A special room comes together

When we embark on a home improvement project, it's like an Amish barn raising event. Here, our resident supervisor explains what is needed: basically to take flat, squared-off pieces of wood and attach them to the wall.

And here is what has been accomplished by knocking-off time. Actually, a whole lot more than I had expected. We only have to install the middle plank... which should be tomorrow morning after a trip to the local hardware store for a final supply run, and we're done. Now, what the heck could these odd-looking shelves be for?

Take away the incentive

How is it that the more resources there are available to us, the harder it is for us to share them? We have plenty of road, yet drivers and motorcyclists are squabbling over what turf is rightfully "theirs".

On our roads, motorcyclists will squeeze between lanes, raising the ire of drivers. Drivers hate such behaviour because motorbikes unpredictably appear from blind spots -- even after checking. Bikers are fast, less visible and aggressive, or they are slow and hog lanes. Either way, they can't win against drivers who feel that the roads are more legitimately theirs.

Let's agree on one thing, at least. Everyone wants to get to their destination safely and in one piece. Speed is a secondary issue. Speed is a function of what the individual road user perceives as "safe". Slow users are careful. They want longer reaction times to unpredictable events. Fast users are avoiding "being there" when something bad occurs on the road. Everybody is searching for some space where they can exist while minimizing the possibility of having to share the same space at the same time, which -- according to the laws of physics -- can often result in a fatal merger.

As a driver, I say we take away the incentive for bikers to squeeze between us. The reason why they feel it is safer between us than behind us is because we give them less space behind us than between us. Whenever we see a biker in front of us, we speed up and force the biker over to one side so we can get past. Admit it, that's what we do -- presumably because we pay more road tax or ERP; or because four wheels are better than two; or something.

Once we realize that our behaviour influences the actions of others, we empower ourselves to do something about the situation instead of waiting forever for someone else to change their behaviour. What am I suggesting? Fellow drivers, for Pete's sake, give bikers the same respect and minimum safety distance as you would for another car on the road. To keep bikes off the sides of the road, give them a safer option and they'll take it.

Bikers will also take advantage of stop lights and jams to weave between us and get to the head of the queue, and that's annoying, but because of their relative size, that's their prerogative. It also helps shorten the queue a bit, so let them do what they do best and we keep our cool about it, can?

But bikers also have to realize that they are too vulnerable to stay on the rightmost (fast) lane for too long. So, if they agree to keep off the right lane unless they are making a right turn or if they absolutely have to overtake a slowpoke on the left lane (in which case they should do it quickly and get back off to the left asap) I think there'll be a much safer traffic flow for everyone.

Not looking forward to this bill

Spending pretty much the whole day at the Mazda workshop. M2's a bit overdue for 50k servicing, but I'm also waiting while all four worn tires get replaced. At $180 a pop (not literally, I hope!) that's going to cost a pretty penny. On top of that, I'll also be paying for the next 10k servicing in advance to take advantage of a package discount they've got going here. I bet I'll also be charged for rectifying whatever is causing the squeaky noise M2's making at very low speeds. Yikes! Another austerity drive beckons.

Currently entertaining myself grading assignments, sipping free cappuccinos and randomly surfing. Shouldn't be too much longer...

Beside still waters

Another great spot for assignment grading discovered. Upper Peirce Reservoir Park has free parking, access to clean toilets and peace and quiet -- lots of it. The only sounds are insect noises from the forested area behind and to my right. I'm at a picnic table under a huge, shady tree with a view of the water. There is a slight breeze, so despite the blazing sun it's comfortable here.

Surprisingly, I'm not bothered by mosquitoes, though I was expecting to be eaten alive. All I had to do was fend off the occasional ant or spider attempting to use me as a highway to wherever it was they wanted to go. Still, tickles are way better than itches.

Other fauna I came across were a pack of stray dogs, presumably a family of an alpha, the mate and three adolescent pups; a lone primate ambling past my table with nary a glance at its human occupant; and, big surprise: a beautifully coloured kingfisher that swooped towards the water and scooped up a silvery fish for its mid-day meal. It happened too quickly to record on camera, so you'll have to take my word for it.

No food or refreshments to be purchased nearby, so pack a picnic lunch if you must.

Once more around the Galaxy

Interesting that my friends know what I lack. There's the issue of a cell phone I either keep on silent or I just don't carry around with me, which keeps me incommunicado most of the time. That is a source of irritation for some quarters -- which I apologize for -- but I was waiting until I could re-contract with my service provider without penalty for a premature handset upgrade. 

