The darn things that kids do!

Davis (I think he's about 4-6 years old) was carrying a chair up my church's back stairs when he fell down. I went to make sure he's ok, he showed me the little cut, then went off on his way again. This time, one of the other youth with me helped him to carry the chair.

At the top of the stairs, he asked the youth to put the chair down. In the middle of nowhere. But lest you think he was just playing the fool, he wasn't! He had a plan... He pushed the chair up against the water cooler, stood on the chair and drank from the fountain of water. Then he got off, looked up at the youth and said, "Ok already. Finish." *so cute*

Then he comes back down to the courtyard, and comes to call me, showing me the blood in his cut. I told him it had to be washed, and then he ran off to go wash it on his own. Then, somehow he could guess that this jie jie won't have plasters (he's right, I don't), and he went to find another lady who is married with two young children. Such a smart kid!

Now, who says kids don't know a darn thing? Kids know lots of things!

And they do lots of darn things too.

A vivid splash of green greeted me as I walked out to take the bus today. I blinked my eyes a couple of times, just to make sure I wasn't dreaming.

And I wasn't!

The green splash was a whole flock of green parakeets flying around the estate to land in a big tree!!! Lentor is really a zoo... And a fantastic zoo at that! Ok, I really must try to get some pictures of these up on my blog:

1. Cat that eats my bamboo tree
2. Birds that bathe in my house fountain
3. Green parakeets that just appear out of nowhere!

My sis is so darn cool! She's got 3 bowling pins. Not bowling balls, but bowling pins. Yes, those bottle-shaped white things you aim to hit in a bowling alley. We don't run a bowling alley... but she has 3 bowling pins!

Ok, so yes she got them from her coach because Kim Seng Plaza's bowling alley is getting new pins and needs to clear the old ones. But still, having 3 pins is WAAAAAAAAAY cool! How many people out there can say that they have the actual pins, blackened from use?

Now, all we need to do is to wait for 7 more pins before we can have our very own bowling lane... Then little sis can practice her throws and spins. Wow...

Did one of those quizzes today about the style of the bedroom, and I've found it to be quite true. My bedroom is a retreat... it's a place where I go to spend time on my own. And I do not like people jumping on my bed or lying on my bed without permission... Not even Mag gets away with it! Right Mag?

So yep... have put up the description that the quiz gave. Unfortunately, I just refurbished my room 5-6 years ago, so I won't really be able to do anything much except play with the fabrics. That I'll do once I erm, get my room sorted out. =p

Safe Haven
At the end of the day, you like to escape from the world (including the rest of the family!) to relax and recharge, and it sounds like your bedroom is your retreat of choice. With the hectic pace of life today, you're smart to carve out an area of serenity.

To make the most of your getaway space, put in carpet that feels good on your feet, splurge on luxurious high thread count sheets, and invest in window treatments that will allow you to block out the light and noise of the world outside your window. When it comes to color, choose restful greens or blues for a peaceful feel. If space allows, add a comfy chair where you can sit to flip through the mail or read a good book.

Treat yourself to a fabulous cashmere throw that you can curl up with when the weather turns cold. Surround yourself with other items you love, like favorite family photos, softly scented candles, and artwork you adore. Finally, hang a "Do Not Disturb" sign on your door and let the relaxation begin.

Just heard Paul Twohill's rendition of Grow Old With You, originally performed by Adam Sandler on the Wedding Singer. He sounded so much like Adam Sandler! Actually, I think these songs that Adam Sandler sings are good for any guy to sing. As long as the guy is not tone-deaf, he should be able to sing the song to his love. Serious. Because it's so simple and basic that's why. Of course, Adam Sandler and Paul can sing it much better because they do have some vocal talents...

Well, enough of opinion right now. I'm just swooning over the words and simplicity of this song. It'll sound so nice sung to the strumming of a guitar...

Grow Old With You
I wanna make you smile whenever you’re sad
Carry you around when your arthritis is bad
All I wanna do is grow old with you

I’ll get your medicine when your tummy aches
Build you a fire if the furnace breaks
Oh it could be so nice, growing old with you

I’ll miss you
I’ll kiss you
Give you my coat when you are cold

I’ll need you
I’ll feed you
Even let ya hold the remote control

So let me do the dishes in our kitchen sink
Put you to bed if you’ve had too much to drink
I could be the man who grows old with you
I wanna grow old with you

I've finally gotten myself a pair of fluffy furry slippers!

It was super cold this morning... I was really freezing. Had a jacket, my shawl, a pair of socks, and Cherie's panda slippers on already, but was still shaking. Even after hot green tea, I was still shivering.

So... when we went to buy lunch, I popped over to Bearyhip and got meself a pair of fluffy furry slippers! Best thing is, they were still on sale, so I got them at $15 instead of $22.

Because I don't have my camera with me now, I'm just going to describe my slippers. They look like two little brown puppies with big fluffy floppy ears. Ooooo... Cute! =) I love them, and they really keep my feet (and me) warm.

Right. Back to work!

