SINGAPORE SHORT STORIES

Since the ‘911’ incident, security at key installations and public places in Singapore have been beefed up, one such place is the MRT stations sprouted throughout the island. The ubiquitous stations have undergone a relative number of changes since the day that changed the world (to a certain extent). Gone are the litterbins that dotted the stations; postage mailboxes became situated further from the stations. These measures are necessary and the inconveniences caused by these measures shall not detract from their important objectives. However, some measures taken at MRT stations may become overbearing though the message contained in them to be disseminated is important. Everyday, passengers boarding the trains are reminded to report anything or any person found behaving suspiciously via the public announcement broadcasts in the trains. The announcements are often quite loud (which serve their purposes) and the close frequency of such broadcasts, though good in serving to remind passen

The world has 7 ‘wonders of the world’; many Singaporeans have been thinking whether Singapore can have a possible candidate for the 8th wonder of the world? A slew of suggestions have been thrown up in the previous years, these ranged from the iconic landmarks of Singapore: the Changi Airport, the Zoo, the Botanic Gardens to the newly built key architectural beauties like the Esplanade, the Singapore Flyer and the soon-to-be-built structure of the IRs (Integrated Resorts). I would like to propose a 8th wonder of the World for Singapore. This 8th wonder has not been deliberately built; it is formed naturally by Singaporeans for Singaporeans. And this 8th wonder of the world as proposed by me is nonetheless found underground, in the exit linking City Hall MRT Station to Connaught Drive! People who pass by this underground at any time of the day, be it weekdays, weekends, in the night or day would be amazed at this naturally-formed 8th wonder of the world in Singapore. There, right in th

Following the last Cabinet reshuffle in May 2006 soon after Mr Lee won his first General Elections as Prime Minister, PM Lee announced the long-awaited changes to his Cabinet today with most of the changes taking into effect from 1 Apr 08. A new addition to the cabinet will be Member of Parliament for Sembawang GRC, K Shanmugam, who will take over as the new Law Minister from Professor S Jayakumar from May 1st. Mr Shanmugam will also concurrently hold the appointment of Second Minister for Home Affairs. Professor Jayakumar will continue as Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security. A summary of the reshuffle in the cabinet is as follows: Education Ministry *Dr Ng Eng Hen, Minister (cum Second Defence Minister) *Ms Grace Fu (MOS to SMOS) Mr Lui Tuck Yew (MOS to SMOS) Mr Masagos Zulkifli (SPS) Mr Gan Kim Yong relinquish MOS Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam relinquished Minister Ministry of Finance Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Minister Mrs Lim Hwee Hua (MOS to SMOS) Min

Singapore Hair Loss Support Group is Singapore's Hair Loss support group for all hair loss sufferers. Discuss, learn and share. You may want to send your questions, hair loss combat tips or share your story with all of us. Email: acer_apex@yahoo.com.sg now!Personal details not necessary, just your name and your area of residence will do. Thanks! http://singaporehairlosssupport.blogspot.com/ More and more Singaporean men are losing their ‘crowns of glory’ and this trend may be getting earlier and earlier. On the streets in these recent years, we may spot a relatively number of young men who are bald or balding. Compare this phenomenon to say ten years ago when this phenomenon is not commonly seen. This balding trend among Singaporean men is sparking an increasing proliferation of hair treatment centres. Hair treatment centres have practically sprung up all over the island with the likes of Beijing 101, Yunnan, Svenson, Bossin, etc. Causes of hair loss can be hereditary, or caused by

The unrest in Tibet caused by the crackdown of the China police on the protestors in Tibet has cast a shadow on the China’s Olympics, with some of the world’s leaders openly boycotting the Olympics. China has claimed the protest was instigated by the Dalai Lama but this claim is still yet to be confirmed. Steven Speiberg’s withdrawal as an artistic director for the Olympic games, the boycott of an African marathon record holder from running the marathon in the games, an Olympic backlash and a media assault by Hollywood stars, international human rights groups and US politicians to urge Beijing to make greater use of its influence to stop the slaughter in Darfur which has contributed to a crisis that has left 200,000 dead; and finally the recent Tibet unrest have all plagued China’s preparations for their first great games. There may be political agenda in all these sudden incidents, all aimed to blight China’s Olympics.

