Friday, February 20, 2009
Cross country; Total Defence
On the 13 of Feb, our school went to Nanyang Polytechnic to have our cross country race and also commemorated Total defence day. We had a talk Total defence. The five defences are: Military Defence, Economic Defence, Civil defence, Psychological Defence and Social Defence. The NPCC(National Police Cadet Corp), NCC(National Cadet Corp) and Red Cross demostrated some skills which we could apply when an emergency occurs. After that, we got ready and headed to the stadium for our Cross Country run. I got my number tag pinned on and the run started. I stopped quite a few times during the run. I came in the 19th position. If I'm not wrong, it's the same as last year. But this time the distance was much shorter than last year's. Rather dissapointing, but there's still next year. Prize presentation and the day ended.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Chek Jawa
Chek Jawa
At first, before the virual Tour I thought Chek Jawa is located at Indonesia. The name made is sound like it's located there. After the Virtual Tour, I realized it is located at Singapore.
Chek Jawa is a gem of marine wildlife. Located at the eastern tip of Pulau Ubin, Chek Jawa is a collection of six distinct habitats - coastal forest, mangroves, sand bars, sea grass lagoon, rocky shore & coral rubble. Chek Jawa is teeming with a wide array of marine wildlife – starfish, sea horses and octopi living in the sand and mud flats, carpet and peacock anemones in the sea-grass meadows, and sponges of all hues residing in the coral rubble.
(Taken from: http://www.visitsingapore.com/publish/stbportal/en/home/what_to_see/parks___nature_reserves/chek_jawa.html)
At first, before the virual Tour I thought Chek Jawa is located at Indonesia. The name made is sound like it's located there. After the Virtual Tour, I realized it is located at Singapore.
Chek Jawa is a gem of marine wildlife. Located at the eastern tip of Pulau Ubin, Chek Jawa is a collection of six distinct habitats - coastal forest, mangroves, sand bars, sea grass lagoon, rocky shore & coral rubble. Chek Jawa is teeming with a wide array of marine wildlife – starfish, sea horses and octopi living in the sand and mud flats, carpet and peacock anemones in the sea-grass meadows, and sponges of all hues residing in the coral rubble.
(Taken from: http://www.visitsingapore.com/publish/stbportal/en/home/what_to_see/parks___nature_reserves/chek_jawa.html)
Sandy shore and sand barThe shore teems with tiny crabs which, if undisturbed, go about their amusing antics at low tide. The sand bar is the backbone of Chek Jawa and provides a home for all manner of intriguing creatures. The Common sea star is a must-see with visitors, and fortunately, it is plentiful on Chek Jawa. Sadly, it is no longer common elsewhere in Singapore. The sand dollar is another intriguing creature to examine. The sand bar is also a popular rest stop for shorebirds that fly in from as far away as Siberia. Overhead, majestic birds of prey hunt for fishes in the sea.
Seagrass lagoonA calm, shallow lagoon lush with seagrasses and seaweeds form behind the sand bar. Here, a rich variety of marine creatures shelter during the low tide. First-time visitors are often stunned by the carpet anemones which are bigger than your face and come in a stunning variety of colours. At some times of the year, the seagrass may be dotted with colourful sea cucumbers. Other seagrass dwellers include secretive crabs and snails. A lucky visitor may also encounter sea hares, squids and mantis shrimp.
(Taken from: http://www.wildsingapore.com/places/cj.htm)
Please do not remove any wildlife from the shore. Poaching of hard corals and other sealife threatens this precious shore. I'm sure no one wants this beautiful shore to be ruined.
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Confession of an Achluophobic
Confession of an Achluophobic
I believe everyone has fears, be it one or many. Likewise, I have fears too. I’m afraid of the dark. I don’t know the reason myself too. Hence, I will never step into a place that is pitch-dark. But, I’ll still sleep with lights off. Beams of light from the corridor would flood in from the window into my bedroom. That’s how I sleep at night.
I remember once, I was at my mother’s hometown, a part of China. It was a village. I was there for during the school vacation. When it reaches around seven, it would be very dark. As there wasn’t any lamp post or any light, we had to carry torchlight if we were to go out. I dare not step out of the house then. But of course, there were lights in the house.
When we turned in at night, I told my mother to turn on the light while I sleep. She agreed. I had a nightmare. I broke into cold sweat when I woke up. To my surprise, I found myself in complete darkness. I felt as though I was blind! My eyes were wide open yet I couldn’t see a single thing! I started sobbing. My heart was throbbing in fear. With tears strangling my voice, I called out for my mother. She was awakened by my cries. She heard me and switched on the light. She calmed me down and told me everything was fine. I felt at ease when there was light again. It took a load off my chest. Somehow, the fear was gone. Wiped the tears off my cheeks and slept in peace.
Till now, darkness means fear to me. This year, I went back too, didn’t stayed there though. Went to visit relatives and stayed for dinner. It was late at night and we had to go back to uncle’s house. The torchlight was needed to show us the way through the dark. I walked in haste for fear of the dark. I didn’t shed a single tear, but I know very well myself, I was petrified. Sometimes I wonder, how do I live without lights.
(359 words)
I believe everyone has fears, be it one or many. Likewise, I have fears too. I’m afraid of the dark. I don’t know the reason myself too. Hence, I will never step into a place that is pitch-dark. But, I’ll still sleep with lights off. Beams of light from the corridor would flood in from the window into my bedroom. That’s how I sleep at night.
I remember once, I was at my mother’s hometown, a part of China. It was a village. I was there for during the school vacation. When it reaches around seven, it would be very dark. As there wasn’t any lamp post or any light, we had to carry torchlight if we were to go out. I dare not step out of the house then. But of course, there were lights in the house.
When we turned in at night, I told my mother to turn on the light while I sleep. She agreed. I had a nightmare. I broke into cold sweat when I woke up. To my surprise, I found myself in complete darkness. I felt as though I was blind! My eyes were wide open yet I couldn’t see a single thing! I started sobbing. My heart was throbbing in fear. With tears strangling my voice, I called out for my mother. She was awakened by my cries. She heard me and switched on the light. She calmed me down and told me everything was fine. I felt at ease when there was light again. It took a load off my chest. Somehow, the fear was gone. Wiped the tears off my cheeks and slept in peace.
Till now, darkness means fear to me. This year, I went back too, didn’t stayed there though. Went to visit relatives and stayed for dinner. It was late at night and we had to go back to uncle’s house. The torchlight was needed to show us the way through the dark. I walked in haste for fear of the dark. I didn’t shed a single tear, but I know very well myself, I was petrified. Sometimes I wonder, how do I live without lights.
(359 words)