Of Blue Label & Free Ang Pow packets.

Chinese New Year is just round the corner..its just 2 more days to reach the Year of the Tiger!

Every year around this period before Chinese New Year, its always a very exciting period for me. The only differences this year boils down to 2 things:

1. This year, I am giving Ang Pow(red packets) instead of receiving it.
2. This year, I am on a training course till the eve of CNY with exams immediately after!

This means that this normally busy period is extremely busy for me as I am not left with much time for my own.

Being the 1st year that I will have to give out Ang Pow, I pay particular attention to Ang Pow packets this year. Every year around this time, banks and many retailers hand out free Ang Pow packets to their customers. I used to pass most of the Ang Pow packets to my friends and relatives as I don't really use much of it. This year,I retained most of them.

There is this very supportive UOB bank staff that gave me 18(180 pieces) stacks of Ang Pow packets. Hong Leong Finance gave me 4 stacks. Cold Storage gave me 2 stacks. I have yet to find time to collect from other banks and retailers,but hope to do so if possible. With so many Ang Pow packets..maybe I should be financially savvy to just put a $2 note in each of the Ang Pow :P~

At this same period, I managed to acquire 3 bottles of Johnnie Walker Blue Label for consumption during the CNY season. My main concern is whether I have time to enjoy it because of the upcoming exam..

Time, has become a very important component of my life..I wish I can have more of it.

Behind the scences of Singapore Airshow 2010

I recently had an opportunity to go behind the scene of the upcoming Singapore Airshow 2010 and would like to share some photos here.

In order to get to the venue,you'll have to drive into a private road: Aviation Park Road. This is the 1st private road that I know of in Singapore and I wonder how any private entity can own a road this long..

Of course,when I was at the venue itself, there were nothing much for me to see yet as the contractors were still in the process of setting up and building the various show booths.

Although I did not managed to see any aircrafts yet, I got to see a jet engine being delivered in its protective casing..

...and also some local Singaporean(ST Engineering) invention/production that arrived early..

I was hoping to see the planes instead... :(

Helping hands for Victorian Azri

Helping hands for Victorian Azri

Wishing all my Friends "Happy New Year 2010!"

As we live this last day of the year,

hopefully smiling from ear to ear.

Be it a year of tears or fears,

be it a year of happy cheers.

We've come to the last day of the year.

Seems like just a blink of eyes,

we talked about polar cap of melting ice.

See how time always flies,

just like the sea level will come to rise.

We've come to the last day of the year.

Good bye 2009, Welcome 2010!

This will be my special prayer,

to everyone of my visitor here.

May you be blessed with health & wealth,

may joy be around you & the ones you love.

Peace to the World of human race,

God save the Polar Bears too!

Please let the World be fill with Hope,

let there be nothing we cannot cope.

Happy New Year 2010!

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Wishing all my Friends a very joyous Christmas 2009!

Dear friends and visitors to my blog,

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of you who helped me make this a good year. Merry Christmas to you and your family! Cheers!

Remember..if you drink, don't drive! ;)

Mr Chiam See Tong celebrates 25 years as Member of Parliament

Yesterday evening, I attended a dinner to celebrate Mr Chiam's 25 years as an MP for Potong Pasir. My whole extended family lived in the squatters of Potong Pasir more than 30yrs ago and I had very vague memories of the zinc-roofed house with a large square well in front of it. We had moved out to Ang Mo Kio and I believe when I was about 9 years old, that was about the time Mr Chiam 1st became the Member of Parliament for Potong Pasir(and for 6 consecutive elections).

Workers' Party had at least a table for the event,but I went with my family members. I was there early and by the time I entered the function's location at 7.30pm,most of the more than 1000 seats at dinner tables were filled up.

There were the traditional Lion & Dragon dancers and also Malay dancers awaiting patiently for Mr Chiam's arrival. Initially there was a false alarm and everyone behind stood up to try to get a glimpse of Mr Chiam when they thought he had arrived.
As the minutes trickled past 8pm, my sense of anticipation grew and I could not sit still at my table anymore. Instead, I decided to go join the crowd that had formed up at the cul-de-sac to welcome the MP. Every vehicle that drove past was subjected to the full scrutiny of the crowd who were expecting to see a Volkswagen Beetle. The surprise for me came when I was told Mr Chiam was walking over. I can see a group approaching from about 300 metres from where I was standing and I just ran forward..

I was feeling a few mixed emotions when I saw the above scene:

Unlike other MPs who usually turn up at functions late in their posh cars,this MP made me feel like its worth the wait.

Unlike the moment when I saw him won the Potong Pasir seat when I was about 9 yrs old, now at 74 years of age, Mr Chiam looks older than his age..the 25 years on my dinner ticket is not just a mere number.

Unlike other MPs who may need to surround themselves grassroots people in case of kerosene attack(s), all Mr Chiam requires is his wife to hold his hand and walk the way with him..I also feel at that moment that should there be any crazy fellow approaching with kerosene,he'll have to talk to my fists 1st..

I felt like part of a paparazzi team when I squeezed the shutter amongst the many other photographers..but I made very sure that he got ample space to walk freely while I took the photos.

As Mr Chiam approached the cul-de-sac,the crowd of awaiting residents rushed forward to give him a warm welcome. This was also the moment the Lions & Dragon and dancers roared to live under the furious beats of drums. The whole situation just reminded me of a rally on the night before the last election day where his supporters followed him all the way from the rally to Potong Pasir Town Council chanting his name.

Since most of the guests are residents of Potong Pasir, you can feel how much love and respect the residents have for their MP for the past 25 years.

