transition had been easier than I had expected. I had the opportunities to work with very inspirational people who supported and guided me through the years. I will single out the boss I had when I was in the airline as well as my previous boss of my current employment. Both were easy to work with and gave me the space to exercise my leadership to my team. For the former, I will forever be grateful to her for her understanding and magnanimity in allowing me full flexibility to work from home if I needed to. Her understanding helped me through a most challenging period then when I had to balance my work and taking care of my mum. 

10 - Cleared my housing loan & bought a car

I managed to clear my housing loans after almost 25 years. Quite a sense of relieve. And with this liability removed, I was able to divert the extra cash into a new car loan... so, in a way, I'm back to square one when it comes to financial liabilities... lol! 

11 - Letting go

You know, there comes a time in your life where you feel like it is time to let go and to not be tied up with all the different attachments that hold you back - either emotionally, psychologically or otherwise. I had quite a few such moments in 2019 and I am glad I made the move to let things go. Some of the things I did include releasing Sapphie's bones into the seas, discarding my dad's bed (not because I was sentimental, but I thought one day I might find a use for it), donating a whole lot of clothes to the Salvation Army, etc... I certainly felt a whole lot lighter.

Well, the above kinda capture some of the more defining moments/ themes of 2019 for me. Rather uneventful frankly speaking. Then again, I proudly say I had indeed taken good care of myself - considering all the trips I have made. And with this, I shall name 2019 as an "uneventfully fulfilling" year. For 2020, I will want to keep things simple. I will not pressure myself with any tall resolutions. Instead, I will simply aim to be happy, and to keep my health in check.

:-)

Movies of 2019

I have continued with my regular movies this year. It has become a habit for me. I supposed it’s an escape for me after my workweek. I’ve followed some of the movies over the years and it didn’t feel right not to watch the sequel. And in this regard, it is certainly quite a bitter sweet feel to see some of the movies ending its run this year. These include Avengers, Star Wars, Ip Man as well as How to Train Your Dragon. 

The following lists what I watched in 2019:

Dec
Jumanji: The Next Level
The Garden of the Evening Mist
Knives Out
Two Tigers
Ip Man 4: The Finale
Star Wars Rise of Skywalker
Spies in Disguise

Nov
The Addams Family
Disney’s Maleficent: Mistress of Evil
The Abominable
Wet Season
Charlie’s Angels
The Cliff
The Cliff 2

Oct
Joker
The Farewell
Tracy
A Dog Barking at the Moon

Sep
Ne Zha
Good boys
Fagara

Aug
Racing in the Rain
Angel has fallen

Jul
Crayon Shin-chan Honeymoon Hurricane: The Lost Hiroshi
Spider-Man: Far From Home
Toy Story 4
Lion King
Doraemon Nobita’s Chronicles of the Moon
Coco
Mission impossible: Rouge Nation

Jun
Men in Black: International
X-men: Dark Phoenix

May
Pokémon Detective Pikachu
The Hustle
Capernaum (Arab movie)
A Dog’s Journey
Godzilla: King of the Monsters

Apr
Shazam
Hellboy
Marvel Endgame

Mar
Captain Marvel
Hotel Mumbai
Dumbo

Feb
Alita: Battle Angel
How to Train your dragon: the hidden world
Cold Pursuit

Jan

The Kid Who Would Be King

Turning 53

As usual, it was a non-event for me, even as people around me made a fuss about it, getting cakes, buying me meals and such. But their gestures and wishes were very well appreciated. And hmmm, for a moment, I actually forgot it was my 53rd birthday. I thought it was 54... 

Signs of aging? Lol! Time passes so very fast when you get on with years. Interestingly, just last year, with all the health issues, I actually wondered if I would survive to celebrate my birthday this year. And here I am. Managing ok. Looking back, the year had been superbly uneventful. I supposed that uneventfulness suits  people my age very well.  I will write more in my year-end blog... for now,

Happy first day of 54 to me.

Food for the Soul

The best food is often the simplest and the humblest... The braised minced meat rice is the staple of Taiwanese and it's the must have for me whenever I visit Taiwan. There are just so many points/ moments in my life that I can recall whenever I eat this.

