Joakim still sucks; the small things

I can't stand him la. And somehow it seems that the judges are giving up criticising his singing. His singing, in my opinion, is still the freaking worst in the competition. He said "Just bring it!" I hope his family and stupid fans have enough to buy his CD when he releases one. I mean, who knows, he might even go Platinum! All through the efforts of stupidity! woohoo!

Anyway, today was a crap day. I think it's really the small nice gestures of friends that make my day. Thanks to those who dropped by and brought stuff. Really appreciate it. God bless ya.

Still (un)decided

Sianz. After a few weeks, I'm still undecided about what to do. The good thing is that I've been speaking to several lecturers and been hearing their (very) varied opinions. Will come up with a decision in 2 weeks when my Head comes back. Till then, I think I need to get the opinions of some neutral ppl. But how to find neutral ppl?

Anyway, my new PC came today and man I must say that it's freaking fast compared to the crap-thing I had just a few hours ago. Thank goodness a lady from Comp Centre managed to help me transfer the data over, otherwise I'll be looking at the new comp, but using the old.

Man, I had so much to blog about but now no feeling liaoz~

Oh ya, Saturday was good cos though my class wasn't "S'pore Idol" material, I was so happy to see them there. I mean I was so scared some of them would just not come. But in the end, most of those who had been practising came. And it was heartening to see the class (or at least half of them) bonding. Now for the other half.

K, more next time. No mood liaoz.

A tiring week (am I weak?)

It's been a tiring week. And I don't know whether the reason is that I'm weak physically. I mean, I've been falling sick quite a few weekends, esp those when I have to juggle both work & church almost consecutively. Yesterday, we brought our teens to Villa Francis Home for the Aged @ Mandai Estate. After which, I had this terrible headache and caused me to sleep from about 8pm last night to 10am this morning, after downing 2 paracetomol pills. I feel much better now. Going over to a neighbour's place for his firstborn's 1st month anniversary! The heading down to a lecturer's place for some celebrations too!

Anyway, remember I told you guys about a decision that I have to make? Well, more discussions with some ppl in the department and two social work professionals have thrown everything up in shreds again. Back to the drawing board again I guess. This is frustrating. I feel the urge to make a hasty decision but my rational side knows better. Will take this entire week to think through this carefully again. Don't want any regrets. Think I may have made one already.

About the Villa Francis visit, I think it was a wonderful experience. I realised the importance of a recce. Really appreciated the company there on Wed, esp since otherwise would have meant a lonely trip by public transport to the ulu place and an equally lonely trek up that hill. Thank you lex! :) The visit there yesterday was good cos not only did I feel I did something out of my comfort zone but I think the trip benefitted the teens quite a bit. Well, I can't say it helped all the teens but I think most of the teens "gained a new perspective" (the exact words of one teen) and that it opened their eyes to a part of Singapore that our government is so quick to sweep up into homes for the destitute. Not that it's a bad thing. Just look at America and you will realise that our country is lucky enough to be small and have a small (yet substantial) proportion of destitute people. I guess the young can be quite sheltered from the marginalised and forgotten in society especially since (I found out) that CIP nowadays can involve merely making and selling of gifts/food to raise funds for charity. Don't get me wrong, I'm not against this but this also means they do not have direct contact with the needy. Back in my time, although there wasn't CIP, we still had trips to an Old Age Home and I felt that the exposure was important. Back to the trip yesterday, I think that the teens was exposed to the conditions of an old age home. Ironically, I felt that it was definitely one of the homes in better condition and with better facilities/equipment. Also, how the nurses handled the resident was also appalling to some; to me this just highlighted the need for more staff in the social services sector and the congruent need for policies to address such rigidities as the RAF which dictates how much staff is sufficient in handling a set number of residents. There is much to do and improve. I guess for me what struck me was how loving some of the teens are; we have so much to learn from them. When we did a head count on the bus (going back to church already), we realised one of the girls in my class was missing. I was surprisingly calm as I headed back to the multi-purpose hall. I scanned the area and spotted someone stooped down and patiently feeding an elderly resident. It brought a smile to my face. As I approached her, she saw me and asked, "Is everyone waiting for me?" I just replied, "It doesn't matter. Take your time." That really made my day. I hope you guys have a similar incident to speak of. If not, make it happen guys. Make it happen. :)

Share

Just wanted to share this essay with you guys. It's pretty short (~ 500 words) but I don't know why but it really stirred up emotions in me. Enjoy. Some of you might not agree though.

Emigration Essay

CLICK*

I watched Click with Karen just now and I must say it's a fantastic movie. Gonna get the DVD. To be honest, I just expected to laugh and didn't expect any serious undertones to it but tears welled up in my eyes more than once and I even cried once. heh. I guess two words come to mind which I feel can summarise the movie - priorities & regrets. What is your priority in life? Is it work, family, friends, church, God, studies, whatever. In a sense it's a zero sum game cos when you spend time on one, you'll have to sacrifice time for another and it's unlikely that you can "expand the pie". So what is my priority in life? For now, it's indeed my family. I guess Click has helped me to decide on what I'm gonna do next. It's really amazing how a movie, yes a movie, can help me make this decision. For some of you, I've made know the dilemma that I was facing in deciding on my long-term goals in terms of career and certain decisions had to be made soon regarding the possibility of remaining in the uni, finding another job and/or furthering my studies either locally or abroad, of which the latter also required me to think of when and how I was gonna do so. The permutations were innumerable and I was just lost. Now, I kinda have decided on something but I'll be open and mull over it for the next week. Basically, it's safe to say that I'll be in Singapore for a long time more.

