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Fare thee well, 2011!

The Sun sets, in more ways than one,
casting its magnificant light once more,
the light diminishing and dimming as the hours go by.
The Sun sets, on a game-changing year.
A year of paradigm shifts in true sense of the phrase.
A year where mind sets are thrown upside down.
The loss of a well-loved one, yet rebuffed and rejected.
A loss to us. The loss of a visionary.
Musical chairs at many layers.
Change the only constant, they have been saying for years.
Change - for real this year.

The fireworks light up the sky in the countdown.

Light the way, we hope, for a good and prosperous future

in the expected tumultous economic waters of the coming year.

Light the path, we hope, for cohesive togetherness.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

music through the ages

A performance in the Singapore Conference Hall.

Famous Glutinous Rice

The famous glutinous rice in Chinatown food centre. Long long queues on Sunday. Very polite and pleasant service. Good glutinous rice.

(Photo - with thanks to Straits Times.)

Budget Terminal

Another trip, to the Budget Terminal.

So different from the rest. Like a mall in the suburbs.

Boxing Day

A get-together, old friends and new, old teams and new.

Catching up, over food and drinks.

In between running after the kiddies.

So good to see them all.

Family Warmth

Wine, food and family.

Celebrating 23 years of union.

Basking in family warmth, as the cool wind blew.

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Who stole the Fisherman's fish?

The Fisherman, he sat by the pond, with his rod and fish.

The Fisherman, he sat under the shade, secure on the elephant stand.

The Fisherman, quietly he fished, under the shade.

Yet, before we knew it, his fish was gone. Together with the rod.

We spied ...

his fish, a porcelain golden yellow, lying at the bottom of the pond.

Who stole the Fisherman's fish?

Who tried to eat it, the porcelain fish?

From Abundance to Dainty Smallness

From the abundant dishes in Guangzhou, to the dainty but tiny portions in Crystal Jade Xiao Long Bao restaurant.

Three "wo tie", lightly fried and elegantly placed on a dolly - a dish for four.

Fried rice in a small wok-like plate. Enough for three small bowls.

东坡肉 in a pot half the size of what we had in Guangzhou.

Back to reality!

Sandwich Machine!

A sandwich-dispensing machine! What an invention!

(Seen in SGH A&E. Standing next to the drink-dispensing machine. What a welcome sight it must be to tired relatives and friends.)

吃在广州

The majestic grandeur of Beijing, the seat of government and power;
The bustling competitiveness of Shanghai, the city of commerce and financial might;
The poetic beauty of Hangzhou, with its West Lake (the West Lake);
The familiarity of Suzhou - a lesson we should not forget;
The hustle and bustle of Guangzhou, its wholesale markets, the incessant rattle of trolleys (big and small) carrying goods around, the traffic ... and the food and the interesting knick-knacks.
Yet another Beijing Road, in Guangzhou itself.
Much like the Nanking Street of Shanghai and that in Beijing.
Hustle and bustle, very much alive and competiting.

At times, one wished for a quiet moment, for blue skies, wide open spaces and blue waters.
Like in Down Under.

Bye Bye, Guangzhou!

Goodbye, Guangzhou! Home sweet home!

Service standards

Spaced-out waitress, brusque Service. But very helpful concierce. Service standards still some way to go . Yes, siree, we are still competitive!

Clouds over river

The morning clouds gather, above the river, as the Sun signals the start of the day. Pristine white, the clouds are, as work begins for the day.

Black bags

Black bags, garbage bags, one thought . Everyone carrying them around. Strange. One wondered. Till one went to the shops . For shopping bags these were! happy retail therapy. And chilling out over iced mocha.

Guangzhou by night

Beijing Road . . .

. . . In Guangzhou! Lighted up for the season .

Good morning, Guangzhou!

The Sun rises , calling on the boats and all to start work for the day.

An Eclipse

Respite In the Crowd

Weeks to Christmas, malls overflowing with crowds.

People rushing, rushing for discounts, rushing for deals.

Hordes of them, our armies of people.

After the queues, a brief respite in a coffee joint,

sipping tea, relishing toast (even with the sinful butter slice).

Satisfied - with the tea and toast, and the shopping!

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Affordable pasta

Affordable pasta - now at Bukit Timah Plaza. Salami pizza that's delicious. :)

Hawker Fare

A trip to Katong, then a sojurn to Old Airport Road, trying the hawker fare there.

