Our Garden City, Singapore!

Singapore may be a little red dot bereft of natural resources and significant natural landscapes, but it has achieved numerous thumbs up in her efforts to alleviate living comforts in the land scarce city state. Her laurels are many, but one that I particularly enjoy is the greenery of the island.

I did not begin to appreciate the greenery as a child, being a young ignorant being. Having grown up in tropical Singapore, I always lament when the relentless scorching sun teaming up with humidity renders us in beads of perspiration and frustration. It's only of late (thanks to my school going kids while revising their science) that I am reminded that the deliberate effort of pruning Singapore into a garden city allows better ecosystem of regulating air purity and temperature. Without these majestic trees lining up the roads, there will be no canopies to provide shelter and photosynthesis to furnish fresh oxygen...

The other obvious benefit of greenery is the beauty of trees literally. It adds very subtle charm to a city. Whether I am driving or riding on a bus, it's a pleasant sight looking out - I see greens (green color has a soothing effect?) lining the road, screening the buildings instead of pure concrete jungle as in most cities. Without trees, cities become eyesores, regardless of how magnificent or pretty the buildings are as individuals versus the entirety of the landscape. This dawned on me as I travel more around the world. To be fair, some cities are pleasing with their share of trees and flowers, but with seasons of shedding and being bare half of the year, Singapore has the advantage of being an evergreen garden city all year round.

I delight in our garden city everyday as I step outdoors, the brief glimpse of trees is enough to soothe the eyes and moods. Even  on my jogs along roadside enroute to Botanic Gardens, it's a pleasant experience whizzing past the trees that line the pavement. I'm loving my garden city more each day!

I can't help crafting a typical scene of trees lining the road for my SG50 Needle Felting Personal Challenge, it's not a real challenge in terms of skills but representative of our garden city, Singapore!

Disney Princess

Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs is a classic cartoon movie that etched deep in my memory - my generation of girls grew up with fairy tale stories and naively held dear the notion that One Day our own Prince Charming will come sweeping us off the ground and we will live Happily Ever After... But truth be told, life doesn't stay the same ever after, it's full of challenges, entailing happy rides and less happy bumps. Most of us learn the hard way as life experience throws us out of our dreamy yearnings.

I'm not alleging that Disney Princess fairy tales are lame. Many of the princesses went through hardships before attaining their 'Happily Ever After' - Snow White, Cinderella, Rapunzel, Beauty & the Beast, etc. The fallacy is the concept of 'Happily Ever After'. Nothing stays the same in reality, everything is constantly changing or evolving. Life is a haphazard collision of factors within and beyond our control. What's imperative is the attitude towards life challenges and maturing as a wiser, better learned self.

'Happily Ever After' in Disney tales feeds hopes in girls, but an over abundance of similar themes may lead to girls thinking their ultimate dream is to meet their Prince Charming and be happily in love after, only to be heartbroken when reality deals them otherwise. Dynamics in a relationship changes over time and it takes 2 persons more than just love to keep the relationship strong, enduring, healthy and happy. As to how, there are no hard and fast rules, each relationship is different with its unique trials and circumstances.

Thankfully Disney evolves with time. The recent Disney Princess themes do not revolve in a 'Happily Ever After' over a Prince Charming. There are other loves and themes in life that are accorded equal importance, if not more - love between parent and child, love between siblings, friendship love, etc. Even loving your own self! As with all things in life, everything in moderation and nothing excessive, lest it becomes narcissism or obsessive love. I applaud Frozen and Brave for its different themes, embracing sister love and courage to fight one's happiness. I particularly fancy Merida for her carefree spirit and being herself instead of crumbling to social expectations. To Merida!

Marvel Super Heroes

Looking at 2 of my creations for SG50 Needle Felting Personal Challenge gave me an idea - the Samsui woman and NSman crafted for my SG50 challenge were well received by many people for its cuteness and originality, making me prideful ;p Hence I decided to craft more 'cute little people' of diversities and claim it as my signature style! The next inspiration is none other than my childhood favourite heroine, Wonder Woman!

Wonder Woman is probably unknown to my children's generation, their superheroes were some strange forms of Mutant Ninja Turtles, cold looking Transformers and others unbeknownst to me. Fortunately these were transient heroes that do not get stuck in their psyche and they move  on with the flow of current trends. The only character that is still entertaining to them is SpongeBob SquarePants, which I have to admit I find it enjoyable due to its humour.

