Toy Story

Partly because the Great Singapore Sale is on, and partly because almost all of Jaimie's existing toys are hand-me-downs, Angie decided to go on a toy shopping spree when we were at IMM last Sunday.

Among the toys that she ended up buying are:

(1) Train Fun - a toy train set that moves on a colorful track that features rotating segments. Jae doesn't have too much patience with this one.

(2) Park! Amusement - a musical ferris wheel set that plays tunes such as "London Bridge is Falling Down", "Marry Had a Little Lamb". The playset also spots blinking lights, jumping pellets and a little train engine that goes round and round...very fun!

(3) Catepillar stuff toy - with the numbers 1 to 12 along its body, and the 24 alphabets on its two dozen legs. Jae calls this thing "Ka Ka".

(4) Mickey Mouse Mechanical Arm - a half-meter long plastic claw thingie that can be activated by tugging on a lever at one end. According to Angie, this is more for me to use to pick up dead lizards and cockroaches KIA in this house.

(5) Magnetic Draw - magnetic doodle board, with doodling pen and 4 stamping tools. Doodles appear in colored gradients. Cool.

The box in which Park! Amusement came in is funny. See pics here:

Doodling Jae

Angie bought a magnetic doodle board for little Jaimie two days ago, at IMM. It comes with a drawing pen that has a fine tip on one end and a broad one on the other. Other accessories include 4 stamping tools - hexagon, heart, circle and star shapes.

This one is different from the previous one we had many many years ago in that as you draw or stamp on the board, the doodles appear in different shades of color instead of monochromatic black. Contrast not that great, but still quite cool leh. Ok....I think I quite suah-ku.

Jaimie seems to enjoy playing with this new toy of hers.

Here's the first totally unassisted doodle she made!

爱爸爸

最近媛媛最爱的人是她的爸爸。

早上一起身，就“爸爸爸爸爸爸爸爸”的叫，把她亲爱的爸爸从睡梦中叫醒。起来后就一直缠着她的爸爸陪她玩玩具。按到有音乐的玩具就硬是要她的爸爸当她的舞伴。爸爸开车的时候，她高兴不高兴也开口“爸爸！”“爸爸！”的喊两下，喊到爸爸昏头转向。那颗心啊，是泡在糖水里然后裹上蜜糖再撒上糖霜。

我告诉媛媛亲爱的爸爸说，孩子爱你的时候，缠你的时候，叫你的时候，好好享受每一刻、好好享受每一个叫声。女儿长大了之后，也许就不会和爸爸那么亲热了。那时，他只好对着录象，回忆孩子把他当偶像的时刻。

我们做父母的，只有拼命的收藏回忆。将来媛媛长大了，会有一段时间朋友比较重要了。将来媛媛长大了，会有另外一个男孩比较重要。到时，在祝福她长大、祝福她找到终身快乐的时候，我们俩就一起回忆女儿小时候所有的点点滴滴吧。

放假 I-N-G

What's a five letter word that means you don't have to set your alarm clock before you go to bed at night?

The answer is "Leave".

Having accumulated 10 years of working service since last year, I'm now entitled to 28 days of vacation leave per annum, up from the previous 21.

Shiok.

This morning, at 0709hrs, I got yanked out of my sublime dream state by a string of repetitive sounds. "Hey wait a minute. I'm pretty sure the alarm clock wasn't turned on last night!” I thought as I reluctantly transited from the realm of the Dream Lord into the waking world. Gradually, my consciousness crept in and with that kicked in my sense of hearing.

No, it wasn’t the alarm clock.

It was Jamie. Standing on her mattress, looking over the foot of our bed and calling out, in her little melodic voice…

“爸爸，爸爸 ….”

I can’t think of a better way to wake up.

Something's Different

Something's different. I can feel it.

It's like....

My focus depreciated
My attention diminished
My efficiency dropped
My productivity dipped

I am having difficulty in getting the red of my Lotus Notes inbox to black.

I am even struggling to pick up the ringing phone within 3 rings.

I feel slightly light-headed. There's a strange sensation within my entire being...

Something's different. I can feel it.

I know.

It's holiday mood.

Happy Vesak Day (advanced), everyone!!

Missing You

I'm officially "On Duty" right now. Yes, it's the monthly DCPO task that I've got to perform at HQ SCDF. Since my current posting at the MHQ allows me to report to work in CV, the DCPO duty is the only reason why my Number 4 uniforms have not been sold off to the karung guni man.

Normally, for weekend duties, I'd pick the Sunday night shifts but today's duty was picked by Rachel on my behalf upon my request (was incapacitated when the i-DO system was opened for bookings). Night shifts are better than day ones 'cos you get to legitimately get some sleep (they call it 'rest' since sleeping on duty doesn't sound too good). In a typical 12 hour night shift, I'd usually get some 3 hours of shut-eyes. Now weekend 1st shift is from 0830hrs till 2030hrs. Frak, that's like from breakfast to dinner. And you don't get to make time pass faster by hitting the deck. For 12 hours, the golden hours of an otherwise beautiful Sunday no less, you get to fulyl appreciate just how slow time crawls when you're doing something you don't particularly enjoy doing. And when you're missing someone.

