Vacuum State

Zerolimit

2012-01-30T10:46:00.001+08:00

I have heard about Ho'oponopono and how Dr Len has facilitated the healing of an entire ward of criminally mental patients in Hawaii State Hospital. And he did that without even seeing anyone of them. However, when asked, Dr Len said that he didn't heal anyone, but worked within himself to let go of the 'data' in him that has caused the situation. That we are all cluttered with data, such that we have lost our Zero state. He says that we are all 100% responsible for what happens around us.

In Zero state, everything flows: like the right person will turn up at the right time and right place,...etc, miraculously. That it can be so smooth that you don't even have to make a choice. He even added that if you have to make a choice, that means you are not clear enough.

This actually rhymes with what a wealthy Malaysian businessman once said to me when I interviewed him for a magazine. He said (in his halting limited English), "In life, no choice is the best choice". He said that as he related a time when he was financially broke and had nowhere else to go but to go to Indonesia to meet a cousin to start all over again. There was nowhere else better to go. Then, when over there, he grabbed the first opportunity that came, because he had 'no-choice'. Today, twenty years later, he is a fabulously rich man both financially and otherwise.

Then I thought "Has this Zero state happened to me before? Has what happened to me in going into acting, a result of getting back to Zero?"

The story of how I got into acting was surprising, even to myself. As it goes, I was asked to act in a film by a director who saw my photo online (not from an actor's portal), then during the shoot she praised me a lot and urged me to take it up acting as a career. And so I believed her, and a year on, I have done over 40 gigs and acted in two films that won international awards. And all that happened out of the blue, as I can't recall having made any intentions,about being an actor, at least not consciously.

The other experience I have was the watching of the video of Dr Len's explanation about his work. It came out of the blue from my friend who was screening the film. I attended the screening and in the video, heard Dr Len's mention of making 'solarised water' using blue glass bottles. Then there was a question from the audience of where one could find such blue bottles, and Dr Len said that if one is in the Zero state, then the blue bottles will turn up. At that point, I cheekily wondered if the blue bottles will turn up for me.

"Where will I find those bottles turning up for me out of the blue?"

"Perhaps it will be at a pub, probably in town, like Clarke Quay?"

As it unfolded, I didn't go to that part of town nor any pub, but when I reached home, I found two blue glass bottles freshly washed in the kitchen!!! Now I must try getting water into those blue bottles, have them solarised and use them to 'clean' myself to get into Zero. Will keep you posted on my progress.

Actually going into 'Zero', isn't new. I can relate it to Guru's common advice to just "go meditate". And he often say that when you meditate, things will be clear and sorted. It is like polishing the diamonds. We are already the Divine - the Diamond, that needs polished, or 'cleaned' as Dr Len will call it.

Principles of (bad) conversations

2012-01-24T12:27:00.001+08:00

1. We acknowledge one another as equals.

Remember to acknowledge everyone as equals, if you expect them to be able to listen intently (and so remember what has already been said), follow-up with what they have listened, and speak concisely and not hog air-time. But don't worry, because chances are that they won't, so this is your opportunity to clobber the conversation.

The dangerous thing is to treat everyone as stupid or 'unequals', because if you do so, you will be too forgiving and patient to have a bad conversation.

2. We try to stay curious about each other.

Always wonder why on earth would they want so much to be right, since there are much more to learn from being wrong! Don't be fooled by their wanting to clarify themselves and that they have been frequently misunderstood. Always be curious about why and how much ego they must have to not to want to listen to you, especially when you are older than them. Remember to insist that they are the egoistic one and not you. That way, you frustrate them and then they will blow up into a really bad conversation.

3. We recognize that we need each other's help to become better listeners.

This is your great opportunity to speak at length in your best English in complete sentences and to describe every nook and corner of your idea in monumental detail, to show others how clever you are and to teach others to be patient in listening. Reprimand them if they dare interrupt your speech.That way, they will have a lot of time to listen to you.

If you do this well enough, you may actually even get to listen to yourself.Learn how to speak general nothings in eloquent English, so that the conversation will still sound impressive without getting into being good.

4. We slow down so we have time to think and reflect.

When the conversation is converging too quickly to a point, slow it down by throwing in some general statements to keep it divergent. Like, " there is no right or wrong answers", "there are many views and there are many ways of looking at them...", or "Over here, we all have different opinons, but we learn to accept everyone...".

But remember to say something that sits on high moral grounds and that is not contentious. The best way to do it is to quote from some famous motivational speakers and seminars you have attended. That way, you sound impartial and credible, and at the same time , throw everyone out of their tracks towards some understanding on converged points. So preferably, what you quote should be something out of context, otherwise you risk enlightening everyone. This is also to give them time to think and reflect instead of worshipping some singularly boring convergent 'truths'.

5. We remember that conversation is the natural way humans think together.

Conversation and thinking are natural. They are as natural as crying out loud or walking over to the other person who disagrees with you and giving him one-tight slap! So don't break the spontanaeity. Even if you know that some speakers are spewing utter rubbish and wasting everyone's time, BE NATURAL! DON'T BREAK THE SPONTAENITY!

6. We expect it to be messy at times.

Yes! This is when you congratulate those who crack vulgar and irrelevant jokes at critical points of the discussion. Tell them that they are helping the rest of us get out of our tunnel visions and out of the box. Not doing so will allow everyone to flow too well into a good conversation. No, no, no, we can't have that!

Lastly, there is this mother of all principles of (good and bad) conversations. In fact, if you master this one, there may be no conversations to start off with. It goes:

"Maturity begins when we're content to feel we're right about something, without feeling the necessity to prove someone else is wrong." -- Sydney J. Harris (1917-1986)

Note: This post is a parody of "Principles of Conversation". It shows that we can also learn from negative demonstrations. Also, points made on politically correct high moral grounds can still be twisted anyway you want if there is malice. I hope this article can be taken in the spirit of learning, albeit an unusual one. In other words and in the context of this post, the essential ingredient of a good conversation is compassion. Compassion = kindness + wisdom.

ps. Wrote this on my iPhone while waiting for relatives to visit me on Chinese New Year's Day. As you probably suspect, nobody came!! Guess they don't like bad conversations!

Acting - Ready, Set, Go...

2012-01-13T21:56:00.002+08:00

This was unusual. I was feeling nervous before my voice-over assignment. I have never felt nervous before any shoot, not even my very first one. But this time, it got me till my stomach turned, like there is something I couldn't digest emotionally. Some regrets, some mistakes made, that I couldn't forgive myself easily.

Then as I entered the recording studio, as it turned out, the video clip to voice over was about a man regretting about his gambling addiction and his wanting to turn over a new leaf and then giving gratitude to his wife and family for their support.

For some reason unknown to me (at least consciously) this was exactly how I felt. It was as if I knew the story before hand. Isn't it strange?!

Acting - Beginner's Luck

2012-01-06T13:13:00.000+08:00

This video from the Corrupt Practice Investigation Bureau (CPIB) of Singapore won the Gold Award in the International Anti-Corruption Public Service Announcement Awards 2011organised by the International Association of Anti-Corruption Authorities (IAACA).

It is only a 30 second clip, but took a whole day to shoot, starting at 2 am at the wholesale fish market in Sembawang. That scene took us till 5am, and then, we were to resume at 9am at Republic Polytechnic. With barely a few hours in between, I reckoned it was pointless to go home only to get refreshed and then having to rush back to the set. So I chose to go to Republic directly and slept on a canteen bench for a few hours.

The shoot resumed in one of Republic's student kitchen. Being a training kitchen, it was neat and comfortable, so the shoot was relatively easy compared to the commercial kitchen at Joo Chiat where it was hot and sticky, so I was quite surprised that we managed to pull off with our smiling and sleazy look. The scene at Joo Chiat was quite long and we wrapped at 7pm!

The next film is the second film that I have acted in that has won an award, also last year, called, "Hentak Kaki", directed by James Khoo, as his final year project in Lasalle School in Singapore. It won the Best Film, Silver Screen Award in the Singapore International Film Festival 2011. For more about the makings of "Hentak Kaki" and independent reviews, click here.

I attribute the two awards in the last twelve months to the dedicated and hardworking teams that I worked with and in part also to my beginner's luck as an actor.

A beginner has advantages over older practitioners in any trade. A beginner is curious and naturally open to explore any possibilities to get something done, as he is fresh and doesn't know any better. A beginner is not bogged down by traditions and status quo - there is no pre-judgment and preconceived idea of how something ought to be done.

To continue to win awards, I will have to maintain this 'beginner's luck'. Steve Jobs put it differently, he urged young people to "Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish". How true!

For more posts about 'acting', click here.

Happy 2012

2012-01-01T10:25:00.001+08:00

The year much awaited for, 2012, has arrived.

Many of my friends have sent me greetings of happiness and prosperity. Thank you very much. With such loving thoughts lurking around me, these greetings are surely to manifest!

What will 2012 bring? If thoughts become things, then it is time to make our thoughts make the things we want - that means - making resolutions.

I usually do not make new year resolutions because I do not make a big deal out of the coming of a new year, in that I see time as a piece-wise smooth continuation, not one packaged into discrete modules of year, month and days.

But time seem to pass faster as I grow older, so my resolution this year is to be more conscious of spending each day to its fullest, as though it is my last (or first). Time not spent in the present moment is gone forever! Living in the heat of the cut-and-thrust economy, it is easy to forget this. Hence this resolution - an anchor to a thought.

What is your new year resolution?

For other posts on 'New Year', click here.

Coffeeshop Thoughts

2011-12-25T12:32:00.001+08:00

My head is 'wandering' and 'wondering'. 'Wandering' because it cannot stay as still as I like it to be; and 'wondering' what is going to come up next. The latter, robbing me of my present.

The mind is both a friend and a foe, and it is crucial to know when one should call for a separation. A separation when it is needed to allow the soul to continue in peace. I have no two minds about that!

It is with a peaceful soul that one can command the mind to be its servant. Then the mind will synchronise and it too will be peaceful. Just like a grand tree, the soul is always peaceful. It is the emotional winds that blow that make the leaves of the grand tree (the soul) flutter. But emotions do not constitute the soul. They are merely temporary states of mind that will blow over.

-- written using my iPhone while willing my time away in a coffeeshop.

ps. Why did the first sip of the tea tastes so different from the last sip of the tea?Did somebody swap the cup?

For more coffeeshop philosophy, click here.

A Cozy Square

2011-12-22T12:01:00.000+08:00

I wouldn't have noticed this little restaurant tucked away in this cozy corner of Telok Ayer Street if my friend had not told me about it. It is a family run restaurant serving Italian styled food. I was told that they are coming up with new dishes very soon too.

Pumpkin and Chicken Corn Veloute

The ingredients are prepared entirely in-house - a rare treat these days - and that is why the food tastes home-cooked.

Ceasar Salad served with turkey ham

... this one is served with turkey ham, as the food here is halal.

Marinated Norwegian Salmon

Confit Sage Chicken

There is a local flavour to this dish with the inclusion of the Chinese Baby Kailan. I was told that there will be more such dishes with blended local character. Which is what the restaurant builds its character on.

Shank of Lamb

When I chose this dish, I told the chef that I did so because this is an "exam piece", as it has to be cooked gently and slowly, for othewise the meat will not be soft and would lose much of its flavour. So, I was delighted when it came out just right, keeping the succulent texture and the delicious taste.

What is delightful to note is that there is still a restaurant like this around in the city, one that is family run with very friendly service, waiting staff that actually understands what the dishes are about, and a chef that keeps to the whole process of cooking. That is, food prepared from first principles and raw ingredients.

In this era of institutional funds and food franchises, Restaurant A'Square is a gem in the city. There are hardly any businesses in big cities that can still focus on the 'complete process' and the first principles. Sadly, most would focus on turnover and profits in the face of surviving in the harsh market of high shop rents. That usually means ready made sauces and hurried quick fixes. A'Square is therefore a place for ponder. Unhurried and unpretentious. A place also to relax and dine with some good friends. What more, the bill comes up to be surprisingly reasonable.

Clearing out...

2011-11-30T20:50:00.001+08:00

I spilled my cuppa over my keyboard and now my computer is crippled. This is written via my smartphone.

I am in the midst of moving and have thrown and given away most of my furniture.

Feels lighter after clearing alot of junk I collected over the years. Almost no possessions now and definitely no religion too!

ps. I have some posts of my past moving woes. It makes amusing reading, and now looking back, also rather educational. Click here.

Kid's Play

2011-11-21T15:39:00.001+08:00

Kids grow up and leavetheir Garden of Eden. Childhood fades away as the attraction to the opposite sex becomes more enticing as it is to the instinct to procreate. Now, the innocent clarity blurs, the photographic memory falters and visions are filtered by layers ofconditioning.

Bring back the child inus - the divinity that lies within. Nothing has ever beenlost, they have just been forgotten.

For more of Kid's Play, click here.

Anger and Judgment

2011-10-10T00:27:00.000+08:00

It was not usual. She didn't utter a word when we met this morning, not even the greeting of 'good morning'.

I later found out that she felt that i am not a responsible person to the family and am also a man vulnerable to being unfaithful. Sounds familiar?! :) And her mere suspicions alone were enough to make me guilty as charged. I was told no explanations were required as she will not accept any.

I heard of women jumping into conclusions in matters pertaining to the heart, but in this case, I was not even an involved party in the broil, if there should be one to start off with. I am neither her spouse nor her lover and ironically her summary judgment on me was that I am a bad influence to her husband.

I am glad I was a mere observer and not sucked into her whirlpool of sad thinking. Life is a game and one becomes cynical after brushes like this. There was virtually electricity biting in the air throughout her cold and silent reception. Then, I decided to turn around and run the other direction, as I won't like to get involved!

Acting the Villain

2011-09-08T10:52:00.009+08:00

Many faces, same soul.

Which one of this is the real me?

Of late, I have been playing villains. Casting directors love actors with a beard. They seem to associate beards with villains, or perhaps they are playing to the likes of audiences that love to see their villains larger than life - with beards, gold chains, tattoos and other ferocious looking ancillaries. Villain roles are tiring. As an angry and yelling screen character, the first and most affected person would be me. The rule is that whenever we get aggressive or violent, we feel lousy. Whenever we think aggressively, we feel lousy, as we would be the first recipients of such thoughts.

Thankfully, the same goes for any type of thoughts, including loving or peaceful ones, as we feel their immediate glory and peace. Loving thoughts precedes a calm and peaceful mind and it begets loving thoughts from others around us. Recently, I had the good fortune of doing a shoot by the shore of a placid lake. The environment was so congenial that I actually felt more relaxed after the shoot than when I started.

This really means that I should choose to act in more calm and peaceful films than violent and nasty ones. Sadly, there are more nasty ones around, as there is more demand for them. As Ekhart Tolle said, "... more pain films demanded by pain bodies...".

In real life, we too have to make our choices, and I would choose a peaceful story any day.

Get a Life!

2011-08-07T11:56:00.008+08:00

"Get a life!" so she said, describing those of her friends who are married and whom she said merely rush and fetch their children from childcare, get home and then cook dinner everyday.

She on the other hand, single and a well-paid lawyer, goes out in the evenings and party, and travel, hike and climb mountains for holidays. That's what she thinks is "life" to her.

