The Authors

77. Singaporeans only know how to complain but not praise.

2008-08-10T04:11:00.000-07:00

Singaporeans nowadays are preoccupied with their work and busy schedule such that they could only see things that inconvenience them, such as poor customer service and poor facilities. Thus, they would complain and demand the relevant authorities to remove the inconvenience.

Being a typical busy Singaporean, I am also guilty of this. I seldom see the benefits of my friends’ actions and often dread assisting them. I would complain and pushed myself through the job and forget about it later. I almost never praise them for what they had done for me.

However, there are still a minority of Singaporeans that are considerate and understanding. They are not stingy with their praises and commend people for their good intents. Although they are only a small number of people, they are very influential people and more are becoming like them. If they are given time, they would become the majority and Singaporeans would also know when to praise and complain.

18. Some people say that it is difficult to get to know someone much older or younger than yourself. How do you feel about it?

2008-08-10T04:02:00.000-07:00

In the past, I felt that knowing people who are older or younger than me is a very difficult task. However now, I find it to be less of a challenge. This is because when I was influenced by my good friends, Melissa and Tiffany, who were the more talkative and noisy ones. As compared to me when I was in primary school and in secondary 1, I was rather quiet and a less vocal girl. Due to this, I interacted less with my seniors or even juniors in primary school and secondary school, what more people outside who are much younger or older than me.
Yet, now I know juniors from my CCA and other CCAs through Melissa and even Tiffany. I also know how to make friends with them and interact with them. As for people who are older than me, after being a vice-chairperson of my class, I had to be more vocal and I started to talk a lot more to teachers. Under the influence of my friends, knowing someone older or younger than me is less of a problem now. I find that having someone younger or older than you is a blessing. They can actually help us in many ways, socially and emotionally. If you are afraid of making that first step, maybe you could have a gathering with some close friends and other people, so that it would be less awkward.
In conclusion, I find that having to know someone older or younger than me is something that everyone should have because it is always nice to have another friend.
- Corrina

65. Do you think practical jokes can be harmful? Why/Why not??

2008-08-10T01:42:00.000-07:00

I feel that practical jokes can be both harmful and not harmful, depending on the extent to which the joke is carried out.
Wherever you are, be it in school or when you are working, there is bound to be times when people pull pranks, crack jokes, and make fun of one another in the means of creating entertainment for people around them or just themselves. Sometimes people simply play practical jokes on others just because it has become part of their hobby, or because their aim is to embarrass the ‘target’.
Practical jokes are not harmful when the purpose of the ‘joker’ is just to provide entertainment for others. That is also provided that the person on whom the joke is to be carried out on does not mind being the ‘target’ in the first place and that the joke is not carried overboard. Jokes can help to reduce the level of stress during stressful situations such as before exams. Practical jokes can also help to lighten the atmosphere during tense situations such as during a meeting. This way, people tend to be more open with their comments or opinions and will not be too concerned on how others look at them. People enjoy interacting with other people who are willing to just be themselves and with those who are able to engage with others easily with whatever they say. This is usually done through small jokes as the jokes will help make the conversation more fun-filled and enjoyable for everyone. Practical jokes can often cheer people up as well.
However, practical jokes can be harmful when it gets carried overboard. That is the case when people tend to make fun of just one particular person, and thus this might eventually be termed as bullying. This is especially so when the person whom the joke is intended on does not express his or her unhappiness. When this happens, the ‘target’ will most probably feel upset and keep his or her unpleasant feelings inside and not tell others, fearing that it will upset the mood of the atmosphere. The ‘joker’ will feel more complacent and think that everyone’s (including him or herself) enjoying the joke and thus continues with it. This will result in depression of the ‘target’ to a worse extent.
No matter how much laughter or fun people can receive from a practical joke, it is still wise to consider all parties and not let others feel hurt or upset over what the joke is intended upon. Practical jokes can be both good and bad, depending on the situation and the type of joke. Whatever it is, everything and everybody has a limit. However high a person’s tolerance level may be, it is still best to have a limit to everything and of course to every joke. If not, a friendly joke might just turn a person into an ugly monster.