Especially when you're missing someone.

Weekends are really precious 'cos they are the 2 days when I can spend quality time with my two girls at home. This is just the way it is, with us being working parents and all. On weekdays we get but a miserably small window of family time after dinner and before bedtime. Can't really do something substantial, like going to a park, or a swim etc. Weekends are the only days in the week when me and the girls get to enjoy each others' companies from the moment we open our eyes (naturally, and NOT forcefully by the buzzing alarm clock!) till we slip into slumberland after spending an entire day's worth of activities together. As a family.

This morning, I left Angie and Jaimie after our breakfast at Blk 628 coffee shop. The trip to the playground would usually be something I look forward to after a weekend breakfast at that joint. But this morning I had to wave goodbye to my girls. Duty calls. Can't really complain, though. This is part and parcel of my job. And this job brings in the dough. And the guni hoon. And the pampers.

While at my DCPO desk, I got a call on my mobile at 1637hrs.

“你女儿要跟你讲话。” It was Angie on the line.
“哈啰？” I uttered each syllable slowly and deliberately.
“.......” said Jaimie.
“哈啰，媛媛。叫爸爸。” I tried again.
“....爸爸！” Came the reply.
“嗯。妈咪叻？叫妈咪。”
“妈妈！” shouted Jaimie. She doesn't do '妈咪' very well, yet.
“哇，媛媛好乖。要不要爸爸读 bookbook 给你听？”
“啊！”

And then Angie voice returned on the line. She said the little one slept for only 35 minutes during her afternoon nap, after a tiring one hour struggle to get her to fall asleep. “哪里有乖？！”, she complained.

It is now almost 8pm. Half an hour more till I stand down from my 12 hour shift. By the time I get back home, Jaimie would most likely already be in bed. I can almost picture her now... pacifier dangling from her half-opened mouth, pink blanket over her little torso, tummy rising and falling rhythmatically, a tired but blissful-looking mommy by her side...

I miss you, my dears.

David vs Goliath

For almost an hour and a half, we struggled.

Goliath wielding all his strength to put David to sleep. He tried all tactics, hard and soft. He cajoled and offered incentivising promises. When that fell on deaf ears, he attempted to capitalise on his large intimidating frame to issue out threats. These too, were ignored by the equally strong-willed David, who despite being grossly out-sized, refused to relent without putting up a tough fight. David tossed, squirmed and wriggled, little body evading the grasp of the mighty Goliath.

It was a war of attrition, with both sides attempting to wear down the opponent first. It was as though the two were so equally matched that the battle would last forever.

Finally, at 1548hrs, I, Goliath, emerged victorious. With barely enough energy left to place on record this momentous episode. With sheer tenancity, Goliath triumphed over David and history is thus rewritten.

Behold. David, the little one who put up such a hard-willed fight. Sleep well my worthy opponent. Until we face off again at your next nap time.

女儿名字的由来

我们女儿的名字，一直是我们的骄傲。因为我和舒珩非常喜欢"黄靖媛"的读音、结构美和意思。

我们很早以前就在想名字：黄飞鸿／黄蓉／黄耀明／黄花。。。全都有考虑过。但是都是哈哈大笑之后就算了。

后来，很认真地自己算算笔画，结合自己略懂的一些皮毛，找了一些字拼拼凑凑，看可以拼凑出什么火花。结果，拼出了"黄靖媛"。

靖：国家太平的意思
媛：美女

先天下之忧而忧，后天下之乐而乐。国家要先太平，自己的人生才能够太平。希望女儿生活在一个太平盛世，无灾无难。

云想衣裳花想容。每个人都爱漂亮，我们不需要去扮清高。但是，我们要孩子记住：美，是来自外在和内在。两者俱有，才是真正的美女。

这是我们的想法。

后来我们想到"黄"是"黄蓉"、"靖"是"郭靖"！这两个人物都是我和舒珩喜欢的人物！太好了！希望媛媛有黄蓉的活泼聪明、郭靖的正义耿直，做一个有智慧、有道德的美丽女孩吧！

至于英文名Jaimie，我们要找一个意思是"爱"的名字。在网上搜寻了一阵子，找到了这个法文名字，意思是"我爱"。太完美啦！"我爱黄靖媛"这个名字就是这样由来的。

做一分钟的英雄

Yesterday was Mother's Day. It was also the day I got to sing into the same mic as taiwanese singer 杨培安, who is now fast becoming Angie and mine latest idol.

杨培安came to Bukit Panjang Plaza to promote his albums (both the debut as well as the 2nd album, which is, quite oddly, released in Singapore concurrently). The event is entitled 杨培安《我相信》音乐会，which we came to know about a few days back cos we noticed the backdrop being put up at the 2nd level foyer of BPP, which is adjacent to the playground where we always bring Jaimie to play.

