Author: Wong Kong Thean

Interests: Join any activity like stay and tour plans.

Travel Club

Some members have expressed interest in an exciting business proposition ie to start a Travel Club. In that thread (("Christmas cheer and thoughts" https://silverhairsclub.com/2007/12/1327) the idea was to link Spore / Perth on the uncommon packages designed for our special interest group.

At the same time, we can extend the scope to include other countries. Our SHC members residing abroad can help us to organize tours in their countries (ie the inbound leg). We will organize the outbound leg from Singapore.

If there is interest, we can call a meeting to further this idea together with the Oz team.

Fart Facts

Farting is good for you. I set to correct the  misinformation written on this greatly misunderstood and unappreciated body function.

Those who fart in public usually try to deny it. Some go quickly on the offensive and ask loudly "who farted ?" Others try to cover it up by clearing their throats, scraping their chair or shoes against the ground to make it seem like that had been the sound all along. What do you do?

The gas is mainly CO2 and comes from overeating in general. Carbon dioxide is a component of bacterial action in digestion and bacteria cause gas.  Loud farts require more excessive gas. So there is a scientific basis that fat people fart more and louder. Eat less and you should fart less and lose weight. The farts also tend to be quieter for lack of volume and therefore less noticeable.

The odor of farts comes mainly from sulfur. So the more sulfur-rich your diet is, the more your fart will stink. And the more people will notice. Sulphur-rich foods include eggs, seafood, beef, veal, tongue, liver, chicken, dried apricots and peaches, cabbage, Brazil nuts, peanuts and cheddar cheese. Onions, garlic and leeks are also rich in Sulphur. So eating onions does not necessarily cause more farts. But because they are less stinky, it goes undetected more often.

Sulphur is used to make new substances in the body such as the hormone insulin, which is vital for the control of blood glucose levels. So cutting sulphur from our diet, is not an option either.

Yet not all is hopeless. Here’s something you can do. The way you eat and drink can cause gas as well. Not carefully chewing and chugging a drink can cause you to swallow an excess of air therefore causing farts to emerge. Also, chewing can help the digestive system break down the foods so bacteria can be prevented.

Eating slowly and chewing food for longer allows the enzymes in saliva to break the food. The more that food is chewed, the more it is broken down for the digestive system,” MedicalNewsToday said.

Now you know. We should just accept that, on most occasions, farting is good news for our bodies. Next time, sympathize those who can’t fart to save their life.  So, go ahead, let it rip.

Die, die also must eat.

The food pyramid revisited for the older folks

As we are trying to survive the next eating binge from here to CNY, it is helpful to remind ourselves that humans are designed so that they eat to live. Then read the latest research  from Tufts University researchers. They have updated their Food Guide Pyramid for Older Adults to correspond with the USDA food pyramid, now known as MyPyramid. The Modified MyPyramid for Older Adults continues to emphasize nutrient-dense food choices and the importance of fluid balance, but has added additional guidance about forms of foods that could best meet the unique needs of older adults and about the importance of regular physical activity. This will be  published in the January 2008 issue of the Journal of Nutrition.

Here’s a link
http://www.seniorjournal.com/NEWS/Nutrition-Vitamins/7-12-20-SenCitGetTheirOwn.htm 
 
There is no substitute bto reading the whole paper if you are interested to find out how to avoid eating to an early grave. There are many enlightening snippets. I’ll nibble at some to help those hard-of-reading.

The main message is the old one re-emphasized with a fresh sense of urgency – take more fluid (the water-kind, not alcohol) and exercise.

"food and beverages with high water content, such as lettuce, vegetable juice and soups, are important contributors of fluid in an older person’s diet."

"The need for calcium, vitamin D and vitamin B12 can increase as we age and some people find it difficult to get adequate amounts from food alone, especially when calorie needs go down,"
 
"However, we continue to emphasize that the majority, if not all, of nutrients an older adult consumes should come from food rather than supplements."

If you must live to eat, watch the swill before you shove them in. Eat well, sleep well.

Merry Christmas.  

Save the Fishes

Question for aquarium enthusiasts. How to stabilize the tank to prevent  fishes dying en-masse? 

