Complaining - That What We Do

My friend and fellow blogger, Boh Tong is blogging about The Ugly PPS passengers. The crews and ex-crews has a field day writing in the comments and expressing their frustrations and anger towards the passengers. Some also highlight great passengers especially the late Mrs. Lee Kuan Yew. I have written compliments to on the crews whenever I had a pleasant experience or notice a hardworking stewardess with a great attitude. Singapore Airlines acknowledges my feedback and also promised to forward my compliments to the appropriate crews. I love Singapore Airlines not just for the young and sweet looking stewardess (although this does help!) but for the service and positive disposition. It seems the cabin crews have lots of grievances and misgivings with their interactions with demanding passengers. No shortage of complaints there. Some highlights a few nice rich and famous personalities like movie stars.
Personally, I think most passengers are very regular i.e. they are neither nice or nasty. Crews being human remembers all the nasty incidents. I bet they don't remember any of nice compliments they get but remembers all the complaints. Complaints are easier to remember as it is negative and there is an action plan or change in behaviours required by the airline. Compliments? Well, it is expected and very quickly forgotten.
Boh Tong is an ex-crew, so he has the views of cabin crew. I am a passenger and so have the perspective of a Customer. Crews are some times not nice and Customers too! Most time, Crews are warm and courteous and Customers too!

Tap is off

2pm today, the rain finally stopped. It was raining non-stop since I landed at 6am Sunday. The reservoir is overflowing! Not really. The flood gates were opened and the water level is back to normal. We had continuous rain before but not heavy continously. This is my first experience. I understand from the wife this January, we received 4 times the average precipitation this month. What a wet Jan!

Pleasant Flight

I had a good flight from LA to home. I could not sleep and read all the newspapers from cover to cover. Then the magazines, Newsweek, Harvard Business Review, Economist and Businessweek. I ran out of reading material!! I watched a Chinese movie which is really really unusual for me. A week may be too long for me to be immerse in the Angmo culture as Chinese movies is not my "thing". I prefers cars chase, mindless violent and the hero get the girl theme(learn this from the movie, Megamind). So off to the kitchen and disturb the poor cabin crews who have to put up with a alert and talkative passenger. I guess I was lucky as the flight stewardesses were Malaysian. Malaysians are open and warm. Maybe because they are from small town. Chief Steward was excellent probably because he is my age group and we can talk at the same wavelength. The other steward is a Singaporean and just listened intently and did not talk much. He is a typical reticent Singapore boy only answers when the question is direct specifically to him. I am so glad to land after being cooped in a confined space for 18 hours. Time to adjust back to local time.

Reflections on my week in US

Writing is a good way to occupy myself while waiting for my flight. Right now I am in the lounge in Los Angeles Airport. I am making good use of the couple hours of dead time.
The Barnes and Noble is a disappointment. The books are selection are less then Borders or Kinokuniya in Singapore. Many old books on bargain price. The wind of change has happened. Asia is the happening place. I recalled when I first visited US in 1984, I spent hours at the bookstore. The selection was enormous. At that time, MPH was the flagship bookstore and has only tiny fraction of what Barnes and Noble or Borders offers. I was also amazed and impressed by all the English books on Buddhism, Oriental philosophy that were not available in Singapore. Today, quite clearly US is behind in the book retail business.
Even drinking Starbucks coffee is so much cheaper here than at home. It is really fun to travel when exchange rate is in our favor. The cost of lodging plus car for my trip here per day is actually lower than just the hotel cost in the cities of Asia. It is not an apple to apple comparison. Atlanta is not a top tier city like New York, Seoul, Shanghai or Tokyo. Still the balance definitely tilt to Asia.
I must say the security checks flow has improved a lot since I was last here maybe 5 years ago. The queues are not as long and the flow is relatively good although is not as efficient as those in Asia. Airports in China move a lot more people and at a much faster rate. Hey! it is still the first world compared the India's airports. The mood is also more relaxed and competent. After 9/11, America is just in a state of hysteria.
I am not sure if I am going to be back here again. The plan right now is Germany in October. Travelling 17hours is far better than 28hours.

