::Homework Crapbox::

last SG · 2007-06-10T09:23:59+00:00

LOL. i guess u didnt really sleep to complete ur assignment?

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BuiKia posted :

I think this taxi driver is telling the truth except for the parts where I highlighted in red.

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Amusingly, this social phenomenon holds true for all Asian countries, not just China. In fact, this was already noticeable in Singapore well over a decade ago.

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[Taiwan] - Man dies in escalator accident.

Do be careful on escalators, they're a lot more dangerous than you might think.

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=bc5_1312420246

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SiongKia :

In many other places you just have to heighten your alertness and safety - mindedness. This will help in your overall awareness and lessen the chances of personal harm to yourself.Many singaporeans are so protected and safe here that their survival quotient is very low, making them easy prey when they travel.

Enforcer :

I have always said the sane thing. Singaporeans are very poor travellers, very unsafe I would say. They took for granted the safety in Singapore and failed to display even the simplest of street intelligence while overseas.

Goldeneye :

Even within Singapore, there are areas like Geylang where your risk goes up ten times after dark..

Enforcer :

The only danger in Geylang is, all those chickens waving at me.

The most dangerous place is actually those foreign workers dorm. I have heard alot of rapes going on at those areas that never made the news.

Buikia :

Share some of the stories leh.

Enforcer :

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[China] - The Rich get Richer, the Poor get Angrier

The worsening Gini coefficient is certainly familiar in Singapore (and no doubt, to some extent or other, the same throughout the world), which is precisely why the ruling party lost the most recent Punggol East By-Election.

The Chinese have an expression to describe coping with hardship: chi ku—to eat bitterness. The sensation is familiar to Wang Hui, a 50-year-old salesman in Beijing. Wang earns less than $6,000 a year, struggles to put his son through school, and is openly jealous of those around him who have made out better in the new China. A former colleague, for example, who invested in real estate at the right time, now owns four apartments and a Mercedes-Benz.

“I’ve seen so many people get rich so quickly,” says Wang, whose missing bottom tooth and cracked watch seem to accentuate his Willy Loman predicament. “If I worked for 50 years, I wouldn’t make that much money. Of course I’m envious.”

Wang isn’t alone. In fact, he reflects a widespread dissatisfaction in China, one that at first glance might seem counterintuitive. It’s been more than 30 years since Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping opened the country and the Communist party embraced the mantra “to get rich is glorious.” In the decades since, hundreds of millions have been lifted out of poverty. In 2010, China surpassed Japan as the world’s second-largest economy. The Chinese today are four times richer than they were 20 years ago, and people like Wang have opportunities and creature comforts unheard of a generation ago.

But despite China’s economic miracle, recent studies suggest Chinese aren’t any happier than they were in the early 1990s—the result of an income-inequality gap that has grown to a chasm, and demographic trends that have created complicated new realities for millions. These have created increasingly evident pressures, and frustrations are bubbling to the surface. Protests large and small have been growing across the country in recent years—protests against environmental problems, corrupt officials, government land grabs and more. The number of protests doubled to 180,000 “mass incidents” between 2006 and 2010, according to research by the Chinese Academy of Governance. This fall, residents in the coastal city of Ningbo organized through social media, and rallied against the expansion of a chemical plant. A similar protest occurred last year in the prosperous city of Dalian. In 2008, residents of Shanghai successfully fought the expansion of a magnetic-levitation train line, and in late 2011, citizens of Wukan, in Guangdong province, briefly seized control of their village in response to a land grab by corrupt officials.

Protests are happening so frequently in China that further unrest seems inevitable, and this is worrying China’s ruling Communist party, which has long staked its legitimacy on the promise of prosperity through economic growth. While getting rich is still glorious in China today, officials are busy trying to appease a dissatisfied populace by belatedly addressing corruption and the country’s growing list of social and environmental maladies.

