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July 02 Dizzy WeekendBaaaaaaaaaaaaad stubborn flu. I thought I recuperate well at home but my condition turned from bad to worse. I sneeze and sniffs .. Glance down, I've whole bucket of tissue papers ... in clump! ewww .. very yucky sight. I'm glad I don't have blocked nose. pheww .. Mood were bad and fuse were short. So, I stay low.
I dragged myself out and to the bank on Sat morning. Last day of Jun and also the last day for us, the resident to enjoy the 5% GST before it being raise to 7% on 1st of July. Yeah .. I didn't hear I would be having any pay rise. So, practically I'll be 2% poorer.
 Few things are definite in life. 1st is death, 2nd is sickness, 3rd is tax. Can't run away from it. The rich gets richer, the poor gets poorer, the middle class .. get squeeze most of the time. hehehe Am I complaining? Yes, I am. YOU get taxed wherever you go on this earth! haha I ran to few banks on Sat morning. Tidying up all my finances. Aww .. I didn't realise I'm having drought in my bank accounts! ... pheww .. I hope I'm not running into negative! I hope I'm getting my ROI real fast.  June 28 Sickly meOh man, I'm sick again! Not sure what is going on with me. I took a day off today. I woke up early as usual, around 6am. My whole body aches, heavy head and runny nose. I dragged myself out from bed, brushed my teeth and threw myself on the sofa. Errmm .. I wanted to get ready for work, but body simply refuse to move. After awhile, I guess I should listen to the body and get back to sleep. I did and woke up around 8am. Not long after, typing some emails for colleagues to settle some urgent work in office.
I checked myself in to the clinic. A govt clinic just across my block. A lot of sickly old people there in the clinic. I waited 15mins for registeration, 1hr 30mins for seeing a doc, another 15mins to get my medicine. In all, I've spent 2 hrs in the clinic! You may asked, why I don't just go for private clinic? The govt clinic is just a few steps away from where I stay. I'm just plain lazy to go to town for doctor.
I read some of health magazines on the rack to kill time. I found something interesting. There is a legislation in Singapore, which I never heard of called Advance Medical Directive (AMD). Here is the info ..
Advance Medical Directive (AMD)
An Advance Medical Directive (AMD) is a legal document that you sign in advance to inform the doctor treating you (in the event you become terminally ill and unconscious) that you do not want any extraordinary life-sustaining treatment to be used to prolong your life. Making an AMD is a voluntary decision. It is entirely up to you whether you wish to make one. In fact, it is a criminal offence for any person to force you to make one against your will. New advances in medical knowledge and technology create new choices for both patients and health care providers. Some of these choices raise new ethical and legal issues. One issue is that modern medical technology can technically prolong life in the final stages of a terminal illness. However, it cannot stop the dying process. In such situations, further medical intervention would be medically ineffective, and a decision has to be made whether to withdraw such futile medical intervention. Some terminally ill persons who are unable to express their wishes at that time, may want to be spared further suffering and be allowed to die naturally, in peace and with dignity. The law in Singapore allows Singaporeans who wish to make an advance medical directive to do so. The AMD Act was passed in Parliament in May 1996. (Source : Singapore Ministry of Health) This is interesting. I'm not sure if other country has such ruling. I absolutely have no objection of signing the AMD. I prefer to have quality than quantity of life. If I terminally ill with no chance of recovery, I rather to die than to live.
I also told the doc tht I'm having problem with my monthly thing. He wrote me a referral to a gynae. Oh .. the appointment is on next Mon. I'm nervous. I guess I need to make a call to confirm that I'll be seeing a female gynae. Shessh .. this is very private matter. Don't think I'm comfortable to let a man to check my "part". Hrmmm
 June 27 Britain's Got Talent - Paul PottsA fren show to me this - Britain's Got Talent. Another talent show like the American's Idol thingie in UK.
So, there I went to see the clip on YouTube. Paul Potts is the name. A mobile phone salesman participated and performed in this talent show. Paul Potts is an average joe with funny teeth and a very shy man. I thought it was a joke my fren wants to share with me. haha .. hey Pint, you caught me there.
