An Accident from Pretence
It was early on Sunday morning, Jason was watching a tlevision programe, "Superman". Mesmerised by the show, he wanted very much to be like the hero. So he drapped a red old cloth as his cape and pretended to be "Superman".
Next, he climbed up the chair and attempted to fly, but "Superman" he was not and he ended up hitting his head on the floor.
"PAIN! PAIN!" he wailed as he burst into tears. Upon hearing his cries, his sister, Jane came to comfort him. Blood was oozing down his head as he had a deep cut on his forehead.
After cleaning his wond and applying a plaster, Jane showed Jason a newspaper article about a boy who pretended to be "Superman". The boy was wearing a piece of cloth as cape. He opened and jumped out of the window. Instead of flying, he fell and crashed onto the groundfloor to his death. Jason promised that he would not do it again.
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
The Secrets of a Working Mother, Part 2
My mother used to tell me when I was young in Hokkien "mee gia si xi ae, dao nao si wa ae", loosely translated into "things are dead, your brain is alive." What she meant is to be creative, to think out of the box, or basically to use your head.
This phrase was ingrained into my head since I was young. But it was only when I was in my early thirties that I truly appreciate its magic. Do you know that we can and in fact should start preparing when we have got little pockets of time available? That is one reason why I join the Toastmasters Club. I find time to polish up my speaking skills so that I can cut down the time spent to perfect that presentation. The fact is certain core skills are transferable.
This simple but powerful concept applies to managing a household. And today, the focus of my post is that of cooking dinner in a jiffy.
A Little Planning Goes a Long Way
There is a lot of work when one is in the kitchen. However we can definitely cut down certain work. And as far as possible, we should get whatever help that is available. One of which is the scaling, cleaning and cutting of fish. Another is the choice of whether to take meat slices or minced meat. My choice is the latter as it calls for the least work at my end and I can always summon the help of the butcher.
Another is that of garlic - a omnipotent herb used in Chinese cooking - which will enhance the taste of cooked food. I will usually buy the bottled chopped garlic from supermarket. Of course, you could spare the time, you can also chop the garlic yourself. I will then fry them "in bulk" and wait for them to cool before storing them away in the refrigerator. This was one lesson I learnt when I was in the States. My batch of garlic cloves was on the verge of going bad. Following a hunch that cooked food could be kept longer, I embarked to chop the garlic and fry them. Today, this method not only spare me the agony of peeling and chopping garlic everyday, the golden fried garlic bites are also more fragrant.
Weekly Grocery Shopping
For me, the preparation for a five-day dinner menu starts early - in fact the Saturday before the coming week. I will do marketing every Saturday morning at the crack of dawn so that I could complete the preparation by 8 am. I need to do so as thereafter I will have to send my two boys for their tuition later.
I love to shop at wet market because of the personalised service which I received from the stall holders especially after I become a regular. My weekly grocery items include fish (usually a mix of red snapper, cod fish, salmon and at times, pomfret), minced pork and eggs. These are almost my staple.
For the fish, I will get at least five fillets or more - nicely cut in the portions which I will need to cook each time. I seldom buy a whole fish, if I do, it will almost invariably be white pomfret and a big one. I will request the fishmonger to help me to debone the fish and cut into slices. These variety of fish may cost a little more but think of the time savings in cleaning the fish at home. Not only that, these fish is already a winner in the taste category, one cannot go really wrong in cooking them. But make sure, they are fresh. It is not difficult to know which stall sells the freshest fishes - just head to the most crowded one. You can also perform the "eye test", fish fillets should look firm.
In the case of pork, I used to get lean meat but found the cutting cumbersome. So nowadays, I stick to minced meat. Again, I will get the butcher to help to put them into four to five packs - with each pack enough for one time use.
With most of the work done by the friendly neighbourhood market stallholders, I just need to do a final round of washing the fish fillets. Next, I pack them into "one-time" portions before whiffing them into the freezer.
After I send my two children to their tuition, I will next head to the nearest supermarket. Items which I get from the supermarket are tomatoes (usually about five medium-sized one), DoDo fishballs and needle mushrooms. At times, I also stock up small tins of baked beans, sardine cans, preserved "cai xin" and "giam chye" (salted vegetable). Like it or not, sometimes we need some variety in our food and they may not be healthy. But I believe in giving in a little to that urge so that it will not grow sinisterly into a dark desire. That is all for this post, coming up next is the menu and how to section in my next post.
