Nostalgia vs reality

Early this year, I was very excited when I discovered a new channel on Starhub cable - Hits. It's a channel dedicated to all the oldies. I was thrilled that I would get to relive my childhood with shows like The Golden Girls, Seinfeld, Diff'rent Strokes and so on. These are the tv shows I grew up with and have very fond memories of.

I should have known I was setting myself up because many of the shows simply didn't live up to what I remembered. I told Andre to watch The A Team, telling him it was action-packed and very entertaining. We watched the first episode together, sitting through a whole lot of lame jokes and a very simplistic plot. When it ended, Andre said diplomatically, "it's ok" but I'm sure in his mind, he must have been thinking, "My parents are weird". Kenneth admitted to me later, "It was quite boring. I can't believe I used to wait eagerly for this show on tv!" I also watched a rerun of Star Trek: The Next Generation and oh my goodness, some of the scenes and costumes were so cheesy that they were almost painful to watch. Part of me hopes Starhub never shows reruns of Happy Days because I don't think I can take another discordant fissure in my memory bank.

Oh, remember ET? It was my absolute favourite movie growing up. I had watched it on a bad videocassette tape (remember those??) seven times and thought it was brilliant. Then decades later, I watched it again and despite willing myself to love it, I almost fell asleep - it was sooooo slow-moving. Nothing like a dose of reality to shatter all your rose-coloured dreams.

It's a reminder of how much more we've come to expect of entertainment. Everything must be super fast-paced, with complex twists and turns. Dialogue should be snappy, comedy over-the-top funny and characters with more dimension than the Twilight Zone.

It's the same with food. In my teenage and university years, coffeehouses were the luxury places we could go to for a meal. My father worked at Sea View Hotel and I looked forward to the times when I could eat at the coffeehouse and enjoy the absolutely marvelous oxtail stew made by Hainanese chefs. I measured all other oxtail stews by that one (and of course all others fell short).

Couldn't resist the temptation to dig up old photos! Unfortunately, I don't seem to have a single one of Sea View Hotel, but I found this one in front of Yaohan, which was next to Sea View. That's me on the left with my sister.

Right up to my working days, two of the coffeehouses I went to quite regularly was Jack's Place and Han's. The value of their set meals couldn't be beat and those were the popular eateries for people of my generation (still are, I believe).

Our last time at Jack's Place was last year, when we brought the kids there for lunch. It was then that we all realised the food wasn't very appetising. The soup, supposedly cream of chicken, was so thickened with starch it was almost blobby and tasted exactly the way it looked (we called it Cream of Starch). The dessert was a few pieces of fruit cocktail suspended in a synthetic jelly. The steak was rubbery. Does anyone else find it odd that a western-style steak can come with a side of cabbage? One of us had the chicken that came in a strange lychee-flavoured sauce. Only the coffee was still good (I have a special place in my heart for thick, local kopi).

Han's was even worse. The fish and chips were soggy and sad. My kids hated it and we only went once. Cheap...but not good. (PS This is our opinion only. If you're a Jack's Place or Han's fan, no need to send me protest notes explaining why I'm wrong, haha.)

And I kept thinking: gosh, I used to like the food here!?

The reason is simple: It's not that the food at these places has gotten worse. It's that we've come to expect more. In the past, we had fewer choices. These days, food variety in Singapore has expanded so much that we've grown accustomed to better quality and sophistication. And it's not like we have to pay more either, compared to Jack's Place and the likes. If you bother to explore and do some research, you can get good eats at great prices, especially for lunch.

Many restaurants now offer value-for-money lunch sets, like Astons or New Zealand Bar and Grill, one of our favourite hangouts. You can get a set meal starting from as low as $10. Very hearty portions and all very well done. My kids and even my mother-in-law, who's picky about food, love it there.

The truth is, whether we like it or not, we evolve over time. We change and our yardsticks change. We practically demand better food as customers, even without realising it. As a result, some things that we liked in the past, sadly remain good only in our memories, which can be fickle and unreliable when tempered with emotion. In other words, the good old days are not necessarily all that golden. We just choose to remember them that way.