According to a study published in May from researchers at the University of Southern California (USC), Chinese people’s life satisfaction actually declined between 1990 and the mid-2000s, a period when gross domestic product and average consumption increased fourfold. The trend rebounded in recent years but is still below 1990 levels, according to the report, which was published in the journal of the National Academy of Sciences.

The USC study drew links to post-Soviet countries where, like China, economic growth corresponded with rising unemployment and the dismantling of social safety nets, which have hit the poor especially hard. The report’s authors argue that the main reason for China’s stagnant life satisfaction is resentment of the haves by the have-nots. The boom times have disproportionately benefited the rich and, while average Chinese have grown wealthier in absolute terms, they feel relatively disadvantaged, especially since wealth is often flaunted in China through material possessions—from Ferraris to Gucci handbags to rare pets. (A coal magnate recently paid a record $1.5 million for a Tibetan mastiff at a dog auction in the port city of Qingdao.) While middle-income earners reported little change in their level of happiness, life satisfaction among low-income earners dropped precipitously.

“The evidence is that the rich-poor gap in life satisfaction in China is quite high relative to most countries,” says Richard Easterlin, an economist at USC who was the lead author of the report. In the 1970s, Easterlin developed what has become known as the “Easterlin paradox,” which suggests economic prosperity makes people happier only to a point.

Other surveys in China have drawn similar conclusions. Last year, a state-owned information portal, China.com.cn, polled 1,350 Chinese and found that only six per cent of respondents described themselves as “very happy,” compared with 48 per cent who were “not happy.” (The results were briefly published online in a story in China Daily, a state-owned newspaper, before censors removed the story from the Internet.) A 2011 Gallup poll ranked China 92nd, near the bottom, on its list of 124 countries where people were asked to assess their well-being. Only 12 per cent of Chinese said they were thriving—the same as in Yemen and Afghanistan.

“My life is not happy,” says Zhou Hao Hao, a 27-year-old lawyer for a state-owned company in Beijing. He half-jokingly describes himself as an “underprivileged loser” and counts himself among an unfortunate member of a growing cohort of young men known in China as the san wu, the “three have-nots”—no apartment, no car, no wife. (Buying an apartment is a particular challenge for young Chinese, with high real estate prices despite a glut of empty apartments, many of which require a cash down payment of up to 50 per cent.) Zhou, who came to Beijing from coastal Shandong province eight years ago, feels pressure from all directions—his parents, himself, society—to acquire all those things and more. Sometimes it seems futile. “I don’t have any clear objectives in life,” he says over coffee in downtown Beijing. “I don’t see a clear path for the future.”

China’s government has taken note of the people’s melancholy, making happiness a key part of the next five-year development plan and promising to tackle non-economic quality-of-life factors such as health care, education, housing and the environment. “Everything we do is aimed at letting people live more happily and with more dignity,” said Premier Wen Jiabao, in his New Year’s address to the nation. He added that officials would be judged on their ability to make people happy. President Xi Jinping pledged at the 18th Party Congress in November to improve citizens’ lives with “better schooling, more stable jobs, more satisfying incomes, more reliable social security, higher levels of health care, more comfortable housing conditions and a more beautiful environment.”

What officials aren’t talking about, however, is that part of what is fuelling resentment is a widespread belief that government is synonymous with corruption. “Besides income inequality, corruption is the biggest factor” contributing to people’s dissatisfaction, says Hu Xingdou, an economics professor at the Beijing Institute of Technology. Hu argues that China has lost its spiritual centre—Confucianism, especially, is a conservative philosophy that guides an individual’s ethical behaviour within a community—and that the quest for wealth has filled the void. “Chinese people don’t believe in anything,” Hu says. “Money worship dominates, and this is the biggest factor contributing to corruption.”

In 2012, China ranked 80th out of 174 countries in Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index, with Denmark being the least corrupt at No. 1. (By way of comparison, Canada ranked 10th.)

