The Rattan and Wood Plantation Chair

My paternal grandfather owned a very beautiful rattan and wood plantation chair which he loved. It was very similar to the one in the photo. In fact this kind of chair is very hard to find unless one can find an antique shop which stocks this model. This type of chairs were very popular in the 1920's. Indians and the Thais made a lot of these chairs for the South East Asian market.

Grandfather would sleep on it in the afternoon as he had this siesta habit. The chair was very cool and airy because of the rattan used. He placed this chair in his little room where he had some privacy from children and visitors. Having very set habits no one should disturb his afternoon rest and my grandmother made sure that the rules were kept in the house.

Sometimes we naughty children would climb up the beautiful chair and try to sleep in it. But unfortunately, because we were small, we could not raise our feet onto the foot rest and the chair was too long for us. So we did not have the pleasure of getting a good afternoon's rest in this excellent, ergonomically made chair.

We will always remember with fondness that we tried our best not to disturb grandfather when he was having his afternoon sleep.

Barefoot Basketball Players

We were just nice kids on the block. One part of the Methodist Secondary School was called English Department and the other part was called Chinese Department. We had one Principal, and two senior assistants who each looked after the two different departments.

Students were wary of each other. One department had lessons all conducted in English and we were made up of Ibans, Chinese, Malays, Melanaus and a few Kayans. We all spoke English pretty well and all our books were in English.

The Chinese Department students were all Chinese and they spoke Chinese or their own dialects. It was not fashionable at that time for non Chinese to be studying in a Chinese school.

Socially we were quite divided by the language differences. Sometimes we had basketball competitions between the two departments. And we felt that the schism was also amongst the teachers although they tried to be very civil to each other, pretending that there was no divide.

On one of the tournaments I noticed that some of the boys from the Chinese Department were playing barefooted. But I knew that many students at that time did practice without wearing shoes.

"Kaki ayam" or barefootedness was nothing new to us at that time. It was either the boy could not afford the shoes or he was used to playing without shoes.

On the day of one particular game between Form Four Boys and the Senior Middle Class, the boys played on the hot cement court next to the library at about four in the evening. The Chinese boys of course played very well. One of the Chinese boys was barefooted.

Upon seeing that I sort of concentrated on the barefooted boy's playing. He played very well. He was just not conscious of the fact that he was barefooted. It was a heart melting moment for me. And not long after that I noticed to my surprise two of the boys in the English Department team also took off their shoes, the blue rubber and cloth basket shoes which today would be as cheap as peanuts for most people. This was a very impactful on me.

In spite of the differences boys could sense that perhaps fairness needed to be brought about.

Naturally the English Department team lost as they were weaker and less talented players. But the gesture helped cement the good relationship amongst the different races in the school. My heart still went out to any boy or girl who played basketball barefooted then.

Years later when I started teaching, after getting my qualifications, I went to teach in a government school where basketball was popularly played amongst the multi racial student population. And the boys and even the girls played either barefooted or wearing their school shoes. It was a kind gesture that the Principal who decided to pay for some of the basketball shoes for the students when they went on tournaments. The teams looked wonderful handsome and were full of new confidence. They won a few inter-school tournaments. The school paid for their jerseys.

Today life is just too good for our youths. They could buy the best shoes , with the best brands and for any kind of activity. With all the knowledge about sports injuries, most parents are absolutely careful and therefore would pay through their nose for the right shoes. But I am sure somewhere out there, there are still boys and girls who play basket ball barefooted.

I am glad that many of my humble friends go jungle trekking wearing 7 ringgit Sarawak Addidas.

Would you still play basketball barefooted today?

Mosquito Nets

What a beautiful picture!! It has a thousand tales to tell.

Lat's take on or cartoon drawings of mosquito nets sent me laughing for a long time. And he got me to remember the old square mosquito nets in the old house inb Hua Hong Ice Factory. And that there were lots of stories to tell about mosquito nets. My two siblings and I, before the rest were born were often put under one single mosquito net so that we could not be bitten by the huge mosquitoes flying around at night. All windows did not have mosquito netting at that time.

In the day time, we were often placed under a mosquito net when adult relatives and visitors came. My mother had this ingenius way of keeping us under curfew or "Kurong". She later told us that we were very well behaved and we never did crawl out of the mosquito net.

My father always slept under a mosquito net by habit. He could not sleep without one. And in those days Sibu seemed to be cooler and we did not even need a fan at night. Two big windows in a bed room, without any mosquito netting , was airy enough. So a rich, well made mosquito net was a beautiful addition to a lovely tropical bedroom.

There have been several good paintings of mosquito nets in bedrooms and of course today, fashionable magazines often advertise delectable hotel rooms with beautiful mosquito nets.