:-)

Some pet peeves...

As a driver, some of my pet peeves revolve around Google map and it’s features...

For a start, one irritating thing is to have Google map tell me “Head East/ West/ Southeast...”. I am not a human compass and I totally dislike it when Google map does that! It’s especially irritating when I’m at a junction deciding if I should take left, right, straight and the Google map went “Head Southeast”... doh!

And oh, since I’m at it, I also find it extremely distasteful for Google map to keep going, in 200m, go straight... in 300m, go straight, in 100m, go straight... and it kept repeating for me to go straight! Omg! It’s like as thought Google map thinks I’m darned insecure and needs to be reminded again and again or that Google map thinks I cannot read the map...

And last but not the very least, it gets pretty stressful when Google map does an auto-reroute while I’m driving, especially when Google map cannot decipher whether I’m travelling on a highway or a parallel road below the highway... and to get a “Turn Right”” when there is absolutely no right turn while on the highway is not a very nice suggestion to get while I’m concentrating on my driving.

Anyway, I’m just ranting on my final lazy and drizzling afternoon in Taipei.

Superficial Singaporeans?

I’m in Taiwan and over the past few days, I came across so many young 20-ish years old Singaporeans during this trip and from their conversations,  I wondered if Singaporean’s next generation is really so shallow....

You see, the tourists I met came from many many countries, both the west and the east. And most of the time time, I do hear people speak about all sorts of things (at least that’s what I can conclude for those that I don’t understand) but for Singaporeans, it mostly centered around - Wah, my photo nicer than yours, yours put intagram not as nice as mine... - you get the idea. And such thread of conversation kept repeating whenever I came across Singaporeans...

What do you think?

Lol!

Successful summit... and...

Been superbly busy over the last 2-3 months and I’m elated with the ending of November cos it marked the end of all my major events for the year. So relieved that everything ended smoothly and beautifully. Time to shift my focus to planning for next year...

:-)

Biz trip

I’m at the airport waiting to board my plane. Heading to the Philippines as part of the advance party for a regional summit that will be happening this week. Gonna be a stressful week given all the leaders that will be attending the summit...

Wish me luck!

flu flu flu

Down with a bad flu... coughing like crazy. Also, the non-stop sneezing, super bad sore throat, headache, etc etc etc. Dislike to be in such condition. Things usually get worst and I will end up losing my voice, have a fever and fall seriously ill for a couple of days. Then again, it's good to fall sick now and to recover in time for my work trip to the Philippines end of this month.

Also, looking forward to my week break in Taiwan first week of Dec. 

:-)

Cry

It's a little depressing to not be able to cry when you want to cry, to have a most hearty cry and let every thing pour out.

Goodbye Nana aka Sapphie

Reflective and somewhat emotional moment to release Nana aka Sapphie’s ashes into the sea today. Would have been her 19th birthday if she’s still around... for some reasons her ashes at the base of the urn were somewhat damp. Had some difficulties getting it out. Anyway, after releasing them into the waters off the her favourite spot at the beach, I also dropped the urn into the sea. It took awhile before it sank... 

Goodbye Nana. Go free.

Worst trip in my life...

The trip to KL over the last weekend was the worst overseas ever for me in my whole life. This trip was for me to affix the VEP RFID and for him to meet up with his bffs to celebrate one of their birthdays in Genting. Here's the details of the trip:

• Saturday. Drove in to affix the VEP RFID at 4am to avoid the public holiday jam. Appointment was at 10.30am, managed to get ahead of the queue and complete the process by about 10am. Reached KL late afternoon after stopping by Seremban for late lunch. Rested a while and headed out for a simple dinner with one of bff. Felt a little uneasy and light headed after dinner and decided to turn in early.