Barnes and Noble

I saw Barnes and Noble on the way to dinner on Wednesday. I have a little free time this morning before I leave Altanta and will have the chance to do my favorite pastime. There is a Starbucks right beside. So it is perfect!

Pitch Black

It is pitch black and cold outside. I have been awake for an hour now and writing my blog. Occupying myself until dawn. I can go for breakfast in an hour and half. Same food everyday - scrambled eggs, bacon, sausages, wafers and American biscuits with gravy. The fruit section has my usual favorite, pineapple and something usually unavailable at home - raspberry, gooseberry and blueberry. The bread section is not exciting - the bagels are big but tasteless, other types of bread which do not look appealing to me. Americans are into quantity rather than quality. Bread selection is broad in Europe and each country have many different ways of making their bread. I am always thinking about food and worrying about my weight. I need a different mindset.

Catching up with Friends

Finally, I have a chance to have dinner with Kate and her husband. It is very nice to catch up with him. He is selling cardiovascular products, chest drains and synthetic blood vessels. Kate and I have a wonderful time talking shop and updating each other. The food was very good. I had a hamburger. I also ate up all the leftover cookies in my room. Man, I am so full now.

My First Dinner

Last night, I had my first dinner since I landed on US soil on Sunday night/Monday morning. I am glad I did not have regular meals as I usually gain too much weight with all the rich foods. We went to an all American resturant called The Cheesecake. It has a wonderful spread of cheesecake all at American size i.e. each slice is enough to feed my family of five. I order a petite filet steak and it was tender and succulent. Yes, I must always order my steaks medium in future.
Hooray! Today is my last day of meeting. So it will be time to hit the road and go back home for Chinese New Year.

Good Day

I had a good day. I was awake all the time...amazing! The meeting went well and I must say we do spend a lot time talking and talking. Go in a circle and talk again. The good thing is we bring out a lot of issues and discussed them. Whoa! no kidding. I am glad this kind of meetings happened on once or twice a year. Death by discussions. Life in a big bureaucracy. It is like politics. Plenty of robust discussions just to come out with policies. Well, I am glad to be back and sleeping soon. Goodnite, everyone. I will sleep tight.

TV for Company

I am up in the middle of the night with no one but the TV for company. This is the fun of travelling across time zones. Luckily, I have not ate much while letting my body adjust to the local time. Tomorrow will be different. I may be drinking plenty of calories just to keep awake. No weighing scale here. So I have no way of tracking my weight change.
TV programs in the US is just full of buy, buy, buy. Call now so that you do not missed this opportunity! It is consume, consume, consume. The Americans have too many companies promoting consumption in order to grow. This is the modern economy at work.

Aching Molar

My molar is aching. I have replaced the filling but it is sore. I may need to cap it to have a more permanent repair. Taking care of teeth is so important. B3 is only nine and he has decay in his permanent molar. I hope he will start to listen and inculcate the habit of brushing his teeth at least twice a day. I did not go to a primary school that has regular dental checkup and oral hygiene instructions. I munch too much on nuts, chips and cookies. Enjoy junk food and pay and pay.

