The American Dreams...

I like the flowers...Roses....it is so define and at full bloom...indeed king of flowers....I like the dress...elegant beauty...I like her blonde curvy hair...very sensous...

I like to look at her...well, she is a real beauty, isn't she ? Yes, indeed she is, she has been crowned as the most beautiful girl in the United State of America as of 24th January 2009.

By the way, do you know why they called it beauty pageant contest rather than pretty pageant contest ?

Another question, there is of late a very strong call of not buying American products, are you going to resist when you are scheduled to have 1-2-1 Chap Goh Mey dinner aka Chinese Valentine Dinner with our new Beauty Queen here ?

Do think wisely, do not regret...I only say resist not reject...hehehe ...

SHS 88-90 21st Anniversary Reunion 2009

Hi, are you all in the mood already ?????

I can feel that the feeling of celebration is seeping strongly into my mind now, reflecting the great feeling of reunion.......as I got the message from Heroes that our Chairman Peter Yii had earlier updated him that more than 10 of our teachers had confirmed attendance...wow ! (but not too sure who are the teachers confirmed...though my mind tells me that those 3-4 teachers strong supporters will always like to mingle with us)...

So, it is definitelywill be a wonderful night to catch up.

The reunion is just another 5 days to go...on the 27th January 2009, 6.30p.m at Paramount Hotel, Sibu.

On the sponsorship for lucky draws plus gift expenses invitation for our teachers, please do not be shy to put down your name and try to be as generous as possible though in this economic climate.

For those wish to contribute, please email your commitment to ericphang@yahoo.com

For those wish to attend the dinner, please do not hesitate to contact and secure your ticket (cost RM40 only) with the following coordinators;

KL - Patrick Ling (plingsc@yahoo.com)
Kuching - Heroes (ericphang@yahoo.com) or myself (mygreatbuds@yahoo.com)
Sibu - David Kuok (davidkuok70@gmail.com ) or Peter Yii ( peter_yii@yahoo.co.uk )

Please do spread this good news and encourage all to attend.

Do not miss but grab the opportunity when it is presented to you.

"Gong Xi Fa Cai"

REUNION DINNER 2009

After the much awaiting period, I am pleased to announce that the Reunion Dinner 2009 is still on !

Date: 27th January 2009 (2nd Day of CNY)
Venue : Paramount Hotel
Time : 6.30 p.m.

Ticket price : RM40 per pax

The new O.C is Peter Yii Sing Sin who had gracefully accepted the last minutes (an hour ago) proposal following the the unavailability of the elected O.C due to unforeseen cirscumstances and tight schedule which was only disclosed yesterday. Thanks to David who had swiftly managed to convince Peter to take over and our tradition is once again protected.

It is only less than 2 weeks to go and we will have to put in total support to enable our noble tradition continues. I believe many of us would not just sit still but will go all out to spread this news and canvass all support.

It may not be as grand as last year, but we will put in our best effort. However, it may be the best ever organised in a shortest notice !

The dinner ticket will be out by this Saturday, so that we could drum on with the support. Sponsorship of cash is most welcome to provide with lucky draws and other running expenses to the organising of this dinner.

Will update with you on the confirmation of number of attendance as we move on.

Meet-up with Eleu in Kuching

The photo says it all! Ai Ping was in Kuching from 27 Dec - 1 Jan. Eleu arrived in Kuching on 31 Dec around 8.30pm.....in order for the 3 of us to meet at the same time, it had to be on 31st itself!

We picked up Eleu at about 9.30pm and went for a drink at Jalan Song....Eleu's family lives around the area. What can I say about Eleu after not having kept in touch for so long? Still as fun-loving and as ngiau-siaw as ever! But he now has an area of expertise which I didn't know of before - he's a health expert! Ladies, if you're looking for tips to have a better body shape, Eleu's your man!

I haven't been out with friends late at night for ages....much less on new year's eve, so it felt a little weird leaving the baby and hubby at home. Still, it was time worth spent. Anything for meeting up with school days friends!

It's a BRAND NEW Year!

Friendship is like a flower;

A joy from day to day.

But you must take good care of it;

Lest it should fade away.

So always treat is gently,

And nourished by your care.

The bud will grow and flourish

Into a blossom rare.

