Running for REAL..

I was there. Hehe..

I was there too early. The sky was still dark. The street-lamps were not in service yet. (Rather, the street-lamps are not in operation yet for that particular stretch of road. That place is not even on your map yet, you see.) As such we can only see the blinking marshalling bars held by the officials along the main road leading towards the car park, but we can’t really see the officials (who were wearing dark coloured t-shirt) very clearly.

In general, I think I enjoyed the experience.
Why?
Okay, let me think (but with my tiredness now, I think I can easily miss out quite a few.. )

- Spacious routes. No bottle neck. No jam. Fresh enough air.
- Got pals Wk, Ph, Yl, Fy that are of constant inspiration that I may (at subsequent attempts) go and try for longer distant. But.. erm..
- Got pal W as pacer to keep me going for the first good 7 km or more, especially the 1 km stretch of sand.
- Like the white-blue official t-shirt given.
- Pretty well-organised. Sufficient facilities and the crowd was well-managed at every stage.
- Free foot massage. Professionally done for at least 5 minutes. Long enough to feel the effects.
- Free flow of isotonic drinks (100-PLUS). Can ta-bao some more.
- Met quite a few ex-*little pals. Met a secondary school mate and a uni hall mate.

Of course nothing is perfect.
I think the last stretch of about 2 to 3 km was rather tormenting. The sun was out and the final stretch of route was so barren (runway of sort) and we were fully exposed to the elements.

Maybe the starting time can be brought forward a little bit?
Or
Maybe I should just train up myself to withstand the elements more? :P

Now.. erm..
I still feel tired. Natural, I guess.
But I think because of the (free) foot massage, I really don’t have that kind of usual/familiar aching feeling on my legs at all. That aunty must be really powerful. Just 5 minutes, she can do such magic! Wow..

- - - -

Since this is a pretty light entry, I think I can share with you two rather funny pictures.

This photo was taken when the Chinese president went to US.

This photo was taken when Bush went to China.

I shall leave the interpretation to you. :o)
I go and hit-the-sack now.

Eating-Not-So-Rightly..

Had a very filling lunch today. To give you an idea : Just two of us were served with 9 dishes with each dish meant to feed 5 people. Actually the portion of some dishes, I suspect, can even be shared comfortably with 10 people.

We tried, but wastage was inevitable. It was so filling, I skipped my dinner entirely.

I know this way of eating may not be too right. But, once in a while, for a good reason (like being there to witness the union of LK and SS) it is fine. Haha..

Congratulation to them!
And must thank them for my bigger tummy now lor. Mm..

Talking about eating…
I am thinking about eating “right”. Oh I am not talking about what to eat to get a balance, healthy and nutritious meal. I am just talking about…
Okay, I am speechless, see it for yourself.

Eating fresh fish equals to eating fish alive?
So sorry if you believe in this style of eating, but I think it is rather cruel.
I know many fellow human beings cannot even tahan a needle prick. But when comes to eating fellow living creatures walking the same planet earth, they .. erm.. seem to forget the kind of pain inflicted. Mm..

What about
Eating monkey "fresh" brains?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e3Q0DYo3zPk

What about
Drinking "fresh" cobra blood?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uBQyb1bKD2g

咳！…
究竟谁比较「毒」？

"Other-Where" by WJ..

Me : Hey WJ, you said E is supposed to be at classroom X. I didn’t see her there. Where could E be?

WJ : I don’t know. If not classroom X, then it must be other-where then.

Me : Huh? Ooi! What do you mean by "other-where"?

Haha.. We burst out laughing..

This kind of funny-thing often comes out from WJ’s mouth. And when I teased him, he often talks about how he had gotten B4 for his O-Level English, which is way better than mine. Okay lor, you win.

Anyway, speaking in English may not be his forte. He knows it. But now everyone is preparing for PW-OP (Project Work Oral Presentation). He may be stressed, but his attitude of learning always impressed me. He made an effort to memorize his entire 5 minute speech, and practicing it again and again, trying his best to improve his fluency each time.

Today, he even requested that I sit-in while he practised and to give him a pointer or two. Aiyo.. I know my limits. Who am I to give what pointer? By courtesy, I just obliged to listen to his presentation. His seriousness in acting all-so-cool during his speech can make me laugh. But I controlled and only smiled.