Thanks to my generation that grew up with classic Superheroes by Marvel, there have been productions of Marvel Superheroes in movies by these talented and creative fans in the film industry - Superman, the Incredible Hulk, Batman, Spider-Man, Captain America, Thor, Ironman and lately an amalgamation of Superheroes, The Avengers! They are big budget hi-tech fanciful movies appealing to both children and adults. Now the next generation takes an interest in Marvel comics and their Superheroes.

Back to Wonder Woman - why is there no remake of Wonder Woman in movies?! It's the heroine of most girls my generation, not Barbie Doll?!! Hmmm, could it be due to the movie industry being male dominated - they fantasised out their own male heroes versus the women's female heroes? In any case, it will not eradicate Wonder Woman in my heart ;p 

Here I present the Superheroes of my childhood - Wonder Woman, Superman and The Incredible Hulk (though Hulk was supposedly chunkier in upper body but will not fit into the signature style) :-)

Samsui Woman

The challenge to needle felt 50 iconic or representative items of Singapore had led me to a journey of discovering Singapore's heritage. As I gather information and google for pictures of some items, I realize I have very little knowledge of some of the pieces I am crafting. It piques my curiosity further and I research more. It becomes my learning adventure of knowing Singapore in depth.

One of my newly acquired knowledge was the Samsui women - they were typical of Singapore's past. Samsui women were immigrants from China's province of Guangdong (Sanshui, hence the name Samsui) in 1930s & 1940s to work in construction or industrial sites of Singapore (some others work as domestic servants for the wealthy households). These women were clothed in dark blue loose shirts and pants with an apron. What's striking about them was their headgear - crimson red flattish bandana atop their weather beaten faces. They were referred as 红头巾 in Chinese. My daughter learnt in school that the samsui women wore 红头巾 as it was eye-catching and would reduce occurrences of accidents at the work site.

I had never seen a samsui woman in my life. They would be in their 90s by now, not many alive, some had left to return to their hometown in China. I remembered a popular TV drama series of 红头巾 in the 1980s and that was my first ‘encounter’ of samsui women but didn’t leave much imprint in me. As I dug out more information about the samsui women, I feel a deep respect for them. They were a thrifty, hardworking and sacrificial lot! Their main purpose for working in Singapore was to earn money to send back to their families in China. Most of them vowed never to marry. They toiled hard in the construction sites, digging and carrying sand under tropical heat, labouring long hours. They lived in cramped quarters, ate spartanly and patched up old clothes, saving every cent they could. Some even took up hawker jobs beyond their long hours at construction sites to earn a little extra for savings. They were also known to be women of integrity and not engage in vices - opium, prostitution, etc despite their hardship.

Whenever I read about women of hardship (or children in disadvantaged circumstances) it is always heart wrenching, wish I could do more to help them... Also, these reads made me count my blessings, that I am fortunate to be born in a modern era and in Singapore!

Here's to the samsui women whom contributed to Singapore’s nation building!

SG50

2015 is Singapore's 50th birthday since independence in 1965, there will be massive celebrations to mark this special anniversary coined as SG50. Many organisations, whether private or public driven, have lined up various programs and events in the name of SG50. The Ministry of Manpower declared an additional public holiday for residents to bask in the celebration, in hope that everyone gets a chance to commemorate National Day one way or another. I am certainly thrilled ;p

In conjunction with SG50, I decided to come up with my personal SG50 needle felting challenge, meaning I will needle felt 50 items that are either iconic or representative of Singapore leading up to National Day, August 9.

It will be a challenge for 3 reasons. Firstly, compiling a list of 50 items is a task. Singapore is a very young nation, with rather weak heritage and culture teemed with non existent natural resources, it is relatively difficult to list 50 icons that uniquely identifies Singapore. I cracked my brain real hard and merely coughed up with 30 plus names. I had to broadcast an appeal for ideas from friends on my Facebook to boost my list.

Secondly, the feasibility of the ideas that poured in. The synergy of brain power yields wonderful contribution :-) However, not every suggestion is viable to be needle felted in this challenge due to intricacy of details, which ties in with the third reason - time constraint.

Essentially any idea may be needle felted so long as one has the imagination and patience. The craft of needle felting is a time consuming process, a project involving complex and intricate details will command man hours in weeks or even months. The 1st item for my SG50 challenge was The Merlion, a project I started last July, hoping to complete in time for last year's National Day. It was supposed to be a mini Merlion of height 5 inches but as I poked, it turned out bigger and bigger due to the detailing. It became tiresome and boring, I dropped it last August and only picked it up again this March to finish it off.

