You teach a child to read... and he or her will be able to pass a literacy test...
The delightful waltz from the animated feature 'Howl's Moving Castle' directed by the legendary Hayao Miyazaki
Music composed by Joe Hisaishi
Piano/conductor: Joe Hisaishi
My history professor always screens short clips about 5 minutes before lecture begins proper. Therefore I always try to make it a point to be before on-time for his lectures. He's just shown us this today.
Source: Ah Lum's computerI have to do this spreadsheet every start of the semester for the good of myself, so I know exactly what I am doing when I do finally place my bids online (yes, you register yourself and wait for the computer to spin the roulette). We have 20 tutorial slots to choose from - you place the slot, regardless of module, that you really, really, die-die-also want, at the top, followed by the second-in-priority, and so on. Having done this for about 4 times for the last two years I'm too lazy to bother with filling at least ten slots (for safety's sake) so I take a gamble this round and just bid five slots - one per module.
Drats, I didn't get two tutorials on the first try. Second try... and then third try.
DESTINASIA
Loss of the ability to remember why you went to a place after you get there.
Usage: ‘I think I have destinasia.
I walked to the far end of the of the office just now
but forgot what I intended to say to whom.’
Ah Lum comments: I am so suffering from this... at least once a day :S
Politics and worldly affairs aside: this anthem is just so musically beautiful. The best anthem ever! Just heard it played over the TV just now... Russia won the gold for some event in the Olympics (You don't have to look at the video montage)
Cock! I like!
A smattered translation of some bits of German (from whatever I can recall from my basic German course two years ago...) that is spoken in the video, hopefully it brings meaning to the humour.
Lady: Sprechen Sie Deutsch? - Do you speak German?
Man on bicycle: Deutsch? Nein. - German? No.
(Turns to the other man) Spretch du Deutsch? - Do you speak German?
Man standing: *can't make out what he's saying... sorry... I can't make out the rest!*
FINALLY! Being able to see footages from the movie again, after watching it nearly three weeks back. Youtube has only got trailers, spoof trailers, spoofs.. WHY SO SERIOUS! The only footage from the movie to ever grace Youtube is a 55sec clip where the Joker and his men crash the party in the hunt for Harvey Dent.
Mandarin lyrics by Xiao Han
Music composed by Benny Ong
Performed by Joi Chua
I actually like the Chinese version better - it has a sharper arrangement compared to the English one which sounds a bit... lazy.
It has a pretty memorable tune and nice harmonic twists here at certain spots *swoons*.
A really lovely song that Serge recommends me to check out. It's from 'The Tigger Movie', and it's written and performed by Kenny Loggins.
Yes, it's Calvin and Hobbes instead of Tigger and Winnie the Pooh (but Hobbes and Tigger are both tigers right?), but this is the first video that appears when I run a search on the song, and the quality is good. Enjoy! :D
This is supposed to be a spoof of everything (well... most of the things) that's happened in the theatres. Look out for Ironman, the Incredible Hulk, Juno, Sex and the City, Hancock, amongst others, in this trailer.
Hmmm I wonder how bad this movie's supposed to be... well, bad movie but good parody, or bad movie and bad parody?
I like corny shows. Well... okay, random.
The titular lyrics of the song (which appears at the end of the chorus) is so catchy that it is the entire audience at that same karaoke session (described in the next video below) chorusing away!
I remember this song from a karaoke session nearly three years ago, when we army folks are in Brunei celebrating the end of our tree-cutting mission (more on that another time). This is one of the more cheerful songs alongside the other love-sicked ballads and usual popcorn-sweet diabetical popular stuff.
'Na si wah wu ji pa ban!'
I think it roughly translates as 'If I had a million dollars...' and so the song tells us what the personae might do with the money if he/she had it. It's in a similar vein to the song 'If I Were a Rich Man' from 'Fiddler on the Roof' (or its latest pop re-incarnation...)
By the way 'na si' also means 'rice' in Malay - it's a case of coincidental phoneticallity!