But aren't all these just activities?

Activities are just manifestations of life, and life is more meaningful if manifested through love. In the midst of the daily seemingly mundane chores of taking care of the family and children, is life lived through love.

On the other hand, activities in the absence of love hardly bring one much 'life'. These could well include pubbing, clubbing and dining in places among single well-heeled yuppies and glamorous people who are 'hanging-out', especially if they are there out of the fear of loneliness and disorientation.

So it is not the activity, but whether it is done out of love.

Acting - Sharing Public Space

2011-08-03T10:49:00.016+08:00

Singapore is a small place for location shooting. Often, we do not have the luxury to block the entire place for ourselves, as many of the locations are live amid the daily hussle and bustle of the community. So inevitably, the location has to be shared with the public.

Most people are very accepting of the presence of camera crew, equipment, lights and actors occupying their common spaces, however there are always one or two who would be the exception. These rare few would make a big issue of the slightest inconvenience.

Here are some amusing incidents I encountered during my shoot:

1. In one of the scenes the camera was doing a close-up of me on the running tracks crouched in excruciating pain of a collapsed knee. As I laid down on the inner side of the tracks, there came a jogger who had 6 other outer lanes to run, but instead chose to run just inches behind me, in front of the camera! "Cut!!!"

2. In a simulation of an earthquake scene, we blocked off one lane of a minor road. Most of the cars would pass us oblivious of our activities and some would wave and smile, but there was one school bus driver who stopped and complained of the inconvenience and that he had to ferry the school kids in time. I tried to marshal him through the narrow lane, but he chose to stop his bus and continue to scold me, wasting more time than he would have if he had just passed us by. He then called the police. The police came, but they didn't stop us filming!

3. In a scene at a lively hawker centre, one old 'uncle' came and scolded us for using the place for our location. He insisted to sit at the table where we were shooting.

4. I was playing the role of the father and was with his little four year old daughter getting out of the car, walking across the car park and towards her kindergarten, when we were visited by three police patrol cars, after the take. The police said that they had received reports from members of the public that there were young men fighting with parangs (machetes) where we were. *LOL*

5. In one of my taxi driver scene, I had to hurriedly drive out of the covered car park when the town council staff chased us away because we were using their electricity. I had to find alternative routes for the shoot. The camera was still rolling live and I had to pretend to act cool and continue with the dialogue.

As said earlier, most people are considerate and would share public spaces generously. However, being in a tiny and densely populated city like Singapore, we need all the cooperation we can get, without which, the show cannot go on.

There are also problems of noise, change of ambient light and the weather, but those issues are enough to warrant another article altogether.

A Bat Home

2011-07-15T11:58:00.005+08:00

First, it was the sunbirds making their nest on my balcony, now the fruit bats have come to hang out at the entrance.

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Oblivious of the human traffic, it hangs in there...

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There it is...

The Green Corridor of Singapore

2011-07-07T11:53:00.008+08:00

These photos were taken from a walk conducted by the Singapore Nature Society on the 26th of June 2011, along the Bukit Timah railway tracks that are to be de-commissioned, after the land is returned by the Malaysian Government to Singapore.

The return of this long stretch of rail track land from Tanjong Pagar to Woodlands had been a point of contention between the two governments for many years.

Alongside both sides of the tracks are lush greenery. Ironically, it is because of this railway line that this long green corridor has been kept for so many years, as you would see lots of urbanised developments on both sides of the rails.

The Nature Society is proposing to the Singapore Government to maintain a Green Corridor on this railway tracks. Let's see how far we succeed in keeping this bit of green.

Egg Nest

2011-06-17T16:22:00.012+08:00

The two regular Sunbird visitors have decided -- they are moving in!

So they started - weaving their nest twig by twig. For each twig, they would have to to fly hundreds of feet away to collect them. Its painstaking (to me as a human being), but the birds didn't seem to mind.

It is fascinating that they had in them the construction know-how - to hang it off a branch, to get the right shape and size, and even to keep a cute opening for the mother bird to enter and also to rest her head while sitting on her eggs.

My Showreel 2011

2011-06-15T11:44:00.009+08:00

.The actor is a strange creature - ego-less during the act as he empties his personality to assume another; yet when the reel is out, he is again full of himself, shamelessly self promoting.

So here it is, the films I acted in Jan-Jun 2011:

Over-act

2011-06-05T01:34:00.004+08:00

Do you over-act?

Do you over-act to entertain?

Or do you just 'be' to inspire?

Hentak Kaki

2011-06-02T14:12:00.014+08:00

The trailer of "Hentak Kaki" is out. It was well received during the premiere.

Read the review at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com/2011/05/avant-premiere-6-thesis-films-from.html .

I think the audience were mostly captivated by the realistic acting and dialogue. In fact, the film is so real that it doesn't even have music in it! :)

The director, the co-actor and myself, painstakingly worked out the dialogue as accurately as we could remember so that the dialogue itself would be enough for anyone who has been in the Singapore army to sink into deep reminiscence. We literally 'Singlicised' the script, added Malay and Hokkien, army vocabulary and expressions, and of course, some expletives! That I think, worked the magic!

In my first film, the director often reminded me that if the dialogue does not resonate, don't utter them. This proved to be precious advice that had led to the crafting of the dialogue that has made this film much enjoyed.

Actually, we shouldn't utter anything that does not resonate with ourselves in any case - whether on-reel or off-reel! If it does not resonate, it will not propagate.

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Directors

2011-06-02T13:49:00.007+08:00

Some old-style directors still shout and scream at actors that fail to deliver. These poor actors already stressed up for failing to deliver, feel like nervous wrecks burdened by the director's emotional outburst. A stressed up actor wouldn't be able to improve upon his already dismal delivery.

So far, I have been lucky to have worked with directors that prepare me to get into character to fine tune my act. This is particularly important in scenes where subtle shifts in emotions are crucial to anchor the audience attention. For instance, at a funeral scene, the actor playing the role of the moaning relative may be asked to imagine having just held the cold hands of the deceased and recall the happy times he had spent with the deceased during childhood... etc, before acting out the scene. Once in character, the rest comes out easy.

Directing for desired results ought not to be limited to making films. I believe that directing for one's desired results follows the same pattern of coaching the 'actors' in one's project. Team members need to be prepared and coached. The old authoritarian way will not bring forth peak performance.

We can also start by directing our own life - coaching ourselves to get into the results we want. :)

Acting - Remembering Lines

2011-05-29T23:06:00.005+08:00

Remembering lines is the greatest chore for an actor. I find it easier if I memorise the words with the emotions and actions. It would even be better if I have someone feed the dialogue with me and do so with emotions.

In all, it amounts to living in the moment. If we live in the moment, we capture the moment of eternity and remember everything.

Acting - duo language

2011-05-23T20:39:00.009+08:00

Today, I was auditioned for the role of a killer in a film.

We acted out the scene twice. In the first round, the dialogue was in English. Then, the same dialogue was repeated in Cantonese.

During the Cantonese round, I felt like a different character than the one in the first round speaking English. It was surreal, as the mere change of language in this instance had shifted my emotions enough to make me feel like a different person. I am wondering, if such a change is so easy, then where really is the real me? Who am I?

Vacuum State - break

2011-05-20T13:05:00.005+08:00

It has been a absence of 2 months in Vacuum State.

I have been busy with several acting gigs in films, ads and corporate videos. Besides, the Singapore General Elections rallies kept me busy.

More frequent and regular posts will resume here on.

Thoughts

2011-05-20T12:51:00.006+08:00

For a time, I had wished I could act in a stage play, but put off the idea when I thought of the long months of rehearsals required.

Then last week, out of the blue, I was given a role in a short play, and also a short 5 days to prepare.

Curiously, my wish came true without the dreaded long rehearsals and yesterday, I performed two nights at the Esplanade.

So be careful with what you think, for they will come true.

Acting - Make Believe

2011-03-27T23:40:00.012+08:00

Actors get quickly into character of the script during shooting. When in character, his performance is assured. Words, emotions and actions will flow naturally unimpeded.

As much as it is important for the actor to get into character, it is also important for him to get out of the character.

During one of my recent film shoot, I played the tough army warrant officer during the day, running around the tracks and collapsing upon an excruciatingly painful torn ligament on the right knee. And as in film making, this collapse had to be repeated many times (at different camera angles), during each time which I was to demonstrate more and more convincingly that I had collapsed due to a right knee ligament injury.

Then when the shoot ended at 7pm, I had to rush down to another production studio for a rehearsal where I played the sobbing taxi driver father during an emotional separation from his daughter. I managed to get out of the warrant officer role and immediately became a caring sobbing taxi driver father.

I thought I did well transitioning from one character to another, until the next morning when I woke up with a painful right knee. Apparently, my repeated auto-suggestions the previous day had resulted in a painful right knee manifesting. In other words, I had managed to bluff my sub-conscious that I had a right knee injury and finally really got one!!

Our mind is powerful. It can believe in something and make that something manifest. So be careful with your thoughts, as positive thoughts manifest, but so do negative ones.

ps. The pain faded after one day. I had to wish it away!

Amid The Haste

2011-03-03T12:51:00.003+08:00

Today, I was in a hurry on my way to my acting audition. Actors are usually a tad more nervous before audition, as they don't know what to expect and also (ironically) their need to remain calm so that it is conducive to remember the lines and get into character. On top of that, I was lugging a camera, a tripod and a spare laptop as part of the logistics for a talk on "Learning Difficulties" that was to start right after the audition in another venue. Rushing and finding my way around for the correct exit in the subway amid the crowd, the tropical heat and humidity was thus very daunting.

Amid this whirlpool of rush and haste, my phone rang. It was John. John seems to have the habit of ringing at the wrong time and wrong place. What's worse, I could hardly hear him as the signal was poor and he mumbles his words, this despite him being an English language teacher. To make matter worse, John was bidding around the bush as he talked and there wasn't any coherence.

Frustrated and now even getting angry, I retorted, "John, can you get to the point and get on with what you want to say?!"

There was a pause of silence. Then John softly replied , "Mike, I just wanted to speak to a Singaporean whom I can relate easily to, to say how lucky and grateful am I to be in Singapore alive and well, as if I had been in Christchurch, where I was born and grew up in, I might have been dead by now or had my house completely destroyed, as one-third of buildings there have been destroyed by the earthquake."

At that point, it was my turn for the pause of silence. I was embarrassed. Amid the haste, we often forget... Haiz.

Education Therapy: Learning Difficulties

2011-03-03T01:23:00.000+08:00

Education Therapy: Learning Difficulties: "Speaker: Mr Pang Kong Eng Date: 25th Feb 2011 Time: 7-9pm Venue: International Plaza, 10 Anson Road Here are some of the video clips I capt..."

Tolerance

2011-02-24T15:54:00.008+08:00

Today, I thought the makeup girl at the film shoot was over-the-top. She had 6 metal piercings around her mouth and painted her hair red! I wanted to ask her if water actually leaks out of her mouth whenever she drinks!

After the shoot, I described her to my friend and to my surprise he remarked, "Isn't it cool?!!" He feels that she is just one of those mischievous creative types, that likes to experiment with ancillaries but is still out there doing a job and is being responsible.

I am somewhat surprised with his tolerance, but more so, of his tolerance with my contrasting views. Not once did he try to argue that I was wrong or that I was intolerant, as it didn't matter to him. Intrinsically, he had accepted that there was a different view of the same thing. In other words, he was even tolerant with my intolerance. Isn't that cool? :)

Cats' Play - Mother's Love... the saga continues...

2011-02-18T11:01:00.003+08:00

The story didn't quite end happily ever after. Soon after adoption, two of the five kittens died. The mother cat then took the remaining three kittens away, and all four of them - mother and kids have again vanished into the wilderness.

For other posts on "Cats' Play", click here.

Bliss Kitchen

2011-02-15T16:54:00.006+08:00

There is a Bliss Kitchen in Malacca. It serves up free vegetarian lunches every Tuesday and Friday.

It is run entirely by volunteers. There is no roster, but the turnout for volunteers are just about right everytime it is opened.

The founder, Dr Aaron Lim said that there are many who are ready to express their kindness and we just have to get something started and there will be people coming to serve. Dr Lim had intended to pay for the kitchen himself, but soon after the Kitchen's opening, a charity organisation pays for the rent and then sacks of rice and vegetables kept coming, and the operations now does not need money out of his pocket. So there are plenty kind souls around, someone just got to get it started.

Cats' Play - Mother's Love

2011-02-07T23:38:00.023+08:00

Look at these cute little kittens. These harmless little creatures, how could anyone possibly be afraid of them? Isn't it surprising to know there are people who have such phobia?

I was called upon by one such petrified person to get these little creatures out of her storeroom where the mother cat had secretly delivered them and housed them in.

Two other guys were called prior to me. The first one dared not handle kittens so young as he felt that they were too delicate and so he left. The second one went there and tried grabbing them out by brute force one by one, but they (all five of them) clinged tightly together and refused to be removed.

When I arrived, the kittens meowed and crawled out to me. I didn't even have to lure them out. They all happily came to me and allow me to pick them up. Somehow, they trusted me and volunteered themselves into my hands. Clearly, the kittens had sensed that I love them and wouldn't harm them. I then gently took them one-by-one and put them in a box, and brought them away from the petrified person.

That was step one completed - bringing the kittens away from someone with a phobia. The next step was to find them a new home. That needed time, so we wanted to leave the kittens in a temple a few doors away temporarily before we can find someone to adopt them, but the temple caretakers said that the kittens were too young and that they will die without the presence of their mother. Without a better option, we left the kittens in a box with some water just outside the house where they were born, just to keep them near enough for the mother to find them and far enough from the petrified occupier of the house.

Soon after we took the kittens out, the desperate looking mother cat came and quickly picked up her kittens away. She was very apprehensive and stared at us to check if we would harm her litter while she took them away one by one. Realising that we were causing the anxiety to the cat, we decided to leave them alone.

The next morning, the kittens were in the house again, probably brought in by the mother cat who felt that was the safest place for her litter. The house owner was again petrified. Something hard for normal people like us to understand, but it was a commotion.

Luckily, for the kittens, a friend of my niece came and decided to adopt all the five kittens including the mother cat; and so the story ended happily - for the cats and the petrified person.

For other posts on "Cats' Play", click here.

Lunar New Year

2011-02-06T07:45:00.007+08:00

This is a high-end raw fish salad, apart from raw fish, it has raw scallop and lobster flesh. In Singapore we call it "Lo-hei", meaning "toss it up", suggesting that the new year would be tossed up to greater heights of prosperity. This dish is invented in Singapore and now a must for everyone every Lunar New Year in Singapore and Malaysia. Originally, it was some other (cheaper) fish that was used, now salmon is more common, and this year scallops and lobsters are added in the more high-end restaurants.

After the reunion dinner, I strolled along Marina Bay and stopped by a free concert by a singing trio, outside the Esplanade, against a beautiful backdrop of the bay and the banking city. It was splendid!

On the way home, by the neighbourhood temple, they too have their celebration. Very basic, no frills concert complete with the gawdy Chinese kitsch and Hokkien cha-cha beats. It reminded me that in some quarters, life almost stood still while the rest of the country passes them.

