An Interesting Occupation

We know there are countless occupations in this world.

Yesterday I attended a supper hosted by Mr and Mrs B. They live in a house which is just 2 minutes' drive from the busy shopping belt Orchard Road. In this house, I hear no other noises except the crickets singing. I wondered if I were still in Singapore, where noises from vehicles are already part of our life.

This couple has an interesting job. They organise suppers and pay visits to some selected guests. They get invited to special events such as xx country's National Day celebration. They know many people and continue to know more. They talk to many people and at the same time, gather info from guests.

Both Mr and Mrs B have done very well in their job during last night's supper. The guests felt appreciated and happy after a delicious dinner and deserts. It was a memorable evening.

However, what sort of info has this couple gathered?

What is their job?

Autism

Autism is a brain development disorder that impairs social interaction and communication, and causes restricted and repetitive behavior, all starting before a child is three years old.
(source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autism)

One of my good friends' son has been suspected of being autistic. An appointment with doctors in KKH has been made.

I don't know what help or advice I can offered to my friend. I can only hope that through early intervene, this little active boy can get along with children in the main-stream schools.

Grouping and Grading

Over the weekend, I watched a chinese movie called Huo Yuan Jia (Sunday, Channel U). It was a kungfu movie, starred by Jet LI.

There was a conversation which impressed me. Two actors were drinking tea. One of them said that this tea was of higher grade than the other. The other said that he didn't know much about tea. He thought that there was no difference between the various types of tea BUT it was the humans who graded them.

We are all human beings. We will grow old and die. All human beings go through the same process. But we classify or group ourselves based on a lot of factors.

From young, children who display special talents are placed in special schools to further groom them. In the schools, students are grouped into different classes based on their grades, ability to grasp the subjects etc.

In worklife, those who display potential in some areas or with some background are called high fliers.

So we are the ones who group ourselves. But in actual, do we have any differences?

A Trip to Bukit Batok polyclinic

Over the weekend, I was down with flu and sore throat. My throat was so sore that I felt pain even when I swallowed my saliva.

I know going to a polyclinic on Monday would be a hell of waiting. I have no choice but to see a doctor asap.

I reached the clinic around 10.30am. I waited for about half an hour before I got registered and given a consultation room number. I managed to see the doctor near noon. The consultation lasted less than 5 minutes. I left the polyclinic about 12.30pm. The total bill was about $18.

The whole procedure lasted about 2 hours. The most important part - the consultation lasted only 5 minutes. The rest of the time was spent waiting.

Subsidized healthcare comes with a price. I have used my time to exchange affordable healthcare.

Our National Day

Our country will be celebrating her 43th birthday on 9th August. Flags have been hung along the roads and housing flats. Have you hung your flag? Be sure to hang it at the correct manner.

For those who did not have the tickets to watch the National Day Parade at Marina, what do you intend to do?

I have yet to plan my programmes but I will do so soon.

Some tips on things to do:
take a walk in some of the big parks provided the weather is cloudy;
have a picnic at the beach provided the weather is not so hot;
do some cleaning/washing in your house provided the weather is hot;
have a good nap in an air-con room provided the weather is hot etc

Happy Birthday

I have been feeling moody recently. I am going to age 40 soon! Yes, my 40th birthday is just round the corner and I hate it so much that I wish that day does not come. What a great contrast compared to when I was young.

When I was young, I looked forward to my birthday. I would be able to gain more independence and freedom. I would be able to do things that normall adults can do but not the children.

Now my eyes sight is not as good as before, I am not as energetic as before, I get tired after walking a long distance or spent a whole evening out. These are all symptoms of ageing!

Anyway, nobody can stop that day from coming. I intend to spend some quality time with my family and especially my mother. Forty years ago, she brought me to this world. Birthdays are best to be spent with mothers.

Plain Tiger Butterfly (part 2)

The butterfly was finally set free!

Plain Tiger Butterfly (part 1)

Only a butterfly left in the container because the other has been set free. This butterfly was still weak.

The change from a pupa to an adult butterfly was simply amazing. They are so different from each other.

The Two Pupae

The 2 pupae hanging at the top of the plastic container.

The Pupa (cocoon) has emerged as a beautiful Butterfly

Finally the pupa has emerged as a beautiful butterfly. I did not get to see the pupa gotten out from its skin AGAIN. So the change from a pupa to a butterfly took about 5 days.

Anyway, I will upload some photos very soon.

Stay tuned.

The Cocoons

I mentioned the container with 2 cocoons some days ago. I touched the cocoon. Surprisingly it was quite hard. The skin was transulent and I could see there were something inside the cocoon. According to books, the pupa stage can last for about 3 weeks. So it is still quite some days to go before a beautiful butterfly emerges.

Isa is looking at it daily, hoping to see a beautiful butterfly soon.

Wait, we have to be very patient now.

Weather

Have you noticed the recent weather? Are you sensitive to weather?

I am one whose mood can be affected by the weather easily. We are in the month of July, we should be seeing lesser rainfall and hazy condition. Instead, we have gloomy and wet weather especially on Saturday (19 Jul 2008). I read from the papers that the spectators were drenched during the National Day Parade Rehearsal held on that day.