A masterful performance by Mark Hamill as the voice of the Joker, in a scene from the animated movie Batman: The Mask of the Phantasm (1993)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mask_of_the_phantasm). He switches from the funny to the threatening at the moment where you least expect it. Brilliant!
To apologise is to express our recognition of and sorrow for having hurt another.
Giving a sincere apology, without reservation or self-justification, is one of the forms of generosity. By doing so we help heal any anger or resentment the other person may feel, we ease the way for them to practise forgiveness and we make possible the mending of a ruptured relationship.
On our part, giving a sincere, unreserved and timely apology soothes any self-reproach we might feel and helps us become more open about and objective towards the negative side of our character, which is an important part of character building.
And a shame that the fireworks we see on television are not real… an abuse of multimedia technology?
Nevertheless the mass display is still as enthralling as ever. Nobody can deny all the effort put by the thousands of performers in the middle of the stadium. Particularly the human tiles.
Beijing Olympics: Faking scandal over girl who ‘sang’ in opening ceremony
Chinese officials have admitted deceiving the public over another highlight of the Olympic opening ceremony: the picture-perfect schoolgirl who sang as the Chinese flag entered the stadium was performing to another girl’s voice.
By Richard Spencer
The Telegraph.co.uk
12 August 2008
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/olympics/2545387/Beijing-Olympics-Faking-scandal-over-girl-who-sang-in-opening-ceremony.html
Lin Miaoke who lip-synched at the opening ceremony over the voice of Yang Peiyi [right] who was considered unsuited to the lead role because of her buck teeth Photo: GETTY/AFP
The girl in the red dress with the pigtails, called Lin Miaoke, 9, and from a Beijing primary school, has become a national sensation since Friday night, giving interviews to all the most popular newspapers.
But the show’s musical designer felt forced to set the record straight. He gave an interview to Beijing radio saying the real singer was a seven-year-old girl who had won a gruelling competition to perform the anthem, a patriotic song called ‘Hymn to the Motherland’.
At the last moment a member of the Chinese politburo who was watching a rehearsal pronounced that the winner, a girl called Yang Peiyi, might have a perfect voice but was unsuited to the lead role because of her buck teeth.
So, on the night, while a pre-recording of Yang Peiyi singing was played, Lin Miaoke, who has already featured in television advertisements, was seen but not heard.
‘This was a last-minute question, a choice we had to make,’ the ceremony’s musical designer, Chen Qigang, said. ‘Our rehearsals had already been vetted several times - they were all very strict. When we had the dress rehearsals, there were spectators from various divisions, including above all a member of the politburo who gave us his verdict: we had to make the swap.’
Mr Chen’s interview gave an extraordinary insight into the control exercised over the ceremony by the Games’ political overseers, all to ensure the country was seen at its best.
Officials have already admitted that the pictures of giant firework footprints which marched across Beijing towards the stadium on Friday night were prerecorded, digitally enhanced and inserted into footage beamed across the world.
Mr Chen said the initial hopefuls to sing the anthem had been reduced to ten, and one, a ten-year-old, had originally been chosen for the quality of her voice. But she, too, had fallen by the wayside because she was not ‘cute’ enough.
‘We used her to sing in all the rehearsals,’ Mr Chen said. ‘But in the end the director thought her image was not the most appropriate, because she was a little too old. Regrettably, we had to let her go.’
At that point Yang Peiyi stepped up to the plate.
‘The main consideration was the national interest,’ he said. ‘The child on the screen should be flawless in image, in her internal feelings, and in her expression. In the matter of her voice, Yang Peiyi was flawless, in the unanimous opinion of all the members of the team.’
That was until attention turned to Yang Peiyi’s teeth. Nevertheless, Mr Chen thought the end result a perfect compromise.
‘We have a responsibility to face the audience of the whole country, and to be open with this explanation,’ he said. ‘We should all understand it like this: it is a question of the national interest. It is a question of the image of our national music, our national culture.
‘Especially at the entrance of our national flag, this is an extremely important, an extremely serious matter.