Well, in American Idols, there are some clips of funny contestants performing funny things. I expected that too from this show. Trust me, you will be amazed by his singing talent. I'm pleasantly surprise. He wows Simon Cowell too!! He is really good. If you don't believe me, pls visit this link : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1k08yxu57NA June 17 Active LifestyleAnother endorphine charged weekend. Very active lifestyle indeed. Woke up early and attended the group class at the gym. Love it. I hope it is not just another 3 mins heat kind of thing. When the effects run thin, I hope the lazy bug won't struck me for not exercising.
 The gym club is nice, well equiped and overall experience is great. I swear to make my $$ worth by going there at least 3 times a week. Let me tell you, I was so obsessed with the calorie counting. What kept me going, working feverishly on the machine was clocking as many calories I can burn off! Crazy eh. I cycled like hell for 20mins, only 40 cal burnt!!! Oh my, I just managed to burn a chinese bun I had in the morning! Imagine, 1 big Mc Mac set with french fries, 600 cal, you got to run your a%%$#s off! So, think twice to gnaw that hamburger down.
I have some bits of shopping done. I purchased some gym clothing. Trying to look like a pro. haha .. naw, no tight-exposing-body-hugging blouse or pants. Very modest looking and understated. hehehe Clothing is supposed to be comfortable and not screaming for attention! But really, some ladies I saw in the club who weigh more than 100kgs wear really sophisticated gym gear.  Salute them for the courage! Errrmmm ... June 11 Gym Gym, here I comeI spent my last Saturday rather actively and healthily. I went to gym for first time. Quite an impressive place and trendy too. I signed up as member since last April and haven't got chance to go due to busy schedule. Now, I'm free from studies and I do not have any excuse for not going. I went with sis. They oriented me around.
Everyone seems conscious at that place. On the top floor, I saw many men busying pumping and huffing over all the muscle building machines. They working real hard for the xtra inch of muscle on their arms and body.
 The rest of place filled with machines. The personnel in Red are the Fitness Instructors. I got a feeling they trying in vain to gain some eye contacts from just anyone. If you do signal for them, they will try their might to psycho you to sign up a session with them. The package is not cheap, mind you. Anyway, look at my size, don't think they'll try on me. hahaa .. unless I put on another 10 kg or so.  I joined some class. Body Combat, they said. Wow, you jumped, kicked, boxed. Pheww .. you practically moving non-stop for 1 hour with 30 secs rest for every 20mins! My lungs grasping for air! As a first timer who never exactly exercise regularly, I struggle through out the class. My neighbour was a 100kg lady jumping around so enthusiastically!!!!! Shame on me!  Anyway, I enjoyed the class tremendously. A very good motivated way for workout and de-stress. After the class, I tried the treadmill, the bicycle etc etc. I also had a nice steam bath before I get out from the place. Hrmmm .. niceeee! Oh yea, as a result, I've acute muscle ache the next day. Spent whole Sunday, practically doing nothing but sleeping!  June 09 Puff The Magic DragonI loved this song. Used to hear it during childhood time and it brings back fond memories. I don't take notice on the lyrics until I hear it again. This song tell a bittersweet story of the ageless dragon Puff and his playmate Jackie Paper, a little boy who grows up and losses interest in the imaginary adventures of childhood and leaves Puff alone and depressed. The story of the song takes place "by the sea" in the fantasy land of Honah Lee (also the name o f real beach in Hawaii) (Source: Wikipedia).
It was a big hit in the 60s written by by Lenny Lipton (words) and Peter Yarrow (music) and sung by Peter, Paul and Mary. However, some thought that the song is associated with drug culture. Very interestingly, Singapore government actually banned this song in 1963!! Pls refer to this article for details : http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/1370650.stm
Nevertheless, to me it is simply refers to Lost Childhood. Whatever your opinion, pls enjoy the song. Enclosed the lyrics for some Karoke session.
PUFF, the magic dragon lived by the sea
And frolicked in the autumn mist in a land called Honah Lee, Little Jackie Paper loved that rascal PUFF, and brought him strings and sealing wax and other fancy stuff. OH PUFF, the magic dragon lived by the sea Together they would travel on a boat with billowed sail OH, PUFF, the magic dragon lived by the sea A dragon lives forever but not so little boys His head was bent in sorrow, green scales fell like rain, Oh! PUFF, the magic dragon lived by the sea Ironic Life MomentsRead down the list. See if any of this apply to you. ;) Enjoy!
