Reminiscing OCBC Cycle Malaysia 2013

19 February 2013otterman cycling 1 Comment

Stuck at home with an odd bug that wracked me with body aches and headaches this past week, I looked back at some cycling blog posts and videos.

Certainly cycling the 48km Challenge at OCBC Cycle Malaysia 2013 in January was a blast! I’m already signed up and am looking forward to that next year with a few more kakis.

Julian and Kevin put up some enjoyable videos – we are sure to revive these when public registration is open once again later this year.

Video by Julian Lim

Video by Kevin Lim
Notice fellow cyclists comment about his Surley Pugsley fat bike

My blog post at Cycling in Singapore
Read the listed blog posts by the Malaysians there too

“There is a feeling like the clenching of a fist”

16 February 2013otterman music Leave a comment

“Shed a little light,” by James Taylor

“Let us turn our thoughts today
To Martin Luther King
And recognize that there are ties between us
All men and women
Living on the earth
Ties of hope and love
Sister and brotherhood
That we are bound together
In our desire to see the world become
A place in which our children
Can grow free and strong
We are bound together
By the task that stands before us
And the road that lies ahead
We are bound and we are bound”

Lyrics.

Aimee Mann does a lovely rendition of the song in West Wing, but the full performance seems unavailable. Just the clip from the episode.

Valentine Day surprise: @skinnylatte launches education initiative Gyanada

14 February 2013otterman life in singapore, mac Leave a comment

I met Adrianna Tan (@skinnylatte) online in macintosh forums, a lifetime ago, it feels, when she sought support after joining SMU. Macusers were in a ‘secret society’ of sorts in those days, and revelled in helping each other circumvent indifferent officialdom.

Well, we also exchanged smiles with strangers who were pounding on an iBook in a café somewhere. Perks of a minority group!

Well Adrianna was irrepressible and would write and write on her blog, and kept on writing. Eventually and quite dramatically (in my mind) she vanished into the mists of India which had defeated weaker souls.

She revelled in it.

Today she tweeted to announce her Gyanada Foundation. They have a sensible plan, to support existing non-profits in India who operate in slums in Ranchi, Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata.

As they put it, Gyananda hopes to humbly extend a small helping hand to families of disadvantaged local girls to send them to low cost private schools in the area. US$149 sponsors a student.

They begin with 150 girls.

“In the academic year beginning April 2013, we’ll put 150 girls through school — half of this we’ll try to raise here, the other half we’ll try to raise from private donors in Singapore and the US.”

“Pave the Way for Her Journey to Education“

Isn’t this a lovely Valentine’s Day surprise?

Tales from Sweden

14 February 2013otterman nus Leave a comment

Students have an enviable element in their university life nowadays – the Student Exchange Programme. One student, Elizabeth Eu, returned from Sweden to share stories of Lund., over fika. A word I had forgotten as it’s been six years since I sailed with the Götheborg.

Catching up with Elizabeth, I realised there are few accounts written out of Lund, although Tracey at flyingoverpinkclouds.blogspot.sg has done a good job. Well to add to the mix, I posted Elizabeth’s account of the trip and her email to me at the NUS Biodiversity Crew.

It is slightly neglected blog as there are only still just four undergraduate student accounts of any aspect of NUS life. Will work on it.

Meanwhile, its time to write å few more SEP recommendations.