Delicious char kway teow, good green curry, tasty beef soup (with bean sprouts) ...

... and the yummy chilled soya bean curd (www.facebook.com/laobansoya) , the stall with the long queue. :D

C I R C L E, c i r c l e, circle

Circle, circle, circle.

The little kiddies playing happily,

each seeing the other, everyone seeing the picture,

their innocent laughter ringing through the village.

Circle, circle, circle.

The circle gets smaller, like in musical chairs, one chair removed each round.

Smaller and smaller, the circle gets, as each chair - and kiddie - is removed.

Smaller, smaller and smaller.

Smaller, smaller, smaller and even smaller.

Till only the special ones remain.

The special ones who get special nurturing, who get to be know-alls.

The peals of innocent laughter cease; the village chatter withers.

Each kiddie in his own little cottage, his view only of his own little garden plot.

Like a frog in a well, going deeper and deeper into the well.

Only the wise ones see the larger landscape, the bigger horizon;

only they can see, those in the ultimate inner circles.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Happy Sunday

Happy Sunday ...

finding another stall selling yong tau fu noodle, though in another place.

(But not as good though as the one with long queue in Chinatown.)

Happy Sunday ...

Giving the annual bath to the bears, doggie and koala bear, seeing them emerge clean and back to original colours.

Then having mee sua, with meat balls and liver, for lunch.

Happy Sunday ...

gardening, seeing the plants grow, pottering around, as the koi swam close, mouths wide open.

Happy Sunday ...

sipping tea, slurping soft-boiled egg, nibbling on toast bread ... heavenly!

Happy Sunday, restful Sunday, happy indeed!

In a Rut

The beautiful rose, with so much potential;

A blooming bud, blossoming as its petals unfurl.

Will it bloom to its full potential, one wonders.

When it's caught in a rut, its roots held captive in the vase;

its leaves hemmed in.

In a rut, cut off from goings-on around it;

isolated from happenings,

moving further and further from the epicentre.

How to bloom to its full potential?

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spaghetti on a Sunday

Gardens By The Bay ... A November Preview

A brief preview. Together with the World Orchid Conference.

Wide open space. Dome-shaped hothouses with plants, miniature and big, flowers, large and small.

Throngs of people, young and old, going for a look. To enjoy, and partake of the view.

Together. As a Family.

Meeting up, catching up, keeping up with each other.

How've you been doing, my dear?

Time together. As a family.

Growing Up

Why did the doors close on us?

The kiddies turned back. Then they proceeded down the aisle. As they must have rehearsed before.

Then came the bridesmaid. Then another.

Finally the bride and her father.

Memories of a young carefree girl, ever active, always rushing off to her tennis games. Cheerful and friendly.

And a little brother, chubby and stocky, playing basketball, often hitting into the neighbours' gardens.

Now all grown up.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dinner

A full dinner.

把江山送走吧

No, no, no.
This doesn't work; that doesn't work; everything doesn't work.
Close this, close that; close everything lah!

Coming up against a wall - give up? Or find a way around it?
Or create another plot? Adapt and evolve.
Everything can't do. Where's the can-do spirit?

不，不，不， 不如把江山送走吧！

A kind of Hush

A kind of hush, all over the kingdom.

A quietness pregnant with loudness,

as the roar of the lion is heard no more.

A kind of hush, all over the place.

Now like any other place.

Without the volcanic passion of conviction,

without the eagle-like far-sightedness,

ready to pounce on fake solutions.

A kind of hush, a kind of quietness ...

... now in hibernation, but ready to be awakened and catalysed.

A re-visit; A last visit

The same windows, the same doors, even the same door knobs. The same steps, the same stairs, the same ambience. The understated old charm, the acquired snob appeal.

Back to the Gilmour Room, five years hence. Five years from the last retreat, the last - and farewell - retreat, before the blossomed plot was given up to a conglomerate takeover.

Five years hence, another farewell, this time of an icon.

Savouring the ambience, indulging in the memories, knowing there be no more privileged access, knowing it's the last visit.

Fare thee well, au revoir, sayonara!

Conclusion to weekend

Brownie with ice-cream. A fitting conclusion to a long weekend.

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Long Weekend

A restful weekend and Monday public holiday.

Time for running errands;

time for swift retail therapy;

time for garden therapy,

arranging pots of plants, spraying them, feeding fertiliser, trimming them for the holiday season ...

time for portering around the nurseries, looking for plant ideas, restful even if exposed to the scorching sun.