Nostalgia is comforting and helps us embrace our past (funny how just looking at a photo with a sepia tone automatically injects an "aaah" feel-good factor). But nostalgia can also be an insidious tool, choosing to filter memories through soft focus lens to suit our frame of mind - whether it is to mourn a time lost or people who have passed us by. In fact, this perception can be so entrenched that having it dislodged may cause discomfort, even distress. In a way, I'm glad the Sea View Hotel oxtail stew is no longer around. It can stay on the pedestal in my mind forever.

What's my point, if any? Well, it's nice to reminisce every now and then. But dwelling on the past and thinking that nothing will ever be as good as it was, is simply our memory playing tricks on us. Some people like to lament, "Things are not like they used to be!" True. But they were not necessarily better.

Some things have stood the test of time. Like The Cosby Show and Little House on the Prairie. Still terrific after all these years. And Jack's Place's coffee. Others haven't fared so well. I don't think we'll really enjoy living in the past as much as we think we will, knowing what we know now. Some things in the present are actually improvements from the past. So putting nostalgia aside, enjoying the present is still the most productive way to live, afterall. 

Those Miserables adults

When Les Miserables was finally released as PG-13, we brought the whole family to catch it at the cinema. Les Miz has long been Kenneth's and my favourite musical since we enjoyed it on West End many years ago.

The movie didn't disappoint (except for Russell Crowe who was like a wooden American Idol contestant trying not to get his notes wrong).  As for Anne Hathaway, gosh. She really lived up to the hype. That voice, those eyes and the gut-wrenching emotion - totally deserves her Oscar.

Anyway, I emerged from the movie theatre, red-eyed and heart-wrung.  A few days later, my friend Lilian asked me at which parts my kids cried cos her teenage son Brian remained stoic while she wept throughout. Upon questioning my kids, I was absolutely floored when both of them replied they didn't shed a single tear! Lesley-Anne said she felt touched at many parts but not enough to cry.  In fact, Andre looked at me astonished and said, "hah? you mean you actually cried?"

Not weep even for poor Fantine? Thou art heartless souls!

I was grumbling about how emotionless my kids were to another friend when she offered an alternative explanation - kids tend to be less moved by movies/books because they have had limited life experience and therefore can less identify with human situations, especially adult ones.  She recalled how when she was young, her mum would sob uncontrollably over some tv drama while she and her brother would cringe as they passed her a box of tissue.  Now, my friend's the one who blubbers in front of the tv!

Orrnnhhhh.  It makes sense. I remember in my first job, there was only one married-with-kids colleague in my department.  Ever so often, she would bring up some news article of kids being killed in accidents or dying of illnesses with horror and tears in her eyes while the rest of us would look nonplussed and think, "yeah, it's sad but so are lots of other tragedies in the world."

It's only when I became a parent myself that I fully understood the extent of her feelings.  In other words, when adults watch Les Miz, we absorb the full emotional onslaught in relation to our knowledge and experience of life, whereas for our kids, it's probably just another sad story of emo, dysfunctional adults who can burst into song at perfect pitch even when they're dying.

So my kids are not heartless afterall. Phew.

Top Gear

As my family knows, I have zero interest in cars. Once, a friend picked me up in her new car for lunch. Later, I mention this to Kenneth and he asked, "What model is it?"

Me: "Err..."

Kenneth: "Brand? What did the logo look like? Do you at least know if it's a Japanese or continental car?"

Me: "..."

Kenneth (underwhelmed by my powers of observation): "Big? Small?"

Me (in a desperate attempt to sound intelligent): "Oh, oh, I know the colour - it's silver!" (Pause) "Or beige."

It would therefore surprise you to know that lately, our favourite family tv show is a car show. This is even more unfathomable considering there's only one real driver in our household. Among the other three,

• one can't drive (Andre)
• one really hates to drive (me)
• and one has no desire to drive (Lesley-Anne)

And yet we all clamour in front of the telly to catch this hour-long motor show. It's called Top Gear and we love it because of its dry Brit wit. To give you an example, when one of the hosts Jeremy Clarkson was reviewing a car, he said, "There's space in the back for two children. And room in the boot for two more. A real family saloon."

In another episode, he was listing the features of a new car model and when asked if it was green, the camera zoomed into a close-up shot of the car with a dramatic voice-over: "No. It is red."

As you would expect, I don't watch the show for its cars - I watch it because it is possibly one of the funniest comedies on tv today. Each episode typically features a challenge of sorts - either a race or a competition to build some sort of car. This inevitably leads to some wacky concoction or accident, with hilarious results.

