The Death of Reading

Reading is slowly becoming a dying hobby.  I am not surprised that many bookshops around Singapore have closed down.  First it was Borders at Wheelock, followed by PageOne at Vivocity and also Harris in Great World.  Will bookshops become a thing of the past?  Why are these bookshops not profitable?

These are questions that I ask myself.  And I have come to this slow realisation that people actually might be reading a lot less than in the past.  When I refer to reading, I mean the reading of physical books.  On the other hand, they are actually now reading more through sources like the internet which has become so accessible.

People are willing to pay hundreds of dollars for the latest handphone, but might not even spend that same amount on books.  They might love reading, but they simply do not see the need to buy physical books to read.  Even a person like me who quite enjoys reading seldom buy any books. Even if I do, my monthly budget or money spent on books is only around $20 to $50.  That is almost peanuts when compared to the amount I spend on food, transport, and other so-called necessities in life.  So I am not surprised in a certain way that the bookshops have closed down.  If even a book lover like myself is spending so little on books, how much money can these bookshops even make?

I also realised that time passes, I have set aside less and less time to read.  Work, the internet, distractions prevent me from reading a book in peace.  The latest book I bought still lies half read on my bedside drawer.  And yet, I have plenty of time to surf the net, eat, sleep and do so many other things.  Do I like reading?  Yes.  But I simply cannot afford the luxury of sitting down and reading like in the past.

The Street Light

Composed this recently when I was feeling poetic.

 The Street Light 
 The quiet street lies dead ahead,
And everyone is fast asleep.
The street lights shine up my bed,
blinds half shut, I'm wide awake.
 Still eyes shut, he sleeps.
Dreams of tomorrow,
what joys it might give or grave sorrows, who knows?
 And the light still assails, still shining.
Does the light come in or does it go out?
And makes the bedroom bare for all to ponder.
That someone is fast asleep at night,
dreaming, hoping, thinking.
 Still the street light shines ahead,
and everyone is fast asleep,
but everyone is fast asleep.

Britains Got Talent - Susan Boyle

Everyone loves an underdog story.  Just sharing some of my favourite youtube videos.  This videos shows Susan Boyle in her auditions where she declares that she wants to be like Elaine Page (to the sniggers of the audience).  The next video shows her singing a duet with Elaine Paige.

First REIT - Sold Off Again

I bought First REIT just recently.  After the share price rose by more than 10 cents in the last month or so, I decided that it was a good time to lock in some profits or more than a thousand dollars.  Just sold off the 10 lots that I owned at 89.5 cents a share.  Most of the time, First REIT trades at sub-80 cents level and I guess that is where the price is probably headed to.  If so, I will probably pick it up again when it reaches my desired buy price.

Top 5 Regrets of the Dying

Certain that many people have read this article before but guess it is always good to re-visit this article.  Tamworth-based writer and blogger Bronnie Ware shared from her experience as a palliative care nurse the various main life lessons from hours spent with the dying.  These are the top 5 regrets and it is something worth reflecting upon.

I wish:

1.  I'd had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.  This was the most common response.

2. I hadn't worked so hard. "They missed their children's youth and their partner's companionship.  All of the men I nursed deeply regretted spending so much of their lives on the treadmill of a work existence.

3.  I'd had the courage to express my feelings

4. I had stayed in touch with my friends

5.  That I had let myself be happier.


You can see that the one regret people don't have is that they should have spent more time on their work or in office.

Long Weekend

Wishing all Christian readers a  most blessed Good Friday and Easter.  Hope you all enjoy the long weekend and find rest.  It has been a restful weekend thus far for me and I hope all readers find the same rest that I have been having. 

Just lounging around and doing nothing much.

Silver Bullion and Coin Collection

Have been slowly building up my coin collection of silver including a few bullion.  As of today, I have the Canadian Maple Leaf, American Eagle, Austrian Philharmonic, Buffalo coins and some Scottsdale Silver bars.  Many of them are mainly 1 troy oz and some of them are sealed in airtight containers.

The coins are nice to look at, but I seriously regretted using my bare hands to touch some of them as they now have a whittish tarnish on them which can't be removed.