Exacerbating discontent among regular Chinese are profound demographic trends that have transformed Chinese society in recent decades. Some 250 million people have migrated from the countryside to major urban centres. This mass urban migration has strained the family unit, traditionally the centre of social life in China. The one-child policy, now more than 30 years old, has created a generation of only children, many of whom have moved alone to cities to pursue lives and careers.

On the Internet, commentators have adopted the term bei piao—or “Beijing floater”—to describe the legion of young people in the Chinese capital who find their lives lacking in meaning and direction. Lu Peng, a 26-year-old who works in the financial industry, is a self-described bei piao. Like Zhou, the Beijing lawyer, Lu is a san wu, a have-not, and he has struggled to adapt to life in Beijing after a year and a half, often finding himself overcome with feelings of loneliness. On the surface, however, Lu has much going for him. While his parents worked their whole lives in factories in Jiangsu province, he earns almost $24,000 a year. He is likeable and working on improving his social life, but still reports an overall feeling of discontent. “I’m struggling,” he says.

A 2009 paper in the Journal of Happiness Studies, titled “The China puzzle: Falling happiness in a rising economy,” described people like Lu and Zhou as “frustrated achievers,” those who are prospering but who don’t necessarily feel they are. They are doing far better than previous generations, but because they see others doing much better, they feel less satisfied with their lives. Today, suicide is a leading cause of death among young people.

Urban women are also not immune from the stresses of modern Chinese society. Much pressure is placed on women to marry wealthy men and promptly produce a child; ambition and success are often frowned upon. In 2007, China’s Women’s Federation defined the term “leftover” women (sheng nu) as unmarried women over the age of 27, an increasingly stigmatized group. According to a 2010 Women’s Federation survey, more than 90 per cent of male respondents said women should marry before the age of 27 or risk a loveless life.

“In this society, you should be married and have kids while you’re young,” says Yang, a sheng nu in Beijing who works in public relations and gave her age as “around 30.” (She asked that her surname not be published.) Yang says many men she meets find her too old to marry. She doesn’t want to settle for someone she’s not satisfied with, but feels pressure from parents and peers to enter into a relationship soon. “When I meet new people, they feel weird around me because I’m single.”

There is some positive news, however. Gao Wei, a sociology professor from China Youth University for Political Sciences, who has conducted research on happiness in China since 2008, says Chinese born after 1990, in particular, are learning that life is about more than just earning a buck. “Post-’90s Chinese care more about their quality of life, leisure time and work-life balance rather than money,” Gao says. “This is a good trend.” Many Chinese are also looking for spiritual meaning beyond the pursuit of wealth and material possessions. Confucianism and Taoism have both undergone revivals here in recent years and a growing number of Chinese are turning to Buddhism, which has an estimated 300 million followers in China, for spiritual guidance.

For now, however, resentment rules for Wang Hui, the Beijing salesman. He’s tried praying to Buddha, too, but it hasn’t worked so far. Wang dreams of one day opening a small restaurant and of taking up his passion—painting—once again. But he recognizes those dreams will likely remain just dreams. He’s resigned to continue eating bitterness. “There’s nothing I can do,” he says. “Real life is cruel.”

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[Singapore] - "Ah Boys to Men" music videos

Theme song
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gI0s1r6_HQ

Theme song (acoustic)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qmKBLGPwJTo

CNY song
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WeV3YZwNiI0

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[Spirituality] - Atheism SuperBowl commercial

The girl at the end of the commercial, looks a little like Olivia Wilde.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGcPjAH2iHQ

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The problematic issue of foreigners in both PAP's and WP's plans

PAP says "we need more foreign workers". WP says "we need to stop bringing in foreign workers".

Neither plan will satisfy Singaporeans, because neither party directly addresses the real issue of why Singaporeans are unhappy with foreign workers.

Which is this :

Singaporeans happily welcome lowly-skilled foreign workers to take up lowly-skilled and lowly-paid jobs, eg. construction workers and cleaners.
Singaporeans hate highly-skilled foreigners to compete with locals for high-end and highly-paid jobs, eg. managers, executives, bankers, engineers.