The show has become such a big hit that the hosts now practically get away with murder... literally. In some episodes, they annihilate quite a few cars. The challenges have also  become more outrageous, anything from constructing their own stretch limos and motor homes to racing against a fighter jet.

So if you're bored and looking for something to watch, you might like to tune in to this car show on BBC Knowledge. You don't even need to be a car enthusiast to enjoy it.

Here's an excerpt of an episode where the hosts had to transform cars into boats and sail them across a lake.

Teaching that inspires

Before the school holidays ended, we made time for a family movie night. The chosen flick was Mr Holland's Opus. Set from 1965-1995, it's about Glenn Holland, a professional musician who starts teaching music at a local high school thinking it would give him time to compose his own music.

Initially, he is unable to make any inroads in teaching but over time, grows to become an adept teacher. The story also outlines his struggles coming to terms with having a deaf son. After 30 years of teaching, the music programme at the school is cancelled, putting Mr Holland out of a job and leaving him wondering if he had wasted his life.

There are several reasons why I love this movie. One, Mr Holland, played by Richard Dreyfuss, is portrayed as not your typical, idealistic individual but a very real, down to earth teacher with human failings that anyone can identify with.

Second, I like that Mr Holland is a music teacher. Just like in Singapore, music and other "soft" subjects are considered non essential in the US and this comes through in the movie. I love this quote towards the end of the movie, when the Vice-Principal broke the news to Mr Holland that the music programme was being canned:

VP: I care about these kids just as much as you do. And if I'm forced to choose between Mozart and reading and writing and long division, I choose long division.

Mr Holland: Well, I guess you can cut the arts as much as you want, Gene. Sooner or later, these kids aren't going to have anything to read or write about.

It's inspiring without being saccharine and overly dramatic, like many American attempt-to-feel-good movies.

Maybe I love it so much because it has so many parallels in real life. When Mr Holland started out as a teacher, it was simply out of necessity and he left the kids cold. It was only when he grew to love teaching and his students that he touched so many of them.

I've discovered that the best teachers are often not the ones who know the best methods. Andre has had teachers who no doubt, know how to teach. But some of them have completely turned him off lessons because they teach with the impersonal indifference of someone merely executing a task.

Kids are very perceptive. They know who are the teachers who care and who are the ones who don't give a damn. (Andre's friend had a math teacher who openly declared to the class after a frustrating session, "I don't care if you understand this, I still get paid.")

That's why I'm totally against those who go into teaching purely to chase a career path. Teaching is a calling, much like nursing. If you're annoyed by kids, you'll quickly find them a burden in your life and these kids will be left uninspired and unimpressed.

Schools may be surprised to know this but it's also not about how strict the teachers are. I've consistently found that the best-loved teachers, some of whom are the fiercest human beings around, are the ones who have a heart for the kids and truly want the kids to do well. The ones who love the kids they teach will find ways to motivate them to do better. The ones who don't, well, even with the best techniques, will leave the children disinterested. It's time we realise that learning is less about methods and more about attitudes.

This year, both Lesley-Anne and Andre have been assigned excellent teachers, for which I'm deeply thankful. In fact, when Lesley-Anne heard the names of Andre's teachers, she went, "wah, strike lottery!"

Indeed, getting good teachers is like striking lottery, since every school, no matter how good, will have its fair share of good and not-so-good teachers. I can think of few things in our children's school life as important as the quality of teachers. It is infinitely more important than the brand of the school or the range of its facilities.

So, back to Mr Holland's Opus. Do watch it, if you haven't already, for a dose of heart-warming inspiration. If I were the NIE, I would make all teachers-to-be watch this movie. In the end, it's not the grand gestures of teachers, just everyday little ones, that make a lasting impression.

"What the teacher is, is more important than what he teaches." ~Karl Menninger

American Idol-ism

In case you're wondering if the title of this post is a metaphor for something, sorry, it's not. This post has nothing to do with kids or education. It really has to do with American Idol.

Two reasons: 1) I have nothing to say about on kids or education this week 2) I'm a big fan of American Idol. Linked to reason no.2 is that I have a lot of opinions about this season (every season actually) and if you know me by now, you will know I cannot keep these opinions to myself.

