ThE rOaD nOt TaKeN.
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Went to attend a seminar today at The
Legends @ fortcanning. Didn't see any familiar faces today except for my German teach who almost didn't recognise me T_T
Woke up in the morning almost wanting to abandon the seminar as I didn't have any kakis with me, but as my application was sponsored, it didn't feel right to waste the money. On hindsight, I suspect the sponsorship from the organiser could have been a ploy just to make up the numbers (it would have been quite embarassing to invite the Minister of State for Education to an event with less than 50 people...) but that is just guessing on my part.
Spent $4 on parking coupons before realising that they offered complementary parking (serves me right for not checking...)
In the past, when I attended seminars, I always felt a little out of place. Seminars are social events in which you are forced to interact/socialise with strangers esp if you are the one who didn't bring any friends. Sort of like the uncomfortable wedding dinner or the funeral wake except there are more strangers. So I decided to take the initiative and ended up befriending a group of teachers from ITE. Heard some interesting stories from them about ITE students. Although it is purely anecdotal, apparently some of them are not really there to study, so they smoke, sleep, come to lessons late,
siam sch or come to lessons without bringing anything... which is quite sad. However, it's tough for a lot of them who are also working part time as well, to study and work concurrently is really difficult.
Those of us who have the opportunity to study without having to work at a job should feel really blessed and not spend their lives moping around feeling so emo all the time!The food during the seminar was not very good. I took a brochure on wedding banquets from the club but after today, I don't think I can consider them for my wedding dinner...not worth it foodwise!
I thought that overall the content presented in the seminar was not really good as there was a big variation in the usefulness of the various talks and workshops. Some of the presenters were just talking and talking about big theories without putting in any analysis or explaining the significance of what they were presenting. I kept getting the impression that they were talking about concepts in general without really getting right to the topic which was very frustrating. It did not help that the seminar leader sounded like a gospel minister and spoke like he was perpetually high...
I was interested by some of the software that was showcased during the MDA presentation. They introduced:
- Animaker (an animation software which had been used during the N.E.mation comp)
- Koobits (a software that allows the user to create e-books that are interactive)
- Podcasts (very interesting...must see how I can put this in my blog!)
- Newsmaker (I think LPS already has this, will want to fiddle with it when I have a chance!)
My main takeaway from the whole seminar:
I think it reminded me why I joined the teaching profession. I wanted to make a difference and help kids to grow and become better people! As the irritating seminar leader said, we may not be able to impact every student that we teach, but as long as we manage to help at least one student in each class, it is already something to celebrate.
Finish up with an excerpt from this poem from Dawna Markova:
"I choose to risk my significance:
To live so that
which came to me as seed goes
to the next as blossom and that
which came to me as blossom
goes on as fruit"
Adios amigos!
Labels: seminar, Taking things for Granted, teachng
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Didn't go to school today as I caught a cold and have a throat infection (Talk too much and never preserve my voice...plus some retribution from when I was 'gloating' over Kirk's inability to eat spicy food, bleah!)
Took the opportunity to re-charge plus realised Dear Wife would expect me to cook tonight, so stopped by the market after visiting the doc's. No porridge today to DW's disappointment as they are closed on Thursday. Plan B was to buy some
cheong fun and
siew mai for her together with some seafood porridge for myself. Also went to buy some pork ribs, minced pork, watercress and chicken wings for dinner tonight.
The menu is (like in a posh restaurant):
- Watercress soup with pork ribs
- Garlic chicken wings in soysauce with ginger and honey
- Omelette with minced pork
- White rice
- Yong Tau Foo soup (leftover from yesterday's dinner)
Well, except for the last item which is a bit LC, the rest of the dishes are still quite presentable. Scrapped the omelette as I thought it was a bit too much food for 2 people to consume. Turns out that the chicken wings are still not that good as I need to keep refining the recipe which I had gotten from MIL.
Watched Hotel Rwanda on Star Movies in the afternoon during lunch and was shocked. Basically the movie is about the racial violence in Rwanda between the Hutus and the Tutsis and how a hotel manager Paul managed to help many refugees survive during the period. Although the UN forces were present, but it was sad that many of the so-called superpowers were not willing to help because Rwanda (as a country) did not have any thing of value. It was a situation where the refugees who were caught between the opposing forces were being slaughtered in the millions... I couldn't help but imagine the helplessness of being in a country that was being torn up internally by racial prejudice and being unable to defend your basic right to live in peace.
Living in Singapore is a blessing that many of us take for granted. We do not need to worry about finding food or clean water or shelter. So although we do love to complain about anything under the sky (the hot topic now is the NDR speech by PM Lee), it is still important that we take the time to be thankful for being in a country which is stable. It sounds very NE but seeing how the Rwandans were living, not knowing when a soldier or rioter would be brandishing a rifle or machete in front of their faces, makes me proud that we have an SAF to defend us. In order to get help from the police, Paul had to bribe the general several times. Can you imagine calling the police and having them ask you what you will be able to pay them if they help you?
So the next time when the govt passes another piece of legislation to fight terrorism or Changi Airport creates another rule to make searching for contraband easier, I'm going to try and remember that the cost of complaceny is destruction, that sometimes we have to give up a bit of convenience to preserve liberty and our way of life.
It's not ideal, but it's just the way it is.
Labels: Hotel Rwanda, Taking things for Granted
