Sad lah

Just came back from an SC gathering at YT's place. It was reasonably well-attended this time round, with I think around 18 people there. Had to wear the FATHER'S shirt because I didn't have any more red shirts to wear. As usual, it was a few sizes too big, but alright. But a few people didn't come attired in line with the red/green theme, so that was sad. It's JUST red and green, how hard can it be?! Bish to all those who didn't follow the theme.

Basically just ate pizza there and self-composed ice-cream floats i.e. like how a piggy would. Talked to quite a few of them about NS and holiday jobs, not much about studies anymore! Played Risk (yes again), but this time I lost so badly! Ok, so C was completely wiped out first, but then A and V took turns to slowly eradicate me on that (cursed!) board till I was (sadly) no more. HM tried to 'protect' me, but to no avail. First time ever lost so badly I tell you! Happened to such a risk-averse person some more!

Ok maybe that's why I lost.

Some more I was the person there who knew how to play Risk quite well. SAD LAH.

After that I just went around looking at other people playing other games, like mahjong and the real kind of poker, where you lose money. Sad there wasn't anyone playing Bridge; that would have been nice.

After the whole thing ended, I went up with YT and R to go collect money from ZT, who still owed me cab money from prom. Can you believe it, we went around at least three apartments before chancing correctly upon his? YT only knew what floor he lived on, so we basically tried all the doors with a cross on them and track shoes outside, since he was Christian and rather active, haha. In the process, we dropped strawberries and all. Thank goodness he wasn't (really) asleep when we found his apartment. So yay I got my $6.40 back.

Then after making a trip to YT's house and getting a Cambodian souvenir out of it, R and I trooped to the bus stop where he (surprisingly) turned serious and offered relationship advice (of which I have no use for, yet) from his own experiences. A different side of him that I have now only come to know, I would say.

Haha ok, had a good time, though the last-minute arranged Bridge session at HM's never quite materialised. Sad lah. (:

why like that

It's Boxing Day! The day after Christmas! Of which is in the period where I eat a lot and you know what happens next!

I just heard this (or something to that effect) on the news: "There has been a decline in visitor arrivals this year, down from last year's phenomenal tourist numbers. This has been attributed to the current economic downturn, which is taking its toll on many countries around the world."

WHAT. Did I hear that correctly?

"There has been a decline in visitor arrivals this year, down from last year's phenomenal tourist numbers. This has been attributed to the current economic downturn, which is taking its toll on many countries around the world."

I'M SORRY?

"There has been a decline in visitor arrivals this year, down from last year's phenomenal tourist numbers. This has been attributed to the current economic downturn, which is taking its toll on many countries around the world."

WHY? Why must everything be 'attributed' to the recessionary period?

Smaller turnouts at business expositions. Orh, it's because of the economic downturn.

Smaller donation takings for charities. Yah lah, it's the recession.

Less retail earnings. Of course it's because people have to tighten purse strings what. Then what?

More pets left at animal shelters. Oh, they couldn't afford to continue taking care of them. To expensive to upkeep.



Then what?




Ok. Maybe there's some truth to all of this.
Yes, because of the economic downturn, many have been retrenched, many more have taken pay cuts, and therefore, there is less money to holiday overseas, to donate, to spend on Christmas presents, and to even feed Spot. Business expos die because they are boring.



Ok, it's probably because businesses are busy cutting back on expenditure and therefore don't see the need to even try to get more business which will most definitely require more capital outlay.


BUT. It's not ONLY because of the downturn that has caused such phenomena, RIGHT? Does anyone see my point? (Ok maybe not because I'm quibbling over such silly things. BUT.)

I mean, it seems almost as if the current downturn is a plain (and easy) excuse to be used for accounting for many things, which would otherwise reveal something that is not so nice.

Like how tourist arrivals may be dipping ALSO because of the declining image that our country portrays to the rest of the world? Not-so-effective tourism campaigns? They've all seen our country and have gotten bored? Maybe.

Or maybe that prices have instead gone up during the Christmas period, explaining why people opt for cheaper presents now, and therefore, less spending? Maybe it's also because sales just aren't what they used to be anymore, with measly discounts of what, 5%? Not even enough to cover GST.

Or how about this, plain, unyielding human nature. We are selfish, and so we just don't want to donate too much, and don't want to buy more dog food. Charities have lost the trust placed in them due to a few really lame individuals, and people think buying huskies for HDB dwellers as Christmas presents makes absolute sense, especially when they (the dogs lah) look so small and cute when first bought (later on: how EVER did they grow so big and noisy?!).

And business expos are boring lah. Ok, that and because of the snowball effect, when some businesses (doesn't have to be alot, just the major players) decide to stay away from a particular expo (for whatever reason, maybe also because they're boring), more and more will find the expo less attractive as well, and you see my point. Yes you do.