This New Year, very few of my relatives visited us. In the years of passed, everyone of the nieces and nephews no matter how distant they are, came to visit us. Those days, they even visited us during the year, and then gradually less and less often till they no longer come. I wonder what happened to them, as we have even lost contact.

There are ups and downs in life, but I think it would be cordial to keep old family ties. Some things ought to remain the same no matter how affluent we become, or what advances in science and technology take us to. Sadly, this is not the trend.

Vacuum State - break

2011-01-18T09:31:00.006+08:00

It has been a while since the last article. My laptop crashed and when I brought it to the shop, the silly technician simply reformatted my hard disk, clearing all the data without asking me. He was not repented and insisted that he had told me before hand, which wasn't the case, as the word 'ref0rmat' will raise the goose pimples of any IT person like me from a distance. To add insult to injury, he demanded to be paid for his 'work'. Not wanting an argument, I paid, but never again would I return to his shop. He has lost a customer and I won't recommend anyone there. Sadly, there are just some people who would still think of money first and customer last. Wouldn't it be commonsense and care to ask someone first if you clear their data permanently? *haiz*.

Fortunately I have managed to recover most of the data since. When a hard disk is reformatted, the operating system merely tags the memory addresses as 'deleted', it doesn't literally clear all the space to zero.

Ok, enough of that!

There will be more interesting articles coming up now that my laptop is in order again. There should be interesting stories with my recent trip up to Malacca and also a recent run-in with some cats in "Cat's Play". Stay tuned!

Gratitude

2010-12-20T20:01:00.007+08:00

I saw these lush green shrubs and radiant flowers along the streets in Singapore today - that which is normally seen only in gardens and parks in other countries.

I must give credit and gratitude to the National Parks Board and the Singapore Government for their endeavour to build this city as a 'city in a garden'.

Thank you.

Zen Dance

2010-12-19T23:27:00.009+08:00

Zen Dance: Dance Meditation

by Sun-Ock Lee (D.A)

Date: 18th Dec 2010 (Sat)

Place: Suntec Convention Centre, Singapore

Organised by: Kwan Yin Chan Lin (KYCL) Zen Centre

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For over 30 years, Dr Lee has been teaching and performing throughout Europe, USA and Asia. Dr Lee's extraordinary dance performances and therapy programs, based on the mastery of Zen philosophy and Zen Dance technique, she has been recognised and awarded internationally at colleges and schools in Asia, Europe and the United States, as well as many dance concerts.

Zen Dance is a hybrid of Zen and dance which Dr Lee has developed for performance, daily practice, and clinical therapy. It has been implemented various therapeutic programs for the breast and womb cancer, spinal disc management, pre and post-natal women, stress reduction for people of various ages and occupations.

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The evening started with the opening dance performed by Dr Lee, amid a backdrop of colours and light. The graceful movements and flow of costume was also complemented by the interplay of cymbals and the large Korean drums.

After her performance, Dr Lee explained how she got into incorporating meditation into dance, after a Zen master told her that meditation can be done anywhere and even while one is in movement, as long as one is mindful of one's action. By that, she meant that the mind and actions are well synchronised. Being one whom she said 'cannot sit still and meditate', she decided to dance and meditate - hence the discovery of Zen Dance.

She says, "Dance is the best way of relaxation and fighting stress."

With that, she asks all of us to stand up and dance, as she guided us with a few key aspects of what Zen Dance entails.

As we moved our hands, we are to be fully aware of our movements. The movements are mostly continuous and 'piece-wise smooth', until she incorporated opposite and complementary movements - what she calls the 'ying-and-yang' movements. That is, you may be moving gentle and slow, then suddenly fast; or you can be soft and gentle, then turned over to strength. With such flip-flop of opposites, it becomes easier for the aggression and stress to be released. Basically, a dance of opposites, akin to the affairs of the heart.

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After the concert, I contributed some money in the donation box for the KYLC Zen Centre building fund. It is my little support towards having a full-fledge Zen Centre where more people can benefit from the Zen teachings and meditation. My friend who was with me in the concert too donated money to the fund - this to my amazement, as though she is a believer of the Christian faith, she was donating money to a Zen temple building fund.

I guess it shows that she is able to rise above her religion to trust that in all that exist, there is sacredness and god in sublime; even if they exist outside the precinct and practice of her religion.

That's harmony!.

Acting

2010-12-14T11:42:00.024+08:00

Finally got my showreel (an extract from the film) out.

I played the role of the father who had to relive the torment of guilt upon an unexpected encounter with his long lost daughter. I think the director is not only brilliant. I think she is also psychic! :)

There are three things I have learned during shooting. They are to:

1. Ignore the camera

2. Ignore the crew

3. Ignore yourself.

Some directors say that I shouldn't 'ignore myself', so I guess by that, I actually mean that I should not to be overly conscious about myself during the act. My director also told me that I shouldn't be 'acting', but just 'to be'. Once in the 'being', the rest comes naturally.

Other than that, I think it is also important to have chemistry with your co-actor.

Through reading scripts and characters, I have also learned to be more empathetic towards others and am more conscious and observant of my off-reel actions and behaviour. Now, I probably need less reminders to be aware that different results come from different intentions and actions committed in the moment. This awareness comes from the exercise of acting out various scenarios during rehearsals.
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Most of all, acting has taught me to live in the moment, as it is not something you can day-dream away, dread about the past, or worry about the future while in action.

The world is a stage and we are all actors. So live it! Live in the present moment.

Shanghai

2010-11-26T00:33:00.006+08:00

I arrived in Shanghai today. The immigration officer was surprisingly polite and welcoming to me - a sharp contrast to my experiences in the US and Europe where they treat almost every foreigner entering their gates with suspicion and disdain.

Also, free enterprise is very much alive here, much more than in the market economies of the 'free world' now bogged down by high taxation, high unemployment, strikes and regulations.

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Isn't it an irony that the communists are more open for business than the capitalists and that I feel more free in China than in the West?
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Driverless Electric Vans

2010-10-29T11:31:00.008+08:00

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This is a landmark achievement for driverless car navigation. I wonder how they interact with other cars with drivers. If the video doesn't work, click here.

Bucky Group - Changing Education Paradigms

2010-10-25T14:33:00.032+08:00

23rd October 2010

This Saturday, we listened to a speech given at the RSA by Sir Ken Robinson, world-renowned education expert and recipient of the RSA Benjamin Franklin award.

A lot of what he says resonates with what Bucky said, that "Everyone is born a genius, but the process of living de-geniuses them." Evidently, as in Ken's speech, toddler kids score 98% in the genius test and got worse as they grew older.

As an exercise for 'divergent thinking', Joo Hock gave us each an A4 size paper and asked if we could make a loop out of it that is big enough to go around our body. That is, without the aid of sticky tape and staples. I told Joo Hock that I have already done this before and he asked me to think of another way of doing it.

We come back to the results later...

The famous author and futurist Alvin Toffler mentioned about the factory style production of education in his book "The Third Wave" in the 1970s and in "Revolutionary Wealth" in the 2000s. In the factory system, everyone starts at the same age, do the same curriculum and take the same tests. This was to turn farm hands to factory hands in the face of the industrial revolution. More about "Revolutionary Wealth", click here.

This system also assumes that everyone is destined to be an intellectual with the ultimate achievement of becoming a university professor. In other words, some will be called 'smart' and some 'stupid'.

Bucky mentioned in the 1970s that universities of the future would be production studios for educational documentaries. Today, we find lots of these educational documentaries in Youtube and other video hosting portals. MIT and some other Ivy League universities have also uploaded their lectures and lecture notes to the Internet for anyone to download for free!

Then you have oddball groups, like the Bucky Group, going on an informal lifelong learning journey, by gathering in a hair salon every week to learn something from books, videos and each other.

Now, here comes the contentious part about ADHD...

Reflections-on-Ken-Robinson’s-talk
By K E Pang

Registered Educaion Therapist, Assoc Fellow, DAS RETA;

MSc, PGDipEd, BSocSc(Hons), BA.

I agree with his point that we need to reform education due to economic and cultural reasons. I also agree that we need to relook the way we classify human capacity into “academic vs non-academic” and the myth of the “abstract – theoretical – vocational” conception.

Definitely, education should cater to different individuals. But this is not new. About 2,500 years ago, Confucius in China already propounded to “teach according to the material/talent (witty pun too).”
It is true that current public education marginalizes millions of children. While he seem to suggest that all those millions are children with ADHD conditions, I’d like to add that those labeled ADHD are just some of those marginalized, but not the only one. There are others like those with conditions of Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Autistic spectrum, etc.

There may be some cases of ADHD where drugs may not be the best solution, and may be overused. However, in extreme cases, it is necessary for the safety of others. In have come across several children with severe ADHD coupled with violent tendencies that they actually posed a safety hazard to people around them (children and adults alike) on a daily basis. It was only on days they were sedated that the other children felt safe from harm. Fortunately, most cases of ADHD were not like that.
In his presentation, Ken Robinson appear to tacitly privilege divergent thinking and creativity over other capacities. Divergent thinking and creativity per se, without balance from other capacities may not be very helpful. There are also other capacities like the ability to focus, and act, that are also important for work to get done. Thus the value of convergent thinking and deductive reasoning still have their places for survival and daily living.
In the experiment he quoted on the genius in divergent thinking, he noted that divergent thinking seem to deteriorate with age. He attributed the deterioration to education. However, without proof cited, that is just a speculation.

We know from research that influences on the individual from the mass media and peers are just as strong, if not much stronger, than education institutions. Moreover, brain studies show that there are developmental phases in our physiology that our brain cells and their connections go through pruning – a process of cutting down the very connections that is linked to divergent thinking. Perhaps the causes of deterioration in divergent thinking lay elsewhere?
Ken Robinson seemed to contradict himself towards the end. e.g. he mentioned some individuals study best in solitude, some in small groups, some etc... yet, in his closing remark he mentioned that most learning happen in groups.

This may or may not be the case, for we know some of the most important and profound insights were done in solitude. Especially knowledge of intellect and of emotions. wisdom...which is more than both. Jesus spent years in the wilderness. Buddha attained his enlightenment in solitude meditation under the Bodhi tree.
Moreover, learning in groups may be heaven for some of the ADHDs, but it would be a torture chamber for those on the autistic spectrum, or other individuals who just learn best in solitude.

In that case, was he not just imposing another set of ideas onto what is?

Discussion:

About Answers

Monica: Teachers in schools tend to have a 'correct' answer for every question they ask. This does not allow the students to think that there are more than one answer to a question.

My Experiment as a Teacher

That is why when I was a lecturer in a local Polytechnic, I refused to have multiple-choice questions as it gives the impression that one of the four suggested answers is absolutely right and the other three are entirely wrong. This does not closely reflect reality. Usually, there are more than four alternative answers and sometimes, all of them are 'wrong' or not ideal.

The other category I took out from the exams the privilege to choose the questions the student would like to answer. Again, we often do not have the privilege to ignore questions that we face in real life. So I insisted on all questions to be answered.

As I was teaching a security course, all questions were scenario based. That meant that a scenario was given and the student had to assess what to do given the scenario and to state all assumptions if required.

For some questions, I went a step further to ask the student to identify the question (or problem) in the scenario, and that marks will be awarded to the explanation of why the student think that was the question given the scenario. Isn't this a common situation where observations are made, and yet the real question is elusive?

Naturally, I was not popular, as the students were all working adults from 35 to 45 years old, holding responsible positions and educated in the traditional route learning system. I realised that when they interrupted my lesson to tell me that what I spoke of at that moment and what was displayed on the slides were not identical. They also asked which page of the notes I was referring to. They had expected speech, slides and notes to be all perfectly synchronised. I told them not to worry about the slides and only to refer to the notes when they get home, but right at the moment, they were supposed to listen, understand or ask questions. That didn't quite work out.

More challenges arose in the assignments, one of them which was supposed to build a data centre on the crest of a hillock. As they were used to accept knowledge from books wholesale without questioning, some of them mentioned in their assignments that "precautions must be taken to make sure that the data centre site is not flooded during a rain..."; another mentioned that "precautions have to be taken against pipes freezing and bursting...", even given that the site is in sunny tropical Singapore!

At this point, Joo Hwa said that the student was 'correct' about the flood, as we learned that in our nursery rhyme, that "Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water...". "Aren't they supposed to go DOWN the hill to fetch a pail of water?" Come to think of it, yeah, nobody questioned, myself included!!!

In another assignment, I asked the students to pick up any two brands of a security device, then evaluate and compare their usefulness and explain why they choose one over the other. Many of them couldn't do that. They are used to receiving information and treating them as gospel truth. Now with the democratisation of information, they were unable to discern and discriminate. A skill that urgently need to be taught in school - this is suggested by Alvin Toffler in his book "Revolutionary Wealth", as in the Internet age, students no longer learn only from teachers. The result of the assignment was that I got many assignments that merely cut and pasted a table of data of product A, and another table of data of product B, without commentary.

However, there were two activities that worked quite well, so not all was futile. One was the role play exercise, where I simulated a scenario of a security intrusion and that they were to react to the incident. The other successful activity was the one-to-one interview where they felt they really learned a lot from, though the interviews for each of them was only 5-10 minutes. I supposed these two activities worked better because they were interactive and there was more fun!

How to Get the Most out of the Present System

Lily related her experience of her grand-daughter in kindergarten where she coloured the face of a girl blue and the teacher told the little girl that it was the wrong colour, and what the right colour was supposed to be. In another case, her grand-daughter drew lines across a triangle, as instructed, and the teacher commented that the lines were out of the sides of the triangle and that they were crooked, so she should use a ruler to draw them.

Lily said that that was disheartening, but she tries to go along with the system, by telling her grand daughter that for the exams, she must do it in a certain way, but in life, the rules are to be broken.

June then quickly interjected that it must be emphasized that it should be told that the rules can be broken but only if integrity is maintained.

How do you feel if you have made a discovery?

At this point, Joo Hock took out his poster used during his book launch of a quotation by Isaac Asimov, it has some blanks for us to fill in and it goes like this:

"The most exciting phrase to hear in science, the one that heralds a discovery is not 'e_____', but 'that's f____.'"

Can you guess the two words in the phrase? The first one is 'eureka', the second is 'funny'.

Results of Cutting the A4 paper into a Loop:

These are the results from a group of senior citizens trying to cut loops out of A4 size paper that is big enough to go through Joo Hocks body. Well, did Ken say genius thinking deteriorates with age? :)

Try it yourself. Cut a loop big enough to loop around your body from an A4 size paper without sticky tape and staplers. I'll show you one of the solutions next week!

Postscript:
Monica mentioned about the 12 senses in Wardolf Education. I have checked on the Net and found these:

Touch
Life
Movement
Equilibrium
Smell
Taste
Vision
Warmth
Listening/Hearing
Word/Language
Thought
Ego

For more details of the 12 senses, click here.
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What I Feel Like Saying...

2010-10-24T14:53:00.013+08:00

17th October 2010

It had been a special Bucky session with the agenda under wraps for many weeks. It was also the first and probably only Bucky event that Joo Hock had to turn attendees away. Finally, when the day came, it was revealed that it would be a launch of his book of poems entitled, "What I Feel Like Saying".

"What I Feel Like Saying", is a collection of the inner thoughts of Joo Hock, much of them inspired by the philosophy and thoughts of Buckminster Fuller. particularly the one called "The Trim Tab Man".

