Good Friday Durian Party

Some of us will be having an impromptu durian party this Good Friday holiday. Durian at Hougang (Dennis' regular supplier.) :-)

Add caption

Did this poster after 13 confirmed going. ;-)

==== BELOW IS THE WRITE-UP AND PHOTOS OF THE EVENT THAT FOLLOWED====

As this Durian Party was held on Good Friday and the beginning of a long weekend, not all D10-ners could attend. Quite a few had prior holiday plans. And Danny was an 'if' as his mom was hospitalised after a fall. We wish Danny's mom a speedy recovery.

In the end, quite a turn out and rightly so. Durian this season is plentiful with plenty of good grades going at rock bottom prices. Plus the caveat was welcoming back newly found Willie Lim and back-from-India-posting, Alex Lim.

Ian Chiak was also a surprised last minute addition - flying in from Myanmar, making it the Shi San Tai Bao (十三太保) - literally, 13 Princes - of movie title of yore. (See poster above. I parodied it to 十三太饱, the last 'bao' being 'full'. So the title becames a funny, The 13 Full.

Thirteen who indicated they would come and attend this wonderful feast.

You could say my premonition was incredibly accurate as we were all quite full from durian AND porridge. Scary, sia.

Wefie (from left, clockwise): Willie, Alex, Dennis, TC, Ian Chiak, Khen Hua, Choon Meng, Ping Heng, Yew Meng
Karu, David, Barry

Above photo with Tiah Ann joining in later. Alex couldn't eat the durian as he was having a bad throat. Despite that, great of him to join us after recently returning from a work stint in India. Welcome back, bro!

We had quite a few boxes!

Dennis was the perfect host as usual, walking back and forth constantly asking after our preferences and checking if his fave vendor there had the respective kinds. In this way we managed to sample quite a variety of the spiky fruit, first christianed by famed naturalist Alfred Wallace in the mid-1800s when he went to Bukit Gombak to collect insect samples to send home to London, as the "King of Fruits". The durians we ate from Ah Wei (the stall vendor help) ranged from D13, maoshanwang, ang hei to small durians that held impossible fruit. It was like lifting your armpits and finding a sleeping bag there!

To those who could not make the trip, this could well be the regret of the year.

All the fruits we had were just ripe, fleshy, and with seeds so small that one could stick it up the nose! 
Best of all were the durians from Pahang, which had all the maoshanwang creaminess and musang king bitterness. The D13s were more for those with a sweet tooth, something Kheng Hua enjoyed and ordered.

However, with the good Pahang durians only arriving after 7 pm, Dennis had the good sense and consideration to order before hand. Thus those we had came in take-away plastic boxes cooled the night before in the fridge and thus were certainly less "jerlat" to consume. The warmer the durians, the creamier it gets... Just like milk.

At the end of the feast, Dennis also encouraged us to tapow as the durians were exceptional. (They were!) The whole affair was very generous of Dennis and grateful we all were. It is true of what Dennis says: "Got good stuff must share!" Now we just need to know what Dennis likes and pamper him some! (Pity there are not many fair-skinned women at Clarke's Airbase. Karu, pls take note!)

The soft, creamy, niam niam bitter taste durian from Pahang. If you have to eat one durian in a year, eat this. 

Ok, Willie had told me he was not going to eat durians at this feast, which was contrary to the whole idea of the gathering. But present he should be as the latest "foundling". So I offered him good ice cream instead.

The choice was Haagen Dazs. Good ice cream that's also easily available at the neighbourhood Giant supermart. It has been like that since Giant took over Shop 'n' Save.

The ice cream Willie had was Strawberry flavour. I chose this over chocolate as it was less heaty and also because I used to date a girl from the East who was crazy over this flavour. And so I came to like it as well. This flavour of Haagen Dazs has real strawberries in it and when chilled, tastes even better! It's light and a good pick-me-upper. It is the same with Jap Meiji strawberry ice cream.

