Who did it?

A fart is a pleasant thing,
It gives the belly ease,
It warms the bed in winter,
And suffocates the fleas.


A fart can be quiet,
A fart can be loud,
Some leave a powerful,
Poisonous cloud


A fart can be short,
Or a fart can be long,
Some farts have been known
To sound like a song......

A fart can create
A most curious medley,
A fart can be harmless,
Or silent, and deadly.


A fart might not smell,
While others are vile,
A fart may pass quickly,
Or linger a while......


A fart can occur
In a number of places,
And leave everyone there,
With strange looks on their faces .
From wide-open prairie,
To small elevators,
A fart will find all of
Us sooner or later.

But farts are all bad,
Is simply not true-
We must never forget.......
Sweet old farts like you!
Kinda brings a tear to your eye - right?


Look at the Queen's face!

The expressions are priceless!

Can you guess who farted?

Speed limit

Speed limit refers to the maximum speed that vehicles should be traveling at. I am not sure what drivers don't understand about that.

I was driving along the expressway this morning at a speed of slightly above 80km/hour. The speed limit on that particular expressway is 80. Yet I had this huge truck which had a speed limit of 60km/hour tailgating me and flashing his lights at me!! Darn!! He was committing four offences at that time:
1. Driving above his allowable speed limit.
2. Driving above the speed limit on the expressway.
3. Failing to keep a safe distance from the vehicle in front of it.
4. Not keeping to the extreme left lane ( which heavy vehicles are supposed to).

How I wish I was moonlighting as a traffic police officer coz I would have given him all 4 summonses and maybe even taking away his license. It is drivers like these that make it dangerous for all other road users.

And since it is Friday, here's my TGIF joke:

A speeding motorist was caught by radar from a police helicopter in the sky. An officer pulled him over and began to issue a traffic ticket. "How did you know I was speeding?" the frustrated driver asked.
The police officer pointed somberly towards the sky.
"You mean," asked the motorist, "that even He is against me?"

A coveted piece of metal

That was what my Mum gave to me.

This amazing little piece of metal makes little top hats or for the locals here we call kueh pie tee shells. This shells can then be filled with a variety of ingredients and makes good appetisers. Traditionally it is filled with shredded vegetables (turnips, carrots, french beans) and the result is "Kueh pie tee"


Why is this piece of metal so coveted? This kueh pie tee shell maker is more than 50years old, and I know that my niece has been trying to wrangle for it. It can be bought in the market, but they dont make them like they use to! And this particular one is of the right size. The ones we see being sold now are so big that the resulting kueh pie tee cant be eaten in one bite. And to top it off, a seasoned one will usually result in more success as it has been "worn in", so the shells made are more evenly brown.

Well, all's left for me to do is to put my skills to practise!

School woes

We are into week 8 of the school week,and I have been so busy. The school week is so much longer for me, even though I am not the one in school, but from the shuttling of the children due to changes in their schedules this year. So please forgive me if this blog is a little neglected.

Met a few friends and here are some of their Primary One woes:

Friend A - daughter's mandarin teacher gives ad hoc "ting xie" (Chinese spelling) and in addition to the words that they are supposed to learn, gives additional words as and when the teacher feels like it. Friend A feels that this is totally unfair coz her child may not be prepared for those additional words and thus may (and did) get some of them wrong.

My response: No big deal. Everyone in the class will be on an equal footing and will be faced with the same "unknown" words. But unfortunately she is still unhappy.

Friend B - Said to me : "I do not like my daughter anymore, coz she is very cranky when she gets home from school and is very disobedient". Friend B hails from the US, and is not used to the local school system which she feels starts too early and is way too rigid. She thinks that her girl, having been subjected to all that rigidity at school, just wants to break free and rebel when she gets home.

My response: Please cut her some slack, as she is still settling into the new school system, and also may not know how to voice out what is troubling her. I too find that my D is more disobedient since she started school. I guess that is just part of growing up, so please do not hate her. They are just trying to find their own comfort zone and grow up. Sob.

D has also been sharing with me about the Sick bay at school. She is fascinated by it! She thinks its a place to go and rest, ... and you can skip class too, whilst in school! I was aghast when I heard it. And began telling her about why she shouldnt go to the sick bay. She then told me about two of her classmates who are regular visitors there. One is her Best friend (GASP!!), who always complains of having a stomachache. This girl has potato chips for recess as well as after school snack (double gasp!) I then explained to D that the stomachaches are probably caused by not eating well, and went on to tell her about why she needs to eat, and healthily so as not to fall sick.

