READING MARATHON - 144 Hours

For Read! Singapore 2009, one of the event is a reading marathon to set a 144 hours of reading aloud non-stop record in the Book Of Records. The week long event (3rd July 1 p.m. - 9th July 09 1 p.m.) is held at The Plaza @ the National Library, Victoria Street. We took part in the reading marathon today.

READING MARATHON 2009

Under the group name "Wheels of Knowledge and Friends", Nantha Kumar, Chong Choo and I each had to do a half hour of reading aloud. There were 3 other wheelchair-users in our group. The timer on the panel on stage was clocking the 47th hour of reading when we arrived. Serangoon Garden Secondary School was doing the reading. The girl must be dry in her throat from reading aloud. I could hear the rasp in her voice but she continued to read well. I began to worry if I could do the same. Afterall I've never read aloud for long stretches of time and I do get breathless if I'm tired. Initiately, Chong Choo was to read at 1, Nantha at 2 and I would be reading at 3 p.m. with someone else taking over in between. But on hearing that we hadn't taken lunch, the organisers kindly rearrange our time slot so that we could finish one after the other. We were called to go onstage for a group photo shoot after which they seated us accordingly with readied mics. After a very short introduction of our names to the audiences, we took over the reading at 1 p.m. At an average of 13 pages each, we finished 2 stories and a half in the book titled "Dreams and Choices". Just 15 minuites into my reading, the wicked witch of my imagination cast a spell over my throat. It was as dried up as a piece of patchment left too long in the sun. I strived on. Nearing the end, I gladly took a sip of water which my volunteer held out to me. Perhaps she noticed the raspiness in my voice. Ah! How soothing, and refreshing, and precious is the sip of water. I did my turn and joined Nantha and Chong Choo below. They had won something in a draw and would collect their prize at a later date. We had lunch at the Cafe where we order anything from sandwiches to set meal. Lunch at 2.30 p.m. might as well be tea. Sandwiches was a good choice for me. We stayed on for some time after our break and took our leave at 4 p.m. Andrew, our volunteer driver for the day, had us worrying when the Home van died on the way out of the underground carpark. God helped us. The engine got going again after serveral trials and we returned home without any mishap.

Visit to Istana and Getting E51

"When my batteries ran out, you gotta push me," I told Dehong, my good brother/volunteer. We made an appointment to explore Istana on Labour Day. I'm going in my motorised chair.

We weren't the only late ones meeting Dehong at the park, Shet Fen outdid us by arriving after us. We needn't wait long to take a bus and the MRT to Plaza Singapura though. We had a lunch treat from Dehong using his Kopitiam cash-free card. Joined by Li Lian and her boyfriend Zhi Rong, we headed for the Istana.

At 1 p.m. the queue was long at the entrance with temperture check for H1N1 virus symptoms. Peng Mun had a slightly higher temperature and was told to rest in the shade for a while. After the temperature check, a security check cleared us and we were free to roam the grounds.
It was an uphill walk from the entrance partially shaded by trees. After that, there was no escape from the scorching heat. A school millitary band was performing and we stopped to watch it.

When we reached the Istana building, Shet Fen bought tickets for us all to enter the Istana showroom. We were led to enter via the ramp at the side of the building. On display were valuable gifts from dignities around the world: swords, daggers, miniture ship models, ornamental boxes. The volunteers at the Istana were told to look after us and we complied by putting our motorise chair in manual mode and being pushed from room to room. In the comfort of the air-conditioned interior, we took our time to view the state meeting room, the dining area and the sitting area. There were many beautiful art pieces which I took time admiring too.

Back in the hot sun, we squint our eyes looking at the camera while Dehong tried to take pictures of us at every prestigious angle. We sweated buckets and seeked relief in the shady plant shelter around the fountain garden. Dehong was glad that the walk out was downhill as he put my chair on manual to save my battery energy.

We returned to Plaza Singapura and I found what I had been looking for at Carrefour: non-slip bath-mats. (I'd exhausted all shops in AMK hunting for them.) After having cold desserts at Ice Monster, we parted ways and returned to AMK Hub with Dehong.

