Sunday morning at The Arts House

We spent a lovely Sunday morning at The Arts House as the girls had their quarterly art trip there. I didn’t even know there’s such a place as The Arts House! The last time I was around the area was during the launch of the National Family Celebrations at the start of the June school hols! It’s a nice place...full of history...old buildings...
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The girls looking very happy to be out and about!

We met the rest at The Arts House and waited for half an hour longer than the expected time. Apparently, quite a few of the other children, or their parents rather, had bailed out as they were ‘sick’! Even two of the teachers can’t make it. No matter. Parents were there to help out. The children were first given a briefing by the founder of the school who irritated me by repeatedly saying, “chewren” so many times! OMG!
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The ‘chewren’ listening attentively to the founder of the arts school...

After the short briefing we proceeded to Victoria Concert Hall. The children were to draw the building while seated in the front lawn. Although it was a hot and humid morning, the lush trees fronting the grand old building provided us with shade and the occasional breeze a bit of relief. Being old hands at external arts events, we had brought along out ‘camou’ mat and plonked ourselves under a tree that would provide us with the most shade!

Raffles kept watch over us!

Adik started off by crying because the ‘principal’ approached her and egged her on to start...quite insistently too I might add! Adik is the sort who takes a while to warm up but after she does there’s no stopping her! After she had ‘made’ her cry, the ‘principal’ called Adik’s teacher over to soothe her. Quite persistently so too. So the poor teacher had to stop whatever she was doing to pop over to see what was happening. All the while I was observing all this with much amusement! She ended up helping Adik. She needn’t had done that actually for Adik is quite independent. Kakak on the other hand, had to be ‘encouraged’ to try her best. I did my level best to sketch the building to show her that it’s not too hard after all. A teacher walked past and commented, “Wah! Daddy can draw!”...Duh... Kakak did well too and finished her drawing in time. When it was time to announce the winner for each category, I knew Adik would clinch the top prize as her drawing was the most ‘artistic’! The last time we had the same art trip to the fire-station she was so confident that she would win that I was afraid that she would be disappointed if she didn’t! Surely that’s the quality of a champion! Adik’s I mean...not mine!!! Suffice to say, Adik clinched the top prize in her category for the second time! Kudos to you girl! Although Kakak didn’t win anything, she understood that she had to try harder and that she could do better... Anyway, the important thing was the girls had fun in the process! After drawing, we chased butterflies and took some pictures at the fountain.
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In full concentration...


​Adik managed to calm down after a while.

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Adik and her art teacher, Jasmine

Teaser shot!

A teaser shot of our latest holiday... ;)

When I was a YSL...

When I was a YSL
Thinking that life was swell
I would assault up hills with ease
Running up them was such a breeze

I tried to assault up those hills again
But was myself assaulted with pain
My aching legs and heart that burned
Reminded me that I was no longer a Young Second Lieutenant!

Of Facebook, the Army, Education, Journeys & Adventure!

I blame the dearth in blog updates to - among other things - Facebook! But updating my blog gives me a sense of stepping back and to - quoting from my own favourite quote - stand and stare. Facebook status updates are the quick updates one does to just 'let off steam' but to update here takes more thought and effort, I think. For me, not many know of the existence of this blog so it's somewhat 'private'...as private as a public blog could be I guess...but you know what I mean... Forgive me for my ramblings but I'm at work now (yeah, yeah, it's about 2325hrs on a Friday night) with reports to vet, reports to write and exercises to plan. So just taking a break...