So you see (yes you do), the "current economic downturn" should not be used as the excuse-that-no-one-can-refute, because, very often, it's seen that way. Instead, while it should be taken into account, we must also look at ways to resolve whatever problem that materialises.

How about raising service standards to boost tourist arrivals, instead of hoping for the best 5 years on when there will be a probable economic boom? Or how about better pet ownership regulation and licensing so that Spot wouldn't be in a spot?

Then we'll find out, that, after all, it isn't so much an economic downturn. (:

lovely show

Ok, don't know why but I'm kind of stuck on this show that is apparently meant for 6 to 11 year-olds. It's Avatar: The Last Airbender/The Legend of Aang, but both are essentially the same. It's this cartoon that is a cross between the anime genre and the American kind of Saturday morning cartoons. But it's got me hooked, partly because it features Asian elements especially in the 'bending' powers of the kid characters. Ok, so I'm a bit slow and the show actually started the year before last i.e. 2006. Sounds really ancient, but what to do, I focused on my studies then (I still do, hopefully). The comic timing really is quite well-done, and I like it mainly because nothing is pretentious; it's the kind of show that makes you feel really at home with it, where the character development is so fantastic that you feel like you've known them for a long time, and the message from each episode (yes, there's meaning to it) is so relevant to you that you feel that the producers know what they're talking about. And because it's animated. (:

And yes it's Christmas Eve!

the langkawi adventure!

HAHA. That's seriously an understatement. Though, for the life of me, I don't know why I found it rather enjoyable though something regrettable took place.

Ok, so we arrived there at around, hmm, I think 8pm. Had dinner at this Italian bistro in the hotel which served surprisingly good pizza. So that was nice. And the hotel as well! It was really decked out in the nicest and most expensive-LOOKING marble I've seen so far. I've always had a soft spot for luxurious but NOT gaudy interiors. Except the exterior of the hotel looked like it was transported from the gaudy '80s. So that wasn't too good.

Anyhow, the next day we basically just lounged around in the hotel. Ok no, it's more of a resort actually, by the oh-so-fantastic beach which means that isn't like one of those places that looks exactly like downtown Singapore and I was glad for that. Took a swim in the pool and trooped off to the steam room after that to open up some pores! Felt really refreshed after that, and really clean. I've always liked to be clean. Dinner later on was at some famous seafood restaurant which lived up to its name, but the flies there were not to be trifled with.

On the third day, we tried to go for a cable-car ride, but was denied it because of the strong winds. Later on, we went to this waterfall, but had a really bad experience there. Two bags were stolen! And as I type this I am reminded of the sorrow and regret, of just turning our heads away for only around two minutes as we enjoyed the cool waters (it really was a nice place to take a dip), and of the huge amount of valuables that were lost. I wouldn't type it down here, but it really is a big deal. Seriously. Perhaps some may say to get over it and move on, but it's really a huge event for me because it is the first time that such theft has happened to me/my family, and to turn up empty-handed after a rather fruitless search for the culprits, it really is saddening and heart-wrenching, to say the least. It spoilt the holiday for me, at least a little. I couldn't sleep well that night, and kept committing the incident to God. Hopefully, at the very least, I hope whatever was stolen was put to good use, in that it was used to help a desperate father whose wife was swollen with pregnancy and the loot used to raise the child in future, or that it came in handy for perhaps a family with too many mouths to feed. And not to sustain some drug addict or perpetuate a criminal syndicate of whatever sort. That would be bad. And I would be sad. We made a police report later on, and the officers were really nice and all. I had thought that Malaysian police were not really dependable or reliable, since there are many corrupt officers and all, especially the traffic police during the peak periods. Anyhow, these officers were really patient, and even sent down plainclothes policemen to try to nab the culprits (that's what they said though). At least they were nice, and didn't brush us off. During the trip, many of the locals we came across (and who got to know our story) suggested it was monkeys who took our valuables. But it was really obvious it wasn't those animals (though they do have itchy hands), because there was no noise and no mess made of all our other belongings. Monkeys wouldn't leave behind our food and towels and make off with our valuables. Ok, moving on.

