|
Feb 28:
Objection to Temporary Land Allocation
Do you want this view obstructed by construction on this sandy beach (just
outside the Green Cottage Rest.) for the next three years, starting next
month? The Sewage Dept. wants to use it as a construction site for the new
drainage channel in construction right now, flowing into the harbour on the
right of the above picture.
 This
has been a hot topic in our forums now since the Lands Dept. notice has been
posted just before Lunar New Year. Today is the last day for objections by
email and, much better, by mail. All details are in the long-running
Yung Shue Long drain proposal forum. My objection to messing up one
of my favourite sightseeing and photo-taking spots has been emailed and
snail-mailed... What about yours? Some objections HAVE worked out in the
past...
One more pair of photos, a before-and-after shot of the currently
in-progress construction of the same drainage channel behind Green Cottage,
Sampan and Lung Wah Restaurants. As nkarraker said in the
forum: "Those before and after photos speak a thousand words."
Feb 27:
The Year of the Great Golden Flying Pig of Fire
Daniel MomentEye has solved the controversy if this is the
Chinese Zodiac's Year of the Golden Pig or the Fire Pig. In this week's
HK Copy News he suggests to simply combine them, in the true "Peace,
Love, Lamma!" style!
Click below for another little stroke of genius from Lamma's
resident weekly news writer, designer, programmer, reader, distributor,
cheerleader and Lamma Celebrity (as
featured in the SCMP)...
Feb 26:
The Frivolous Antics of Rock Goddesses
Photo and quote by Dan Peterson:
"Here's a teaser in the form of a small sample of photos of the frivolity
resulting from the antics Saturday night, Feb 24, at The Island Bar. A
riotous time was had by a few celebrating birthdays who, together with an
inspired band (a composite of many talents), provided great entertainment
for the many."
Photos by Insomniac:
Sorry, the most frivolous pictures cannot be published in this family
newspaper, eh, Placeblog. We don't want to see Lamma's Rock Goddesses
blush...
Feb 25:
Strolling the Family Trail
Strolling from Yung Shue Wan over to Sok Kwu Wan on another
glorious, warm, clear winter day (Friday, Feb 23), I took a few (275) photos
along the way. It took me about 4 hours with detours and photo/rest stops.
The huge number of tourists overtaking me were all faster than me on this
most popular walk on Lamma, the so-called Family Trail. Did I set a new
record for slowest walk?
I spent quite some time sitting atop rocks at the edges of
steep cliffs/hills, one of my all-time favourite things to do on Lamma. You
can call me the Humpty Dumpty of Lamma, even though I've never fallen off
(yet). Below are a few of the acceptable shots. Photo gallery in progress.
Send me your Family Trail photos!
Renovated
BBQ area above Hung Shing Yeh beach, close to Lamma Power Station
Judy & Ronnie of Lo So Shop in Lo So Shing near Sok Kwu Wan
No Temporary Notices posted today to cover up the holes in the Board
  
  
Feb 24:
Kung Hei Fat Choy Sum!
Local babies seem to learn the traditional two-handed Chinese New Year
greeting at an early age. Just a few months old, these twins have just left
Lamma on Feb 12 - together with the former local celebrity couple
bbchrishaun after 15 years of living here - and have just become
ex-Lammaites. So this greeting above could also mean
"Farewell to all Lammaites!".
As today is also "Everybody's Birthday" in the Chinese calendar (7th day of
Lunar New year), their greeting could also mean
"Happy Birthday to all Lamma-zine Readers!"
The twins & bbchrishaun & the Lamma-zine are
"Wishing you all heaps of prosperity & joy & excellent health for the Year
of the Pig!!" We're sure these two cuties above will return to
Fertility Island frequently for a visit! They sure look healthy, eating
their (mashed) Choy Sum and other vegetables. As they're already
honourary members of (now former) Lamma Band
"Guitars & Nappies" they might even play a live gig here in just a
few years or so.
In the meantime, I'm sure the Lamma-zine will receive many more e-cards from
their
Rock Mum bbChris - formerly self-proclaimed "Rock Goddess" - showing
their progress in growing up in the 21st century, becoming "Twin Rock
Goddesses" someday. See how they've grown just since Christmas two months
ago:
Lamma-Gung3 has become a step-granddaddy for the 3rd
time (Gung3) on Feb 5,
so you might forgive me the recent increase in number of baby pictures, I
hope. I'll try to restrain myself, only occasionally publishing "really
special" baby pictures.
Email me
some (Lammaitian babies only, please)!
Feb 23:
Seasonal Variations of Gluttony
|
Official Court Glutton (all photos by Official Court
Glutton): |
Hot Pot
Review
In my opinion, gluttony has seasonal
variations. Although I am not a fan of colder
weather, there are two aspects to cooler weather
that I like:
-
My beer stays cooler, so
I can occasionally buy the 1-litre can of Asahi
and drink it before it warms up.
-
Hot pot. In a variation
from my previous reviews in restaurants, this
review is about home-made Lamma hot pot made
with village-sourced ingredients.
In my decade of being on Lamma, I've
had only a few hot pots in the village and normally
have been under-whelmed by the result.
Considering that it is not that
difficult to do a good hot pot, I do not understand
why the restaurant version of hot pot is so feeble
in the village restaurants.
In reality, you only need three
things:
a device to heat the pot/wok, broth, stuff to
cook in broth.
-
In our case, an electric unit
was deployed. I never used the electric version
before. The disadvantage is the time lag between
changing the setting and the result in the
pot. Gas units have the advantage of instant
control, but have the risk of fire and
tantrum-inducing aspect of running out of gas.
-
In this review the broth was
home-made by our mystery hostess. A whole frozen
chicken was thawed and boiled in a pot with
ginger, lemongrass and spices until cooked. No
canned broth for this hot pot!
-
All the stuff (see picture) was
easily sourced at the frozen meat shop
conveniently closed for Chinese New Year.
Fortunate pre-shopping was done to obtain the
sliced beef, shrimp ball, octopus ball, squid
ball, other balls filled with crab roe, plus
some condiments. Mushrooms and veggies are
sourced in the shops on Main Street.
Actual process of hot pot
cooking/eating/ talking is a slow but delicious
process. Huddling around a warm pot cooking the food
and talking means that the conversation never stops.
Each person has their own little
bowl to add spices according to their own taste. In
my case, some twit (me) used too much Guilin Chilli
sauce requiring two-handed guzzling of my 1-litre
beer can to extinguish the flames in my mouth. Other
more sensible people did not seem to have the same
problem.