Anyway, for those who have not watched Click right, better go watch. Think it's good. I recommend!

Coldplay / Travis Concert

I heard Travis' Sing just now on the radio and it naturally reminded me of the only concert that I've been to - the Coldplay / Travis concert @ the Singapore Indoor Stadium in 2000(?)

I guess for me what I was reminded of, besides the wise words of Travis' lead singer, were two people.

The first is my NJ junior. She was my angel in that game during my jc days but besides that, there was hardly any interaction. I bumped into her after the concert, we exchanged phone numbers and that just ignited our friendship. And I guess she would my 1st official late night supper kaki. How time flies. Next yr, she'll be getting married. I wonder what happens to a friendship after one gets married. I'll find out soon...

The second person is someone who I've been thinking about recently. She's also my NJ junior and we, together with 3 others, went for the concert together. We kept in contact for a few yrs after she left but since the demise of icq, I've had no way to keep in touch. You see, she's in Canada now. I remember that early morning when I sent her off at the airport. I remember wanting to hug her there at the airport but not doing so cos I knew I would cry. I remember the bus ride back to camp. And then sitting down at my locker and just breaking down crying. I guess I knew today was gonna come. She was someone special to me. I hope to find her somehow but it's difficult to track down a globe-trekker who has no roots in Singapore; she's Malaysian btw. I look forward to the day we meet again. I'm sure we will.

Sing -Travis

Singapore Idol (Not)

I've been watching the past few episodes of S'pore Idol and I swear it's getting freaking irritating. I mean how can 3 of the best singers be among the bottom 4. Are S'pore teens idiots or what? Blindly supporting their stupid - I wouldn't even call them idols - fav singers like Jasmine who can't bloody sing. Maybe Singapore has run out of singers. No lei, I know a few ppl who can sing, really well too. Just the other day we went to Hard Rock Cafe and the guy there was better than most of the finalists too. Man, this is a bloody waste of time seriously. wtf.

I'll post about something more impt soon. Probably need some advice so do stay tuned. At least here you know you won't get "spore idol-proportion surprises".

One Way Jesus

I lay my life down at your feet
You're the only one i need
I turn to you and you are always there

In troubled times it's you i seek
I put you first that's all i need
I humble all i am, All to you

One way
Jesus
You're the only one that i could live for
One Way
Jesus
You're the only one that i could live for

You are always, always there
Every how and everywhere
Your grace abounds so deeply within me

You will never ever change
Yesterday today the same
Forever till forever meets no end

One way
Jesus
You're the only one that i could live for
One Way
Jesus
You're the only one that i could live for

You are the way the truth and the light
We live by faith and not by sight ... for you
We're living all for you

This is the song that my cat class is supposed to perform for our Talent Time on the 26th of August. *sigh*

Listening to this song just makes me sad, or rather hypocritical. I don't think anyone except my parents/sis knows this but I haven't attended mass for more than a month. Just don't feel like going. Somehow I either feel too tired or just can't bring myself to go. Why eh, I also don't know. It's ironic that I'm in church every week still for cat class, but not for mass. Maybe, just maybe I'll go tomorrow. Anyway, I'm supposed to attend mass with the Nellers on Sun. Supposed.

On a lighter note, work is getting better I guess. Officially completed a month of work. Will have to think of long-term plan soon. Soon.

Work thus far...(special feature - I'm in love)

I've been working for the past 2 weeks and there're so many thots in me head. There're some aspects which I like but also some others which I simply detest. For one, I can't ask for a better boss or colleagues...been getting lunch/dinner treats n all, esp since they know we've not earned a dime yet. Also, sharing a nice office with someone else, is also very nice. Just ask those who have been there. Plus, my office-mate is so nice, she bought flowers for my vase; plus I have a supply of chocs in case I get too down. Been showered with gifts too...for grad & for the overseas trips of my lecturers, mainly Dr NGT. Working hrs are flexible which is supposed to be a good thing, but I realised is a VERY bad thing in my case. Another good thing is that I've been meeting up with ppl from various agencies - prisons, saca, sana, ntu, moh, etc. Get to know a lot of ppl and also to be involved in endless meetings. I've conducted two training workshops for student researchers already and got to know some of them. All in all, quite a hectic schedule.

Things I don't like at all. First, the main thing is that I feel like a freaking secretary; no wonder ppl ask me why I'm wasting my time in NUS. Second, the flexible working hrs is bad for me cos I get into office ard 730am every morn (cos I hitch a ride from dad) and I end work at 7pm (earliest). For the past few nights, it has been much later. The problem is that my boss only comes in around noon (usu after), so he stays in office until damn late. Doesnt seem nice for me to leave earlier. But i think I will start doing that soon; it's only fair I say. Third, I've been required to work on Sat as well and it's affecting my church work which I kinda resolved to put more effort into after I leave NUS (as a student). Decided to leave early today to join them for combined class. Think if I have to, I will tell my boss that I can't work on Sat if it means the timing keeps clashing. But i talk big, like I dare to tell him. But don't think it will be the case. If I have to sum up my experience now, it'll be - ain't lovin' it. Sad to say but it's not what I expected. Maybe I need more time. Wati told me things tend to start slow. Well, it better change la, if not then...maybe it's time to let go of this. I think at the crux of the matter is what I want long-term. If it is to be an academic right, then I guess I should stick on, but only if it serves my interest. After all, my boss has his agenda, which might not fit in with mine. Oh well, we'll see how it goes. Just gotta ride it out. Ride it out.