This phrase was ingrained into my head since I was young. But it was only when I was in my early thirties that I truly appreciate its magic. Do you know that we can and in fact should start preparing when we have got little pockets of time available? That is one reason why I join the Toastmasters Club. I find time to polish up my speaking skills so that I can cut down the time spent to perfect that presentation. The fact is certain core skills are transferable.
This simple but powerful concept applies to managing a household. And today, the focus of my post is that of cooking dinner in a jiffy.
A Little Planning Goes a Long Way
There is a lot of work when one is in the kitchen. However we can definitely cut down certain work. And as far as possible, we should get whatever help that is available. One of which is the scaling, cleaning and cutting of fish. Another is the choice of whether to take meat slices or minced meat. My choice is the latter as it calls for the least work at my end and I can always summon the help of the butcher.
Another is that of garlic - a omnipotent herb used in Chinese cooking - which will enhance the taste of cooked food. I will usually buy the bottled chopped garlic from supermarket. Of course, you could spare the time, you can also chop the garlic yourself. I will then fry them "in bulk" and wait for them to cool before storing them away in the refrigerator. This was one lesson I learnt when I was in the States. My batch of garlic cloves was on the verge of going bad. Following a hunch that cooked food could be kept longer, I embarked to chop the garlic and fry them. Today, this method not only spare me the agony of peeling and chopping garlic everyday, the golden fried garlic bites are also more fragrant.
Weekly Grocery Shopping
For me, the preparation for a five-day dinner menu starts early - in fact the Saturday before the coming week. I will do marketing every Saturday morning at the crack of dawn so that I could complete the preparation by 8 am. I need to do so as thereafter I will have to send my two boys for their tuition later.
I love to shop at wet market because of the personalised service which I received from the stall holders especially after I become a regular. My weekly grocery items include fish (usually a mix of red snapper, cod fish, salmon and at times, pomfret), minced pork and eggs. These are almost my staple.
For the fish, I will get at least five fillets or more - nicely cut in the portions which I will need to cook each time. I seldom buy a whole fish, if I do, it will almost invariably be white pomfret and a big one. I will request the fishmonger to help me to debone the fish and cut into slices. These variety of fish may cost a little more but think of the time savings in cleaning the fish at home. Not only that, these fish is already a winner in the taste category, one cannot go really wrong in cooking them. But make sure, they are fresh. It is not difficult to know which stall sells the freshest fishes - just head to the most crowded one. You can also perform the "eye test", fish fillets should look firm.
In the case of pork, I used to get lean meat but found the cutting cumbersome. So nowadays, I stick to minced meat. Again, I will get the butcher to help to put them into four to five packs - with each pack enough for one time use.
With most of the work done by the friendly neighbourhood market stallholders, I just need to do a final round of washing the fish fillets. Next, I pack them into "one-time" portions before whiffing them into the freezer.
After I send my two children to their tuition, I will next head to the nearest supermarket. Items which I get from the supermarket are tomatoes (usually about five medium-sized one), DoDo fishballs and needle mushrooms. At times, I also stock up small tins of baked beans, sardine cans, preserved "cai xin" and "giam chye" (salted vegetable). Like it or not, sometimes we need some variety in our food and they may not be healthy. But I believe in giving in a little to that urge so that it will not grow sinisterly into a dark desire. That is all for this post, coming up next is the menu and how to section in my next post.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
The Secrets of a Working Mother, Part 1
Many people ask me how I am able to juggle both work and family without a maid. Just the other day, I was navigating the after-office-hour rush to fetch my elder boy from his primary school, with his little brother in tow. An auntie could not contain her amazement and asked me non-stop on how I manage to cook dinner everyday, fetch my boys, coach them with their school work and do housework while holding a full-time job.
I Have Done it Before
The first thing that comes to my mind is that it's really nothing spectacular. I did my part-time post-graduate studies in three years during which I worked full-time, was heavily pregnant with my boys and took care of the elder toddler too. I just do it because I have to.
I did not think much about it. It has also never crossed my mind that this itself was an accomplishment. A few years down the road, I met one of my former classmates who had just become a new mother after graduation. She told me that it was gruelling enough just being pregnant and then being bleary-eyed taking care of the baby, it was baffling that I could still squeeze in time for my part-time studies.
