Lifestyles Ideas Management - Best of Both Worlds

It is possible to have the best of both worlds, at home and in the work place.
Here are some strategies that have worked for some folks.

Plan to do things as a family when the children are at home.
Leave work aside until the children are asleep or when they are engaged in planned activities to keep them busy and interested.
Plan your day and decide which activities can wait. Most of the time, children cannot wait so there is a need for us to attend to them first. Celebrate life knowing that each day is different and there is something to look forward to. It could be having a nice cup of coffee or seeing someone who cares for you.
Plan each day to be a happy day. Plan something happy to do each day with your child. It could be having a moment together blowing bubbles or chasing the butterflies.
Find something that you love doing with the strengths you’ve got. This way you will have more success than failures.
Lean something new each month and make it work. It could be a new recipe or a new approach to managing children.
Make time to break away from the hustle and bustle of life and work and just have a quiet moment by yourself. Take a brisk walk or sit down quietly to have a nice cup of tea. Pamper yourself with a good manicure and pedicure.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Stunned by Grace by Max Lucado

I’ve never been surprised by God’s judgment but I am still stunned by his grace. God’s judgment had never been a problem for me. In fact, it always seemed right. Lightning bolts on Sodom? Fire on Gomorrah? Good job, God. Egyptians swallowed in the Red Sea? They had it coming. Forty years of wandering to loosen the stiff necks of the Israelites? Would have done it myself Ananias and Sapphira? You bet.

Discipline is easy for me to swallow. Logical to assimilate. Manageable and appropriate. But God’s grace? Anything but Examples How much time do you have?

David the psalmist becomes David the voyeur, but by God’s grace becomes David the psalmist again.
Peter denied Christ before he preached Christ.
Zacchaeus, the crook. The cleanest part of his life was the money he’d laundered. But Jesus still had the time for him.
The thief on the cross; hell-bent and hung out to die one minute, heaven bound and smiling the next.
Story after story, prayer after prayer. Surprise after surprise.
Seems that God is looking more for ways to get us home than for ways to keep us out. I challenge you to find one soul who come to God seeking grace and did not find it. Search the pages. Read the stories. Envision the encounters. Find one person who came seeking a second chance and left with a stern lecture. I dare you. Search.
You won’t find it.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Funny People

Italian conservative leader Silvio Berlusconi shoots his mouth too fast after telling a young female student that she should marry a millionaire to solve her financial woes.
“The best thing is for you to find a millionaire” the self-made tycoon cum politician told the 24 years old student after she asked for his advice.
“With that smile of yours, you could even get away with it” he added.
There were accusations that he was disrespectful towards woman and young people who cannot find a job. He later dismissed it as a joke. Reported by AP

Reuters news on a young man who watched his dreams of his proposal to his sweetheart
Literally vanish into thin air.
The 28 years old man from east London hid a USD 12,000.00 (SGD 16,500.00) engagement ring inside a helium balloon- she would pop the balloon as he popped out the question. But soon as he left the shop, a gust of wind pulled the balloon from his hand and he watched the ring sail away. He told the Sun newspaper that he could not believe it.
Who is the fortunate person who will pick up the inflated helium balloon and never will this person dream that the inflated balloon contain an expensive ring. I wonder whether there will be a continuation of this balloon that sailed away.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Love your enemy

Who are my enemies?
People who are different from yourself? Enemies are beings that are a little too difficult to understand and they go around making their ugly presence felt by either talking aloud to intentionally putting someone down or cutting people into midget sizes. Enemies are people who go around being unkind and to the point of being cruel. They are the oppressor, the wicked and the vicious uses harmful means to get what they want and elbow everyone down up the ladder. In the corporate working world, those are the ones who get to the top and manipulate others to stay at the top but deep down they are the lonely soul.

In the course of my work I had met some of the worst very unpleasant creatures but one consolation I have always been positive about the world is beautiful and there are many nice people around, thanks to those ugly people around that makes comparison so easy between the good and the bad.
I always think that God uses difficult people to bring about a life lesson and experiences to change us into a beautiful person inside and then outside. It is really very scaring to befriend a person who is so “very nice” in the upfront but behind others back speak ill of others. The tongue is like a forest fires, it burn the whole forest by lashing out unkind words, gossip, malicious lies to harm the whole group and bring about division among good friends. Such personality is best to leave them alone and keep a distance from them or flee away from them. They are destroyers, robbers of good feelings and jealously is their name. Sometimes, you wonder whether you should give them the benefit of doubt to believe them once.
I always make it a point to be with the cheerful personality, their cheerfulness brings about sunshine and blue sea, to be with them bring laughter, smiles on your face.
To be the backlash that speak nothing good about others, sometime I wish that I am deaf and hard of hearing. To hear the bad stuff and nothing good left a sour taste in my mouth. In reality the backlash are the most inferior people or people who suffered with superiority complex, they could not love others and therefore these are the people who cannot love themselves. In order to love others, we have to love ourselves.

Of recent I realized that I am in the company of such personalities, I chose to stay away and draw an invisible line to separate between works and personal, this is to steer away from unnecessary human related problems. Life is full of problems and it is through these struggles with others that you begin to know and understand yourself. I am a better person now having struggled with difficult people most of the times; yet enable me to be a better person. This is all possible by what I believed; God uses difficult people and circumstances to mould me to a better person. Without these difficulties, I will not let off my bad habits and shortcomings. The misunderstandings with friends and colleagues make me think and learn to put myself in other’s shoes. My life’s journey have been enriched by my enemies and thanks to them, today I am a changed person.

Yesterday 27 March, my enemy remarked some words that triggered my adrenalin glands off. I got so mad and angry that I felt like going over to her workstation and gave her a tight slap on her face for the many months of bottle-up frustrations (witnessing her shouting at others, putting others down and acting as if she was the boss of the company) The pent-up feelings has been there all the while and this time it just bowled over. In my mind I thought ugly thoughts of her, she is the pain in the neck. I reminded myself the whole day that I will zip my mouth and not talk with her, not a single word from now on.
This incident makes me think that I can lost control of my bad temper if I am not careful and need to exercise self-control over such situation.
Then when I think of what Jesus teaches, to love your enemy as myself, I told myself to forgive others for the wrong that they have done and also for the wrongs that I have done to others. It evens up. Nobody’s perfect.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Troubled Kids

Kids and adolescents aged 19 years are seeking help at the Mental Health. There has been a very active awareness of mental illnesses and greater outreach program on the media.
Due to this awareness, many parents are coming forward to seek help early.
The cases involves children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (AD –HD), learning disorder or emotional disorders such as excessive worry, fear and sadness.
Of past when one mentioned about seeking psychiatry, the general thing will be that this person has blown his mind away. Now such stigma has diminished, as more and more parents are willing to seek help. In the past, people thought it was a bad reflection of their parenting skills if they needed to bring in their child for help. But now if you do not bring your child for help it is seen as bad parenting.

The alarming problem is many children are stressed up and there is a lack of parent and child interaction. The long hours at school and work meant that family members hardly spend time together. During interaction the parent will usually asked about school work and the scoring marks, hardly about the well being of the child. The child equates their self-worth with how far they had met their parent’s expectations. Another distraction is the internet which is vying for the child’s attention. It is hard for parents to get the child to bed early as their kids stay online. If parents did not impart necessary life’s skills, their child may not be able to handle crisis when this happen. The children of today do not have opportunities to experience major life events or adversity; they may not be able to cope with stress. It is a good sign that more are seeking help rather than letting the kids suffer in silence.

With the society obsession with perfections seem to have churned out a generation of youngsters who base their self-worth too much on whether they are able to attain straight As. Students are so apprehensive of their “failures” that they broke down before they seen their result slips. Student life is running a marathon.
I hope that the Government will be building more educational institute and not Mental Health Institutions.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Gang that suck blood

A gang that allegedly “sucked” blood from poor people they held hostage.
Five people were arrested in connection with a racket which blood was extracted from the captives and sold to various hospitals. The victims had been in captivity for two and a half years. The police acted on tip-off from resident raided a house in Gorakhpur, a town near Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh state. Police rescued seventeen people from a small house in the remote area. The victims were by then reduced to skeleton and some were so weak that they could not stand. Apparently the gang leader and three others managed to escape. The five people arrested had experience working as lab technicians at various hospitals. Daily the hired pathologist would arrive and collect blood. Police recovered two units of blood and large quantities of blood bags from the house.