The other thing I was waiting for was the unveiling of the iPhoney 5, but recent legal developments forced me to reconsider my potential ties with the Evil Empire.

And so, meet my newest mobile device, a Galaxy SIII in a slick pebble blue case. It boasts a big, beautiful, sharp (Super AMOLED) screen that my ageing eyes are so very grateful for; a fast camera that takes pretty decent pictures; and a whole bunch of other functions that could effectively take over from my current 7" tablet and still be able to fit in my trouser pocket comfortably 'cos it's surprisingly light for its relative size. My only problem with it after a day of use is that the smooth case is horrendously slippery. But that's nothing a silicone skin can't fix. Oh in case you're wondering what's propping up the SIII for the pix (above), that's Momo. Good girl, Momo.

In other news:

Pix from my SIII: the wife is embarking on a DIY home-improvement project. We're in Defu Lane to scrounge up some scrap planking, but wound up purchasing teak! A bit extravagant for what she's planning, I think, but if it turns out well maybe it'll be worth it.

And somewhere across the road, we pick up more supplies. Act like a DIY newbie and the vendors are sympathetic and offer a lot of advice. And I believe we still got away with paying reasonable prices for the stuff we got.

Hopefully, I'll be able to upload project details by next weekend when the work begins in earnest.

'chers' Day 2012

Lots of things to be grateful for this 'chers' Day. The Drama Club's 'recruitment ad' skit went off nicely. The story was focused and tight, nothing extraneous or distracting, intentions crystal clear. Our performers could use more practice hand-holding their mikes, though -- we occasionally lost sound with a couple of characters. I'm sure Sirius had a hand in the final tweaks prior to curtain, and that's really decent of her because it wasn't any of her contractual obligations with us.

Nice of the kids to present me with a hand-made card fronted with a portrait of myself. Ahem. What's really nice were the many hand-written notes appreciating how different their GP experience has been, and how they've been able to learn from it. Good to know because most of the time I get more flak than accolades for the kind of classes I run. I have a great bunch of kids this year... or maybe it's just Stockholm Syndrome. Hope their faith pays off in spades with their final grades.

Combined schools dinner with the usual crazy bunch seated at a table far from the main proceedings. Best case scenario, as we were generally left to our own devices for entertainment, and we are usually our own best entertainers. That, and a little good news of a general modest raise all round for every rank-and-filer in the industry. As someone said, it isn't just about the money... but a little mo' money doesn't hurt. Yays!

Inhale... exhale...

Time to breathe after a week long marathon of grading assignments and writing testimonials. And tomorrow it starts all over again... :p

And just to be ironic, here are the cats doing what they do best...

while I'm busy scrambling to earn enough to buy kibble for them. Hmph.

Off on a tangent

Ok. Can tell from the stats that the readership isn't interested in food. Be assured that I have no intention of becoming a foodie blog. It just so happens that the biggest things happening over the weekend have been mostly epicurean 'cos, y'know, special occasion and all.

Thanks, friends and family who through various thoughtful gestures have made this past week really special for me!

Once this endorphin induced high has dissipated, our regularly scheduled programme of psychotic, expletive-filled rants will resume. Stay tuned, folks!

Restaurant at the top of the hill

Went back in time to one of the few places left that still rings a bell in my crumbling memory. Hill Top Japanese Restaurant was where I got my first taste of Japanese food, oh, many decades ago, but I've not been back there since. Situated at the peak of Jurong Hill, it's not exactly immediately accessible, and not quite the first name that pops to mind when anyone suggests going Jap.

Was pleasantly surprised to stumble upon it on hungrygowhere.com and see that it's been going strong after all these years. I just had to go back to relive that first memory.

I recall sitting at the teppanyaki table back then, but today I opted for the regular menu and ordered this beef steak teishoku. This set seemed like a good compromise as what I really wanted was to swim in sashimi, but I wanted to get my teeth into some proper red meat too. This decently sized slab of beef didn't disappoint. Though not rare as I like it, it was still chunky, beefy and tender enough.

This was what I was back for: the salmon sashimi. Way back then, when they told me I was going to eat raw fish I was like, oh, um... brave face and all. My first mouthful of salmon oil, fat and, holy cow... what was that toxic green stuff that sent such noxious vapours racing through my head and respiratory tract??? But wouldn't you know it? After they pulled me out from under the table, I was hooked for life.