I supposed that it was my commitment to myself to complete what I had started. I had just commenced my post-graduate studies when my first child came along. As Lance Armstrong once said: "Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever." And I am definitely not a quiter. Giving up my studies was not an option. So like an athlete, I pressed on with my sheer will pushing over my body. Of course, my boys' laughters and antics made all the hardwork worth it.
The Training Ground
Then I had the training of being away from home when I became a stay-at-home mother at the United States. It was hard in the beginning. I was homesick - very badly homesick. And I suffered from cultural shock from all angles. For one, I was never a domesticated person. My cooking sucked and I seldom cooked at home. To add salt onto open wound, it was also very tough to get the Asian ingredients in a non-Asian country.
But desperation breeds ingenuity. I learnt new ways of cooking - using oven but Asian condiments to prepare fusion food. The 30-minute with Rachael Ray's cooking program was my favorite. From which, I mastered the concept of preparation in advance. E.g. frying minced garlic and keeping it for later use.
When I returned, I have also experimented with cooking food the night before and heating it the next day for dinner. There were a lot of learning points on what was the most efficient way, and how to cook in the shortest possible time, easiest way while still retaining its nutrients. All these are largely from trial and error which I would share with you in my next post.
I Have Done it Before
The first thing that comes to my mind is that it's really nothing spectacular. I did my part-time post-graduate studies in three years during which I worked full-time, was heavily pregnant with my boys and took care of the elder toddler too. I just do it because I have to.
I did not think much about it. It has also never crossed my mind that this itself was an accomplishment. A few years down the road, I met one of my former classmates who had just become a new mother after graduation. She told me that it was gruelling enough just being pregnant and then being bleary-eyed taking care of the baby, it was baffling that I could still squeeze in time for my part-time studies.
I supposed that it was my commitment to myself to complete what I had started. I had just commenced my post-graduate studies when my first child came along. As Lance Armstrong once said: "Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever." And I am definitely not a quiter. Giving up my studies was not an option. So like an athlete, I pressed on with my sheer will pushing over my body. Of course, my boys' laughters and antics made all the hardwork worth it.
The Training Ground
Then I had the training of being away from home when I became a stay-at-home mother at the United States. It was hard in the beginning. I was homesick - very badly homesick. And I suffered from cultural shock from all angles. For one, I was never a domesticated person. My cooking sucked and I seldom cooked at home. To add salt onto open wound, it was also very tough to get the Asian ingredients in a non-Asian country.
But desperation breeds ingenuity. I learnt new ways of cooking - using oven but Asian condiments to prepare fusion food. The 30-minute with Rachael Ray's cooking program was my favorite. From which, I mastered the concept of preparation in advance. E.g. frying minced garlic and keeping it for later use.
When I returned, I have also experimented with cooking food the night before and heating it the next day for dinner. There were a lot of learning points on what was the most efficient way, and how to cook in the shortest possible time, easiest way while still retaining its nutrients. All these are largely from trial and error which I would share with you in my next post.
Saturday, July 11, 2009
My Favorite Things
Reason in Economics and marvel in management. These are a few of my favorite things.
Logically, people will ...
I fell in love - head over heels - in Economics for it is so rational. But my love clearly is not.
Economics makes so much sense in the at times nonsensical world. While usually true, economics could explain not all of today's phenomenon. As my Economics professor has put it very simply, when we study economics we do so in a "closed" world.
The key assumption here is that people are rational. In the real world, he added one variable, "a" in the equation and aptly termed it "animal". Like a beast it is, it is highly unpredictable but powerful - able to overthrow the entire economic reasoning. This animal is "market sentiments". Just like my love for the subject.
Once there were only white swans
Another very interesting concept which I learnt not from former education but from reading especially management books is that of "white and black swans". The story goes this way. Once people have always believed that only white swans exist. This was because no one has ever spotted a swan of another color. Then, this belief was debunked when black swans were sighted.
What is the morale of the story? Very often, we make decisions based on past trends. But past trends cannot predict the future as there are a lot of unknowns that lie ahead of us. Nothing is absolute as the world is constantly changing.
Putting the two together
When I put my two favorite things together, I learn to plan with the best information and yet be prepared for the uncertainties that lie ahead. Just like in the chorus of the song:
When the dog bites
When the bee stings
When I am feeling sad
I simply remember my favorite things
And I don't feel so bad....
Logically, people will ...
I fell in love - head over heels - in Economics for it is so rational. But my love clearly is not.