At several points, more hot water
has to be added to the cooking bowl as the broth
does boil away. By the end of the meal, the broth
has the flavours of everything else cooked in it. I
am not normally much of a soup person, but this hot
pot broth is truly remarkable.
In summary, this was the best hot
pot I have had in my whole time on Lamma! Having
home-made broth made a world of difference, and
easily beats the local restaurant version.
Many thanks to our mystery hostess
for cooking the broth and providing a venue for our
experiment. I highly encourage others to give it a
try at home (even a vegetarian version is possible).
It is not that difficult, the cost is modest, and
the results are terrific .
The way things should be, but rarely
are...
|
 |
Feb 22:
Do Moon Bears Rock?
|
Angela Leary - Moon Bear Rock organiser (all photos by
Angela, except the 1st photo - showing Angela - and Black
Seraphine below left, both shot by Cristobal de Lamma): |
This Sunday’s Moon Bear
Rock at Delaney’s Wan Chai was another great success,
thanks in part to the generous support of Lamma’s
talented musicians and the island’s even more talented
drinkers.
Starting at 4pm on
Sunday, the Chinese New Year event rocked on past
midnight and raised a swag of money for Animals Asia
Foundation’s Moon Bear Rescue (not sure how much yet as
we’re still tallying up the takings.) About 300 punters
packed into Delaney’s first floor for the gig.
In the line-up were the
fabulously talented Aussie singer/guitarist Greg Thomas
who kicked off the show, and Scarlett Lewis with her
sassy blend of folk, jazz, blues and rock – not to
mention stunning looks and stunning voice.
Next on were the gorgeous
and gifted guitar-strummin’ gals from the Shotgun SheRas
with their fun take on Country and Western.
Lamma’s own Red Star Rising, led by the
inimitable Steve Cray, really got the show going
with their original blues rock numbers.
Poor Steve still can’t
work out why the SCMP, HK Mag and BC Mag chose to run a
photo of the Shotgun SheRas, when they could have run
one of him. Still, he managed to put this behind him and
deliver some amazing guitar solos as frontman of Red
Star Rising, while drummer Hugh Whitby’s pounding
beat kept the crowd jumping.
Next came the
electrifying, gravity-defying Black Seraphine –
Hong Kong’s greatest covers band. Wild-haired John
Prymmer’s forays into the crowd almost scared off the
punters, but fortunately the music was such fun that
most stuck around regardless. Lamma also claims two of
Black Seraphine’s members as its own – Ivy Fernie
and Dave Campbell – and guitarist Brendan
Delfino is a refugee from Lamma’s ferry schedule.
Animals Asia founder and
CEO Jill Robinson brought tears to the eyes of many in
the crowd with her moving presentation about the more
than 7,000 Moon Bears still being tortured on bile farms
throughout China.
Lamma’s answer to Annie
Leibovitz (for pets), Andre Eichman and Vicky
Baker of Petographer, donated a photographic
session, which was auctioned off for an amazing $3,200.
Another long-time
Lammaite, Maureen (Mo) Gerrard, gave what
appeared to be half the stock of her Central jewellery
shop, Saturn Essentials, to the cause.
And Delaney’s lovely
manager, Claire, also hails from our fair isle.
Delaney’s Wan Chai is donating a large percentage of bar
takings to Animals Asia as well as providing a delicious
veggie buffet. San Miguel and Stella Artois generously
offered to stock the bar with beer.
For more information
about Animals Asia Foundation, go to
www.animalsasia.org.
|
 |
|
Jay Scott Kanes -
Lamma Author (all photos by Jonathan Wong, SCMP): |
|
Benefit Boosts
'Stunningly
Beautiful' Bear Bottom and Buddies
Even pranksters can contribute to good causes. A
donor to the Animals Asia Foundation's Moon Bear Rescue efforts, a
man with "a dubious sense of humor", once insisted on naming one of
the animals Bottom so he gleefully could show friends pictures of
"his bear Bottom".
Less deviously, hundreds of people enjoyed live
music by the likes of the Lamma Island rock band Red Star Rising,
drank beer and consumed a vegetarian buffet to help tormented
animals during the AAF's Moon Bear Rock fundraiser. The event took
place on February 18 at Delaney's Irish pub in Wanchai on Hong Kong
Island.
Red Star Rising spearheaded the entertainment,
stepping up to the microphones and letting loose before a capacity
crowd, including many Lamma Islanders. Moon Bear Rock is an annual
function in support of the AAF's ongoing China bear-rescue efforts.
At the latest event, five musical acts performed.
Australian singer/guitarist Greg Thomas began,
followed by Scarlett Lewis with her original folk, jazz, blues and
rock, and then the Shotgun SheRas, Hong Kong's all-girl country
band. After Red Star Rising, the high-energy band Black Seraphine
concluded with old rock favorites.
"People of all ages gather to help end the brutal
practice of farming Moon Bears for their bile," said the AAF's
founder, Jill Robinson. "Moon Bear Rock celebrates our achieve-ments,
but also has a serious side. More than 7,000 bears still endure
lives of agony, enclosed in tiny cages on bear farms in China. They
desperately need our help."
Animals Asia has rescued 218 bears from such bile
farms. These animals now prosper at a sanctuary in Chengdu, Sichuan
Province. During a musical intermission, Robinson spoke fondly of
the bears, many of them named by financial donors.
One of those is Bottom, a medium-sized female.
"Although her name has caused some degree of embarrassment to us,
she doesn't seem to mind at all and revels in the fact that she's a
stunningly beautiful bear." |
 |
Feb 21:
The Red House on the Cliffs
|
 Marcanthony,
Eileen, Blazenski, Foxy, Insomniac -
A great piece of "collaborative creative writing" - started by
Marcanthony (see his avatar on the right) and continued by the
other writers, all adding various pieces to this fable.
(edited together by Lamma-Gung3, see the
original forum that started it all): |
The Land
of Pak Kok
Have you ever heard of the
mysterious "Land of Pak Kok" on Lamma Island? It is believed to
be located over the mountains to the north of the capital,
Banyan Tree Bay. But most of us Lammaites have never been able
to find it or even visit it.
The other day, scaling the
vertiginous crags - called Heart Attack Hill for obvious reasons
- north of the prosperous and powerful Po Wah Yuen Village
through the hazy smog wafting in from the distant Mainland, my
eyes descried the gleaming spires of this foreign land - Pak Kok!
A mysterious country, no doubt,
where colourful maidens wander amidst their flocks, and simple
goat-herders raise their children in splendid isolation. A land
apart and at peace with itself. At least, so they say in the
teeming, cosmopolitan streets of Banyan Tree Bay. But is it
true? Can anyone shed any light on the people and politics of
this strange land?
