goodbye to 2004

A big Surprise!

2008-07-13T06:57:00.001-07:00

Shocked to see this entry? haha..

Well my darling is currently damm busy with his internship, thinking about when will he be able to play volleyball and tennis again, application for exchange and spending time with me that he has no time for this blog already. So i am gonna do some updates for him.

This coming week will mark the last week of internship for him. Strangely, he is not as emotional as he was last year when he realised that internship is gonna end soon. Probably cause he did not make any good friends this time round who can make him feels that way. Besides that, he is almost fully recovered from his abcess on his butt and I know he is damm happy about it. He just cant wait to start excerising again, especially his usual tennis session on saturdays.

After internship, he will be flying off to Penang and Genting with his dad for a few days. He is extremely thrilled about it as he cant wait to eat the famous laska and chay kuay teow. Wat a pig! Right after this trip, he will have to attend his JC classmates' wedding dinner at four seasons hotel. First red bomb received at the age of 23. Not bad.. haha

Next up will be the long awaited BKK trip with his sweetheart(me)! haha i cant wait.. all the shopping, massages... YES!! Of course the most important objective of this trip is to spend more quality time together before school term starts and we are off to get busy with our own stuffs.

haha.... that's abt it. Yes his life is really quite boring that why there isnt much for me to write.

Haha, see ya folks!

New Wimbledon Champ! Rafael Nadal!

2008-07-07T04:30:00.000-07:00

New Wimbledon Champ! Rafael Nadal!

One of the most historic Wimbledon finals I must say, what a match!

Remnants of my recent thoughts

2008-06-15T01:50:00.000-07:00

Remnants of my recent thoughts

112th entry: 15june2008 01:50
listening to: bye bye - mariah carey

Sorry for not blogging in recent days, but have been really caught up with work, unnecessary and neccessary socializing after work, training on weekends, spending time with my sweetheart, tennis and mahjong sessions, and also a series of unfortunate events... But one thing to clarify before I officially start on this entry, the previous entry was posted by none other than my sweetheart, haha rather cute of her to think of such a move and she just knew I was too lazy to delete the entry (the photo really didn't do us justice lah... so many better photos don't wanna use hai.. haha)

Anyway, the past couple weeks were rather forgettable, because the internship consumed me to a large extent, and I really could not help complaining to the fellow interns... somehow I'm pretty glad that I'm on a one-week MC till 20 June, so there's no need to report to office and count down to 630pm.

Yup first up French Open men's finals. What a disappointing outing for Federer, I have never seen such dismal performance by the World No. 1, especially with Nadal (whatever happened to the tenacity and superbness from last year's Wimbledon final clash). Although I had wanted Nadal to take the title, neither did I wish for such a one-sided match with the helpless Swede conceding a bagel in the third set... To think that, a few of us volleyball guys rushed out of the sports hall to catch the finals with hope of an exciting, nail-biting clash of the titans, to be so downright disappointed at how quickly the match ended (our food came after Nadal ended it with a 61 63 60 hold of the French Open title) :(

The women's finals was worth the watch at least, although I wished Henin hadn't announced retirement so she could play Ivanovic in the finals haha. But Safina is one great warrior on clay and it was pure enjoyment to see her and Ivanovic swinging from deuce to advantage and back endlessly. Seriously I feel that Henin's sudden retirement really made the whole playing field level, and it seems like any player is also capable of lifting the prestigious title (I love Jankovic's determination, Sharapova's beauty and glamor on court, Ivanovic's strokes and talent, Safina's tenacity and attitude). Anyway, grass season's next and I'm looking forward to much more action between Federer and the other camp which includes everyone else but him, haha.

Visited Ruihong last weekend and was reminded how much talent this young chap, best buddy of mine, had when he was still around. Often quiet in front of others, most people would not realize how much fun it was to be around him, and I really miss having him around - someone who absorbs my nonsense, ignores my shortcomings and loves a friend simply for who he is.

Yup June wasn't great because I was sidelined twice. Once for the second degree in Business - now that I'm finally dropped from the 'prestigious' programme, the feeling was similar to abandonment from a family whom I have slowly learned to embrace, which made me think very hard about such pursuits and how much do I really benefit from them. The other sidelining was my own health, once again. Since 2008 started, I have visited CGH A&E twice. The first time was chicken pox (sidelined for 2 weeks into the new school term); this time was an abcess on my butt.

When the doctor said that I needed to be admitted cos the situation was not too good, it really came as a rude shock. But after a while, I figured out that the ordeal would be over before I knew, I took things really easy. In fact, I spent most of the time sleeping without realizing I had endured hours of no food or water. Simply waited for the operation, and when it was finally time for the operation, I was slightly happy cos I knew that I could eat after that. However, when I was wheeled to the OT, I found tears flowing down my cheek cos I was reminded of the pain my buddy had to go through, or maybe he didn't experience any pain at all. I won't know any of this because he never had the chance to describe it to me... But anyway, the operation was a success and over before I knew. One thing which I liked was the feeling of waking up from anaesthesia, it's just like waking up from a very deep slumber and everything seems rosy and calm. However I really hope I don't have to go through the process again. Made a vow to maintain a clean bill of health for the better, stay as far away from visiting A&Es or any hospitals again...

Yah so that gave me a one-week MC till this Friday, of which I'll spend my time with my dad and mum at home, as well as some quiet time to reflect, clean up my room, have a few good reads, watch a few good movies, take long afternoon naps, help out with some of the housework. I'm just glad this provided me the chance to slow down the pace of my life and appreciate the littler things which I often overlook. Obviously looking on the bright side of things, as always.

2008-05-26T07:37:00.000-07:00

I love my SWEETHEART.. happy belated birthday~

First day of internship tomorrow

2008-05-12T00:20:00.000-07:00

First day of internship tomorrow

111th entry: 12may2008 00:20
listening to: i'm yours - jason mraz

Tomorrow's the first day of the ten week internship at ocbc bank's risk management department. Hai.. I guess this summer will be as busy as last year's, and although I'm looking forward to doing new stuff this time round and learning more things, but I know I really dread the office life... which includes waking up early, dressing up in business formal, networking with colleagues and other interns, joining the office crowd during lunch, travelling on the packed trains on the way home, feeling sleepy after lunch, ahem sounds really like a drag.

Anyway I think it'll probably be better this time around, cos I wasn't as blur compared to last summer, and the thing is many of my friends are also interning this summer too (quite a number working in the CBD so can meet up for lunch or drinking after work haha). Alright, but a damn sure busy summer it is going to be, still have tuition, training, sponsorship stuff from the beach volleyball event...

Very sleepy now, better catch some sleep if not I'm certain I will fall asleep during work tomorrow.

A nice lazy Friday

2008-04-25T22:47:00.000-07:00

A nice lazy Friday

110th entry: 25april2007 22:47
listening to: rise above this - seether

One day after the sports leader camp at Nacli, and the camp was much better than I had expected! Definitely, I did not expect much of the camp to start with, so it turned out better without much surprise as well. The main objective of the camp is to provide an interactive platform for all the sporting members and leaders to gather and share thoughts to make everyone's jobs easier. I thought it would be more effective to just include discussions and sharing sessions to gather feedback as a collective group, but the part on games (supposedly to build rapport with members of the other sports clubs) wasn't that effective in bonding everyone together.

Post-camp thoughts - I have a much better insight of the different management styles of various sports clubs because of their size, requirements, periods of competition and major events. Also had a good talk with them on the kind of problems each club is facing, seemingly different problems which I would never have thought about. Thanks to all who had willingly shared their experiences and added value to the camp besides the long discussions and talks with the OSL and SSU peeps.

Yup physically tired from traveling to and fro Nacli, cos it's damn freaking far. Nevetheless, I was pretty happy to enjoy the comfort of sleeping in my own bed (although I must admit that the accom at Nacli was seriously rather good too), just couldn't resist the idea of 'staying out'. So I came home on Wed to make the booking for the upcoming Bangkok trip in August, after my internship. So that'll be something little to look forward to when I start toiling for the summer internship, gonna have a good time shopping and unwinding before preparing for another demanding school term.

Spent the whole of today slacking, taking naps, checking out videos on Youtube, traveling to the library to borrow some books, and it is really enjoying to have all the time to do things slowly without rush. A far cry from a usual day during the school term... Now I have a couple of good books to accompany me for these 2 weeks, and for another few days before Sweetheart comes back from China. Haha maybe I should also get busy with my community service and internship reports, both LONG overdue... I don't have the mood to associate myself to school at all at least for this weekend, so probably till Monday will I see myself starting on the reports.

And some good news, my amnesia cleared partially cos I found my friend's textbook in another friend's locker, and that means I do not have to fork out money to buy a new one, but more importantly, I feel so much better knowing that I did not lose something that I borrowed. Yup looking forward to a couple of things this weekend on top of the sufficient rest and lengthy naps... Tennis tomorrow morning! Yup kinda looking forward since the week before study break. And volleyball training on Sunday too, also haven't been training intensively since a long time due to school work. As for the SMUX event, Volar, on Sunday, I'm having second doubts about attending it even though it sounds really interesting and fun. But Tanjong Beach is really far and inaccessible and unless someone offers to give me a lift, I'm really lazy to travel there to have fun. But worse than that, I could not find anyone who is the least bit interested to go with me, must be the location lah... maybe SMUX can look into that next year. Hahaha now I understand how other people felt about going for Waikiki, the location must have been a huge put-off... then again, where else can you hold a hip beach event other than on sunny Sentosa?

Alright, before I wait too long for Sweetheart to come online, I'll start reading the Kite Runner first (didn't manage to catch the film early this year.. prob rent a DVD sometime)

2008-04-21T22:35:00.000-07:00

109th entry: 21april2008 22:35
listening to: dreaming with a broken heart - john mayer

I'm pretty certain I have amnesia. So many things I can't seem to recall, and the thing is those things are not exactly dated, probably around a couple of months back... but I just can't seem to remember anything.

First, I thought I had my friend's textbook with me all throughout the semester, but when I tried searching for it at home, I couldn't find it... The book I thought was my friend's was my Finance textbook, all this while! - how unbelievable can it be. And then, I had problems recalling how much my tuition kids have paid me, or how much they have not paid me... the ironic thing is that I have been keeping a record of the payments, but I just couldn't figure out what I had written...

And worse, I forgot whether I had received the remainder of my scholarship money from Office of Finance. When I was really certain I have not received it, I was told that the payment was already made in March, and I seriously can't remember a thing.
All these sound really ridiculous and I'm afraid my memory is indeed on the decline.... It's not as if I was so busy this semester to forget all these things... Anyway, I'm so glad exams are over, this semester has been a breeze, considering the 4 modules, inclusive of FT and Counseling, and I'm grateful for the amount of time I had to do the assignments and readings at my own pace. Learning seems more meaningful when you do it properly!

This week is going to be crap, all because of the 3 days I'm going to waste at the Sports Leader Camp... Nevertheless, I had a great time shopping for groceries with Dad today, and I realized I haven't been spending enough time with my parents especially during the exams period. Will be meeting up with the old bunch of friends tomorrow, before Tingyi leave for Alaska for Work and Travel. If not for family pressure and peer pressure, I would also be setting off for Work and Travel around now... but never mind lah, since I've made the decision I'll just make the best out of the summer internship at OCBC.

Alright, off for a night jog with my brother now.. before I begin to lament how better I wish my summer is going to be.

all the random stuff

2008-02-26T01:12:00.000-08:00

all the random stuff

108th entry: 26february2008 01:12

listening to: all the great stuff in my playlist at one go

the great stuff in my playlist goes like this, it has to start with 'sober' by kelly clarkson. i don't quite know why but this song just captivates me so much, i kind of need to listen this song before i start doing work or before going to bed. and next comes 'whatever it takes' by lifehouse, and 'homecoming queen' by hinder, which will bring me back to life. to complete the collection - 'stolen' by dashboard confessional, 'sorry' by buckcherry, 'undiscovered' by james morrison, 'let me go' by 3 doors down, 'rule the world' by take that, 'built to last' by melee, 'never too late' by three days grace, 'no one' by alicia keys and many more.

yah back to blogging after a month hiatus, finally brought myself out of laziness to blog some of my thoughts. just went for my regular monday night jog and workout, and today was a little disappointing. it wasn't windy and the air was not as fresh as before (the haze has to go mans...) nevertheless, i still enjoyed the solitude for 45 minutes. the jog - when i do not need to engage in a conversation, when i can sweat and feel the wind in my hair simultaneously, when i leave my deadlines and worries back at home.

also went running with the volleyball guys last friday, along esplanade and singapore flyer towards kallang river. although we only ran for about half an hour, i was terribly tired (guess i need to increase the intensity a little more this week, if not i can forget about passing next saturday's ippt...)

that's right, the first day of the one-week break flew by so quickly, besides ending up doing negligible work other than replying some emails and preparing tuition stuff for the week. anyway it doesn't matter it is supposed to be a break week, so i should just take a break.

some photos with my sweetheart on valentine's day!

how can we miss out on the sweet stuff?

i just love her when she enjoys her food

shagged out after driving around singapore the whole night

from sentosa flowers:

and more photos from chinese new year visiting

me and my bro with ah-ma

all the cousins unite, and ah-gong and ah-ma

Australian Open in full swing

2008-01-16T12:44:00.000-08:00

Australian Open in full swing

107th entry: 16january2007 12:44

listening to: clocks - coldplay

Day 3 of Australian Open - and I bet all the attention would be placed on the Davenport vs. Sharapova showdown. It's really hard to pick a winner out of these 2 stunning tennis ladies - one who has delivered steady performances since her comeback in fall 2007 (of course I have always loved her style since she was world No. 1 back then), and then the other one who has vowed to improve her paltry 2007 showing of only 1 career win. But the current world No. 5 Sharapova is often a favorite because she dazzles the courts more than any other female players in the competition.

Quite a few players that I'm rooting for - Andy Roddick (repeat the success at the Kooyong Classic come on!), Rafael Nadal (it's about time federer takes a break), Lleyton Hewitt (I don't know why but I also wanted an Australian to win this too), Maria Sharapova (everyone's fave eye candy, but I think it's a extremely tough battle esp. against Henin), Jelena Jankovic (her first round encounter was simply too motivational - she totally deserved to advance), and all the representatives from the Asian continent too.

Check out more on the tennis action here: http://www.australianopen.com/en_AU/index.html

And I just can't wait to play tennis again when I recover, haven't played since November...

A few more photos taken recently:

2F Christmas Dinner

(Clockwise from left: Clem, Tingyi, Tecko, Janice, Hongyi)

Hey what's with the stripes?

Morning shot taken from my room

Finally on a break -- feels more like retirement though

2008-01-11T19:22:00.000-08:00

Finally on a break -- feels more like retirement though

106th entry: 12january2008 12:27
listening to: whatever it takes - lifehouse

School has started for a week, and weirdly enough I have also rested for a week. I've been down with chicken pox since last Sunday, putting me out of action and right at home for an entire week. This should be a blessing in disguise since I haven't had much rest since the term ended in November -- this is my break, but again I feel more like a retiree instead haha.

Fantastic, I've been waking up at 11am every day this week, taking afternoon and evening naps, watching Ch8 drama serial, reading Freakonomics, scouring the newspaper articles (which takes me hours), eating homecooked food by Mum and Dad, watching dated Youtube videos, and trying my hand at the sewing machine. Never mind the spots lah~

Actually I feel fortunate that the spots aren't that many as well, and they aren't really itchy either. Guess my trip to the doctor was early, that was why. Recovering real soon, which then I'll be jolted back to reality. School won't be much of an enjoyment because I have certain requirements to meet by this sem, and I dislike the idea of having pressure to do well - I just like learning and experiencing at my own pace. This sem is different. Really have to be more focused.

Yeah here's the colorful part: photos from the winter break~

traversing through Sungei Buloh

you won't believe how many mosquitoes that place has...

prized shot of the day

you can see johor on the otherside

really could have taken more shots if not for the hordes of mosquitoes

christmas dinner - waiting for my food..

sheer delight!

we were there in 2006 too, wow

sweetheart and me enjoying the music at nude bar

at jerry's grill for lunch - adrian and me

the famous wings! (10% off for smu students at tanglin branch btw)

huiwen and me posing for the cam

the 3 monkeys with 'queen kong'

the smu interns at td - clem, huiwen, adrian

Hmm 2008 has begun without much of my knowledge... Although I'm only doing 4 mods, but I believe I need to slow down my pace a little, kinda sian of school already. Anyway much to look forward to this year, first up is Australian Open, which starts this Monday!

Aching like mad

2007-12-30T23:45:00.000-08:00

Aching like mad

105th entry: 30december2007 23:45
listening to: you give me something - james morrison

My whole body is aching like mad, from working out last friday, wah i take quite long to recover from the muscle aches. Just had volleyball training so I'm really aching all over now, can't wait to lie on bed and stretch, toss and turn haha. And i kinda injured my finger while spiking, so I was trying to avoid using my index finger throughout matchplay, but I guess it'll be fine by this wed (first day of IVP).

And I still need to work tomorrow, on New Year's Eve! Haha the sad thing is I can't lug stuff around and lift trays of fabrics without feeling the muscle aches... never mind I have better things to look forward to.

Yup this week will be the final days at TD Fabrics; it seems as if I have been there long enough to know every nook and cranny of the office. I guess when we (the interns) leave on Friday, we will probably feel a tinge of sadness amidst the complaints we often dispense during work. What it means: going back to school for another 15 weeks of pia-ing. and before that When's the outing to Jerry's Grill for the fiery-spicy-wings-eating-competition?

Oh yah also went KTV with sweetheart, Tim and Susanti earlier today - and I felt a little reminiscent of the good old days when we just knew each other in SMU and the KTV culture amongst us brought us together. But then the aircon was blasting so hard in the room, so the 4 of us ended up freezing more than singing -well-

Alright, December is coming to an end - besides working and giving tuition and training for volleyball. I also had loads of fun travelling to the rural parts of Singapore to look at birds and feed the mosquitoes, meeting old friends over Christmas and thinking how much we have changed over the years, spending sweet times with who-else (although she always complain that I don't have enough time for her... haha), bonding with army friends over BBQ and mahjong, going on a short trip with my parents to Malaysia. I shall post some photos here when I have more time to have them arranged first, off to bed for a fresh start to the week!

Busy like hell, in december of all times

2007-12-11T01:05:00.000-08:00

104th entry: 11december2007 01:05
listening to: lips of an angel - hinder

"Lips of an Angel" - brings back wonderful memories, back to the exam period in year 1 sem 1. When my entire CT group had so much fun staying back in school to chiong project in week 14, and we had this song played on repeat mode. When my buddy was still around and we were mugging for our first times in uni. When I knew this girl who became my sweetheart. When the christmas and new year's day was the most memorable one i had in so many years. When all of us were still relaxed about studying so hard and having fun was the mantra.

Of course, there are many other songs in the various periods in my life where they just mean so much, and whenever those songs start playing, the respective memories begin to appear again in front of me. Music is my treasure chest; there are plenty of hidden tracks which make me want to turn back time and experience the moments all over again. Yup, in case some of you have not realised the year is coming to an end. I often wonder why time passes so quickly, and yet most of us do not think much about living each moment the way we want them to be.

I'm pretty sure I've tried harder at pushing myself when it came to studies and projects this sem, and I'm glad that I've learned useful skills and made nice friends along the way. Right now I'm on an internship with TD Fabrics, which would consume my entire holidays except for Sundays and the public holidays. And I'm not kidding, I find myself working almost all the time in TD all week, and there are endless tasks to complete, some fulfilling and enriching, some mundane and menial (totally). Anyway, I wanted to try something different this winter so I thought why not try out a small company and learn something, make new friends, earn some cash for next year haha.

Anyway my sweetheart would be busy this winter as well, having great fun in Korea right now (without me...) so I might as well bury myself in work, haha just kiddin' =/ Work so far has been really tiring and consuming, and I still managed to keep up with tuition this holidays, and training for next year's IVP, and I wonder why I don't save some time for myself, especially since I've already thought about it so long ago. It's alright lah, I guess blogging is another way of enjoying personal time and sharing my thoughts - self consolation.

