eyesight lost- the horrifying experience

April 1 2002

April fools day. Lying in the bed in total blackness. I blink. Ouch, my eye still tinges. What time is it? I turn over, reach out for the clock, instead swipe it off the table. It drops to the floor with a ring. Then I was calm one second, and paralysed with terror the next. There was some racing fear in my mind, and my heart pounded louder. I couldnt see. Groping around in the darkness, my fingers feel the floor for the clock. Bending to pick it up, I fall off the bed. Curling up in a ball on the cold hard floor, I think,"This has to be some joke. Its April Fools day. Come on. Calm yourself.

This has to be a joke

April 2 2002

Woke up to the talking of two women. I could tell. They were mumuring. I heard a familiar voice. "Ron, Ron. You awake?" My eyes opened still to a dark world of nothingness. I heard someone urge softly to get on with the experiment. Experiment? What experiment? Someone sighed, and said no response whatsoever. A soft bout of crying, and footsteps clacking down the hallway quickly.

April 7 2002
Out of the hospital. I have accepted what happened. My parents are making arrangements. I need someone to follow and guide me everywhere. A kind woman, encouraging me to get on with everything. Accidents may happen, but get on with life. I'm going to a new school for the visually challenged, where I'll learn Brialle. I realised how extremely disabled I am, unable to type read or write. The woman is helping me type this. Whats her name? oh yeah, Mrs Samantha.

April 13 2002
Getting on with life in eternal darkness. It is difficult to even brush my teeth. I feel helpless and pitiful. But life has to go on...

April 23 2002
Learnt to use the walking stick. Mrs Samantha today thought me about god and all the other stuff. About Adam and Eve and Noah and Jesus. Feel since I cant watch television or use the computer, it would be okay for Mrs Samantha to tell me about Christianity. I'm bored anyways.

great leaders of the world- Martin Luther King Jr

"I have a dream"

These words were said from one of the greatest leaders in the world, the person who stood up to racial segregation and succeeded the person who ended inequality between the blacks and whites - Martin Luther King Jr. He was the right man, during the right time. When racial segregation got so bad, a black could be arrested or even killed, for making a remark, or refusing to let whites sit down on the bus as they were tired. Even highly educated blacks would be forbidden to serve as Juries or vote or even get a job as a white would always been the priority even if the Black was the best for the job. Segregation could be summed up into this joke:

Students from a class were returning back from recess, and so the teacher asked one of the students,"Tommie, what have you been doing during recess?"
"I was playing in the sandbox."
"Very good, now if you spell me sand, I'll give you a freshly baked cookie."
Next the teacher asked Jane,"Jane, what have you been doing during recess?"
"I was playing with Tommie in the sandbox."
"Good, If you spell me box, the cookie is yours."
Next she asked Ahmad, who was bruised all over," Ahmad, what have you been doing during recess?"
"I wanted to play with Tommie and Jane in the sandbox, but they threw stones at me."
So the teacher replied," Now class, this is what we call blatant racial discrimination. If you can spell blatant racial discrimination, I'll give you a cookie."

But now, the movement of Martin Luther King Jr brought that all to an end. Now, racial discrimination seems like a thing of the past. He was courageous to stand up too the whites when it seemed all was lost. Between that, he had to hold out with death threats, and it was to the extent that his home was once blown up with his wife and children inside.

In 1955, he led the famous bus boycott for the civil rights of black people, as they were always made to stand or at most sit at the back of the bus, making them seem unequal. So he succeeded and made a small step to racial equality in.

His most important quote was of course "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character" Martin Luther King was given a Nobel Peace prize for his efforts. He was although assassinated in 1968 while standing on the balcony leading a protest.

Traits that make Martin Luther King a great leader:
Courage
Inspires people to act (good talker)
Peserverance
Wise

Earth Hour total win

Last Saturday was earth hour. Started as an initiative by Sydney in 2007, this is now a growing global trend, and this year, Singapore has made a start, when many over 2000 people came to the Esplanade park and celebrated by candlelight. Also many companies have pledged their support to this Earth Hour. Macdonalds I heard, was about to off their famous golden arch M in the signage outside. Strangely I didnt get the chance to see any "acdonalds". Instead of celebrating at home, we went for dinner at a Teochew resteraunt. It seems that they did too did pledge their support, but at the wrong time! When we arrived at about 6 (went there early to go back before Earth hour) There was a area that was totally empty(we were extremely early for dinner) that was totally turned off. It was like this until about 7.15, when it started to get crowded, they turned on one more portion. It went on until 8.00 when all portions were turned on.(It was a big restaurant) That was such a difference.
After coming back, we realised how difficult it was to do anything without lights. My brother's Canberra friend turned off all the lights but instead turned on all the air conditioners and the computer he was using. What a waste. There was no reading or rushing homework (which was what I wanted to do) for one hour. No com or TV too. I hour in total boringness, with only candles we couldnt read by. (About 6 of the candles had enough light not to spoil your eyes while reading. We only had four. So that was also a waste of time. All we did was sit on a chair and look at the marvellous stars.(Sirius is the brightest) and enjoy the wind (the wind around Lower seletar resevoir is strong every night and morning) Then I realised this is how difficult it is when you are blind. Not much more difficult to move around but still. No reading, or it is slow, no watching TV using the computer or even marvelling at the stars. Earth hour is a once in a while experience. It was not that bad.
Sceptically speaking, even if you are using candles, low quality candles could emit more carbon dioxide than the lightbulb itself.

5 really fun (and destructive) ways to celebrate Earth Hour.
1. Turn off all your cars hazard lights on your car
2. Turn off all street lamps
3. Turn off all lights in a lift (to freak people out)
4.Turn off the Amut in Amusement in an Amusement park
5. Turn off the lights in a firing range (dont forget to turn the people who are firing towards each other)