A trim tab is a smaller control device to release pressure prior to making major navigational changes on an aircraft or boat, to change direction. Bucky likened himself to be a trim tab. That is, just an individual that discovers new things to prepare humankind for the major changes ahead.

"What I Feel Like Saying" is also how every Bucky session in the Salon starts off with, to allow participants to say anything they have in their mind. Absolutely anything with no judgment of what is 'right' or 'wrong'.

Here is the opening poem:

Opposite every printed poem, is a blank page for the user to pen his poems, perhaps inspired by the author's.

We were also served to a game of filling in the blanks of famous quotes, like those pasted on the wall:

Did you manage to fill in any of the blanks?

There were also famous poems, whom we have to identify who the authors are.

Somebody then asked Joo Hock why he likes poems so much. He says that they are inspirational and he tries to commit to memory many of the poems he encountered, especially those penned by Bucky. He finds writing poems therapeutic. Perhaps they are all these thoughts bottled inside that needs to find their way out in a gentler kinder manner such that they can be inspirational to others.

Finally, the book launch...

... and the autographing...

I got mine inked by the author too...

TEDxNUS

2010-10-24T13:20:00.015+08:00

16th October 2010

It was an enlightening seminar - one that lived up to the expectations of TED.

I was given a tag to fill out my name and what I would like others to talk to me about and I scribbled, "Technology".

Others I have met have more light hearted suggestions, the best among which is "You!". Yes, talk about you! Isn't this the best way of engaging someone else in a conversation?

The famous Dale Carnegie's book on "How to Win Friends and Influence People", has put this as one of the main principles

- "Be a good listener. Encourage others to talk about themselves."

For the list of speakers, click here.

The 3 things that most impressed me and that I have learned from the seminar are:

That a goal you want to achieve 'someday' is not one worthy of you to take up.
That singapore's human settlement is at least 700 years old, preceding the arrival of Raffles.
That nobody knows the future in the stock market.

The seminar doesn't explain:

Why Americans are said to be diverse in culture yet unable to focus on human relations at work.
Why male spiders are much smaller than it's female partners.
What Singapore culture is.
If Singapore's wildlife is reducing or flourishing on the balance.

There was a speaker (Gino) who spoke about living in the present moment, but funny enough when he explicitly asked everyone else to focus on him (symbolically) as our 'present moment', I lapsed into an overly conscious state and couldn't be in the moment. hehe. Easier to do this naturally. Once too conscious about the present moment, it slips away from me. The present moment is in the moment before thinking. Thinking adds, "I, me, my..." in it and the blissful clarity vanishes.

Overall, it was a great experience to be in TEDx. I wish there was more time to mingle around during the seminar. The lobby hall was a little too small for moving around, but that just slowed things down a bit, but not a show-stopper.

My Unique Day in Singapore

2010-10-20T15:14:00.011+08:00

18th October 2010

The morning was a little bit of a hurry, as we were trying to beat the 7.30am Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) toll charge along the East Coast Parkway in Singapore. We started a little late and so we had to hurry. However amid the haste, in between pauses at traffic lights, we could still change the iPhone4 skin. Not bad eh? Every each day, a new skin! Isn't it cool? :)

Then as we got near the ERP toll gantry, as if to make the plot more exciting, the traffic slowed down and we had only 2 minutes before the toll bells ring! Then as we crawled till just at the bottom of the gantry, the clock clicked 7.30am and we got charged $1.50 instantly, to our cries of "Oh shit!" in perfect synchronisation.

Later in the day as I travelled in (public) bus number 130 along Balestier Road, an elderly man (about in his late 70s) got up with a folded wheel chair. The driver forbade him to take it up the bus and suggested that he took a taxi. "Taxi is very expensive!" the old man replied, but that didn't soften the driver's stance to block him coming up the bus. Ironically, the driver said that the old man could bring the wheel chair up if he sat on it, which he couldn't as it was damaged and he was bringing it for repair.

After the old man got off the bus, the driver called up his head office to enquire if he could allow the wheelchair up, and after some discussion, the head office said that he could allow the wheel chair on board. However by then as I ran down the bus to get the old man, he had already taken a taxi.

I was upset with the driver for being so heartless and myself for not intervening earlier. Singapore sadly has become a state where many people live like robots. I asked the driver how he could possibly turned the old man away and he said that if it was just up to him, he would have allowed, but he was afraid of possible reprimand from the company. Couldn't the driver decide with his heart? What harm or safety risk can a wheelchair do on board? The irony is that he could have allowed the wheelchair up if the old man sat on it. Haiz!

Good reminder that we should trust our heart.

This is my Uniquely Singapore Day!

Bucky Group - Making Enzymes

2010-10-17T10:08:00.011+08:00

9th October 2010

Siew Kiang, a Bucky Group member briefed and guided us into the process of making enzymes from fruits. We made one from fruit peels and wastes for cleaning, aka "Rubbish Enzymes" and another for drinking.

We used big fat plastic bottles. 'Fat' for the volume and 'plastic' so it won't explode during fermentation. The yeast in the fruit consume sugar producing alcohol and carbon dioxide. Initially, the carbon dioxide will carbonate the water and subsequently build pressure that can pop the bottle or break it.

The proportion of sugar:fruit:water is 1:3:10.

That means if you use 900g of fruit, then it would be 300g sugar: 900g fruit: 3000 cc of water.

The brown sugar is added, then the fruit peels and remains (only for the Rubbish Enzyme). Have a good mix of different fruit peels, like lemon, apple, bananas...etc, so that we can get the different properties of the different fruits.

After that, add clean water, leaving some space in the bottle, cap it tight and shake the bottle thoroughly to mix. Open the bottle cap once a day during the first two weeks to release the built up pressure during the fermentation.

At the end of 3 months, filter the enzyme solution for use. Enzyme solution is like wine as the potency increases with time. There is no expiry date.

The residue may be reused for the next batch by adding more fresh ingredients or you may dry the residue, blend and bury them in the ground to fertilize the soil. Use this carefully as it is a very strong fertilizer. Alternatively, pour into your toilet bowl / kitchen sink to clean and remove blockages in the pipes.

Do the same for enzymes for drinking, but use raw honey in place of sugar, as sugar produces more alcohol, and in excess, is bad for the liver.

Enzymes are effective as:

Fertilizer (replace or reduce use of chemicals), diluted 1:100/500/1000 ratio.
Insecticide, diluted 1:1000 ratio.
Pesticide, diluted 1:100 ratio.
Plant hormone (for fruits and flowers – use on roots, soil), diluted 500 times.
Anti-odour / air freshener ( pets, laundry, toilets, closets, shoe box, refrigerator), diluted 200 times.
Shampoo, Washing liquids, Detergents (to reduce chemical side-effects, grime, mould/fungus), 1 teaspoon per 500cc.
Veggie and Fruit wash – soak fruit and vegetables for 45 minutes to remove harmful pesticide residues, 1 tablespoon per 1000 cc.
Soothe Insect bites / itch / eczema / scalding - applying on affected areas immediately.

Notes courtesy of Dr. (H) Joean Onn of Naturopathic, Family Care Centre in Penang.

At the time of writing, we are 9 days into the enzyme fermentation process. You can drop in Hair Affair Salon to see what the bottles have turned into. In another 81 days, the enzymes will be ready for use, saving the environment from harmful toxic chemicals, giving you good health and hygiene and saving you some money.

Finally, see how easy it is to keep a group of senior citizens happy by just giving them each a bottle to shake with.

Read about my explosive experience making wine in High Spirits.

Adaptive Imperative

2010-10-11T16:29:00.009+08:00

Date: 5 Oct 2010

Venue: NUS Bukit Timah Campus

Speaker: Jeff Chua, Boston Consulting Group

I have attended a talk recently about developing business strategies in turbulent times when it is difficult to see trends beyond two or three years. The speaker mentioned the following observations:

The context of strategy has changed since changes happen frequently.

Market leadership does not necessarily imply the same extent in profitability.
It is harder to define industry boundaries.
It is harder to predict the future.
Market position is unstable. Those on top do not stay on top for very long.

Example of a Market Leader losing out to latecomer:

Blockbuster vs Netflix

Blockbuster was a market leader in video rental. But on 23 Sep 2010, it filed for Chapter 11 of the US Bankruptcy Code or protection against creditors.

Netflix is also in the video rental business and started in 1997. It deployed no strategy other than encouraging compulsive dissent and experiments. They tried sending out DVDs on envelopes, posting them and pricing them on a flat fee for as many DVDs customers care to watch. Then they continued to stream videos across different channels. By 2007, they passed the billionth DVD delivered.

This, the speaker claimed is evidence of increased unpredictability and turbulence.

Businesses would need to have:

- Responsiveness (agility)

- Resilience (robustness)

- Readiness (anticipation)

- Recursion (experimentation)

Example of two market leaders deploying very different strategies:

Google – using open systems

Apple – using closed proprietary systems.

The speaker continue to suggest that businesses should adapt using their:

Signal Advantage
System Advantage
People Advantage
Simulation Advantage
Social Advantage.

My opinion:

I think the speaker had focused too much on the form and not enough on the essence of the apparent ‘changes’.

The underlying common denominator of the current observations is merely the advent of technology and its easy and cheap availability. For instance:

- Netflix triumph over Blockbuster because of the former’s clever use of technologies.

- Large companies no longer make the proportional scale of profits as they used to because clever technologies are no longer just affordable by big companies, but they are affordable to small ones too. It is now possible even to become a one-man multi-national company.

So things aren’t that unpredictable or turbulent if we focus on the common denominator of ‘technology’.

Also, while Google appears to be ‘open’ and Apple being ‘closed’ using propriety systems, the commonality is that both makes money through their own propriety ‘orifice’. Google’s orifice is their search engine, while Apple’s is iTunes. And we have another major orifice called Microsoft Windows. Businesses love orifices. So in this respect, they are the same. So there isn’t the unpredictability or turbulence.

In summary, observations may appear different in form, but in essence there are usually common causes. The trick is look beyond the raw data to derive meaningful meta-information. The luminary Buckminster Fuller (Bucky) believed that the universe is one system obeying a set of generalized principles, and that in the early days when equipment are limited in ability and accuracy, different phenomena appeared to behaved differently. That resulted in the formation of different disciplines. So some scientific observations became ‘physics’, some became ‘chemistry’, some became ‘biology’,…etc, but in truth, they all belong to one system in the universe.

By those measures, it doesn't matter if Apple is a computer company, a mobile phone company or a lifestyle company. The fact that businesses have be categorized wrongly as stoke pipe industries with clear boundaries, doesn't mean that they need to continue to be so. A fresh look at them as eco-systems in one universe with their outreach enabled by technology would be closer to the reality.

Once the causes are identified it’ll be easier to help companies to cope up. So now you cure the causes, not the symptom. That means a simpler remedy, but usually that means you cannot sell expensive ‘medicine’ and make a lot of money. Bucky said, “You either make sense or make money, they are both mutually exclusive.” To date, I am still pondering over this question, "Can we make both money and sense?"

For god, No god.

2010-10-04T17:29:00.005+08:00

Met some atheists. They mocked the raping of choir boys by church priests and said they are going to educate others that there is no god.

I think they will have a hard time, as if they really believe that there is no god, then there should be nothing to educate about. Unless they want to start atheism as a religion.

Happy Children's Day

2010-10-01T10:25:00.004+08:00

For those children out there and those still a child at heart, "Happy Children's Day".

Here is a song I used to sing in school called "Semoga Bahagia" on Children's Day in my National Language Malay. This song is composed by Zabir Said, who also composed the National Anthem of Singapore.

Lyrics (Malay)

Sama-sama maju ke hadapan

Pandai cari pelajaran

Jaga diri dalam kesihatan

Serta sopan-santun dengan kawan-kawan

Dengan hati bersih serta suci

Sama-sama hormat dan berbudi

Jaga tingkah pemuda-pemudi

Adat dan budaya junjung tinggi

Capailah lekas cita-cita pemudi-pemuda

Supaya kita ada harga di mata dunia

Kalau kita lengah serta lupa

Hidup kita sia-sia

Jiwa besar sihat serta segar

Rajin dengan sabar tentu bahagia

Lemah lembut perangai pemudi

Cergas tangkas wataknya pemuda

Suka rela selalu berbakti

Sikap yang pembela dan berjasa

Capailah nama yang mulia pemudi-pemuda

Rajinlah supaya berjaya semoga bahagia

Lyrics (English)

Together we progress

Clever at seeking knowledge

Take care of your health

And be courteous to your friends

With a clean and pure heart

We respect and do good to each other

Watch your behaviour, oh youths

Respect and honour your customs and traditions

Quickly reach your goals/dreams, oh youths

So that we'll have our worth, in this world

If we are lazy and forgetful

Our lives are worthless

A big heart and a fresh mind

Hardworking and patience definitely brings success/happiness

Soft-spoken is the lady

Energetic and tenacious is the man

Charitable, always contributing

Having a righteous spirit and doing good

Attain a respectable position, oh youths

Be hardworking so that you will succeed, may you achieve happiness

Bucky Group - Shock Incarceration

2010-09-28T15:51:00.005+08:00

25th September 2010

This Saturday, we started our session with a Skype connection with Dr Cherie Clark from Albany, New York State. In true blue Bucky Group impromptu style, with some of us still munching our breakfast and others probably didn't know what was going on in the beginning when we were merely exchanging pleasantries.

However, it didn't take long before we learn of Dr Clarke's impressive programme called "Doing Life", which she taught to inmates of several Correctional Institutions in the US, to help rehab them. Dr Cherie has adapted Bucky's Synergetics: the 12 degrees of Freedom, which are 6 positives and 6 negatives into the programme. To date, 42,000 inmates have graduated from her programme with a very high success rate, since 1987. This programme has since spread to five states in the US.

The programme is tough. It is 16 hours a day, 7 days a week for 6 full months! Not for the feeble minded! The inmates though have the motivation to complete it and do well because they will get their sentence reduced from 3 years to 6 months. This saves the prisons a lot of money every year and transform the inmates back to useful citizens in the mainstream of society.

For the video about the "Doing Life", click here.

More about 12° Of Freedom: Synergetics and the 12 Steps to Recovery, click here.

Bucky said, "Everyone is born a genius, but the process of living de-geniuses them."

AND

"... reform the environment instead of trying to reform human."

So, by accepting that the inmates too are geniuses, the programme seeks to re-genius them. This has been well demonstrated and 42,000 graduates from the programme can attest to that.

The Golden Palm Tree

2010-09-24T11:07:00.004+08:00

An Extract from "The Making of the Golden Palm Tree", author Michael Chua

The world population has risen steeply, since the Second World War, due to the conquest of many diseases, increased food production and improved sanitation and hygiene. Alongside this population boom, came the impetus to develop houses, hospitals, schools, factories, etc to serve the increased population. This rapid urbanization in the last century has burned a trail of damages to the environment which we now see is causing climate change and mayhem in some nations.

While we need to continue to develop life supporting wealth to humankind, it is timely that development has to be done in tandem with nature and perpetually balanced with nature to achieve continued harmony and prosperity.