The world still loves a good mosquito net. What are your tales under a mosquito net?



Mosquito net
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


A bed covered by a mosquito net.A mosquito net offers protection against mosquitos, flies, and other insects, and thus against diseases such as malaria. Its fine, see-through, mesh construction stops many insects from biting and disturbing the person using the net. The mesh is fine enough to exclude these insects, but it does not completely impede the flow of air.

Mosquito nets are often used where malaria or other insect-borne diseases are common, especially as a tent-like covering over a bed. For effectiveness, it is important that the netting not have holes or gaps large enough to allow insects to enter. Because insects can bite through the net, the net must not rest directly on the skin.

Mosquito nets treated with insecticides -- known as insecticide treated nets (ITNs) -- were developed in the 1980s for malaria prevention. These nets, impregnated with a pyrethroid insecticide like deltamethrin or permethrin, kill and repel mosquitoes. Unfortunately, standard ITNs must be replaced or re-treated with insecticide after six washes and, therefore, are not seen as a convenient, effective long-term solution to the malaria problem.

As a result, the mosquito netting and pesticide industries teamed up to develop so-called long-lasting insecticidal mosquito nets (LLINs), which also use pyrethroid insecticides, but are also treated with a chemical binder that allows the nets to be washed at least 20 times, allowing use for three or more years.


Alternatives
Mosquito nets do reduce air flow to an extent and sleeping under a net is hotter than sleeping without one, which can be uncomfortable in tropical areas without air-conditioning.

One alternative for reducing mosquito bites is to use a fan to increase air flow, as mosquitoes prefer still air; however this is far less effective and less preferred to a mosquito net, in areas with insect-borne diseases.

Another alternative is to apply an insect repellent to the skin; this also may be less effective (reducing rather than eliminating bites) and may pose health risks with long-term use.

Mosquito control measures are often appropriate and effective, but may be impractical to undertake effectively on an individual or small-scale basis.


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The Forgotten Garden Tool - the Scythe

When I was studying in the Methodist Primary School, the gardener was a silent man, big and dark, but very disciplined. His room was the little cubicle below the staircase. And we kids were terrified of him because he was part and parcel of the "discipline" committee. He made sure that we would not shout, not run up and down the stair case and not dirty the school compound. He also showed us how much he loved the school too. *When I reflect on my early learning days I realise how important the small population of children was to the management committee and how precious we were in their care. Each one of us, probably less than 200 , was recognised by them and observed properly. apart from being taught well by the serious and single minded teachers.*

Many years later, I realised that he was very grateful that he had a place to stay and a job to his name. I often wondered if he went to church, if he had a family, or why he was so alone in the world. He was not chatty. And I never saw him smile. And I often wondered if any one ever invited him for a cup of coffee, or took him home for a home cooked dinner. If I were an adult then, I would garnered up the courage to invite him for a meal and I would wish that he would accept.

Besides all these thoughts, I remember the garden tool he used. I used to marvel at how he patiently slipped the scythe through the grass so that every blade was cut. He kept the school garden so neat and tidy. He also sharpened the scythe in the afternoon when it was very hot. Making the sharpening noise, he also indicated that he was not in the least lazy. He kept his gardening tools very well,shiny, glinting in the sun, clean and without any brown grass sticking to any part. Besides, he always had a pail of water near him so that he could sharpen the scythe anytime. In fact I have not met anyone who loved his gardening work as much as this gardener. Because at that time, no one wore a name tag, I never got to know his name. He was just the "grass cutter ah pah". That's a pity really, even though he was called "the grass cutter uncle who was older than our father". Old Uncle or Ah Pah was a great honour in terms of address in olden day Sibu.

By the time I reached secondary school age, the scythe was slowly overtaken by the noisy lawn mower. When I was in Sixth Form, one of the gardeners made sure that he cut the grass whenever we had additional afternoon lessons, just to let every one know that he was working!! Sometimes in the morning he would hide in the bicycle shed and the Senior Assistant had to go look for him. Those were just some of the more humourous human resource problems of our school then.

I hope these pictures will help you remember the forgotten garden tool.

By the way I am quite sure that the scythes that we had in the Primary School came all the way from the United States,thoughtfully brought in by our Amercian missionaries, as I cannot remember any one else having them outside the school.



(Note : it is still being used in the USA and it is very ergonomical.)

This article appeared in the June, 2004 issue of Countryside Magazine.

The Beauty of Scythes
Scythes have a bad name. Goes without saying, I suppose, but I have to begin this story somewhere and reputation seems a good a place as any. It is an unnecessary reputation brought on mainly by North American style scythe, that is heavy, cumbersome to use and difficult to sharpen.