2nd May 2009 was a significant day for me. That was the day I had been in the Army longer than I have not. Geddit? That day, I had served the nation for 18 years 4 months 13 days versus being a civilian for 18 years 4 months 12 days! I'm a sucker for this kind of tracking. I track my talktime, I track my receipts, I track my weight, I track my runs, I track my movement using my GPSr, I track the flight numbers of all the flights I have ever taken, I track flight times, I track distance, etc... Anyway, with today's announcement (actually we knew about it much earlier) that officers are retiring at 50, I would be in the Army for more than 32 years if I choose to retire at 50!!! Wow! Then I would have to be alive for at least another 14 years to beat back the record of being a civilian more than being in the Army...confused? Hah! Told you I just dig this kind of tracking. Anyway, a wise general told us about the 30:20 ratio for long term planning. Meaning that one marries and gets a kid by 30 and by the time one retires at 50, the kid would be 20. In Singapore's context, that would mean finishing tertiary education...

Talking about education...The FD just finished her SA1 just now. Three papers since Wednesday - English, Maths, Mother Tongue. Ha...Mother Tongue! Back in the days, we used to called it 2nd Language but I guess Mother Tongue is more appropriate now! Anyway, being first time parents with a kid facing exams, we were naturally 'excited'! Being Singaporeans, we had naturally scouted for past assessment papers to let her 'practise' all three papers. "Eee...so kiasu one!", some would say...Wait till you have your own kid facing the exams lor...This is called 'bo-pian'. Anyway, we of course try not to pressure her. We encourage her to try her best. We have seen great improvements in her MT. Used to be that she refused to have anything to do with it but kids being kids, when they see their friends do certain things, they don't want to be left out. There's a positive and negative side to it of course but I guess this peer pressure has helped the FD in wanting to improve her MT. Incidentally, I'm amazed at the kinds of material that are provided to support our kids in their educational journey. There's LEAP, there's ROAR, there' Learning Journeys, tons of other supporting materials. It's no wonder that kids are so much smarter these days. Anway, although there are CAs and SAs in place as a benchmark on their progress, to me, the journey is AS if not MORE important than the destination. It's no use if a kid can score high but did not enjoy the learning, and worse, becomes turned off by the whole process. I believe the best form of motivation is self-motivation and the desire to excel and to better oneself. This would put one in good stead throughout life. This, incidentally was what today's khutbah Juma'at was about - delivered in English at Al-Khair Mosque! Take for example, the FD's piano lessons. There were many times when she wanted to give up. But we encouraged her to perservere and to keep on trying. To me it's not so much learning the instrument but the life lessons it would teach her along the way that is more important. And if along the way, she picks up a musical skill, all the better. It was always difficult for her after learning a new piece. But each time I would try to guide her and tell her that what at first may seem difficult would get easier if only she tries harder. And each week when she has mastered a particular piece, she would feel a sense of accomplishment. It got to the point that she would practise on her own just to be better. You can't put a price to that! And she came home one day glowing with pride as she had gotten 3 stars from her piano teacher who said "bagus"! A little bit of praise and motivation can go a long way... So, to all teachers and educators out there reading this (I know at least 2...3 including the husband of one of the 2!), you guys have an important role to play to nurture and inspire the future of our nation! I have played many roles in the course of my career before and hands down the most fulfilling was when I was given the honour and privilege to lead, motivate and inspire my men. To turn them from boys to men. And when I was in OCS as an instructor, to turn civilians to officers who carry themselves with pride, honour and integrity. It wasn't easy but after 10 months of hard training and seeing these cadets standing on the parade square dedicating their lives in defending Singapore in front of the President, it was worth it...and it always brings a lump to my throat.

Next up for the FD is her Madrasah exams. Specifically Sirah and Fiqh. We're helping her revise these two subjects and coming up with mock test papers because obviously we can't find past years' papers of them! I'm coming up with a simple mind map for her complete with colourful pictures to help her remember! Then slowly but surely letting her do her own mindmaps. I use mindmaps for every aspects of my life. Planning events, self-reflection, taking notes, studying, etc. It's very useful for me but may not be for someone else. It's good for quick revision for an upcoming exam or test. I used it for my recent exam on 12th May. My path for this part of my educational journey is almost over! 10 more credits to go! With the SAF encouraging more of its officers to pursue their education, I will go for another degree in another field and may even get a masters. Why am I doing this? Partly for self-actualisation (Maslow's topmost level in the pyramid!), partly to prove that I can do it and partly to inspire my daughters. To show them that learning is live-long. And I've truly enjoyed my learning journey so far...