Roswell, Georgia

USA - a long long way. 17 hours to LA then another 5 hours to Roswell. My original transit time was more than 6 hours. Luckily, I managed to get an earlier flight out after I clear immigration. So instead of arriving 6am Monday morning, I arrived 12 midnight. The drive from Atlanta to Roswell is one hour with no traffic. It is nice to drive in the middle of the night! I am glad I managed to switch to the earlier flight. Otherwise I will be fighting Monday morning rush hour.
I tried to nap but not successful. So I am up writing my blog.
I am starving. I had two warm chocolate chips cookies when I checked in. Yes, this is a nice warm welcome from the hotel. I first experience this hotel in San Diego and like it so much (with my sweet tooth!). I am glad the hotel in Roswell is converted to this chain as well. It was something different and every since our San Diego office was closed I did not get a chance to eat this warm chocolate chips cookies again until tonight. So things does go in a circle. San Diego office has been closed for maybe 7 years now. I loved the city. It is a great place to live and visit. I like the architecture and the weather. The food is ... as the Aussies put it, beautiful. Anyway, Roswell is a nice small town outside Atlanta.
The next few days are jammed packed with food and plenty of coffee to fight jetlag. My brain will go on overdrive with all the meetings. I hope I do not gain too much weight. My past records are no good as I loved American food deep fried everything, meats and giant portions. The motherland of extremely sweet Krispy Kreme donuts.

Spring Cleaning

We are putting on a fresh coat of paint on our home. We have to move our furniture and shelves out for the painters to do their work. As we put back our paraphenalia, we took the opportunity to clear up all our unwanted stuff. The boys are not interested. They only help out when asked. Even with repeated reminders, they do not wish to clear their stuff. I am glad to finally decide to get rid of a lot of my R/C helicopters and airplanes. They are not the serious hobbyist type but made in China toys for kids.
I have lots of magazines like National Geographic, Harvard Business Review and Reader's Digest that I am still keeping. I am glad I did not subscribe to the periodicals as my library will be overflowing in no time. My collection of books have grown but I am keeping them for reference. Clearing up gives me a nice refreshing feel in my home office and with the clutter gone, my place now feel so Zen!

Trepidation

It has been more than 3 years since I last visited US. I am a little stressed by the recent snowstorms that my destination city experienced. I have not driven in snow for long time. Probably since I left Toronto. Driving in snow is so demand and I am worried as the drive will be long and arduous. I do not fancy a challenging drive after 36 hours of air travel. I am going to land on Monday morning, start of the rush hour. The schedule is not good. I would have landed on Sunday night if I go via New York but the snow storm disrupted all flights in La Guardia and Kennedy airport a couple weeks ago. So I take the less disruptive but not as good a connection via LA.

Tooth Cracked!

The filling of my last molar just cracked! Terrible thing to happen on a Friday night and I am leaving for US on Sunday. I have to seek emergency treatment. Luckily, my wife has the telephone number of a dental clinic nearby and she managed to secure an appointment for me tomorrow morning. I was told by my new dentist in NUH that the filling has crack last month and I thought I can hold off the treatment for a few months... dental treatments are expensive. Now I am in desperate straits. Hopefully, I can get it fixed for at least until Chinese New Year is over tomorrow.
Angels, please look after me.

Superstitious?

Last night, I did not sleep well. My eyes was itchy and painful. When I woke up, my right eye was swollen. It must be bacteria infection as bad smell emanate from my eyes when I rubbed them vigorously. I went to an Eye Doctor and there were two pus sac on my right eye and one much bigger pus sac on my left eye. The doctor removed the pus sacs and prescribed two different type of eye drops and a cream for my swollen lid.
Then in the afternoon when I ride my bike into the PCN, I was putting my phone into my pocket and riding handsfree, I lost my balance and almost go into the reservoir. I managed to brake and recover by putting my foot on the green fence. Phew! I thanked angels for protecting me.
On the way home, on the up slope, I shifted to a lower gear to make it easier to climb the gradient. The chain jammed. I have to stop to release it. After that, as I ride, I tried to reverse pedal and lost my balance and fell. I have deep scratches on my left elbow and left knee. Luckily, I was wearing my gloves and my palms which I used to break my fall is just bruised rather than having the skin torn off.
Is today my unlucky day? I am glad it is the end of the day.

Done!

My feedback to NParks works! The lights are working now. I have left ST a voicemail to let her know they are turned on. This is effective government at work. I am officially impressed. Kudos to NParks.

