Happy New Year to all my friends!

Happy Deepavali !

Photosource: Link
Wishing All Hindu Friends and family Happy Deepavali with blessings of...

Lakshmi: Divine Energy
Vishnu: Happiness
Kubera: Wealth
Indra: Opulence
Gajendra: Carries the wealth
Deepavali ki Shubhkamnayein
(दीपावली की शुभकामनाएं)

October is the time for Oktoberfest..

Oktoberfest is a 16–18 day beer festival held annually in Munich, Bavaria, Germany, running from late September to the first weekend in October.
Only beer which is brewed within the city limits of Munich is allowed to be served in this festival. Upon passing this criterion, a beer is designated Oktoberfest Beer. Oktoberfest Beer is a registered Trademark by the Club of Munich Brewers.
Well..I attended an 'Oktoberfest' in Singapore yesterday with 2 friends..

One of my main disappointment is that the beer comes in wussy plastic cups of suppossedly 330 & 500ml capacity instead of the Maß (a 1 liter mug) at the actual Oktoberfest..

My opinion that beer served in plastic cups is such a turn-off and rob this particular Oktoberfest of its festive spirits. I see it as another excuse to get it's patrons drunk..Luckily, none of my friends end up as "Bierleichen" (Beer Corpses).
Don't you think that it really feels different drinking beer from a proper mug as compared to a plastic cup? Look at the picture below..it's supposed to be that kind of mugs.

I did not touch a single drop of beer at all yesterday.

Who will clean up these areas???

I was walking around Aljunied GRC this afternoon and came across a dirty location seemingly not swept for a period of time and weeds were growing out of the cracks in between the bricks on the ground...

I was about to call up Aljunied-Hougang Town Council when I realized that this may be one of the 26 locations taken away from the Town Council in the recent saga..

Well then, I duno who to call now..who is in charge of cleaning up all these places?? 

The Truth about $ Money: Money as a Debt

I was reading Alvinology (blog) and came across these two video clips that gives a clear explanation of what is going on in the world of money right now. It helps me to understand that the situation in Singapore may be applicable in terms of rising prices(because of the need for more debts the people have to undertake to keep the economy going strong) and taxation.
The video clips (by Paul Grignon) are in 2 parts and I took some time to go thru it. I hope you have the time and patience to go thru them too if you wish to understand more about Money$$$!
Part 1:

Part 2:

Paddling in the Cityscape

I attended the event "Paddling in the Cityscape" this morning. I had just recovered from a round of muscle aches and wonder if I will get another round in the coming days. I have not paddled this hard since more than a decade ago and I definitely must admit I must be getting on in age. I am particularly impressed with the fact that they have arranged for an ambulance with 2 medics on standby for the event(I only have a pic of one of them here).

The reason why I signed up for this event is partly because it is a good opportunity for me to see the city from a different angle..usually I am on the shore looking into the water, today I was in the water looking at the shore! It was also good exercise for me..something was wrong with my canoe(or was it just me?)..it kept going zig-zag and there was no way I could make it go straight such that it'll be more energy efficient for me..


Why I am hapering over this fact is because I was a Sea-Pro' canoeist before and I am totally ashamed for my canoe behaving like that of a beginner. I dare not to tell anyone there I ever learnt how to paddle before. Of course, as expected, I was the last few to come back(I should be glad that I could make it back!).


Anyway, I chucked all my belongings in a waterproof bag and do not have much pictures to show. I was told I could go find Kallang CC YEC Facebook page to see the photos when they are uploaded.


What I have are some photos before the commercement of the paddling which is the Kallang CC YEC Biannual GM 2011 which is graced by the GOH Grassroots Adviser Mr Edwin Tong,who is also the MP for M-K GRC. He thanked the outgoing YEC and pledged full support for the incoming YEC(which I think more or less are the same few people). 

I did not know that the YEC election is part of the event and it was quite interesting for me to witness the whole process altough the election was a walkover. Before that, I was wondering why the YEC were already wearing the YEC shirts before the election..the walkover was the reason. They took the PAYM pledge to be sworn into duty.

