The rotting starts today...

It's the school holidays! 1 month away from school (3 weeks + to be precise). Am having mixed feelings again. I guess I'm one who can't sit idle for too long, else I'll get bored. Suddenly I have so many Saturday-like days on my hands.

I should really sit down and plan how I want to spend my days wisely. (sounds like I've contracted some terminal illness)

1) Exercise regularly
2) Read books
3) Learn to cook some decent stuff (fried rice and instant noodles not inclusive)
4) Tidy up room
5) Set exam paper and prepare for Term 3

Alright, we'll see how I'll fare at the end of June. In the meantime, I'll go slow with my targets... Afterall, it's only the 1st day right?!

K1

It's been a long time...

It's been a long time since we both blogged. Don't expect anything from the other klutz anytime soon cos that fella is now holidaying in Europe! *envy*

Been rather 'free' these days since the exams are over. The pace in school has definitely slowed down three folds. Even the kids seem more relaxed. What does this say about the stress in schools? Yes, yes... I know it's stressful for the kids but sometimes it just can't be helped! When the kids are stressed, so are the parents and teachers. How I wished things were back to the good old days when everyone barter traded everything. But on the other hand, education does open doors to bigger and wider perspectives. It's such a dilemma.

I'm going for a wedding later. Talking about weddings... I got bombed (by wedding invites) twice in less than a span of 5 minutes yesterday! Plus another 2-3 from the hags later this year. I like attending weddings of close friends (only close friends... otherwise it's just a social obligation) seeing how they progressed from geeky secondary school students (that was when I first known them) to the beautiful bride walking down the ailse. And being those 'san ba' sisters at the gate refusing entry to the bridegroom. Haha. Can't wait for Kala's wedding in July!!

K1

What's your name?

While I was invigilating the Mother Tongue paper this week, I noticed that many of the children still used to classic name 'Xiao Ming'. A part of me couldn't resist but smile to myself. After all these years, Xiao Ming is still the much preferred name for the Chinese boy in a composition. As a primary school student, I had also used this name countless times. Even my teacher then often complained about our lack of creativity.

Walking around the class, I noticed that other than Xiao Ming, Xiao Hua topped the popularity list for girls name.

Then I noticed the top Malay name for a boy is Ali, and the one for a girl would have to be Siti...

And the top one for Indian boy is Gopal... but I can't seem to remember any one for Indian girls. I shall make it a point to be more conscious and pay attention to Indian girls' names.

K1

What Women Want...my version 1.1

..2) Love (cont'd)
Ok. So I beg to differ, but you know what, that being said, I have to admit that a teensy part of me still hopes to walk down the aisle to the sounds of Bach... *grin sheepishly*

3) A listening AND empathising ear (minus the "matter of fact" solutions)
Hm. I think that is why companionship is what many people look for when they're older, and when their social circle is slowly shrinking. What women would like, at the end of a long , hard day at work (or at home, at school) is a patient and listening ear. A solution may not be what we are looking for... just a willing ear for us to whine to..

hmm... after thinking about this (At the risk of sounding like a platinum member of Family Life Society), I think it mainly boils down to one simple thing > Love. At first glance, it sounds extremely cheesy and cliche. But if you really think about it, it's only with love (and not just the happily-ever-after love that's so often not the case in reality) that there can be respect for each other, compassion for the unhappy and suffering, empathy for the troubled ..and the list goes on and on... then maybe it's not so difficult to believe that the greatest commandment of all is "..to love one another .." as HE has loved us..

@~~@
K2

"I wanna make you smile whenever you're sad
Carry you around when your arthritis is bad
All i wanna do is grow old with you

I'll get your medicine when your tummy aches
Build you a fire if the furnace breaks
Oh it could be so nice, growing old with you

I'll miss youI'll kiss you
Give you my coat when you are cold
I'll need youI'll feed you
Even let ya hold the remote control

So let me do the dishes in our kitchen sink
Put you to bed if you've had too much to drink
I could be the man who grows old with you
I wanna grow old with you"

- Adam Sandler (from The Wedding Singer)

What Women Want..my version

Ok. I really shouldnt be doing this, but heck, it's only half hour to lunch...might as well take a short break.=P

Right. So, what do women want..hm..let's just take this up from K1's points..