Chance Meeting with NParks

I was cycling on my favorite PCN when I met NParks officials. They are warm and solicited my feedback on the PCN. I was shocked! Government staff asking for feedback? This is really incredible to me. No wonder Singapore is a city in a Garden. No wonder we are one of the happiest country in the world.
I gave feedback to the super nice lady who was in-charge but there to handover over her PCN project to another colleague. I am very pleased with the PCN. Half the lights along a stretch of the PCN near Pei Hwa Secondary are not working. She immediately called over the contractor and asked him to get it fixed right away. She expected the lights to be back on by tonight. On top of this she also introduced herself and gave me her office number so that I can become
"Friends of NParks" and give her feedback NParks' projects. Soliciting the users in giving constructive feedbacks and acting on them, NParks is an organisation that has modernise its methods and management. I am impressed! Keep up the excellent work, NParks.

Happy

I have an excellent day today! I made a few people happy and I love it! I get a kick out of making others happy.

Record Cold

The La Nina is causing record low temperature in Singapore. It is wonderfully cool. I love it! How I wish we have this kind of temperature all year round. This weather reminds me of winter in Perth. It is cool and allows me to jog for long time. I busted my knees a long time ago. So it is swimming and now cycling.
My colleagues are sharing the snowstorms they had. London, Atlanta and somewhere else in Europe experienced snows like never before. It is fun for the kids and frustrations for the adults. Welcome to the new world.

Mavericks At Work

As I listened to this book, I wished I have more room to put some of the Mavericks practices at work. After referencing the print copy, I will highlight a few examples now.

Page 145 - "Great retailers ask, 'How can we make it easier, simpler, more fun to do business with us'"
Page 199 - "Business and life are built on successful mediocrity," the unknown world-weary author concludes, "and victory comes to companies, not through the employment of brilliant men, but through knowing how to get the most out of ordinary folks."
Page 231 - In Pixar, every employee -- animators, techies, production assistants, accountants, marketers, even security guards -- is encouraged to devote up to four hours per week, every week, to their education.
Page 257 - Over the years, even the most advanced companies we have come to know have used traditional help wanted ads to prospect for recruits. What's is instructive about their ads, though, is how untraditional they are. They emphasize character rather than credentials and spotlight how the company works rather than where an individual might be working.

There is another point which I like but cannot locate where it is on the print is "Employees has no job description".
Mavericks companies that are successful in growing their business and win accolades.

Omens of Impending Disaster?

Strange phenomenon in the news. First dead black birds falling all over a small town in US. Today, Yahoo news reported many areas have dead birds. Many experts speculate the possible causes of mass death. One analysis showed they were drunk as they ate up the pulp of grapes used to make alcoholic drinks. Whatever the scientific reason, it is curious that there are so many incidents around the world this year. Also we have quite a number of floods. Now Brazil. Are these the signs of the world coming to an End?

Mall Rat

I met an old friend. He was staying in a hotel near a golf course. It is a deathly quiet place. Dark everywhere except for the hotel lobby. It is in the middle of nowhere. Unless it is not possible, I always chose a hotel with a mall nearby. He called me a mall rat. I do plenty of shopping, window shopping. I do not need much stuff and do not wish to accelerate the demise of our Mother Earth. However, I still buy books for learning and education.
Today, Takashimaya has 10% discount. So I bought water filters and storage boxes that air can be pumped out to keep food fresh for longer time. I am happy to buy stuff to reduce waste and best of all, there is another 30% discount. So I save plenty of $$$! Thank God for retail therapy.

Back

Sorry for not writing for three days. I do not like to pay exhorbitant charges for internet access. I ate much this trip. Hawker food for breakfast, Chinese lunch consisting steamed threadfin(fish) in ginger, dongko pork with steamed buns, deep fried chicken with salt, black pepper prawns and soup, finishing up with dinner at Grumps. Grumps is toted as an Italian resturant. However, it offers pork knuckles. So I would considered it as a European resturant. The French fries was fabulous. I had good company and good conversations. This bring about weight gain. Serious gain. I gain one solid kg. I need to exercise non stop for a week to burn all the calories I ingested. I guess I have to pay the price of enjoying good food.