Even though India economy is booming by an average of about 8.5 percent per year over the past five years. But more than 300 million of its nearly 1.1 billion people still live on less than US$1 (S$1.40) a day. The same reason with China, the rich is getting richer and the poor getting poorer or there is no other word to describe. Many poor people become victims of illegal scam. They are lured to town by promising them jobs and they were persuaded to undergo blood tests. Then it paid them 1,500 rupees (S$51.00) a month for giving blood on a frequent basis. The victims soon became too weak to challenge their captors. The blood was sold to the various hospitals for between 800 rupees and 4,000 rupees a unit depending on the rarity of the blood group.
Besides the blood donor racket, the organ theft gang, what will be next for the oppressed?

Lifestyles Ideas Management - illegal prostitution

Lifestyles Ideas Management – Illegal prostitution

If you come to Singapore and mentioned the word “Geylang” it is known as the red light district but nowadays it goes beyond “Geylang” to other districts as well.
There are many illegal sex workers coming here in Singapore. Some 5,400 foreign prostitutes were nabbed, a 25 percent increase over the number in 2006. Most of these women from China, Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam are on social passes.

Traditionally these red light districts are normally on the even numbered lorongs (lanes) between 16 and 24. Of recent there is a new group arising from between lorong 42 and 44, the Vietnamese are plying their trade in pairs. Most of them in their 20s.
They came with the same stories, most of them come from Ho Chi Minh City, this is their first visit to Singapore, and their friends took them to the pubs to work.
Tran is 21, petite and has long straight hair (most Vietnamese keep straight hair and men likes it this way). She was a hairdresser and could not earn enough to support her parents and sister. She stays in Geylang lodging house with three other girls who do their rounds.
Their social pass normally allow stay for two weeks, in a month they can earn as much as SGD 1,000.00. Many have to leave before their social pass expires, usually making a trip to next border, Johor Baru and then return for extended stay.
Unlike licensed one, the illegal prostitutes do not go for mandatory health checks. Out of 60 free health checks, five had sexually transmitted infections. Whenever you broach the subject of sexually transmitted infections, it turns them off as they are not willing to face up to it for fear that they might not have the resources to deal with it.
Prostitution is an old trade way back from the past since Bible times and it show to prove one thing man will never learn to be contented with one partner. The way to living life is not to take short-cuts like earning a living by quick cash, how long these ladies will last by five years most of them will be down with bout of diseases. Life will then be very harsh for them and it is difficult to find someone who can accept their past life. Sometimes I wonder whether is money the answer to every life’s problems.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Sex Diseases

At least one in four American teenagers has sexually transmitted diseases (STD) according to the recent study of its kind. The ‘One in four’ new has moved expert to seriously high-light the need to give sexually active youngster the better information on how to protect themselves. But I think that there is no such thing as safe sex , the serious thing for the educators or policy makers to do is to clean up the media (T.V. and movies, magazines) not to glamorize “sleeping around” as something “cool” or it is a natural instinct. Young girls with STDs risk cervical cancer at later stage in life. Pregnancies and infertility is not an issue for young girls, as most of them at this age do not think that far off, this issue of unwanted pregnancies is a growing social problem.
The virus that caused “cervical cancer” human papilloma virus (HPV) is most commonly sexually transmitted infection among teenage girls.
The survey results showed that at least three million teenage girls across US are infected.

What about Singapore?
The number of teens and adolescents with sexually transmitted infections (STIs) has tripled in the last five years. Singapore youngsters have a more liberal attitude towards pre-martial sex. The pressure among teens and adolescents is you need to be loved by the opposite sex and have sex with someone. This kind of pleasure is what they would called it part and parcel of growing up and it must be a great boast to their self-esteem.
Cool stuff? It is just the opposite of being cool, plain stupidity and poor self-esteem. A poor self-esteem person needs to go around and find someone to love with a price tag. This is self-affliction not love.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Hear only the good stuff

Much of what we have learned in Christianity is not incorrect, but it is incomplete. For instance: To say “we are saved from hell” is not incorrect but it is incomplete. What is being left out is the glory of God. Without it, we many think it is “all about us.”

To declare, “God loves you and wants to bless you” is not incorrect but it is incomplete. God loves us and wants to bless us so that we might radiate his goodness and glorify him.

To affirm that “God is faithful” is not incorrect but it is incomplete. We may assume that God is faithful to us and not necessary to himself.

Filtering life through a “Me-o-logy lens can, over time be detrimental to your faith. It may leave you depressed and disillusion (“God, do you really love me?”), or bitter and angry (“God, why do you let that happen to me?”) Many Christians today are joyless, powerless and grump simply because they are still focusing on themselves and are walking away from hell rather than walking toward heaven having fallen in love with God. Joyless, powerless, grumpy – that is what an incomplete gospel can do to you.

Why did God choose to love and bless us? So that we could sit back in our comfortable chair in our comfortable home and say, “Praise the Lord! We have been blessed!” That’s only half of it. The other half is so that we could turn around and be a blessing to others; so that we could make known God’s glory among all peoples.

“May God be gracious to us and make his face shine upon us, that your ways may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations.” (Psalm 67: 1-2)

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Slimmer, Younger and Fair-skinned

Aesthetic medicine that aims to help people fix their flaws or discontented with your looks or imaginative flaws – sagging skin, wrinkles and many more that ladies could think of. I heard about a young girl no more than twenty years of age, she started with aesthetic medicine on looking more youthful. I believe it is more of a psychological problem of poor self-esteem and inferiority complex. Her mum makes it worse by encouraging her for such treatment. These people are forking many hundreds of dollars just to make them look beautiful, if being beautiful is all that is to life, it is a sad thing.

The authorities have identified several treatments patients are to be careful about. Patients must seek doctor for evidence on treatments work and check if there are side effects if any. There are hosts of unproven beauty treatments offered by doctors from drug cocktails to dissolve fats to anti-ageing hormone injections. Doctors who sell snake oil pose a greater danger than a lay person who sell snake oil, people trust doctors more.
Some of these treatments are not supported by medical evidence and this warning is necessary as more local doctors are into lucrative beauty treatments. Six out of 10 doctors are now in aesthetic procedures, though these doctors are general practitioners. Specialists in fields such as anesthesia, gynecology and even renal medicine are grabbing a share of the multimillion dollar market. Some doctors are making over million dollars a year from these procedures.

Dubious remedies
Fat reduction
Mesotherapy
A drug cocktail is injected into the skin and claim that it dissolved fat.
Carboxytherapy
A non-surgical procedure similar to mesotherapy. Carbon dioxide is shot through a tiny needle to “kill” fat cells and stimulate blood flow.

Skin treatments
Micro needling derma roller
This device uses a series of pins on a hand-held roller to make microscopic punctures in the skin which supposedly encourage new collagen to form and reduce scars and wrinkles.
Skin whitening injections
These jabs are aimed at reducing blemishes such as acne, scars, wrinkles and chicken pox marks.
Growth hormone treatments
Treatment replace testosterone via injections or creams applied to the skin. Human growth hormones are then delivered through micro-injections.

Miscellaneous
Vacustyler
A patient’s lower body is place in a chamber. A machine then stimulates the lymphatic system. Advocates claim that it improves circulation in the lower body.
Colonic cleansing for “detoxification”
Treatment involves flushing the colon by shooting water through the rectum. Advocates claim it reduces food intolerance, improves the skin, zaps cellulite, raises energy levels, helps people to lose weight and boosts the immune system.

Some of the procedures used here are banned in other countries, Britain, Canada and Brazil has also banned drugs purporting to dissolve fat. United States Food and Drug Administration does not approve the use of any mesotherapy drugs.
Majority of the doctors here supports evidence based medicine and looks forward to working with the authorities on the practice of aesthetic medicine.

