The Handkerchief Tree

Driving or walking along Singapore roads the handkerchief trees will catch your attention.



The new leaves of these trees hang at the tip of the branches and looking like handkerchiefs.



The scientific name is Maniltoa Browneoides.

It is a native of New Guinea.

Cards, Church, Casino

"The Deck of Cards" is a 60 year old song about a young American soldier arrested and charged with playing cards during a church service. The song became a hit in 1948 by T. Texas Tyler.

It has also been recorded by Phil Harris, Tex Ritter, Wink Martindale, Max Bygraves, Bill Anderson, Pee Wee King, Redd Stewart, Merle Travis, The Persuasions, Hank Williams and Dick Curless.



"You see, sir, when I look at the Ace, it reminds me that there is but one God.

And the deuce reminds me that the bible is divided into two parts: the Old and the New Testaments.

When I see the trey, I think of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

And when I see the four, I think of the four evangelists who preached the Gospel: there was Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

And when I see the five, it reminds me of the five wise virgins who trimmed their lamps; there were ten of them: five were wise and were saved, five were foolish and were shut out.

When I see the six, it reminds me that in six days God made this heaven and earth.

And when I see the seven, it reminds me that on the seventh day, God rested from his great work.

And when I see the eight, I think of the eight righteous persons that God saved when he destroyed the earth: there was Noah, his wife, their sons and their wives.

And when I see the nine, I think of the lepers our saviour cleansed, and that nine of the ten didn't even thank him.

When I see the ten, I think of the ten commandments that God handed down to Moses on a tablet of stone.



When I see the King, it reminds me that there is but one King of Heaven, God Almighty.

And when I see the Queen, I think of the blessed Virgin Mary who is the Queen of Heaven.

And the Jack or Knave is the Devil.

When I count the number of spots in a deck of cards, I find 365, the number of days in a year.
There are 52 cards, the number of weeks in a year.
There are four suits, the number of weeks in a month.
There are twelve picture cards, the number of months in a year.
There are thirteen tricks, the number of weeks in a quarter.

Queenstown Development

The National Development Ministry announced Commonwealth Avenue next to the Queenstown MRT station will be allocated for private residential housing developments.




This plot was previously block 27A which was acquired under the SERS programme.

The withered 40 year old angsana trees seem to be aware that their time is near.

What's In a Name

What do you call a person who drive a bus ?

In 2005 Singapore Bus Services renamed its drivers Bus Captains.

All jobs come with job hazards.

A man, who was smoking, asked a bus driver to wait for him to finish his cigarette before boarding. The driver explained he couldn't, as that wouldn't be fair to other passengers.

Soon,the man started to scold the driver using vulgar language and also grabbed the driver and hit him. This while the bus was still moving.

Soon signboards are put up in the buses.

Be Afraid

A chinese saying, Birth, Aged, Sickness and Death every human beings have to go through.

A stroke occurs when blood supply to part of the brain is interrupted either by an artery supplying blood to a part of the brain is blocked, or an artery bursts within the brain.

The annual number of stroke patients in Singapore has been increasing, from 5,463 in 2005 to 5,743 in 2010. Deaths among stroke patients increased from 641 in 2005 to 689 in 2010.

Quality of life takes a hit for stroke survivors who describe it as being worse than death.

A research conducted by McMaster University on Ontario, Cananda look into the causes of stroke. It comes up with the ten commandments of strokes.

1. High blood pressure
2. smoking
3. a fat stomach
4. poor diet
5. lack of physical activity
6. high levels of bad cholsterol
7. diabetes
8. alcoholic drinking
9. stress
10. depression

Can you name one of above not related to the present lifestyle ?

Many long-term bad lifestyles eventually result in a stroke, according to chinese traditional doctors.

Emotional stress, working long hours, excessive physical activities, irregular eating habits, poor diet and excessive sexual activity are contributing factors.