-xx

16. Why do you think people keep photograph albums?

2008-08-03T07:17:00.000-07:00

Everybody has at least a photograph album, be it an album of the photos taken when they were babies or photos of their families or even friends. Even I keep photo albums; in fact I have a whole drawer-full of photo albums.
People keep photo albums for various reasons, one of which is for it to serve as a source of entertainment during their free time. Some people treat it as a hobby to just rummage through any one of their albums and have a good laugh at the hilarious and unglamorous photos taken of themselves or their close ones. To them, it’s a form of entertainment and relaxation technique.
Another reason for keeping photo albums is to ‘store’ all the memories of their past times and childhood. Time can never be reversed, therefore in order for people to remember those wonderful memories they have had; pictures are taken and ‘stored’ in the non-living book-like brain of theirs. Especially for people who have very poor memories, keeping photo albums is a perfect way for them to recall things. What more, pictures speak a thousand words, so wouldn’t it be better to keep a photo album to tell the stories rather than just through words in a diary?
I’m not a person who likes to take photos. I will only take photos when necessary like say for example during a special event or occasion. But when I was a kid, my parents always took pictures of me. Photos of me eating, dancing, cycling or just of me simply doing nothing. However it is amazing how all those photos can help a person reminisce on the past, not mentioning that the photos also bring in colours and laughter into a person’s life.
Sometimes, when I am feeling stressed out or have nothing better to do, I will just take some time to flip through the folders of the photo albums I have.
To me, the albums are like my story books. They are not stories written by others or stories about others; they are stories about my life.

2008-08-03T07:02:00.000-07:00

I spend my free time watching the television most of the time. To me, television serves as an entertainment for me when I am free, especially when I am bored. I love to watch cartoons, so I will always switch to the program with cartoons, and soon, the time seem to past so quickly. I will take this time to relax myself too. Cartoons normally make me laugh, and it will really keep me away from all the stresses and problems i have. However, I also love serving the net. But, I only serve the net when there is nothing to watch on the television. Normally, I would blog about my daily life, or I will just view other people’s blogs. I would also use the computer to chat with my friends online. These will keep me occupied and not be bothered about my troubles. Other than these, I would also call up my friends to chat with. We would chat on out daily life, as well as catch up with each other’s personal life. Sometimes, we will share jokes with each other, and make each other’s day happier. When the day seems bored, I would also call up some friends out to the mall to shop. Shopping will surely keep us busy because we girls just love to shop. Whether is it window shopping or shopping, it will be the same. We will go from shop to shop, looking for the things we want to buy, if we had the money. This not only keep me occupied, but also makes me happy when i buy something.

13. Do you think young people do enough to help out in the community/the less fortunate?

2008-08-03T05:47:00.000-07:00

I think that young people do not do enough to help out in the community. This is because young people like students are too caught up in their studies that they do not have time to commit themselves in helping out the community, or they are too reliant on others to plan projects that can help the community.
Nowadays, young people are all leading very busy lifestyles, especially students. Students have to study for tests and exams, participate in co-curricular activities and school events. How would students have time to help out in the community? Hence, these students do not contribute enough to the community.
On the other hand, other youngsters are spending most of their time going out with classmates or friends. They are wasting their money and time on movies and arcade games. Furthermore, they do not spending their precious time helping out in the community. Thus, young people are just not doing enough to help out in the community.
In addition, there also young people who do not even bother about helping out in the community. They do not have the passion and empathy to help out others in their community. Therefore, they do not want to do anything for the community. There are also those who are selfish and are only busy with helping themselves and not others. With such attitudes, how would young people like them contribute enough to the community?
In conclusion, young people are just not contributing enough to help out in the community as they only rely on teachers to help them plan community service projects or they just do not care about contributing. Hence, to encourage more young people to help out in the community, perhaps someone should start the ball rolling, perhaps starting with volunteering in school or at community centres.

