Happy Mother's Day

Tribute to all mothers, esp. my mum, and Mary, Mother of God.

Talk on Autism

If you are a parent whose child is autistic, or if you know of anyone who has an autistic child, or even if you suspect your child may be autistic, and want to know how to identify the symptoms, then it would be very beneficial for you to attend a 2-day workshop where you can learn how to deal with autism. This workshop is conducted by Ruth S. Arunasalam who has vast experience in teaching students of all ages, from school going children to professional adults, and who is also specialized in autism.

I know Ruth in person as she is my current TESOL teacher whose motive in teaching is purely selfless and goes all out to make sure we all leave this course fully armed with all the training and knowledge to enter into the real world of teaching. In fact, I am already feeling more and more confident after every class, and I daresay I will be fully prepared to start teaching by the end of her class, which would be end February.

Please click on the picture for the advertisement which appeared in The Straits Times, Friday 17.02.2012:

What Season would that be??

Today our M.D. issued a greeting to all staff via corporate email:

  SEASON'S greetings 
 & Best Wishes for a Happy New Year!


I pondered upon the greeting and, I wondered to myself, 'Now what Season would that be..hmm..?'

I know that Christmas is round the corner.. as does everybody; I also know that New Year follows a week later.. but 'Christmas' is not mentioned in the greeting. That the case, then his greeting wouldn't be a Christmas greeting! Cos if it's a Christmas greeting, surely it would be mentioned.

After all, what's in a word.. it's not like the word Christmas would offend anyone, or any group in particular, right? Or that the religious intonations attributed to the word Christmas is so feared and offensive to certain groups of people to cause our M.D. to be senselessly mindful of his choice of words? Nahh.. he is the M.D., mind you! Not any Tom, Dick and Harry can be MDs! It takes 'brain' to be one.. I mean, brain that really can function; not only a functioning one cos any chimpanzee's brain can also do just that, albeit with minimal effort. Really!

Or, could it be possible that our M.D. was politely advised, by his team of 3 corporate wisemen of the east, against using the word 'Christmas' because, in the modern world, 'Season' has been accepted as the appropriate substitute for what was once a religious event? Now I try not to concede to the idea that someone as highly regarded as our M.D. would subject his esteemed reputation to a compromising position and adopt his corporate advisors' recommendation to drop the word 'Christmas' from a 2,000 year old greeting, which the whole world, consisting of all types of races and religions, has known, for a fact, that the Chirstmas celebration is always greeted with "Merry Christmas"!

Naah! He is our M.D.!