If either PAP or WP (or any party at all) are willing to implement policies to reduce the intake of foreigners competing for high-end jobs, while increasing the intake of foreigners willing to perform low-end jobs, this party would enjoy overwhelming victory at any election.

Bernard Chong Seow Ming :
http://www.straitstimes.com/premium/forum-letters/story/revise-foreign-labour-policy-help-sporeans-20130208

Hariharan Gangadharan :
http://www.straitstimes.com/premium/forum-letters/story/adopt-nuanced-approach-foreign-labour-20130208

Goh Geok Teck :
http://www.straitstimes.com/premium/forum-letters/story/the-four-groups-foreigners-20130208

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[Japan] - Girl singer has her head forcibly shaven because she had sex with a boyfriend.

You wanna bet whether someone forcibly shaved her against her will? Although she confessed to doing it herself to atone for her 'sin' of having sex with a boyfriend, but corporate gangster-like bullying is so common in many such entertainment circles (whether Japan or Korea or HongKong or India, etc) you can bet someone (eg. her group's management) forcibly shaved her head against her will.

http://singaporeseen.stomp.com.sg/stomp/sgseen/this_urban_jungle/1598016/no_pop_star_should_shave_her_head_in_shame.html

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On a recent Singapore visit, Anak Raja (one of the Royal princes of Malaysia) broke several traffic offense and being stop by police. Anak Raja threatened Singaporean Malay Police.

Singapore Police threaten to lock up Anak Raja, Royal Police from Malaysia that follows negotiate with Singapore TP. TP agree to let off after Malaysia side agree they allow someone sober to drive the Ferrari instead.

"YOU COME INTO JOHOR AND I MAKE SURE YOU WILL BE IN TROUBLE"
These are the words of a Johor Prince towards a Singaporean Malay policeman which stopped the Prince car at 3am. Suspecting the driver drink driving after failing to stop for a few traffic light.

For awhile the black Ferrari with the car plate number JA*1 being follow and given warning by the TP, the car driven by the Prince stop. The Prince shout in anger when the police came close "YOU STUPID SINGAPORE POLICE, YOU DON'T KNOW WHO I AM?!?"

The Singaporean Malay police officer which is of Inspector rank, spoke sternly, "You had commited traffic offence and if you touch me, you will be locked up. This is Singapore with our Constitution and Laws."

Shortly after, a Pajero and other escort cars for the Prince stop. About 9 royal Malaysian bodyguards surrounded the police officer. One of them introduce himself as Inspector Shah from the Malaysian Royal Police. All this while, the prince continues to curse and swear from inside the car.

To save the situation, Inspector Shah plead the Singapore TP to let go the prince, saying the young Muslim prince drank too much alcoholic liquor, while asking for "Professional Courtesy" from the Singapore Inspector.

Source : https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=367073800066300&set=pcb.367075640066116&type=1&theater

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Singapore expats say assaulted by bodyguards of Malaysian royalty

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/singapore-expats-say-assaulted-by-bodyguards-of-malaysian-royalty

KUALA LUMPUR, May 9 — Four Singapore-based expatriates have alleged that they were attacked by bodyguards of a Malaysian royal family while on holiday at a Johor island.

Singapore’s The Straits Times reported today that the men were “brutally assaulted” within hours of arriving at Alang’s Rawa resort on Pulau Rawa, the second attack in seven years on the island with alleged links to Malaysian royalty.

According to the daily, the attack at the resort island off Mersing left a 28-year-old British man covered with injuries and his German friend in intensive care with bleeding in his brain.

“They grabbed my arm, surrounded me, and kicked me in my genitalia to disable me first, then the onslaught just happened,” the man, who spoke on condition of anonymity, was quoted as saying by The Straits Times.