Thirdly, as aforementioned, time constraint. I could only needle felt during my free time, which mounts up to an average of 2-3 hours daily. It is 15 weeks to my dateline of 9 Aug, translating to an average of 3 features per week. It means I have to be selective in my choice of items, that they have to be simple and quick enough for me to complete. Thus friends, if I do not needle felt your contributed idea, it is not because I do not like the idea but due to time constraint. My apologies in advance!

Tribute to Mr Lee Kuan Yew

The passing of Mr Lee Kuan Yew has left a whirlwind of emotions in Singaporeans, as evident in the flood of tributes and comments all over Singapore and social media. Mostly were respectful manifestation of gratitude and awe in grieving, with a minute camp of 'slightly sad' whose opinion lingered a sliver of skepticism on LKY's legacy. Whatever ones' opinion, let this be a mourning week and leave the differences aside.

After 2 days of private wake at the Istana, Mr Lee Kuan Yew's body is lying in State in the Parliament House and members of public have been streaming endlessly to pay their respects. In fact, it is an incredibly long queue of 8 hours wait to enter the parliament building but it doesn't deter most people in queue, despite the hot and humid weather. Such a solidarity show of the Singaporean spirit is heartwarming. Even in the mournful state, the authorities displayed their trait of efficiency and reacted speedily to keep the Lying in State open 24 hours to the public, easing the queue time. Nonetheless, the waiting time in queue stands at 3 hours at 12 midnight... Hats off to my fellow countrymen!

As for myself, it has been a moving target from original plan of 4pm visit with family to 1am visit with hubs but alas, he has limited waking power, as I pen this, he has drifted into dreamland with no holds barred. We will play by ear over the next 3 days depending on queue situation to pay our last respects to the founding father of modern Singapore.

Singapore is where I am born and educated, where I work and raise my own family. Over the years, I feel more and more appreciative of Singapore - for its safety and security, cleanliness and greenness, efficiency and orderliness, compactness and convenience, etc etc - things that my generation has taken for granted. While there is imperfection (as with any place on earth), I have learnt to make the best out of the flaws and whine less. At the end of the day, I feel blessed to have been born and grow up in a progressive and just society, study and work in a meritocratic environment, raising my kids in a safe and  invigorating country. It seems cliché to attribute the progress of Singapore to Mr Lee Kuan Yew but had he not been the driving force, I cannot imagine how Singapore would have been carved out from 50 years back. Think what you wish, but all I want to do is give thanks to Mr Lee Kuan Yew for his vision, wisdom and energy, bringing Singapore to where it is now, including his team of cabinet groomed under his wings.

My Salute to you, Sir!

My Firstborn

My firstborn is 11 going 12! It's amazing how time flies, from a new born baby to an adorable feisty toddler, sweet pre-schooler to an artsy pre-teen. She's been my sunshine since she came into my life, despite short bursts of tyranny - 1st 5 months she simply refused to sleep through the night, demanding to be carried at differing positions to go into slumber and her 'terrible two' stage. In general, she's a sensible, sensitive and gregarious child, with an inclination and passion towards creative crafts, which takes priority over her academic studies. Unfortunately, Singapore school system is not conducive for her type of personality that tends to learn better in a creative environment, even in areas of academic studies.

My firstborn is a cheerful and charming girl. Even as a toddler, she'll be beaming smiles at people. When she was about 14 months old while in the arms of my mom who was doing her grocery shopping at a supermarket, she flashed her signature smile at a lady who was so captivated that the lady invited my mom and daughter to her home right after. My mom called me later to inform me that they were at a 'stranger's' house, to my horror! I quickly went over to fetch them and it turned out that the stranger lady was a kind lady who had a boy about the same age as my girl. Thereafter, both kids became playmates and the stranger lady has become a dear family friend, all thanks to a charming smile ;p

As my first born grows, her smiles and laughters continue to warm my heart, as well as others'. Many people commented that my girl's laughter is spontaneous and contagious and brightens up everyone's mood :-) May my girl be a joyful person always!