Oh ya the bit that got you reading...I'm in love! With Sony Ericsson W850! Oh man, I wanna buy it when it comes out! Check it out!

Commencement 2006

A picture paints a thousand words (it also means I don't have to type much...)


My family and I at commencement...been a long time since all 4 of us were out tog...


haha...you all know I'm working liaoz right...here's a pic of my boss...Dr TIm sIm...


one of my best frens in social work...ahbao...(I realise I dont have one of CY...will post his soon)


One of the guys I respect the most in social work...Fareez...a guy who's hardworking & has a lot of heart...


Wati, Liling & Jianting...with their softtoys...


say, say, say!!! the prettiest gal in sw...or at least I think so...


IMH ppl!!


Xinhui & her kid...so cute right she? :D

And how can the pics be complete without CSS ppl??

Alph, karen & angie!!


The same grp with markli, piglet & nat!


Ms @lex1s K0h, we were trying to form 'S' & 'W' but we couldnt form an 'S'...guess it reflects how social work does more work than social stuff...heh


My Udon facil...Aaron!

haha and a not too glam shot of me n brenda!


Me and piglet holding up the hands of her stuffed...err....lion...err...


And my gd fren...Chen Chin K@ng

More pics when I get them! Thank you all for being a part of commencement 2006....means a lot to me...finally...sch life is officially over...after 18 yrs...

Bachelor of Social Sciences, 1st Class Honours in Social Work
Singapore Association of Social Workers' Gold Medal

Thank you God, I lift it all up to you.

Egypt Trip

Inspired by Karen’s post…I’ve decided to do one of my own…a post about my Egypt trip from my perspective using photos taken by myself as well as my wonderful travel companions (mainly kes cos he’s the only one who’s uploaded the pics!)…

Well…it all started off at Changi Airport but it wasn’t too good a beginning cos I was having a really terrible headache, most probably due to my participation in the CSS Games Day…and I had to hide it from my mum to prevent her from worrying too much…to make things worse, Liverpool was trailing 3-2 thanks to that fluke of a goal by West Ham…thankfully pool won in the end so it wasn’t too bad…here we are at the very beginning of our trip…

I must say that the plane ride was pretty exciting especially since the last time I took a plane was ten years ago…Emirates is pretty good I must say…anyway we had a transit at Dubai first and we decided to hire our own cab to bring us around! I was pretty excited cos I’ve always wanted to see “The Sail”. So we got a cab (more like mini-bus though) to bring us around. And we realized that the driver was also Catholic; I mean how cool is that – meeting a cab driver who’s Catholic in a Middle-eastern country. Heh! Among the many things that we saw were mosques (I still don’t know why but most of them had two towers; Singapore ones tend to have one main dome only), the King’s palace, inclusive of his harem of peacocks, Ski Dubai which is like an indoor ski resort (wasn’t open yet though), Emirate Towers and of cos “The Sail”! Here’s a pic with me and the world’s first 7-star hotel!

To be honest, although the hotel was nice, it definitely wasn’t as impressive as I had seen on tv. I still loved the moment though and in the next pic, you can see me frolicking (if this word is suitable) in the Seas of the Arabia Gulf! The water was fantastic and there’s always something great about soaking in the sea, albeit just the legs. We then went on to have lunch at 9+am. I can’t remember what we ate but I know I liked it. I felt that it was super worth it la, like we toured another country as part of our trip. Dubai’s a land of construction and if the master plan that they have materializes right, it’ll really be an exciting city. Now, off to Egypt! The “sheesh-ta-ool” on the plane was great (it’s something like lamb rolls).

The first day (or rather evening) in Egypt didn’t get off to a very good start. I was irritated with the sudden change of plans – change of hotel from the Pharaoh Hotel to Cleopatra Hotel. It was also a culture shock to see armed policemen outside our hotel carrying weapons ranging from AKs to MP5s and other weapons which I did not learn about in counter-strike. Anyway, the hotel was kinda small but I was cool with it. The lift didn’t work too well and had to be operated by the staff; the corridors outside our room bore a uncanny resemblance to that of a scene I had seen in Munich, the movie. The part of the room that I liked was his window thingy which allowed us to actually go outside the room and take in this view of downtown Cairo.

Here you can see the nicest view of our bedroom

The view of downtown Cairo from Cleopatra Hotel

We walked around town at night to just explore and grab some food. Managed to get some good cheap stuff (to me good stuff = meat, the more the better). There was this guy who started chatting with nan and me also. Quite weird. I guess it’s something I cannot figure about Egyptians – whether they’re being genuinely nice or they’re trying their freaking best to rip you off. In the words of kes, sometimes when they see us, all they see is a dollar sign. At first, it was just a chat but later I started feeling weird when he asked for our numbers and all, so we kinda ignored him and walked faster.

The first official day of our Egypt trip and we were introduced to big fellow (a picture later) in which we were to travel for the 1^st week of our trip. Wasn’t really what I expected but I grew to like that vehicle. Anyway, the first day was mainly the pyramids and the Sphinx. It was also the day I got conned. We traveled on Big Fellow to the pyramids…as with the Sail, it wasn’t as grand from up close but only when u’re up close can you appreciate the immensity of these structures or rather tombs that had been built so many years ago, without the technology that now exists to help us in such mammoth tasks! Check out these pics…

Nan and I in front of one of the pyramids…can you see the Tourism Policeman in white uniform?