I wanted to renew my M1 contract and get a Nokia E51. The salesgirl at the AMK Hub M1 shop was rather unhelpful and indifferent towards us. Perhaps she thought we would be a waste of her time. I became really annoyed only when she continued treating me like a dummy after I proceed to make a purchase. Her attitute dampened my spirit and I regreted doing the purchase with her. Just some shops away is Planet Telecom dealing with Nokia products. There, a really nice and friendly salesman Roy paid attention to us and made very satisfied customers out of us. I was happy to get my bluetooth headset from his shop.

It was 9 p.m. when we sat down to dinner at AMK Block 453 market.

Memory Lane at Changi Village

The food was good but lunch at the Changi Village hawker centre was hot and stuffy. I wasn't feeling too well and had a loss of appetite. The weather was hot as hot can be. We must be crazy to go to the beach in this weather. Yet, how refreshing it is to be by the sea.
Peng Mun and I strolled leisurely on the boardwalk while Dee wandered on the sandy beach a little distance away delighting in little finds: a little pearly shell became my keepsake, a tiny crab in perfect shape until we broke its dried and brittled pincers trying to move it, a small starfish on a stone step was dried and spiky to the feel.

Our 2 hours' stroll took us from Changi Point Ferry Terminal to the Changi Sailing Club. Along the stretch we passed the Civil Service Club where the Singapore Cheshire Home used to be from 1976 to 1984. I was admitted to the Home in 1983 and had a room with the front veranda looking out towards the cape, the Changi Beach Park. Many of our staff back then were the local Malays who had to take the bum boat from Pulau Ubin to come to work; a good thing the Ferry Terminal was so near.

Dark clouds gathered in the horizon when we looked back the way we came. Anyway, we could go no further. The boardwalk continued beyond the Sailing Club begining with a step up; accessibilty denied to wheelchairs users.:(

We made a U-turn and took the pavement by the road. This took us pass the old Changi Hospital and once again my memories was brought back to the old days when residents were sick and admitted to the hospital. Some residents needed special care and the hospital being so near to the Home, the caring attendants went the extra mile to bring them back for bath and toileting needs. Many residents had travelled this same path to the hawker centre to get kopi-o, roti john, fishball mee-hoon and the likes either for themselves or for their fellow residents.

The pavement here are lined with old angsana trees that are home to many parrots. We spotted green and red Eclectus (males and females) and white cockadoos and almost bumped into a hunging spider. It was a walk amid nature.
We didn't want to go back to the stuffy hawker centre, so we settled down at Milli's for dinner. The food didn't meet our expectation. I was running a fever then and Dee cooled me down with ice and a fan blowing directly on me. I didn't want to go home yet. I haven't seen fireflies flashing in the night all my life and the previous time when we went to Changi in the day, I saw many bugs that could possibly be fireflies. Transport would come at 8 and I held on to my hopes of seeing fireflies. We crossed the bridge to Changi Beach Park.

The sun had set and a gentle breeze was blowing in from the sea refreshing everyone. Strangers exchanged friendly smiles. Relaxed, everyone was feeling happy. The transport came puncturely at 8 p.m. I didn't see a single firefly but happy, relaxed and feeling much better, I sang with Dee on our way home. We would go there again, I promised.

With GE to the Flyer

We'd been on the Singapore Flyer!

General Electric organised and took us to the Singapore Flyer today. Initially I was reluctant to go because I simply hated having to switch from my motorised wheelchair into my manual one for the Home outing. But everything went smooth and easy for me today. I got up as early as 5.30 in the morning and had plenty of time left for breakfast after the morning staff showered me. (Normally I'm the last to be bathed and come out as late as 10 o'clock.) Besides, one major reason that I hated being pushed on the manual is I get easily jolted out of my sitting position and becomes really uncomfortable and significantly weak with no one to put me back in the right position. But today, there were serveral staff following us and one of them, Kumari, knows how to position me well. Immediately on reaching our destination, her help proved invaluable to me and was the cause for my enjoyment of the trip.

Gathered in a room at the venue, Melissa, our programme co-ordinator had us play some ice-breaking games with the GE volunteers. We were assigned to our specific volunteers and headed in groups of four to our capsules. Osland, John, Peng Mun and me were in the first group with our volunteers, Eugene, Sonia, Evelyn and Sandra and Paul, our Home staff.

