52nd Independence Day

Today is the 31st of August 2009, Malaysia's Independence Day. We have been a nation of multi-ethnic group for 52 years. On this day, we would normally see lot of people watching a colourful parade in the capital city. National television networks would also air this event "live" from 8:00AM till about 10:00AM when the parade ends. It has always been a grand occasion. Here's a video clip of the 51st Independence Day celebration last year, taken just outside the Sultan Abdul Samad building in the capital city:

This year, however, the government has decided to close its doors to the public. Our 52nd national day do was held at the Parliament Square. The event was still covered over national TV, but unlike the previous years where every one was there to celebrate this occasion, only invited guests were allowed to be at the venue where the King and his consort, the Cabinet Ministers and other VIPs were seated. The usual massive crowd that had been waking up early for over 50 years to get the best spot to witness the important event was missing.

The reasons for this sudden change were: To respect the holy month of Ramadhan, and to prevent H1N1 from spreading further. At the point of this blog being written, there are 71 deaths. Hmm...by the way, I've just got an update on the death toll - it's 72 now.

New Affiliate Programme

One of the latest affiliate programmes to hit the Internet is Link from Blog. Like a few other programmes, you could either sign in as an advertiser or a blogger. You need to sign up, then register your blog and activate it. The best part of all is that you're able to receive a $50 payment for qualified referrals to your friends. To those with a good network of friends, this could be a good way of making money. Of course, you could make much more by making bids and posting reviews once your bid has been accepted. Good luck to you :)

Portable GPS

Have you ever got lost in the city which you're not familiar with, or afraid that you might just miss a junction in a traffic congestion? Fear not. Now we have a portable Global Positioning System (GPS) which could be fixed to the windshield of your car.

I was in the capital city yesterday, and with the GPS as my navigator, I was able to arrive at not one, but two places safely and accurately. Well, I had actually missed a junction, but the GPS was smart enough to recalculate the distance and redirected me to an alternative route within just a few seconds.

The GPS which I've bought (pictures above) came with an additional feature. Its junction view gives drivers a ground-level view of which junction to take. So this feature actually tells you the distance before you get into that junction, and the voice will remind you to turn a few hundred meters before you arrive at the junction. Yes, it could "talk" and you could select whether you want the voice to be male or female; British or American; Malay, Chinese or English language.

There are more companies selling GPS now, so rest assured the price would come tumbling down in just a couple of months. I'm very happy with the system I have now, and I've no regrets forking out quite a big sum for it. Safety comes first. Take note that the satellite transmission gets cut off in enclosed areas like the basements and tunnels.

Teach Your Child to Read: Thinking Aloud

Parents love to see their children learning to read, and sometimes, they themselves would read bedtime stories to their children. However, not many parents know that there are strategies that you could use to teach your children to read. These reading strategies are skills that are important so that your children know to be a critical (or active) reader rather than a passive one.

One of the strategies in reading is thinking aloud as you read. Thinking aloud means that you verbalise your thoughts so that others could "hear" what you're thinking. In the video clip below, you'll see the teacher teaching you how to use thinking aloud when you read to your children.


By using the thinking aloud strategy, children will learn that as they read, they have to THINK, not just voicing the words that they see.

Events in the US

Would you like to know what's happening in the vicinity this weekend, or better still all the time? Check out the Parent's Connect widget that you see on the left sidebar of this blog. By using this widget you could check out events that are happening in your area instantly. It's pretty easy. Just enter your City, State or ZIP code in the empty field on top of the widget that you see on the left of this blog, and you could immediately see the activities currently being held in your area. For instance, enter the ZIP code "90210", and you would be able to see in brief what's happening in California. To get the details, just click on the link. If you wish to see what's on throughout the United States, type in "all" in the empty field, and events for all states pop up. The great part of this widget is you could look for events on any particular date by scrolling through the dates on top of the widget.

Alternatively, if you do not wish to use the widget provided here, you could visit the ParentsConnect.com website. On this website, you'll be able to see a complete list of all the states. On top of that, you would also find that there are useful tips on babies, teens, pregnancies and a few others. Even your teens could be a member, participate in community discussions and "talk" to others. You could also subscribe to the newsletter for updates.

Peranakan Food Fair

Two days ago, it was the dinner. Then on Sunday, PPCM had a food fair to collect development fund for the organisation. The food fair was held in the PPCM building itself. The turnout was fantastic, as you see from this brief video clip. There were lots of peranakan delicacies on sale, some of which are not sold in regular night markets or restaurants. Check it out. I managed to capture snapshots of some of the goodies that I took home.