BUT, This December is supposed to be a relaxing and a mental cooloff period where I reward myself for the hard work I had put in throughout the term but... I really need to get things done, but this job is in my way and there's nothing much I can do about it. Don't know why I'm complaining so much too (unlike me haha)

Anyway, I was really busy with work today that I skipped lunch (unintentionally) - just felt that I could not leave things lying around undone today, no idea what was wrong with me cos I usually would still leave things hanging and go for lunch. I think the weather got me a little melancholic lately, started behaving more strangely too. I wanna do so many things, meet up with old friends, prepare some stuff for next sem's hell, spend time with my loved ones, save time for myself to relax, but all these really seem difficult. I guess this is why I feel kind of weird these days. Alright I'm waiting for Christmas to heal me...

Better stop here, another long day ahead - hope I do not have to rely too much on coffee to keep me going tomorrow. And I wanna have some nice lunch tomorrow - and I don't care.

chillout day - can't get any better!

2007-11-16T21:01:00.000-08:00

Chillout day - can't get any better!

103th entry: 16november2007 21:01
listening to: pictures of you - the last goodnight

today was simply great, besides the marketing research participations in the morning (the most academic thing that happened to me today actually), it was simply shiok to just chill out and forget about the impending exams and relax....

watched 'game plan' with sweetheart and walked around, got ourselves a haircut. Now my hair is really quite short, but I'm cool with it - my head is so much lighter! amazing.

then came home and slack, watch youtube videos, then blog a little now before i set off for mahjong with the army gang (another bunch who don't really see the urgency to start studying for exams, except benjamin who has no exams) anyway, it just felt really good to not forget about the stress and workload of school. maybe i'll push myself a little harder tomorrow or sunday when i learn that most people have already gone full force into serious mugging... right now, mj then sleep till late tomorrow morning!

Overdrive mode

2007-11-15T09:08:00.000-08:00

Overdrive mode

102th entry: 16november2007 01:45

listening to: wo de ai - stefanie sun

Haven't blogged for so long... The last two weeks were simply insane - especially during the crunch time. It all started with Marketing individual assignment due on Monday, then Finance report and presentation on Monday as well, CAT report and presentation on Tuesday, Marketing quiz and BP report and presentation on Wednesday.

Overdrive mode turned off for now, considering I spent one good day doing nothing but rest and slack. The past few days were especially bad, such that my vision went blur on a couple of occasions and I just couldn't concentrate at all.

Going to spend the day with my sweetheart tomorrow, catch a movie, shop for stuff, put on some weight, and get a haircut too! So many people have complained that my hair is way too long, but seriously speaking I haven't had the time for the haircut, at least not for the last 2 weeks.

Oh yah, more or less decided my mods for next semester. FA, MA, Malay, FT, either Int Econometrics or Urban Econs, and maybe Counseling too. Hope to get my FA and MA bids... then my timetable for next week will be somewhat fixed. Really deciding if I should take up Actuarial Science as second major, I think it'll be interesting and challenging but there's a high chance that I'll end up struggling to keep up with the batch...

Some photos taken recently:

Volleyball SUNI Games - Team photo

ECxpedition 2007 - Happy 3 Friends (2nd runners -up) yeah!

My sweetheart baked a 'century egg' cheesecake for my birthday!

CAT team photo with Prof. Cheng

Pictures!!

2007-10-04T23:45:00.000-07:00

Weird, productive Thursday

2007-10-04T23:14:00.000-07:00

Weird, productive Thursday

101th entry: 4october2007 23:14
listening to: the great escape - boys like girls

Wah haven't blogged for a long time. The past couple of weeks since Week 5 were really busy, quizzes, assignments, volleyball UNI games, midterms this week. Still have one more paper on Saturday before the long-awaited one week break yeah!

Today was a weirdly productive day, especially since it is a Thursday. Thursdays are usually my recuperation day, after chiong-ing 5 mods from Monday to Wednesday. So usually I'll wake up late, have a slow lunch, read the papers, retreat to my bed for a nap, wake up and prepare tuition stuff, then tuition from 5-7pm first, then dinner at home, after which tuition again from 830pm to 10pm plus. My Thurs routine is scarily routined.

Today was different. I didn't take a nap. I didn't read the papers. I managed to study for most part of the afternoon. I stayed back after tuition after 7pm to talk to the centre-in-charge and the another teacher. I gulped my dinner in ten minutes. And I have time to blog even though my Finance paper is on Sat..

Anyway, the bunch of us were talking about school stuff in Coffee Club last evening. I was always bewildered yet amazed at how Coffee Club is so serene and distant from the School of Economics, which is just 50m away across the street. I like the atmosphere there, slow and calm; the difference between the enclave and the pit is just too stark. Yup the bunch of us was there for dinner, basically just to chill and relax after a hard day.

A couple of them were complaining how busy school was and there was simply no time to pursue any other activities or non-curricular stuff. I always remind myself about the little happy things that kept me going during school term, be it reminiscing on fond memories, or looking forward to something joyous. I hope the people around me could feel happy about themselves, about school, about life.

Half the term is almost over. I still could not believe how fast everything has been - and it seems I'm always including such sentences in my entries. Hai...

Alright I think I better get back to mugging. Will try to post some recent pictures here when I have more free time maybe next week. Can't wait for tennis sessions, mahjong, chillout session at some cool place, KTV, watching movie with my sweetheart, get back to exercise and many more.

The 100th entry

2007-09-09T01:35:00.000-07:00

The 100th entry

100th entry: 9september2007 01:35

listening to: first time - lifehouse

After this blog entry, I'm going to start mugging my Marketing text. Haven't been studying at all since last Wednesday, and I'm beginning to feel a little guilty, only a little.

Thursday - Finance project meeting, Tuitions (back to back)
Friday - 1/2 day corporate camp at East Coast Park, Mahjong with gang

Saturday - Grocery shopping with parents, Tuition again, Hanged out with my sweetheart (including watching some getai at geylang, strolling in ECP 'again..')

It has been a year since I last took camps, and although I really miss the good old days spent at JBac and Sentosa, I haven't been able to fork out time to do any camps this year. The half-day camp was spent touring ECP with clients from Batam (playing Amazing Race actually), and walking for kilometres under the scorching sun. I was surprised yet glad that they had so much fun, sweating and spending hours walking from the jetty to Macs. I had my fair share of fun too, knowing that I did not have to worry about schoolwork and away from the hustle and bustle of civilization.

Group photo taken at the Bedok Jetty

After lunch, the few of us trainers went along to send them to the airport, as they were departing for HK for a short getaway. Although they were only here for a couple of hours on transit, they did not mind participating in the activities under the hot sun. I have to say Indonesians are a cool and fun bunch of people! The best part of the camp was hitching a ride from a lorry uncle. Since we were rushing for time to get back to the food centre from Macs, we sought help and we got it!

So much for the camp, I'll need to get back to serious work. The upcoming weeks are going to be crazy. Project meetings, quizzes and tests, SUNI games, tuition commitments etc. Just wanna watch 'No Reservations' some time this week, don't wanna think so much in the meantime! Haha

Last but not least, happy '100th entry' to my blog!

Under the starlight + HK wowed me!

2007-08-26T00:53:00.000-07:00

Under the starlight + HK wowed me!

99th entry: 26august2007 00:53
listening to: 一眼瞬间 - 张惠妹 & 萧敬腾

Had a different evening yesterday. We went to watch some old film by the Beatles, with many others at the open air screening at the National Musuem. Though the conversation was quite hard to comprehend for most parts of the film and the colors were restricted to shades of black and white, we enjoyed the experience of lazing on the grass under the starlight, with the musuem in the background and SMU just next to us.

That was after a fulfilling dimsum meal at Vivocity - seems like we haven't gotten enough of Hong Kong cuisine at all. Anyway, I was very glad to get out of school (sorry to the volleyball fellas!) because it was simply too crowded and noisy. Hmm I think we have somewhat morphed into anti-social creatures haha! Anyway frankly speaking, I really can't get used to being back in school, and the first week was a struggle. A struggle to adjust myself to the increasing workload, hectic schedules, noise pollution, new group of friends, early mornings and many more. Partly due to the ten weeks at OCBC, which made me feel so much like a working adult. And of course, I was also missing my dear friend, who has already made my campus year an interesting and unforgettable one. Never mind that you are not coming back because you have never left me, and all of us.

I was indeed procrastinating so much to start on this blog entry because so much had happened in the past 4 weeks. The HK trip blew me away and I had a GREAT time eating, shopping, playing, walking around and spending time with my sweetheart! The 5 days in HK were so tiring because we trawled almost every single shopping mall and shop along Mongkok and Causeway Bay. And not forgetting the food - I love the mango desserts and the dimsum buffet and Krispy Kreme donuts and the fried wings, oh yah and the roadside snacks in Shenzhen (so cheap and satisfying!) Sorry I get carried away easily when the topic comes to food. Haha!

I really take my hat off her, there were times when I was really exhausted from walking too much and exploring places, and she would be going "But I'm not done yet" GIrls are made for shopping - no doubt about that.

The best part of the trip has to be Disneyland! The Disneyland experience was phenomenal and I suppose every visitor felt the same way as we did. We loved the performances, the rides, the gift shopping, the photo-taking and the fireworks display. As it was my first time visiting Disneyland, I never quite understood how it was like being a child all over again - thus it felt a little surreal at first - that all of the little things were reminding me of the joy children experience nowadays, which also happened to be so elusive to adults.

I was blown away by the 5 days of fun in HK (Macau and Shenzhen too) and I felt the reality was a little cruel to pull us back to Singapore. Maybe it was because we had to attend school and get used to campus life all over again that made us recall so much about the trip, haha. Fond memories always.

Alright, here are some photos from the HK trip:

On the Macau bus, moments after we touched down

Ruins of St. Paul (taken before the sky turned dark)

Haha loads of barang barang to carry...

No parallax error - I'm taller than Jay Chou

Wah damn nice photo

Victoria Harbor nightview

Eeyore needed a pat from me

Macau Bridge and Fishermen Wharf

At the Peak - too foggy to see anything haha

End of my internship journey

2007-07-25T21:43:00.000-07:00

End of my internship journey

98th entry: 26july2007 13:15
listening to: ru guo ni ye ting shuo - zhang hui mei

The weather lately has been really nice, perfect for late mornings and afternoon naps. Finally, I'm done with my ten-week internship. That probably sounded like I dread every moment of that ten weeks - however it was nonetheless the most enriching and rewarding period this year so far. I really enjoyed the internship at OCBC and felt glad that I didn't miss the chance to know more people, see more things and also improve myself better.

On the last day of the internship, when the few of us were busy clearing our stuff and doing some last minute handing over, we could not help but feel a sense of belonging to the company. I felt as if I was already a part of the department and I had already gotten so used to working with the bunch (supervisors and peers alike) and waking up early every weekday morning.

It's probably not permissible for me to divulge too much on what I had done, but all I can say is that I have really learned much more than I had expected. We have to learn when to take the best opportunities and learn as much as possible, and often also make the best out of bad situations. Taking this opportunity, I would like to thank everyone who made this journey such a memorable and fulfilling one!

Group photo on the last day of internship - thanks to everyone of you!

When the interns adjourned for dinner at Marina Square after work, I must admit there were mixed feelings inside us. Not so much of me yet, but the girls were really emotional and I could not help but think how much time we spent with one another for the past couple of months. Time really flies and when it comes to parting with one another, it is always much harder to take. Don't worry, we'll still stay in contact and you guys have my most sincere blessings.

Alright moving on to Oikos! Econs Orientation Camp - the 2-day camp was not so much of fun but more of work. That's the main difference in being the freshman and the senior. Also, I didn't really feel very involved in the camp, probably my own fault because I could not neither afford the time to attend the mock camp nor read through the entire ops manual. Basically, I was just roaming around, offering help to whoever needed it. The night walk was quite a dampener I must say - partly because of the rain - but also because certain miscommunication between the main organising committee. Such problems are inevitable when too many people are involved in one single activity/task - which I believe trust in your peers to complete the task would the best way out. Btw, I'm not trying to point fingers at all.

All in all, I feel that the orientation camp is a commendable effort by all those who made it possible, it's true that much effort has been put into making it a success (from my third party point of view).

Yup, still have 3 more weeks to go before school starts, and I still have one more orientation camp to help out in, bidding of courses to settle, and reward myself with indulgent shopping and food excursions in Hong Kong on 11 August. In the meantime, maybe I should spend more time with my loved ones before everything gets too hectic.

IPPT Siao liao...

2007-07-16T02:13:00.000-07:00

IPPT Siao liao...

97th entry: 16july2007 02:13
listening to: when you're gone - avril lavigne

Took IPPT last Saturday with Benny and Benjamin. The f*cked up part was to wake up at 6 plus in the morning, and I haven't exactly tasted the feeling of waking up when the sky's still dark in a long time... Even now when I have to work at OCBC, I usually wake up at 730am and the sky would already have been bright.

Anyway, I scraped through this round of IPPT, could have gotten silver if not for my weakest station: 2.4km run. Haven't had the time to train for this IPPT at all, really busy with other stuff. I could still remember how I wanted to become fitter during this internship, telling myself to work out and run more regularly and all. But something happened during the past few weeks which had kept me procrastinating, or rather losing motivation to run...

I only managed to pass 2.4km by 5 seconds... my timing was 12:15, and actually I wasn't exactly dissatisfied with this timing (considering my lack of prep training) but I was indeed disgusted by my current level of fitness. Whatever lah, got $100 as incentive so it wasn't really that bad.

This week's my last week at OCBC. After this internship, I guess I won't have much excuse to procrastinate and I really hope I can regain some motivation to staying healthy and keeping myself fit. Forget about training just for passing IPPT, do it for yourself, for your own health and when you reap the benefits years down the road, you'll realise all the hard work and sacrifices are all worthwhile.

So much for keeping fit and staying healthy, I wish this last week of internship at OCBC wouldn't be too quick, cos when Friday comes I'll have to bid goodbye to the other interns, to workng life, to the perm staff, to the good and cheap food at Golden Shoe, to everything that made the past ten weeks so memorable and enjoyable.

Recent photos (June/July 2007)

2007-07-16T02:00:00.000-07:00

Recent photos (June/July 2007)

CSPM Interns (Maria, Bryan, Me and Nas)

The legendary three!

Happy Birthday to Nas!

Tingyi, Me, Liting at Old Airport Rd Food Centre

Me and Tecko, also at Old Airport Rd

Gathering at Mind Cafe!

Me and OCBC as background

Removed my braces already

2007-07-02T01:08:00.000-07:00

Removed my braces already

96th entry: 2july2007 01:08
listening to: do you know (the ping pong song) - enrique iglesias

Found myself so weird without braces now. Took it out last Saturday and I'm seriously not used to looking myself in the mirror and find nice and straight teeth in my mouth.

Anyway, I wasn't quite prepared to have my braces removed when I went for the dental appointment. When she removed it finally, it only took her 5 minutes and all of a sudden I felt my mouth 'naked' - empty from the bulges that used to occupy the spaces. The weirder part was to see my teeth in the mirror. Too damn surreal to explain.

22 months of braces were in fact fond memories and even though I always had trouble getting the food out after meals, I realised I enjoyed the process of putting braces more than I had expected - seeing my teeth becoming straighter after each visit. When my dentist showed me the mould of my teeth before putting braces, I was very certain the pain, trouble and the cost were all worthwhile.

Yup Ok, I was very tired from spending the day with Eileen at Sentosa (not much sun for tanning though..) and more so from the volleyball training. Tournament starting next Sunday, and I still feel tired going for every training, seems like I need more than just sufficient rest before I can keep my concentration on the court.

Anyway, yesterday was the 6th month we had been together and I'm really glad we've come this far. Many differences indeed, but we would always find a way to compromise and learn from one another. Hope we can progress further than the next half of 2007 and beyond.

Alright, still a long week ahead - 8th week of internship and I think I'll probably have to start coordinating some stuff for the upcoming presentation for the division....

Almost done with June 2007

2007-06-29T22:49:00.000-07:00

Almost done with June 2007

95th entry: 29june2007 22:49
listening to: liang bai ju shang - alan kuo

The last blog entry was after the French Open finals between Nadal and Federer. Now it's tennis fever again, Wimbledon this time! Really quite pissed for not having sports cable channels... and its not like kopitiams bother to broadcast tennis matches (in fact they only bother about soccer).

It's the end of the seventh week of my internship, three more weeks to go before I leave that place and start another hectic semester. Somehow I became appreciative of summer holidays, even though I have to wake up so early everyday for work, and dress up in formal business wear everyday, and make myself busy with work and non-work-related stuff.

Have been busy scouring through the loads of survey responses in office lately, collating the data and recounting them again... super tedious and mind-numbing. Finally got over and done with that manual countsheet and the excel spreadsheet for good this morning. Felt a bit unwell after lunch today, so I took half day leave to come home to rest. I haven't been having enough sleep for weeks and I really wanna rest for a while when internship ends. What happened to my personal pact of early nights and healthier lifestyle?

I wanna meet up with friends who I haven't met in a long time. Trying hard to meet up with old friends for lunch recently, not long before everyone gets busy again. Also looking forward to the short trip in mid august to HK, planning right now in fact. Travelling is just keeping me going right now, the break I needed after this hectic summer, yeah.

Alright some of the interesting things that happened lately:
- Gathering with the SMU gang for seafood dinner 2 weeks ago, at some ulu place near Hougang. Super satisfying meal, no doubt about that, just that hanging out with u guys makes me think of him... I can't help it.
- Had my haircut... and although it feels more comfortable now, I still missed the comfort my long hair had provided me with - nvm 6 months again.
- Small Uni-Y gathering at YMCA on the 22nd - reminded me of how detached I have become from SMU, it just feels different being near school again.
- Went Mustafa Centre last Saturday!! And I liked it alot, cos it didn't feel like Singapore at all. The dimsum at Geylang after that was equally fantastic! (HK has more and I can't wait)
- Department bonding session cum food tour yesterday! Went to Arab Street's famous cafe for the exotic food and the sheesha! The main course was fabulous (not the appetizers, ironically) and trying out the sheesha made everyone laughing nonstop. Too bad I couldn't join in the murtabak and mee goreng after that... but the girls can really eat (esp. Nas haha)

Yup all that in a few weeks, plus numerous volleyball trainings and movie outings and tuition. That's June 2007 for me.

Nadal performed magic once again

2007-06-11T07:35:00.000-07:00

Nadal performed magic once again

93th entry: 11june2007 22:36
listening to: big chair - travis

Last night's French Open finals was satisfying yet disappointing... I wanted Nadal to secure the third consecutive title, however it hurts a little when Federer just couldn't do much to convert those break points, and he was just this short of getting his final and very elusive Grand Slam title. Nevertheless, it was cool to watch these two tennis powerhouses trying to outwin each other.

I wonder if Federer will ever get to attain the honor of obtaining all the Grand Slam titles; Nadal proves too menacing on clay for Federer to handle. But seriously, Federer's backhand was really superb, and Nadal's forehand and plain tenacity was just formidable. Really made me wanna pick up tennis seriously...

Anyway, I've signed up for tennis lessons starting next month with my army friends. Definitely a good start for more exciting games in future.

Today was the start of my fifth week of internship, and it didn't really cross my mind that five more weeks of internship would mean the start of another very busy period of 3 months. A part of me prefers studying, cos it's more 'own time own target' and I can choose whether to attend or skip the lesson. However, I think school will probably be so different next sem that it scares me a little to go back and face reality. I rather be busy with work now and not think about how much everything is going to fall in place.

Haven't been catching up with most of my friends lately, besides the usual suspects. I guess I'll start finding them up soon, before school starts and before everyone slips back.

Goodbye my buddy

2007-06-04T22:50:00.000-07:00

Goodbye my buddy

92th entry: 4june2007 22:50
listening to: closer - travis

My dearest SMU buddy left last wednesday. The several days after his departure were extremely hard, for those of us who know him so well and embrace him with us for the past 2 semesters.

Thank you so much for the laughter and hope you've brought to your friends, and especially me. You will always be fondly remembered, and always be my buddy.

You are off to a better place. As for me, I'll get better, and I'll also live your dreams to fulfilment. Take care buddy.