It's true that they lead an
idyllic life, unburdened by the concerns of modern-day urban
existence. The maidens are quite comely, although of a
potentially aggressive disposition. I took a sketch of one I met
emerging from her vegetable patch:
Further enquiry finds that the
good people of Pak Kok are not, in fact, shepherds - they till
the earth, growing an assortment of fruit and vegetables -
potatoes, carrots, tomatoes, lychees and cabbage. Doubtless,
this wholesome diet explains the abundance of voluptuous maidens
typified by the pictures in this fable. The Land of Pak Kok is
also well-known and widely famed for being the home of the
elegant, slim and beautiful.
I met a nameless man - a
traveller - who said he'd heard many tales in his time, but few
stranger than those relating to this mysterious land. 'Tis said
- he said - that these people are matriarchal. That the wimmin-folk
rule the roost, thus explaining the frustrated, addled
appearance of the men, who live their lives in bondage.
Travellers in dead of night have reported the strange and
pitiful wailing of these poor souls - ganged upon by their
feverish and lustful wimmin, who enjoy the sport noisily. Men of
Banyan Tree Bay, beware!! And if you wear trousers, don't go
there after dark!
 Some
of these mysterious inhabitants live in very nice Red Houses on
the edge of the sheer cliff in this green and pleasant Land of
Pak Kok. These ruby-red houses are overlooking the open sea all
the way to Hong Kong Island. They're rumoured to have big
gardens - safe for even small children to play in - and even big
pools, a luxury almost unheard of on Lamma Island. Some of these
houses, little pieces of heaven, are even available for rent to
outsiders, non-Pak-Kokians!
Contact Eileen (see her avatar above right) to rent a
Red House on the Cliffs.
But
how to get there? It's not that hard - simply follow the coastal
path. If you are coming from the capital Banyan Tree Bay, don't
forget to bring your torch, mandatory big bottle of water,
hiking gear, weather-proofs and passport. Or just get on the
direct, one-stop ferry from Banyan Tree Bay. Even the extremely
smart 3-year-olds from the Land of Pak Kok seem to be able to do
it! Visit the Land of Pak Kok today!
 
Pak Kok Village,
by L-G | View of Pak Kok from HK Island, by Yogesh
|
Feb 20 - 3rd Day of
Lunar New Year:
Bangs & Fangs
|
Jay
Scott Kanes - Lamma Author (all photos by Jay Scott
Kanes): |
BANGS
AND FANGS:
Fireworks Fan Unfazed
A peculiar thing caught
my attention at midnight recently as Lamma Islanders
greeted the Lunar New Year with fireworks.
My wife and I had arrived
at a prime viewing place – near the temple, the football
pitch and the harbour. Zigzagging, we reached the
crowd's front row and gazed upward expectantly.
Unauthorized fireworks are illegal in Hong Kong (see
poster on the right), yet Lamma launches each New Year
with an impressive pyrotechnic display. Discrete police
officers stay away.
We'd locked our family
dog safely indoors. Most canines detest the tumultuous
noises of the Chinese New Year. Fireworks make our dog
cower and tremble, even when hugged or petted
reassuringly.
Folks at the Lamma Animal
Welfare Centre had posted notices: "Every year dogs and
cats get frightened by fireworks, run off and are never
seen again. Please make sure that this doesn't happen
this year to your pets! Keep them securely indoors
during the festivities."
 |
|
Debris descends like
rose-petals |
As expected, the
fireworks erupted in glorious brightness and
near-deafening noise. Firecrackers exploded. Smoke
wafted. Yet in front of the crowd, his head tilted to
the sky, stood a furry, brown dog. Although recognizing
the animal as one who wanders freely in the village, I
knew neither his name, nor owner.
Several times, the dog
turned slightly, craning to view the show. Even when a
chain of firecrackers erupted near enough to blast red
wrappings at him, the dog never flinched. Evidently, no
one enjoyed the festivities more. Amid the noise, I
(almost) heard him thinking: "Jolly good show!"
Dogs on distant rooftops
and balconies howled in fearful protest. Yet this silent
fireworks-fan held his position, hoping for more, long
after the human spectactors had strolled away.
Again, I (maybe) deciphered the dog's
thoughts: "Encore, encore!"
Red paper litters the streets
|
Most pet-owners take precautions
The dog looks for another sky-show
Furry fan anticipates next year |
Feb 19 - 2nd Day of
Lunar New Year:
Freya - the Silent Heroine
Click above to view the art galleries on her website.
This month, we feature a different type of artist, a digital
artist using photographs of herself and Photoshop to show different aspects
of herself and her relationship to the world around her. I have to admit
that I just love her photos. Part of an artistic family, she's lived in Pak
Kok Village till a few days ago, just moving to Norway. Her HK exhibition
was on for two days in a Soho gallery at the end of January (click
here for photos from the exhibition):
|
Freya Baska - Lamma-zine Artist of the Month (email,
website): |
My creative journey
I am half Norwegian, half Polish
and full Australian. I have lived in Hong Kong for three years,
having just completed my final year at the Australian
International School Hong Kong. I am currently pursuing my dream
of being a (part time) artist in Norway, while learning
Norwegian.
For eleven years I went to a
Rudolf Steiner school, which I am sure contributed significantly
to the way I perceive my creative world.
Artist Statement
With the medium of self-portraiture, I embarked
on a journey of self-exploration through colour, costume,
expression, posture and symbolism. The photographs are a
reflection of my inner feelings, ambitions, desires, emotions
and spiritual discoveries.
By observing my lifestyle, behaviors, interests
and values, I created a total body of work reflecting a deeper
understanding of aspects of my self, environment and cultural
influences.
My inspiration came from a variety of different
artists including Norwegian painter Edvard Munch and Chinese
painter Wang Yi Dong, American photographer Cindy Sherman and
Australian photographer Tracey Moffatt. I either directly
appropriated aspects of their works, or incorporated their
styles, use of colours or poses. They contributed to the
cultural backgrounds of the works.
It is up to the
audience to make the full observations on the person in the
frame. Happy, serene, free, or determined, it is entirely up to
the audience to create their own interpretations:
  
   
|
Feb 18 - 1st Day of
Lunar New Year:
Greeting the New Year of the Fire Pig
  
  
(All photos shot with Nikon D80 by Lamma-Gung3 from his rooftop in YSW,
2-8 seconds exposure time. Click to enlarge.)
Feb 17:
Tree Doctors & Tree Nurses
“Tree doctors” from Hongkong Electric and the Conservancy Association water,
measure and prune the young trees.
