Friday, August 29, 2008

Happy teachers' day!

helped marcus and mabel with doing their thank you cards in powerpoint and help them to burn it on cds to give to their teachers. The idea came to me, well, must be related to occupation. saw mabel doing a thank you card, so i thought why not be more creative and do it on powerpoint. anyway, there are so many blank cds at home.

actually, i honestly think that both of them have very great teachers. If not for their patience and kind understanding, Marcus could not have persevered in his Chinese. From open book chinese spelling, he now learns his spelling and with close book, he got 90 marks for his recent chinese spelling. So this could be their last year in cedar, (next year, will most probably change them to a school nearby) i thought they should really thank and show their appreciation to their teachers.

then i began to reflect on myself. Would my students' parents think the same of me? or have i in anyway let them down?

anyway, a very happy teachers' day to all the teachers out there. You have been doing a great job, educating the next generation. Remember, we are accountable to the next generation. When their parents placed their child in school, we have a great responsibility in educating them. Kindle that passion in you again, the seeds that you sow now, you may not see the harvest, you may not reap the harvest, but remember, with every sweat you toil, with each drop of water, with each fertiliser, i'm sure the seeds that you sow will be a great plant, great tree, great being.
it has been a long week and probably a long term as well. did i mention i want to close the blog? ha, i didn't even realise i wrote that, that is what happen when your mind refuse to function and process information? ok, so i shall be more careful here and process my thougts slowly.

It has been a long week as i mentioned. it's taking a toll on my mental state. there were many times i controlled my temper, not to flare up at home. last night, after meeting ended at 7pm, suppose to go home, but students were in the library studying. helped them out a little with their work. by the time i reach home, 8 plus, i was so tired last nite, that even children, esp my dear darling Max couldn't cheer me up. The best thing is to go to bed early. True enough, i felt much better this morning.

I am very glad that 1 week break is here. I need the break to clear my messy table, clear my admin work, strategise for Marcus and Mabel's exams and of course, strategise for my students to deal with their national exams. there will be 3 papers next week, so 3/4 of the week is gone. must strategise to make use of the week wisely.

For this weekend, i'm not going to do any work. I'll just use the weekend to really spend time with my family. For this whole week, after dinner, i had been working on my laptop, non-stop from mon-fri. that will be the solace i look forward to.

this morning during the short drive to school, the morning breeze is actually very refreshing. now am listening to bee gees, it's actually very refreshing too!

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Sister came back to Singapore for a short while but went back to Dubai again.
Though it's a short time together over lunch on Sunday, hope you have a good time time with your nephews and niece. also hope that your flu is better now.

i was just googling about Dubai and really marveled at its transformation over a short span of 20 years. They have the money, the resources and the courage to try out new things, new architecture. That is what i call, arts and culture pushing the boundaries.

anyway, why do i update my blog? primarily for my dear sister who is there in Dubai. the side effect, she would be able to entice my cousin with tales of my children so that my dear cousin can set her mind to give birth.

secondly, let's see what are the constraints that i face in blogging? it is definitely work. i can't blog about students, the profession, my work troubles. all i can blog about it's my thinking, my reflection (even my reflection on students, on my work, on my colleagues, i can't blog it here) i mean i can blog and say that my colleagues are incompetent or say that my students are hopeless. all these i can't say. so what have i left to say? i can only blog about my family. I dun think readers are interested to know about the adults in my family, so all i can blog about is my children. and occasionally complain about how stress i am, that's all.

sometimes i feel that i run out of things to say. sometimes i feel that i should just close down the blog.

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

going bongus.... this is the result of too much marking. you get tired, mentally cannot think straight, daze, stone. then as you are listening to songs on your ipod, you get emotionally easily and cry at the slightest song that you listen.

HELP! i think i'm going crazy.

let me go freshen up before i continue marking.

ha, if you think that i'll be posting some silly sentences of my students on my blog, wait long long. i won't do that. anyway, their scripts are ok, just stubborn, dun want to listen to what i say in class, so cannot blame Mrs Tan for failing them. really can't give them higher marks.
what should i blog about?

1) Ser's trip back to Singapore is postpone. (again?!?)

2) i'm having a splitting headache now. This is the 2nd time this month i had this kind of headache.

3) i have a hole in my pants! and it was students who told me that i had a small hole in the front. my reaction? i told them, luckily it's not at the back, otherwise it's another asshole.

4)i'm suppose to be marking. stress

5) next week, almost every day is busy, super stress

6) the only hope that keeps me going... children. so good to go home after a hard day's work, then, your children all run to you to hug you. like yesterday, i was very quiet when approaching home, open the door quietly, when i was inside taking off my shoes, i think max must have sense me. he said, 'mummy?' then he ran to the door to see. when he sees me, 'mummy!'

there was one day before dinner time, i went to the toilet to wash my hands. Max must have sensed that i'm not around, cos he goes like, 'mummy?' he peeped into the kitchen, looked around, 'mummy?' then the maid bluff him, 'mummy go gaigai' then he started to cry and ran to the door and shouted 'mummy!' i dun have the heart to hide from him, went to him to give him a hug. when he saw me, he was like 'mummy' that kind of tone like blaming me for disappearing.