June 05 Are you afraid of the dark?I just finished 1 novel titled as above by my all time favorite author Mr Sidney Sheldon. It is about 400 pages in paperback which I took about 20 hours to finish it. I sacrifice much of my sleeping time though. *yawn* tired
He was a master storyteller. His story always taut with suspense,intrigue and with an unnervingly realistic premise. Able to keep you glue to the book for hours. My sis and I had read all his works and it is 2 thumbs up.
His story get more sophisticated. This title talks about about a brilliant scientist who built a command center of a satellite system that can control the weather in any area of the world! He can cause storms anywhere, create famines, manufacture hurricanes and cyclones. Wow! The story seems real.
I wonder if there any think-tank company in this world is actually doing that. Using the scientific knowledge to build a super computer that can control weather! hrmmm ...
June 03 Why Waterlotusmud?Someone asked me, why Waterlotusmud? What a nickname I got there.
Well, I don't consider myself religious type, but I make a point to live life in accordance to the teaching of the Buddha. Thus, thinking of some names that I aspire to be and associated with. The Lotus is a very significant symbol in Buddhism. It symbolise purity, spiritual growth and enlightenment. It refers to the complete purification of body, speech and mind, and the blossoming of wholesome deeds.
Starting life as a seed, it grows in the muddy darkness at the bottom of a pond. The darkness is like our ignorance (deluded by our senses). The seed grows toward the warmth and light of the sun (just as human naturally grow toward the warmth of love and compassion, and toward the light of truth). The mature flower grow above and water and the leaves floats on the surface, basking in the full sunlight, well "anchored" by strong root and moving freely according to the movement of water (adapting to the fast changing environment).
The water and mud feed the lotus. Therefore, WLM! I aspire to grow out from my wordly ignorance, to gain wisdom, to cultivate unconditional love and compassion to all living beings. Well, it easier to say than done. Not at all impossible, but it may take a lifetime to do this. Anyway, I hope you know what I mean. June 02 Blood DiamondsSis rented a DVD for couch potatoe-ing over the weekend. There, I spent an hour or so watching the movie called Blood Diamond. I don't have a clue what it means until I watched the movie. It was a heart wretching movie! Having stay in the south continent for sometime, I aware on the civil wars happening up north and I certainly not aware of something called Blood Diamonds!
Blood diamond is known as Conflict diamond. Conflict diamonds are those sold in order to fund armed conflict and civil war. Profits from the trade in conflict diamonds, worth billions of dollars, were used by warlords and rebels to buy arms during the devastating wars in Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Sierra Leone. Wars that have cost an estimated 3.7 million lives. They helped fund devastating civil wars in Africa, destroying the lives of millions (Source : Amnesty International USA).
Pls visit this link for some details : http://www.amnestyusa.org/amnestynow/diamonds.html
I felt really sorry for the affected African people especially the children who suffers because of this tiny bits of carbon that have no intrinsic values in themselves. The locals don't wear diamonds! The most worrying aspect is the international community's belated response. UN intervene only in year 2000 several years after the civil war broke out. For this instance, only after I watched the movie. Hrmm ...
If you have got time, pls watch it. Here is the spoiler : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_Diamond_(film)
The post effect of this show? Diamonds? No thanks. %^&*$!!
 those unscrupulous diamonds trader for these stones who directly or indirectly causes so much of misery of the people in Africa. I don't mean to be so 1-sided in my comments as I do actually understand the complexity of the issues. The wars and violence are only the manifestation of the root problems. *sigh* what a world we have here.  May 31 How does chicken mate??I was chatting with colleagues over lunch the other day. The topic came about birds re-productive system. I always wonder, how chickens mate in order to fertilize the eggs? I've had this question for as long as I could remember. I asked around, but seems nobody knows the exact answer. Okay, let's do some research on this.
Back in Malaysia, mom kept some chickens for own consumption. I seen and helped in chicken slaughtering process before and had studied the chicken anatomy, both hen and rooster. Yea, it was a cruel process. Especially, the throat slitting part. Can't bear to see the chicken struggle for its dear life and died slowly in a pool of blood. I always asked mom to buy frozen chicken from the supermart and stop rearing chickens. ..... I should be a vegetarian.