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2009

Today 31/12/2008 is the last day of year 2008. Time flies very fast and our last reunion in Sibu was still fresh in my mind although it was almost a year ago.

Tomorrow is the 1st day of another new year of our life; 2009. I believe there are plenty of 'look forward' events or things that each and every one of us are eagerly waiting for irrespective of personal, family, company or friends, therefore in order to make our 'look forward' happen, we must put it into action in the coming year.

Here I would like to wish all of you a Happy New Year 2009 and may all your dreams come true. No matter how well or bad our performances was, no matter how high we flew, no matter how happy or sad we were in the past, let's forget about the past. Live with no regret, no reserve & no turning back but instead march forward with hopes, smiles, dreams, aspirations and resolutions.

For those who join us to conquer Mount K.K next year, please be reminded that we MUST well prepare ourselves mentally and physically fit. Set your own preparation for the historical event of our life time. See You At The TOP.......Cheers.... :-)

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Christmas songs were played everywhere, shopping arcades, hotels, offices, home and even in our cars for the past few weeks. Even though with the current economy situation, this annual festive season will not be forgotten by all of us and the mood of the pre-celebration are still equally high as compare with the westerners.

For some of us, it's time to do some recollection of what we had been done or achieved in 2008, although some may or may not have that kind of practise but I must say that it's good to start to review ourselves in order to prepare us in moving on towards the even more challenging and tough year ahead which is just A WEEK before we say goodbye to year 2008.

In Kuching, we had just organised a small scale of Christmas gathering at Kenny Rogers. How about you guys out there? I guess you should have a great plan for family gathering or dinner somewhere.

Here I would like to take this opportunity to wish all of you a Merry Christmas and God Bless. Treasure every moment being together with your loved one, family, relatives, friends and colleague and always show appreciation to them anytime & any place.


HO HO HO......


This is my dream and I hope to celebrate a real White Christmas one day...... How about you?

We Did It Again !

A total of 9 families joined in our 2008 Season Ending Get-Together event at tHe Spring yesterday. It was a joyous occassion as we mingled among families as we update our memory banks (in case some of us complained about memory loss, overhauling may be needed here).

It is a simple gathering with no official speeches but pure chit-chatting, laughters, smiling, hugging, cuddling, singing, cheering, drawing, games, free CDs and of course eating plus cake cutting but we start with food ordering first in line...

Whilst waiting for roasted chicken, Heroes finds time to cuddle Isaac.... & mommy is watchful at the side...

A family drawing event, putting down wishes for 2009 was a hit. I must say this is a lively event, some of us had not been drawing for the last 20 years, suddenly the art & skill when display is unfaded and even much better than those years ago. Beside wishing peace, health, harmony & wealth...we have a catchy wish which is celebrating White Christmas next year...whooha...oh yes...a White Christmas in US or Europe... err..may be a bit expensive...then we could choose Beijing/Shanghai...cheaper leh...

Mr. Tee though lone ranger is seriously displaying his unused artistry since leaving school in 1990.

Updating is a must...we can observed how our 3 friends catching up with each other. Mr. Tee even taking time to consult specialist on his troubled parts...hehehe..guess which leg ? (no photographic evident, pleasezz)

On yes...for the kids...beside the drawing, we have gift exchange activity.

Ivy is indeed very good in this activity, taking every advantage being close with kids (just look at her lovely smile...not only watching her communicating with the little ones and the flow of her body language). The little cute girl is Josephine (Leh Ning/Ah Too's daughter) who is so happy to have her choice. This year no more crying liau...more confident now. hehehe ...

A wonderful event indeed...Moses is so delighted to have the RM20 MPH voucher, had been holding on (yes...for 6 hours or so) until I had to go back with him to buy his favourite comic book using that voucher.

Last but not least...a group photo taken...mapping the smile of everyone...

Oops..there is one special photo after the group...looks like this is going to be the Photo Of The Year ! (this is not an anniversary cake of theirs but ours as we get the singles to do the honour).

The cake is very delicious and Moses had 3 pieces just to validate on this fact !

We also played our special edition Christmas CD (specially prepared by Heroes) and we sing along a few songs softly....

