as we go on

So before I leave and become virtually uncontactable for a period of time, let me summarise what materialised over the later part of the week.

Thursday: An outing of sorts with YH, ZY and YJ. Hah, the Y's. To tell the truth, I play pool much worse than any of them. Even though I suggested pool. It's like how I love to play games I really am quite bad at. A painfully good example would be Risk. So you know we shared some more about our shared experiences. Really, it's a bit like getting stuck in the past, but I think that's perfectly fine at least for now, because that past really was quite an eventful one. We deserve our conversation's worth of discussion and mulling over it. YH really is an entertaining, top-notch conversationalist, ZY's the penultimate crapper/lamer/joker, and well, YJ has his moments and outbursts (of whatever, I don't know). Oh yes, the 3-scoops-for-3-dollars ice cream was welllll worth it.

Friday: It was supposed to be a major bridge session with B, HM and WY, but the package that day included a movie inspired by card-counters. So apt right, playing bridge right after that movie. Ahaha 'sweet sixteen'. Felt bad I was a little late, but other than that, I quite enjoyed the company, and having good hands for bridge. Turned down a chance at a gathering with some of the section, partly because I don't know how to play mahjong (and I don't intend to learn). Then, went for dinner with YX and SY, as a treat for SY's birthday and the many months of treasured friendship (hahaha). Had some mini lobster thing at a big discount, though I felt that the dish did not do plenty of justice to the crustacean (but neither did we, eating it and all), and then had a good ol' vanilla cone to fill 'er to the brim. After that, we went on a fruitless shopping jaunt for a Father's Day gift. Oh ya and I nearly lost my photocopied ID, having left it at MFM and going back an hour-plus later to get it. Thank God I found it!

Saturday: Had a sub with SY, YQ and HB. Long time since I've seen the latter two. And the former two, have had quite a good time so far compared to HB and I, so that's really... I'm really glad for them, ahaha. After a pseudo-discussion, we adjourned to a board games cafe, and well, played some games lah. Quite fun, especially the Bang! game (my second time playing), and the Ruby Rhino thing was interesting despite the lack of brains (or any effort, for that matter) needed. The Wrong Game was a bit of a let-down, not very challenging, but Blokus revealed the inner cunning in all of us. Like I didn't know, right, hahaha. Then after that, headed off to the COUSIN'S place to discuss about what to do for my maternal grandma's birthday. I'll just say this: "GAHHHH!" Okay.

So, on a totally unrelated note, I know where I'm going off to next. It's bittersweet (seems to be my new favourite word), because while I know many people want in on this, not many get selected in the end, and to some, it seems a prestige. But obviously the flipside is that there's going to be a lot of sacrifice and maybe even different levels of suffering to be had. Oh well, I'm going to take things as they come and cast it all unto Him. And that would be only in a matter of hours..!

back to life as we know it

So on Saturday, K and I went for this carnival thing at SAC, labelled Playmax. I guess it would have been a lot more exciting if you went in a bigger group, but the others K asked along couldn't make it, or could only make it late (and ended up cancelling on us). While I wouldn't say it was roaring fun or anything, it did give us a much-treasured opportunity for fellowship, and to just catch up with each other. Thing is though, at such carnivals, there'd be the quintessential carnival games in all their cheesy glory, but as we made our dutiful turns at each of them, we somehow really tried our best at not letting any of them get the better of us. So what if they were targeted at adolescents, they weren't very simple at all. Then after that we watched a strongman performance plus a slapstick sketch. Saw B and E, and various other familiars there as well. All in all, as an effort to reach out to the community and the youth in particular, I would commend the entire event, though I felt that the high ticket price would be a partial deterrent for some. After that, HM came over to catch up as well, and while they had their value-for-money subs, I ate some donated cookies. Yes, I have been gravely and terribly affected by the recession, haha. And it is then I have realised that it isn't actually entirely impossible to talk to girls about what I've gone through the past few weeks, ahaha.

These are what my keen information-gathering skills have come up with: K has a pretty happening social life. HM has a very, very happening social life.

