~ Dave Meurer ~

A great marriage is not when the

"perfect couple" comes together.

It is when an imperfect couple

learns to enjoy their differences.

I got the urge to share this after I read Liz's blog.
I always believe that in order for a relationship to work & last, the couple must share the same goal.

Under different circumstances, either party must sacrifice in order for a certain plan to work.
Communication & Honesty are very important too!!

Year 3 Outings

20th May 2008, Kallang River

Students were first "enjoying" the briefing & presentation by the YO Group on the important of clean water. Pictures of polluted area were showed as well.Next, students were given a pair of high quality gloves each, a few thongs & black bin bags. We cleaned up the designated area by picking up rubbish like cigaratte butts, bottle caps, food containers, wrappers etc etc. Ryan was in-charge of jotting down all the rubbish we found. We were amazed by the number of cigaratte butts we found. The most dedicated cleanner goes to.......KYLE. His white socks & shoes turned black. He told me that he enjoyed playing with mud:)We were all given bottles of NEWater. Taste okay for me, no funny smell...At the end of the day, all the students were smelly, sweaty, sticky & tired. They can't wait any longer for a refreshing shower. Well Done, Kids!!Mentor's remarks:

I picked up rubbish with my students. I'm angry with the public who didn't give us co-operation by chucking rubbish wherever they wish. After the activity, I enjoyed the air-cond & clean water so much. I took a cooling shower & panadol for my headache. It was a good experience:)

21st May 2008, East Coast Park

Students were so excited & energetic. After briefing, students were told to design a flag that represent their group/class. The pretty + cute lady like cartoon on the far left is me, their mentor; while the purple dinosour next to me is Barney. Both of us prefer & encourage the LOVE method when educate the next generation.

"I love you, you love me, we are happy family. With great big hug & a kiss from me to you. Won't you say you love me too...."Yu Jia & Tricia bought me a cup of tea:) Thank you very muchie!!The next task -- sand castle building. I'm so happy that everyone in my class contributed full-heartly to build the LOVE castle. M08307, wrong planning! We built the castle to near to the beach, high tide!! We need a 'strong' wall... However, the nature is stonger than us. We gave up after more than 30min:(
*Ivan, you are not doing your part!Sleeping beauty? Little mermaid?No! Zi Kai is tyring to save our castle by being the human wall!!

Our end product:) Can you feel the LOVE???Some other sand castles by other mentor groups.

Mentor's Remarks:

I really enjoyed playing sand & salty water with my kids. We have lots of fun although the weather was extremely hot. I'm now darker (still pretty) & whole body is aching (not because I'm too old), but is worth it!! I love you, M08307. M08305, M08306 & M08308 don't be jealous, cause I love you all too:)

Disgusting

Guess What?

Is a toe's nail
Is hubby's nail!!

MY SON NEVER WAKE UP

extracted from: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/5/14/nation/21244895&sec=nation

Wednesday May 14, 2008
By KULDEEP S. JESSY

PETALING JAYA: Student Lim Sze Jian, believed to be a victim of a snatch theft, never regained consciousness until his death on Sunday. He had been in a coma for almost two years.
His father Lim Guan Seng, 52, said that after the incident in September 2006, Sze Jian never regained consciousness or opened his eyes.

“Sometimes he moved a hand or leg when we talked to him,” he said.

Guan Seng said Sze Jian, who was allowed to be taken home after the incident, was admitted to Hospital Kuala Lumpur a month ago for high fever.
He said Sze Jian was allowed to go home again a few days later but was re-admitted to the hospital’s intensive care unit a week before his death after he fell sick again.

Sze Jian, 20, died at Hospital Kuala Lumpur, at 2.30am. His father claimed his body at 3.30pm the same day.

“I hope the police will get the culprits who did this to my son,” Guan Seng said.
City CID chief Senior Asst Comm (II) Ku Chin Wah said that he would personally look into the case which police had classified as snatch theft. He said based on findings so far, there was an eyewitness.

