Book run to the Cheshire Home

Today's Library delivery run took us to the Singapore Cheshire Home. For once we were assigned to a single one-stop address. Though that sounds more convenient, it was actually a bit more difficult because once we arrived, we had to locate the individual recipients and then figure out a system to keep track of our disbursements and collections when more than one came to find us at about the same time. Communication wasn't easy either -- some of them were barely audible because of their disabilities.

The residents have a mixed bag of disabilities. Most are wheelchair-bound, some needing help to wheel them around the place. They vary in age-range, from teenagers to the elderly. It wasn't even possible to guess who was requesting which books until we met them personally. One young fellow was quite taken by a book about tattoos in his pile and soon became absorbed in choosing a design for himself, quite determined to get one as soon as he was able. An older gentleman turned down a pair of Chinese classics, though initially we couldn't understand why. Then it became face-palmingly obvious: the books were too heavy for his atrophied hands and the words were too small for him to read. We went looking around for a little kid who ordered a set of primary readers, but he eventually turned out to be an elderly lady who wanted to learn English through reading kids' books.

Quite a bit of feedback for the NLB then, especially to the staff helping to choose books for the next delivery. Hope they can read the scribbled comments I left for them in the feedback form.

An expat settles in

Another of June's foreign contacts dropped in from Germany. He'll be staying in S'pore for half a year and needed a place to rent. We spent this evening taking him around to view a couple of rental units that June could scrounge up at such short notice.

The first one was in Potong Pasir. A tiny, cramped shophouse apartment that smelled funny and was asking 2.6k per month. For a foreigner, it would have been quite exciting to live like a heartland S'porean. To eat for cheap at the kopitiam downstairs, to go marketing at an NTUC, to mill about with aunties and uncles and listen to the cacophony of a milieu of incomprehensible languages and dialects from day to day, that's learning to be a true S'porean while simultaneously studying at at NUS on an exchange programme. But the asking price was way too much for the experience so we moved off to the next prospect.

Staring out of a 30th storey window of the Plaza Apartment, the view was absolutely stunning. The panoramic windows put the entire city on display. At night, it's a fully dynamic light show of buildings and traffic that never sleep. Just slightly left of centre is the S'pore Flyer and Marina Bay lies beyond. That promises a fantastic view of the occasional firework display, the next one probably being at CNY, just around the corner. Food around here is still relatively cheap in the Arab Street area, while the heart of downtown is within walking distance, as is the MRT if he wants to go further. Jacuzzi bathtub in the bathroom. Asking price (after June got through negotiations) 2.8k per month, pro rated.

No prizes for guessing which apartment won the contract. Our friend is going to live like an expat and not a heratlander after all.

The apprentice

Dropped in on Jojo and Derek's new condo for their BBQ housewarming. Most of the evening she was recounting to us her renovation experiences which didn't quite live up to our expectations as we had recommended to her our ID whom she contracted without seeking a second opinion.

Therein lies the difference between having the work done by the master ID himself (which was our experience) and having the work done by an apprentice. While William controlled every aspect of our renovation with an iron fist over his workers, his poor apprentice showed how freshly minted green she was by getting properly bullied by everyone from her workers to her increasingly frantic client. The apprentice got run through the mill of tardy workers, delayed deliveries, assorted errors of calibration and other careless mistakes; and probably got yelled at quite a bit too by various parties.

We're kind'a sorry our recommendation for a trouble-free renovation experience turned out to be a more hairy one than expected for Jojo, and we're thankful she's not taking it to heart against us. As for the apprentice, we hope this job has taught her to be tougher and more in control of her resources, and not run home crying to mommy about all those mean people she's had to put up with. It's that kind of an industry, and she's just got to learn to survive in it.

Practical GP

Since we're already discussing how dynamic the education industry is with its constant updates and course corrections, can we really think we are so unique that change doesn't take place as quickly in other countries? That seeking education 'for a job' and not as an end in itself is just an Eastern/Asian concept?

