International Nasi Lemak - Changi Point

The nasi lemak do not seem to be as good as before.  The queue is still long and fish fillet and otak ran out by the time we were there which is just after 12 noon.  Maybe the quantity they have is a lot less or more popular because the nasi lemak is 50cents cheaper.  I like the tahu goreng.  It is quite good.  I tried the chendol drink but it is average as the stall use coconut milk from the packet instead of freshly squeeze milk.

Full Moon

The moon is beautiful today.  Big and round.  I like full moon as the sky is bright. 

Good Deal Music

Nowadays, the markets have temporary vendors that come once a month to sell their wares.  The variety is huge nowadays compared to only clothing previous.  Stainless wares, health food, kitchen gadgets, new cookware and lots of cheap stuff from China.  Electronic vendors sell MP3 and MP4 players and the songs are encoded in the microSD cards.  So for $12 there will be  487 songs or even up to 900 songs.  The only problem is they have only oldies.  I like oldies and buying a few SD cards is far cheaper than CDs.

I like the SD cards I bought today.  The songs are not copy protected.  So I can put into my Samsung phone and it works!  So now I do not need a separate MP3 player to listen to the new songs I bought!

Youth Day

B3 do not need to go to school today as it is Youth Day.  So Primary School kids have Children's Day and Secondary School Youth Day.  This look like an extra Public Holiday for teachers.  School teachers have more public holidays as well as easy time during school holidays.  It is an iron rice bowl with benefits!!

Foldable BBQ Stove

I bought a 12" by 12" foldable stainless steel bbq stove and used it today.  I am very happy with the performance of this stove.  The heat is high in the beginning.  So I have to use the spacer that come with the unit so that I do not burn my meat.  I need to get vegetables to grill next time.  It is an excellent toy for me.  Even though I was sweating profusely while bbqing in the hot sun, I enjoys the process.  Charcoal grill food tastes really very good.

Sembawang Durian Seng

B1 wanted to buy durians.  He is checking out the internet for different vendors.  We try out Durian Seng in Sembawang as it is nearer than Ah Seng in Ghim Moh.  He has all the fancy names - Black Pearl, Old Mama, Tekka and others I cannot recall.  So we bought 5 durians and total weight is 8.6 kg.  Price?  $150!!  This is the highest we paid for durians so far.  The durians tasted distinctly different with the different varieties. 

After paying such high price, we invited our vegetarian in-laws to feast.  I am glad they can make it.  So I feel better paying so much as the King of Fruits is enjoyed by more folks.

Best Value and Most Competitive Photocopy Service

We needed to print some flyers.  It is just black and white on A5.  We checked around Ang Mo Kio Central.  The print shop Popeye's is wanted 10cents per copy.  The shop opposite Ditsun(where Harvey Norman is) has a big sign that says "Flyers 2 cents".  We went to ask and 2 cents per piece is for MOQ 10,000.  MOQ is minimum order quantity.  Otherwise it is 4 cents each. 

So we decided to try Queenway shopping mall on the 3rd storey.  The price for 1,000 copies if you have your own original is $16.50 or approx. 1.7 cents per copy.  You will save $40 - $16.50 = $23.50.  It is worth the trip to Queenway.  Because you can also try the Katong Laksa while waiting for the printing to be done.  It takes less than 10 mins!

High Tide - Clean!

Water is usually cleaner at high tide.  I usually play hide and seek with the fishes.  They avoid me when I stand up looking for the schools of fishes.  So I squat down and get better success.  Today, I managed to catch some fishes.  I have to keep changing strategy every time as the fishes learn to avoid being caught.  I also need to acquire or make my own net for catch the invisible shrimps.

Pollution in Punggol Sea

The Punggol sea is very dirty this morning.  It is oily and smells bad.  No fishes at all.  However in the evening, high tide and the water is clean.  So plenty of fishes!  The tides help clear the pollution.  The ships must have clean their oil bunkers and discharge the dirty water into the sea.  I am glad due to the tide clean water comes back in.  Big schools of anchovies or at least I think they are anchovies.  It will be nice to get a cast net to catch the fishes.

