Went watching Harry Potter on Monday.
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Friday, July 20, 2007
To market!
Going to NTUC supermaket yesterday, 19 July.
Little boy was tired "dragging" the trolley there.On the way, he swopped hands as the other hand was too tired.
Making a monkey face ...Friday, July 13, 2007
End of ICT
Finally, today is the last day of my ICT for this work year. My comrades and I went out to have lunch at a coffeeshop-like restaurant, opposite Sembawang Shopping Centre. It boasted of its curry fishhead, so we ordered one bowl. We also ordered half a fried chicken and a plate of tapioca leaves. The curry fishhead was so-so, nothing special lor.
By the way, the answer to the riddle:
"If they drop it, the eggs will break!" Haha!
By the way, the answer to the riddle:
"If they drop it, the eggs will break!" Haha!
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Riddle, Anyone???
Today, I was having fun giving riddle to my comrades in Chong Pang Camp. It was fun as they tried to solve the riddles. One even came up with a ridiculous explanation for "How the Chicken got its name?".
Anyway, here is a riddle for you, reading my blog.
Why do Chickens lay eggs?
Anyway, here is a riddle for you, reading my blog.
Why do Chickens lay eggs?
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Two of Us!
Today only 2 of us left. There are 5 of us in this ICT. Yesterday, one injured his back and one went for dental appoint and got 2 days medical leave. This morning, another one reported sick. So tomorrow, it will be two of us there again!
I saw the IPPT results that the conducting unit faxed over. My timing for the 2.4km was 12 minutes 51 seconds and the Shuttle Run was 10.27 seconds. I think I am running slower than the previous year. :]
I saw the IPPT results that the conducting unit faxed over. My timing for the 2.4km was 12 minutes 51 seconds and the Shuttle Run was 10.27 seconds. I think I am running slower than the previous year. :]
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
I have PASSED!
I have passed my IPPT! Hurray! I must thank Kelly and Clarice for their well-wishes. Well, it was a struggle in the last few minutes of the 2.4km run, but I managed to pass it. My time was 12 minutes 31 seconds. I needed to get below 13 minutes to pass.
At around 7.40am, I reached Lim Chu Kang Camp 2, which was at the junction of Jalan Bahar Road and Lim Chu Kang Road. The camp is quite near (about 5 minutes' drive) to the P4 camp site at Sarimbun Scouts Camp. I reported to the cookhouse and found my comrades there waiting. At about 8am, the conducting officer first briefed us about the sequence of the IPPT test, followed by the medic who briefed us on the safety and "evacuation" procedure for any casualities during the IPPT. We started with the Sit-ups and most of us did 31 sit-ups as that was the minimum requirement to get 3 points. Then, we proceeded to the chin-up or pull-up station and I managed to pull up 4 times while my comrades did 6. I guess I was a little overweight to do more. After that, we moved on to the Standing Broad Jump Station in the parade square. I did 213cm on the first attempt, but I managed to reach 230cm the second time and earn myself 5 points for that station. Next, we got to the Shuttle Run Station and I ran a time of slightly more than 10 seconds (I forgot my timing). One comrade sprained his back while attempting the shuttle run and he was taken to the Tengah Medical Centre to see the Medical Officer. He was later given two days of medical leave to rest his back. It was quite serious as he had great difficulties even to stand and walk on his own. I hope he will recover soon. Anyway, this round could be his last ICT and he needs not go back to camp again. We rested for about 10 minutes before we proceeded to the final station.
The final test was the 2.4km which everyone found it the toughest. Most of us had passed the four stations, except for the one who injured his back, and all we needed was to pass the final station. My comrades started off the run pretty fast and I had a hard time keeping up with them. It was only during the second round that I managed to catch up with them. In the last and final round, they started to slow down, so I overtook them one by one. When I saw that I had only about 3 minutes more to pass the test, I started to speed up by increasing my pace. Somehow, I felt both my calves weighing down my legs and I could not run as fast as I would like to. Glancing at my watch, I saw the seconds moving fast. Thinking that I would have to retake the IPPT all over again somehow "boosted" my endurance and I quickened my steps and moved towards the finishing point. I clocked a time of less than 13 minutes. Phew! I felt all my energy drained out and I could move no further so I sat down on the kerb by the road. I could not walk properly for the next half an hour. My comrades did not make it by the 13 minutes. Fortunately or unfortunately, I was the only one who had passed the IPPT. They would need to retake the WHOLE IPPT again, as the rule states that we have to retake all the stations if we fail the 2.4km run.
