And I have to say….WOW!! It was simply Awesome!! The fireworks, the whole opening performance..was jaw-dropping great. I’ve gotta say that this opening ceremony is one of the best I’ve seen. Directed by Zhang Yimou, the acclaimed director of such films like The Red Lantern with his favourite actress, Gong Li, he managed to encapsulate China’s 2000 year history in 3 plus hours with 22,000 performers dressed in lavish costumes and props. Slated for opening at 8.08pm on 8th Aug, 2008, the extravanganza is reported to have cost an estimated USD100mil. Even tho’ my stomach was growling hungrily as I haven’t had time to get my dinner, I could not tear my eyes away from the screen. Esp loved the part where the performers did some acrobatic stunts on a piece of painting and painted with their bodies on the huge canvas. And the other cool performance was from the group of young men who was very well-coordinated in their movements hidden in boxes like thingy, drumming an image of a huge chinese keyboard forming chinese words with Mexican waves. 

Bird's Nest

Fireworks

Okies, ever since I shifted, as mentioned my journey to and fro my house is rather long….and with the hike in petrol price….YIPES! Since I gotta wake up earlier, I have resorted to doing a lot of things in the car. Errr….not like Mr. Bean tho’ to the extent of brushing teeth and changing clothes in the car…that will cause accidents on the road!! No, but somehow I seemed to be living like a nomad…with my gym bag ever ready at the back of the car…tho’ it’s not like I visit the gym often nowadays…:( …shoes for all occasions stashed at the back (very important since the last time I forgot my work shoes, I had to rush out to get a pair during lunch hour!!) and I tend to eat and drink in my car too to maximise the time spent travelling…:) Shhh….I know I know….we will get fined for eating in the car..also it’s dangerous, not to mention the difficulty in maneuvring the steering wheel with one hand! I also have this bad habit of reading my text and sms while driving…this one I really admire those peeps who are able to text without needing to look at the phone at all…if it’s me right….will prob end up texting something gibberish!

It’s rather interesting to look around and see what other drivers are doing inside their cars…especially when you are stuck in traffic jams (which is practically a norm every morning for me now). Some drivers are really gross…they pick their noses and dig their teeth when they think nobody is looking! Some will be doing their own karaoke in the car and it’s amusing to see the mouths moving…hahahaha….ok, I am also guilty of this…hey, it helps keep me awake mah….Some ladies like to do their makeup…normal…as long as they don’t end up drawing a Nike swoosh as their eyebrow, reckon that is ok.  Some couples like to canoodle while stuck in the jam…hey, if you knew everybody else will be looking, then should be a bit more ‘reserve’ lar….we are not living overseas where this is the societal norm leh…..

On a related note, my pet peeves of drivers on the road

1) who like to accelerate and brake every 50 metre or so…

2) who drives like weekend drivers at 40km/hour and hogs the center of the lane

3) who can’t make up their mind whether to turn right/left or head straight. They put out their indicators then decide to go straight anyway

4) who tailgates you so near you feel they are waiting to bang you or keeps flashing at you to get outta the way since you must be driving at snail speed

5) who drives like formula one drivers switching lanes and racing with other cars

Now, I seemed to be living in a jungle where the nearest shops is approx 8 mins drive away…nope, I can’t walk out to the shops anymore. They have the same things ie kopi tiam, post office, clinic, dentist, banks, supermarket, McDonald’s, no cinema tho’ since that has been monopolised by the megamalls of today. But somehow, the feeling is different…I still feel ‘lost’ whenever I need to patronise a shop. Are the sundries cheap and good? Is the service nice? do they have a branch of xxx bank? I once tried locating a post box turning twice to the same road….but still can’t locate it tho’ I remember seeing it previously

So, guess what….sometimes, I still go to my beloved old neigbourhood and goto the banks, eat at the kopi tiam, throw my letters into the post office box etc…I basically know where each shop is located at the back of my hand…I just go there, run in and get out…saves more time that way….also, gives me the comfort that my stuff have been dealt with properly…old habits die hard I suppose…the sense of familiarity is very comforting…

Nowadays, I drive about an hour (min) to reach my workplace. To and fro means approx 2 hours of travelling on the highway. Sigh! My old office used to be a mere 5 mins drive away from my old house…those were definitely the  good old days!! Even my new office was only a 20mins drive away. Gees….now, I know what a godsend my old house is!

Also, being not a natural ‘morning person’, it’s been a difficult process of separating myself from my bed every morning! And hard to make myself sleep at night too. The night owl in me just refused to doze off. At times, I have drifted off while driving on the roads in the morning…dangerous stuff I know..

It will take some time to adjust to the new neighbourhood and learn every crook and cranny in times to come…hopefully this old dog can still learn some new tricks…:)  

I just started tutoring some kids in a shelter recently. A friend invited me over last week and I sorta went over out of curiosity. I admit that I have never been one of those really noble person who does community services or voluntary work during my spare time. The most I can claim to be charitable is forking some monies out of my pocket for the occasional donations or buying books as gifts to the kids in the annual MPH Xmas Share-A-Gift Program.

During my years in school I have visited an old folk’s home and it just feels so sad to see the state of those elderly people staying there. This is partly why I don’t go to old folk’s home anymore. It is rather depressing and hard to imagine one of your relatives staying there. So, learn to appreciate your parents when they are around. They may nag you to death everyday but ultimately, they do so with good intentions.

This week was my 2^nd week going to the home. I was late by an hour last week cos I was stuck in the office rushing off some work so I was determined to be punctual this round. When I reached, some of the kids came running out to greet me and started ushering me to a table. There are approx 23 kids in Precious Home and their ages ranged from 2 to 16. They are not orphans but kids whose parents are unable to take care of them. The kids are so starved for attention that they fight with each other just to get a seat next to you. And they are so enthusiastic for you to teach them! It is endearing and so heartbreaking at the same time! Also, these kids are more well-behaved than the usual. No doubt there is the occasional poking, jibing and teasing but overall, they are like angels and will listen to you when you tell them.

I was ill prepared last week seeing I know nuts about tutoring kids. I went for tuition for all my life (for the most part of it) and it was more or less forced by my parents so I only knew about tutoring as the student, not as the tutor. I taught the kids basic Maths last week but found without a book, the kids lack focus. So this round, I got some workbooks and started teaching them using the books as a guide to gauge their level of understanding.

There was this little boy, aged 6 who is really intelligent. I taught him Std 1 syllabus and he managed to answer most of it even tho’ he didn’t know how to read much. Very endearing and a joy to teach. His thirst for knowledge is amazing! And I just need to teach him once; he could repeat it for me again after that. On the flip side, another boy aged 9 could hardly read! I was aghast! I repeated a couple of words but he still could not repeat it back to me. I think the current school system of allowing the kids to advance to the next level without passing their exams is not productive. They go thru school not learning and gaining much knowledge which somehow defeats the purpose!

Anyway, for those who are interested in lending a helping hand and giving something back to the community, join the Helping Angels inside Facebook and make a difference to the kids. It’s amazing how 2 hours of your time in a week can bring so much joy to them! The kids love you so much that they will ask you whether you will be coming to see them again next week and you find it hard to say no….

Precious Children Home
No. 11, Lorong 3/57A
46000 Petaling Jaya
Selangor (behind MPPJ Library Petaling Jaya)
Tel: 016 361 4733