Economics makes so much sense in the at times nonsensical world. While usually true, economics could explain not all of today's phenomenon. As my Economics professor has put it very simply, when we study economics we do so in a "closed" world.
The key assumption here is that people are rational. In the real world, he added one variable, "a" in the equation and aptly termed it "animal". Like a beast it is, it is highly unpredictable but powerful - able to overthrow the entire economic reasoning. This animal is "market sentiments". Just like my love for the subject.
Once there were only white swans
Another very interesting concept which I learnt not from former education but from reading especially management books is that of "white and black swans". The story goes this way. Once people have always believed that only white swans exist. This was because no one has ever spotted a swan of another color. Then, this belief was debunked when black swans were sighted.
What is the morale of the story? Very often, we make decisions based on past trends. But past trends cannot predict the future as there are a lot of unknowns that lie ahead of us. Nothing is absolute as the world is constantly changing.
Putting the two together
When I put my two favorite things together, I learn to plan with the best information and yet be prepared for the uncertainties that lie ahead. Just like in the chorus of the song:
When the dog bites
When the bee stings
When I am feeling sad
I simply remember my favorite things
And I don't feel so bad....
Thursday, July 9, 2009
I will always remember you Michael Jackson
On that fateful day 25 June 2009, the whole world was shaken by the shock news that Michael Jackson had passed away from a cardiac arrest.
The world grieved in pain for the loss of a music giant. He had many beautiful songs. Amongst which, "Heal the World" and "You are not alone" are my favorite as I love Ballad. Through these lyrics, one could not but feel his very sensitive inner self. A versatile songwriter, singer and performer, he was. Who could have forgotten his fast-paced number "Beat it" and his famous moonwalk. His endless philanthropic deeds speak volumes of his kindness and generosity in giving back to the society.
Despite his music success, he had a controversial life after he suffered second-degree burn during a Pepsi concert, further aggravated by a rare skin disorder. The court cases against him had caused much pain and angst in the gentle soul. In the latter part of his life, he suffered from severe insomnia.
Now that he is gone, may he rest in peace.
As what Maya Angelou aptly titled poem "We Had Him", I am glad the world had him.
Maya Angelou's poem in tribute for Michael Jackson's public Memorial on Tuesday, "We Had Him":
Beloveds, now we know that we know nothing, now that our bright and shining star can slip away from our fingertips like a puff of summer wind.
Without notice, our dear love can escape our doting embrace. Sing our songs among the stars and walk our dances across the face of the moon.
In the instant that Michael is gone, we know nothing. No clocks can tell time. No oceans can rush our tides with the abrupt absence of our treasure.
Though we are many, each of us is achingly alone, piercingly alone.
Only when we confess our confusion can we remember that he was a gift to us and we did have him.
He came to us from the creator, trailing creativity in abundance.
Despite the anguish, his life was sheathed in mother love, family love, and survived and did more than that.
He thrived with passion and compassion, humor and style. We had him whether we know who he was or did not know, he was ours and we were his.
We had him, beautiful, delighting our eyes.
His hat, aslant over his brow, and took a pose on his toes for all of us.
And we laughed and stomped our feet for him.
We were enchanted with his passion because he held nothing. He gave us all he had been given.
Today in Tokyo, beneath the Eiffel Tower, in Ghana's Black Star Square.
In Johannesburg and Pittsburgh, in Birmingham, Alabama, and Birmingham, England
We are missing Michael.
But we do know we had him, and we are the world.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Dictation for Term 3 and 4
These are the dictation passages for Primary 2.
T3 W3 Dictation 1
It was a sunny and windy day. Jill and Ling went to the East Coast Park. There were many people at the park. The girls headed for the beach to pick seashells for their Art lesson.
T3 W4 Dictation 2
My daddy bought me a skate scooter. I was so happy! But he wants me to be very careful when I ride on the skate scooter. He told me to wear a helmet.
T3 W6 Dictation 3
Early on Monday morning, Dan rushed out of his flat to go to school. In his hurry, he forgot to bring his house keys with him. He only realised it after the front door was slammed shut.
T3 W8 Dictation 4
Mr Lee was dressed in a black T-shirt and blue jeans. He was also wearing a blue cap with red stripes. He is a tanned Chinese man and has a moustache on his face.