I don't have a clear favourite yet - I think this is one of those seasons where my preference will change as it progresses. Part of the reason for this is that there are so many great singers this season. I believe this is the best lineup they've had for a long time and I credit the new judges for this (although they've been way too nice and unconstructive since the contestants hit the big stage). In the past, I've felt that Simon strong armed his way to get certain contestants who he feel are "marketable" and that often means young and blonde, voice was secondary (*ahem Kellie Pickler*). With JLo and Steve Tyler, it's quite clear they picked based on vocal ability so kudos to them.

At the moment, my bugbear is how everyone seems to be fawning over Pia. I disliked this girl the moment she massacred "I'll Stand By You" last week. The song is a tender message from one to another, declaring she'll stand by her friend/loved one. The way Pia screeched it, the friend would have completely drowned in Pia's pool of self-absorption. Apart from the original singer Chrissie Hyndes, Carrie Underwood nailed it as an example of how the song should be sung.



And then this week, Pia did it again. Wrung all the emotion out of that Celine Dion song by shrieking it to high heaven. Man, she's annoying. Almost as annoying as Lauren calling Ryan Seacrest "Peaches". In one of the earlier seasons, Latoya London sang the heck out of "All By Myself". Also a diva with a big voice but with all the emotion.



For now, I like Casey, Paul (not so much this week) and James. What they have in common is they all have big personalities and they seem very comfortable in their own skins. We'll see what happens along the way.

And just for fun, Lilian and I had such a laugh matching the contestants, some of whom didn't make the top 13, to their look-a-likes. Ashthon = Beyonce, Casey = Will Ferrell, Jacob = Bubba (from Forrest Gump), Scotty = Alfred E. Neuman (from Mad Magazine), Stefano = Joey Tribiani (from Friends), Brett = Simply Red guy, Robbie = Adrien Brody, Jaycee = Fat Bieber. Who knew there were so many lost relations!

Who out there watches the show too? Share your favourites and dislikes with me!

Toy Story

Last weekend, we caught Toy Story 3 at Iluma. I think the whole Toy Story franchise is just fantastic - the concept is so innovative and something all kids can relate to. I'm sure many kids at some point feel that their toys are like real companions, to see them actually come alive on the screen is really a kick to the imagination.

Toy Story has a very special place in our hearts because my kids watched it growing up. Toy Story 3 is especially poignant, it deals with issues of growing up and the emotions faced by all the different parties - Andy, his mum and the toys - in its characteristically heart-warming and touching way.

By the time Andre was 2 years old, he was already very taken by Toy Story 1 and watched it repeatedly on LD (yes, the now defunct format).

That Christmas, I ordered a Woody toy from ebay for him. When he opened the wrapper, his expression was priceless. He didn't whoop with joy, he just stood there staring silently at Woody in wonder, like he couldn't quite believe his eyes. This pic on the right pretty much captures it (sorry for bad photo, all the old photos are scanned from prints). At that age, Andre still wasn't talking much so his face said everything.

The rest of the day, I caught Andre carefully placing Woody in various positions and just staring at him. That night, he went to sleep with Woody lying next to him in the cot bed.

Seeing how enamoured Andre was with Woody, I eventually bought him a Buzz Lightyear too, but Woody remained his favourite, much like with Andy in Toy Story. In fact, after many rotations, Woody still sleeps in Andre's bed today.

Spoiler alert!! Towards the end of the movie, Andy parted with Woody and the rest of his toys because he realised that toys are meant to be played with. I understood this logically but I felt a pang in my heart because if it were me, I would never give up my long-time cherished toy. Of course it helps that I know my toys don't really come alive and have emotions to boot, LOL.

I probably have to explain that my kids, especially Lesley-Anne, are soft toy hoarders. Throughout their growing up years, they've grown attachments to lots of them. When Lesley-Anne was younger, she used to bring a soft toy with her everywhere she went. As a result, some of them have great sentimental value.

During the week, Lesley-Anne started digging up her old toys. Here were some of her favourites growing up. Right: the orange bear that she received for her first Christmas (which I thought was a hippo). In fact, this toy triggered the first word she ever uttered - not "mama" or "papa" but "bear".

This one on the left is not technically a stuffed toy - it's a bear haversack given to her by her grandpa. She brought it on every single holiday and it doubled up as a cuddly reminder of home at night.