Anyway...having decided that we would attend the event, we deposited Jaimie at MIL's place (which is just across the road from BPP) and went to the mall's foodcourt for lunch. When we got to the foyer where the temporary stage had been erected, 10 minutes before 2pm (which was the time the event was slated to commence), there were hardly any gathering. A couple of girls and one guy waiting at the stage front. That was all. I suggested that we sit somewhere to wait but Angie said no. "I want to wait here. In front. At the centre." she said. Ok lor...

What do you know. Once the 100.3 DJ came on stage and said “ 哈罗！大家好！”，people started streaming in from nowhere and congregated real quickly at the stage area. Soon, there were like at least a hundred strong audience waiting eagerly for the appearance of 杨培安. The DJ host did a good job of priming the audience by giving anecdotes of the singer, on how he began his singing career at pubs at age 17, but only got discovered and offered the opportunity to cut his debut album 《我相信》 at the ripe age of 35. Etc etc.

杨培安 was called onto stage amidst bouts of shoutings and clappings at around 2.15pm. Not surprisingly, the first song he belted out was the 主打歌 from his debut album “我相信”。 As the 过门was playing, 杨培安asked the audience if anyone knew how to sing this song. Having watched the YouTube MV of this song in the BayB Supplies Forum thread posted by wolfgirl, I have since learnt the lyrics by heart. So I sort of nodded my head in supportive response. I mean, singers usually would rally the audience to sing along with them, clap hands and all that. Right? What I didn't expect was when 杨培安 told me he'd come to me and have me sing the chorus portion together with him! Alamak! First thought that flashed through my mind was "What if I 忘词？" Well, there was nowhere to run, nor hide. I was stuck in the front row, pressed against the railing, and had a huge crowd on either side and to the back as well. So, that was it. I braced myself when 杨培安 jumped down the stage and came towards me, thrusting the mic towards my face.

And I had my one minute of fame.

You Always Have A Choice

Watched "Spiderman 3" with Angie last Friday. Thought that is was a really strong film, even though both of us would still pick the second installment as our fav within the superbly crafted trilogy.

Despite the fact that Spiderman 3 was predominantly an action-based movie, the movie managed to do a wonderful job in developing their characters, by putting them in real-life situations and dilemas where the audience can really connect, and emphatise with. Unlike most other Superhero movies where the main characters are always infallible when it comes to choosing the side of good over evil, Spiderman is essentially flawed. With his Spidey suit on or off, Peter Parker is always struggling with problems including his romantic attachment with MJ, paying his rent for his miserable apartment, mending his strained friendship with his best mate Harry, and basically balancing his whole life between his dual identity. And when the time comes for Spidey to make choices, he does not always make the right ones. It is precisely because of his vulnerabilities and weakness that makes Spiderman all the more endearing since we can identify with him as a fellow human being, rather than someone who has come from a far away planet.

In Spiderman 3, the theme of "choice" runs very strongly throughout the movie. When Peter learnt that Flint Marko was the real killer of his Uncle Ben, he was filled with hatred and the thirst to exact revenge. At the end of the movie, however, he chose forgiveness over vengeance. When the symbiote fused with Spidey's suit turning it black, Spidey experienced new found power enhancement. It felt wonderful but he realised it also adversely affected his personality. As a result, his relationship with MJ crumbled, his best friend Harry ended up disfigured. I particularly loved the scene where, at the bell tower of a church, Peter struggled with all his might to rip off the symbiote suit. It looked painful, as all hard decisions are bound to be. Even Harry Osborn made critical choices in this movie, when he eventually decided to bury the hatchet and went back to being Peter's best buddy, and ally...for one final tag team battle that he ended up paying with his life, to save that of a dear friend. I thought it was a particularly nice touch that in the beginning of the movie Harry made the omnimous comment that Peter Parker and Mary Jane are two of his best friends, whom he would willingly give up his life for.

I think that in real life, the lesson of making choices is an important one. Often we'd hear about people grumbling about being burnt out from work, having no time to spend with family cos work requires much travelling, children growing up spoilt because no time/means to discipline them etc etc. Whenever I hear such things, I can't help but think these to just be a bunch of excuses. Excuses that these people conveniently utter in an attempt to convince not only other people, but also themselves, for their inability and/or unwillingness to make the right choices.

I mean, if one acknowledges that family and health should come before work, then one should take steps to strike a balance between work and home. A balance where these priorities are aptly reflected. Granted, sometimes it is easier said than done. But my feeling is that people who gripes about these inadequacies often do so without even trying to make amendments.

The worst are those who have kids and go around telling people how difficult it is to raise kids...no time to discipline them...maid/ caregiver not doing a good job...now kids become rascals, but no choice cos there's nothing they can do...blah blah blah.

No choice? Bullsh*t. These people should have considered all these before choosing not to put on that bloody condom.

You always have a choice.

Writer's Blog....Block

Just barely a week ago, Angie asked me to help her start up a new blog. She said she wanted to do some online version of that 《交换日记》books, with her friend-colleague. Ok...so I set up a blogger site for her. The name she wanted "2bestfriends" had already been taken, so I took the liberty of registrating the new blog under the name of "exchangediaries".

