Surprise!

Went to work last week and found these lovely pressies on my table. :) Thank you! I am really blessed to have such wonderful and caring colleagues. :)

I Didn't Cry

I have always thought of myself as a Singaporean because I was born in Singapore, studied in main stream schools, excelled under the bilingual policy, sat for all the high stakes (PSLE, O & A levels) assessments and even worked in a ministry. However, I am the first generation Singaporean in my family as both my parents hailed from different birth countries, China and Taiwan.
My identity/ loyalty as a Singaporean is questioned today because I didn't cry for Mr Lee Kuan Yew. I respected Mr Lee and am thankful for all that he has done for the country, including the tough calls he had to make. I felt great sadness in his passing but I didn't cry. Everyone mourns differently. To me, what's more important is celebrating his life, remembering his contributions and carrying on his legacy in one way or another to ensure the continued survival and success of our nation for the future generations of Singaporeans.
I didn't cry for Mr Lee but I am still very much a Singaporean.

Rest In Peace, Mr Lee Kuan Yew III

Thank you for your leadership and your contributions to Singapore. 

Rest in peace, Mr Lee Kuan Yew. 

LKY Books

There are two  Lee Kuan Yew books in my household since 1993 and 1994 - LKY 40 years of selected political commentaries (1993, in Chinese) and LKY A Pictorial Biography (1994). Thanks to my mother who is an avid reader and who is interested in politics lol. Thanks to my bilingual education and to my mother for being my first Chinese teacher, I enjoyed reading LKY's political commentaries in Chinese.

Today I added two more books to the collection - Memoirs of LKY: From Third World to the First The Singapore Story 1965 to 2000 and The Singapore Story. I also bought a book on Goh Keng Swee: A Legacy of Public Service.

Honour's Day

I was invited to my counselling school's Honour's Day. It was an honour for me that the school treats me more than just an employee or a staff. It was an even greater honour when I realised I was seated in the front row, together with the Guest-of-Honour. :)

Rest In Peace, Mr Lee Kuan Yew II

This morning, my parents and I were at the Botanic Gardens Community Tribute to Mr Lee Kuan Yew. To me, it's a lot more meaningful and serene at the garden because Garden City and Tree Planting Day every November are my first memories of Mr Lee (and also I love green).

Community Tribute to Mr Lee Kuan Yew@Botanic Gardens

Aranda Lee Kuan Yew - orchid specially bred in honour of Mr Lee

Science Alive

In my household, we often find little containers lying around. We know better to throw them away and we know better than to just open them blindly. Those are Marieann's containers. More often than not, if you look carefully into the containers, there is something alive in it - a wasp, an ant, a grasshopper, a spider, a millipede, a worm, .... She likes to observe them, how they move, how they eat, ... She usually releases the insects after she is done with her observations.
I am really happy that I have a daughter who is not squeamish about handling creepy crawlies. (Actually she is too comfortable handling them lol.) I am really glad that she likes science. 
PS. However, it freaked me out when I saw the latest occupant in one of her containers - a spider. I hate spiders.

A Distant Tarot Dream

I came across a free tarot reading Facebook page. Having experience in tarot reading, I decided to try it out. It was pretty good with details. :) 
I was into tarot reading in the 1990s and early 2000s. I used to read tarot for my friends who claimed that I am very accurate! Lol. I used to have a dream - to open a lemon cheesecake cafe with tarot reading on the side. :) Alas, it is a distant dream now... 

Rest in Peace, Mr Lee Kuan Yew

When I woke up this morning at 5:30am, I saw the news that our 1st Prime Minister, Mr Lee Kuan Yew has passed away at 3:18am. Although it is inevitable given his age and health condition, it still came as a shock. Our leader has gone into the great beyond. 
Rest in Peace, Mr Lee Kuan Yew. 

For Reading Pleasure

I bought three new books for the girls. 
Two are fiction books in the genre that the girls enjoy - horror, suspense and mystery. Once they are done with reading them, I want to read them too. :)
The third book is a gamble. With Marieann taking History now in secondary school, I thought the non-fiction book with its nuggets of facts and historical events may pique her interest. I wish I had something like that to interest me when I first started learning History. 

1. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs
2. The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton
3. Tales of Old Singapore: The glorious past of Asia's greatest emporium by Iain Manley

Under the Weather

For the past week, the weather has been off. Hot one moment and then cold and wet the next moment. No wonder I am beginning to feel a little under the weather especially my throat which is becoming sore. I am been taking natural remedies as far as possible to prevent my throat from worsening - manuka honey, ginger tea, water, ... but got to start whacking the chemical stuff soon. :(

To Wait or Not To Wait?

A friend shared with me the air ticket promotion advert from a travel agency. I am thinking of going away in June with Juliane (Marieann does NOT want to fly this year no matter what. Sigh.). I wonder if there will be more air ticket promotions later on... 
To wait or not to wait? 