Monday, August 18, 2008

ok, let me see, it's a new week. this is the marking period with all the tests and exams, if you are teaching graduating class.

and i'm using seaweed to reward myself. for every 5 scripts i marked, a packet of seaweed. you know, those small packet with 3 or 4 seaweed inside. that is what keeps me going. otherwise with the distractions and nintendo wii at home, i doubt i can mark.

kind of a long week, just to think of it... but i guess slowly, one day at a time, one step at a time, we can pull through.

ohhhhhh, i'm rather excited about National Day rally speech, i dunno why. actually he is quite right in saying that parents should encourage their children to marry and have children.

and yes, probably we should stop complaning about foreign talent. look at ourselves first. to put it crudely (translate to hokkien) 'government ask you to give birth, dun want to give birth. now foreign talent, don't complain.'

it is the same with the Olympic. students complain that the sportsmen and women, most of them are not Singaporeans, mostly foreign talent. so i tell them to quit complaining. i even suggest to them, 'tonight go home, put down all your books and studies and tell your parents you want to quit studies and train very hard for 4 years in table tennis and 2012 represent Singapore in Olympics. The next morning, come back and tell me what your parents advise you to do.'

so if Singaporeans are always so pragmatic (actually i think i am too, to a certain extent) then quit complaining about foreign talent.

Saturday, August 16, 2008

nostalgic

let me see, yesterday i was thinking, you know how my mum's generation would tell us, last time this is gay world, blah blah blah, then we have that question mark look on our face. I was just wondering, next time i would tell my children, last time this is marina south where we can fly kite and have steamboat buffet, then it's their turn to have question mark look!

ok, let me make a list of places that have disappeared.

1) marina south - fly kite, bowling, play pool, steamboat buffet, pubs. let me see: mingles (where i used to work part time) and barracuda!!! been to that disco???? haha

2) pleasure dome at hotel phoenix - can identify? last time used to hang out there every fri nite, without fail

3) elias, fisherman's village - the food centre and its pub along the beach.

4) ridley's at ANA hotel? - that time, drive honda SiR, the red car parked right in front with all the sports car, cool.

5) 97 at that building? wow, i miss this place, only place that can listen to canto songs.

6) studio baker? haha, then it was changed to i think venom, then china black (i think)

7) sparks at Ngee Ann city? - another happening place at that time.

8) warehouse next to river view hotel?

8) fire at orchard plaza? can't even remember the name of the building. are u still able to follow?

9) rumours at forum?

10) charmers at river view hotel? still following, or dunno what the heck i'm saying?

11) Carpark A along ECP? the one nearest to rocher exit? haha, very famous carpark for couples!

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

this is so frustrating. plug in my external hard drive and it tells me USB not recognise.

all my documents, pictures, musics, lessons, papers all inside!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

it's a miracle i can still keep my sanity for so long

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Max is so cute. these few days have been spending time with the children at home, today it's time to go back to work. he woke up in the morning (too much urine, pants wet) then he cried when we go to work.

have to pacify him.

and when you come home after a hard day's work, he would run to you, shouting, 'mummy, mummy' and come to hug you when you are at the door. he is that cute and in that way, he steals your heart.
on monday, it was a school holiday. brought the children to explorer kids. well, it was good fun, marcus and mabel actually wanted to try the highland adventure, but they are too short!

this thurs and fri is psle oral exam so pri sch got no sch. so lucky. on fri afternoon may bring the children to walk the telok blangah bridge.

hey sis, just transferred the money to you. aiyo, just finish all the bills. haha sis, i think you will take half a day to settle all your bills when you are back in sg. all the best! am looking forward to your short trip back to sg. hope we have a time to catch up over dinner or supper.

Tuesday, August 05, 2008

old folks home

btw, i'm suppose to be drowsy now after taking medicine and suppose to be sleeping. I woke up at 3 plus am last night, dunno for what. too many things on my mind to fall back to sleep.

with regards to money no enough and old folks home, it's funny how our this generation doesn't like the idea of old folks home. i was thinking, maybe for my generation, we may check ourselves into old folks home. as long as the room has computer and internet, i can pass time easily at the home. no need computer, i bring my own laptop, more DL. internet connection also no need, now got those broadband from M1 and so on, juz plug in and you can use liao, so convenient.

or just put a game console in my room, can liao. i can pass time easily.
money no enough 2

went to watch this movie on friday nite. It was a nice movie, hilarious and true becos it really depicts the lives of every day Singaporeans. but the movie has its sad moments too.

what i find true is when their mother is sick, how they transfer her from one child to the other child and finally the old folks home. Hui ge is really good in his role and i think the role suits him well. the other teary part is when the mother is in icu. reminds me of grandma, with all the tubes in the mouth.

when the vcd oomes out, i'll definitely buy one to keep.

the other movie i wanted to watch was 'wanted'. i guess this one i'll go and rent.

brand new pics of Knox and Vivienne

haha, for those who are wondering who on earth they are, they are Brad's and Angelina's new born twins. sorry, i subscribe to pittwatch.com. gosh, babies are so cute.

now they got 6 children, 3 adopted and 3 biological. hey, anyone in USA? can buy me a copy of that magazine?



Friday, August 01, 2008

been some time since i blog. been busy lately with marking. it's like never ending and there is a need to mark. tests, prelims coming, they need the practice. le tme count, there are five piles to clear this weekend, next week, i think i giving out a few more tests... and some more practices, so there will be new piles to mark next week.

oh yah, still got project haven't mark yet.

but it's a satisfaction to mark when students show improvement from the last assignment. it's like a drug to me, makes me want to give some more practices and mark somemore. haha, it's addictive.

as for family, recently adrian junior emailed me some sportonclub activities for children. great activities, i would love to bring the children to try out these sports. but must be member first, then the rates are cheaper. will do that this weekend.

today is NATAS fair, not sure if want to book anything. instead of doing my work, am browsing through newspaper now.

oh yah, btw, so fast, chinese 7th month already. all the getai and all the burning of paper. it's time for me to remember himer again.