Chinese New Year Gathering

Chinese New Year Gathering at Freddy’s House - 27th of January 2009

I have been tasked with writing a report on the gathering at Freddy’s place. Lucky me. Those who were at the gathering that night, please feel free to add anything that I might have missed out. Here goes:

Location – Seventeen, XYZ Gardens. ( I use XYZ instead of the actual name in case Freddy is not comfortable having his address made known in public).

You will note it is ‘Seventeen’ and not ‘17’. This will give you an idea that the residence is different from others. The word 'posh' don’t even do justice to the place. I don’t even know what they call this type of houses. And it is not just one house, but two houses with the dividing wall knocked down to join as one. It is an absolutely fabulous dwelling.

Anyway, I arrived at about half past six to find Mr. Chow, Bala, Kim Chuan and Kian Seng already there – the early birds. Of course, New Year greetings and wishes were exchanged, and I settled down to hear what they were gossiping.

Since the gathering was for 6 pm onwards, people trickled in at their own time – some alone, some in twos, and threes. By half past seven, almost all who said they will be going had turned up. By then, the buffet was ready and it was time to eat.

Instead of exchanging oranges, as was the custom, Freddy decided that he will give each of us a MP3 player. Cunning fellow! Now we all know why he is so well-to-do. He kept all the wealth we wished him and never give us any!

We were also given a copy of the book – ‘My Mother’, written in Mandarin by Freddy’s sister. Since she happened to be around, some of us asked her to autograph her book, and it turned out to be quite a book signing session.

After dinner, Freddy, who is very much into running – he likes to punish himself thus – started recruiting joggers to join him in his forth coming Sundown Marathon run. He had taken upon himself to ‘recruit’ at least one person from the group. He wasn’t very successful to begin with. All the uncles and aunties have all sorts of ailment, as you can well imagine. However, luck was on his side that night, and he found a ‘volunteer’ in Kian Seng. We were all significantly relieved, as otherwise, I don’t think Freddy would have allowed us to leave. Thank you, Kian Seng, for volunteering!

As the evening wore on, everyone was visibly more relaxed, chatting, interacting, catching up, and of course, gossiping. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. It was a pleasant evening. The weather was nice too – it was not too humid and there was a nice breeze every now and then.

All too soon, it was time to leave. Time really passes when you are having fun. However, Freddy remembered just in time that we were suppose to ‘lo hei’. He had almost forgotten about it. So, the ingredients were produced and we all ‘lo hei’.

For those who do not understand the term, I will try to explain what it is, as best as I can. Those who know better can correct me if I am wrong. ‘Lo hei’ means to – loosely translated – ‘toss up’. In this case, to toss up any wishes that we may have, so that they will come true in the new year. It is a dish of sliced raw fish, Julian of carrots and cucumbers, mixed with a sauce and sprinkled with condiments. It is believed that the higher you toss the dish, the better luck and wealth you will have. I think, traditionally, people 'lo hei' on the 7th day of the Lunar New Year, but these days, most people do it any time between the first and fifteenth day of the Lunar New Year. There are some who 'lo hei' when they have their reunion dinner.

I hope I am right and clear on the term ‘lo hei’.

Anyway, to continue with my report … As it was a working day on the morrow, we didn’t stay long after the ‘lo hei’. And it was with regret that we parted company for the evening. All in all, a very pleasant evening was had by all, I am sure.

I see that Freddy has posted the group photo. You will observe that there are four new faces in the picture. A big and warm welcome to Bessie (Chai Yin), Irene (Mui Hua), Polly (Choon Lin) and Shirley (Sum Moi). Very glad that you were able to join us, and we hope to see you again at our next gathering.

And on behalf of all who attended the gathering at Freddy’s place, a big 'Thank You!', Freddy, for having us!

Cheers!

Vincent

Happy 牛 year

A very big thank you for all those classmates and friends that come to my 牛 year gathering. For those who couldn't make it, a very happy "niu" year too. Our next gathering will be multiple choice

1) Henderson Wave walk o Mt Faber
2) East Coast Park Car Park B1 for trial run
3) Eat Again

Have a peaceful, healthy, happy and prosperous 2009

Way Seng, our 5050 guy that had to leave early for another engagement.

I run to eat, but these group alemak come to eat only, except kian Seng who signed up on the spot for the Sundown Marathon.

"Chai-lek" eat so much afterward guan huat ask me to run, must "siam"

Our Friends 38 Years Ago

More photos of those years when we were in BPES....
(from Bessey's treaure chest)

Miss Wong

Behind L to R: Bessey, Annie Chai.
Front L to R : Janet, Khrisna Veni

L to R : Bessey, Khrishna, Koh Siew Eng & ?

L to R : Pushpa, Irene, Khrishna, Bessey, Maggie

More Classmates Found !

Firstly, we must thank Bessey for working hard to locate some of our friends.

She has managed to contact three more of our long lost friends. They are
-Maggie Quek Siew Geok,
-Shirley Khoo Sum Moi and
-Annie Chai Geok Hong.

Bessey is also trying to locate Judy Er Bee Lang.

Click on the picture and you'll be able to see their names clearly.

School mates found after last gathering

The three schoolmates who were found after our last gathering on 8 Nov 08, are in the photos below :

L to R : Irene Ng (Mui Hua) and Bessey Yew Chai Yin

Ng Jiu Meng (brother of Irene Ng)

Happy Road to Life -Take The Time to......

Take time to love - It is the sea of eternal youth

Take time to laugh - It is the music of the heart

Take time to cry - It is sign of a large heart

Take time to read - It is a source of knowledge

Take time to learn - It is the power of intelligence

Take time to think - It is the key to success

Take time to play - It is the freshness of childhood

Take time to dream - It is a breath of happiness

Take time to live - Because Time Passes Quickly and Never Returns !