We had only spent slighlty over two hours but after the event, as I slowly walked back to my car with Heroes, I am practically exhausted but satisfied as it was an enjoyable moments especially cuddling Isaac (Looking at this condition, Heroes warned that we had better be prepared for the big event in May 2009).

Hmm...I am looking forward for our next gathering soon and of course the White Christmas next year..

Before ending, on behalf of the organising committee (Ivy, Heroes & MGB), thank you very much for joining us for this season ending gathering...(Ah Too/Leh Ning/Jonathan/Josephine, Ah Yaw/Joanne and kids, Martin/wife/daughter, Mag, Mellisa, Mr. Tee). It will not happen without the support from each one of you.

We look forward for bigger crowd next round...may be bigger than the traditional gathering in Sibu.

Hohoho...Merry Christmas Everyone...

A Family Affairs at Kenny Rogers

In 6 hours time, 10 families of our batch will be having year end lunch together at Kenny Rogers, The Spring Kuching. It will be a fun time for the children and for the parents to catch up with each others (probably the last time before the new year ends).

A wonderful event awaits...shall keep all posted. Cheers

The Final Countdown

In 14 days time from now, we will be gathering around with family and friends to wave farewell to a great year 2008 and welcoming 2009. Wow, time really flies it is another year end and another new year coming. A lot of festivity moods here, I must confess. Nevertheless, the kickstart is a bit slow and I believe everyone would say...well you know..lah,...financial ? Angpow boh leh...

Hmm, never mind that...I am not Chinese educated but I was repeatedly advised that there is sayings in Chinese, in risks or challenges, there is always opportunity. Importantly are we ready to sieze the opportunity when we saw it ? Many of us could not sieze though many said they will not let opportunities pass by. Example....if today you come across an opportunity to buy a property that has guaranteed good investment return, will you buy it ? Uurh...frankly, we will think more protective measures especially during times of financial turmoil, engaging a surviving mode rather going all out to sieze the opportunities. So, generally, we will not take it during this time of turmoil, worrying about what if we are tie down with such big investment when the return is only going to materialise in 5-10 years time, amidst rumour of more job lay offs or closures of businesses (I have just learnt that 1,800 companies were closed down in the last 1 month in China ?).

So, state of preparedness (SOP) is crucial, I believe strongly. We will probably not strike even we have clear opportunity ahead...if we are not prepared (as we cannot afford it). In the world...there is only one Donald Trump, Bill Gates, Barrack Obama, George Bush, Warren Buffets, Tun Dr. M, Tan Sri Ting, White Ant...they are well known to us as they have achieved huge successes. From what I know they seldom missed opportunities passing through them...few of them even had grasses died off naturally whenever they stepped on it. They practically did the opposite but of course with a lot of guts and risks consideration.

My best buddy had also mentioned to me few years back, success is depending on one's definition and even if one's success is so minute compared to others achievement, it is also a great success to their satisfaction. Example, if a beggar managed to beg a plate of rice and met his daily target...it is a success to him. So long as he is happy, there is nobody who could take that satisfaction away from him. This is a great advice indeed for which we must honour as many among us do go for the stars but for the moon which is equally successful as they lived a happy and wonderful life. In short, everyone will have their opportunities, they shall need to make the best of it.

Whichever way, we have fourteen days to reflect for what we have gone through for the past 12 months or so and to chart our new course or aims (if needed) to seek our own stars or moons in the new year.

One thing for sure, we have the magnificent 7 who had put forth one of their 2009 goals to scalp the highest mountain in South East Asia on 2/5/2009.

A happy time ahead together with all our loved ones with array of wishes are along the way, with free flowing beers, whiskey, brandy, soft drinks plus roasted chicks, ducks, squids, fishes and prawn...hmmm..muacch...(like this how to achieve my dream weight huh...) Merry Christmas & Happy New Year 2009...plus Happy Reflection 2008 hehehe...Cheers..

Of Magazines and Pen Pals

Oops, I have owed Ivy a tag for more than a month now, and Mygreatbuds have been kicking my butt in the shoutbox, so I guess I better get going.

The topic came to my mind when I was driving (as with most things nowadays) to work one day.  Remember those little A6 sized magazines that were sold every now and then in both SHS and SES?  That's right folks, I'm talking about The Young Lasallian.