If you were given the choice to work in another county, which country would you choose and why?

2008-08-03T05:38:00.000-07:00

If I am ever given a choice to work overseas, I would work in Korea as a member of a game development team. I chose Korea as it is where most of the brand new online role-playing games are tested first before publishing. In addition, there are many varieties of exciting and amusing games to try out and complete. However, I also understand that such a career would be exhausting.

Since I am far from being qualified from working as a member of a game development team, being able to participate in simple part-time jobs with my friends is sufficient for me. Although students’ main focus is supposed to be study, I strongly believed that doing part-time jobs once in a while is beneficial for them too. I think so as doing occasional part-time jobs provides the students an opportunity to learn and experience new things in the adult world. This will also prepare them for their future. However, the students should not be too occupied with part-time jobs as by doing so, they would have lesser time to focus on their academics.

1. What would you do if you had to look after a five-year- old child for the day?

2008-07-27T15:19:00.000-07:00

The only time I have ever babysat for anyone is babysitting my younger cousins with an age ranch of about three to five years old. However, it is only on rare occasions. Of course the rare babysitting experiences were pretty interesting and fun-filled for me, despite the many difficulties I had encountered.
Looking after a five-year old child isn’t as easy as it seems. It involves planning ahead, adjusting to ever changing situations and also ensuring the safety of the child at all times. And as any adults know, five-year olds are a bunch of hyperactive and vocal kids and they tend to run around and scream for their needs, to the worse extend not listen to you at all. Therefore, maintaining a form of discipline to gain respect from the child is necessary at all times.
If I were to look after a five-year old child for a day, I will definitely make the day an eventful and exciting one to keep the child entertained. Before the babysitting session, I will plan out all the things I will do with the child and a backup plan in case of any unforeseen circumstances.
All children enjoy watching cartoons like Tom and Jerry. Hence, I’ll bring some of my old video CDs of those cartoons for the child to watch while preparing meals for him or her. This will prevent the child from getting bored and to end up running and wreaking havoc all over the house while I am busy in the kitchen.
Most kids I’ve seen are very keen in entertaining themselves with doodles and colours during their free time, hence after the meals; I will help the child with his or her school work if any. Alternatively, I will give the child a colouring book to colour and doodle in.
Always being cooped up in a house isn’t very healthy, not even for a five year old. Therefore in order to allow the child to have the luxury of running around in the outdoors and breathe in the fresh surrounding air, I will bring the child out to the nearest neighbourhood park and have a game of Frisbee with him or her. That is provided that the weather permits for any outdoor activities. This will definitely help stimulate the hyperactive juices in the child and allow the child to be able to run freely about and enjoy the game as well. Having a few rounds on the bike is also a plus point for the child that is provided that he or she knows how to cycle in the first place. An outdoor picnic in the park after the activities will be set up with all the prepared food and snacks for the child to munch on.
When it is about time that to parents of the child are back to look after the child, I will bring the child back to the house for a bath. If the parents are still not back yet, I will keep the child entertained with a few rounds of Snakes and Ladders. The game never fails to bring in anticipation and laughter into the players.
These are the activities I will organize and execute if I were to look after a five year old kid; of course nothing will ever go smoothly but I believe that as long as the kid is enjoying him or herself, the babysitting session is a success.

-XiaoXuan (6)