On the left below is a giant sized Elmo which she had lots of fun with because it was larger than she was! On the right are Po and Lala, her beloved toys when she was going through the Teletubbies phase. Lala was a gift all the way from London, before it was available in Singapore.









And here are the toys again, not looking much worse from sitting in the toy box, reunited with their owner.

Starfighters and calamari commanders

I previously wrote about the Star Wars phase Andre is in. Well, somebody must have been praying very hard because one day, out of the blue, my cousin Benjamin popped by with one heck of a fantabulous present for him:

WOW!!! Colour me impressed and I'm not even a Star Wars fan. Looks like Christmas came early for Andre, his reaction was akin to someone telling him that his school had been transformed into Disneyland.

This set is a reproduction of the Rebel flagship from Return of the Jedi with 6 mini figures. It features loads of intricate details and moving parts, things that you can trust Lego to deliver.

This is the Mon Calamari command centre and briefing room with the Death Star "hologram".

And this is the repair hangar with a Green Squadron A-wing starfighter. The starfighter has a removable engine and launchable missiles.


The levers and gears are movable, even the command chair swivels. Have I already said how cool this set is?? I had to take a video just to show the movable parts.



Ben, if you're reading this, thank you again for the unbelievably generous gift. Andre is a very lucky boy and you're now officially his favourite uncle!

May the force be with you

It started innocently enough. Earlier this year, my cousin gave us the complete digitally remastered Star Wars in a 6-dvd set. What we didn't expect was that it would spark off a Star Wars frenzy in Andre, to the extent that it dethroned even his beloved Lord of the Rings. Almost all of his daily tv quota thus far has been dedicated to reliving Star Wars episodes 1-6 in turn.

Every other day, I'll hear emanating from the screen, the original, ultimate climatic scene, which Andre loves to ham up:

Luke Skywalker: You killed my father.

Darth Vader: No (heavy breathing). I am your father.

Luke Skywalker: Nooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!

I was not a Star Wars fan growing up but I can see why it's every boy's fantasy. Flying, fighting machines, sleek robots, oozy, slimy creatures and of course, the fabulously cool light sabres.

I don't allow the purchase of any toy weapons in our home so Andre decided to fashion his own light sabre, using an empty shuttlecock tube and a part from a kids' basketball game set. Quite ingenious, I thought!

Last week, I found him recreating scenes from the Star Wars movies using Kenneth's stack of flip chart paper and coloured markers.

This is Attack of the Clones:

A New Hope:

Some close ups of key characters:









Alamak, somebody needs to work on his spelling.







Star Wars has its unexpected side benefits. Andre is always lamenting over his diminutive stature but recently, he told me, "Now I feel better about being small."

"Why is that?"

"Yoda is small but he's the wisest and most powerful."

The truth you speak, my young Padawan.

"Size matters not. Look at me. Judge me by my size, do you?" - Yoda (The Empire Strikes Back)

Whose Line Is It Anyway?

Over the weekend, my kids and I have been watching clips of 'Whose Line Is It Anyway?' on Youtube. If you don't know what that is, you're really missing out! 'Whose Line' is, in my opinion, one of the best variety shows ever produced on tv.

It started out in the UK and went on to become a big hit in the US. On the US version hosted by Drew Carey, there are three regulars - Wayne, Colin and Ryan - with a recurring guest star. What's so clever about the show is that it is one big improvisation act. The stars play a series of games thrown at them without preparing any scripts. I'm always so amazed by their ability to think on their feet. The results are always side-splittingly funny - Lesley-Anne and Andre were laughing so hard they were crying.

I have so many favourite moments but thought I'd share just a few of them here.

This game is called Sound Effects - Drew picks two ladies from the audience to provide the sound effects for Ryan and Colin (he always picks the shy, mousy ones so the comic effect is amplified!) Here, Ryan and Colin are a couple at an amusement park, Colin is the pregnant wife.



This game is called Stand, Sit and Bend. Three people play this and one always has to be standing, one has to be sitting and one has to be bending.



One of the really mind-blowing parts of the show is the ability of the stars to make up songs on the spot in any style. Wayne is a master at this. This game is called Greatest Hits. Colin is my favourite - he just cracks me up!



This one is Questions Only, where the stars have to speak only in questions. Brilliant!



This last one I'm including because it's Andre's absolute favourite. He can't stop watching it and it triggers the same delicious giggles everytime. It's also called Sound Effects but this one, Ryan provides the sound effects for Colin.