June ordered this teriyaki beef ramen on a recommendation. She ate half, and as usual, gave me the rest. Now, that's what I call a beef soup. Drained the bowl. Need I say more? After this, I couldn't go back to my miso. For once, I left my miso barely touched.

Ok, before you get the wrong idea, what I'm describing isn't necessarily what you might expect from fine, exotic dining. The impression I get from the taste and presentation is more down-to-earth and honest; like grandma pottering around the kitchen and cooking from the experience of the family kitchen. That, above all, is the most charming aspect of this odd location. The food tastes of the goodness of home.

Parting thoughts: very reasonably priced. Just a hair over $40 for everything above. Parking is limited (free parking after 1700 hrs!), unless you park at the Bird Park and climb the hill -- now THAT would work up an appetite! Otherwise, just aim to arrive early.

Back to May's for dessert. Along with the wontons of yesterday, she'd also brought back genuine HK custard buns. Here Pebbles photobombs this shot with a sneak attack on my plate.

A custard bun close up. It tastes more eggy and slightly salty, and a lot less gelatinous than the local variety. It's still good, but a day old by now. Should have eaten it yesterday when it was still fresh. Heh. Greedy.

Wonton by air

It was quite the treat when May returned from HK with freshly made wontons and noodles in tow. While I'm cool with our local version, these clearly belonged in another league altogether. Each of these dumplings was a complete mouthful of either shrimp, minced pork or fish wrapped in a delicate skin of dough. The noodles were satisfyingly springy in the mouth. Cooked with some oyster sauce and their local chili/oil paste, this simple recipe already left quite an impression. Wonder what it would taste like if made by native hands? Remind me to go look it up if ever I'm in HK again.

Brunch at Jones'

Dunno why I thought Jones the Grocer would have a fish and chips thingy to satisfy  a recent craving, but no dice there. What they did offer was this rigatoni served with stewed veal, topped with gruyere cheese shavings. The pasta was nicely al dente, but a bit cold around the edges. Either I took too long with the shot (above) or it might do them some good to warm their plates before serving. Fortunately the stew was generous and still hot, so overall, it didn't taste too bad. The pix doesn't do the colours much justice, but they do take the trouble with presentation and this was actually quite an appealingly coloured dish.

The other thing we ordered on the brunch menu was this, the Croque Madame. Basically a ham, egg and cheese panini wrapped around with a wide strip of Parma ham. I don't comprehend the name of this dish: it didn't come with anything discernibly deep-fried and crispy so the "croque" is a bit of a misnomer; and the Madame... well, I don't quite see a "Madame" lifting this Dagwood-proportioned sandwich up to her mouth with both hands and chomping down with gusto, so that too, is something of a mystery. Having said that, it was still a darned good, hearty sandwich.

Run away! Run away!

When a St Andy's kid runs away from home because of exam stress, something has gone terribly wrong with the whole system. At one point St Andy's prided itself on being an equal-opportunity educator (save for the all-boys exclusivity). That was back when 'maximizing potential' meant that if a kid could reach a 'C', he would be coached to maximize himself to reach his 'C'; and an 'A' achiever would be maximized to reach his 'A'. Today, we've moved our goalposts so much that everyone's potential is expected to be an 'A*' within a certain narrow time-frame; failing which... let's just say our life-expectancy becomes significantly curtailed.

Of course, back then, some education was better than none. We grew up in much simpler times.

The "how far" question

Heeyyy, kids! It's model essay time again!

Been trying to explain to the kids why "to what extent..." and "how far..." questions cannot logically be answered with "to a large/small extent". The common error is to argue for and against the subject in order to somehow determine whether the pros outweigh the cons or vice versa. However, unless the essay identifies some criteria for this decision -- such as a value, a context or some other yardstick -- that decision is arbitrary and often baseless. Less skilled essayists are also likely to end up with internally conflicting arguments with little to no resolution.

"To what extent" and "how far" assume that the subject is already in play. In this case, the question "how far should a state have a right to monitor the actions of people within its borders?" the argument is not whether a state should or should not have or use its internal monitoring capabilities. Rather, the assumption is that the state does indeed have a right to do so, the question then being how much of this right is it acceptable to exercise before it becomes an unacceptable abuse of power. This is not a question for merely comparing pros and cons but a question of clearly identifying what is normal, acceptable behaviour of the state and what is clearly abnormal, unacceptable behaviour. And if at all possible, identifying some kind of general principle that can guide the responsible use of such power.