Time for a roti prata breakfast, oily but good.

Time out for a cooling drink but the coconut drink was not to be ...

... just some liquid, no coconut ... wonder if we'd been had! =_=

Rose Bear

Adorable bears with rose-patterned fur!

A New Flower

A new flower blooms. A new beginning.

~ The Sun and its Glow ~

The Sun, high up in the sky,
so visionary, so far-sighted,
paving paths no one else could see,
making strategic connections no one else could imagine.

The Sun, the Almighty,
courted by those below,
the ambitious, and all.

The Sun, the head honcho,
casting its glow around, kind as always,
giving warmth even to the undeserving.
Always rising in the East, and setting in the West,
giving priority to one, fading off in another,
leaving the faithfully diligent to strive hard,

and suffer under the wicked.

The Sun,
looked up to by all, much loved by most.
Fighting for the wannabes below,
leaving the diligent out in the cold.

The Sun,

oh so brilliant, yet so warm to the blazenly rotten.

Integrity to the winds! One's well sheltered in the sunlight.

The Sun,
rising in the East and setting in the West,
taking its glow to warm households.
The little loyal elves look up with glad sadness,

and wish it well, even if with hurt in their little elvy hearts.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

sunshine wish

A baby born

After about one year, the "baby" is born ...

Left Unwritten

A scrapbook of memories. Full of messages - some polite wishes, some platitudes, some heartfelt wishes. One message, short in words, standing by itself on a page, spartan if not for the decoration kindly placed by the organiser.
The message, in a few lines, but laden with unwritten feelings, expressed partially in the verbal intro.
What the message could have been ... ;)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Like Golf Kinship

Golf on the course, shadows long as the day wore on.

Tired but energised from the camaraderie,

camaraderie of being together,

father and son.

Not golf but meals - lunches and dinners.

Networking, collaboration.

He with his beef steak; me with my sushi and miso soup.

Talking, discussing issues of the day.

He with his masala tea; me with my English tea.

The sense of camaraderie as strong,

strong enough to draw me back.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

a simple lunch ...

A simple lunch, we thought we'd have ...

pyramid

A pyramid of rice!

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Cementing for Long Term

The houses stand sturdy, solid in the sunlight.

Built on strong foundation, solid and hard.

Yet, time and harsh weather wait for no man.

Awashed and eroded, even strong foundations can be,

when the founder's gone.

So cement, cement, cement hard and fast;

strengthen the foundation, deepen the links,

widen the boundaries ...

And leave strong word to care for the worthy.

Rain, heavy rain

Rain, heavy rain. Pouring down from above.

Rain, heavy rain, gushing down the drains. An avalanche from above.

The heavens crying. In sadness or in mirth? In despair or in joy?

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The Thunder of the Pouring Rain

It poured. Like barrels of water, splashing relentless on the roads, drenching the drains, flooding the fields.

Heavily it poured this afternoon. Like the Heavens opened up. As if the Heavens were weeping, weeping copiously.

Connecting the dots; how important.

Connecting the dots differently, a different model, in this new normal.

Blind to the connecting, blind to the connectors, blind even to some dots.

Like some Greek mythology of goddesses or gods being blinded for not connecting.

The rain ceased. Ceased too the zest. Deadened. Washed out.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Friendliness Reset

A fresh wind; a welcomed wind.

Hello and goodbye restored.

A renewed friendliness in the air.

Purifier needed, to reset to an olde-new normal.

A welcomed reset.

So Touched :)

A division of labour; one to the florist, the other to the baker.

In our mind ... am so touched.

A gift of goodies, specially delivered, as always.

In our mind ... thank you for remembering, am so touched.

Text messages, all bearers of good wishes.

In our mind ... am so touched.

An invitation to the pantry (but meeting's at Rendezvous!) ...

... a cake awaits; faithful singing, kind wishes.

In our mind ... am so touched.

Really touched :)

Work, Life or Balance

One day in a long while, one day on leave.
One day in a vacation, a long while since the last.
One day in a year, time needed for family errands.
Yet, yet ... like a leech, Work clings.
Even as one is out with Life, trying to enjoy "dim sum".

Where is Balance?

One cries, one's heart feeling like an elastic band stretched,

and stretched, and stretched.

One wants to run away with Balance; if only Balance could be found.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~