A scythe (pronounced “sigh” or “sithe”) consists of a curved, steel blade attached to one end of a long, wooden shaft called a snath. Handles on the snath allow the user to hold the scythe and stand upright while swinging the blade horizontally at ground level to cut grass or brush.

Scythes have been used for centuries to mow grass for making hay, clearing land of bushes and small trees, keeping fields or lawns neat and tidy. There are two styles of scythes, the North American style and the European style, which is light, easy to use, mows grass and cuts bushes easily. Instead of leaving you bone tired at the end of mowing you feel invigorated.

My first experience with the North American style scythe came at sixteen when the 80 year old man I worked for tried to teach me to mow. He wanted to clear a back swath around the edge of a hay field I’d recently cut with a horse drawn mower. The scythe was heavy and seemed dull even though we used a sharpening stone on it. As I swung the scythe, constant cries from my mentor to “keep the heel down” didn’t help as the blade first cut air then plowed dirt. The grass mostly remained standing, some bent over and very little of it was cut (I believe the grass even laughed at me). This exercise lasted about half an hour before we both gave up in frustration. The next time I picked up a scythe twenty years had passed. It was a life changing experience.

In 1983 I purchased a 50 acre homestead with a house and large, attached barn. The farm had about 20 acres of fields much of it overgrown to brush, mainly meadowsweet, fir and poplar saplings. The brush was scattered about the fields and the saplings were edging into fields from the adjacent woods.

Planning on livestock and needing to use the fields for pasture and haymaking, I looked at ways of clearing the fields to bring them back into production. Neither being able to afford nor desiring to use gas or diesel driven machinery I looked into low-tech methods for clearing the fields.

It occurred to me that a scythe might be just the tool for cutting back the scattered brush and milkweed around the fields, and putting up hay for a recently acquired herd of milking goats. The idea of using a scythe again was not appealing but the price and environmental considerations compared to machinery won me over.

Out of pure happenstance, I received an unsolicited catalog from the now defunct Green River Tool Company of Vermont. It advertised a European style scythe outfit for mowing grass. The package consisted of snath, grass blade, sharpening tools, and instructions. The price was reasonable and the descriptive text with a photo convinced me to buy. Along with the grass blade for making hay, I purchased a bush blade to tackle the brush and saplings.

After work, throughout that summer and fall, I mowed a bit of grass or tackled brush in the overgrown fields. Going at it for an hour or two each evening, and longer on the weekends, I managed to clear the fields as well as put up four ton of hay in the barn loft. I found that I could mow a third acre of tall, thick timothy in a bit less than three hours. That worked out to be about an acre a day, historically considered the area a one person could mow in a day.

After mowing, the grass was left in the field to dry for a day or two. With the help of family and several old, wooden hay rakes we gathered the dry hay into long windrows that we heaped into conveniently spaced piles, pitchforked into a cart then carried to the barn for storage.

This experience with the European style scythe was so much different than my encounter as a teenager. To my delight, this hard work was actually enjoyable. Years later, with no animals or fields of my own to maintain, I enjoy mowing for its own sake. The mown grass used as garden mulch or compost.

Mowing grass with the European scythe is a meditative experience. As the mower picks up the rhythm it quickly becomes second nature and nearly mesmerizing; step and swing, swing and step, working your way down the field. You stop from time to time, take the stone from the holder on your belt, whet the blade a few strokes to resharpen it. You look over your shoulder and admire the neat, straight line of mown grass you have laid down, the empty row of stubble beside the tall grass waiting to be cut, breath the aroma of fresh cut hay, give a prideful sigh, and joyfully return to mowing.

The European scythe is as easy to maintain as it is to use. You sharpen the blade by peening the cutting edge with a hammer on a small anvil or jig, then honing with a whetstone. Using a grindstone, either hand driven or motor powered, overheats the steel, removing the temper from the thin blade. Hammering the blade draws out the steel, hardens it, increasing the life of the edge. A manufactured peening jig makes it simple and accurate to hammer sharpen a blade. For the experienced user this process may take as little as five minutes and usually no more than ten.

Peening may be required once or twice a day depending on how hard the scythe is used. Between peenings sharpen with a few, quick strokes of a whetstone kept handy in a water-filled holder attached to the mower’s belt. When honing no longer maintains the edge, it is time to peen.

A scythe is an excellent tool for mowing hay fields, maintaining lawns, cutting grains for human or animal feed. Use it to clear the edges of fields, mow along stonewalls, under and around fences, and on steep or wet ground impossible for heavy machinery. The scythe clears brush and rank growth along roadsides, in fields and ditches. It is perfect for mowing grass in orchards, around rocks, between garden beds, for cutting old corn and asparagus stalks. With a bush blade remove saplings along woods roads as well as clear woodlot undergrowth and culls. For this, the scythe is easier on the back than loppers.

