Two families leave China 100 years ago, This is a journal recording their passage, their so-journ in Borneo and then on to Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, England and beyond. A fascinating account of how time and place have changed the members.
During
the World War II, there was an embargo on ships crossing the South
China Sea. There was no rice import, an staple of the people. People
planted root vegetables like sweet potato/kumara, tapioca and pumpkin as
staple. Dad said when you eat this day in and day out, withour any oil or salt, you soon get very tired of it. The world has turned around. I like sweet potatoes , and sometimes I steam them on top of the rice.
some 70,000 seeds being smuggled to Kew in 1875, by Henry Wickham, at the service of the British Empire, from Brazil and stole some
rubber seeds aka Hevea brasiliensi.
From those stolen seeds, they grew to supply the rubber gardens in Malaysia and Borneo.
The
original rubber trees were very good, but took too long to reach a
productive age. Then the good old scientist developed a smaller tree but
produced more and called it high yielding tree.
My
plant is a miniature tree. It's a tribute to both sets of my ancestry.
It was rubber that brought them to Borneo.In 1907, my Great Grand father
was scouted to lead a developing company to grow this important cash
crop.
During the World War Two, trading ceased. People
stitched up rubber sheets and wore them. The more enterprising ones even
made shoes.
Nang Kham SetThis
pic was taken at the occasion when my little nephew entering into
novice and at the same time ear piercing ceremony of my daughter and
nieces was performed
Sai Kaung Set Yan Paing is Nang Kham Set's son .Sai is our Shan family name that means Mr. This is Kaung Set Yan Paing and her nephews entering Monkhood ceremony and daughter and nieces ear piercing
I
have been very privileged to have lived in many countries and made
wonderful friends from all over the world. In Singapore, I have amazing friends from Myanmar, Daniel Lwin and Grace Lwin. With Facebook, I made a wonderful friend who made me feel proud when she called me sister. Nang Kham Set, Lecturer & Head at University of Medicine,Taunggyi. I asked her to educate me the Myanmar culture.
From today on Myanmar will be well known among people as a respected and confident leader is nominated as president today. U Htin Kyaw, old friend and trusted person of Daw Aung San Su Kyi, our national leader.
When Dad studied in Singapore after the World War II, he made some very good friends from Myanmar.
Manihot esculenta, with common names cassava (/kəˈsɑːvə/), Brazilian arrowroot, ... Like other roots and tubers, both bitter and sweet varieties of cassava ...
It must be properly prepared before consumption. Improper preparation of cassava can leave enough residual cyanide to cause acute cyanide intoxication and goiters, and may even cause ataxia or partial paralysis.[8] wiki
My father told me there is a
folklore that it is very important to grow them the right way up, or the
tapioca would be poisonous. It would be better not to eat them.
Tapioca is a dietary staple
in Africa, Asia and South America, and you'll also find it in beverages and
puddings in the United States. Although commercially packaged tapioca is
generally safe, the plant can be highly toxic if not prepared properly.
Tapioca naturally produces
cyanide, which is poisonous to humans; however, the cyanide may be removed
during processing. By eating poorly prepared tapioca, you may risk cyanide
poisoning according to the American Cancer Society. Symptoms include headache
and dizziness; in severe cases, you may experience convulsions or coma. It is
suggested that if a person is allergic to latex, it is best not to eat tapioca.
I used this story in my World War II, about a family dying after eating the up side down tapioca.
In 1900s, all the men who left Quaang Tung to Borneo dressed like this. Frog buttons and fishermen's pants. Over time, some of them changed to wearing western clothes. My grandfather aka Ah Kung continued to wear it until he died in 1976.
When I was young, I was rather embarrassed he adhered to his Chinese culture. He was like a countrybumpkin wearing slippers/jandals.
When Bruce Lee became famous, young Sibu boys mistook my Ah Kung to be a Kung Fu Master and nagged at him to teach them Kung Fu. He was tired of them following him, one day, he opened his bamboo umbrella and they all ran away. They thought it was his Kung Fu move.
As I grew older, I am proud of my Chinese roots, and equally proud of my Ah Kung. I wrote about him in my books From China to Borneo to Beyond. In my World war II book, I fictionalised him as a hero.
In the photo, the elderly gentleman wore a fedora. I went at lengths to describe another character who wore a fedora.
A fan saves a bat from hitting a young kid at a baseball game. Photo Christopher Horner via Twitter/@Hornerfoto1
A fast acting spectator saved a young fan from being whacked by a flying bat at a MLB pre-season game in Florida. Pittsburgh
Pirates outfielder Danny Ortiz lost hold of the bat and photographer
Christopher Horner captured what happened next in a series of frames at
the Atlanta Braves' spring training stadium. The young boy in the firing line had been looking down at his phone when the man next to him flung out a protective arm. Ortiz told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.:
"I didn't know what happened, if it (hurt) the boy or anything. I went
home and my wife said to me, 'You almost killed that kid!'" Baseball
bosses want clubs to extend protective netting at grounds, and have
warned fans about the risks of sitting close to the field.
This is a Methodist Hockey team. About the same girls played softball for the school team. The girl second from the left is Jasnah Obeng, St Mark verses St John. I was batting and I flung the bat.
I was sent out, but I didn't know where or who the bat landed. It was decades later when I told Jasnah about it. Jasnah said, it was her who copped the flying bat and it was very painful.
We laugh when we meet. I will be meeting Jasnah, and will will have a good laugh.