• Sunday. Woke up with the stomach churning and head feeling like it was gonna explode. Body felt warm. Fell in and out of consciousness through the whole morning cos I was too spent to get up. He got me some diarrhoea pills before leaving for Genting. I was left me alone in the hotel room. Started having diarrhoea and non-stop vomiting through the afternoon. In between bouts of diarrhoea and vomiting, I slipped in and out of consciousness. Simply too weak to get up and my head was too heavy to stand properly. Body was burning. For some moments, I wondered if I would die in my sleep (LOL). Couldn't eat anything through the day and had to force myself to drink. Told myself I cannot not replenish my fluid given all the purging. Felt a little better by evening time and dragged myself out of bed to get some food. Had not eaten anything and needed something light. Managed to eat 2 slices of watermelon and honeydew. Collapsed in bed by 8pm and slept until the next day. It was a badly disturbed sleep, waking up every hour or so.

• Monday. Woke up and headed down to eat something light. Couldn't eat after 2 mouthful cos my stomach started churning again. He's supposed to be back by 11am but texted me that he would be back by 12pm instead. Arranged for a late check out and walked about the mall. By now, he had texted to say he would be delayed further. He arrived close to 2pm and we started our drive back to JB. Halfway back to JB, we realised our passports were not with us... made some calls and decided to drive back to KL. I was still weak from the food poisoning and the emotions that erupted after realising the loss didn't help. Got the documentations done before making our way to JB. Had given up hope of retrieving the lost passports. Arrived JB close to midnight.

• Tuesday. We splitted ways to make our respective documentations. I got my documents from the Consulate General Office by late morning. He was told to go to the Immigration HQ to process his passport replacement. Halfway through at about 2pm, the hotel called and told him that they had found his passport. We decided to head back to KL and it was another 5 hours drive. Got the passports and I insisted on checking into the hotel for the night. I refused to drive back to JB that evening. 

• Wednesday. Left KL early to drive back to JB. The mindset was to simply get home as soon as possible. Regretfully, had to go through quite a bit of hassle with the Malaysian immigration staff before being allowed to head back to Singapore. Arrived back in Singapore close to 6pm.

Yup, so that was my last trip to Malaysia. In a span of a couple of days, I drove up to KL 3 times.  And it's not just the hassle of the movements, but also the food poisoning, the feeling of loss and being alone, the emotions, the tensions, and the less than friendly and inefficient public office staff. 

Glad I am home.

Losing my Passport

Here's my experiences after losing my passport during the trip to Malaysia last week... and this is a continuation of my previous post about the Malaysian public service. 

• He got a call from the hotel that they found the passport, just as he was queuing up and waiting for the Immigration Office to open. And it was thankfully so cos it was beginning to get stuffy standing outside the lift landing and everyone was getting a little impatient and agitated. We found your passport pouch underneath the blanket, the hotel staff said. hmmm, it was kinda weird cos they found our passport more than 24-hours after we checked out underneath the blanket... hmmm... anyway, we decided to drive up to KL again to collect the passports. It would be more important for him cos mine has already been terminated. We arrived in KL in the evening after some 4-plus hours drive, collected the passports and decided to check in for the night. 

• To be safe, we decided to call the immigration department to confirm if we need to cancel our earlier police report. No, came the answer. But to be sure, we were given another number to call, a number that was not attended and nobody answered. We gave up trying after some attempts. We drove back down to JB the next day (Wednesday), and at the customs, we were stopped and summoned to the office. Accordingly, my documents were verified ok and that I could go back to Singapore. But for him, the immigration officers said he had to make a police report to cancel his earlier police report (since he has found his passport). We obediently drove back into JB to look for a police station.

• Thankfully, there was a police post within 10min drive. When we arrived, the police officer said there was no requirement to make a report. After explaining that this was a requirement by the immigration officer at the customs checkpoint, he insisted there wasn't a need, nonetheless he re-drected us to another police station cos he has shut-down his system... so... we arrived at another police station and yet again was told there was no requirement to make a police report (to cancel the earlier police report). Yet again, we had to explain the need and grudgingly they eventually issue one that simply stated we want to cancel the report. 

• In our second attempt to clear the Malaysian customs, we were yet again stopped and summoned to the office. This time round, they said that although my documents were in order, I had to go to the Consular General Office of Singapore to get my found passport canceled before they could clear me. I was quite flustered by then. I called the Consular General's hotline and the staff assured me there was no need to. He asked to speak with the immigration officer and after some few minutes of conversation, I was cleared. He told me to call him back should they create any problems for me (how reassuring). We were eventually cleared to return to Singapore. I personally thought it was weird for a Malaysian immigration official to tell a Singaporean institution what to do... 