I'm supposed to know how to take care of myself

2007-05-21T21:40:00.000-07:00

I'm supposed to know to take care of myself

91th entry: 21may2007 21:40
listening to: boston - augustana

I'm still listening to Boston. And that makes it 2 full months of Boston. And my Boston is constantly on repeat mode, that was why when my laptop went screwed with the audio properties a while ago, I felt totally strange without... Never a song which captured me this much, love it so much.

Have been busy interning at OCBC recently and it was fantastic knowing more people and building up contacts. Although I was complaining that I wasn't of uch use on the first or second day, I felt the full brunt of the workload in the middle of last week. When the tasks came on Friday 530pm, somehow my weekend felt a little more precious, knowing that this entire week will be crammed with presentations and submission of reports. And I don't know understand why I can afford the time to blog now...

I'm supposed to know how to take care of myself. But it seems like I'm going in the opposite direction. I need rest, much more than what I'm having now, but I just can't seem to make myself sleep early. When it comes to night, I felt as if I should be awake given that most of my time was spent in office; sleeping would be a waste of time. And f*ck my weekend with activities that I couldn't have a proper rest... Never mind me, I'll be fine after ranting for a while more.

Haven't really had much time to think through things lately. My time is tightly divided into work and everything else. Even my travelling time on the train was spent dozing off, to replenish my few hours of rest every night. This cannot go on for any longer. I'll either feel too sick about everything or be sick, literally. Maybe I should stop blogging right now and finish up my powerpoint slides and preparing the 'thing' for tomorrow.

What a coincidence

2007-05-02T23:57:00.000-07:00

What a coincidence

90th entry: 2may2007 23:57
listening to: boston - augustana

On the way home from volleyball training just now. I was reading 'A Long Way Down' by Nick Hornby on the train, and I realised the story is beginning to turn for the better.

The book is about 4 indivduals who happened to converge on the rooftop of a popular suicide spot in London on New's Year Eve. They were there to do one thing: to jump off the roof to end their troubles. All 4 of them have their own reasons to their misery. Where I stopped to get off the train, they were already off the roof, searched a few parties for someone important, made a pact to live till Valentine's Day where they will then decide if life has indeed changed for the better, and then make a decision whether to commit suicide again.

This story is rather convoluting and I really hope that the ending is a good one, something that really inspires and motivates readers to treasure life and love one another and themselves more. Actually I believe the ending is most likely to turn out positive, most fictional stories are anyway.

'A Long Way Down' isn't really a bestseller of any sort (although I enjoyed the movie 'About A Boy' which was adapted from the original novel by Nick Hornby too) and the coincidental part was.... I saw someone reading the same book as I was on the way home! That person was in her late-twenties I guess, and her index finger was between the pages of the book so I assumed comfortably that she was reading the book too.

I felt the urge to go up to her and tell her that I was also reading that same book too, however I contemplated because I guessed that Singaporeans are probably not comfortable with the idea of talking to strangers in public. Furthermore, I would also probably have found whoever damn weird to come up to me to inform me that he/she is reading the same book as me.

Whatever, my point is the coincidence was really cool because the book wasn't exactly a very common one, which makes me wonder how many people are actually reading 'A Long Way Down" at this same time. If you are talking about Dan Brown's novels, then it is a different case.

Alright, enough of the coincidence sh*t. Just came back from Genting with a bunch of cool SMU people haha, although it was a short trip it made me recharge enough to move on with whatever is here in Singapore. I still need another vacation when my internship and all the freshman orientation camps end in August.

I have quite many things on hand now I feel and I hate to think that I don't have enough time for the ones I love. I also hate to think that I don't have enough time for myself, which explains why I deliberately took the bus to training today instead of the train even though I was already running late. Anyway, the one-hour long bus ride was my little respite, my one-hour long of personal time, which I treasure alot it seems.

OK enough of ranting... I need to get back to preparing for tomorrow's tuition stuff, loads of marking to do and solutions to work out. Can't wait for their school midyear exams to be over...

Feels great to feel young and to feel like a tourist!

2007-04-21T22:18:00.000-07:00

Feels great to feel young and to feel like a tourist!

89th entry: 21april2007 22:18
listening to: sexy back - justin timberlake feat. timbaland

I feel I haven't had enough rest yet, but it doesn't matter. as long as it doesn't involve mugging or doing projects, that's perfectly fine with me!

I felt totally like a kid and a tourist yesterday! Had so much fun choosing candies and chocolates at Candy Empire before heading for the 'Songs of the Sea' musical fountain performance at Sentosa. Unexpectedly the show blew me away, the atmosphere was perfect - with the star-filled night sky, soothing sea breeze and dazzling display of lights and sounds, I found myself immersed in the performance. I thought I wouldn't be really impressed with the musical fountain show but I suppose I'm wrong. Of course there was someone beside me that made it special too! What a nice way to spend a Friday evening.

Yeah I bet we were one of the very few Singaporeans at the show, in fact I don't remember seeing any other local except those over-friendly Sentosa staff. Not bad, it felt as if I had gone for a short yet satisfying vacation - all in one evening. I'm a little lazy to post the pictures here, but go for the show if you have the chance to! The experience is really cool - my guarantee~

Tomorrow's the last day for indulging, after which my one-week trial period for healthy living will start - hope I can keep it going, but I also doubt the effectiveness... Anyway the school gym has been really crowded lately, must be due to the guilt of not working out for the past few hectic months and the lousy diet and late sleeping hours. I've come to a conclusion that it takes much more than determination to stay healthy; you need motivation to really keep that going... and some luck too (the weather lately sucks big time)

My dad's getting supper right now, and I don't usually resist the idea of having meals with my family, haha. You get the drift..

Besides that, the past week was also spent hanging out with some old friends at Bar Stop, visiting old folks at Econ Nursing Home, working out at the school gym, chilling out at the Sentosa beaches and giving more tuition than I had wished for. Hectic, I would say, for someone who loves to take things slowly, nevertheless, post-exam days are just simply cool.

The simple life

2007-04-15T22:40:00.000-07:00

The simple life

88th entry: 15april2007 22:40
listening to: look after you - the fray

freshman year has ended, effectively last thursday. i can't believe how fast that has happened. many times i wished for school term to end sooner so that i could have my holidays, but somehow i do not want my university life to go by so quickly.

the past few months had been great, besides making many new friends, chiong-ing for deadlines and the late-night talk-cock sessions while mugging, also having the chance to go on a overseas CIP trip to Shanghai last December. i often felt regretful for not spending enough time with my parents and brother, my good ol' pals and army dudes. this summer, i'll definitely catch up with you guys before another hectic school term comes my way.

this summer holiday is full of plans right now, i have trouble finding time to put away my books and notes even (usually i'll settle that the moment my last paper ends...) anyway, what's life without a little mess? i'm rather optimistic with the time i'm going to spend the next few months, going to take up tennis, starting internship on 14 may, possibly a couple of holiday trips, getting back into regular exercise and reading as well.

just had a crazy tiring day with the volleyball bunch, had training at spans clubhouse early in the morning, when i saw my sec school coach after so many years. surprised that he could recognise me, even though i thought i was rather slack last time and with my bad-looking long hair now... chiong-ing sentosa tomorrow with them for some fun at beach volleyball, hope the weather can be perfect yeah.

right now, probably another week or two to the release of results, and before the comparison and the disappointment start setting in, i'm living life the way it should be, the simple yet fulfilling way.

Giving the best shot - taste of success will be much sweeter

2007-03-31T13:10:00.000-07:00

Giving the best shot - taste of success will be much sweeter

87th entry: 31march2007 13:10
listening to: wo huai nian de - stefanie sun

Saturday afternoon, my fave slack period of the week, besides the usual thurs super-duper slack time as well... yeah I have survived 13 weeks of sem 2, and although I felt greater pressure to do better this time round, I think I havent been putting in enough effort and of course still rather unmotivated to mug for exams. Felt a little down on Tues when I knew I had screwed up my comms presentation. There are so many times when i really want to perform well, but i just knew I'm going to blow the chance. Tues was a classic example. Maybe I should have really prepared more for the presentation (I changed my topic only the night before), anyway it doesn't matter now anymore. LTB and Comms have officially ended, and I feel great to have to only focus on the remaining 3 modules.

Next week is study break and I'll make full use of the opportunity to make up for all the weeks of lazing around, not paying attention in class and copying homework. the last burst is really appreciated and I believe I'll find this summer holidays much more meaningful if I had toiled for this final exams. Forget about the pressure to do well, I'm just going to try my best, whatever that is... If everyone is going to start comparing with one another, it is just going to be more competitive and tiring; there'll never be an end.

Yeah, really looking forward to the holidays, where I can wake up late, spend quality time with my family, friends and my loved one, allocate some personal time for myself, go on short trips to invigorate the mind, take up some camps and relive my younger days, work out and feel more fit and healthy.... All these in less than 2 weeks' time, just a little more to go.

Right now, I'll take my time to read the papers, then slack a while more before giving tuition at 3pm. As for the evening, I'll see if I can cram a bit of studying so I won't feel so guilty. I need more than pure hard work for my final AE exam, not forgetting how I screwed my MS as well, I guess I should also at least try harder this time round. Not giving up until I'm certain I have put up a great fight - the attitude towards mugging is much more important, same for the process.

Haha, I also like to give some credit to Stefanie Sun for her new album, and her new songs are simply great as accompaniment during those quiet studying moments late into the night. (Last semester's Lips of an Angel will still be on my mind for a long time though)

Music and lyrics

2007-03-20T23:40:00.000-07:00

Music and lyrics

86th entry: 20march2007 23:40
listening to: let there be love - oasis

Music and Lyrics rocks my socks! I simply love Drew Barrymore, and all her previous shows especially 50 First Dates! Most might find this show a little less subtle (Tim likes this word..) than it should have been and probably too cliched as well, but I found it terrific!

There was this scene where Sophie and Alex quibbled over which is more important: music or lyrics. I felt that Sophie said it really well - the lyrics are like the 'second level of knowing someone'. Of course, the theme song rocked as well.

Anyway, great way to end my day off cos I was feeling nauseous on the way to school, sleepy and hungry during Comms lesson, uneasy during AE lesson etc. Saw the school doctor today and it just reminded me of visiting the MO during those army days. The doctor wasn't around when I went and the receptionist had to call him to come back, just like how the MO is always out of his office. Fortunately, there wasn't any patients around and I didn't have to wait too long.

Comms presentations today - and I thought everyone did very much above average, seriously! I can imagine how nerve-racking it will be next week, especially waiting for my turn in that super cold NSR... Haven't started writing my speech at all, I guess I'll probably need to put in some extra effort to find a good topic and hopefully pull it off, maybe not by telling lame jokes, but by talking about some serious stuff (which may bore the class to sleep...) No idea at all right now, hope this weekend can spurn some inspiration for next week's presentation.

Enough of school stuff, I need to get back to work... Late AE homework first then maybe mark some tuition assignments too.

4 more weeks to go!

2007-03-17T19:41:00.000-07:00

4 more weeks to go!

85th entry: 17march2007 19:41
listening to: ni guang - stefanie sun

frankly speaking, time has been passing real fast. i can't imagine there's only 4 weeks left to the end of the term, and the end of my freshman year. although the people around me are getting stressed up over numerous unending assignments, readings, projects and presentations, i'm totally unscathed from all the SMU stress. in fact, i need some stress...

last sunday, KDF held their 'Fun on Foot' walkathon and they set a new record. my LTB group was there to display our project and join in the fun. it felt really great to have completed part of our LTB project, the remaining part being the presentation in 2 days' time and the submission of our portfolio.
team aurora with jeannie (sorry, without rajan around)

when viewing the other groups' presentations, some got rather emotional and it made me realise that i'll probably feel the same way too this coming monday. actually i really had a good dose of fun and laughter, as well as headaches and frustrations, along the way however this entire experience is a satisfying and memorable one. team aurora has really grown from the random bunch of individuals to the dynamic and understanding team i'm proud of.

when monday comes and everyone starts to get emo, then i'll probably have more to blog about. of course, i also try to post my takeaways from this intensive course, and hopefully have that as a reminder of the lessons i have learnt so far.

yup, the previous week was spent rather fruitfully. besides catching some movies, singing KTV, lazing at home with someone preparing food for me (haha thanks!), i also found time to mug a little. the only thing that's missing from my life right now is exercise. that's totally different from what i had set out for myself in january this year. i wanna start a healthier lifestyle and get more involved in sports and exercise. better get started after exams if not i'll regret again come christmas 2007...

so anyone who's interested in regular tennis, beach volleyball and badminton or any sport, JIO me! oh yah, i miss playing badminton with the army bunch at tampines safra... blame it on our busy schedules. anyway, looking forward to post-exam slackness - slack around, go for a few short trips, take up a couple of camps (hopefully), spend more time with family and friends, exercise more regularly, and internship too.

right now, maybe i should stop procrastinating and finish up my AE and MS homework.

P.S. Stefanie Sun's new album will be out this coming Thursday! Don't forget to support her!

'Fun on Foot' 11 March (Sun) - A Walk to Remember!

2007-03-06T01:46:00.000-08:00

'FUN ON FOOT' WALKATHON - 11 MARCH 2007

Hey all, this 'Fun on Foot' walkathon is part of my LTB project and the event is held in collaboration with Kidney Dialysis Foundation. It is happening this coming Sunday - 11 March 2007, 730am @ Telok Ayer Hong Lim Green CC (just next to Clarke Quay Station, beside Hong Lim Park).

Please do come and show your support for a good cause. Besides raising awareness for kidney related diseases, this event also celebrates World Kidney Day by breaking a new record (most number of balloon hats worn by individuals at any one time)!

By the way, if you are a student and you wish to take part in the walkathon, registration fee is waived! Just contact KDF at 6225-3133 or visit www.kdf.org.sg for more information. All participants will get a free goodie bag.

Hope to see you guys at the event itself! Have a nice day.

A reason to celebrate

2007-02-26T03:00:00.000-08:00

A reason to celebrate

84th entry: 26february2006
listening to: lithium - evanescence

Just hosted the 2F new year gathering at my place, and after steamboat, some card-gambling and mahjong, I'm feeling the fatigue and the idea of waking up at 7am tomorrow morning (or rather this morning) is not helping at all. At least the LTB lesson tomorrow will see us playing games instead...

2F'99 gang at my house for steamboat

Had a good chat with Tim, Liting and Yixiu when the rest of them are playing mahjong outside. We talked about university life, career options, internships and many more. I really feel like I'm getting old and I'll need to make many important decisions as I grow older and find a job upon graduation. There are really plenty of things I wanna do during these few years of my life as an uni student. Especially when the girls are grimacing that they'll have to start looking for jobs very soon and most of them are not exactly looking forward to that idea. Sometimes I really wonder how my career will turn out to be.

Besides that, I also had a conversation with her last night when we talked about the things in life and although I was really tired, I really thought through the questions she asked. This weekend wasn't that great without her, notwithstanding Waikiki 2007 and the steamboat earlier on.

By the way, I'm relishing the last few moments of my midterm break before the workload starts to pile up again. And I'm not looking forward to getting my midterm papers back as well but it doesn't really that much. In addition to visiting friends and relatives for the past week which was both tiring but interesting, I also found some time to catch movies.

Watched "Notes on a Scandal" and "Protege" last week and I thought that both movies were rather decent. The former was a black comedy albeit a rather distasteful plot with odd twists. Nevertheless, I feel that the movie brought out a different perspective to the run-of-the-mill productions and it somehow made the experience a little better. I know Tim will cringe whenever the movie name is mentioned and the term 'delicious' will also be viewed differently from now onwards.

The latter was a film by Derek Yee and the cast was impressive. Daniel Wu is cool, Andy Lau is charismatic, and Zhang Jingchu (the lady who was addicted to drugs) is simply attractive. When the cast looks this good, the plot expectedly fails miserably. How much more predictable can a movie be?

Also, Waikiki occurred last Saturday and although I felt really lazy to walk around (cos the weather was scorching hot) it felt really good to let your hair down and just enjoy the heat and the fun. SMU people really knows how to enjoy and I think Waikiki 2007 is a great success. Of course, the beach volleyball crowd was also sizzling hot, thanks to the winning team and a few other teams which were also rather impressive. Got to know a few more volleyball fellas whom I didn't know at first and also got a nice tan from being out in the sun for so many hours. Really appreciated the day out at Sentosa, very shiok to just hang out on the beach and get some action from beach vball.

Alright, it's getting late and I need to catch some sleep before beginning the week in a few hours time. Some stuff to look forward to: the execution of the final LTB project on 11 March, the trip after final exams (which means the end of freshman year), internship from May to July.

Cannot believe it.

2007-02-07T18:20:00.000-08:00

Cannot believe it.

83th entry: 7february2006 18:20
listening to: hello lonely (walk away from this) - theory of a deadman

Yeah this is probably my first time blogging at this time of the day. came back from school rather early today - maybe not rather, VERY early in fact.

That's right, my week has ended officially after this morning's Microecons lesson. And I'm feeling great coming home early. I'm waiting for my mum to cook dinner now and it's super rare that she cooks so I guess I'm quite lucky today after all. My dad's helping out too, cannot believe it!

Went for dental appointment a while ago and guess what? It's going to be the very last few trips down to the dentist cos I'm getting my braces out in a few months. Actually the proposed date was sometime in Dec06 but I missed quite a few appointments and my dentist went for holiday in Jan too..

Also spent the afternoon "mugging" but ended talking cock and singing out loud in the GSR instead. Hai I just cannot study with you.. (you should know who you are haha) I only managed to copy 2 questions for 2 hours plus! Anyway thanks for the laughter after a hectic first half of the week!

Mid terms coming next week, gotta get down to mugging real soon. By the way, check out "Hello Lonely" by Theory of a Deadman! Cool tune really!

It came and went

2007-01-24T22:56:00.000-08:00

It came and went

82th entry: 24january2007 22:56
listening to: chasing cars - snow patrol

(If I lay here
If I just lay here
Would you lie with me and just forget the world?

Forget what we were told
Before we get too old
Show me a garden that's bursting into life)

If you can just forget the world, and leave everything behind, and go for a long walk, and not tell anyone about the journey, and experience what your eyes couldn't usually see, and probably then walk back to life.

Will you still feel the same way?

If that could make you understand and live life the way it should be, walk on. Walk on strong, walk on far. You will find that garden bursting into life.

Went on a photography trail with SMUSAIC last Friday. It was really cool to leave everything in school and take a long walk around Chinatown, then Singapore River to snap at everything. I was concentrating rather hard that day, trying to find nice views to take in. Really enjoyed the entire trail and although it was tiring, I feel it's a great way to clear your mind and indeed a fulfilling experience.

This is a shot of a bridge along Singapore River. I kind of like the contrast between the dark skies and the construction cranes with the calm and peaceful cyclist on the bridge.

Many other photos taken along the trail:

Some lens flare effect there

The blend of skyscrapers and the clear blue sky is just lovely

I wasn't the only one snapping away

There's still tomorrow and the day after tomorrow and...

2007-01-11T00:06:00.000-08:00

There's still tomorrow and the day after tomorrow and...

81th entry: 11january2007 00:06
listening to: zi wo cui mian - luo zhi xiang

My to-do list is so long... I'm having trouble categorising which are the important tasks I need to finish first. This blog entry explains how well I am at organising my time... (when I can save this amount of time and try to make my list shorter..)

Anyway, I watched Blood Diamond with Eileen after Microecons today. I think the film is brilliant and the violent scenes are impactful and vivid. The message of the film also came across rather well - at least it made Eileen think twice about getting diamond wedding rings, haha. It was cool to catch a movie after morning lesson cos there was little crowd and it was a great stress buster too. Hmm seems like more movie sessions this semester for me (Cathay is really near - the temptation is right smack in my face!)

My 2.5-day week is paying off! I get to sleep in till late on Thursdays and Fridays! I think taking up part-time jobs on these 2 days seems rather infeasible, especially with the post trip comm service and projects... And I have a million things to do before tuition at 5pm tomorrow. I have a feeling I'll wake up after lunch and eventually have to rush through all the work before going for tuition. However, I'm still going to reward myself with as much as sleep I can 'consume' tonight, so heck it lah.

ISP Shanghai Photos!

2007-01-07T01:36:00.000-08:00

ISP Shanghai Photos! (11-23 Dec 06)

Group photo of ISP Shanghai Team

I'll never forget her innocent smile

I made them attempt the SMU star jump!