 Opps .. digress abit. Ok, back to the topic. I know the rooster got testes tht produces sperm but I don't see the rooster got penis! Hmm, if that the case, how the rooster to mate and fertilize the eggs? When mom cut open the chicken abdomen, I actually conduct some close circuit study on the anatomy. I seen some undeveloped eggs - plenty of yolk or 1 or 2 soft shell eggs inside the hen stomach. Amazing eh. For rooster, I just can't find the penis! hahaha ..
I did some research just now, here are some of my interesting findings :
1. "Birds, like mammals, use internal fertilization. Many
species of birds lack a penis; instead, the male just
has a genital opening (cloaca), which must be
positioned against the female's genital opening
(also called a cloaca) for sperm transfer"
(Source : by Dennis Chang, graduate student and HHMI
predoctoral fellow at Harvard University).
2. The rooster's semen contains around 5 billion sperm
per cc, about 40 times as much as that of a human.
3. The hen has only one ovary, which is on the left side
of her abdomen.
4. Following mating, sperm enter the hen's oviduct and are
stored within sperm storage glands. Only sperm that can
swim will enter these sperm storage sites.
These glands can store more than half a million sperm.
Sperm can remain alive in these glands and fertilize eggs
for up to 3 weeks.
5. Sperm do not break through the eggshell. Instead they
travel up the oviduct to the infundibulum to join with
the egg yolk.
6. Around 30 sperm must enter the egg near the germinal
disc to insure a 95%chance of fertilization.
7. When the hen lays a fertilized egg, the chick embryo
has already developed for about 25 hours into
approximately 20,000 embryonic cells and is a live,
breathing organism.
8. a) Cockerel is a male chicken under one year of age;
b) Cock or Rooster is a male more than one year old;
c) Pullet is a female under one year;
d) Hen is a female over one year of age.
Source :
- Dr. Chris McDaniel, Associate Professor, Poultry Science
Department, Mississippi State University
- University of Illinois Extension (Incubation & Embryology)
Okay, at last I got some answer on this. Some mention tht the roosters do have a small penis. Let me re-confirm this again if I've chance to deal with yet another rooster "surgery" session.
 Cut out all the internal organs and lay on the table for biology session! Apart of this, I wonder what life would be without eggs. I simply lurrvveee eggs. 2 sunny-side up, pls! May 29 Few liners ;)Aha .. something nice to read. Enjoy!
School: A place where Papa pays and Son plays.
Life Insurance: A contract that keeps you poor all your life so that you can die Rich. Nurse: A person who wakes u up to give you sleeping pills. Marriage: It's an agreement in which a man loses his bachelor degree and a woman gains her masters.. Tears: The hydraulic force by which masculine willpower is defeated by feminine waterpower. Lecture: An art of transferring information from the notes of the Lecturer to the notes of the students without passing through " the minds of either" Conference: The confusion of one man multiplied by the number present... Compromise: The art of dividing a cake in such a way that everybody believes he got the biggest piece. Dictionary : A place where 'Success' comes before 'Work'. Conference Room : A place where everybody talks, nobody listens and everybody disagrees later on. Father: A banker provided by nature. Criminal: A guy no different from the rest....except that he's got caught. Boss: Someone who is early when you are late and late when you are early. Politician : One who shakes your hand before elections and your Confidence after. Doctor : A person who first kills your ills by pills, and later kills you by bills. Classic: Books, which people praise, but do not read. Smile: A curve that can set a lot of things straight. Office: A place where you can relax after your strenuous home life. Yawn: The only time some married men ever get to open their mouth. Etc.: A sign to make others believe that you know more than you actually do. Committee : Individuals who can do nothing individually and sit to decide that nothing can be done together. Experience: The name men give to their mistakes. Atom Bomb: An invention to end all inventions. Philosopher: A fool who torments himself during life, to be spoken of when dead May 27 I'm backkkk ... Happy Anniversary for WLM's Space!Time flies. It has been a year since I started this blog. Happy Anniversary for WLM's Space!
Thanks to you all who came and for those who allows me to know you by leaving your comments. Thanks once again.. am appreciate it very much. Vesak Day is coming. Will I be joining the 3-steps 1 bow exercise? I guess I will give a miss this year. Heart is willing but body is weak. I'm down with sickness for the past 1 week and I guess this will take fairly long time for me to recover.