People who strive to be beautiful, perfect in details on the face are normally with poor self esteem or they think that the world emphasize importance on being beautiful on the face. With beautiful face the world is your fortune, not anymore you can be beautiful on the outside (almost perfect with some parts under the knife) but yet the inside is suffering from depression, loneliness and insecurity and discontentment. Beauty is not everything in life, life encompass much more than looking beautiful but staying beautiful in the inside that reflect on the surface.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Scalp Problems

It is commonly thought that hair problem affect only men and older people. Bu the truth is that hair problem may affect anyone and at all stages of life. Take for example; I have combination of oily hair on the scalp and dry hair at the edges. I remember when I started working adult life; I was always taking extra care of my hair. During weekends you will always find me experiencing all kind of stuff over my hair. Whenever I read a magazine about a certain concoction, I will try it the next week end. I tried washing with beer, eggs, honey, milk, hair mask from the salon, oily scalp solution etc. All these stuffs worked wonderful except the oily scalp problem will not go away. My scalp can get oily the very next afternoon. It is a bad problem and if it gets too oily the scalp will itches badly. I tried every possible shampoo in the shops, from body shops to salon distributed brands like Paul Mitchell, Red ken and Wella. All these worked awhile and later on it is back to the same root problem. At one time it was so bad until I decided to stick to mild shampoo like Johnson baby shampoo but after awhile I realized that my hair get a little dry at the ends. This happened because I used it daily. Even now, I wash my hair every day and it becomes a habit. So much so that I washed my hair during the cold season in China, my hosts cannot understand the logical behind the hygiene. It feels very uncomfortable if I do not get to wash my hair in the morning, it becomes a routine like brushing teeth in the morning. I envied my sister, she have so much hairs that she do not have to worry getting bald. But there is one consolation for me, my mum is eighty years and she still has a full head of hairs though it is evenly white. They said “like mother like daughter, so hope I will still retain my crown of glories by sixty. Why sixties and not eighties, I wish to quick get to Heaven by the age of sixty. Eighty to me is too old and I may have to be looked after by someone and live in the old aged home. And by the way, who is looking after a single old woman. Just imagine, you used to be so independent and then by eighty you have to depend on others to look after you. The dependence is too torturing for me, I wish that God have mercy on me and lead me home to life everlasting. Another one wish from God is when Mr. Death comes knocking at my door, it will be a quiet, quick and instant exit not a tragic where one part of the body is missing. It will be an hour of knowing that death is near and still caring for someone. It will also be an hour when I have already washed my hair, scrub and mask my face. My last meal will be my favorite Lays potatoes chips, eggs & ham sandwiches and a good cup of home brew coffee. Do you like to know what I use to moisturise my hair, the sap from the Aloe Vera, the oily scalp is a little better and the hair is soft and shiny.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - 5.9 Billion Yen

5.9 billion yen in 10,000 yen bills, if stacked one on top of another would reach a height of 59m or about that of a 16 storey building.
Two sisters stashed away 5.9 billion yen in the house just to evade paying tax on their inheritance. Their father died and left behind nearly 8 billion yen when he died, he was a real estate businessman. This inheritance was supposed to be shared among eight siblings. His other children were unaware of this inheritance as it was hidden away by the two sisters. Sometime before their father’s death, the two sisters has been withdrawing money from their father’s account. The local tax authority became suspicious when the two sisters declared an inheritance of 1.6 billion yen after their father died and they ordered an investigation. The declared amount apparently does not square with the size of their father’s known assets. If the two sisters declared the additional inheritance of 5.9 billion to the tax man, they would have to pay 2.8 billion yen in inheritance alone.

Both sisters were arrested on tax evasion charges. Investigators need a few days to count some 5.9 billion stashed away, there were 50 cupboard boxes filled with 10,000 yen bills in an unused garage. Paper bags were also found stashed away in the cupboard. Neighbors said they suspected that the two sisters were well-off as they were often seen wearing very expensive kimonos and were surprised that they stashed so much money at home. The investigators counted up to one billion yen and after which they gave up counting.

Now, they have to fork out 4 billion yen in inheritance and taxes.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Melted Plastic in Hot Oil

In Johor Baru, some hawkers are literally cooking popular snacks like goreng pisang (banana fritters) and keledek (Tapioca fritters) with melted plastic in hot oil. It was circulated in the emails reporting hawkers (street vendors) adding plastic drinking straws or melted five liter empty cooking coil bottle in boiling hot oil by stirring it in. This will improve the crispiness of the snacks for several hours. The customers will get to enjoyed extra crispy banana fritters, extra crispy keledek, and extra crispy chicken. We love our extra crispy snacks, the type that can hear the crunch when you bite into it.
This adding plastic into hot oil has been allegedly started in Thailand for frying ikan bilis (anchovies) and onions. The extra crispy method spread to Kedah and Perlis, then the rest of the country until Johor Baru, which is the border town next to Singapore.
I wondered whether our food seller in those eating places will also do the same, I have yet to go around and spot one out. It will be hot news creating a scare; at least it is better than the recent scare of escaped Selamat which have been always on our mind.

I believe that plastic can be melted at very hot temperature and chemical release into the oil which may cause cancer and birth deformities if ingested. To improve crispiness of the snack will have to do with the batter, adding vinegar when deep frying can improve crispiness. Our food seller has to undergo one day course on food preparation and handling besides hygiene before a license can be issued. So I think the plastic drinking straw and five liter empty cooking oil bottle will not happen here. Our snacks sold here is already extremely crispy without a need to throw in the plastic item.

That reminded me of quite many years ago, one of our colleague was out-stationed in Thailand for one week project assignment. She came into the office with a big plastic bag of fried yam fritters. The yam was crispy but there was a certain funny after taste. I took a few pieces and threw the whole bag away with the permission from others. The yam fritters was fried in palm oil plus (can you guess?) kerosene oil. Back then, the cooking oil was very expensive and it was later reported in the news that some illegal cottage industries were frying yam and all kind of snacks with cooking oil mixed with kerosene.

That reminded me during my five days free and easy tour to Hong Kong about ten years ago. Someone told me that you must taste the fried goose at Shatin as it was crispy and the taste was nice with cinnamon. I love the smell of cinnamon on anything especially breads. So off we went by MTR (subway) to Shatin and into a certain restaurant. It was so crowded with lunch time hungry workers, so we packed one big goose in a take away bag. Once back in the hotel room we were tucking in the juicy meat of the goose. The next second, third and fourth day it was goose meat every lunch or dinner. Until one day we decided to eat at the restaurant since it was our last dinner. We went there early before dinner time; the door of the restaurant was closed. SO we walked to the back door hoping to catch a glimpse of one of the serving crew. We saw the most horrible sight!
The big cooking pot of hot oil that was used to fry the whole goose was black as soot, and we saw some of the fried meat floating up the black oil. This is the poisonous oil that fried the few goose meat we ate during the last few days. We quickly make our way out to the front and took the MTR (subway) back to the hotel. All of us felt so terrible wished that we have bulimia for the last few days. We skipped dinner for the whole night and go for fruits and milk hoping to cleanse our digestive system. We left Hong Kong and did not mention about the delicious goose meat to anyone back home.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Big Bouncy Red Ball

I had two dreams of the same kind.
I cannot recall the dates anymore as I did not write it in my journal.
It was a good night sleep but half way down the sleeping pattern, I dreamt of something funny that happened to me. I was pregnant and I was still single, my stomach was big and my mum was not at all angry with me for getting into a pre-martial sex. That was also in the dream. Then one morning, painless and yet I told mum that I was ready to gave birth.
She told me that we could do it at home in the toilet next to the kitchen. Then I was wheeled on the caster wheels arm rest chair to the toilet. Strangely, my brother and sister were all very young girls and boys, excited about my pregnancy. The time difference was something which I could not understand at all. My mother looked very old and I was probably about twenty years old. It was as if going into time tunnel, the clock wind back to twenty year back then. Mother encouraged me to push as hard as possible, there were some splashes of blood and then out came the big red ball instead of a blood-stain foetus.
My mother grabbed hold of the ball but it slipped out of her hand and bounce out of the toilet into the living room. My kid brothers and sisters was giving it a chase. Then

Then months later the same dreams appeared for the second time.
The third dream was related by my brother while visiting us in the afternoon.
Eng Choon told me not to get angry as he was about to relate something concerning me. It was a dream that he had. I was pregnant and gave birth to a red bouncy ball and he bounce it in the living room. I was very surprised that it was the same dream that I had.

