Pig out!

Lunch at Waraku restaurant at Central Shopping Mall at around 3pm. Followed by a Giant Earthquake at Swenson's, shared by five people. And that was at 5:30pm. Finally, buffet dinner at Furama Hotel at 7:30pm.

I feel like a pig.

I am born to eat.

And eat.

And eat.

My first ever eating marathon.

Anyone wants to sponsor my second?

Anyone missed me??

Woah! I knew I hadn't blogged in a long while (of course!), but I did not realise it was THIS long until I logged in today... I had thought my last entry was sometime in November.

Anyway, in the midst of this hiatus, life has gone on of course, including an In-Camp-Training(ICT) aka reservist in end November. This has got to be one of the slackest high key ICT anyone can have, with only two major activities - combat shoot and IPPT, although there's a tough three weeks ICT for next year with our involvement in SAF Day. Sigh... Anyway, I was glad that I managed to achieve silver for my ICT IPPT. Thanks to that glorious morning, I am thus spared remedial training (RT), and was given some spare cash (read: incentive for silver award) to tide over the festive season!

Lady Luck has been avoiding me in normal life though... Production has been pretty stagnant and some 'good' prospects seem to be avoiding me for no apparent reason. Somehow, road shows seemed to have lost much effectiveness as a working model... Haiz... Singporeans have wised up to our prospecting methods. What else can we try?

It's the rainy season again. And I'm no fan of rains (Or Rain for that matter) . Unless the rain falls at night, while I am in dreamland. A shower has the miraculous ability to spoil one's mood for the outdoors, or simply moving out of the door. It is so troublesome to have to walk around with an umbrella, and I certainly do not fancy myself walking around soaking wet. Neither do I enjoy working when it is raining, with water splashing onto our stuff from everywhere, or even leaking from the ceiling... Indeed, home is the best place to be when it is raining.

Think before you speak!

The mouth can be such a lethal weapon.

Sometimes, words can deal more harm than knives and guns.

We should all be careful with what we say. Especially with people we are close to, as the closeness may cause us to let our guard down and say things without thinking through...

I hurt a friend today. Hope I can be more mindful of my words next time.

Turn Left, Turn Right?

There's been so much going on in the past weeks... There were a few times when I wanted to get down to blogging, but my mood was fluctuating so much that I just could not find the conviction to get down to task. I hate the disorder in my life now - my thoughts and actions are so incoherent now, I hardly know where I am heading. And it was only not so long ago when I thought I was finally going to re-establish some control over myself. Nevertheless, I am grateful to have RC with me through all the turbulence. But there's still a long way to go...

Just found out that Tracy has left. It was a huge shock, and now I have one less friend in the company. Apart from the occasional crap, she is actually a very nice person to talk to. Not that I mind her crap since it helps to liven up the place. Hope she can find a good job soon.

I'm still feeling very perturbed... Shall try to blog again when my thoughts are clearer.

Chronicles of the Wisdom Teeth - Part 3

Pardon me if I sound stupid. I can't help it - I've just lost four 'elements' of wisdom. This should explain for the rather long and monotonous entry here...

The journey towards the reduction of my wisdom actually began last night. I had to fast from midnight onwards - no food, no drinks (no, not even plain water). Went to bed around 12:30, but took quite a while to fall asleep as I tried to clear the numerous thoughts and worries that have been entrenched in my mind.

Woke up at seven plus to prepare for my appointment at 0915hrs. Reached there faster than expected, at 9am. I was told to change into into this patient gown which consisted of a huge draw-string pants and a cavernous shirt that threatened to swallow me whole. Nurse A says it is worn like a kimono. Perhaps...but it sure does not look like one. Anyway, having changed into the appropriate attire, I was assigned a bed, and that was where I would spend the next three and a half hours as I entered Phase 1 of the surgery - The Long Wait. I managed to get about two hours and a few bits of sleep, sandwiched between watching Nurse B pottering around doing her chores, and reading half of a Men's Health magazine.

I could be mistaken, but I thought I saw some spider web between my toes when Nurse A finally came over around 1235 and told me that it was going to be my turn. She proceeded to spray this acrid fluid into my nostrils, which I then had to swallow. Yucks! It took another 15 minutes before I was allowed into the surgery room for Phase 2 - The Surgery (of course!). The female anaesthetist asked a number of questions regarding myself as she prepared to administer general anaethesia. Perhaps she was trying to help me to relax, but she was not very successful as she sounded very unsincere. Not that it matters since I was only a little nervous. Nurse C proceeded to cover my nose and mouth with an oxygen mask and instructed me to inhale deeply. I drifted out of consciousness shortly after...

