Long Break

Back to work since April 2008. As a volunteer and then an instructor. Now full time work. Having taken a long break, my feelings are:

1. you had time to chat with people who normally you did not have time for, such as lunch with friends, no matter where they worked, and visited relatives, who you normally met only during CNY;

2. you could study anything you like, no matter they were held in daytime or evening, and never missed any class due to work commitment;

3. you could read a lot of books and magazines, this is the part I liked. No matter long classic or short novel, you could enjoy them day after day;

4. you exercised more;

5. most importantly, you had time to think about yourself and decide the next career you want.

So, try taking a longer break, say 3 months or more, and you definitely feel the difference.
Remember, this is a special stopover in your life for you to get re-changed and keep going.

四川大地震

由中國在五月十二日發生地震開始，一直在緊貼着新聞。看到國家地震區有極大傷亡，實在很痛心。政府今次的危機處理做得相當不差，第一時間便派人搶救傷者，再派人深入通訊隔絕地區救人，另外亦趕發物資予災民。當然，鼓勵海內外捐输及容許外國派人協助亦反應很快。而且對本地及外國媒體採訪亦不設限，使到消息可全球知道。

事實上，無論在香港以至外國媒體，對政府今次表現都是好評不絕。而且對比在不久前發生風災的緬甸，其政府對人民死活的冷漠態度更顯出中國政府的反應快捷了。

不過，對於很多在地震中傷亡的中小學生而言，政府所做的便遠不合格。在災區有不少學校是由於工程質素太差而使學校在地震時不能支持以至快速倒下而使學生來不及逃生。事實是只要設計好及用足材料學校是絕對可以抵抗此次地震。政府絕對要將和這些工程有關的官員及工程人員嚴處，另在再建造校舍時施工質素上嚴格監管，才能在下一次災難發生時保護好下一代。

Volunteering

I used to be a volunteer when I was in Canada. After I joined the agency in Hong Kong, I never got a chance to be a volunteer. Now I am a volunteer again.

Volunteering is good as you can contribute to help the society to become better. Because you are a volunteer, nobody expect you to be a professional and you can decide the time, organization, and the type of work you want. You have less pressure than paid job also.

There are two types of volunteering, event specific and routine work. The first one requires you to participate in an event that takes one to several days continuously, and you are free. The second one requires long term commitment and you need to spend a couple of hours or more per week to serve. To choose either one depends on your availability. It's the heart to serve that counts. Try it and you will like to be a volunteer.

談教學語言政策

由政府宣佈應能容許學校自行決定教學語言開始，政府用作規範中中及英中的教學語言政策宣告終結。亦表示政府終能自我了斷其中一個影響最大及爭議最多的政策。有趣的是，政府花了大筆錢請人研究母語教學的成效，但完成報告後卻拒絕公開整份報告。最大原因就是報告顯示母語教學對中中畢業生的前途有很壞的影響。亦表示回歸以來一面倒以為迎合主子心意的教學語言政策毒害了不少年青人。

老實說，我是十分贊成母語教學的。能夠用母語學習知識肯定會比用第二語言吸收得快及多，而且學生在課堂上更會勇於發問。不過，由於大專院校多以英文為教學語言，中中畢業生在大專院校內一定較英中畢業生難適應。所以，理想模式應是在小學便要學生學習英語音標，使他們懂得英文發音，在初中時再學文法，打好基礎；另外在初中各科目內的名詞附加中英文對照，使學生開始認識多一點英文名詞。到了高中後便全用英文課本，學生到大專時便容易應付。

TV News

I like watching news. Before I got married, I could watch Cable TV news continuously. Now I am more selective. Everyday I watch it once, or maximum twice. And recently I prefer watching news in the English channels. Why? Because the Chinese media, no matter TVB, ATV or Now, are unprofessional. Besides they report less on international affairs, this is what I can accept, they like to report trivial facts with unbearable remarks.

Two examples, the first is whenever the weather gets cold, the Chinese media always has a reporter report that "The weather gets cold, and people on street are wearing more clothes." Is that news or a teaching lesson for small children in kindergarten? Change of weather is worth reporting but not the rest. The second is whenever there are some minor things happen, such as an increase of electricity price or a redirection of driving route for special occasion, many Chinese reporters always like to put words into others' mouth by asking leading questions such as "Do you think that the increase of electricity price/change of driving route is not good/convenient?" They have an answer in heart and they just want it from others. Why not just report the facts and forget the rest? You never find the above examples in the BBC and the English channels.

過年

農曆新年眨眼便過，當中總不免到長輩家中拜年。雖是例行私事，但一年能有機會和親友相聚一次也是好的。

在年少時要跟隨父母在農曆新年拜年總不免覺得煩厭，但想到有紅封包可拿便只有隨時候命。那時總覺親戚很多又麻煩，但在年紀漸長後知道親戚是你生下來便是你血緣的一部份，不能像朋友一樣可以選擇不交往便只有欣然面對。

到了現在，人變得成熟了，更明白親戚是你家族中的一部份。 無論你喜歡與否他們都是你的親戚，所以自已亦變得較為關心他們。每年農曆新年間更喜歡與他們見面，大家交換近况，暢談一番。

不少人喜愛在農曆年間出外避歲，我卻寧可去拜年，和親戚朋友閒話家常。就算是不想見的人，最多亦只是一年見一次，每次半小時左右，絕對可以接受。

Questions

I have just finished reading the book "A Brief History of Time" by Stephen Hawking. An interesting book but it's difficult for those who do not know science. Some of his questions raised in the book are very very difficult to answer but enlighten. I have chosen a few of them:

1. after the beginning of the universe since the big bang, the universe is expanding, but if the universe stops expanding and starts contracting, are we heading to the big collapse?
2. why do we exist in the universe, at this moment, and for what purpose?
3. why does the universe exist, and for what purpose?

These questions put you in deep though. What do you think?