We Were Young, Once ..... 我们也曾年轻过。。。。。

This post was published in the Sam tet Old Boys Class of 1978 Blog. You can view other posts at http://stoba1978.blogspot.com or follow the link at my Blog List

Shoe boxes are great to me because I store my old pictures, photos and memorabilia in them. I still have my old Scout proficiency badges in one of the boxes, for example.... I look at them a few times a year and not surprisingly my mind wonders back to when the photos were taken, what could have been if I had done certain things differently.....

Where are your shoe boxes? Have you looked into their contents lately? If you have some treasures I would like you to share them with us!

It was a "popular" thing for us school kids to keep a passport size photo of class mates. We used to exchange photos during Forms 3 and 5. Do you remember that practice? What is interesting to me are also the words written behind the photos by these individuals. Some were meaningful. Some were said when we were young. From left to right in the uploaded shot above I detail their comments as follows:-

KC Mak - It says " Bye, goodbye, bye-bye.....I just want to said good bye....."

KC Mak again - A little funkier. The words written on the photo were $500,000 WANTED!

Ng Chun Mun - 一路顺风

Chin Yong Yong - 身心愉快 Yong2 头1975-5-9 (That is some 33 years ago)

This other pic was of me riding a bike just outside our former Ipoh house..... Biking was popular, remember? We used to ride a bike to school, and for school activities. The more well-to-do rode "cub jai" .....

In this photo I can see Weng Wah, Chen Kim Wah, Khoo Tuck Ming, Chun Mun, Yuet Fai, Tong Leong, Siew Fook Kheong, Seng Kian and Ah Hor.

This is my Standard 6 photo. Not sure. Maybe Remove Class?

Scouting Activity @ Lord Baden Powell camp. I can see Philip Lip and Yee Chut Ngeow in this picture

Two Other Restaurants We Went To

We went to Tan Lac Vien in Springvale on 9 Jan for lunch because Yik recommended we try their Crab Noodle 螃蟹生面 which they are famous for. Unfortunately they did not have live mud crabs when we were there due to the new year shortage of supply. They did have fresh lobster and so we ordered 1 pound of lobster and 2 noodles for a total of $46. Then the waiter came back to us saying the cook's instruction was that the minimum order was 1kg of lobster. I felt that was too excessive a meal for us. Last Saturday we went to Victoria Market because we wanted to get some fish and it turned out the salmon and rockling fillets we bought were not quite fresh and we put it down to the lack of seafood supply to the retailers during the new year season. Next time we will be careful.

In the end we ordered Vietnamese Broken Rice and Cambodian Noodle instead. Damn. We have to come for crab noodle another day!

I can't remember which day it was but SM and I went to Carlton Lygon St for a meal. We dropped into Notturno for a pizza and a spaghetti carbonara. We didn't know the scene well and so we chose a restaurant that had plenty of patrons. Turned out it was not too bad. The prices were very reasonable, service was great and the food satisfying. Promised we would come by again some time.

祝父亲生日快乐 Dad's Birthday Party

香格里拉 Shangri-La Inn

生虾面 Long-life Noodles With Prawns

Steamed Teow Chew Style Garupa/Snapper

Slow-cooked Ham Hock/ Pig Trotters (Special Order)

Spicy/Salty Flounder

Chicken Cold Dish

Black Pepper Steak

Special Tofu

The Ubiquitous Black Forest Cake

Tonight we held a dinner to celebrate dad's 83rd birthday @ Shangri La Inn, Vermont. His birthday falls on 14 Jan. The Shangri-La Inn Restaurant setting was conservative suburban fare with lots of Chinese water paintings on the walls and fairly plain decor otherwise. There were a few tables occupied by Aussie patrons when we sat down two joined large tables for some pre-dinner drinks. We had two large tables accommodating 15 of us. Lee ordered prawns with long-live noodles, steamed garupa/ snapper Teow Chew style, chicken cold dish, ham hock/pig trotters, spicy/salty flounder (which was not ordered but compliment of the restaurant), black pepper steak, kankong, and tofu. There were plenty of food to go around the tables and everyone had had too much to eat.....

