What is important to you?

What is important to you?

Present enjoyment or delayed gratification?

Whichever you choose, that one is "importanter" to you! (At least according to this sign!)

Obviously the owner of the pub decided that beer (consuming, promoting, selling, etc) will be able to feed him and his family for a lifetime, so he choose that over a good education. That is his choice alone.

I hope that you, dear reader, will choose education instead! Absolutely no one can take learning away from you!

One added benefit: learning a language well ensures that you don't look stupid in front of others! Haha.

Have fun with English!

Shoot, frame, hang

Each of these words has different meanings, depending on the context of the sentence in which it is used.

"Shoot" can be about taking a photo, or cause harm to someone, in this case, your wife.

"Frame" a picture or a photo, or blame an innocent person for a wrong done.

"Hang": Well, this is simply to put it on a hook and nail it to the wall or ceiling, but it could also refer to someone committing suicide by tying a rope round his (in this case, "her") neck and fastening the other end of the rope to the ceiling.

This sign outside a photo studio is a really clever play of words. Creativity at its best!

Have fun with words!

English is downright confusing

Learning to make English words can be so difficult. As someone who grew up speaking English, I just took everything in my stride. After learning a few Asian languages, I can honestly say that English words can be downright confusing. Explaining the words to a learner of English is even worse.

"It's an exception."

I suppose we can use that as a convenient excuse for any English words or rules that cannot be explained.

Have fun with English!

Chinese face does not speak Chinese

I met a Swiss young man the other day when I joined a group walk around Singapore. He had signed up for the walk through the Chinese Meetup group he was part of. That group consists of a bunch of people who want to speak Mandarin. I had signed up through the Singapore Cantonese Meetup group that I am part of.

Many in the group had already asked him why he had chosen to live in Singapore for now. He said he wanted to practice speaking Mandarin. My remark to him was, "Singaporeans' Chinese is 'broken'." He retorted immediately, "Nonsense." He was completely convinced that all Chinese Singaporeans speak Mandarin fluently.

I beg to differ.

I have said before that Singaporeans like me who went to English-medium schools learned Mandarin in order to pass exams. Once in the working world of English (unless we have to use Mandarin regularly), everything we had learned in 10 years of basic schooling had long been returned to the teacher. I have too many friends who cannot function in Mandarin at all.

I am far from fluent, but I try.

To me, that's all that matters in language learning. It's a lifelong process.

Here's to learning a new language in your lifetime!

Broken English

Th +/- r + ough = different pronunciations

Small variations of spelling, yet so many different pronunciations!

How well did you do reading this sentence?

Show a little kindness

Love and kindness are universal acts that know no boundaries of language, culture or race. Anyone you meet, regardless of whether you can communicate with him or not, appreciates a smile, an act of kindness, an expression of love. It is therefore no surprise that acts of violence in any country elicit protests from across the globe. The world would be a nicer place if we would just show a little kindness.

This article on why some marriages last and others do not may be an eye-opener to some, but it makes complete sense. In fact, I read it and went, "Huh? Duh!" Why? Because I really should not need scientific evidence to tell me that I want to receive kindness and love all the time, so should I not do the same to others?

Unfortunately, the honest truth is that we too often turn others away because of our bad behaviour of selfishness. Why should I be so engrossed in what I want to do that I shun another? Human beings are created for relationship, not isolation. The more I respond to another's question, the more I feel good about myself. Life is not about me. It is about living for others, so that together we experience a happy place in which to live.

In multi-cultural and multi-racial, global and cosmopolitan Singapore, I have a chance to show kindness to someone of another race all the time. As much as I try to do so, I think I could do more. A smile, a "thank you" for holding the elevator door for me, ... I need to do my part to make my little part of the world a more pleasant place in which to live.

I hope this inspires you to give a smile to the next person you meet today. It will not put you out of pocket, but it will earn you a smile in return.

Here's to spreading the kindness all around!