Here, we old schoolers bemoan the dwindling number of scholars in the more liberal arts, like literature and philosophy, while the bandwagon hard sciences and math; accounting and business have gained in popularity because they appear more connected to the 'real' world where food on the table is a necessary precondition of life and all else is esoteric luxury. It's hard to argue against that kind of cold pragmatism.

However we like to idealize education, the fact is that today the primary purpose for people to take up an education is indeed to become employable. It's true here, just as it is in the US where the Liberal Arts are likewise giving in and reinventing themselves to become more practical in the employability stakes: see "Making college 'relevant'".

Are our Liberal Arts degrees (and the ricebowls of us old-timers) going the way of the dodo, then? Of course not. As the article points out, the key is to innovate our subjects so that they can offer the kids long-term training in real-world, practical skills. As long as we can give what employers want, we continue to be relevant.

What do employers want?

According to The Association of American Colleges and Universities (quoted in the above article) 89 percent said they wanted more emphasis on “the ability to effectively communicate orally and in writing,” 81 percent asked for better “critical thinking and analytical reasoning skills” and 70 percent were looking for “the ability to innovate and be creative.”

Currently, people view GP as just essay writing and comprehension exercises, a.k.a. advanced English (language). But everything employers want is there in the GP package. But we need a fresh way to teach and engage the kids in it, with more emphasis on what employers want rather than just GP for its own sake. Fortunately, what's required is not a major overhaul of the subject itself, but merely a redesign of the packaging.

New year, new kids, new focus.

Tastes like protection

We're quite indiscriminate about our daily expendables such as toothpaste. We have no brand loyalty. Our priority is whatever looks cheapest or on promotion, we grab. So happens, the latest teeth cleanser we're using is Sensodyne. The ads say it's a special formula that protects people with sensitive teeth from pain when biting into hot or cold foods. What the ads don't say is that it tastes like mint bubble gum that's lost its flavour having been previously chewed... by someone else.

Changeup*

It's good to know there are upcoming changes to the teaching and testing of Chinese to cater to students who have difficulty in the language because an increasing number of them are growing up in English-speaking backgrounds. I presume some of the changes might include a more bilingual approach such that the use of English will be used in Chinese class to facilitate better communication and foster understanding (i.e., comprehension) between teachers and learners.

In the past, the most frustrating thing was being restricted to only use Chinese in class, and how could I answer the teacher's questions if I didn't understand the question? How could I ask if I couldn't formulate the question? How could I read if I didn't have a Rosetta Stone to translate from? It was a downward spiral of "negative talk" and punishment that drove our mutual antipathy in the bad old days.

Today, though, I no longer feel so negatively towards Chinese. I believe I've picked up more of that language through informal means than I ever did than in the ten years I spent in the classroom. It's still embarrassingly pathetic, but I can get by and better with more practice.

But this entry isn't about me, for whom it's all too little too late. It's about the kids studying GP with me. Against the grain, many of them have grown up in predominantly Chinese or dialect-speaking backgrounds. Though their experience in my class is probably not as dire as mine were in my day, English is tough on them especially at the level we expect them to use it. Grammar can be confusing, vocabulary is immense, spelling isn't always 'like it sounds'. Not to mention that we want them to think, reason and logicize in a language that isn't their first choice of communication.

If we're trending towards accommodating English-speaking kids in Chinese class, maybe it's also time to slaughter GP's sacred cow of "only English to be spoken in class" for our more Eastern-rooted kids. A little compromise for the sake of clarity and keeping everyone on the same page would help a lot more than enforcing a dogma that does little to encourage the kids to use the language more.

* Heh. Looks like a Korean word, doesn't it?

First dinner of the decade

New Year's day, 2010. It's been completely dedicated towards preparing this family feast celebrated with the in-laws. This was one occasion for the turkey and pumpkins we were so desperately hunting for last night, but failed to find. The turkey being carved up on the far left was the one we bought for this occasion weeks ago. But because a couple of unconfirmed invitations suddenly became confirmed, our turkey supply of one became inadequate.