Okay, I'm done with my final exam. Am I excited? Not really a yes. I did badly in 1 subject and am not sure if I pull it through. Let's wait patiently for the result. Was sick during exam period though. So unfortunate for me. I spent most of my time sleeping now. The feeling is good, no pressure and just enjoy the much deserved time.
I went to see a doc yesterday for second time. I'm surprised that all clinics closed on Sat afternoon. I went to a TCM clinic (Traditional Chinese Medicine) instead. Since the clinic pretty quiet, I had a chat with the Chinese Physician. He did a stats of my diet, my lifestyle and offers some advice. I thought I eat healthily but found out tht I do have many bad eating habits. For the past few months, I indulged in chocs, coffee and ice-creams. Thinking the sweet stuff and caffeine can help in giving me more energy. I guess I overly indulged. Strangely, I didn't put on weight though.
He persuaded me to stop eating chocs altogether when he knows I've digestion and menstruation problem!!!! I said whaaaaaatttt? Tht's insane! Coffee and chocs are 2 heavenly food for me. I can trade off with fried chicken wings, french fries or any fried oily food for this right??? Can't I? hahahaaa ..
That's all for today. I'm having splitting headache and aching body. Hiyaaaaa .. what a life! Talk again, adiossss .. May 01 Mayday, maaaaaad-ays!Woaaaa .... it has been a long time eh .. since my last entry. Well as you might know, I'm miserably busy. You know what, there was a young Singapore girl drop dead because of her stressful and busy life. I feel really sorry for her and the family. I'm busy but I won't sacrifice my health for work. I spent the whole afternoon sleeping for this May Day.
I'm having my final exam in 2 weeks time. Work is still manageable, no doubt is stressful. Ohh .. my menstrual cycle is running amok. I seems getting my period twice a month! Hrmm .. I'm turning 31 and I'm due for a thorough health check up.
Ok, I think I better get back to my revision. Talk again! ciao ciao! April 11 S$600 AssignmentI got an offer recently from one of the regular supplier whom is currently doing a course. He is looking for someone to work on his coursework assignment at a fee. Me? a coursework "contractor"?? Attractive offer. Easy $$ eh ..
On today economical sense, it is perfectly fine. If you can't do it, you out-source it. Nothing wrong with that. But, on the ethical ground, it seems very wrong. What's the point if you pay for the paper certificate but not for knowledge? Can learn thousand of one things from the report writing process. Oh, not everyone think alike. Anyhow, I cheers for him to be so creative and smart. I've never ever think of such a solution in studies. Maybe, I'm just a plain she-cow who only knows how to plough the land.
P/s : I was very much tempted actually. I'm eager to measure my work by his University standard. After thought, I think I should not to be overly ambitious. I'm risking of doing too many things at a time and ended up completing nothing. I've mountains of stuff to work on! What was my take? I didn't accept his offer. Maybe I will when I completed mine and has plenty of free time. April 09 Perodua Kelisa - worst car in the world?I've not been reading news for a long long time. As I was running thru the 7 days news archive with Singapore's very own CNN (Channelnewsasia) http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific_business/view/268567/1/.html 1 news in particular caught my attention.
Jeremy Clarkson, a host on the BBC's "Top Gear" motoring show labelled the Perodua Kelisa the worst car in the world.
Okay, these are some excerpts what I got from BBC.co.uk : Mr Clarkson has voiced his frustrations with the small three-cylinder model in both magazine articles and on film. In one article, he said its name was like a disease and suggested it was built in jungles by people who wear leaves for shoes. And in a DVD car review, he described it as "unimaginative junk, with no soul, no flair and no passion". He then smashed it, hung it from a crane with a one-tonne weight attached, before blowing it up. Perodua is Malaysia's second national carmaker and began producing small compact models in 1995.
Personally, I feel it rather brutal and insulting. Hey c'mmon dude, the car is ain't that bad. As long it can bring ppl from Point A to B and deliver it promise, it is a good car. Whether the car is cool/sleek or not, it is not the point. The car is not overly design and made affordable to the general mass. What else can we expect with such pricetag? Think again.