‘So we made the choice. I think it is fair to both Lin Miaoke and Yang Peiyi - after all, we have a perfect voice, a perfect image and a perfect show, in our team’s view, all together.’
One question remains: why was Lin Miaoke allowed to give interviews in which she lapped up the praise for her singing. Mr Chen said she might not have known that the words she was singing could not be heard. She had, in fact, only known she was going to perform at all 15 minutes beforehand.
Yang Peiyi is said to have reacted well to the disappointment. ‘I am proud to have been chosen to sing at all,’ she is reported to have said.
Participation in tutorials - 20% (4% for attendance)
Assignment #1 - 15%
Assignment #2 - 25%
Examinations at end of Semester - 40%
And then he adds, ‘But of course, this is not fixed. You’re free to make suggestions…’
In other words, we are allowed to voice our opinions about the current allocation.
He proceeds to tell us, the last time this course was conducted, the students had protested that the participatory marks for tutorials were much too low, so they – or rather, the Prof – raised the bar to 20% (particularly since that class liked to talk a lot in tutorials). Hence the percentage stands at a fifth of continuous assessment, as you see above.
‘Since we have about five minutes more…’ he says, glancing at the clock, ‘why not we discuss about this?’
The marks for ‘participation in tutorial’ are the first under fire. 20% (as it is)? 15% (which the Prof tries to discourage because he is ‘poor in Maths’)? 10%?
Votes are cast. A number of people raise their hands for 20%. Twice that number of people stands up for 10% - I included (in case I suddenly lose my tongue on that particular day).
A fingerful of people vote for 15%.
Okay, so the vote goes to 10%. But… what about the remaining 10%?
Someone from the back: ‘I have a suggestion. Could we add the 10% to the first assignment so that it evens out with the second assignment?’
Right away I hear long-drawn mooing: ‘Noooooooo…’ The rationale being nobody is confident with the first assignment, not knowing how this Prof will mark us. We are like toddlers taking our first steps into the swimming pool.
Another person: ‘I find 6% very ridiculous for speaking up in tutorial… in this way why would anyone bother to come to tutorial?’
Murmurs all around.
‘I think we should keep it as it is.’
‘Hear, hear’. We’re back to square one.
The Prof looks a little shell-shocked – but I can’t really read what’s he making out of this bunch of people. ‘Okay, we’ll keep it as it is then… but if you have any suggestions or opinions please feel free to email me.’
Perhaps this explains why democracies fail as political system – when you give others a chance to take a stake, or to have a say in the way they want their country to be run, anarchy ensues; the instigator(s) is left at his/her wits’ end which is seen as indecisiveness and then some stronghold decides to contest and overthrow this weakness of leadership and establish some autocratic dictatorship, either to fulfill their own hidden agendas; partly a genuine outlook towards progress and stability for the country?
On review… perhaps it’s a good thing that we’re practicing guided democracy in Singapore?
So much for being democratic.
SIN-ful Singapore? Use SGP Instead
I watched the Olympic event on TV on Saturday night, in which Singapore swimmer Tao Li came first in the heat of the swimming competition for her.
However, I was shocked to see her swimming cap printed with the Singapore flag and the letters “SIN”. I would like to ask why these letters are used to represent Singapore. I suggest the letters SGP be used instead.
I know the letters SGP may cause confusion with the first Formula One night race in Singapore, also called the Singapore Grand Prix or SGP. However, it is better to be mistaken for the Singapore Grand Prix than to be mistaken for, or mocked as, a sinful nation.
Ace Kindred Cheong
Ah Lum: *scratches head*
Of course, the aftermath is a different story altogether...
I leave you with some messages from my professor, who's a specialist in military history.
HY2242/SSA2208—Singapore’s Military History
[My notes] HY is the code for History; SSA is the code for Singapore Studies. Yes, you have to do a course categorised as Singapore Studies in order to graduate!