The next year around September 2005, I switched my job to another multi-nationals corporation and there was a need for pre-employment medical checkup. During the body check, doctor found that there was a oversize growth around my womb. I went to the hospital for a second opinion and true enough the doctor suggested to do a surgery.
The growth was too big for a three hole surgery and a slit surgery must be done without further hesitation. The appointment for surgery was confirmed on the following week.
The surgery was smooth and I recuperated very fast within five days I went home.
The second day after the surgery, the doctor showed me a photograph of a big red ball and he told me that there goes the mango.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Fish

Many of us know that fish is nutritious. In fact, the American Heart Association recommends eating two to three servings of fish each week. But how much do we really know about fish and its benefits?

Benefits of eating fish
Fish offers quality protein with fewer calories than a similar-sized portion of meat.
Fish is a good source of potassium, vitamins and other minerals, low in sodium.
Fish is low in cholesterol and saturated fats which have been associated with high blood pressure and heart disease.
Fish contains omega 3 fatty acids, which have favorable effects such as reducing the hardening of the arteries as well as lowering cholesterol and blood pressure.
Fish contain eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) two long chain omega 3 fatty acids. These omega 3 are known to have many health benefits. DHA may also have played a crucial role in the early brain and eye development of young infants. The recommended daily intake of omega 3 fatty acids from fish is 200 to 600 mg. Fish high in omega 3 fatty acids include salmon, sardines, trout and tuna.

A word of caution
Eating fish is god for health. We need to be aware of the possible contaminants found in fish, especially mercury. Mercury is naturally found in air, water and food. Fishes absorb mercury from the streams and oceans where they feed. Deep sea fishes and large fishes such as shark, swordfish, marlin, ray, and gem fish could contain high amounts of mercury. Excessive intake of mercury appears to affect the nervous system and is extremely detrimental to foetal development. Try to avoid deep sea and large fishes.

Healthy ways to cook fish
When buying fish, look for bright eyes and firm flesh which indicates freshness.
Baking
Put fish into a greased dish and cover with foil
Add flavor with herbs, lemon juice and olive oil
Bake fish at around 180 degrees and baste frequently.

Shallow Frying
Dry and coat fish with cornstarch or flour
Place a small amount of oil in the pan
Fry the fish at medium heat

Grilling
Cut slashes into whole fish to help the heat penetrate the flesh
Place fish on a preheated grill
Baste it frequently

Poaching
Place fish in gently simmering stock
Whole fish should be placed in a pan of cold stock which is then slowly heated to a gentle simmer. Not suitable for flaky varieties of fish

Steaming
Put fish in a steamer or on a plate over a saucepan containing gently boiling water
Use natural seasonings such as ginger, spring onion, tomato, etc… to jazz up the flavor.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Time to start saving

The Bible teaches us tat God is at work 24/7 filling his followers with grace, mercy and power to reclaim, redeem and fix this broken planet.
And he is looking for anyone who is willing to take him at his word, that losing, not gaining, is the way to life and fulfillment.

God’s intention is never for any of his followers to be a spectator. He wants all of us to be participants, playing out hearts out. He calls us to roll up our sleeves and join him in his mission with out talents, money, time and passion. “if you are into chasing the wind.” God tells us, “you can keep right on doing that. Or you can hook with me and together we’ll do something that counts for eternity.”

What would it fell like to lay your head on your pillow at night and say “you know what I did today? I teamed up with God to change eternity.”?

Many people I know love their jobs. They feel stimulated and energized by their work. Some of them even leave their workplace each day knowing that they have honoured God by their work. But few of them would say: This is what is life is all about.

Most of what we do in life doesn’t really matter, not next week, not next year or next decade. But anytime you are serving in Jesus’ name – each time you offer yourself in faithful service to God and humble service to one another – no matter how small, it matters. Whether you taught a child how to pray, guided someone toward faith, helped a husband and wife reconcile, served a meal to a needy person, or produced an audio CD that puts the Christian message in someone’s hand, it matters.

Jesus said this in Mark 8:34- 35
“If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it.” Sermon by Pastor Richard Lim, Bethany Evangelical Free Church.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Serving God: The Provider

3 February sermon on the pulpit: The Great Exchange
A small boy had been consistently late for dinner.
One particular day his parents had warned him to be on time, but he arrived later than ever. He found his parents already seated at the table, about to start eating. Quickly he sat at his place, and then noticed what was set before him – a slice of bread and a glass of water. There was silence as he sat staring at his plate, crushed. Suddenly, he saw his father’s hand reach over, pick up his plate and set it before himself. Then his dad put his own full plate in front of his son, smiling warmly as he made the exchange.
When the boy became a man, he said “All my life I’ve known what God was like by what my father did that night.” (Homemade, May 1989)

God had made Himself known to us especially in how He has always provided for us. Let us be faithful in our walk with God and in our service for Him even when it seems that there is nothing in it for us. Abraham discovered that principle in his journey to Mount Moriah, Abraham called God Yahweh Yireh, God the Provider.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Manage Menopause

Menopause is when a woman misses her periods for 12 consecutive months. It usually occurs naturally after the age of 50 when the ovaries stop producing hormones estrogen and progesterone. This mark the end of fertility, menopause is not a disease or disorder and most women do not need treatment. After menopause, women are more vulnerable to bone loss and heart disease. Therefore eating right and regular exercise can keep women healthy as they age. Menopausal symptoms include anxiety, overreacting to minor upsets, irritability, forgetfulness and mood swings, hot flashes, night sweats, insomnia and vaginal dryness and increased risk of urinary tract infections.
For mild symptoms of menopause, some herbs and minerals may provide some relief.

It really depend on your own body like my elder sister, her menopause period was something that is so natural that she did not know that her period was over and life is just as usual. When you are so busy and active in your lifestyles management, there is no time for you to brood over your menopause and fret over what will happen if your menopause is coming. Get active when you hit 50 and it is mind over body.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Life and Limbs

There is a one kilometers stretch of sea separating Singapore from Malaysia’s Johor Baru, it present a challenging opportunities. The illegal hailed Singapore as a land of abundant opportunities and equal rights and all want to go to Singapore. If they could they will take the whole villager there.

The dangers lurks those who take this risk, there are fast moving currents and deep water along the path. The open-water swim set out in the deep of the night, with body strip down to under wears. They tied their clothes in the plastic bags and used as floats.
Some slipped into a rubber ring floats and paddle across the water and when spotted, they submerged into the water and breathe through a tube. Others take an even more dangerous way by taping the rubber tube to their mouth and submerged in the water to escape detection. Some so desperate that they take the risky boat trip.
These are the various ways to get into Singapore illegally. Only the strong swimmers and fishermen will swim across. But the price to pay for entering the land of abundant opportunities and equal rights is heavy, six months in jail and a fine up to SGD 6,000.00 or at least six strokes of the cane. The jail term would seem light but not for the six strokes of cane. Later, they will be deported back to Myanmar. To these illegal, the worst punishment is to be send back home where they will have to clear the mountain of debts chalked up for failed escape. Yet they still come with the hope of starting life afresh.

The tour package is not free and easy; they pay a high booking fee for a six days bus journey ended at the Myanmar –Thailand border. They alighted in and trekked for an hour to across Myanmar into Thailand and a few days later from Thailand into Malaysia. If they can find work in Malaysia they will keep in touch with their families back home and send money home. But if they cannot find work in Malaysia, they will take their chance to Singapore. Mechanic Mr. Mg has a friend who is supposed to have made the crossing last month and was expected to call on arrival. Mr. Mg had no news.
He told me “I am a good swimmer” That as the last I heard of him.