Meow 2015

I love the photo of this cat - the colours and the composition. I didn't expect that it would turn out this well as the cat was actually hissing at me when I took its photo.  

Three-Generation Events

It seems there are a few things that the women/girls in my family will do together as three generations - getting a haircut and visiting the dentist lol. Interestingly, we haven't been shopping together for clothes yet lol. 
We had our dental check-up today at my friend's dental clinic in the afternoon after which we went to our hairdresser for our haircut in the evening. :)

See You Soon, Azlina

Today is the last day of work for Azlina. :( We are really sad to see her go but I am very sure she will be back again! :) So instead of saying "Good Bye, Azlina", I am going to say "See you soon, Azlina!". :)

Yes, someone forgot to pass me the memo to wear purple today lol :P

Resume

Spent the morning tidying up my resume for a job application.

Catch-Up Movie

I finally watched Divergent. :P Just in time for me to catch the second installment, Insurgent which is being released this coming Thursday, 19 March to continue the story. I enjoyed the songs at the end of the movie when the credits started rolling. 

Beating Heart by Ellie Goulding (uploaded by EllieGouldingVEVO)

Find You by Zedd (uploaded ZEDDVEVO)

Term 1 Break

It is the start of Term 1 break. Time for some R & R - Review and Revision of Term 1's work for the girls. I am not being harsh as Semestral Assessment 1 (SA1) will begin in late April. This one week break is the perfect time for them to review their work and revise for their SA1.

Friday the 13th

For once, Friday the 13th is unlucky for me.

Reviewer

Recently I was invited to be a reviewer by a journal for one of their manuscripts. The abstract looked interesting and of my interest area. I decided to accept the invitation. :)

Wet Week

It has been a rather wet week so far, raining for the past few days. Wonder if it will continue raining for the rest of the week.

Sugar by Maroon 5

Here is the acapella cover of Maroon 5's Sugar by Mike Tompkins using just his voice and mouth! (uploaded by Mike Tompkin)



Here is the original song, Sugar by Maroon 5. I really love the reactions of the wedding couples! :)
(uploaded by Maroon5VEVO)

  

Extra Room in the House

What I really want as an extra room in my apartment is a study! According to Blogthings quiz, that's what I am, a study lol.

You Are the Study

You are a total brain, and you don't stop learning just because work or school is over. You find little more relaxing than a good book, and you wouldn't mind a room stocked full of interesting reading. You aren't just a bookworm - you're a full on intellectual. You may do a lot of interesting writing and thinking in that study as well. The world is fascinating to you, and you are often quite content to quietly learn about it in the comfort of your own home.

What Extra Room in the House Are You?

However even without a proper study (just a study table and book shelves in my bedroom), I shall aspire to do more writing and thinking. :)

Happy Women's Day 2015

(Source: http://internationalwomensdayquotes.com/)

Happy Women's Day 2015!

Irrational Worry?

I was asking where would the girls want to go for holiday this June as next year, we will not be going away because it's PSLE year for Juliane. Juliane was excitedly telling me she wanted to go here and there. On the other hand, Marieann said she will only go overseas in 2016! I was surprised. Why? Is there a difference between 2015 and 2016? 
Upon probing, she told me she doesn't want to fly because of all the plane crashes in 2014. Wow, I didn't realise she was keeping tabs on the plane crashes. I tried to tell her that plane crashes are rare as compared to car crashes but she was adamant and would rather forgo overseas holiday this year.
Ok it may be an irrational worry but I am impressed with her resolve.

First Milestone Down

We had a meeting with MOE today to present our preliminary report/ findings. It was a relief to all that the report was well received. One milestone down. :) We will take a break this weekend and then start working on achieving the next one.

Childhood Memories: Plum Tablet Candy

This is one of my childhood memories: Plum tablet candy. I love its sweet sourish taste. Now my younger girl loves it too. :)

Stop and ...

...smell the flowers.

ok, maybe not smell the lantana but can still look :)

Butter Cream Cakes

My colleagues/friends and I had butter cream cakes for snack. 

One of them had never eaten such butter cream cakes before! :O Sigh. Generation gap.
Butter cream cakes are a fond childhood memory of mine. Nowadays, only the tradtional/ old school bakeries sell such butter cream cakes.

Locked Out

I discovered that I was locked out of the staff portal when I tried to log in to book a meeting room. Strange as I was able to access it just two days ago. IT helpdesk could not find my user details which would usually denote that I am no longer staff. What?! They promised to look into it urgently and get back to me as soon as possible. 

Happy Birthday, Juliane

Happy Birthday, Juliane! 
May you always have great health, wisdom, fun and laughter, and love. 
May all your dreams and wishes come true in 2015!

Thank you for all the birthday wishes that came her way via Facebook (from my friends) and via Skype (from her cousins in UK)! :)