As you can see from the orange shade of the soup, we found our butternut pumpkins after all. The further you go looking for something, the greater the chance you're going to find it in your own backyard. These we found this morning at the market where our old place was. Saved!

June took on the lion's share of getting this meal ready. From boiling up the soup to roasting the turkey to prepping the salsa for the tortillas, to chopping up the salad, she was multitasking in the kitchen like you wouldn't believe. Me? I'm just there for basic fetching and carrying, and other assorted grunt work. Which suits me just fine. I'm quite brainless at the culinary arts. :P

Unnecessary ventilation

So much for the lovely 'marshmallow' sofa, as B-lo called it. Now officially the cats' scratching post, the damage has gone beyond tolerance. This part of the sofa is Maui territory.

Welcome to Kaiser-ville. Rhumba trembles in his dock (background).

The cats will have to enjoy their little nests while they last. After more than a year's gritting of teeth, we finally shelled out for a replacement sofa. A cheap fabric one. From Seahorse.

Cats. Can't have nice things in the house if you must live with them.

Edit 01:

We're a bit short of turkey and pumpkin this festive season. In desperation, we went to Mustafa Centre after dinner to see if there were any left there. In Little India we braved traffic, walking crowds, and very nearly got broadsided by a mad speeding taxi, but still came away bereft of our quest items. What turkeys were available were too small for their price, according to June, and what pumpkins they had were not of the butternut variety. But we did load up on biryani spices, rice and baking supplies -- stuff that wasn't on our shopping list. Such is the nature of shopping at Mustafa's.

The mountains shall crumble

Nothing like going back to the office and cleaning out the ol' desk for the new year. It was a two day job, but progress has been quite satisfactory.

Stuff I've been accumulating since c. aught-four(!) has been stratifying and petrifying into an entire mountain range spanning the whole of my work surface. It's been so bad that when I really need some space I've had to squat at other people's desks if they've been left temporarily vacant (you have to time it right with their timetables). Or flee into the library -- but that's not always possible 'cos kids are always hangin' about out there. Blech.

My great levelling project has seriously undermined the foundations of the once-mighty geological feature on my desk. I admit, it's not completely flatland yet. It still looks like a diorama of natural features that William could use to teach his Geography classes with, but the view just isn't as impressive as it once was.

It feels so good to have reclaimed some territory for myself. And if the ants want to go skiing next winter, they can go to Aspen. I don't care. Send me a postcard.

A little cash back

So what happened to the old LG 1710 that was sitting all mopey in the corner of the study, having been replaced by the new 2250?

I've been looking around for places that recycle or accept donations of old computer peripherals -- but not many organizations around here do this sort of thing. There's the Salvation Army drop box, but because the 1710 is a sensitive and functioning electrical appliance I didn't want to just drop it off and not know if it'll be mistaken for junk and trashed after all. Same with other charitable organizations because there's no proper facility for handing over such donations.

Thankfully, I discovered Ca$h Converters. The person I spoke to on the phone insisted I speak in Mandarin, which involved a lot of hard thinking to make the necessary translations between us. The best I came up with was, "ni2 you3 mei2 you3 mai4 [wrong intonation!] dian4 nao3 de4 dian4 si4 ji1", at which he said "oh... mo-ni-tor, ah?" It turns out they don't accept ancient CRT monitors, but LCD ones are ok.

After the formal assessment (conducted in English) at the premises, my four-year-old 17" LCD VGA monitor fetched a grand total of $35 because of it's tip-top condition. A fair enough price, I guess, considering how relatively cheap brand new monitors are these days. And that means that because of my generous friends, and my long-service incentive, and the cash I got back, I hardly paid anything for my new monitor. And the old 1710 can still find a good home. For me, that was the most important priority since electronics are actually too environmentally toxic to just trash.