Video Clip:

The scene in the PPCM building. Food galore!

Photos:

The PPCM facade

Popiah - wrapped in egg skin. In many night markets, the plain skin type is sold.

Pongteh - black mushroom, chicken and potatoes. Not spicy at all. Traditionally, pork with fat is used. Here, chicken is used so that non-pork eaters are able to consume it too.

Mee hoon siam - fried vermicilli, sliced eggs, fish fingers, bean sprouts, cucumber. A little spicy. A bit of tamarind sauce is added to give it a slightly sour taste. Squeeze a lemon to give it a bit extra punch.

Ayam masak merah - literally translated as chicken cooked in red sauce. It's spicy and it's a little sweet.

Kuih talam (left) and kuih ginggang (right). Kuih talam is a dual-layered cake. The bottom layer is brown while the top layer is usually white. To get that tinge of blue, the peranakans extract the natural dye taken from a flower called "bunga telang" (clitoria flowers). Kuih ginggang has light red layers alternated with white. Notice that the first layer is dark red while the bottom most layer is white. I love peeling each layer with my teeth and tongue, and then eat layer by layer.

Pulut sri kaya - another dual-layered cake. The top layer is typically yellow, while the bottom is made of glutinous rice. You could see the blue dye again. Indeed, peranakans love using the natural dye in their delicacies.

Kuih gu - this one's called "or gu" or black kuih gu, but as you can see, it's actually very dark green. The other variety is called "ang gu" or red kuih gu. Kuih gu is stuffed with green bean paste. Very sweet and quite elastic. Take note that it looks like a turtle shell. There's a story behind this.

Chendol - a coconut milk with "gula melaka" dessert. Red beans are also added. Served cold. The green stuff is edible; it has pandan flavour Use a metal spoon for a colder effect :)

Tai bak - another dessert, exclusive to the peranakans. The red and white "noodles" are made of flour. The water is sweet.

Note: The cakes made by the peranakans have heavy Malay influence. Some of the cakes are identical but have different names. For example, "sri kaya" (peranakan) is known as "seri muka" (Malay). The peranakans love using yellow while the Malays use green

The Baba & Nyonya Charity Dinner 09

The Peranakan Association of Melaka or Persatuan Peranakan Cina Melaka held a charity dinner in Melaka on 21 Aug. 2009. There were close to 120 tables in the large air-conditioned Chinese school hall. The purpose of this dinner was to raise funds for some charitable organisations in the state. Each guest has to pay RM30 - that's RM300 per table. All proceeds went to selected organisations like the church, temple, Montfort Boy's Town, the SPCA and a few others. Here are some video clips and photos which I captured on that eventful night.

Video clips:

The Melodians: A renown peranakan band from Melaka. You'll notice that the background is rather noisy. Well, in a typical Chinese dinner, this is normal. So foreigners who are attending such functions for this first time should be prepared for the noise.

In any event organised by the happy-go-lucky peranakans, dancing is a must. You'll see here that no matter the age and the level of your dancing performance, every one takes to the floor. The keywords are: ENJOY and HAVE FUN. The video is a good testimony of this. Watch how the man in the foreground dances ,and compare with the elderly lady beside him :) Oh by the way, they're doing line-dancing.

Photos:

Picture 1: Everyone's dancing

Picture 2: Special performers

Picture 3: Mock cheque presentation to charitable organisations

H1N1 Prevention

I'd like to share with you an e-mail (unedited) which a friend has just forwarded. It's about how to prevent H1N1 effectively. Apparently, the N95 face mask and the Tamiflu vaccine are not good enough. Read on, and let's hear it from the experts out there.

The H1N1 Virus

=============

The Most Sensible Advice About H1N1!

How to prevent H1N1– An eMail forward is reproduced below:

Friends,

Thanks to media hype about H1N1, several people who trust me have either approached or called me to advice. The hype in media about the utility of face masks and N95 respirators as a tool for general protection against H1N1 can't be deplored enough..

Yesterday, a friend who listened wanted me to write down briefly what I advised so that he could tell others in similar words. Hence this short email to friends whom I have advised recently (and others whom I haven't yet).

Please realize that this is not an official advice, especially the one about face masks or N95. Most N95 respirators are designed to filter 95% particulates of 0.3µ, while the size of H1N1 virus is about 0.1µ. Hence, dependence on N95 to protect against H1N1 is like protecting against rain with an umbrella made of mosquito net.