Ministry of Steak

Chomp Chomp is a food heaven. Plenty of good food and relatively inexpensive. We try out Ministry of Steak. We had mushroom soup, chicken Maryland and ice lemon tea. My wife and I shares food as she eat very little to keep her petite figure. I, on the other hand is a gutton. I ate 80% of the food we share. I also exercise more. However, my waistline keeps expanding and the number on the weighing scales only go in one direction.
Going into MoS, I was hit by the smell, the smell of disinfectant. I told the staff that it smells like a hospital. Actually, I was wrong. Hospitals today do not smell at all. It actually smell like hospitals of the old days, in 1970s and 1980s. Look like the resturant is using Detrol.
Set lunch is a good deal at $6.90 with a drink. No Service Charge or GST. My wife observes that the patrons are mostly females and young mothers with babies and toddlers.
The chicken Maryland was good and french fries fresh and crisp. The ice lemon tea was put through a blender and served chilled with all bubbles like beer. This meal cost $16.20 which is not bad. I think it is good value and I may bring my boys to try out their steaks and burgers.

All Day Long

It rained non-stop from morning until nightfall and looks like it will continue through the night. It is cool and the raindrops pattering on the leaves make it very relaxing. It is great sleeping weather. I shall go to bed now.

Father and Sons

I bring my two older boys to explore the upcoming PCN. It is good to bring them to the muddy tracks and a little nature in the man-make world of city. B1, the eldest is extremely law-abiding and not as adventurous. I have to encourage him to take a little risk. B2 just follow through all the muddy and adventurous terrains without any comments. We check out the menu of Punggol Seafood. The price looked a little high for my liking. I am a thrifty person and do not enjoy seafood and thus unwilling to pay premium price for something I do not enjoy. However, since they like it. We will go there to check out the food.
Look like the environment upgrading will be done in Q1 this year. I hope it is complete on schedule. My home now has good access to the beach and seaside. We may pick up fishing again...

Happy Nieces

Internet is wonderful for staying connected with friends and family. I can see that my nieces are happy and having a wonderful time. Life is a walk in the Park. I guess it should be a walk in Botanic Gardens in Singapore context.
Electronics do not replace live social interaction. It is a good medium for communication. While it is a just a slice of what actually happens and we only see what is published, it is a window. I should be satisfied they are doing well in life and have grown up and will make their own decisions.

Fine Drizzle

Yesterday, the rain drizzle finely. It is just like a flurries of snow. This is quite similar to fall time in Toronto. Temperature is cool and the water droplets lightly brushes your face. Walking outdoor is like walking in the mountain mist. This is the best time to live in Singapore. It is heavenly.

Exploring the New Further PCN

The park connector near my home is going all the way to Punggol Seventeen Avenue. We can cycle to Punggol Marina for Punggol Seafood in future. The cycling/jogging path extends all the way to Punggol Point and beyond. It is nice to enjoy the seaside via cycling in future. I think it is Johore we are looking across. I am glad our Government finally decides to build something for all to enjoy and also take care of cyclists.
Kudos to our Government. I appreciate you putting money into free leisure and healthy living.

Roller Blading again

It is two years or more since I broke wrist and hit my head. I had retrograde amnesia or loss of memory. Until today, I could not recall how I fall or all the procedures done to me in Tan Tock Seng Hospital. I had MRI on my head, deep cut below my chin stitched and various tests done.
Finally, I plucked my courage to roller blade again today. I wore the wheels for a grand total of 20mins. What an achievement! Although I fell while cycling and started to cycle while recovering. I was afraid to go on wheels. It is hard to balance on 8 small wheels compared to two large ones. I am glad to finally roller blade again. I still have to learn how to stop. More importantly, how to balance myself.