Field Trip Schedule
Field Trip Number 1: Fort Canning and the Original Defences of Singapore
Date: Saturday 23 August 2008
This is a walking trip, which lasts from 9am to about 1pm. We will meet at the Centoaph, the WWI memorial on Beach Road, directly opposite the centre of the Padang, and tour precolonial and East India Company Singapore. The purpose of this trip is to shed light on the military and other problems and experiences Singapore went through during these periods, by combining space with text. There is no limit to the number of students who can take this tour.
Field Trip Number 2: Fort Siloso and the Defences of Keppel Harbour
Date: Saturday 6 September 2008
This is a bus assisted trip, which will last most of the day. We will meet at the bus stop outside the Central Library at 9am. There are 48 places for this trip, sign up with me. First come first served, no changing your mind. The purpose of this trip is to explore the problems of expanding Singapore’s defences before the First World War, during a period in which world affairs became a great deal more ominous and the Empire changed substantially in many respects. This will take us from Katong to Labrador to Sentosa, with lunch in between.
Field Trip Number 3: World War II in Singapore: The Defences of Singapore
Date: Saturday 13 September, 2008
This is a bus assisted trip, which will last all day. We will meet at the bus stop outside the Central Library at 8:30am. There are 48 places for this trip, sign up with me. First come first served, no changing your mind. The purpose of this trip is to explore the massive expansion and transformation of Singapore’s defences after the end of the First World War, to respond to fundamental changes in British defence strategy, world affairs, and other concerns. This will take us from Sembawang to Changi to East Coast to Pasir Panjang to Labrador, with lunch in between.
Field Trip Number 4: World War II in Singapore: The Battle of Singapore
Date: Saturday 4 October, 2008
This is a bus assisted trip, which will last all day. We will meet at the bus stop outside the Central Library at 8:30am. There are 48 places for this trip, sign up with me. First come first served, no changing your mind. The purpose of this trip is the classic purpose of a military history field trip: to walk the ground, to gain greater insight into why a battle was fought as it was and turned out as it did—in this case, the battle for Singapore island in February 1942. This will take us from Lim Chu Kang to Sarimbun to Kranji to the Causeway to Bukit Timah to Kent Ridge to Pasir Panjang to Labrador, with lunch in between.
Field Trip Number 5: Japanese Occupation in Singapore:
Date: Saturday 11 October, 2008
This is a bus assisted trip, which will last most of the day. We will meet at the bus stop outside the Central Library at 9am. There are 48 places for this trip, sign up with me. First come first served, no changing your mind. The purpose of this trip is to explore the sites that remain witness to the experience and impact of Japanese occupation from 1942-45, for all who went through it. This will take us from Chinatown to Beach Road to the Japanese Cemetery to the Changi area, beach and museum, with lunch in between.
FAQ
What happens if it rains?
We get wet. Come prepared.
What if I am late at the rendezvous?
We leave on time, be there.
What will these trips cost?
Nothing, except what you want to buy yourself for lunch.
What should I wear?
Sun block and anti-mosquito spray, plus, my suggestion, a hat, long pants and comfortable walking shoes. This is a special note to the ladies: high heeled shoes are NOT good field trip walking shoes. Note to everyone: open toed sandals are NOT good field trip walking shoes.
Should I take notes?
Considering you are doing an assignment* connected to one of the trips yes you should. And ask lots of questions. Bring a tape recorder and camera if you want.
*This is the assignment:
Field trips—
Military history is made in the field. As we live in the midst of our subject we are going to exploit that fact. I will lead the following five field trips, on Saturdays:
1) Fort Canning and the original defences of Classical and British Singapore
2) Fort Siloso and the defences of Keppel Harbour
3) World War II in Singapore: three trips:
a. The defences of Singapore
b. The battle of Singapore
c. Japanese Occupation of Singapore
Everyone will be required to attend TWO of these trips, and write an individual short essay on a question related to ONE of them. The paper will focus on a specific question addressed by the trip. Details—dates of trips, sign up lists, arrangements—will follow shortly, when enrollment is confirmed. Each essay will be due two weeks after the trip you choose to work on. The essay instructions are:
Write a 1000-1500 words essay, with proper attribution and citation of sources, on one of the following questions. Draw on both standard text sources and discussion/insights derived from the trip:
Trip 1, Fort Canning and the original defences of Singapore—
Can we learn anything credible about defending Singapore before 1819? Why or why not?