The next day, we went for a mangrove tour. I noticed that my parents didn't look too affected by the theft, so that was good. I had thought they would have been brooding a lot over it, since they were the main 'losers' from the theft (personally, I only lost my bag and my pair of goggles). Anyhow, the mangrove tour was enjoyable! (:(:(: (I'll try to smile more. (: ) We went eagle feeding, touring bat caves, looking for monitor lizards, crabs, snakes, monkeys, kingfishers, mudskippers, various kinds of fish, and finding them. Sad that we didn't see any crocodiles. It was nice to be back with nature, but kind of sticky as well. If I remember correctly, we went to this expensive al fresco restaurant for dinner, where only tourists go and locals stay away. The food wasn't too bad though, and I suspect it was a Singaporean outfit, because of its arty design, alright service and exorbitant prices. Plus they had some Singaporean dishes. Sometimes I don't get my father though. While he strives to save money (I think I got my prudent genes from him), at other times he's quite willing to splurge. Not that there's anything wrong with that. (:

Ok, the next day we went fishing! Not my favourite activity, but I was all for it since my father was so interested in it, and I thought that it was a good distraction from the previous unpleasant memories (if you don't know what I'm talking about I suggest you take reading lessons and a test for dyslexia). We chartered a boat and went around the different parts of the sea to fish! I didn't catch anything though. The SISTER caught one, my father caught three fish (one big fish, one small fish, and one small grouper) and a squid, while the BROTHER was the 'hero'; he caught seven fish (one big fish, two small groupers and other small fish). But I got sunburnt feet. We later gorged on our ocean harvest. Dinner was simple at an zichar restaurant in the town area; cheap and good. The deep fried 'pork limb' there gives the German pork knuckle a serious run for its money, I tell you.

And now we come to the last day! We basically just lounged around in the resort again. After sleeping in, I went to open up my pores with some steam again. Dinner at the Italian bistro again (couldn't get enough of the pizza!). And as I type this, I'm back in Singapore. (Duh, the Internet charges there are exorbitant - RM 5 for 15 minutes, like hello, what are they thinking!)

This brings me to my next point, about Malaysian service. Ok, not that I have anything against the service people there; some of them are really nice, like the lady waitress who was enthusiastic to suggest places for us to visit and kept on asking us whether we were happy with the food, the cab drivers there (who no doubt charged us high fares; Malaysian cabs are like that, especially those called by the hotel) who advised us on the best ways to spend our holiday and sympathised with our predicament, or the mangrove people who were so entertaining with their tidbits of mangrove knowledge. But certain people there seriously spoil the entire Malaysian image as a place welcoming for tourists. Like the guest relations manager who couldn't stand to see the darts drop to the ground even once, the sniffly van driver who insisted that we should pay more because we had 5 and not 4, or the salesgirl who somehow couldn't stand helping us pack our purchases into hand-carry friendly boxes and had to mistreat, no, abuse our goods. I especially don't fancy the ones who only fawn on the ang mohs and the Middle Easterners. Yes, they are tourists, but so are we! Just because we come from the ASEAN region (including the Thais and the Indonesians and other Singaporeans), does not mean we do not deserve equal service standards. We pay for the same services too! Ok, enough venting. But I guess service standards do not really seem to be up to par for many destinations around the world. Such is life.












Ah ok, I hope I seriously put the unpleasant experiences behind me (way behind) and remember only the good bits.

Japanese food again!

Went for Japanese lunch with ZY today at some, what else, Japanese restaurant called Ministry of Food. The name sounds a little too pretentious though... like it is the authority on all things edible, when it only specialises in Japanese cuisine, haha. Well, it was one of the few times I opted to go non-raw, because usually, in such scenarios, I'd be off my top ordering all the raw fish I can get my hands on. The beef slices though were equally nice, and had this meaty (yes there's no other word to describe it) taste that if replicated in every other kind of meat, there wouldn't be any need for sashimi. But since it isn't, sashimi's still good. So anyway, the beef is supposed to be cooked in some pot of (delish!) soup over a flame, but some of the ash intermittently flew up and hurt our eyes; sigh, the sacrifices we make for good food.

On this note I would like to say that good food is perhaps one of the items that is worth paying exorbitant prices for.

Anyway the conversation soon (somehow) veered towards the corrupt nature of many political institutions and how we would deal with them when we grow up to be highflyers of note in our specific fields of work. But then I got distracted by the dessert that came. ZY tried some soft-serve ice-cream that seriously tastes quite good for its price even though McDonald's sells the same kind at a pittance and doesn't taste half as nice. Hokkaido milk really is better. But she didn't like the black sauce that she (herself) poured all over the rest of the dessert, and so, I got to eat it. I should seriously pack some of the black sauce wherever I go - lets me have free dessert and tastes like brown sugar (maybe it's really brown sugar and not black dates and prunes. The cheaters). My tri-colour dessert thing wasn't really tri-colour, but tasted alright anyway. Hokkaido red beans and potatoes don't really go well with rice cakes, in my opinion. But what can I say, they're the Ministry of Food. (:

Over-relaxation

Went for another outing, this time with some SC members. First met up with HM and JZ, and came to know of the really, really miniscule turnout for it. Sadly (at first). Anyhow, we came to enjoy ourselves, and so, we must. Went to NYNY for lunch, and ordered brats with bacon and cheese. Very nice, and somehow, they were amused by how I laid out my ketchup all around the circumference of the plate. Ja came over then, as I was finishing my food, and later on, Jo came, decked in PE attire and all. It was quite amusing to see them react in surprise at the dismal turnout, yet expressing silent understanding of the situation. But I actually thought it was for the better; it's actually more effective bonding time with a smaller group of people (as always has been my belief), and actually more fun as well. We went over later to the games cafe, where we met V, and played Ugly Doll, Bang! (yes somehow it sounds wrong), and Quicksand. Ugly Doll was crazy, whereas Bang! was frustrating; I kept getting jailed or having no equipment to 'shoot' people. Ja and JZ left after that game, and somehow it was weirdly observed that they might be together. Oh well, that remains unclear; no speculating please. At first I thought Quicksand would be boring, but it turned out to be quite intriguing and fun, although I didn't win. We very nearly played Risk, but I was glad we didn't; didn't want another 'harrowing' episode of being ganged against. Later on the four of us went for dinner at some place whose name I forget, but they served nice hoagies and rosti for rather reasonable prices, after which we ended up watching Bolt, where I nearly cried when Mittens fell out with Bolt. Silly, I know. But Pixar/Disney (since it owns Pixar now) always has one of these scenes that tug at the heartstrings. Sigh, it was nice, the bonding and all. So you see, even with so little, we had so much fun. Turns out that in such cases, less is more. I rest my case. And don't anyone dare touch it.

Went for yet another outing (I don't know any other appropriate word for it) with HM (yes again (: ), RB and JY, this time to enjoy an ice-cream buffet. Alas, it only starts at 3pm and so, having met up at 12.30pm, we went over to Mos Burger for a while, ate some and talked some. At 3, we went over to Mingles (haha Mean Girls), the ice-cream buffet place. JY, HM and I wanted to sit on the soft, cushiony seats, but in the end the former two got to sit there while I settled for the less-than-ideal hard chairs with no back, more commonly known as stools (haha shit). Anyhow, I stole JY's seat after a while (and she stole HM's seat later, and HM stole my seat much later. But bottomline is, I got to sit on the cushiony seat. That's all that matters.). All in all, I ate, wait for it (..........), a whopping 27 scoops of ice-cream spanning 22 flavours (I didn't take Rainbow 'cause it was bubble-gum flavoured, and Mint-something 'cause it was powdery; I stole tastes from my friends')! Very worth the money, I know. New Zealand's Natural Premium yadda yadda some more! HM took a close 24 scoops, but JY and RB disappointed greatly, with just 7, and 4 and a half scoops only. I felt a little fat/full/bloated though, but that doesn't matter. Happens to me all the time. HM was so enamoured by the gourmet sausages they sold there as well, but all of us (including her) were rudely shocked by the $9.30 price tag that came along with each. So we decided (after an extended period of time) to buy the sausages from Cold Storage and cook them at JY's house ourselves. Clever, I know. As a treat from RB, we bought $16 plus worth of gourmet sausages, potatoes and canned soup. But seriously, cooking at JY's place was a real challenge in itself, even if we transformed into culinary experts adept in the art of producing exquisite cuisine i.e. chefs in Michelin-rated restaurants, definitely not the hotel kinds, though. Her kitchen was so devoid of cooking equipment/ingredients, the former is as good as non-existent. A bit exaggerated, but true. Nonetheless, being the quick-minded, resourceful and versatile individuals of excellent calibre we are, we managed, and whipped up really tasty sausages, and mash mixed with soup, and more soup, with some help from the World Wide Web spider. All the while watching The Little Nyonya and some last episode of the CSI-esque Hong Kong serial. Not bad for the group of us. HM and I agreed that it was, on hindsight, a good experience. Cooking seriously bonds people, and this is independent of any culinary skills whatsoever. After that, we taught JY how to play Bridge (quite successfully), and thereafter went our separate ways i.e. home. Again, less is more.

Though, I think I'm being over-relaxed. I guess that's the syndrome of the education system here. It primes us too well to handle heavy loads of work, and while that's appreciated, it somehow makes us a little too guilty for having a good time; at least for me it is so. Oh well, I think I'll get used to it pretty quickly. J (I have a lot of J friends...) recently sent me a Christmas card that promised another treat, and I have other appointments I want to keep as well with other friends. So here comes my 'over-relaxation' time of enjoyment. And with open arms, I receive you.

the Singaporean blogpost

Hm, today I'll probably do a post about certain occasions or incidents that have happened so far. And in the Singaporean manner, these occasions shall share a similar thread: me.