Day 2 of New School

B3 transferred to his mum and brothers alma mater. We were tired of parent-unfriendly neighbourhood school in SengKang. Actually, the school is below my fellow blogger, Boh Tong's apartment. There were 3 kids joining Primary 4 when B3 reported to the school yesterday. The school is in Toa Payoh and starts at 7:10am in the morning. He has to wake up at 5:30am to get ready for his school bus who picks him up at 6:05am. In the neighbourhood school, he can wake up at 7am and reach school by 7:45am. However he is home by 1:40pm in the new school compared to 2pm before.
He is spending longer time on the road. So why switch? We were fed up with the neighbourhood school. After the Principal change two years ago, all the original team of teachers left. We felt something wasn't right but cannot tell because non of the teachers who left said anything. We experience more and more change in the school where parents are treated as if they are sending their kids to a highly secured prison. The open and relaxed atmosphere and accessibility of teachers and Vice-Principal and Principal are gone.
Now in the new school, he is adapting well. The form teacher introduced him to the class and assign a buddy to him. He is introduced as someone who will give stiff competition to the rest of his classmates. His Chinese teacher says his attitude is "ren zhen" or serious and focussed. He also feel his classmates are smarter than in the neighbourhood school. By the way, he was in the top class so this give you an idea the standard in neighbourhood school. Rather it reinforce the view popular schools have higher standard.
It is still early days, for now we feel blessed the school accepted him and very glad our decision to pull him out of the neighbourhood school is right.

Just Another Day as Usual

Everything is very regular.
Bad news as usual. Flood of Biblical proportion in Queensland, Australia but only 200,000 people affected Contrast with flood in Pakistan and millions are affected. Snowstorms in Europe, then in US.
Business as usual, so we are all working. The wet markets and hawker centers are open. The malls have shifted to Chinese New Years decorations and music. I have not got over Christmas yet and CNY is upon us.
Routine as usual. Wake up, read newspapers with teh halia, work, lunch, work and dinner. For my boys, no school today. Hurray!
Exercise as usual. Cycle in the Park Connector even though it is drizzling. A few fanatics are doing the same.

Back to Routines Again

On Tuesday, it will be back to routine of school, tuition, homework and CCAs for the boys again. B1 is now working for a bank until he goes for military service. I have a busy schedule ahead with issues to deal with and new directions to foster.
The going may be tough, and the tough will get going. I am cautiously optimistic for the new year.
It is interesting. Today, my whole family ate vegetarian food only. Yes, totally and absolutely no meat the whole day! Me and my boys can't go without meat and visiting my in-laws last night may have rubbed on us.

First Day of New Decade

It is the first day of the New Decade. The sky is cloudy and air is cool. it is quiet and only birds are chirping. Today is not just first day of a new year. It is a brand new decade as well. In 21 months, it is the highly publicised end of Mayan calendar. SETI just reported 3 alien spacecrafts on it way to Earth. The mother ship is 240 km across, larger than the size of Singapore! We can accommodate 6 to 7 million people. I wonder how many aliens will there be inside the spaceship.
There are plenty of skeptism. Who knows? SETI is run is scientists. So I would take their warning seriously. But really we cannot do anything as we had no idea on the intent. "We are here in Peace" may be the first words from the aliens.
I am back in Singapore for more than nine years, nine good years! My boys all speak Singlish and do homework on their spare time instead of playing sports in Canada. B1 will be serving his military service this year whereas in Canada, he will be starting University. We lived in a comfortable home and close to a park like Oakville. We contacted and met 3 long lost nieces. Go to Europe twice for holiday. Turning more green with our Prius. Continue to work for good and stable company. Have morning tea with newspaper everyday....
I am grateful for Buddha's blessing and my wife's desire to return home. My boys always asked when are we going back to Canada and the answer is someday. We will live there again.