It was close to 3pm when I was woken up by Nurse A. Apart from aches in the areas where the teeth had been extracted, I also experienced numbness in the lower jaw. Nurse A helped me to change my blood-soaked cotton gauze and gave me a cup of Ribena. I was asked if I was suffering from any of the common after-effects: headache, giddiness, nauseousness, sore throat. Apart from some slight drowsiness, I felt OK. I was then told to rest further in this Phase 3 - Post Surgery Rest. I did not sleep much as I had already slept quite a lot earlier and did not feel tired. In fact, I was actually more hungry then tired. My senses were totally alert as I watch and hear the nurses engaged in their activities - calling people to inform them their reporting time for tomorrow, tending to other patients...

I was finally freed around 5pm after the surgeon ascertained that I was fit to go. It had been over 20 hours since I last ate anything! I felt a little hungry but did not have the appetite though. Still I had to consume some food before I could consume my antibiotics. Thus I had my first meal of the day at 5:45pm when I drank the porridge mum had cooked in the morning. I also swallowed some blood.

Now I feel like a dumb vampire.

Chronicles of the Wisdom Teeth - Part 2

I have been lazy, hence the late update.

Basically, I did not get my extractions. I had a bit of phlegm on that day, and as there is increased risk of pneumonia, I decided to postpone the surgery. Hope I will be fully healthy on that day(two weeks later). I do not want it to be postponed again. Not because it hurts(the pain has subsided), but because I am afraid of getting infection and decay. I think I am very vulnerable to this as my gum has grown over part of the partially erupted tooth, which has made it harder to brush the area around the wisdom tooth. I certainly do not wish to have to extract the neighbouring tooth due to decay...

I have tried to imagine post-surgery impact: How swollen will my cheeks get? How long will I take to recover sufficiently to consume 'normal' food? Will I be able to go for lessons? How long do I have to wait before I can go back to work?

Questions, questions...

Answers in two weeks time(hopefully)...

Chronicles of the Wisdom Teeth - Part 1

Went for my X-ray today.

Result--> I need to extract all my wisdom teeth, including the two unerupted ones at the top. Great.

Total estimated cost for the whole affair (inclusive of initial consultation at Hougang Polyclinic) --> about $930. Marvellous.

Physical and financial pain awaits. Excellent combination.

Stay tuned for part 2 of the Chronicles of the Wisdom Teeth.

Deja Vu

Experienced deja vu today. I was asking Meeling about her appointment yesterday. Then I realised how it all seemed so familiar... I have vague memories of being at the same place, asking her the same question, with her giving the exact same reply. Even my follow-up question was the same, and from there, I was able to know what her reply would be, before I even finished asking my question. She answered in the same way she did in my 'memory'. It just seemed so unbelievable... There was one big difference between what happened today, and what was in my mind though - Ching Song was not in my mental scene.

This is not the first time I experienced deja vu. Is it really just a coincidence, or...?

Anyway, coincidence or not, that was not the chief preoccupation of the day. That honour would have to go to the ache in my buccal cavity. The problematic tooth has also left me with a slight swelling of my left jaw.

I'm SO looking forward to my dental visit tomorrow.

P.S.I doubt I have ever been more eager to see the dentist.

Groans!!!

My body's still aching after my IPPT exertions on Wednesday. It must be due to my lack of exercise and insufficient cooling-down exercises after the test. Oh, by the way, I failed (as I expected). Only managed 5 pull-ups instead of the 6 required to pass. Not that it matters since I have plans to retake even if I had passed as I want to get a silver.

Anyway, I have a new ache - this one caused by my new wisdom tooth...

There's a numbing pain that is downright distracting and getting unbearable by the minute. Wonder what time the dental clinic opens.

Will I be able to sleep tonight?

Detached...

School's bustling with excitement, with the CCA bazaar, students-organised games and other activities, food fair, etc. Indeed, SIM seems more like a fair this week, replete with life and energy. Everyone seemed so happy...

I feel so out of place. All this gaiety surrounding me only serves to intensify my uncertainties and confusion. What is the right balance?



Seeking...

Answers...

Seeking...

Assurance...



Sigh... Assurance... How ironic...

What should I do tomorrow?

Teachers' Day

Today, we had our last session of Read-With-Me for this term. Jia Yu was his usual wretched self...but a tad more destructive. Twice he grabbed and crushed Aaron's song sheet. Thankfully, Aaron was more bemused than upset.

I worked with Wei Ming for the first time today. His situation was worse than I expected. He could hardly speak(or perhaps he was just afraid/reluctant to speak?), and his ability to comprehend instructions and questions was barely enough for him to learn from the session. Besides that, he was largely anti-social, refusing to share his puzzles with others... If only I had more knowledge for helping such underpriviledged children.

Joven has been a good student generally, interactive and easy to teach. I'm sure he would have a smooth transition to Primary 1. I'll definitely miss him, the way I'm missing Rong Zhuo and Chao Yuan. I'm sure they are coping well.