Just last year, I learnt about stock types in the 18th Century French and Italian drama. This year, I see stock types in the 21st Century Singapore Office Reality.

Stock type 1: The Elevator Attendant
Commonly seen in elevators, especially in my office building. The Elevator Attendant enters the lift, presses the button for his/her destination level, and stays put by the buttons. Others coming in are generally unable to press the button for their destination levels. The Elevator Attendant makes no move to show that he/she notices other people in the lifts, neither does he/she offer to help others press the button for their destination level.

Stock type 2: The Magician
Seen in the food courts and hawker centres, the magicians give a lot of weight to pieces of paper. Especially tissue paper. The magicians gingerly place a piece of paper on the seat, will the paper to stay in the midst of much movement and wind from the fans, and move off to purchase their food. When they return, voila! The piece of paper may be there or may not be there. It is up to their mood. The mood for the day decides the paper trick that the Magicians show.

Stock type 3: The Door Guard, also known as 'men-shen'
Extremely easy to spot, the door guards travel in hoards. These hoards can be spotted from about 5.45pm onwards. The hoards get bigger as time passes, but die out by the time 7pm rolls around. Characteristic of the door guards is their propensity to stand guard along the MRT doors in a semi-circle, not allowing anyone to get in or out after all the seats have been filled. Door guards ensure that trains leaving Raffles Place MRT are not too crowded so that commuters at the next few stops can get on.

Seen these stock types yet? If not... come spot them with me, and tell me if you spot more stock types!

I think our ministers need to go back to school. No, I'm not insulting their intellect, logic or problem solving abilities. But I think they should go back to school in the capacity of a teenager to understand what needs to be done for the students.

Just on Monday at the Teacher's Day Rally in Expo, our Education minister announced better monetary rewards for future teachers. Dr. Lily Neo applauded the rewards. Now, there are quite a few assumptions in there that somehow seem to make this policy a little... how shall I put it... doomed to attracting a lot of 'teachers' who are there for only the money. There, I've said it.

Yes, public and private sector salaries for executives can differ by quite a lot. But oftentimes passion cannot be quantified. And here, executives and students are being attracted to teach. I do agree that for some individuals, the low pay and their family commitments make them unable to teach even if they want to, so this new policy is great for them!

Yet, there are the MANY out there who are in the teaching profession for the money. Teaching is different from investment banking or accounting. Investment bankers and accountants do not in their direct scope of work influence young minds. I am discounting the influence advertising and branding of the big companies. What I mean is that, by dealing with numbers and shares day in and day out, investment bankers and accountants do not exactly engage with young people and teach them. But teachers do.

Teachers are expected to be role models. Are they?

Teachers are expected to be passionate about the subjects they teach. Are they?

Teachers are supposed to be furthering their students' abilities. Do they?

I'm not dissing all teachers. My Mum's a teacher, and I think she's an excellent one. She 'fights' with the students to get their work done, she pushes them for their folios and corrects and edits everything inside. She guides them to come up with practical solutions for the O level Design & Tech exam. Many of the students fight back, but at the end of the day (or the year or the next year), they come back to thank her.

A few of my friends who are currently studying in NIE are also passionate about working with young people. One of them, affectionately known as 'laoshi', is passionate about instilling a love for the Chinese language and culture in her students. Another, who i shall call 'da-men', loves sports and wants to share the love for sports with his students. Another, who i'm not sure if he's in NIE, had a stint teaching students and loved every second of it. He loved being the coach, the mentor, and shaping their lifes.

These are the people that must be attracted into the teaching profession.

But the reality is that there are teachers who see teaching as nothing more than a job. A money generating machine.

So if the purpose of the policy is to incentify more to join the teaching profession, the policy should be effective. If, however, the policy is in a series of policies to improve the teaching profession and ensure that all our nation's students are taught well regardless of which neighbourhood they are in, then the policy might be less effective than intended.

And on that note, there's no such thing as a school that is not a neighbourhood school. Can any school not be in a neighbourhood? Even if the school is situated in Mars, that's a neighbourhood!

Mixing peanut butter and nutella gives a peanut-buttery-tasting dark brown paste with slight streaks of light brown.

Tada!!! Lil' Miss Mouse has a brand new blog skin. A skin with colour tones that are more reflective of her more sedate and sedimentary mood.

And Lil' Miss Mouse doesn't have the blues... it's just that the words aren't very appropriate, but I just love the colour! The freshness and light breeziness of it is just astounding!

Anyway, Lil' Miss Mouse has her eyes on some dance shoes at Cindini. No, I'm not about to don the shoes and do the cha cha. Not while I don't have a dancing partner anyway. But dancing shoes are all about comfort, and Lil' Miss Mouse believes that good shoes are essential for happy feet, happy spine and happy back. Not to mention those aching shoulders that'll be happy for a change in sensation. Ooooo... Now, I just need to wear out my Scholl court shoes that I bought 5 years ago and have not worn since... Scholl leather is good. The shoes are still in such fantastic condition that I hope enough people buy from Cindini so that I can still find that pampering pair there in a few years time...