Blades come in a variety of styles, weights and lengths to suit different tasks and mowers. The most popular are grass blades used for mowing hay fields, grain harvesting, and maintaining lawns. Convenient lengths range from 22 to 36 inches. Length selection depends on the area to cut, ground conditions, the type of grass among other considerations. The shorter sizes work well for small areas and in tight quarters, such as cleaning around garden edges or between garden beds. The longer grass blades cut a wide swath for mowing grass in large fields or harvesting grain. Grass blades are beautifully formed, graceful, thin and light, strong and resilient. A 36-inch blade weighs only 21 ounces. Grass blades are a joy to use and once you begin, are hard to put down.

Bush blades are built short, stocky and strong for the hard work of cutting woody plants. The lengths run from 16 to 20 inches. Use them to thin saplings in a woodlot or to keep back small trees encroaching on a field, for clearing brush and heavy weeds. The weight of these blades, as much as two pounds, provides momentum to slice through woody plants.

A third category, ditch blades, falls between the grass and bush blades in heft and sturdiness. Stronger than grass blades and slightly heavier, ditch blades mow grass, heavy weeds and light brush. They will not stand up to the abuse of thick woody stems like the bush blade. Ditch blades are versatile and used in places where the mower encounters a variety of plants. Lengths range from 18 to 30 inches.

The European style scythe, with a straight or bent snath, is a well balanced tool, simple, inexpensive to purchase and maintain, a pleasure to use and with proper care will last many years. Quieter than a power scythe or string trimmer, the scythe does not destroy your hearing, will not sling rocks through your window, nor fill your lungs and the environment with noxious fumes. It does not leave your body exhausted, or quivering from engine vibration. The scythe provides a pleasant physical workout at the end of which you feel good instead of beaten.

The European scythe has a beauty, an aesthetic appeal, a gracefulness that speaks to centuries of development and refinement. It has redeemed the scythe’s reputation as a clumsy, exhausting tool.

Some images and context to interest you too:
http://www.lowimpact.org/hackney_course_outline_scyt...

Father's Day Reflection - Little House on the Prairie

I was in love with love after watching episode after episode of "Little House on the Prarie". I wanted to emulate Caroline Ingalls and wished that the man I married would be someone like Charles Ingalls.


This is what Laura Ingalls (Melissa Gilbert) look like today. She was in the HBO movie, Sacrifices of the Heart, shown recently on Astro.

Handsome, hard working Michael Landon as Charles Ingalls was a "dream father and husband".






If any one ask me what would be the best time I had with my children when they were young, I would say that there would be many such times. And one of them was watching "Little House on the Prairie" with them.

The later part of 1970's saw many homes having tv sets in Sibu. More tv sets and the new sensation videos started to be sold by Mr. Johnson Wong and other similar shops in Sibu.

As my children grew to like the television just like anyother children in town, they enjoyed watching "Little House on the Prairie" most. The television may have been considered an "escapism" by many academics but to a certain degree if used properly, it was a good educational tool, and even a "baby sitter" for the harried mother.

On my part as a mother, I was hoping that my children would grow up to be like Laura,Mary, Carrie and Grace. I would not have wanted my children to be Nellie and Willie Oleson. My children grew up with a grandmother, lots of aunts, uncles,cousins, friends, good teachers and neighbours who helped them develop analytical and evaluative skills and I am grateful that they had not really caused me too much heartaches, knowing how difficult it is now to raise a bunch of kids.

Even my grandmother and mother watched the tv series with them when they were just small children. Yes, and my eighty year old grandmother could recognise immediately Michael Landon. She called him, "the father of the four lovely girls who always carried a pail."

We would put away all our chores and sit in front of the tv and watch the story unfold.

Little House on the Prairie was an American one-hour dramatic television program that aired on the NBC network from September 11, 1974, to March 21, 1983. Malaysia bought the rights to the series as soon as they were available.

The show was a loose adaptation of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s best-selling series of Little House on the Prairie books. Readers of the books will notice huge discrepancies between the book series and the shows.

(Wikipedia)

Children every where would happily read the Laura Ingalls Wilder books their school teachers recommended. School libraries began to stock them too. I remember many parents bought Laura Ingalls Wilder's books as Christmas presents for their children.

I believe that all children who watched the series were all impacted positively by the solid social and spiritual values and creative thinking embedded in the episodes. Their horizons were definitely broadened.

According to an article, "the Little House on the Prairie influenced the culture of the American society more than any other book ever written."

I just hope that this series will also be available to this new batch of 21st century children.

Happy Father's Day.