Tamiflu does not kill but prevents H1N1 from further proliferation till the virus limits itself in about 1-2 weeks (its natural cycle). H1N1, like other Influenza A viruses, only infects the upper respiratory tract and proliferates (only) there. The only portals of entry are the nostrils and mouth/ throat. In a global epidemic of this nature, it's almost impossible not coming into contact with H1N1 in spite of all precautions.

Contact with H1N1 is not so much of a problem as proliferation is.

While you are still healthy and not showing any symptoms of H1N1 infection, in order to prevent proliferation, aggravation of symptoms and development of secondary infections, some very simple steps - not fully highlighted in most official communications - can be practiced (instead of focusing on how to stock N95 or Tamiflu):

1. Frequent hand-washing (well highlighted in all official communications).

2. "Hands-off-the-face" approach. Resist all temptations to touch any part of face (unless you want to eat or bathe).

3. Gargle twice a day with warm salt water (use Listerine if you don't trust salt). H1N1 takes 2-3 days after initial infection in the throat/ nasal cavity to proliferate and show characteristic symptoms. Simple gargling prevents proliferation.In a way, gargling with salt water has the same effect on a healthy individual that Tamiflu has on an infected one. Don't underestimate this simple, inexpensive and powerful preventative method.

4. Similar to 3 above, clean your nostrils at least once every day with warm salt water. Not everybody may be good at Jala Neti or Sutra Neti (very good Yoga asanas to clean nasal cavities), but blowing the nose hard once a day and swabbing both nostrils with cotton buds dipped in warm salt water is very effective in bringing down viral population.

5. Boost your natural immunity with foods that are rich in Vitamin C(Amla and other citrus fruits). If you have to supplement with Vitamin C tablets, make sure that it also has Zinc to boost absorption.

6. Drink as much of warm liquids as you can.Drinking warm liquids has the same effect as gargling, but in the reverse direction. They wash off proliferating viruses from the throat into the stomach where they cannot survive, proliferate or do any harm.

7. All these are simple ways to prevent, within means of most households, and certainly much less painful than to wait in long queues outside public hospitals..

Happy breathing!

Best regards,
Dr..Ashutosh Mundkur

Email Finder

Gone were the days when locating a long lost friend was quite impossible. Now, with the internet, there are numerous avenues to locate someone whom you've not met a long time. If that person has an email, you could search for him using this e-mail finder. Click Here! for EmailFinder. You could then start looking up anyone any place.

Malaysian Moon Cake Festival

Moon Cake Festival, also known as the Mid-Autumn Festival is held on the 15th day of the 8th month each year of the lunar (Chinese) calendar, or equivalent to mid or end of September in the Gregorian calendar. On this date, the moon is supposed to in its fullest. This festival is also called the Lantern Festival where children carry beautifully-decorated lanterns to celebrate the sighting of the moon. In Malaysia, children walk with their lanterns around the housing estate. (Take note: In China, the Lantern Festival is something else; it's held in the beginning of the year.)

Picture 1: The Chinese mooncake (commonly round)

On this day, Chinese families eat a special kind of sweet cake known as "yue ping" or in English, moon cakes (Picture 1) prepared in the shape of the moon and filled with either sesame seeds, ground lotus seeds and duck eggs. Nowadays it is stuffed with various ingredients and flavours. It is believed that the tradition of eating mooncakes dates back to the 14th century. It is said that the moon cake was used by a priest to send messages which were hidden inside the cake, thus tricking the Mongolians, their enemy. As a result of this ingenious plan, the enemy lost.

In Malaysia, due to heavy commercialisation these days, moon cakes are available months ahead of the festival or even throughout the year in shopping malls. This is indeed a sad thing as it shows tradition doesn't take precedence anymore. It won't be long before the future Chinese generations are ignorant of the significance of the moon cake, no thanks to money-making entrepreneurs. In fact, even the Malays have joined this celebration by duplicating the moon cakes that the Chinese produce (Picture 2). The difference is the ingredients used are "halal" so that Muslims are able to enjoy this delicacy; another difference is in the packaging, which is green. While this new trend exhibits the assimilation of culture, the identity of the moon cake will one day be lost as Muslim children may grow up thinking that the moon cake is "theirs". My wife told me that one of her Muslim colleagues told the others that the making of "ang koo kueh" was actually initiated by the Malays, when it is in fact a Nyonya delicacy. Shocking but true. It is this kind of ignorance that causes confusion which we want to avoid.

Picture 2: The Malay version (not bad)
Note - the packaging has been removed to protect anonymity

End of the World?

