Once in a while

A long post once in a while is the norm now...somehow I kind of lost interest in writing here, lazy for the most part. I am quite a workaholic nowadays, or perhaps a worry-wart. Always trying to do something in advance, always wanted to plan ahead.

Work has been ok so far I guess, things are pretty relaxed at the office, but the bad thing is that I find it really hard to be productive when I'm sitting at my table. I surf the net aimlessly, do small bite-sized manageable stuff and can't focus on doing the more tedious things like marking for example. Really wasting time actually. What I'll have to do more is to go home early and do the necessary in the comfort of my own place.

Still haven't paddled as much as I would like to, but I should be going on some day trips soon enough as my 3 star kids need to log sea journeys. Would want to take the chance to get the PC people to go paddle together again, really nice to see all of them whenever we get the chance.

And because of my new bike, I now feel the urge to go out for a ride whenever I look at it. But then it still strange for me to go for a round trip without some purpose or objective, no matter how small that is. I do know that I just want to go at a nice easy pace, be able to spin easily, and enjoy the sensations of being in the flow of traffic and the constant wind on my face. Maybe I should tell myself to go Tiong Bahru to get a bowl of Cheng Tng...

Finally, I have to say that it is good to let your office knows about what you think once in a while. Had the chance to do say what I wanted to say and do things the way I wanted at work recently, and it's quite refreshing. To hell with politics and hiding your thoughts because you think the bosses will want things done their way always - I think telling people what's the best way to do some things really helps, and they'll appreciate honesty and constructive feedback.

New hobby...

I've got a new hobby called bikegazing! Wanna see how it goes?


Hope that was fun for you too! haha...

Ok anyway besides being lame I thought maybe I'll write a little more here...hm...CNY was good this year, as usual. Though I don't get as much angbaos anymore and have to give them out instead, reunion dinner was interesting with my uncle as the cook, I get to Lo Hei like ten different times, and I have my fair share of gambling (and winning!). Ahh...if only I can play more mahjong still...

Somehow, this term my timetable is quite slack but I'm still busy with work whenever I sit down to think about it. Lots of paperwork to do with my CCA, and I just can't muster up enough effort to clear it all up once and for all. I'm taking things easy but at the same time stressing myself by thinking of all the work still around all the time, weird.

So what am I looking forward to this year then?

• Building up my form class to be the best class in the level! It sure is hard work trying to gel noisy sec 1s together, with their daily bickering, but I think I'm on the right track...
• Training a select group of kids to go for and complete 3 star kayaking! Are they the only secondary school ever to try for that? Half of them already knows how to roll before they even went to the course under my tutelage! I'm so proud of them...
• Holidays? Going Korea in June, but actually, what will really make me happy is a short paddling trip somewhere...anyway...
• Cycling more on my new lean mean biking machine!

Things have been idyllic and peaceful so far this year...hope it lasts...

A new ride!

My new bike!

It is a carbon-tubed bike with aluminium lugs and weighs 7.92kg without accessories . I bought the frame on the cheap and built it up with parts new, second-hand or transferred from my previous bike.

Just took it out for a spin...the difference in the feel of the ride was huge. Pedals were so smooth due to the ceramic bearings, and the dampening of the road vibrations were superb. Finally, I experienced the fabled carbon ride, and it was real good.


Falling in love with cycling all over again!

Bike project

My new bike frame! Bought this last season's model on the cheap to build up, and it has been lying on the carpet for 2 weeks already waiting for its parts. I've always liked BMC for its interesting design, and it's really a steal now. Besides, now that BMC has divorced from Easton for its tubes and such, its quality is probably not going to be as good, despite whatever technical jargon they cooked up to convince others that they are doing that for better quality.

So, what's going up on it? Another pair of cheap Soul 3 wheels (the same one on my Fondriest now), a FSA K-wing bars, Enric's Ultegra set on the cheap, and carbon cranks (got to have that la). Want to get the very reliable KMC gold chain again too. Will be transferring my saddle and pedals over because they were good buys and it'll be expensive to replace them, and selling the rest of the Fondriest.

