Joyous Jones

Once again I found myself at Jones, wandering langurously down the spacious aisles, glancing the assortment of snacks tantalisingly placed where your eyes meet, heart beating cheerily at the soothing hues prancing around meekly. Here is where I find a haven bathed in soft tones and simple details that gleam pristinely from every corner, delighting your senses and fanning your sweet desires. I willingly surrender to the marketing ploys, embracing the dreamy guileless child-like charm within, a charm that warms your soul the way a nice cuppacino does your body and mind when savoured in a cozy setting like Jones'.

pleasant surprise

I did the unthinkable today - honestly. I was half dragging myself out of home for that annual ritual called IPPT, fully expecting that I will be getting Silver as usual. Then I outdid and surprised myself by managing to clock a Gold timing for my 2.4km run. Yes, Gold! The last time I did that was when I was still a strong, young man, many, many years ago! Something is not quite right today, I swear. Or as Tang put it (un)charitably, the route must be shorter (this being a newly designed route). Bish.

The funny thing is, I didn't feel awful while running, nor was i running my lungs out round and round on the indoor ground. I was lucky that my body was sort of on form today during the run segment: no funny stomach, no uneven breathing, no stitch. I could run without my body giving all sorts of funny signals, which is often the case when I do 2.4km run.

Anyway, to reward myself, I had Ice-Kachang later. Tang managed to get his silver, so we have two happy men tonight walking out of Maju Camp.

Heart Attack on a Tray

Words Courtesy of JW :)

Kidnap Fantasy

Someone has offered to kidnap me. Do it then, i said.

It will be quite hard to smuggle you inside the luggage, came the reply.

Ok, I will offer to be openly smuggled. Don't need to keep me packed. No legal issues. No problems at all. Ok?

It's Friday tomorrow. Wonderful Friday.

street charm

In the day


At night

One of the things I enjoy doing when i travel overseas is taking a walk through streets that are flanked by shops and eateries in a row on either side. These streets usually have space for vehicles to pass through one-way only. The narrow road, the shops bursting into the walkway, the messy signboards hanging above, the dizzying array of words and pictures screaming from every corner - all these amplify the denseness of the street and give it character.

The vibes alone make it worthwhile to stroll through the street. Soak in the sights and look around with a keen eye, and you are likely to be rewarded with interesting details that are bound to be lurking somewhere. Interaction with the locals is a problem if language is a barrier. But one can also get insights and pleasure just observing others going about their business and activities.

Writing this post is a tell-tale sign: I'm yearning for another overseas experience. Will somebody kidnap me to a foreign place? Preferably one with nice streets and lots of interesting things to see, please.

Wonders of Nature

I realise just how different it is to have a nature walk with someone who possesses knowledge of the environment, as compared to having a casual walk without similar company. You see things differently. You enjoy the walk because you gain knowledge and understand the things you see. Enlightenment increases pleasure, you see.

I thought of how Science could be a very interesting subject because it is about grasping the wonders of nature - our environment - and finding out about living organisms and their habitat. If only my Science lessons were conducted in the real classroom - outdoors - I might have been more interested to pursue my studies in that direction. (Nah, i won't actually. Haha!)

I want more nature walks. More!


Chek Jawa. I supposed that tree in the middle must be
very famous, being so prominently situated.


Probably the largest crab I spotted. Here it rests
on a mud lobster mound.


Fiddler Crab - with its characteristically enlargerd pincer.


Rambutans! Whenever someone sees something interesting,
the natural insinct seems to be to shout for me:
'Come and take this picture!'


The attap chee from your Ice-Kachang comes from this.


House No.1 - I also want a house to be called No. 1 all right.

Transformed

By way of 'celebrating' the new lease of life i've just injected here, i pored through my albums and decided to have this lovely picture front the new look. Woohoo.

It took me so long - and thus revealed my utter stupidity - to figure out how to display the labels and have archive by year instead of month. And with the abundance of space now, the pictures are bigger and so much nicer.

Me is pleased. 8>

seeking comfort

Old Chang Kee's fried chicken wing is so sinful, it's good.

6.10pm

Me: I'm going to get some comfort food.
JW: What's comfort food for you?
Me: Er, i don't know.
JW: You should get chicken wing.
Me: That's a good idea. Ok, I shall go get Old Chang Kee's fried chicken wing!

6.25pm

Chicken Wing completely demolished. Lips gleaming with oil. Oh, and bubble tea half wiped out.