His effort.. yes, his effort.. I’m ever so impressed.

Anyway, his has a pair of small eyes but always sparkle with keenness to learn more and more in every single lesson. His has a big built that seems to be able to overpower many people if he wants to, yet he is still always pretty gentle in his ways.

- - - -

He and more other *little pals often set me thinking :
If my learning attitude were to be as good as them when I was of their age, I think I would not-be-just-me as now.
Anyway.. time never goes back.
I got to just pick up from here and move on.

- - - -

~ ~ Risk Taking ~ ~

I used to think I am timid and not wish to take risk especially when financial issues are concerned. But lately, I don’t know what got into me and erm.. got myself involved in some super high-risk investments, kind of investments friends are wary about and warned me against. Now I know it is also a kind of investment authorities are investigating. Mm.. My side is pretty safe by now (as I got back what I'd put in and more and supposedly to be keep on coming). My only concern now is for the other pal I naively “dragged” into it. He needs just 3 more months to break even. Of course, if things go on as planned, everything will look so good and rosy, but if.. erm.. *finger crossed*.

谢谢多位相当关心的朋友。
这次我算是脱了险，不过感觉还是那么的不踏实。
我只希望不会拖累或殃及他人。

Such were the days..

I was randomly reading and I came across these :

We had no seatbelts, no airbags and sitting in the back of a truck was a treat…

Our baby prams had the most georgeous lead based colours…

Cycling was like a breath of fresh air…
no safety helmets, knee pads or elbow pads, with plenty of cardboards between spokes to make it sound like a motorbike… and we were fearless on our bikes even when the brakes failed going downhill…

We were showing off how tough we are, by how high we could climb trees & then jumping down…. It was great fun….

We had no mobile phones, but we always managed to find each other….
How? no one knows…

We lost teeth, broke arms & legs, we got cuts and bruises and bloody noses…. nobody complained as we had so much fun, it wasn’t anybodys fault, only ours

We ate everything in sight, cakes, bread, chocolate, icecream, sweet sugary drinks, yet, we stayed skinny by fooling around.

And if one of us was lucky to find a 1 litre coca cola bottle we all had a swag from it & guess what? nobody picked up any germs...

We did not have Play Stations, MP3, Nintendo’s, I-Pods, Video games, 99 Cable TV channels, DVD’s, Home Cinema, Mobile phones, Home Computers, Laptops, Chat-rooms, Internet, etc ... BUT, we had REAL FRIENDS!!!!

We played with sticks and stones, played cowboys and Indians, doctors and nurses, hide and seek, soccer games, over and over again…

When we failed our exams we were given a second chance by simply repeating the same grade…without visiting psychiatrists, psychologists or counselors…

We had freedom, success, disappointments and responsibilities...
Most of all, we learned to respect others…

- - - - - - - - -

The question posted was “How did one survive?”

Different generation, time is changing, people are evolving, expectations are revising, etc.. I have to acknowledge all these.

Somehow I still enjoy more simplicities.
Or perhaps my simple mind can no longer handle the complexities. Heh.
Or perhaps …

我就是向往《单纯的美》。
可是，我却早已复杂化了。

- - - - - - - - -

She wants to be more emotional independent..

Y said this year she has learnt to be more emotionally independent. She said she had learnt not to vocalize her fears and problems too much, worrying that it can only upset others more.

她认为过一味地向人吐苦水，只不过是会把烦恼带给别人。
她只想带给别人快乐，她不想带给别人烦恼。
所以，她决心要变得更坚强。

但是，我也担心，一向来需要找人倾诉的她，
这么一来，不是会憋得很辛苦吗？

I asked : Why do you need to be so restrictive?

Y replied : It’s okay. I will learn to cope. Just like you what⁺. Knowing you for more than 10 years, you also never share your concerns and problems before.

Q was just beside and she added : Maybe Nanzi never got concerns and problems mah.

I was pretty speechless.

By the way, “⁺Just like you what” is 「就好像你嘛」 and certainly not 「就是喜欢你嘛」。

- - - - - -

人生在世，有哪个没有烦恼呢？
我尝试以画来讲解。

你们猜一猜我想画什么？
After guessing just click on the picture itself for the answer.