Everything will fall into place next week!

Kite flying

About 3 weeks ago the guys arranged for a kite flying outing, and it was quite nice to try this again after so long. They went out of their way to buy the kites, and there's quite a bit of variety in the ones that they got.

It seems like everyone's hard at work, but I'm a little lazy. My new kite (I forgot to take a picture of it!) was up in no time and was at the end of its tether after a minute. And then it was a problem of 'so how now'...

I hooked it up to my bike brake levers...and it dropped quite soon after....went to retrieved it, got it up a second time, and again the same thing happened when I anchored it down. It seems that my patience for the activity is pretty low...after it is soaring comfortably I can't really stand standing there not doing anything. So I kept it after a while.

It was quite interesting to watch other people's kite actually, these spectacular ones look damn huge with its long trailing tentacles, really nice!

And on a separate occasion - I got my kids down for the Singapore International Kite Festival for CIP, and the variety of kites there is pretty impressive too. There's a massive teddy bear and turtle which are 'inflated' with the wind, but don't really go very high, and a parachute kite with a long line of small kites on its line below it.

Will I try it again? Hm...not a bad day out la, just to be in the outdoors. But it's really freaking hot! Sun protection is mandatory.

Review: Buried Treasures

Went for this concert on Friday, just to hear Shostakovich's violin concerto. We should have looked carefully and noticed that the concerto only starts after the interval, and should have went for dinner instead of going in on time. My goodness, Schumann is really insipid in some ways. Nice motifs here and there, but the whole piece hardly qualifies as a symphony. Seems to me like he treated the orchestra as a string ensemble, and uses the other parts of the orchestra sparingly in unimaginative ways.

And then, Shostakovich was next. From the first few bars, I decided that I like Ivanov's playing, strong notes with secure intonation that was well projected. His phrasing and cadence was good as he went through the piece, and at the end of it, I have to say that I couldn't expect anything more in terms of interpretative intelligence. His virtuosity showed in the fast movements, very strong technique that carried off the cadenze very well, and the last movement too.

I was transfixed as I watched the concert, stiff and straight as he captured my attention entirely for the 40 minutes. I thought it will be hard for me to accept anything other than Oistrakh's archetypical recording, but I am mightily pleased with this too! He topped it off with Ysaye's Les Furies, showing off his technical skills again.

I look forward to more concert like this! The next one by Leonidas Kavakos promises to be equally spectacular too!

Cycling on roads

Thoughts on the recent road cyclign debate

• Motorists are supposed to overtake or give way to slow moving traffic, so what's the argument about? It is legal for a bicycle to take up a whole lane. And if they don't, it is because they act out of courtesy, allowing cars to overtake them without having to change lane. That should not be seen as a fault that makes cars want to swerve out!
• Motorists often misjudge our speed - we can go much faster than we seem. So don't try to do that right turn when you see us coming from a distance. We can't stop as easily as them too; trying to stop probably results in as much accidents as collisions themselves, though with less serious consequences.
  
• There's so many insane drivers on the road, catch them all first before talking about rule-breaking cyclists. Just as there are reckless cyclists, there are also (much more) reckless drivers.
  
• Cyclists on pedestrain walk ways should push or quietly pedal behind pedestrians. They have no right to get them to give way just because they have a bell. Pedestrains should exercise their right not to give way!
• The road tax excuse for getting bikes off roads is damn stupid, if drivers have some sense they should stop invoking this lame reason.
• Cycling groups are a little dangerous in my opinion, but it's just an impression. If they want to cut across 3 lanes, they should be a tight group, not a train.
• The government should stop giving lame excuses and start building those bike lanes. Developed countries with a huge load of cars have bike lanes too.
  
• I beat red lights only when I'm going straight along T-Junctions, and that's because I don't hog a lane.
  

Actually, despite commuting to work everyday, I have very little unpleasant experiences with motorists. I like to think that's because I've experience in knowing what I should do and what other motorists are thinking, and react accordingly to give everyone their space.

