Blog To Express

A blogosphere learning experience to express with blog

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Location: Singapore, Singapore

A "recycled teenager" learning to blog.

Apr 25, 2009

Going Bald (sound as 'bawd')...Just to Blog

Are you running out of blog topics and do not know what to blog about? Come join me to do something crazy....like going bald :) 

Some men are more open to having a shaved head than others and often they like the feeling of having a bald head. In some cases, older men opt to hoave their hair shaved off because they feel that their hair has thinned out too much and it is better off to shave their heads. 

Men with receding hairlines and bald patches also think of shaving their remaining hair off instead of trying to think of a hairstyle that can cover up their baldness. 

Since my childhood days, I've never sported a 'botak-head' hairstyle. So why now? 

Firstly, this is a 'recession-proof' hairstyle; 

Secondly, the heat is getting unbearable these days, too hot to keep long hair; 

Thirdly, the price of hair shampoo, hair-cream is increasing. I don't need to carry a comb with me anymore. 

Actually, I just want to know how it feels like to go 'botak' to practise "emptiness" when I don't have to worry about my hair. 

There are more meaningful things to worry about in life, I believe. 

Someone once told me that the reasons why monks shaved their heads is because they will not be distracted by their appearance...or to worry about keeping up with the lastest trendy hairstyle so that they will look fashionable :0 Makes good sense! 

How else could the monks meditate when they keep looking around to check out the best hairstyle for them? 

Before I sound like a sour-grape who tries to justify my need to have a shaved head, ostensibly to save money (don't let my barber friend Zali hear that :) 

I would rather blog about my 'go bald' experience at the barber this morning. When I entered the shop for the haircut, Zali asked me: "Uncle, macham biasa huh?" I told him that I wanted a 'botak' hairdo. He asked: "kosong"?, sounding surprised. [kosong in Malay means empty or nothing...reminds me of Jean-Paul Sarte's "Being and Nothingness"] 

Before actually landing the electronic clipper on my head, he asked me again..."kosong? confirm?" as if he is going to format a hard-disk to delete all files, once done cannot be undone! I said "confirm" and closed my eyes while he shaved off whatever little hair I have on my head. 

The whole "kosong" process took less than 10 minutes. After the haircut, I felt that my head is so light, so clear... 

The following are some reasons why a person is bald... 

1. As a newborn baby on the first day I came to this world, I did not have any hair. 
2. When ordained as a monk 
3. Under chemeotheraphy treatment 
4. Suffering from scalp-related diseases 
5. Hair loss due to old age 
6. As a fashion statement 
7. NTUC Love Project...going bald to raise funds for charity 
8. To have a taste of 'shock therapy'...like when my friends couldn't recognise me :) 
9. To be part of the project of the Children's Cancer Foundation. 

From now onwards, I will watch the reaction of people who have never seen me bald....its gonna be fun :)

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Apr 21, 2009

Berita Harian, 23 February, 1982


Source: Berita Harian dated 23 February, 1982
(Please click on image to enlarge)

Exhibition attracts more than 100 library members

MORE than 100 people, mostly children, became library members in the housing estate here.

They are among the West Coast residents who attended the Book Exhibition at Block 602, Clementi West Street 1, organized by the West Coast Zone 3 Residents Committee and the Queenstown Branch Library last Saturday afternoon.

Free Membership

This is the first time that a Residents Committee has organized such an exhibition. According to a committee member, the response was encouraging.

At about 4.00 pm, a total of 800 books were loaned to the residents.

Ms Mavis Richards, the Head of the Queenstown Branch Library, said that usually an average of about 50 to 60 people register as library members whenever such exhibitions are held.

She added that membership is free.

Cultivate Interest

One of the youngest members to join the library was nine-month-old Maylene Seah. Her membership was registered by her father, Mr James Seah Kok Thim, Treasurer of the Residents Committee.