哈哈。
这「苦」字好像都写在每一个人的脸上嘛。

For Q to think/comment that I’m problem-free is.. mm.. heh..
It is just usually not my style to talk about it.

话说回来，
我还真的不善于谈我的「烦恼」与「苦楚」。
若是要谈也从来不超过实情的一半。
剩余的都会让时光冲淡。

- - - - - - - - -

最近心情不悦，也是在等时光将之冲淡 …
功力不足，不悦的心情偶尔还写在脸上 …
友人问起，我也只是以「不舒服」带过 …
回避一下，表情整理一番，才敢再出发 …

咳 …
好多话想说，但是不能说 …
好多话该说，但是没有说 …

Mm …
不然今天也试一试到海边让海风冲淡，一切随风飘散 …

- - - - -

For your easy reading, the text in the picture says :
Ladies and gentlemen, this is captain speaking. Firstly, I'd like to thank you for choosing to fly Manadarin Airlines. As we taxi out to the runway please make yourself comfortable... and for those of you sitting on the right side of the plane... please look to your LEFT!

Taking a bath together..

Wow!
It was unplanned. It naturally came by...
And I think it was undeniably one of the best thing to do on such a hot afternoon.
I registered every facial expression.
Undoubtedly it was heavenly and blissful, telling me how enjoyable the whole experience was for each other.
It was indeed memorable.
.
.
.
.


Wait a minute.
Just what are you thinking?
No no no.. not that kind of intimacy you expect between me and whoever out there.

I was driving along a road on a hot afternoon. The traffic was pretty heavy and I was driving at snail’s pace. My eyes wandered around and I saw something interesting.

There was a small and shallow pool of water just along an old pavement beside the road. That pavement is old and uneven. The unevenness allows it to trap a pool of water due to the previous’ night downpour.

A few mynas were playing in that small pool of water together. Not just that, I saw a few more black pigeons amongst them too. Because the pool was really shallow and small, it cannot possibly house the entire company all at once.

You know what? They actually took turns. A few mynas walked towards the middle, supposedly the deepest part, flapped their wings, get soaked, stayed for a while, then walked towards the side of the pool. Next a few fatter and bigger pigeons walked towards it, generating much bigger splashes, enjoying the water bath. The mynas just looked on, waiting for their turns.

I would have stayed longer. I would have whipped out my camera to take a few shots. Aiya.. Forget to bring my camera. Silly. I was driving! Even if I were to bring my camera along, I can’t do it. Haha.. I just got to move on.

Let me see if I can grab a comparable picture in the web.

Okay, this one comes near. You just got to imagine a few more mynas and a few more black pigeons near by, waiting eagerly for their turns.

It was funny and interesting to see how different species coming together and enjoy in harmony (more or less).
One more true story here.

It leaves me thinking (randomly)...
- Animals are certainly also complex beings looking forward to good fun and safe company.
- Can we (human beings) come together to take a bath together and work in (more) harmony?
- The behaviours by these animals may also be teaching us a lesson or two.

- - - - - - - - - -



有一位圣者这么说：

聪明的人，争取时间。
懒惰的人，等待时间。
愚蠢的人，浪费时间。

Each time I fall..

Each time I fall… I actually become stronger and better once I get up.
Ha.. I am not trying to be philosophical here. :P
I am actually referring to my experiences inline-skating practices.

It is so obvious that I actually fell down the most number of times during all official lessons and self practices. All my protective guards are now bearing deep scratches. I can’t imagine those scratches to be transferred directly to my knees, elbows or wrist. Thank god!

昨天跌得最严重。
我看跌倒的震动都让我五脏六腑移了位。 Exaggerating, of course..
大拇指稍微扭伤、食指也擦破了皮。Small case, I know..
腰部两边的骨也觉得有一些怪异。No worries man..

A little joke :
I fell so many times that people around me got so used to it.
During the first few rounds, there were concerns saying things like “are you ok?” or something alike.
Now.. err..
WK : Hey Nanzi, 你跌倒的姿势很正确。手有直伸出来 to break the fall。教练也是这么说的。10 分。满分。哈哈。。
And then he just bladed past me. Aiyo.. haha..