The Teachers' Day present this year is rather useless to me, and is now lying in the cupboard next to last year's Teachers' Day gift. I like the accompanying Delifrance peach tart though...

Looking forward to the trip to the fire station...




Missing: All those teachers who have made an impact in my life.
Sorely missing: Mrs Jennifer Lee and Ye lao shi (aka Mrs Tan Mui Luan).

POSB Community Service Day

I did not sign up for this year's Army Half Marathon.
I thought I would be able to sleep in as a result.
Until...

I signed up for a morning with the animals at the Singapore Zoo.

It was a trip to the zoo for students from Student Care Services (SCS), organised by title sponser, POSB. I got the chance to join as a volunteer at the Hougang branch of SCS.

It was tough waking up at 6+ in the morning so that I could reach Hougang SCS by 7. I was late; but then again, only Xin Hui was on time... Haha...

It was tough trying to organise a roomful of screaming kids into the four groups they were pre-allocated for attendance-taking and distribution of group identification stickers and event T-shirts. We only managed to depart at 08:15am after settling the above tasks and other miscellaneous stuff such as getting the kids to change into the T-shirts, etc... Our speed was pretty OK until you consider that we had planned to leave at 07:30am. Some kids started complaining as a result.

The trip was pretty uneventful, in a negative way. The highlight was probably the magic show by 'Danny the Magic Prince'. We did not see a lot of animals as the planned route was pretty short.

Overall, there were a few things that stood out(for me):
1. There was this wolf which kept pacing up and down in its relatively small enclosure and it seemed to be in distraught.
2. There were so many free goodies in the TWO goodies bags given. Too much of a good thing can be bad. We ended up with many dimunitive kids carrying bags which even I think is heavy.
3. I thought there was too much POSB propaganda going on during the event.
4. The emcee keeps speaking in English that is too good for the children to understand. I'm not sure some of the children know what a 'washroom' is... And since the event was organised for the kids, it makes sense to speak at a level that is comfortable to them, not the adult volunteers.

Oh dear... I'm really tired... I was typing a load of gibberish which I've deleted, of course...

Good Night!

Two weeks of blur-ness

There's been so much going on in the past two weeks... I can hardly catch my breath. As such, all entires from today onwards till at least the end of this month will be kept brief, while I try to catch my breath. And some much-needed rest.

The lack of rest is probably the main reason for the numerous silly mistakes I've been making lately, and it's been such a hassle trying to correct the errors. I really do not have much spare time left for such ineffective use of time. Then again, I'm blogging now, and Peter will probably categorise this under his list of time-wasting activities... Haha...

Recent results have been pretty encouraging, though disappointments are still common. It's downright frustrating when people portray untrue interest, raising your hopes to the sky, only for you to fall flat on your face, wondering why you have been such a fool, when you realise the deceit. Or how about those people who proclaim interest, yet seem to treat their phones as fashionable accessories and nothing more since their phones seemed to be off 23hrs and 58mins everyday. Then there are those whom I maintain the hope of hearing their wonderful voices because their phones seem to be on 24hrs a day. The only problem with such species is that half the time, the line is engaged; the rest of the time, no one answers the phone.

I need just one lucky minute everyday to more than double my appointment count for next week.

I wonder if that nice lady I met at Woodlands last week is still awake. I've never tried calling at 1:36am...

Personality test - http://www.quizbox.com/personality/test82.aspx

Taken from Cher's blog...

Get to know yourself better

Your view on yourself:You are down-to-earth and people like you because you are so straightforward. You are an efficient problem solver because you will listen to both sides of an argument before making a decision that usually appeals to both parties.

The type of girlfriend/boyfriend you are looking for:You are a true romantic. When you are in love, you will do anything and everything to keep your love true.

Your readiness to commit to a relationship:You are ready to commit as soon as you meet the right person. And you believe you will pretty much know as soon as you might that person.

The seriousness of your love:You are very serious about relationships and aren't interested in wasting time with people you don't really like. If you meet the right person, you will fall deeply and beautifully in love.

Your views on educationEducation is very important in life. You want to study hard and learn as much as you can.

The right job for you:You're a practical person and will choose a secure job with a steady income. Knowing what you like to do is important. Find a regular job doing just that and you'll be set for life.

How do you view success:You are afraid of failure and scared to have a go at the career you would like to have in case you don't succeed. Don't give up when you haven't yet even started! Be courageous.

What are you most afraid of:You are concerned about your image and the way others see you. This means that you try very hard to be accepted by other people. It's time for you to believe in who you are, not what you wear.

Who is your true self:You are mature, reasonable, honest and give good advice. People ask for your comments on all sorts of different issues. Sometimes you might find yourself in a dilemma when trapped with a problem, which your heart rather than your head needs to solve.

Confused

What would it be like if humans are more simple-minded? Perhaps intelligence is the biggest bane of all? Maybe the world as we know it and live in is just an illusion? Possibly all that we see, smell, hear, and feel is just a massive dream?

