The Wonders of BTC

Not the food! Although a dear friend of mine claims that she misses it, I still the food isn't as good as one would expect from a school canteen. There's only one decent stall out of seven! Not to mention the exorbitant prices but those rich kids have cash to burn so no one's complaining :S.

Otherwise, one cannot help but marvel at how the pool table, the gym and the study rooms are so close to each other. Plus a club room to play cards in. Now that's what I call seamless transition from work to play ;), all within the confines of school!

What a weekend!

And it was spent on night cycling and on a nice dinner hosted by encik at his house. I must say that this night cycling event was interesting and full of thrills. It is amazing how we managed to navigate our way from East Coast all the way to Vivocity and back again in record time, all on the back of a local street directory. Considering that this was the first time, our goals were pretty ambitious and I must say it was a good night spent. For those who know me, I pretty much refrain from overnight activities unless absolutely necessary =P.

Otherwise, the gathering at encik's house tonight brought back many memories of yore. Although only mon, alex, dl and shawn turned up (among the nsfs), we had a great time talking about the good old times and all those stupid things that we did last time. Strangely, it is almost a year since I orded. I do miss those days at company line and would very much like to return there to take a look at the buildings and rooms that contain so much memory. I've had a very fulfilling NS experience, and made many good friends (for life) along the way. Till next year then =D. And the food rocks.

Indeed, last week has been momentous. With the passing of the week, tensions have been eased, problems solved, and life in general has been nothing short of blissful. I've never felt so free and uncontrained as of late. Next up, I shall save up for a good camera and explore Singapore in the shoes of a tourist! Imagine being a tourist in your own homeland--how eye opening would that be! Till next time then ;)

Ah, this will be a momentous week. =)

Stop, Go. Smell the roses.

The lure of the wilderness claims us again! Ok not quite the wilderness, but the great park connectors in the East. You get the drift. Some like minded friends finally get together today for a spin on the newly minted tracks around the East. Ah how I love the rush of adrenaline that accompanies a downhill sprint, the wind that rushes through your hair, the colors that rush by you and the general feeling of being detached from the manic rush to mug. It's wonderful to just, for that few hours or so, not worry about impending deadlines or other committments. It's refreshing, to say the least.

Changi park was simply breathtaking. For want of pictures (because the batteries died), it sufficed to say that I felt like Frodo exploring some unknown woodlands, well besides the lack of a clear path and a bike =P. But there are somethings that one has to experience on his/her own to fully grasp the beauty of Nature in its entirety. Words won't and can't do justice to it. While we cannot change the fact that life will be full of committments, we can, even for a short while, allow ourselves to explore the paths less trodden and to lose ourselves in the process.

Peregrinations...

Finally! A break in the skies after almost 2 weeks (yes I counted) of rain and general bleakness. Time to bring the bike out for a spin!

A few things that I noticed:
1) Air actually costs money-- It costs 50cents to pump air into bike tyres.
2) People indeed do walk with their eyes closed =_=
3) Some rollerbladers can be pretty fast.
4) Cable Skiing looks incredibly enjoyable but resembles a treadmill.


Click photo to link to album

I remember when sports shoes were not allowed as footwear.
I remember Tooh Fee San.
I remember when I could buy fried chicken and snacks from the old hostel.
I remember a 25 minute break and a next to useless 10 minute break.
I remember sneaking into my friends' hostel rooms.
I remember Saturday morning jogs.
I remember credit points, project work and exemptions.
I remember singing 'Let's Be' and that '彬彬有礼' song during weekly assemblies.
I remember 4 years of Track and Field finals without once actually being in the grand stands (thanks to SJI).
I remember calligraphy lessons in Sec 2.
I remember 'Use Your Hands' activities.
I remember reading all the TinTin and Garfield comics in the library.
I remember Gopal.
I remember 66, 67, 74, 151, 154, 156, 157, 170, 171, 174, 852 & 961.
I remember Coro and KAP.
I remember the wind that passes through the Tower Block classrooms.
I remember going up the clock tower twice.
I remember the 80th anniversary celebrations.
I remember 4 great years of my life.

Saw this on the CHS fb group. Poignant man... and yes I do remember everything..

And it's the time of the night again for quiet reflection and contemplation. I can't help but allow this thought to intrude every time I think about it. Hope presents itself in the murkiest depths.


Just another fairytale then?

A photo a day to chronicle one's life is really poignant.