It rained hailstones in the central part of Singapore today. It was reported that the hailstones were the size of 5 cent coins. The hailstones were seen mainly in Bishan, Toa Payoh and Ang Mo Kio, falling for about 20 minutes before subsiding. The last hailstone incident was reported in July 2007. Hailstones form in intense thunderstorm clouds. Such clouds develop when there is strong convection, which occur all year round in the tropics. Generally, the hailstones would have been melted before they reach the ground. However, in the presence of a strong downdraft in an intense thunderstorm, the hailstones can be brought to the ground rapidly without melting. Singapore’s weather is really interesting and unpredictable. The moment before the hailstones fell, the afternoon was marked by especially hot and dry weather, but suddenly it rained cats and dogs in the late afternoon. I was not even aware of hailstones falling until I came back home and watched the news. Interesting weather phenom

The Health Ministry on Monday 24 March 08 sent a circular to all doctors, explaining its stand on aesthetic treatments and why there is a need to 'safeguard medical standards'. It said media reports last week on the ministry banning doctors from doing 11 aesthetic procedures might have 'presented an inaccurate picture'. There has been some confusion on the ground, especially among doctors who offer treatments the ministry had likened to 'snake oil', as they are not backed by science. Some doctors had been asked by the ministry to show proof that such treatment works. If they are not able to do so, they should cease offering them. Others offering similar treatments had not heard from the ministry. Monday's circular by Professor K Satku, director of medical services, gave three reasons for the ministry's stand on safeguarding medical standards' on these treatments: Not enough evidence to prove the safety and effectiveness of some treatments. Reports of

A reader of a local daily recently sparked an interest (or rather a disinterest) in Goreng Pisang (malay word for ‘fried banana cakes’) among Singaporeans when she wrote in, narrating her vivid account of witnessing a hawker in Malaysia throwing plastic straws in hot frying oil; once the straws were molten, the hawker commenced his cooking of his Goreng Pisangs in this ‘plastic oil’! According to the writer, the hawker had cited that Goreng Pisangs cooked in this manner would turn out superbly crispy and the crispiness would last for a very long time! Local authorities here are quick to alleviate Singaporeans’ concerns by announcing that hitherto, their regular stringent checks on food stalls selling Goreng Pisang have not discovered any acts of such nature. Scientists here have also debunked the fact that the cakes cooked in this manner would turn out crispy as the ‘theory’ does not hold water with scientific reasoning. Though everything may turn out well with the cooking of our favor

Glancing through the obituaries in the newspapers, I noticed the age of the deceased range from 30 plus to over 90s, with the average deceased age at around 70. Many believe life itself is unfair, the world is unfair, and death seems to be the only equalizer. But looking at the aforementioned statistics, it seems that death may itself be unfair as some do not live long, maybe till 30 plus while for others, their candles of life do not wither off till 90 years of age. For me, I consider living beyond the age of 50 a blessing already, if one can achieve most of what he sets to achieve by then. Imagine if one is to pass on around the average age of 70 while another lives till 90; though both are considered to be in advanced stages of ages, the difference in age is a staggering of 20 years! Can you imagine how much difference one can make and do in this amount of time (provided that one is healthy enough)? Back to the question of fairness in death, another side of the equation is to look a

Holi festival, also called the Festival of Colours, is a popular Hindu spring festival observed in India and Nepal. In West Bengal, it is known as Dolyatra (Doljatra) or Boshonto Utsav ("spring festival"). Holi - the festival of colors - is undoubtedly the most fun-filled and boisterous of Hindu festival. It's an occasion that brings in unadulterated joy and mirth, fun and play, music and dance, and, of course, lots of bright colors! With winter neatly tucked up in the attic, it's time to come out of our cocoons and enjoy this spring festival. Every year it is celebrated on the day after the full moon in early March and glorifies good harvest and fertility of the land. It is also time for spring harvest. The new crop refills the stores in every household and perhaps such abundance accounts for the riotous merriment during Holi. This also explains the other names of this celebration - 'Vasant Mahotsava' and 'Kama Mahotsava'. On the first day bonfires ar