This morning, the sky was so cloudy and I could hardly see the hot sun.

It is good to have a change of weather ie from the usual hot and dry to occasionally gloomy and wet weather. But I still prefer to have hot weather. The bright sun brings life and cheers me up. The gloomy weather makes me feel miserable.

A caterpillar becoming a cocoon

Isa brought a plastic transparent container from the school. Inside it, I saw a caterpillar, a cocoon and some green leaves. The cocoon was hanging upside down from the top of the cover of the container. The caterpillar, instead of nibbing the green leaves eagerly, it was hanging upside down like the cocoon. It did not move much but was still alive.

Isa and I wondered if this caterpillar was getting ready to change into a cocoon soon. How does a hairy-looking caterpillar become a green cocoon? Is this changing process going to take place over the next few days?

The next morning, Isa shouted! There was no more caterpillar. Instead, there were 2 cocoons hanging upside down. So the caterpillar has turned into a cocoon during the night. The great disappointment was we missed this significant process.

I wish I can have another such chance to witness this process.

The March of the Pegnuins

Did you watch the documentary "The March of the Penguins" on Arts Central channel 10pm 13 Jul 2008?

The place was somewhere in Antarctic. There were thousands of penguins who arrived on a very large piece of ice land. They walked for days and weeks to reach their preferred place to start a new life. The walk was lonely and long, facing the harsh weather conditions.

Upon reaching this place, they danced to look for one to mate. At times, two male penguins might fight over a female. A new life has started after the mating occurred. An egg was born. The female would transferred the only precious egg very carefully to the male. The egg was handled with great care because when it was exposed to the coldness, the whole egg would freeze and this year would be wasted.

Somehow I saw that the female penguin carried the egg with much ease as compared to the male. When the male penguin carried the egg, he has to curl up his feet to prevent the egg from rolling out from his thick feathers. Both adult penguins have been without food for 3 months. The mother penguin was very hungry and started walking back to the sea where she came from to look for food for herself and the unborn chick.

It was a journey with a hungry stomach. She was weak yet had t watch for for any seals. If the seal caught her, not only her life was gone and also her unborn chick. Once she reached the ocean, there was plenty of food and she basked in the ocean. When she had enough food, she started her third journey back to her mate.

The chick has already hatched and screaming for food. The male penguin was exhausted and hungry, being without any food for 4 months. He knew that if she did not return soon, both he and their chick would die of hunger.

Very soon, he saw her. They hugged for one last time before he left for the ocean. His journey was a journey of hunger. A lot of his friends died during this journey due to the hunger. His chick was raised by the mother.

I am truly amazed by these penguins! They are small yet have great determination to fight against the mother nature.

A Scene in Singapore?

I was at a bus-stop waiting for a bus.

I saw an old man walked to the dust-bin. He looked into it and picked up a plastic bottle still filled with drink. To my dismay, he opened up the bottle and drank it. Then he continued digging in the bin and found a metal can. He stepped on the can and put the flat can into his pocket. He searched and found an unfinished cigarette butt. He got a light from a smoker and enjoyed a few puffs before the butt was finished.

I am confused.

How broccoli helps reduce cancer risk

WASHINGTON - A SCIENTIFIC study published here on Wednesday sheds light on why men who eat a lot of broccoli are less likely to develop prostate cancer.

Scientists have already observed that diets rich in cruciferous vegetables - including broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, bok choy and kale - may reduce the risk of prostate cancer and other chronic disease.

But the new research, by scientists at Britain's Institute of Food Research, is the first attempt to show how that works in a clinical study involving people, as opposed to animals or cell models.

For the new study, men at risk of developing prostate cancer ate 400 grams of broccoli or 400 grams of peas a week for 12 months, in addition to their normal diet.

The researchers took samples of prostate gland tissue from the men at the start of the study, at six months and at 12 months, to monitor changes in genes linked to cancer.

'There were more changes in gene expression in men who were on the broccoli-rich diet than on the pea diet, and these changes may be associated with the reduction in the risk of developing cancer,' said a statement by the Public Library of Science, which published the work Wednesday in its online journal PLoS ONE.

'The results of the study suggested that relatively low amounts of cruciferous vegetables in the diet - a few portions per week - can have large effects on gene expression by changing cell signalling pathways,' the statement said.

The signalling pathways are the routes by which information is transmitted to the nucleus of the cell where gene expression occurs.

'Other fruits and vegetables have been shown to also reduce the risk of prostate cancer and are likely to act through other mechanisms,' said lead researcher Richard Mithen.

'Once we understand these, we can provide much better dietary advice in which specific combinations of fruit and vegetable are likely to be particularly beneficial.

'Until then, eating two or three portions of cruciferous vegetable per week ... should be encouraged.'

Prostate cancer is the most common form of non-skin cancer affecting men in western countries.

(source : www.straitstimes.com/Latest%2BNews/Tech%2B%2526%2BScience/STIStory_254146.html )