Recre Room, all done up!

Tired of acting cute in photos...

R&R at Nanxun Water Village

Picturesque night view taken from the Bund

Guys shopping at Huaihai Lu - Weihao, Me, Nasir, Vincent, Lawrence, Andre (left to right)

Grp 3 (Lawrence, Jieyi, Vincent, Michelle, Me)

Beauty galore~

Music lesson (with guest appearances!)

The proud artist of Baby Goofy

Looking back at 2006

2007-01-02T23:45:00.000-08:00

Looking back at 2006

80th entry: 2january2007 23:45
listening to: superman (it's not easy) - five for fighting

2007 has arrived and my mind is full of thoughts. My pathetic brain takes damn long to process them, and it is getting slower over the years. Feeling very fortunate to welcome 2007 and I have plenty of things to smile about!

My blog has been around for 2 years. I'm pleasantly surprised at my determination for keeping up with my personal updates and my reflections here. When things become complicated, I always try to simplify it by jotting them down here. On the contrary, I have also picked up the bad habit of complicating matters when they could be plain simple.

Many things have happened in 2006:
Jan - pre-ORD trip to Bangkok with army gang, started volunteering at Hougang FSC
Feb - 13-day backpacking trip to Taiwan with 2 great pals
Mar - ORD-loh, started relief teaching at Poi Ching School
Apr - relief teaching at Yu Neng Pri
May - short getaway to Genting with Tim, Tecko and Douglas, temp job at Sentosa, camp instructor job (Compassvale Sec, East View Sec rock!), landed the OCBC scholarship
Jun - one month temp at SIA Engrg
Jul - Oikos Econs Orientation Camp, Uni-Y Freshmen Orientation Camp
Aug - FTB Camp, start of SMU school life
Sep - 21st birthday (start of adult life)
Oct - thick in the action of neverending projects and presentations...
Nov - busier than Oct, feeling down for a while, Term 1 finals
Dec - SHANGHAI ISP!

On the whole, I'm thankful for the wonderful year. The bountiful experiences I've amassed from my NSF life, my travel experiences, my relationships, my temp jobs, my fantastic overseas community service involvement, my new SMU life and company are going to be with me forever. Learn to grow and you will grow to learn more.

2007 - Someone to love more for the new year, families and friends to embrace for life, myself to search forever.

I'm going to sleep right after this entry, hitting the gym tomorrow morning before Microecons. Photos - soon to be uploaded!

Writing 2006 off, very soon...

2006-12-27T00:21:00.000-08:00

Writing 2006 off, very soon...

79th entry: 27december2006 00:21
listening to: here without you - 3 doors down
invincible - muse

I'm back from Shanghai. Besides the persistent cough, the souvenirs and my cool Espirit bag, I've brought back with me genuine and unforgettable memories. This overseas CIP trip has made me see things from a different perspective, made me treasure what I have now, made me reflect on who I am, made me less critical and more loving to others. I've learnt many good lessons throughout the entire journey, even though I might appear to be stoning at times (the freezing cold weather was our justificaton for those stoning moments).

There's no way I can describe my feelings and thoughts in every detail through this blog. I feel so much more than words, so much more than pictures, so much more... If I could capture every moment that I felt so alive and real, every moment that touched me deeply, I guess I'll probably stayed on for months to take all of them down. But I believe when it's time to leave the place and move on with life, sad feelings were inevitable and I must say that the kids had an easier time of parting because they are still young and less likely to feel the effects of leaving someone and not being able to see them ever again.

This trip has ended 2006 on a high note. The great company, the team dynamics (dearest weina and jingyang chose the team well), the kids that made me smile and tear (almost..), the difference in lifestyle and culture, the adrenaline of travelling, the idea of helping people and enriching ourselves at the same time. I couldn't be more thankful for this wonderful opportunity.

I'll try to post the numerous photos here (if not you can check my friendster too) asap. Looking back, I feel this year has been great. Except for the few downs, I'm still rather happy to write 2006 off with a smile.

For the past 2 days after the trip, I'm done with reconciliating with the fact that my holidays are very numbered... I guess I'll have only enough time to settle pre-school-term stuff, looking for job offers, meeting up with friends, shopping for clothes and relaxing and slacking for the remaining little time. Year 1 Sem 2's going to be a blast, wait till summer arrives hahah...

And believe it or not, I've been bloggin for nearly 2 years. Not that I'm a frequent blogger, but I think blogging has become a part of my lifestyle. My way of letting friends know how and who I am, my noticeboard, my collage board, my ideas on a palette, my preferences and dislikes.. I'm writing off this year very soon, new year resolutions in the pipeline, leaving everything to the final few days of 2006.

All good things should come to an end

2006-12-10T15:57:00.000-08:00

All good things should come to an end

78th entry: 10december2006 15:57
listening to: all good things (come to an end) - nelly furtado

Most of us probably really wish all good things never come to an end. If only...

Right now, I'm just done with my packing and I'm ready for the Shanghai trip, ready for the cold weather, ready for the language barrier, ready for the personal challenges I've set for myself. However, there are things here which I think I'll miss quite alot and it makes me wonder how I'm going to cope when I leave for exchange in Year 3 (likely). Anyway, I need some time to feel and be around my family before I leave and I'm quite sure they will miss me as much as I miss them. Of course, I requested for a good hawker dinner before flying off tonight! (The same old glutton Clemence...)

I was thinking through the things that are good and yet never come to an end. But, I could not seem find anything of significance. Maybe the saying is indeed true.. (as much as I do not wish to believe it's true). I think if all good things never come to an end, we probably will take things for granted and end up living a life unsatisfied and meaningless. So, maybe it's not such a bad idea if we can learn to part with good things and learn to accept them as part of life. Somehow or rather, a part of human beings are programmed to adapt to changes. Do not fret as more good things may follow after one has ended!

I was asking around my SMU friends how they are finding university life and how satisfied they are with themselves and their current lifestyles. A wide range of answers I had gathered. Actually most of my friends are also taking this short december break to travel and relax, especially after a hectic and crazy semester in school. Really hope you guys can encounter some pleasures in life during these few weeks! Looking forward to meeting up with old friends over Christmas and of course looking forward to starting school real ready and fresh! Now it's time for a short nap before a scrumptious dinner, then off to the airport!

Bye friends, I'll be back on the 23 Dec. All the best for your Term 1 results! Take care~

Let's dare ourselves to...

2006-12-04T02:58:00.000-08:00

Let's dare ourselves to...

77th entry: 4december2006 02:58
listening to: it ends tonight - all-american rejects

When was the last time someone dared you to try something new? Did you do it purely because of the dare? Or was it part of a challenge to improve yourself?

I was thinking through if I'm more of the sort of guy who dare other people or the other way around. My life right now was still kind of comforted and cushioned, sometimes I feel like I need friends to challenge me along and offer me dares. Very soon, the year will come to a close and most of us will be evaluating ourselves for the past 12 months. I hope those of you who are not going to be very pleased, can take these last few days in december to find yourselves and do crazy things you thought you would never do.

I'll be leaving for Shanghai in 6 days, and I hope I can find more pieces of myself. I don't really think it's possible to complete the puzzle, no one will ever have the complete puzzle though, but as best as anyone could, we should try to discover more about ourselves. I'll be there to learn and give and experience and feel and realise and absorb. Ever willing and optimistic about travelling, I have a feeling that this trip is going to end the year rather nicely.

This 4-week break - so many things I wanna try, so many people I wanna meet, so many places I wanna go, so many stuff I wanna get for myself and others, one person I wanna know better. Half my holiday will be spent overseas, the remaining time to prepare for the trip and train for next year's IVP, I guess there's a need to apologise in advance if I can't find the chance to meet up with you.

Oh yah, my parents called me from macau yesterday and I was glad to hear that they have been enjoying themselves very much. My parent's trip this time, made me realise how concerned they must had been whenever I was overseas. I felt so much better knowing that they are fine and I can't wait to see them this Saturday. Supposedly a big boy now, but the feelings I have for my family will never change.

Last Thursday, I closed another chapter in my life. The final exams were not as bad as I thought, and in the midst of the mugging I had great music for accompaniment - lips of an angel, i dare you, call me when you're sober, it ends tonight, when you were young etc. (thanks ruihong for recommending some of the songs - they are fantastic!) It's time to start a new chapter now, and I'm more certain then ever that it's going to be better than the previous one.

27 more days before we count down to the new year - I believe this holiday is going to end sooner than anyone of us will expect it to. So quit thinking so much and have a wonderful and unforgettable holiday ahead! Give yourself a dare and go do it.

And I just felt like blogging

2006-11-29T07:30:00.000-08:00

And I just felt like blogging

76th entry: 29november2006 23:55
listening to: i dare you - shinedown

Tomorrow's the last day of November and the last official day of school for Term 1. My 2 last papers (Analytical Skills & Business Law) - the two courses which I find harder to manage. Anyway, I'm not exactly sure why I have the mood to blog right now... I was feeling a little retrospective a while ago and I was recalling the days when I was working as a relief teacher, camp instructor and other temp jobs. And the Bangkok trip and the Taiwan trip. And all the orientation activities. And the first few weeks of school when everything was still in 'relaxed' mode. I really hate to admit that time indeed flies... and good times are never long enough.

Then came midterms and those endless project deadlines, assignments, presentations... I can never forget the late days I had spent in SMU chiong-ing and trying to meet deadlines, the last train to Pasir Ris at 1209am at City Hall MRT, the last feeder bus at 1240am at Pasir Ris Interchange. All these somehow have become second nature to me (which most people will find it sad to mention), BUT I'm actually enjoying almost every moment of university life actually - regardless of the stress and amount of work needed to be done.

During those times, I think I was in school more than I was at home. That made me really guilty as I hadn't had a meal with my parents for weeks. That's on top of the fact that my parents are away on a holiday now and my brother is in camp (as usual). Especially for the past few days, when the house was so quiet, I felt grateful for the elusive silence, but I missed my family so much more. Now I realise how little time I have been spending with them ever since school started.

I believe next term is going to be pretty much the same as this, even though I have 2 free days I don't really foresee having much personal time to relax and unwind. I should start planning what I want for myself next term.... Of course, I also hope to find more time for the people I love and treasure so much.

Alright, I guess I'll return to mugging now, hanging on for 16 more hours and I'm officially done with Term 1! Good luck to everyone who's taking AS and Biz Law finals tomorrow!

Photos!

2006-11-17T21:44:00.000-08:00

Some photos taken lately!

Lips of an angel!!

2006-11-03T00:39:00.000-08:00

75th entry: 3november2006 00:39
listening to: lips of an angel - hinder

This song is amazing! Haven't heard a nice rock song in quite a while, this really rocks. Anyway, I'm blogging this entry while preparing to go to bed, this is one of the earliest bedtimes this year. The average bedtime will be around 2-3am, and I'm finding it tough to concentrate in class, especially for back to back lessons on thursdays, total killer!

This entire week's crazy, busy cheong-ing project stuff and staying back in school to settle BGS major, preparing for AS presentation (glad that's over!), on top of many other commitments and meetings... Sometimes I wonder why my time management is so poor and I hate myself for sleeping so little.

My brother just came down with chicken pox and I'm quite sure I'll probably also get it as well, cos my immune system isn't exactly strong... The doctor advised me not to take the jab, because if the virus is already in fact incubating in me, the jab will be useless. He advised me to see him the moment the symptoms of fever, sore throat, rashes appear. And this feeling really sucks, it's as if I know something is going to happen to me and all I can do is to wait and see.

Right now, I'm feeling uneasy and a little paranoid too, cos next week's my crucial week: BGS major project presentation on monday, Biz Law oral presentation on thurs. And I don't think I can afford to have chicken pox next week. However, there's nothing much I can do about it but wait and assess the situation. Alright, if I sleep right after I post this entry, I'll have approximately 6-6.5 hours of sleep! (Oh I planned to be late for tml morning's stats class so I can sleep for 30 more mins) Wow, ok guess I'll update you guys again probably when my major presentations are all over. Good night.

Space badly needed

2006-10-29T01:00:00.001-08:00

74th entry: 28october2006 01:00
listening to: wo gei ni xing fu - power station

I'm feeling a little uneasy without my smu password, cannot check school email, cannot download stuff from vista, cannot book gsr to mug (haha, just a joke). The worse thing is that I can't even surf the net using the student wireless lan... It was plain dumb of me to forget my password...

The stupid system prompted me to change my password late last night, I was so tired then I typed in any password that came to my mind and went to bed. Of course when I woke up this morning, I couldn't remember at all what I had typed. Felt totally screwed up man! No choice but to visit CIT Helpdesk on Monday to fix it..

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I really have many thoughts going on in my mind, many of which I couldn't put it into words. In fact, I have been typing them out and deleting them again. Now I'm getting irritated for taking so long to post this blog entry, angry for not being able to find the words to say. Alright, really enough of this cos it's getting nowhere.

Sunday tomorrow, and I'm going to spend it with my mum and dad and brother. Many of things I wish to do, I'm going to do it one by one.

Overdrive mode

2006-10-17T01:43:00.000-07:00

Overdrive mode

73th entry: 17october2006 01:43
listening to: chasing cars - snow patrol

somehow or rather, i felt like time has just passed me by again. my midterm break has gone so quickly, it's like those scenes from 'Click' where Adam Sandler fast forwarded his life to skip the mundane stuff. It seemed as if I had just fast forwarded my one week break, and what have I missed? I believe most SMUggers had spent the week mugging in LKS Library or meeting up in GSRs to discuss projects.

By the way, my knee has recovered nearly 100 percent, save for the pain I still get whenever I stand up from prolonged sitting down. My fitness has dropped rather significantly, with the weeks put out of action by the bad knee, late nights (usually till 3pm) and poor eating habits. My sleeping habits are screwed up totally, I can't remember when was the last time I slept normally.... oh yah maybe during NS!

And the haze! Frankly speaking, I cannot remember how the previous haze spell affected me. In fact, I don't think I was very much affected by the haze until now. I feel sleepy just looking out the window and seeing everything in a blur. I feel the urge to hide in my bedroom with my windows shut. I feel that I have to squint my eyes more often.

I can't help but keep telling myself that I'm going to be a tough survivor. Cos I don't know how else to stay clear with so many friends around me mugging their lives out. I'm also mugging hard, practically in overdrive mode, but actually all these have a tint of sweetness to it. And I don't really feel that terrible because I know there are better things to look forward to!

my accompanying suitcase - never a burden

2006-10-01T08:39:00.000-07:00

my accompanying suitcase - never a burden

72th entry: 2october2006 00:15
listening to: tui hou - jay chou

injured my knee - during training last friday. i carried on with the game cos the pain was bearable. however, the pain kicked in the next morning and it was so bad my mum had to accompany me to go for acupunture. she supported me on the way there beacuse i could hardly walk. That scene was rather funny to me, probably to the passers-by as well.

acupuncture was quite cool , i must admit! it was weird at first to have a stranger poking needles on my knee, but seriously i was surprised that the procedure was almost painless and i went really candid about it (i even took pictures with those needles sticking out my skin!) after that, at least my leg could straighten and although the pain was still rather bad, i felt assured that the situation was within control. apparently, acupuncture helped to remove the hardened blood clots that were surrounding the tear and that was the reason why i didn't feel so much pain that night, cos the blood clots weren't as bad yet.

of course the weekend was spent at home recovering, and mugging of course! i had so much work to catch up on, even though i didn't manage to complete everything, i had less to settle this coming week. thinking about that, when was the last time i complete everything i had set out to do? it seems that i always write a long list of 'things to do' such that even if i have 48 hours a day, i can never accomplish all of them...

alright, i hope i don't attract too much attention limping around in school. but staying at home for the past few days made me realise a couple of things! my fitness has deteriorated and sometimes i feel like an old man, backaches and all.. my promise to myself - getting back to exercise when this knee of mine heals. this has to be the nth time i'm telling myself this, but take my word for it - this time's for real!

in addition, i realise i need a break, a short vacation to some nice place with clean beaches and great weather! especially when my parents just came back from the travel fair with loads of brochures, i found that myself drooling over the possibilities of leaving my mind to rest and soak in the sun on the beach. wah thats the appeal of the travel fair - work-focused singaporeans are in such a desperate need to relax and unwind, to simply slow down the pace of life and experience how life is like without having to worry about deadlines and expectations. seriously they can raise the admission price of this travel fair and see the crowds increase multiple fold...

frankly speaking, i was feeling lousy the past couple of days but i also kept myself busy thinking about many things. what to really expect of myself and how other people expect of me. i'm trying to retreat and take a good look at this world, and i'm going to make sure i find something reassuring and comforting before i take the next step.

(lastly, thanks to mum for worrying about me and taking care of me, thanks to dad for not fussing over me like mum)

2006-09-22T12:29:00.000-07:00

Carry my luggage and wait for the rainy day

71st entry: 23september2006 02:50
listening to: yu tian - stefanie sun
yi ge ren de xing li - penny dai

alright, i haven't been diligently updating this blog, not exactly because i'm so caught up with school work and getting stressed out and all. in fact i'm rather relaxed still, just a little stressed when friends around me are mugging hard and worrying about not coping well and stuff. the reason why i hadn't blogged so often is that i haven't found anything special to write about, and i believe that you guys probably don't want to know the nitty-gritty details of my life.

anyway, im gonna stop writing about smu for a while and tell you guys something else other than school. the 2 songs i'm listening to right now are fantastic, if any of you are into mandarin pop, please don't miss out on these two fabulous singers. I LOVE THEIR MUSIC! Stefanie sun's voice is the determining factor for my desire and i must admit that i have been her fan since she released her first album back in 2000. on the other hand, Penny Dai's music is probably less familiar with the general public in singapore but check out her tunes! she never fails to impress me with her talented vocals and unique songwriting styles. Can't wait to get my hands on these 2 albums when they are released next week.

there are still plenty of things i wanna do besides plain mugging, gonna try out the tour guide job, whether or not i can afford the time i'll leave that decision to a later time. i also wanna take up vocal lessons just for the fun of it, but the courses are all so expensive. still waiting for MIC to offer some subsidised vocal lessons with a few music school near SMU. then also wanna train for volleyball again, cos i enjoy the sport (esp the beach vball) and because i havent been playing ever since i quit the cca in JC1, i guess i need to put in extra effort in order to improve. then again, i also need to raise money for my shanghai comm service trip in december, and friends who know me well enough will probably know how much i yearn to travel!! i seriously can't wait for the student exchange programme in year 2/3 haha.

havent posted photos for quite some time too. here's a few photos from the ocbc scholarship ceremony a couple of months back and the neoprint of me and kailing, which i thought was rather well-taken and interesting: (all these photos are posted here in my neat little blog entry - thanks to my capable scanner!)

The gripes and concerns

2006-09-15T00:54:00.000-07:00

The gripes and concerns

70th entry: 15september2006 00:54
listening to: juan lian- FIR

I have been consistently mugging for Biz Law for the past few days and I managed to cover quite a few chapters! And I really mean consistent mugging, cos I don't really care about my Math for Econ or Stats right now. So most of my time was spent on devouring that terribly boring BLaw textbook (so far no one has told me anything nice about that book..) and guess what happened today....

My prof went through stuff so quickly, he way surpassed where I stopped muggin'... The feeling was sh*t!! Now, I have to catch up on the stuff he briefly covered in class and expected us to know well and in addition, prepare for the next few topics... That's going to take up my whole weekend and all my evenings... Anyway, though I'm still having bad feelings about bidding for BLaw, the adverse effects aren't that bad as last week when I stoned through the entire lesson. Of course, I was the only one in class who know nuts about all the terms and basics of law...and that very adequately explained why I stoned during lesson.

Thursdays are so energy-sapping, I find myself slacking big time the moment I reach home. I took one long hour to finish my dinner just now, it wasn't really because I wanted to sit down and enjoy a nice meal, but my mom cooked chili crabs for dinner and they were so difficult to eat. Also, I'm still rather surprised that my mom bothered to cook today, what more to say chili crabs (which I think takes plenty of effort to prepare) After the dinner, I pitied my poor teeth having to endure all the harsh biting and chewing. Glad my braces didn't get displaced!