1) respect:
This is probably one of the most debated topics over the past 50 years or so. In fact, my final year project in school was related to this. We were trying to find out how women leaders managed an "optimal" work-life balance. Guess what? No surprises here.. you can't have the best of both worlds. Yes, you CAN succeed at work, and gain all the respect you want, but it's probably at the expense of your family (if you even have one to begin with). I've personally seen this at work too... how many females do you see in senior management? The very outstanding female boss of my previous firm is one of the very few female bosses (not just middle management, but the top tier management , I mean) here in SG. You can probably use just one hand to count them off your fingers.

I guess the first reason is that women (being the caregiver -- as sadly defined by society) see their family as a higher priority in contrast to their career. I wouldn't say that this is the norm, but because women have for so long been set into the mould of "housewife" or "caregiver", they are more inclined to take on this role.

The 2nd reason is of course, the widely known "glass ceiling" that still plagues soooo many organisations... i can go on and on and on about this, but things will not change lah (and I'm getting bored with my own ranting). Anyway, God did create Eve from Adam (and after 265 popes, you haven't seen a she-pope have you?).

2) love:
All humans long to be loved and to love. It's not just women who crave for it. It's innate in all of us (again this has probably been debated over the last 2000 years). I think what K1 is referring to is the love between a married couple. Sure, it is a blessing to be part of such a union, but not every woman craves for it. Sure. When you are in your teens, or in your twenties, most of us long to be in that "smug-marrieds" (if I may borrow a line from Bridget Jones) club. But when you reach your thirties or forties (or whenever it hits you), you realise that not everyone is called to this "marriage" vocation. You see, society has drummed this "happily ever after" concept into women's heads so well (since their kindergarten days of Cinderella) that it seems wrong to be not married... and then you get prominent columnists who whine about their single status in The Sunday Times..=P.

So K1. I beg to differ on this point..

Ok, have gone on long enough for now.. gotta get back to work.. will continue later.!

K2

What women want... really?

The topic for today's blog came into my mind last night as I was tossing and turning around in bed trying to get some sleep.

Besides diamond, what else do women want? One thing for sure is that women are hard-to-please and extremely hard-to-understand creatures. One minute they would be chirpy and yakking non-stop and the next they'll keep really quiet and sulk through the day.

I've yet to conduct any form of research on this topic but the following are some pointers for the male species out there who want to understand women better.

Women want:
1) respect
With the increasing equality of men and women, we ask for more respect at the work place, at home or anywhere else.

2) love
No doubt about it. Human beings are creatures who want to be loved. Most girls harbour the thought of being swept off their feet by Prince Charming.

3) an outlet to vent our fustrations
We are not perfect. Being the more emotional of the sexes, allow us some space to show our emotions. There is nothing wrong in crying. It makes us feel better thereafter.

Hmm... I guess I'm stuck at this point and I thought I'll have loads to write. Maybe K2 can help out in this. In the meantime, I'll conduct some market research on the female species and update real soon. If anyone of you have something to add on, do drop in some comments.

Gtg to work now.

K1

Excuse me, are you irritated?

People get irritated with all sorts of things and for all sorts of reasons. Someone close to me fits the bill to a perfect T.

If there are road repairs going on, or if father turns on the radio too loudly to await the weekly 4D results, person X will get irritated. It's not just irritation mind you, the word is literally written all over the face. Yes, I may have protrayed person X as an overly-sensitive person relative to the surroundings but does it warrant such a reaction?

According to some theory which I studied years ago, an Action triggers a Behavior and thus results in a Consequence (this is some ABC Theory). While we cannot control the action, we can control our behaviour and thus softening the impact on consequence. What person X might have done, taking the case of the road repairs for instance, would be to control behaviour. Put aside the negative thoughts and think positive. 'The road works are necessary so that the car park downstairs will look more beautiful (or something to that extent).' With this thought, person X might not feel as irritated and would be able to endure the noise for some time.