Channel 5 is currently showing reruns of 'Whose Line' at 1.30am every weekday. It's a sad reflection of the low intellectual tastes of Singaporeans that such shows have to be relegated to the zombie hour. Thank God for Youtube! The show can be quite risque at times so I would be selective over which clips to let your kids watch. But if you want a good laugh, nothing beats this show.

Les Choristes - must-watch family movie

A blog reader Veronica previously suggested that Lesley-Anne might enjoy watching the movie Les Choristes. It's a 2004 French film about a failed composer Mathieu who became a supervisor at a boys' school for delinquents. In spite of the unsympathetic headmaster, Mathieu found a way to reach out to the boys by teaching them to sing. The movie became a sleeper hit.

It was a great suggestion, somehow it's just the type of story that's right up Lesley-Anne's alley. We arranged a family movie night and all sat down to watch the dvd. That she loved the movie was no surprise but what caught me off-guard was the discovery that Andre too enjoyed it tremendously. There are some hilarious moments in the movie and somehow, foreign language films are better able to take a sentimental script and make it moving, not sappy, like so many American movies. The singing is ethereal, especially the soloist's, and will touch a heart of stone. Les Choristes was nominated for and won a string of international awards.

Les Choristes became such a big hit that a live concert was organised featuring the same 13-year-old boy soprano who starred as the protagonist in the movie - Jean Baptiste Maunier. In the movie, he played Morhange, the bad boy. A teacher described him as "the face of an angel but spawn of the devil". Face of an angel is spot on - chiselled features, dimples and piercing eyes. With a pure, haunting voice.

Here's a video of one of my favourite songs in the show, Caresse sur l'océan (Caress of the ocean). Tell me your heart doesn't melt when Maunier sings!



This is another memorable song - Cerf-volant (The kite).



The songs are beautiful but even more meaningful if you've watched the movie. If you and your kids haven't caught it, go get the dvd - totally worthwhile! At last count, my kids have already re-watched it more than five times, that's how much they enjoy it. Thanks Veronica for the recommendation!

Need more persuasion? To end my shameless plug of the movie, here's a trailer.

MDA to investigate the screening of PG trailers during prime time

This is an update on my earlier post, Are we desensitised to sex on tv?

There was silence from Mediacorp so I thought they had simply dismissed the issue and swept it under the carpet. But yesterday, there was a reply from MDA on the ST online forum. It says:

PG movie trailers at prime time: MDA to investigate

WE THANK Ms Monica Lim for her Online Forum feedback last Friday, "Don't show trailers of adult films during prime time".

Broadcasters are guided by the Media Development Authority's (MDA) Free-To-Air Television Programme Code, which outlines the general standards to be observed by broadcasters for television broadcast. Although programmes rated PG (Parental Guidance) can be shown only after 10pm, their trailers can be aired at prime time if they have been edited for a general audience and if the PG rating is also included.

MDA is looking into the feedback and will take appropriate action if the guidelines have been breached.

Ginny Goh (Ms)
Head, Broadcast Standards,
Media Content
Media Development Authority

Whether or not anything is done, I'm just glad that someone has acknowledged the issue and is looking into it.

Are we desensitised to sex on tv?

I had written to ST Forum a couple of days ago. My letter was published but in the online version, not the print paper. Here it is in full:

ON THE first night of Chinese New Year, MediaCorp screened a movie, The 40-Year-Old Virgin. Due to its adult content, the show was screened at 10pm.

But I was disgusted by the trailer for the movie which was shown repeatedly during prime time from 7pm, when many children were watching television.

The trailer had blatant sexual innuendoes and scenes. It was obviously not suitable for children. Yet this, for some reason, escaped MediaCorp. I cannot help but wonder if MediaCorp is so desensitised it is oblivious to the inappropriateness of such content during prime time. Or has the priority of promoting a movie overtaken that of social consciousness?

I am no prude. But I wonder at the double standards of scheduling an adult show at 10pm while allowing the trailers to be shown at 7pm. It is bad enough that prime-time movies often have extreme violence as a matter of course, and even children's programmes these days use sex as an easy sell.

I was perturbed to learn that the popular cartoon Winx Club, whose viewership is predominantly young girls aged five to 10, features kissing scenes and has female characters lust after boys and enter into boy-girl relationships as casually as they change their clothes.