Harmony with nature is of paramount importance as humankind is part of nature and therefore ought to flow with the pace and rhythm of nature. It is amid the natural rhythm and balance that we find bliss.

The Golden Palm Tree has funded the Sepang Gold Coast Environmental Interpretive Centre for the protection of wild life around Sepang. Even before the construction of the resort, it has already contributed to the cleaning up and replanting programme of mangrove samplings along the (river) Sungai Sepang. These mangrove plants have been around for thousands of years. Mangrove swamps protect our coastal line at Sepang Gold Coast and also forms an important habitat for biodiversity.

The rivers at Sepang are now clean from debris and flotsams, thanks to the hard work of the boatman, our guide and the hired cleaners. It is through involving the common people in the cleaning process that the environment can be protected.

I asked the guide at the mangrove river boat ride how he would urge people to protect the environment and he said that he would ask people to treat the environment as their home. “How would you like it if other people come to your home and destroy your home? You wouldn’t like that, so do the same for the wild life at Sepang. As the environment is beautiful, it will attract more tourists to the place and bring prosperity to your business…”

It is through young men like this guide that more will step forward to protect these mangrove swamps and coast lines, which are the habitat of many creatures like the otters, sea eagles, kingfishers, egrets, mud skippers and the ubiquitous colourful blue swimmer crabs. You can see these wonderful creatures and more when you hop on the mangrove river ride. Then, you will also have the chance to plant a mangrove sapling by the river bed and do your part in protecting the environment.

The Golden Palm Tree is designed as an ecologically friendly resort with energy saving insulation building materials, water treatment plants and building the sea villas on raised stilt platforms with minimum disturbance to marine life. The raised platforms have become an artificial reef offering shelter to the marine life beneath. Fishermen at Sepang Gold Coast have said that there are now more fishes in the sea since the resort is constructed.

All these environmentally friendly installations added significant costs to the resort and savings can only be realised after many years. This means that ecologically sustainable development essentially requires long term commitment.

Besides the infrastructure, the other half of ecological sustainability is the service and training to hire locally and scout for local farms as their food suppliers.

As a result, the local cottage industries are now bracing themselves to get ready for more tourists. The local famous Seafood Bak-Kut-Teh (seafood pork rib soup) is already serving two bus loads of tourists every other day. Others like a local bird nest farm has decided to set up a showroom and visitor centre for tourists to understand and appreciate the process of harvesting bird nests and the health benefits of consuming them. They are also clearing parking lots for anticipated tour coaches coming to their showroom. Local fruit farms, fish, prawn and crab farms that are already suppliers to the resort’s restaurants will also see increased demands when Sepang Gold Coast ‘food paradise’ is completed. This will bring you the best chefs and restaurants in the region, so that you can wine and dine in the idyllic settings of the sea.

In the world of large corporations and institutional finance, cottage industries offer us a softer and gentler side of commerce in a more human scale, where products can be designed and packaged closer to the customers’ tastes and lifestyles.

Together with the resort, the restored environment and these cottage industries, the heritage of the people in the Klang Valley can be conserved for the many generations to come and enjoy.

For other articles of the Golden Palm Tree, click here.

Coffeeshop Talk - Jailhouse Rock

2010-09-20T10:44:00.003+08:00

My regular coffeeshop is in a dilapidated state. The collective owners are not refurbishing their properties because they were trying to get it sold en-bloc. In Singapore, you may get a rich developer offering you a sum of money you cannot refuse. It happens, but sometimes it happens not.

As I was at the back of the shop, I struck up a conversation with a young chap smartly dressed in long sleeves and a tie (that is an effort amid the tropical heat and humidity), about the state of the shop. We spoke about the previous attempt for the estate to go 'en-bloc'.

Young Chap: They are en-bloc-ed right?

Me: No. The last attempt failed. There is height restrictions here, so it is not very attractive for the developer. They were trying to make a holiday resort here, when there is a popular one, run by the unions (NTUC) called Downtown East, barely a few kilometres away. Besides, you don't build a resort literally opposite a prison.

Young Chap: Yes agree, the prisoners won't be coming out to visit the resort.

I almost burst out laughing, but realised he was stuck in his rigid left-brain logic and sombre about his remark. *LOL*

Bucky Group - Herbal Garden Tour

2010-09-16T10:46:00.018+08:00

I love Bucky Group outings and this is one of the best so far. This week, we visited Mr Tan's Herbal Garden by Block 938, Jurong West Street 91.

It looks like any ubiquitous HDB (public housing) cluster of apartment blocks in Singapore - neat, dense and colorful with activities on the front green.

Sandwiched between two apartment block is Mr Tan's tiny plot of herbal garden, remarkable in land scarce and straitjacket Singapore. This herbal garden is a project of the Resident Committee (RC). I heard that there are other such gardens in Singapore, also similarly projects of RCs.

The one standing with the blue shirt is Mr Tan. He is here busy explaining to the Bucky Group the virtues of various plants and how we can use them to heal rheumatism, cardio-vascular problems and even cancer. He has asked me not to blog about specific herbs and their usages, as he does not want people following them blindly to get sick and getting him into trouble. If you want any specific advice, you can go to the garden itself to meet him. All herbs are free for your collection.

Here, we were under the shed, just like in a kampung (village) amid high rise urban dwellings. The green canopy are passion fruit vines.

The garden is grown in permaculture style - the crops mixed randomly. This way, the soil nutrients get naturally recycled and the menace of pests minimised. Pests get confused when they smell varied kinds of crops coming from different directions and eventually die out.

Many of the herbs are common plants, many looking like weeds. In fact, some of them are commonly considered as weeds! Perhaps we haven't been giving enough respect to 'weeds'! More appropriately, I would now consider a 'weed' as a plant whose virtues are yet to be discovered. You may like to say the same of human beings in the same demeanor or predicament. :)

Can you spot any plant you know? Among the common ones, you can see papaya, guava and 'wild yam'.

The Herbal Garden is tilled entirely by volunteers. This must be uniquely Singaporean, having a tiny plot in the midst of urban dwelling, tended by volunteers and the crops given away for free! What is more surprising is that generally hardly anything else in this crass materialistic country comes free!

One of the Bucky Group member told me after visiting the garden that he now feels there is still some hope for Singapore. I guess he meant hope of having caring and compassionate people around. I think there is always hope. Even the cut-and-thrusts of a staunch market economy such as ours, has its precessionary effects.

Bees go around sucking nectar out of flowers, but in the process they pollinate plants. This is a 'precessionary effect'.

Bucky said that no matter what, we are at least in a sub-conscious evolution and that the intention should be to move from that to a conscious evolution of the human consciousness. The latter being faster to save humankind from degradation.

These fruits are called "mountain grapes" in Chinese. This is one herb that the consumer must consume with correct advice and caution as it may not be suitable for some, like pregnant ladies.

I don't know the name of this plant. It must have a scientific Latin name. In fact, all the herbs in this garden have scientific names and therefore are nothing new. What is new to the layman are their usage as medicinal herbs. This blue flower in the pix, by the way, is less than 1 cm in diameter.

It's beautiful isn't it, what nature brings? Those fine filaments are less than a millimetre thick.

This tiny leaf tastes sweet when you chew on it and even leaves a sweet after taste.

Some of the herbs are dried out before consumption.

Hereon, the pixs are eye candy for this post. I do not know their names and their uses. Even if I do know their usage I still would not leave any advice here. However, if you know the common names or the scientific names of the plants, please leave a comment below.

Before we left the garden, one of the volunteers came with a plant uprooted from another sister garden in another estate, to be planted in Mr Tan's garden. For this plant it is the roots that are medicinal.

We are now finished with this garden and are heading for the garden at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) nearby.

If you are coming to Mr Tan's garden and don't know the way, just navigate from this church. Home for the sexy singing pastor Ho Yeow Sun aka "China Wine" - Jurong West's other famous product! :)

This is the start of the NTU garden.

Beside it is a map with the various crops labeled in Chinese.

Though within the perimeters of a public tertiary institution, the volunteers here are very traditionally Chinese in their practice. Their first ritual is to pray to the Toa Pei Kong deity before they start work. Kind of a respect to the land.

It is a scenic lovely plot of land on a hillock.

You can see the Bucky Groupies engulfed by the serenity of the countryside.

Here, unlike Mr Tan's plot, the crops are neatly planted in their own beds. This is so that they can easily be identified and harvested for systematic clinical studies by the university academic staff.

It is indeed a lovely Saturday morning. Time well spent. The knowledge gained was overwhelming. It is enlightening to know that illnesses can simply be healed through traditional herbs without surgery and the chemical side effects of drugs. Western developed countries are learning a lot about these herbs and are now making capsules out of them. It'll take a long time for me to learn more about these plants. Some of the Bucky Group members come here more frequently and understands more. Some got their ailments healed taking the herbs. I was told that one of the volunteers here had a brain tumour and got healed taking these herbs. He was there tilling the earth when we arrived.

What is most amazing is the dedication of the volunteers and their big heart of giving away everything free. I feel honoured just being associated with these kind souls.

For more of the Bucky Group, click here.

Coffeeshop Talk - The Simple Things in Life

2010-09-15T15:50:00.008+08:00

Today at my local coffeeshop, I saw the aunty preparing empty condensed milk cans for customers to take-away coffee or tea in. This was popular in the old days in Singapore up till the late 70s. After that, coffee stalls prefer to use plastic bags or polystyrene foam cups. The prepared cans certainly look quaint and nostalgic and so I took some photos of them. The aunty was surprised and remarked that only rich people can be fascinated by things like that.

"Why is that so?" I asked.

"It is only when you are rich, stomach full and have nothing to worry about that you appreciate such simple things," she replied.

"But one does not need to be rich to appreciate the simple things in life," I said.

"Yes, but people are not like that nowadays," she retorted.

Then, she told me that her neighbours' children on their first salary (of mere SGD3,000/month) went off to buy a car, spend all their salary away every month, then ask their parents for money. How times have changed! In my time, with whatever little we have, we still give monthly allowance to our parents. Then, these neighbour's children gone on to have extravagant weddings in 5-star hotels, expensive photo shoots, honeymoon, luxury apartment, and got divorced after their second kid. Isn't it akin to running on treadmills?

One doesn't need to be rich to appreciate the little simple things in life. Just looking at the tin cans reminded me of my childhood and the lifestyle of that time. It is a beautiful feeling, and hence the photos. Besides, I am not anywhere as rich as they think I am. So one can be financially poor to appreciate the simple things in life!

Perhaps parents in Singapore are too busy working and making money instead of imparting values to their children. As a result, children grow up adoring money and material wealth. After some time, they think that material wealth is all that matters. It is said in jest that when a man is poor, he longs to find a wife and when he becomes rich, he divorces his wife!

I told the coffeeshop aunty that my nieces and nephews are lucky as their mother stayed at home to bring them up and so they are inculcated with moral values from young. They love the family and gravitate towards home to be with everyone. If home is where love is, kids will gravitate towards it to find their serenity. Such serenity secures them and cushions them against the onslaught of the daily harsh materialism we commonly find in our societies.

Then just before I left the coffeeshop, she marveled that I am well educated and therefore need not take into buying 4D (the weekly lottery). I couldn't believe what I heard at that instance, so I merely shook my head in reflection and left.

The Power of Numbers - The Secret Letter Box

2010-09-09T11:28:00.010+08:00

Straits Times article 7 September 2010.

A peddlar of illegal contraband (un-taxed and smuggled) cigarettes was caught hiding his merchandise in a public housing (HDB) flat letter box. Notice that the letter box number is "10-5111".

According to numerology...

10-51-11 breaks down to:

1 = Lone initiative

51= Obstacle alone (meaning he gets through his obstacle alone).

11= Alone alone (meaning that it is a lone operation).

10-51-11 adds to

1-62

62 = "money talks", well why else would he be up to no-good?

1-62 further adds to

1-8

8= Stress

1-8= Alone Stressed!

1-8 finally adds to

9 = Business

In summary, this is a lone operation where he had an obstacle of hiding his merchandise for the sake of making money. This stressed him and he runs it as a business.

Mere coincidence?

Coffeeshop Talk

2010-08-31T17:02:00.009+08:00

Today at the coffeeshop, I asked the auntie why she is glum and she retorted that she didn't strike 4D (lottery) and therefore there is no cause to smile. I asked if she had noticed if the people queuing up at 4D shops smile, but she didn't reply.

It is common to see people looking glum in Singapore because they have not struck lottery. Compulsive gamblers become perpetually glum.

I have two lady friends who have divorced their husband because of the latter's addiction to gambling. And these are educated men in respectable professions, one a teacher and the other a policeman, both fallen to the devil of greed.

Recently, there is a rich man who lost 26 million dollars within 3 days in a casino in Singapore. It must have been a great pain and suffering for his family and him. It hurts me just thinking of it. More so in this case, as he is someone I know and went to the same kindergarten class in our early years.

Gambling is a social ill. For one to win, many have to lose. Stay away from it.

High Spirits

2010-08-30T11:48:00.014+08:00

When I came home a few days ago, a bottle of freshly harvested papaya wine exploded, splattering the wine and shattered glass all over the place. After cleaning them up, I opened the other bottles to release the pressure to avert another explosion and the first bottle popped like a high pressure jet splashing its contents all over my face, shooting up to the ceiling and messing the place all over again!

Then as I thought the worst was over, a bottle slipped off the fridge and smashed itself into bits, as I was trying to make space there. What a mess!

What went 'wrong' was that I had followed the recipe without understanding the reasons behind each step properly. Stirring the ferment every morning is to allow the resulting carbon dioxide to escape and not form pressure in the fluid. What I didn't understand was that besides tasting the fermenting wine, I should also be checking the effervescence in the fluid, to judge if they are ready to be bottled. And so, I had foolishly loaded the fluid together with the residual sugar waiting to convert to alcohol and carbon-dioxide that was to blow up its vessel.

The second lesson I learned from the incident is that no matter what, I should not to be stressed up. If I had been more relaxed and mindful, I wouldn't have let the bottle slipped from the fridge and smashed up on the floor. If I had been cool about it, I could have even taken some pixs for this blog post before cleaning the mess up. It was quite a scene and would have made fascinating photographic material. :)

Side notes:

Brewing wine is fun! Witnessing, tasting and understanding the fermentation process first hand is fun!

Like human beings, different types of fruits have different nature and therefore behaves differently though put through the same process. Some become explosive faster while others have gentler ways of dissipating pressure.

In other words, be mindful and know what you are brewing everyday and remember to stay cool so that you can enjoy the fruits of your harvest. It applies not only to making wine!

Technology - The Straggling Bus and a Non-stop Express Train

2010-08-18T17:53:00.009+08:00

Innovative proposals from China...
.

.

.

No time is wasted. The bullet train is moving all the time.

If there are 30 stations between Beijing and Guangzhou, just stopping and accelerating again at each station

will waste both energy and time.A mere 5 min stop per station (elderly passengers cannot be hurried) will result in a total loss of 5 min x 30 stations or 2.5 hours of train journey time!

The Chinese are innovative enough to come up with a non-stopping train concept. When the train arrives at a station, it will not stop at all.

The passenger at a station embarked onto to a connector cabin way before the train even arrive at the station.

When the train arrives, it will not stop at all. It just slows down to pick up the connector cabin which will move with the train on the roof of the train.