6.31pm

Typing this. Feeling satisfied. Shall get the damn speech out now! Notwithstanding all this, I blame JW for the oil and fats i just fed my body.

Over and out.

Fly Away

Chug Away

Reality...quoted

"To be genuinely empirical is to reflect reality as faithfully as possible; to be honourable implies not fearing the appearance and consequences of being outlandish. The next time someone pesters you with unneeded advice, gently remind him of the fate of the monk whom Ivan the Terrible put to death for delivering uninvited (and moralizing) advice. It works as a short-term cure."

"History and societies do not crawl. They make jumps. They go from fracture to fracture, with a few vibrations in between. Yet we (and historians) like to believe in the predicatable, small incremental progression.

It struck me, a belief that has never left me since, that we are just a great machine for looking backward, and that humans are great at self-delusion. Every year that goes by increases my belief in this distortion."

"My paternal uncle was not too bothered by my political ideas (these come and go); he was outraged that I used them as an excuse to dress slopily. To him, inelegance on the part of a close family member was the mortal offense."

The Black Swan, Nassim Nicholas Taleb

my job

Righhht.

Fly Emirates

Young Ambassador

I don't do this very often, but once in a while, I find myself looking through my folders to look at photographs taken in the past. Sometimes I would chance upon an old snapshot that did not quite capture my attention when it was first taken; but somehow, it now catches my eye. Perhaps it is with the passage of time that I found new meaning in old stuff. Whatever the case is, I am happy to find something that draws a smile from me. It is like discovering a treasure you never knew you had all along.

Though I like taking pictures, I would hesistate to say that I like photography. To me, there's a difference between the two. Photography entails more than just taking pictures. It is a subject-matter, much like literature, astronomy, or geography, for that matter, which has an entire branch of knowledge. Someone who likes photography isn't intersted in taking pictures per se; he is keen and desire to learn and apply knowledge on matters as lighting, equipment, editing software, camera specifications, etc. At the moment, I know and pursue too little of all this to claim that I like photography.

Yet I like taking photos for some simple reasons. Like drawing a painting, sculpting clay or writing a story, taking photos is about creating something. That process of creation is liberating, but most important, it brings joy to the creator and gives him a sense of personal satisfaction. Art does this for the human soul, and I consider photo-taking a form of art that lay-person like me and many others can access and enjoy.

I also like taking photos because it allows me to capture the kaleidoscope of colours and sights - the peculiar, the funny, the interesting, the inspiring - in life. Surround yourself with images and things that excite, move and inspire you, and you are likely to be a happier person. After all, our preferences, taste and possessions in life are shaped by what we like (or dislike). And the thing about a camera - it lets you create only what you like, as you see it.

green tree and blue sky

Something about solitary trees and blue sky that moves me. Makes me fond of their combination. Their silent contrast. Their peaceful and serene disposition. Their co-existence. They convey a sense of warmth and hope.

I hear their beautiful silence and admire their natural glow.

Skyblue sky. Green trees. Lovely sight.

Being Aware

One can't help but feel sorry for the self-declared 'feminist mentor' Thio, who till yesterday appeared to be still helpless and clueless about why she has been met with such vehement disapproval from many Singaporeans. Did she realise that the strong tide of opposition against her and Josie Lau & Co has made a huge mockery of her claim to be 'feminist mentor'? Apparently at the AWARE EOGM yesterday, Thio spoke of her achievements and held out a 2007 book that mentioned her as the first woman dean of the Law Faculty at the then-University of Singapore. With all due respect, it was a rather painful sight to see her try to reclaim some degree of credibility and thereby assert moral authority with the raucous audience. She may have achieved much as a successful woman in Singapore, but now all that has been irreversibly tainted by her indelible involvement in the momentous AWARE episode.

The saddest thing is that even as the ex-committee and Thio were resoundingly rejected at yesterday's AWARE EOGM, they might be none the wiser still on why a huge segment of Singapore society has emerged to be so strongly against them. They believed in the self-righteousness of their actions and appeared incapable of understanding why their supposedly good intentions were not met with well-meaning support but were instead cast aspersion at. One would have thought that after so many weeks have passed, they would have had time to digest the arguments raised and therefore better understood the emotions and concerns of the opposite camp. In so doing, they should have been expected to be well-prepared for the EOGM.

But they were not. Therein, it was not just their weakness and ineptitude that emerged. It showed that they were motivated to assume office because they were only concerned with particular issues, not because they were truly passionate about all-encompassing women's issues.