Alright. People around me have been incessantly complaining about how mugger-ish SMU is and how so different the uni life they had previously expected had become. I have to agree the workload is indeed heavy for those doing certain modules, however I feel that if we are to start bemoaning how tough school life is right now, what makes it certain that we can survive the weeks nearer to major project presentations and final-term exams. Advice to all: believe in yourself that you can do reasonably well, or at least survive this terrible semester. Cos when you realise you can tackle this sem, the subsequent sems will be much simpler to tahan.

Then again, I'm available for jio-ing!! Be it lunch/dinner or gym or mugging in library, haha.. Having Stats tomorrow morning at 830am, hope I don't have to enjoy a breakfast at Macs PS before entering the classroom at half-time again (truth: I was so late for lesson I intended it would be better not to walk in at all) In fact, I'm going to be early for morning lesson for the first time! Let's see if I can do it...

sleep bug, flu bug - get lost!

2006-09-02T22:04:00.000-07:00

sleep bug, flu bug - get lost!

69th entry: 2september2006 22:04
listening to: white houses - vanessa carlton

Ughrh, I've been sniffing the entire day, drinking loads of water plus popping vitamin c pills. Going to fall sick, i can predict... Feeling very sleepy also, when I took a short half-hour nap this afternoon, I felt like I had slept for hours! When I was giving tuition, I could feel my throat squeezing up and my class was especially noisy today (must be in the holiday mood lah)...

Last week at school wasn't that bad! Except for the ultra-boring Business Law lesson I crashed on Wednesday, everything was quite smooth-sailing. I'm very much getting used to the new study life, coupled with mugging in libraries, photocopying notes and sleeping slightly earlier! Business Law isn't a module I can do without, cos of the requirement of the double degree... so I guess I have no choice but to suffer this sem. give me stats or maths anytime man!

Anyway, I'm not one who finds comfort in complaining that school is hectic or stressful. I find comfort in exploring new ways to spend quality time with myself. This afternoon's nap was a great example!! Just like what happened also on Friday, I felt the urge to go home for a bath after morning lesson (even though I was supposed to stay back in school for something later on). Nevertheless, I managed to squeeze in a shower and a visit to comex at singapore expo within 4 hours, after which I went back school. Haha all that's possible now that I bought the travel concession, if not the expenses would probably deter me from travelling around unnecessarily.

So, week 2 of school has passed and I can't wait to get involved in more school activities! Although I have been having sufficient rest for this week, I still feel very tired. Many had told me I looked dazed and sleepy,like I just woke up or something... esp. my tuition kids who kept complaining my blur look made them blur as well... Whatever, I better catch some sleep before I really end up unwell tomorrow...

SMU Week One: 'quietly' rocks!!

2006-08-27T01:26:00.000-07:00

SMU Week One: 'quietly' rocks!!

68th entry: 27august2006 01:26
listening to: for you i will (confidence) - teddy geiger

well, the first week of school has passed and it wasn't as bad as i had thought. my 4 day week timetable wasn't considered the killer, until my 5th module and creative thinking (which will start midterm) both come my way. not forgetting the ccas and projects and endless readings to accomplish...

just an idea of how smu life is about: interactive seminar-style lessons, quirky profs, hang-outs around town after school, hang-outs along concourse between lessons, plenty of loud hi-s along the corridor, projects!! basically, i'm enjoying life as a student now, -please ignore- the getting up early for lessons, being competitive for A's, preparing for projects and presentations and of course learning to speak up more during lessons. I feel great knowing that there is this bunch of fun-loving people who take pride in being unique and confident, and of course also trying their best to make the best out of their prime times of lives.

i'm really quite adept at adapting to changes. when i was feeling like sh*t on monday, i was feeling superb after vivace (cca day!) talking about vivace, i hoped i had not signed up for too many ccas... only wanted a couple of which i'm really interested in and willing to sacrifice my time for. only complaint has to be the huge crowds at the concourse, creating traffic bottlenecks esp. that whole stretch outside booklink to ocbc. never mind that, i'm looking forward to trying out the different ccas and eventually settle down with the 'few'.

also enjoyed the convenience of meeting up with friends! met up with yixiu and a few of the 2F gang for dinner on thursday. Had a blasting good time at mind cafe along boat quay, in particular the 'say what' game!! also met up with ejia and tim at raffles city on wed. some photos we took while we were at BnJ's.

next week: busy as usual! my tues will still be free for recuperation and extra-curricular activities!! feel free to ask me out on tues, although i may reject your request cos my free day is especially important to me! haha. much to look forward to in the coming weeks, to my friends who are overseas either on exchange or serious mugging, all the best and stay healthy dudes!! send me a postcard when you are free.

A Shooting Star!

2006-08-19T21:35:00.000-07:00

A Shooting Star!

67th entry: 19august2006 21:35
listening to: hung up - madonna

Quite a hectic week, it being the final week before school officially starts on monday. Econs OG chalet at downtown east, orion group lunch at breko plus kbox, 2so2a dinner at holland v, hippo bus tour around the city, farewell dinner for liting then finally this afternoon's convocation at suntec.

The best had to be the dinner with my so2a friends, supposedly a farewell dinner for suchang, but it turned out to be a huge gathering of people I haven't seen in a long while, of course with all too familiar faces as well. I particularly enjoyed the part where we ventured back to old rjc and made our way through the dark paths. A few of us saw the shooting star when we were walking along the track. Super cool, my first encounter with a shooting star and it took me a while to figure out what I had seen. Made a couple of simple wishes!! Anyway, I was really comforted to know that the JC class has grown up quite a bit and every one seemed to be doing well in their lives! All the way guys.

Countdown to school: 1 day left. My timetable was out a few days back and I was assigned with a 4-day week (free on tues). Looking at my schedule plainly, I find that there are actually many slots available for slacking, but according to seniors, those precious blocks of time are sadly taken up by projects, presentations and self study as well. Tomorrow will mark the end of slack period and back to serious business, be it studies or school activities. Very soon, I'll begin to miss the slow pace of life I have been enjoying for the first 8 months this year....

Some of the photos from the NUS MBA Camp last week:

Group photo during sandcastle building!

During Amusing Race - in front of Merlion

Me and KL

Picture of SESS taken on board Hippo Bus

NUS MBA Day Camp at Sentosa

2006-08-15T23:27:00.000-07:00

NUS MBA Day Camp at Sentosa

66th entry: 15august2006 23:27
listening to: if only - the calling

Cool! Did another camp on Saturday, this time: the NUS MBA bunch. Same as the previous time, my entire group consisted of people who are older and more experienced in life than me. I was more confident this time round, even though they knew that I was only a freshman, they were very chatty and enthusiastic in sharing their knowledge and culture with me, instead of just talking among themselves. Took quite many photos on the way during Amusing Race, that was probably the reason why we lost to the first team, although I felt that our group was already very fast in completing tasks and moving around.

Cos most of them are foreign students who came over to do their masters programme, they were rather clueless to most of the attractions on Sentosa. So I turned into a tour guide and explained some of the highlights that the island has to offer!! In relation to that, I also applied for the tour guide job and I just received a call for interview. Haha hope I don't screw up during the interview this friday!

Oh yah, hope to post the photos I took last Saturday soon! Me and kailing were busy taking photos on the beach when our groups were busy building sandcastles, and guess what? The senior instructor came over to us and reminded us not to forget that we were still working! Haha felt quite paiseh about that, cos we were behaving more like tourists than instructors... Anyway, I hope I still have the chance to try out different camps even if school starts. Also looking forward to the freelance tour guide job (if i get it)!

suddenly the urge to blog

2006-08-12T02:05:00.000-07:00

suddenly the urge to blog

65th entry: 12august2006 02:05
listening to: far away - nickelback

Yup that's right, it's rather late right now but I suddenly felt the urge to blog about stuff. Came back from badminton with the usual suspects (benjamin, ks, alvin and wh), and of course a few of us felt compelled to stay back after that to talk cock, cool down and order food and drinks. I enjoy badminton sessions with them and the talk cock cum supper after that.

I also enjoy the sunday evening KTV sessions with chang and yong chuen. Singing our signature tunes especially - always made me feel that times like these should never go away. I can name so many songs that we love (one night in beijing, ai zhong fei xing, huo gai, my anata etc...)

I also enjoy going for camps with sec school kids. When I started out only having the trying-it-out feeling, I realised that such camps are muc more than that. I have learnt behavioural patterns in people, managing kid and letting loose and having plain fun during the activities and the campfire. Of course, knowing the different fun-loving instructors along the way!

My friends are all starting school very soon (NTU guys, you all are ahead in the race) and I believe that all of us will be busy with studies, caught up with hall activities or CCAs, some also going into relationships (definitely!). Then, I just hope that you guys have fun and score well. Promise to make time to meet up and catch up on stuff, no matter how busy you all are (the same goes for me). I'm already starting to miss the badminton, supper, talk cock, mahjong sessions, KTV, Camp HA camps and many more.

And to those leaving Singapore for US (Suchang, Murugan etc), those leaving for student exchanges (Liting, Yee Jia etc) and those returning back for studies - All the best and enjoy yourselves!! Embrace life and remember to meet up when you come back during the holidays.

Basically, life will be different when school starts. I'm ready to adapt to the change - no longer apprehensive of being lazy and sian about knowing people and worry about endless assignment deadlines. Feel free to ask me out for coffee or supper - haha!! Alright, just hope that everyone reading this feel good about the impending start of the academic year!

Uni-Y Camp Photographs

2006-08-11T00:20:00.000-07:00

Uni-Y Camp Photographs

Playing games with the old folks at All Saints Home

ORION group photo

Me and Tecko posing for the camera

What a cheerful uncle - I gave him my blessings!

End of camps

2006-08-10T14:10:00.000-07:00

End of camps

64th entry: 10august2006 14:10
listening to: high - james blunt

Finally, I'm done with camps. First it was Econs 'Oikos' Orientation Camp, then Uni-Y Freshmen Orientation cum Comm Service Camp and lastly, Freshmen Teambuilding Camp, which just ended yesterday. I haven't had much sleep for the past few weeks and it's making me wonder how much worse it's going to get when school starts.

The most recent teambuilding camp was quite a 'happening' one and my group (E29) was made up of a bunch of unique characters. It was them who set the pace of the camp, making it a slack fest and relax party. Besides that, we also made quite some noise when it comes to reflection/debrief time, and I believe some of the senior facis couldn't stand us for that reason. But we challenged them because we felt that there should be improvements for the next 2 camps, not because we were simply bochap or crazy. Anyway, the camp turned out to be rather good. After the kayaking high and the thrashing out of conflicting interests and ideas before dinner, I think our group sort of bonded much better. The campfire was also not so bad (besides me on stage stuffed with marshmallows in my mouth, the game really sucked man!).

The thing I love most about the whole camp has to be the campsite together with the sea view, strong wind and planes above!! Nothing can beat that invigorating feeling and of course i was also thinking about the vacation I missed. Now, I'll probably have to wait till year end to see that happening, or maybe even longer cos I need to start saving up for my exchange in year 3.

Met up with SO2A people for dinner last night and we had such a good time just chatting about how life has been lately. I feel that the class spirit is stronger than when it was back in JC days. Everyone has stories to share about their school life (quite a few overseas), working days and many more. The girls seem to be doing well and very soon they'll be graduating!! Really looking forward to a larger attendance at our next gathering.

Now that I'm done with camps, I still have some time left to meet up with friends, bid farewell to those leaving for exchange or studies, settle any other remaining stuff and of course, have time for myself to relax properly! I also don't mind falling sick now, cos I have all the time to recover and feel great when school starts!

Uni-Y 'Lost' Camp: 31Jul to 3Aug

2006-08-04T23:25:00.000-07:00

Uni-Y 'Lost' Camp: 31Jul to 3Aug

63th entry: 04august2006 23:20
listening to: fei xing bu luo - F.I.R.

The past week was spent at a community service camp and I must emphasise that it was time well spent. Not only did the campers get to help out at different beneficiaries, we also had fun getting to know each other from the same school.

Our group Orion, had the chance to visit All Saints Home, a nursing home for the elderly. Personally, I felt alot for the old folks there and many thoughts went through my mind. I felt sorry for those residents because they looked depressed and lost. However, I hid my feelings because I believe they didn't want us to feel that way too. Anyway, the entire group tried our best to help out in which ever way we could and brought smiles to their faces. All in all, the camp was a rather meaningful one and I think everyone (be it the campers or the beneficiaries) has benefited from this wonderful experience.

Great to know all the people of Orion and of course the facis who made Orion such a unique and different group! Looking forward to meet up at Breko to use our prize vouchers!

2 camps coming up next week, before that happens, I'm going to treat myself to a well-deserved break this weekend. I apologise for late SMS replies or missed calls...

Cool dude on the prowl

2006-07-30T22:37:00.000-07:00

Cool dude on the prowl

62th entry: 30july2006 22:37
listening to: when i'm gone - 3 doors down
hanging by a moment - lifehouse

Attended the OCBC scholarship presentation ceremony cum lunch reception on Thurs with my parents. All I can say was the event was overwhelmingly cool, and I felt very proud and honoured to be there with my dad and mum! I also had the chance to thank the 2 persons who made it for me, really had a good talk with them during the interview months ago! Anyway, the opportunity to mingle with the staff and past scholars and the CEO was totally cool. It didn't matter that I did not take any photos to remember the event cos this fond memory will last for a lifetime anyway!

Rushed to Sentosa after that for the SMU Econs Orientation Camp. Felt bad joining the group late once again, missed out on the fun they had in the morning (which included getting wet) but anyway, my group still had fun hanging out together during the camp. Although I felt it was just a little too short for an orientation camp, it was cool to know the bunch of econs people I'll see around in campus for the next few years. Kudos to the 2 facis too, who had to join us in all the activities for the 2 days (except the ridiculous forfeit of dressing up as nerds, holding hands while walking through citylink). I'll see you guys around in campus man, then maybe can jio each other for lunch or coffee breaks!

After the camp, I met up with the entire bunch of army dudes (KS was absent again) to celebrate winston's belated 21st. It had been a long time since we last gathered to talk cock, cos everyone was busy and working and studying... So although I couldn't join in for the steamboat (wah really missed cheong-ing the beef and prawns man!), we had fun chilling out at Cartel till late. I believe when school starts, we won't have much opportunities to meet up and talk cock with the same strength...

Besides that, the weekend was spent catching up on lost sleep and pigging out at ECP hawker centre and bowling. The bowling was hilariously memorable (at least for me!) cos I thrashed my personal best without realising! I think benny and benjamin were a little shocked at my great form during the last few games haha!

One of the last few weekends before the start of the academic year, and I can't help but think of the busy study schedule and lost sleep. Heck it, maybe I'll start worrying when school really starts. Anyway, I'll be attending the comm service camp from tomorrow till Thurs, looking forward to interacting with the people and the beneficiaries.

...enough to last? even for a lifetime?

2006-07-26T23:55:00.000-07:00

...enough to last? even for a lifetime?

61th entry: 26july2006 23:55
listening to: the riddle - five for fighting

Helped out with a camp on Mon with the bunch of Camp HA crazy instructors. This time round, the campers were a fleet of aspiring teacher trainees and they were undergoing the NIE course. The day camp was only a part of the bonding and team togetherness they have to experience before graduating from NIE.

In addition, I also managed to catch up with a few old colleagues from schools where I had taught before and I couldn't help but marvel how small Singapore is. When the day camp finally ended, I gave the teachers in my group my most sincere blessings and wished them all the best. I was also glad that they reflected positive stuff about the camp in general and of course their trainer as well (that's me)! Hehe!

Went for volunteering on Tues, and I felt really bad for skipping last week's session to enjoy shopping and dinner in JB... The mood of yesterday's session was a little less upbeat. The students were not interested in the assignment and there were also fewer volunteers around. Cindi also mentioned that she was contemplating to pull out of the programme cos she was afraid that she won't be able to commit when school starts. Actually, when I was persuading her to reconsider, I wasn't exactly sure how my level of commitment is going to turn out too. However occupied I may be, I promise myself I'll keep up the efforts, at least till the end of this year.

Actually, I came back from tuition just now and found myself disillusioned again. Sometimes, I can't help but relish the idea of cancelling the tuition just to slack at home or go for a run. Everyone has the same amount of time in a day and then Valerie Teo can juggle medical studies and professional bowling so well. Maybe I should start reconfiguring myself to get accustommed to the new life ahead, for survival's sake

Ok, maybe I should also keep my blog entries short and sweet, then I have more time to do other stuff. Anyway, I should be taking a short break from blogging cos I'll be attending the SMU Econs camp tomorrow. Gonna be late again (after last week's late arrival for the Marche gathering) cos I have to attend the scholarship presentation tomorrow as well. My parents are going to be more thrilled than me and I can understand their anticipation. More photos hopefully by next week.

Just some of the recent photos:

2006-07-23T00:10:00.000-07:00

Just some of the recent photos:

outside cathay after a day of sun and sea (Note: Yong's toothy grin!)

last day of east view sec camp (with sweeting and kailing)

tecko's 21st birthday @ sizzler

one of the best photos by chang, the resident so2a photographer (qiuping, kat and yong at sentosa)

My room's so messy, I'm feeling the same as well

2006-07-22T21:55:00.000-07:00

My room's so messy, I'm feeling the same as well

60th entry: 22july2006 21:55
listening to: best i ever had - vertical horizon

The past week was a blast. Matriculation was a flop, I forgot to get my dad to sign on the tuition grant form. I felt like an idiot when I realised how forgetful I was. On the whole, the trip to SMU to settle admin issues was a waste of time, cos I bet I could also have done everything online. Now, I'm a little unsettled which laptop I should get (don't really feel like getting such common ones from SMU).

Went JB with Tim and Liting on Tues. I was super angry when I had to wait more than an hour for the two of them. When you have to wait very long for either one, two of them together can drive you mad. However, we had fun eating and shopping although only for a few hours. When school starts, I believe we'll have even less time to meet up with one another, esp. Liting is leaving for Sweden on student exchange. Too bad Tingyi and Tecko didn't join us this time round.

Wednesday was disappointing... Went Sentosa with yong and chang and the weather was far from nice. In fact, it seemed as if a storm was imminent. The last time we were there (with kat and qiuping), it was also damn disappointing... So we concluded that one of us jinxed Sentosa, maybe we should conduct an experiment. Then I had to rush to attend a camp briefing at Camp HA, cos next Monday I'm required to help out with some camp for NIE trainees. I'm gonna enjoy myself interacting with those people, I can predict! However it may feel weird leading them on with cheers or playing icebreaker games with a bunch of older people, it doesn't matter lah!

So because of the briefing, I was super late for the Econs OG meetup at Marche. There was obviously not enough space to squeeze the entire group, so it was even more awkward when I had to squeeze in.. But after that, when we started playing card games the atmosphere loosened up a little. I think it's a rather good idea to meet up first before the orientation camp, cos the camp itself is only 2-day long. Shit lah, I'm going to be late again for the camp cos I have to attend the OCBC ceremony. Hope I don't miss out on most of the fun in Sentosa...

Friday was a blast! Went cycling and kayaking with yong, qiuping and serene at ECP, and it was great to sweat and soak up the sun. So I ended up sunburnt and aching like mad, what more I had badminton with the usual gang at night. Super tired out.. After ECP, we went to watch this witty comedy 'Thank You For Smoking' at Cathay, enjoyed the show even it was so different from the usual action flicks, animated films or romcoms I'm more inclined to watch. And then, we were all freezing in the cinema cos we were in beach gear and the aircon was blasting (of course the cinema was rather empty too).

Feels a little strange to be at home on a Sat evening... haven't done that in a while. My room has been left untidy for months, maybe I will clean it up later, if not there won't be time to do so when school starts. In the meanwhile, I'm going to have a chat with my dad, I think he has something to tell me too.

(Oh yah, watched the singapore idol results show that day... Gayle was eliminated! Damn sad lah!! She has such a nice voice and affable character, what a pity...)

C'mon! Step into the world

2006-07-17T01:50:00.000-07:00

C'mon! Step into the world

59th entry: 17july2006 01:50
listening to: qiao qiao gao su ta - nan quan ma ma

Great! Finished my one-month job stint at SIA Engr last Friday and I believed that marked the end of the few months of temp job-hopping. I must say the past months spent working (and slacking too) were refreshing experiences. The few jobs I've tried include: relief teacher at Poi Ching and Yu Neng Pri, Sentosa event helper (some beach vball competition), camp instructors with Compassvale Sec and East View Sec, admin job at SIAEC. Oh yah, also the stationery fair assistant job with my army kakis! Haha, almost forgot about that...