Change

Singapore is changing and we are experiencing the effects of policies like "foreign talent" and pro-business.  Employers are protected and given advantage while employees are on their own.  PMETs are suffering as the laws in Singapore make it difficult and expensive to fight in court for unfair dismissals or termination of employment contract.  In other developed countries like Australia, Canada, US or Europe, citizens are protected from foreigners.  The companies have to prove that they have tried very hard to hire locals before they can hire foreigners.  Terminating employees requires justification and proof.

In Singapore, PMETs are vulnerable.  The employment contract says serve the legal notice period i.e. usually 1 month and that it.  Companies can just tell the employees that you no longer have the job and that is it.  No need to explain why.  Then hire a cheaper worker e.g. foreign worker. 

I hope the upcoming election will have change.  Serious change with the government so that we can have at least a level playing field with big companies.

Food from the Punggol Seaside

Low tide!  I caught a lot of small shrimps and asked my wife if she like to eat them.  If not, I will be putting them in the aquarium and see how long they last.  They will be in the small eco-system together with fishes and a flower crab.  She said yes and cooked tonight.  So I freeze them and we cooked them for dinner.  I did not eat the shrimps, she said they tasted good.  So I will catch as much as I can next time.

Wild Honey

B1 booked Wild Honey two days ago for 10am.  Wild Honey is very popular.  It serves only breakfast all day.  We ordered 5 different types of breakfast - English, Tunisian, European, Canadian and Parisien.  The English breakfast is most substantial.  It has scrambled eggs, fried mushrooms, sausage, bacon and 2 slices of Brio bread.  I had Tunisian which comes in a small frying pan with sliced sausages in a tomato based sauce, eggs and cheese topping.  B1 want to try the poached eggs which is the European.  Two poached eggs are place in a parma ham wrap and topped with Hollandise sauce on a brio toast.  Mummy loves French toast.  The Parisien is French toast with ham in-between.  B3 like sweet food and has Canadian which is puffy pancake with hibicus sauce and maple syrup and candied bacon.  Candied bacon is just bacon dipped in syrup.

I had a caramel latte which is very small but quite good.  The bill come to $140 for 5 breakfast sets.

8:20pm

Booking in time is 8:20pm.  Seems odd.  I suspect the actual book-in time is 8:30pm and the instructors must have told the recruit to come 10 mins earlier.  We arrived 8:10 and many recruits are already waiting at the main gate.  Many cars are still coming after us.  B2 is worried about going for Section Commander course.  He is afraid as they have told him that it is going to be tough and men have gone OC or out-of-course.  It is all relative.  Life in SCDF is relatively easy compared to Army.  However, it is still so stressful.  All able-bodied Singaporean boys have to go through this passage.  It is a way for the country to be defended.  It is also makes all male citizens obedient.

Forgetting to Blog!

I am enjoying the Hari Raya holidays that I am forgetting to blog the last few days.  B2 is home and has lots of stories to tell.  He is all excited about the punishments he is receiving and all the physical exercise they have to do.  His head is shaved and he cuts it again on Thursday when he is home.  The SCDF is much easier than Army in Tekong. 

B2 is shown the detention barracks and solitary confinement.  B1 was like "what!"  Obviously, the recruits in SCDF are different.  No one in the army needs to be shown detention barracks.  Apparently quite a number of SCDF personnels do go to detention barracks for AWOL or absent without official leave or drugs.  So there is a need to strike fear to the recruits.

B2 Booking Out Tomorrow

B2 is enlisted in the SCDF.  He has his confinement weekend last week.  Tomorrow is Hari Raya's Eve and he can book out.  It is actually not bad considering he enters on Tuesday.  SCDF is much easier than Tekong that B1 went.  Of course, during my time it is hardship but as B1 puts it, the difference from what I am living to army is probably the same level as it is for him.  I think he is right considering he has aircond when he sleeps.

B2 thinks he is going through hell.  I guess everyone thinks his burden is the heaviest.