The other regular visitor apparently eats well at recess (she usually has noodles and macaroni soup, I was told) but is also plagued by stomach pains. And after the oil rubbing session, still has that ache and will then go to the sick bay to "rest".

Having manned the sick bay at the school previously, I am aware that there are children who will go there just to skip class. When I mentioned it to hubby he shared with me this incident.

His friend received a call from his child's school one day when they were having lunch, and apparently this has been a common occurrence recently. His daughter complains of stomach pains every time mandarin lesson approaches. Why? Because the mandarin teacher, on a particular day, was upset with some children in the class slammed down some books on the table and his daughter was startled by it as she was seated near the table. Since then she has had this fear of mandarin classes. My heart goes out to the poor girl. But in such a situation what can they do now to help the poor child overcome this fear? It is fortunate that the school managed to identify the cause of the problem and have now assigned her a school counselor to overcome the problem. But shouldnt something be done to the teacher as well? What is with this intimidation? Much as I know, it may be difficult to control a class but the teacher must be taught how to handle situations and not use intimidation and definitely needs to be counselled as well.

As for my woes, apart from the long days for me, is when the child does not perform according to plan. I have always practised for spelling and ting xie with D. And during these practises, she has been getting them all correct. BUT when she gets to school for the actual spelling test or ting xie, she gets some of them wrong!! How? If she gets them wrong at home, I can drill her, or come up with little tricks on how to remember the correct way to spell - BUT she gets them correct at home!! Could it be anxiety too? I dont know. But, going thru P1 for the 3rd time (4th if I consider my own P1 year), I am now COOL about it. Que sera sera, I did my best to help her learn it. And if she still gets it wrong, there is nothing more I can do. I no longer insist on getting 100% for all ting xies and spelling exercises.

I guess we mellow with age, and I dont want to stress the small stuff. Also, I dont want the white hair to multiply so fast :P

When opportunity knocks ...

... will you dare to open the door and welcome it with open arms? Or will you be hiding behind the curtains and peeking, deciding whether to open that door?

It is tough when you reach a certain age and are already in your own comfort zone when it happens. You may not want to rock the boat and start from scratch again. You may want to cover all bases before making that jump. There are just too many variables to consider. An unpolished diamond may be right in front of you, but can you recognise it?

Many a times people lament about the lack of opportunities. But when it comes, lets hope you are around to be able to decide, and not at the neighbourhood bar, too drunk to realise that there has been a knock at your door!

It's not fair!!

I know I sound like one of my/your kids right now. But it's true, it's really not fair!

What? My weight. You see, this lunar new year, I have been very good. I did not indulge in all the cookies, goodies, etc. In fact I denied myself a lot of food. On the first day I usually have two lunches: one at my husband's grandma's home and then again at my parents place. This year I only had half a lunch at the first place and at my parents I only selectively picked on some food. I didn't have ANY cookies at both places!!

On the 2nd day, we usually go out for a big lunch with my in-laws. This year I had a no-carbo lunch.

Yet when I weighed myself today, I found that I put on two and a half kilos. That is more than 5lbs. Don't you think that is really unfair? Considering I hardly indulged myself at all this year. Stardust should be the one putting on weight, not me!!

All my life I had been one of those that could eat as much as I wanted and I wouldn't put on a pound, and now this! Is it pay back time? I sure hope not. Maybe the weight gain is from the 50 pineapple tarts I sampled before the new year :p

My mother-in-law gave me the above plant for Chinese New Year.

When she first gave it to me, two days before CNY, there were only buds. I was told only to sprinkle sparingly, just with whatever water that I could sprinkle from my hand, which was what I did. And look at how it has bloomed.

The florist had told her that the flowers will be purple in colour but surprise! surprise! this plant yielded bluish purple, dark pink, pale pink, and pink flowers. And there is yet another bud that has yet to bloom!

I thought it was so appropriate as there are five "flowers" representing the 5 members of my family, 2 big blooms being the parents and the 2 smaller ones plus the bud being the 3 children.

Unfortunately I do not know what flowers these are called. But they sure are pretty!

Choices

A friend posted on FB a photo of what she had as dinner for the CNY reunion dinner.

After looking at the photo I felt really sorry for her children. Why? Because all her family had was a plate of home-made wanton noodles.

