蝶海情僧

Butterfly Lovers' Concerto is about the love story of a passionate prince who is gifted with the ability to attract butterflies whenever he recites love poems. Later he is forced to become a monk after a coup in the Palace.

I only took a few photos before and after the performance.

leader

One morning I was passing a row of shops. A middle-aged man was unlocking the metal shutter and then trying to lift it up. Three young men, probably employees, had also arrived and were waiting to get in. The man, probably their boss or superior, had a little difficulty with the shutter as there seemed to be a little obstruction.

Surprisingly, none of three young men went to help him. Maybe it is something that often happens and they are used to it.

If there were only one employee around, I think he would have helped.

Sometimes a person doesn't want to help because he doesn't want to be seen as if he wants to curry favour with his superior.

In some cases if there are many people but no leader, no one wants to do it.


(Note: There will be no new posts for about 3 weeks.)

血濺未央宮 - 龔耀祥, 黃妃

馬林百列廣東戲曲團九周年紀念

Some of the performers at the Marine Parade CC Cantonese Opera Group's 9th anniversary shows.

賽雪心, 蔡淑嫻



賽雪心, 張偉光

何婉媚

洪清芳, 文群芳

龔耀祥, 黃妃

武吉巴督艺声粤剧团

林建炜, 谢绮玲 - teachers/leaders of the Bukit Batok Community Cub Cantonese opera group ...



Recruitment of members ...


Performances/activities to celebrate its 10th anniversary ...

粤曲

丁卫标, 曾秋霞


Here is a quiz for you. What is the name of this song?

buy 2 get 1 free

I was looking for frozen chicken wings (those seasoned ones used for snacks). I saw a certain brand at a FAIRPRICE supermarket. The picture of chicken wings on the packet looked quite appetizing. They are product of Turkey. I thought of buying a packet.


Then I saw a notice which said Buy 2 get 1 free. Three packets? I haven't eaten this type before so I only wanted to try one packet. Also, my freezer was already quite crowded, I didn't want to put in another 3 packets of chicken wings.

If I buy one packet, I would feel like I have been short-changed.

In the end I bought another brand, one that I have tried before. Normal price, no special offer..

胡不歸之哭墳 - 鄧志駒

childish

Once upon a time I was driving along a road and looking for a certain building in an area I was unfamiliar with. So I drove slower than normal. A male driver behind me was not happy. He honked me. He was following too close. So, I increased my speed a little to give him chance to overtake.

Later he had the chance to overtake me. After that he cut into my lane and suddenly slowed down. Then he purposely drove slowly - slower than I. So I had to slow down further. He thought he could irritate me.

I find his actions childish and risky. It could have caused an accident.

Soon he lost patience. No, he didn't come and box me. He lost patience with his own slow driving. He drove off.

Maybe in future I could make a banner and display it at the back windscreen - Driver not familiar with area.

大断桥 - 张爱萍, 楚云玉

大断桥 - 楚云玉, 张爱萍




水漫金山 - 楚茹意, 楚茹芯, 楚云玉, 楚茹明

use the rod .....

棒下出孝儿

I came across this Chinese saying while watching a period drama. It means that if you use the cane, you will produce filial sons. Do you agree with this? I guess most of you do not.

Nevertheless I think there are parents in China who not only believe in this but they carry it out too.

Perhaps some of you believe there is some truth in this proverb: Spare the rod and spoil the child.

My view is that it is more important to be strict and firm with your children and not let them climb over your head. If you are a teacher, that applies to your pupils too.

Pupils, including the trouble makers, respect teachers who are strict and not teachers who try to be popular.

opera at Ang Mo Kio

This group of temples are at Ang Mo Kio Avenue 10. The street in front is Street 44.


The opera shows on the three days were to celebrate the birthday of the Goddess Matsu (天后诞). The opera stage and audience section were at the foreground of the temples The area was quite small. That night, the smoke from the temples drifted over to our eyes a few times.


These were the lead sheng and dan, 文劍斐, 裘倩儂 .




From the photos, I think many of you will know what the opera is. It is a Yam-But classic.

I do not know anything about the dan. The sheng is quite well-known and she performed well. But, on the whole, I find the presentation of the opera quite disappointing. If you ask me good to see or not (好看吗), I could only say fair..

save Rediffusion?

No one is going come up with $30000 every month to save Rediffusion. Those who want to save Rediffusion should subscribe to it and persuade their friends to do so. But would people subscribe to Rediffusion just for sentimental or nostagic reasons? Even if they do, how long can it last?

I am one of those who grew up with Rediffusion. Here is one memorable scene I have .....

It was evening. My father, just returned from work, was sitting in the hall. There was no television set. He was listening to Lee Dai Sor narrating the story of The Condor Heroes on Rediffusion. My mother, clad in sam foo and wearing wooden clogs, was in the kitchen preparing dinner. She was more interested in Cantonese opera than wu xia stories. My sister was reading a movie magazine. My younger siblings were amusing themselves with their own games. Some hens which we reared were strolling in the backyard. I was also listening to Lee Dai Sor.

Now? I would feel nostalgic but I would not enjoy Rediffusion as much as I did in my earlier years. The circumstances and backdrop are not the same anymore.

I also liked the slots where they broadcast Cantonese opera and Cantonese opera songs. There were other programmes that I used to listen to, like the story-telling by Tang Kei Chan, a man who could speak in different voices including male and female as well as old people and young children. Once there was a slot called Midnight strange tales that I liked. It is something like incredible tales, about ghosts and the supernatural.