Ex-colleague in Canada

I received reply from a short note I drop to an ex-colleague of my in Canada.  She is doing well and is now living in London, Ontario.  Her parents have returned home after living in Canada for many years.  I am very happy to hear all the good news.  London is a small city, maybe just a town.  In Canada, a city has to have a population of 1 million or more.  I will chose to go to live in Vancouver as the weather is nicer and there are many Chinese resturant (yes! food!) or Toronto.  Although I like Canadian food like pizza and other Italian food, I enjoys going to Yum Cha and the Vietnamese Pho.

I see where my boys want to settle when they start working.  Maybe I can be an "astronaut" or "hai gui" where I can live in Canada for 6 months and back here for six months.

Mexican Resturant in Plaza Sin

I saw the poster yesterday when I was in Plaza Sin to repair my Samsung.  The earphones no longer turn on or off and neither can it increase or reduce volume.  Unfortunately, the replacement earphones ran out and I have to go back to pick it up. What better time to do it than lunch time.  I decided to try the Mexican resturant in the poster I seen yesterday.  Set lunch is $9.90 and comes with a drink and soup or salad.  The price is good.  Portion is small.  So I am still hungry after the meal.  I had a chicken fajita.  It came in a sizzling plate.  Smell good and taste ok too.

Best fajitas is still Chili's!!

Mandarin Gallery

It is Sunday and we want to have a relaxing meal.  At first we thought of our regular haunt, Imperial Treasure but both boys objected.  So mummy thought of Tonkatsu Maison in Mandarin Gallery.  We had lunch there once and she thought it was good. 

It is on the second floor which is easily accessible with the escalator along Orchard Road.  We surveyed around and found Wild Honey is very popular with long queues and another cafe with New York theme.  We must try out those two to check why they are so popular.  The cafe beside the escalator is pretty popular and quite full but no queue.  Several other Japanese resturant but Tonkatsu Maison is the most popular.  So we decided on Tonkatsu as there is no wait.

We try out 4 different sets.  They are all pretty good.  We had prawns, crab croquettes, loin tonkatsu and layered pork tonkatsu.  The meal is very enjoyable.

Shrimps!

This evening, there are no fishes but shrimps.  We cooked most up for dinner.  Balance are in the tank in the video.  You can also hear the pistol shrimp's pistol shot!

Cannondale Quick

I was in Jurong East to see Chinese Sinseh.  There is a bike shop, Ulu Bicycle a few shops away.  I decided to check it out.  The bald head owner is quite young.  His body is full of tattoos.  The tattoos are Buddhist chants and images.  He is a nice guy and when I asked him about hybrid bike, he tells me he has the last Cannondale Quick on "special" for $1,000.  The bike is very dusty and has scratches.  But it is light weight.  I asked him if a basket can be installed.  He says he has a high quality mounting and basket for additonal $100.  I also asked for a parking stand which he agrees to give to me for free.

I took a walk check on the internet to make sure it is a reasonable bike.  I like it because it is very light.  So I went back to purchase it.  He fix up the accessories and I parted with my money.  The bike is not bad except it is caliper brakes instead of disc.  I like disc brakes better but for the weight I decided to compromise.  Now I own the bike which I can use for my fishing.

No Durian for a Week!

The AMK market was closed for 3 days.  It re-opens finally today.  So at half past two we went to the market to get durian but our approved supplier is not in.  So we went back there at 5pm but he sold out!!  The durians came at 4 pm and sold out before 5pm.  We are out of luck!  So the vendor says he will keep 5 for us tomorrow. 

I like the service.  We are lucky as he is just resting and talking to his friends when we went there.  We even brought our own boxes.

Electric-Assist Bike Repaired

I am happy to have my electrically assist bike repaired.  It cost a bomb with the guy charging me transport as well.  Unfortunately, there is a special tool required and he has a subcontractor who does the work for him.  He did not want me to know who it is so that I am tied down by him.  Anyway, I will use until it breakdown again and maybe retire it if the cost of repair and maintenance is too high.  Now we can get anything from internet at a reasonable cost.  So replacement cost has come down.