Hopefully, the kids will be able to see how this essay argues and resolves the above dilemma without tying itself up in convoluted knots. Ok, enough talk. Here it is: click here.

Behind the scenes: wrote another massively long essay but ruthlessly chopped it down to [close to] the word limit. Also replaced one of the original paragraphs 'cos it was sounding paranoid and pushing towards an extreme I did not want to deal with. Yes, I'm also aware that the conclusion is easier said than done. Sue me.

Return of the baby

News that I have become a great-uncle once again should put the Senior Lee's fears to rest. This whole baby dearth thing is probably a phenomenon relating specifically to my generation born during the tumultuous years between the 60s and 70s. People blame the population policies of the period and while there is truth in that perception, the greater truth is that people are more flexible than just blindly complying with a non-compulsory governmental exhortation. My generation is the literally lost generation, at this age too old to reproduce and too tired to bother looking after babies. The generation after mine is better-adjusted, a lot more secure and forward-looking. I daresay the babies are coming back again.

Prawns to be respected

Pek Kio Market (a.k.a. Cambridge Hawker Centre) is up and running again after a couple of week's sprucing up. This fact is not lost on the crowd of people gathered  around the more popular stalls, like this one: Farrer Road prawn noodles.

These blushing beauties and an accompanying bowl of noodles weigh in at $8. Three big prawns in a soup give up a firm, meaty bite; and taste fresh and clean without the bitterness usually associated with the juices leaking out of the head. Here the uncle splits the heads open and the juices are probably boiled into the soup as a very rich stock. That plus the garlic sauce amounts to quite a kick in the head early in the morning.

Beau Geste

So, that's why we went picking apple snails from the river. We were getting it nice and clean for the PM to give his National Day address in front of.

Anyway, 3:27 in the video (above) raised an eyebrow: "Let us prepare every child for the test of life and not just a life of tests." Apart from the trite cliche, the man is referring to an aspiration, though the reality is proving to be quite the stumbling block.

It is true that we all want our students to do well.  But for many of us, "doing well" means passing the next exam, and we don't quite see much further than that. Qualifying the kids for University IS our stretch goal because we have no control over what happens after that. Once they're undergrads, we've done our jobs. Good luck, kids, you're on your own now!

Secondary schools say the same thing about preparing kids for JC; primary schools say the same thing about secondary schools. When kids pass their tests, we pat ourselves on the back and it's on to the next test, ad infinitum. As long as the paradigm that preparing kids for tests is preparing them for life, I think the big boss and we the bottom-feeders are going to have a little conflict of expectations.

Which is why I like teaching GP. Unlike the other so-called 'content subjects', GP presumes zero knowledge when it comes to taking our tests. Ours really is a test of life. We present a problem no one's really considered before -- the more surprising, the better -- and what we evaluate is the student's ability to go from "whuuuttt??" to figuring out a process that brings whatever little knowledge he has on the issue to bear on the problem and reasoning out a conclusion.

Just like real life, no one can claim perfect knowledge. What we have to go on are the little we do know, the little more we can acquire (Paper 2, the compre paper) and enough common sense to make a reasonable decision. It helps that the student is well-read because the bigger the initial pool of knowledge, the more options are open, but of greater advantage is a well-trained brain that can deconstruct the problem, filter out the relevant knowledge-components and synthesize a conclusion. In our test, knowledge is always secondary to the process.

The other aspect of GP that is so different from the other content subjects which neatly categorize and compartmentalize knowledge into arbitrary 'topics', is that in GP we recognize that true learning is chaotic. There is a reason why we do not subscribe to a textbook: our knowledge currency is everywhere; updates itself on a daily even minute-to-minute basis sometimes; and is virtually limitless. Our job is not to package up finite knowledge in a neat bundle for memorization and later regurgitation, but to train our students in skills of knowledge management, communication and initiative, if not leadership.

Some snide person once asked dNYel how we can squeeze out more A graders in GP. The answer to that is to reduce our kids' dependence on us -- especially at this late stage when the students should be needing our guidance less and less while increasing confidence in themselves, their training and their abilities more and more. Also, there is a growing pool of students who are already well-trained and at this time, we should be putting their abilities to use by helping their fellow students to improve, and not taking the full burden on ourselves.

