Fieldtrip to URA

3rd fieldtrip was to Urban Redevelopment Authority, where the group-in-charge wanted us to explore the topic on urban development. It was the typical boring fieldtrip - could only walk around an area, look at the exhibits, gather information and fill in worksheets.

The only interesting thing was the extensive model of the Singapore city landscape which left me mesmerized and struggling to identify the prominent buildings featured.

Marina area (the white vacant plots reserved for the upcoming IR and further reclamation)

After the fieldtrip, the kind URA people thanked us for our visit and gave us each a thick heavy (weighing nearly 1kg, I think) hardcover URA coffeetable book, detailing development and refurbishment plans for various buildings and sites like Suntec, Liang Court and Parkway Parade. We were delighted with the free gift, thinking that now with this book, we were at the forefront of urban development (read: luxurious condominiums) in Singapore. Until I realised something was wrong - pictures of Suntec were sketch pictures, not photographs. Puzzled, I flipped to the second page and found out that this was printed in 1995.

I think it can fetch me a decent sum from the karang guni man.

End of QED520!

Today marked the end of the Ed Psych module, meaning Fridays would be free!!!

I really love these cheery class shots

I'm going to miss the ever-entertaining Mr Tan.

Fieldtrip to City Hall

2nd Geog fieldtrip for the week, conducted by us! Itinerary was to take them around the Marina area, visiting particularly the Singapore Flyer and the Esplanade, to investigate the influence of the 4As (the four factors influencing tourism - Attraction, Accessibility, Amenities and Ancillary Services) on the appeal of these two tourism landmarks.

We arrived at Suntec early, so shopped around first. Together with the Geog mates, we congregated at about 4.30pm, and off we headed to the Singapore Flyer first, with Peiying and me leading the troop in front, and Daphne and Jieying at the back shepherding those who might go off-track.

Daphne, me, Peiying and Jieying!

Apparently the walk from Suntec to the Singapore Flyer proved too much for some of the wusses, for they pulled a long face and whined about the distance on the way. There were 4 bitches who decided not to cooperate with us by slowing down, causing a gap between them and the rest in front. When Jieying did her job by asking them to walk faster, Bitch A snapped at her "You tell us to walk faster, then you yourself walk faster lah". Jieying was dumbfounded.

When we reached the Singapore Flyer, we gave out instructions to carry out an activity (i.e. explore the landmark and note features) before releasing them for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, Jieying told us about the bitches and that got us gossipping in agitation.

The troop of Geog mates

At the Singapore Flyer

Cutesy babes doing the merry-go-around

Meeting time was 10 minutes later, but they appeared reluctantly 15 minutes later. Some of them were busy fanning themselves. I seriously could not stand wusses like them. How can they be good Geographers when they cannot even withstand basic elements like distance and humidity?

Our next destination was the Esplanade, and again, we gave them 10 minutes to explore the place and complete the activity worksheet. The meeting place was at the back entrance of Esplanade Mall, as decided by us and agreed by the rest. However, 10 minutes later, we got a rude shock when Bitch B called us and said that everyone was inside Esplanade Mall and told us to meet them there. We were SO offended because since we were the ones conducting the fieldtrip, they should be going according to our plans. Since when did they (as 'students') call the shots!

No choice but to meet them (and our tutor) at Esplanade Mall, where we spent the next 30 minutes evaluating our fieldtrip. It did not come as a surprise when many of them criticized our fieldtrip, saying things like we did not do a good recce, distance was too long and tiring etc. We did not take it to heart because deep down, we knew they were a bunch of weak whiny wusses!

The Geog troop

With our lovely Geog tutor!

Fieldtrip to Aeroponics Farm

Went for the first Geog fieldtrip to Tropical Aeroponics Farm along Neo Tiew Crescent early in the morning. The first group, comprising 5 guys, was conducting this field trip, as part of their field study package. The Essential Understanding was about aeroponics.

On the bus!

First, we watched a video on aeroponics, its origins, development in Singapore and advantages, and a farm guide let us sample some really fresh produce of crispy lettuce and their in-house concoction: Lettucino. This Lettucino was a tangy beverage filled with the goodness (and green pulp) of butterhead lettuce, but of course, lime and kiwi were needed to cover that grassy taste, so it did not taste too bad.

Next, the guide took us to visit their aeroponics greenhouses, where vegetables in various states of growth were kept and given optimal environmental conditions to develop. No soil is needed for aeroponics, only air (the roots take in oxygen from the atmosphere) and nutrient solution (which is sprayed at the roots in a mist form at 5-minute intervals).

Guide taking us to the aeroponics greenhouses

Aeroponics greenhouses

Young plants planted in polystyrene boards of the troughs

Cute little baby veggies

It was really hot in the greenhouses, because they trap heat. According to the guide, temperatures in the greenhouses can reach as high as 40 degrees C! But of course, technology allows for the adjustments of greenhouse temperatures, and temperate vegetables like butterhead lettuce and Batavia (the maroon lettuce used in salads) can actually be grown in Singapore.