Quite a few Tree Huggers call Lamma home (myself included),
but did you know that there are also Tree Doctors and even Tree Nurses?
Neither did I. Till one of the informative and oh-so-educational press
releases by our main sponsor HK Electric taught me all about these
environmental volunteers.
 It's
all part of their 3-year
Green Lamma Green campaign together with the
Conservancy Association. It's an important part of HK Electric's
"green PR" and "aims to enhance Lamma’s ecological and educational value;
to promote eco-tourism and to achieve sustainable development on the
island." It all sounds like very noble goals, indeed!
Since 2005, they've planted more than 2,000 seedlings up at the pavilion
above Hung Shing Yeh beach, along the tourist trail to Sok Kwu Wan. They
write:
"A team of more than 50 “Tree Doctors” from Hongkong Electric and The
Conservancy Association (CA) called at Lamma Island recently to perform
“check-ups” on seedlings planted there in the past two years under the
“Green Lamma Green” project.
Led by Dr. Chu Wing-kin, General Manager (Group Commercial) of Hongkong
Electric, and Dr. Alvin Kwok Ngai-kuen, one of CA’s directors (see right),
the tree doctors measured, watered and pruned the young trees. They also
used tree assessment cards to help look for any disorders in the seedlings
caused by pest, disease or fungal infection.
The tree doctors also carried out a close search for a foreign species
called Mikania which preys on other plants making them weak and causing them
to die. Dr. Kwok said, “We must eliminate these plant killers to protect our
ecology."
For more info, here's the
full press release.
“Tree doctors” from Hongkong Electric and the Conservancy Association
perform health checks on seedlings planted on Lamma Island in the past two
years.
HK Electric's Public Affairs Dept. has been keeping very busy
recently, sending out quite a number of "green" press releases - hoping to
make us forget about the 2.5%
tariff increase on Jan 1? Here are the other recent releases:
10 Feb 2007 - Giving Up Bad Habits for a Greener Chinese New Year:
"With Chinese New Year just round the corner, Green Power and Hongkong
Electric have joined forces to call on the public to give up some festive
habits that threaten the environment. These include using self-adhesive red
packets instead of reusable ones and new banknotes for Lai See; using more
gift wrapping than is needed, discarding too many things during the
traditional ‘spring-cleaning’ ritual and eating endangered species such as
reef fish and shark fins..."
2 Feb 2007 - Short story competition on the importance of power supply:
"Hongkong Electric is launching a short story competition to highlight
the importance of reliable power supply. It will be held under two
categories, one for the general public and the other for students and will
last for six weeks from 5 February to 15 March. The competition is part of a
series of activities of the Smart Power Campaign 2006/07 which will run
throughout the year to raise public awareness of both the benefits of power
supply and the need to use it efficiently..."
Feb 16:
Bruce the Bodyguard
|
Jay
Scott Kanes - STBWFLA (Soon To Become World-Famous Lamma Author
(Story courtesy of
Cairns Media
Magazine, photos by Jay Scott Kanes.) |
On Duty, on Alert, on
Top
in the Guarding Game
When Lamma Islander Bruce McLaren
performs his job well, high-profile events unfold more
smoothly. Soft-spoken and favoring finesse over
fisticuffs, he's one of Hong Kong's leading security
directors and celebrity bodyguards.
A co-founder of Signal 8
Security, Bruce guards famous people who visit Hong
Kong. Recently, former U.S. vice-president Al Gore
became a client. Bruce also has protected Arnold
Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, Elton John, The
Rolling Stones, Cindy Crawford, Jennifer Lopez, Phil
Collins, Sting and many others.
"Often the work's dull,"
Bruce said. "You meet famous people and see interesting
things, but sitting outside someone's hotel room for
hours can be very tedious. There's lots of reading
magazines or pacing up and down to stay active. The
hotels often help by providing sandwiches, coffee and
water. Bodyguards receive a list of people allowed to
knock, and we turn everyone else away. If we do the job
right, it should be dull. Any trouble means that we
underestimated the situation or didn't prepare properly.
"With celebrities, we
also focus on crowd control and escorting them through
fans. Scenes at the airport can resemble rugby scrums,
especially with the boy-bands. Then I like to bring at
least two guys for each person we're protecting.
"Although I've never been
caught in a really dangerous situation with celebrities,
the media pursuit is stressful. We've nearly been run
off the road by fans and the press chasing us. Often
drivers want to speed up to get away, but I tell them to
slow down. It's more important that no one gets hurt.
"At events, you
constantly scan the crowds. You take the best position,
not too close to the client to avoid getting in the way.
At a cocktail reception with Al Gore, I stayed against a
wall, always within 20 feet and with Al in clear sight.
If someone acted suspiciously, I'd move closer. You
watch for anyone with hands hidden or acting strangely,
maybe agitated and with eyes darting. If something's
wrong, you usually get warning signs."
Bruce operates from a
modest office in Hong Kong's Central Business District.
When duties prevent him from catching a late-night Lamma
ferry, he sleeps at the office under the gaze of
celebrity clients peering down from autographed posters
on the walls.
"Late hours and strange
schedules affect your sleep patterns," Bruce said.
"Usually, I can relax on Lamma, but I never switch off
my phone." He most enjoys strolling on Power Station
Beach with his girlfriend and their four pet dogs –
Bart, Cookie, Hannah and Spike the Bulldog.
Originally from near
Glasgow , Scotland, Bruce arrived in Hong Kong one week
after a Chinese atrocity, the Tiananmen Square Massacre
in Beijing on June 4, 1989.
"At first, I worked as a
waiter, barman and cook," Bruce said. "I started in
security to earn extra money. After watching security at
concerts, I told the promoters that I could organize the
jobs better and cheaper.
"A few days before the
Planet Hollywood restaurant opened in Hong Kong, I was
asked to handle the bodyguards for that, which became a
huge logistical nightmare. Ten days later, I'd lost 12
pounds from sleeping just two hours a night, but things
went smoothly. Money from that first big job allowed us
to set up the company."
In 1994, Bruce and his
Australian business partner Kim-Maree Penn, a former
karate-world-champ and martial-arts-actress, launched
Signal 8 Security. Last year, Kim-Maree opened a branch
office in Los Angeles.
Bruce employs a core
group of 10 full-time bodyguards, some Chinese, others
Western, usually working in shifts of 10-14 hours.
Altogether, he has about 40 regular staffers. For big
concerts or sports events needing yet more security
people, Signal 8 collaborates with other companies.
The basic cost for a
Signal 8 bodyguard starts at US$50 per hour. Protection
may be high-profile, as when shielding singers from
screaming fans, or low-profile to facilitate business
meetings. Bruce pledges efficiency and confidentiality.