Tapestry

This is the first piece I am writing since onset of 2015... It's been a hectic beginning - adjusting kids back into the routine of school term, attending Meet-the-Parents sessions, social gatherings, work and family. Now I can finally sit back and pen my reflections, which may not be much, as it's a haphazard swirl of thoughts. These thoughts unravel in my mind as I needle felt or weave, which is one of the reasons why I enjoy poking. Needle felting is a slow, philosophic and silent occupation, which keeps you busy but gives you time to think of other things. It allows my mind to wander freely, pondering on life and its mysteries.

Too many incidences have transpired lately, social, societal and global, they serve as food for thought to life in general, leading to no satisfactory answer to each bit of wonder. Restlessness surfaces as the thoughts swim about, leaving me more thankful to each day, to each blessing bestowed, to each love in my life and hopefully I am able to give back all the blessings to all around me.

Maybe life is like a tapestry, with all the entanglements and weavings, everything is intertwined. There's no exact blueprint, the tapestry is weaved based on instinct and freedom of choice, and sometimes due to restraint, it's weaved in a different manner from original intent but still yields a fulfilling result. It echoes my experience with life, as well as my first tapestry weaving. I had an idea of what I want (breads), a vague design of the backdrop (baskets of breads on shelves) and my ideal (French floor tiles) and started weaving without outlining the exact count. I went along as it flowed. Not every tile is perfect but in the big scheme of the entire tapestry, it looks coherent. As I weaved on, I ran short on a color and could not replace it with the exact color and texture, I re-designed the backdrop into a store frontage instead. It turned out pretty well, a French Boulangerie :-)

Hollyford Track

My love for the mountains began when I did a trek in Mount Kinabalu 16 years back. I was awed by the grandeur of the mountain, the magnificent views atop the summit and the pleasing humdrum of simply walking on the tracks. Trekking has a therapeutic effect for my spirit, the mountain my sanctuary. There's always a longing to return to the mountains to rejuvenate my soul...

Tramping in New Zealand had been on my to do list since but somehow I went on other treks instead. I was in NZ this Nov for a fibre retreat and took the chance to extend my stay for a trek, albeit a short one!

I was alone on the trip and sensibility rules - instead of being an independent trekker, I opted for a guided trek. The Hollyford Track seemed luring as it covered a less tramped region, spreading from pristine native forests, valleys and lakes, historical sites, natural seal colony and climaxing it with a helicopter ride to Milford Sound, a wide range for a 3-day trek! I signed up without hesitation.

The experience with the Hollyford Track is in a league of its own! I had many boo-boos during the 3 day trek but every situation was salvaged by the organising team and scenic route. We had to carry our own backpack of 7kg and trekked 19.5km on the 1st day; by the end of the day, my shoulders were sore from the weight. Upon reaching our lodge, we were greeted by a lovely and cozy lodge furnished with beds and fireplace! A good night's sleep on a comfy bed does miracles to the body's healing. Furthermore, we were served a michelin style dinner with wine :-) What better way to pamper oneself after a hard day's trek?

Weather for Day 2 was rainy, which is usually a bummer for a trek. However, our knowledgeable guides perked the day imparting interesting history about the route which we trekked. In actuality, it rains most of the time at Hollyford Valley, making it a rain forest valley, with mists setting in, casting a mystical landscape, beautiful in its own way. We jet boated a bit, reaching the far out inaccessible places due to rain. During mid day, my right boot quitted on me, its sole ripped open - a nightmare for any trekker (I only had a pair of walking shoes)! Thankfully the guides were equipped with a handy kit, my boot was mended to withstand the rest of the trek.

At the last stretch of trek, we traversed the natural colony of fur seals and it was such a delight to watch them up close! Another highlight was the Fiordland crested penguins which were usually shy. However, due to the rain, most of them clambered ashore. In fact, one of them was so curious, it came as close as 1 metre from where I was. I was brimming with smiles :-)

Upon returning to the lodge (yet another luxurious hut), my boot protested after a treacherous 12km walk and totally fell apart. My resourceful guide managed to procure a pair of track shoes for me. It was a wee bit big but with stuffing of napkins, they worked pretty well for my Day 3 trek, which was a mere 5km walk on a sand dune island.

We were again spoiled rotten at Martins Bay Lodge with a generous spread of cheese board and wine, followed by a grilled salmon meal. The bar is certainly raised sky high for a trek! I may reconsider doing any independent trek in future ;p Breakfast affairs were equally sumptuous.