See the full gallery on Posterous

The Aljunied GRC Medallion

This piece of 1Oz 999 fine silver Aljunied GRC medallion you see in this picture is one of a very limited 300 pieces specially made to celebrate The Workers' Party's victory in the GRC on 7th May 2011 General Election. Every piece have a unique certification number and is definitely an item that guests who attend 7th Month dinner functions in Aljunied GRC would look out for...those that were able to invite the opposition MPs of course!


It is not available for sale, therefore, you cannot buy it from any retailers. It is instead, given as a gift to the organizers of the 7th Month dinner functions that the opposition Aljunied GRC MPs attends,for them to auction off. All the proceeds from the auction goes to the organizers.


This particular piece that I had with me in the picture above was auctioned off earlier this evening for $13,800.00 . 


This is a new record for this item..the highest bid so far. I wonder if it has got anything to do with the ongoing issue in Aljunied GRC (See Link :Media Release on Use of Public Sites in Aljunied GRC).


I am really glad and appreciative of the fact that there are many people on the ground who are supportive of WP, despite the current unlevel ground situation.

Wishing all citizens, residents and friends of Singapore a very Happy National Day 2011!

The 46th Birthday of Singapore and many MPs took this opportunity to wish their residents a very happy national day with their very big (duno whose's budget!) budget! In fact, I strongly believe that their budget is bigger and bigger each year in accordance with the size of their billboards.

In fact, the billboards are so big to the extend that it caught the attention of Aljunied GRC MP, Mr Chen Show Mao (See Link Here)...
Well, for me..I can only afford a tiny small column in the Wan Bao & Sin Ming(8/8/2011) and the Zaobao(9/8/2011) using my own limited pocket money..

Happy 46th Birthday Singapore! Of coz, we must not forget the people who made Singapore what it is today..definitely not a single man...the pioneers of Singapore..our parents and grandparents' generation.."This generation embodies the true Singapore spirit—the determination to work hard, overcome the odds and carve out a better life for their children. They serve as an shining example for many future generations to follow."
Majulah Singapura! :)

General Election 2011 from my perspective..(Part 2)

Sorry I took so long to update again..I was living out the hangover' from the GE and busy with some stuff.
Let me touch a bit on the supporters..The supporters who came to our rallies were wonder and creative people..

They came and bring along with them all sorts of display to show their message..I don't know about you, but I know exactly what they were pointing at :)

Here comes our big boss looking tired from a multitude of campaigning activities.

See the full gallery on Posterous

...and look at these two buddies of mine...do you think they look more tired than our boss? :P

You must have saw the flower garlands hanging on our candidates' necks..they were all from WP supporters. However, supporters cannot hang them directly on the candidates and after consultation with the rally site Police, we decided that our volunteers will help the supporters do so. Due to the lack of time, everything must be properly organized while the candidates were speaking on stage..

See the full gallery on Posterous

The flowers were quickly presented in less than 2 minutes..

When the candidates were talking on stage, any info updates are done the traditional way..

One observation I made during this GE campaign was that my perception that our young do not have any interest in politics could be wrong. During our walk about in Moulmein-Kallang, a group of Primary School kids went up to discuss national issues with Uncle George at his preambulating vehicle and also waited all the way till our candidates return from their walks. Well..not all kids got the opportunity to learn about the General Elections in this way!

See the full gallery on Posterous

Read part1 here: http://tttansg.blogspot.com/2011/06/general-election-2011-from-my.html

General Election 2011 from my perspective..(Part 1)

I haven't updated my blog for almost a month..most people(for example, my Boss Kelvin Fong) would think that after GE 2011, I should be very free..I would have thought so too..but I was really so wrong. In fact, I became more busy than during the GE campaign.
Before I joined WP, I was actively involved in GE as a spectator. This was the 1st time I was so fully involved that i've no opportunity to go check out other opposition's rallies altough I would very much love to..in fact, I even have to give a few WP rallies a miss!
Allow me to bring you thru' the whole process of what I went thru' from right before the GE 2011. When the boundaries were announced,I could start to feel the changes in the pace of things..In fact, in the earlier part of March 2011, suddenly discovered a new back drop at Workers' Party HQ.
Then the pace for walks increased, especially in the locations that WP may possibly contest in..I was happily helping out a Bro who had 'booked' me to help him out for his campaign..