"We travel around Asia
with celebrities and into China with business people,"
Bruce said. "Most attacks come from behind so you walk
behind and slightly to a client's left, which keeps your
right hand free."
Hong Kong laws forbid
bodyguards from carrying firearms, stun-guns or pepper
spray. "We rely on our bare hands and maybe umbrellas or
walking sticks," Bruce said.
Threats need constant
assessment. "Professional assassins strike from a
distance to avoid getting caught," Bruce said. "They use
bombs or high-powered rifles. Against them, you keep
your client away from areas of visibility. You use
underground carparks, put up canvas screens and
constantly change schedules or routes. An assassin needs
to know who, where and when. We try to keep those
secret.
"Most attackers with
knives or handguns have grudges or mental problems.
They're after the person we protect, which means the
weapons don't point at us, and we can deal with them. In
crowds, we watch the first three rows, where an attacker
needs to be for a clear shot.
"Priority one is to
remove clients from danger. In a two-man team, the
bodyguard nearest an attack deals with it while the
other gets the VIP away. As a lone bodyguard, you do
just enough to drop an attacker before extricating the
client."
|
Umbrella blows may repel an attack - or frighten a photographer.
Hulk-like Arnold Schwarzenegger relies on Bruce.
Another snapshot with the Governator
Always alert, Bruce watches over actor Jackie Chan.
Not shooting at shadows, Bruce and colleagues prep for real dangers.
Guarding Sting
Bruce guards from behind while escorting the band Westlife.
Bruce poses by his "credentials wall".
Singer Jennifer Lopez (centre) relaxes in Signal 8's care.
Near an autographed Jennifer Lopez poster, Bruce stares down an
impertinent journalist. |
|
Signal 8 protects individuals, events
and venues like nightclubs, offices or homes, often 24/7. The
corporate client list includes the Hard Rock Café, Elite Models,
Microsoft, DKNY, Universal Music and Warner Brothers.
"For business people, the most
dangerous places are their homes and offices because they need to go
there," Bruce said. "We may recommend alarms, motion detectors,
CCTVs, razor wire, metal detectors and secure car-parking spots."
Signal 8 supplies security for
various bars and nightclubs. "If I use reasonable and proportionate
force in doing my job, then I have no serious problems with the
police," Bruce said.
No matter how enraged others become,
Bruce and his staff must stay calm. "We need humor and a tolerance
for verbal abuse," Bruce said. "But being spat on or poked is
physical assault and justifies restraint. If someone pokes
menacingly, I'd grab the extended finger, bend it back and bring the
person to his knees. Then we'd talk.
"Ideally, Signal 8 avoids the
nightclubs prone to triad troubles," Bruce said. "But some
difficulties are unavoidable. Then we may be outnumbered 20-to-one,
so we try to recognize the top guys. Sometimes we may tell club
management, 'Music off, lights off, everyone out.' If the triads
fight each other and we have no control, our priority becomes making
sure that all the customers and staff stay safe."
Bruce has training in marksmanship,
unarmed combat, defence and restraint, protective driving, secure
escort, searches for explosives, anti-sniper measures, electronic
counter-surveillance and first-aid.
Some precautions are hi-tech. "When
sweeping offices for bugs, we start at the top, probably in false
ceilings, and work down, sectioning the space so that nothing's
missed," Bruce said. "We cover entire rooms and every object in
them. It takes a long time."
Bruce began his working life as a
marine engineer and a firefighter. To share some of what he's
learned in the security business, he teaches "real-world" self-defence
classes.
"People
assume that the main thing is an ability to fight," Bruce said. "But
if you do everything else right, you avoid fighting situations." |
Feb 15:
Lamma Pétanque Tournament
 Our
more and more numerous French-speaking Lammaites got a Pétanque league
together, opening it up to the public next Saturday!
What the heck is Pétanque? It's the sound the ball makes makes when
hitting another one in this game: Peh-tonq! On a flat open space, you throw
or roll your metal ball as close to the target point as possible, hitting existing
balls away from the target. The ball
closest to the target at the end of a round wins. Simple, but a sport passionately played by all
ages, especially, but not exclusively, in French-speaking countries, and now
on Lamma as well!
Check out the
rules on
Wikipedia and then stop by for the tournament, maybe even
participate on Sat, Feb 17, 11am! The location is Tai Peng, near
the shop. There'll be signs, of course. Watching is free, players contribute
$50 to costs.
For more information, call Eric at 2982 0185, mobile 6104 5977.
 Romain
writes (translated from French by Lamma-Gung3, no
guarantees for any translation errors):
The matches will
be played in 3 rings: Ring 1 and 2 inside the Grand Field, Ring 3 in the
Triangular Field.
11am:
Forming the teams (A,B,C,D Pool 1 and C,D,E,F Pool 2), distribution of
materials and explanation of the rules.
11:30am:
Start (3 rounds per group).
11:30am F
/ G E / H A / B
12:15pm B
/ C A / D E / F
12:45om
E / G F / H C / D
13:30pm
A / C B / D G / H
2:15 -
3pm: semi-final in the Grand Field (Ring 1 and 2)
3 - 3:45pm:
grand final in the Grand Field and little final in the Triangular Field.
4pm: Prize ceremony and lots of
applause!
|
Marianne - one half of Lamma's PPP (Pétanque Power Pair): |
A Short History of
Pétanque on Lamma
The Lamma Pétanque Club needs YOU to promote this new
activity on Lamma. This game is already well-known to the people
living around Tai Peng, as the usual players gather every weekend and
sometimes even during the week.
The idea came last year from Romain
who asked a friend going to France on holiday to bring him back a few
Pétanque balls to play around Wang Long Village. Then more and more
people passed by and tried to play. As we moved to Yung Shue Long New
Village, we went to look for another playground nearby. We found a great
place in Tai Peng. We first cleaned the playground and took out all the
weeds and even the centipedes. After taking out all the rubbish (several
tons!), we could put in the "little stones".
Many people were passing by and were
asking us what kind of game we were playing. More and more people joined
in from many nationalities: British, Australian, Canadian and, of
course, French. Then Romain and Eric decided to create the Lamma
Pétanque Club. They bought more than 100 balls and cleaned another much
bigger playground. It took a few weeks to prepare and now it's all
ready.