And someone who has accompanied me on my journeys all along is of course my better half...Among other things, she has accompanied me in my runs. Kudos to you, sayang, for trying your best! We are participating in upcoming local runs as our objective. Nothing like working together towards a common goal... We've also starting playing badminton as a family. Went to Mustapha Centre the other day and bought 4 badminton rackets. We had a raucous time playing near our place that day. Shuttlecock ke mana, racket ke mana. But at least we had fun and a good work-out with the girls! Once the girls are big enough, we'll bring them for runs...Their Nya'i used to be quite the athlete in her Raffles days right Mak?!? :)

Ah, the ATEC Adventure Club (which we coined while waiting for the bumboat back to the mainland from Pulau Ubin, for lack of a better name) had its inaugural trip to Pulau Ubin a while ago. Although it was mainly made up of avid photographers from ATEC, we didn't want to make it seem like a photography outing! It was a good ride all the way to Chek Jawa followed by the tongue-dragging, butt-cramping bash up to the summit. The guys were cursing at me for 'forcing' them to climb all the way up! They left their bikes halfway up while I carried mine (it was a personal one while the rest were rented!) till the top. The view was worth the climb. Over-looking the pristine abandoned quarry... We plan to go to Pengerang, Gunung Ledang and Mount Kinabalu next though not necessarily in that order... There are even plans to go to Bhutan and who knows one day we may even catch a glimpse of the 'roof of the world'...

OK, that's enough updating for now...it's almost 0100hrs... gotta look for the 'kiak-kiak' bed (that's the sound the bed makes when one unfolds it!) to 'koon' soon... gonna collect the race pack for next week's race with the wifey tomorrow! Catch you guys soon...

Far too long...

As I stand here staring into the distant seas

The simmering lights far below caught my eyes

As I stand here freezing in the cold night breeze

The very thought of you makes me feel nice!

I've been away from you for far too long

Yet my feelings for you are ever so strong

I'm glad that you're in my life

I love you dear, my darling wife

Life So Fragile...

The fragility of life is once again brought to bear

When a buddy had an unfortunate meeting with fate

On the hills of Lim Chu Kang, we used to sit, stare and share

We were quite close then, both me and my mate

I will always remember the cars he had

His streetwise ways is not easy to forget

His presence lights up any room

Talking to him will chase away any gloom

We used to stare at the stars over Areas A, B and C

Waiting for the NSmen and for time to pass

Over hot drinks we kept each other company 

And talked about things that are close to us

Farewell to you my friend

Farewell to you my buddy

My thoughts and prayers are with you

Rest well dear Azmi

Of long queues, shopping and gatherings

I am ‘writing’ this entry while queuing up at the bank. Having a mobile broadband internet connection makes queuing up a lesser waste of time! I can check the many news sites that I subscribe to, looking up information is a breeze with apps like rednano, plusmo and wapedia (the mobile version of Wikipedia), hooking up with friends via MSN, Yahoo or Google Talk through ebuddy is also not a problem as is religiously checking out FaceBook. Checking out the blogs that I am a fan of is also a breeze. In fact, I don’t queue as often as I did mostly due to the advent of technology. Now one can do virtually everything online whether it’s from the comforts of one’s home or on the move with the many available gadgets around. I remember waiting in queues at the bus stops or even taking long bus or MRT rides and doing most of my readings then. So why am I queuing now? Well, some things you just have to queue at the bank...