We were led off seperately to the boarding area. The staff of the Flyer actually stopped the ferry to let us board safely. Because of this, we were told, we will be in flight for a few minutes longer than a usual flight time. The cabin door closed and we took off in slow motion. Thought it wasn't only me who secretly hope that something would go wrong and get us stucked up there for awhile, nothing went wrong. We didn't feel the ferry wheel stopping for the groups of residents behind us. But it stopped once only for a little while when we were at the submit. All too soon, the flight ended and we were ushered out of our cabin and into the lunch reception room where we initiately gathered. We had the whole room to ourselves as we chatted and view the pictures Eugene had taken while we waited for the other groups and for lunch. Lunch was Japanese bento which didn't taste too bad for many hungry stomachs. Despite myself, I enjoyed the trip.

Catching the Floats

We expected a quiet and simple dinner at Elaine's place yesterday. It turned out quite differently. Neighbours got invited and unexpected friends popped up. It was Mrs. Gwee's birthday and for the fun of it, Elaine bought 2 small pieces of cake to be cut up into 16 little cubes for each of us! We had a good dinner and stayed on to chit-chat after the neighbours left. Elaine made the suggestion of catching the Chingay floats in Ang Mo Kio.

A check through the internet provided the details. The Chingay floats would made their way through Teck Ghee, Ang Mo Kio Avenue 10, block 409 to Street 51 and 52. Thereafter it will go on towards Serangoon North through AMK Ave 3. There are two places where we can see the floats; Teck Ghee block 409 and the Chong Boon Park across the underpass.

Elaine arrived with her sisters and brothers-in-law and we hurried over to the 409 market reaching there before 7.50pm. We needn't have worried. There was a variety show going on and goody bags were being distributed. It was a long wait before the floats came coursing down the road. We sat by the road and had a good view of all the floats. After the last float went by, we ran the way back home an cut to the furthest end of Chong Boon park just in time to catch a bird's eye view of the parade passing by again. We were elated to have catch the floats twice.

Hitch, hike, help and home is Home

Having confirmed that my room-mate Lan Mui can walk far and not tire easily, we went out together yesterday and spent a whole day at Ang Mo Kio Hub. I thought of taking the bus to the Hub in the morning to save energy, time and battery power. (Peng Mun's motorised chair battery was starting to wear out after two years.) I would rather we hit the pavement in the evening as the buses coming back from the MRT Station are, needless to say, fully packed. We arrived at the bus stop and checked the panel. It was a long wait for the next WAB (Wheelchair Accessible Bus). We hit the road on pavement.
Before the morning gone by, Lan Mui was complaining about a pain in her leg. We rested and walked some more. Along the way, as we shopped and lunched, we stopped and rested in between. I was getting concerned if Lan Mui can make it back, for her complaints came in shorter interrvals. Eventually I asked her to specify where the pain was. It was in her left foot. I suggested she took off her track shoes to relax it for a while. Guess what? The moment she loosen her shoelaces, she felt a tremedous relief. I can't believe she tied her shoes up so tied, it hurts! Well, I was relieved too; she could walk happily after that. It was Peng Mun who didn't have enough power to move in the evening. We had no choice but to join the evening crowd in boarding a bus. Bus 268 with two wheelchair seatings came quickly. We gestured to the driver with three extended fingers. He nodded. We were all aware of the crowd jostling for places. The driver did what he had to do. He opened the front door to let the able-bodied passengers board the bus. They swarmed in. The bus was nearly full when the driver tried to close the door. The people further away got the message and stopped rushing while the last few people were let into the bus. It was a crowd in the bus but we managed to board it. Three stops later, the bus was empty except for us. We dropped at the fourth bus-stop near the industrial park, thanked the kind driver and walked the distance home through Tavistok with Lan Mui helping Peng Mun along. Neared Saint Peter's Church, Peng Mun summoned Attendant Julie out with a phonecall for help. We raced the short distance home.
Today, visitors donated to the Home cartons of Milo, Anleen Milk powder, Maggie Mee, instance coffee packets, et cetera, while the Home cleared out and gave away cartons of Quacker products and packs of unpolished rice. There were simply too much, we couldn't finish them in time. Thanks to our many kind-hearted donors.