One of my family generations in Tanjung Balai Karimun Island, Indonesia

Karimun Island is an island where my beloved grandparents lived in.

It is a small island, located just off the east coast of Sumatra, guarding the southern entrance of the busy Straits of Malacca. It lies west of Batam and to the southwest of Singapore and is the furthest west of the Riau Islands.  This island is found in the Riau Islands province of Indonesia. It is also the name of a group of islands and regency (kabupaten) to which it belongs.

Map of Karimun Island in Riau Archipelago (Indonesia)

Coming on way soon, I'm planning to set up a family tree to indicate the origin(s) of our family members. It includes which countries my family members are born in. I guess this must be good for my future family generation(s) to see, know and explore our real origins. It would set a good example for my future family members to follow my footsteps in doing/updating the family tree. : )

SMS ‘71222’ to book a taxi

Dear my deaf and hard-of-hearing friends,

I would like to share with you about my true story, how to book a taxi in Singapore.

Last month, I was working in my office to handle horticulture / environmental matters. Before departing for meetings/seminars outside, I had to get a taxi to travel. As I was born deaf, I had to rely on my collegue to make a call for a taxi booking. During that time, I was feeling abit frustrated as this could consume some of my precious working time. In addition, I did not want to be “spoon-fed” as I would wish to be fully independent.

So, I came up with an idea to sort out this problem. Surfing on the internet, I found the website, which could allow me to SMS 71222 to book a taxi. It is actually free of charge! I have tried out doing this SMS. This really worked for me!

Let’s say in your sms: Send “Book postal code pick-up point” to 71222.

For example: Book 109918 Keppel Club

In about 10 to 30 seconds, a message came in my handphone inbox. It said “Citycab Toyota Crown taxi 8734 with a booking fee of $3.50 will arrive in 5 to 7 mins. Pls proceed to your pickup point. Thank you for using Comfort & Citycab” I was delighted upon seeing this fast response in my hp.

In few minutes’ time, a specific taxi with correct plate number (8734) arrived at my workplace at a great convenience!!! This brought such a relief to me. = ) Thanks to ComfortDelgro for its wonderful SMS Booking service. Please refer to http://www.comfortdelgro.com.sg/files/press/attachment/216.pdf for more details. Let’s try one for yourself if you would like to book a taxi. Cheers!

Winning PUB Watermark Award '09!

The best day has arrived for me. Phew!

On last Tuesday, I rushed to attend PUB Watermark Award Ceremony at Marina Barrage after my work. Feeling deserved and honoured to receive the prestigious award from the government board, Public Utilities Board (PUB) for recognition of water conservation & efforts @ Keppel Club (K.C). It has brought great happiness and joy to K.C staff. The other winners are big organisations - CapitalLand, HDB and Hitachi.

Ronald holding PUB Watermark Award '09

From left to right in a row: Peter (Newsletter Conveyor), Vicki (Admin Executive), Sook Fun (Communications & Marketing Manager), Desmond (Deputy General Manager), John (Captain), Edwin (President), Tahir (Vice Captain), Gene (Communications Executive), Ronald (Horticulture Officer).

Keppel Club goes green! Come and join us in going greener! Yeah!

Go Green with Keppel Club stickers to outreach visitors / guests in going green.

Besides Singapore Environment Achievement Award this year, it is ME who prepared, planned and compiled the PUB Watermark Award submission once again! : ) My deputy general manager (DGM) said “Well done!”. I am very contented. Upon hearing from the high-level management committee of K.C, they praised me for doing well in my great job in spite of my hearing-impairment. I know that my DGM told them about this earlier. Anyway, I have to continue to work hard BUT remember to take it easy. Liao! My DGM is going to throw lunch retreat for us later on! = )

On last Wednesday, it made me happy again. Because Keppel Club was featured in the Straits Times Newspaper. Please refer to the article below.