Could it be that, nothing really matters?

I don't know.

I'm still dreaming, running, chasing after all that little spots of light in this foggy cave.

Will I get there?





Or will they get me?

Blur queen

My manager can be really blur at times. Scaringly blur.

She was giving me a ride home earlier after a coaching session at AMK. Having stopped at a traffic junction, she inexplicably started moving off even though the lights were still red. And she wasn't trying to beat the red light - she drove across the junction at not more than 30km/hr!

Apparently, she thought the light had turned green. I thought she was possessed. The other drivers at the junction probably thought she was mad. The way she drove across, you would think the road was owned by her grandpa. Thankfully there were no cars driving in the perpendicular passageways.

Her other blur moments - such as fixing appointments at the same time, same day; forgetting to inform us of important news - seem so trivial in comparison.

Did she extend her 'license to be blur' without informing us?

I would not be surprised.

P.S. My manager is a very nice lady. Her occasional inexplicable acts and amnesia is probably the result of a tired brain.

13/07/07

Friday the 13th was a very memorable day.

It was the first time I see so much smoke in my house. The neighbours probably thought my house was on fire.

It was also the first time I see charred baos.

Basically, I set the oven for three minutes when one minute would have suffice, according to mum. The two buns were still simmering when I opened the oven door. And the smoke would continue to permeate the house for the rest of the day and the next.

I was only partially successful in removing the stubborn stains that had resulted from the catastrophy. The interiors of the microwave oven remained yellowish despite half an hour of wiping with detergent.

And to think I was the one who taught mum how to use the microwave - through my own understanding of the icons since the manual was not very helpful.

Friday the 13th was a very memorable day.

I'm Back!

Wow! I had so much fun! Peiling should have joined Jack Neo's J-Team. She could be the queen of humour in Singapore with her super comedic performance in the skit. Ren Cheng's turn as Michelle the sister with the split personality was hilarious as well, not due to the acting but more because of the overall appearance and unintended wardrobe malfunction. Haha! What a night, and how close we were from a prize - only 8 points away from 3rd place...

Food wasn't always up to expectation. While it was satisfactory or better on most occasions, lunch never fail to disappoint. Thankfully, there's always fresh, juicy fruits (watermelon, pineapple, honeydew) and cakes to fall back on. Lunch on Day 2 was the worse; the baffling thing was how they served crispy fried chicken wings for afternoon tea break. I thought if they had served that earlier, I would have eaten more at lunch...

Gillain is such an amazing lady. She must be incredibly motivated to be able to maintain such high standards for so many years. Compared to her performance, my targets seemed like a joke. Still, as Sherlyn says, I'm just putting unnecessary pressure on myself with such unrealistic comparisons. Afterall, she's very experienced and I've just started not long ago. I guess everyone's got his own race to run, and we should concentrate on completing it. When others run a better race than us, we should congratulate them and carry on our own race. We should not be discouraged by our relative lack of achievement and give up. Everyone has different abilities and what is most important is that we put in full effort in achieving our own goals. I wonder if I can reach my goal?

Ren Cheng surprised me when he mentioned about his family problems. It seems like many of the people in the organisation came from broken families. I feel so fortunate to still have my parents around. It's a blessing.

Marriage

Hmmm... Just found out ZH is married. While still in uni. And he's only 23. Wow...

It must be cool to introduce your wife to your friends in school.

Makes me wonder how old I'll be when I get married. If I get married. I've been single all my life and I've never really felt uncomfortable about it. There have been times when I've been filled with envy looking at loving couples, but I never really felt the urge to find a girlfriend. I prefer to have things happen naturally, and besides, I'm not financially ready for such commitments.

But sometimes I do wonder whether I've been true to myself. Perhaps my financial status is just an excuse. Perhaps I'm just too indecisive. Or too shy. Or a commitment-phobe.

I don't know. Maybe it's because I'm just so unsure of myself now, what I really want to do, that I avoid pondering things that would add to my confusion.

Perhaps, perhaps...

Perhaps one day I would be there. I could volunteer at the old folks' home one day, play chess the other, and crap along with friends, old and new, the other days. I would have the ideal wife, a companion who would share all my joys, everyday. I've applied for a ticket to Utopia, but when would I have the wealth to travel there? Perhaps I should wake up first and think about it another day...

A great week ahead?

A weekend of welcomed rest, free from work.
Frustrations from knowing that the end of the week is here, that I have once again performed below expectations.
Apprehension at having to present lacklustre results and having to hear of impressive performances by others.
Excitement at the prospect of going to an exciting (that's what they all say) event, the same dreaded event mentioned above.
A better week ahead?

I WANT MY REIMBURSEMENT !!!

Perhaps the goal-setting session would provide the spark I need.

To Batam. To success.

Is my degree recognised?