Butterhead lettuce

Guide showing us the suspended roots of the butterhead lettuce

Storage tank that contains the nutrient solution

Returned to school sweaty and tired after a morning hobnobbing with the herbs and lettuces under the sun.

Night Out with Bong and Mo (4)

Walked around the Marina area: Bugis Junction - Suntec - Marina Square - Esplanade - One Fullerton - Asian Civilization Museum - Victoria Concert Hall - Padang - War Memorial Park (which is lesser known as the Civic District because during the colonial years, this area was the administration centre for the British) with Peiying, Daphne and Jieying. We had to recce this area in preparation for our Geography fieldstudy package, where we designed a fieldwork package on the topic of tourism and we were going to bring 'students' (our 15 other classmates) to go on this fieldtrip and do some Geography activities. We had a great time charting our route, straying into Zara, admiring the bright full moon at Esplanade, taking pictures at One Fullerton, and strolling all the way to the War Memorial Park (which I affectionately call the 'Chopsticks' and they could not accept it).

Glowing moon and the Singapore Flyer

After that, met Bong and Mo at Boat Quay, where we spent the rest of the night playing board games at Minds Cafe. Although the ambience of the place was totally destroyed by the howling laughter from some of those inconsiderate patrons (especially two fat PRC-looking geeks), it was generally a comfortable place. We played Scrabble, Taboo, Payday, and I really loved this Giftrap game, whereby supposedly we had the choice of giving gifts to one another. First, a few gifts (as shown in the picture cards) will be placed on the board, and we have to rate the gifts in order of our preference. Then we have to guess what kinds of gifts each of us will like, and 'give' them to the respective person. For example, if there is a match between the gift I prefer a lot and the gift they give to me, it shows that they understand me very well.

Mo and Bong seemed to be able to guess each other's preferences correctly. I was the baddie who could not. But one thing for sure was Mo prefers laser eye surgery, Bong prefers a golden Buddha and I prefer a year's subscription to an adult magazine.

A very careful Bong

We were so engaged that we stayed till past midnight. We were playing Jenga when Mo's leg accidentally hit the table and caused the whole tower of wooden blocks to topple over. Then we realised it was getting late and decided to go home. Never knew playing board games could be so fun!

Atrocious McDelivery Boy

Were feeling peckish, so went online to order some snacks from McDee's newly-created online ordering system. Ordered a Fillet-O-Fish meal for myself (Slug was not hungry), and an hour later, there was a knocking at the door, and I told Slug to attend to the delivery boy while I lazed around in the bedroom.

When Slug came back, he commented that the McDelivery boy was a young fat teenager, and that it was weird that he told Slug to check if the order was correct when he should check it himself. To our surprise, we found two McSpicy burgers instead of the Fillet-O-Fish I ordered, and realised that the McDelivery boy made a mistake. Although I was craving fish, we decided to rejoice because now Slug and I each had a burger!

While we were halfway through the fries, suddenly I received a call from the McDelivery boy, who was standing at the door and knocking away (but we ignored him). I picked up the phone reluctantly and he told us that he had sent the wrong order and wanted to take back the two McSpicy burgers. We were pissed with him for making such a silly mistake, and Slug reluctantly returned him the two untouched burgers. Again, the McDelivery boy asked Slug to check the new order but as if lazy Slug would do that.

He came back with the changed order, which contained the Fillet-O-Fish burger, and an extra pack of fries! We immediately declared to each other "This time we are not returning anything!" and happily devoured the fries. As expected, the McDelivery boy returned again (after a good 20 minutes) and started knocking at the door and blasting my phone with calls. We just ignored him because we found it too ridiculous that he bungled up for two times. After 15 minutes of knocking and 7 missed calls, he went away.

Call us mean, but these folks just have to learn to BE CAREFUL.

Mimi Left Me

Mimi has departed for the land of flowers and butterflies. Words cannot describe how much joy she has brought to me, and how much grief she left me when she departed so unexpectedly.

Falling asleep on me

Resting on my butt is one of her favourite pasttimes

Stretching out on my bed

I hope she comes back soon.

Poor Kittens That Were Dumped

Some people just lack the brains. And the heart as well. The Earth does not need pathetic creatures like them.

Found out recently this BLACK society family staying at the opposite block dumping newborn kittens indiscriminately. They seem to have this impression that since Mum is feeding the void deck cats, they should take advantage of the free food for their kitties (typical of them, ain't it? And they seem to have a problem with neutering cats, oh well, speaks so much about themselves). So off they let these kittens to the void deck, and never even making the effort to gather them back. Poor kitties, you should have seen them mewing piteously, wandering around aimlessly and nearly falling into the canals. After much investigating, Mum found out roughly who the culprits were and sent the kitties back to the 6th storey of that block (not the exact unit because she was not sure which BLACK society household it was). The next day, they appeared again at the void deck again. Sent again, appeared again. Today was the third time, and Mum took them in to give them some food.

Adorable kittens!

My Mimi was exhilarated to see these two newcomers, and kept playing with (and crushing) them. Mum suggested we release Mimi to take these two in, and I vehemently objected to the idea. So Mum took these two poor things back to the 6th storey, hoping that they would be adopted by some kind souls.