Me sitting on one block of the pyramid. Can you imagine how freaking big the pyramids are?

Besides the huge pyramids are little pathetic tombs for the wives of the Kings…most of them were in poor condition and probably reflected the relationship between the King and his wives as well…there was this burial site of a ship though…use the camels to gauge the size!

We traveled further on to the site of the famous Sphinx…I was told that it was being “renovated” so there would be scaffolding on it but it wasn’t as bad as I had anticipated. Felt that the Sphinx needed a nose job though; shouldn’t it be easy in this day and age? ;)

We headed down to the Perfume Museum where I bought 3 bottles for myself and my parents…think that’s the most expensive stuff I got on the trip man…it was also around the area that we had our first taste of Egyptian tea which is served without milk but with mint leaves which you add in…after which we headed down to the Papyrus Museum.

You can see the guy in the pic holding a Papyrus (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papyrus) plant at the museum. Basically they used that to make paper and they even taught us how to distinguish real from fake papyrus…apparently it also cannot be torn easily. I loved the painting behind the guide but then it was too expensive.

This painting is some sort of a judgment day whereby the king faces the 12 gods and 6 of them hold the key of life whereas the other 6 do not. Darn, I can’t remember anything else…you guys can ask our unofficial guide – nan. He should remember.

Anyway, the first night was spent out in the Black Desert. If I’m not wrong, it’s name is due to the iron ore that forms the black that covers much of the sand.

We camped out in the Black desert and I must say that the sunset was unforgettable. I just loved it and at that moment, everything seemed worth the trip and all my grumpiness at things that didn’t turn out as planned melted away. However, I didn’t take any pics; they wouldn’t have done it justice anyway. We had to cook our own food and I must say that the food was good even though the portions were small…here’s a pic of kes whipping up some whipped potato…

I still remember that first night in the black desert…the cold wind, the sand that kept going into my mouth and I just felt so uncomfortable…I woke up frozen and just couldn’t move, save for the incessant chattering of my teeth. It took me some time before I could get up and when walking around and moving couldn’t generate enough heat for my body.

It got better during breakfast when I held a hot cup of Milo to my hand…we passed by an oasis town later in the day and walked around…here are some pictures I took…

Here’s us walking as a section through the oasis town…notice the kids on the left…many of them pestered us for pens and I gave away one…if we had more we would have given it to them…these kids were nice though…unlike those we were to see later…

I like this pic cos of the details of the spider-web that can be seen…somehow I think that the web is thicker than normal…must be a pretty big spider…thankfully it wasn’t home…

A “panoramic shot” of the Oasis town…

The White Desert was beautiful to say the least and I will end off the post here cos I really don’t see an end in sight! Enjoy the next few photos and look forward to the continuation of this epic effort to photo-blog about my Egypt experience!

There’re a lot of these white structures that are amazingly created by nature…just look at its size compared to all of us!

And I rem this pic when kes ran towards the structure and said that it was bread…hilarious…

I know it sounds unbelievable but we climbed to the top of this white “snowy” mountain!

And this was the view from the top! Check out the Kumuka truck that we were on looking like a toy…

I’m sure all those of you who have my msn has seen my favourite pic…now here’s the funny version…the best part is that when this pic was taken…I had NO idea that kes was behind me!

Last but not least, I like this picture that was taken after our swim in the cold spring – the water was cold and the surface was super slimy la! There’re just so many nice layers…the sand, the greenery, the sky, which itself seems to be a continuum of colour from near white (nearer to the horizon) and darker blue as it reaches higher up. So much colour in the desert!

To be continued…

NUS CSS FOC 2006 - Acts 29

FOC ended yest with a fantastic finale at Sentosa. Must say that it has been a fantastic experience and I'm really glad I went, committed myself to it and made that the final event as a CSS member. Although I'll still be ard NUS for some time, I think as a student, FOC was the encore. I must admit that on the first day, I did get the sense that I was a little out of it. I felt I was old & that I couldnt keep up. I was wondering whether I had made a mistake. You know, I had been looking forward to this last FOC for some time now, and initially I was a little disappointed when I realised that kes, nan, val & many others in my batch wouldnt be attended full-time. Thank goodness for markli! You've been a great companion throughout dude! :) Anyway, for me right, the turning point was the second day. I think the ice between me & the freshies broke when they drew on my head. It's the 1st time since I had this 'hairdo' that anyone has done that...and the games that ensued, esp the Geisha game whereby piglet painted my head with powder & lipstick that I really felt in it. I think that many times we just have to give of ourselves totally if we wanna feel 'part of it' and tt's just what I did. There're so many memories man. Piglet was hilarious throughout la - be it from dodging waterbombs in a crouching defensive position to saying that she "used to be left-handed" when markli said left-handed people are smart. Then all the Udon (tt's my group name) cheers that we came up with, to the super energetic freshies that we got; man they really had "balls of enthusiaism" man! I really think that I can see & feel the generation gap bet me & the freshies. Must say that the freshies have lotsa initiative also man. I'm sure they've enjoyed themselves and I just feel so happy! I'm so glad to have known them - jared, johan, kelvin, sam, emmi & mallery - as well as others like Ben (aka hardgay), Jeremy (aka Geisha Chan), Nicole & Grace (the girls who broke their door lock on the 1st day) and Teresa (the only sane teresa thus far :p). Think I got to know some seniors better also - piglet, aaron, brenda, paul, benny, ivan, daniel, nat. Must say that I was particularly impressed with Aaron, in how he looked after the freshies, led as well as prayed. I'm sure he's gonna be big in CSS. And the seniors who have been with me in NUS & CSS - thank you all so much. The last day started off rather gloomy and it even started to rain; how it ended - with 2 wonderful, beautiful rainbows in the sky - was really an affirmation of God's presence and I could see it, feel it during Steph's prayer...it was so powerful. I would say it's one of the best prayers I've heard in CSS. And so ends a chapter in my life.
You know, last yr, Alan told me those words I still rem so clearly, when I felt that I was not needed at FOC - that we're all dispensible and that my time in CSS has ended. I was kinda hurt then. But not this yr...I see it as a transition. And as they say in chinese - chang jiang hou lang, tui qian lang. There'll always be new blood to take over the old, esp to be God's instruments. Thank you God and everyone who has been a part of my life in CSS. I love you all.