HAPPY ROAD TO LIFE !

Make the most of Life and Enjoy the ride !

Tips for an Exceptional, Superb & Powerful Life!

1.) Take a 10-30 minute walk every day. And while you walk, smile. It is the ultimate antidepressant.

2.) Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day. Buy a lock if you have to.

3.) Always pray and make time to exercise.

4.) Spend more time with people over the age of 70 And under the age of Six.

5.) Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants And eat less foods that are manufactured in Plants.

6.) Drink green tea and plenty of water. Eat broccoli, almonds & walnuts.

7.) Try to make at least three people smile each day.

8.) Clear your clutter from your house, car, desk and let new and flowing energy into your life.

9.) Don't waste your precious energy on gossip, issues of the past, negative thoughts or things you cannot control.
Instead, Invest your energy in the positive present moment.

10.) Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum
that appear and fade away like algebra class .......but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.

11.) Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a layman And dinner like a begger

12.) Life isn't fair, but it's still good.

13.) Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.

14.) Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

15.) You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

16.) Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.

17.) Don't compare your life to others'. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

18.) Ladies - Go on and burn those 'special' scented candles, use the 600 thread count sheets, the good
China and wear fancy clothes now. Stop waiting for a special occasion. Every day is special.

19.) No one is in charge of your happiness except you.

20.) Frame every so-called disaster with these words: 'In five years, will this matter?'

21.) Forgive everyone for everything.

22.) What other people think of you is none of your Business.

23.) Time heals almost everything. Give time, time!

24.) However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

25.) Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch with them.

26.) Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.

27.) Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need. God provides, remember?!

28.) The best is yet to come.

29.) No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

30.) Do the right thing!

31.) Call your family often.

32.) Each night before you go to bed complete the following statements: 'I am thankful for __________.'
Today I accomplished _________.

33.) Remember that you are too blessed to be stressed.

34.) Enjoy the ride. Remember that this is not Disney World and you certainly don't want a fast
Pass. You only have one ride through life so make the most of it and enjoy the ride.

LIVE, LOVE, LAUGH. LIFE'S A gift. that's why it's called PRESENT ... UNWRAP IT! Please share with friends!
Have a nice Day !
Way Seng

Endeavour - 1953

Dear friends

Mr Kanda has searched through his treasured possession to help us unfold some mysterious past of our school. He found some old magazines dated as far back as 1953 - 1957 and has very kindly made copies of those publications for us. I have read through them and was enthralled by what the school and students were involved in during those days. Other than missing out on computer technologies, those students were not worse off in view of the enrichment programs they enjoyed and their high command of English as reflected in their essay and poem writings.

They had fun fairs in those days to raise funds for scholarships and to buy a projector for the school so that they could screen films for the children as follow-ups on their lessons. They even formed an Animal Lovers' League to rescue stray animals in the vicinity.

In view of the interesting history, I thought it would be a good idea to share some excerpts of them with you on the blog. Below are from the 1953's publication. However if you do wish to read the complete hard copies, feel free to get them from me.

Mr Kanda, your contribution is deeply appreciated. Thank you !

Regards
Ai Lay

PS: Click on the pictures for magnified version. (apologies for not being able to arrange the pages in running order due to technical difficulties encountered - will improve on it in the next posting)















Some interesting sponsors........

Did You Know ???

The fact that.....

Human Body

• Like finger prints, everyone’s tongue is different
• Women blink nearly twice as much as men
• You can’t kill yourself by holding your breath
• It is impossible to lick your elbow
• People say bless you when you sneeze because when you sneeze, your heart stops for a millisecond
• If you sneeze too hard. You can fracture a rib. If you try to suppress a sneeze, you can rupture a blood vessel in your head or neck and die
• The human heart creates enough pressure when it pumps to squirt blood 30 feet
• Wearing headphones for just over an hour will increase the bacteria in your ear by 700 times.
• 
  

Words

• The name of the entire continents end with the same letter that they start with

• The most common name in the world is 'Mohammed'
• Most lipsticks contain fish scales
• TYPEWRITER is the longest word that can be made using the letters on one row of the keyboard
• STEWARDESSES is the longest word typed with only the left hand
• Shakespeare invented the words ‘ assassination’ and ‘bump’
• The “sixth sick sheik’s sixth sheep’s sick” is said to be the toughest tongue twister in the English language

General

• What is the only food that doesn’t spoil ? – Answer – Honey
• American Airlines saved $40,000 in 1987 by eliminating one olive from each salad served in the first-class
• Each king in a deck of playing cards represents great king from history:-
• Spades – King David
• Clubs – Alexander the Great
• Hearts – Charlemagne
• Diamonds – Julius Caesar
• 111,111,111 x 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321
• If a statue of a person in the park on a horse has both front legs in the air, the person died in a battle. If the horse has one front leg in the air, the person died as a result of wounds received in a battle. If the horse has all four legs on the ground, the person died of natural causes.

Inventions

• The electric chair was invented by a dentist
• The cigarette lighter was invented before the match

Animals

• A crocodile cannot stick its tongue out
• A snail can sleep for three years
• All polar bears are left handed
• Butterflies taste with their feet
• Elephants are the only animals that can’t jump
• In the last 4000 years no new animals have been domesticated
• It is physically impossible for pigs to look up into the sky
• An ant always fall over on its right side when intoxicated
• Rats multiply so quickly that in 18 months, two rats could have over a million descendents

Orange Festival in Netherlands

Have a wonderful weekend !