The holidaymaker said he and his three friends, all in their 20s, were having dinner on Friday night when the Malaysian VIP arrived with “a lot of security” and “they started playing hip-hop music.”

According to the newspaper, the two victims were invited over for drinks including shots of tequila with the VIP, also in his 20s, and his cousin.

“He was friendly all along and showed no hostility at all. My friend was in mid-conversation with the VIP and his cousin when this aggressive-looking guy just slapped him out of nowhere.

“I don’t know what the nature of the conversation was, I was at the other end of the table, but there was something that was said that wasn’t ‘correct’,” he said.

According to the Brit, the German was followed to the bathroom by the bodyguards.

“I went to see what was going on, but got pushed out of the bathroom. I don’t know what happened in there, but he ran out like a bullet... through the bar and out onto the beach then into the forested area, and they chased him down,” he said.

He added that the remaining men then turned on him before he dashed into the sea, swimming back to shore only after the attackers had left.

He said he then returned to his room and alerted his other friends, but the attackers had caught up with the German man on another part of the island.

According to the newspaper, the group were asked to leave the island the next morning but not before they had settled their bills for the drinks and lodging.

“We were warned by a European lady working there that it was no longer safe. A boat was arranged for us in 10 minutes and we just left,” the Brit said.

The Straits Times also reported that although Alang’s Rawa confirmed that the victim and his friends were guests there, operations manager Fairus Ahmad denied the account, as did the manager of Rawa Safaris, the only other resort on the island.

“We have checked with all staff and management and they have confirmed that they do not know of any incident either,” Fairus was quoted as saying.

The newspaper reported that back in Singapore, the German man was placed in intensive care with bleeding in his brain and was moved to a normal ward yesterday.

In 2005, a group of six men, allegedly including a Johor prince, gate-crashed a Brazilian couple’s wedding at Pulau Rawa and attacked wedding guests with golf clubs and sharp objects.

Police detained four men, including a member of the Johor royal family in his 20s, but freed all of them on bail a few days later.

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I've often related this oh-so-true joke about dogs and cats :

Dog : Man feeds me, takes care of me, and loves me. Man must be God.

Cat : Man feeds me, takes care of me, and loves me. I must be God.

Here's a video which further confirms the different behaviours of dogs and cats.

This heart-warming video, which went viral recently, shows how a dog teaches its young the value of trust and loyalty. The video has since been shared and viewed many times, and has also garnered lots of positive comments.

The video shows a puppy which is afraid to go down a flight of steps. The puppy's parent dog goes up and down the stairs to encourage the young dog to take a leap of faith and traverse the stairway.

After much encouragement, and a gentle push or two, the young puppy finally goes down the flight of steps and is greeted with the delighted reactions of its parent and the person filming it.

The end of the video show a humorous take on how cats teach their young about the same values. It shows a kitten trying to go down a flight of steps, when its parent pushes it down from behind. The kitten is sent crashing down the stairs.

Click on the "video" link on this webpage :
http://singaporeseen.stomp.com.sg/stomp/sgseen/this_urban_jungle/1598120/heartwarming_video_shows_how_dogs_teaching_their_young.html

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NumeroUno posted :

The johor sultan is still the most powerful and the richest across all the sultans of Malaysia. He still controls the JMF (Johor Military Force) a private and active military unit who has heavy firearms and weapons and commandos amongst its rank and some of whom has seen action in Bosnia and Hercegovina serbian war. go to the main palace and you see his private army patrolling palace grounds. he also owns large plots of land within Singapore. wouldn't mess around with him as they literally are above the law in Malaysia. Those old enough know about "the bukit turf club horse helicopter incident" in 1990 and the diplomatc mess it created on both sides.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JMF_Elite_Forces
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Johor_Military_Force

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Kohliantye posted :

Members of the Malaysian Royalty, especially from the State of Johore, "zooms" in and out of Singapore regularly and in a dangerous manner.

I have been told that both the Malaysian and Singapore sides has special lanes reserved for these "VVIP".

