Charlie Phang Siew Eng and Chua Swee Kune

Charlie Phang Siew Eng:

Five 9 Years Non-Swimmer Boys: Almost Drowned
5 boys, including me, decided to go for a swim after school one afternoon. Once at the pool with full excitement, clothes and shoes off, we all plunged into the adult pool.

I was struggling in the water, then felt something knocking on my head. I noticed it’s a pole and immediately grabbed hold of it. And it pulled me out of the water. The lifeguard continued using the pole to pull the rest out of the water. The lifeguard made us sit at the pool edge and lectured us for our dangerous act.

Man Fashion In The 60’s And 70’s
Bell-bottom pants and keeping long hair were popular those days. There were many restrictions for man spotted with long hair. 4” man high heel leather shoes too. Believe me, I wore a 3” high heels shoes before. It’s not comfortable but make you proud with 3” taller. Fanciful Big leather belt too.

Olden Days Creative Sale: Tikam-Tikam
Tikam-Tikam. It was a well-loved game by the kids back in the older days. How this game works is that you will have to pay a small amount of money (usually a few cents) and you will be entitled to pick a ticket from the board. The lucky ones will be able to walk away with prizes. If not, you will still be able to walk away with consolation prizes such as snacks for you to snack on the way home or a carrier bag of pineapple drinks.

The Most Dangerous And Fun-loving Childhood Game: The Fireball Game
There were many fun outdoor games such as the hum tam bola, culeklek, Beauty fire-work and fire-cracker as long as 2-3 stories or the length of the kampong street during Chinese New Year, kite flying, and many more. Fireball game is not common in those good old days. It is a very simple and entertaining game just like football but a ball with fire which is very dangerous can be played in the evening and night.

It is made of many layers of cigarette aluminium folded together into a ball and soaked in kerosene oil for at least a day before being taken out to play.
https://youtu.be/fPJhqDdNeBg

Spider Fighting
We catch our own spiders used as “Fighting Spider” mainly for the boys. They were kept in matchboxes with leaves. Provide the spider with insects as food and water. The whole process of capturing, admiring, nurturing, and staging fights among these spiders is a popular activity among many young people. In some instances, the practice had a relatively large financial impact on those young people who participate in these practices both because of the sale value of a strong contender and also because of the bets made on their fights. Mainly in the 60s and 70s.

Chua Swee Kune:

Funny Memories: Dealing With Myopia
I always dealt with poor eyesight since I was 5. My father first realised that I was myopic when he observed me squirting my eyes when I was having my tuition. What was funnier was that back then, swimming goggles did not have prescriptions, so when my mother asked me to find my swim coach at the pool - I couldn’t because I had no idea how she looked like!

Then came my kindergarten graduation. I was the emcee for our school skit and my name was Pinky. I walked around the stage for hours like a blind bat without my specs, it was a night to remember!

Fashion!
I wouldn’t say I am well-versed with fashion but I value comfort a lot! Lately, I am into pencil skirts (who knew that they can be comfortable right!), sweaters, huge shirts… My favourite has to be rummaging my brother’s cupboard and stealing his clothes. These days, fashion is so versatile and it is so convenient to purchase clothes whenever you want online! Once, I dyed my hair purple because I wanted to try something new hehe.

Pop, Pop, Pop!
Kid you not, but I really think I am still a child at heart… These days I am crazy with this toy called ‘Pop It’; it is just a fidget toy made of silicone with many pokable dots, basically like a bubble wrap BUT reusable. You can get them everywhere, from gachapon, to even online stores in Shopee! I have a mini one which is dinosaur-shaped, and a big muffin one with pastel colours. I am guilty of bringing them to my lectures…

K-Fever
I don’t really play games but nowadays when I think about childhood games, I immediately think of the latest Netflix original drama called ‘Squid Game’ - you should totally watch it, you will have no regrets trust me! I have always been binge-watching Korean dramas all these while but the peak period was during Circuit Breaker back in 2020 when I watched 15 dramas within a month! I also took the chance to take up Korean language classes online then.

Walking Addiction
As someone who is not active and fit at all, the only ‘workout’ I do not mind doing is walking/strolling - My family members too! We usually visit parks such as Jurong Lake Garden, Bukit Timah Nature Reserve… My brother and I even attempted the 36km coast-to-coast trail; although I only managed to complete barely half of it ending at Botanic Gardens, my brother had already finished the trail 2 times!