While the train is still travelling away from the station, those passengers will board the train from the connector cabin mounted on the train's roof.

After fully unloading all its passengers, the cabin connector cabin will be moved to the back of the train so that the next batch of outgoing passengers who want to alight at the next station will board the connector cabin at the rear of the train roof.

When the train arrives at the next station, it simply drops the whole connector cabin at the station itself and leaves it behind at the station.

The outgoing passengers can take their own time to disembark at the station while the train had already left.

At the same time, the train will pick up the incoming embarking passengers on another connector cabin in the front part of the train's roof.

So the train will always drop one connector cabin at the rear of its roof and pick up a new connector cabin in the front part of the train's roof at each station.

If you are reading from facebook, click here.

The Thinking Chore

2010-07-26T02:16:00.005+08:00

Haiz. All these dishes to clean. Isn't thinking about it more painful than the doing? Suffering comes from the thinking.

A Happy Party

2010-07-12T15:33:00.018+08:00

I was invited to a party last Saturday.

Everyone there was so happy and smiling. They even lined up to greet me. What a lovely reception!

Some may have disappeared into the background, but still smiling and always maintaining eye contact. Not a moment were they busy on the phone or sending smses.

There are some cute little baby ones like this...

... or famous ones like Elmo.

Minnie Mouse was also there. She was searching for Mickey...

Mickey had the cheek to show us how much he ate...

... but not as much as Winnie... he helped himself thoroughly.

There is also a sexy one lurking by the couch...

... watching me...

... hmmmm...

... and finally, the birthday cake! A labour of love!

Yum!

Visit Vacuum State, click here.

A Tale of Two Indians

2010-07-02T10:40:00.005+08:00

The Roti Prata shop two doors away from our regular table has closed itself from business. It used to our regular Prata shop.

Their final closure is not a surprise. When we used to frequent that shop, it was beaming with business. Often, we had to wait for a seat. The food was okay, but the service was virtually absent. There were two waiters, but they seem to develop a skill of standing in front of the shop staring into space. No frantic waving for them would get their notice. In other words, they conveniently choose not to see us.

Then one day, as we could not get a seat, we wandered over to a similar shop two doors away. There, we were instantly greeted by a smiling waiter. The food was great and after we finished, they thanked us and told us they hope to see us again. It was a huge contrast in service, and since then it has become our regular Prata shop.

Then over the weeks we saw the number of customers in our newly adopted Prata shop increasing, while the other shop that we frequent previously dwindling. By then, we were treated like 'members', as the waiters even remember our names and our choices for their dishes. Each time we went we were always greeted with "How are you today Sir?" Many a times, we made even unusual requests, like shifting our table into the open air, asking for fish curry instead of the usual lentil curry,...etc, and got promptly served. Nothing seemed too difficult.

As time goes by, about two years, we saw the previous shop we frequented gone worse and worse, and eventually, closing for business.

The two shop sold almost identical dishes. Quality of food is about the same. The difference is in the service. The second shop showed they care - and that's what made more customers coming back.

Teamwork

2010-06-23T21:16:00.005+08:00

The Japanese has such great teamwork. The other day as I queried about my credit card refund with the hotel receptionist, her colleague at the far end came over instantly with the documents without her prompting. It is as if they are telepathic.

Teamwork is natural to the Japanese as they spend countless hours in 'group-work'. Hardly any work gets done without first having a group discussion and consensus. This however, takes a lot of time. Something which typically takes 30 minutes to complete may extend to 6 hours in a group. But to them, it is not a drag. This is the way things have been done and it is the way it is. To an outsider like myself, I find that difficult to understand.

There is no absolute answer as to whether individually completed work or group work is better. I feel that sometimes, we should honour individual work, and at other times, group work -depending on the context and urgency. Group work takes up more time and not always better quality work. Also, work-life balance is also important. It is senseless to have strong teamwork in the company and broken relationships in the family.

Respect and Honour Your Guests

2010-06-17T14:40:00.020+08:00

The Japanese is probably the most polite people in the world and a culture that offers the best customer service.

A Japanese host upon seeing anyone coming near their shop would instantly bow, greet the person, and say "please come in".

A Chinese host would normally wait for the customer to enter the shop before talking to the customer. Those that do come out, usually do so to ask what the customer wants. Some of the more zealous ones will go further to suggest what the customer should have.

I would feel more comfortable entering a Japanese shop, as I feel honored and pampered to examine what they have to offer at my liberty, without obligations.

In a Chinese shop, I would feel pressured to buy, as an expectation is already set.

For all else being equal, many of us would rather enter the Japanese shop than the Chinese shop, as the former offers us the comfort and liberty to do so.

The crux of it happens in the first three seconds when anyone is seen near the shop. For the Japanese, it is a reflex to honour and respect the other person. Applied to business, it not only win over the customers' hearts, but even win against the hungrier,leaner and arguably more efficient Chinese.

Taking longer than three seconds to react to the presence of the customer will not have the same effect, as it will turn out choreographed or orchestrated. Just like the many smiles and "Good morning sir" greetings from American fast food chains, they don't produce the same results.

This crucial three seconds, however took a lifetime to develop. A lifetime to make it one's second nature. The irony is that the Japanese culture of honorific greetings and bowing was originally imported entirely from China!

This comparison between the Japanese and Chinese is a case of culture winning over brute force. It also demonstrates that 'copies' can be refined to a quality higher than the original.

In history, the superior culture eventually emerged the victor.

In 371 BC, the Spartans lost the war against the Athenians, although the former had a superior record in military might. The Athenians rose to become influential figures in economics and politics in the territories they lost to the Spartans and corroded the defensive brute force Spartan shell.

Similarly, after the Mongols had invaded China in 1271, Kublai Khan adopted legal systems of the Han Chinese and established political systems, radicated politics of centralized state power, resumed normal ruling orders, and also, created the system of administrative province.

Vacuum State

2010-05-31T20:32:00.006+08:00

Sorry, having a break from Vacuum State in Japan for the moment. Visited lots of places here and lots more to write and share later. Keep tuning in...

A Child's Prayer

2010-05-04T11:37:00.002+08:00

Prayer for Dad

Dear God,

Please send clothes for all those poor ladies on Dad's computer.

Amen

[Sent to me by a friend. Author unknown, but thanks for such refreshing humour.]

Symphony of Science

2010-04-28T16:44:00.002+08:00

This is one in the series of music videos from Symphony of Science. Sounds like science and spirituality is coming together. They have never been separate subjects to start off with. So concisely articulated to summarize the mechanics and inter-connectivity of the universe. Very much what Buckminster Fuller propounded.

Psychic Buster

2010-04-21T11:00:00.012+08:00

Here is a video of James Randi talk in TED talks:

(if you have problem with the video, click here.)

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I don't agree with everything he says, but include this video here as it helps readers to be more discerning and check bogus psychics out, so that they don't get cheated.

Here is my critique of his talk:

1. That what he said was mostly his opinions that we have to assume it is true to go along with his arguments, for instance, about the several occasions of what these purported psychics said in generality during 'communications with the dead'. But read on, as I have found other videos about his more substantiated investigations below.

2. How am I to know that the bottle he consumed is indeed homeopathic pills or that he had spit them out in his hands carefully and not swallowed them? He is a stage magician and conjuror after all!

3. That it is his assumption that dead people are 'dead' after the pass on. This is again his opinion and belief, as scientific studies have been done on people who had clinically died in a hospital and came back to speak about their continued consciousness. Also, there are scientific studies on reincarnation.

4. However, I would agree with him about the media putting on programmes as long as it pleases the sponsors. In any investigation, just follow the money and the sex - that'll cover 90% of the grounds.

Here is a more methodical way to bust fraudsters, where Randi tested this 'astrologer', who turned defensive quickly. But we don't know if the subjects are pre-arranged actors. Sorry. I am a bit of a nitpicker given the context. (If you can't get the video, click here.)
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Here is an even better analysis. Read the subtitled comments in the video:

(if you can't get the video, click here.)
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This one is more spectacular:

(If you can't get the video, click here.)
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Lastly, this is a video about some evidence about reincarnation:

(if you have problems with the video, click here.)

I put up this post to urge readers to do their own thinking, and not based their beliefs on someone else's thinking and experiences.

Personally, I practise Reiki and have recently bent a spoon, without pre-bending it in preparation. I have also witnessed psychics who could give spot on detailed answers to questions they have no way of knowing, sometimes stuff that the subject himself has forgotten. But don't take my word for it unless you have experience similar and it makes sense to you.

I think where there are counterfeits, there must be the real, otherwise there is no reflection of the of the former. What do you think?

You can read about my experiences of Reiki healing here.

You can read about my spoon bending experience here.

Reiki - Understanding the Cause

2010-04-18T09:45:00.009+08:00

This pair of slippers is not exerted upon symmetrically. You can see it from the imprint. The right foot tend to lean on its right side. This is because the big toe on the right foot experiences pain when it is moving. To avoid the pain, the foot intuitively lean on its right side. Hence the assymetric imprint.

Observing symmetry is important, as our body is made to be symmetric. For instance, if you are constantly adjusting your shirt or skirt to bring it bring it back from getting uncomfortably twisted around your waist, it may be a sign that there is asymmetry.

This is my pair of slippers. So I too have asymmetry and that is caused by my painful right toe. It used to experience intense and piercing pain. When I went to my doctor, he suggested surgery, but with no guarantee of it being fully rectified. So I hesistated and tried Reiki instead. That was three years ago. Then, it was swollen and intensely painful, but after Reiki, the swell has vanished and the pain is much subsided.

I have continued the healing, but the results were very slow, until one day when I learned from a Chinese physician that the cause was that there is abnormal and inward growth of a bone in the toe. Knowing that, I then visualise shaving off the extra growth each time I heal it. Then to my surprise, the healing accelerated and there is now only residual pain in my right toe joint.

Then, just as I thought my problem was about to be over, my left big toe started to experience similar acute pain. Again, I responded by using Reiki energy to shave off the extra bone in the left toe. To my surprise, it healed within hours and the pain has not come back since.

I am still healing my right toe daily and I believe soon this chronic pain too will disappear totally.

What have I learned here?

That if you know the cause, it is easier to heal, thus it will help alot if the healer understands about anatomy.
That if problems are detected early, they can be healed faster.
To watch out for asymmetry, as these are unhealthy signs, so that you can respond early to heal.

To read more about Reiki healing, click here.

Bucky Group - Meditation

2010-04-12T09:58:00.009+08:00

It's good to join the Group again at MacRitchie on a Sunday morning, after a long while. It was a very humid morning and I was drenched running the 4km stretch of boardwalk by the reservoir.

After that, we continued on passages on Bucky's "Utopia or Oblivion" book. Chao Loy was surprised that the Group had only covered one page after the last time he was there, which was one month ago. We all laughed and joked that Chao Loy should come more often to speed us up. We are slow alright, but better so to go the casual approach to understand Bucky's philosophy without too much of a rush.

This week, we read about how the Soviet Union jump started their industries by buying the latest factory equipment from the United States in the 1930s and so did China subsequently after 1949. Both countries improved the quality of life for their people rapidly as a result.

I think that if it had been for the inept political system and resulting upheavals, just left to the advent of technology alone, the quality life would have improved by leaps and bounds. Politicians and greed puts us back. So though technology enables us to make things cheaper and better rapidly. the cost of living has consistently gone up and the quality of life stagnated or gone down for the masses. Bucky had mentioned is passing to send all the politicians on a spaceship to the sun and we would all be better off. On the other hand, take away technology and there will be widespread starvation very quickly.

In China today, it has come a stage where producers of consumer electronics have to introduce new improved versions of their products every six months to beat the copycat pirates. To do that, the producers have to keep one version released to the market and two newer versions in the pocket, ready to be released anytime the pirates catches up with them.

At Breakfast in Brinjai:

Chao Loy shared with us about a talk by the chief of Tzu Chi Charity Foundation Singapore, a successful entrepreneur who decided to stop his business and donate all his money and focus all his time to the Charity. In his talk, he said that these days, people are spending more and more time and resources on their body and forgets about nourishing their minds.

I told Chao Loy that though nourishing the mind is important, it has to be balanced with a healthy body, as I have experienced. I have been doing regular meditation and even some yoga stretches, but at one stage was still not coping up very well with stress. So I decided to have an overhaul of my lifestyle. This is my self-imposed regime now I:

Cycle to the beach, do qigong exercises and meditation
Return home for breakast
Hit the gym for one hour
Have raw and steam veg for lunch
Rest for 1 hour after lunch
Have a short meditation
Skip dinner
Have some light yoga asanas
Sleep before midnight.

I feel brand new now. So, meditation (taking care of one's mind) alone is not enough. We need aerobic exercises, diet and rest.

Chao Loy then shared with us an interesting story between a little boy and his grandmother who is a devoted Buddhist who chants incessantly.

As the grandmother was chanting, the little boy came and interrupted her and asked to be able to buy ice cream. The grandmother told her to hold on, as she is busy chanting, in which the boy said:

"The ice cream man is here, if you wait he'll be gone. Buddha on the other hand, can wait, and you can chant later."

Defeated, the grandmother stopped and bought the boy the ice-cream, then continued chanting.

The boy came again and then called, "Grandma".

The grandma heard him but ignored him as she focused on her chanting.

"Grandma", the boy continued.

The grandma again ignored him.

The boy then repeated, "Grandma..."

This time the grandma shouted at the boy, "Stop interrupting me, can't you see I am busy chanting???!!"

The boy was saddened, but replied gently, "Grandma, you called out Buddha's name for so many times and he was never angry with you, I just called out your name three times, and you got angry with me."

Coffeeshop Talk

2010-04-08T16:15:00.008+08:00

At my neighbourhood coffeeshop today, the coffee auntie asked if I have been to the newly opened casino in Sentosa (Singapore). I told her that I haven't since I don't gamble. She was surprised since many others here love gambling to the extent of taking it almost like a religion.

I told her that I believe in the teachings of Buddha, and that in gambling, for me to win, many have to lose. She was amazed and then confessed that she is a Buddhist, but couldn't get herself to understand some of the principles in Buddhism that encourages people to live a less materialistic life. She then related to me that her friend had just spent $18,000 to bring a Buddhist monk into Singapore ( I assumed it's for blessings), but still that had not got her anywhere (read 'made her rich').

I explained that faith is in the heart and not in the matter of spending money to bring priests and monks to bless oneself and gain merits. She listened intently, but seem confused and then walked away.

Kids Play - Nice Teacher

2010-04-05T13:53:00.003+08:00

Zee is a gutsy little 8 year old talking to her teacher...

Zee: I like Miss Tan, she is gentle, sweet and nice to me. I like her. You (referring to her teacher), you are mean, and I don't like you!!!

Teacher (paused, and gently replied): Yes, but sometimes the mean ones are the ones that love you most...

Why Positive Thinking Is Bad for You

2010-03-29T10:10:00.005+08:00

By Srikumar Rao

The "power of positive thinking" is so firmly enshrined in our culture that knocking it is a little like attacking motherhood or apple pie. Many people swear by positive thinking, and quite a few have been helped by it. Nevertheless, it is not a very effective success tool -- and it can be downright deleterious. There are much better ways to get the benefits that positive thinking allegedly provides.