I had a taste of the uber-rich when I met my friends today at one of the latest coffee boutiques that have sprung up in Singapore recently. I was not the one who had initiated going to this boutique restaurant for a coffee and I have never been to this restaurant before. However being a high class boutique restaurant, I have expected the possibly high prices of the coffee that they serve in this restaurant. My beliefs were affirmed as I glanced through the menu, looking at prices from $4.30 onwards. I ordered the least expensive cup of coffee (at $4.30 of course), and when my cup of coffee came, I was shocked and dumbfounded. The cup of coffee that was presented to me was nothing like that presented in the brochure. Presented in the brochure was a familiar regular-sized cup from which I normally drink my fluids, however what appeared in front of me when the waiter arrived was a super tiny cup and a miserable portion of Italian Expresso that I could easily complete it in less than one-q

Singapore’s weather is interesting. It never rains but pours. What seems to be a very hot and humid Saturday day in the morning was suddenly disrupted when it poured heavily in the late afternoon throughout many parts of Singapore. Luckily I am always armed with a weapon against rain: the umbrella. I only knew how heavy the rain was when my shoes were utterly soaked as I stepped out into the deep puddles of water, braving the rain with my small umbrella. It proved futile as the rain and wind were coming in from all directions and half of my body was soaked. Halfway throughout my ordeal to get to my destination in the rain, I felt a pat on my shoulder, and before I could realise, there was a man who had, without my consent, sought hostage in my umbrella! This was the first time I encountered such a situation and I could understand him if he were really in a rush of time, but he should have the decency to seek the permission of me before such a ‘hitch-hike’. As a result of the sharing, I

This Singapore Short Stories blog started by me had gained quite a significant following and it was ranked fourth in placing as of today by the Yahoo Search Engine. Just go to Yahoo and type ‘Singapore Short Stories’. This result could not have been possible without the support of you, yes, you reader, now reading my modest website. Feel free to recommend this website to and share with your friends and relatives should you find it interesting!

Taiwanese has decided today 22 March 2008 as to who would be the country’s next President after Chen Shui Bian helmed the top office for 8 long years amidst the growing dissatisfaction of the Taiwanese with this current leader of the country, particularly over the growing economic woes that the nation faces in recent years. Ma Ying Jiu of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) faced off with Xie Chang Ting of the Kuomingtang (KMT). Finally Ma Ying Jiu garnered 58.45 % of the total votes over his rival contender to become the President of Taiwan. This year seems to be a year of elections, first in Malaysia, then in Taiwan, and then soon in the United States. In recent weeks, the leading contender in the US Presidential Candidacy for the Democratic Party, Mr Obama had lost a number of votes to his strong opponent, Ms Hilary Clinton.

Money grows exponentially with the compounding of interests! Just imagine, you put in $2,000 in a bank account which has a fixed interest rate of 3% and when the interest on this $2,000 has accrued at the end of the year, instead of taking out the interest, you plough back this interest of $60 to the $2,000 that you have placed at the beginning of the earlier year to reap an even bigger interest. Thus, at the beginning of the second year, you would have $2,060 in your account for the interest to effect on in the second year, and so on subsequently. I have provided below a useful formula for the calculation of the amount one can receive in the nth year due to such compounding of interest: Amount received in nth year= {(1+ rate of compound interest) to the power of n} multiply by starting amount put in Year 1, e.g. if interest rate is 15%, rate of compound interest = 0.15) There is another form of compounding of interest rate. Say you put $300 every month into a bank deposit and at the e

Temasek Holdings (“Temasek”) today announced the signing of a Share Purchase Agreement with SinoSing Power Pte Ltd (“SinoSing”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of China Huaneng Group (“China Huaneng”), a leading power company based in the People's Republic of China, for the 100% sale of Temasek’s wholly-owned Tuas Power Ltd (“Tuas Power”) for a cash consideration of S$4.235 billion. The transaction is expected to be completed by 24 March 2008. The sale of Tuas Power, one of the three major power generation companies in Singapore, marks the completion of a competitive and rigorous bidding process which began in October last year when Temasek announced its plan to divest Tuas Power. This is also the first of Temasek’s three power generation companies to be sold under its long-stated plan to divest all of its wholly-owned power generation companies in Singapore.