Adapted from The Sunday TImes dated 9 March 2008
From the evening news when it was announced that the police caught a few illegal near the waters between Singapore and Malaysia, Johor Bare, we knew that these are the courageous people who are taking their chance entering the land of abundant opportunities and equal rights. We wish sometimes they can enter this land legally rather than risking their lives and leaving behind their families. They will see their families again or being deported back into Myanmar to face the worst suffering? What a pity and sad to be so desperate to find work for just a simple living. This is something I could and never will understand the plight of find abundant opportunities and equal rights.
Adapted from The Sunday Times dated 9 March 2008

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Power 1 Walnut

Power 1 Walnut is said to be the sexual enhancement drug believed to have been made in China. Controlled item under the Poison Act is glibenclamide found in Power 1 Walnut is five times higher. Besides Power 1 Walnut contains another prescription drug for impotence sildenafil which is sold as Viagra but a very low level.

The number of men suffering serious reactions to this illegal sex drug Power 1 Walnut her continues to rise. Confirmed cases now is total 16; 40 suspected victims include 11 more believed to have taken pill. In the past two weeks, six more men have developed dangerously low blood sugar levels after taking the sexual enhancement drug Power 1 walnut. Eleven other include one who is in coma. But the men refused to admit taking the drug which was touted to be able to enhance sexual function. These patients are men between the ages from 20 years and 90 years, some are foreign workers. The man in coma is the second person, another suffered a stroke three week ago and still in the hospital. The HSA, national drug watchdog has not been able to confirm the suspected cases, but all these patients have the same symptoms of low blood sugar level, tremor, dizziness, drowsiness, weakness and confusion. The low blood sugar if left untreated can lead to death. The HSA has warned the public to stop buying health products from dubious sources such as street peddlers, makeshift stalls and off the internet. Last month during the three raids, HSA has seized more then 75,000 illegal sex drugs including 2,000 Power 1 Walnut pills. The penalty for anyone who imports, sells or possesses for sale drugs controlled under the Poisons Act can be given a jail term up to 2 years and a fine of SGD 10,000.00 or both. Those men refused to admit taking the Power 1 Walnut feared “losing their face in the public” and by admitting taking will lead to police investigations and fear of unnecessary troubles which their families may came to know about it. What if my neighbors came to know that I took Power 1 Walnut and visit the brothel, how am I going to face my neighbors and friends in the market place. They rather suffered in silence and blamed themselves for being foolish. Power 1 Walnut is probably a package deal when one visited the brothel “two in one fun package.” This news of adverse reaction to illegal sex drug has been circulating within the last three weeks and still no one came up clean to admit taking this pill. This show to prove one thing “ Dare to do but dare not admit.”

Undergoing MyBlogLog Verification

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Solid Gold Loo

Hong Kong’s solid gold loo is part of the travel itinerary if you ever visit this country. The Hang Fung Jewelers famed solid gold toilet draws many Chinese tourists by the busload to its unique Hall of Gold. The toilet is part of an extravagant display which includes a golden palace originally created to attract people to the shop. The shop owner has been using this solid gold loo as a marketing tool for quite a while since few years ago. The owner intends to smelt one tonne of gold in its 24 carat lavatory if the price of gold hits USD 1,000.00 (SGD 1,400.00) an ounce.
Hang Fung Jewelers promised that the toilet will stay except the ornaments around it will come to an end. In January, this year Hang Fung Jewelers smelted one tonne of gold from its display and gold it for about US$855.00 an ounce, nearly double the price it originally paid.

The mainland Chinese loves gold as it is a symbolic of wealth, jewellery sales rose 40 percent in China last year. It is a sign of China’s booming economy and its thirst for all things gold. The Hang Fung Jewelers Group intends to increase their 160 outlets to 1,000 outlets. Even when gold prices keep rising, there is an almost unquenchable appetite for gold jewellery in China no matter what the cost is. Like all jewelers, they are keep their costs low by using less gold in their designs but still maintain the luxurious look.

If, I am saying if I am so rich I do not mind having faucet in gold as a long term investment if gold prices dips to orginal price during the 1998. gold loo is a bit too extragavant and showy. You can always smelt it if you need the hard cash, it beats inflation.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Young Days Part 3

After 4 months in the Nihongo environment, I began to get used to the sticky rice, the raw eggs that was stirred with the piping hot rice, and the fermented soy beans that has those sticky web sticking out when you dig in with the chopsticks. The wonderful katsudon (pork chops on rice with the beaten eggs) smell from afar. I loved the fresh air in the morning, the crisp sound of the leaves when the wind blew against it. The sound of the train that runs across the tracks located at the back of our dormitory. The majestic mountain that stood afar from the kitchen window, the scene was ever changing from season to season. The summer time was the best time during Sundays when we will ride our bicycle (loaned from our Japanese room mates) to the nearby waterfalls. The tall shades trees with branches covering and touching each other in the middle of the road. It was a nice cool ride and so few cars passed by, you can liberally walk in the middle of the road. We can occasionally get a few car owners honking at us. We bought along bag of apples for dipping in the cool water from the falls. It was a wonderful summer afternoon. Along the way, you can find goose berries and if the birds ate them we picked to eat as well. Most of the trees along the way, the trunk was white in color and it was good for making ornaments like Japanese dolls. What I loved is the changing season, my moods changed with the season. Summer time I felt so energetic and the weather was warm but not humid unlike back home. There was so much to explore in the nearest town, the railway station and the walk back to the dormitory. Though it was lonely walk but you can still hear the birds chirping away and the beautiful summer resort home of the rich. I loved to visit the vegetable shop; the proud owner will displayed their clean and sparkling vegetables in a neat slot. The cabbages were fresh and it goes so well with the instant ramen. It was nice of my manager to invite us out for ramen dinner with his friend. We each ate a bowl of ramen and the lady boss especially grilled two green chilies as a side dish with the ramen. We went for the ramen and back to the dormitory as the night was cold in autumn. One strange day after lunch, our chaperon, the Japanese man who is in charge of our stay spoken with me. This was one conversation which I will never forget in my life. He told me that someone like me and wishes to know me better. And it turned out to be my manager. At that time, my main concern was to enjoy my working life in this place and by next year I will be back home. Being young there was so life waiting for me back home. I wanted to be independent and striving out on my own path. Relationship was far from my mind and that was not in my agenda. So I rejected the relationship offer and he was disappointed in me. One afternoon my manager called me to join him in the cleaning room for some new assignment. And as we were working together he commented “Your heart is like a stone.” I do not know what to say but told him that I do not wished for him to be hurt emotionally. Looking back I should have explained to him on the basic of relationship which needs to be nurtured. Liking a person does not happen overnight. With the different culture background, it was difficult for me to fell for him. Not forgetting that my parents have gone through the Japanese Occupation period and they knew Japanese to be cruel and unkind. When I was young, my parents will always narrate those horrible stories of Japanese Occupation period.
Autumn, winter and spring passed on fast enough that I was heading back home after one year stay. The last day when I board the bus, he gave me a writing instrument for memorabilia through another person. Looking back, I owe him an apology. It has been so mnay years passed and I wondered how is he doing?

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Young Days Part 2

Before graduation, the school organized a film on “Japan, The Land of Cherry blossom” and immediately I felt in love with this country and told myself that I will one day visit this land. True enough, after graduation I went job hunting and submit my application for an overseas job in Japan. I was very disappointed after being rejected in the first interview but somehow they called me up for a second and third interview. It was about six months after the traveling procedures were completed; my mum brought me to a shop at the North Bridge Road to buy some warm clothes for the overseas trip. Somehow I was sad and yet happy to be able to fulfill my dream comes true. My mum was sad as she packed my luggage with all travel necessities. This was my first trip as a young girl to a foreign land and I was traveling alone except that I will be meeting some colleagues at the airport. I remembered putting on a purple pant suits with white lined collar and a pair of sneaker. I met some of the girls at the airport and we became friends on board the plane. It was a great new world and a new life exciting ahead of me! That day we landed at Tokyo International Airport it was a cold summer night. The rain was pouring as we landed by the Japan Airlines at about 10:00 pm. We cleared the customs briskly and were ushered in a tour bus. The night was dark and lit with neon lights; we’re so tired that we slept through the journey. I was slowly getting homesick as the true set in that I will be alone in this foreign land. I regretted my decision to leave home for an overseas job. Anyway I promised to write often and so do I for the first three months I wrote almost every night. Life was at the dormitory with three Japanese girls older than me and very beautiful smooth complexion. They woke up in the morning with a gentle “ohaiyo” and off they went together for our morning wash. Two of them will cook in the kitchen and another room mate will walk together with me to the cafeteria. There was always a choice of breakfast, traditional Japanese meal or breakfast of eggs, bread and Meiji milk. I always opt for bread and Meiji chocolate milk. The first three months was the most lonesome part of my stay. It was cultural shock as the customs and way of life is so different. There was so much adjustment besides work, lifestyles and social customs. Lunch and dinner was at the cafeteria and back to dormitory. Night after night of loneliness slipped in. My room mates were trying so hard to communicate with me and I was on a three months Japanese course, so there was not much vocabulary to start an interesting conversation. So I spent much time watching Japanese television, cannot understand the dialogue but by watching the action somehow it was quite interesting. But television viewing simply cannot take away the lonesome feelings. I began to understand loneliness; it was a heartache hurting every emotional part of me that one can only buried it to sleep. I slept with tears for three months. My Japanese working colleagues knew about it especially my manager. He took the time to bring me around during working hours when he has the time for me. I did not understand why he bothered to do this anyway I began to learn to adjust to the working environment. I lost weight so much that my pants was very loose and need alterations. To be continued..................