The Johor Royalty has a bad reputation. Some of the atrocities committed by the late Sultan of Johore, who is a close friend of our top leader, are as follows:

1) Killed a young Indian lad (poor caddie) with a golf-stick, who laughed at him for missing the ball.
2) Shot dead a Chinese man as a "suspected" smuggler.
3) Sprayed certain "chemical" onto a member of another Malaysian Royalty who had problems with the JB Customs at their side. The chemical caused them to suffer from emasculation (groin injuries).
4) Violently assaulted and locked up the driver (in the kennels) who was involved in a fatal accident in which his mother (Sultan Aminah) was killed after Kulai. She was then in a Chevrolet limousine escorted by an entourage. This took place in 1970s. He later "banished" that driver from the State of Johor.
5) Locked up a Malaysian Customs officer in the dogs kennel for not allowing certain items from Singapore to be brought into Malaysia.
6) Assaulted a hockey coach.
7) Threatened an Indian doctor who treated that hockey coach.
8) The current Sultan also has a very bad reputation when he was the Raja Muda or Regent. There are many examples about his wrong-doings. Would make into a good book.

After all these incidents, the Malaysian Cabinet (Mahathir) was then forced to introduce a Constitutional Amendment that "snipped the feathers" of these monarchs. It sort of demoted them as only able to exercise powers as head of Islam. Unlike Indira Gandhi that completely made the Maharajas "impotent" by taking away their fat salaries, the fat privy purses of Malaysian monarchs and their families remain to this day. Cost the rakyat hundreds of millions of ringgits to maintain these monarchs.

The deceased Sultan of Johore was convicted by Raja Azlan Shah, the Sultan of Perak, who was then the Lord President of Malaya (Chief Justice). He was placed on a 6 months "good-behaviour". Following this he ascended as the King of Malaysia. As a King he rode big motorcycles to the Merdeka Day Parade in KL.

The Sultan of Johor indeed own large tracts of land in Singapore (including the railway land), huge parcel of land at Clementi, Telok Blangah and Bukit Timah..

The deceased Sultan of Johore and the current one, have no inch of respect for the sovereignty of Singapore. The late Sultan use to blatantly fly his helicopter into the Singapore Polo Club grounds WITHOUT any "aerial clearance" from independent Singapore. Waiting for some air disaster to occur.

The deceased Sultan of JB loved gambling on horses at our Bukit Timah Turf Club. He also owned many race horses and was a good friend of the late EW Barker.

Our ministers make annual "pilgrimages" to his Hari Raya Open House, even up to the present time.

The present Sultan of Johore has many a times caused trouble while drunk at our Orchard Road bars.

His "body-guards" have no respect and regard for our local cops. They are an arrogant lot.

They may even be armed with guns.

The current Sultan has been a very reckless driver and would drive his flashy cars when intoxicated.

Are Singapore authorities waiting for a day when some drunk monarch from Malaysia or Brunei kills a few more young boys in one swift strike just like the case of the two innocent ones who recently died in Tamines Street 45.

Why are these people accorded so much respect?

Its possible for them (monarchs and bodyguards) to "smuggle" weapons and drugs into Singapore. Our Immigraion and Customs do NOT check them at all.

UltimaOnline SG

Thank God for the internet, and for YouTube.

The song has been identified to be Within Temptation's "Ice Queen".

Wikipedia :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ice_Queen_(song)

Original Music Video :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qmLIE6ULtyU

With Lyrics :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YbhB_A_8fM

UltimaOnline SG

First of all, communism at its core is simply an ideology that wants everyone to be treated equally and fairly. That they are tortured, persecuted and murdered, speaks of the fear-based nature of those in positions of political power who fear (mostly imagined rather than real) selfishly for their own power, and have no qualms over torturing and murdering (hundreds of thousands) of others to safeguard their own political power.