Since then, Angie has been pretty active in her postings. I would see her logging on and writing blog entries while waiting for Jaimie's midnight feed. Quite prolific. Well, definitely more so than I am.

Perhaps I am inherently a boring person, with a life quite mundane that there usually isn't much that is worthy of documenting down in a blog. Perhaps I am having writer's block. Perhaps Arts graduates write better than Engineering ones (unless of course we're writing a physics paper).

Or perhaps women just have more to say than men.

My Visual Profile

Read my VisualDNA™ Get your own VisualDNA™

彩虹的約定

彩虹的約定
-------------------

小寶貝我用彩虹和你約定
風雨過後陽光會微笑
平安的長大
迎接希望的未來
就像紅橙黃綠藍靛紫

小寶貝我用彩虹和你約定
一起走過童年的記憶
快樂的長大
迎接燦爛的未來
就像紅橙黃綠藍靛紫

彩虹是希望的約定
也是最真的愛
親親寶貝
我們愛你到永遠

彩虹是幸福的約定
也是永恆的愛
親親寶貝
陪伴你直到永遠

Heartwarming lyrics to a lovely song, arn't they?

Through these simple words, a vivid picture is painted. One on the vibrancy of hope, the innocence of childhood and the vastness of a parent's love. Bound to bring a smile to your face and warmth to your heart.

Unless of course, you know of the association of this song to little 宇廷. In the short 11 months of his life, 宇廷 had been bedridden. In place of toys, candies and playgrounds, 宇廷 had drip tubes, needles and injections. I can't even begin to imagine living a life where the only constant, the only certainty, the perpetual sensation...is Pain. 宇廷's (and his parents') struggle has now ended. The little boy had decided to leave this plane of suffering, to journey on to another place....

Where his body can be whole,

Where there are no tubes sticking out from various parts of his tiny torso,

Where the rain no longer falls, and

Where he can finally view the magnificent Rainbow.

自己跌倒，自己爬

Have been video-ing quite alot of Jaimie recently, and there is this particular one that I like. Captured by Angie during our visit to IMM playground yesterday, this clip shows Jaimie demonstrating her new 'kungfu' moves - the "Shadowless Palms of Fuoshan" aka 佛山无影手. This session at the playground also made us realise that our Jae is indeed growing up to be quite a resilient little girl, and not some 'softie fruitcake'.

I've always held the belief that the opportunity to 'strive' against adversity is a crucial component in growing up. It is through hardships that the most valuable lessons can be learnt, and potentials developed. Initially, when Jaimie falls, or knocks herself onto household furnitures, Angie and I would be quite kancheong. My natural instinct was then to immediately cuddle her, sayang sayang, siusiu etc. I realised this only fueled her cries and screams, and reinforced her reliance on us. Then I remembered the story of the man who witnessed a butterfly pupa struggling, with much difficulty, to break out of its cocooned shell. Out of compassion, he cut a slit on the cocoon with his knife to facilitate the exit. It helped. However, after the butterfly emerged from its former confinement, the man was surprised to find that it could not take flight. Depriving the butterfly the opportunity to struggle on its own, to build strength in the process, the man had inadvertently stunted its natural development.

Now, whenever Jaimie takes a fall, I'd remind myself of the lesson behind this story. I'd offer my encouragement to her to get up and try again. No, I do not wish for Jaimie to have broken wings.

Get up, Jae. And take flight!

Jae's Place

Went to Jack's Place for dinner last Friday, cos I got $50 voucher redeemed from Citibank. Ordered lotsa stuff and ate till very full.

But 重点 is that we realised that with Jaimie now having reached the phase where she is really trying to express herself, both verbally as well as physically, a 'quiet and peaceful' family dinner out is not something we'd be getting anytime soon.



Why post this now and not earlier, you ask? Well, it is only now then I managed to encode this video clip taken from my Dopod smartphone (with Super) and I thought, what the heck...havn't been posting to the blog for sometime liow, so might as well put this up and clock as an entry.

滥竽充数.

烂.

Jaimie The Toddler

6th April 2007 was Good Friday. It was also the day Jaimie the infant transformed into Jaimie the toddler. Yes, Jaimie has turned one! Excuse me if I come across as overly self congratulatory here as I give myself a pat on the shoulder for having survived my first year of fatherhood.

One year old. 说大肯定不大，说小呢又不是太小。This is the awkward stage that when we are out and come across a newborn (or a young infant), we'd tell Jaimie "Look. Baby. Baby.". At the same time, when other parents with kids walk by and notice us, we'd hear them exclaim exactly the same thing in our direction. Oh well.

This little milestone seems like a good point to do a little "stock taking". Here're some of the more prominent skills and capabilities Jaimie has picked up in her first 365 days:

Vocab

- Baba
- Mama
- Gorgor
- Nainai
- Mummum
- ...string of other non-intelligible syllables

Signing

- wave "bye bye"
- signal "come" (sometimes indistinguishable from bye bye)
- blow flying kiss
- signal 怕怕
- gesture 恭喜恭喜
- hit head for "伤脑筋"
- Clapping (拍拍手)
- Raise arms(手高高)
- touch various body parts when these are named e.g. ears, nose, tummy and ermm...nipples (mine).