Day 3 was a relaxing trek despite bits of rain and hail. The route was scenic - undulating dunes with breaking waves and misty mountains as backdrop. We bade farewell to the Hollyford valley by climbing onto a chopper onward to a majestic descent to the Milford Sound, absolutely stunning!

Toy Soldiers

My boy has a penchant for soldiers, as with most boys. In his toddler days, he aspired to be a soldier when he grew up. I cannot fathom being one in any stage of my life... A soldier is essential as a country's defence force but the association of a soldier with violence seems inevitable in my mind as news of territorial fighting with armed violence in the world seems rampant. The entertainment industry tends to glorify war movies but the atrocities in a war immensely overwhelm any justified victory :-(

While Singapore is a small nation, it is beefed up by a strong defence force. Other than the political argument, I see the mandatory 2 years of National Service for its male citizens at age 17-18 as a plus from a social standpoint. The boys grow to become more mature mentally and emotionally! It roughens their charisma, makes them rugged, fosters comradeship and patriotism. Some may argue it as a waste of time for Singaporean men economically but the character that's built in the 2 years is priceless...

When my boy was introduced to soccer in his kindergarten days, he began a love for soccer and played in league matches with his academy team. His ambition changed - he aspired to be a professional soccer player! We didn't want to discourage 'the ambition' as his passion is admiringly hot at his age. He follows world class soccer players and their matches, his wealth of current soccer knowledge is impressive. 

As he grew into his preteen years and became acquainted with maths and economics, his love for soccer hasn't dissipated. However, his logic grew. It dawned on him that it's excruciatingly difficult to become a world class player with Singapore as the base and when he realised that even the top player in Singapore rarely commands high price, his 'ambition' wavered with his pragmatism. As we all know, our ambitions change over time ;p Nonetheless, he still loves the idea of soldiers and soccer. 

London Trip with Mom

London never ceases to bore me even as I have visited it many times. Its wealth of culture, heritage, arts and scenic outskirts is constantly amusing visitors. Perhaps my comment is skewed - being Singaporeans naturally makes us more familiar with England since Singapore was once its colony, we are more informed due to Singapore's history. It applies more with my parents' generation, as evident in my recent trip to London with my mom.

I had travelled with my mom for vacations aplenty since my firstborn 11 years ago, however it was always as a family vacation. Over the years, I realised that such family vacations were always centered around the kids - the programs were geared towards kids such as beach vacations, theme park vacations or places of interests that appeal to the kids. Even the choices of holiday cuisine were limited as the children are not as adventurous in their tastebuds. Hence, all of us suit our itinerary and meal choices towards the kids. Imagine no sushi nor sashimi when we were in Japan :-(

Meanwhile my mom will make other travels with her own friends, while I ventured on couple travels or adventure travels, which were neither suited to an elderly lady. My mom's circle of friends always chose Asian destinations (especially China and Japan), likely due to language, culture and cuisine similarity. When I decided to bring my mom on a birthday trip this year, one that's tailored entirely to her needs, she surprised me by choosing London. 

So off to London we went. I planned the entire itinerary, bringing her to the essential sights and museums in London, peppering up with gastronomic experiences. Thankfully London is cosmopolitan, there are great restaurants that serve up excellent Asian dishes to satiate her savoury and spicy palate. We had a fair share of fine western meals too. The highlight was Claridge's Afternoon Tea that was reserved months in advance. Lovely assortment of sandwiches, scones with their infamous dollop of clotted cream, pastries over exquisite tea in a regal and charming ambience. The serving was too much for us but I made sure I had a bite of each. 

My mom was particularly delighted to visit any places of interest that relates to the Royal family - Birmingham Palace, Claridge's, Diana's memorial fountain, etc. She chirped happily and repeatedly that Singapore used coins and notes with the royal queen imprinted during the olden days. Even the post box was the exact british post box we see installed in UK now. Then it dawned on me that she was more acquainted with British history by first hand experience :-)

Parking Day SG 2014

September had been a hectic month, with the beginning a preparation of my first roadshow, figuratively and literally! Parking Day, which is part of an annual worldwide event where community members transform parking spots into temporary public spaces, became my first project showcasing my needle felted creations. While it was a simple installation of an Art Gallery, it was a logistically challenging feat, having to almost single handedly shoulder the entire project. Thankfully I had gracious friends and my little ones who chipped in to help, lifting some burden.