I was just talking to another buddy of mine the other day in camp and we shared the same thoughts. Why is it that I tire out easily when going shopping but can last throughout the night going long distances while I am on exercise? Ah, for those who may not know, ‘exercise’ here does not mean exercising one’s body as in going for runs or hitting the gym. Here it means ‘training exercise’...Anyway, this buddy of mine had the same experience as me and I suspect many more of my buddies feel it too! Is it just us men or men in the army in particular?!? I mean, I can walk through the jungle (we don’t usually use the word ‘jungle’ here in Singapore to refer to our training area since they are mostly ex-vegetable plots! But when you talk to ‘civilians’, using the word jungle gives them a better idea! To us, jungle would be like those found in Brunei...now, that’s what I would call a jungle...), anyway, I can walk in the ‘jungle’ throughout the night without sleep and still be fresh in the morning. But once when I hit the concrete jungles of Orchard Road, I like cannot tahan long! Even in the air-con comfort of the malls... Maybe if I put on my jungle hat, carry my tongkat (this is a combination walking and sitting stick that I always carry in the ‘field’. Here again, ‘field’ does not mean the wide open field that people play in. What civilians refer to as the ‘jungle’ here in Singapore, we refer to as the ‘field’. Geddit?) and put on my No.4, I can last longer! Why ah?

There were gatherings galore over the CNY weekend. It started with a BBQ at Nyai Bik As house (now that’s a confusing term for those uninitiated but what to do...In the first place, pangkat si Asiah to me is cousin but since young I’ve been calling her Bik As, then my kids pulak call her Nyai...so...) on Sunday attended by some 35 people! Banyak kan?!?! It was supposed to be something small...just a few trays of food that’s all. But small just don’t dig it with my family. So it became a full blown BBQ with roaring fire, tons of food and games too! Games was requesting by Aqilah for me to organise. A bit last minute for me but I dig last minute! Came up with quite decent games that involved young and old. I hope everyone enjoyed them although I lost my voice a bit. It ended way past mid-night. We even celebrated Cik Lah’s birthday. Cool!

The next gathering happened the next day on Monday. A gathering of cousins and kids at West Coast Park. We participated in the time-honoured camping-at-a-park-during-CNY bit! The plan was to stay overnight but semua macam tak larat gitu. The usual suspects descended upon WCP on a windy, cloudy afternoon sans Boboy and family who wanted to Batam-ised their bundle of bubbly cuteness. As usual, the whole place was full of people since the malls were like ghost towns. Kites dotted the skies, blue tents popped up like mushrooms and the playground was full of kids. We plonked ourselves near the sand pit and the 4 kids plus Dennis the Menace promptly made themselves at home in (and I mean IN!) the sand! There was to be a partial eclipse of the sun but with the cloudy skies, it wasn’t that obvious. Furthermore, the maximum coverage happened at about 1749hrs which was nearly twilight anyway so...not much difference. I think not many people were aware of it anyway! I brought some stuff and we played dodgeball in the sand. It was great fun and everyone got sweaty and sandy. Pak Bonyo and clan came by bearing murtabak! And gamely joined in our next game which was rounders/baseball. You should have seen the Pak Bonyo and Cik Jamilah flying and diving into the sand! Bakat terpendam sey! After that we played Twister, Mentalogy and told ghost stories till about 0100hrs when we wearily trooped back to our cars with sleepy kids in tow!

The last ‘unexpected’ gathering happened the very next day! With the usual suspects. Hai, muka engkau jugak! It was to be a karaoke outing but I suggested karaoke-ing at my place and it was soon flooded with crooning ladies and sleepy babies! The usual tidbits and drinks were prepared and I took out my entire karaoke collection for the guests to sing along to. Ada orang tu mula-mula cakap lagu-lagu untuk orang-orang tua tapi at last nyani those songs jugak! Oh, ada orang Perancis tu dating untuk berenang...tak dengar dia nyanyi pun! Just before going back, sempat jugak si Farah dan Julie main si Wii...berpeluh-peluh di buat nya!

Till the next gathering then guys...

What was the most FUN you had?

Ok dah…dah lama tak blog ni… Tadi terbaca blog adik ipar aku (aku ada dua adik-ipar, tekalah sape yang blog!) dia kata boring dah pergi blog yang tak updated. So I oso dowan to be like the rest of you who has a blog but don’t update them!

