Chet’s Chatter

It’s really quite simple …

Posted on 20 June 2008 @ 13:10 in General, Writing

I don’t suppose writing consists in anything more than doing it.

John Steinbeck
Journal of a Novel: The East of Eden Letters

In other words …

Just Write!

Ang Pow Art

Posted on 17 June 2008 @ 23:49 in Pictures

Yes, yes, I know Chinese New Year was in February, and there won’t be any CNY ang pows for another 6 months or so. But when I saw this piece of ang pow art displayed on the door to my sister’s office, I just had to take a picture and show it off here.

This piece of ang pow art is made up of 4 ang pow envelopes given by the OCBC Bank. Placed side-by-side, the 4 envelopes make up a mini painting. Very creative. And a clear winner in the best ang pow design award, if ever there is such an award.

The last missing panda

Posted on 10 June 2008 @ 21:38 in Stress Busters

When the earthquake happened in China’s Sichuan Province on 12 May 2008, six of the giant pandas at the Wolong Panda Centre went missing. In the days that followed, five of them returned. The sixth remained missing. Until now.

Mao Mao, the sixth panda, is home. Not this earthly home, but wherever pandas go after their journey on earth is over.

Mao Mao (giant panda)
1999 - 2008

Her body was found on Monday, 9 June 2008. According to an Associated Press report, she was crushed by a wall of her enclosure, while a report on the Xinhuanet news site said rescuers found her body in the rubble of the pandas’ pens.

Her body was retrieved on Tuesday, 10 June, and buried the same day.

The Xinhuanet site reported that she had 3 offsprings, aged between less than 1 year and 3 years old.

“Chinese panda keeper He Changgui, center front, and his colleagues at China Conservative and Research Center for the Giant Panda mourn for panda Mao Mao which died in the May 12 earthquake at Mao Mao’s funeral in Wolong, China’s southwest Sichuan province, Tuesday, June 10, 2008. The nine-year-old Mao Mao was finally found Monday and dug out Tuesday, almost a month after the devastating earthquake, crushed by a wall of her enclosure as the river nearby swelled with landslide debris. (AP Photo/Alexander F. Yuan)”

I’d like to think that death took her quickly and she did not suffer much.

RIP, dear sweet Mao Mao.

Family Historian in the making?

Posted on 6 June 2008 @ 12:49 in Family

It’d all started when I printed two family photos with cousin JK in them, for her family. At the wake, I showed the pictures to the other cousins who were soon asking for copies for themselves. Cousin KN even offered to pay for the ink and paper. Then I told them about the mini site I’d done for the old family shop, and he said why not put up the old family photos online so they could print them themselves.

Later that night, I went to the online gallery that I’d set up a while back, and created a new album called Old Family Photos.

There are currently only 17 photos online, but it’s a start. More to come. Good reason to digitise the old family photo albums, too.

BTW, when I was showing the two photos around, cousin Lee asked if I was writing my autobiography. No, my dear cousin - not autobiography, since it’s not about me, but family history, because it’s about all of us in the family. I guess that makes me the family historian.

Oh, the photo album is here:
Old Family Photos

Family Get-togethers

Posted on 4 June 2008 @ 12:27 in Family, Personal

When we were children, we would meet often, the younger ones especially, often hanging out in one another’s homes.

When we got older, we met less often, usually during Chinese New Years.

And then not even during Chinese New Years, as we got busy with our own lives, some married and with growing families.

It got to the point where we would only meet during two occasions - someone’s wedding or someone’s funeral.

This evening, I will be meeting up with my cousins. But it won’t be for a wedding. It would be for the wake of one of our older cousins. And then we’ll meet again, for her funeral, maybe tomorrow, or in a few days’ time.

A few weeks back, Sai Goo, my father’s younger sister, had called to say cousin JK was very ill, and suggested that my sister and I visit her. When my sister called cousin JK’s husband to ask how she was and to say we would like to visit her, he said not to visit as it would alarm her because we’ve not kept in touch so visits from all the cousins out of the blue would cause her to ask why.

Two evenings back, Sai Goo called to say cousin JK had been admitted and her husband had expressed a wish that the cousins visit her if we could. So my sister and I went after dinner that same evening.

Cousin JK looked well. She recognised us and clasped my hand tight when I reached out to hold her hand. She’d partially lost her speech but managed to whisper to us a couple of times when we were there. She remained the concerned older cousin as she tried to tell us where the toilets were, in case we needed to go during our visit. When we left, she was sleeping.

Yesterday evening, I returned from my evening walk to find my sister on the phone. She turned when she heard me and said “Cousin JK’s passed away.”

During my sister’s first phone conversation with cousin JK’s husband, when he’d told us not to visit her, I felt very sad that I would not be able to see her one more time. So when Sai Goo called to say he would like us to visit if we could, I felt grateful to be able to see her again.

The last time I saw cousin JK was at my niece’s funeral wake two years ago. Before that, it was for father’s funeral wake the previous year. She’d arrived all apologetic for not visiting during that Chinese New Year; she’d been busy looking after her newborn granddaughter.

That’s how it is when we grow up and get on with our own lives. We lose touch with cousins and relatives, sometimes even with our own brothers and sisters. I’ve been very blessed that my sister, brother and I remain very close, and look to one another for help and support in different areas of our lives. Mother is one reason why we remain close, but it is my prayer that even after she leaves us, we will remain as close as we are now.

Cousins