The Funny Guy, Kevin, Fooling Around

Kevin And I Comparing Notes

Sin brought a bottle of Bailey's which was well received. It lubricated us pre- dinner. Jack and Mai brought a bottle of red Penfolds Bin 138 to quench our thirst.....

All too soon we finished our meal and were chitchatting away. Sis was as usual, maximizing her time spent on whowering her love for Baby Riana. Sis and Lee brought a large black forest cake earlier and dad cut the cake for all of us. And he gave each and every one a red packet. We knew he was very happy that we gathered to honor him and to share with him his special occasion .....

The bill came to $447 and we all shared in the happy occasion of buying the dinner for dad. Sin and Mom were impressed by the food quality and asked the restaurant to provide a quote for a list of dishes they drafted out for CNY dinner..... However some of us thought that some of the dishes were not so fantastic. Let's see.

香格里拉Shangri-La Inn Malaysian & Chinese Restaurant
(03) 9877 6298
37-39 Brentford Square
Cnr Canterbury & Stevens Rds
Vermont VIC 3133

Happy Birthday, Dad

14th Jan is my Father's birthday. There is a family dinner organized for tonight to celebrate his 83rd birthday and we are all looking forward to it.

SM and I went out to The Glen to look for a present for my dad. I thought a mobile phone will be a good one for him as the one he uses now is maybe 2 - 3 years old and he had already had the phone cover replaced twice.

Since dad only uses the mobile as a phone and nothing else we bought him a simple Nokia 1650. It's no frill, and has FM radio, speakerphone, and polyphonic ring tones. That's all he needs, really. He does not need push email, GPS, camera, internet. Dad finds the mobile indispensable nowadays. We are both on the Vodafone network and we call each other for 25c per call. That is handy and effective. Also the phone gives him a peace of mind in case of emergencies he can reach 000 and us.

I think that's what phones should be; just a phone. But one day I might change my mind and think that all these functions are effective and great. With the exception that when I had the Blackberry I found the email facility extremely useful as I do not have to turn the computer on to reply emails. I would still want push email on a mobile.



Cheap phone, but it's still a phone. Dad is used to Nokia and so I hope there is minimal cross over of learning to use the new phone.

I am sure he will like it. It has a nice black color, too.....

My Space Is Calm

My Space

Taking A Break

My Paraphernalia

My Favorite Books - Many Of Them Given Away Or Sold

I like my space organized and uncluttered. It's clean. Books are stacked well categorized on shelves; aviation, travel guides, travel writing, fiction, biographies, and home decor & design. Nowadays I prefer to read travel writing books. I am reading "Slow Journey South" By Paula Contact depicting her walk through Africa. I am also reading "Say When" by Catherine Deveny. SM has shelves full of her cook books and recipes; and hard core stuff such as dictionaries, thesauruses, and health, medical books.

I'd say my space is calm. And I like it quiet so I can concentrate. Every studio has a particular atmosphere and as for me, it is one for work as well as pleasure. Every now and then I would get up, take a walk and have a snack or a coffee. The Studio looks out to my front garden. I can see the lawn, the roses, the camellia plants, and the huge tree. Peaceful.

You can tell what sort of person is by the sort of objects they have around their desk and studio. I collect things that are related to my passion; airplane models, airplane posters, " I'd rather be flying" iron on, key chains, pins and the like. I also have many momentos from work:- business card holders, clocks and even a mobile phone holder.

I am the kind of person who wants things I like around me. I think I like holding on to stuff. It makes me happy and feel good.

The energy in my studio changes depending on what I am working on. When I am researching for information the energy is lethargic. When I am putting my thoughts to paper ( ie the computer) it's high energy.

2009 Travel Plans

2009 seems to be a good year to travel with the world jet fuel prices being so low and airlines are giving incentives to lure passengers back to their folds such as reducing or eliminating completely their surcharges. And that is their con job to begin with, of being able to legitimately charge passengers for traveling with them.

