House rennovation going at snail pace (3)

This is how the rennovations look like after 2 and a half months. Electrical lines, phone lines, TV lines all installed. Next week contractor had scheduled to install aircon conduits, water piping and to complete plastering...hopefully...keeping my fingers crossed on that! Toilet and kitchen tiles have been chosen, using shades of grey for all toilets and white for the kitchen. Quotations for wood laminated floor received... laminating the sitting and dining and the bedrooms. Decided to carpet the staircase instead of wood lamination, partly to save cost and partly for safety (less slippery).

The seven dwarfs

Remember the 7 Dwarfs- Bashful, Doc, Dopey, Grumpy, Happy, Sleepy, Sneezy?

What happen when they grow old?

Source: http://seniorcitizenhumor.blogspot.com/

I can identify with not one but several of them! ke...ke...ke...

My daughter the avid rock climber

I was just googling several days ago when I came across this newpaper article in Utusan Malaysia (in Bahasa Malaysia) several months ago about my own daughter, which I never knew about.

Utusan Malaysia : Fedelia suka debaran, kepuasan

My daughter the avid rock climber

The article actually talked about her love for rock climbing. In fact it seems to me as her Mother that the sports has become kind of an obsession for her. Any free time she has is being spent on the rocks, although I would have prefered her to learn how to cook or how to sew!

She represented Malaysia in the last X Games in Shanghai in rock climbing. Although she did not win any prize I think it must have been a great experience for her.

A Mother loves her children even though they least deserve to be loved

Brother Tai Hou, back for a short visit from Melbourne, made a trip to Fairy Park in Meru, Klang, to pay his respects to our late Mother who left us on 9 August 1998. For me, as usual on occasions like this, as I waited and watched, I was flooded with memories and a profound sense of loss. There were also feelings of regret, remorse and guilt for not having given her the best and for all the hurtful words and actions I wished I could have taken back.

A mother loves her children even when they least deserve to be loved - Kate Samperi

The sun shines down when old friends come to mind

Norhayati, our graceful host, my friend of 47 years since lower secondary school when I relocated from Methodist School Parit Buntar to MGS Kuala Lumpur


Norhayati's husband, Syed Mokhtar, koraoke-ing away

Norhayati (R) and Mei (L) engrossed in singing a romantic number. Norhayati and me came to know Mei when we were freshies in the University and the 3 of us had remained good friends since then.

Mei's husband Puteh relaxing in Nor and Syed Mohktar's house

Scenes of the interior of Nor and Syed Mokhtar's lovely house in Valencia

A water feature in the garden

There’s hearts filled with laughter

and eyes moved to tears

with memories so vivid

transcending the years

the words of compassion

and actions so kind

the sun smiles down,

when old friends come to mind- Jim Morton

My bounty as boundless as the sea,my love as deep!

Mr. Saw Hin Seang (L) and Datuk Wong, both retired DID Directors at the pre-dinner cocktail

The ever graceful Mrs. Saw Hin Seang

The happy bride Michelle Tan and groom mixing with the guests at the cocktail reception

Amy Tan (R), wife of the late Mr Tan Hoe Tim (who passed away recently on 1 May 2009, also the bride's father) and her elder sister

Kan Wai Mun and her husband

Yours truly managed a snapshot with the bride Michelle

The sweet and radiant bride, who is not only sweet in looks but also in character

The bride and groom entering the dinner hall. Congratulations my dear Michelle. I am sure your Father would have been so happy for you too.

My bounty is as boundless as the sea,

My love as deep;

the more I give to thee,

The more I have,

for both are infinite. - William Shakespeare

Welcome or not welcome?

Have you ever received an invitation but later feel that you are actually not welcomed? I just experienced one. Strange? Whatever the reasons may be, I think this kind of behavior is bizarre . I would certainly give a pass on future invitations from the same source and would be very careful not to take things at face value.