True enough, I agree working isn't really fun. Besides the fact that temp workers have less responsibility, then working with friends is a blast compared to working alone, I still think working, in general, can get very mundane and unmotivational. That left me thinking about the impending start of the academic year, which doesn't look inviting too. Reasons aplenty....

Anyway, I looked back at the first 6 months of 2006 and I couldn't be more satisfied with what I have done. The 2 trips to Bangkok and Taipei were the main highlights cos I'm positive the fond memories from these trips will be with me always. ORD seemed less significant in comparison, sorry to add.

This weekend was super shiok too! Besides the weekly fix of badminton with my army friends at Tamp SAFRA and the post-badminton talk cock session with benjamin and ks until 2plus am, I also managed to squeeze in a quick gym workout between my tuition commitments on sat, mahjong with army friends, tennis with tim on sun (haven't played in months, super shiok to swing my racket again) and ktv with chang and yong. Hah, such a packed weekend was cool!

Next week is going to start off with matric on mon, I just hope I don't end up feeling like sh*t again after realising how unprepared I am for university. Talking about that, I still haven't gathered the stuff I need for tomorrow. Really procrastinated like crazy cos whenever I start thinking of uni stuff, it just left me with too many thoughts and procedures that I gave up thinking after a minute or two. Alright, I'll wake up slightly earlier tomorrow to settle everythig at one go, but I need the sleep leh... considering that I have been sacrificing my sleep for the past month because of work.

Last of all, thanks to Kailing for posting comments on my blog! Same to the rest who bothers to check this out on a regular basis (feel free to leave comments), maybe I'll 'import' a tagboard soon for more interaction! Ok, my hair is almost dry now, time for sleep...

Untitled

2006-07-12T23:24:00.000-07:00

Untitled

58th entry: 12july2006 23:25
listening to: wo men de ji nian ri - fan wei qi

Something's not right today, I'm feeling weird but acting normal. Now, I'm trying to recall what happened today that made me suspicious. Actually, yesterday wasn't right too... just that I didn't have time to think about stuff last night. The reason why I named this entry 'Untitled': my mind is impaired now.. cannot think.

Have been a little out of sorts lately, from thinking too little and too much at different times of the day. When I know that my mind is away from me, I leave everything to a stop and sit back and watch and observe. Cos I know I won't be able to do much. It happened when I was making my way to volunteering yesterday. I know I need to do something, but my mind left me alone, so I ended wandering in some part of hougang (which I have never been there before). I also spent a little too much time thinking how I should get to the tuition place. Very weird feeling, Not sure how to describe it fully, but I just can't seem to concentrate... you know lah, the feeling when your brain is in sleep mode.

Experienced it again today, when I was making my way home from badminton session with my colleagues after work. Same thing again, I was supposed to be very eager to get home and eat something cos I was seriously famished. But somehow or rather, a part of me just wanted to sit on the bus and take a long ride to somewhere far. Then when I was finally eating my dinner, I couldn't finish it although I was really hungry before that.

They left me clueless why I'm experiencing such confusion in my thoughts. In my memory, I have always been the lucid guy. Maybe someone is hinting something and I have not been able to pick up the clues. Seems like I have to spend some time before sleep tonight to think it over, provided that I don't fall asleep before I set my mind working.

Most of my friends are gearing up to a new start in university, getting a new wardrobe, sporting a new haircut, coming up with cool funky names for themselves, holidaying before school term starts etc... I also wanna start school really psyched up but right now, I can't think of anything except taking a long break from work and going on a holiday.

As expected, my friends are all busy preparing for uni, attending orientation camps so my dreams of flying off for a vacation are down to zero. Unless I travel alone... which I don't think I can handle that yet.

I can't seem to tell myself what I want and need and persuade myself to go for it. The problem lies with me - Solution? Unsure

Therapy-thirsty and sleep-deprived

2006-07-10T23:40:00.000-07:00

Therapy-thirsty and sleep-deprived

57th entry: 10july2006 23:40
listening to: yellow - tanya chua

I was 'dead' for the whole day. My mind was on leave and my response time slowed down immensely. I also dozed off many times during work (even while I was standing and faxing documents) and of course, I couldn't resist the urge to catch a few winks after lunch.

Dammit lah, hate to start the week on such a low.. But cannot help it, last night's world cup finals only appeared after four years, and i was so supportive of france to lift the cup. Hai, i guess they just lost out to the italians in the 'luck' department, and what the hell was zidane thinking when he head butt materazzi? That was the huge shocker last night!

Oh yah, back to my story of being sleepy the whole day. I was also down on my luck too. I missed my stop on my way back, when I woke up the bus was already entering the expressway en route to sengkang, so i have no choice but to sit in the bus and wait for my exit at sengkang. But the thing that kept me agitated was my bladder was on the brink of bursting and I was really hungry as well. So I kept cursing under my breath, cos that was about the most I could do to alleviate it.

Confirmed with the agency that I'll be leaving this friday. Looking forward to better days and more personal time! Also decided to drop one of my tuition assignments to better cope with the impending heavy workload of SMU and also allowing myself a bigger portion of time to rest and relax. So when I was giving my last lesson with the bunch of sec2 kids, I suddenly admired their innocence and 'wishful thinkings' and somehow or rather I also wished I hadn't given up teaching them...

When squeezing on the bus sets me thinking or regretting...

2006-06-26T23:30:00.000-07:00

When squeezing on the bus sets me thinking or regretting...

56th entry: 26june2006 23:30
listening to: dance dance - fall out boy

Hai.. had to squeeze onto the bus both to and from work today. I didn't have a choice to wait for the next bus. I am always 5 mintues late if I catch the 735am bus to changi, so I can't afford to miss the bus and be too late for work. Then, on the way back, I thought I would have time for a quick dinner before tuition at 630pm cos I rushed out of the office at 530pm sharp! However, I ended up late at the tuition centre, 5 minutes as well (of course no time for dinner...)

The funny thing was: I grabbed onto the railing with only one foot on the bus and although the bus uncle was about to close the doors, I was frantically telling the people on the bus to move in a little more. I believed those people were thinking why this idiot wanted to squeeze onto this bus so damn badly... but I couldn't care less. Anyway, I had my back stuck closely to the front bus doors for half my journey and of course many weird looks from the passengers.

Today at work: super hectic! Must be the start of the week, I couldn't find myself sitting down and stone for more than a minute. When I left the office, I had a long list of things to complete tomorrow. Whatever lah, I'm glad to know that I'm only a temp staff, and that means new-found responsibilities are also temporary too! Time was very scarce today too, I found myself rushing around, sleeping while standing, skipping meals and multi-tasking almost the whole day! Sad enough, I should be sleeping now cos I'm seriously worn out ( and it's only Monday) but I chose to blog...

I'm getting rather accustommed to working in an office.. Although I still have fleeting thoughts of quitting the next week or taking day offs on wednesdays, I think the job has been rather enjoyable and enriching. In addition, I'm also more comfortable with the bunch of people in the office. My colleagues, which I thought were quite boring at first, initiated Wednesday badminton sessions and asked me to join them. And when I learnt there were more expert shuttlers than I had expected, I had a feeling I'm going to make a fool of myself this wednesday.

Then, to end off my hectic day, I had nearly 3 hours of tuition with kids of disparate learning capabilities. That made me really busy setting them different work to do and of course, coupled with plenty of explanation, I was exhausted by the end of everything! More things to expect this week, I'm beginning to feel the urge to look for a magic lamp and wish for more time to SLEEP. I'm so positive I'll have to endure bus-squeezing again tomorrow, whether or not that will set me thinking about life and regretting about my decision to work for this period, will very much depend on how stoned I am tomorrow.

Zzz... Sleepy like mad

2006-06-20T22:10:00.000-07:00

Zzz... Sleepy like mad

55th entry: 20june2006 22:10
listening to: li jia bu yuan - nan quan ma ma

Wah, something must be wrong with me today... I was feeling very sleepy since morning, with the pouring rain and freezing wind, I dragged myself to work, knowing I would be much better off snugged in bed and satisfying my need for sleep. Very sleepy because I couldn't be bothered to sleep early last night, even though today was the first day of my work.

The trip home was a blur to me. I remembered barely squeezing onto the crowded bus and soon after I found myself waking up just in time to get off the bus. I don't even remember myself sitting down... must be too tired lah...

My irregular sleep patterns are killing me (I found myself sleeping the whole day on Monday, lazing like crazy... when I was supposed to be out swimming or working out). The weekend was worse, plagued with late nights and mahjong sessions. And my dad chose to speak to me for hours on one of the nights when I was really sleepy. Also went for KTV with suchang and yong and a surprising newcomer, Ms Koh! Didnt expect to see her tagging along for KTV... wonder if her F Math lessons are still the same as 3 years ago.

Then on Monday evening, I took over some tuition teacher for a Sec1/2 Math lesson in the evening, I realised the students didn't really understand what I was saying most of the time... until I started mixing a little Chinese into my 'speech', I could see they were beginning to understand me. However, I enjoyed teaching these groups of students cos I could feel that they are willing to learn and listen. Promising young kids i must say.

Yup, because of the same willingness to learn, I'm taking up this new admin job with an open mind too. First time working in an office environment, I'm not used to the corporate culture and I feel that working in such a large corporation is such a hassle. Too much bureaucracy and red tape, it's hard to come up with anything creative or out-of-the-box. However, there is a whole new set of skills to pick up from such an office job. When I used to think that I'll never enjoy sitting at my desk and sorting out documents, I feel that menial tasks like that can test our patience and determination rather effectively. Hope I don't sound like I'm comforting myself... I like the job also because there's a direct bus to the workplace and the lunch there is cheap! Haha, should be able to save quite alot keeping this job.

Alright, I better sleep now before I find myself embarrassed from yawning nonstop during office hours. Maybe I'll treat myself to a gym workout tomorrow after work... if I'm diligent enough to drag my feet there..

Familiar scenes

2006-06-17T00:45:00.000-07:00

Familiar scenes

54th entry: 17june2006 00:45
listening to: beautiful disaster - kelly clarkson
the real thing - bo bice

Spent one whole night sending out emails for temp jobs yesterday. Didn't expect to receive a horde of calls today with countless job offers and interviews... Anyway, in the end I chose none of them and went down to Tampines to take up a logistics assistant job. Of course I know it's most likely a sai-kang job, maybe carry or move goods or pack stuff. However, I'm finding it hard to find a super-temp job and this assignment will last me a month which suit me just fine.

However, the coordinator (which happens to be the one who attended to me in March this year - she remembered me because she said there weren't many ex-RJC students who went there to apply for jobs) recommended me another job. The weird thing was that she offered me the same job as the last time. I was wondering there hasn't been any applicants for that same job for months... sounds absurd. Anyway, I'm seriously quite fine with the admin job at Changi - fuck the pay lah - since I can quit as and when I wish, I thought why not? Have been slacking around for weeks so I guess it's time to go back to work. Now, I'm looking forward to the new job starting next week, hope I can get to make new friends and learn new skills too.

Badminton game at night - another familiar scene... don't know why I was reminded of the days back in Bedok Camp when we had so much free time to play badminton, and we didn't have to pay a cent for the courts. Had a great time playing - this time with alvin - so the pace was faster than usual.

Lost it..

2006-06-07T22:53:00.000-07:00

Lost it..

53th entry: 7june2006 22:53
listening to: put your records on - corinne bailey rae

third day feeling weak and sick. lost my appetite totally, the phelgm in my throat killed my appetite and drove my hunger away. i couldn't believe how little i ate for the past 3 days... because of that, i lost 2-3 kg, considering that my weight doesnt fluctuate much even after gorging at a buffet, this weight loss is rather troubling.

true enough, i expected myself to fall sick because i have been neglecting my health lately. haven't had the opportunity to rest enough and practise healthy eating habits. my dad insisted that my late-night sleeps accounted for this bout of fever and sore throat, i guess he's somewhat right... whatever the reason, i only have myself to blame for not taking good care of myself. wah, i cannot take it anymore... really hate to be unwell and you have to forgo all the simple things in life.

i'll probably end off soon in another paragraph or two cos the medicine is making me drowsy, and i better sleep before my dad reminds me to, if not he will start nagging. anyway, i can't wait to recover and get back to life again. my appetite was so badly affected i have never felt eating was such a chore (except the time when i had all my wisdom teeth extracted and braces fixed, but i won't consider that eating - swallowing or drinking more likely).

take care and stay healthy - to whoever is reading this

Upgrading in progress - expected date of completion unknown

2006-06-04T00:35:00.000-07:00

Upgrading in progress - expected date of completion unknown

52th entry: 4june2006 00:35
listening to: beautiful love - tanya chua

Just finished another camp, this time with EVSS at Sentosa and the past few days were spent trotting around the island and shouting and cheering and making new friends! I feel that I'm beginning to get into the job of a camp instructor. Though still very fresh and much more room for improvement, I'm keeping an open mind about the new job and of course ever-ready to learn. Thank you all (students on Grp 2 and all the instructors) for leaving an indelible mark in my mind, I had so much fun 'playing' and 'sweating' for the 3 days and 2 nights.

As I've been pursuing my interests and taking things at an easy and relaxed pace lately, I feel that the pace at which the society is moving is way faster than mine. Many things have changed without my knowledge, people included. Stagnant, maybe thats what I've been for the past couple of months. However, I have been very contented with the things that have happened to me since the start of this year. Because of this contentment, I have slowed things a little to allow myself to appreciate the other aspects of life. In actual fact, I think it's time to pick up a little speed so as to ensure a smoother transition when school term finally commences.

Apprehensive - the impending pressure when I start studying in a few months' time. I feel that I'm rather ill-prepared still, and although I have been telling myself to read up on books on the course I'm taking, I have been procrastinating more than practising it. I can't help but refer to my friends around me and feel that they deserve to do well in uni because they are putting in effort and researching about their paths for the next few years. Headstart... no way to be found in my dictionary currently.

Have been thinking too much recently, I'm finding myself caught in a jumble of thoughts once again. Time to up my mind's natural processor speed, considering it has been rather low in efficiency for years. Someone even called me a himbo, maybe I'm really becoming dumb and slow... to think that I was actually acting stupid at times, I just hope I'm not exactly stupid most of the time. I wonder how long it'll take me to untangle the threads of issues in my head, hopefully the upcoming one week break from work will help.

Before I start sourcing out a new job, I love to think that with each new job comes a new set of experiences that will follow me for life. I also love the idea of taking up new jobs knowing that I'll never try them when I finally graduate and step into the actual corporate life. Countdown to school term leaves me with uneasiness, the few weeks left to experience new things in life will be spent wisely (no doubt).

Northstar oei!!

2006-05-26T19:55:00.000-07:00

Northstar oei!!

51th entry: 26may2006 19:55
listening to: ping chang xin - zhang hui mei

Just attended a school camp for 3D2N and it was a blast! My maiden attempt as a camp instructor was a very enriching and enjoyable one. The only complaint would have to be the pathetic few hours we had to rest...

The kids in my group were all talents in their own fields and I'm really honoured to have the chance to interact with them and share ideas and talk cock and joke around and tell lies and act cute. Although I believe I could have done so much better and injected a little more values in them, I feel that I tried my best in entertaining them and teaching them as well. I've heard words of consolation throughout the entire 3 day affair and I appreciate those comments alot, you made it for me!

Thanks to everyone who was a part of the camp (super-infectious senior instructors, remaining kids of 3A). When the camp finally came to an end, I couldn't help but think that I've just came back from another short holiday! Fond memories to stick with me for a long time: rafting success, campfire night and talk-cock sessions. But before I take up another assignment, I can't wait to get rid of my irritating cough and all the insect bites...

What a week!

2006-05-23T12:22:00.000-07:00

What a week!

50th entry: 23may2006 12:22
listening to: jia zhuang - cai yi lin

Wah, I have multiple ulcers on my lips and a super bad throat (just coughed out so much phlegm), I believe it's time to fall sick... Cos I havent fallen sick for a long time. However, I just signed up for a camp assignment from tomorrow till friday. I guess I'll have to wait until this weekend to allow myself to recuperate properly.

At first, I was only expected to be attached to another experienced instructor to learn the ropes because I'm a serious newbie in this. But, in the end they allocated me a camp group with another newbie (happens to be ejia's friend) and so we were expected to plunge right into taking a group of sec 3 kids. I'm looking forward to enjoying myself and making new friends during the 3D2N camp but above all, I also hope to refresh myself with those outdoor memories I have when I was still in school or NS. Cool! I just hope I don't fall sick during the camp...

Yup had loads of fun taking up many different jobs for the past few months. Hmm, I'm contemplating of going back to Sentosa next week to help out with their Balloon Hat Festival. I believe it'll be quite fun too, just like the Swiss Beach Vball International last week. I also had a chalet with SO2A gang on Sunday at Sentosa (again..) but it was a huge disappointment as the weather was terrible. In the end, we missed getting ourselves a nice tan and a good game of beach vball. However, the stayover was cool besides squeezing into a crazily small room, we also talked about many interesting topics. The only complaint was that I couldn't breathe properly cos I felt uncomfortable with so little space in the room (and to think that I was the only one who had one whole bed to myself! haha) and of course the aircon... ~Aircon is the bane of all my sleeps, I just find myself very out of breath when i wake up in the morning...~ On the whole, the chalet was alright: glad to have met up with Kat and QP, whom I haven't seen in a long time.

In addition, I also went for my OG gathering on Sat, organised by Kangyi. Being the enthusiastic member in the group, we were all appreciative of his efforts of getting all of us together and initiating conversations during the meal. Felt comforted to know that most of the girls are doing well in unis local or overseas, and excited for the guys to be embarking on their own fruitful journeys come August/Sept. All the best to everyone in the OG!

Genting trip (8 - 10May'06) : Photos!

2006-05-22T21:54:00.000-07:00

Genting trip (8 - 10May'06) : Photos!

Happy like mad!!

2006-05-18T23:03:00.000-07:00

Happy like mad!!

49th entry: 18may2006 23:03
listening to: love story - fan yi chen

Huh, I'm still very overwhelmed by the shock that I am awarded with a scholarship. A part of me felt so relieved and the other part of me felt so lucky. Just when I thought I lost the chance at another scholarship 6 weeks ago, cos no reply at all for these weeks. I lost all hopes of securing any in fact so this pleasant surprise really caught me unaware! That was the lucky part. The relieved part was my jubilant parents when they learnt about this good news. I'm very glad that they do not have to worry about my tuition fees and I'm very happy to make them proud.

I don't think I can sleep tonight simply because I'm too ecstatic over the piece of great news. Although I am seriously shagged out after 3 days of arduous, back-breaking work on Siloso Beach, I believe I can afford to keep myself awake to fully absorb the reality happening right now before my eyes. About the temp job in Sentosa, I believe this experience will be very much unforgettable, considering the amount of sweat put in and the sunburns on my back and face. I must concur that this job wasn't easy at all, however I'm grateful for this chance to have a feel how its like to be a 'labourer'. I just couldn't help thinking about the state all of us (the temp event helpers) were in especially when we were transported from one place to another on a lorry. Having to squeeze onto the lorry and receiving glares from hordes of tourists were enough to allow to think of the foreign workers being employed here and the kind of treatment they get from Singaporeans.

Anyway, tomorrow will be the last day of my work and I'm delighted to make new friends and catch up with old ones too. The Swiss beach volleyballers (females included) are super tall and hot, they just made all of us look like dwarfs and hobbits among them! Not kidding at all... quite a sad thing in fact. Asians pale so much in terms of height and build when compared to their Western counterparts, is this something we have to live with? Anyway, it was pure delight to watch them play volleyball on the beach, besides being really skilful and professional, it was like watching '6 hours of Baywatch', quoted direct from the ads found on Sentosa.

Maybe I should try containing my joy and attempt to sleep now, don't want to knock out while working on the beach tomorrow.. Looking forward to tomorrow, last day of work!! Time to rest again!