Or…
+ Was British Singapore defensible before Fort Canning was built? Why or why not?
or…
+ Did Fort Canning meet the defence needs of British Singapore when it was built? Why or why not?
Trip 2, Fort Siloso and the defences of Keppel Harbour, before 1918—
+ Why were so many batteries built on Blakang Mati before 1918? Was the money well spent?
or…
+ Was there a crisis in British Singapore’s harbour defences before the Great War? Why or why not?
Trip 3, Singapore and World War II—The Defences of Singapore—
+Was Singapore well defended by December 1941? Why or why not?
Trip 4, Singapore and World War II—The Battle of Singapore—
+ Is there any point to studying the battle of Singapore island in February 1942? Why or why not?
Trip 5, Singapore and World War II—Japanese Occupation—
+ What label best describes this experience: an example of human barbarity; a testament of human endurance; something else? Why?
The Chinese think that 8 is a lucky number. In Chinese, 8 is pronounced as ‘ba’, which sounds like the Chinese equivalent of ‘strike’ – ‘fa’. Hence the Chinese government decides to open the Games on this lucky Friday.
2. Beijing Olympics
3. The eve of Singapore’s National Day (good news kids – half day in school)
Unfortunately the public holiday falls on a Saturday, when most of Singapore stands by the five-day work week.
* * *
I’m noticing striking similarities amongst toddler milk commercials in Singapore. It seems that taking any of these brands of milk will cause the child to age with extreme rapidity with regards to intelligence and motor skills.
Recall those wunderkinds who can beat the older ones to answer mathematical and scientific questions; the adults are left either jaw agape, or applauding and grinning broadly ‘my kid is a genius!’
Then the camera pans to show the kid gulping the milk that he’s been chosen to endorse.
Sounds familiar?
* * *
Why do advertisements for private properties like to advertise that they’re located near good schools? I can understand the case for primary schools – but secondary schools, junior colleges and the like…?
The most paradoxical statement, as quoted from the article: 'Former SDU chief Mrs Tan-Huang Shuo Mei agreed, saying: 'It's not about encouraging JC students to get hitched, but about encouraging socialisation and developing a healthy view of relationships."'
Come on lah. We know we're all desperate because *sings* 'birth rates are falling off our heads'.
JC students to learn all about love
By Carolyn Quek
The Straits Times, A1, A4, 8 August 2008
For years, it focussed on getting single graduates to meet, mingle and marry. More recently, it turned its attention to polytechnic students.
Now the Government matchmaker is ready to spread the message of love to teenagers in junior college.
The Social Development Unit is seeking bids from those willing to teach the 16-to-19-year-olds what they need to know about dating and finding the right partner in life.
The focus is on helping girls and boys to set goals for long-term love relationships, and shore up their confidence to relate with members of the opposite sex.
Hopefully, it will get them in the right frame of mind to want to eventually marry and have babies.
The wining bidder will have to produce teaching materials and have a pool of at least 30 trainers.
The SDU wants the programme run as a pilot project with a view to having it integrated into the JC curriculum. The 16 colleges have about 30,000 students.
The 24-year-old matchmaking unit was set up originally to fix the problem of graduates who remained unmarried into their 30s and beyond.
More recently though, it has trained its sights on younger people, helping universities fund social activities to get undergraduates together.
Last year, it started a so-called love elective at Singapore Polytechnic, to impart the finer points of coping with relationships.
The programme proved hugely popular, with places expanding from the initial 90 to 420 next semester.
New Ann Polytechnic caught the love bug last October, and began teaching its students how to manage relationships using several methods, including analysing love songs.
Why the move to junior colleges now? Yesterday, an SDU spokesman would only say: ‘Extending such courses to junior colleges is part of the effort.’ She declined to reveal more.