In any case, if Willie could not finish his tub, he could always share with his significant female other later!

FYI: Giant Supermart is having a 2-for-1 deal right now. Three tubs for the price of two. So, not only are durians cheaper this season, ice cream too!



===PORRIDGE=== 

Sin Heng Kee Porridge address is:
Blk 685 Hougang Street 61, S(530685)
Hrs: 7 am - 9.30 pm Everyday 

Porridge: One-For-All, and All-for-One!  (And yes, it is the No.1 porridge that's best! If you liek tubes -aka intestines - order No.7 like Ian Chiak did.) 

Afterwards we adjoined to nearby Sin Heng Kee for excellent rural porridge. I didn't know that Hougang had such a famous boutique porridge place.

Tong and Kheng Hua went ahead to chope seats and place their take away orders, which proved a long queue (see pix above). We later discovered that eating there was faster than ordering tapow.

Sin Heng Kee is famous for their "No.1" porridge and so we ordered that. No.1 had fish, pork, liver, tubes, etc. It was indeed a belly-warming and heart-stirring recipe! Afterwards, we were seriously full both from durian and porridge. Ian Chiak, true to his liking for innards, ordered No.7, which had tubes (aka intestines), if I am not mistaken. In bak kut teh, he liked kidneys more than liver. (I mean he has told us how he liked to consume various wild meats, which in TCM terms, is not a bad diet to embrace.)

The tres excellente "No.1" porridge. Yew Meng kindly treated us to this. 

In the end, this event was a wonderful impromptu gathering to trade some jokes and indulge in some talkcock moments. Also a chance for us to meet newly-found Willie, who have had a tough week, what with his church founder, Rick Seaward, (formerly of Calvary Charismatic Church, now Victory Family Center) killed in an auto incident in Brazil. And today, having to attend his senior pastor mom's cremation service as well. A double whammy, and solid that he turned up at all!

=== JOKES ===

Karu also shared some jokes, two of which were medical:

Aye, Aye, Aye...

A guy goes to see his doctor: "Doctor doctor... Whenever I drink kopi or teh, my eye hurts. With Milo or Horlicks, nothing."

The doctor checks and finds one eye red. He gives the man eye drops and sends him home, none the wiser of what is wrong with the man.

"Let me know if it hurts again," is his parting advice.

The following week, the fellow returns with the same problem. This time his eye is redder still.

"Come, I'm leaving for lunch. Join me and we can talk about your condition at the nearby kopitiam."

There, the man orders kopi, one of his fave kopitiam drinks. The doctor sees this but doesn't say anything.

The man drinks.

"Ouch!' exclaims the man. Sure enough, his eye hurts again.

"John John John..." says the doctor, in a manner not unlike that of a patient parent.. "Next time when you drink kopi or teh, please remove the spoon first. It's poking your bloody eye out!"

=== Next salvo ===

Balls Out

A man goes to see you a doctor about a headache that refuses to go away. The doctor's prognosis is that the man has to have his balls cut off. "It will relieve the strain it is causing from the base of your spine to the top of your head," he counsels.

However, the man refuses to accept the suggestion, thinking how preposterous it was. He then decides to seek a second opinion. Then a third. All come back with the same advice: "Cut off the balls!"

Unable to bear his headache anymore, the man grudgingly agrees to have his balls cut off. To his amazement, the remedy worked and he could finally walk around with a smile on his face again. The scowl pulled long by his crusty balls gone for good.

One day he goes into a gentlemen store to look for underwear. He picks out the usual briefs and proceeds to pay for them. A senior service staff at the counter notices him. He looks him over and then at the briefs. He then says: "Sir, you know, right. If your briefs are too tight, you'll get a perpetual headache! I think you have picked briefs that are two sizes too small!"

At that, the man grabbed his rather empty crotch and wailed.

=== Alex back from India ===

A sample of domestic India plane.