8. Describe some of the superstitious belief that you are familiar with.

2008-07-27T07:02:00.001-07:00

There are many people who are superstitious. Even though I am not very superstitious but there are some that I believe, to be safe than sorry. Some superstitions that I know are finding a four-leaf clover will bring good luck, walking under a ladder is unlucky and that if a black cat crosses your path, it will bring you bad luck.
It is lucky to find a four-leaf clover, probably because a four-leaf clover is really hard to find. Hence, if you found one you would be considered lucky. In addition, walking under a ladder is unlucky because in the past, criminals were hung from the top rung of a ladder and their spirits would linger under the ladder. Furthermore, black cats crossing your path will bring bad luck because black cats were said to be witches. Thus, if a black cat crossed your path it meant bad luck.
Not everyone is superstitious, however for those who are; maybe they have heard about some superstitions and they believe in it. Otherwise, they may also have experienced it and thus believed in it. For example, someone may have walked under the ladder and the ladder just fall on them. Hence, aren’t they just having bad luck?
I do not think that it is good to be superstitious. Everything around may be linked to a superstition, hence it would not be possible for us to avoid all of them. It is also not good to be superstitious because will make people a paranoid. They would always be so careful in what they are doing that it makes others very irritated. However, there are some superstition that is better for us to believe, as there may be traces of facts in them, like an apple a day keeps the doctor away. An apple will be part of a healthy diet, thus having a healthy diet would mean that we would not have to see a doctor since the diet would keep us healthy.

-Corrina

What do I remember most about my time at primary school?

2008-07-27T04:33:00.000-07:00

When I was Primary Six, I experienced many different things with my class. The most memorable one was my first camp that I went to. The camp was our reward for peer tutoring, which lasted for a long period of time. Initially, I was unable to attend the camp. However, after much persuasion, my parents finally consented let me attend the camp. The camp was held at Sentosa’s Underwater World.

We went there on a Friday evening and when we reached there, we were taken for a walk in the Underwater World. After that, we watched a documentary on sharks and how cruel getting shark fins is. Soon, all of us were exhausted and we headed for our showers. Then, we slept beside the conveyor belts. It was an interesting experience sleeping beneath marine animals. Everyone felt weird and scared of sleeping because we were right beneath a whole tank of water. Furthermore, the boys were sleeping underneath the sharks. I was so terrified and shocked whenever there was a thud sound. I feared that water may gush out from the tank along with the sharks. Although my mind kept thinking about those terrifying thoughts, I managed to fell asleep later.

The next day, we went to the Dolphin Lagoon and watched the performance by the dolphins and their trainers. It was spectacular. After the show, I was stunned when I was told we will be in close contact with the adorable dolphins. I was elated at that thought but I always feared being too deep in the waters. Hence, I hesitated about touching the dolphins from beside. However, I was relieved when I realized that the waters was shallow and only up till my knees.

All in all, the camp was the only experience that I had with my friends that I would never forget and will cherish up till now. This camp made me know more about my friends and feel bonded to them despite being unable to go out often with them.

-Jason, (39)

2008-07-26T08:23:00.001-07:00

1. Do you agree that man is destroying the earth’s environment?

Depletion of ozone layer, littering, deforestation, etc, are all man’s doings. The earth had become a place not save to live in due to the consequences that come after man-made disasters. Man tried to make the earth a better place for them to live in. Instead, the earth is suffering ebn without man giving a second thought that what is beneficial to them might not be good to the earth.

I agree that man is destroying the earth’s environment. The more CFCs related products, like aerosols, used by man, the more the depletion of the ozone layer. By doing so, globalization, the trapping of heat in the earth, will lead to death of living things that could not adapt to the rising temperature. This in turn led to more destruction of the biodiversity of the earth.

Millions of plastic products used in everyday life of man are being disposed off and burnt. The harmful gases produced lead to the pollution of the air on earth, overtaking the fresh air in the atmosphere. These harmful pollutants simply destroy, dirty and kill the earth’s environment. Moreover, thousands of trees are cut down by loggers to obtain timber or wood to make furniture; things that man need. This large scale of cutting trees – deforestation - lead to many drastic changes no man could ever think off; even more disasters.
Soil erosion due to the absence of support from the trees will occur, followed by floods due to many debris washed into the river channel. These made the earth unsightly. Moreover, it destroys the earth’s environment, creating a mass destruction of the beautiful earth.

Hence, man is destroying the earth’s environment. Although what man is doing now is good to them, it is definitely harming the earth. Large scales of man-made destructions are still carried out, leading to even more harm to the environment. If there is no man, nature will lead the way. Globalization, littering, deforestation, etc, will not even be in the dictionary of mankind.

-elaine, (4)