Psychomotor

- Walking
- Crawling
- Ascending and descending stairs with hand-holding
- Picking up pea-sized objects with fingers
- Grabbing and throwing objects
- Squatting to pick up object and reassuming standing posture

Angie organised a little get-together lunch to commenmerate the first candle-blowing opporuntity for Jaimie. It was a buffet-style makan session held at Bukit Batok HTNS's Guilin Restaurant. We were given a private function room (谦卑房) to use, so it was pretty cosy. And convenient since we did not have to clean up after. The birthday cake was a double-tiered "lychee-martini" flavoured one, courtesy of Ah Leong. Tasted good, not oily nor too sweet. Everyone seemed to enjoy it.

Alright. Nuff talk. Here're the pics. Happy Birthday, dear!

Yes, we're now prepped (both mentally and psychologically) for more challenging times ahead with the one-year-old....

I'd Like To Thank The Academy...

I know I just missed this year's Oscars...I was too small then and my facial muscles not developed enough to be able to articulate the full range of expressions expected of a profession as demanding as that of Acting.

Well, not any more! And there is always the 2008 (and future) Oscars! Papa says it is never too early to start honing my acting skills.

Hollywood has been doing quite a bit of Sports Movies lately, like Million Dollar Baby, Goal!, Bend It Like Beckham and Rocky Balboa. So, for warm up, I'm gonna do a couple of sportsmen of my fav game, basketball. I love Michael Jordon and Yao Ming!



Hmmm...recently docudrama seems to be also getting lots of attention. Who knows, I might be called upon to play the President of the US of A.


I saw this guy in The Scorpion King and DOOM, and papa says I do a better impersonation of The Rock than he does.


I know being in showbiz is tough. It's a good thing I am not choosy. I can play the occassional ape if being called upon. What? No hair? Ermm...I'm working real hard on it, believe me.



Action roles? No problem. Papa says this next move even he cannot perform...



Hollywood, here I come!

我姓方，名字叫向痴

左右不分，是我最大的问题。如果需要我给开车的人方向指示，我只能够说：“转你那边”，或是“转我这边”。要思考这边是左还是右，最少需要三秒钟，然后嘴巴说出来的却又是相反的方向。我这个毛病，常常给开车的人带来很多苦恼，甚至让他们火冒三丈。

但是，我为人又十分热心，常常在路上看到旅客在看地图或问路，就会不自量力地充当旅游亲善大使。我不止一次信心满满，心肠热热地扮演仙人指路。当对方连声道谢随着我指的方向走后，我大概过了三分钟才发现我给错指示了。这时已经是亡羊补牢了，只能默默在心里向对方道歉，并希望他能找到真正的贵人给他带路。

最可怕的一次，是在旅游的时候，我左问问右问问，问到了旅店附近有一间书局。欢天喜地地扛了一大叠书会旅店的途中，遇到了同样在找书局的团友。我又极其古道热肠地把方向告诉她，他三步拼做两步就急急往我指的方向迈去了。我正为自己做了件好事而沾沾自喜的时候，猛然想起把其中一个转角的方向说错了！但是，要买书的人早已走远，我自己又拖着两大袋的书，实在没有办法去弥补自己的过错。第二天吃早餐的时候，我拼命向对方道歉。还好她表面上看起来并不生气，只是告诉我她奇怪自己怎么走到了天涯海角似的还看不见书店，最后便折回旅馆了。我羞愧难当，唯有不停地道歉。

我想呀，我还是要自量一点。看地图给方向指示这回事，可不是光凭一股热情就能办好的。我还是先搞定了自己，才给别人带路吧！

BayB Get-Together

What started as a simple advance celebration for the Apr 06 babies snowballed into a considerably large-scale lunch get-together involving 17 adults, 2 toddlers and 9 babies, at Vil'age, China Square Central.

This was the first time we met up with other mommies and daddies whose forum userids we've grown so accustomed to through our regular exchanges over cyberspace (not counting the two occassions where we'd coincidentally bumped into Idy Tan and Chin Mama). It's great to now be able to put a face to each of these hitherto faceless nicknames and handles. Thanks goes to Vivian aka ezrababy for organising this event!

Managed to snap some pics amidst the "organised chaos". Here they are - 世界未来的主人翁！(The real babies, not those overgrown ones).

Trilogy

It appears that more and more, Hollywood are churning out their movies in installments of 3. Trilogies are really getting quite prevalent lately.

Recent examples include The Lord of the Rings, The Matrix, Mission Impossible, Blade, The Fast and the Furious, Final Destination, Star Wars Prequel...

