MENTOR-CUM-MOTHER



We share proudly our students' work here



A victory corner for a deserving win



My treasure trove of teaching materials

  

It's preppy day and back to college.




We are a sounding board to one another 





A borrowing corner. Amanda with my pearls



A bottle a day keeps the migraine away




Happy birthday Giles



Keeping healthy is important

All actions are impromptu but sincere 



A birthday celebration is welcome here












A modelling corner

 

Our craziest moments - tasting sourish jellies



Let's take a break and enjoy ourselves

A hug for you and me

An eye for an eye

A box of brownies for my young teachers



Bride-to-be and mummy-to-be corner too!


















OH MDM MAMA!

I mentor young teachers and they constantly seek advice from me on many areas - classroom management, teaching pedagogy, professional development, suitable courses to attend, balancing work and life harmony and also matters of the heart involving their loved ones.

They would come to my table and share with me their concern on anything and everything. Last Friday, a group of them was crowding and sharing with me about their coming baby and wedding plans. Like young school girls, they were giggling and laughing sharing their hopes and  plans with me. I feel so much like their mothers.

What else happens near my cubicle?  Sometimes there's a birthday celebration and a ruckus is created. Wishes are made and the cake is cut. Hand shakes and hugs are exchanged. Sometimes, someone will grab a chair and is all ready to break into tears.  Who says teaching is an easy job will be clobbered by me immediately. When such cases happen, I will offer my listening ear and a box of Kleenex.  A comforting wrap around the shoulders would do wonder to the person. I let the person pour out her floodgate of emotions before sharing my two cents worth of view.

My corner is also a place where a lot of teaching props are kept.  Whenever I need them, I will just fish out and bring them to class.  These props colour my lessons, making them memorable and authentic.  That is how I relate lessons to the students' daily lives and heighten the relevance of the lesson. We also congratulate students at my table and immortalise their victory and proudest moments with a photography session.

At other times, some one would want to take a photograph because we have dressed similarly or starkly different.  At times, my friends just want to share on a new purchase and would like to show me their new possession. Food is also what my young ones would ransack for at my table.  They have had home-prepared macaroni, nasi goreng, mee goreng, sandwiches, shepherd pie, biscuits and the life-saver Kit Kat.

What else has happened?  My place has become a hug corner where the young ones drop by  to give me a hug or ask a hug from me.  It's so wonderful truly to be wanted and appreciated that way. My table has become a congregation for us to do silly and stupid things behind the students so that we would not be caught red handed and be their laughing stock. We have made ourselves a fool by observing whose face was the ugliest upon sucking a very sourish sweet. Oh...but it was so much fun and hilarious.

My workstation has become a tonic drinking corner too where we down brands essence of chicken to keep our immune system up!  Too many MC is not too good because there would be a lot of catching up to be done. My station has also become a motivation corner where successes are celebrated and words to feed and nourish the passion in teaching are given generously.

Don't think that nothing serious never happens at my place.  It has been a place where we bounce ideas and plan what's good for the students and the staff.  Numerous discussions have taken place here on setting of exam papers, marking and running of school programmes. We have cried and fought for our students. Discussions on how to improve our students' performance and the exchange ideas on new strategies to stretch the potentials of our charges have taken place here too.

I love my corner.  It's big, warm and inviting.  You're welcome to pop in any time even if you do not know what to do there.  I will always give you some ideas to add more zest to your day!



SWEETLICIOUS SHIELA



That's Shiela, my student from 1986-1990.



As a clinic manager, she trains her staff too

My Shiela as graceful as ever when she was a dancer



I love my teacher with all my heart



Different races live harmoniously





Have a heart for each other





Pass wtih flying colours



It doesn't matter if you're black or white!

The students were thrilled to receive a cupcake each



Can't wait to put this into my mouth



I hope my students will pass with flying colours



Teaching is a passion.  It is not an interest.



CUPCAKES SHIELA

My ex-student Shiela had a nostalgic trip when she came back to YSS after so many years of hiatus. Too many memories came back to her, she said sounding emotional. The school had changed so much that it was difficult for her to link the past with the present.

Shiela was one of my Malay Dancers.  She was passionate about dancing and was a very discipline and graceful dancer. It was a sweetlicious moment for me and Shiela for I had asked Shiela to bake me some cupcakes for my students who would graduate soon. Every student of my class went over the moon upon receiving her Hershey brown chocolate cup cakes coated with white or brown chocolate and sprinkled with multi-coloured sugar-rice or sweets. 

According to Shiela whether we are brown or white, we are all the same.  The multi-coloured sugar rice and M&M symbolise the achievement and flying colours one should aim for in life.  She placed two heart-shaped chocolates in each box to remind the students that a perfect individual is one who possesses a heart for others.  Strong and impactful learning here!

