About A Picture

This is in a department store, Gap. There are guitars, microphones and tables. There are many people in the shopping mall. They are queueing up to get a glimpse on the performers and to get an autograph from them. It would probably be in the afternoon at 2pm. I think that the performers are performing in shopping mall for an event, to promote T-shirts in Gap. There is a girl singing and playing the guitar, she is wearing a sky blue dress and is looking at her other guitarist. There is a boy who is playing the electric guitar. He is wearing a black T-shirt, jeans and a black, green and white hat. He looks engrossed in what he is playing. They are wearing these clothes and playing the guitar because they are performing for the audience and their fans. The scene is in a department store because they are promoting a Gap T-shirt. This picture can be linked to what is happening around me now, such as concerts or an autograph signing session.

Somebody Has To Say It

SINGAPORE
$9.5m to rejuvenate Yishun landscape

$9.5m to rejuvenate Yishun lanscape. That is a lot of money. I am living in Yishun, and in my opinion, I think the government is turning Yishun to a more popular place. It is a joint effort involving government agencies and Khoo Teck Puat Hospital to remake the heartland into a vibrant place for residents to live in. The Yishun Pond is set to undergo a facelift to become part of a waterfront park for the area's residents and the nearby Khoo Teck Puat Hospital's patients. It will be covered in trees, shrubs and flowering plants. There will also be footpath for residents to go jogging or walking around the area. I think that this is eco-friendly and it helps the envirionment not only for us but we can also enjoy the scenery of the pond. We can also have activities near it and enjoy community or family bonding. These are new things which people have not seen before, therefore, I think that people would be talking more about it, and Yishun will be more known to more people. I would be excited and would be waiting until the transformation is complete by the end of 2011.

(197 Words)

A Time For Reflection

3-2-1 Reflection

3 new things that I have learned in school for this term :

1. I have learned that I have to study hard to achieve my goals. I try to at least study 1 hour a day for at least one subject during the weekdays, and at least 2 hours during the weekends.

2. I have learned that being in the Normal Stream is not as bad as I think it would be. Sometimes, we get easier questions and topics. But sometimes, our questions are quite similar to the Express girls and I find it quite unfair. But I just have to accept it. I would like to do my best in order to move on to the Express Stream. I think that I have the potential to do well to move on.

3. I have learned that I should be more independent. I would take responsibility to do my own work and to study by myself without my parents telling me to do so. I would do the best of my ability and strive for my goals.

2 things that I would like to improve on (school work/yourself) :

1. I would like to improve on my subjects such as History and Literature. I am quite weak at those subjects and I would want to improve on it. I would read and memorise the History facts and the Literature points that my teacher has given me.

2. I would like to improve on my writing. I would like to blog more often and write more compositions and letter writings to improve on my writing. I will try to read more books and if I manage to find new words, I would check the dictionary to find out the meaning of the words.

1 thing that I would like to learn more about :

1. I would like to learn more about study techniques. I would like to know the different study techniques so that I would be able to study properly and well to achieve my goals and do well for my examinations.

Living In Singapore

To live in Singapore means a lot to me. Not only because I was born and raised here, this is my home country where I live. I think Singapore is very special country, because it is just a small red dot. Singapore also has many special tourists' attractions which are really nice.

Some examples are the Esplanade. It is commonly known as a "durian". Another example is the Merlion. It named the Merlion because it's head is made up of a lion and the body is made up of a fish and Singapore was used to be known as "The Lion City". There are other new tourists' attractions such as Marina Barage, Marina Bay, The Singapore Flyer.

I love the food in Singapore mainly because there is a variety of food all over Singapore. Such main and popular foods are : Chicken Rice, Hokkien Mee, Satay and Roti Prata. Singaporeans usually speak singlish which is a mixture of languages in multicultural groups such as Chinese, Hokkien, Malay or Tamil.

I love living in Singapore because I am very famliar with the place and it is my home country. If I were to migrate to another country, I would miss Singapore quite terribly.