I do not believe in completely shielding children from the realities of life. But in this complicated world where kids grow up too quickly, it does not help to have the media continuously reinforce the message that sex and violence are normal, casual activities.

I used to think that mothers who ban their children from watching TV are tyrants - now I think perhaps they are the sensible ones.


Because the online version of ST has a much younger readership, as I'd expected, there were many comments saying it's ok! what's the big deal? Which reinforces my point that in this generation, we have become desensitised to sex on tv because it's so rampant that it's now considered acceptable (together with violence and vulgar languages).

I think non-parents are less likely to empathise with me on this issue (it's cliche I know, but really, you won't understand till you have kids), but I'm curious as to how other parents feel. Do you feel the same way or do you think I'm over-reacting? Banning tv is not an option for now (Elan, thumbs up for you!), but I think we'll be limiting it to DVDs and documentaries for now.

We all live in a yellow submarine

You would have noticed that I changed the title of my blog. Turns out when I was trying to create meta tags for the pages, the title was too long so I shortened it. Not the world’s punchiest title, but at least it’s self-explanatory. Of Kids and Education. Not a big deal. What was a bigger deal was that my mio box broke down on me this morning. The Singtel guy had to come around and fix it. What has the world come to - one day without Internet and I’m feeling jittery and on edge like a junkie going through withdrawal! It’s a diabolical invention, I tell you (even so, I want I want…)

I’m generally a practical person but in certain areas, I cling on to nostalgia like a comforting old blanket. I’m referring to old movies and tv programmes. When it comes to tv, my kids have an extraordinary attention span (unfortunately this doesn’t extend to homework). Even at a very young age, they could sit through full-length feature cartoons, so I introduced them to a diet of old Disney cartoons (via VCD, then later DVD), even the lesser known ones like Sword in the Stone and Robin Hood.

While other kids were battling it out with the Power Rangers, mine were joining forces with John, Paul, George and Ringo to tackle the Blue Meanies in the Yellow Submarine. (I suspect my kids might be the only ones in Singapore able to sing along to “Hey Bulldog”). The Yellow Submarine is nonsensical, psychedelic and pure fun to watch. I’m a huge Fab Four fan – the bus-stop ad poster of John Lennon’s Imagine in my living room testifies to that.

I derive some twisted satisfaction from knowing that sometimes my kids would choose to watch re-runs of old Scooby Doo or Tom and Jerry cartoons over the more current fare like Teen Titans or Kim Possible.

It’s not just cartoons that my kids watch. I think the phrase “they don’t make ‘em like they used to” really applies to the genre of musicals. Mary Poppins, The Wizard of Oz, The Sound of Music, Singin’ in the Rain, An American in Paris, My Fair Lady, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang – these are some of the classics my kids have grown up with. Some have made more of an impression than others. For instance, we quickly discovered that Andre was drawn to music and drama when he became hooked on Singin’ in the Rain. He couldn’t have been more than 3 years old, but he could mimic all of Gene Kelly’s dance moves, down to the shoulder shakes and tap sequences. I used to just watch fascinated as he twirled around with an imaginary Cyd Charisse, and brandished a ruler as an umbrella for the signature scene.

When the musical Chitty Chitty Bang Bang came to town last year, we were lucky enough to win two tickets to the show. Since we couldn't get additional tickets, we let both the kids go together. Even though Andre was only 7, he sat through the entire 2½ show with his sister and they both enjoyed it tremendously, since they know the storyline and songs inside out.

One of my most loved tv programmes growing up was The Muppet Show. Remember them? Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Gonzo, Bunsen and Beaker, Pigs in Space… don’t those names bring back memories? The series has been released on dvd and I bought a whole bunch of them. The jokes are corny, the characters kitschy, and my kids LOVE them. What's there not to love? Elton John in his zany glasses being eaten by a crocodile after he sings "Crocodile Rock"? Hilarious! Lesley-Anne would spout the one-liners to me, like:

Kermit: “The invisible cheeseburger has lost its voice! There’s nothing left of it but the smell of onions.” (followed by a fit of giggles from Lesley-Anne)

Writing about The Muppet Show has gotten me all sentimental, so I'm going to share the love (thanks to YouTube!) Here's a clip of one of my kids' favourite scenes of the Swedish Chef.



Truly an oldie but goodie!