Big Incense Container

Has Town Council approved this big incense container to be placed at the loading/unloading lot here? Or has our place here been designated as 'Official Incense Burning Area'? I'm not sure, anyway I have sent an email to the TC today regarding this issue.

Someone placed this big incense container here at the loading/unloading lot at Blk.384 Tampines St.32 yesterday around 3pm+.


Came night time around 10.45pm to 11.15pm, my wife spotted the burnt ashes flying into our house. Luckily my wife spotted it on time and quickly closed all our windows facing there.




Imagine those on the lower floors - how badly they are affected. What about those who are unaware of it and already sleeping with their windows opened? Moreover, the funeral is actually not from this few blocks but at a few blocks away.

Why didn't they place it near to them? That's why I'm wondering has our area become 'Official Incense Burning Area'?

Hope to hear from the Tampines Town Council on this issue.

Note : 4 Mar 2008, TTC replied that they have "taken appropriate action for this incident".

Birds At Work

You find them at food centre or coffee shop. Whenever someone finished their food, they started to flock together and have a go at what you have left over. Shown in the video is the coffee shop at the Bedok Ind Park E.

What's worst will be those that not aware of the birds and left their just bought food on the table and buy drink. When they are back with their drinks, they find their food are being eaten by the birds.

Sometimes this problem started with customers or stall holders feeding the birds. Then later the birds started coming to look for food on the table...

You may find another similar report here on STOMP.

Many Stall Holders Are Shifting Out

Take a look at this Kopitiam food court at Tampines Mart! The Snack stall, Pao stall, Keow Chap stall, Western Food stall, Yong Tau Fu stall, Tonic soup stall are have shifted out of this food court immediately after the Chinese New Year in Feb 2008.

A check with the remaining stall holders why is this happening, most said that it's probably due to the increase in rental. Those choose to stay find it hard to survive or breakeven without passing the rent increase to the consumers. Thus a price increase or quantity reduction is inevitable. Finally the Chicken Rice stall had no choice but to increase 30 cents (now $3.30).

All this started since last year when Kopitiam introduced the Kopitiam card cashless payment method. See my previous post here. The 10% discount given to blue card holders are to be absorbed by the stall holder themselves so stall holder at that time started increasing their prices. Some increased as much as 50cents.

Just a few months later, now with the rent increase - how you expect the stall holders who have increased their prices not too long ago, to increase their pricing again? So many choose to leave...

So what is the real reason for so many stall holders choose to leave? Rent increase or what? I don't know either...What am I left to eat now? The whole food court is much quieter and business have dropped tremendously especially during weekdays lunch time. Even with new stall moving in, the pricing will increase again!

Principal Reply To No Parking Sign In School

Credit : STOMP

The vendor of the delivery vehicle parked at the 'No Parking' zone in the school on Feb 14 and has been identified. A warning had been issued to all vendors to refrain from parking there. The school has also taken steps to ensure traffic safety in its school.

Below is the East Spring Primary School reply on Feb 21 2008;

"We appreciate Mr Yew's feedback and would like to assure him that the school will step up its monitoring of its adherence to the 'No Parking' sign.

"The school has taken steps to enhance traffic safety in the school, and ensure that unauthorised parking incidents do not happen again," said Principal David Teo.

"Waiting areas have also been designated for parents and pupils, who have been requested to remain at these areas during peak traffic hours.

"The school has identified the vendor who contravened the 'No Parking' sign and has issued a warning to them to refrain from doing so in future.

"In addition, the school has reminded the pupils on road safety and specifically told them to be mindful and watchful of vehicles coming into the school compound and to use the designated walkways in the school," he said.

"We will continue to educate our pupils on road safety awareness and give high priority in making the school environment safe for our pupils and their parents.

"We also thank Mr Yew for his concern for the safety and well- being of the school community," said Mr Teo.

The above are in response to my previous post.

Obstacles Full Or Barrier Free Country?

Look at the following articles on Barrier Free access in Singapore;
- S$40 Million Fund For Barrier-Free Access
- DESIGNING FOR BARRIER-FREE ACCESS – AN OVERVIEW
- Accessibility for Seniors: Barrier-Free Society

In the past few years, we have been reading about making our country Barrier Free access as our population is aging. Sounds good and caring too but...just take a look at this Berseh Food Centre located at Jalan Besar.