Myths, Legends, Fables And Folktales

1. THE LION AND THE MOUSE

In this story, a lion was sleeping peacefully when something crawled up his back. It was a mouse. As fast as lightning, the lion quickly grabbed the mouse. The lion did not believe that the mouse could actually save him one day. When suddenly, after the mouse left, a group of hunters captured him and tied him to a tree with a rope. The mouse heard his roar and he quickly bit the rope till it broke, and the rope snapped. The lion therefore learnt a lesson to believe that a small animal could save a lion. I like this story because the moral of the story is that little friends proves to be great friends. No matter how big or small you are, the act of kindness is what matters most.

2. WHAT HAPPENED TO UNICORNS?

In this story, unicorns were frightened of people and therefore lived in the woods alone. One day, a little girl named Elaine, was exploring the woods when she saw a unicorn. They became best friends immediately. Elaine even named the unicorn, Moiraine. They played every single day until Elaine was 16 years old. Suddenly for four years, Elaine did not come to play with Moiraine anymore. One day, Moiraine went out for a walk in the woods, and saw Elaine with a young handsome man. Elaine explained that she was married now and had no time for childish games. Moiraine was so heartbroken that she ran very far away. I like this story because it shows that even animals can be heartbroken when one does not come to visit anymore.

History

Why do we need philosophy/religion today?
They seem to cause more division and problems.

We need philosophy because it is the science of life itself. Its a necessity to life, something we all need. A hungry person needs food to live, a lonely person wants friends to have fun with, but after these basic needs have been fulfilled, there is something more, a search for a purpose that we all have.

We need religion because it is a crutch for the weak. If you have no faith means that you have no hope and after death all you're going to end up with is death. I believe religion helps us to know more of what we want to be and how our lifestyle will be and our families as well.

Food And Culture

1. Sambal Stingray

It is a Chinese dish. Sambal is a versatile chili paste blended with spices, shallots, candlenuts and often belachan (fermented shrimp paste). The sambal-coated cuts of stingray are wrapped in cleaned banana leaves and is grilled to smoky perfection. It tastes spicy and has a wonderful Smoky BBQ Flavour to it. I like it because it is tasty especially it's smoky flavour and the juice of the stingray just melts in your mouth.

2. Roti Prata

It is an Indian dish. Roti Prata is a flat piece of bread which when the Indians knead, flatten and flip it until the dough is a tissue-thin sheet. It is then folded into multi-layered pancakes and griddle-fried til crisp. It is usually served with curry or sugar if you cannot take spicy. It tastes spicy if you pour curry over it. Nowadays, more ingredients can be added to the prata such as cheese, chocolate, strawberry, mushroom, egg, etc;

HISTORY LESSON: Life During The Japanese Occupation

During the Japanese occupation, some people were placed in prison where they had to behave normally, regardless of their race and religion. The four hundred of them bathed together everyday with a piece of soup in their hands and waits patiently for the water to be switched on. They were to be fast in everything they do. My father died in prison due to dysentery, which was an infection causing severe diarrhoea. There were many diseases and infections in the prisons. During morning assemblies, we had to sing the Japanese national anthem and was supposed to bow to the Japanese Emperor. We are supposed to bow to a soldier when you see him. If we do not bow to them, we would get harsh beatings by the Japanese.

128 Words

World

World

ICELAND CLOSES AIRPORTS FOR THE FIRST TIME DUE TO VOLCANIC ASH CLOUD

Iceland will close two airports on Friday for the first time, a week after ash from an Icelandic volcano forced the shutdown of airspace over much of Europe and stranded thousands of passengers around the world. It is really sad to see people stranded in Iceland. Just because of this Volcanic ash, people travelling will not be able to reach back to their own home town. I think that this is the worst volcano erruption yet.

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/europe/04/22/iceland.airport.closures/index.html

Southeast-Asia

Southeast-Asia

ONE POLICE OFFICER KILLED, 31 WOUNDED IN THAI SOUTH

I feel really sad that a police officer was killed. The two people riding on a motorcyle threw an M67 grenade at the officers shortly after they had assembled to observe the national anthem at their station in Pattani provice. I think that these people are really mean. Many more people could have died. That police officer actually risked his life to save the people.


http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/SGE63K036.htm

Exercise 4

Did you have a favourite TV show as a child or youth?