My main aim of the roadshow is to promote the art of needle felting - creating an awareness and understanding of the craft, as well as an appreciation of the intricate yet amusing art. The event turned out rather meaningful, having a fair stream of lunch time crowd and friends who came to support and visit the gallery. My girl assisted to demonstrate the craft to the public, as well as teaching the curious ones the art of needle felting.

The day panned out well despite the relentless scorching sun. It poured suddenly during midday and I had to scramble to shift the installations under shade (with the help of visiting friends) and not long after, the sun came scorning on us again. We moved the installations a couple of times depending on the sun intensity and human traffic. Logistically comical but it added to our memory bank of fun moments :-)

Skiing

Winter sports is practically zilch in Singapore as it is a sun locked tropical island. In order to engage in winter sports, we have to travel far north or south at the opportune timing to catch the bountiful snowfall in the mountains. Unfortunately, the Northern and Southern Hemisphere snow seasons rarely coincide with local school vacations, depriving local students the opportunity of experiencing winter sports. 

I am a fervent fan of the mountains. Before I had kids, I would trek the mountains and soak in its grandeur and awe, especially snow capped mountains which serve as a sanctuary to my spirit. However, snowy mountains are far away from the equator or the nearer ones would command heights more than 3500m, rendering a longer time to scale these mountains due to distance. As a mom of 2 young kids, it is almost impossible to pluck myself away from them for more than 2 weeks as homesickness and guilt will kick in. 

In tune with family life, I had stayed away from long treks and greatly reduced my occasions atop snowy mountains. But the yearning will not be doused, leading to an alternative way to reach the summit in a much shorter time - skiing! I managed to escape into snowy mountains a couple of times while leaving the kids at home biding their school schedules ;p 

When the chance finally arose for my kids to ski with their favourite cousins living in Australia, I did not hesitate to take them off school for a couple of days. As young kids, they are ideally suited to learn a new sport - their sense of balance, agility and boldness are amazing! They mastered the green slopes in a matter of a 2 hour lesson, freeing them to ski breezily (I learnt to ski as an adult and had to conquer many psychological fear before achieving their ease!) Furthermore, skiing and bonding with right company adds to a beautiful experience, memories that will last a lifetime, whereas the few days of local school routine would be barely productive in a child's learning nor imprint a lasting memory. Here's a pic of my girl and her best friend cum cousin while skiing - a fond memory etched in her forever :-)

World Cup 2014

My boy started his love for soccer at the age of four when my 1st helper, Duhpuii whose love for soccer so great introduced him to the world of soccer as she followed her favourite teams and players. He would learn the names of the teams and players and became well-versed in them, more than his dad who is also a soccer aficionado. As he turned five, the World Cup 2010 hype was roaring in my household. We didn't subscribe to World Cup TV channels then, thus father and son would wake in the wee hours (as it was held in South Africa in a different time zone) and trot to MacDonald's for live telecast. I was simply amused - a 5 old year waking up at odd hours beyond the comfort of home just to watch a soccer match!

Soccer, on the other hand, was an alien to me. I grew up not knowing much about soccer. While my partner (then boyfriend) was a soccer fan, I was never sucked into his interest of watching the games. I just could not comprehend the thrill of 11 men chasing after a ball?!

As motherhood presents me with a boy whose passion in soccer intervenes with my own life, I was forced to acquaint myself with soccer more and more. He enrolled into a soccer academy after World Cup 2010. It started as a once weekly activity which was the dad's responsibility to chauffeur. As time passed, his skills sharpened, the training increased to twice weekly. During league seasons, it is thrice weekly soccer sessions! I started to chauffeur him to training and become a cheerleader during his matches. At times, his school roped him in for soccer matches or the academy ran friendly matches, so imagine the soccer overdose I had!!!

I learnt bits and pieces about soccer as my boy would be talking about it. In fact, my knowledge of soccer stems from his infectious passion and animated chat which he engaged me. I am certainly far from being an expert but am happy to hold a soccer conversation with my boy.

Now with World Cup 2014, the hype is on again. This time I am genuinely interested after all the influence from my boy. Hosted in Brazil, the timings of matches are even more horrendous for us here in Asia. Some nights I watched with my boy, in an effort to bond with him. However, I couldn't keep up while he continued to follow his favourite teams. His routine is certainly upset - he would go to bed at 530pm skipping dinner and wake up at 4am to catch the match before hopping on to school at 630am. The price boys pay for World Cup!