St. @nne's concamp '06

Just came back from concamp and I must say I'm totally drained physically, despite already taking a rather long nap. I'm still trying to figure out whether this yr's one or last yr's one is better but I guess you can't really compare God's work cos they're both special in their own ways. I think that having a personal stake in last yr's concamp - my cat class & my sis - might have heightened the subjectively evaluated "good" for last yr's concamp. Guess what Mervyn said in Chris' car struck me cos he shared that he felt this yr's camp was better. At the end of the day, I'm just glad that God blessed us with, in Bridget's words, such a wonderful combination: YACs, teens n all of us. I felt that the logistics and lots of the discipline and stuff was lacking, due mainly to the lack of my leadership ability in handling such a "big" camp. I really feel that if we had other teens, we might not have been able to pull it through. I've also learnt that I'm more of a follower and can't really lead. Don't think I will take up such huge responsibilities in the near future.
Anyhow, I'm just glad to be there to serve the teens. Got to know some of them and especially those who seem noisy and naughty were actually very nice and I've even added some of them to msn. Some of the things said or tt happened during the camp warrant mention here so that I will never forget them. First, there is Anna who realised her purpose in the camp, just as I did during FOC 2 yrs ago when I was kinda not really "in it", if you know what I mean. Of cos, there's Cherlyn who despite her age and lack of "experience", showed such maturity and wisdom during our praying over session that I just knew it was guided by the Holy Spirit. She was amazing. Then there's a teen who asked who came up with the HELP letter idea because his dad had not spoken to him in 2 yrs before that letter. And Richard pointed out someone who needed a little support and I just went over during the session and put my arm around him and just sat there beside him. I think there're so many wonderful things that happened during the camp and it not only benefitted the teens but all of us adult & youth facils as well. I just wanna thank you God, from the bottom of my heart for this experience for all of us. Thank you.

Grad Trip - Egypt 2006

I'm finally back for those who didn't know. It's amazing how 18 days have passed and I've done so many things that the first day seemed to be so distant. I hesitated to blog about it cos I don't think I rem everything and to be honest, I'm feeling really lazy. So instead of giving all the details, I'll just recount some highlights:

• seeing "The Sail" in Dubai (though it wasn't as impressive as I expected)
• Seeing the pyramids (not as impressive as in postcards or documentaries), remples and other historical sites (e.g. Cairo Museum - King Tut's tomb is impressive!)
  
• Camping out in the Black Desert (including watching the beautiful sunset & waking up frozen)
• Camping out in the White Desert (seeing all the sand formations and shitting in the desert)
• Playing Cricket in the desert (I feel like picking up the sport! *thank you aussies & kiwis!)
• Swimming in a cold spring (though the floor was super slimy!)
• Swimming among jellyfish in the freezing Red Sea!
• Snorkeling in the Red Sea (a big acheivement considering I was clinging onto the freaking ladder on the ship when I started out...)
• Cheonging at Ministry of Sound @Red Sea
• Surviving 2 days on a Felucca - something like a sailboat - which sailed along the River Nile (waded in the water but did not swim for fear of getting the virus spread by the water snails!)

Wow...that sounds like quite a bit already right? Plus the company...you guys have been wonderful. Thanks for being patient & understanding especially when I was grumpy or being difficult. Must say that I enjoyed myself. If there is one thing I must say about Egypt, it's that it is a land of extremes. The weather - can be super hot & then super cold (especially in the desert); the people - some are nice but there are many a**holes who pissed the hell out of me cos they cheated us, harrassed us, keep asking us for baktish (spelling?) which is basically tips. It was so bad that I actually fantasized about tripping this kid who was like a freaking leech. The flies is another thing I will not miss about Egypt - wah lau eh...they fly all over u lor! I guess the best part of Egypt I loved is Hurghada which is the most 'touristy' city and also the cleanest I guess. The memories of the Red Sea & MOS served to make it the best city in my opinion. The historical sites didn't hold much interest after the first few, although our aspiring Archaelogist, Mr KTTH was excited with every "tem-bull" as the guides pronounce "temple". Overall, I must say that this holiday is one that I will always rem. It has pushed me so that I know I can survive a little rough & tough. The company made it great. Egypt is a great country, though many things did irk me (mostly the group of *ucked up ppl). I have struck Egypt off as a country I have visited and I doubt I will be back. But thank you all the nice ppl, places, nan, kes, char, jacy & ben for a memorable holiday :) will be starting work in July. Before that, there's Concamp & FOC to look forward to. Here's to the last month of freedom. God bless one and all.