A thriving aqua eco-system has many benefits. Feng Shui can be enhanced if properly located. It gives a cool, aesthetic feel to your home. Combine with a water feature, it can be meditiative and thereupatic.

Share your experience as how to keep a aquarium buzzing with life.

SHCIC – The Investment Club

The time line is imminent. Here’s an update and an explanation of what to expect. Most important how to best use the club to create the investment opportunity and to create the elusive passive stream of income.

It requires some commitment and effort from you to make it worthwhile. Trading is like running a business. You take risks for returns. There is no magic formulae. Practise makes perfect. The more you apply yourself intelligently to trading the better you will become.

Good-luck

 

RIP – The final nail

CPF is moving beyond the grave. Withdrawals are locked up in compulsory annuity. Work till you die for funds you are unlikely ever to see. Sell back the balance of your property to support the lifestyle that you deserve provided they gave you back your own money.

At least, we have eliminated sickness. If you are ill, you can’t afford to live for long. It is a convergent and self-terminating problem. You converge to the after-life in a zero sum game.

Leave nothing behind. You’ll likely go as you came. Naked to the butt. Shafted but not bowed.

What to do?

Die also cannot

First cannot drawdown CPF early. Next, no subsidy to die at home. So how?

"Mr Khaw wants to survey Singaporeans on their preferences so that his Ministry can accommodate the last wishes of the terminally ill."

Please don’t take too long. We can’t die on cue. Hope that this heavy sell is not just a new trick to clear beds at  hospices. Keep our CPF, increase estate duty and screw the dead.

Pava Roti

This is my suggestion for Shirley’s latest creation in her  Hotdog Wagon @ Hougang. A fitting mouthful to commemorate the passing of one of the most popular tenor of our times.

"No one will sleep" until victory!

His "Nessun dorma" is my favorite piece to calm the nerves when market goes badly for me in the night before.  The trailing strains in the dead of the night promises hope at the break of dawn.

http://www.videocaffe.com/video/DkwrTsAZ6Eg/Pavarotti-sings–

All’alba Vincerò! Vincerò! Vincerò!

Vanish, O night! Set, stars! Set, stars!

At dawn, I will win!

I will win! I will win!

Green and Grin

(We have Suzhang to thank for this post. This follows from my  reply to one of her comments.)

Can we be a green  farmer in Singapore? Tell us about your experience in agriculture, horticulture, growing things or simply potting around.

Tell us about about your experiments with ecological and environmental friendly technologies and self-sustaining biospheres. This could be energy (eg solar power or getting your mother-in-law to pedal the power cycle saying its good for her health) and water (collecting rain water to recycle to toilet flush, washing and watering plants.)   

Actually a modern farmer is a beautiful retirement model. Think of the real estate potential!

Barking dogs bite?

Worse. They irritate. A real pain in the ass.

Can all the dogs lovers please advise me before I do something that I will live to regret.

My new neighbours in a very peaceful part of the city has two big ferocious guard dogs. Don’t know why. The only thing that ever goes missing in the area are policemen.

So what else can overfed and pampered dogs do besides shitting all over? They bark. Everytime they sense me they bark the whole neighbourhood down.  Though nice people, my neighbours seem to be completely bark deaf. What to do?

I have been told of this solution. Hang my dirty clothings near to those two killers. Overwhelm them with my smell 24/7.

So will this work? Help! 

 

 

In praise of coffee

Whilst we wait long, long for tea tasting, I like to suggest coffee tasting. This is my favorite brain food. Latest scientific research has shown a direct beneficial effect to even brain desease such as Parkinson.

I take my coffee black. I have no trouble sleeping. No, I don’t mean Starbucks. I am thinking of tasting different beans straight out of the roasters. No kiddie milky stuff.

 

Moving goalposts

If you are not 67 today you can probably forget about retiring. The only thing that will be retired tomorrow is the word "retire". This is to be replaced by "work". And be glad you can work even if this means halfpay, same work and you get to report to Junior. 

Annuities may soon be compulsory which means that you don’t have to worry about CPF. It will be history soon.

Don’t worry about money too. You won’t be burdened with much. Life will pass very fast. Faster if you are sick.