The little compact magazine was meant to update the La Salle students all over Malaysia and Singapore on the latest happenings in the La Salle schools.

One of sections that always caught my attention was the pen pals.  Around Form 2, I finally got the courage to write to 2 of them (both girls, of course :P)  One was in Taiping, and the other Semenyih.  I later corresponded with another 2 pen pals (both girls as well, of course!) in Penang and Kuching.

Those were the days of non-instantaneous communication, where calling outstation cost a bomb and there was neither sms nor email.

So, we all used to look forward to going back home after school and checking our mail box to see whether another letter has dropped into it.

I remember the Taiping lady used to write long reflective letters about her life, while the others were more flippant and generally just shared about the latest happenings in their school lives.

After I went to college, the letters dried up, and when I reached uni, I lost touch with all of them.

But as I reflected on those letters that we exchanged, I am in a way quite struck by how profound some of those letters were.  Those were the days of youthful idealism and great clarity of mind, unpolluted by cynicism and broken dreams.  They were a snapshot of our minds, and reminded us of who we once really were.

Serve Others like "Candle"

Be the light to light up other's path, other's confusion, other's other's etc and in the end sacrifice yourself for the good of others.

With thankgivings celebration around the corner and with year end soon (I was told we have only left with 25 days working days this year...if those taking leave, it shall be lesser), this message is an early reflection for us to make something good for others or better if we have been serving...

Last night, I heard someone already playing Chinese New Year song...what a joyful feeling...but I have yet to hear Christmas Carol (so I bought a Christmas CD...it is only about 30 days left) . I guess the economic scenario must be getting tougher and many needs this sort of music to relax off and getting the festivities mood.

Frankly, the mood of businessman/taukeys is not as good as last year as most of us if involved in business will acknowledge the economic challenges faced by many especially those in US &(Japan & Germany have slipped into recession as reported) though there are few are very happy locally because of acquisition.

The crude oil per barrel has dropped below USD50 and this should be a cause of joy for us commoners as we could expected another revision of petrol to below RM2.00 per litre. Every week now, I could save RM30...and that could let me enjoy a session of rose perfume massage :) (2nd thought....have not been spending such rejuvenation session for a while already as must save more for tougher days ahead).

I pray that we could always live as a strong community of Malaysian going through unitedly sailing better than other countries like the one in 1997 crisis. Malaysia boleh..lah ! Pasti boleh !

10 Years Old Photo

Go & Check, how was your "look" in minus 10 from current ?

This was taken in 1998, during the year that Mr. Tee was the O.C. I think the place of reunion was Premier Hotel, Sibu.

Sibu

Maybe some of us have not see how Sibu looks like for many many many years. This is Sibu few days ago.

Thought of shooting some photos of our SHS school. Don't know whether they will let me in or not or the "Red Army" will throw me out of the school. Hehehe...

St Elizabeth......mmmmmmmm maybe lahhhhh, I can try to take from across the road.

Reunion With Bro. Albinus

Haishe... I should have brought my Lumix...but just have to satisfy with N95. May I could have taken a better close up but facing our Abai, my mind just went blurr....luckily still able to click it.

You can see Mr. Tee rubbing on....probably was so please to have the chance to have a man-man photo session (a position that we may have never though of some 20 years back...?)

We also met Mdm Wong, Mdm Chai & Mr. Louis Ling...who are just sitting next to our table. Mr. Tee & Ah Yaw were very engrossed in their updates with them.

It was indeed a fun time as we could meet many of the old faces beside enjoying great presentation from our juniors (some 24 of them). We also met Irene Tiong (the first year student...sponsored by SHS Kuching Alumni). Petty lad...Mr.Tee & Ah Yaw unaminously thinking of introducing to our Heroes.

We joked a lot..at least reflecting on our past encounters with Abai. How our tougue turn to 'stone' as it was so extremely difficult to communicate with him in English...(not that we do not know how to conversate)...but just the system seems faulty @ does not work when in front of him... (BTW...I think Mr. Tee still have the 'fear" there leh....introducing us as 1986 instead of 1988 Form Five...betui tak Mr. tee ? Hehehe)

Can anyone guess how old is he ??? (FYI, He is in Kuching...as you can usually meet him attending 7.30 a.m. mass at St. Peter Church, Padungan)

Having attended the latest reunion dinner, someone in the midst asked ? .........