Reading fads

It's interesting to see students following certain trends in their reading choices, blindly subscribing to the bookshops' marketing promotions. First there was the Harry Potter series, then the Vampire trilogy (the one which made vampirism really attractive and sexy), and also there's the Endearing Animal stories (Which spawned off from Marley & Me).

I think Harry Potter's pretty ok probably (I never read a word of it though), and the vampire stories at least teaches them courage in tackling thick volumes. I'm very much disturbed by the most recent reading fad though, which I called the Depraved Adult literature. Those which promises stories of various forms of child abuse in all their sordid details. What a disgusting choice of book for leisure reading! Not something I'll recommend 13 year olds to read, and my sec 1 kids do read them ok.

Now if only the booksellers go back to promoting the classics in a similar fashion, I'm sure children will end up being more literate and intelligent by reading the good stuff instead.

Misused terms

Unleash potential
Potential is an ambiguous word that is hard to define in concrete terms. It is 'latent' ability that may or may not manifest. So it is debatable whether a certain potential exists in a certain person ; barring physical and mental deficiencies, we can all potentially break any record! The pairing of potential with 'unleash' assumes firstly the existence of potential, and that it is 'leashed' some how (by what?).

If the term refers to the breaking down of boundaries that might hinder the manifestation of potential, it is too vague because it presupposes the presence of both. In any case, it is a hideous term - you unleash animals, not ideas. Nurturing talents sounds better, or if you want it the bombastic way, actualising talents.

Strategic thrusts
Continuing the theme of violence, measures and objectives must be strategically 'thrusted' into the system, probably to jolt it alive (in pain). Why can't they use 'organisational goals' or something else equally bombastic if they so wish? Another hideous term...

Grow students
Students grow by themselves, we don't need to feed them fertilisers or water them. The person who thought of this term must be a biology teacher.

World class (anything)
Singapore favourite term, which refers to being among the best in anything. Usually refers to indicators of economic status like airports, ports, education system etc. But no one ever presses the relevant organisation of the benchmark of 'world class'! And why not try to be world class in something that money can't buy, like world class service or world class sports achievements or world class civil society?

My new class

I had the fortune of being assigned as the form teacher for the first express class for the sec 1 level this year - I think the management finally realised that I'm best suited to teaching high ability learners. Which is not to say that I didn't enjoy teaching the second last class last year and the year before, but I think the management is not convinced that my methods will develop their language skills rather than confusing them.

The first class is quite noisy when they are relaxed around me actually, which my students always do. They will raise quick suggestions all over, and counter-suggestions will come from other parts of the classroom without my intervention. They perpetually remind me of the hundred and one forms that they are supposed to hand up to me and the stuff that i'm supposed to collect from them. a third of the class shot up their hands in the air when I asked if anyone's willing to try be the class chairperson and vice-chairperson. And amazingly, when the classroom is empty in between lessons, they are all in their seats and eerily quiet. The last one is really a winning quality that will no doubt score points with the school management.

Ahh...life is gonna be good. I am going to try revolutionary ideas to make my form class a real home for them this year, and it is good to know so early on that I have an appreciative group. Maybe they will be my best teaching class ever. Perhaps they might even be the class to hold me back in this school for another 2 years.

A new start

Someone remarked about why I stopped blogging, and I don't really know why too. It's seems as if the impulse to blog interesting thoughts just stopped acting up on me nowadays. Perhaps I'm just content to let things happen without contemplating too much, perhaps I was too busy at work or on holiday, or maybe I just stopped thinking, full stop. Which is which? I really don't know.

So anyway, it's the dreaded start to school again. Actually, I don't really feel it's dreadful la. I regret the end of the holidays that's for sure, but then school isn't that bad at all for me this year. I've done a lot of preparatory work, beginning of school is quite slack, I'm the form teacher of the best class in the level, and as usual, my healthy optimism for the future kicks in (before it gets destroyed in mid-term).