As Romain and Eric are very much into
Pétanque, they decided to organise a tournament this Saturday, Feb 17,
in order to show to other Lammaites this French game that is more than
100 years old. We will organise this tournament in teams and play from
11am - 4pm. The winner team will win the Lamma Pétanque Club
trophy. We ask $50 per person to participate. The money will serve to
buy more equipment and organise another tournament later. The goal is
also to create a strong Lamma team to play against the HK Island team
later; even against other Asian cities! In many of them, this kind of
club already exists.
|
Feb 14:
'Musical Mayhem, Mirth & Murder'
|
Nick
the ReviewMan - Official Court Music Reviewer:
(All
photos courtesy of Dan Peterson, poster by Harry Harrison.
Harry
described his own band:
"The
Yung Shue Wan Curs are the YSWankers, featuring the usual suspects,
including Frazer who's back in town for a few days. Hot Ginger and
Dynamite are Dave, John and Ollie who have a nice twenties swing set
that they do.") |
There's quite a crowd
gathered at The Island Bar for tonight's menu of musical
mayhem, mirth and murder(ous) re-workings of cult
favourites, obscurities and ranting pop/folk. Yes, it's
the newly re-spelt Yung Shue Wan Curs
entertaining their demented revivalist fan base with a
stirring pre-St. Valentines Day concert. I've arrived in
time to hear the final 3 songs from the opening set by
Bahouki, with John on guitar and mouth organ,
Davy on fiddle and Ollie on accordion. Other assorted
Curs are getting lubricated to the woozy blues waltz of
"Shanghai Lil" - a sort of weird cross between Tom
Waits, Robbie Lakatos (the virtuoso gypsy violinist and
Indiana Jones 2. As the song winds down like a dying
gramophone, a shout of "absolutely brilliant" is heard
from in front of me.
A brief hiatus and Ollie
is playing Pachelbel's "Cannon" on the recorder while
Davy cuts loose with some searing Swarbrickian fiddle
breaks. Whack on a skittery drum-and-bass beat and
you've got a great dance single. Final track of the set
takes us to bluegrass hell with the old Charlie Daniels
track "The Devil Came Down To Georgia". John growls the
lyrics in a cod-midwest accent, while Davy seems to
channel both Charlie Daniels and the prog touches of
Jerry Goodman of Flock. Fraser is spotted making an
ironic? wankers gesture as the tune unfolds.
So who's in the crowd as
the band start to prepare for the second set. Big up to
Dawn and Andrew, Vivian and Marcus, Sarah. Theo and Don
by the door, John Transnoodle, Frank in the corner with
his cigar, Simone and Holger in front of him. All
mentioned for free, gratis and absolutely nothing.
Should I mention Kelly? She says she hasn't got "a pithy
comment tonight."
A big thanx to Dan and
Kumar behind the bar for keeping the creative (lime)
juices flowing. Gavin is doing a splendid job of keeping
the sound coherent and chaotic. He thinks it would sound
better if the band could be by the entrance, playing
back into the bar. Mystery reviewer "Official Court
Glutton" has plonked himself next to me as the music
resumes. The original 3 are joined by Gavin on bass,
("he got rid of his box and broomstick after Dickstock
and decided to buy a bass" sez John TN). Fraser and the
original Reverend Hank "Harrison" Williams are
on guitars. Davy has moved front and centre. Everyone is
wearing straw Stetsons.
John kicks off with a
drawly yee-hah version of "Folsom Prison Blues" which
flows into a mournful cover of "These Boots Are Made For
Walking". Jules is unaccountably missing on co-leadvox.
Johnny Cash gets a second workout with a feisty stride
through "A Boy Named Sue". The good Reverend now exhorts
the sweaty masses to heed "the blessed Saviour
calling you" - the first of his fiery/brimstone sermons
of the night. Raj makes the first call for "Plastic Jesus"
which is ignored or unheard. There's the old favourite
"Lonesome Pine" which is a kissin' cousin to "Shanghai
Lil" in execution.
Some new surprises in
store tonight as the Curs channel the buzzing spirit of
The Horseflies" in an unexpected rendition of
"Fixing-To-Die-Rag" by The Fish. I''ve just mixed this
into a recent CD and it's nice to have a shared musical
memory with you John. A warped version of "The One That
I want" is mingled with whoops and heehahs. Could be the
Greasy Rawhide splice. Enough to get Rae and John TN
bopping while Dave and Richard Cook look on. There's
"Gin-n-Juice" by Snoop Doggy Dogg re-worked as a "lost"
track by The Waterboys from their Big Music period. Dan
James joins in for a splenetic "Sympathy For The Devil".
The lyrics start making sense after about 3 minutes of
buildup. Davy is back in the 70's again, re-kindling
memories for me of High Tide and String Driven Thing.
This song could by their "Dazed And Confused
(live-Zeppelin versions) if they want it to.
Don comes over gobsmacked
as Fraser leads the Curs through the most explicit song
of the set. It's "Piss Up A Rope" (or maybe that's the
chorus) by Ween. "I can't believe they did that", he
gasps. "Ween will play anything, go from death metal to
this song". Rae, Ruth, Sally, Olivia, Louise, Teresa,
Natalie are now dancing as Harry sing's "I Saw The
Light" and John ups the ante with a fucked-up vocal
intro to "Still Haven't Found" before sending the tune
into inspired folk/ punk terrains. Finally, a few mangled
riffs that sound like "Smoke On The Water"/"Sweet Jane"
mutate into a soaring version of "Plastic Jesus". Raj's
prayers have been answered.
There's time for one encore as the
midnight ferry passengers wobble through the crowd
outside. Harry sings a song about playing a song and it's
all over. Although you didn't play "Surfin' Bird", I
still think you guys are a Lamma Living National
Treasure. Long may the musical mania remain undiluted by
the merciless ravages of pampered packaged Top Ten Pap.
|
|
Feb 13:
Yung Shue Wan Flower Market
 A Chinese-only note above Ah-Ying's fruits and flowers stall
(outside the electrical shop) alerted me to the yearly Chin. New Year flower
market this morning, 10am on the new boat pier in the reclamation
(opposite the Football Pitch).
This low-key event - visited almost exclusively by locals -
is the best, biggest and cheapest local opportunity to buy the all-important
blooming flowers and plants to decorate your home or business for the
Chinese New Year holidays next weekend (Feb 18-20). But you've got to arrive
there early, as it has the feel of a "Grand Final Sale" and all the nicest
plants are sold out within minutes! Got to run, it's 9am already right now!
I'll bring back some photo souvenirs, of course: auspicious
kumquat trees, peonies, narcissus, chrysanthemums, pussy willow branches,
plum/peach/quince blossoms:
Click above for my complete CNY Flower Market photo gallery!
