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Hello Kitty’s Diary

July 10, 2015

I was born as Kitty White in the suburbs of London, England, on 1 November 1975 to Japanese parents. I am now age 40, stand at a height of five apples, and weigh as much as three. I met Cocoa Evenings when she was a preadolescent, somewhere between seven and nine years’ old. I liked her the moment I saw her, for she had the most beautiful big smile and brilliant twinkling eyes. I shook her outstretched arm and said,

“My name is Hello Kitty.”

She picked me up and hugged me enthusiastically.

I think it was love at first sight.

***

Yes, it is love. I found myself duplicated in many ways. I appeared on wallets, pencil cases, stickers, utensils, boxes, pens, umbrellas, necklaces, stationary holders, hair clips, and many more! I have never really been out of her sight.

I found out that those duplicates were mostly gifts for her birthday.

Cocoa loves Hello Kitty so much that she would always request her presents to be a Hello Kitty item. That is how she has a mini collection of Hello Kitty.

That, is also how I became a kind of symbol of love from other people to Cocoa.

***

Furthermore, in all the years that we have known each other, she did always reiterate that I was the source of motivation for her to study hard back then.

She said she would one day bring me back to my parents’ homeland – Japan. She said she needed to get good grades so as to qualify for the state-funded Japanese Language Programme, and only then she could go to Japan. She said she would not let me and herself down.

With that determination and perseverance, she made it into the programme.

Halfway through, she wanted very much to give up. However, her mother encouraged her see it through and reminded her of what she promised me. She dug deep, and found the strength and courage to see it through.

Slightly under two decades from the time we met, she finally made the trip to Japan with me.

Now, I am elated that we made it together! I cannot be more proud of her. She is proud of me too.

***

I have become more than Hello Kitty, a cat without mouth.

I have become a symbol of success. I have become a symbol of achievement. I have become a symbol of hard work. I have become a symbol of determination. I have become a symbol of strength. I have become a symbol of courage. I have become a symbol of support. I have become a symbol of love. I have become a symbol of lifelong commitment.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Cocoa’s notes:

In Singapore, Hello Kitty is a little bit of a symbol of the Singaporean kiasu (afraid to lose) mentality and competitive spirit. Also, Hello Kitty is sometimes used as a metaphor, to depict highly popular items that garner crazily long queues. Hello Kitty was sold as a MacDonald’s Happy Meal plush toy for the first time in 1996, then in 2000, and 2014. Hello Kitty will make a 2015 appearance specially for SG50, Singapore’s Golden Jubilee. To understand this more, see Hello Kitty Craze.

In the world today, Hello Kitty is a symbol of social communication, international friendship, and speaking from the heart, without language bias. Hello Kitty is not merely a logo that lives in someone’s childhood.

Do you recognise Hello Kitty? What does Hello Kitty mean to you? Is she anything more than a cute character?

In response to The Daily Post’s weekly photo challenge: “Symbol.”

[Photo:Taken from Hello Kitty Run 2014 T-shirt that I own.]
Lee’s Sunset – 夕阳无限好，只是近黄昏. 18 gorgeous sunsets to relax your mood

July 7, 2015

So what’s your muse — what subject do you turn to frequently, more inspired each time?

Sunsets.

My adoration for sunsets likely comes as no surprise to you, my dear reader, for my blog is titled Cocoa Evenings. Since evenings only come around when the sun sets, I have dedicated this blog to sunsets as much as I have to evenings.

Sunsets inspire me because they signify the completion of a hard day’s work, and I use it to reflect, to take stock, to take heart in the blessings I had received throughout the day. Sunsets inspire me to show gratitude and appreciation towards what had happened, what is, and what will be. Sunsets motivate me to continue the next day better as they softly warm my skin and bathe my walls in a vermillion glow. Sunsets inspire me to continue life with zest as the setting sun always returns though it never lasts. Indeed, “夕阳无限好，只是近黄昏。” Translated: “Sunsets are endlessly beautiful but just too close to nightfall.”

Each sunset inspires me more because each one is different, and will teach me something different, depending on my circumstances then. The sunset by the Parliament House (featured image) has inspired me the most so far. It was also the longest of all the sunsets I have captured, and it was long in every sense of the word “long”.

***

Pause. My eyes search the four pale cream walls of my room. My heart pumps a little faster. My one fist clenches. My lips are press against each other. My tear ducts trembles with sensations as my mind scrambles to piece together a coherent and cohesive text that will accurately represent the significance of this memory.

***

I queued 5 hours and captured this sunset 4 hours into queuing.

I walked from City Hall MRT Station (train/subway) to Parliament House.

I had the longest conversation regarding Mr Lee.

I had spent six days and night in a state of depression before I saw this sunset.

I asked a friend why I felt that way and did all that, and he replied,

It is because you have never known life without him.

I bowed three times. Goodbye, Mr Lee. ~~One last time.~~

***

How does this sunset inspires me?

I now live with a renewed sense of the idea, “we must ourselves defend our nation”, for indeed, if I do not, who would? The hard truth? Death spares no one; even a Founding Father must leave.

I know you will feel me deeply and find meaning if you had yourself experienced the departure of someone whom you had never lived without until the departure.

I have come this far, and will go further.

I celebrate Singapore’s golden jubilee #SG50 years of independence with loving memory of Mr Lee Kuan Yew, who passed away on 23 March 2015.

Yes! I love sunsets, insofar, you could call it my comfort or my drug. I will show you more!

Thus far, I hope that you have enjoyed the sunsets that took my breaths away.

Comment if you want to find out more about the story behind any of them! Let me share in your memories too. What is your most memorable sunset?