Medisave payouts have increased so that you can pay your fast inflating medical  bills faster. Before you feel the pain it will all be gone.

How do you cope? Share. We can learn from each other.  

Cruise your blues away

Love cruises. Can’t join gang on Virgo due to heavy prior holiday committments. But we don’t have to travel together to enjoy cruises as a club. Like to use this post to share great deals, experiences, and opportunities on cruises.

Let me start with a great deal posted by Ron Lai,
"VIRGO cruise on 6d5n to Bangkok and Hua Hin, at the cost of $l030/= per pax (exclude tax), on the BUY ONE GET ONE FREE, subject to paying by" DBS/POSB cards.

He says interestingly
"We love cruises, not as to venture to the casino or the one-arm bandit, as these will cause to donate, but to enjoy the lovely music and dance the nights away, every nights. In the mornings, with sea-breeze blowing to your face, can do LTK (LUK TUNG KUEN) exercise on the deck."

But let’s not leave out Casinos – your favorite tips & tricks to beat the house. It is part of the total experience. With luck, an enriching one.

Watch Your Gas

No enbloc and more than 10 years. Watch your gas pipes. With age they can  pit with rust and can leak under pressure. The usual culprits are the exposed pipes. You can check these yourself. But the more subtle are the concealed. Normally, if you have separate water leak then gas pipes nearby will be become suspect over time. Ask the gas company to check regularly. 

Sad about Mr. Chan the active senior who died from the Bt Merah gas leak.

Question : Does anone knows why "Sarah" of Sarah Senior Citizens Activity Centre. Is this private and profit run?

Fit to Die?

A Defence Executive Officer working in the SAF fainted and died after completing a run on a treadmill. Relatively fit and health concious people have been known to die during workouts.

Sad and frustrating especially if you exercise regularly. What’s gone wrong? What can we do to prevent it from happening.

Property Investment for financial freedom

Anybody like to group to invest in properties on a TIC basis? (Tenant-in-Common). You can also share your traumatic experience if you have a recent en-bloc. Like what to do with too much money.

One enbloc can set you free. Put back $300 to 400 K in a beautiful spacious HDB flat say in Punggol and the remaining million plus into annnuity for $60Kpa will set you free for life. Your only problem left is how to live beyond 85 and beat the house odds.

We call this "HomeRun". The final stretch. Hee-hee.

Financial planning for a life of leisure

I am revamping this thread.

Many people are not even aware of the basic options out there. How can they creatively structure their finances?

Let’s scan the opportunities together. If you find some interesting program, post it here and share. Keep it short and in summary. Provide links to details. Declare if you are a vendor or have commercial interest. We can still learn from you but we would like to know where you are coming from.

(Disclaimer : Unless otherwise declared, I have no commercial interest in things discussed in this thread. )

Cybercafe Project Update

Dear Terence

As you know a few of us has been keen on the cybercafe project initiated by Ronald. I spoke several times with Ronald on the subject; and also with the other members who have posted on his thread. Although we have gone down individually to the location suggested by Ronald, some of us have yet to meet one another. We intend to take this opportunity to meet at tonight’s Silverhairs meeting.

To the best of my knowledge, this project is purely a Silverhairs members voluntary initiative and cooperative effort. There are no corporate sponsors at this stage. No one is trying to sell anything to anyone. This is a good thing. 
 
It may also be a good opportunity for us to present and share some of the findings and ideas to interested members. Many members  may be interested in the business plan but have yet to come forward. Perphaps we can do it towards the end of the meeting when all other scheduled matters have been dispensed with. All those interested can stay back if they want to. Will this be OK?

It seems that Silverhairs lack a convenient and central location for their gatherings and activities. Getting the logistics together for a meeting eg the ecommerce training is a case-in-point. So a member’s initiative for a cybercafe (or to use its updated 3rd generation concept of a chill café) may be just the de-facto clubhouse that is required for Silverhairs to grow to the next stage.

You can email iwiz@cyberway.com.sg or call me at 62727046 or 91721567.

Death by Fat

Over the weekend, I had Luo-bo-gao (carrot cake) and   Hao-jian (oyster omellete) at a famous hawker center rebooted (Tiong Bahru). It was good enough to die for.  If I have to go just then I can’t find a better time to do so.