We are 2 days shy of World Cup 2014 Finals, with Germany facing off Argentina. Whom shall prevail?

Warplanes

Hmmm… Warplanes? I do not know much about war aircrafts nor was I ever interested in warfare nor war related weapons of destruction. The closest contact to warfare knowledge was the brief history lessons during school days. Ever since, I would not dwell deep into war topics - the subject of warfare being too dry for a female chromosome, the atrocities waged at war too heartbreaking to bear. Yet, the subject of warfare is unavoidable in one's life as the media is strife with news of tension and conflict.

Neither will I imagine myself enjoying reading warfare literature. A recent visit to The Museum of Flight in Seattle had spurred my interest in WWII history and a coincident reading of a novel "The Boy in Striped Pyjamas" (a supremely light read depicting a subtle portrayal of political injustice through the naive eye of a 9 year old boy) on The Holocaust.  I started to 'wikipedia' for WWII related articles. Every article is immensely loaded with new information previously unknown to me, which at a click will further illuminate the unexplored field. The more I read, the more it whets my appetite. However, it comes at a cost - it whips up a whirlwind of emotions and thoughts which I shall not elaborate.

The next book I picked out is A Higher Call, a memoir that will warm the heart, knowing that true honour and kindness do exist even in the darkness of war. It doubles up as an educational read - I learn about warplanes and ammo, the technicalities and tactics of warfare in a non-dry textbook manner. In fact, I was able to visualise these warplanes and imagine the scenarios as the visit to The Museum of Flight had equipped me with the background on WWII. I am amused to learn that a B-17 bomber was manned by 9 persons in a full combat and all the crew were situated at different parts of the plane, from the nose to the tail! The book is such an enlightenment (now I can spar with my boy on war combat terminologies ;p) that I feel compelled to poke a B-17 Bomber :-)

Battle with Mandarin...

I am a Singaporean Chinese and I learn Mandarin from young. I studied in a reputable Chinese primary and secondary school but I am not proud to say I am barely proficient in Mandarin. While other major subjects had been a breeze, Mandarin was my most nightmarish subject. I practically had recurring nightmares even in my adult working days - the scene of examinations setting and I couldn't find the words to begin my chinese essay; instead, I was peeling my nails throughout and handed in a blank sheet! Surprisingly I scored an A1 in national level Standard Chinese examinations and was delighted to be a B3 student in national level Higher Chinese examinations. The bonus was I liberated myself of Chinese lessons ever since! While most of my college mates had their due of weekly Chinese lessons and assignments, I could idle away ;p

Apparently I do not possess a flair for languages. As years passed in the real world of interaction with people of diverse backgrounds, as well as my curiosity of cultures and places, I became motivated to learn new languages. But still, polishing up my Mandarin wasn't on my to-do list. Somehow I wasn't charmed to re-learn Mandarin, perhaps due to the nightmares as well as my personal experiences with Chinese related incidents which had not been very pleasant? When my kids started to attend primary school, I was once again forced to acquaint myself with Mandarin, in my feeble attempt to help them. The Chinese standard in my kids' era has been way elevated beyond my time, thus I am rendered totally useless in any assistance to their learning. 

Mandarin language thus became a bone of contention between myself and Singapore education system. The schools place a high priority and standard to learning of Mandarin. However, having gone through the learning process myself, I realised that if a child is not brought up in a natural environment whereby the language is spoken and used at home nor in his social circle, it becomes a pain to learn a language if the child is not passionate about it. If the Chinese teachers in schools fail to inspire the child, that almost spells doom. Thus, it falls upon the parents' responsibilities to boost the child's interest. I have to resort to external help of a tuition teacher to brush up my kids' Mandarin, but the once weekly lessons are hardly enough. 

I am certainly not a Tiger Mom; for me, it is enough that the kids are equipped in basic Mandarin as a foundation. I will not go to lengths stressing my kids to excel in Mandarin, killing their joy of learning a language and their childhood. Eventually as they grow and learn to carve a role for themselves in society and if Mandarin proves to be essential in their life, they will naturally be motivated to polish up their Mandarin, and they will easily pick it up given their foundation in Mandarin, as depicted in my own life... Now that I have discovered a Chinese writer cum illustrator (幾米) that captivates me, I am fired up to polish up my Mandarin again! I shared 幾米's pieces with my daughter, she loves the humor and animated drawings too! Hopefully it'll inspire her to read more Chinese books :-)

For those who are new to 幾米，here's a peep at his 作品. This was the first piece I read and was so tickled by it, not to mention my girl. So tickled that I had to poke the character :-)

Learning Journey of Needle Felting

As I experiment and poke more, I discover subtle techniques of needle felting that will improve an artwork. It may seem common sense to be poking this way or that way, but it takes experience to uncover the 'ahhs' of techniques. I started learning the basics by reading a few needle felting books initially, but as I poke more, I tend to poke by intuition. I wonder if I should document these trivial revelations along the way which may be helpful as instruction in event that I forget what I had done before...