Who is Singapore’s Happiest Person? A search is now on, for the Happiest Person in Singapore. To qualify, participants in the contest must be at least 18 years in age, have good disposition and show a strong sense of belonging. They must also contribute to society. The closing date of the search is till 30 March 2008. The search is spearheaded by Mr. Philip Merry (the link of his name with happiness is pure coincidence), CEO and founder of Global Leadership Academy (GLA) as part of a well-being conference called the ‘New Science of Happiness and Well Being Conference’ to be held in the middle of April. Mr. Philip has indicated to the press that some 2 or 3 Singaporeans have already signed up for the contest. A poll has discovered that 90% of Singaporeans cited life in this tiny island is stressful and many hope that there would be more fun in their lives. The poll results run parallel to a Happy Planet Index, which ranks Singapore a low placing of 131 out of 178 countries in the happin

I have always thought that financial freedom is the highest level of financial status, however there seems to be even a higher level. In one of his best-selling books, “Secrets of Self-Made Millionaires”, author Adam Khoo, a multi-millionaire himself shared with readers what he defined as the 4 levels of wealth: a) Financial Stability i) when you have accumulated enough liquid assets to cover your current expenses for a minimum of 6 months. ii) you have life and hospitalization insurance to protect you and/or family’s lifestyle should you be permanently disabled, unable to work or pass away suddenly. b) Financial Security Through investment of time, money and ideas, you accumulate a critical amount of positive cash flow assets that generate enough passive income to COVER YOUR BASIC EXPENSES. c) Financial Freedom Through investment of time, money and ideas, you accumulate a critical amount of positive cash flow assets that generate enough passive income to SUSTAIN YOUR CURRENT LIFESTYLE

University places in Singapore are much coveted. Statistics in year 2007 attest to this fact: 34,000 applicants vie for 6,600 places among the various faculties in NUS. For NTU and SMU, the ratio of applicants to number of places in the varsity is 35,000: 5,850 and 12,900: 1,500 respectively. There has been such a surging demand for local university places in Singapore that there will be a fourth university in the pipeline to cater to the demand, and it will be an university offering an alternative mix of subjects and curriculum like soft science, arts, etc although details have not been firmed up. The red-hot demand for a university education in Singapore is understandable as more and more of its citizens; especially the younger ones are degree-holders. A large proportion of Singaporeans without degrees are continuing their further studies to a bachelor degree through part-time study in, long distance learning with the public and private universities. The reason for this trend is the

Loyang Tua Pek Kong temple has moved to a new location 2km down the road from its old address. Click here for the new location The old location was just next to the sea while the new location is opposite Loyang Valley. For first-timers to the temple, please do not rely on your hardcopy of the street directories for the location of the temple if your street directory was published in early 07. You would be directed to the temple’s old location and be disappointed when you arrive since the temple has already moved, though just recently on 3 Aug 2007. Loyang Tua Pek Kong is a unique Chinese temple as you can find a Natoh Kong and a Hindu temple in it besides Tua Pek Kong (and others Chinese deities). A little bit about its history is that someone found some statues washed to the shore years ago. Therefore, he decided to built a small shrine for it. Among those statues is Hindu God, therefore Hindu temple inside Loyang Tua Pek Kong. As time passed by, devotees to this shrine increases. Thu