More movies, with already a sequel tucked under their belt, are going for the power of three with an upcoming 3rd installment. Some of these to-be trilogies are:

- Spiderman (with Spiderman 3)
- Ocean's Eleven series (with Ocean's Thirteen)
- Pirates of the Caribbean (with POTC: At World's End)
- The Ring (with Ring 3)
- Rush Hour (with Rush Hour 3)
- Jason Bourne series (with The Bourne Ultimatum)
- Sin City (with Sin City 2 this year and Sin City 3 in 2008)

It's great actually, cos most of these movies must inherently possess sufficient merit in order for them to make it to number 3. Just check out this trailer of the POTC: At World's End, which is just released. It's HOT! It's got Chow Yuen Fatt too.

Elle-You-See-Kay

Obi-wan Kenobi said to Han Solo in Star Wars Episode IV, "In my experience, there is no such thing as Luck."

I think that is because Obi-wan had never won a lucky draw throughout his Jedi life. Pity. So much for the Force.

Maybe this new Golden Pig year is having some favourable effects on my lucky stars. Maybe the Fengshui Master's tips truly are taking effect. The fact is, I feel damn lucky!

It was midweek when I got the call.

"Hello. Is this...mmm...Ng, xxx, xxxxx?"

I glanced at the caller ID. Not a familiar number.

"Yes, this is xxx xxxxx." I replied in my so-what-do-you-want-to-sell-me-this-time voice.

"Hi. This is Eileen calling from FiRST mag. Do you remember you entered the “FiRST Favourite Cover – Readers’ Choice" contest in Nov last year?

"Mmm...yes, I might have."

"Well, congratulations! You are one of our lucky winners of the Panasonic Viera 26 inch LCD TV. Can you come down this Friday to SPH to collect it?"

It took me a while to take in this totally unexpected message. I mean, this is really good! This must be the biggest thing I've ever won so far in my life. After thanking Eileen profusely (after switching voice to the oh-so-thankful tone) over the phone, I sms'd Angie to tell her the wonderful news. She asked if I was bluffing her.

The new TV set is now sitting comfortably in my living room. Its arrival is actually also very well coordinated, and at a time when I was grieving over my stroke of bad luck. See, my Palladine LCD TV recently broke down after a thunderstorm which tripped the electric circuits. It is now still with the Palladine repair guys and wouldn't be back until next week. Come to think of it, the breakdown might also be a sign of good luck, cos it happened just half a month before the 1 year warranty expires for this equipment

I think Han Solo was right when he said to Luke, "I call this Luck."

I feel it in my fingers, I feel it in my toes.
Well luck is all around me, and so the feeling grows.
It´s written on the wind, it´s everywhere I go.
So if I'm really lucky, come on and let it show.

全职妈妈最伟大

假期来了，我原本有一系列的假期计划，包括去瞎拼去练瑜伽去图书馆等等，但是我妈妈捷足先登，说她要到中国去探亲，我的完美计划立刻泡汤。

于是，我再度成为全职妈妈。每天一大清早开始就忙着熬粥帮媛媛洗澡搞她睡觉陪她玩耍消磨时间带她到游乐场喂食做运动。一天下来，满身臭汗，蓬头垢面，气喘吁吁。哪里有上班时的衣着光鲜？哪里有上班时的美丽彩妆？我完全就是一个欧巴桑！

我突然觉得，能在职场上呼风唤雨没什么大不了。你能在家里全职全心全意照顾孩子，才叫厉害。

Rise & Shine, My Baby!

Jaimie woke up at 7am this morning. She was in her usual good mood. What was unusual was that I too was in just as good a mood as her. Why? Cos I AM ON LEAVE, BABY!

I think only babies TRULY rise and shine when they wake up in the mornings. I mean, who else can exit from slumberland and NOT have a bad hairdo, NOT have amouth that smell like something died inside there over the night, and have that smile that makes the person seeing it feel like a million bucks?

Petals Around the Rose

Met Gobi in Windows Messenger for the first time last night. He logged on at almost precisely the moment I made the decision to shut down the PC and get to bed. It was 0052hrs.

After some exchanges, he asked if I would like to have the Singapore Zoo pass which he was holding on to, but couldn't make use of because of Pam's last minute committment over the weekends. I said yes, and we made arrangements to meet up in the morning, at 0800hrs at the foyer of his block (just a street away from mine).

When we met up this morning, besides having the Zoo pass change hands, he remarked that there was this "game", which could be played on the internet, which had him stumped.

"It is called "Petals Around the Rose" and basically it involves throwing of dice and then you're to guess the 'roll' for each throw. The name of the game is supposed to be the clue. Apparently Bill Gates played this and like solved it after one and a half hours"

"So you're supposed to do what? Break the code? Find the formula issit?"

"Yah. Hey, if you solve it, you have to tell me the secret ok? Don't leave me having sleepless nites over this!"

"Walow...you think too highly of me lah. IF I solve it, then say."

And we parted ways.