I was given half-a-day off for passing the IPPT, and here I am now, writing this post. :)
At around 7.40am, I reached Lim Chu Kang Camp 2, which was at the junction of Jalan Bahar Road and Lim Chu Kang Road. The camp is quite near (about 5 minutes' drive) to the P4 camp site at Sarimbun Scouts Camp. I reported to the cookhouse and found my comrades there waiting. At about 8am, the conducting officer first briefed us about the sequence of the IPPT test, followed by the medic who briefed us on the safety and "evacuation" procedure for any casualities during the IPPT. We started with the Sit-ups and most of us did 31 sit-ups as that was the minimum requirement to get 3 points. Then, we proceeded to the chin-up or pull-up station and I managed to pull up 4 times while my comrades did 6. I guess I was a little overweight to do more. After that, we moved on to the Standing Broad Jump Station in the parade square. I did 213cm on the first attempt, but I managed to reach 230cm the second time and earn myself 5 points for that station. Next, we got to the Shuttle Run Station and I ran a time of slightly more than 10 seconds (I forgot my timing). One comrade sprained his back while attempting the shuttle run and he was taken to the Tengah Medical Centre to see the Medical Officer. He was later given two days of medical leave to rest his back. It was quite serious as he had great difficulties even to stand and walk on his own. I hope he will recover soon. Anyway, this round could be his last ICT and he needs not go back to camp again. We rested for about 10 minutes before we proceeded to the final station.
The final test was the 2.4km which everyone found it the toughest. Most of us had passed the four stations, except for the one who injured his back, and all we needed was to pass the final station. My comrades started off the run pretty fast and I had a hard time keeping up with them. It was only during the second round that I managed to catch up with them. In the last and final round, they started to slow down, so I overtook them one by one. When I saw that I had only about 3 minutes more to pass the test, I started to speed up by increasing my pace. Somehow, I felt both my calves weighing down my legs and I could not run as fast as I would like to. Glancing at my watch, I saw the seconds moving fast. Thinking that I would have to retake the IPPT all over again somehow "boosted" my endurance and I quickened my steps and moved towards the finishing point. I clocked a time of less than 13 minutes. Phew! I felt all my energy drained out and I could move no further so I sat down on the kerb by the road. I could not walk properly for the next half an hour. My comrades did not make it by the 13 minutes. Fortunately or unfortunately, I was the only one who had passed the IPPT. They would need to retake the WHOLE IPPT again, as the rule states that we have to retake all the stations if we fail the 2.4km run.
I was given half-a-day off for passing the IPPT, and here I am now, writing this post. :)
Friday, July 6, 2007
Fifth Day of ICT
Five days of ICT have passed. I can say time really passes by so fast that you may not aware. Today, I did not do much as I had already taken the PKE. Well, no news means good news. So if the OLTC did not "say" anything, it probably means I have passed the PKE. Yeah...!!!
Another test is waiting for me... That is the IPPT (Individual Physical Proficiency Test). It is similar to NAPFA test that is taken in schools and institutions, except that the Sit-and-Reach section is taken off. You may want to ask why? Well, who can do pass the Sit-and-Reach test with a tummy? Haha! Oh, the test will be conducted in Lim Chu Kang Camp II - a faraway place in the western part of Singapore. It is situated just opposite Lim Chu Kang Chinese Cemetery and it is next to Tengah Airbase.
Sorry, I could not show you any photographs of my ICT as we are not allowed to bring in any camera phone into the camp.
Last evening, one of my good pupils handed me four Maths questions and asked me to help her solve them. Well, I actually asked two of my comrades to solve them. The first question was a little tough as it dealed with speed with only the time taken given, and they could not solve it even after one and a half hour. So, I guided one of them and he managed to come up with the solution using algebraic equations. Not too bad though! The other one gave up half way and dozed off! Haha!