The first-year accounting student at the University Tunku Abdul Rahman was found unconscious at the Masjid Jamek LRT station on Sept 18, 2006, reportedly attacked while on his way home to Wangsa Maju. He was believed to have been robbed as he had contacted his father saying that his cell phone had been snatched.

For those of you who has been following my blog, this is a sad story of my ex-student. I was so shock when my Phavz (ex-colleague) broke the news to me via msn. Now, I'm still shock & don't believe what I have read. As you know, my parents visit him quite often & I when to his house during my last trip back to Kuala Lumpur. His parents told us that he was much better at that time....

Think from the brighter side, he is no longer suffering.
Hopefully the culprit will get the punishment!!

Thank you! Thank you!

Big paus from Brother Thong & Evelyn "Love" from Seck-Cher (my colleague)

Thank you very much for the guidance & help throughout the whole semester

A very special giftAnother special gift....Yum! Yum!
Bye bye Zhi Hui (trainee), wish you all the best in everything you do:)

Delicious chicken pau from Hariz (physics colleague)

Can anyone please tell me who left this apple on my desk?

Anywhere, thanks a lot...

Haw Par Villa

As I'm writing this blog, I'm just glad & feel relax that I have finally finish all the markings, students' remarks & examination analysis. However, this is not the end of the story... There will be 2 sessions (I 'm teaching 2 modules this semester) of scripts checking with my 'cutie pies' & hopefully I haven't done much mistake.

Last Sunday, hubby & I decided to take a break from our hectic schedule as we were both working at home on Labour Day. I came across a tv show that brought back my memories when I first visited Singapore in my primary school day...

Haw Par Villa, formerly called Tiger Balm Gardens, was originally constructed in 1937 by "Tiger Balm King" Aw Boon Haw as a grand residence for his younger brother, Aw Boon Par, who helped create their fortune with the anagesic balm. In English, Haw Par Villa translates as Villa of the Tiger and Leopard.[2]

Aw Boon Haw then created an entertainment park to teach and preserve Chinese values. The park's colorful collection of over 1,000 statues and 150 giant tableaux centered around Chinese folklore, legends, history, and Confucian ideology. Morality tales included classic battles between good and evil and tributes to Chinese cultural heroes such as the famous pugilist Wu Song, who tamed a ferocious tiger with his bare hands.[2]

We were guided by this old man, he lead us to the path less travel with lots of blessings.25 clusters of original statues and figurines replicate Chinese mythology characters like the Laughing Buddha and the Fu Lu Shou (Taoist deities).[1]
Described by various visitors as "fascinating, delightful, bizarre and entertaining", Haw Par Villa is like no other place in the world. Literal and leaving nothing to the imagination, the statues and sets immortalise moral values and Chinese cultural heritage for generations to come.[1]I am so sad that everyhting is so run down, I no longer feel the happiness that I got during my 1st visit. This Signature Pond in the picture has even dried up! I dare not approach some areas as the run down statues are so scary (to me). After the major renovation, the compound is now smaller & many interesting stuffs have gone too... I remember vividly that my granduncle & grandaunt brought my brother & I + cousins to take a boat ride into the dragon mouth -- the Ten Courts of Hell, featuring the ten steps of judgement before reincarnation. After the renovation, the 'river' & dragon is gone :(
I would like to highlight some important points to my beloved students. The punishment for:

1. cheating is thrown into a field of knives
2. misuse of books is body sawn into two
3. cheating during examination is intestines & organs pulled out
4. disrespect to eldest is heart cut out
5. disobedience is grounded by a large stone

As a conclusion, please obey your Ms. Kong, return her love with good performance in both academically & behaviourally. Hehe...

References:

1http://www.visitsingapore.com/publish/stbportal/en/home/what_to_see/themed___other_attractions/haw_par_villa.html

2http://www.singaporemirror.com/co_hawparvilla.htm

*Many people have forgotten about this wonderful sighseeing place in Singapore which used to visit by tonnes of local & oversea visitors. I truely wish somebody can do something & it won't be demolished.

For more detail story & nice pictures, please read this entry:

http://timesofmylife.wordpress.com/2007/07/13/haw-par-villa-re-revisit/