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Young Days Part 1

Back during my school days, mine was a girl’s school maybe I am destined to be a single woman. The all boy’s school was just opposite ours so the girls will always be hanging around the next door school looking out for their boyfriends. During recess time, the topics were always on the boy and so much giggles among my classmates. Most of them were from middle and rich class family. They came by school bus, cab or private motorcars. My going trip was by the public bus and the return trip was walking home which will take about 30 minutes or more. I do not like school at all, most of the time we are so preoccupied with so many assignment and projects. This was part of the curriculum of the school; homework was part of the scoring system. I always thought that education was part of growing up to a civilized person. But my mum will always nag that education was so important and a gateway to a better job and salary. I was very much of a dream and going to school was very stressful. The teachers of those days were very discouraging and calling names was part of the lesson. If you were caught dreaming in her lesson, she threw chalk and put you out of her class. Standing outside the class or standing on the chair was part of the corporate punishment. Our school was reputable to be top ten schools and as such teachers expected all students to be talented in their subjects. So a late development brain like me was somewhat out of place in this school. Our brainy students got into limelight each year with prize giving day and the principal will called them up the stage as role model.

Most of us grew up with very little self esteem as competitions between classes were really a discouragement. The comparison were so great that the teachers will pay more attention to the top three classes and the bottom three classes will always be grill with homework after homework. There was this subtly a caste system in school.
I was quiet lonesome in school as I was an introvert, among small circles of friends, I was an extrovert. I cannot remember having friends in school, most classmates were aloof personality. They keep to themselves and clichés with one another. Being an outsider it was difficult to penetrate into these clichés and found a sense of belonging. So I decided to be the solitude person in class. My term report written by class teacher will always be “A quiet and conscientious pupil”. In fact I was dying to express myself to the world. So I kept quiet for the whole day and would dream in class as I looked outside to the big green fields and the evergreen trees that stood tall and the branches bending down to say “hello” to the lonesome girl. Strangely in class, while the teacher was teaching at the same time I can still hear the birds chirping away on the branches. So when the examination was near, you can imagine me cramping all the notes into the small brain.
I was just an average student, not at all bright or talented; in fact I was a late bloomer brain. While my classmates were having their first love bites from their numerous boyfriends, I was still reading books in the library. One day I heard someone commented on me being a square and it took me quite awhile to know what was it like to be a square.
Anyway, square or round nobody can tell me how to run my life. I had decided to be myself. One day something good happened to me. It was after the sports day and I was walking home from school to home. After way down the walk, the rain was pouring and I was drenched all over. Someone called me from behind and asked me whether I would like to go to her house for a warm drink. She was from the same school. I was shivering all over and knocked my head indicating ”yes”. She shared a small umbrella with me, both of us were soaking wet. Once I stepped into her apartment, her elder sister told me to change my uniform into something dry. After that she offered me a warm drink and told to stay for dinner as well as they cooked more than enough. There were three of them, all sisters and both parents were working late. After dinner, I mumbled my thanks and make my way home. Such good Samaritan attitude changed my whole perspective of life. After this incident, I told myself that I will strive to be a kind, generous and helpful person. Until today I am kind, generous and helpful person.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Silent Thief of the Sight

While working, one of my colleagues exclaimed on the flashes of light that appeared in his vision. A few flashes on both eyes happened at the same time within minutes. Most of us encouraged him to quickly visit a GP the next day and ask for a referral letter for a comprehensive check up with the eye hospital. He did as we sighted that he may be suffering from Glaucoma at the early stage. On 6 March 2008 was Glaucoma day where the Alexandra Hospital is offering cheap rates for those above 55 years to have their vision tested for glaucoma. One of our colleagues makes an appointment for diagnosing glaucoma and brought back a brochure title” What is Glaucoma.” freely distributed by Singapore Eye Hospital.

Glaucoma is Singapore’s most common cause of permanent blindness. Many call it the “Silent Thief of the Sight” because it can steal your vision away without any warning and you will never know it – quietly, painlessly and irreversibly.

Glaucoma is a disease of the most important structure in you eye: the optic nerve – an “electrical cable” which transmits signals from the eyeball to the brain. This allows you to see. In glaucoma, the optic nerve is damaged from a numbers of causes.
Glaucoma is a lifelong disease. Once diagnosed, a patient requires strict follow up with his eye doctor for the rest of his life.

There are several types of glaucoma and each causes optic nerve damage in its own way. If you have been diagnosed with glaucoma, please ask the doctor which type you have.

Types of Glaucoma
Open Angle Glaucoma
The eyeball’s drainage system slowly becomes defective leading to extreme internal pressure. This is the most common from and it is painless.

Close Angle Glaucoma
The eyeball’s drainage system physically closes up (slowly or suddenly) leading to extreme internal pressure. This can be painful, especially the sudden, acute version.

Low Pressure Glaucoma
The optic nerve itself is so weak in these patients that it gets damaged with normal eyeball pressure and it is painless.

Other Types
High eyeball pressure can also be caused by other eye conditions like diabetes, cataracts inflammation and surgery. In rare case, infant may be born with defective drainage systems.

Glaucoma suspect
These patients have not been proven to have glaucoma. Some may have high pressure without any detectable nerve damage. Others have weak-looking optic nerves but no definite loss of function.

The signs and symptoms of Glaucoma
There are to broad classes of glaucoma
Chronic glaucoma causes very slow and painless reduction of vision
Acute glaucoma causes severe, sudden eye redness, pain and blurring vision

The most unfortunate are those patients unknowingly suffer from the chronic form and hence, without realizing that they have glaucoma until it is quite advanced.
By the time, glaucoma causes any visual problems; there is already severe damage to the optic nerve. Regular eye check-ups are so important for older people and those with family history of glaucoma.

The eye doctor who can tell you if you have glaucoma by doing the following ways:
Checking your eyeball pressure
By examining the appearance of your optic nerve
By using a computer to test you visual field
By using high resolution imaging of the optic nerve

By early detection you can prevent it from stealing your vision.
Your eye doctor will usually focus treatment on lowering your eyeball pressure by one or more of methods. The goal of treatment is to prevent further damage to the optic nerve and to preserve remaining vision.
Eye drops
Laser treatment
Surgery

I cannot imagine how to relive my life if one day I lose my sight at the age of fifty. The colored world becomes dark all at once, a sighted without sight, how pitiful!

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Free the Children

Satay Seller (satay = kebabs) Samion Noordin committed three sexual crimes against minors. Twice, he was let off, presumably for the lack of evidence. The third time, the 47 years of father of five was finally sentenced to 15 months jail and six strokes of cane.
He pleaded guilty to molesting a nine year old. In 2000, he was acquitted of charges repeatedly raping a teen who was related to him. Five years later, he was arrested on charges of molesting an eight year old girl. But the charge was dropped and he was let off with a stern warning. His case and many more sex fiends who are free just because their crimes cannot be proven.