Catch of the Day

Big Schools of Fishes

There are big schools of different types of fishes around the Punggol Jetty.  The water is not clean but support thriving community.  I do not know what types are fishes are they.  Clearly different types of fishes - some like ikan bilis, others are bigger and pikes are plentiful too.

I am happy to see plenty of living creatures on our seaside.  It is like beach front living!

Super Low Tide

This morning it is low tide at -0.1m.  I am so lucky as there are plenty of shrimps in the leftover puddles that the digger of sea worms left behind.  So it a good catch this morning.  Squatting for long time is not good for the back.  Another middle age man was excited but could not squat for long time.  After catching the shrimps, I went to the washing point.  There a man with 2 sons were washing up.  He was collecting mussels.  They collected quite a lot but he says there are more in Kranji.  I told him my boys did not dare to eat when they see the water so dirty and smelly. His boys says Kanji smells worse than Punggol. 

The man also eat iguanas.  He says they taste good with ginger.  They caught iguanas with dead rat inside but they still eat it up.

Cat High Homecoming

I went to the homecoming to give B3 support.  I asked B1 to follow-up but he says he is playing some game that will take a few mins.  I left after reminding him that we always supported his homecoming.  The carpark was a nightmare.  So I just parked at the HDB.  No stress! 

Some of the stalls selling food looked pretty professional.  I think maybe be real hawkers manning the stalls.  I like the bumper boats.  It is the same as bumper cars except in a small pond.  The one with long queue is also quite fun.  Putting the kids in a giant transparent ball and rolling about in the pond.  I thought maybe I should get one of this ball to play in my pool. 

The kids looked like they are enjoying themselves and also making money for the school fund.  It is win-win.  Also a good way to relax and have fun.

Fabulous Sinseh!

I have been suffering from low back pain in the last two days after working on levelling the tile in my front yard.  This afternoon, my wife insist we go to visit a sinseh recommended by her classmate.  I am reluctant as my backache has been a chronic issue since I went to army.  After a few weeks, it will usually go away as I exercise to strengthen my back muscles. 

We drove all the way to Jurong East.  We are lucky as he was talking to a customer when we arrive.  The customer leaves once he saw us walked in.  He asked what is your problem.  I explained my back hurts after working on the yard.  He told me I need to use a stool and not squat.  I told him, I did.  Then he explain that it is my discs misalignment and pinching the nerve.  He made me stand in front of the mirror and showed me that my "spare tyre" is bigger on the left compared to the right.  Then he adjusted my spine by cracking it.  He also pressed into my hip.  After adjustment, he asked me to go in front of the mirror and observe my spare tyre.  He is indeed correct, it is more balance now.  My back pain also disappeared.  Then he teach me to exercise my back muscle.  I have to do it every morning and evening.

The exercise is simple.  The problem is discipline.  I will need to make this exercise a habit.

Punctured!

It was a regular ride to a regular place to fish in my regular net.  I did not catch any fishes yesterday but on the way back suddenly my bike become bumpy.  The rear wheel has no air.  I have to push my bike all the way to SengKang swimming pool where there is a bike shop.  Unfortunately, they did not want to replace the tire saying it is different size.  So I have to get a ride back as I have work call at 8pm. 

The bike shop noticed the screw in my tire.  My tire is only 1.25 inches wide and I have a get a screw puncture.  What luck!  Luckily, it was not too far to push.

Reliving Old Times

My friend, Boh Tong is reliving old times after reading my blog.

"I used to catch lokang fishes from the kampong when I was
a kid. When I grew up and lived at Bedok area I used to catch
prawns in the sea off the East Coast. I had 2 sampans and it
was fun cos there were huge prawns. As for fishes, I would
go further out near the international water opposite Batam
and used hooks to catch them."

I am glad to be living in times when life was simple and with simple joys.  Catch longkang (drain) fishes was my pastime too.  Today, there are hardly any longkang fishes anymore.  The drains are all made of concrete and the water do not have plant or microscopic organisms which are food for fishes.  So no guppies in our longkangs today.