It's nice to go back and see the kids I taught last year now supposedly more mature. They are really conscious of their new status in school, and truly behave accordingly without any prompting. And I was thinking that it's so nice to see some of the angelic kids, and that sustains my motivation to continue teaching. But in no way am I inclined to have kids of my own, still!

So, a brand new year with a new class, and I'm going to kickstart my plan of moulding them into the best class of the level in spirits and character. Let's see what happens!

A holiday report

Have been ages since I posted anything here, I must have lost all my audience. It's not that I'm busy in school (in fact I think the last semester was the easiest one ever), but somehow just lazy to write? Either because I don't find much urge to write about my common life or I'm just more into other things now. I am getting much more forward looking with my work, always looking to see if I can prepare something for the future always. And I still stay away from facebook, of course.

Well, since the holidays, I had done 2 of my CCA's camp, where I spent sleepless nights making leaders out of them haha. Starting to think the kids do much better than me in terms of resilience, and I'm really amazed at what they can do sometimes, when we give them a push and a shove. My biggest triumph was to get my sec 2 kids to learn the 'Virginia Reel' dance and teach their seniors; it was great to see them laughing themselves silly learning it and then enjoying the performance.

And I went for a 10 day Melbourne trip! Flew there on the new Airbus, very shiok to watch big screen tv! It was a driving trip mainly, going around the Grampians National Park and the Great Ocean Road. Nice scenic views there, cute penguins on Philip Island, got to see real koalas too. But ultimately, somehow it didn't gave me memories that makes me wanna go back there again, like how I felt after going to Perth. Maybe it was the lack of sporting action - the only physical activity in the itinerary was to swim with the seals at Sorrento, and it was freaking cold. We're already thinking of a return trip in the future, with surfing and climbing and more shopping at Macpac and Kathmandu haha.

Now, I'm eagerly counting down to the Southern Islands paddling trip happening on Sunday. I miss sea expeditions badly, and seeing how much I am anticipating it I realised I really ought to go out to sea more often like this. It's just damn sad that a day trip around Ubin just doesn't cut it, and the SIE is the only trip that feels like a proper expedition around Singapore. Time to venture into Malaysia perhaps? Or maybe do more weekend staycations on the islands like this haha.

Ok, I'll promise to post photos and trip report after the SIE!

Family

On Thursday, Mum called to say that Ah ma was hospitalised due to a weak heart, and asked me to go down pay her a visit if I can - she might just go anytime with the next attack.

I wanted to visit her the next day, but then apparently she was discharged. Turns out that she was admitted just as a precaution after suffering a moment of difficulty, but she's fine enough to stay at home already. There's probably no difference resting at hospital or at home, and the latter is definitely much preferred.

Still, it was a moment of fateful dread that I felt when I first heard the news; Quite a while back I said that I wanted to get her over to my house for a visit, to make her proud of her grandson's own home. I thought that I wouldn't have the chance to do so man.

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Anyway, I visited her at home the next day, and she was quite dismissive of her condition. Staying beside her while she was watching TV, she asked me to take care of my aunt who's single and living alone by herself, telling me how much my aunt loved me when I was younger.

And yes, I did kind of forgot about her, among the other relatives around me. My life revolves around my work (stupidly) and the activities I do to escape from it (sports). I actually miss my nephews too, but never could find the opportunity to meet them up or visit their place.

It's sad, but i think I need post-it memos to remind myself of my relatives so that I'll think of them. Thought everyone has their own families and pretty much live in their own universe after that, it's not something I want happen to myself.

Training for running

Has booked my first ever IPPT since I ORD-ed on the 7th of November, and I'm trying to get myself into shape to try go for Gold. The only difficult thinga bout that is the 10min 2.4km run.

It was only last week that I started the training. I chose to do interval training cos I like speed training, and the rest after that. My mental strength is quite weak and training by running the actual distance probably wouldn't be very productive as I cannot push myself hard. So, progressively longer distances for my interval training, from 400m per lap, to 800m per lap yesterday. Today I'll try half the distance and get it under four and a half minutes.