T3 W10 Dictation 5
Jason saw a little girl, about two years old, at the bottom of the pool. He dived in and pulled her up. Luckily, the little girl started crying. She was all right. Just then, the little girl's mother dashed to her side.
T4 W2 Dictation 6
Ming comes from a poor village. He spends his time looking for food thrown away by the fruit and vegetable sellers. Once, he spotted some ripe bananas near the dustbin. Quick as flash, he picked them up.
T4 W4 Dictation 7
During the holidays, Jenny and her brothers visited their aunt. The children took a taxi to her house. Their aunt was preparing some food for them. Jenny looked forward to her aunt's delicious meal.
T4 W6 Dictation 8
There was a big crowd at the shopping centre. A woman had fainted as the place was very hot and stuffy. A passer-by dialled 995 and an ambulance arrived shortly. The woman was sent to the hospital.
T3 W3 Dictation 1
It was a sunny and windy day. Jill and Ling went to the East Coast Park. There were many people at the park. The girls headed for the beach to pick seashells for their Art lesson.
T3 W4 Dictation 2
My daddy bought me a skate scooter. I was so happy! But he wants me to be very careful when I ride on the skate scooter. He told me to wear a helmet.
T3 W6 Dictation 3
Early on Monday morning, Dan rushed out of his flat to go to school. In his hurry, he forgot to bring his house keys with him. He only realised it after the front door was slammed shut.
T3 W8 Dictation 4
Mr Lee was dressed in a black T-shirt and blue jeans. He was also wearing a blue cap with red stripes. He is a tanned Chinese man and has a moustache on his face.
T3 W10 Dictation 5
Jason saw a little girl, about two years old, at the bottom of the pool. He dived in and pulled her up. Luckily, the little girl started crying. She was all right. Just then, the little girl's mother dashed to her side.
T4 W2 Dictation 6
Ming comes from a poor village. He spends his time looking for food thrown away by the fruit and vegetable sellers. Once, he spotted some ripe bananas near the dustbin. Quick as flash, he picked them up.
T4 W4 Dictation 7
During the holidays, Jenny and her brothers visited their aunt. The children took a taxi to her house. Their aunt was preparing some food for them. Jenny looked forward to her aunt's delicious meal.
T4 W6 Dictation 8
There was a big crowd at the shopping centre. A woman had fainted as the place was very hot and stuffy. A passer-by dialled 995 and an ambulance arrived shortly. The woman was sent to the hospital.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Lost in The Shopping Mall
This is an essay adapted from a primary 2 school student.
=============
On a bright and sunny day, Jack and his mother went to a shopping mall in Tiong Bahru to buy a present for Jack.
In the shopping mall, Jack was amazed to see many shops selling toys. As he walked along the corridor outside the shops, his eyes feasted on the fascinating toys on display at a shop. A transformer - Bumble Bee, on offer caught his attention. He let go of his mother's hand and stood in front of Bumble Bee, wishing that his mother could buy it for him. When he turned around to tell his mother to buy it, she was gone! "Where is mother?" the thought flashed in his mind and he burst into tears. His cries filled the whole shopping mall and he was so frightened. When his mother heard his cries, she hurried back to the toy store to look for Jack.
True enough, she found Jack! Both mother and son were so happy and hugged each other. His mother heaved a sigh of relief. Jack told his mother what he wanted. He was so excited when his mother agreed to buy the toy for him.
Jack has learnt his lesson well. From that day onwards, he did not dare to go out of his mother's sight without her knowledge again.
=============
On a bright and sunny day, Jack and his mother went to a shopping mall in Tiong Bahru to buy a present for Jack.
In the shopping mall, Jack was amazed to see many shops selling toys. As he walked along the corridor outside the shops, his eyes feasted on the fascinating toys on display at a shop. A transformer - Bumble Bee, on offer caught his attention. He let go of his mother's hand and stood in front of Bumble Bee, wishing that his mother could buy it for him. When he turned around to tell his mother to buy it, she was gone! "Where is mother?" the thought flashed in his mind and he burst into tears. His cries filled the whole shopping mall and he was so frightened. When his mother heard his cries, she hurried back to the toy store to look for Jack.
True enough, she found Jack! Both mother and son were so happy and hugged each other. His mother heaved a sigh of relief. Jack told his mother what he wanted. He was so excited when his mother agreed to buy the toy for him.
Jack has learnt his lesson well. From that day onwards, he did not dare to go out of his mother's sight without her knowledge again.
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