After work, in the late afternoon, I took the questions back to her place. (I shall not mention her name - to "protect" her. Hehe!) The first question was quite tough, so I showed her an example with a similar question and solution. After that, she was able to do it on her own without any help. Bravo! Then, I got her to do the remaining three questions. I pointed out to her about the quantity that was unchanged throughout the two questions, and she was able to solve them right away using her own method. But I still taught her the Unitary method which was much easier to solve that particular type of question. Of course, it is also possible to use the Model Method to solve that type of questions, but it will be a little tedious as you need to "cut" the "units" into smaller "parts". She told me that there was no need to "cut" as writing the "number of parts" in the "units" will be sufficient. Maybe that is more efficient, in a way. :)
Later, her daddy came back from his work. We had a good chat talking about his army times. We also compared the times he did his basic training and my times as a recruit. Interestingly, he wore the very old type of uniform which was plain light green in colour - just like the uniform which the NCC (National Cadet Corps) used to have. He had completed his thirteen cycles of ICT at the age of 33 in 1995. That was also the time when a "black" baby was born into the family! Haha! It was quite an memorable time for him.
Got to rest now... Bye!
Another test is waiting for me... That is the IPPT (Individual Physical Proficiency Test). It is similar to NAPFA test that is taken in schools and institutions, except that the Sit-and-Reach section is taken off. You may want to ask why? Well, who can do pass the Sit-and-Reach test with a tummy? Haha! Oh, the test will be conducted in Lim Chu Kang Camp II - a faraway place in the western part of Singapore. It is situated just opposite Lim Chu Kang Chinese Cemetery and it is next to Tengah Airbase.
Sorry, I could not show you any photographs of my ICT as we are not allowed to bring in any camera phone into the camp.
Last evening, one of my good pupils handed me four Maths questions and asked me to help her solve them. Well, I actually asked two of my comrades to solve them. The first question was a little tough as it dealed with speed with only the time taken given, and they could not solve it even after one and a half hour. So, I guided one of them and he managed to come up with the solution using algebraic equations. Not too bad though! The other one gave up half way and dozed off! Haha!
After work, in the late afternoon, I took the questions back to her place. (I shall not mention her name - to "protect" her. Hehe!) The first question was quite tough, so I showed her an example with a similar question and solution. After that, she was able to do it on her own without any help. Bravo! Then, I got her to do the remaining three questions. I pointed out to her about the quantity that was unchanged throughout the two questions, and she was able to solve them right away using her own method. But I still taught her the Unitary method which was much easier to solve that particular type of question. Of course, it is also possible to use the Model Method to solve that type of questions, but it will be a little tedious as you need to "cut" the "units" into smaller "parts". She told me that there was no need to "cut" as writing the "number of parts" in the "units" will be sufficient. Maybe that is more efficient, in a way. :)
Later, her daddy came back from his work. We had a good chat talking about his army times. We also compared the times he did his basic training and my times as a recruit. Interestingly, he wore the very old type of uniform which was plain light green in colour - just like the uniform which the NCC (National Cadet Corps) used to have. He had completed his thirteen cycles of ICT at the age of 33 in 1995. That was also the time when a "black" baby was born into the family! Haha! It was quite an memorable time for him.
Got to rest now... Bye!
Thursday, July 5, 2007
Fourth Day of ICT
Today is my fourth day of ICT. This is the day which I have to take my PKE. I started to go through all the few hundreds of questions, question by question, in the booklets. I used my knowledge of examination skills to help me revise the questions in the shortest possible time. My comrades were smart enough to link the solutions to the questions based on some key words. We did not go to the canteen this morning. Seeing the lack of time, one of my comrades bought breakfast for all of us, so we had our breakfast in the office. After our breakfast, we began to study all the questions again. By noon, we had revised the bulk of the questions and we rushed to finish up the remaining hundred of questions.