After an almost 4-year stint in India, Alex of Murata Electronics Singapore shared this harrowing story of one time making a domestic flight.

The air-conditioning inside the small plane he was in - probably an ATR with that just one central aisle (see pix above) - was not working. Air inside was very warm and stiff. Alex put up a hand to check for airflow again, and found the vents to be extremely hot to touch. What's going on, he wondered.

Soon white smoke drifted over from the front of the plane as if to answer him. It wasn't an answer Alex was prepared for.

Neither the passengers too, it seemed.

According to Alex, no one panicked, everybody was calm. Or maybe the event was too shocking to comprehend.

I mean smoke filling up an aircraft cabin must be serious, right?

Yet the air stewardess moving through simply swatted at the smoke as if it was an everyday affair.

The smoke soon got thicker and alarmingly so. It shocked Alex. Is nobody seeing this? he wondered, not without thinking if his survival was at stake.

Could the engines be on fire? He asked his companion to peer out of the window to check. No fire. The props of the aircraft were still where they were and performing admirably.

Inside the cabin, the smoke continued to issue forth and build.

Er, shouldn't anyone say something?

Eventually, the captain of the plane did get on the intercom PA and announced that the aircraft's aircon had died. That they had in all probably 10 minutes left!

Alex told me he thought the captain meant the world was going to end in 10 minutes. But actually it was touchdown in ten minutes!

As you could imagine, 10 minutes in a smoke-filled cabin is very much like eternity in Limbo Land, you know, that place between Heaven and Hell after you'd died. So I could sympathise with Alex on how he must have felt at the time.

(If, in that interim, a buxomy stewardess were to approach me, then I would think I had ended up in heaven. It is in my bucket-list to expire in the arms of a double D lady with lashes so long butterfly kisses are like a Pharaoh's frond fan). If it was one of those very senior and bochap flight stewardesses from Qantas Air, I would know I was a bad boy and be sent to my room without dinner, durians, and the Internet. If it was a handsome air steward with a twitchy little finger, then I'd know it would be hell and I'll be buggered for the rest of end-time!)

In the end, even though the aircraft cabin was filled with smoke, the plane landed safely and did not catch fire. To Alex's relief.

Outside, he could see that the airport's fire services were all assembled and ready for action.

My, my, what drama and trauma to go through in a day's work!

==== Next ===

On another occasion, Alex spotted an emergency door that was clearly dented. He pointed that out to an air stewardess who simply shrugged the matter off. The plane took off just the same. So domestic air travel in India is not for the faint-hearted. *Sweat

I am wondering if people clung to the outside of the plane just as they would trains in India.

Just two of the many stories from today's Durian Party and talkcock session. Plenty more for the next round. Cheerio guys, and keep well till then.

A loose screw could make a lug loose as well. So tighten your watch screws from time to time and maybe apply super glue to prevent them from coming off. Super glue can be dissolved with nail polish remover.

This gathering was also a good time to repair the D10 watches of Barry and Ian Chiak as Dennis had brought along spare screws and a couple of extra new watches. The D10 watch is well-made and definitely value for money at $120, but its screws and lugs could become lose after prolonged use. So some regular maintenance is needed to prevent both the lugs and lug screws from falling away.

(This Panerai lug design is actually very convenient for changing straps. No fidgeting with springloaded pins, etc.)

Two new watches were passed to Willie and Alex. Guys, welcome to D10 Timekeeping! What is D10 Timekeeping? I would like to think it is looking forward to the next talkcock session. *Big smile!

Meanwhile, keep ticking and prospering, bros. Not waistline, just anything but. And Happy Hols!


=== Liaw and His Cadet Tee ====

Oh, if you look closely at the above gathering photos, you might be able to glimpse Liaw wearing his OCS cadet tee. The very one with the OCS badge and red and orange shoulder stripes. Man, amazing how he could still fit into that tee-shirt and eat all that durians and porridge, haha. Zhan!