It is slightly narcissistic, but since this is partly, in a sense, some sort of diary or log of things that concern, namely, me, I shall write about someone, i.e. me.

Ok, notwithstanding prom, things that follow consist of what I did after the A levels (largely):

1. Went for lunch with some schoolmates, i.e. HM, K, K, ZT, J, and another K. N was supposed to come but he (amazingly but not surprisingly) somehow lost his way and decided to go back home instead. Basically talked about anything under the sun, but somehow, some way or another, we still managed to talk about (what else.) studies! Even after the exams. We decided to do something remotely fun though. HM was dared by J to ask her junior out (of the same gender, so that was not so embarrassing), and the loser would eat some weird concoction of lettuce, vinaigrette, ketchup, beef sauce, salt, and pepper (a myriad of ingredients from our lunch). Well, J (expectedly) lost. Then we did another dare where all of us participated: whoever guessed correctly the colour of the dress that D wanted to wear to prom would have to consume the mixture. Well, I guessed hot pink (haha.) and other colours thrown were brown, purple and more. Well, one of the Ks guessed turquoise, and guess what, she was right! Lucky her. So K and J ate the thing together, grimaced together, and later tried to bluff everyone into eating it as well by saying it tasted quite fine apparently. After lunch, one of the Ks (the latter K actually) went off, and the rest of us went to J's house to play Risk after failing to realise that Settler's at Katong actually moved. So we travelled for like one and a half hours before reaching the house. Clever, yes. But Risk was fun! Except that I was the main target to attack for many of them (don't know why...). But one of the two Ks won in the end, even though she was basically reading stuff (academic stuff some more!) most of the time apart from throwing dice and stuff. Well, it was fun.
2. Went for breakfast on one of the past few days with M and K. Well, we basically talked about a lot of things, ranging from baby killers in the US to my post-prom aftermath. It had been a long time since I ate breakfast out, so breakfast was good. After that, we went to Borders and a myriad of small shops, just looking around. Wanted to buy back some Japanese foodstuff, but was thwarted by the horridly humid weather we have here.
3. Ate plenty, plenty of nice salmon sashimi that I was denied during the A levels. Felt so good.
4. Joined a newly formed Bible study group. The first meeting went quite well actually; everyone felt quite at ease and contributed plenty to the discussion. For me, it was one of the most fruitful discussions in a long time. After that we had a barbecue for one of the members' birthday.

So those are about the more notable things I've sort of enjoyed post A's, among the family outings and more. Looking forward to more treats from certain friends who have promised them... (:

prom and what happened after that

Haha prom. Seriously I thought it could have been worse, but it turned out alright. But just alright. Not fantastic or groundbreaking or anything. When the waiters and all did the short dance with all the fancy (faulty) lights, I nearly dry-vomited. No seriously, I hope that some part of my ticket price did not go to training them for that thing. Food was alright, but the entertainment, well, let's just say they tried their best. But everyone (well, almost everyone) looked really good that night, and it was fun taking pictures with people I knew (and people I didn't really know).

Post-prom started out slow I guess, and while I thought it really picked up at the end, to the serious clubbers, it never really did. Oh well, not really a clubbing type myself, I was just satisfied with whatever there was. Drank some, danced (read gelek-ed) some, and was called wild/crazy/cute by some. But I really thought no one could see me under the blinking lights (no really, they were blinking)! Anyhow, that would probably be the first and last time I step into a club of my own free will, unless I'm forced to, for work or some other nonsense, haha.

Oh well, I'd prefer my mundane life anyday, thank you. Much better I think. (:

Nearly one rational year on

Probably no one really comes to this blog anymore, but that's not what a blog's for, I guess. Nearly one year on, and I've come back to it, after my A levels, after finishing yet another year at school. It's really been quite some time since I've written just for fun, in a narrative, descriptive style, unlike the pseudo-analytical, evaluative and expository writing I've been doing for the past year in school. And I'm not really used to doing so. But I guess I'll just try. That reveals a lot of what I've been so busy about, haha.

It's deceivingly easy, yet, you find yourself trying to express, let's see, what's that word, un-express-ible (?) feelings, emotions, things (the best word to fall back on yet), and find yourself falling flat on your face just expressing yourself, not writing or analysing. It's the simplest things that are the hardest, really.

In the past year, let's see, I don't think I've changed a lot myself, though some people have told me that I have. It's really not up to me to judge, but it's definitely up to me to decide. If there's been change, I do hope it has been for the better. But what's really defined as better or worse, in deciding a person's character or personality? From what I know, I think the change was for the better. If not a lot, at least a little. That's what I would hope for.