We set the time to go for our lunch at 1pm in the Specialists' Mess. The Mess is actually a place for the servicemen to relax and have their breaks or meals there. In the evening, the servicemen who have knocked off from work can go to the Mess to buy beer at a special price. There are also food and other tidbits sold in the Mess during the Happy Hours. One of my comrades ordered the last of the Chicken Chops, while the rest of us ordered Chicken Cutlets and Steak on Hot Plate. By the time we finished our meals, it was almost 2pm. Our Master Sergeant Cheung came in and took us to OLTC for our examination. Along the way, I met some of my old colleagues from other units. We went to the CAI (Computer Aided Instruction) room to take our PKE. Someone made a mistake and we almost needed to take another 40 questions on top of the 140 questions. We took about an hour or so to complete the 140-Question paper. After that, we went back to the Mess to have our tea and some fries, sponsored by MSG Cheung.
Sorry, I have to end here because my little is waiting for me to go to sleep. He is moving my mouse here and there, and fidgeting with the keyboard. I cannot do much now. Good night and bye! :D
We set the time to go for our lunch at 1pm in the Specialists' Mess. The Mess is actually a place for the servicemen to relax and have their breaks or meals there. In the evening, the servicemen who have knocked off from work can go to the Mess to buy beer at a special price. There are also food and other tidbits sold in the Mess during the Happy Hours. One of my comrades ordered the last of the Chicken Chops, while the rest of us ordered Chicken Cutlets and Steak on Hot Plate. By the time we finished our meals, it was almost 2pm. Our Master Sergeant Cheung came in and took us to OLTC for our examination. Along the way, I met some of my old colleagues from other units. We went to the CAI (Computer Aided Instruction) room to take our PKE. Someone made a mistake and we almost needed to take another 40 questions on top of the 140 questions. We took about an hour or so to complete the 140-Question paper. After that, we went back to the Mess to have our tea and some fries, sponsored by MSG Cheung.
Sorry, I have to end here because my little is waiting for me to go to sleep. He is moving my mouse here and there, and fidgeting with the keyboard. I cannot do much now. Good night and bye! :D
Wednesday, July 4, 2007
3rd Day of ICT
Today is my third of ICT in Chong Pang Camp. I only managed to complete "browsing" through all the questions that I am required to answer. There are hundreds, almost to a thousand, of questions and some are new questions that have been added this year. I hope I can pass my examination tomorrow afternoon. I have one more morning to revise and "remember" how to do all those questions.
The food today was quite good. We had salmon burger with a slice of cheese, baked beans, scrambled eggs, potato wedges and ice cream in the cook house. I chose the chocolate fudge ice cream while my comrades had vanilla-lime ice cream. I think I should have taken the vanilla-lime ice-cream as vanilla is my favourite. But I wanted to taste something new which I had not tried before.
Initially, I tried to make sense of all the questions and their possible solutions, but I gave up trying to make sense of them yesterday. I don't have the time to slowly "digest" all the questions! I guess life is also like that. You really do not have all the time to try and make sense of all the things happening around you. Perhaps you can selectively take a few of them, break them down into "smaller parts" and analyse them. I can tell you that you may not find one that can make sense. Perhaps LIFE is sometimes quite SENSEless.
This evening, my little "Kim" called to chat with me. She is a nice girl, but she likes to use some "crude" words on me. I know she meant to joke. She told me she had done well for Chinese, and I am glad she did. She got me to test her on her timestable over the phone, which I did. I can sense she still have some motivation in her studies. One day, I hope she will achieve something in her own area of interest. :)
The food today was quite good. We had salmon burger with a slice of cheese, baked beans, scrambled eggs, potato wedges and ice cream in the cook house. I chose the chocolate fudge ice cream while my comrades had vanilla-lime ice cream. I think I should have taken the vanilla-lime ice-cream as vanilla is my favourite. But I wanted to taste something new which I had not tried before.
Initially, I tried to make sense of all the questions and their possible solutions, but I gave up trying to make sense of them yesterday. I don't have the time to slowly "digest" all the questions! I guess life is also like that. You really do not have all the time to try and make sense of all the things happening around you. Perhaps you can selectively take a few of them, break them down into "smaller parts" and analyse them. I can tell you that you may not find one that can make sense. Perhaps LIFE is sometimes quite SENSEless.