If we're really going to help our students to take the test of life, we shouldn't be doing more for them, which will only increase their dependence on us further. We should be doing a lot less. We focus, we target, we customize. We do not blanket cover everybody with a one-size-fits-all programme catered to the lowest common denominator and make it compulsory. That proposal sounds like a recipe for disaster.

GP is not one of the content subjects. We are the last department standing that is keeping the Industry of Education from becoming the Industry of Indoctrination. For the sake of the future that the PM himself is envisioning, we must hold out!

End of the line for film unit

Glad to be at (The Last) Film Fest on campus, not because it's really the last, but because as a supporter of campus arts I should show sympathy for an activity that could not sustain membership interest beyond its five or so years of existence. The same could happen to any one of us and if was the end, I'd like a few friends to be there to say goodbye.

I'm also glad that at the end, the quality of production has seen significant improvement since its inception. Back then their short films were more artsy mucking about with a camera than actual film narratives, but their latest efforts do indeed have stories to tell.

"Highlight" and "No Ordinary Girl" delivered one-liner punchlines that relied on a patient build-up of repetitive time passage clips. Despite the repetition, there were sufficient variations on the theme and pacing to avoid the haven't-we-seen-this-before syndrome.

Short, "Pranked" likewise relied on passage of time, but with a reveal at the end showing the victim somehow turning the tables on the prankster. I didn't quite follow the logic of this vignette, but it had some funny moments nonetheless.

The two main features, "Home Movie" and "Clockwise" were equally commendable. "Home Movie" experimented with the family drama crossed with horror genre and concluded with a Scooby-Doo inspired farce with a little implied violence on the side. Tension was built around a few peekaboo moments, a couple of which were quite effective; but because the resolution was played for laughs and the conclusion was slightly preachy, I felt that the narrative could have made up its mind first what it wanted to be instead of going schizophrenic on us partway through.

Finally, "Clockwise" was something of a "Groundhog Day" setup in which a whole week of misadventure was undone by a magic device that turned back time to where the trouble all started. A romantic comedy with a wish-fulfillment theme about the wisdom of hindsight -- if only we knew to make the right choices at the right time our lives would be so sweet. Maybe it's a subconscious message to the audience to get cracking on their final exams. Since not everyone can be so lucky to get a time-turner, we just have to get it right the first time.

I could talk further about awkward and unnatural camera-angles, uncertain and occasionally pointless establishing shots and the wisdom of investing in a tripod, but let's just call the overall effort a learning process via a work in progress. Sadly, no one's left to pick up the mantle and continue making improvements next year.

Talking politics

The kids got me busy working on another essay. Based on the 2011 Paper 1 question, "Consider the view that efficient government is more important than democracy", I decided to craft an essay I could use as material for a politics content lecture. Again went over-the-top with verbage, so weighing in at over 1700 words -- more than twice the size of a normal JC level essay -- this minor monstrosity isn't very useful as a 'model' of such.

But writing it gave me some insight into how S'pore positions itself on the political scale and how our political aspirations conflict with our bread-and-butter concerns as a people. Simply put, although we have taken our fledgling steps in the right direction, we are still far from ready to accept democratic rule.

Essay here (the usual disclaimers apply).

Family outing (at least smile a little)!

Criminal mastermind behind bars, at least, that's what he looks like. No reason to pull such a long face, right? Today's our annual family outing. Granted, it's to get everybody their shots all together, so all the pets of two households are gathered in my car and headed for the vet.

Usually, it's quite traumatic to round everybody up and stuff them all in their travel crates. But we got smart and prepped the crates out of sight in the store room. Then we picked up the most easily spooked of the cats first and before he knew it, he was secured. The next two followed in quick succession. We got perforated, nonetheless, but at least it was over quickly.

As usual, we drove to the strains of Momo yowling a dirge all the way there and all the way back.

Old, but not yet History

Watched the episode of Pawn Stars on the History Channel in which Rick surprises his Old Man by presenting him with a beautifully rebuilt '57 Chevy for his 70th birthday.

Just before the Old Man takes possession of his new ride, Rick surprises him yet again with a stipulation: he must retire. The Old Man considers the proposition for a moment, then says, "Sure... the day after I die!" With that the Old Man gets in the car and takes off with a parting shot, "Screw the cake!"

Too many of us already start looking forward to retiring from the first day we start work. Few of us love or even enjoy our jobs the way the Old Man does.To want to carry on working till the day after we die... we should all be so lucky.