Haha, hope. That's how the President-elect, became, well, the President-elect. Funny thing, hope. It's often perceived to be so intangible, inexplicable, so unconnected with the rational, scientific, and economic thinking that has come to dominate our modern psyche today. Now the fad is to be on the thinking side of the fence. Yet, it is also the thing that so many of us hold dearly, close to our hearts, never to let it go, for there's always that little flicker of hope, of light at the end of the long, dark tunnel, that, while forgotten, apparently has the strength and power to save us whenever we falter a little too much. And it was cleverly played on in this time of turmoil that all of us have to struggle with, in whatever aspect of our life.

Whatever the case, I do place my trust in God and take my own leap of faith. Hope, for me, while fine and dandy, can never be as good as faith. Sticking by one's moral principles, especially in confusing and misleading situations, is as good as any other solution. Why wholly trust a compass when you can see the stars?

I'm irrational and illogical, so whack me.

funness

China was really fun! Got to know so many of the CSE people much better. To think that we actually spent one entire year just sitting quietly in class, keeping to our own tables, never really mixing around. Went to the usual places in Beijing and Tianjin, like Tiananmen, Forbidden, Summer Palace, Great Wall, etc. But because it was educational (and gladly so), we visited Chinese industrial factories and got to know about their gargatuan growth in the last three decades thanks to the opening Chinese administration, the Urban Planning Museum which is just about one of the most contemporary and modern places in Beijing (yes Beijing, which already looks like, or even better than, Singapore in some places), and Singaporean organisations there like Raffles and Capitaland. Must say it was really interesting, and I took plenty of NICE pictures of which I will not upload.

But I fell sick for a few days after I came back from the trip, though I should after all thank God that I did not fall sick or feel unwell during the trip itself, as I usually do especially in cold climates. And in China, it was really cold, but not wintry. Sadly. Food was oily and salty, but I guess I ate around three times as much as I do in Singapore for each meal, partly because I was burning a lot of energy to keep warm, I think that's how it works. Tianjin was absolutely polluted, the air was horribly putrid. But Beijing's much cleaner, and thankfully breathable; we spent most part of the trip there. Must be because of the upcoming Beijing 2008.

To sidetrack, LYX is captain!!!!! *Popping of champagne* Another boost to our Cause. Heh.

Now coming back. Have been inspired by the trip to actually do stuff for the CSE IS.











Ok, so now the funness ends.

Oh yes, Christmas is coming!!! Somehow for me, the season gets less commercial and more meaningful as the years go by. Hopefully it does too for all of you out there! Because that's the way it should be.

the good and the bad

The Good:

1. I got to meet really nice people during the internship. They have entirely changed my perspective (or misconception, really) of the people from that particular college. I hope I get to meet them again somehow. Only one week and I am that fond of them already, hahaha.
2. Internship was a generally good experience. Got to attend this convention that saw businesspeople descending on Singapore. Quite a refreshing trip really, though it makes me question whether I really want to join the corporate world when I grow up (it really isn't as smooth as they make it out to be).
3. There has been quite a lot of subsidy for the China trip, coming from many quarters: the college, MOE, my grandma. The wonders of Singapore. Get ready for it. YAYNESS.
4. The holidays so far have been quite alright, except that I'm not entirely keeping to my homework schedule. I guess now that since tuition is sort of missing from my holidays, I've become a lot more -gasp- lax in doing things. Well, what are the holidays for anyway.
5. Eyes are under control - contact lenses are helping.

The Bad:

1. Internship should have been longer!!
2. Leaving those dearies behind. (Grandma talk should be 'in' anytime now. Yuppp.)
3. Some people can be quite unhelpful and unnecessarily curt at times. Or maybe it's just me. (No, not me being quite unhelpful and unnecessarily curt at times, but how I may be seeing things wrong.)
4. Chinese food for ten days.
5. No contact lenses for ten days.

The Many Things

YES I got the internship. God has been really good to me. To get it even though there was a trip clashing with the schedule - miraculous. Hopefully I can learn PLENTY from it, even if it is merely a week.

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A little less than half of 3E went to the zoo quite recently (my goodness, I can't remember when). I brought along the SISTER as well, since her exams were done and over with the day before. Haha, it really was quite a fun ride, we got to see plenty of things, even those that were unmentionable. What with the lion pride fighting and all, the blatant consensual (I believe) intercourse between red, plastic-buttocked Hamadryas baboons (reminds me of the various PDAs among humans), and all, in between, I believe, we had some good, clean fun.


Hahaha.


The SISTER sure enjoyed it. I guess J(u) would be the person she would remember the most, what with the girl carrying her around intermittently. She got to participate in one of the shows too. J(u) as well, haha.