This evening, my little "Kim" called to chat with me. She is a nice girl, but she likes to use some "crude" words on me. I know she meant to joke. She told me she had done well for Chinese, and I am glad she did. She got me to test her on her timestable over the phone, which I did. I can sense she still have some motivation in her studies. One day, I hope she will achieve something in her own area of interest. :)
Tuesday, July 3, 2007
2nd Day of ICT
Today is my second day of ICT. Well, my comrades and I have started preparing my our Professional Knowledge Examination (PKE) on Thursday. We have about three days to prepare for the examination. Do you know how many questions we have to answer? The paper is about one and a half hour, and we have to answer 140 questions! Two years ago, it was still only 100 questons! But since last year, the people in Operational Logistic Training Centre (OLTC) increased the number of questions to 140!!! Yesterday, we were told that the number of questions could increase to 180! Wow, I guess the GST increase not only affected the prices of things around us, but also the number of questions!
I started "learning" the hundreds of questions in the manual. Hopefully, I can "remember" all the answers there on Thursday. I realised that they had also changed a number of the "standard" questions in the manual. Nevertheless, I think half of them are still the same standard questions. I felt that some of the questions were quite irrelevant to me as I do not operate forklift or perform servicing on aircrafts although I am serving in the Airforce.
This is my little boy who was doing his penmanship. I have got him to write something this evening after I got home from camp. He needs someone to be with him before he will do any work. Sometimes he will do the work given on his own. :)
I started "learning" the hundreds of questions in the manual. Hopefully, I can "remember" all the answers there on Thursday. I realised that they had also changed a number of the "standard" questions in the manual. Nevertheless, I think half of them are still the same standard questions. I felt that some of the questions were quite irrelevant to me as I do not operate forklift or perform servicing on aircrafts although I am serving in the Airforce.
This is my little boy who was doing his penmanship. I have got him to write something this evening after I got home from camp. He needs someone to be with him before he will do any work. Sometimes he will do the work given on his own. :)
Monday, July 2, 2007
First Day of ICT
Today is my first day of ICT. What is ICT? It stands for In-Camp-Training. Originally, we were known as "reservists", but now we are known as "Operational Readiness National Servicemen". Well, they both mean the same thing. We are afterall serving our duties as servicemen. I guess the term "In-Camp-Training" is used to reflect the need for us to continue training "in camp" every year we are back to our unit.
It's a good way of gathering a few old army comrades so that we can "keep in touch" with one another. Some enjoy the break from their normal work routine, while others find it disruptive as they have to put off some important things from their busy schedule.
Today I met two of my best former colleagues and friends in the teaching service. They have been very supportive friends and they took time off their busy schedule to spend an evening with me. The food we had was delicious and filling as three of us filled our stomach with five different dishes. Anyway, we had a good chat and that led me to think about my future. I remember today, one of my In-Camp comrades showed me a book by the title "Finishing Well". I just flipped through to find out what the book was about. It mainly described the "Almighty One" whom most of us are familiar with. It talked about how HE knowing the end of HIM coming and how HE planned HIS way towards the "finishing line". I guess the main point is that we must think about what we actually want in life - the goal in our life. Maybe it is about what we are seeking for in life. Maybe it is about how we look at LIFE at different points of our life. Are we heading to the desired ending or are we changing directions everytime we hit a road junction? "Begin a task or job with an end in mind".
It's a good way of gathering a few old army comrades so that we can "keep in touch" with one another. Some enjoy the break from their normal work routine, while others find it disruptive as they have to put off some important things from their busy schedule.
Today I met two of my best former colleagues and friends in the teaching service. They have been very supportive friends and they took time off their busy schedule to spend an evening with me. The food we had was delicious and filling as three of us filled our stomach with five different dishes. Anyway, we had a good chat and that led me to think about my future. I remember today, one of my In-Camp comrades showed me a book by the title "Finishing Well". I just flipped through to find out what the book was about. It mainly described the "Almighty One" whom most of us are familiar with. It talked about how HE knowing the end of HIM coming and how HE planned HIS way towards the "finishing line". I guess the main point is that we must think about what we actually want in life - the goal in our life. Maybe it is about what we are seeking for in life. Maybe it is about how we look at LIFE at different points of our life. Are we heading to the desired ending or are we changing directions everytime we hit a road junction? "Begin a task or job with an end in mind".
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