Budget airlines such as Air Asia, Jetstar and Tiger are giving seats away if you can catch on to their promotions at the right timing. I have done my sums and my conclusion is that if one spends 2 nights or more in a hotel in Asia the cost of accommodation will cost more than these inter-Asian airline return tickets! It goes without saying that if one can find free accommodation in Asia then air travel within Asia is CHEAP! So budget airlines, KEEP ROCKING!

My Favorite Budget Airline Air Asia

The only setback is that AUD is at an all time low compared to Euros, USD, Sterling, and all the major Asian currencies. This phenomenon will stir up more domestic travels within Oz but do not promote travels to international destinations by Aussies.

We are booked on our trip to Asia in Feb and March. We will spend most of our time in KL, and then make short hops to Ipoh, Penang, Singapore and Bangkok. One of my goals is to catch up with former class mates and former work mates in these places. Then I am off for an Outback Tour to the Kimberley and Broome in May and June (see Stawell Aviation). And if I have money I hope to do another Outback Tour to Cape York (Northern territory) via the Australian East Coast in June 2010.

Flying Cessna C182 To The Outback

Bungle Bungle

Ord River

Camerons Corner

Gulf Coastline

First Day Of 2009

Melbourne Welcomes 2009

Jan 1 2009. First day of a New Year.

We had a NYE family dinner at Pat's. Being a pot luck party all of us brought cooked food and it was a great time of sharing and eating together as a family and to usher in the New Year.

Mom, dad and Sin brought chili prawns and VB (Aussie beer).

Lee & Sis brought dry chicken curry, home made pandan ice cream (yummy) and almond/cherry jelly.

David & Pat cooked nasi lemak, Teow Chew style tofu, boiled eggs, and the all time favorite chicken liver. They provided soft drinks, nuts and red wine.

Jack and Mai brought kangkong belacan.

Victor and Katrina brought a beautifully rich Lasagna.

And SM cooked fried ikan bilis with peanuts and seaweed for those who do not eat spicy foods, traditional chili ikan bilis and she baked a wonderful strawberry cream swiss roll. We also contributed Guinness Extra Stout mixed with Pure Blonde beer - Malaysian style! Once a Malaysian always a Malaysian. A wonderful drink to start before the dinner.

Food is always big in our family (and I suspects in all families) and during occasions like this everybody just tuck in heartily and there is always plenty of food to go around and for take away. If not for the ample amount of foods laid out on the table we would have finished them all.....

The Big Feast

Dish Of The Night: Chicken Curry

Another Favorite Dish: Chili Prawns

Nasi Lemak Will Not Be So Named Without Ikan Bilis

In no time everybody had seconds and more. There were conversations around the table and in the open plan lounge and we were all happy to share the company. The kids always found something to do; played video games, mucking around, and joining in with the adults sometimes when they felt like it.

The Patriarch, Great Grandpa

The Matriarch, Great Grandma

Tucking In

Baby Riana, Mom and Grandma
The Newly Wed

The Beginning Of The Family Tree

The Kids

The " You're Not My Mom " Funny Guy (See Video)

Sis Irene as usual spent a lot of time with granddaughter baby Riana enjoying her and basking in her presence; happy and thrilled to be a grandma. In respect of traditions, we opened business with a game of Black Jack and I was as usual the banker and dealer. Luck was on my side and I won $20+ collecting wins around the table.

Bad Habits Die Hard

The Hand Of The Night

A Freak Hand: Banker had 18, And 4 Other Bets On The Table Were 18 Even. All of them by nephew, Jack.

Soon the New Year count down was in progress on the telly and we welcome in the new year..... 2009 is going to be tough for every body and I hoped our family and other working families ride through this difficult period without too much blood on the floor. My thoughts also went out to friends who are in Australia, Malaysia and other parts of the world, wishing them a peaceful year ahead, and that they enjoy the moment .....

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2009!!

New Year Count Down # 1




Family # 1




Family # 2
(More videos on You Tube "Chen Family NYE Dinner")