Yes I do have a favourite TV show as a child. I used to watch this TV series called 'Hi-5'. It was a group of 5 people - 3 girls and 2 boys. Their names are Kathleen, Kelly, Charlie, Nathan and Tim.
In the beginning of the show, they would sing and dance to a song. When I was younger, I remembered that i always used to dance and sing to the music. After that, they will have their own segments.

Kathleen's segment:
She would always do an activity. However, this little 8-legged monster called 'Jup Jup', who always hides in Kathleen's small square doors, will always try to ruin her activity. Fortunately, she always completes it well, by finding other equipments to complete her activity. Isn't she smart?

Kelly's segment:
She has this puppet called 'Chatterbox' whom she always spends time and talks to. Chatterbox is really cute as she has glasses and nice long hair.

Charlie's segment:
She would always dance and sing to music. Sometimes she would act it out too. To me, her segment is actually the shortest among the rest. Sometimes, she has this swing, which was connected to the ceiling which was nice. I wish that I had one too!

Nathan's segment:
He would always go on adventures which was really interesting. Some props were quite interesting too!

Tim's segment:
Tim is a musical person. Therefore, he plays all sorts of instruments. He is really talented. Sometimes, he will asked the rest of the group to come, and play some instruments and sing. It was really nice.

Their music are always lovely. I remembered that i was totally crazy about them, and bought many of their CDs. My mother threw them all away as i got bigger. Now, the main crew of 'Hi-5' are getting old and retired, therefore, the younger generation are taking over now. To me, the old 'Hi-5' is still the best!

Exercise 3

1. Sam (8 years old) is watching the pump attendant fill petrol into his father's car from the rear window. Write a dialogue for a conversation between the boy and pump attendant.

Dialogue :

Sam: Hello.
Pump Attendant: Hello little boy.
Sam: What are you doing?
Pump Attendant: I am filling petrol into your father's car.
Sam: Why are you doing it?
Pump Attendant: I am filling petrol in cars because if the car is out of petrol, the car will not be able to move. Therefore, your father will not be able to drive it.

Sam: Is it dangerous?

Pump Attendant: Well, to me it is not. Because I have been filling petrol in to my customers' cars for 10 years already.

Sam: Is petrol expensive?

Pump Attendant: It depends on the amount of petrol the customer wants in his or her car.

Sam: Are there always so many people coming here?

Pump Attendant: Well, yes. Many people would come here for filling up petrol in their cars in order for it to move. They can also come here to have a car wash or buy anything from the shop right over there.

Sam: Why do you always have to help people to fill petrol? Can't they do it themselves?

Pump Attendant: Well, some people do not know how to fill petrol in their car. That is why our company here has many pump attendants, to help our customers pump petrol into their car.

Pump Attendant: Are there anymore questions?

Sam: No, I do not have anymore questions. Thank you very much for answering all my curious questions, and my father just came back. Goodbye Mr Pump Attendant!

Pump Attendant: You're welcome. Goodbye little boy!

Exercise 2

I have learned that during wars, most of the people were in danger. Although Bruno was German, he lived in an unpeaceful environment. His father was a German Commander, therefore, he was in charge of the soldiers who sent Jews to concentration camps. The Germans were very cruel to the Jews and therefore killed most of them, by putting them into a room and putting out poisonous gas. If I was a German, I would feel very pitiful for the Jews just like how Bruno felt. A role model is Anne Frank, a Jew. She was very lucky to have survived by hiding with her family. But when the Germans were going to take hold of the Jews, they had no choice but to surrender, therefore, Anne Frank's life was in danger. Just because of one man - Adolf Hitler, most of the Jews were dead. Even though Bruno and Anne Frank were supposed to be enemies, they both died the same way. This is a really sad event, and therefore, lets hope there will not be anymore wars in the future.

Exercise 1

My feelings :

1. Angry
I feel angry because the Germans treated the Jews badly, and actually killed most of them.

2. Sad
I feel sad because the Germans sent many people to concentration camps, and killed Anne Frank. Unfortunately, Anne Frank was only 15 years old.

3. Pitiful
I feel pitiful because Anne Frank was only 15 years old and she was killed. I pity all of the 6,000,000 people who were killed.