When he gave a 10 minute speech on the stage, what I was most impressed with was that he started thanking everybody,including the cooks in the kitchen preparing food for all the guests..For what he said,I went behind to the kitchen to snap a photo. Mr Chiam may be physically weaker and unable to express himself as fluently like when he was younger, but the residents and supporters who have seen the legacy he had built are willing to strain their ears to listen closer to him when he speaks.
The next highlight for the evening was when Mr Chiam invited the rest of the opposition leaders present amongst his guests on stage for a toast.
The celebration, besides the events I had described was in co-operated with a concert where Mr Chiam sang a segment of the song "Rong Shu Xia" to the applause of many present.

At one point in time, two younger friends of mine came by my table and commented that the programmes are quite boring.. I pondered for a while wondering why I did not feel the same? Am I really growing older than I think I had?

To me,the concert was just a backdrop. The subject of celebration was Mr Chiam and the past 25 years with him in my Singaporean life has been an exciting roller coaster of passionate, fiery display of concern for the political well-being of Singaporeans.

To those who were bored during the celebration, it's just a night out of the past 25 years..enjoy the moment.

To those who commented that Mr Chiam could not speak properly..I hope you don't grow old or suffer a stroke while you are at it.

To Mr Chiam, thank you for your selfless contribution to our nation for the past 25 years and thank you for still trying your best. I wish you the best of health and will power to carry on the fight!

Moon Watching

I have to send my aunty to the airport for her very early morning flight . Setting off at 4.30am,I was on my way back home by 5am. Along the way,I cannot help but keep looking at the moon.

I was totally mesmerized by the moon. There were no clouds in the sky and the moon on this 16th day of the lunar month was as bright as it could be. I was almost unable to keep my eyes on the road and I decided to get home as soon as possible to look at the moon before the sun takes over.

As soon as I was home,I quickly grabbed my camera and a glass of brandy..took a few pictures and enjoy my moon watching with sips of brandy. Looking at the moon bring back many flashes of memories..

Getting Married...(Wedding Dinner?)

About 5 months earlier, I made the decision to want to settle down and start a family with the girl that I love. My wedding date is set on 30th November 2009 and I thought I got all the time in the world to prepare for it.

Altough I had planned for a simple wedding, now with barely a month left,I seem to be running short of time. I have already more or less got the wedding album ready, finalized the wedding dinner location, got our wedding bands, contacted florist for all the flowers I need, getting to a photographer for the actual day..sounds like I am almost ready?

Maybe I should mention what needs to be done instead..

The guest list for the wedding dinner is quite difficult for me..I cannot just invite all the people I know. I want it to be a small simple event..in fact,a wedding dinner was not even on my plan originally. How did this idea took its roots on my wedding plan..? I think I probably can attribute it to a long-standing Chinese tradition to have a dinner to celebrate a wedding..hmm..why not just say its my mum's wish?

I started looking out for the smallest location I can find to hold a wedding dinner for my relatives and a few friends. After trying out a number of places..I thought I finally found the perfect location that can house the maximum of 15 tables..Peach Garden@ Novena Gardens. My mum violently objected to my proposal. Reason: no stage(for 15 tables)! Gosh..why do we need to have a stage for a wedding dinner?? Why can't I just sit and eat like everybody else?

The search is on again and I contact a friend of mine from the army whose father operate a restaurant: Beng Hiang Restaurant. I arranged for my family to go try it out during one of our dinners. The food is delicious, they can accommodate the small number of tables I requested and it's got a stage! Guess what? My mum complained that parking is inconvenient,have to walk through construction sites etc..etc..

I almost wanted to give up the idea(or rather my mother's idea) of holding a wedding dinner when one afternoon,while I was driving, this place suddenly popped up in my mind. It was a place that I frequented with my family since I was young, but stopped going in recent years since my grandparents passed away. I immediately told my friend beside me that we need to take a detour to go check out this place. This place is the same age as me,I already feel a certain affinity to it even before I reach it.

I arrived when they were having an afternoon break,but the captain wast there to answer my queries. I knew immediately that this is the location I want and should my mum reject my choice again, the dinner will be off my wedding plan. The only catch is that I need to get a minimum of 20 tables..well..my wedding plan just grew bigger :P

Anyway,allow me to be secretive about the location of this place until all my guest have receive their invitation cards..I promise I'll write about it later.

Let me move on to my guest list...and why its not so easy..

10 tables were assigned to my mum for all the relatives. So I need to plan for only 10 tables.. and I do so table by table..and it includes some of my collegues from Propnex, some senior agents from my ex-company McDowell Realty Network, Primary School friends, Secondary School friends, Junior College friends, Army friends, fellow Workers' Party members and also some friends whom we used to hang out a lot together.

It is very touching for me to have some of them replying my sms almost immediately with their address asking me not to forget to send them the invitation..etc etc..

Some replied asking me who I am because a few phone upgrades,they no longer had my number on their phones,but I called them back immediately and glad they recognize my voice still.

Some called back saying they cannot attend because they are getting married near my date(it is not auspicious for Chinese to attend weddings within say 3 months of their wedding date), or they are on overseas assignment.

Of course,there are some who have yet to reply. When I look at my list again,some tables are full,but some barely half filled and I don't intend to combine tables. .

Looks like I'll have to wait a few more days before I send out the invitation cards..

In the meantime, I'll have to look into the preparation of the Thailand side(my wife is a Thai)..and the furnitures, and the air-tickets,and the translator,and the upcoming visa application,alcohol purchase and 101 other things.

Special thanks to all my friends who offered their help..but a lot of the things that I require,I got to oversee them personally.

Yeah..I manage to keep up at least a blog update this month :)