My left brain tells me to go abroad for a leisurely RV resort lifestyle. The flashes of hao-jian stops my right brain. Lucky my stomach has non-voting rights.

So I still game to go. Provided the two is on the menu.

Disclaimer: I don’t sell  Luo-bo-gao or  Hao-jian.

Home Alone Again

The numbers are chilling. 22,000 seniors in single households is a rise of 47% in 5 years (see Straits Times Mon 7 Aug 2006, Review Section, Page 21. If you take away 4,000 singles you potentially have at least 18,000 couples assuming both are seniors.

How many senior studios are on plan? 200, 300 or 1,000 tops for the NEXT 5 years?! The global aging is onto us. Not in drips but like the smashing of a meteorite to ground. Just look at a "modern" city like Sydney.

There are 700 retirement villages in NSW alone supporting supporting 35,000 residents of age range 70 to 75. The residents break up into 50% female and 10% couples. If Singapore is to come to par with Aussie retirement lifestyle, then we need to project RVs for a 180,000 senior residents. 

The maths shouldn’t surprise anyone. Everybody knows that there are more kangaroos then people down under. We may be small in size but we have 4 million smiles. The news is shocking made all the worse by the fact that we consider senior at ages above  55 or 62 depending on what you are looking for.

Look at the bright side. Silverhairs should have no problem finding recruits.  Also better step on the accelerator on finding the ideal RV. Long quesues expected anytime soon.

On improving Silverhairs Forum

Like to share some thoughts on improving this forum site?

This forum tend to be very blog-like. It has large first postings and  typically short threads ie smaller number of short comments. I wonder if this is intentional.

One suggestion is to post a summary of the topic posting (say first 10 lines max) and the last 24 hours thread submissions (also in summary format). The bulletin should contain only current postings, say,  topics submitted last 72 hours or with freash submissions less than 24 hours. The rest is archived. This encourages depth in the thread. Typically then you will find many more comments of a meatier nature.

 

Retirement Resort

Here is a very good discussion on minimum sum.
http://info.channelnewsasia.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=33132&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0&sid=395fc2f5b76d2e1f0bab0686eabd4573

It is a complex issue in itself. But for the purpose of this discussion, the impact of this is that you will be obliged to keep back S$120K for which the government will pay you $711 per moth between the ages of 62 to 82. If that’s all you have, try not to die before or after that age.

Let’s first concentrate on staying in Singapore. In five years time, you will find it impossible to maintain even a basic conventional lifestyle in Singapore for that sum unless you take a vow of poverty.

Here is the best Plan B for Spore retirees. This is in the form of new Elder Studios coming in at a projected $190K per unit by some estimates. You can downgrade releasing the difference in capital value to supplement your savings. You would be wise then to minimally put savings up to $500K in annuity to create an additional $2K per month for life. Together with the CPF minimum sum provision you will have up to 2.7K per month from 62 to 82 and $2K for the balance of time. You should be able to maintain a reasonable standard of living in Singapore.

If you cannot raise this amount here are few additional tips. If you need to, sell your car to scrap together this amount. If you do not wish to downgrade, you can consider putting your existing property into a reverse mortgage to raise the shortfall.

If you are still short of this sum then you can turn a page to a still controversial proposal Plan C. Terence has provided the lead. We expect that the new Elder Studios will eventually come under a new management corporation (MC) structure. Unlike present MC which tend to focus on maintenance of fixed assets and running of the estate, this MC will have extended mandate to run the estate like a retirement village or full service apartments. The MC like any organisation can then have economies of purchase. They can also provide extended services like maid services, common kitchen and transportation. If this can be achieved then we can see a stretching of the dollar and our hope for a more leisurely lifestyle here.

I would like to hear views, opinions, experiences and recommendations on living and retiring abroad. Many members have expressed interest in an alternative lifestyle.

We have been told that it is possible to live in Thailand for under SIN$500. Places like Chiangmai, Chonburi and Krabi have been cited as possible locations. Some members have even visited possible locations for a taste of the possibilities.

Here is a chance for us to collate details and share  information specifically on middle and long term experience of living abroad.