Alfred's Ramblings

This is more of a follow up from the previous post. This post is done retroactively, eg I change the posting date to time of death.

Recently I attended a wedding dinner. This was held for my brother-in-law at the Paramount Hotel. There was this guy in the crowd that look vaguely familiar. He had the same strange feeling. So we went "Haven't seen you some where before?"

Turns on that both of us were colleagues in AMD, some 10+ years ago. Lets see now he is the bride's mother brother in law. That makes him how many hops? Wife, brother, wife, mother, sister, husband.

Six steps!

This is more of a placeholder for me.

How bereavement affects children How do children learn about death?

As adults, we know that death is universal, inevitable and the end of physical life. But children's understanding of death comes gradually.
Under five years:

* children of this age have little abstract sense of time or distance, so final and forever mean nothing
* dead means less alive
* death is a sleep or a journey
* death and life are interchangeable

http://www.bbc.co.uk/relationships/c...children.shtml

According to latest statistics from the Ministry of Health, Hand Foot and Mouth Disease, HFMD, the number of cases jumped to 1000 in week ending 15 Apr. This is up from 892 in the previous week, giving a total 6315 cases from January.

We are part of that statistic. Both the kids were infected during the Easter weekend on 21 Mar. We never knew they were infected until a week later when my son started having spots on his hands.

Mother is not strong enough to do the cooking. Wifey has volunteered to stand in. After a bit of head scratching and taking a leaf from the outsourcing book. I suggested it might be a better idea if wifey cooks for my mom and the rest of gets catered food.

Are your parents covered by medical insurance? Most Singaporeans are buying personal insurance for work, travel and medical needs. Now for the older generation of Singaporeans, not all of them do.

Talk to anyone about this topic, everyone has a horror story. Well I have mine for nearly a month now. So far so good, if you set your expectations low and give detailed instructions.

1st day of work for the domestic helper. First time in Singapore from Indonesia. Lets see how she turns out.

This year we checked out Swissotel Stamford. The room has a king size bed and throw in a cot, lots of space for the kids.

Ted had a great time switching off and on all the lights in the room. Wifey was freaking out over it. Lots of fun.

Hmm December, holiday season. Went on a holiday. First time in 3 years, went on a holiday. Right here in used to be sunny Singapore.

Previously, I used to book through an agent for my room. Nowadays, the hotels are going direct and you can book rooms throught their website. Even if you got your confirme room through the agent, it is recommended to call the hotel to confirm the booking. Otherwise you might be out of a room when you turn up.

Overall the exprience is great. Recommend it for anyone that can't get away for long periods.

According to Mum in law, Ted started walking on Wed. Staggering a few steps at a time. When no one is watching or when he gets excited, he forgot and let go his hands and totter over.

Athena's birthday is in end of November, so out of the school calendar year. After nearly six months of watching her classmates having birthday celebrations, it would be mean not to let her have her moment in the limelight.

Took Ted to a colleagues' Hari Raya Celebration. Every year, to celebrate the Malay New Year, big do is organised at her house. Her family will invite all the relatives, friends and colleagues over for lunch or dinner. Everyone would pack into her house and tuck in on her mom's cooking.

Happy Birthday Ted!

Ted can wave good bye when you wave at him