To hear their own words, one almost suspects they have chosen to be led blindly by their own faith without regard for rational thought. It could not be that the women and men, Christian or non-Christians, who have spoken up against them were pro-gay or anti-family (as opposed to their being anti-gay and pro-family). Many concerned men and women have stood up, voiced their opinions and felt morally obligated to make a stand for fundamental values that they perceived were being eroded and for what they saw as unacceptable behaviour.

I was shaking my head when I read in the Sunday Times (May 3, 2009, p.11) this:

She (Thio) wanted to continue, but she was drowned out by the chants of "Your three minutes are up, three minutes, three minutes."

Later, she told the Sunday Times she was surprised by the "anger" and "vehemence" she felt from the AWARE members.

"It's very scary," she said. "What is happening to women in Singapore?"

What is happening to women in Singapore? To hear this coming from a top corporate lawyer and once Dean of the Law Faculty is almost bewildering. More so as it is a case whereby a woman doesn't get her own kind - other women. And even more bewildering to this writer is the fact that although weeks have passed and people's reasons for their unhappiness and disapproval have been presented all over the papers and the internet, this brilliant lawyer appears aghast and clueless still about the strong negative reactions received.

As for Josie Lau, this was reported in the interview in Sunday Times (May 3, 2009, p.31) that she had with Sumiko Tan:

"The truth of the matter is we were elected democratically through an open election. You can't ignore the fact that the team was elected according to the Constitution."

Constitutionally, yes, but in the eyes of her detractors, not ethically.

She shrugs off the critics and says she is not losing sleep over them. "I try not to read. I don't surf the Net much anyway - first I can't surf in the office and at home, I'm not very computer savvy."

Shrugging off the critics? Not bothering to read legitimate criticisms of others? Is it any wonder then that her team lost so resoundingly? Any leader would tell you that if you want to win over followers, if you want to lead with moral authority, you should rightly be concerned with criticisms: Not because you want to lead by popularity, but because criticisms have a place in any organisation. Where invalid and untrue, they allow you to present your arguments, establish an even stronger case for your stand or product, and to dispel misrepresentations or untruths that can potentially bring greater harm to your reputation; where the criticisms contain some shreds of truth, then you should be gracious and open-minded enough to consider them and self-reflect so as to right any wrongs and make progress.

What infuriated people and elicited strong ground-up activism was that Josie & Co persistently repeated evasive answers and did not, or could not, address the legitimate concerns raised by numerous people. Ultimately, they sowed their own seeds of distrust and allowed their credibility to be torn apart. When their 'feminist mentor' revealed herself, i think that was a major turning point which got more people riled and decided to stand up and be heard.

As I mentioned at the start, I feel more sorry and pity than dislike for Thio, Josie Lau and her committee. They often appeared helpless and clueless, and seemed more in need of help than being able to help others or further the cause of women's issues in Singapore. Well-meaning citizens though they may be - even if they were acting on their religious convictions to propagate their beliefs - I hope they do take the opportunity to reflect upon the "anger" and "vehemence" showed towards them.

At the same time, like many others, I am heartened and strongly encouraged by the activism of women and other Singaporeans who have stood up and helped right an injustice. This - civil activism - is what Singapore, or any society for that matter, needs in order to fight against bigorty, fundamentalism of any type, and deleterious incitements by any groups.

Undergraduate No More

Just saw Canuf's Portugal photojournal. His pictures, as always, are so wonderful. You can always trust a trained architect to take good pictures and know what makes a good frame.

On a separate note, I figured my week ahead is now ruined. Sleeping at 5am and waking up at 11am is so upsetting my biological system. I am in this sorry state because the smart alecky me decided that it's time to live and feel young again. That was Thursday evening, when the five of us met at 9pm and did a half round-island ride that consisted of riding and eating and eating.

The road traffic from KAP to Mandai was pretty heavy, but this did not make us slow down. From the get-go, I could feel a wave of excitement as we thrusted forward alongside unruly vehicles far mightier than us. At a traffic light junction along Woodlands road, Eugene smiled and asked jokingly from the back: 'Are we chasing the last train?' I shouted the message down to the rest as the traffic light turned green and Jon was starting to move forward: "Eugene said, 'ARE WE CHASING THE LAST TRAIN?'" The startling traffic rumbled and my voice was drowned out. We carried on cycling, chasing the mysterious and elusive last train.