Most people who has not blogged for a while will say things like “a lot has been happening in my life that I have no time to blog” or “hmmm, it’s been a while since I’ve blogged…where to start?” but I’ll try to resist that.

It’s about 0135hrs early Sunday morning…the SD is sleeping at my feet while my BH is to my right. The FD is sleeping soundly in her room. This is the second time the SD has walked to my room after I had sent her back to her room. I’ll carry her again to her room after this…She doesn’t sleep as soundly as her sister…so this walking to my room and me carrying her back to her room goes on every night…I can’t remember the last time I had 7 hours UNINTERRUPTED sleep! So those of you who have younger kids with irregular sleeping habits, good luck if you don’t train them NOW! Anyway, my years of ‘training’ allowed me to sufficiently survive on a minimum of 4 to 5 hours of sleep.

I’ve just gone through with the BH a detailed schedule of our girls’ daily timetable from the time they wake-up till the time they go to bed. From what time they eat breakfast, their rest time, playtime and study time. They will sleep a minimum of 10 hours everyday. The latest bedtime is at 2100hrs EVERYDAY including Saturdays and Sundays. We feel that it is important to have a structure and routine built into their lives. Time management is something one is never too young to learn. Of course we are flexible and will see how they are coping with their schedule. But hey, those who fail to plan, plan to fail right?!?

We crossed a major milestone in our lives as parents. The FD crossed into the realm of primary school 3 days ago. Awww…my little girl…so big already…sometimes I can’t believe that this tall, gangly girl used to be someone I can carry easily in my arms as I cuddle her to sleep…sob…sob… So parents, treasure your kids at EVERY stage of their lives… there’s no going back… that’s part of the reason why I am a stickler (and my BH too) at trying to ‘document’ every significant and not so significant moments my girls have gone through be it in pictures or moving images. I must have taken thousands of photos and many hours of footage of my girls since the day they were born.

When I finally go back to work on Monday, I would have been away from it for 25 days!!! That will be like the longest time I’ve been away from work since I joined the military many, many, many moons ago! “Wah so long ah? So rileks ah?”, some would say. Ah, but one must know the kind of training we have been through the whole year! Many overseas training away from loved ones, many local night training again away from loved ones with little sleep and rest. So, yes, I think we deserved our long break…

It has been a good 3 weeks spent with my loved ones. We believe we have created many happy memories for our girls in those three weeks. And we certainly had lots and lots of fun! Taking care of 5 kids for a few days was fun! A’Famosa, with some 25 of us all there, was fun! Korea was cold…and FUN! Guitar Hero was tiring for the fingers, but FUN! St John’s Island was FUN in the SUN! Spending time with the BH while the girls were taken care of by our parents was FUN! Going for our spa session was fun! Going cycling with the girls was fun! Swimming whenever we could at our pool was fun! Eating our sushis, pizzas, ice-cream, satays, kimchis, etc was FUN! Going ‘prawning’ with the girls was FUN! Playing with my one and only niece and nephew was FUN! Getting shot at and shooting at others during paintball was FUN! Water World with its awesome slides was FUN! Go-karting with the girls and getting oh-so-muddy and dirty was FUN! Playing the wii as a family was FUN! Regaling my girls with tales from the Faraway Tree was FUN! Having a blast at Mind Café was FUN! Most of all, just spending time with the family was the most FUN of all…just being there with them…The simplest pleasures are always the best…

Of Rocky Town and bears!

Was on the flight back home from Rockhampton the other day. After we had gone through security and were waiting at the boarding gate (it's not really a gate lah, just a place we had to wait before boarding...) we had 2 whole hours before the flight. Hmm... what to do for 2 whole hours!?! I know... Let's introduce the "Bear Game" to my colleagues!