The next day, they were not there anymore, for better or worse, we do not know. I hope they are getting on well now.

Back to School

Took time to visit my contract school and those adorable-cum-horrible students from last year's 1C and 1F.

Initially was hesitant in stepping into the school, and just wanted to loiter at the atrium, but Yi Jing pulled me into the VP's office. I was trembling nervously because I was afraid that they would persecute me for trespassing, but I was surprised when the VP broke into a genuinely delighted smile when she saw me. Yi Jing told her how I refused to step in just because I perceived myself to be an outsider, to which she assured me that the school doors are always welcoming and open for me to return (Hint: come back and teach (hopefully)). We spent a good 40 minutes chatting over the impressive O Level results of last year's Sec 5 students, and recalling the fond memories we had of the English night classes, tutoring them in writing essays and chasing them (literally) to hand them in. I must say, she is my most favourite person in that school. She is frank, but never criticizing nor intimidating; she is helpful, encouraging and supportive, but still remains firm as a figure of authority. She deserves my respect.

I then ventured to the staff room and I met Hillary, my ex-1F student who made an impressive leap from N(A) to Express this year, and she actually gave me a present! She could not have known I was coming, and she said that she wanted to give it to me earlier this year but I was not around anymore, so she kept it in her bag till now. Inside the crumpled gift box was a silver butterfly brooch, but her sweet thoughtfulness really melted my heart.

Then I met some of the ex-1C boys along the way. I could see the utter shock on their faces: eyes wide opened, jaws dropping and sharp shrieks of "Miss Ng! Why are you here!". Soon a good 10+ of them crowded around me, bombarding me with questions like "Why you don't teach us anymore?", "What are you doing now?" and "When are you coming back?" I was truly overwhelmed with nostalgia, seeing how warm these kids were and realising how much I missed teaching. On the other hand, I was truly overwhelmed because with every one question I answered, another 10 questions were waiting for me and they were piling up! Soon, they were making so much noise, and Mr Bernard came along, casting them a stern glare, and I had to herd them back to their classes. They were protesting, "Miss Ng, don't worry, now we are tidying our tables (because the next day is the start of the March holidays), no lessons today!", but that was not the point.

I just had to visit my ex-form class (1F) students, who have been separated into 2F and 2G this year. After finding out that 2G is on the second floor and 2F is on the fourth floor (arranged strategically so that these two N(A) classes will not be near each other and make so much noise), I went to 2G first. There was no teacher in the classroom, and upon seeing me standing outside the class, the ex-1F kids exclaimed in excitement and came out to surround me. We chatted and they made so much noise that the 2F students came out to see what was going on (they instinctively know whenever there is a din, it will always be coming from 2G and not anywhere else). My favourite boys, Russell, Marshall and Irfaan, yelled my name when they saw me, and quickly ran down to the second floor. At that point, the form teacher of 2G came and the 2G kids had to meekly return to their classroom, while Russell, Marshall and Irfaan pulled me up to 2F. Again, no teacher in the class, and the class was in chaos. Caught up with those naughty kids, especially Imran, chatting and laughing. They were supposed to dismiss at 12.30pm, but at 12.20pm, they were already started to carry their bags and stream out of the class. Decided to help babysit these kids and shouted (pretending to be angry) that they could only leave when the school bell had rung. Could not believe they actually obeyed and waited for 12.30pm before leaving, even though I was no longer a teacher there!

After school had dismissed, I went to the staff room to catch up with some of the teachers like Miss Luar, Melvin and Ivan, and then had lunch with Melissa, gossipping about the latest happenings in the 'political' scene in the school. I even visited the P, but soon realised the conversation was so patronizing that it made me cringe. Came out within 5 minutes.

Then met Caijie, Sandra, Evelyn, Eve, Calista, Bingqian and Amanda (from ex-1F) for a gossip session at a nearby void deck, where they updated me on many interesting happenings in school, about teachers, about their classmates and ex-classmates etc. They were complaining about how difficult the English common test was, and when they let me see the paper, I was flabbergasted. The comprehension passage was 4 pages long, the topic was dry (American history), and the words were too difficult for a Sec 2 (I don't even know the meaning of 'abysmal'). What was more fascinating, this paper was meant for both the Express and N(A) students. In my opinion, this was tough enough for a Sec 2 Ex kid, let alone these poor N(A) kids! They were even whining about how they were not shown condoms during Science lessons (because they were at the topic on sex) whereas the students from the other classes were. Caijie was relishing this joke where when asked to list ways to have safe sex, his classmate answered suggested the use of safe sex equipment while another said "Do not change partners while having intercourse". What have these kids been learning?! They still remembered making fun of Mr Choo and me last time, and it was no exception now, and their teasings really brought back sweet memories ...

As much as I wanted to continue chatting with them, I had to go reluctantly. Caijie was drawling, "Don't go lah ..." while silly Sandra and Eve said they would scream if I tried to leave (and they did). They even urged me to organise another chalet for them later this year, to which I shuddered recalling the chaotic barbeque during last year's chalet ... ...