NOTE: This blog may contain elements that are controversial. If you're not comfortable with accepting different points of view, kindly stop here.

A couple of days back, I watched a documentary entitled "Apocalypse" on our satellite channel. To me, it was rather disturbing. No doubt that the world would eventually come to an end, and scientists have already said that there will come a time when the sun will lose all its energy and that would put Earth into ice age. By then, there would be no more humans. I believe that it is not necessary to show about the end of the world on TV, to report it in the press or promote it in places of worship. When it comes, it comes. Showing computer simulations of destructions and interviewing theologists cause fear - perhaps that's what the media wants to happen to people. I'm sure you've watched other movies like "The Day After Tomorrow", "Armaggeddon" and by year end, "2012" will hit the silver screens worldwide. All these movies are about the future of Earth, the end of it. Why do we want to see the future as we know that the end will be here eventually - it may happen in our lifetime, it may not.

Why do people talk about the future instead of focusing on the present? Isn't the present more important? It is the present that will determine the future. "Don't look to the past as it's over and gone, don't look to the future as it has not come but be here in the present with His name in your mind." - that's what my religion teaches me. It makes perfect sense. No one knows what's going to happen tomorrow or even an hour from now, let alone in 2012. We know that death would come to us - naturally or not. So, focus on the present events, make life better, and help the earth survive longer if we could. That's the whole purpose of life! Life is far more than just worrying about the end of the world.

Heat Exchange

How's the weather in your city. Over here in Malacca, it's about 87 degrees Fahrenheit or 31 degrees Celcius even at night. That's real humid. Those who wish for a cooler place, if you're in America, should try moving to Arizona (AZ). The weather in Arizona is a cool 80 degrees. That's approximately 26 degrees Celcius. Those of you who wish to move there could check out real estate in Scottsdale and see for yourself the types of properties available for sale, and the services offered. What's different about this properties agency is that it has relocation service for its clients. So, not only your furniture moves, your family will be ensured that they will be able to move in without any problems.

So, would you move to another city to avoid the heat?

Learn English the Chinese Way

While Malaysians have been making a big fuss about learning Math and Science in English, other countries have taken serious steps to ensure that they learn the language. One such country is China. Once famed for its closed door policy, it has since opened its doors and is now one of the world's superpowers respected by many countries including the US. The one thing that has brought China to where it is now is the use of English to communicate with the outside world.

Realising its importance, the government embarked on a massive programme to ensure that the people of China from all walks of life learn English. This was vital especially in preparation for the Beijing Olympics in 2008. Every one, young and old, were interested to learn English and be an Olympic volunteer to assist the millions of foreign visitors who would be using English as a unifying language to communicate with the locals. Impossible? Nothing's impossible in China where resilience, patience, patriotism and courage are synonymous to their culture.

Here are two video clips to show you how the Chinese young and old in China struggled to learn English - for their country... and for themselves:

The videos are certainly good motivation for those who are afraid to make mistakes. Will the Malaysian government learn from China's experience?

Blogging in teaching language

Blogging is a useful tool in the teaching of English. This new application is also known as a computer-mediated communication (CMC) tool. While western countries have already embarked on using the blog to assist and enhance teaching and learning, Malaysia has still not really caught up with this fad. In fact, up till 2008, prior to the General Elections, nobody took notice of the power of blogging. I shall not dwell into politics as the focus of this blog is education.

Here's how you could use a blog in an English language lesson. This suggestion is suitable for a 1-hour lesson.

Identify a topic:

• choose a topic for the day - for example: The Road Not Taken
• students should have already read it at home

Present lesson the conventional way:

• discussion on the theme of the poem
• the significance of "the road not taken"

Create activities in blog as follow up

• let students write about which road they want to take and explain in their blog
• include multimedia elements (e.g.: video clips, graphics, music) - take note of copyright
• students post comments in their peers' blogs
• review and discussion on the comments

Here is an assignment that I gave my students a few years ago!! (yeah, it's been that long) to give an idea of what you can do.

Blogging could be done either at home as assignment or in the language lab on the day of the lesson. It would also be good to award students some marks for their effort; this is a form of encouragement for them to continue blogging productively.

What about grammar? My opinion on this is that the purpose of blogging is not to correct the grammar (unless the blog is purely for grammar classes). Content is paramount. As long as students write coherently, they should not be penalised for grammatical errors. In fact, focusing too much on grammar in a non-grammar class could be a real put off and discouraging for students who have things to say but keeps being corrected due to grammatical errors.