It might be easy to just point fingers and offer some 'impractical' solutions, but I think life is too short to get over such 'kachang puteh' (read minor) issues.

It's all in the mind... You are what you think and you react according to what you think.

K1

Operation collagen

My new 10-day "miracle" drink!
Yes, yes... me--the non-believer of health supplements and makeup--has succumbed to the promise of firmer and wrinkle free (well...reduced lah) complexion!.. apparently, this health drink (to be taken at bedtime) will show its miraculous effects after 10 days of consumption. I'm now at day 2..haven't seen anything yet, short of the few pimples that've mysteriously popped up (must be the sucky weather and work related stress #$!%$^*#). Well, I'll be patient and wait. 2 days down, 8 more to go! *hehee*

@~~@
K2

What shall I do today?

I always ask myself this question on Saturdays. 'What shall I do today?' Sometimes I have a whole lot of things that I think I might want to accomplish for that day, like go shopping, meet up with friends, go to the beach, exercise blah blah blah. But the reality is that I never got down to doing any of the above. The furthest I got was just thinking about them.

The weather is freaking hot these days. I can't imagine how I'll melt under the hot sun if I ever went out (even worse, to the beach!!). It would be a wiser choice to stay indoors and enjoy the 'cool' air from my recently-cleaned fan (I do not have the wonderful invention - aircon in my room or living room).

Plus the fact that the shopping centres are packed with people who also want to escape the heat wave by congregating there. I hate crowds... screaming kids, kiasu uncles and loud aunties. And their wet bodies accidentally brushing against my hand or something... YUCKS! Spare me the agony... I'd rather stay home.

So that leaves me with nothing to do on Saturdays again! Oh well, I shall do what I always do on Saturdays then... stay home, watch those bo-liao Taiwanese variety shows and catch up on my beauty sleep.

Someone I know just commented that I am a predictable person. You can't blame me for being predictable... there's simply nothing interesting enough to get my butt out of home.

K1

Stupidity Personified

"I see stupid people"

~--~

I can't believe the level of stupidity that exists around me. It's amazing to see such imbeciles at the helm of things. The best part is, they get away with it..but then again, if Barbie the airhead is willing to put herself in a compromising position with Bozo the clown, you can obviously get away with it, considering that Bozo is amazingly still staying at the top of things.

I seriously gotta get out of this circus soon. Wouldn't wanna stay too long in the ring with these clowns.

~--~
K2

TGIW

Thank goodness for the long weekend...it's already midweek..2 more days to the weekend! *HoOrAy*...=)

Hmmm..I must say today was quite a relaxing day.. (although my in tray is overflowing =P)..guess it's the spillover effect of the long weekend PLUS the half day leave yesterday.!!.. sighh.. I can already forsee myself suffering the effects of my laziness today..(oopss... I'm not sure I should post this for the whole world to read..) *YIKES*

Recently, I've learnt some pretty interesting things going on around me... it's amazes (and sometimes amuses) me that plastic no-brainers DO go places ....(think 36-24-36 and DOM...)yeah..got it? Of course, above all this superb gossip fodder, I just feel plain disgust. I can't understand how one can compromise his/her dignity to such a level.. Well, I guess it happens all the time, and I've just been that poor ignoramus stuck in the well.

For now, I guess I'll just sit back and watch the show.

@~~@
K2

Tuesday blues

I had a severe dose of Tuesday blues today. Must have had enjoyed the long weekend too much. On one hand, I welcomed the break... but on the other, I just seem to have so many things to clear!

Exams are less than a week away and those clowns don't seem to be very bothered by it. Some of them did not do well for the revision practice papers. Oh man! I just hope that a miracle happens.

Work aside, there are now 2 security guards hired by MOE in the school now. The appearance of the security guards somehow makes me wonder if this is necessary. Are we being overly cautious? I'm not even sure if it would deter the rapists, molesters, terriorists etc. Just look at the size of the security guards (in general).. most of them are definitely not what I would call fit. Most are old ah peks with a beer belly. I wonder how much they can run before they stop to pant.