Finally gone digital

After holding back for several months, I finally decided it was time to use the birthday vouchers from my colleagues. Combining those with my long-service incentive, they amounted to a fantastic subsidy towards an new Samsung 2250 22" wide-screen monitor to replace my ageing LG 1710.

With the new monitor, I'm operating in full DV-I mode, having spent the last four years in analog VGA. At 1920x1080 resolution it's like having new eyes when playing games like DA:O. Sharp, clean, clear graphics and text... and skin textures I had never noticed before -- a close-up Wynn shows her wrinkles and a couple of age-related blemishes over her left eye, for example. Such details were washed out at lower resolutions. How ever did I live before digital?

Met said colleagues for dinner followed by "Sherlock Holmes". Followed by dessert at Haagen Dazs to help Amy use up her 1-for-1 coupon. It's good to be back with the company again. Work looms just up ahead, but for the moment we're re-establishing our ties after vacationing separately during this break period.

"Avatar" same but different

Despite the hype, "Avatar" follows a very familiar movie formula: A member of an invading force learns the defenders' ways, culture and [ahem!] mating rituals; decides to "go native" and instigates an uprising against the invaders -- his own people. We've seen the same story in "Dances with Wolves" and "The Last Samurai" with little variation, and it's a little disappointing that plotwise, "Avatar" puts nothing new on the table.

But the plot isn't really the point of this particular movie. What truly amazes is the leap in movie-making technology that raises the level of immersion into the viewing experience. Viewed in 3D, the effects are truly astounding. Instead of seeing an image that looks composited from several 2D layers superimposed on each other, "Avatar" manages to create a 3D effect that actually looks like depth, or at least a finer gradation of depth such that transitions between different layers are not only possible but look natural too.

And with this new level of immersive reality, the thrills of falling from great heights or being pursued by things with sharp teeth are greatly heightened. At one point, the guy beside me gasped and jumped, and I was lucky not to get a faceful of melted cheese from the nachos he was munching on.

The story isn't the biggest thing for me. I think of "Avatar" as a just a preview of the new kinds of movies that Hollywood will soon be grinding out. Anyway, there's little choice in the matter. There's no way, with current technology, that movie pirates will be able to offer the same kind of viewing experience on our home screens. Take that, Jolly Rogers!

Doin' bidness with the Thai

Thai vendors, especially the ones at the night market in CMX have a simple sales philosophy: never chase away potential income. Having learned from our experiences in Bali, June was out to drive the hardest bargains she could. She picked on quality, colour choice, she even offered to purchase multiple items for a "bulk" purchase rate. At a little stall that sold silver trinkets, she mixed and matched pendants with neck and wrist bands, even though they had to be un-made and re-fitted on the spot. At the next stall she came to, she got an even lower price and asked for a instant custom job which was carried out quite happily.

June's biggest triumph was at a fabrics store where she inquired about a batik sarong and for a demonstration as to how to tie it in a halter-neck fashion. No problem, the sales staff obligingly and painstakingly showed her step-by-step until she got it. When June quoted her price, the sales staff unleashed a torrent of foreign-sounding curses, punctuated by the word, "stingy" a couple of times. We simply walked off to find a tuk-tuk to get us back to our hotel. Just as we were about to negotiate the fare, from afar we heard an exasperated, "ok, lah!" We turned around and saw our batik sales staff waving at us to come back. Score!

This isn't, however, about a people desperate and grovelling for a pittance. We all know there is a game we're playing. We're not there to screw each other over, we're simply negotiating a price both buyer and seller can accept. The process in no way diminishes the pride the vendors have in themselves and their wares. There's nothing to be gained by chasing customers away with displays of attitude. If the customer requires a little more work in order to be satisfied, then just be obliging, smile and do that little more for a win-win.

Their service culture is just something more to admire about the Thai.