After decades of repression under the dictatorship of Suharto, who rose to power after a bloody purge of communists and Chinese in the late 1960s, Chinese-Indonesians are now accepted in mainstream society of the largely Muslim nation.

Suharto, who ruled Indonesia with an iron fist for more than three decades until 1998, banned Chinese languages and symbols, and forced Chinese-Indonesians to change their names.

His rule began after an anti-Communist purge in 1965-1966, in which at least 500,000 people considered communists or sympathisers – mostly ethnic Chinese – were tortured and killed. Rights activists say up to two million perished.

http://www.straitstimes.com/breaking-news/se-asia/story/indonesia-islam-leaders-stir-row-over-chinese-new-year-20130210

Summer hill SG

1 more page..

UltimaOnline SG

You gotta love Wikipedia. The World's Knowledge At Your Fingertips.

Wikipedia on Suharto :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suharto

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Featured in Far East Organization's TV advertisement for the Hillsta condominium.

Louise Dowd & Richard Salmon's "Chasing the Sun" :
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Louise+Dowd+%26+Richard+Salmon+-+Chasing+The+Sun

UltimaOnline SG

This loving couple should do a Hilarion Reading. Actually, every couple should do a Hilarion Reading.

http://singaporeseen.stomp.com.sg/stomp/sgseen/editorpick/1602706/love_story_adam_has_one_arm_amputated_another_paralysed.html

Posted on 13 Feb 2013
Love Story: Adam lost one arm, with the other paralysed -- but Ally still stood by him

Adam seemed to have lost everything when he had to have his right arm amputated after an accident, with the other arm left paralysed. However, little did he know that it was a 'blessing in disguise', as it led him to the love of his life, Ally.

Adam shares his love story:

"I was born normal, but a few years ago, I met with a road accident, while on the way to work, that left me with an amputated right arm and paralysed left arm.

"I was just starting my career as a marine engineer, and as someone young, I was devastated with the turn-of-events, as I had everything going for me.

"After I was discharged from the hospital, while undergoing intensive occupational therapy and being confined at home, and with all my friends busy with their new careers and starting families of their own, I turned to online social networking platform, to make new friends and to find someone to correspond with, without having to face the person personally as I was embarrassed with my new abnormal physique.

"That was where I got acquainted with Ms. Ally Kuan Lee Siang.

"I was surprised that she was very open-minded who was willing to accept me as a friend, despite my condition, unlike many who rejected and turned away.

"During our months of exchanging e-mails and messages, I found her to be an understanding, encouraging and a very supportive person.

"She was always there to listen, giving me advice and cheering me-up with her humour.

"Then one day, I was suggested by my doctor to take-up running to improve my stamina and endurance to prepare me for the next operation which will have me on the operating table for very long hours.

"I then told Ally about the doctor’s suggestion, and my fear and shyness of being seen in the public.

"So she suggested that she will accompany me by jogging beside me which again took me by surprised as she had told me before, during our correspondence, that she is a person that dislikes sports especially running and she dislikes perspiring. I took up her offer.

"I was very shy, as it was the first time we saw each other in-person, and the first time I’m exposing myself in the public, but her friendliness and her candidness dispel my shyness.

"The first time that I tried to jog, I felt very awkward with my new physical form.

"The running gait was very weird, I almost tripped a few times but Ally was always there to prevent me from falling, as she held my left paralysed arm firmly.

"Throughout my maiden jog after the accident, she will kept giving me positive words, chatting with me and making me laugh, even though at times she was struggling with catching her own breath and being very uncomfortable with the perspiration trickling down her face, which I know the sole purpose was to distract me from the public stares and to boost my confidence. But it did help me.

"The next two months, she kept knocking on my house door, almost every other day, pulling me out from the bed and couch to jog with her despite her own busy schedule with work and taking care of her family.

"Then one day, she suggested that I participate in the Swissotel Vertical Marathon to help with my confidence of being seen in public as well as to have some fun. And to make sure I participate in the event, she registered and paid the participation fee for me.