Feb 12:
'Video Blogger Gets a Big Head'
Defribillators for security guards,
SCMP conspiracy, the HKIEd soap opera, the KCRC's new swamp hotel, and, last
but best, a HK Copy News item about the formerly secretive creator and evil
mastermind behind it all. He titled this segment as "Video Blogger Gets a Big Hit",
corrected to "Big Head" by himself later.
Lammaite Daniel Clarke is hitting the big time now with his
weekly video blog "Hong Kong Copy News". As I've reported last week (Feb
7 - "Shooting from the lip"), he's been prominently
featured in the SCM Post. He writes:
"Hooray! Fame and fortune at last!
"After last week's SCMP there are a whole
lot of new viewers. But you guys are still the hard core.
"I'm also going to be on a show called
"What's Up After 8?", which you can get on Cable TV 's Channel 27 and
HKBN Channel 47 or
www.tictv.com.
"But most importantly there's a brand new
episode up.
Get it here
or here
or
subscribe via iTunes."
Let's hope that Daniel "Fame & Fortune" Clarke will remember
me and his other poor old friends after moving into the Lammarina luxury
development for multi-gazillionaires soon, frequently taking his super-duper
yacht out to cruise to even more interviews and appearances on local and
international TV channels...
Feb 11:
Chin. Forum's Chin. New Year Update
|
Samson - Official Court
Moderator of All Chinese Forums
(Photos by Siuyu, Mo and nicole_kam) |
-
 SOB
- The Petition
The Save Our Banyan online
petition aims to save the big banyan near the Main Street police
box. Now translated into English and moved to the Environment
forum!
Read more...
-
Shocking
Stockings Stalker
The regulars of the 7:40am ferry
discuss the somewhat strange behaviour of a fellow passenger,
who seems to have a very keen interest in black stockings…
Read more...
-
Say No to Fare
Increase!
The proposed across-the-board
$1.6 fare increase (and $72 for monthly ticket: $567!) caused a
great deal of concern in the Chinese forum.
Read more...
-
 Pests
on Ferries
Still on ferry-related matters,
mo complained of unwanted passengers on the lower deck of the
slow ferries! Photographic evidence attached!
Read more...
-
Cold-hearted
Neighbour
Although Lammaites are known for
being friendly towards each other, Miu had a less than
pleasant experience in rescuing her cat from the rooftop of an
unhelpful neighbour.
Read more...
-
Cold Comfort?
Speaking of the cold: although
this winter has been mild, not having hot water at home sure
sucks! Milkyginny had to put up with cold showers with a
malfunctioning water heater at home…
Read
more...
-
 Good
Man on Lamma
Adhering the old Chinese saying:
“One is not a great man unless one has been to the Great Wall”,
nicole_kam proves her greatness by sharing photos of her
recent tour of Beijing.
Read more.
-
Congrats to
the Reps
The results of the Village
Representatives Elections 2007 announced.
Read more...
|
Feb 10:
Wired Rabbit Massacre!
Feb 9:
'I only stayed for a few weeks...'
|
Fred Baines from frosty Nova Scotia (self-portrait
photos by Fred Baines) |
I only stayed for a few weeks
but wish I could stay forever
 You
know, tonight here in Nova Scotia it is -30 Celsius with the
wind chill is factored in. Tonight it is snowing, not a lot,
maybe 5 to 10 centimeters.
Would I rather be there tonight, you bet... I
first went to HK for business reasons. The company I work for
sells parking meters. A few years ago the Hong Kong Parking
Authority bought 30,000 of our meters.
Needless to say some needed repairs so I was
sent there to fix some meters. I could tell as soon as I made
the trip into town I was going to like this town...
That time I stayed over in Tsimshatsui in
Kowloon.
The second time I was there I stayed on Lamma
Island.
Back then I used to use ICQ to chat with folks
and one day a girl from HK asked to chat. I thought, wow, a girl
from HK wants to chat. Ok, I can do that. Later on she says why
not drop by for a visit. Okee-dou-kee, I can do that too. That
is how I came to stay on Lamma Island for a few weeks...
I just thought the place was so neat, no cars, great people,
great food, fun times every day.
Here the population is small, maybe 12,000
people. Everyone knows everyone and knows what is happening in
the neighborhood. I get the same feeling with Lamma Island. Your
e-zine certainly keeps everyone up to date, even me who spent
all of three weeks there. If there were some way I could get a
job on the island I would be there so fast it would not be
funny...
Do they have estate auctions in HK? That is how
I make some cash here, buying and re-selling things I pick up at
estate sales. I wish I could provide pictures of my travels
there, but my pics are buried in a closet. My scanner is there
also.
I have so much stuff in my place that I have
bought for resale I can hardly move around my flat. I have a
path that goes from my front door to my kitchen, to my bedroom,
to the bathroom and to my computer. The rest of the space is
full of stuff I have or will have for sale.
These days the girl I knew there is long gone. I
have not talked to her in a couple of years. Alas, a new girl is
in the picture, again living in HK. Maybe a return trip will not
be too far off.
|
Feb 8:
Finally, Back Online!!!
After being offline for almost two weeks - thanks to PCCW's
amazingly stupid incompetence (see separate story) - I can finally continue
this blog. I'll try to back-fill stories up to Feb 1st, but Jan 26 - 31 will
remain empty as a testament to PCCW's monumentally incapable customer
non-support.
The two photos above show the view from the rooftop of my
new 2/F flat. After 5 years on Lamma, we've just officially graduated from Lamma Newbies to Junior Lammaites
(20 years to become a Senior Lammaite). Now we've finally become entitled to a reasonably-priced rooftop
flat (just kidding!) You can jump that 5-year queue if you're willing to
pay the increasingly exorbitant rents charged for rooftop flats these days
(just kidding again, or am I?)
Our flat move, 200 metres down the road, took an almost
record-breaking 6 days (more on this later, or earlier, as it will be in the
back-filled stories below). Months of unpacking await us; I still can't
find my favourite trousers...
Feb 7:
'Shooting from the lip'
Click above for the latest edition!
David Momphard from the SCMP contacted me 2 days ago for my comments on
Daniel MomentEye's weekly HK Copy News. But before I could reply - in the
middle of unpacking - the deadline had passed, unfortunately.
Pretty nice and in-depth story about Daniel in the SCMP on Feb 8! Now we can
finally reveal how Daniel looks like, from this really fine photo by the
SCMP's Dickson Lee below, subtitled "Daniel Clarke says Hong Kong needs
more satire such as HK Copy News as part of a a mature political landscape."
As most of the SCMP website is not publicly accessible, I'm re-publishing
the story here, assuming friendly permission from HK's leading daily English
newspaper, as I've almost contributed to this story:
|
David Momphard - Features reporter. Story and photo
© SCMP,
Feb 8 2007.