Or maybe it's just an attempt to create employment for Singaporeans? Haha. I'll be watching them to see how they 'perform' on the job.

K1

How we got this blog started

I'm back from my retreat! Yes yes, I went to one of those marriage encounter equivalent weekend getaway over the long weekend. All thanks to K2 for telling the whole world about it. Well, the weekend was fun! Actualy this retreat was the finale of the series of 6 lessons on couplehood. I'll recommend it to dating couples and those preparing to get getting married. (Not that I am going to get married any time soon k...)

Anyway, back to the title of this blog. Maybe I should tell of how our blog came about. It all started one Saturday when I was reading others' blogs and found some to be extremely hilarious. After K2 came online, we decided to create one too (the usual Kiasu mentality) to provide similiar entertainment to those people with too much free time and nothing better to do. Of course, this will also serve as a platform for us to snigger at people.

I simple love U5. In fact I was humming it all weekend. Instead of announcing it as Unity 5, how about eUphoria 5? K, I know it doesn't start with U, not eUphoria does sound like it starts with U right? I mean for those who aren't good in spelling, I'm almost certain they'll think it starts with U. eUphoria, according to my Longman Dictionary of Comtemporary English means 'a feeling of extreme happiness, pride and excitement.' Isn't it just appropriate for the title of the hymn, K2?

For those who are lost in out debate, here's the lyrics of eUphoria 5. See if it should be Unity 5 or
eUphoria 5...

'Let love be real in giving and receiving,
without the need to manage and to own
A haven free from posing and pretending
where every weakness may be safely known

Give me your hand along the desset pathway,
give me your love whereever we may go,
As God loves us, so let us love each other,
with no demands just open hands and space to grow'

K1

Labour day weekend

Hmm..the long weekend sure zips by quickly. It's already Monday! *boohoo*.. but well, at least the weekend was good. Rested well. Slept enough. And of course, I had great fun singing (or perhaps I should say screeching) my heart out at a certain karaoke joint near Chinatown.

That, of course, explains the strange music that's playing in the background. The "strange" music, if you're wondering, is the from the soundtrack of "C'est La Vie, Mon Cheri"(xin1 bu1 liao3 qing2), and is one of the "must-sing" top 20 songs amongst my karaoke kakis (our top 20 chart features other songs like the ringtone-friendly Yu4 Jian4- from the absolutely crap movie Turn left Turn right, Dancing Queen- think 3 crazy girls screaming away in the often not-too-soundproof-room, and OF COURSE, our all time favorite... Gao Lin Feng's "gu niang de jiu wo", where the "hooga chaga hooga chaga" simply cracks me up everytime we sing it).

That being said. I'm now dilligently trying to master the cantonese version of "hao xin fen shou", which sadly to say, is still in its infant, and pathetic stage...

Awright..this has been an extremely boring post. .. till the next time..

@~~@
K2

U5- Ursula 5?

I've always wondered...in the days when "physical" hymnals still existed**, whether anyone could ever come up with a perfect name that started with "U" when announcing the next hymn that would be sung next. Most of the time, the closest "church-like" term that one could best come up with was "Unity". Well, I guess that's the best that one could do, since I can only imagine that Ursula would cause much confusion and frantic page flipping amongst many a parishioner...

Anyway. U5, of course, is K1's all time favorite classic, and before she left for her weekend getaway (think marriage encounter style...muahaha...she'll probably kill me for saying that), I promised that it WILL be featured in her wedding. But no worries, dear K1.. I'll make sure that the accompaniment is not the horrendous "bom cha cha" that a certain someone used to do..=P

**(now replaced by a high-tech, squint causing-pls remember, our island has one of the highest rate of short-sightedness amongst its residents- wide screen projector that goes ballistic once in a while when it decides to go on "auto-pilot" and take over the role of the official "slide-clicker")

@--@
K2