Bangkok & soon-to-be Egypt

I havent been in the mood to blog. Although life has been beautiful. This week however, things seem to make me feel down, but as always there are ppl to bring me up :D

I liked the Bangkok trip a lot. I don't think I got to buy as much things as I thought I would but then the company was excellent. I also liked learning more about a culture, about the ppl, n just being in another country. I rem something tt struck me quite a bit. Actually it's a comment from Aaron when we came back. He said, "Don't you find it funny going there with 2 couples?" Actually he had a point cos I have never liked being in the midst of couples but I realised that this trip I had successfully mingled! I think it helps who the ppl are and I'm glad all of them were so nice...we looked after each other, which was great. There're a few pics tt I particularly liked but I'm too lazy to post them here...maybe soon...anyway, I realised during the trip that I can be dangerous when I'm alone. Dangerous in the sense that I think too much for my own good. I don't know why but I seem to have an ingrained thinking mechanism that kicks in when I'm alone & can't sleep. The first night wasn't too bad cos I could talk a bit till I sleep. I guess it's also a little like what Brian said about msn...tt sometimes you just wanna logon not to chat, but just to know that there are ppl ard you. Maybe it was the same. It's kinda different sleeping alone la. But it was ok. I mean I have my own room at home so...

I don't know why but I feel sad everytime I listen to the mp3s that I have. Must admit that my collection is limited after my last laptop crashed...so I only managed to d/l a few. All the songs however just make me feel sad when I listen to them. Now is no exception.

Had a social work gathering last night and before that, I had a great time with bao & yat, shopping for Dr Rowlands' present. The whole day was good and it just made me feel happy at the moments, & then (as usu) a little sad as it offically marks the end. The end of this small fellowship of soical work honours students. I guess I don't miss the lecturers cos I'll be back there soon, if things work out ok.

Prep for the egypt trip has been nothing less than hectic and I'm really really broke. In fact, I now have to take a loan, albeit interest-free and probably a loan I do not have to re-pay even if I wanted to. Kudos to Bentoh & Jacq who helped us source for excellent sleeping bags and also accompanied me to buy my windbreaker, track pants & long-sleeve tee. Bentoh has the same taste as me man! Cool! haha...n tt also marks another being comfortable with couples occassion.

Actually there're so many thoughts swarming in my head that I don't want to hear any of it. There's some that're eating into me. Eating away so much I feel that I'm dissolving like an egg shell in hydrochloric acid (rem the sci expt in sec sch??). You know sometimes I really wonder, and I struggle. Sometimes I struggle with my feelings towards myself. Why? why? I rem learning in social geron this sem that one has to differentiate him/herself from their roles. This is impt so that when certain roles are taken away, tt person can still function, won't feel lost. Example is that if a man defines himself through his work, then when he retires, he will feel a loss. And if the loss is extreme, he will not be able to get over it. Sometimes I wonder when I strip away all my roles - son, brother, friend, catechist, social work student, Liverpool fan - then what will be left? The worse part is that sometimes I feel as if when all these are stripped away, I am nothing. I'm just a blur. Just a drop of mediocrity in the vastness of emptiness. haha I guess at times like this, my url name is pretty apt huh?

Anyhow, I'm looking forward to Egypt with somewhat guarded optimism. I will be open and enjoy it. For one, I know the company will be the best I can ask for. Countdown...2 days...

R@LLies

Wow...went for my first r@lly today and must say that though I couldnt hear much, let alone see the speakers, it was heartening to see so many ppl man! To think that some say Singaporeans are apathetic! Hmmm...maybe ppl are just KPO. Anyway, I'm really hoping that r@lly turnouts = votes although this is unlikely to be the case. Anyhow, leaving you guys with two pics and you all compare and contrast.

1. p@p at H0ug@ng


2. wP at H0ug@ng


Fantastic!

The last paper and the in betweens...

I have just one paper left and I just can't get down to starting on it although I'm having less & less time to finish it. It's 60% and closed book so I have to start...arg!

Anyway, some things that have happened in the past few days have irritated me...gonna spell them out here. Hopefully it'll be therapeutic:

1. Got a bloody letter from my army unit stating that I am liaible to be mobilised from 21st April; I got the letter on 25th April. As usual, the army screws up. Apparently, the NUS (so called world class uni) has told them that we have already graduated. Idiots.

2. Egypt bomb blasts: I don't understand these idiots la. They wanna kill foreigners but end up killing 20 of their own people? How stupid can they get? But the thing that irritated me about this is that it puts our grad trip in jeopardy. I hope that all six of us will be able to go for our grad trip, whatever the details are in the end. Think it'll be different if any one of us can't make it. For me, I'm gonna have to convince my mum that it's safe. Of cos, I have to be sure myself as well.

3. CHee S00n jU@n: He's a bloody idiot la. I agree with the ST report which stated that he diminishes the credibility of the opposition. I guess he really has nothing to lose but doesnt he realise that he's turning more people off and def won't be drawing any votes for his party? In fact, the whole fiasco has completely destroyed any hope that SDP has in this elections. Idiot!

4. The tactics of our incumbent powerhouse here in Spore. Despite my respect for most of them, I really despise some of the tactics that they use, especially using upgrading as something to threaten the voters. What I realise is that they will be basically choosing our next batch of leaders la. It's like new ppl enter all the various parties but becos one is in a strong GRC (those not contested, then they're given a 'free ride' into the govt), although those new-comers from the opposition parties may be just as good if not better. I don't like this elite thingy la.