The experience at the Singapore customs was world of a different. 

• When we arrived at the customs, I handled over the documents and asked if my passport had been canceled and whether I can use the passport if it was still valid. The immigration officer smiled and said he will get his colleagues to confirm and to explain the process to me, should I need to replace my passport. I waited in my car and soon, 2 security personnel came. It was nice of them to clear the jam (which had build up by them) and escorted me as we made our way to the immigration office.

• At the office, I was greeted nicely by the immigration officers and ushered to a seat before they verified the validity of my passport. I was told the passport had been cancelled and that I should make a new one at the Immigration Office when I am free. With this, I was told I could proceed and make my way home. Simple, easy peesy. Efficient and pleasant experience, as always.

Anyway, my new passport will be ready by this coming Wednesday. Everything was processed and done at the Immigration HQ, all within half hour.  

M’sia Public Service... Sighs!

We were in KL over the weekend and lost our passports. I believe I had left them in the safe in the hotel but despite checking with the hotel several times, they claimed they couldn't find it. Frankly, whenever I lost anything in Malaysia, I have absolutely no hopes of getting them back... And emotions apart, our reactions to the loss was worlds apart. It's during such crisis (or perceived crisis) that you get to see a persons real character. But well, let's not go there... what I want to write here is the difference in the efficiencies of the Malaysian and Singaporean public offices in handling the public. Here's some observations...

• Went to the police post to make a report. Was told I needed to go to the Special Branch in person to report the loss and to be interviewed before a police report can be made. This was because Singaporean passports are in high demand in Malaysia and they needed to interview me to make sure I do not belong to any syndicate... hmmm... don’t understand the logic but well, what the heck. I’ll do what I need to do to get back home.

• The interview process was straight forward but imo, the questions asked were no different from when I made the police report after that. They could have just asked the police to forward the police report to them... I also don't like how the "investigation" was done - the questions asked were, imo, irrelevant. "How come your passports together in one bag?" "How come you are in the same hotel room?" "Are you both single?" ... and it's not what's asked but how it's asked that made the world of difference...

• Drove from KL to JB and made a report to the Singapore General Consulate. Apart from an (initially) rude security guard, I thought the experience was generally good. Was greeted professionally by the staff and they explained nicely to me how the loss will be managed. The process was quite a breeze - filled in a form, asked to give them 2 hours to verify details and to return to collect my Document of Identity (DOI). The DOI would allow me to return to Singapore to get my passport replaced. And the staff patiently explained which document is for what and for who... from the accent of it, the staff is definitely Malaysian. But the experience is different.

• As for his passport, being a Malaysian, he had to head to one particular office (UTC) to get a passport replacement. Google map says it's opened from 8am but when we reached there, we were told they open at 1pm. I supposed Google map is not totally accurate. He decided to head to another office some distance away, only to be told they cannot handle his case and that he needed to go to another office (Malaysian equivalent of Singapore's ICA HQ) as his passport is still valid. And when he reached there, he was told his ID photo is old and he needs to change his ID first before they can entertain his request of a passport replacement... Goodness knows what else he needs to do before he can get his passport replaced.

I may be Singaporean but I really do not think I am biased in my views. Apart from efficiencies (or lack of it), I think there are a lot to catch up for the Malaysian public service when it comes to simple courtesies while carrying out their professional duties.

Marry me off...

I was so surprised and honoured! I got a text last evening from this beautiful lady asking me to be the witness when she register her marriage with her long time partner in Jan 2020! Never ever imagined I will have such an opportunity!

2 months

I am at the coffee shop having my morning coffee and I want to blog. Yet, my mind is blank. There are a lot of things in my mind that I want to capture and much are all work related; and I really don't want to waste time writing about them. But in the spirit of capturing key moments, do allow me to share what I have been busy with of late at work:

• Completed a major activity for my workplace (I blogged this previously)
• Launched a major 2-month event (that is currently on-going)
• Organised a mega-roadshow across 2 different sites locally
• About to launch another major event mid-Oct (and we are all in the thick of things now)
• Counting down to conducting a global survey for the group end-Oct
• In the midst of planning a global summit that will be held end-Nov in the Philippines...