World

WORLD

OBAMA TO DONATE PEACE PRIZE MONEY

US President Barack Obama plans to donate the 1.4 million US dollars (£930,000) from his Nobel Peace Prize to good causes. It is really kind of him to donate to people who are in need of the money. He is giving a total of 750,000 US dollars to six groups which help students, veterans' families and survivors of Haiti's earthquake, among others, drawing attention to organisations he said "do extraordinary work". Since, he is so willing to donate the money, it was certainly his prize of the Nobel Peace Prize.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ukpress/article/ALeqM5hYMLSf0uQtYCY2vJZerIplPLaULQ

Southeast-Asia

SOUTHEAST-ASIA

MONSOON SEASON LANDSLIDE LEAVES 7 DEAD, 3 MISSING IN VILLAGE INDONESIA'S WEST JAVA PROVINCE

In Jakarta, Indonesia, a rain-triggered landslide has killed at least seven villagers and left three missing on Indonesia's main Java island and 10 people were buried under tons of mud from Thursday's landslide in a village in West Java province. It is an unfortunate event indeed. Many people died because of the monsoon which is really devastating. If I was helping out at Jakarta as a Red-Cross volunteer, I would feel really sad to see the many people who died, went missing and injured.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5hv9c0Gei-i1N-YbBl3lAvWM0DQlQ

Singapore

SINGAPORE

56-YEAR-OLD MAN CHARGED WITH STEALING CASINO CHIPS

It's really horrifying to see these types of people trying to break the laws in Singapore.Ooi Boon Huat who is unemployed, allegedly committed the offence at a casino table on Wednesday at about 12.10pm. He took 10 pieces of cash chips, which carried a face value of 500, which belonged to Resorts World Casino. I think that he has no money as he is unemployed. But stealing is an offence. Yet, it is casino chips which is worth a lot of value in cash. He could be jailed up to three years and fined.

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1043150/1/.html

Singapore

SINGAPORE

WEB SCAMMER DROVE HIMSELF TO JAIL

I think that Allen Tan Wei Loon, an Internet Scammer is really brave. His Internet scam netted him about $134,000 in just four months last year. Sixteen people fell victim to his scam from July to October last year, which is really bad. He should be sent to jail because scamming is really an offensive thing to do. It is cheating. Although he has a 5-year-old-son and wife being six months pregnant with their second child, he does not have a choice but to plead guilty of scamming.

http://www.todayonline.com/Silver/EDC100312-0000095/Web-scammer-drove-himself-to-jail

My Most Memorable Experience

My most memorable experience was in 2007, when i went to Los Angeles, California. I feel very fortunate to have gone there. My family, which includes my father, mother, brother, grandmother, grandfather and me, went to Los Angeles for my auntie's wedding. That was the first time i ever sat in an aeroplane. It was an unbelievable experience. I actually liked the food in the aeroplane while my other family members do not. Aren't they high class?

My uncle which is my father's younger brother, actually lives in the US, same as my auntie which is my father's younger sister. My family lived in my uncle's house. He had a cat too. I was afraid of it. We went to tourist attractions such as Disneyland, Universal Studios and Hollywood. We also went to shopping centres to eat and to go shopping.

Let me start with Disneyland. I went to Disneyland with my parents, brother, uncle, and my uncle's friend. We had a lot of fun. First we went to take pictures with the disney characters. It was a funny feeling though. After that, we went to an Indiana Jones theme park. It was extremely scary for me! I held on to my father's hand the whole time! After that, we ate snacks and we went on more rides. After a tiring fun day, we sat down and watched the evening parade. It was wonderful and inspiring. After that we went onto one final ride which was Splash Mountain. The boys were so unfair. We girls had to sit infront. But we were all wet anyway. After that, The boys went to sit on the ride again. After that, we went on to have dinner. We went to a place. There was this waitress. She was quite old actually. She could remember all of our orders for such an old lady. Unbelievable!

Next, Universal Studios. First, we ate lunch and then we took a picture with the globe. It was cute. After that we went in for rides. First we went on the Jurassic Park ride. We went on twice because it was extremely fun! After that we went to a mummy ride. It was scary! We went on to other rides and went back home.

A few days later, went to shopping centres and finally .. the WEDDING!

Overall, it was a wonderful experience having to see the sites and theme parks in Los Angeles, California.