5. Although my constituency will be contested, I will not be able to vote cos I'll be overseas. arg! why did they choose 6th May! hai~ but I will go for the rallies la. Anyway, although the opposition has made their rounds (and I've talked to them), the ruling party seems to be slacking in Sengkang la. Never see or hear from them at all. Maybe they concentrating on Pasir Ris or something. Btw, the boundaries suck la. oh well...enough of complaining.

I just need to study for my last paper man. Somebody Save Me!

Happy Easter!~

Happy Easter!~

Blogger is down so I have to type this out on word first then transfer it later. There’re so many thoughts in my head that I want to get them all down. And since I’m in the mood, which I’m rarely in nowadays, I should pen them down now.

Today was excellent. The morning was spent organizing my readings and lecture notes for social gerontology. Apparently I have 10 seminars to cover and I managed to cover two in the short time I had. Having only two exams really gives you a lot of flexibility in managing your time and squeezing the max out of it. I managed to meet my 2^nd Godson for dinner @swensons at CP. The last time I saw him was actually during Confirmation Day last year. Man, I enjoyed it. It was just basic catching up and though it started off cautiously, I felt him opening up as we went along. I think I learnt more about him during dinner than I had known about him all along. I’ve made a mental note to meet up with both godsons regularly, possible once a month for mass then a meal. Think that’s the least I can do. After dinner, rushed down to St Iggy’s for Ray’s baptism. To be honest, I was quite surprised to hear that Ray was getting baptized, although he had already told me that he was going for RCIA. Anyway, I managed to reach there by 820 (had to take a cab from MacRitchie) and the cab journey was interesting as well. I told the driver that I was late then he asked me why I was going to church at this time. I tried explaining to him what baptism was but my Chinese prevented me from doing a good job. Apparently, baptism in Chinese is something like diao li? Or izzit qing li? Anyway, I managed to share with him about the baptism of my friend and then asked him about his religion. He shared that he used to “bai sheng” but had also gone to his sister’s church before but he felt that there was “too much to learn”. This line kinda struck me quite a bit. I realized that for many elderly, less educated people, the bible may be a tad bit too confusing. I guess that’s why quite a few elderly people prefer to go for Novena and stuff whereby they can participate and partake in God’s presense without really having to read or decipher scripture. Anyway, he ended off with a very funny question – “ Can I drive into the church?” haha…I was quite amused but told him that he was most welcome to! I told him about Holy Cross (which was closest to his place) and asked to go there to experience mass if he wanted. I think it’s amazing! Especially since our conversation was in Mandarin! I always have interesting cab rides :)

When I entered the church hall, it was pitch black but then nat et al. spotted me and I joined them. I must say that the church is really nice. Plus, it was my first easter vigil (believe it or not). I enjoyed it although I felt that it was really too long. When it was Ray’s turn to be baptized, I just felt this sense of joy inside me. I guess it’s cos he has journeyed through in CSS without really expressing the desire to become Catholic. And things didn’t exactly go very smoothly after he graduated but God sure has His ways of calling people doesn’t He? :) I think that it was really wonderful to welcome these people into the Catholic church on, in my opinion, the most important day in the liturgical calendar – Easter! Really glad for all those who were baptized and confirmed today! Something else warrants special mention though it is of much less importance. Thanks to some good friends, one girl now thinks that I tried to hit on her or something because Ray actually asked her if I mind taking a picture with her! Heh. Oh well, too bad for her I chickened out in the end! ;)

Supper at Al-Ameen was good and I really how good the-tarik tasted once again! :) Thank you Val, Nat, Alph, Pearl, Markli for the great company & Mark for the life back home too! I hope we continue to have such things even after we graduate.

Looking back on the week, Wed also deserves mention. First, it was the last class of my NUS life as an undergraduate. It went well, with Dr Mehta showing us “Dad” by Jack Lemon. It’s a really wonderful show that left me in tears. I don’t know why but the end of this class just seemed so normal that it left me feeling a little nostalgic. I don’t know. Maybe I expected more, like saying of goodbyes or like, well I don’t know, people to stay behind and chat a little more? It ended just like that with people just leaving as if they still had the rest of their NUS lives of lessons, lectures, tutorials, seminars to attend. Of course I’m not pinning fault or find it wrong but it just felt so normal that if I had not consciously realized that it was the last lesson, I might not have even noticed the difference. I guess it is fitting that I started my social work ‘life’ with Dr Mehta and now I’m ending it with her. I will miss all the friends that I’ve made throughout these 4 years. I will miss you guys.

We went over to Magicmark’s place to bake hot cross buns after class. Did I mention that his house is a dream? It’s fantastic la! Complete with basement home entertainment center, a nice pond, basketball post, nice paintings and magic cards on walls. Heh. I really had fun with all the people there learning how to bake hotcross buns! I think the making of the dough was really very very tough but I enjoyed it. The satisfaction of seeing it transform cannot be matched I tell you. Plus it was fun la, all of us taking turns to try the different roles. Too bad I couldn’t stay cos of my presentation the next morning. Anyway, reflecting on this past semester, I guess I’ve achieved my aim of getting to know more people and spending time on people as well as work. In fact, I feel that I’ve gotten to know the year1s better, especially Moses, Magic & Ade. They’re really nice people and I like them. :) Plus, I’ve watched more movies this semester than I’ve in year 2&3 combined! I really thank God for this! And work seems to be ok also. Well, at least for now la, cos I’m quite scared of social geron, but there doesn’t seem to be any motivation to study. Oh well, we all have to fight our demons!