Perhaps the statement that best exemplifies positive thinking is "When life hands you a lemon, make lemonade." It seems so obvious that this is good advice that we never question the wisdom of the adage. But it does not take a whole lot of digging to unearth the flaws in this reasoning.

For one thing, did life really hand you a lemon -- or was that merely your initial, unthinking reaction upon finding yourself in a difficult situation? And is being handed a lemon really a bad thing?

No matter what happens to us in life, we tend to think of it as "good" or "bad." And most of us tend to use the "bad" label three to 10 times as often as the "good" label. When we label something as "bad," we greatly increase the odds that we will experience it as such. And that is when we assume that we need to apply positive thinking. We have been given a lemon, and we had better scramble to salvage something out of the situation by making some lemonade out of it.

How tiresome and tiring!

Think back on your life. Can you recall instances when something that you initially thought was a bad thing turned out to be not so bad after all -- perhaps even spectacularly good?

Maybe, for example, you missed the early-morning train that you always take to get to work on time, and you had to wait a whole hour for the next one. But in that hour, you struck up a conversation with someone else who had missed that train... and a beautiful friendship developed. Or maybe you didn't get a job that you desperately wanted. But then you were unexpectedly offered a much better job -- which you would not have been able to accept had it not been for the earlier rejection.

And consider the story of Olympic champion Michael Phelps. He broke his wrist after slipping on some ice. He was in the middle of intense training for the Beijing games, and thought his career as a swimmer was over. But his coach wouldn't let him quit. And though he couldn't swim for a few weeks, he kept training just by kicking his legs.

Phelps did make it to the Olympics, and he won the 100-meter butterfly by one of the closest margins in athletic history -- 1/10th of a second. Turns out the weeks of kicking had given him leg strength he'd never had before. While his opponent had to stop kicking and glide at the end of the race, Phelps was able to keep going and win.

Now, let me propose something radical and revolutionary: No matter what happens to you -- no matter how terrible it may seem -- you do not stick a "bad" label on it. You are fired from your job... your mortgage lender sends you a foreclosure notice... your spouse files for divorce... or whatever. Is it possible, just possible, that the reason you experience such things as personal tragedies is because you have been conditioned to think of them that way?

In his book Man's Search for Meaning, Viktor Frankl tells about a beautiful girl from a privileged background who was grateful to be in a concentration camp because it allowed her to connect with a spiritual side of herself that she never knew existed. Observations like this led Frankl into his life's work of trying to determine why, when faced with extreme adversity, some people flourish while others disintegrate.

Many who rise triumphantly never label what they go through as "bad" and, thus, don't agonize over it. They simply take it as a given -- like an engineer surveying a swamp through which a road is to be built. From his perspective, the swamp is not a bad thing. It is merely something that has to be addressed in his construction plan.

If you never label a situation as "bad," you won't experience it that way. You won't need positive thinking to get yourself through it. And all of the stress associated with figuring out how to make lemonade out of your lemon simply goes away.

That's a lot different than saying to yourself: "This is bad. Really bad. But somehow I will make some lemonade out of this lemon -- and then perhaps it won't be so bad." What you're doing, here, is falling victim to the huge pebble in the positive-thinking shoe. First you think your situation is bad. Then you think you will somehow make it less bad. Meanwhile, you can't help but wonder if you're just kidding yourself. And if you don't manage to make lemonade out of your lemon, you're devastated -- because the success tool you were conditioned to believe in caved in on you. That's why I say that, in some cases, positive thinking can be harmful.

Can you actually go through life without labeling what happens to you as "good" or "bad"? Sure you can. But you have to train yourself not to do it. You have been conditioned to think of what happens to you as being either bad or good. And you can de-condition yourself. It is neither easy nor fast, but it is possible.

Let's say you break your leg. Yes, there is some unpleasant stuff you have to do -- like having a doctor set the broken bone and going to therapy when the cast comes off. But the real unpleasantness in this situation is what you inflict on yourself: "Why did this have to happen to me? Bad things always come my way. I am in such pain." All of that is simply baggage. You don't have to pick up this load -- and the only reason you do is because you were never told that you don't have to.

I am telling you now. Don't pick up that useless burden. Don't label what happens to you as "bad." Then you won't need positive thinking -- and much of the stress in your life will simply disappear. Poof! Just like that.

[Dr. Srikumar Rao is the author of the new book Happiness at Work -- Be Resilient, Motivated, and Successful, No Matter What. Visit www.srikumarsrao.com to read more of his articles and to buy the book. You can also follow Dr. Rao on Twitter: @srikumarsrao.]

Spoon Bending

2010-03-20T12:42:00.006+08:00

This is the second time I am bending spoons. The first time was five years ago. Then, I used a thinner spoon and thus was not so convinced if it was brute force or mind-over-matter. This time, I chose a thicker spoon.

The procedure is such:

Hold the spoon one hand on each end.
Focus and feel the spoon 'softening'.
The moment you feel that, quickly apply some force.
When it starts to bend, you just have to lightly push to bend it totally.

That means, it should be: Focus-Feel-Force-LightPush. If it is: Force-Force-Force-Force until the spoon bends, then it is not it. Besides, if you are doing it correctly, the spoon is heated.

Power of Numbers 3

2010-03-12T09:40:00.014+08:00

This is an unusual and interesting Life Path. Read till the end and find out who this person is.

Root Number:

Root 5 people are a very strong character and a born leader (even stronger than Root 1) and therefore holds high positions in his life/career. This person has to be very careful because ‘5’ is in the centre of ‘1’ and ‘9’, so he can turn to either extreme of ‘good’ or ‘bad’. He is very fussy and like to control. He can adapt easily (flexible) and therefore can also be dangerous. He has strong instinct of things. He is very hardworking and will achieve success in later part in life. A realistic and firm (very grounded) person (not a dreamer).

The downside of this person is that he is stubborn and hard-headed. He should relax and not pick on small issues. If he relaxes on his principles and become less stubborn, he will be respected by all. ‘5’ is also a sense of direction.

Key Character:

This is a very lucky individual.

Life Path of this person:

Spends money on himself or in entertaining his friends and is spendthrift. Because of this, he attracts backstabbers.

He works alone to achieve wealth, resulting in many supporters/customers/network, which in turn gives him more wealth.

A very lucky individual that has many supporters, many of them women; able to sail through difficult times.

His plans are always under pressure, and he ends up being aggressive.

Extremely emotional, quick tempered, very aggressive and very impatient. Money comes very fast and go very fast.

He would spend money on entertaining influential people that will benefit him.

His friends/supporters would backstab him or give him obstacles.

Gets agitated very easily, as he meet obstacles; emotional and impatient.

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Other points:

1. He is prone to divorce.

2. He is very systematic when he does things.

3. He has many domestic issues.

4. Subconsciously, he is very stressed.

5. He has a very very high sex drive.

6. He has a split personality. ie. You think you know him well, yet you don't really.

7. A very charming personality.

8. When driven to a corner, he can have suicidal tendencies.

9. He is prone to head injuries.

10. He attracts women.

11. Money gotten by aggressiveness. He got affairs.

12. He talks a lot in the night. eg. In the pub and/or via the Internet and SMSes.

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This person is none other than Jack Neo, a famous and successful Singaporean movie director and comedian, now embroiled in a highly publicised scandal with his mistress. This post is not to discredit Jack, but merely to demonstrate the accuracy of "Power of Numbers" and how we can use it to understand ourselves.

I think this reading describes Jack quite well. Incidentally, I was shared the same office with Jack during my National Service days, so I know a little bit about his off-stage behaviour. At that time, he was not a celebrity yet.

I wish Jack and his family well. As for all the press and girls involved, it is time to leave the man and his family alone. People will forgive and forget, and time will heal.

There is a very good article in the Singapore Today newspaper, entitled, "WHY JACK NEO SHOULD NOT APOLOGISE TO ALL OF US". To read it, click here.

If you take away the sex and the money, none of these would have happened. No scandal, no apologies and the press won't have their news. What impresses me is the couple's continued love for each other and their family. That is something many struggling marriages may like to take a leaf from. In the end, love conquers all.

It really does sound like another Jack Neo script for a movie, most of them centre on romance and family.

As for me, I'll continue to watch your movies Jack. You have my support.

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Re-inventing Universities in China

2010-03-11T12:16:00.008+08:00

A friend of mine forwarded me this CCTV video (scroll down) about the re-inventing of universities in China and discussion with the Vice-Chancellor of Sydney University.

Here are my observations:

1. That the Vice Chancellor reiterated that students do not only learn from teachers, but from everyone they interact with in their life, including other students. That is mentioned by Alvin Toffler in his book "Revolutionary Wealth"

2. That the Vice Chancellor is creating an environment for change (very much what 'Bucky' Buckminster Fuller) such that students and staff from different disciplines can come together and interact, creating a multi-disciplinary approach to studying. However, note that the university still divide studies into different disciplines, instead of approaching them from generalised principles.

3. That the University is looking at an assessment of academic results as entry into the university, such that it is fairer to candidates from disadvantaged backgrounds and rural regions. In the context of Singapore, should this mean that if we cast our university admission nets further to the rural folks in ASEAN, will we give scholarships to students from the minority tribes in Borneo, Sulawesi and Papua, though they do not have the sparkling A1s that scholars ought to have? Also, should these rural students having learned to be a brilliant scholar in a field that has little application to their hometowns, such as Computer Scientist, mean that they are better off remaining as the university professors or executive jobs in Singapore?

4. About Fudan University's curriculum of specialising their students only in the fourth year of their study. Perhaps they are coming closer to the realisation that there isn't really such a thing as a 'specialist', in that the universe operates on generalised principles. A friend of mine used to tell me that specialisation is only for insects.

5. I am impressed with the young CEO's quest to live his dream and also his sharp analytical mind towards capturing customer requirements and serving his clients. However, he may be hard pressed to enter any of the prestigious universities in China or abroad. The Vice Chancellor has even turned down the (hypothetical) suggestion to write a letter supporting the CEO's application into university should that be required one day. This is clear evidence that education systems today are still unable to pick up individual talents and doing them justice in terms of academic grades. Toffler mentioned about the need to treat students as individuals in Third Wave education, but we are still far from this ideal today.

6. About the lady who returned to study in university despite her good career at that time and came to graduate. Though she said that it is her dream to complete her education in a university, I suspect it also had a lot to do with the Chinese cultural perception of holding a piece of qualification in order to progress in her career and for earning respect in society. This is dangerous if universities continue to lag behind in pedaegogy, updated knowledge and teaching medium. Bucky said that the future universities are likened to be production houses of documentary movies. This is already happening in Youtube, but hardly anyone would call it a university.

7. That the Vice Chancellor mentioned about the need for universities to return to their fundamentals to explore the 'truth' of everything, whatever in costs are. This is ideal, but how are you going to do this in a dictatorship? I agree that true education comes only when we have enough mental space and physical space. That will lead to an open society and critical thinking, as advocated by author and financial market guru George Soros, that is, when dogmas will have lived its natural life and died.

The video demonstrates the contrasting perception and concepts of what education is, between Eastern and Western civilisation. A rare treat. It also shows that China is progressing at astonishing pace and surprising openness.

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Everything is OK

2010-03-02T14:28:00.005+08:00

Choose what you like from this video, you don't have to believe that 'everything is ok'.

What you did not choose probably doesn't feel ok with you, but can be ok to others.

Love and Light!

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The Power of Numbers 2

2010-02-26T12:12:00.018+08:00

I have been doing a lot of character-and-behaviour Life Path readings using dates of birth and the Power of Numbers - probably a thousand of them.

The One-Man-Band

The above is Mr John Smith's (not his real name) Life Path Diagram. I highlight John's Life Path here because he has an unusual repeat of numbers. His Numbers show that he is so independent that he can and prefers to run his business alone. This may sound 'good', but truly, the universe really does not judge what is 'good' or 'bad'. Numbers merely speak what they are, and as they are, and the judgment is only and purely human. However, being a one-man-band business also mean that he is unable to scale up his business and is more likely than not working himself to a detrimental health. So, that is not very 'good' at all, going by the human judgment.

Balance

John is also not a very balanced person, as he lacks in the ability to: act fast, garner support and be resilient against stress. It is said that to cultivate Tao, a man needs to learn to be balanced in all aspects. That is, a balanced man is the success beyond all of business or material successes put together.

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Compatibility

Separately, a common question I get is one pertaining to 'partner compatiblity'. Many clients are highly anxious to know if their boyfriend or girlfriend is compatible with them and if they are spouse material. Just for the record, many couples I have read are not compatible. Even the married ones are not compatible (by the measure of the Power of Numbers). Consequently, many of them are also unhappy in their marriages.

So how did they end up married? How could they be sufficiently 'attracted' to one another to tie the knot? These are hard questions to answer fully, but let's see if we can get some hints.

Firstly, does 'compatibility' mean that if two persons are married, their relationship will be trouble free and that they will live happily ever after? Given that we most people are living in a harsh and hurried manner in urban settings and by the Law of Average, a dispute-free marriage is highly unlikely.

From the cases I have seen, compatible couples have a lot in common in their Life Path. That means they have similar thinking patterns, interests and habits. Perhaps, this is the reason they find each other by the Law of Attraction - that which pulls them together, or pulls them back together after every squabble. When two persons are highly similar, their chances of staying together are much higher as it will be easier to exercise empathy given that they think alike. That is, empathy is easier if one has experienced the same or similar thought patterns before. Given that and for every other thing being equal, a compatible couple then has a higher chance of staying married.

For couples that are incompatible, I find it easier to use the Life Paths to show where and what they are incompatible in. It is a more organised, structured and visible way of bringing awareness of their incompatibilities. Once the couple is made aware of their specific issues, they can then work consciously towards understanding the other party better and close the gaps. Since nothing is fixed or permanent, awareness itself is halfway through the victory of taking charge of our one's own destiny.

Lastly, "How did these incompatible couples end up married?" Much of the answer could be found in the word, "curiosity". Incompatible couples do not have much in common, hence they were initially very curious about each other. So much of the other party's character traits were then new to them and were seemingly interesting in the beginning. This is the light hearted floating feeling one experiences, and one often mistaken as a feeling of 'being in love'. However, once such curiosities are satisfied, the light floating feeling fades, and the mundane starts. Perhaps that's why 'love at first sight' often do not last very long, if at all.

For other blog posts on the Power of Numbers, click here.

ANNOUNCEMENT

For those who want to meet me for a reading or a chat, I'll be at the fair near Central Mall in Singapore on:

Date: 6 March 2010 (Saturday)

Time: 4pm to 11pm

Place: Along the banks of Singapore River outside Central Mall.

There will be a fee charged. I have a manager now and she says that it is only fair to have an exchange. I think so too. However, there'll be a 'promotion price' if you have a reading at the fair.

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The Interview with God

2010-02-19T10:06:00.006+08:00

Got this inspirational video from a friend today...

I dreamed I had an interview with God.

“So you would like to interview me?” God asked.

“If you have the time” I said.

God smiled. “My time is eternity.”

“What questions do you have in mind for me?”

“What surprises you most about humankind?”

God answered...

“That they get bored with childhood,

they rush to grow up, and then

long to be children again.”

“That they lose their health to make money...

and then lose their money to restore their health.”