Mr Seah said that although his daughter still could not read, she likes to look at the pictures and this is one way to cultivate the child's interest so that she will enjoy reading from a young age.

Besides the exhibition of books in the four official languages, there was also a presentation of songs by children. A lucky draw based on the library registration number was also held.


With thanks to Miss Ong Hui Pheng, Librarian, Lee Kong Chian Reference Library, National Library Board and Miss Nur Shawalindah Yusop who helped to translate the Berita Harian report in English.


Maylene at home in the mini "Library Sweet Library".

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Apr 20, 2009

Book Exhibition at HDB Void Deck

Following my previous blog about my first visit to the Raffles Library in 1957 to join as a member, I suddenly recalled that my daughter, Maylene Seah was the youngest National Library member when she was only nine months old.

She was registered at the National Library Book Exhibition at Block 602, Clementi West Street 1 on Saturday, 20 February, 1982.

I vaguely remembered that the West Coast Zone 3 Residents Committee event was reported in the Berita Harian but could not remember the exact date of the book exhibition.

Fortunately, I managed to retrieve the Berita Harian report of 23 February, 1982 from the old newspaper archive microfilm after spending 3 days (on different occasions) at the Microform Room on Level 11 of the Lee Kong Chian Reference Library, NLB, Victoria Street, Singapore.

I struck gold today when I found the article I have been searching for so long.

This blog is also being updated at the multimedia station at the library.

Thanks to the National Library for providing the research resources, computers with Internet access and eResources to help library users like me to do our personal research.

The following is reproduced from the Berita Harian dated
23 February, 1982:

[Quote]

Pameran tarik lebih 100 jadi ahli pustaka

LEBIH 100 orang sebilangan besar kanak-kanak, telah mendaftarkan diri untok menjadi anggota perpustakaan hasil dari satu rencangan mendekati masyarakat pembaca di estet-estet perumahan di sini.

Mereka adalah sebahagian dari para penduduk West Coast yang menghadiri Pameran Buku di kolong Blok 602, Clementi West Street 1, anjuran Jawatankuasa Penduduk Zon '3' West Coast dan Perpustakaan Cawangan Queenstown pada Sabtu petang lalu.

Tak kena yuran

Inilah kali pertama jawatankuasa penduduk itu menganjurkan pameran serupa itu dan menurut seorang anggota jawatankuasa tersebut, sambutan yang deberikan adalah menggalakkan.

Menjelang 4.00 petang, sejumlah kira-kira 800 buah buku telah dipinjamkan kepada orang ramai.

Cik Mavis Richards, Ketua Perpustakaan Cawangan Queenstown, berkata bahawa biasanya purata kira-kira 50 hingga 60 orang mendaftarkan diri untok menjadi anggota perpustakaan setiap kali pameran seumpama itu diadakan.

Beliau menambah bahawa tidak ada sebarang yuran yang dikenakan kepada orang ramai yang mahu menjadi anggota.

Pupuk minat

Antara yang termuda sekali menjadi anggota ialah Maylene Seah, sembilan bulan, yang didaftarkan namanya oleh ayahnya, Encik James Seah Kok Thim, Bendahari Jawatankuasa Penduduk di situ.

Encik Seah memberitahu bahawa meskipun anaknya itu belum lagi tahu membaca, tetapi dia gemar melihat gambar-gambar dan ini adalah satu cara untuk memupuk minat anak-anak supaya gemar membaca sejak kecil lagi.

Selain dari pameran buku-buku dari semua empat aliran bahasa, persembahan-persembahan patong, nyanyian kanak-kanak dan cabutan nombor bertuah berdasarkan nombor pendaftaran perpustakaan juga diadakan.

[Unquote]

Note:

The previous topic title for this blog: "Youngest Member of National Library" has been changed.

I learnt that the National Library conducted a campaign to get parents to register their children early, and some parents are known to have registered their children as early as a few weeks after they are born.

Maylene is not the youngest member at 9 month old. She was the youngest member registered at the book exhibition though.

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