One guy managed it, till the day he died.

http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/15131

On the Job

This is interesting. I just happened to look into detail my marking allotment and *gasp* I found out that I have to mark all the part 1 Situational Writing (sec 1 NA) and the entire sec 3 (minus technical, of which there are only 2 -_-) comprehensions.

=X
><
=S

Money doesn't come easy nowadays!

Ah, it's been some time! I'm pretty much settled into a 'half-day' work day lol, and what more can I ask for? I just don't see the point in working till 9pm daily, or even to put in overnight OT (yes overtime done in the wee hours, as our dear PS will attest to). Initially, I dreaded the thought of taking classes but I became very comfortable after just one week. Still, it's more an issue of controlling the crowd than to actually educate those 'kids'. Still, it is heartening when you see students who actually have the desire to learn and who will ask you for help. They will be those who pay attention and who will ask questions, however stupid those questions may be=P. And then, there'll always be those who are, well, visibly absent. *winks*

A PET scan costs 2k! Mmhmz..But some expenses are necessary

Of late, I've been very callous and unthoughtful when it comes to my deeds and words. There are so many pieces lying around that it's really hard for me to even decide on which will be the best way to start mending things. There'll be a good time to start, hopefully.

.A vortex of emotions that runs the gamut.

Thoughts

I attended the first session of the Alpha course yesterday, and I'll definitely be looking forward to the next session. The speaker in the video presentation talked about how certain people lived for the future, and who were continually on the search for things to look forward to, such as a promotion or a new job. However, twenty years down the road, they were still searching for a particular something to fill a void in their lives. When they opened up to the faith, they finally found, at last, what they were looking for! It was this spiritual need and hunger that had gnawed at them in the past, and they sought to fulfill this using other distractions, which ultimately proved to be futile.
I need to understand some actions and things. By the way I feel peaceful whenever I enter the church of the HT. It's a feeling of calmness that fills me as I walk around and explore the surroundings. Hmmm..

the little wonders of a Sunday morning

Indeed! To think that after my after my apocalyptic and unnecessarily violent dream last night, my day wouldn't be that good, but it turned out otherwise! I met Alex (who was as usual late -_-) for mass at 9.30am. It was pretty good and the Alpha posters piqued my interest. Guess I'll just pop by the first session this Wednesday =). Having been to Jerusalem for a 2 week pilgrimage in December, he told me about the Jews and how they don't seem to believe in Jesus even though they were supposedly God's chosen ones. It must have been an eye opener to retrace the route Moses took when he led the exodus out of Egypt, on top of visiting all the other religious sites.

Meanwhile, a copy of Gaiman's Fragile Things now graces my table! I'd always wanted to read his works after hearing about it from a friend, but was always unable to find it at the library. When I browsed through the shelves today, I found not only 4 of his works, but also an illustrated copy of the Sandman lol. However, that would have to wait >.<.
Interestingly, I've also discovered that NTUC is now selling wholegrain bread under its own inhouse brand, which is indeed good news for the wallet!
Tis' has indeed been a fruitful morning =). Onwards to invigilating those little devils on Monday.

Reality gnaws at me. Onwards to a new job!

Sometimes, I feel like I'm grasping at air, when all the while I've been trying to reach for something concrete..

Ah come this Wednesday, the other half of the Flunk 4 will ORD! I still remembered the day I turned operational. The very last time I stepped out of my bunk was as surreal as it could get. With the soft orange light of the evening slowly filling every nook and cranny of the bunk with it's empty cupboards, I suddenly thought, "oh boy, I could miss this!". And "this" meant all the late night map doctoring on the eve of missions, with equipment strewn all over the floor as we prepared with whatever little time we had. "this" could also mean the pillow talk -_- I had with my fellow bunk mates, which comprised largely of gossip more than important matters lol. "this" could also mean the late night supper sessions that we had after returning from outfield, or the ridiculously stupid and inefficient army system. LOL.

Come to think of it, of the 13 guys in my class, only Cheng, Glendon and I were thrown into frontline combat positions. I just feel it's somewhat an achievement not to have given in to the stress or the myriad injuries and get downgraded as a result. Of course if one is really stricken with injuries one would be an idiot not to get downgraded. *shrugs*

Not that I will miss those bittersweet days though. It's time to move on.

Why is that everyone seems to want to cut their hair during cny. :S

Perhaps certain chance events of late are serendipitous. Lol.