This game is known by various other names. You can read about it here... . I first learnt about it while observing a group of Hotel cadets with some instructors sitting in a Starbucks joint somewhere in southern Taiwan back in '06! I was curious since there were periods when they would be totally quiet and other times when there would be riotous conversation! Intrigued, I approached on of the section instructors there and asked about the game. Long story short, I introduced the game during one of my Monthly Cousins Gathering and there was no turning back!!! We played from about 2200hrs till 0300hrs!! Other groups I have introduced this game to was during my CSC when I taught my syndicate how to play it. Also during one of the long Chinese wedding dinners when my table played it! In all cases, there would be ernest (ernest being an understatement!) conversation in trying to vote off the "bear".

So you can imagine the scene that ensued when I introduced this game to the Chief (he gamely played it, good guy!), Mite, Lionel, Oh Kok, the Doc, Jason, Masih, Chung Wai and Kar Boon. The usually quiet waiting lounge was punctuated by our laughter, eager accusations and constant bluffing! We came away knowing how to read our friends' body-language better! We managed to play 2 full games (it was a tie!) with the 3rd game hanging in the balance when we reluctantly dragged ourselves to the waiting aircraft after the announcement was made! Some even wanted to continue playing in the aircraft!!! Talk about being 'enthu'!!!

Boardgames galore!

The next MCG is coming up soon. Just to whet everyone's appetite and to 'encourage' the rest to come, here are some of the boardgames which I bought when I went to Aussieland recently. We'll definitely be testing them out!

1. iMAgiNiff

2. Apples to Apples

3. Pass the Bomb

4. Mentalogy

5. Articulate

So for those who have not indicated your response, please do so in our Facebook MCG Group. See you guys this Saturday! Now I gotta hit the books...Exams in less than 24hrs!

Hello from Down Under...

Yep folks...after less than 4 months, I'm back again Down Under! Am reporting live from Rockhampton Town in an internet cafe there... We managed to get the day off!! Can't report much as I'm paying $2 for 10mins of surfing! Pics shown are of my first wild kangaroo which happened to be there along the airstrip that I was running on! And that's me in my tent! GTG...will report back soon!

The Magic Faraway Tree

I grew up on books by Enid Blyton (interestingly, I always thought the author's name was Gnid Blyton...yah what, just look at the name on the book cover!), books like The Famous Five (interestingly, there were five of us cousins who used to hang out together during the school holidays. Boys around my age. And we used to think we were the Famous Five and had great adventures together! We even had a tree house somewhere in Telok Blangah Hill...but that's fodder for another story ok?) and of course The Magic Faraway Tree. I loved the Magic Faraway Tree and would eagerly 'devour' each installment! Of late I had been regaling the FD with tales from the Faraway Tree complete with characters whom I have grown up with (with help of sites like these of course!). But since my Enid Blyton books are long gone (wonder what happened to them?) and I can't seem to find any copies of it on the net, I had to make up the stories as I went along. Every night for bedtime story, I would crack my head to come up with different lands that 'visits' the Faraway Tree...places like "The Land of Do-As-You-Please", "The Land of Magic", "The Upside Down Land", "The Land of the Little People" and "The Land of the Giants"!!! And I would try to end each session with a 'cliff-hanger' so that the FD will keep asking for more! So she has grown familiar with Joe, Beth, Frannie, Moonface and many other such characters. But nothing beats getting hold of the actual books and I have been searching for it ever since. I asked Popular but it was out of stock. Even Borders. I even tried eBay Singapore but no joy. I tried Borders UK and hit jackpot! But they only deliver to a local address...so, since I have cousins visiting there now (they should be back anytime soon right?), I thought, what the heck, see if they can accept the delivery at whatever address they are staying. I'll settle the rest, no worries. So I emailed them more than a week ago. But I waited like fruit-never-fall! Maybe they're busy with the wedding. Never mind. Where there's a will, there's a way right?!