A new price of under £5,000 makes the Perodua Kelisa the UK's cheapest car. Cheap is cheerful too, as every car has power steering, dual front airbag and seatbelt pre-tensioners. The underpinnings come from the Daihatsu Cuore, which gives this high-value package proven reliability. An excellent option for low-budget, no-nonsense motoring. (Source : Parkers - Car Review)
All I can say that the marketing team at Perodua should have be more sensitive on the cultural diversity while trying to market the car internationally. Rather using the native name as Kelisa .. how about to name it as "Kelsia" or "Leaski"? more western friendly? My conclusion? What Kelisa trying to sell is basic mobility and not lifestyle nor performance. So, shut up Clarkson! April 07 Flu .. do I need a jab?I'm sick!! I can't afford to fall sick. I've plenty to do and my coursework is due in 2 weeks time. I spent the past days sleeping. In fact, I got bad flu-fever for a week already. I'm stubborn, I didn't visit the doc. So, don't pity me, serve me right! haha
 We're having rather crazy weather here in Singapore. Boiling hot during the day, heavy downpours in the night. And sometimes, no rains at all. In such extreme temperature, lots of ppl fall sick. It started by my dad. He infected us with his virus. As a results, my sis and I got it. Sniffing away with aching body. *snifs*
Oh .. *yawn* think I better to go and take a nap. My head spins .. adios ..
P/s : No, I don't need a jab, I need more sleep ;) April 03 Ouchh .. my feet!You know what, I was on buying spree for shoes. Few more new pairs added into the collection. Hrrmm .. I thought, it will be enough to last me for year 2007! There are plenty of selection from the shop and yea yea .. I'm kinda fanatical about open-toed shoes nowadays! Why open-toed shoes? Well, because it can :
1. De-stress your tiny toes
2. Ventilate 'em with some air
3. It's sexy looking! heheee
My ever positive impression on them worn off until I got my feet wounded with blisters! Ouchh .. painful! Yes, the pairs have nice style but not friendly. I'm smart enough to have keep some emergency plaster in my purse. If not, I would be walking bare footed on street! My feet now is bandaged with plasters and seriously need a day off!! heeheee
There was a myth, it says that before the new shoes 'bite' you, you got to 'bite' it first before you wear it for the first time!. Ay .. I should bite it first eh .. duhhh March 29 I blew the whistle ..not loudly but subtly 2I had a separate session with boss when he received my "whistling" email. We had a chat and I've informed him discretely on my concern. I can't blatantly tell him my suspicion on that fella. Anyway, I've proposed my suggestion on closing the open loops. I was given a task to review the current procedure and tighten the control of buying.
Now, I've to audit the buying process periodically and to intervene in pricing negotiation. Well, that means I've more things to do! I need a pay raise!! March 24 Unattended Bag in the MRTI'm in my last semester for my final year! Hooray! I'm about to see some light at the end of the tunnel. hehee. Some of my classmates rant about having no life after they took up the course. What a life.
My day started out rather interesting. I was bored and sleepy having to wake up early for class this morning. I boarded the MRT. I noticed that there was a handbag mysteriously lying on the aisle between 2 opposing sides of the train seats. One boy sitting next to it busying with his gameboy. The lady who came later noticed the bag and *ish* *ish* shy away. She kept eyeing on the bag suspiciously. I quietly laughed at her reaction. When I'm about to alight, I asked the boy if the bag belongs to him. He said NO. Then I take the bag out and pass it to the Station Master on my way out from the control station.
There was advertisment about getting the public cooperation to identify any unattended suspicious package (terrorist attack, bomb hidden in the package) in the public transport. Whoever discover such package should report to the personnel in-charge immediately.
I told this to my family later in the evening and I was scolded by my sis on my no-cow sense action. My act had certainly put everyone in danger this morning. Instead trying to be heroine, I should have just leave it to the staff. Hiya, I have taken the matters too lightly.
What was on my mind? Firstly, I must have thought the bag owner must be worried to death and search frantically for her missing bag. The bag may contain purse and other important docs. If the bag being ignored, somebody would have take it. To prevent this, I can pass it to the Station Master to deal with it.
Oh dear .. I'm nearly landed myself into trouble. I don't want to be the first female "suicide bomber" in Singapore! |
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