Hello!

This month is a very special month. It is February! This month is named after the latin "februum", which means purification. This is the shortest of all months and has an extra day every leap year.

Despite this, February is still important to me.

Today is 元宵节, known as the Chinese Lantern Fastival.

The 15th day of the first lunar month is the Chinese Lantern Festival. The 15th day is the first night to see a full moon. According to the Chinese tradition, at the very beginning of a new year, when there is a bright full moon in the sky, there should be thousands of colorful lanterns hung out for people to appreciate. At this time, people will try to solve the puzzles on the lanterns and eat 元宵 , or glutinous rice balls and get all their families united in the joyful atmosphere.

Happy Chinese Lantern Festival, and happy Lunar New Year.

On to other facts about "Fantastic February", on the second day in United States and Canada, it is Groundhog Day. According to folklore, if a groundhog emerges from the ground, and does not see its shadow, it will leave its burrow, meaning that winter will end shortly. However, if it does see its shadow, it will hide back into its burrow, sadly meaning that winter should end in approximately 6 weeks. I feel that using this idea of groundhogs to predict the coming of spring is very innovative, but it could be inaccurate as there is no scientific proof that groundhogs really could tell the changing of seasons. Still, it is a fun event and if it were held in Singapore, I would really love to see a groundhog.

Meanwhile, I only have this picture of a groundhog.



Another "Fun Feb Fact" is that every four years, Febuary has 29 days. Which means the Earth takes 365 and one quarter days to revolve round the Earth. I bet you did not know that! Also, years that are not divisible by 400 (e.g. 1700, 1900), will not be a leap year. Another point is I myself know someone who is born on this special day. He was born in year 1996, and celebrates his birthday on the 28th. Think about it, it would sound awkward to consider him 3 years old today!

Finally, the "'Fav' of Feb" is none other than the 14th of Febuary, Valentine's Day. It is celebrated mostly by Westerners, who present gifts and cards to their lovers, showing their appreciation towards them. This day is so popular, about one billion of valentines are sent every year!

Valentine's Day to me is something more. You show how much you care and love someone. I am not directly applying to a love relationship. I would also think that we should show our concern to our family and friends, as they themselves deserve something too. That is in the spirit of Valentine's Day. So, please do not forget to present something to everyone you know. Every thought counts. It does not matter if you give a small card, or a box of chocolates, or a dozen roses. I am sure anyone who recieves gifts from you will be elated.

Valentine's Day is in 5 days. However, do not simply show love and care on that day. This day should be reflected upon everyone and they should learn to show appreciation to everyone, every day.

Finally, here's a video on Valentine's Day by Stuart. Stuart is a production by Mad TV, similar to Miss Swan. Therefore, if you enjoyed my previous video, you will surely love this!

Stuart's Valentine's Day

Happy Groundhog Day, Leap Year and Valentine's Day!

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Puppy Love
Left: Neighbour's dog, Cookie
Right: My dog, Lie-En

Happy Lunar New Year!

I know this seems as a VERY late post, or maybe not. Well, this is because the Lunar New Year celebrations should have been held on the first few days, but today is the 14th day, and some people are still celebrating! It is about my Lunar New Year Celebrations.

Starting off with school, I did not think the celebration this year was a success. The main problem lies with the sound system. You could not hear what the emcees were saying, as if they had a ping-pong ball in their mouth, or in other words, they sounded muffled and soft. Also, there were a few squeaky sounds in the system. I think the old folks, who were the invited guests, were not too satisfied. When the sound system was finally fixed, was the old folks' turn to present to us. They sang Lunar New Year songs.

Well, their singing was remarkable. I also admire their courage to go on stage to perform. Even though I am in the school choir, I still get nervous. I was impressed! Well, I (secretly) took other pictures (with my phone). You can view it here:



A captivating performance by Victoria School's own Chinese Orchestra!



The CHAMPIONS of the first ever Science Buskers Festival - Joejyn, Bok Woon and Jia Peng, performing up on stage! Here, they are performing their fizzy juice experiment on Mr Chia.



A play by the CLDDS, about how parents raise their children in their own perspective.

Now for the real celebrations. Day one, my family stayed at home in the morning. My godsister and her family came over. Woohoo! My first red packets! After that, we took some family photographs! I looked so handsome in my new clothes! Pity that I'm not able to upload them. =(

Next, was my grandparents place! We had a reunion dinner, eating my grandmother's famous dishes! She woke up at 3 a.m. and started preparing. She must really be tired! Still, you can taste the sweat and blood she put in (that was a figure of speech).

Well, other than that, we spent the rest of the day visting our other relatives.

Next day was even better! It started after lunch. I went to my (this will sound complicated) uncle's father's place to watch some lion dancing. This reminds me of my childhood when I always wanted to see the lion dance about. I (sometimes) went up to the lion and pull parts of the costume. You cannot blame me, I was just a young boy!

If you missed any lion (or dragon) dance this year, how about viewing some pictures I took with my phone?



Started out with the dragon dance, where the dragon chases a spinning ball, following its direction, speed and path.



The grand finale of the dragon dance!



A TWIST to your normal dances. This photograph depicts the drummers, pounding the drums and made it seemed as if it were a song. Choreography was added, too!



Old school, if you would call it that. The well-knowned lion dance!



Within such a short amount of time, the "lion" was able to create these auspicious words, saying "牛年运旺", meaning "wishing you happiness and luck in the year of the ox"

Moving on, we went to my aunt's place to play! I played games such as Blackjack, Big 2, Charades (on movies) and Mahjong. I really enjoyed myself. Also, please do not worry about me playing Blackjack or Mahjong. We bet in small quanteties of money (10 cents). Therefore, there is no way we can get addicted, but at the same time, we come together as a family. Isn't that the purpose of the Lunar New Year?

I also played a game called "Winter Bells" on my cousin's computer. You should try it too. It is simple, yet fun! Can you beat my highscore of 1 564 210?

Winter Bells


This is how I celebrated my Lunar New Year. To you, it may seem quite short, but I think it is perfect.