Lazy bug

2006-05-15T10:35:00.000-07:00

Lazy bug

48th entry: 15may2006 10:35
listening to: love story - fan yi chen
wo yao de xuan ze - jolin tsai

the previous week was spent with friends mainly, besides the short genting trip with tim, tecko and doug, there were also badminton and mahjong sessions, BBQ at bull's place, tecko's 21st birthday celebration and many more. the lazy bug is still in me, i'm getting out of bed later and later each day.

the genting trip was peppered with so many jokes from my dog, many would definitely last for a long time. also had some fun placing a few bets, dining in and taking 'for-tos' (photos). all in all, the entire 3 days were spent touring around the huge entertainment resort which also led us to discussing about the upcoming integrated resort in Marina and Sentosa in a few years' time. though genting is so much affordable and rather enjoyable, i believe it'll be some time before i go there again. right now, maybe i can planning for another trip overseas before school starts officially in august!

i'll try to upload the fortos soon (still haven't gotten tecko's). by the way, i'll be working at sentosa helping out some beach volleyball event. the pay sucks but at least i have company to work with and the sun and the sand will brighten things up a lot too! just hope i survive this week with minimal sunburn and uneven tans.. though i think the job should be more enjoyable than tedious or boring.

More Taiwan photos, this time from Kwan shen's camera!

2006-04-26T17:38:00.000-07:00

More Taiwan photos, this time from KS' camera!

Appreciate the beauty of a simple life

2006-04-25T23:10:00.000-07:00

Appreciate the beauty of a simple life

47th entry: 25april2006 23:10
listening to: bring me to life - evanescence

I have longed so much for this week to arrive because this will be the week where I'm 'clearing my leave' and my mind is put to relaxed mode. Some of my friends knew that my relief teaching stint at YNPS was a rather stressful one. Indeed it was. In fact, I was so glad that I can have the luxury of waking up late and not having to worry that I can't cover the syllabus by week 8. The idea of just slacking around and basically live life at a slower and more natural manner prompted me to drop whatever unnecessary commitments I have this week.

Learning to appreciate life when it is simple: home-cooked dinners, no fixed schedule to follow, freedom to do whatever you want, long naps on rainy afternoons. Such therapy don't come easy and I believe it takes a little courage to put away everything else to pursue this little pocket of freedom in such a hectic and impoverished society.

Learning to appreciate the opportunities gained and lost: so many times we thought we could do better and achieve what we set out to get, but we were also often blinded by other goals along the way and end up losing our directions. take a step back and make sure you have enough space to view yourself and others in a different light. reassess why you had allowed some opportunities to slip by. slow things down and you will find youself making better decisions and finding the right direction again. another advice: break up your task into many smaller ones instead of seeing it as one huge task to accomplish, the motivation of pursuit will also come in smaller waves, pushing you towards your eventual goal.

i'm supposed to leave my mind alone for these few days. but because of an apparent lack of business in my life right now, my mind is also forced to generate more ideas as well. also, being appreciative of what we so often tend to neglect. before we know it, it may just be too late and those fond memories you could have collected may just leave you for good. so friends out there, just sit down and think of nothing except your breathing. you will find many unexpected surprises from that.

wah, i was also overwhelmed with the numerous flashbacks i had these few days. many fond memories of JC times (eating lunch at ghim moh food centre after school as a class, stoning in the canteen during breaks, mugging in school library, songwriting sessions on mondays, songwriting showcase in 2003!!), sec school days (weekly volleyball training sessions at Pei Chun in Toa Payoh, staying back after school for no apparent reason, volleyball matches and friendlies, Sec 2F'99 outings), NS (many more fonder memories cos it hasn't been too long since I've left the army). I love flashbacks. They are a reminder of how time passes so quickly and a testament of my 'good' memory of course!

Tsk tsk, shame on myself...

2006-04-16T22:23:00.000-07:00

Tsk tsk, shame on myself...

46th entry: 16april2006 22:23
listening to: savin' me - nickelback
beautiful disaster - kelly clarkson

I'm so averse to a sedentary lifestyle yet I'm leading a life quite similar to the one I dislike. In addition, poor eating habits and lack of discipline to hit the tracks and the gym for workout are all adding up and I'm feeling the effects. I'm suffering from low resistance and high lethargy, quite sure I'm going to fall sick very soon...

Quick! I'm hoping for this week to end, which happens to be the end of my relief teaching stint at Yuneng Pri. I seriously need to get moving once again, ever since I started my travelling days in Jan-Mar this year, I've stopped exercising on a regular basis. The occasional badminton sparring with benjamin and weihan, tennis sessions with timothy, bowling practices with campmates and weekend gym workouts with yongchuen are all eluding me ever since I've started working a month back. Tried running 2.4km on the treadmill 2 days ago, and there was a noticeable drop in my stamina... felt really terrible knowing how much I need to catch up once again.

I'm supposed to embark on a healthier lifestyle after I ORD, because I know that after NS the scary truth of losing yourself to laziness and lack of discipline to keep fit will definitely spiral. Most people will soon find themselves gaining of a couple of inches on their waistlines and by that time they will be even lazier to do anything about it. I can't have that happen to me!

Ok, after this blogging, I'm going to devise some fitness plan (a backup plan is necessary too, esp this rainy season may affect most outdoor decisions). These few months leading to August are meant for me to build up my fitness so I can slack a little when school starts officially. Some things I want for myself are still left unfulfilled, after a month of being civilian, I believe I should have started to be more assertive and determined in achieving the goals. Enough said, action counts more!

working life = just do it

2006-04-01T00:57:00.000-08:00

working life = just do it

45th entry: 1april2006 00:57
listening to: she says - howie day

so much for ORD... now i've plunged right into work. not that work is boring and uninteresting and crazily tough, but it requires some steel lungs to scream loud and self-belief to endure the madness of the new generation kids. i've started relief teaching last week and the experience i've amassed so far has been so enriching i'm really glad that i chose the job. actually i'm also equally interested in any banking/finance related jobs, but right now i guess i'm holding on to teaching for another couple of weeks more...

oh yah so much to share about relief teaching! i love the kids, love them for their spontaneity, creativity, smartness, ignorance and many more. i enjoy being surrounded with so much life, but the noise puts me off sometimes. deafening screams especially, i think the kids will never understand how debilitating their screams can be. another plus: short working hours and rather attractive pay!

more importantly, i've also created a new mantra when it comes to work. 'Just do it' aptly applies to all tasks. so many times i tried planning and deciding the importance of every single task and end up having less time to accomplish them. so for the past few days, i've stopped thinking totally and did whatever i need to do almost all at one go. and it miraculously worked, i managed to finish whatever test analysis, filling up CA1 scores, adding marks, tallying results, jotting down important details along the way and more and more! just do it - multi-task? so be it!

anyway, Poi Ching has left with me many fond memories and most people are telling me that relief teaching is probably one of the best temp jobs around. true enough, but don't get the wrong idea. get started with a teaching career with the correct mindset, to influence the younger generation and pass on the correct values that one should have. i salute the full-time teachers for their dedication, patience, perserverance, love for the students. i still have plenty to learn and the next few weeks will be another learning experience for me (though in another school). same mantra applies, just do it!

Taiwan photos!!

2006-03-31T09:34:00.000-08:00

these photos are a small fragment of the entire collection, still haven't gotten ks photos yet so more to come! by the way, these photos display the fun i had in taiwan, how much i wish i can post them all here! haha..

Liberated! - just days ago, not anymore

2006-03-08T23:38:00.000-08:00

Liberated! - just days ago, not anymore

44th entry: 08march2006 23:38
listening to: i want happiness? - zhang hui mei

I've never felt so worriless and liberated in my life!! This trip to Taipei was really worthwhile cos I've travelled to so many places with picturesque views, tasted countless snacks that i've started craving since i last left that land, seen many interesting characters, enjoyed the soothing weather never once felt in singapore. More importantly, I've learned a great deal about myself and valuable lessons I won't forget. Too much to elaborate, so I won't. (don't want this entry to end up in pages)

Many wonderful memories accompanied throughout the trip and they will accompany me for the rest of my life. I've developed a special bond to Taiwan. When I left the land, sheer sadness didn't appear. Instead I have a strange feeling I'll return to that place again to relive my experiences. No sadness involved - that's the special relationship I've developed with that country.

So falling back to reality and I'm still appalled by the sudden end of my escapism (albeit for 13 days). Whole lot of things to settle after 2 weeks and hopefully I can finish them up before I ORD in a few days time. However, I'm exceptionally grateful for the short-lived liberation and to you guys waiting to view some photos of this exciting trip of mine, I'll try to upload them asap (when I get them from Yong and KS).

in need for space

2006-02-13T10:58:00.000-08:00

in need for space

43th entry: 14february2006 10:58
listening to: if i were you - hoobastank

after a hectic week of shuttling around, i feel that i'm in great need of some space for myself. simply to rest and relax and think over stuff. i think it's about time that i fall sick after a tiring week but i don't want that to happen and definitely not next week when i'll be travelling in taiwan. hmm, or maybe i should fall sick before i fly off...

right now, i'm thinking of venturing to some secluded place with a great view and some light breeze. the first place that came to my mind was the not-yet-developed sentosa cove area, which i went with my family just to take a look weeks ago. that place is fantastic, breeze, sun, sand and sea and of course SPACE. i'm beginning to realise that singapore is really quite short of open spaces and scenic locations to enjoy a 'full meal' of fresh air and quietness. at this moment, some neighbour of mine is doing some renovation to his house and the deafening noise is driving me crazy. i'm rushing out this entry so as to get out of the house to escape the noise...

alright, so much for the need for spaces. i'm certain i'll be more driven to find such places during my taiwan trip, so looking forward to it. talking about the trip, i had an interesting revelation when i went for my dental checkup at selarang. i met dingding there and we had a hearty chat about the old times, jc classmates, studies, NS/BMT and all and when the topic changed to ORD celebrations, the unexpected happened! I still can't believe that by such immense coincidence, we are going taiwan on the exact same day on the same flight!! haha, yong chuen will be thrilled when he learns about this, and i'm glad that such serendipity can occur in my life. And that reminds me of the movie ' Serendipity', one of my faves. which reminds me of the movie screening back in JC by the student council which i didn't attend...

by the way, feel free to leave me messages on my blog!! and also check out this new single by hoobastank - if i were you (which i'm listening to right now amidst the noisy background), their third album ' every man for himself' will be out in april!! this new song is really quite cool, almost comparable to the hit ' the reason'!!

ps:thanks vina for the comment, come back soon cos i can't wait to go sentosa with you guys again!

Family trip to Sentosa on Day 2 of CNY

2006-02-04T06:59:00.000-08:00

Family trip to Sentosa on Day 2 of CNY

only managed to post these few photos for viewing, took a total of 100 over photos so it's rather impossible to post all of them here.. anyway, great time spent travelling around sentosa taking in the nice scenery (esp the sentosa cove part) and getting burnt.

Reflections over the lunar new year

2006-02-01T23:50:00.000-08:00

Reflections over the lunar new year

42th entry: 01february2006 23:50
listening to: where are you - natalie and justin roman

happy chinese new year!! had some great fun celebrating this year's CNY cos i'm right in the mood for ORD (only 40 days left!! including weekends). the start of the lunar new year kind of signifies a start to my new life after leaving the army, the milestone that i have been waiting for so long. actually come to think of it, the past 2 years have been quite a breeze for me, guess i'm considered lucky to avoid all the sh*t. so much for cruising during NS, i believe it's time to shift to a different gear now.

the highlight of CNY2006 had to be the trip to sentosa on the second day of the new year! took many many photos with my family and with the many many flowers on display as well. the whole ferry terminal to the musical fountain was adorned with flowers of different sort and colors, and the view was simply breathtaking. but the weather was quite a killer and my parents were forced to carry umbrellas around. esp my dad who resembles a polar bear who can't stand the heat totally... however, we had so much fun taking pictures and just soaking up the sun. that's like a continuation to the previous year's photo marathon at the botero exhibition at cityhall/esplanade area also during the cny period. haha, cool! never thought my family could indulge so much in posing for the camera.

then today i went for corn removal at cgh. wasn't exactly a removal process though cos they pared my dead skin away and sprayed loads of liquid nitrogen. and it was excruciating painful lah!! to think that i've suffered enough pain for wisdom teeth (4 at one go) plus braces, i'm actually rather resistant to such pains, but today i squirmed in a corner and clenched my fists so hard, i couldn't believe the pain was even bearable!! anyway, still recovering from the ordeal this morning and i still have to go back for another round of liquid nitrogen torture in a month's time... arghh...

hmm alright, cny mood slowly wearing off but still i'm glad for this annual opportunity to meet up with relatives and friends and catch up on their latest endeavours. discovered that my uncle is working in a cool computing company (which maybe i can ask him to provide some job lobang when i ord!) and another uncle is migrating to aust and one of my distant relative is so so wealthy and a few of my cousins are getting smarter than me! and many other discoveries, including realising that my grandparents are all getting much older faster than i thought.. sometimes i just think are we really so caught up with work every day that we can only afford to see each other once a year? i believe the effort to keep up the family ties strong and sturdy is everyone's responsibility and more often than not we always overlook this important piece in our lives. in this new year, i'll try to make a change to the close ones i treasure in my family, before CNY 2007 arrives and i start realising and regretting...

Bangkok crazy!

2006-01-22T01:15:00.000-08:00

Bangkok crazy!

41th entry: 22january2006 01:15
listening to: cai hong tian tang - liu geng hong
kiss goodbye - wang li hong

last week's trip to bangkok was a blast and indeed a good start to this new year! had so much fun shopping for cool tshirts and jeans, accessories, caps, berms, foodstuff etc, travelling around on tuk-tuks, ultra-cheap cabs and MRT, gorging on super affordable and tasty roadside snacks. Couldn't forget the beef kwayteow soup, fried pork/chicken with garlic, fried chicken wings, mussel omelette!! haha sounds like a really good trip right?

the shopping there is simply unmatched, the low prices, wide variety, cool designs, bargaining shiok-ness and all made me rate bangkok shopping a 9 out of 10! another highlight of the trip had to be the thai traditional massage which only set me back 12 sing dollars. for that 12 dollars, i had 2 hours of sheer relaxation! i bet fook, winston and new will agree with me on this!

yup also found the tuk-tuk ride at night to be one of the most memorable moments too. i was really quite fascinated at the agility of that small vehicle and of course the driver's adept manoeuvring skills. look at the way he sped away and cut lanes and probably you'll be too afraid to pick up driving in bangkok! haha

all in all, i had great fun spending, sweating (the weather is mercilessly hot when we were there), tasting, travelling, taking photos and bargaining! even though the 6 of us were all travelling on a rather tight budget, i believe the fun and excitement weren't the least bit compromised. cool! feel like revisiting the city some other time and explore the other attractions that it has to offer. in the meanwhile, i have to start worrying about the money i need for my taiwan trip in a few weeks' time...

Bangkok photos (14 - 18 Jan 06)

2006-01-20T00:03:00.000-08:00

Bangkok photos (14 - 18 Jan 06)

Heavy traffic in downtown Bangkok - thanks to Benny (bottom right corner) for his 'involvement'

Superband wanna-bes cum Mayday imitators

Benny, Clemence, Fook Chee before boarding the plane

Benjamin and Clemence posing for the shot

Tourists aplenty at Patpong night market

WOW! Super cool! Clemence, Fook Chee, New showing their smiles on a tuk-tuk

Unrelenting blankets of rain - the weather is crazy!!

2006-01-11T23:40:00.000-08:00

Unrelenting blankets of rain - the weather is crazy!!

40th entry: 11january2006 23:40
listening to: far away- nickelback

Wow, the weather is getting crazy lately and i would seriously preferred hot scorching weather than rainy and cold days. rainy days are quite a pain; they affect my outdoor plans, mood for the day, lifestyle habits. so i've been staying indoors and limiting my activities indoors.

Although i had bouts of almost screaming into the sky to stop the rain (think i'm going crazy as well), i've also had something to smile about. Firstly, I've finally submitted my leave forecast today, applied all of my overseas leave and local leave and settled all my regimental duties at one go. so that means i'll probably won't be seeing camp for some time. Have been waiting for this to come for so long, however recalling the wonderful experiences and interesting people i've come across during my NSF period, i think i'll miss them all.

Also, i can't help but feel excited about this sat's bangkok getaway! hope the weather over there isn't as relentless as singapore. going to do some cny shopping and basically letting my hair down and rewarding myself for the work and effort i've put in for the past 2 years. after this shopping trip and next month's backpacking trip to taiwan, i'm going to start working and prepare myself for more gruelling tasks ahead.

Yup, in addition i'm also feeling the festive mood in advance. i don't usually start to feel excited and jumpy until spring cleaning or reunion dinner but right now i feel that this year's cny is going to be great! i'm starting to stay away from barbers, and haha i think it'll probably take a while for my friends to get used to me sporting longer hair. maybe i'll colour my hair in taiwan as well.. sounds great!

Hahaha feel like i'm breathing much freer and easier. I'm going to stop here cos i feel like sleeping early tonight (haven't done that in quite a while) and when i return from bangkok, maybe i'll post some photos here!

Making sense of everything

2006-01-06T11:45:00.000-08:00

Making sense of everything

39th entry: 6january2006 11:45
listening to: liu ruo ying's new song

woah! my first entry this year and i can't help but feel excited about the opportunities and changes that are going to take place in 2006. in retrospect, 2005 had been a rather enjoyable year and upon recounting my experiences and achievements, i believe i could have done more. nevertheless, i had a great 2005 and because of that, it simply leaves me with more hope for this new year!

have been relaxing and spending time with friends and family for these first few days of the year. really found it an absolute enjoyment! in another few days' time, i'll be flying off to bangkok for a shopping trip, hopefully to amass a new wardrobe in time for chinese new year, taipei trip and uni life (later this year). That'll probably mean i should start to watch my spending and to look for a part-time/temp job or tuition assignments. but right now, i'm still basking in the mood of being free from camp and allowing myself to indulge in slacking and thinking over things and basically nothing much to worry.

yup the weather recently had been a major frustration! i can't understand why the weather can be so 'capricious', everytime i wake up in the morning to find the sky so bright and cloudless, so i'll pack my trunks to go for a dip in the pool or prepare to go out shopping, only to realise that the sky had turned dark and gloomy the moment i left my house.... it's raining again now and i can't explain to you how much i hate rainy days. they make me sad and gloomy and cold and basically they just make you lazy to do anything and slump in bed or in couch in front of the tv...
hmm i can't wait for this rainy season to pass.

the first week of 2006 is almost over and i'm still making sense of myself and the things around me. kind of weird but until i do that, i believe i still won't be able to convince myself that 2006 has actually started. so much for new year resolutions that maybe i'll do without them this year and settle less tangible ones!

trying out image hosting

2005-12-25T10:40:00.000-08:00

Trying out image hosting

38th entry: 25december2005 10:40

listening to: tian hui - SHE

this photo isn't exactly new... took it with douglas and timothy at PS Cartel. i'll try to upload more photos the next time esp. after this x'mas period with all the phototaking session with old friends!! feeling extremely sleepy now cos i'd spent the night at suchang's place cooking some substandard 'feast' and watching some laughable DVDs. still have to attend munwai's housewarming party later so i have to put off my precious sleep hours later... quite excited to view munwai's new home, i wonder if it's going to be a super large kitchen and nothing else...haha. alright should be ending with some reflective blog entry some time this week to send off the year and welcome the new year!

timothy, douglas and me at PS Cartel

NS flashbacks!

2005-12-09T07:53:00.000-08:00

NS flashbacks!