It is the time of the year civil servants receive their performance bonuses (PBs). In the coming two weeks, civil servants will not only receive their performance bonuses, special ‘growth bonuses’, would also await them for the very first time. These PBs and growth bonuses are only applicable to performers, defined as officers with assessed performance gradings above the ‘D’ grade. Typically, civil servants receive their performance bonuses in March, a 0.5 month of bonus in July and a 13th month plus AVC in December. Are all the bonuses good? To be frank, the bonuses dished out in Civil Service are averages at best. With the various bonuses being given out in these months: July, December and March, a civil servant who would like to quit would most likely try to find a ‘suitable’ month to quit so as not to forfeit his bonuses. The December bonus is generally the most generous portion. To quantify for this bonus, an officer would have to be in service till the end of January ne

Yesterday’s night might be the one of the coldest here in recent months when the thermometer registered an unusual low reading of 22 degree Celsius. It has been raining daily in the afternoons and evenings since the start of March; so much so that this month can actually be a good month for employees to clear their leaves; the drowsiness among many employees in this weather is inevitable and understandable. Apart from the aforementioned reason, the weeklong school holidays in March has provided additional incentives for couples with children for taking of leaves during this period to holiday with their children. The whole of Singapore was practically air-conditioned yesterday night. Despites the massive intensive manhunt, the cold weather and the torrents of rain pelted, Mas Selamat has still not been ‘flushed out’ by all of these natural and man-made elements (if he is still in Singapore).

The mass media labelled the Malaysia General Election as a ‘political tsunamis’ as 5 out of the 13 states fell to the Opposition. Penang fell to the DAP; Kedah, Perak and Kelatan fell to the PAS and even the most industrialised state of Malaysia, Selangor, where Kulau Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia is based fell to Keadilan, Anwar’s party. It is a political awakening for Malaysia!

March is not a month to be associated with rain but it has been raining moderately to heavily in the afternoons and evenings since the beginning of March. With the sweltering heat in Singapore, I welcome the rain though it can get inconvenient at times for outings.

Despites the hundreds of policemen and military personnel conducting carpet-combing searches round-the-clock among the forests and thick foliage in the island, 15 days have passed since the escape of Mas Selamat from Whitley Detention Centre and he is still nowhere to be found (in Singapore, as presumed by the police). Though Mas Selamat has not been caught, others have been arrested as a corollary of this incident. Illegal immigrants, though few, still exist in our tiny island. The massive, intensive and thorough searches yielded around 40 illegal immigrants staking their illegal habitats in our island the previous week. The yield begs the question of whether these illegal immigrants would only be caught as a result of this massive manhunt? How did they get here in the first place? How effective are our security efforts in deterring illegal immigrants and arresting them once they land on our shore? If there is no such massive manhunt, would they still be caught? On the other hand, 2 m

Mas Selamat has not been found after his escape on 27 February 2008. Authorities here still believe that he is hiding in the forests of Singapore and the searches for this criminal are unrelentlessly conducted everyday. Security experts reckoned that no matter how strong Mas’ willpower is (to stay inside the forests and prevent capture as believed), his physical body, subject to the strong elements, the constant maneuvering (to prevent detection) and void of little nutrition, will soon reach a ‘breaking point’ that may cause him to final surrender to the police. But all the above may be a conjecture, who knows Mas may have left Singapore, though there is no concrete facts to prove this point. By the way, I am bothered by the erroneous name that the Chinese TV news use for Mas Selamat: Mas Selamat Kastari. On National television, in this multi-racial country, how can such an error occur? Call him Mas Selamat or Mas Selmat bin Kastari but not Mas Selmat Kastari for Kastari is the name of

Mineral water are drunk by the thousands everyday in Singapore and many Singaporeans are reusing these mineral water bottles for their daily containment of potable water to work, to school, etc. But how many of these Singaporeans understand the proper and safe use of these bottles? Just some year ago, it was reported that the chemicals making up the mineral water bottles may leak and seep into the water on reusing the bottles many times. It is also shuddering to witness some pouring boiling water into plastic mineral water bottles and water bottles, totally ignorant of the health risk of these acts. How many Singaporeans are aware of the plastic identification code found at the side or bottom of plastic containers, mineral water bottles and their meanings? For a deeper understanding of the Plastic Identification Code.