The act of speaking out is gut-wrenching. Repeating their dramatic experiences to separate teams of professionals – the police, doctors, social workers and counselors- makes this kid relive the trauma over and over again.
If the case goes on trial, the cross-examiner’s standard is to attempt discredit their testimony is brutal. When it boils down to deciding whom to believe, the victim usually loses because he or she may be too traumatized to recount accurately the experiences in court. There are usually no witnesses so something is difficult to prove the accused guilty. Psychiatrists say some kids or teens who are sexually abused display inappropriate behavior. Relying on children to speak out will not do.
Studies in United States have shown that child sexual abuse typically occurs within an ongoing relationship between the offenders and victim, intensifies over time and lasts an average of four years. Children who are repeatedly abused by their fathers, stepfathers or other relatives for example, often also face hostile mums. There have even been cases of mothers ganging with the sex predator to hurt rather then to protect the child. One such case hit the headlines here last month. A 47 year old widow forced her 15 year old daughter into engaging in oral sex with her married lover.

Reporting of child abuse by professionals such as doctors, social workers, psychiatrists and teachers is compulsory in countries such as the US, Canada and Australia. More than 80 percent of doctors and lawyers here is in support of some form of mandatory reporting. Mandatory reporting after call can goes a long way in catching more sex criminals particularly repeated offenders. This in turn can free countless children who may be suffering in silence, trapped in their private little hells of perversity and pain.
Imagine at such a tender age , the children have to relearn lifestyles management of trusting and having faith in entrusting their lives in another adult, supposing their mums, fathers and other relatives.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Cosmetic Treatments

There are many ways to look beautiful in Singapore.
The aesthetic procedures such as:
Botox injections: Injected into the muscles around the eyes or mouth so wrinkles temporarily vanish.
Collagen/filler injections: Given to plump up the lips and sunken eyes.
Intense pulse light: Using different lightwave lengths to rejuvenate skin or remove hair
Thermage: Heat the collagen in the deeper layers of the skin to tighten loose skin.
Chemical peels: Use chemicals to remove the fine outer layers of the skin
Mesotherapy: Remove fat under the skin by dissolving it with a cocktail of drugs.

With a rise in numbers of people wanting cosmetic treatments, some GP have moved beyond their coughs, colds to performing cosmetic services.
One patient, a 28 year old woman who did not want to be named had gone to a GP for fuller lips. But she was injected with too much of the wrong type of lip filler and collagen and ended up looking like a “duck”.
Many years ago, there was a craze of tattoo eyebrow which was popular among young and older woman. Some eyebrow ended up right low and left higher not in alignment.
One woman patient ended up with right higher and left lower. Besides her treatment of double eyelids performed by an unqualified aesthetician, a swollen upper eyelid and tearing eyes. Apparently the aesthetician puncture her tear duct and she has to live with the teary eye condition. She was supposed to look more beautiful but ended up an ugly than before.

There was one young man of 29 years old born with a more than bigger size nose. He went to an unqualified plastic surgeon who did such a shoddy nose job. He has to live with a permanent damage nose that is constantly runny and painful most of the time.
The last he went to see a Government clinic to seek help to alleviate his pain and the doctor told him that he has to live with the idea of taking painkiller for life. His condition cannot be cured except by feeding on painkiller is the only choice.
He decided to end his life by dropping in the hardware store. He bought a electric screw gun with some stapler and killed himself in a small home run hotel.

For the sake of being beautiful, many sought after cosmetics and surgery and beauty will not last long, what is most beautiful is a kind heart and soul. An ordinary people can be beautiful inside and yet beautiful outside. Look beyond the face! Love yourself, be contented with your looks and most cosmetics can do great wonders to bring out the beauty in you.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - The battle of life

I have seen my own friend, Pauline battling with tumor in her brain. A beautiful lady, so full of life vigor and yet when she was diagnosed with tumor, her appearance changed from beauty to an old old bald face with traces of agony and pain all written over. She no longer looked at the mirror and I can't hardly recognised her. She passed away in December 2006, at age 56.

Many of my friends with cancer fighting a battle with drugs and radiation but none won the battle. They lived with pain, side effects and the last hour living with morphine and death came slowly. It is a very painful experience for the sufferer and the caregiver. I wonder why some people has to suffered in their last days while others just died a quick and instant, like sleeping in the bed with their last breath taken away.

This is about a 55 years old man called Nithiah Nadan who knew something was wrong when he could not shake off a fever and he was fast losing weight.
A medical test in 2005 showed he had cancer in the kidney; he started a last battle of his life.

July 2005
Renal cell carcinoma
Stage FourIncurable.

The doctor told him and his wife and daughter, broke down. They were inconsolable. The doctor told him that eight months to 12 months, could only prolong his life and maintain or improve his quality of life. The doctors put him on two drugs and he warned him of the severe side effects. The side effects were pimples all over his face, frequent vomiting, diarrhea and a constant sore throat. The response was initially but as the cancer progressed the treatment is of no help.

January 2006 Nithiah started on a different treatment.
Interferon and capecitabine, Interferon was given by injection three times a week and his daughters had to learn how to do it as they are to be his caregivers.
After each injection, he would shivered for more than an hour, had fever and vomited frequently.

March 2006
Doctor started him on sunitnibmalate, an oral based treatment to be taken daily.
It gave him non-stoppable hiccups and he could not talk and sleep. His taste buds became strange and did not eat much. He was admitted to the hospital. Nobody could do much about the hiccups. One day, a consultant came and gave him Detinox and the hiccups stopped. He continued with this medication, shivered and vomited and he felt that he would not get any better.
He wanted to see his daughter getting married and they arranged for the forms to be signed at the hospital bed. Then Nithiah went home on a trial drug.

The new trial drug had another set of side effects – fever, rashes, nausea and vomiting.
The drug burnt his tongue and lost his sense of taste. The drug did not worked for him.

Doctor asked him whether he like to have this tumor removed.
“Ok. Let’s go for surgery. I am already dying. Let me take the risk.”
On appointed day, the whole family was told that the operation could save his life and could also kill him. His wife and children were dumbfounded. After much tears, they finally told him “if you go through the operation and it is successful, we can see you for a few more years. If you don’t, we don’t know hoe long more we a see you alive, we will respect it.” The cancer forced his family to make the most difficult decision.

July 2006
The operation lasted 69 hours and he pulled through the operation.
Later his doctor told him that he had another tumor and was next to the stomach.

November 2006
He underwent surgery to remove and intrabdominal herniation of small intestine.

December 2006
Doctor discharged him back home in a wheelchair and at the wedding he was in a wheelchair. After the wedding, doctor advised him to take another drug for another type of cancer. He gave it a try.
After three months, his condition worsened and it was about a week from the end of the course of treatment on April 2007.
The last stage he was prescribed morphine to manage the pain, four, five times a day, 5ml each time in syrup form.

June 2007 he passed away and through an interview he had six week before he died at 57.
“I have a wonderful family. I am very, very fortunate God has given me a very good wife and very good children. They suffer with me at home. I would vomit and they will clean up. When I need to go to the toilet, they would hold me. You know I can’t walk and sit up on my own anymore. It is so important to have a good wife and good children. Money is not the important thing. I don’t regret the fight against cancer. I fought because I owe it to my wife and children.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - Just Checking In

A minister passing through his church in the middle of the day, decided to pause by the altar and see who had come to pray.

Just then the back door opened, a man came down the aisle.
The minister frowned as he saw the man hadn't shaved in a while.
His shirt was kind a shabby and his coat was worn and frayed, the man knelt, he bowed his head, Then rose and walked away.
In the days that followed, each noon time came this chap, each time he knelt just for a moment, A lunch pail in his lap.

Well, the minister's suspicions grew, with robbery a main fear.
He decided to stop the man and ask him, "What are you doing here?"
The old man said, he worked down the road. Lunch was half an hour.
Lunchtime was his prayer time, for finding strength and power.
"I stay only moments, see, because the factory is so far away;
As I kneel here talking to the Lord.

This is kind of what I say: "I JUST CAME AGAIN TO TELL YOU, LORD, HOW HAPPY I'VE BEEN, SINCE WE FOUND EACH OTHER'S FRIENDSHIP AND YOU TOOK AWAY MY SIN. DON'T KNOW MUCH OF HOW TO PRAY, BUT I THINK ABOUT YOU EVERYDAY.
SO, JESUS, THIS IS JIM CHECKING IN TODAY."