Tuesday saw me going for the interview and test. Both were reasonably alright, and I guess I managed pretty well. Only thing is that I don't actually see myself in that academic field, so the entire process for me was pretty stress-free. Lunch at the restaurant there was really value-for-money (this term will become more important to me), given the kind of food and ambience for that kind of price - I really enjoyed it with the FATHER. After that in the evening, joined K, WY, HM and B plus J for a short while at the cafe, before following J to meet ZT, V and M. Talked A LOT about our shared (haha) experiences (strangely I'm not bored of it yet), watched some Peranakan play rehearsal, and had some good old vanilla cone.

These are what my keen information-gathering skills have come up with: Ambience is key to food enjoyment, more so than I have realised. ZT can keep his hair. M is still caught up with his experiences, haha, must have been unforgettable. V has somewhat higher levels of myostin (go look it up and you'll know what I mean).

Went out for lunch with the family on Wednesday, exploiting the various discounts and promotions restaurants have come up with because of the recession, er the Great Singapore Sale, I think. After that, caught up with B near her place, where they serve good (as always) apple strudel. I think this was the ultimate catching-up session EVER, we went on for a good four hours, talking about things that truly meant something. It was really meaningful fellowship for me, and hopefully for her as well.

These are what my keen information-gathering skills have come up with: B is a changed person, and I would say it is for the better. (:

Am thoroughly enjoying what little time I have before going back in, and looking forward to the rest of the week.

Pop goes the weasel

So there go nine weeks, gone in a twinkling, a flash of time, seconds - so premature, yet so long-awaited. Perhaps it's true our education system is rather stifling; it's been quite a long while since I felt so different. Or maybe the experience of it all was just so starkly different from everything I'm used to, affecting me so greatly. But while all good things must come to an end, who says we can't procrastinate?

So quite immediately after it ended i.e. the next day, some of us booked badminton courts and well, played badminton. Been a long time since I touched the sport, so was a bit rusty when wielding my cobwebbed racquet. Though, it took only a while before I really started playing, and it was really fun playing with the rest of them, for three hours straight. After that, had some good chicken rice.

Then we went out again the next day! This time, with a bigger gang (admittedly, badminton's not everyone's sporting cup of tea, so.) of people, at Sentosa. It's kind of ironic, in that we already had so much sun, but you know, uneven, ugly tan lines call for such ironic measures. Basically I tried my hand in sports I previously wouldn't touch, like frisbee or beach volleyball, and doing all sorts of myriad crap in between. Operative phrase being 'tried my hand'. They were fun, but I prefer just soaking in the sea, and engaging in meaningful conversation, haha. Oh and we had dinner at ******! (the exclamation mark is not a typo), and I will tell you now that the service there should be banished to the darkest depths of some abysmal abyss. Food was passable given the not-so-value-for-my-hard-earned-money pricing, but giving us the wrong order and being so unwilling to do anything about it just about breaks the golden rule of service: No, it's not that the customer is always right, but, that reason is always right i.e. unreasonable service personnel shouldn't even be working at all. Anyway.

Hopefully, we'll get to see each other again, and given the slim chance of doing so, it is indeed some sort of obese, fat-ridden hope. Nonetheless, it's still worth hoping. We could continue procrastinating and ignoring the deadline presented to us just two days ago, keeping in touch even as we move on in different directions.

reflective half-essay

Okay it's coming to an end soon - for the most of it, it was quite fun, even exciting. Obviously it wasn't ALL good, if not it would be Bali, but other than that, it was seriously much better than expected. I'm not sure how I would be able to adjust to another environment without the people I've been through with so much so far, plus how I still would be detached from my original circle of family and friends for yet another period of time. I feel like I'm writing some reflective essay, and maybe I am, but it's really how other people have put it - I went in not expecting much, yet came out of it bringing plenty.

Many of them, the people I've met and interacted with so much over the few short weeks, they were certainly not perfect. They could do much better with cleaner language, maybe a few pointers on courtesy and etiquette, but who am I to judge. Most of them, I find, would agree that all such good things must come to an end (and a very short and premature end might I add), even as we may not enjoy the routine and regimen of it so much, we certainly enjoyed each other's company as we went through each bit of it, complaining and crapping together. Somehow, a bit of me wishes this would not end but continue on for the rest of the time I have to serve, just remaining on that piece of land up northeast, continuing to do what we do. Pretty aimless, but definitely a lot of fun (it's funny how I find it fun when I'm out, but when I'm in, it isn't really so).