Just read the latest entry on Wei Ren's blog(OK... So it has been there for a few days already...). I agree with most of his points regarding my UOL degree, but I believe a 2nd upper or 1st class honours degree from the UOL-external programme is worth more than he suggested. From what I've heard, a 2nd upper or 1st class degree gives a reasonable chance of getting into an MNC against competition from NUS, NTU and SMU graduates with relevant degrees, while the civil service tends to prefer graduates from the three local universities. Well, it's all talk from the grapevine, and I can only hope my sources are reliable. Haha... In any case, it's not that relevant in my current job, and if I stay at it (hopefully), I won't have to worry about the recognition given to my degree.

Of course that does not mean I can slack and be satisfied with a 3rd class or 2nd lower. In fact, I'm looking forward to the new term.

Hopefully by that time, I would have decided whether to disrupt from my NS liabilities. What a bother!

Relieved --> Stressed

Finally closed my first case yesterday. Not ecstatic though; just relieved that I finally cleared the first hurdle, especially since I would not have succeeded without Alfred's help.

I'm tired. Looking forward to a relaxing session at Batam. Hope it's not too stressful...

I think I've stepped on someone toes. Did I misinterprete her views, or did she misunderstand me? Or maybe it's just her not being in the mood to entertain others, as she suggested? She told me not to worry when I asked if she was offended, but after reading her blog entry, I'm not so sure. Perhaps she is not offended, but just VERY annoyed? Or maybe she's referring to someone else?

I really should stop second-guessing others, before people get so frustrated that they give up trying to explain how they feel and any misunderstanding deepens into a chasm...

Hiaz... Now I don't dare to talk to her in case she's really referring to me. In which case I would be bugging her again. Perhaps I can try to clear my doubts after the trip...

Why am I so affected by how people feel about me? Arghhhh!!! :-(

Small Singapore, large Chinese population

Met many friends over the past few days, hoping to meet more. There are some people I really hope to meet, especially Bert, who is forever cocooned in his world of music.

It shouldn't be too difficult, since Singapore is so small. To think that the owner of a used-to-be-irritating maltese is now my colleague. And I didn't even recognise him at first. Wonder what's next. Perhaps one day I will realise that my neighbour is my manager's relative, or my dad's colleague is my friend's mum. Haha...

One final observation: there are A LOT of Chinese (as in Chinese nationals, aka China people - hope this doesn't sound offensive) in Singapore. Although official statistics puts the figure at a few hundred thousands(i think it's less than 500k), it seems like a million to me. Maybe one day there will be more Chinese from China than Singapore, in our homeland. Haha...

My prediction: In year 2100, there will be 5 official races in Singapore - Chinese, Malay, Indian, Eurasian and Chinese PR. Haha...

Whatever the case, peace and harmony is the most important. We shall remain as one people, one nation, one Singapore!!! (perhaps I'll get a National Day award for this show of patriotism)

When can I rest? But I've only just started...

I'm so tired...

After a week of intensive training and some less stressful mental exertions, I'm finally ready to start work. Sort of. Still got a lot to learn actually. And a lot of sleep debt to 'clear'.

In short, I'm now a somnambulistic entity with an engorged brain, aching back and numb legs.

Hope AMK will yield better returns. May I be blessed with helpful souls who will in turn get to benefit from my service. I believe the liars at Bukit Batok today are an anomaly (I hope).

~Alas! The world is ridden with deceit. Pragmatism rules over conscience! I shall attempt to resist the devastating plague. No filling of resume with blatant lies or avoiding people doing survey with chants of " I'm busy ", only to be seen loitering in the area for the subsequent hour.~

'07 Exams - Part 2 : Temporary freedom from academic imprisonment

Holidays...somehow it does not feel very different from the exam period. I guess this means I could (and should) have studied harder. Whatever. It's too late now.

PBF was not quite up to expectations. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for that all-important 'A'. Then again, it's not quite realistic to keep my fingers crossed for the next few months. Perhaps I should find some four-leaf clovers.

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There was a fire in a flat in the opposite block on Sunday. I was not aware of it even though my room was facing that flat. Somehow I managed to smell the smoke only when my mum alerted me to it - a case of delayed reaction? Rushing to the windows, I saw that a crowd had gathered below, looking up at the billowing smoke. Some were taking photos - perhaps to send to STomp? I took shots with my phone's camera, but they were rather blur. Too bad, no pictures for this kay poh...

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Was at AMK Central today. AMK Hub was so different from the last time I went there, when occupancy was barely 50%. Now it seems like a fusion of J8 and TPY bus interchange.