The minister feeling foolish, told Jim, that was fine.
He told the man he was welcome to come and pray just anytime.
Time to go, Jim smiled, said "Thanks." He hurried to the door.

The minister knelt at the altar, he'd never done it before. His cold heart melted, warmed with love, and met with Jesus there. As the tears flowed, in his heart, he repeated old Jim's prayer: "I JUST CAME AGAIN TO TELL YOU, LORD, HOW HAPPY I'VE BEEN, SINCE WE FOUND EACH OTHER'S FRIENDSHIP AND YOU TOOK AWAY MY SIN. I DON'T KNOW MUCH OF HOW TO PRAY, BUT I THINK ABOUT YOU EVERYDAY. SO, JESUS, THIS IS ME CHECKING IN TODAY"

Past noon one day, the minister noticed that old Jim hadn't come. As more days passed without Jim, he began to worry some. At the factory, he asked about him , learning he was ill. The hospital staff was worried, But he'd given them a thrill. The week that Jim was with them, brought changes in the ward. His smiles, a joy contagious. Changed people, were his reward. The head nurse couldn't understand why Jim was so glad, when no flowers, calls or cards came, Not a visitor he had. The minister stayed by his bed,

He voiced the nurse's concern: No friends came to show they cared. He had nowhere to turn. Looking surprised, old Jim spoke up and with a winsome smile; "the nurse is wrong, she couldn't know, that in here all the while everyday at noon He's here, a dear friend of mine, you see, He sits right down, takes my hand, leans over and says to me: "I JUST CAME AGAIN TO TELL YOU, JIM, HOW HAPPY I HAVE BEEN, SINCE WE FOUND THIS FRIENDSHIP, AND I TOOK AWAY YOUR SIN. ALWAYS LOVE TO HEAR YOU PRAY, I THINK ABOUT YOU EACH DAY, AND SO JIM, THIS IS JESUS CHECKING IN TODAY."

Many people will walk in and out of your life, but only true friends will leave footprints in your heart. May God hold you in the palm of His hand and Angels watch over you.
But for those of us who are already His, He not only holds us in the palm of His hand, but has engraved our names there, and we are continually in His sight (Isaiah 49:16)

Lifestyles Ideas Management - The face that launched 5.5 million MMS alerts

This is my personal thoughts as I read about Mas Selamat Kastari.

No one take notice on the Jeemah Islamiah terrorist Mas Selamat Kastari during his detention days in Singapore after the Indonesian authorities handed him over to Singapore in 2006. Back then, most of us knew that most JI terrorist were all under arrest deserved to be in detention as they were dangerous men. That all we knew and now that Mas Selamat Kastari appeared daily in the news media and newspaper, we knew more about him.

He was the former leader of Jemaah Isalamiah terror network and had plotted to hijack a plane and crash it into Changi International Airport.
He is in headlines all over Singapore and known as Singapore’s most notorious man on the run since his escape from the Whitley Road Detention Centre at 4:05pm last Wednesday, being detained since 2006 under the ISA (Internal Security Act).

Mas Selamat had an ordinary childhood growing up in Kaki Bukit and led a typical carefree kampong life, playing football and marbles and flying kites with his neighbors. He attended English language school and did not show interests in radical religious beliefs. He known to be calm and soft-spoken and his stubborn nature are such that he cannot accept other’s opinions.

He was born in Jan 23, 1961 in Kendal a province in Central Java, his family migrated to Singapore when he was a young boy. The youngest of the eight or nine siblings, a normal kid and he played a lot like any kids. He was not weird and he did not spout any nonsense.

Like any young man, he likes to have a family with wife and kids but the wrong step he took when he joined the JI in 1990. There in JI, perhaps I saying perhaps in this organization the leaders knew how to brain-wash their members in believing that they can be extra-ordinary human beings who can anything and importantly the leaders recognized their ability.

If one grows up in the family of eight or nine siblings, I am sure Mas Selamat must have been neglected by his parents and his picks up his character developments during his childhood plays in schools and neighbors. He is a nobody and when in JI organization, leader supposing can spot a nobody who wanted to be some body, why not make use of him to fulfill their organization mission and objectives. In the JI organization, he was recognized and well regarded, accepted and had the sense of belonging. He probably thought that this is place where he can be himself and free from the opinions of others.

He is the sort that cannot accept other’s opinions so his activities was probably not known by his in laws and in laws were upset with him for often being out of a job.
His wife and children often went hungry because there was no money for food as Mas Selamat was overseas. His in-laws would send food to their home, the children stopped attending school. Mas Selamat was firm with his family and his wife who wore a veil covering most of his face save for her eyes was not allowed to speak to friends or relatives. Just like Mas Selamat was being controlled by the JI organization, his wife was controlled by him. What I cannot understand was when he was caught by the Indonesian police; he smiled to the photographers rushing forward to snap his pictures. What was he thinking when he was caught? That his comrades will rescue him or that he is confident that he can outwit the Government by his prison escape attempts.

During this escape, doesn’t he care for his wife, five children, four boys and a girl aged seven to eighteen years? What will happen to his wife and the five children going through emotional thoughts on why his father is being man-hunted by the authorities?
Even he can escape this time, what will be the future for his wife and children?

He is too deeply involved with the mission and its objectives and the sort who cannot accept other’s opinions. He is already having “his two legs deep in the mire” that he cannot be reformed even during his two years of detention.

Sometimes even when this person knows that he is terribly wrong and what he did cannot be forgiven (in his own thinking) he will not turn back as he is already too much in this unworthy cause. Turning back as a reformed man will make him “lose face” in the face of his family, JI members and JI organization. His escape is the only last hope he has, I hope that he will come out in surrender and recognizing his own mistakes and clear his conscious of any guilt he may have.

Lifestyles Ideas Management - One day at a time

In my life, many people walk in and out of it.
I remembered the good, the ugly and the bad. Not bad as in character or ugly as in physical form, it is simply just means they are people who needs extra care and concern. Not the regular or standard expectation which one will expect from friends or colleagues. You got to extra careful and cautious when you interact or make a statement and you must expressed yourself so clearly that it is without prejudice. If it is so difficult to even be yourself then I rather disentangle with such personality.

Not that I am a perfect person in character, I too have my fair share of habits, likes and dislikes. I like to associate with people of my same mind for I believe sometimes; you do not need to say so much but the other party understood it well enough. I believe it all boiled down to life’s experiences of heartaches, crisis and unexpected circumstances. For instances, my father’s death ten years ago taught me to treasure those whom I love, to spend time with them and to do things for them so that it is never too late. I never really get along with my father that well, I always think that he was always living in a life of solitude. He hardly spoke and only when one bought home some unhealthy food which he loves, he will go bubbling the whole night. The last few moments which I spent with him during the dying days were the best times of our lives. We talked real matters because he knew that his time was up and he kept asking me what did the doctor says. Anyway without me saying that he has got very little time left, he knew it, too. From the dreams he described to me during his stay at the hospital about the old days and his disappointment in his sister (my aunt who passed away about five years back then). I know how it was to lose a loved one. Then sometimes about three years ago, my good friend’s mother passed away. She was heartbroken with the mother’s passing and the friendship that ended abruptly, life was too much to bear. I understand that feeling of loss and sadness as I went through it before.The first loss of a loved one was hardly to accept though I know that death will come one day. When Mr. Death come knocking, even how prepared I can be, it is hard to accept especially when death is sudden.

Sometimes when I think about my friends who are so dependent on their husband for very little details in their life, how are they going to cope when one spouse is gone? I believe we should live life alone at times so that if all my friends have gone to Heaven, I can still live energetically. I met our church caretaker now that she is in old folk’s home. She told me this, nobody is as ugly in appearance like me yet my husband married me, now that I am old and hope to go heaven soon as I am very tired living on earth. I hope that when I age gracious I will like to carry on living excitedly, not waiting for Mr. Death in a black horse to carry me away.

Live life one day at a time and this is a lifestyles idea which we need to remind ourselves daily. Choose to be happy today no matters what happen along the way, in the bus at the office or supermarket. Smile and the whole world smiles with you!