Life Sucks

Love this website: http://catchthespin.com/ Read it for a good laugh whenever you feeling down.

Accompanied Mum to SGH Eye Centre for her check-up. The appointment was for 2.35pm. We reached there at 2.25pm and finally left at 5.40pm. First we waited for registration. This was the shortest wait approximately 10mins only. Then we waited for some clinical technician to test her eyes. After that waited for a nurse to put eye drops on her eyes. This was followed by a half an hour wait for the eye drops to work its effect. By then it was past 4pm after which we were asked to go to another room. Waited outside there for another 10mins before another nurse told us to go to another room to see the doctor. Thus another waiting session continues. After the doctor it was to the cashier for another long wait. Luckily I decided to concurrently queue for the medicine otherwise probably got to stay till after 6. The only good thing about the whole experience. The medicine only cost $3.50 and the consultation $29.00. Was that worth the waste of 1 whole afternoon?

Many moons ago, a colleague 'tarpa' a packet of fried rice for me. It was one of the best I ever tried so some time later I went back myself to the stall on the ground floor of Amoy St Cooked Food Centre to buy a packet for lunch. That must have been more than a year ago. And I have never been back there anymore or eat anything from there again. Why? I am reminded of the reasons today at lunch. I was sitting near the stall and staring at the queue. It was a long queue and that made me wish I can try it again but..... After I had finished my lunch, I stood there for another 5 minutes observing him. You see, the stall is a one man show. The guy frying the fried rice and fried hor fun is also the kitchen assistant and the cashier.  First he picked up some prawns (?) I think from a tray and throw them into the wok and continued frying. After he finished, he scooped up the noodles and ladled them onto a plate and handed it over to the customer who paid him. With the same hand that h...

Take out the hankie and the tissues. This is going to make you cry View this movie at cultureunplugged.com

For the 3rd weekend in a row, had to attend another funeral wake. 4th funeral in 3 weeks - 2 of which we were active participants in the ritual and not just visitors. Rather depressing weekends:( Anyway, I am always bemused by the elaborate rituals of Chinese funerals, - the chanting, the folding of 'gold paper', the burning of the gigantic paper mache house, cars, servants, and nowadays credit cards, dvd player and even 'CD' of popular singers. Do the deceased family seriously think that all these paperworks will miracloulsy turn into solid gold/structure wherever the deceased is? However, to preserve the peace, I normally participate in these rituals. I don't really see any harm in sitting and listening to the chanting since I don't understand a single word of it or hold a joss stick in my hand although I know most of my Christian friends will freak out. To me, the act of holding a joss stick is more a form of paying respect for the deceased just like other re...

I have not walked along Orchard Road for a long long time so tonight after catching a movie, instead of taking the train at the nearest station at Somerset, decided to take a slow stroll down Orchard Rd. It was slightly afte 9pm. There are many people still walking around. Interestingly, a lot of young men were wearing hats, yea hats and not caps and some young ladies have scraves drapped over their shoulder and in long sleeve and long black stockings. for a moment, I thought I was in Hongkong except the stifling heat and humidity was a constant reminder of where we actually were.  Speaking of heat and humidity, I really can't understand this craze of eating Al Fresco in Sg. It is so hot and so humid how does one need in comfort much less sit there for hours on end chitchatting the hours away? Wanted to see what was the big improvement that the STB did but as far as I could see, from the stretch of road from Orchard Turn to the Orchard MRT, there didn't seem to be much changes....

After the funeral on Tues, Mum asked us to follow her out on Friday morning. Where did she bring us to? The temple where she usually goes. Her purpose? To show us where she wants the wake to be held and the place for the ancestral tablet to be placed when her times come. Gross? I guess the death of somebody who is her peer had rattled her much more than we realized. Should have known when after one visit to the wake, she refused to go again citing tiredness. Not like her. Maybe it is better. At  least when the time comes, we know what to do. (hands firmly on wood J ) but hopefully that will be a long long time in the future.

For the first time in many many years, I stepped into a church, not for a wedding service but for service. But it was nearly not meant to be. It was Good Friday and at the invitation of a good friend, M & I went to Lighthouse Evangelism at Tampines for their Good Friday Miracle Breakthrough service. Maybe I really have been out of the church scene for too long but things really have changed. We got there late as we had problem finding a parking lot and had to park much farther away. And when we finally reached the church, I was so surprised that it was full and people were milling outside because they couldn't go in and the usher refused to let anybody in. That was it! At that moment, I thought this wasn't meant to be M time to hear the Lord's message. But our friend, who had invited us came through in the end and she and her children gave up their seats for us so in the end we managed to go in. Thanks Mich but a church turning people away? That was something I certain...

Some years ago, when the movie AI was out in the cinemas, a lot of my Christian friends were making a lot of 'noise' about it; their main objections to it being that only God can create humans and human cannot create life. The movie was of course set in a future world where human and robots live side by side and the robots are so life like and human in nature that they take the place of children. I laughed at their objections. After all, it was only a movie. Now I guess fiction is fast becoming fact. Japanese scientist have moved on from creating robot dogs to creating a robot child, one that can touch, feel and response to stimuli. From the pictures published so far, this is by far the most human like robot ever created. In fact, this robot has been programmed to learn and develop social skill. Just like a real baby. More info can be found here and here . So the Japs have move on from Astroboy to Robotboy. Will a world like that in AI become a reality? I think the answer ...

Beautiful things should be shared and not hidden. Someone emailed me a link to her website (hope not a virus scam) which contained beautiful visuals created by the artist. Check it out:  www.soojungcho.com

Much has been said in the papers and debated hotly over the right to die. Most time, most people argued passionately about it and usually the pro camp are those who have been in a situation before whereas the against camp are those with strong religious beliefs and those who have not been in such situation before and do not fully comprehend the impact of the right to die. Let me said that I am pro life but I am also pro right to die. My views like many people however applies only to myself – ie if I am so sick and suffering from an incurable disease, I rather be allowed to die with dignity than suffer for long period and in the process drag loved ones into misery. The pro life part of me said that life is precious, a gift from God and we should treasure and nurture it to the best of our ability and not destroy what God creates. So what happened when something like that occurs?  I have never actually thought too much about it but yesterday at CGH, I found myself contemplating this a...