I know the problem is usually because I am often blading at a speed often too fast for myself. A little ... erm... 不自量力, I know. And when any abnormality arises (even just by placing my tired foot at not-so-right angle on the ground while moving), I may tumble much like humpty dumbty.

The idea of falling down, crashing down at not-so-low speed isn’t pleasant at all, I must agree. But I can’t fail to notice, each time I get up.. take a little break.. move on.. I become better (I think). Now that’s the consolation. Haha.. And with this in mind, I am looking forward to each fall. Crazy. Nay, I am looking forward to my better skills after each fall, if I were to fall.

We may be just graduates of Beginner Level, but we are already self practicing skills pegged at Intermediate Level. Hehe..

- - - - - - - -

你怕「跌倒」吗？

「跌倒」或许会让人沮丧
振作一点它也会让人坚强

人生旅途要一直一帆风顺很难
「风浪」来袭之时咱唯有面对
即使「遍体鳞伤」也要很确定
再一次站起来的我们将更坚强

- - - - - - -

A little (very short, yet rather inspirational) story to share : A box.

Approaching Retirement…

We (okay, majority of us, if not all) like to lead a simple, relaxing, yet meaningful life. But the society is functioning in such a way, we just got to work (and work.. ). Even if we are thinking of only self-sustaining, cultivating the crops enough for our own survival can be so energy-draining. See, I’m even assuming that we have the know-hows of planting rice.

It’s okay if we like the work of what we are working on. Besides, often, that is also a possible source of where we derive the “meaningfulness” from. However, even if we were to like our profession that much, I don’t think it is ever simple and relaxing.

So when can we actually lead a simple, relaxing, yet meaningful life?

When we apply leave and go for holiday lor…

Fine.
But that’s so short-term.
虽然会埋怨它的短暂，
在无他计可施的时候对它也是相当的渴望。

After we retire from our work at old age lor …

Fine.
But with old age also comes… erm… health problems.
一生的付出奉献，都是在盼退休后的那种悠闲生活。
可是有的人，在渐渐迈进退休年龄的时候也「盼」到了病魔缠身。
所以，忙碌了一生，退休后也不能真正的悠闲。

- - - - - -

I am only thinking..
Are there things we dearly hope to achieve and yet we decide to postpone them till after our retirement?
Maybe “achieve” is too heavy a word to use.
I try again.
Are there things we dearly hope to try, to say, to do, to express, to … and yet… work-come-first-free-then-see-how??

人生充满等待。
而我们也不懂我们所等待的另一端会有什么在等着我们。

或许人生就是那么无常。

也许…
只要我们懂得调式我们的心态、心情…
只要我们懂得当下过得充实…

所以我们
不需要等到退休后才…
不要只懂得沉浸在工作上而忽略了…

Haiz..
Just quite many random thoughts when the two phrases “approaching retirement” and “health problems” are put together. The marriage of these phrases is never part of anyone’s plan, but.. it dawns on me that it is so real.

- - - - - - - - - -



有一位圣者这么说：

人务必让自己生活得纯正无私，
不要让自己不良的思想占尽心灵。

人的思想如果不纯正，行为自然也不纯正，
将来就会产生灾害苦难。

所以，
一个制箭的人，定会设法使箭笔直；
一个挖沟的人，定会设法使沟通畅；
一个智慧的人，定会设法使心纯真。

Reading (My) Health Screening Report.

I am not really very into health screening. I don’t think I will initiate voluntarily for any health screen myself (unless I feel something very not right or unless kena ordered by doctor). But when the medical team literally knocked at the door (I mean they really came down to the work place) and providing subsidized rates… erm.. okay lor.

Besides, lately I have heard the following slogans so many times :
「验得早、过得好」
「健康无价」

Plus, I have reached such an age-group whereby every medical personnel will advise me to do periodic screening.

Anyway, the tests done generated the following profiles :
Lipid Profile, Liver Profile, Renal Profile, Diabetes Mellitus Profile, Bone/Joint Function, Hepatitis Profile, Thyroid Function, Tumour Profile, Carcinoembryonic Antigen Test, Haematology Profile, Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate, Urine Profile.

