I attempt a haiku as a response to each site that I have visited on this tiny island.

1. Aquarium on Sentosa Island

Flitting past humans Helmets glow and dance. No sun. Life beneath the waves

2. Mandai Zoo

Endless screams and shrieks Long arms – furry – swing past trees Orange men with tails

It might be good to go back and visit my friends – some of whom have become family – and see how they are doing.

1. Chr****** (Cathedral) is working with NICS (Network of Christian Schools) to benefit refugees, and youths in Africa.
2. T** (barista) is pulling shots at Kurasu Coffee (the Orchard outlet) and feels sad that he has no choice but to go for two more cycles of serving in the Armed Forces.

Over a time-period of approximately ten months – from 18th September 2023 A.D., to 14th July, 2024 A.D – I experienced an encounter with people from my past. I think of it as a milestone in my journey thus far.

I list those people in no particular order:

1. Crystal, Nan Hua Media And Debating (MAD) Club, 2004
2. Goh Shi Bin, Nan Hua, 2005
3. Yu Ting, NJC Harmonica Band, 2007
4. Hwee Hwee, NJC Harmonica Band, 2008
5. Tay Yi, 35SCE, 2009
6. Yong Rui Xuan, NUS SoC, 2011
7. David Bensadon, entrepreneur (in the field of domestic helpers), 2015

I made some new friends in this period too.

1. performed on a Shigeru Kawai grand piano. (Music: “Forbidden Love” by S.E.N.S., the theme music of a Japanese television drama “Nisen-nen no Koi”, or “Love 2000”). 8 December 2021, approximately. Location: No. 176, Orchard Road.
2. performed on a Bechstein grand piano, and an Bechstein upright. (Tchaikovsky's Nocturne, Op. 19, No. 4). 14 November 2023. Location: Block 3014, Bedok Industrial Park E.
3. performed inside a ballroom of a hotel,

Brick-and-mortar book-shops have been closing down, one after another.

I'm trying to contribute where I can, in as appropriate a manner as possible, with what little strength that remains in these frail arms.

I attended a screening of a documentary, at a nearby cinema.

It was about how humans manage – or fail to manage – industrial waste, and consumer waste. There were a lot of statistics in the documentary.

It ended on an carefully curated optimistic note:

In other words, what do I want to work on, moving forward?

1. Apply for a subsidy in renting a public house. (here be formidable bureaucratic dragons). c.f.: Mei Ying.
2. Toil away at a higher-salary job so that I can afford a more expensive house. (But why would I want a more expensive house, in the first place?). Become a piano-teacher, maybe? Or, a software-salesman? CRM, ERP?

Interactions with the world of theatre in Singapore.

1. Signed up for a course of study, at National University of Singapore. “GEK1055: The Theatre Experience”. (2014). Conducted by Paul Alexander Rae.
2. watched a play. “The House of Bernarda Alba.” (Produced by Wild Rice). 2014. Location: Drama Centre, National Library Board Building.
3. Acted in a short film, with Wong Souk Yee, and Jason Soo. 2014.
4. Watched a play. “The Skriker”. November 2017. Location: McNally Street, LaSalle College of the Arts.
5. Experienced Recess Time, by The Theatre Practice. 2019. Location: 58 Waterloo Street, Singapore.
6. Watched a recording of an opera. “Faust”. (Produced by Royal Opera House in the United Kingdom). 2019

This list is not exhaustive.

Kitchen Staff

1. Qian Ling, full-time

Please let me ask – who, indeed, exerts control over this planet? Are the following people in control?

1. Luis Rubiales, former President of the Spanish football federation. (“Luis Rubiales, Former Spanish Soccer Chief, Faces Arrest”. In The New York Times. 21 March 2024. And: “Luis Rubiales quits in wake of World Cup kiss scandal”. In The Guardian. 10th September 2023).