The Reunion dinner on chinese new year's eve is one of the most important events for most chinese families, and it is usually a large and lavish meal, and traditionally it is in excess of what is to be eaten as there are meant to be lots of leftovers, signifying abundance, which is kept over till the next year (next day, in this case).

And her very simple reunion dinner wasn't because she already had an earlier reunion.

No, I am not being condescending towards her and her family for being unable to afford more for dinner, because I know she can afford it. It is more for the choices she chose to make.

I am not sure how she has celebrated previous reunion dinners but I feel that her children are at that age (3, and 7) where experiences that they have now will forever be remembered and will determine how they live their lives later.

In our family, we try to give the best to our children. Be it in experiences, food or education. We, the adults, make the sacrifices. If we can do without something so that our children can have something better, we will let them have it.

I just couldn't help but feel sorry for her little ones who may not understand the significance and importance of such an important day for the chinese, for having not experienced it.

When my Mother-in-law saw the photo of their reunion dinner, she really pitied the little ones and wanted to give them some of the extras that she had cooked. But I don't think that's the way to go.

Why? We all make our choices. I don't have nor carry the Gucci, the Bottega Veneta, the Prada and the Louis Vuitton handbags that she does on an everyday basis. I don't wear the Tod's and Salvatore Ferragamo shoes that she does on a daily basis. Does anyone pity me? No! And I don't want them to, because I don't yearn for those things.(Ok, maybe I do sometimes, but I have learnt to live without them.)

The choices we make today and everyday will influence the lives of our children. It will determine how they view certain festivals, important family events, and traditions in the future. Are we making the right choices for our families?

Note: You may not agree with what I have written. I am not saying that the choices I have made are the right ones and the only ones. You make your own choices for your own families according to your own customs beliefs and how you have been brought up. You decide!

Hey Dude

Just came from the this blog and I totally agree with the guy who writes it: we should always be thankful for the little things in our lives!

So I will try to remind myself of all the little things that I am grateful for.

Today is for my child sharing with me.

D came home from school a few days ago with the following news for me:


D: Mum! I made 2 new friends at school today.
Me: That's great! What are their names? Are they in your class?
D: I don't know their names. But they are dudes!
Me: Dudes?!?
D: Yeah! Don't you know what dudes are? They are boys! They are so funny, and they made me laugh.

Hmm, better get used to my little one making friends with Dudes!! Guess she will be having more dude friends!

Best wishes for the lunar new year!

The lunar new year is just two days away.


The Chinese zodiac follows a twelve year cycle, each of the years being named after an animal. The Chinese believe that people born in a particular year take on the characteristics of the animal associated with that year.

This coming lunar new year will be the year of the rabbit.

Persons born within these date ranges can be said to have been born in the "Year of the Rabbit," while also bearing the following elemental sign:
29 January 1903 – 15 February 1904: Water Rabbit
14 February 1915 – 2 February 1916: Wood Rabbit
2 February 1927 – 22 January 1928: Fire Rabbit
19 February 1939 – 7 February 1940: Earth Rabbit
6 February 1951 – 26 January 1952: Metal Rabbit
25 January 1963 – 12 February 1964: Water Rabbit
11 February 1975 – 30 January 1976: Wood Rabbit
29 January 1987 – 16 February 1988: Fire Rabbit
16 February 1999 – 4 February 2000 Earth Rabbit
3 February 2011 – 22 January 2012: Metal Rabbit
2023 – 2024: Water Rabbit
2035 – 2036: Wood Rabbit
2047 – 2048: Fire Rabbit

Rabbits are thought to be:

Affectionate, gentle with strong family ties. Caring and hates conflict. Peace-makers with lots of friends. Dislike being the centre of attention and enjoy the good things of life. (Source: Topmarks and Wikipedia)

All preparations for the rabbit year at my home are almost complete, I gave away about 6 bags of toys / books. Cleared away clothes which have been outgrown or worn out. Spring cleaned the house. Only thing left is that unclearable clutter on my dining table :p Well, will just have to hide it somewhere for the time being.

Cookies and goodies have been bought. New clothes all ready to be worn. Guess we are all set for that most important day for most Chinese families.

Here's wishing you and yours : Good luck, fortune and blessings from above this lunar new year.

And if you are a rabbit, just like me, may your new year be extra hoppy, erm, I mean happy!