Is our 21st SHS88-90 Reunion in Sibu still on ??? No news until now...though it is less than 100 days liaw ??? (silence....as everyone seems to ponder...)

SHS Alumni Asso of Kuching

shs8890 bloggers,
Our Kuching SHS alumni has recently launched SHS Alumni Association of Kuching blog. Check it out!

MGB, Chee Seng Yaw, Thadeus, Anthony Ting, Dr Patrick Ting, Dr Alex Sim, Dr Joseph Yii and myself were at the same table. It was fun and great to meet up with so many ex-SHS boys and girls.

Bro Albinus...yup, finally we have the gut to take photo with him . At least one of us is taller than him now. MGB, don't forget to post the photos.

Reunion With Cikgu Ong

It all started when Cikgu Ong found our blog.

Next thing we knew, he was on Facebook as well!  That's how we found out that he's now staying in Alor Gajah, his hometown.

A few weeks ago, I mooted the idea of visiting him to Stephen Chung and Heroes.  They were a bit aphrehensive at first, but I convinced them the journey will not take too long, and that we can do it sometime during the Deepavali weekend.

I sms'ed Cikgu Ong of our intentions.  Not only was he most welcoming, he took the trouble to work out a map for us to follow.

At the last minute, Chuan Ming decided to join us as well by driving over from Bahau via Tampin, so I mms'ed him the map.

And so on Deepavali morning, we took a quick breakfast at Puchong and set off for the Simpang Ampat toll on the NSE.  Getting there from Puchong took us only 50 minutes, and along the way we had an impromptu karaoke session in the car of old Mandarin songs, just to put us in the mood, hehe :)

From Simpang Ampat, it was a matter of following the map given, and after about 15 minutes we made a left turn to Machap Baru.  At that time we found out that Chuan Ming was just right behind us.  After another 5 minutes or so, we reached Machap Umboo.  A left turn after the Pondok Polis, 50 more metres down the road and we were greeted by a smiling Cikgu Ong.

He hasn't aged at all!

He remembered all our names except for Stephen Chung, but he managed to recall it after a few minutes.  :)

For some of us, it's been 20 years since we last saw him.  He was actually still in SHS until 1998, when he got a scholarship to do his Masters at USM.  After graduation, he taught at Raja Uda Penang until early this year, when he came back to Melaka.

After some time catching up, we noticed some old SHS annual magazines sitting on one of the shelves.  So out they came, together with photos that Cikgu Ong took at SHS.  The photos were mostly taken in the classrooms and some school functions. It was amazing he still remembers the names of almost all the students that he taught in those days.

We adjourned for lunch at a nearby restaurant.  Being the gentleman that he is, he refused to let me pay for lunch :P

As we made our way back later, we thought about the reunion we just had with a teacher who had  touched our lives in many different ways.  How he had encouraged us and planted the seeds for us to become who we are today.  We are forever thankful for his presence in our lives.

Last but not least, we have an open invitation to visit him again during the next rambutan season!  But if anyone wants to pay him a visit before that, we can organize another trip again soon :)

Photos courtesy of Cikgu Ong and his new Nikon D60 :)

The Formation of SHS' Girls' Club

My post has been long overdue, apologies! But I have good reasons – I needed to interview someone to get my facts right before putting on the post. So here goes….

A couple of months ago as I was chatting with my sister on the phone, we came across the topic of how the Girls’ Club got formed in SHS. Of course, by the time we girls (meaning the girls in our year) went into SHS for our Form 6, the Girls’ Club was an entity that had been fully accepted by the boys. Not only accepted, but welcomed. Am I right, guys?

To find out how the Girls’ Club came into formation in a boys’ school, I “interviewed” the founder of the club, Ms Ho Mei Ling, and also my own sister, Audrey, who was one of the committee members.

The Girls’ Club was formed in 1982. According to Audrey, that was the very first year that SHS accepted girls into their science stream in Form 6. Not only was it the first year that the science-streamed Form 6 boys had to adjust to having girls in their class, but they also had to adjust to the number of girls that came in – about 30 of them, almost a class on its own. Prior to that, SES girls who were science-streamed went to Methodist for their Form 6.