Liaw wore the same OCS tee (as shown here on Seto) to the Durian Feast. Fantastic! Should have taken a clear shot of him in it!

- TAMAT.

Finally, the Last D10 Member is Found!

Today is a HUGE day in our D10 Reconnection journey.

The final missing member of our platoon is located and importantly, rejoined.

He is none other than our very own Willie Lim.

I remember him back in OCS as a devout Christian, always bible in hand outside the corridors of our OCS barrack. He was taller and bigger sized than me and it was always great to have him help out in weapons carry, bashing through jungle, etc. He was always cheerful (no doubt aided by a positive Christian outlook) and gung-ho; a demeanor that often brought levity to an otherwise serious platoon proceeding, especially during mission topos and training overseas.

He also had his own way of thinking and that often made our PC Ang say: "Lim Willie... Must be different!"

Whether he was quirky or into his own Christian world, it was never a doubt that Willie was a good chap to have about. He as also pretty sportive.

I recall sparring him in the boxing ring. It always felt a challenge as he was bigger and rather bullish. A good thing I took karate-do in my teens and thus was not so easily put-off.

I think in boxing we all took away some important personal lessons. But the one thing we all can agree on is how tired our arms would become, often hanging limp by our sides after each training session. Our triceps were certainly still soft as tofu during those fresh NS years.

Finding him.

I knew he was devout - and from SAJC - so my first search was if he had become a senior member of a church.

I made calls to SAJC but they were fruitless, as were searches on the Internet.

How about Facebook? As a resource it was useless. There were just tens of Willie Lims...many not anointed with a profile photo. So, how to identify if any were our Willie Lim? Of course at times I would send a Messenger message to enquire. Thus far, no replies.

After each failure to find him, I would take a break and hope something of him would appear in a Google search later. (Hopefully good news!)

I would also wonder each time I came across a Christian organisation, if Willie Lim belonged to it.

This happened one time when I passed by a Family Victory Centre near my place. I thought about it but left it at that.

Then last week, I came across a flyer from VFC. The thought of Willie's association returned and I sat down to do a Google search. I used the keywords: Willie Lim, 55

A search result with Willie Lim's name finally turned up. It listed him as a volunteer at an VFC outlet. Could it be him? Well, it was a week-day morning so I put a call to the VFC HQ. Turns out there was a Willie Lim but he was helping out at a VFC pre-school. I made some inquiries and left my number. Days passed and I forgot all about the matter.

So imagine my surprise when just the other night (Friday), I checked my phone at about 1 am+ and received the following text:

.

It was like seeing something really amazing... a lost locket or special childhood toy! And he had seen our D10 blogs!

(By this time, I had completely forgotten all about me calling VFC and trying to locate him (such was the frequent disappointment of looking for folks). It had turned out that my reach-out to VFC was fruitful. And here he was, sending me messages and even a photo!

It is really nice when an old friend is willing to reconnect.

Apparently after Willie Lim learnt I was looking for him, he went and checked up on me on the Internet, trying to affirm if I was actually doing work for D10, not for some tax collector from the IRS or "dai yi long" (debt collector) from Geylang (haha).

So, it was a fantastic day for D10. For Chee Hwa, Willie was his buddy from BMT days. He was Tiah Ann's D10 buddy. I am sure his SAJC mates will be thrilled to re-acquaint with him.

So with this, the search for D10 mates officially comes to an end. With Willie found, it behooves folks like Adrian, Mooi and Ho Soon to finally find peace of mind and circumstance to reconnect with the rest of us at Platoon 10, Delta Coy, 1/82 IOCC. We wish them well and patiently await that day.

- Happy like bird! as they say, heheh. ;-)

84mm Life Firing. Willie there holding the dummy round. Me on the gun. Fun times. ;-)

Catch-ups and Meet-ups

Below are some pics of us guys catching up when we can. Many of the pics are of guys picking up their D10 watch after the latest gathering on 2 Dec 2017 (those who couldn't make it). Way to go and what fantastic support!