Being a pioneer batch of the school in 1986-1990, Shiela felt strongly for the school and held fond memories of her school days, the teachers and her friends. Her passion is now baking and cooking.   

It is a gratifying feeling to have your former students visit you.  They still remember you even after a long time of separation.  The only difference now is that we are no longer talking on a student-teacher platform but as friends.

CRAVING SATISFIED

 

Finally served Kacang Pool for a beautiful Sunday





The garnishing to tempt you more

 

Ful Medames Anyone?

Otherwise known as Kacang Pool, a Middle Eastern dish commonly served during festive occasions and is a staple meal in Sudan. Have been craving for it and finally had it laid for a beautiful Sunday morning. Kacang pool is originally a middle-eastern dish called foul medames (or variants of it, depending on region).  It used to be commonly sold in Singapore but now it had made way to more exotic middle eastern dish.  And since those I tried was not very great, I decided to cook myself following my mum's recipe.  

My mum's recipe is easy to prepare.  Fennel seeds, coriander and cumin were pounded together with garlic.  The paste was fried with ghee.  I used ghee for it's aroma and fragrance. A teaspoon of curry powder was added together with some minced meat into the paste. The mashed ful medames was then added and cooked to boil. 

To garnish the dish you sprinkle some diced onions, tomatoes and sliced green chilly.  A squeeze of lime will add some zest to the dish.  To top it all, fry an egg or a mata lembu in ghee too. Serve with toasted baguette. Eat with your hands for best result for you need to tear the bread and scoop the beans together with the garnishing.  Atlast, my craving had been satisfied.  

Notice my cup? River Nile and Egypt are printed on it. If I couldn't be on a River Nile cruise  to enjoy Kacang Pool, sipping Nescafe from the cup will do.

Ahlan wasahlan.

OFF ROADING

KOTA TINGGI-MERSING OFF ROAD TRIP

 

The sleepy town of Mersing was calling us. The winding and undulating coastal road would be a test for the driver’s dexterity on the wheels. Nothing concrete was planned so it was just a road trip for us to enjoy the view and the unexpected. A roadside durian stall forced us to apply the brakes of our car. They were real kampung durians, claimed Ah Lum. No hybrid of species. We tried the kucing tidur (sleeping cat) specie. It had reddish yellow colour with thick creamy flesh and flat seeds. I would not do any justice if I just say that the durian was nice. I understood immediately the true meaning of ‘heavenly’ immediately.

I saw them during my previous drive along the Kota Tinggi-Mersing Road. The pillboxes or bunkers that scattered around Kota Tinggi lines were constructed earlier before WW2. I believe they were built to improve Singapore’s fortress defences lines during 1937. There was quite a bit of fighting there involving mainly Malaysian, Australian and Japanese soldiers. Evidence of rifle shots and volleys of machine guns hit could be seen. One pill box had its top blown off, most likely by shells. It must be a nasty place to be in the bunker. Nobody could survive with such penetration.

Poor Zac, my nephew must have sworn to have this as the last road trip with me. He had an earful of live lessons from me on Geography and National Education, ranging from oil palm cultivation, river features, gabions, history of Johor Lama, the Japanese Occupation and the elusive Mawas who used to terrorise the Sedili-Mawai area.

Another stop was at the apam balik and fruit stalls. The fruits had just been delivered and the apam balik and the boiled groundnuts were tempting our taste buds. Our next stop was at a keropok lekor factory where we witnessed how fish meat was minced, kneaded, rolled out and boiled for making into keropok lekor. I bought a few kilos of fish cracker. The Tioman jetty terminal was our next stop. Like kids, we played on the swing, took horse rides and gave a go at the buggy along the sandy beach. By then the clouds were darkening and all of a sudden a small twister hit us. The force and strong wind picked up the sand quickly. The sand swirled around us, spraying it in our eyes, face and clothes. I almost lost my balance but managed to take refuge at the shelter nearby. The force died down as sudden as it had started. What an experience it was.

When the rain subsided, we drove to Air Papan Beach, passing by rice fields and home stay offers. We had teh tarik facing the South China Sea. Numerous chalets dotted the coastline. The trip would not be completed without a sea food dinner, with fresh catch from the sea. Two pairs of hornbills decided to add more excitement to our trip. They were flying around and perched on the casuarina tree in front of the restaurant. Since the Endau-Rompin reserve is nearby, they could have flown from there.

We had to be careful driving back along the Kota-Mersing Road at night. Some stretch of the road was pitch black with the trees crowning your car. We passed by a cemetery, the bunkers, an elephant crossing area and vast oil palm plantations. I wonder what happen to the motorcyclist who was hit by a car. The ambulance would take a long time to arrive. Our trip had been filled with the unexpected but was high in fun too.