I attended a workshop recently hosted by a renowned author of child psychology and other books that have become school text in Australian schools. Mind u, this is a paid workshop ($98 per couple). One would think that at that price, the workshop would at least be well presented. After all, the presenter is a world class linguist and an expert in psychology. For three hours, the audience was put through a “listen-to-me” session; he hardly engaged the audience at all! He talked from beginning to end, rushing through one topic after another as if he had not enough time to complete his itinerary. It’s already hard to concentrate on a topic like psychology for 3 hours on an evening of a working week, and this presenter really made the going even harder for the audience. To be fair, I did gain useful knowledge from this workshop, but having digested the contents, I feel he could have done a bit more homework and presented it differently….especially engaging the audience a lot more. I guess a world class author doesn’t necessarily make a world class presenter.

Joe

Someone (broseph4521) asked me if I was going to blog about news of Michael Jackson’s passing on. I do have something to say about one aspect of MJ’s career. I wouldn’t write about his life….I believe he had the right to be who he wanted to be….inexplicable or otherwise. There is no doubting his talent; Michael Jackson was probably the most iconic personality in show business for as long as I had been listening to pop music.

The one thing I want to write about is his live concerts. From the moment I saw him ‘live’ at the Singapore National Stadium (it was the first - and probably last - time I did not hesitate to pay $250 to watch a concert!) I had this feeling….so it’s something I’d been keeping for more than 15 years. I believe that MJ lip-synched most of his live concert performances, especially those songs that required him to dance rigorously. If you need a reference, watch his live stage performance of “Dirty Diana” and keep your eyes peeled for whenever he did his trademark pirouettes (spinning on the spot very fast)…he would hold his microphone very close to his chest AND….he would NOT be singing. But yet his voice in the song would continue to play on! This is not by any means criticism of MJ. A lot of world renowned artistes lip synch their live shows. MJ’s shows were more than just singing….his very presence, the high-octane dance routines and the elaborate stage props….they made MJ shows all the rave. If anything, the lip-synching just showed that MJ was, after all, human.

Rest in peace, Michael. Thanks for the memories. May God bless your soul.

Joe

I used to think Roger Federer was untouchable. Then along came Rafael Nadal. Then I thought Nadal was untouchable. Then came Andy Murray.

I used to think Lewis Hamilton was untouchable. Then came Jenson Button.

Four-time World Soccer Champion Argentina got thrashed 6-1 by Bolivia - ranked 58th in the world - recently in a World Cup qualifier.

There is no such thing as supremacy in sport. That’s good news for all those further down the list. Your time will surely come one day if you just keep believing in yourself. So, we CAN see Singapore reaching the World Cup Finals one day, right?

Joe

I read recently in the papers that a Malaysian daily suggested that Singapore wanted to build a third bridge into Johor so that the Singapore Army could overrun the state more easily! Wow. Isn’t it wonderful that our Malaysian neighbours think so highly of the SAF and our military might?

I recall a true incident at my school’s principal’s office back when I was in Secondary Two. Two teachers were quarelling with each other and the principal was trying to mediate. One teacher said to the other “You’re barking up the wrong tree”, to which the other teacher retorted “Now you’re calling me a dog?!!!”

What do you call people who simply see what they want to see?

Joe

I was watching a programme on Discovery Channel on how animal babies adapt to their new world almost immediately when born. The female Tasmanian Devil gives birth to a handful of babies slightly larger than a grain of rice each. The babies’ first instinct was - believe it or not - to race to one of only FOUR nipples on the mother. It’s survivial of the fittest, because the ones that don’t get to suckle on any one of the four nipples do not get to suckle at all! They simply flop around and get eaten by the mother!!

Then, there’s the penguin. The mothers brave stormy seas and the predatory leopard seals to find food for their little ones which they leave on an island. When the mother comes back with food, there could be two young peguins going for the food. The mother would do this strange thing - she runs AWAY from the babies. Whichever baby can catch up with the mother gets the food. That’s because one day, the baby penguin would have to get into the same raging sea and fend off the leopard seal to survive. So, the baby with the stronger will and physical strength would be fed. The weaker one….well, too bad!

And we complain about our childhood?

Joe

Surely many of you reading this would have bought life insurance policies? I mean policies on your own life (ie. payable only upon your total disability or death). Well, good for you! I think it’s absolutely selfless and considerate of you to knowingly put aside money for those you’d leave behind should you pass on from this life. When money is hard to come by for someone, it’s especially difficult to put aside what little money he/she has, knowing that he/she will never get to enjoy this nestegg while he/she is still alive. But you’d be taking care of your loved ones with this payout. So, well done!

Joe

I have worked some 30 years. In the same company. This year, too, I celebrate my 25th wedding anniversary. I am just turning the corner of 50. I love my job and get a decent salary. But I have been feeling for a while now that it is time for me to give back to society….while I still have the energy and lucidity of thought. I wish to quit my job and do charity work. And in my spare time, I would like to (finally) write and publish story books for children. It’s going to be a very brave decision, even if I may say so myself. After all, my wife is a homemaker and my daughter is only 10. But I feel that I pass through this world but once. Life has been kind to me; I should give back. Pray for me as I deliberate on this important decision.

Joe

Finally….someone who says what I’d been telling my daughter for a long time. We do NOT need a car. Read the letter from reader John Grater in TODAY (June 8, 2009). My daughter is fascinated with cars and had been bugging me to buy one - believe it or not - for the last 4 years! And she’s only 10! Really, I had worked my sums all these years back. I would need spare cash of at least $900 if I want to maintain a car in Singapore. Mr Grater listed the opportunity costs as children’s education (check), health care (check) and family holidays (check). And he also said that at the prices we pay for cars here, we might as well be taking taxis for the rest of our lives! It’s really tue. I had been taking taxis everywhere I go with my family on weekends and it’d cost me no more than $300 a month. Here’s another nugget - for all that money I pay to buy a car, I leave it parked for the whole day while I am in the office. Sheesh! But the clincher has to be that it’s also being environmentally friendly to not add to the already bad pollution and road congestion we’re faced with today. So, people….do buy that car only if you have spare cash, or if your job needs you to, or you have sick or old people to ferry around. Think about it.

Joe