One fine day, I was summoned to a secret location in Singapore and given my appointment and introduced to my new team..since I am staying in Moulmein-Kallang GRC, I was appointed as the Principal Election Agent of the team!

These are my 4 candidates for Moulmein-Kallang GRC..As the PEA, I am attached to the team leader of the M-K team, Mr Rahizan.

We started visited homes at such a pace that would put any real estate agent to shame..(ermm...BTW,I am a real estate agent :P)..

As a matter of fact, I walked so much until i had 2 pairs of jeans ended up like this..

We do not know when the queue for rally site actually began at Cantonment Police Complex(seems to me that the aunties queing for PAP knows), but this GE 2011, with a stroke of luck, WP got the 1st position in the queue!

I got to multi-tasked a few roles and got to experience as much as I can imagine what goes on in a political party during the GE campaign. I was also the proposer for my M-K candidates!

On Nomination Day, I walked with my candidates into our Nomination Centre at SCGS. I was surprised that the few of us walked into a group of media people that outnumbered our team!

After the Nomination was confirmed, I went with the candidates to speak to our supporters present and on national TV.. This was what I saw..

The WP umbrellas was one of the items brainstormed by Alfred & myself as a youth wing project that did not really get the full scale approval of the CEC, however, thanks to Swee Bee, it got to see the day light of Nomination Day and it helped to shield a number of Singaporeans(be it WP or PAP) from the unforgiving sun. This umbrella immediately became a sold-out item at every rally such that we have to keep ordering from the factory in batches. I almost could not even get my hand on a single piece of umbrella myself if not for a twist of fate(or I should say luck)..I am happy that the umbrella managed to help whoever that is holding them.
I got to see how press interviews can be held in a kopitiam(coffee shop)..

I got to rent and set up/ do up the 'preambulating vehicle'..

..got to see what the supporters/ sponsors gave..

We are really grateful to the supporters who turned up suddenly out of no-where and left as suddenly as the finished their job, like this uncle below. He was using a changkul to sharpen the flag poles for the hard Hougang field.

My Facebook Profile picture was changed to this..

Happy Vesak Day (韦塞节)

Dear family, friends and readers,

I would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a very Happy Vesak Day !

Final Day of Campaigning (WP Moulmein-Kallang GRC)

With the blink of an eye..
Today is the last day of campaigning for General Election 2011. Our Moulmein-Kallang GRC team have been walking the ground non-stop since this new GRC was drawn up barely 2 months ago. 


The response we gotten from the ground was wonderful and we even got a resident who presented our candidates with flower garlands today! It was indeed a very good encouragement to the team of members and volunteers such that they did not want to have lunch until we have achieved the objectives we set out for the day.


To all the residents of Moulmein-Kallang GRC, thank you very much for the support you have shown to us. We have tried our very best to reach out to you during the short duration that we have since the formation of this new GRC. We hope you can give us your support come polling day. To the rest of Singapore, think of the future that you and your children would like to have..would you like to have the best representation in a 1st World Parliament? 


You are our best secret weapon..

3rd Rally site for The Workers' Party in GE 2011

This is a very exciting General Election and I am actively involved as the Principal Election Agent for Moulmein-Kallang GRC team from The Workers' Party. One of the most interesting thing in my mind is how we managed to be 1st in the Queue for Rally Sites this year..the 1st time in History and now i finally understand the reason(s) behind it.


Our 1st rally was at the open field beside Blk 837 in Hougang. The 2nd was at Serangoon Stadium.

 After attending these 2 sessions, I have a conclusion in mind: There is a difference between this election and all those before..besides the number of seats contested that is. I noticed that this year, the Police blocked up a good number of car parks preventing visitors from attending the rally parking nearby. The roadside kerbs have cones placed along them to prevent roadside parking unlike last election.

*all photos from theonlinecitizen Facebook*

Anyway, our 3rd rally tomorrow 30th April 2011 is at Bedok Stadium from 7pm. Please try not to drive so as to avoid the disappointment of not being able to find parking, stuck in traffic jams etc..etc.
Thank you Singaporeans for the great support you have shown us so far! See you later!