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PW OP has just been finished. Which also marks the end of PW as a whole. I should be feeling all relieved and happy, but somehow, I just feel a little old, a little sad at the thought of putting the process of PW behind me. Truly, I faced it with as much as apprehension, cynicism, (derision even) as everyone else did, but at the end of it, I believe my group members B, K, and J did make PW a whole lot more tolerable, even fun, really. I really hope I will not forget the journey we toiled through as a group for PW (everyone in the group did shed a tear at least once), and the memorable experiences, like learning that putting cookies at the top of the oven shelf burns them really badly, learning to walk in sync with both the person in front and the cymbal-clanging, and even trying to "see-saw" on a plank and a cylinder (that was really fun). I hope that no one forgets all these; I myself have been changed somewhat (hopefully for the better) during this process, all of us have, indeed. I truly appreciate all their efforts - they've at least counted for something; we did well.

At the end of the road, when we look back, I would hope to see, and to realise, how we've actually made something not fun, fun.



And productive as well lah.

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My goodness, I really need to finish up the homework and study for the holidays. Work hard y'all!

Wow.

Ha, really long ago since I last wrote here; nearly forgot my password even.

To anyone that reads this, you must be really patient: no post in four months, and yet still waited and managed to read this post. (:

End of the EOYs! I just realised I don't want to call it 'Promos', because it antagonises me.

Was reading about Facebook in the recent news. So much was said about it, from throwing sheep, virtual drinks, and poking to the many, many Americans it counts among its users.

I hope I get treats soon. (:

Social networking online just keeps getting better.

Must remember to do more Maths during the holidays.

But I'm having none of that, not yet anyway.

As well as read up about Econs.

Nothing much against it, just that I don't really believe that such applications do improve the quality of friendships, if the connections in the networks even qualify as friendships in the first place.

And choose a proper topic for CSE research paper.

Perhaps it is a good way of getting to know more people (which is good), but good things do create an addiction to them, so, no.

I really hope I get treats soon.

But then again, the veil of Internet anonymity has become less of a problem in Facebook, since users are connected to groups and such, so that will increase its usefulness in networking and cyber-safety, if there's such a term.

I hope the holidays won't be too busy, yet I hope it won't be too free.

But I think many Singaporeans use Friendster more so than Facebook or Myspace, is that true? Not too sure, though I think the Facebook trend will catch on here.

Am going for internship test tomorrow.

Imagine earning millions just for developing this online social network.

Hopefully it'll be smooth.

At such a young age some more.

Hopefully I can pass/ace it; cannot wait for it to start.

Wow.

Wow.

the post that comes in a long while

It's been quite a long while since I last blogged. Well, much has happened. The official induction has not yet taken place, while post allocation is merely tomorrow, but even then, I feel as if I've been doing this for a long time, and I can only hope this means a smooth-sailing term, if not a near perfect one. I hope for a certain confidence that people will have in me, and what I will do, because it is definitely important that some form of mandate should be given to me to ensure a continuing momentum in how I plan and do things. And even if this support is not given to me, I pray that I will be able to push on, keeping an unwavering self-confidence, knowing that what I am doing, I am doing for the best.

Time seems to run by me faster, each week passing quicker than the last one. Am I learning enough, fast enough? It seems as if everything rushes by, and then, you realise, you're being left behind. But is that such a bad thing after all? I want the scenic route; there's too much to be missed, yet, I cannot help feeling that this gap between me and the rest, is widening, deepening. Notwithstanding this, time waits for no man, but will it make concessions, just for me? I just hope I'm not too late.

Many new things, experiences - some delightful, some hard to accept. Change is definitely in the air, but I don't hope to. Routine has to be discarded, but I can't bear to. For a certain time now though, I've been living in the future. The 5 is always written as 7, and July's now instead of May. Is the idea of translation in time subconscious for me, a sign that I accept the bird of time and the winds of change?

If it is, I don't realise it.

tributes

Many thanks to HZY and CSLK for l0vely treats, LYX and PSY for wonderful gifts, and MLWR, SMBAH, LZHS, CLXE, JTZQ, MKSY, the people in front, and the family in Cairns for the b'day wishes. Even though not all may have remembered (and I don't expect them to), at least there are some who do make the additional effort to care. Though it's without the family, this birthday was very much enjoyable. I think I'll grow fat, but whatever, no one will notice anyway. Thanks to HZY and PSY for much-needed Math sessions. even though you people don't have much time to spare. Quite fortunate to have willing, helpful friends, I must say. Really don't know what I'd do for Math without them. This holiday has been productive because of you. I may not be the best of friends at times, but I dare say I try my utmost to be one, and appreciate everyone for who they are, regardless of any preconceived notions. Everyone deserves my best, and I shall try to be the good friend I hope you think I am. Tough, but yes I'll definitely try. It may not be very coherent, but I assure you it definitely holds a lot of meaning (no, not crap) for me, and I hope for you too as well.