According to Mei Ling, one of the reasons that the girls decided to form the club was because they felt a need to “fight for the girls’ rights” in a much male dominated school. For some reasons, the boys treated the girls with “an aloof attitude” – particularly the girls in science stream. The boys’ egos were probably slightly bruised by the fact that their female counterparts were as smart as them, at least that was what my sister claimed. Remember, in those days SHS students had brilliant academic results, what more to say of those who are science students.

I asked Audrey what reasons the girls in her year had to feel that they were being treated differently, and she had quite a few to tell! Firstly, they were called to the school hall by dearest Abai to start off the school term with a bang – he warned the sixth formers that they had better not have any ideas of hanky-panky with the boys, and vice-versa. When you’ve been in an all-girls school for 11 years, it’s not a totally pleasant experience on your first day in an all-boys school.

Then, there was the lab incident. My sister happened to be one of the last person to leave the lab one day, and as the boys from another class waited to use the lab, they threw taunts at her something along this line “hai ya, leave lah, why are you occupying our lab”. This of course mainly came from the junior boys who were more mischievous.

The girls in that year created a new abbreviation for the letters M-C-P : male chauvinist pigs. Hey, don’t get offended ya, that was 1982. I would have used that term too if I had experienced what they did – a maths teacher said this to the girls “Why do you need to learn maths, you don’t need it for cooking”. Hah hah hah! No wonder the girls were chastised!

So much for that. Mine was a wonderful 2 years in SHS, though! Pat, you’re tagged.

Reunion 2009 at the Peak

A magnificent view isn't it ?

A view from Kundasang, KK, Sabah. This photo was downloaded from Wikipedia. I do have this similar photo with my family which was taken during our last trip in 2005. It is now placed at my office side table since then.

A view from the peak....this one I do not have, the two figures in the photo are ammo (I guess) but definitely love to be in the photo.

I have to admit that this is a teenage dream ! To conquer Mount KK, inspiring from Mr. Chong (our form 5/6 lab assistant) who used to lead few expeditions of teachers and students but I am not one of them. We have talking for many years....at least 20 years...though the last round of talking was a Heroes' company trip that was never materialised (though he was eager and nearly bought a RM300 climbing shoes).

This challenge of conquering "pop out"again in the last one month and ada "ura-ura" to make this trip happen very very soon. Background works have started.....

What do you think...any of you interested...flying our flag up high at the highest peak in South East Asia (so...the Dragonteas visit may have to take a backseat due to financial and melamine issues...)

Friendly Match

On 2/10/2008, 3p.m sharp, we have finally had our long awaited squash friendly match which was held at SHS Squash Court between ex-SHS form players from Kuching against Sibu squash loyalists (we have been planning it since August 2008). We also have a suprised player from Klang, who is none other than Lieng Tee, who happen to have his short break in Sibu during this Raya season. Why surprise ? We actually did not count him in this match as it was purely arrangement between Kuching and Sibu as we do not expect due to distance and costs. Hmm...what a good arrangement it turn out to be as we have him in our team (Kuching) as if not, it is 3 against 4 players.

Who are the players ? From Kuching, we have Ah Too, Mr. Tee and myself and in Sibu team, they are Dr. Lau, Ah Chiew, Ngieng Kee (Lieng Tee's brother) and Lawyer John Tiong (our senior..the one in singlet below).

Ah Too was playing against John in court 1 whilst Lieng Tee was playing against Dr. Lau.

All of us enjoyed the games as we played at least 3 games with each other. With the solid sounds generating from the squashing acts, it is no surprise as Kwong Siong a.k.a Ah Poh also turned up to meet us in the squash court together with his youngest son to find out why the sound was so unusual as compared to usual days (Ah Poh's house was just quarter stone away from the court) :).

The returning leg in Kuching will be more exciting...as vengeance is already building up though no dates were selected but we are determined to have it before the year passes on....

You must be curious....why no result was announced ?

Remember vengeance ? Yeap...Kuching team "kalah really teruk" and I may have purposely did not keep any scores...:) For consolation...just blame it on sea...lag, road..lag or just heavy balls....hehehe..

Bottomline..I enjoy myself very well (what a good time) especially revisiting the part of my yesteryears...oh..yeaaaah,,