I had dubbed this the undergraduate ride - 'We can all feel undergraduate again, including K' - for we've not done something like this since those days when we were still young and brazen with a lot more free time to spare (or rather, time we had chosen to spend cycling instead of mugging). Back then, way before I started cycling in Malaysia as regularly as I do now, I rode mostly on Friday nights. Those were Friday casual rides - i was still on knobby tyres - and the highlight was invariably the food stops. We met to ride but were just as eager to ride to eat. Energy was not expended on chasing last trains, but was used to maintain chatting with other riders whilst pedaling on at a comfortable pace.

That was then. Nowadays, night cycling is rare. Asked when was the last time he cycled at night, Eugene said unhesitatingly: 'Six years ago, i think'. So it was a good change to do a night makan ride. We were after all undergraduates and garung night riders once.

About 98km of cycling that night saw me reaching home at 3.30am, but not before stopping at Jalan Kayu for prata at 11+pm, then at 12+am at a kopitiam in Tampines Ave 10 for carrot cake that we waited for quite long, followed by superbly good chilled beancurd/grass jelly at Balestier at 1plus to 2am. Somehow, we found ourselves rejuvenated after the delicious cold snack (which we searched for quite earnestly) and even settled down on the road pavement to chat after finishing our food. (We didn't want to impose on the young Chinese lad who kindly allowed us to buy our food even though he was preparing to close the shop when we arrived.)

It was a good night journey round the island on our two wheels. But feeling undergraduate is one thing, not being young anymore is another. For when I woke up the next day and felt the effect of the late night in my (old) bones, I thought: it would be quite tough for me to survive more nights like this.

4.30am

Had a pleasant day that took me to places from Portsdown to Dover to Dempsey to Chinatown to Orchard and to the Pier. Many charming sights and then there's the rare blue sky to boot. But alas, Im out of camera action this weekend - and for the week to come - because both my cameras have been lent to others who have gone overseas to have fun while i remain behind in singapore the tiny town. Had an overdose of chocolate, both eaten and drunk. Also had a cup of cuppacino which i suspect is the reason why im still awake at 2.45am (it just poured and there's still lightning and rumbles of thunder), though i felt very tired at midnight sitting at a cafe.

But truth be told, i came online to read about how the AWARE EOGM had turned out. The whole episode has been instructive on a few matters, the most significant in my opinion are: new media, its impact and role as tool for (social) mobolisation; and civil society and people activism. GE 2006 did demonstrate the impact of the new media and, correspondingly, the constraints of mainstream media. But i daresay this aware epiosode went further to throw into sharp relief how new media has become a politically important tool and authority of information that shaped and galvanised opinions and action. Once again it shows the speed at which information is being transmitted via new media, and how new media is effectively used by passionate and well-meaning citizens as the stage to repudiate untruths, scrutinise the people and arguments at the centre of the storm, and mobolise support.

The proceedings at the EOGM itself were captured by the public and reported live, while the broadcast media were apparently barred from entering the premises. This was just one thing. A separate website was set up by the old guard after their ouster, and a video exhorting support was put up at the website - all this done within the past few weeks. A university lecturer, a 'bible-beliving christian for 25 years now', posted a note about his views on Facebook; that became circulated online and was also mentioned in the press. It was remarkable because it was a thoughtful piece by someone in a well-regarded position in society that was posted on Facebook and subsequently circulated around. These voices of reason - along with numerous other analyses online - served to marshal public opinion, even if public opinion was probably confined to only a particular segment of society - those who are generally more educated and already active online. The new media also allowed citizens to engage each other and present their opinions without the burden of speaking out on a public platform such as the print media. (A scan of some of these postings would tell that many commentators, though anonymous, are highly educated and intelligent folks who shared insightful thoughts.)

More importantly, what came across rather strongly, I thought, was not the sensitive issue of religion; nor was it christianity per se, nor homosexuality, nor even AWARE itself. I thought the whole episode showed how a perceived sense of social injustice, so to speak, was keenly felt, pursued and 'righted' by passionate and concerned citizens who effectively mobilised new media to galvanise support. That the old guard eventually triumphed (on the basis of the eogm) showed that it was reason, a sense of justice, and the strength of their arguments that prevailed - this was demonstrated through what emerged in both new and old media over the course of events leading to yesterday's eogm.

Emotions had run high, but they were not without the company of reason and well-meaning thought.