So just now, since I got back slightly early from work, we decided to get the SD a new swim wear just like her sister's. The one that is long-sleeved so that she won't turn blue during her swimming lessons that she's starting next week! So we trudged down to Tanglin Mall to the swim shop there to get her a blue size 6 suit. Looks kinda big but we're pragmatic! Not cheap I tell ya...I don't have shirts that expensive!! But her sister's had lasted this long so it's worth it! We then headed to Far East Plaza to break fast at Ramen Ten and also because there's a second hand bookshop we wanna check out. After booking a place at Ramen Ten we went to Sunny Bookshop on the 4th floor. I asked the man there to direct me to books by Enid Blyton. There was disappointingly a few books by her but I when looked closer, I found the book that I was looking for!!! And it was a 3-in-1 special, as thick as JRR Tolkien's books! The 4 of us gave a collective cheer of delight!!! Yay!!! I've been re-united with a long lost 'friend' and Kakak will finally get to read what I've read many many many moons ago...

We're going digital, sir!

Ah...it's 'official' at last! The actual uniform came out in the Straits Times today. Front page no less! It was reported in the Straits Times a few weeks ago but I guess they couldn't get hold of the actual attire then so they just showed the ones used by the US Military. A more detailed report is carried by CyberPioneer.

During exercises, I've seen some personnel wearing it as part of T&E (Trial & Evaluation). All I can say is that it takes some getting use to! 

Oh, I'm not saying I'm 'old' or anything but I've been in uniform since the 'Temasek Green' era! (The one shown in the extreme right) But that was during my NCC days! There was a transition to the then 'new' camouflaged No.4 when I was in Sec 4, I think. It seems that I'll have a chance to wear all 3 generations of uniforms! In any case, we are all eagerly waiting for the 'digital' uniform  to roll out. Expect to see me in it by early next year!

Nokia Internet Radio

I've been a subscriber to Singtel's Broadband on Mobile for a couple of months now. At 22 bucks a month, I get a 50GB download limit (which I don't think is easy to burst if all one does is checking email and surf the occasional blog) and the ability to surf the net from anyway in Singapore, even in the field! With a single push of my mail button on my Nokia E51, I get to check my email. Updating Facebook Mobile is a matter of selecting the Explorer icon. But the application I just downloaded makes having a Mobile Broadband all the more worth it! I'm talking about Internet Radio! I've been looking and testing some of these software for quite a while but they didn't quite make the mark. But this particular one works quite well! And with stations from SHOUTcast streaming via my E51, I can now bring my sermons, talks, baroque music, jazz, bossa nova wherever I go! I am now looking for a cable which lets me output audio from my E51 out to any Audio In port. Then I can listen to thousands of stations in my Stream! And even at work...Cool!

Oh, you don't really need a Broadband on Mobile account to receive the stations. As long as you have a WLAN at home (which most people nowadays do), you just tap into your own network and voila! you're in!

Also, give SHOUTcast a try. Search for any stations in the "Search for" box and you'll be presented with the stations that you want. Just click 'Tune In' to listen to the stations!

Enjoy...

That which is measured improves...

Something to share with my brothers and sisters. I stumbled upon the Heartwheel Journal while surfing the Islam Channel. Here's the explanation on its use. If you are someone who always sets goals to achieve a desired outcome, this Journal will certainly help! Happy Journalling...

This life is temporary and we are departing...

For those who thinks that the internet has nothing more to offer than the usual blogs, emails and games, think again!

As I'm typing this at 0420hrs in the morning (time for sahur soon), I've been listening to a 75min podcast on Part 2 of the Incentives of Tauba from Get Islamic Podcasts. I got it from the iTunes Store actually and was led to that website. There are tons of podcasts out there that are beneficial both spiritually and intellectually. As in anything on the internet, you just gotta discern the gems from the flotsam and jetsam. So, here's another use for your MP3 players. Instead of just listening to mindless music on your commute to work, download these podcasts to fill your journey with knowledge!

And something I got for myself during my birthday has opened up another use of my broadband! I can 'receive' up 10,000 radio stations on the internet from 'Holy Quran Radio' in Palestine to 'Bossa Nova Jazz' from Sky.fm to Baroque music from the US. And you don't even need a PC to do it! There's also a ticker-tape like news updates scrolling across the screen. You can subscribe to RSS feeds to sites that you like. I've even subscribed to this blog! It's like the coolest gadget I got for myself this year!