And on the social and personal fronts, I've been able to keep to my plans to travel at least once a month (with my recent trips to Jakarta, Penang and Johor Bahru), catch up with a couple of friends for meals, meeting my ex-boss for lunch, etc. On top of that, I have been busy counselling a friend who's been quarantined in the hospital for 2 months due to TB, and then faced some marital issues with her husband once she’s discharged, another who's depressed following his dad's demise and jobless, and another who decided to quit after his boss screamed at him. Gladly, things are panning out well for them. It should (hopefully) get better for all of them in the days ahead. 

All these left me quite drained (and possibly made worst by the many many negativity around the world - HK, toxic politics - both globally and at work, etc). But I am not complaining. Being dutifully employed and able to help people is a blessing. So... yeah, it's been a busy month or two for me. And looking ahead, it is less that 3 months before 2020. Scary how time flies. Seemed like not too long ago when we were busy preparing for the turn of the century and worrying about the Y2K virus.

Hang in there.

Beginning of the end?

Are we witnessing the beginning of the end for two most vocal, golden haired, self-centred egoistic politicians? i kinda miss the days when politics used to be very noble, somewhat altruistic, and politicians were charming, charismatic and influential.

Die! Die! Die!

I drove pass Mangala Vihara - a Buddhist temple, recently and saw a banner hung around the shrine. I couldn't make out what the banner was but kept wondering why it said "DIE, DIE, DIE" repeatedly. It was when I looked at it closer before I realised it was actually the Buddhist flag...

LOL... and with no disrespect, I wondered why I saw it as "DIE". Anyway, I came home and reflected and it struck me that I didn't know what the colours on the flag meant and I googled it. Here's the explanation behind it and here's a summary of it:

• Blue: The Spirit of Universal Compassion

• Yellow: The Middle Path

• Red: The Blessings of Practice

• White: The Purity of the Dhamma 

• Orange: The Wisdom of Buddha's teachings

• Sixth vertical band: Truth of Buddha's teachings

Interesting right?

Yes (wo)man

How do you manage a boss who’s a yes-person and will say yes to everything that the boss wants? And to make things worst, this boss is quite a hands off person and can only say yes yes yes. And then turn around and tasks the additional tasks to you...

For me, I am at a point where I have to draw a line and firmly say I cannot do and cannot deliver. No resources. Period. And I am also starting to say things like - if this goes on, I’m gonna to tender. Call it a threat I don’t care. But I have to draw a line. The bad habit of tasking everything to someone who can deliver and reports to a yes-person boss has to stop. 

And I think my boss got my message... but I’m sure the yes-man nature will continue...

Sighs!

What a week!

Just completed a super major event this week that involved ministers, senior officials from the union and many strategic partners of the company.

The events this week was a culmination of many months of planning. The many rehearsals, briefing decks for leaders, meetings with the different stakeholders, etc and the final execution of event went like clockwork.

Usually, when such events end, fhere'll be a sense of emptiness. But for me, there's no time to do so. We are now gearing up and counting down to an extended period of 2 months of non-stop events. Hopefully, my team don't get burned out...

:-)

Suka Tua (Like Mature/ Old)

These days I get “Hi”s and “Hello”s and taps from a lot of profiles with names such as “Suka Tua”, “Ilikemature”, “ilikesnr”, and with descriptors such as “I like daddies, white hair, big belly, old man, grandfathers, etc”. Wtf, I seriously don’t think I fit into some of the categories they mentioned. But what the heck... 

#agingisabitch 

Lol!

Hong Kong - sighs

Hong Kong is a place that I enjoy going cos it's orderly, the transport system is easy to navigate, the people are easy to get along with, and most important, it is a relatively safe place for asians. Not anymore. I have been following the developments rather closely when the protests first started, but I have stopped doing so cos I do not agree with them. 