"So as not to disappoint her, and also to make sure that I’m able to run-up the 73 storeys, I started to train running up the stairs in my 14-storeys block.

"Again, the first time, I had problems adjusting running-up vertically, and this time, I did had a tripped and I got a very bad cut in mouth and on my nose.

"I was bleeding almost profusely. Again, Ally came to my aid by applying ice packs, antiseptic creams and etc.

"I almost wanted to give-up running altogether after that incident, but with Ally’s encouragements and determination to make sure that I overcome any obstacles that came my way, I was back at the stairs the very next day.

"After a couple month of training, though I know it was insufficient, I was determined to do my best to complete the 73-storeys challenge and do it at a respectable timing, to make Ally and myself proud.

"But to both of our surprise, not only did I manage to complete the run at a good timing, I managed to outrun many able-runners to come in the 76th position out of 297 participants in my category, and being the first disabled participant to compete and complete the challenge.

"Then another surprise came. My achievement was noticed by the Singapore Disability Sports Council and I was invited to train with the National Disabled Track & Field Team.

"I accepted the invitation and train with the team with Ally coming down to watch me train almost every training session.

"After just three short months of training with the team, I was chosen and given the chance to represent the country in competing in an overseas track & field competition.

"I was overjoyed but worried at the same time as I had to find a caregiver to accompany me to assist me with my basic needs for the 10-day trip.

"Without hesitation, Ally volunteered to be my caregiver even though she had already planned on using her work's annual leave for a trip with her friends.

"With her sacrifice and support, I came back to Singapore with a gold and a silver medal for both my track events.

"Due to my success, I was again chosen to represent the country in an even bigger competition, the Commonwealth Games in Delhi.

"I was thrilled and again, just like before, I had worries in finding a caregiver for this trip.

"As Ally had used-up all her work leave, I tried searching for other people to be my caregiver but to no avail.

"Ally tried to request from her employer for unpaid leaves to accompany me but her request was denied. Seeing that I will not be able to participate in one of the biggest sporting event in the world without a caregiver, Ally tendered her resignation to be my caregiver once again.

"I was shocked and touched by her sacrifice and when I asked her why she resigned even though she had worked in that company for a long time, she replied that a new job can always be found but the opportunity of participating in such a big scale event and being chosen to represent the country is once in a lifetime opportunity which must be seized.

"Though I only managed to finish in the sixth position for the Commonwealth Games, she was very proud of my achievement.

"Now, after I have left the National Disabled Track & Field Team, and doing my own runs, participating in local running events such as marathons, ultra-marathons and even recently, participating in triathlon events, to raise the public-awareness about disability sports, and, raising awareness and funds for other good causes and for charities, as well as to inspire people, Ally is always by my side to lend her support, and even at times, join me for runs to help me with my cause.

"Although we had known each other for a few years now, Ally had not only been my friend, but she has been my pillar of strength, and, a source of inspiration, confidence and believe. She is the reason that I'm able to pick myself up after the accident and turn my life around for the better.

"I won't be the person I am today without her.

"We became so close, that three months ago, on November 16 2012, we tied the knot.

"As I have used-up all my savings to pay for my hospital bills, and with still having mountains of outstanding bills to clear, we only had a one-table dinner wedding with family members and a couple of very close friends.

"We exchanged vows and wedding bands which cost less than SGD300 for a pair.

"Even though the wedding was very humbly small, and I only managed to give her a plain ring without any diamond, and don't have any possibility of a honeymoon, Ally told me that she is very contented, and she look forward to continue to care for me and support me for the rest of our lives together.

"Ally, thank you so much for everything that you have done for me. You are more than just my best friend and my wife, you are my everything.

"You are the blessing in disguise that I've been searching for all these while.

"Because of the things that you have done for me during my most difficult period of my life, I'm now 'paying-it-forward' to help those in need and sharing the blessing that I receive from you with others."

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