Tender documents made public yesterday said the SDU wants to ‘build the foundation for meaningful relationships and marriage’ by equipping young people with ‘relationship skills’ and a ‘pro-family’ mindset.
The SDU’s latest effort comes at a time when the shortage of babies here is back in the spotlight, with Government leaders mulling once again over the questions of how to get Singaporeans to marry and have babies earlier.
The problem is that couples are marrying later, and putting off having babies. The current birth rate of 1.29 is much lower than the 2.1 needed for the population to replace itself.
Consultant psychotherapist Richard Lim, 43, who runs a romance, love and sexuality module for Singapore Polytechnic students, thinks it is a good idea to get teenagers up to speed about relationships early.
‘When they are younger and not caught up with their careers, being able to reflect and clarify with experts about what they want in relationships will serve them well in the future,’ he said.
Former SDU chief Mrs Tan-Huang Shuo Mei agreed, saying: ‘It’s not about encouraging JC students to get hitched, but about encouraging socialisation and developing a healthy view of relationships.’
Related link
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/29/world/asia/29singapore.html?_r=2&pagewanted=1&ref=asia&oref=slogin
‘Excuse me, excuse me.’
I stop and turn around and see this little middle-aged lady carrying two bags: a handbag as well a massive plastic one.
‘Excuse me, can you help me collect voucher?’
I feel I have been suddenly shaken up in the middle of the night. Straightforward as it seems, I’m still quite bewildered by the request.
‘Can you help me collect voucher?’ She points to the information counter not far away. ‘I already collect one, cannot collect anymore.’ She passes me some receipts.
‘Erm, okay…’ I’m a little on my guard because here’s a total stranger out of the blue asking me to collect something on her behalf with some slips of printed materials which I’ve not had the chance to scrutinise; neither do I feel appropriate to ask her so many questions in the manner Jack Skellington sings when he discovers Christmastown.
‘Erm, will you follow me to the counter?’ I hope to keep her in view until I pass to her the vouchers I’m supposed to collect.
‘I cannot go there, otherwise they’ll see me. They know I’ve collected already.’
‘Okay…’ I begin to make my way to the counter, still a little wary. The lady goes to wait in a nearby passageway on our left – one that leads to a door that goes out of the shopping mall to the smoking area and washrooms (yes, the entrance to some of the washrooms are located on the outside!)
I arrive at the counter. Thankfully there is no queue. I pass the receipts to the receptionist. I glance up and notice the lady leaning against the wall of the passageway.
Stamp! And the vouchers are laid on the counter. I pick them up, say my thanks, and brisk-walk over to the passage. Yes, she is still there. She collects the vouchers from me. ‘You want one?’ She offers me the extra voucher.
‘Erm, no thanks. You can keep them.’
With that she heads for the door, out of the shopping mall, vanishing as abruptly as she had first appeared.
‘We owe people things, and people owe us things. Sometimes out of pure forgetfulness.
‘And then have you ever encountered a situation whereby you’re meeting up with someone, and you know there’s some transaction that’s to take place between you and him/her but you just cannot figure out what that is? Even after his/her face perks your reminder mechanisms while you blatantly wag your finger rapidly at the person and mutter, ‘I’m supposed to give you something…’ in a bid to stall time so that you can recall what exactly you are supposed to do?
‘Fret not! How about a software for those savvy electronic devices of yours, whereby you can post your reminder and stick a photo of the person’s face next to it? You can set it to pop up on your desktop every time you switch on your computer, so that you’ll constantly be haunted by the debt of image that you owe to this person in order not to forget that when you meet up. Of course, you can also set up notice as to when you’re next going to see the person, so all the better to settle outstanding issues!
‘As the Chinese say, “It ain’t good to keep debts past Chinese New Year.” *wink* (Music fades out)’
We now return to, ‘Who’s Price is it Anyway.’
Wrong. ‘The Price is Right.’
What a waste of talent for Mr Drew Carey…