The other areas of AMK Central was much quieter than my last visit, which was not at all surprising. The inexorable invasion of malls into the heartlands is undeniably detrimental to the neighbourhood shops, but there can only be sympathy for these legacies from a period of lower population. The space crunch and the general(younger) population's preference for a 'all-in-one' concept will eventually result in the decimation of most neighbourhood shops - or at least those in town centre... (I'm not quite sure where this is heading, so let's change the topic)

Anyway, I met quite a few old friends today: Yin Lin, Shawn, and of course, Peng Fei. I met Peng Fei at the bus interchange while waiting for the same bus. Apparently, he was having nights off, and was going back to camp after buying a $5 pillow. Good investment I suppose, but not absolutely necessary. Afterall, I spent many months with mouldy pillows in the army, and my head's fine! Other than the occasional itch, but I doubt it has anything to do with the pillows. I believe they are usable as long as you wash the cover regularly. Besides, he's only got 5 more months to go.

I found out he is in my former camp, but different unit. Chatting with him about camp brought back so many memories of that quaint settlement of British legacy - an ancient civilisation sheltered by lush greenery from towering HDB flats a few kilometres away. An interesting milieu indeed!

Oh, I also met Mediacorp actress, Carole Lin. Looks pretty much the same in real life...

'07 Exams - Part 1

During the exams...

Econs and Stats were terrible. Thanks to a serving of contaminated curry, I was plagued by diarrhoea throughout the two days. I ended up in the toilet for 10mins on each day, during my exam. I did not manage to finish either paper, although the toilet trip was not the main reason. I was too slow in a relatively easy Econs paper, while the Stats paper was truly a monster. The most of the supposely easy questions require either lots of critical thinking or tedious workings, while the tougher questions were allocated huge chunks of marks. It did not help that Section A was a real killer, and following the examiner's advice of doing Section A first(she said we should do it first because it is easier), I was depleted of time and energy by the time I reached the relatively easier Section B. She probably found it funny to award four measly marks to the calculation of mean, median, range and interquartile range of 12 numbers! In my opinion, the interquartile range alone is worth four marks.

Maths was better, but not as good as I had hoped for. Given my poor performance for Stats, I figured I would need at least 90 for Maths to achieve an A for Maths/Stats (they have to be combined as each is a half-unit). No joy there, unfortunately. Still, I should get A for Maths...


Outside the exam hall...

I met Alvin outside Expo MRT after my Econs paper, and he almost did not recognise me. He is working for Kaplan, and was giving out brochures for ACCA courses, specifically targeted at UOL students. I was not interested in the courses, but the free pen was good. Haha..

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Last Saturday was a warm day. I was trying hard to keep my eyes open while reading the papers when I received a dreaded call.

"...You have been mobilised..."

It sparked a flurry of calls and SMSes to friends to find out what I was supposed to bring when reporting. No one knew. There was also no relevant information on the NS website, and no one answered the phone at the admin centre. I even made a call to BMTC School 1 by accident.

Turns out we only had to report in our uniform. Thankfully, with advice from my father, I did not bring too much unnecessary stuff, unlike some of my friends. It was nice to meet up with friends and catch up with one another, if not for the fact I was in the midst of my exam...

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On Monday afternoon, I watched Spiderman 3 with Kang, after my Maths paper. I thought it was pretty good, though there were too many elements in the show. Sam Raimi tried to do too much, which resulted in the movie flitting from one scene to another. There were also some minor inaccuracies that Spiderman fans would not be too thrilled about. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the spectacular fighting scenes and the touching moments, especially the one near the end where Harry and Peter became friends again and fought Venom and Sandman to save Mary Jane.

Pre-exam

Hiaz... One weekend in Gentings and I chalked up an excess $25 in my phone bill. What really surprised me though, was how I had to pay more for the incoming calls. Since mum kept calling me to ask about JY, who's almost always ignorant of her calls, I ended up with the biggest bill in the house, even though my usage was the least...

Just found out yesterday that Cher is on holidays in Hong Kong and parts of China. Through SMS. I wonder how much the 4 SMS (2 sent, 2 received) will cost me. Or my dad, rather.

Recent news mentioned the use of dry walls in the wake of Indonesia's sand ban and the resulting sand crisis. Apparently, the walls can resist fire for an hour and every point of the wall can withstand 25kg of pressure. Wonder how the walls perform with 25kg of pressure at a point in a fire...

Then there's Mr 'Newsoil', who found a way to build roads using soil with special chemicals added. I thought that was pretty cool!

There's also the Bring Your Own Bag Day (BYOBD), which has seen total participation from Ikea from Earth Day onwards, as opposed to having it only on the 1st Wednesday of every month. I was intrigued by the oxo-biodegradable plastic bags they use. Apparently they biodegrade under room condition, which I suppose, means that they biodegrade in air. I wonder what they biodegrade into...

Exams are round the corner - literally. Econs paper falls on next Wednesday! Excited at the prospect of having my exams at Expo (a totally new experience!), yet nervous about my 1st actual exam in a long time...

Hope I do well.