I am more of a self- taught needle felt artist with my haphazard way of experimentation. My passion for needle felting grows by the day, with each creation poked. Having said that, the desire to poke is very much dependent on what inspires me at the moment in time, pretty random. 

The challenge arises when friends start to request for commissioned works, which means they dictate the theme of the art piece. At first, I have doubts as I am very much a person who crafts based on inspiration. The first job was themed hot air balloons; I researched on pictures of hot air balloons and started to work on it. In the process, I began to discover joy as I get acquainted with the pictures and tried as best as possible to make the creation real yet captivating to the customer, in this case a 3 month old infant - cutesie Baby Gene! The baby mobile turned out pretty and useful :-)

Disney Frozen

The upside of parenthood is being able to transport back to childhood - reliving the missed bits and revelling in childish acts without being labelled as 'childish'. Recently, my kids and I synced our inflight movie and watched the acclaimed Disney movie Frozen together; we enjoyed the plot and musical. I was pleasantly surprised that the supposedly girly movie captivated my boy too. We downloaded their favourite song titles from Frozen on iTunes and played them during car rides, both of them would sing along and reenact the scenes from Frozen. It's a delight watching them giggling in their antics, such simple joy :-) The combination of an entertaining movie and great musical songs keeps reverberating in our memory, so much so that I'm inspired to needle felt Olaf and my first attempt of a huge figurine, Anna!

Felissimo Koala

While visiting a friend in Kobe in 2012, I chanced upon a Felissimo Happy Toys Project Exhibition. It was a delightful display of handmade koala bears in patchwork or crochet, created and contributed by different individuals who participated in the project. After the exhibition, the multitude of colourful and vibrant bears would be shipped and donated to various children in the world as a gift,  how heartwarming! 

The project was launched in 1997 in Japan and carries out yearly missions of collating handmade toys. The mascot changes every year, ranging from teddy bears, dogs, reindeers, elephants to cats. Being Japanese, the mascot never fails to be KAWAII.... I missed out taking part in the project for 2013 but will certainly be looking out for the new project this year. I can't wait to sew my own patchwork mascot and make my contribution.

Here's my version of Felissimo Koala in needle felt :-)

Cookie...

While I professed to be a cat and dog lover, I would have never thought I'll have a Chihuahua in my household, as the minuscule breed is the last to uphold the characteristics of dogs that appeal to me - charisma, security, 'huggability', rowdy play, gracefulness, etc. However, when I first saw this puny shivering ball of 3 brown spots on its body of white coat, it warmed my heart as it reminded me of our late Jack Russell Terrier, Rusty whom departed last August. Something stirred within me, I cannot pinpoint. As I watched the tiny 800g trembling within its enclosure, I had the desire to comfort and care for it. In the snap of minutes,  in crept the various reasons to justify why we should have this Chihuahua in our household: a companion for Coco that will not create chaos in the house, a dog for my girl whom she is able to manage by herself, a dog for my boy to instil in him 'responsibilities', a creature for me to care for like a baby since the factory for human babies is officially closed...

Since it's technically the kids' dog, they named it Cookie, despite a protest from my brother that it should be named Yoda due to the sheer resemblence between the two in his opinion. Thus Cookie's other nickname is Baby Yoda. It's been a month since Cookie came along and it finally had its last dose of vaccination. Even the vet who examined it was tickled that Cookie is such a teeny Chihuahua. After consultation, the vet actually came out and requested a picture of Cookie ;p 

Cookie (keeping fingers crossed!) has yet to exhibit the typical yelpiness of a Chihuahua, she barely barked more than twice in her stay with us, and both times merited with good reason. We've brought her out a couple of times in a doggie bag; she would be trembling initially till she settled comfortably in her bed within the bag, without making a wee bit of noise while we carried her about. Hopefully Cookie will be a great companion to my girl in her growing up years :-)