Today’s Sunday Times offers an invaluable insight into the lives of Africans residing in Singapore. There are currently 3000 Africans in Singapore, with the majority residing in the Little India district. Africans making their appearances in Singapore is a recent phenomenon. With the Nigerian scams making headlines here in recent years and the occasional brawls among the Africans in little India, there is a typical negative stereotype harboured by Singaporeans towards these Africans, in general. The Africans in Singapore come from the many different countries in Africa which include the wealthier South African and the poorer Ghana. There is also a myopic assumption by Singaporeans that all the Africans in Singapore belong to one particular country. This myopic assumption is understandable given the small landmass of Singapore which may render many of its citizens to think ‘small’ too in geography. Try asking a foreigner what is the weather of his country, and you will get a smile. For

Singapore boasts of some 66,660 millionaires, more than enough to fill the old National stadium. ‘Millionaire’, a status so coveted by Singaporeans in this era! To be one, Singaporeans can consider some of these three options: a) perform exceedingly well in school and co-curricular activities and land a prestigious President’s scholarship, or PSC scholarships and stick to civil service and be automatically promoted ranks after ranks towards the higher helms of civil service b) consider a career in investment banking c) be an entrepreneur Of these three options, the most common route towards achieving that first million is to be an entrepreneur, though that path is laid with risks after risks. In this modern era, setting up your own business may require little capital as ideas are the most important capitals in this knowledge economy. Since some years ago, advertisements proclaiming to assist Singaporeans to achieve that first $1,000,000 are aplenty in the dailies. Often the taglines of

Billionaires (6 Mar) Warren Buffet has ‘overthrown’ Bill Gates to be the richest man on earth with a staggering net worth of US$62 billion . List Terminal 4 (6 Mar) Singapore’s Minister of State for Transport Ms Lim Hwee Hua announced in the debate on her ministry’s spending plans today, that the government is planning another Airport Terminal 4, to better prepare for the surging air traffic volume in the next few years and to fend off competition in the region. With the huge Changi Airport Terminal 3 costing 1.75 billion just open in January, it is an unexpected piece of news to many. Terminal 4 may be built to rival Beijing Airport’s $3.8 billion third terminal, just open on 29 February 2008, which is bigger than all the five terminals at London’s Heathrow. Singapore already has 3 airport terminals, should the 4th be built to fend off competition and to find itself to be underutilised upon completion, it would go in the way of the few ‘white elephants’ such as the Esplanade. Murderer

The hunt for Mas Selamat seems more knotty as it continues into the fifth day. Pierce reservoir was searched today. But all efforts were futile. Police revealed more information on Mas Selamat, clarifying for the first time that Mas walks with a limb only when he is running or walking quickly. Mas Selamat continues to hog the headlines of several local and international newspapers. For instance, the Sunday Time’s today published special reports on the life of Mas Selamat. It seemed for once Mas Selamat became an international and local celebrity! Millions of phone subscribers received MMS pictures and information of Mas Selamat. The posters of Mas Selamat are also practically all over Singapore. I boarded buses today only to find his posters were plastered on the front windscreen of buses and on their exit doors. Home Affairs Minister Wong Kan Seng told the local media that the hunt for Mas Selamat would continue till he is found! An investigation panel has been formed to investigate t

The hunt for Mas Selamat continues into its fourth day since the detainee escaped from Whitley Detention Centre on the evening of 27 February 2008. Besides calling upon the Interpol to help, Singapore has issued a global alert for this wanted criminal. Back at home, the hunt for Mas Selamat drizzled down to the grassroots. This morning and afternoon, several Members of Parliament and their grassroots volunteers made their rounds into the heartlands of their constituencies, giving out posters and information of Mas Selamat, appealing to the public to call the police once they spot the top wanted man. The scene was akin to the hustings prior to the General Election, only difference was that the posters did not contain the election candidates but that of Singapore’s most wanted man. There was not a fitting word to describe the style of the hunt than that of ‘carnival’ as besides the aforementioned husting-style scene, some schools carried out emergency drills, exhibitions against terroris