In response to The Daily Post’s weekly photo challenge: “Muse.”
Ah Cek’s House

July 6, 2015

In response to The Daily Post’s weekly photo challenge: “Door.”

I immediately notice the metal grills that criss cross in front of the folding panel doors. I notice the red cloth with Chinese characters on it and the red pumpkin-shape lanterns with complimentary yellow tassels hanging from beneath. I find myself transported to more than two decades ago when I was barely able to count.

***

Then, I would followed my mother on the long pilgrimage to a temple that was housed inside someone’s house once or twice a year. I called her Ah Cek, as my mother did. Ah Cek probably means Ah Jie or elder sister, and was likely a term of respect because Ah Cek was way older than my mother was.

I remember that Ah Cek’s house was somewhere along Joo Chiat Road, near to the Guanyin Temple on Waterloo Street.

I would smell Ah Cek’s house before I saw it for there was always incense burning.

I would see the rusty grills that criss crossed in front of the folding panel doors.

I would feel tears welling up in the rims of my eyes for there was always incense burning.

I would follow and pray.

I would use the washroom before leaving because it was a two hour long Bus 61 ride home. I had to scoop water with a handy pail from a large bucket of water to flush the wastes away. I would turn the creaky metal tap to release water and wash my hands.

I lived in the era where one could still find house without the flush system.

***

Now, I find great resemblance in the grills and doors of this photo to the one at Ah Cek’s house. However, I know they are not the same for this door is much more colourful and has flower carvings on the wooden panel above the door.

The doors are not the same because Ah Cek’s door belongs to the Chinese culture while this door belongs to the Peranakan culture – a blend of two cultures where the people are ethnic Chinese but culture and language are predominantly Malay-influenced.

In that era, doors were mostly utilitarian for the Chinese- for locking up the place. Metal grills were mostly unpainted and left to rust, and wooden doors were left to rot.

On the other hand, this door belongs to the Peranakan culture and is a little more decorative, really making the place look much prettier.

Till now, I smell the incense and almost find tears in my eyes when I chance upon such doors.

[Photo: Taken along Joo Chiat Road, Singapore, in 2014.]
Top 10 things to do by 12 years’ old (Nice Version)

July 6, 2015

I hope you will find value in reading this list I publish, as I reminisce my past and prepare notes for if and when I have a child, whether you are a parent of a child under twelve years’ old, a young adult who could become a parent, or a student under twelve.

I also want something that I can hold on to in this ever-changing world because I find my memories slowly fading as the years fly by.

Below, I present my top ten things to have going for in the first twelve years of life.

1. Know what you want to do and fail all it takes to get there. Yes, fail big time. Still, stand up and chase it because the world is your oyster; time is on your side. Nobody will laugh at you for wanting to be the President in future because, really, who knows? Work hard. Work very, very hard.

2. Master a second language; be effectively bilingual because it gives you practical work advantage in this increasingly small world. A different language also provides a new method of thinking and stimulates creativity because of its different contexts/stories. Most of the times, a new language also introduces you to a new culture and helps you relate better to others.

3. Be kind. Volunteer to help everybody for the sake of helping. Provide value and you will become worthy for chances to be offered to you. Mentors will start guiding you. Opportunities to gain exposure will start knocking on your door.

4. Learn all the life skills, such as, cycling, swimming, climbing. Keep fit and say ‘No’ to fast foods. Staying fit is truly invaluable as you will find it easy to take part in activities when you are adult as you never know if your work requires it. In addition, life skills greatly increase the dimensions of your travels.

5. Pick up a hobby-type skill. Learn drama. Learn music. Learn dance. Learn a sport. Try to learn these in school for free or at low costs. It will cost much more when you are an adult.

6. Read. Make learning your life’s goal. Reading comprehension will prove to be far more important than you can imagine when you are a under twelve. Reading not only increases the standard of your language but it also builds your character and demeanour. Non-fiction tends to expose you to the world. Fiction tends to expose you to human behaviours and mind sets.

7. Save diligently. Save for college. You want to either have an insurance plan that you could withdraw in order to pay for college, or you want to have saved the full cash required for college by the time you are of age. If you can, save all your pocket money. If you cannot save all, remember the one-third rule – save a third of your income.

8. Make friends. Be sociable. As a friend, be loyal and do not sabotage your friends. If you think a friend is wrong, talk it out with him/her before you decide to tell on him/her! Do not talk behind your friends’ back.

9. Train your memory. Pick up techniques such as mind-mapping.

10. Choose not to have tuition/paid extra lessons. Spend your time playing in the sand or watching cartoon. Be the child. A child-like sense of wonder, deep appreciation, and gratitude for this world will carry you far. That said, you really have to make real effort to motivate yourself and stay conscientious in order to keep tuition at bay.

I am curious about what you think of this topic and this list. Could there be something essential which I have missed? Comment!

This is subjected to change as I grow. It is not an end-all-be-all list.

[Photo: Taken at the Changi Simei Community Centre Open House, Singapore, in 2015.]
Come by in the evenings for a cup of cocoa and some chit chat

July 2, 2015

I was intrigued by this idea of a lady employee having cocoa with her male employer, a butler with a famous house of old England, in The Remains of the Day, by Kazuo Ishiguro. I thought it was such a good idea to get comfortable and iron out work in this manner each evening. I find that it gets things done in a dignified manner. I am sure you will enjoy such kind of serenity as well. Let us sit back and relax. Read away, write away, and laugh away.

[Photo: Taken at the bridge towards Gardens by the Bay, Singapore, in 2012.]