Confucius on good government

During his life, Confucius served as a public official and had many things to say about good government:

• Leaders should always serve the people with honesty, fairness, and, once again, humaneness.
• Leaders should preside over the people with dignity, and they will be serious.
• Leaders should be filial and kind, and they (the people) will be loyal.
• Leaders should promote the good, instruct the unskilled, and they will be enthusiastic.
• Leaders should dwell on it [government] tirelessly; carry it out faithfully.
• Appoint the wise and talented to office.
• Trust, above all else, is the most important thing for a government to strive for - above arms and even food, for "nothing can be established without the trust of the people.
• An ignoble man cannot serve in government, because he "worries about getting something, and once he has gotten it he worries about losing it. ...there's no telling what he might do."
• Always "put service first and gain after."
  
  Creidit to :http://www.associatedcontent.com/

Our politicians still have much to learn from Confucius... Will they ever?

Fairness and being fair

Today the local radio station discussed the concept of fairness and being fair. At the end of the discussion, the moderator concluded that whatever the definition of "fairness", what is considered 'fair" to one may appear completely 'unfair" to others. This reminded me of an incident that happened to me many years ago when I was much much younger.

Many years ago when I sat for an examination while a sophomore in a local university, I made an honest mistake. Instead of anwering 3 questions out of 5 as required by the examination paper, I misread the instructions and answered only 2 questions out of 5. When I realized my mistake at the end of the examination I was frantic. I went to the lecturer and told her my problem and requested for a little bit extra time to answer the thrid question. I remember her name was Mavis Puthuchery. After listening to me, She said she will look at the quality of my answers for the 2 questions and she will decide whether to mark me based on 2 questions or 3. When the results were published after 1 month, to my delight, she had given me an "A". When my friends knew this, they remarked "Oh! So unfair!". Thank you Mavis Puthuchery for being fair.

Wise saying

In dwelling, live close to the ground.
In thinking, keep to the simple.
In conflict, be fair and generous.
In governing, don't try to control.
In work, do what you enjoy.
In family life, be completely present.
-Lao Tzu 老子

The 14 year old was malnourished and covered with burns, bruises and scars!

In OKLAHOMA CITY a 14-year-old boy with deep cuts around his wrists and covered with burns, bruises and scars wandered into a National Guard armory last week and said he had escaped from a home where he was locked in a bedroom closet. The boy, malnourished and covered with scars, showed up at the base, about a mile and a half from the town house where he lived, and asked where a police station was located so he could report being abused.

Two security guards who work at the armory and saw the teen there said they lost sleep over the weekend thinking about the boy and the torture he described. "He said he wanted help, and as soon as he showed us the bruises, we took him inside and called police", said one of the guards, Paul Clark. "His wrists looked like he either had been handcuffed or had ropes or chains around them. It really kind of took me aback."

Police believe the boy's mother frequently tied him up to prevent him from escaping and had a lock installed on a bedroom closet where he often was kept for days at a time. He was frequently locked in the closet for hours if not days at a time. He wasn't allowed to leave, never attended school, never received medical attention.

Reference for more details: Manager: Evidence Okla. closet used as bathroom

In most countries, there are too few data on the prevalence of violence against children in all settings, and there is inadequate research on the risk and protective factors that infl uence violence, on the impact of violence against children, and on the effectiveness of different strategies to prevent and respond to violence against children - UNICEF

How do I love thee?

Ethelin and her husband's 58th wedding anniversary. Happy anniversary Mr and Mrs Teo!

How do I love thee?

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight.
For the ends of Being and ideal Grace
I love thee to the level of everyday's
Most quiet need, by sun and candlelight.
...

I love thee with the breath,
Smiles, tears, of all my life! -- and, if God choose,
I shall but love thee better after death.

Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806 – 1861)

The very sweet kindly Ethelin

John and Fuziani joined in the celebration

Will he...or will he not? Mmm... looks like probably not!

He...he...