It was quite an eventful day today. We made a trip to the Zoo right after having bf in the car (大包). In the afternoon, we shuttled down to Suntec, to the IT Show 2007, where Angie purchased a DELL Inspirion 640m laptop. She only told me this morning after we woke up that "I think I shall buy a laptop with Wifi capabilities." I said "Ok, I will help you source which are the star buys you can get over at the ongoing IT Show at Suntec." And that was it. Sounds like an impulsive, spur of the moment thing? No lah...this is typical of what happens in this family.

While driving home from Suntec after evacuating from the uncomfortably congested mall, I sms'd Gobi to tell him that I'd drop off the Zoo pass into his letter box. He said ok.

"Any luck with the rose qn?"

"Nt tried yet. Morning zoo. Nw juz coming bk fr IT show."

Ok...I thought. Now he has really gotten me curious. Must try this later. And I did.
After reading the descriptions on the website, and the constant reminder that the "name of the game" is the important clue to breaking the code, I tried out the game proper.
Now this is gonna sound like quite haolian...but actually, it didn't take me long at all. It really helped that I jotted down the throw combinations and their corresponding results and then just stared at these lines until I could see that "pattern". The rush that I felt when the answer suddenly struck me was exhilarating. Wow! I wasted no time in verifying my hypothesis at the website with another 4 throws, and was shouting out silently inside when they were all correct. Whoa.

Guess who my immediate next sms went to? Hahahaa.

I am not gonna tell him the answer but give him some clues and encouragement so he could have a chance to experience the high of solving the puzzle by himself. Good luck, Gobi.

For anyone reading this who wishes to have a go at the game, here's the link:
http://www.borrett.id.au/computing/petals-j.htm

All the best!

妈妈的心得 之二

当妈妈们一碰头，便会大谈妈妈经。

“我的孩子X个月大就会爬了！”“我的孩子X个月大就长牙了！”“我的孩子X个月大就会拍手了！”“我的孩子X个月大就会叫妈妈了！”“我的孩子X个月大就会拜拜了！”……一个母亲的骄傲，常常在言谈之中不经意地流露。

我从来都不为媛媛的生理进展或学习进度烦恼。因为，一个在10个月会走路的孩子和一个在15个月会走路的孩子，在他们2岁的时候有什么分别？同样的，在10年后又有什么分别？他们迟早都会他们该会的。我在孩子身上也学到学习瑜伽的道理：别着急。有时候学瑜伽有点气馁，因为有些动作别人做起来轻而易举，而自己学了那么久的瑜伽都做不到！啊，我学会了别着急！就好像我们走路是轻而易举的，孩子学步时却是踉踉跄跄，还跌倒摔交，最后才学会轻而易举地走路。每个人有每个人的学习进度，不需超之过急，不需与人比较。让我们的孩子的每一个学习过程都是愉快的吧！

Spiderman's Identity Revealed!

James, no wonder you've got no time to reply our emails, and always tell me your work keeps you busy. I can see why that is so now.

I notice that you've been working out too. Nice bod.

Hang in there, bro. With great powers come great responsibilities, yah?

Jae Walking

One small step for Man. Many smaller steps for Jaimie.

Technically, Jaimie’s first steps were taken on 20th Feb 2007, at Uncle Yeow Seng’s place. That was 大年初三 and we were having a mini-gathering at YS’s. Trust this haolian baby to pick a time and place to perform this feat to impress us all. Show off!!

Since then lil’ Jae has been demanding for more walking opportunities. She’d protest pretty hard if she was being carried, at times when she wanted to be on her feet, usually with one of us holding on to one of her hands.

Well…Four legs good, two legs better, eh?

人穿新衣，Blog换新貌

The Lunar New Year is just round the corner. Today is the penultimate day of the Year of the Dog. In just a couple of days, the world would be ushering in Mr Piggie. Not just any piggie, mind you. This time round, we'd be welcoming the Golden Piggie!
During the Feng Shui talk I recently attended, the Shifu declared that the coming year would be one that is gonna be bountiful in the element of WATER. Apparently the zodiac signs of Pig and Rat are ones that are associated with the WATER element. Consequently, those of us under these zodiacs would be faced with the threat of overwhelmingly high levels of this particular element. Oh noooo.....going to kenna flooded!

Ok...Shifu did tell us how to counter the excessively 'wet' year ahead. Generally, these have to do with upping the level of the FIRE element.

Tip #1 - To wear RED (!!!)
Tip #2 - To place items that give out light/heat in your workplace.
Tip #3 - To associate with people with zodiac signs of Goat, Horse or Snake.

Oh, I've revamped the look of this blog so that it can, like us, spot a new look at the start of the new year.

Here's wishing everyone a very happy, peaceful and prosperous Lunar New Year 2007!

恭喜发财！

天使

I dedicate this Mayday song to my two lovely girls at home.

Angie and Jaimie - Thank you for being my angels. And for letting me be yours.

Happy Valentine's Day.

天使

作詞:阿信 作曲:怪兽

你就是我的天使 保护着我的天使 从此我再没有忧伤
你就是我的天使 给我快乐的天使 甚至我学会了飞翔
飞过人间的无常 才懂爱才是宝藏
不管世界变得怎么样 只要有你就会是天堂
像孩子依赖着肩膀 像眼泪依赖着脸庞
你就像天使一样 给我依赖 给我力量
像诗人依赖着月亮 像海豚依赖海洋
你是天使 你是天使
你是我最初和最后的天堂

Faceoff!