Indeed, I think many students of mine are quite capable of pushing themselves harder than me. There are students who run until they puke doing the distance, though I'm not sure whether that's due to a weak body. Nevertheless, I have never reach the state of total exhaustion after a race yet, and see it as a lack of total commitment to my goal.

Need to get that all-out mentality in preparation for my polo competitive play!

Playing at it.

For the second time of the week, I became a cat care volunteer, offering large slices of fish to strays around my place. Unfortunately, it wasn't very well-received by them at all!

For the first time since we moved in, we tried cooking for ourselves, a meal of fish and angmoh soup. Batang fish is quite nice, but this Toman species is really tasteless and dull, and it was a waste that it came in such large slices. We could just imagine this huge fish swimming happily in the sea meeting up with two tragic fate, first being caught in the net and second being rejected at the dining table.

So I took the slice and walked around downstairs trying to find cats to feed. After walking 2 round, I found one that sniffed it for ages, took a miniscule bite off it, then lost interest. Another ran away when I approached, and I had to waste the huge chunk of meat. The memory of seeing this National Geographic picture of a fishmonger selling a long string of fish bones to the poor people in Africa who couldn't afford the meat itself keep appearing in my mind. The entire episode happened again today, but with the same cat eating a bit more of it.

And it seems like the two of us are simply playing 'house', trying to act out a semblance of life as a 'normal' married couple. Buying groceries, cooking, cleaning up. The truth though, we really don't want to go through the trouble of cooking unless we are hosting or just want a couple activity, and I haven't moped the floor the last two Sundays.

Still I like things the way they are now. I was always abhorrant of the banality of the cloistered married couple, shut up in their own home (T.S. Eliot's poewrful images of this in 'Rhapsody on a Windy Night' is firmly etched in my mind). Cooking is more fun when it is not a necessity.

Sailing

Just went for the MOE sailing course for teachers, and it was a tiring 4 day course out in the sun. Tiring not because the activity itself is demanding, but because somehow just sitting out in the sun going round and round markers is a drain on the brain.


It was pretty fun when the wind blows strongly (it was never very strong though), I pull in the sail taut when going upwind, and hike out the side of the boat to balance the boat. But we actually spend more time sitting in the boat when the wind is low, and that's where I take a dip in the spa pool onboard (my boat was leaky) and hang around. At first I'll get psyched up and go around the triangle course as if i'm in a race, gybing with reckless abandon and loving the sudden flip of the boom, but boredom takes over when the instructors just leave us there to go round and round for a long while.


So what's next? Maybe I'll try is a few more times to get my skills fully proficient, and perhaps get level 2 in the future. I don't think I like it enough to be too 'on' about it, but perhaps just for the satisfaction of mastering a new skill (and getting a new cert/adding one more line to my CV), I might pursue the next level still.

Here's how it looks like out there. I'm actually risking capsize here by sailing one handed and only steering by hiking out, but after a while even that becomes routine.

Change

As always, James asks the most interesting questions: "Do you think you will fulfill your potential if you teach in an international school?"

Potential? What potential?

Why an international school? Never seriously thought about it...I suppose the pay will be better I guess, and the work load lighter perhaps? But I'm sure it comes with its own set of problems, like having to treat the students and parents like clients. Plus my innate ah-bengness might disagree with the environment, especially if I have to deal with bratty ang moh kids.

What exactly am I capable of anyway? I always want to inspire my kids and tell them that anything can be learnt and achieved with sufficient will, but as yet I have no grand dream to work on now. I'm just content (relieved?) to be able to do what's demanded of my job on time, and spend my own personal time vicariously for leisure. It's too demanding, inconceivable for me right now to strive towards personal goals in my out-of-office life.

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ST featured this forex trader today who worked for 4 years, calculated that he'll never be able to be financially independent if he stayed on being a salaried worker, learnt to trade in currencies, and now earn USD $15k and beyond each month. Now that's someone with the strength to make life-changing decisions. 0

I'm far from that state of being right now, and I hope Alex can make it ahead of me first!

