Some thoughts that were shared during the staff meeting yesterday:

"Don't ever do anything as though you were an amateur. Anything you do, do it as a professional to professional standards."

• A professional learns every aspect of the job. An amateur skips the learning process wherever possible.
• A professional carefully discovers what is needed and wanted. An amateur assumes what others need and want.
• A professional looks, speaks and dresses like a professional. An amateur is sloppy in appearance and speech.
• A professional keeps his or her work area clean and orderly. An amateur has a messy, confused or dirty work area.
• A professional is focused and clear-headed. An amateur is confused and distracted.
• A professional does not let mistakes slide by. An amateur ignores or hides mistakes.
• A professional jumps into difficult assignments. An amateur tries to get out of difficult work.
• A professional completes projects as soon as possible. An amateur is surrounded by unfinished work piled on top of unfinished work.
• A professional remains level-headed and optimistic. An amateur gets upset and assumes the worst.
• A professional handles money and accounts very carefully. An amateur is sloppy with money or accounts.
• A professional faces up to other people's upsets and problems. An amateur avoids others' problems.
• A professional uses higher emotional tones: Enthusiasm, cheerfulness, interest, contentment. An amateur uses lower emotional tones: anger, hostility, resentment, fear, victim.
• A professional persists until the objective is achieved. An amateur gives up at the first oppportunity.
• A professional produces more than expected. An amateur produces just enough to get by.
• A professional produces a high-quality produce or service. An amateur produces a medium-to-low quality produce or service.
• A professional has a promising future. An amateur has an uncertain future.
• The first step to making yourself a professional is to decide you are a professional.

I came to school a few days ago & started laughing when I saw my table. I had been the victim of a prank!


Ms Allyson and both the Mr Ongs were of the opinion that my newly-tidied table was too bare and decided to arrange all my wordly possessions (what they called) neatly over every available space on the table. Gahh! It did give us a good laugh though and I thought it was a brilliant prank! At least, this was better than the prank we played on one of the Mr Ongs, where we rubber-banded every single thing on his table.

We've also been hanging out after school, eating at all sorts of places & enjoying each others' company.Here are a couple of piccies I took with Ms Allyson - the first one was taken at Starbucks (Tampines Mall) where she went crazy over the Christmas special - the Toffee Nut Latte. Although I'm not a coffee drinker, the sprinkling of salty, nutty, crunchy, sugary bits over the whipped cream on top is very good.


The next 2 piccies were taken at a restaurant serving food from Macau at the Expo where we went a bit crazy over the Robinsons sale. The Portuguese egg tart is highly recommended!



And last of all, this long-overdue pic - thanks Ranjitha, for your lovely Deepavali goodies. Here is the picture I promised you.


Ms Siti Rafeah looking with envy at the goodies!

And in case you people think I'm just slacking away in school, I've been working on the structured tutorials and the pamphlets for the Primary Six students considering our school. Stressful, but I'm having fun :)

Have a good weekend, everybody!

P.S. 3E2, thanks for the present, little cards, chocolate mochi & the lovely food during the class chalet! Very well-organised, all.

I went to Songfest yesterday at my church where aspiring composers presented songs they had written, and it was really good. I was touched by how they were singing & composing from the heart. I hope that I can do everything from my heart too, to carry out deeds and actions born from deep reflection & a good relationship with God and others...