5th Dec 2017: Phit Seng back to Perth and showing off his watch. Way to go, bro!

11th Dec 2017: Lunch with Kheng Hua, collecting his watch after coming back from overseas trip.

16th Dec 2017: Tiah Ann collecting his watch and sharing his army experience (a D10 interview).

20th Dec 2017: Lunch with Danny. Him collecting his watch. Way to go, bro! 

28th Dec 2017:  Bennett back to Ho Chi Minh and showing off his watch. 

30th Dec 2017: Catching up with Yew Meng, Huang Kiat and Chan Boon Kiong (back from China) collecting his watch Early breakfast at Ghim Moh Hawker Center.

2 Jan 2018: Chuan Hui showing his watch in office after getting it. Way to go, bro!

2nd Feb 2018: Meeting Siew Cheong for the very first time after all these years. Breakfast at Paya Lebar Square. 

9th Feb 2018: Catching up with Boon Teck (Teddy) for dinner in Sembawang.

15th Fb 2018: Kok Kee delivering my fruit cake order from his baker. Wow, thanks bro, for following up on that, and the treat!

15th Feb 2018: Hung Kiat catching up with Kian Meng at BMW workshop. 

18th Feb 2018: Catching up with Eddie in Sembawang, he collecting his watch. Posted to Shanghai, back for CNY hols. Way to go, bro!

24th Feb 2018: Lumch with Ian Chiak (back from Myanmar for CNY). Trying out his friend's BKT stall at the new Yishun Park Hawker Centre. Very good garlic, ginko nut flavour. Had a very good seafood white beehoon there as well. Also a chance to hear Ian Chiak's retelling of Taiwan reservist "di xia jie incident".

28th Feb 2018: Great of Choong Seng to call on me during a brief stopover in Sg. He was also here to do his annual check-up with his doc at Mt E. Still busy with his work in China when here. Don't forget to relax, bro.

6th March 2018: SAFTI Alumni Dinner at new Temasek Club (Rifle Range Road). Kheng Hua, Choon Meng and myself. Unfortunately, Dennis and Yew Meng couldn't join in. Maj Ang Tow Hai was there. 

=====

Earlier meet-ups and catch-ups:

29th Jun 2017: Meet-up and send-off drinking session for Ian Chiak. Going to Myanmar to work as IT security consultant.

30th Jun 2017: 2nd send-off for Ian Chiak at Island Country Club. Huang Kiat host. Thanks, Dennis. ;-)

1st Jul 2017: Johnny with Golf Company cadet B Spears (LOL) @ Marina Bay Sands

26th Jul 2017: Poh training in Ho Chi Minh and catching up with Bennett there. Bennett runs a pre-school there and commute back and forth Sg often.

17th Aug 2017: Famous Paper Wrap Chicken restaurant along Clementi Road closing down. One last burst of fire, haha. Host: Tong Ping Heng (friend of proprietor son. Form NYJC?); Dennis brought durians!

30th Sept 2017: D10 Gathering Org Comm meeting at American Club Chinese restaurant (Scotts Road). Very good glass charsiew! Present were Dennis, Tong Ping Heng, Lim Yew Meng, Liaw Choon Meng and myself, TC Lai. Dennis host. Thanks, Dennis! ;-)

30th March 2018: Durian Party at Blk 682 Hougang Ave 4. Host and treater Dennis at his fave durian supplier stall. From left, clockwise: Willie, Alex, Dennis, TC, Ian Chiak, Kheng Hua, Choon Meng, Ping Heng, Yew Meng, Karu, David, Tiah Ann, Barry.

30th March 2018: Same day as Durian Party. After durians, adjoined to nearby famous Hougang porridge shop Sin Heng Kee. Superb porridge. Yew Meng's treat. 

=====