Happy New Year

Just want to wish everyone a very happy new year 2010!
I am not going to make any New Year resolutions like in 2009, just want to take it easy and focus on three things:
1. Health (shall keep up 6k jogging regimen)
2. Study and practice of Buddhism teachings
3. Generation of passive income to achieve financial freedom

Both numbers 1 and 2 should be on top priority.
健康第一,佛法第一! 祝大家新年快樂,身體健康,萬事如意!

生日

生日,是母親受難的日子,又稱母難日.

回家

今晚終於要回家了, 現在樹林市這裡還下著傾盆大雨, 不知新加坡那裡是否也正下著雷雨呢? 在台北這些日子, 天天打開電視機都看到颱風的災情報告, 實在令人感到悵然..希望受災的人能早日恢復正常生活, 我也為自己現在生活在無天災的新加坡而深感慶幸...

蓝宝石婚

1964年2月9日。农历十二月廿六日。兔年。
地点寮国永珍。
一对新人在众人的祝福下共结连理。
一年后的一月，大姐出生。
隔年的十月底，二哥出生。
再过两年的八月，三哥出生。
又再过两年后的十月底，老幺我出生了，跟二哥生日竟然一样，也跟当时台湾的政坛强人蒋中正同天生日，以此原故我名字里有个"正"字。
今天是爸妈的蓝宝石婚(45周年)纪念，跟爸妈一同去plaza singapura的翡翠小厨吃了一餐庆祝，希望爸妈永远健康幸福快乐，也顺祝大家元宵节开开心心！

外在美, 内在美, 缺陷美?

最近闲来无事在网上认识了两位女生，当她们获知在下患有遗传性秃发后，都不约而同建议我去做些什么加以补救, 她们也说, 秃头是很难让女生心动的.
外在美跟内在美的争辩话题已经是老掉牙了, 在此无须赘言, 我只想说的是, 秃头或者任何天生的缺陷不是自己所能控制的, 命已如此, 当事者唯有坦然去接受, 勇敢去面对, 与其不切实际地追求完美倒不如实在地去欣赏缺陷美。如果这娑婆世间一切都是完美，那就不叫娑婆， 而是西方极乐世界了。这世界上的种种不完美的事情，其实冥冥中早有定数，是让我们觉悟的契机，让我们不要执著于外相，因为再怎么漂亮的外表，经过岁月的摧残后也终归不免一杯黄土，只让人惊叹一时却无法让人超脱； 而“不幸”拥有了不可逆转的先天“缺陷”，却能使拥有者时刻警惕自己，今世之丑陋皆因累世所造恶业所致，不再重蹈覆辙，积极正面的好好过这辈子。

天意

刚跟爸妈去四马路回来。在观音庙拜了观音菩萨并第一次学妈妈求签。我求的是姻缘, 掷第二次才圣筊, 结果是只下签，签末结语是“凡事劳心费力也”。无语，还是认命吧。

刘德华今年48岁，最近公开宣布说他其实本人并不浪漫，很多戏里浪漫的事情他现实生活中都没做过，因为日子过得太忙了，但他也说自己不会就这样下去，做一辈子孤独老人的。这话挺有意思。犹记得他当年那首老歌“天意”里唱过，“无情无爱此生又何必”，最后又说“无情无爱此生我认命”。真是我此时心情之写照！

跟YJJ在网上谈起，她说即便结了婚，也难保能长相厮守，其实世间没有永恒不变的事，谁也无法说得准谁会比谁先走。没人爱就自己爱自己吧，唯有注意自己饮食习惯，多做运动保持身体健康，命里有时终须有， 命里无时莫强求，尽人事而听天命矣！

Songs of the Sea@Sentosa

Visited Sentosa yesterday to re-take some photos at the Flower Show, as we did not have enough time last Saturday to fully explore the newly expanded display of flowers this year.

We also visited the new "Songs of the Sea" show which replaced the Musical fountain (closed on 25 March 2007). I couldn't help but felt a sense of disappointment after watching the show. I have very fond memories of the Musical fountain which has been a major attraction of Sentosa for 25 years since 1982, which coincidentally is the year which I first arrived in Singapore.

I still remember vividly till this day. As a 12-year-old boy, I watched in awe the various formations of fountain, the different angles, heights and degrees of splashes and how they blended in so nicely, completely in sync with so many different pieces of classical music, even Taiwanese folk songs like天黑黑 and 丟丟銅 were included, much to my excitement. The musical fountain show has been an FOC attraction for all these 25 years too, while the current "Songs of the Sea" is now priced at 8 bucks per ticket now. Yes, the use of laser and pyrotechnics may be spectacular but somehow I just miss the good old days. When I heard the big applauses from the audience, I felt somewhat sorry for them, because they didn't know what they had been missing, haha.

Except the annual CNY flower show which has been free every year, all attractions on the tiny island now comes with a price. So there is no more "free lunch". But as far as the musical fountain is concerned, I guess a priced lunch may not taste as good as a free lunch in this case.

Bonus of FIVE months!!!

An ex-colleague just told me that he's just been offered a fat bonus by his company of about five months worth! Gosh, imagine my surprise and drooling.... It's unthinkable at this time of global economy crisis that people still get such a big fat bonus. Same people, different fate, man... He can definitely live a 大肥年 in the year of Ox liao, haha!

除夕

七姑姐今早搭華航回台中了. 昨天逛了整天聖淘沙, 回到家已經凌晨12點多, 然後拖拖拉拉搞到三點才捨得上床睡覺. 真是歲月摧人老, 感覺姑姐似乎老了不少, 不過兩位表姊都保養的很好, 身材樣貌都不像是已到中年的女性, 也許跟她們平時注重飲食與生活習慣有關吧.
今天吃年夜飯大家打算打邊爐, 希望大家牛年行大運, 過個平安順利的好年.

Dad's birthday dinner

Today's Lunar Calendar 18th December, my Dad's lunar birthday. In his times, the older Chinese generation used to adopt the lunar calendar for birthdays.
After work, joined Dad and Mum for dinner at at Xin Wang Hong Kong Cafe @Plaza Singapura. We ordered Ying yong (coffee+milk tea), Black Pepper Chicken Egg Rice, Stir Fried Beef HorFun and HK-style crab bee hoon. The bee hoon didn't taste as good as it looked, unfortunately. Too salty. Total dinner costed $60.4, including two cups of warm water (at $0.20 per cup, sheesh, even plain water is not free here). But I think the total price is reasonable.

We then headed straight to Swensens located just two floors below Xin Wang. Courtesy of Vivian, I received from her a one-for-one Gold Rush voucher that I used tonight to enjoy the all-time favourite ice-cream with my parents. It costed just $8 for the two ice-creams. What a steal, haha! :)

Gonna go to Malacca tomorrow and stay for one night there. Hmm, I heard that's the site where Little Nyonya was being filmed due to its rich Peranakan heritage. Also, a friend from Malacca told me to remember to try the Malacca satay celup, chicken rice ball, dim sum, wantan mee, nyonya laksa, bak kut teh and Yong Tau Hu. :)

年纪大乎？嗜睡症乎？

今天下午又不知不觉睡了两个多小时的午觉，不知为何，最近周末假日的下午总有昏昏欲睡的感觉，以前总是觉得可能跟自己周末的晨跑有关，早上跑的太多，消耗体能过度而导致午间比较倦怠，可今天我没跑啊，而且还从晚上十一点睡到早上七点多！如果不是有假日嗜睡症就是跟年纪有点关系了。