*click on image strip to see it in full view*

The Master of Disguise

Be silent! I, am Jaimie Ng. The master of disguise. Nobody knows my true appearance because I am like a chameleon and can change the way I appear to your untrained eyes as and when I like.
Observe.

I sometimes manifest myself as the one you call "Super BB". Faster than a wind-up ducky. Able to hurdle a milk bottle in single stride. My supersonic scream can be heard throughout the entire foodcourt!

Here, I employ my see-thru vision to detect the pampers premium diapers (L-size) this little baby is wearing underneath her red pants!

Here, I am BB Flash, the fastest babe on earth! I can move so fast my movements appear as a blur to eyes of mere mortals.

I can likewise easily appear as my alter-ego, the mild-mannered Jaymeed Singh.

Finally, I appear as Jae Midus ze Master Hypnotist. A simple wave, a mere gesture, and you'd be totally under my control.

So beware, my friend. You'd do well not to cross me! Dun pray pray, understand?!

Close Encounters Of The Tot Kind

Yes! We are finally going to meet the newest, youngest addition to the Family. That'd be none other than Raymond-Janice junior aka baby Zelia Tan.

Raymond has chosen the 24th of Feb, which coincides with 人日, the 7th day of the Chinese New Year, to invite the rest of us to be officially introduced to the littlest one. Looking forward to the gathering.

Only one thing to complain about....

WHY IS IT THAT AUNTIE WHEE-M.I.A-MEIN GOT TO SEE THE BB BEFORE THE REST OF US UNCLES & AUNTIES DO ???!!!

Clark Chuah

It has truly been a looooong loooong time since any of us has found the X to do this (X being time, energy, motivation, whackyness etc).

Somehow X came to me today. So here it is - my latest work.

Enjoy.

When Clark changes into his Superman costume, he sometimes forget to remove his glasses. That oversight dimishes his overall superhero image somewhat, wouldn't you agree?

Pirate of the Curry Bean

RRRAAARRR!!

Be afraid. Be very afraid. I am a pirate from the land of the curry bean!

When you left me stranded on this deserted island you call "mattress", you forgot one important fact, mate.

I am CAPTAIN. JAIMIE. SPARROW.

Now hand me the MILK! Or I'd make you walk the plank!

And no, that is NOT my nappy on my head!!!

Making Faces

Frowning are you, my little one? Or
Are you smiling, my dear?
Crinkly little nose
Eyes tightly closed
Simple amusement for all of us here

Hot Nos

The result is out!!!

The auto agent delivers 2 days ahead of the stork, the latter dropping off the bundle of joy precisely a month prior to CNY eve!

For a potential windfall, place your bets on these numbers. Hot Hot Hot !!!

妈妈的心得 之一

我发现一件事。

勉。强。是。没。有。幸。福。的。

当孩子不肯睡觉时，勉强只会让你抓狂，让孩子哭闹得整座组屋的邻居都以为你在虐待孩子。

当孩子不肯吃饭时，勉强只会让你发疯，让孩子有机会学习佛山无影手来应对你的汤匙进攻。

当孩子不肯大便时，勉强只会让你懊恼，让孩子觉得人生为什么一直围绕着吃喝拉撒而生气。

其实，当孩子不肯的时候，他有他自己的理由。可能是不舒服，可能是心情不爽快，更可能是其实他不是不跟你合作，而是他根本已经尽力而为却又无能为力了。

我正在学习当媛媛“不肯”时，我不勉强她。因为勉强只会让我血压上升火遮眼兼仪态尽失，最后两败俱伤。

这种方法，大概只能用在孩子还不懂事的时候。等她懂事了，嘿嘿，你给我试试看！老娘我用上方宝剑伺候你！

Mail-to-Blogger Feature

Hmmm....I'm supposed to be able to post a blog entry by mailing to a pre-identified address. Shall try it out to see if this works!

This morning as I was driving to work, two things came to my mind. These concern impending events that are about to come to pass, probably in the span of the next week or so.

The first is the arrival of Raymond and Janice baby daughter. The second being the delivery of Yeow Seng's new car.

I wonder which would come first?

Would YS be driving his new "baby" to visit Ray and Jan's new baby?

Either way, there're bound to be at least a couple of numbers to bring to the next trip to Singapore Pools.

Cool.

First Gathering of the Year

Never since the photo-taking session at the RMCS library grounds in 2003 has there been such a get-together involving so many of us. 12 adults and 6 kids. That's a whopping 18 in total! Excellent!

Child's Play

Come come, little one, let's play together!


Hey wait a minute! She'd play with us!


Booo-hooo I have nobody to play with....


Alright. Let's leave the two little gals to themselves. The two of us can play this game called "Park Tor". My daddy last time also play this with my mommy. He says, first must hold hands...


Can anyone tell me what's going on??