I will end off here....

*written 16th April, 2006, 3:02am*

Packed Sat...

It's been good since my thesis was handed up, although the social geron paper did give me some trouble. But somehow I managed to finish it (quality not that though). So now I'm left with 2 exams and then I'm officially a graduate :)

Yest had been a packed day full of non-academic related activities. Started the morn off at ApEx H@rm0ny lodge which is basically a home for dementia patients. The place is super nice and the atmosphere is very relaxed. I think one of the reasons for this could be due to patients wearing their own clothes instead of having standard drab-looking pyjamas. Also, the style of the home really looks like a resort. Even the physio-room is kinda outdoors. Very nice place. But of cos as usu, I wasn't very comfortable with interacting with the folks and kept it to a smile and 'hi'. We sang some songs but I guess our lack of prep kinda showed la. I think we should have put in more effort for it. Oh well...anyway we had lunch at k0mala villa @east coast. The food there is good man and I learnt quite a bit from my lecturer who treated us. She's so sweet!

Chris came to pick me up after that and we went to get the bread and 'wine' for our combined class. Chris really puts in a lot of effort for our lessons. I was so amazed with that break...it looked so 'authentic' plus it was in baskets man. Super impressed. And it tasted great too! Lesson went well although I was feeling a little irritable. Went ok la I think. Hope the kids found it meaningful.

Dinner at hollandV to celebrate draggie's bday was good. haha although the attempted 'prank' wasn't THAT a good idea. But oh well. Then rushed back to church for lentern vigil. Never attended one before so didn't know what to expect. Was already tired so felt apprehensive about whether I could last throughout. I have NEVER ever knelt on my knees for such a long time before in my life. The songs were good though it got tiring after awhile. I liked Fr Henry's session the best though I just realised that it has left me with blisters on my knee! He got us to knee and make our way on our knees, from the back of the church to the altar and then lift up the sufferings of either ourself or that of a person to Christ. It was more painful then I had expected but recalling the scenes from the Passion of Christ, I realised that this was nothing compared to the excruciating pain that our Lord & Saviour Jesus Christ had to endure just to save us from our sins. I can never imagine myself going through so much to save so many who don't ever deserve His mercy. Doesn't seem like a fair exchange but that's unconditional love for you. Anyway, I slept through the entire homily during morning mass though it was quite short. Had breakfast b4 heading back home and sleeping till 4pm. Unfornately, I now have the flu. Sigh. Oh well...it was worth it la, going through all the stuff on Sat. Given a choice, I would do it all again :)

Soccer

Watched the Chelsea match jus now and I realised why they deserve to be Champions. Worthy of mention are Drogba & Geremi who I felt were exceptional. It's when the team is in crisis that you see the true strength of the player and Drogba (who for the record I don't think is a 'world-class' striker) carried the team and they came from 1-0 down, with 10 men, to trash West Ham 4-1. Much more pale in comparison, a rather limp Pool managed to scrap a 1-0 victory over Bolton. Obviously, both teams were not playing up to their usual high standards. You can really tell that Pool derserves no better than 3rd in the league. At current form, even the Gunners deserve 3rd place. Ok...going to see the manyoo-gunners match now...have a blessed Holy Week ahead.

Thesis

My thesis is complete! Also, I rem a joke that Dr Deng told us in a GEK mod that I took. Found it hilarious but as usually I caution that I'm not a good storyteller. Enjoy...


There was once this rabbit who lived in this hole. One fine day, he decided to come out to enjoy the warm sunny weather and as he busked in the sun, he did not notice a fox had sneaked up behind him and caught hold of him! Just as the fox was about to eat the rabbit, the rabbit stopped it and told it to give him a few more days cos he was finishing up his thesis on the "Superiority of Rabbits over Foxes and Wolves". The fox could not hide its bemusement and the rabbit invited the fox to go into its hole to take a look if he didnt believe it. The fox went into the hole and never appeared again.
A few days later when the rabbit came out to busk in the warm glow of sunshine, a wolf sneaked behind him and caught him again! The rabbit, as he had done before, told the wolf to give him a few more days cos he was finishing up his thesis on the "Superiority of Rabbits over Foxes and Wolves". The wolf laughed so hard that he almost lost grip of the rabbit. The rabbit once again invited the wolf to go into its hole to view the thesis if he didnt believe him. The wolf went into the hole and was never seen of again.
After this rabbit had completed his thesis, he had a hugh celebration and invited many of his rabbit frens. When they asked about his thesis topic, the rabbit beemed with pride and said that his topic was on the "Superiority of Rabbits over Foxes and Wolves". All the rabbits were amazed and asked to see the thesis. All of them scurried into the rabbit's postgrad room in the hole in which he lived and the sight they saw was typical of any such room - a large table in the center, paper shrewn all over the place and academic journals lining the shelves at the side. On the right of the table was a pile of fox bones and on the left was a pile of wolf bones. In the center of the table sat a big fat well-fed lion who was the rabbit's supervisor.

Moral of the story? To write a good thesis, the title doesnt matter, the subject matter is inconsequent and your hypothesis need not be logical. All you need is an influential and satisfied supervisor.