I just feel like languishing and dragging my feet along the education track for a while mroe...ironically, mindless drudgery can be easier than mustering courage to change.

Slow pedagogy

I need to learn to live by slow pedagogy.

Walk slower.
Do less.
Relax more.

And realise that quiet time can be good times.

Argh. I need to slow my blood down.

Days of happiness

Had a bout of stomach flu last week, giving me a surprise in the form of a 2 day MC - it's a surprise because I haven't been sick this badly for a long while. Then after post-National Day holiday on Monday, I had spent the last 2 days and today at a first aid course. I can't say it's better than going back to school, but well, it got to be done, and is a change from routine at least. And next week I have to answer a ridiculous charge from SAF on Thursday, yet another day of school missed!

Indeed, these days I don't like to stay in school longer than necessary. I will try to bring breakfast to school, eat something else during recess, then after that look forward to leaving school after 2.30pm so that I can go out for lunch and then go home. Home is really enticing, and it's maddening sometimes for me to sit at my desk waiting for 2.30pm to come. Your own home is really the best place to be.

And my place has been transformed quite a bit since I moved in and took 'showflat' pics of it.

We now hang out the laundry on the balcony, and usually the coffee table is very messy with papers because we do work in front of the tv...

We put these soft toys on the carpet - A National Geographic gorilla I bought in Paris, a crocodile rug from Hong Kong, showed here eating up Domo Kun... The brown slates are extra pieces from the Ikea blinds that I bought for the study.

I fixed up the hangboard! And play with it sometimes, when I remember it whenever I'm out at the balcony.

There's now 2 small pots of plants, which thrives and wilts in turn depending on whether we remember to water them. Poor things...

The thing on the left is a water fountaing thingy which is really the most modern looking water fountain I have seen, a gift from my eldest brother. The right Buddha face is from Barang Barang of course.

A $300 Ikea cupboard placed in the spare room for the things that we couldn't stuff into the study's cupboard. It is already 1/3 filled with my university's literature notes, backpacks, soft toys etc...

Ever seen a storeroom with 3 kayaks, 5 paddles and a bike?

Karen moved in her study table last weekend and we're clearing up stuff. All my lit notes were on the floor, and I was sorting them out methodically, for the day when my student asks me about critical theory or cold war logic and I can turn them out again to refer to.

This is now my work place proper, very comfortable!

Anyway, I alighted at Jurong East MRT and was walking to IMM when I walked by a guitarist busking at the station, playing the famous Prelude from Bach for the solo violin crisply! I had to whip out my wallet and gave that guy something for providing me with a bright spark of beauty today with that music. And then during the course, I suddenly remembered that I've got tickets to Tang Tee Khoon's recital tonight! I'm sure it'll be good later.

Oh, and I've bought a few books in Kino during their N-Day sale, and 2 Adidas shirt at their discount shop at IMM recently.

How much better can things be?

No computers for kids!

Am watching a Nat Geo documentary on South Korea and its gaming culture there. It's basically stories after stories of people being addicted to computer games because of the easy access of high-speed internet. The kids start using it from a very young age, and most of them gets addicted to the screen in some way or another.

The kids talk about not going to school to play games, wanted to go professional, and am really quite unable to do anything social other than that. The parents don't know how to raise kids in the internet age, and can only let them live out their lives this way. Some of the kids play 24-48 hours non-stop, eating by the computer, and then faint from exhaustion (Quite a few die, of course).

It's a really crazy world - the teenager here on the screen is now saying that he feels that he has achieved something when he kills characters on the screen. He confuses reality with cyberspace, fearing that people be hiding behind doors stalking him, and have to sleep with his dad, waking up several times a day.

I hope this post can warn parents about the dangers of early exposure - there's already so many cases that I see in school, with the parents being unable to admit that they have long relinquished their control over to the computer screen. Sigh, and now I am reminded of the silly parents I'm dealing with, those that needs advice from their just-married, young and childless teacher...