SimonSimple

Hi People

This morning a young 2LT pulled rank on me and I had to trudge up the hill to give a talk on work-life integration to some army people - well, nearly (some kind soul gave me a ride up the hill). I made a choice to let my son have the family car as he had to go to Mandai and I, to Gombak, which is just a few bus stops away from our home.

I made the conscious choice willingly. In fact, my wife and I have decided that we should take the public transport as far as possible (no pun intended!). Just the other day we took a bus ride from home to VivoCity and back. My wife commented how great it is to be able to really enjoy the sights during the bus ride. We had a simple lunch at the Seah Im Road bus terminal. Then walking through the Harbour Front shopping arcade on the way to a movie show I had the chance to pick up a wallet for myself.

In the afternoon I made my way back to Bukit Batok for my scheduled medical check-up at the polyclinic. They did a blood test for my diabetes condition, took my blood pressure and did the ECG routine and I saw the attending doctor. The verdict? I am in great shape - both physically (I was given a clean bill of health) and financially (the bill came up to $28 only, a fraction of what I used to pay at the hospital checkups).

Banks are in bad shape, the economy is in bad shape. Many people are in bad shape - physically, medically and financially. I believe the simple life is the answer to many of our troubles. As an illustration: I used to drive to the hospital for my medical checkup in Thomson Road. Now I can literally take a 10-minute walk to my neighbourhood polyclinic.

I reckon it is a wise strategy to keep physically and financially fit and help save the environment by taking public transport as much as one can and so-called ‘down grading’ in terms of getting medical treatment and services. Believe you me, air-conditioned buses in Singapore is quite a smooth ride and the people at the polyclinic are as pleasant and helpful as you can get.

The above is a simple idea. If you act on it early, the changes can be very powerful. The problem is not whether the idea really works, for it has worked wonders in my case. The problem is not acting on the simple idea. Again, make the right choice. It is up to you.

Hi People

We just suffered a shock. My dear wife just shared our ordeal with our daughter in her email. Here is an extract:

“TOM and I are so busy with our TOUCH and Focus assignments that the weeks just go flying by. Seems like only yesterday that I bathed Elvis and he is due for another already. Had a really bad fright after his morning walk today. Was waiting for the lift when he went into one and the door closed before we could get in. I panicked as the leash was outside - which means if the lift is moving up he would likely be hung by it. Good thing TOM realised that the lifts normally open either one and not both at the same time. He got me to quickly go into the other one to press a floor so that it would close and allow the one with Elvis to open. It was lucky no one was activating the lift with Elvis inside during this ordeal.. Phew! must always remember to put him on a short leash and not allow him to enter the lift first. It really was a close call.”

Not only is this a close call, it is a wake up call to cherish your loved ones when they are still around you. Don’t do the wail and bawl at their funerals.

NB: For the uninitiated, TOM is aka The Old Man, namely Yours Truly and Elvis is our four year-old, four-legged “son”.