Murphy's Law

Today, I would like to give a little illustration of the presence of Murphy’s Law in my life. From my observations, you should be able to sense my frustrations at the unwelcome coincidences. I will add more case studies should I come across them.

Case 1

Background:
Whenever I take bus 74 home from school, there are two bus stops which I may alight from, to transfer to a feeder bus to get home. The first stop requires me to cross a short stretch of road, whereas the second stop necessitates the crossing of an overhead bridge. However, there are two buses that I can transfer to at the second stop(119 and 136), compared to only one(119) at the first stop.

Murphy’s Law comes into play…
Often, when I alight at the first stop, 119 take ages to arrive (typically 15mins and above). On the other hand, if I decide to alight at the second stop, 119 will appear just after my bus leaves the first stop. I will then end up watching the sun go down while waiting for 15mins or more at the second stop. On a few occasions, I watched 119 go pass as my bus leaves the first stop, only to wait for 20mins before boarding 119 at the second stop. The 136 driver probably had to make a detour to the toilet on those occasions.


Case 2

Background:
There is this road that I have to cross whenever I have to go to the mall near my house. I almost always cross at the traffic junction (because I am a law-abiding citizen. Haha!).

Murphy’s Law comes into play…
From my experience, the pedestrian lights are only in my favour on three occasions out of every 10 trips I make. (I include favourable light changes within ten seconds of arrival)

First World Hotel stinks!

I probably lost 5 years of my life from all that smoke inhaled. But I’ll come back to that later.

I travelled to Genting Highlands over the Good Friday weekend via coach. By Five Stars Tours Pte Ltd. On a 1st Class coach.

It was a truly enjoyable ride. My seat seemed to be able to accommodate two of me, and there was a wide choice of (Nintendo-typed)games and videos to choose from. And since we traveled on Thursday night, it was nice to be able to catch forty winks on a reclining seat that opens to 150 degrees (I think). Pity the thigh massager in my seat wasn’t functioning, otherwise I could have a complete massage. I never thought I would be able to enjoy such VIP treatment (though apparently, they offer all the above, complemented by in-bus stewardess to provide refreshments; ironically, their VIP coaches are one rung below the 1st Class coaches).

We had a very fast and efficient driver who got us to First World Hotel in less than four hours, excluding a half hour stop in Yong Peng for toilet break and refreshments. It was surprising to learn that the hotel holds the Guiness World Record for the most number of hotel rooms. Another surprise was meeting Meng Keong at the lobby. The poor guy had to wait in queue for his room while I was able to check in straight away, having paid a little more in booking fees.
The hotel is pretty huge, and it takes quite a while to orientate myself around the myriad of shops. There is a good mix of retail, F&B, and entertainment outlets around, on top of the usual outdoor theme park, but there is a dearth of signage and directories. I missed out on some indoor rides, as I was not able to locate them on the first day, when I got a day pass for unlimited rides. I was also disappointed with the exorbitant fees for the LAN shops. 12RM an hour would have provided me with six times as much entertainment in Singapore! The pool/billiard and bowling are set at decent prices though, at 12RM per hour and 6RM per game respectively. Watching a movie costs only 10RM, but tickets to Mr Bean’s Holiday were sold out when I wanted to watch it.

The trip was generally fun, but it would have been better if smoking were not allowed in the hotel. I had thought the casino would be the only haven for smokers – how wrong I was to be. Whether one is in the toilet, in the lift, queuing for tickets or taking photos with the mock Statue of Liberty, there’s just no escaping the smoke. Even in the few areas where smoking is banned, regulation is lax. The no-smoking signs did not stop smokers in the billiard shop; neither did the counter girl, who probably has eyes on her feet, and nose in her hair. Similarly, signs that restrict smoking in the hotel passageways were ignored. I was not surprised though; nobody would be. Not when you provide rubbish bins with ashtrays on the lift landings of every floor! So what if you have an anti-smoking sign above the bin?

I’m glad Singapore is largely smoke-free.


Another surprise was the great disparity in cigarette prices compared to Singapore. While cigarettes in Singapore typically cost S$10 – S$11 per pack, in Malaysia, they only cost around RM$7! I know our cigarette tax is huge, but it is only now that I realise how significant it is.

Help! Help! My house is 'falling'!

Maybe it's time to move.

Over the past few weeks, various accessories in my house has started to break down - both metaphorically and literally. Apart from the leather sofa where the split has been widening for two years now, there's also the cranky printer, telephones, washing machine that broke down, the leaking kitchen sink. I've seen all those before, so I wasn't surprised(esp. since we've been here for almost 10 years). What surprised me was the toilet tap which broke! I was the one who broke it by the way, though I'm pretty sure it was not because of any giant strength that I gained.

As a result of the broken tap, I was greatly inconvenienced in my daily teeth-brushing and face-washing. For almost a week in fact - because my dad decided to wait till weekend when he's free to get a new tap. Speaking of taps, I wonder what happend to the golden taps in Durai's ex-office. Are they still there?