37th entry: 10december2005 00:50
listening to: fortune faded - red hot chili peppers

woah! right now i can't explain how elated i am. i'm feeling a little light-headed and lost now that the exercise that kept me so very busy for the past weeks had finally ended. i have a long list of what-to-dos at this moment, even when i'm trying to blog in my latest entry. finding it really hard to contain my joy, haha!

it took me loads of energy to tear down the setting today.. esp cos i stayed up the whole night doing shift. however tired i was today, i didn't display it and the best part had to be the last journey back to camp. i've always enjoyed tonner rides partly because i love the endless wind breaking in your face and also because i find myself more introspective on tonner rides. so when i was looking at the orange skies from the front of the tonner this evening, i was suddenly overwhelmed with unforgettable NS flashbacks.

so i started recalling, visualising in my mind, all the events that had happened during my stay in 7sib. in a span of 18 months, i've realised so many things have occurred. some more memorable and enjoyable than others, some harder to connect any positive feelings to. anyway, this is a short recap of the events that happened from last june: SAF Day Parade 2004, NDP2004, Ex Suman Warrior 04, Ex Paloma Heart 04, ATP, Helping out for tsunami aid prep, great time slacking in camp (jan05) cos of OFE, Ex High Noon 05 (had such a fantastic time i'll never forget the great times spent in ROC), gruelling AHM trainings, application for stayout approved, Army Half Marathon (another highlight of 2005) which nearly got me paralysed..., Ex Switch Blade 05. i have a feeling i left out something significant... but never mind, these events had accompanied me throughout my unit life, though some of them are rather arduous and tough, i believed they have helped me realise that things are not as simple and superficial as they seem, more often than not, we tend to overlook the details or simply take things for granted. im also really grateful to learn so much from the people around me, the valuable lessons i've encountered and the friends i've made throughout this period of time also made me discover how lucky i've been.

my NSF term is coming to an end, with the advent of x'mas and new year celebrations, i'll have more reasons to celebrate than previous years. the boundless opportunities in 2006, the freedom of leaving NS for uni studies, the overseas trips that await me in jan and feb, the idea of self-improvement finally taking flight.

hard to believe but i've blogged for a year already. though i have no idea how popular my blog is among my group of friends, i'm still glad that you guys are willing share my daily experiences, grouses and happy moments! since 2005 is drawing to an end soon, i'll need to find time to assess my performance for this year and i believe the evaluation will turn out fine. right now, i'm also itching to make 2006 a much better year and i can't wait to come out with my new year resolutions!

Transport woes

2005-11-28T00:20:00.000-08:00

Transport woes

36th entry: 28november2005 00:20
listening to: why georgia - john mayer

getting rather irritated with taking public transport lately. started off with yesterday when i had to walk 20 minutes from the interchange to my home as there wasn't any more bus services left. most services end around 11pm or so, with the exception of feeder buses which end later (around 12 plus). this very much restricts the ideas of hanging out late with friends or having late-night supper. furthermore, i'm beginning to feel the pinch of taking public transport everyday. surprisingly, it can amount to quite a substantial sum every month, needless to say it's still comparably cheaper to owning a car but the money spent on transport can be rather overwhelming at times and you wish you had walked to your destinations instead (but obviously the time factor comes into play...) i realise i've been spending quite alot on public transport alone, average $20 per week which adds to $80 per month and i haven't factored in the cab fares...

another reason why i dislike public transport is because i stay in the easternmost part of singapore and travelling to me becomes a real hassle and plenty of time is spent. took MRT back just now and realised that some commuters can be really irritating. a bunch of schoolkids sitting on the floor right in the middle of the carriage, a lady who kept nudging me with her elbow (unknowingly or not doesn't matter to me...), slightly bigger size people who intentionally took up 2 seats (depriving me of my seat), some workers leaning his body on the pole so i had nothing to hold onto, a bunch of older ladies talking loudly and inconsiderately. actually i'm also not sure why i have become so repulsive towards public transport, maybe i was just tired and needed a seat badly and had to suffer the loud chatter and... or maybe a part of me just wished so badly to own a car of my own. and that conveniently brings me to the next topic on private transport.

Owning a car seemingly appears rather impossible. with the still-costly prices of petrol, endless parking fees, exorbitant season parking fees, ERP charges, maintenance and insurance and road tax and not forgetting the more frequent trips for supper and midnight movies and shopping, which equals to spending more money. though now that i have a class 3 license but no car to drive, i've become accustommed to the idea that public transport should be the option for me (or rather the only option i have), until the recent spate of incidents which made me understand the convenience and reliability of owning a car...

Hey you know what?

2005-11-19T23:40:00.000-08:00

Hey you know what?

35th entry: 19november2005 23:40
currently watching 'i am sam' on tv

life is great knowing there are things to look forward to. getting busy and falling sick shielded my sight and ate away my time to plan for the 2006 ultimate escape. now i've recovered and gotten used to being busy at work, i realised the thrill and excitement awaits at the start of 2006 and right now, even i still have an exercise and range to fulfil in the next few weeks, i'm overwhelmed by the opportunity to move on quickly.

i borrowed this great travel guide of taipei which was rather comprehensive and uplifting. found great joy reading the guide and imagining the fun, planning the iterinaries, visualising the photos that i'm going to take, feeling the liberation and all things great! however, it's going to be a budget backpacking one, and i'm glad my friend has agreed to offer his place as accom! now my head is just filled with yearning hopes of many plans i have next year and i'm practically living on these to fulfil my NSF commitments.

soon i'll have to blog about the happenings of 2005, basically a recap of the happy moments and not-so-happy experiences as well. quite an eventful year i must say and serving NS actually provided me the chance to reflect and reconsider my thoughts in many occasions. satisfied or not, 2005 is ending and that means i've blogged for nearly a year, whatever left undone and half-accomplished has to be brought over. my spirits are very much lifted this week and i'm glad i've chased the drag i experienced last weekend completely away. alright i'm getting back to watching 'i am sam', hope you guys reading this can be reminded that there are more valuable stuff in this world to pursue besides cash and fame and glory. rent the dvd if you have to, this show is fantastic!

Ready for takeoff

2005-11-16T23:08:00.000-08:00

Ready for takeoff

34th entry: 16november2005 23:08
listening to: because of you - kelly clarkson

haven't really kept track of time ever since last week's fever...and the good news is that half of november has passed rather quickly!! actually my throat is still hurting and it's affecting my appetite, which is affecting me indirectly. also realised that my teeth are moving quite alot lately, so naturally i'm facing quite a lot of problems eating. i wish i don't have to eat to stay alive, weird enough to think of this (for someone like me especially) i must admit but right now i'm not looking forward to meals of any sort...

i started off this week being really repulsive of the idea of returning to camp and basically getting back to work, (yong chuen should know this...) but by the end of today i'm over it finally. i believe getting past wednesdays is key to surviving the week and welcoming the weekend. i'm relishing the idea of being situated far away from camp (literally, cos of some attachment at PLC!) although it is definitely one of the least comforting thoughts to be stuck in an air con room for the whole day. but at least i'm away from camp and after hearing about the stories winston had to share this morning, i felt fortunate albeit for a brief moment that i didn't have to experience what they did the day before.

this is going to be a short entry, cos i need to catch up on some sleep from the back-breaking and super-long journeys from home to bedok camp then PLC then back home again. by the time i post my next entry, it'll be very near to crunch time (ex SB) and besides grinding my teeth and getting prepared to forgo rest or sleep, i hope nothing worse arises.

fever has finally found me

2005-11-08T12:34:00.000-08:00

fever has finally found me

33th entry: 8november2005 12:34
listening to: tuo yan - z chen

i'm feeling very terrible now... blocked nose, sore throat, full of phlegm, full body ache, headaches, drowsy all the time. i seriously dislike being unwell, not even the slightest comfort could be derived from a couple of days of MC.

my fever started on sunday and when i thought i was just experiencing some minor muscle aches and slight headaches, i didn't expect myself to be down with fever. i must admit i haven't been taking good care of myself lately especially during the long deeparaya break. right now, i still can't quite figure
out whether i'm feeling warm or cold. alright enough of complaining how uncomfortable i'm feeling now.

yup so i stayed at home and did quite a bit of planning for 2006.
- bangkok budget shopping trip
- taiwan visit-friends cum hongkong stopover trip
- US backpacking trip (that is depending how much money i have left by then)
which is why i see the urgent need to curb my spending and start saving more. by the way, i was quite impressed with my friend who managed to save nearly $7K throughout his NSF life so far! found it hard to believe at first but i realised later that it wasn't impossible. so there it goes, i'll start saving more from now onwards, only a few months left before my NSF allowance will come to an end, but at least i can save a decent amount to fund my trips in 2006. of course, 2006 can't be all play and no work. so i'm intending to be a full-time tutor or relief teacher or some other freelance jobs.

oh yah the recent drop in COE prices is indeed making new car purchases very attractive, especially the off-peak cars. besides the upfront $17K rebate and significantly reduced road tax, i also realised that with less frequent usage comes less need for maintenance and car park fees. Really quite eager to own a car to drive around, so when recently my dad briefly expressed interest in getting a car, i was elated for that moment. but i know that no matter how cheap cars are right now, my family doesn't really require a set of wheels so why waste the money?

found myself doing stupid things lately as well. when i was discussing about owning cars with a few of my camp mates, i spontaneously entered a singapore pools outlet to buy 'numbers' (literally). only to realise that it is extremely hard to strike any of the prizes unless you buy the numbers in some combinations or permutations which costs more... haha anyway it was pure fun putting down a bet, knowing at least you stand a chance, no matter how remote the odds are.

yup so tomorrow i'll be back in camp for work, getting really busy with exercise prep. and i believe i need a few days to get accustommed to bedok camp once again cos i haven't really been around since a month ago. when the long break was meant to allow myself to be invigorated, i ended up running a fever... alright i think i better finish up what i was supposed to during the long break before plunging into hectic camp life starting tomorrow.

my feet are screaming for a massage

2005-11-03T01:40:00.000-08:00

My feet are screaming for a massage

32th entry: 3november2005 01:40
listening to: 'start' album - stefanie sun

first of all lets celebrate the arrival of november! have been rather enthusiastic in welcoming each new month since june and i think the reason is clear.

hmm seems like i'm becoming more of a suburban guy than a town guy... have been glad to travel within tampines and anywhere in the east, somewhere less crowded and fast-paced. maybe the fact that i've been travelling to places like pasir laba camp, NUS, nee soon camp that i'm finding myself lazier to venture out of the east... if only i have my own car to zip around with.

anyway, explored town the whole day today and my legs are suffering right now from too much walking. why do i sound like some country bumpkin? haha
by the way, went window shopping with tingyi and we walked the whole stretch of orchard from plaza sing to far east. and i realised my stamina for shopping have dropped drastically since god-knows-when. i believe guys are simply not cut out for long hours of shopping. or maybe shopping isn't much of a pleasure in singapore, i feel if i could see more affordable and less common stuff that i like i can very well imagine myself with huge bags of stuff. that just explains why singaporeans flock to bangkok, hongkong or kuala lumpur to stock up on their wardrobes, coupled with cheaper prices and more quirky finds and a whole new shopping experience, it's not easy to resist the shopping bug.

anyway, i realised that the service standards have improved slightly too, glad that the move towards better sales service is in gradual progression.

yup so much being really tired from window shopping, i still had to walk around town after dinner. this time round with douglas. first bugis then national library (which was really impressive i thought) then SMU campus then raffles city then marina square then suntec city and finally back to the mrt station. i believed i'd walked a full marathon today...

alright the national library was really impressive, the architectural design very contemporary, the collection of fiction and magazines more extensive and the idea of chilling out at the cool studying corners, while studying in SMU next year, makes me really excited!

ok a considerably tiring day for me, though i don't forsee myself shopping in quite a while, i still need to compose a shopping list in time for christmas. there are really quite a lot of things that i need to get...and i think by then i'll be more than willing to get totally shagged out from sale frenzies!

Travel Sick

2005-10-28T22:00:00.000-07:00

Travel Sick

31th entry: 28october2005 22:00
listening to: high - james blunt

i feel that i'm going to fall sick soon... must be the fact that i haven't been exercising much lately. i feel so unfit now because i head straight home after work and i simply feel too tired to work out or go for a run after reaching home. or maybe i'm getting the lazy bug... which i know i'm probably infected and desperately searching for a cure right now. anyway, so much procrastinating has been occurring in the past few weeks, not collecting my phone from the repair service centre, not planning my taiwan trip with my buddies next year, not even thinking what i need to accomplish during the super long break.

really hate to feel sick, when most people could rejoice by staying at home without reporting to camp, i'll rather feel healthy to move around and sweat then lie in the whole day and complain about headaches. so for this weekend, i'll have to sweat it out no matter what, no more being lazy. got a couple of things that i need to get them straighten out too, which i foresee will probably take me some time...

anyway, what happened this week hadn't been more interesting than the previous ones. had to attend a course at some god-forsaken faraway place near tuas for 2 days straight, and i simply succumbed to feeling sick after travelling from pasir ris to jurong early in the morning and even dreading the feeling of returning home after the course as well. i couldn't help but wonder those NTU undergrads who don't stay in halls.. no way they are surviving right? or maybe i'm wrong..
i still very much love the idea of residing in the east.

so much of travel sick and lack of physical activity that is making me a little like a fish out of water, that very much explain for the increase in frequency of headaches i had for the past few days. now as im typing along, there's this generator roaring along somewhere near my house and it is rather loud.... adds on to my throbbing headache...

anyway, i also enjoyed myself last evening catching 'flightplan' with kwan shen after work. the plot was riddled with flaws and i felt that the show was a little over-hyped however i think the acting chops jodie foster displayed was remarkable. besides that, the twist was quite unexpected (duh..) and kept me at the edge of my seat and i love the idea that the movie was almost entirely shot on the huge airplane, cos the plane itself proved to be a great premise for a thriller (esp. when foster treated it as if it was her private playground) felt rather destressed after the show.

yup so much of being sick and tired for a week, i'm looking forward to the long break next week.
i'll be rather free and i'm glad for that. time to recharge once again!

out of sync

2005-10-18T20:05:00.000-07:00

out of sync

30th entry: 18october2005 20:05
listening to: no fear - the rasmus

feeling weary again... not sure why. not because of work cos im currently attached out of camp and its quite alright to be away from camp. weary maybe because of spending my sunday in camp doing cos duty, where i could have enjoyed a game of tennis and a session of gym. guess i need the endorphins from exercise, cos i haven't been sweating it out lately and thats probably why im feeling a little sluggish and weary.

anyway, i'll have to forfeit my chances of taking a good rest before nov and dec start, all thanks to the last minute notice to attend some useless crappy course next week. i don't really mind that cos again i'll be away from camp (which can't be bad) but the thing is that i intend to take leave next week to relax and hopefully find someone to go for a short trip. but so far still can't get my fingers on that, so the course ain't that bad, at least i won't be spending my leave days slacking and complaining that i should be enjoying more.

having quite alot of thoughts recently... feeling kind of lazy to compile and arrange them. so right now my thoughts are in disarray and it just seems too overpowering especially when im feeling tired. december is coming real soon, still have a couple of resolutions left unfulfilled and i doubt i have the time to realise them (nov and dec will be totally spent getting busy with exercise... i have a lot to say but i guess it's not time to say it right now, really need to reorganise the mess in my head first, thats why i was looking forward to the break next week to unwind and relax completely. i believe i have to wait till the deepavali and hari raya puasa week before i can straighten out my thoughts completely...

alright, better leave myself alone in the meantime, too confused for any serious blogging now...

Charging Complete!!

2005-10-15T10:45:00.000-07:00

Charging Complete!!

29th entry: 15october2005 10:45
listening to: better days - goo goo dolls

woah! i just woke up from a 13 hour sleep!! i still can't believe it took 13 hours to recharge my internal battery, cos i must admit at the end of yesterday my batt was down to 0%. so i slept with my com on, lights on, tv on, heavy rain on(knew it from my mom) and everything half finished...i havent been so sound asleep in quite a while and im so grateful i wasn't disturbed when i was sleeping. or maybe they just couldn't wake me up from my slumber.

yup so now i am awake, not very refreshed still but much better than last night. yup 10 days from my last entry, so quite alot to update. basically, the past week had been spent attached out to nee soon and it felt quite good working away from camp. though the distance of the camp from my house and the monotony of the stuff that we had to do, nothing beats working at our own pace and away from the camp. so glad was our experience that i didn't even realise that the week has ended.

yup also finished the book 'man and boy' and i must say the book is really quite good. can't wait to read the other book by tony parsons. maybe tomorrow, cos i'll be stuck in camp doing duty and i'll have the whole day to read!

another surprise! i bought stefanie sun's new album the day it was released! and the album though wasn't as spectacular as her previous efforts, is quite a good listen! it is a feel-great album, and it just doesn't fail to lift my spirits whenever i hear it. some songs are really fantastic! including 'ying xing ren', 'wan mei de yi tian', 'liu lang di tu' and a few more. now i can't wait for jay chou's new album!!

oh yah, my tuition commitments all came to a stop in the last week (actually got one more later in the afternoon) but basically exams are almost over so my schedule seems slightly emptier lately! now i'm immersing in the anticipation of planning my end-of-year trip to bangkok and which other days to clear my leave. so interesting to have to worry about leave issues!!

in addition, 'camp babes 2005' just ended on thursday and the event was a huge success! glad that the show turned out well, just felt that someone could have filmed it down so that all of us who weren't able to watch it live can watch later, haha! anyway, the few of us has put in loads of effort in promoting the event, organising it, and though our efforts had not exactly paid off, the show was fantastic so no regrets man! by the way, also learnt quite a lot from this experience too. thanks to my friends who were there to support the event, and also to those who want to go but couldn't make it!

alright, i should be spending today fruitfully before booking in tomorrow morning and the week starts officially again.

feeling so peaceful right now..

2005-10-05T23:19:00.000-07:00

feeling so peaceful right now..

28th entry: 5october2005 23:19
listening to: fix you - coldplay

this song i'm listening to rocks totally! im not a fan of coldplay exactly but some of their songs are really fantastic and they never fail to set me in the correct mood. 'the scientist' is another worthy hit from the band.

today's entry is going to be short, basically because it has been quite a simple and peaceful day. im reading this book 'man and boy' right now, the book is kwan shen's, though i'm only halfway through it, i have to say the book has been great so far. maybe i haven't had the time to read the past 2 months or so, thats why im so easily captivated when im back to reading again. hope to finish the book asap.

yup gave tuition to nazri for the last time before his PSLE tomorrow. how time flies, it has been 1 year 2 months since i first taught him, and it still seems as if i have only started a few months ago. it has been wonderful having him as my student and i wish him all the best for tomorrow's math exam!

alright, i think that's about it. right now i'm looking forward to the end of this week where i can enjoy the weekend comfortably. all things smooth and that soothes me seriously.

hello to october!

2005-10-03T00:10:00.000-07:00

hello to october!

27th entry: 3october2005 00:10
listening to: sammi cheng's old album (i deserved)

hey guys! its october already and i can't believe its only 3 months before 2006 arrives. not that i'm complaining time is passing too fast, cos i wish time can fly instead... but its just that im afraid to look back at the events of 2005 and regret that i should have accomplished more. anyway, still have 3 months to fulfil whatever resolutions i have set for myself in jan.

october's going to be rather hectic for my company (as usual), we haven't experienced any rest or peace since a few months ago. there will plenty of guard duties this month and i'm just glad that im not part of it. guard duties are such a dread and i'll never forget the lethargy and grime on my face every time the duty ends. but i mean what's NS without guard duties right?

yup. so i'll be busy with prep for the upcoming exercise out of camp, and i'm really thankful for the chance to be away from camp. i have been missing the good times when we worked hard and played hard and whenever we travelled out of camp for store runs or courses, they always ended up in bouts of laughter and we really have to thank munwai for these jokes. this cute mild-mannered giant has started clearing leave and soon he'll be officially out of the army. not forgetting ck, ruohao and melvin, this bunch of people was a great joy to work with.

alright so much for reminiscing, but i really couldn't help it considering the current state of the company. talking about the company, we just had our cohesion last friday at east coast park again. the original idea was to spend the day at sentosa sunbathing, gazing at babes, playing beach volleyball or simply chill out. so whatever lofty ideas we had before were totally screwed when we had to gather at ecp. i still enjoyed playing volleyball in the hot sun though. oh yah the karaoke session with tingyi and siuchun was great as well, had a wonderful time choosing all the latest songs to croon. haha i almost forgot that i was having my braces on throughout!

yup regarding my previous post, the camp babes event at momo on 13 oct is going to be very exciting so if any of you guys want tickets to the event, you can contact me personally at clemenceyeo@yahoo.com.sg

alright, the week has officially started (its past midnight now so its monday...) ok need to catch some sleep so i can start off the week afresh. quite looking forward to this week actually, and i just hope everything can go according to plan!