Driving in Thailand

To get around Thailand, I've ridden in taxis, tour buses, tuk-tuks, and songtaew (public transport converted from pick-up trucks). Regardless, the driving philosophy is consistent. Unlike drivers on S'porean roads who are fixated on their right-of-way and what "should" or "is supposed to be" and drive so grumpily because road conditions seldom suit them, Thai drivers deal with what's in front of them -- they deal with the "is".

If someone is slow in front, change lane. If lane changing is impossible for the moment, brake. If lane changing requires a bust of ridiculous acceleration and an immediate course correction, hit the gas and manoeuvre accordingly. There is no ill-tempered driving nor curses, raised fists or fingers. The horn if sounded is more for information, "careful, I'm here," rather than imperious, petulant demands to "get out of the way".

Yes, there were hair-raising moments on the winding, often narrow and dark stretches of roads in CMX, but we survived to tell the tale, anyway.

Weekend market

It's Sunday and I've recovered sufficiently to attend the must-see Chatuchak weekend market. Despite my initial apprehension, I really love this place! It's a complete carnival celebrating classical capitalism without crass commercialism. Ever wonder how the "fair" came to be named? It was when traders came together and set up an itinerant market, just like this one, and everyone knew what the best and FAIRest prices were because no trader could price his wares much higher or lower than his competitors. Best place to buy and sell what you needed was at the fair, and that's why fairs are so well loved from way back when. The rides and sideshows that now accompany fairs came much later, hence "funfairs".

The market has everything, including a corner for pets and pet supplies. The merchandise is all well-groomed, fluffy and most importantly, cute! This pix (which I surreptitiously snapped -- "no photos, please!") shows a pup, getting his bath in the process of being preened to perfection. NBS better stay away from this place or she'll be sorely tempted to buy the lot, including the bathwater.

So many sweet treats to eat and beat the heat. June opted for this colourful dessert mostly containing the pink stuff in the middle: some jelly-coated water-chestnut, a staple of most Thai sweets.

Coconut ice-cream served in a young coconut shell cup with tender coconut shavings on the side for me. What a concept!

And after a few more hours mall-pounding MBK, we're on our way home. Bumped into this bunch of crazies at Suvarnabhumi International to pose with for one final pic in Thailand.

Sawadee krup!

Floored

No photos for today. We're back in BKK and have checked into the Paradiso. June's gone shopping. I'm stricken with food poisoning. Maybe raw fish wasn't the best choice for dinner after all. Well, that's the chief suspect, anyway. I ate other crap yesterday too. The Professor who runs the CMX Flora was nice enough to give me two stomach-calming capsules to help me survive the flight back here.

Anyway, of all the hotels we've inhabited so far, the Paradiso has the most comfortable bed to lie in. The mattress is firm, providing excellent back support, while the angle of the wall-mounted LCD TV is perfect for viewing in a supine position. Programmes are terrible, though, but I don't care 'cos they're just on to provide a little background noise while I try to sleep.

Shopping spree

Oops. Caught sampling pork floss snacks at this stall in Warorot market. They're made fresh daily here, and the auntie was thrilled to practice a little Teochew dialect with us. Regular customers, we are -- two days in a row.

Today's tour didn't thrill me so much. We were chauffeured to see some "handicraft" stores, a.k.a. expensive souvenir outlets: a Thai silk factory where June bought a lovely black dress for formal occasions; a lacquerware factory we breezed through; and a gemstone centre which we would have escaped from sooner if we didn't meet the same sales staff who sold us soap the previous night at the night market. The people here work two jobs! Kinda' puts us to shame, that.

Above is part of the big temple at Doi Suthep. Everyone who comes to CMX has to visit this landmark temple if not for religious, historical or aesthetic reasons, then...

for this glorious view of the whole of CMX city. Don't know if we're looking through smog, haze or cloud cover, but I'm sure I could spot our hotel down there somewhere, if I knew where to look.