Had stats revision lecture today. Got back my prelim exam script - I passed on the dot with 34. Hiaz... Was expecting a little more, but well, at least I passed. The UOL lecturer spoke slowly and gave lots of long breaks. Kind of similar to Raymond Teo. Is that the trademark of stats lecturers? Lecturers for other subjects are always speaking much faster, yet they struggle to complete their lesson on time. The stats lecturers, on the other hand, seem to have the best job in SIM.

Maybe I should become a stats lecturer in SIM when I graduate.

Chinese New Year '07!

This Chinese New Year will be remembered for the pretty large 'takings' this year, partly due to Aunt Kelly giving a huge ang pow as a make-up present for my 21st birthday(last Nov), which she missed as she was overseas. It will also be remembered for the frequent toilet trips from day 2 to day 4, probably due to incompletely-cooked food during the steamboat dinners. It was really terrible and my legs were totally weak after spending about 2.5-3hrs everyday in the toilet during that period. That was hell!

I went back to Cat High last Thursday with Wei Yan and Wei Cheng. It's been a long time since I last went back and the school was so different! I was finally able to review the result of all those years of fundraising. (As usual, I was not able to enjoy the new facilities which I had contributed to...)

The school was rather quiet when we reached minutes before 2pm. It turned out they had a celebration that day for the fantastice 'O' levels results for the batch of '06. Cai lao shi did not make his way back to school, but we were at least able to meet Mrs Anna Tan, and a couple of other teachers. Mr Edwin Heng and Mrs Angeline Wong had gained weight and looked rather hagard; Mrs Tan, on the other hand, looked the same as the day I left. We were amazed as she told us the results: Mean L1R5 aggregate of 9.5 and 98% distinction for E Maths! All 111 students of hers clinched distinction for E Maths. Wow! Perhaps from this year onwards, Cat High will be able to entrenched itself in Band 1 of the school rankings.

Econs Prelim is coming up this Wednesday, and the remaining papers will follow in April. Hope I will be able to do well. And now, back to my revision!

Two weeks plus of hiatus...

Hey! Hey! My first blog of February and second (only) of the year... I've been REALLY lazy in the past few weeks and too engrossed with DOTA. Must stop that... Exams are coming...

Anyway, just a brief recap:

1. I finally passed my driving test last Thursday! :-) That was a relief! I've spent so much time and money. I didn't drive well that day though, and was lucky to have a SUPER GOOD tester who gave lots of chances... Maybe the prayers worked this time?

2. Mum started spring cleaning a few weeks ago, the result being piles of books / clothes / dishes / etc on the floor everyday as she cleans one cupboard a day. Actually, not exactly everyday. On some days, certain rooms will be missing the curtains as they too, get a major wash after months of service. I think she's been making good progress, though she keeps saying she doesn't have enough time. I was not idle either; I've been helping out with the folding and ironing of clothes!

3. Xiao Han went to Sweden last Tuesday for an overseas immersion programme. I'm excited to hear about her experiences. Wonder if she will be any different when she comes back half a year later...

4. There's been so much going on in the world. From floods in the Sahara Desert and blooming flowers in winter in USA, to discussions and evaluation of the war against Islamic terrorists and Bush's actions (leading to talks of the enemy at home - Bush - being more dangerous than the enemy of the world - the terrorists: Check out The Enemy At Home (Doubleday), by Dinesh D'Souza, an Indian national now based in the USA), to the execution of Saddam Hussein. Back home, there's that political conflict with Thailand due to the informal meeting with Thaksin, which has resulted in some Thais burning an effigy of DPM Wong Kan Seng outside the Singapore Ambassy in Thailand(Why him?). Then two nights ago, there was that controversial penalty in the 82nd minute against Thailand in the Asean Cup, which resulted in the Thai players leaving the field in protest, before the match was resumed nearly 15mins later. (For the record, Def-midfielder, Mustafic Fadruddin scored the penalty to give Singapore a 2-1 victory) The second leg in Thailand will definitely be exciting and explosive. I just hope the Singapore players and fans will return safely.

Hopefully, from now on, I will be able to convince myself to blog more regularly. Lastly, may the world be blessed with peace!

2007 !!!

My first blog of the new year! Hmm... Haven't been bloggin for the past week. This time though, it's not because of the brat, but due to my own laziness. Haha! Anyway, now that the school term has started, there's no way he can monopolise the computer, which is good for everyone, including him. It's especially good this week, since he's away to OBS for five days!

So many changes in this new year. Wei Yang and Wei Tong have moved on to secondary education, my 2nd maternal uncle is moving house to Sengkang this Thursday, and of course, Parry has officially merged with Xing Hua.

Hopefully, I'll be blessed with positive changes!