(Photo by Dickson Lee) |
Shooting from the lip
Politicians, pregnant mainlanders and even the Post -
they're all fair game for Daniel Clarke's spoof news website.
The tenor is evident when the
newsreader intones, "Legislative Council calls for more
legislation; accountants call for more accountancy" - and
political appointments are "popular with political appointees".
Spoof news site HK Copy News says it is "just like the real
news, but cheaper".
Founded by video-production
manager Daniel Clarke, the website takes pot shots at
politicians and pokes fun at the government's policy gaffes.
And Clarke, 35, reckons we could do with a lot more political
satire. "There might be a political comedy troupe out there, but
not that I've heard of," he says.
The Briton has been involved in a
number of creative endeavours in the 13 years he has lived in
Hong Kong, from an improv-comedy troupe and life-drawing classes
to Hong Kong's first - and surely only - unicycle hockey league.
But until Copy News, he didn't
have much interest in local politics, partly because he, like
almost all Hongkongers, doesn't get to vote for the chief
executive.
"For years, I basically flipped
over the Hong Kong news section of the paper," he says. "It's
very hard to stay with it, but it is fascinating when you get
into it."
An article written by former
security chief Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee for the opinion pages of
the South China Morning Post spurred Clarke to create Copy News.
"She said something like, 'For
Hong Kong to develop a proper democracy it's going to need
political parties and it's going to need to develop a bunch of
stuff'," he says. "I thought, well, the other thing it needs to
develop are proper satirists. There's got to be more people who
tell the likes of Regina Ip that she's an idiot.
"She's involved in demagoguery of
a sort. And, you know, free speech and all that. Of course, to
have free speech is to stand up and speak freely. And that's
partly how [HK Copy News] came about."
Launched last September, the
weekly news review is now in its 17th instalment. Clarke writes
the script for each episode during the week and puts it together
at the weekend. He does the animation at home and records the
voice of the cartoon newscaster at his office. His wife, Kate
Allert, a freelance voice-over artist, coaches him on the
delivery.
The current edition touches on
the announcement by Donald Tsang Yam-kuen that he'll be running
for re-election as chief executive - a mere formality for a
process with a foregone conclusion.
"It is a testament to Mr Tsang's
fairness and commitment to the democratic process that he
managed to restrain himself from immediately announcing
victory," the newscaster declares.
Clarke insists his beef with
local politicians isn't personal. "In terms of themes, I guess I
come out for free speech, democracy ... and honesty," he says.
Bureaucracy often takes a
beating. For instance, a November episode sideswipes the
government's lumbering efforts at implementing its vision for a
cultural hub. "The West Kowloon Cultural District Consultative
Committee on the Core Arts and Cultural Facilities is probably
the last group of people you'd want to let near any kind of
creative project," the animation newscaster says. "Their
greatest achievement on which they can all agree is their name",
which Clarke abbreviates as WKCDCCCACF.
In a December episode, he unveils
a board game, Consultation, in which one player representing the
government can do whatever he or she pleases with a lump of
"Basic Law modelling clay" and a stack of "easily dismantled
national heritage building blocks". One player takes the role of
the government and everyone else plays the public. The public
can comment on what becomes of the blocks and modelling clay,
and the government can throw pieces of the clay in their faces.
Play ends when all the national heritage building blocks end up
in a landfill.
Food scares, pregnant
mainlanders, Christmas and the Post have all been in Clarke's
sights.
But if he can dish out criticism,
he seems also to be able to take it. He receives a modest income
from the service that hosts his site and, in a recent post, he
told readers he had reinvested his earnings by buying two books
on comedy writing.
"Does that mean it will start
getting funny?" one wag asked.
"Even the heckling will reach
minimum standards eventually," Clarke shot back.
Ryanne
Yeung Lai-hiu is a weekly viewer who subscribes to the RSS feed
of Copy News.
"It's a gem, very entertaining,"
she says. "I especially appreciate its light-hearted humour and
the funny look and voice of the news reporter. It also shows
that expats really care about what's happening in the local
community, so much that they'd spend time to put together a show
every week."
Clarke isn't sure how many hits
the site gets each week, but says he receives a small fee for
every viewer who watches a whole episode - currently just over
100 people a week.
"Sometimes I look at that and
think it's a pretty small number when Bus Uncle can get 30
gazillion hits in a day," he says. "But if you think of [the
site] as being like a comedy club, 100 people every week is a
pretty good turnout.
"[News satire] is more and more
of a phenomenon in the US and in Britain, where shows like The
Daily Show is where people want to get their news from," he
says. "It's well-informed and presented with a bit more
character in a way that people actually want to listen to."
Although comedy is what drives
Clarke he says that he enjoys having a soapbox.
"It feels good to have a platform
where I can say something. I don't know how much I really want
to stand up and say, 'Yeah, I want to get people informed', but
I'd be happy if that happened."
HK Copy News can be found at
http://hkcopynews.blogspot.com
|
Feb 6:
'They Keep Me Afloat!'
Click to above to read the latest instalment of Gina's Photo Comix (proudly
created on a Mac). More to follow all through the season, I hope! Gina
writes:
"We need new paddlers!
As with most dragon boat clubs in Hong Kong, the Lamma Ladies lose
paddlers each and every year to horrible things like pregnancy, relocation,
and - very occasionally - the demands of what some people call "real life".
(Though some of us are unfamiliar with this term, others insist that it
does, in fact, exist; along with "good salary" and "men who clean
bathrooms"). "
Join the multi-award-winning team by
emailing Gina or phone her at 9121 3648
- after checking out
their rambunctious blog - and soon
you'll be pinkified!
.jpg) Feb
5:
Lamma-Gung-Gung-Gung
This morning at 8:07am, I became a third-time step-grand-father. You could
call me Lamma-Gung-Gung-Gung or Lamma-Gung3 now.
We had to get up at 5pm, taking the first ferry to town to the hospital, our
first time ever to take the very first ferry at 6:20am...
A bouncing baby boy of 2.85kg was born to Lamma-Por's eldest daughter by
Cesarean Section. They're both fine, thanks for asking!
I've got 3 step-grandsons now, no -daughter, coming from a
4-boys-no-girls family myself.
The photo on the right was taken with my camera phone just a few minutes
after birth, when all four of us were taking
pictures of the new arrival after he emerged from the operation room.
And how did the new mother see her son for the very first time? On the screen of
our camera phones shown to her in her room while she was slowly coming to
from her general anesthesia... Welcome to the virtual age, grandson!
Read last month's stories...
|