- - - -

All is well. Phew..

Nevertheless, some readings caught my attention.

(1) You are overweight. You should …
So, I am overweight, clinically speaking. Haha..
Oh well, if they were to base their finding on Body Mass Index (BMI), I am indeed a little overweight now. Yes, I admit, I put on a little more weight, but silly BMI can’t distinguish between muscle mass and fat mass what. What to do?! As if.. Haha..

(2) Calcium : 9.9mg/dL (Ref. Range : 8.4 – 10.4)
So, my calcium reading is not just within the normal range but also tending towards the higher-end side. Mm..
I have been taking vegetarian food for 12 years (and counting). Besides, for the past 6 years or so, I have been trying my best to avoid dairy products too.
Where the extra calcium comes from then? Mm..
Oh, I’m crazy over mushrooms and nuts. Maybe these are rich in Calcium too? :o)

(3) Potassium : 5.7 mmol/L (Ref. Range : 3.3 – 5.1)
My potassium level is mildly raised.
No cause of concern though. However, it is advisable to repeat this test in a few months’ time.
I read that increased levels of potassium can cause a decrease in muscle function, and may occur in circulatory failure (shock) and kidney failure. Mm..
My diet got so much potassium meh?
The following table explains why : Table of food rich in potassium.
No wonder. All are my favourites. :P
Actually a few days before the test, I had also been drinking a lot of pomegranate juice, which is known to be very rich in potassium also.

(4) Haemoglobin : 16.1 g/dL (Ref. Range : 13.5 – 18)
Iron is the key raw material required by the body to keep the production of Hb up to the normal rate. The more popular rich sources of iron are meat, liver, eggs, etc. Mm.. Then I must have my iron source from elsewhere.

(5) ESR : 1 mm/hr (Ref. Range : <11)
While randomly reading through some websites (for example : here), I noted that my reading is comparable to a newborn. Haha..

- - - - - -

The other readings appear just "normal" and they don't leave much impression with me even now that I'm writing this entry.

~ ~ Choose A Healthy Lifestyle ~ ~
Everyone wants to be healthy.
May I say, in many ways, we are responsible for it.

Wishing all of you be always in the pink of health.

- - - - - - -



有一位圣者这么说：

圣佛与凡夫不同之处，在于
凡夫争利，圣佛争善。
凡夫是损人利己，圣佛是当仁不让。

所谓
「争强之人，其心最弱；争富之人，其心最穷；
「争胜之人，其心常输；争权之人，其心常困。」

唯有争善之人，其心常乐。

因之 ——
人之心胸，有欲则窄，无欲则宽。
人之心术，有欲则险，无欲则平。
人之心事，有欲则忧，无欲则安。
人之心气，有欲则馁，无欲则刚。

坚强之伟大是战胜自己的私欲，而不是战胜别人。

Of Punctuality..

Imagine a system in place in college whereby there is a bell (let’s call it E-bell) 5 minutes before the start of every period. This E-bell is therefore also a signal that any on-going lesson should stop to allow students to take a stretch-break or toilet-break before transiting to the next lesson venue punctually.

There are just too many instances whereby many teaching staff disregard this E-bell and drag on the lesson for a few more minutes and still magically expects students to be punctual for the next lesson. Heh..

There is one fellow colleague who happens to have such habit or practice (of dragging on, disregarding the time). By some strokes of luck, every Friday, one of the classes his was tutoring should come for my lesson immediately after his. It is only natural that most of the time, this class will be late.

I was told, he was insistent in completing a point or two even after the students reminded him that the time is up and they just have to move to the next lesson venue, else they will be late.

This happened too frequently. I reminded him a few times, in the nicest of tone. Heh.. Apparently, he didn’t get it well.

I thought of a way to get the point across to him.

I wrote him a dramatic email, expressing my frustration and questioning his practice. I think the email must have stunned him quite a bit. :P

He jumped to his defense and replied.

Some extracts :

… If I were to offer any reasons (or excuses since any explanation still points to my fault of letting them off late), it would be that the class has half-hour less tutorial time compared to my other H2 class and often I have to rush through my entire tutorial with them. The class is also generally weaker and needs more clarification time during tutorial.