We made a discovery: The airport mall isn't in the airport at all, but a huge mall complex near the airport. This spread is our dinner at Zen, a deviation from the usual tom yum goong, mango salad, steamed rice affair we've been surviving on since we arrived in Thailand.

June discovered this outlet in the mall that sells fair-trade tribal handicrafts. Since the organization was non-profit, and since our money would go towards helping the tribes directly, we bought a number of souvenirs from here. Assisting us was this obliging salesperson whose high-heel shoe size was... unusually large. I will speculate no further.

Trails and tribes

A full day tour of the Doi Inthanon National Park kicks off with a couple of waterfall views. This one is the Vachirathan (rainbow) falls, so named because the sun from behind creates a rainbow in the spray from the falls.

... like so.

Not too many people find their way to this spot on the falls 'cos the trail is partially hidden by a snack bar. The trail is clearly marked but once people see snacks, they get distracted.

Once again among tribal scarves...

... made by these (non-long necked) Karen women.

We're at the King's Project, a royally-backed effort to bring sustainable living to these Hmong people. The emphasis on agriculture, handicrafts and tourism seems to have brought some prosperity to them -- without compromising too much on their traditions and culture. Their kids are kinda' cute.

The royal twin pagodas top off this trip. That's the King's pagoda in the background. This shot was taken by a Dutch lady who was among the United Nations that our tour bus comprised. There were the Omani couple, the Israeli couple, the Italian couple, the Singaporean couple (us), the two Dutch ladies, and the two guys: a Dane and a local Thai (a couple of indeterminate status, on which I have no wish to speculate). Throughout the trip, while the rest of us were dosing in the back of the bus, there was a Middle Eastern conference going on in front, presided over by our chatty, often hilarious, tour-guide. Nice to see the Arabs and Jews getting along so well under normal circumstances. Politics just spoils everything.

At the Flora

Moving day again! We've now come downtown and have checked into the Rachamankha Flora House. A very pretty, cosy family-run guest house, so new that the tuk-tuks have no clue where it is unless you tell them the posher BP Hotel immediately across the street. So new that the two PCs in the lobby for guest access is running on Win 7. Proprietors are warm, friendly people. Nice place to hang your hat for a few days.

New daily routine is to take a brisk morning walk to Warorot Market and back. It's a local market and not so touristy here. Lots of colour with these flower stalls this side of the market. Inside, there's fresh food (for cooking) and other daily sundries. I need the walk for the exercise, she needs the shopping.

Ah, Uncle Map makes an appearance! This is his tour office where I've returned to meet June who went for a Thai cooking class earlier in the afternoon. She was a bit disappointed with her lesson, though. The teacher didn't give away too many secrets, insisting that the necessary ingredients can be bought pre-mixed at the supermarket. Teacher wasn't expecting an advanced student, I guess.

Comin' round the mountain on an ATV

This activity we arranged with Away since we were just down the road from ATV-Chiang Mai Tours. We opted for the 3-hour tour and this is the starting point. Here, after the mandatory safety and operational briefing, we took our ATVs around the test track (behind) for some practical experience. It was then decided that June should ride pillion with me.

To be honest, most of the tour was on asphalt up the mountainside, but here's where we got our kicks -- off-roading a couple of these tracks that were dusty and at times narrow enough to peer over the side and contemplate falling over the edge into the green unknown below. Fun!

One of a few rest-stops for a shot of the fantastic view of the mountains and the rural activity going on around us. Wasn't as cold as I had imagined, despite climbing to this elevation. Rest-stops were necessary to alleviate sore butts and to calm our hands and feet that were still feeling the vibrations even after we'd got off our bikes for a while. Think I've chalked up enough experience for the full-day tour by now. Next time.

Like I said, the view is fantastic. Oh, in case you're wondering about the lousy quality of today's shots, it's because some idiot (actually, there's only one suspect) previously tried to take some night shots but forgot to reset the ISO to normal day shots. These shots were taken at ISO1600 in broad daylight! Duh.