The wife is awake now...preparing for sahur...gotta go soon...something I took away from the sarahan so far is that "this life is temporary and we are departing..." and "work for this world as if you will live forever and work for the hereafter as if you are going to depart tomorrow"...

About the first fast...

The FD tried her hand at fasting since the first day of Ramadhan. She gamely woke up for sahur with us although getting her to wake up at 0445hrs is a bit of a challenge. But she finally did and finished her food in good time. Since it was the school hols, we let her sleep in slightly longer after that. The SD however was wide awake at 7 plus and was wondering why her ibu and kakak were still sleeping! The wife told me later that when adik was having her breakfast of toasted bread, kakak wanted to have some but she endured after she was reminded that she was fasting. Well, she finally broke fast at about 1300hrs and I congratulated her on her 'first' puasa! Anyway, she had a swimming lesson shortly after that so it was just as well she broke her fast... Yesterday, (yes, yes, it's really 0338hrs on Wednesday morning!) she did the same thing but it was slightly easier to wake her up for sahur since she slept at about 2100hrs. Again she broke fast at about 1300hrs. She had another swimming lesson too. Come to think of it, she's eating more when fasting than not! Sahur she eats a lot, she eats her lunch when she breaks fast and then her regular dinner with us! So, no worries Nyai, your first grand-daughter will certainly put on weight!!!

Ah...as always, one of my goals for Ramadhan is to lose weight. It's always an opportune time to do it...if not now, when? Last year I managed to reach my goal of weighing below 70kg even though it happened the day before Idul Fitri! But the thing about losing weight is that it's easy to do but to maintain it at a particular level is the hard part! Well for this year, I aim to lose 5kg! Yes, 5kg... Always aim high right!? For the record, when I weighed myself on 1st Ramadhan (how convenient it is that 1st Ramadhan coincides with the first day of the month! Makes for easier counting!), my weight was 73.5kg. It has been constant for the past few months. Last year's average weight was 75kg. Must be the 1, 3, 5 thingy that has been a part of many Army personnel's life since it's implementation! I'm referring to our Healthy Lifestyle programme that has been on-going. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, we have our PT at 0730hrs till 0930hrs. It was a pain when it was first implemented. But that is the nature of change right? Once one gets used to it, one wonders what the big deal was in the first place!?!? That and training for both the Sundown Marathon and Army Half Marathon helped to keep the weight in check! So, the aim is not only to lose 5kg but to maintain it as such!

Adegan di Ya Kun Lot 1

It happened last week when I was buying 2 slices of butter kaya toast from Ya Kun @ Lot 1 with the FD (if you dunno what's FD...hmmm...not a regular reader ain't ya?). We just came from Delifrance at the third level where the FD had bought a French loaf on her own. We're training her to buy things on her own as part of the run-up to P1 next year! So, I lined-up at the counter while the FD waited outside Ya Kun. I asked her to join me in the queue but she seemed occupied with just standing outside, carrying the French loaf from Delifrance. Since the order took a while, I sat down on a chair near the counter, waiting. I signaled the FD to sit with me but she, standing just at the entrance of Ya Kun, shook her head vigorously while pointing to something inside Ya Kun. I kept signaling to her but she kept refusing to join me. I asked what was she pointing at and she kept pointing to something beside the counter. I asked her what was it...Guess what? She pointed to a sign that said, "No Outside Food Allowed!"!!!!!!!!! Cute kan!?!?!? ;)

Selamat Datang Ramadhan

Wishing all my Muslim readers a blessed Ramadhan. May we face our challenges with resilience...

Tea Session @ Al-Khair

Well, here I am reporting 'live' from the Auditorium of Al-Khair listening to a talk on environmental awareness. It's part of the end-of-term tea session the pre-school holds with parents regularly.