… To me, the E-bell is a "reminder" bell that the lesson is ending and the teacher should round up his lessons and dismiss his/her students for the next class. The teacher cannot just truncate his/her lesson immediately, especially when he is explaining a concept, going through a question, etc. Definitely the summary and round up will take a minute or two.

- - - -

Ha..
He seems to be right. Mm.. But that is only if we choose to look at things in a more self-centred way. Somehow I feel that he still missed the point. I wrote him a reply, but this time I make it less dramatic, but more to the point.

Some extracts :

I see the E-bell as a "reminder" too. But a reminder of a different kind. It's a reminder we should stop. You mentioned "the teacher cannot just truncate his/her lesson immediately, especially when he is explaining a concept, going through a question.."
Mm...
I am not disagreeing with that. But I cannot totally agree with that too.

We ought to be "aware" of the time. We are in control, we should be "always" in control, ideally saying so. As such I don't start a "fresh point" near the finishing time, unless I am confident in completing it. However, things may not (in reality) be at our control at times, I understand. As in students might wish to clarify and things get dragged on. I just got to take note of where exactly I had stopped and to take off from there at the next lesson.

While I am also rather concern of the abruptness of my stoppage, I am also just as concern that I am taking up the time of other subjects (remembering full well that they too have 1/2 truncated for every week). I can "see" the other teacher eagerly waiting for them at the other classroom. I just don't have the heart to "drag" on.

I hope the students can make use of the 5 minutes to freshen up and be very ready for the next lesson too. I literally chased them out of the class. As I "demand" punctuality for my lesson (simply because I believe in it), I have zero basis to "drag" on. I must stop on time.

In a way, I think you do believe in punctuality also, don't you? :o)

You see. Whenever SPAs draw near and the Science Head(s) sent out email(s) reminding everyone to release students on time, I see that all of you believe strongly in punctuality too. However, I see such email(s) as "silly" and "redundant". It should be a cultured habit for every single lesson, regardless. How ironical when many science teachers literally drag on lessons and yet can make such request? But again, such request seems "necessary" as we seem to know not many teachers are sensitive to the E-bell. Heh..

I try to remind myself this way.

I don't just think about "I need to finish a point". I also think of "the other teacher is waiting (just as eagerly)".
It takes effort and time to practice this well.
It certainly feels weird to finish a point abruptly. But over the years, I become more sensitive about when I should start to explain a new concept. I became more sensitive of the time left, before I make a point. I know my actions, my decisions can also affect other teachers' plan as well. Do you remember how our new VP speaks? He speaks with his watch right in front of him. Yes, he is a VP. He also make it a point to take note of time (up to the minute) while making his delivery. When the time factor is a constraint, he even has to change his style of delivery, or the actual content he wishes to share as planned. I think he demonstrates a very good habit, somehow.

- - - - -

I think I must be too free liao. Haha..

My intention was not to attack him lah. I was only trying to bring a point to him more clearly since I reminded him so many times verbally already. The written form seems more effective lor. Today, that class actually turned up (in full strength) at the lesson venue earlier than me.

Kaoz.. Now I actually feel a little bad and I only hope I didn't scare him or hurt him or anything.

Silly me is still exploring better ways of getting things done more amiably yet effectively. Mm.. Anyone care to teach me?

- - - - - - - - - -



谁是食物配给的主人

齐国有一位姓田的大贵族，在宫阶前举行大拜拜，席开百桌以上，参加筵宴的食客有千人左右，客人当中有献上鱼和鹅作为礼物。

田氏很欣喜的接受，并略带感慨的说：
「上天真是厚待我们呀！不只是生长五谷令人食用，
你看，这些鱼鹅，不是都为我们的口腹之欲而生吗？」
所有食客都响起了附和的掌声。

席中有位鲍家的孩子，年纪才十二岁，随即站起来反驳说：
「我不同意这种论调。
人类和天地万物共同生存在这大地上，本身并没有贵贱之别。
由于身体的大小、智力高低而造成弱肉强食的情况，
这并非上天注定谁必须为谁所食。
人类当然自己选择食物，不能说是上天特为人类创造的。
正如蚊子吸人的血，虎狼啃人的肉，
这难道也是上天安排人类来当作它们的食物吗？」