Yours Sincerely.

old buses

The buses are seriously getting old, breaking down on me. Now this can no longer be discounted as an excuse for getting to school late.

What happened to our infrastructural efficiency?

What happened to the reliability on our beloved public transport network?

What happened to those Daimler-Chrysler engines?!?!

song in the head

Songs always do get stuck in my head, especially if it's from a movie soundtrack. Those are especially sticky, but yet have nice, catchy tunes (fuzzy feeling coming), though nauseatingly so. I have a few songs stuck in my head right now, but they're sort of mixing. So sometimes I hear something from Mulan (my sister's currently quite in love with it, and it's funny how everyone says Fa Mulan, and not Hua), and another from Prince of Egypt (don't know why it popped out). If you're wondering why both are cartoons, it's because animated movies are actually the only movies worth watching over and over again.

Why? It's because it's The Way, i.e, it just is.

Though, songs in my head don't annoy me or anything like that, because they're way clearer and therefore more enjoyable, than songs from an iPod. Something like an inbuilt player, really.

bygone

Ah long time no post. Well, I've been on attachment for around five weeks now. Though it may seem a little monotonous at times, I'm nonetheless quite grateful for this attachment - quite a new experience, I must say. But on to more pressing things.

I (and the rest of Singapore who took the O's) got back THE results. Oh yes, THE results that will make or break you. Well, not exactly. And even more not so for me, since I only took the HCL test. Ah, it's quite a known fact that I'm not entirely great in the subject, so I was not too surprised I got the results I got (no, I'm not telling). But definitely thankful that I passed. But I must say I was quite surprised at the results others got. Some in pleasant surprise, some in utter shock, and some in milder disbelief. Oh well, everything's quite unpredictable (especially when it comes to things like these). I didn't expect everyone to congratulate me or console me or anything, but certain insensitive remarks were made that I felt were awfully derisive and contemptuous, and I felt quite hurt after hearing them, especially since it came from someone whom I thought would not say such things. But with all things like these, it's best not to dwell too much on them.

On another note, I am very, very grateful for my parents, who were very, very understanding about my grade (not telling). But I just hope that I would work harder and know that I have done my very best. leftbracketandcolon.

And can everyone else please start updating and stop deleting/moving their blogs... I want to read...

Ha. No more yellow frog.

Changed the blog template today, quite obviously. How do y'all like it? Well, I do.

Orange and dark grey go perfectly well together, unlike those other black blogs which cause me to squint (you know who you are).

At least there's no more yellow frog staring right back at me in the face. I should think the previous image of the nicest tree ever was deleted from imageshack's server; how deeply distressing.

On another note, Christmas is over, and school's going to start. I can't get my preferred subject combination, and I know nothing about the attachment. Is this the calm before the storm, so they always quote from an unknown source, as usual?

"As the dark of this night set in, I humbled myself, for the time of reckoning is nigh."

It is still numb.

The holiday was pleasantly uneventful, except on the plane trip back. Quite harrowing, that was.

So there I was, on the plane, sitting next to my sister. At one moment, I bent down to pick up her bag that was lying on the floor, just trying to pack some stuff in it. But when I sat back up, I felt this sharp pain course through my vein/artery/whatever somewhere in my forehead (I didn't even know I had a vein/artery/whatever there in the first place). It (the pain, not the vein/artery/whatever) was quite mild at first, but it progressively grew sharper, and I got a bit worried. Slowly, the pain travelled, and soon, the area around my right eye became painful as well. It was as if something was tugging at my eye from behind. By this time, I got very worried. All the worst-case scenarios flitted in my head: what if I go blind, what if I burst a vein/artery/whatever.

Well, it got worse.

The pain continued on to my teeth. The whole of my right jaw was now in pain, like all of the teeth on the right side were having major toothaches. So now, the entire right side of my face was in pain. The worst, most excruciating pain I'd ever felt.

If it weren't for my mother's company and God's comfort, I'd have gone mad with pain.

In fact, I was already half there.

Well, apparently the pain was due to the decompression of the plane, which I think means that the air pressure in the cabin changed a tad too quickly. Apparently, most of the passengers felt it, but I had it quite bad, because I wasn't feeling too well in the first place.

So, if you saw someone looking all dishevelled, holding the right side of his tear-stained face, at Changi Airport's transit lounge or departure area last night, chances are, that was me.

Well, that was near death enough for me; I seriously thought I was going to die, with a burst vein/artery/whatever or something. Till now, the teeth on the right side are still numb.

And now I can't remember anything about the trip, but this. Looks like I won't be flying anytime soon.