And today, I read this headline - "Trump, make Hong Kong great again". I couldn't help but roll my eyes. I mean, seriously? Trump, to me, is only concerned about himself. His presidency has thus far been about his own ego and his own re-election. HK means nothing to him but a pawn to be used to co-erce China as part of his game to seek re-election. Whatever HK's fate is, Trump will spin the outcome to his favour. Liberate HK? Make HK great again? what nonsense!

Over the last couple of weeks, I texted a couple of HK friends and all of them expressed their disagreement about the protests and felt the protesters had gone a tat too far. But at the same time, they could empathise with them as many felt helpless by the soaring land prices, etc. So, what started off as an anti-extradition bill protest had morphed to one where people are using the protests to vent their anger at the local government and their failure to look after the good livelihood of the populace.

Anyway, this post is not meant to generate a political discussion and I will certainly not respond to anyone who tries to get me to do so. It is a post for me to capture my thoughts. Here're some of them:

• The 21st century belongs to China. This is a fact and everything I know in all the different spaces, point to this fact unfolding. So, if I were a Hongkie, I will happily embrace this fact and embrace myself as a Chinese HK. I might even ask why I have to wait for 2047... fact is - HK has a natural hinterland and wants to deny it. Singapore, in 1965, wants a hinterland, but was denied one... what irony.

• Democracy - do we even have an alignment in our thoughts about what democracy is? Looking at the protesters, many of them are in their late teens and early-20s and come across as pure naive (case in point is their cry for Trump to make HK great again, what rubbish). Many have not even seen the world nor understand the dynamics between countries. As such, much as I admire their idealism, I seriously think they fell short of understanding what's real. 

• Personally, I am all for rights and freedom of (anything), but I also believe strongly in being responsible. I will willingly forgo my rights if there is a larger good for the society, for the community, for the country. And in the context of China, I seriously do not think the country is ready for democracy as the US knows it. China has never in it's 5000-year history been governed in this manner and I do not see it change overnight. This brings me to the next point...

• Engage the political leadership and change the politics over time. Hong Kong already has so much freedom that the mainlanders do not enjoy, enjoy this freedom and navigate the space, instead of pushing for more too suddenly. Best case if you do so is to incur the wrath of China and China will simply let you run out of steam and sideline you into oblivion. Worst case is that China will roll their military and force things down.

I can only say this - people needs to cool down, and agree to talk. If they don't, and keep pushing, things will never end. And at this rate the so-called leaderless protesters are going, the only ones to suffer will be the Hongkies themselves.

Ok, just ranting to fill my weekend boredom. Gonna be a stressful week ahead. 

:-)

Of Chickens, Rabbits & Dragons

I was in Penang over the last weekend and came across this dim sum place that was decorated with lots of lanterns. I was simply wowed by them. 

When I was a kid, it was customary for my mum to buy mooncakes for my godmother, who, in return, would buy such lanterns for me. I particularly looked forward to such cellophane lanterns and I recalled vividly that I had different animals for different years. 

My favourite lanterns include those shaped and painted to look like chickens, rabbits or dragons. And guess what - much fun as I had walking around with candle-lit lanterns, the real fun actually lie in the fact that I get the chance to play with fire! And all the time, my fun will end when my lantern got burned.

Those were the good old days.

Finally cleared...

Fulfilled my resolution for the year finally. The last deduction of my housing loan was completed today after 3 months of application. So am officially free of housing loan! 32 years... or was it 33 years?

Well, what's important is that I'm done with housing loans!

:-)

Of Death Anniversary & Ghost Festival

The 7th month of the lunar calendar is the month of the Hungry Ghost Festival where Taoists believe that spirits of the underworld would be released to roam the living realm. As a Buddhist, I commemorate it as the month of filial piety and respect for our elders.

August is also the month of my dad's passing in 2008. Time flies, it's been 11 years. His anniversary date was 10 Aug and we've commemorated his passing on this day instead of the lunar date (10th day of the 7th lunar month). I supposed it's easier to remember (although I admit I actually forgot to do it this year).

So yeah, here I am at the columbarium today to do due diligence to these two events.

:-)