“That by thinking anxiously about the future,

they forget the present,

such that they live in neither

the present nor the future.”

"That they live as if they will never die,

and die as though they had never lived.”

God’s hand took mine

and we were silent for a while.

And then I asked...

“As a parent, what are some of life’s lessons

you want your children to learn?”

“To learn they cannot make anyone

love them. All they can do

is let themselves be loved.”

“To learn that it is not good

to compare themselves to others.”

“To learn to forgive

by practicing forgiveness.”

“To learn that it only takes a few seconds

to open profound wounds in those they love,

and it can take many years to heal them.”

“To learn that a rich person

is not one who has the most,

but is one who needs the least.”

“To learn that there are people

who love them dearly,

but simply have not yet learned

how to express or show their feelings.”

“To learn that two people can

look at the same thing

and see it differently.”

“To learn that it is not enough that they

forgive one another, but they must also forgive themselves.”

"Thank you for your time," I said humbly.

"Is there anything else

you would like your children to know?"

God smiled and said,

“Just know that I am here... always.”

-author unknown

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Comics - Beware the Conscious Mind

2010-02-08T10:28:00.006+08:00

click on the picture to zoom in

How does your tongue feel? LOL!

Now try being your big toe!!!! hahaha.
.
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How to live till 100+

2010-01-27T11:11:00.006+08:00

Summary of video:

1. Move ( find ways to move mindlessly, make moving unavoidable )

2. Plan de Vida ( know your purpose in life )

3. Down Shift ( work less, slow down, rest, take vacation )

4. 80% Rule ( stop eating when you're 80% full )

5. Plant-Power ( more veggies, less protein and processed foods )

6. Red Wine ( consistency and moderation )

7. Belong ( create a healthy social network )

8. Beliefs ( spiritual or religious participation )

9. Your Tribe ( make family a priority )

"How to live a long healthy life", BBC documentary:

For other posts in this blog about 'life extension', click here

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Conscious Creation - The Greatest Love of All

2010-01-22T11:10:00.007+08:00

FREE FRIDAY PRESENTATION** ON

"CONSCIOUS CREATION : "SELF-LOVE - Part 3"

presented by

Dr. T. Aaron Lim

Co-Founder, Bodhi Fellowship / Center For Inner Peace

Had we not loved ourselves at all, we could never have been obliged to love anything. So that self-love is the basis of all love. -- Thomas Traherne

According to the song : "Greatest Love of All "

The greatest love of all

Is easy to achieve

Learning to love yourself

It is the greatest love of all.

Self-love may be the greatest and most important love we ever experience in this lifetime. However, "learning to love yourself" does not seem so "easy to achieve." For most of us, genuine self-love seems so elusive, so much harder to grasp than we expected. How we feel about ourselves has a lot to do with how others feel about us.

If we pour and pour from a vessel without ever refilling it, eventually, it will run dry. So, if we are like that vessel, how do we refill, recharge, re-energize, and replenish ourselves, so that we will have energy and love to give to others and to the world? The answer is: by loving and giving to ourselves, first.

Loving ourselves is the foundation. In order to have loving relationships with others we must have loving relationships with ourselves. Answering the questions below is the first step:

"What would you do if you believed you were completely responsible for the presence of love in your life? What relationships would you heal? How would you act if you believed you were the source of love in any encounter? How would you change the way you treated yourself?"

Just as a lack of self-love has a vibration, so does unconditional self-love. It has a quiet, steady radiance which draws others to its light.

You can explore the universe looking for somebody who is more deserving of your love and affection than you are yourself, and you will not find that person anywhere. -- Unknown

If you aren't good at loving yourself, you will have a difficult time loving anyone, since you'll resent the time and energy you give another person that you aren't even giving to yourself. -- Barbara De Angelis

WHEN: Friday January 22, 2010 8:00 PM - 10:00 PM

WHERE: Bodhi Fellowship Dharma Center

1B-39-3, Bachang Mall

Jalan Kesidang 3/11

Kg. Lapan

75200 Malacca

(close to Petronas / along Prudential Insurance / 7-11 Store / Zhong Hua Seafood Restaurant / a few doors down Gateway Christian Fellowship and above Dermastrata Beauty Salon. Call Ruby @ 012-6133788 for direction)

Friday evening presentations are an excellent opportunity to meet new people, build long-lasting friendships, and learn to live a spiritually-centered and loving life.

Here is the music video of the song itself. Listen to the song paying close attention to the lyrics. I have heard this song many times, but didn't realise there is so much power in the lyrics.

Lyrics: "Greatest Love Of All"

I believe the children are our are future

Teach them well and let them lead the way

Show them all the beauty they possess inside

Give them a sense of pride to make it easier

Let the children's laughter remind us how we used to be

Everybody searching for a hero

People need someone to look up to

I never found anyone to fulfill my needs

A lonely place to be

So I learned to depend on me

[Chorus:]

I decided long ago, never to walk in anyone's shadows

If I fail, if I succeed

At least I live as I believe

No matter what they take from me

They can't take away my dignity

Because the greatest love of all

Is happening to me

I found the greatest love of all

Inside of me

The greatest love of all

Is easy to achieve

Learning to love yourself

It is the greatest love of all

I believe the children are our future

Teach them well and let them lead the way

Show them all the beauty they possess inside

Give them a sense of pride to make it easier

Let the children's laughter remind us how we used to be

[Chorus]

And if by chance, that special place

That you've been dreaming of

Leads you to a lonely place

Find your strength in love

If you reading from facebook and want to watch and listen to the music video, click here

Oppression

2010-01-14T10:47:00.002+08:00

Brain washing

2010-01-12T01:59:00.002+08:00

While we are on the subject of the need to do one's own thinking, I chanced upon this video on an experiment that lead people to conform without the subject's realisation.

So do your own thinking!!!

Bucky Group - I dreamed a dream

2010-01-11T13:02:00.019+08:00

2 January 2009

This week we had a light entertaining session of June sharing her photos from her recent trip to Japan and listening to "I dreamed a dream" sung by three different singers.

The first one was the much applauded live performance in Tokyo by Susan Boyle.

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Next, we listened to Elaine Paige, Susan's idol...

Lastly, we listen to Hayley Westenra...

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While the videos were played, there were repeated and persistent remarks about how beautiful Susan looked after her makeover and the echoing of Simon Cowell's praises of how "nobody has sung the song the way Susan Boyle has...". Haiz, could they have at least left these frivolous comments until after the song was sung? That way we can actually enjoy the song.

Besides, what did those remarks amounted to?

"... nobody has sung the song the way Susan Boyle has..." - Sure! Everyone has their own unique style (whether good or bad), but come on, this was a frivolous remark from a reality show sensationalist judge. Why were we repeating unthinking remarks like these at the Bucky session to the extent of disturbing the listening?

As for Susan's improved looks - she had a make-over and looked more presentable, but she was not about to win a beauty contest.

I wanted to say something about this, but was told that it was not about whether I agreed or not, but it was about what Simon Cowell said. I am surprised as I didn't know that the Bucky group has now become one good only for parroting somebody else. Isn't Bucky about "Doing your own thinking?"

Which version of the song do you prefer?

Which one did you think sang with the emotions of a woman estranged with a baby, dreaming for the day the baby's father would come home to her?

I had my friend whom I have played the three videos to without him knowing who the singers were and how they look like. There was no right or wrong answer necessarily, but he did his own thinking. So should you.

If you are reading from facebook, click here

Reflection

2010-01-09T16:08:00.000+08:00

Really?

Sepang Retreat

2010-01-04T20:12:00.017+08:00

We did not reach Sepang Gold Coast by sunset as intended, as our car was somehow infested with ants in Singapore and we had to stop by to get rid of those pesky creatures. I think a nest must have dropped off from the tree the car was parked under. I take it that the car must have been cozy for living creatures.

It was already dark when we reached the resort. This time we were greeted by the illuminated Christmas archway.

This is the sea villa that the girls stayed in for the evening. I took the one-room villa opposite.

This is a single room villa. I love the steep pitched attap roof. It reminded me of my grandmother's house in the old days in Singapore - back then when we still had kampungs.

We stayed up chatting for a while, but I went to bed earlier to catch sunrise in the morning.

Where the villas are, it is possible to watch sunrise in the morning at one side and sunset in the evening from the other.

The entire resort, other than the restaurants and offices are built in the sea on stilts. This allows the water underneath to flow without disturbing the ecology. In fact, the villas offer a good shelter for marine life, such that local fishermen have said that there are more fishes along the coast since the resort was constructed. Oysters also grow on the stumps underneath the villas.

The chairman and owner of the resort has planned it all along that the construction do not disrupt the ecology of the surroundings. "We must have the resort in harmony with nature. That way nature will help us, because man is also part of nature," he said. This philosophy goes well with Tao, that man exists in balance with nature in respect to the Natural Laws, and all in nature circulates and transforms in harmony.

This half completed building in the background will be a multi-purpose hall, which the girls are planning to organise an International Latin and Ballroom Dance Competition in August 2010. I suggested that they make Sepang Gold Coast the Blackpool of Asia (Blackpool has hosted such international dance competitions for 80 years!).

This is the villa balcony. In the distance, are other huts.

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They look like this close-up.

.This is the dining area, but we did not have time to have breakfast here, as we have meetings at Shah Alam at 12noon.

A flower dish in the showroom. Isn't it lovely?

This is the model plan of the resort - a palm tree stretching out to the sea.

We managed to reach Sepang Gold Coast's Shah Alam's office at 12noon, in time for a lunch treat! By then we were hungry, having skipped breakfast so that we had more time to find our way around.

After Shah Alam and our meetings done, we headed for Malacca, with yours truly as the driver. However, the idea of a Peranakan dinner at Malacca soon petered out as it got dark and we felt that it will be too much of a detour. It was prudent that we get back to Singapore not too late as one of us had a morning flight the next day to Macau to judge a dance competition! Otherwise, a sumptous Peranakan dinner at Malacca would have been nice.

We opted instead for a Teochew porridge dinner along our route at Seremban. The Teochew porridge restaurant was said to be near the town's Teochew Association, so our mission was to find the association building.

We were told that the association's building is behind this old Portuguese-Peranakan styled building of antiquarian charm.

This is the town's cinema - still a single screen theatre (as opposed to a multi-theatre cineplex). The last single screen theatre in Singapore, incidentally also called 'Capitol', closed down many years ago!

Finally, we found the Seremban Teochew Association!!! Hurray! But no restaurant, as it opens only during the day! So no dinner!

Oh dear, we should have gone to Malacca!

So from here, it was a straight speedy track back to Singapore. Once back, we headed straight for our favourite Wanton noodles at Lavender Food Centre. There was a long queue at the stall, but we needn't have to queue. For us it was special! Frequent customer privilege! :)

For our previous trip to Sepang Gold Coast, click here.

Christmas 2009

2009-12-26T19:07:00.011+08:00

I attended Christmas Service at the church where my sister sings in the choir and goes to regularly. In the chapel, there was a verse projected on the front wall, "But the Lord is in His Temple: Let all the Earth keep silence before him." (Habbakuk 20:20). I find that moving, as it is only in this silence that we can communicate with god.

While reading the verse on the wall, I noticed that there is no cross there. I happen to speak to the pastor after the service and he said that it is so that the congregation will focus on the worship of Jesus Christ, rather the symbolism of the cross. Personally, I would go one step further to focus on the teachings of Jesus. That is, not to confuse the singer with the song.

The sermon mentioned about the historical context of Jesus and Pilate, and how Jesus died for all so that we can have eternal life. The message ultimately was for Christians to live a surrendered life and make Jesus the king of their life.

"But, how many people, Christians or otherwise, dare live a surrendered life?" I thought. Do we truly dare to follow our hearts? Follow the path that we believe is spoken from the holy spirit. Or would rationality and materialism takes precedence?

Fears and fatigue abound in life in a city state. It is normal. In urban life, we no longer spend our waking and sleeping hours according to the sun. The rhythm of urban life violates the natural cycles of daylight and tires us. Besides, in Singapore, we don't grow our own food and the only way to survive is to work on a business or job to make money to buy food.

Before the church service, whilst at the local coffee shop for breakfast, I chanced upon an old lady, probably in her 80s, who was perturbed about a Buddhist monk who had converted to Christianity.

"I asked him if the church provide his meals, but he didn't get my sarcasm," she said meaning to wake the ex-monk into material reality.

Did she really mean it to say that if the church does take care of the ex-monk's meals that it would have been worthwhile converting to Christianity? Sadly, even at her advanced age, she suffers the myopia of not being able to see beyond the physical, creature comforts of material survival.

So contemplating a 'surrendered life' is a tricky one. All mainstream religions preached that. It is therefore down to one's faith and belief in providence and the abundance in our eternally regenerative universe. I think for that, changing one's religion is not necessary, but changing one's thinking and resolve does.

Here is the choir:

Dream Interpretation - the riot

2009-12-20T15:32:00.009+08:00

I normally do not share my dreams in my blog, but this is an exception because it conjures hard hitting images and conflicts.

[Start of dream]

I was cycling along a familiar stretch of a dual carriageway road near my home. I was reaching a traffic light regulated T junction when I was confronted with a big truck coming straight on me violating the flow of the carriageway. I was perturbed but skirted along the side of the truck and proceeded forward.

Then I saw two collided cars, one of them burned to charred black and both drivers were having a punch-up. Then did I realized that the truck was wilfully coming in the wrong direction to block everyone from going forward.

Having gone passed the truck, I have gone into the point of no return and had to go forward and turned right at the T-junction to get home. As soon as I turned right, the usual surroundings of the otherwise familiar road changed. Instead of trees and residence, I saw shop houses on both sides of the road and people fighting.

By the time I saw all that, I was in the middle of a riot. I had no better choice but to keep cycling, avoiding the smashed glass debris on the road, hoping that they don’t puncture my tyres and immobilize my bicycle. To play it safe, I thought I would keep off the road and cycled along the corridors of the shop houses.

It wasn't better along the shop house corridors, as there was also fighting in there. It became apparent to me that there was a younger more ferocious group beating up another milder, older and more pacifist group in saffron coloured robes. They appeared to have Himalayan facial features. These youngsters were mercilessly punching their older compatriots who were petrified and were clasping their hands to beg their assailants to stop.

I was in no position to save them, so I continued cycling, and by now, a little scared that I may be mistakenly dragged into the fighting. As I hurriedly cycled passed those shops, weaving around the spots of violent actions that were sometimes only about six inches away from me. Then, I saw that some of the shop lots were Buddhist shrines and temples with golden Buddha statues. At that point, a voice communicated to me that the youngsters were beating up the shrine keepers for their supporting a regime that held golden statues while the masses starve. The young rebels felt that the gold used to plate the statues could better be melted and sold in exchange for food.

Then, as I got out at the other end of the corridor, I was once again out on the road and going over a bridge over a big canal. As I crossed the canal, there was no fighting on the bridge and on the other side of the canal. At the end of the bridge on the other side, there was a group of concerned Chinese looking onlookers watching the ransacking of a Buddhist temple on the 9^th floor of a building at the other side of the canal by a group of Bangladeshis. At that time, the temple was already smoldering in smoke and flames while the temple keepers were crying for help.

[End of dream]

How would you interprete this dream?