This food centre is surrounded by 1 main road and 2 side roads. It is difficult to access to the food centre via the side roads as there are cars parked at the side of the roads.



There is a barrier free access at this food centre but there is no signboard pointing users to this side of the food centre to use this access. Unless you are a regular there, you will not know of it until you walk round the food centre.

Below shows the Barrier Free Access;


Everything seems fine until here.

To prevent cyclists and motorcyclists from using the footpath, 'obstacles 1' are placed at one end of the pedestrian crossing at the food centre;


Alongside to obstacle 1, is obstacle 2 shown below;


If building all these 'obstacles' are to deter cyclists and motorcyclists from using the footpath - I guess the authority is penalising the disabled instead of the wrong doers.



I really do not understand why build a barrier free access slope for the disabled at one side, and the other sides - obstacles are placed? I suggest the one who plan for the barrier free access at such public places, please visit the place using wheel chair to see if it's really 'barrier free'!


Photos and Videos taken on : 16 Feb 2008

Burning Incense Outside The Given Bin

Every year on the Ninth day of the Chinese New Year, the Hokkiens will 'Bai Tian Gong' - a day of gratitude for their ancestors’ relive, if I'm not wrong. As such, burning of incense is probably done during midnight on the Eight day of the CNY.

Some people still don't bother to use the incense bin given to them (as shown in the photo) and simply burned them on the floor. When wind started blowing, the burnt or burning ashes will fly into the homes of the flat dwellers nearby.

As usual, I've forgotten when is the actual date of the offering as I'm not a Hokkien and didn't close my windows. There were burnt ashes all over my hall's floor and sofas. Luckily those still burning ashes did not land on my sofas, else my house will be on fire.

- The Town Council and RC could have put up notices at the lift lobby notice board to inform resdients of the date of this burning of incense and advice residents to close their windows especially during the night.
- Those who are burning incense, should do it in the given bins.

Photo taken on : 15 Feb 2008.

No Parking Sign In School

Credits : STOMP





The above photos show the lorry YJ5115X parked at the No Parking site at East Spring Primary School today.

This is not the first time that delivery vehicles are parked in front of the No Parking sign at East Spring Primary School. The purpose of the No Parking sign is to ensure the safety of students as there might be students standing at the stairways or near the railings.

The Operation Manager and Security Guard are told of regarding those drivers that parked their vehicles there. All they did was just to ask them to remove their vehicles. When no one raise the issue of No Parking there, the drivers are left to park there just like the attached photos. The security guard post and the General Office are just near by to this No Parking site and yet no one seems to bother.
Even teachers walking past don't seem to do anything about it.

I wonder how safe are our students in school. Must we wait till accidents occurred before we take precautions? In fact, there was once a delivery truck almost hit a student while reversing to park his vehicle there for unloading and in another instance, one van almost hit another parent who was standing at the railing.

Will the school authority kindly comment and ensure that safety is observed at all times. Are there appropriate Loading and Unloading Bays in school? Why ain't these drivers informed of where to park by the security guards when they enter the school?

That Fish In HDB Lift

For those who have taken the HDB Lift before, you will be familiar with that 'Fish Signature' or rather the signature that resembles that of a fish shape on the lift Certificate Of Maintenance;


Surprisingly I'm still able to find this Certificate Of Maintenance with the 'Fish Signature' on it at Sengkang MSCP (the one besides the Chinese Temple). I wonder whose signature is that?

In the past, HDB issued this Certificates of Maintenance to the respective Town Councils for display in the HDB lifts. Since Apr 2005, under the Building Maintenance and Strata Management (Lift And Building Maintenance) Regulations 2005, the Certificate of Maintenance is no longer required to be displayed in lift. So we are seeing less and less of this 'Fish Signature'.

With the new regulation, Town Council display other information related to the lift and its maintenance;


Read here for more detail on Certificate Of Maintenance.

Ape Is Better Off In Singapore

Credit : Singapore Press Holdings, MediaCorps Press.

I wonder the day I die, will there be 400 people sending me off, not to mention 4000 people? Ah Meng, an ape in the Singapore Zoo, for a very long time died on 8 Feb 2008 (second day of Chinese New Year) morning. She was 48 years (human age about 95 years old) and died of old age. Her children and grandchildren are still with the Singapore Zoo.