Lee Dai Sor is no more around. Nowadays you can listen to Cantonese opera and songs from other sources. Cantonese shows are also readily available in other media. I guess it is the same for other dialects.

Ministers' pay again ?

Last Sunday I was at the market. Some men were selling newsletters. I had a glance at the top headline. It is about ministerial pay. So I see they were from a political party. But why are they still harping on the issue.

We all know that there is no formula that will satisfy everyone. Even if we have a few formulae or options and let people vote, the one selected may not get the support of 50% of Singaporeans, just like in the presidential election. .

I guess whatever formula the committee comes up with and the government accepts it, opposition parties will oppose as they cannot be seen by their supporters to be agreeing with the government. But why couldn't they wait and see how it goes as there will be a review after 5 years.

Later a man seemed to be arguing about this with one of the sellers whom I think was a candidate in the last General Elections.

No one asked me to buy. Otherwise I would like to ask them why not wait and see how things work out first.

On second thought, maybe they think a by-election is coming and their party intends to contest, so they try to use old issues to work up sentiments.
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the tiger's mouth

There is a Chinese saying 馬路如虎口. It means the road is like the tiger's mouth. So when we cross the road we should pay attention to the task that we are doing, that is crossing the road. We should not fiddle with some gadget or engage in another task that divides our attention. Even when we have the right of way, we should also be careful. There are drivers who are careless or inattentive.

I have been careless before. Luckily I did not cause injuries to anyone, only to my own vehicle.

In Singapore, I think the roads are not very wide. You can cross them within 30 seconds if you walk briskly.

In some cities in China, Macau for example, many drivers don't stop for pedestrians to cross at pedestrian crossings which are not at traffic-light junctions. You have to wait for the road to be clear or you have to hurry or dash across when the traffic is not too heavy or you can try crossing, hoping the drivers would stop for you.

special coffee recipe

This happened about a week ago. I lifted the lid of the kettle (the tall cylindrical plastic type) and filled the kettle with water. I did not rinse the kettle as I had used the kettle in the morning. I boiled the water. Then I made a cup of coffee.

I drank the coffee which tasted as usual.

Later when the water was cooler, I poured it into a jug. It was then that I discovered a cooked medium-sized cockroach in the kettle.

So I poured the water away. But I couldn't do anything with the coffee in my stomach.

I do not dislike cockroaches, so I did not feel too bad. If it were a lizard I would feel more revolting. Maybe I would also throw away the kettle.

Luckily, I didn't get stomach-ache.

It is a lesson about not to be too complacent even with simple things. Otherwise, I may get poisoned, cut myself or get some other unpleasant surprises.
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lost recipe

This is fried big prawns or ha look in Cantonese.


My father used to to cook a few dishes very well. One of them is this ha look. The shells of the prawns became golden-brown, crispy and aromatic while the flesh remained sweet and succulent. Unfortunately I did not watch him do this. Before he passed away, he didn't pass on the recipe or skills to us. If not I could sell them to make some money, not a fortune, maybe $200. If 100 of my blog readers or Facebook-friends buy it, I could get $20,000 already!

Haha, just day-dreaming!

Transient beauty

One day I stumbled upon a photo which gave me quite a shock. It also provides much food for reflection. It was a photo of a former Shaw's kung-fu star at his senior age. He is Wang Yu (汪禹). I am not his fan but my image of him has always been a good-looking young man.

You heard of the Cantonese saying 同人唔同命?

This Wang Yu (汪禹) has a different fate from the famous kung-fu star of the One-armed Swordsman fame, Wang Yu (王羽). His film career was not as successful. He seldom did the lead role in his films. According to information, his life after his film career was quite a distress. And he was addicted to drugs. He died at the young age of 53.

In Buddhist philosophy all things are transient. Nothing is permanent. That includes youth and beauty.

Here are 3 sets of photos showing three stars in their prime years and in their senior years.

Brigitte Bardot, a famous sex starlet. I have not seen any of her films.


Hong Xian Nu (紅線女), the Cantonese opera diva. I have not seen her perform opera in person.


This is Wang Yu (汪禹).

not good behaviour

Last Saturday I attended a Cantonese opera show at a community club. There were opera excerpts and songs. The last item was a duet, the song of which fans are very familiar with. I think the lady singer is from Kong Chow Wui Koon or Tung On (I think it is now known as OperaWorks.). I have seen her perform opera before. The male singer is quite well-known and is a good and an experienced singer.


During this last item, a group in the audience stood up and started leaving. Soon more and more people also started to make for the exit. At a show of this nature, it is not uncommon that some people leave early. But, in this instance, it looked like an exodus. I think it is quite disheartening to the two performers..

Why? Couldn't they wait for about 10 minutes more for the song to end? I am sure these people were not going to attend to some emergency or to attend an important meeting. They were also not old folks brought there by buses and had to leave at a certain time. It was not late neither. I think it was about 10 past 10. Were they trying to make it to another show?.

Anyway, I think it is not nice to leave in the middle of a performance. It is better to leave before the item starts.

Perhaps the compere in a show like this could remind the audience that the last item is only so long, say15 minute, and the artistes would appreciate if they stay on to support.

林冲之魂会山神庙 - 戚超群, 郭建华

Lin Chong's wife had a tragic death. The Magistrate at the Court in Hell-land took pity on her and allowed her spirit to go to Earth to meet her husband. They met in a temple.