Tuesday, May 30, 2006 | 5:40 AM

I just had to put this up. I cant believe this.. thing.. here can be so scary and cute at the same time. And apparently it was on the vegetables (before they were washed and cooked) for dinner tonight. Eeeww.

By the way, in case you cant tell, this is a snail. Albeit a tiny and kinda cute one. Look, scarier and more disgusting than kids!! Now how often can you find things like that?

Apparently 3.2 MP is more than enough to capture the image. The details are freaking me out. I am off to do the testimonials now.

*takes a look at snail and flees*

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| 5:09 AM

It has been a loonng trip.

The public holiday probably ended on Saturday, but you know the things with holidays. Sometimes traffic jams happen or you get distracted by roadside stalls, or some accidents happen, or you stop for a breather so you wont fall asleep and crash into a signpost later.

These little kinds of things that make you late for work on Monday and stuff because you return too late home to unpack and stuff on Sunday.

But you know what, it feels great to be home, no matter that you stumbled unglamorously through the door, bedraggled hair, crumpled clothes from siting in one position too long, carrying all those knick knacks you picked up along the way, those dirty laundry strewn about in your luggage case along with all those toiletries you stole from the hotels along the way.

So you return home back to the grind of daily life, memories of all the wonderful sights of nature you saw, all traces of warm laughter you heard, all the not very happy thoughts you had when you puked your guts out by a roadside foodstall, all money spent on coffee for the corrupted, all of these and more fading away as you, with a sigh, surveyed the 1 nanometer thick layer of dust over your furniture and examine your wilting plants.

And by the time you reach your office, and was sitting beside a huge stack of work on your desk, you put your hands behind your head and...

You think about holidays in general, about how happy and fun and relaxed they all are, and laugh at those little misadventures you had.

And dream about the next holidays. Life is still good, simply because, after everything, you find that, life still goes on, and everything will be alright.

Maybe except that the pirated VCD you bought cut the movie Over The Hedge short and had lousy audio.

Whatever all these crazy ramblings mean.

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Friday, May 26, 2006 | 8:37 PM

Pix taken en route to Grandma's house.

Pretty morning. What a great way to start my holidays. Shopping trip with the babes in my class later. =)

Now, in what manner shall I start the month for revision for the Mid years? I guess I shall stock up on the sleep I will miss during the days up to the exams yeah?

Over and out.

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| 3:12 AM

Oops. Got the class outing and even the gang outing settled. Unfortunately, because of how we record things chronologically, these are gona be recorded as events which happen after certain things happen. Yet I didnt know at that point in time, and it is very likely that my actions will be interpreted as effects of a certain cause instead of a collaborative effort initiated by Bee during lunch .

But tell you what. I cant believe you would say that before you even first make an attempt to clear things up. You of all the cynical apathetic people in the world.

Oh well. Since you said it all so politely.

Oh and am I supposed to feel happy that you cant stay angry for long and I suppose forgave me? And that you warned me about it?

Because I didnt do what you first accused me of. Because there was no reason for you to feel maligned in the first place okay. The second one, you tell me.

I can clarify, but what for? You tell me. Preferably in person the next time.

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Monday, May 22, 2006 | 4:16 AM

JUNE HOLS ARE COMING!! (and a fat lot of good they are.)

RAISE YOUR HANDS AND WAVE FOR BEACH OUTINGS!! XD




Random, I know.

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| 3:53 AM

Gahh. My guts are twisting in green envy. After chancing upon the exhibition by the photo soc, and checking out the new photo entries on the pod collect, I am determined that I definitely want to get a SLR next time. One with much higher range for aperture mind you. And definitely with high noise reduction and focal length.

Anyway, during GP just now, something short of a realisation revealed itself. Haha, oxymoron, I know. Well. My group decided to do the question "The best things in life are free. Do you agree?"

And when Mr Seah reached our table, we have only managed to agree and settle on one thing, our definition of "free."

I went a little chemistry and physics mad by offering it, yet I thought it turned out pretty well.

By free, we mean
1) it doesnt require effort or any input to start [link to introduction of energy into a closed system to do work]
2) it can occur on its own [delta G less than zero, rxn can take place spontaneously]
3) does not require effort/ input to sustain/maintain

Hmm, and actually we sort of went off miles and Mr Seah put us back on the right track. Actually, the many questions he chose to answer himself, were for us to answer, and he actullay would lead us to certain realisations had we attempt to answer them. And this was what I found out on my own.

By trying to define what is a "best thing in life", we first have to see, what gives us the greatest satifaction or joy, or utility. And perhaps we begin with the example of doing well for an exam we studied hard for. And from there we go on to, so it is those actions that evoke in us certain feelings of maybe peace, contentment, happiness, leisure, of which we may define as the feelings we most like to have. And it is these feelings tht actually are the best things in life, not the actions or objects.

For eg, I said I think one of the best feeling in life is doing well for a test I studied hard for. So this is the tangible thing. Which creates a sense of achievement. And it is this feeling that I define as my best thing in life.

Mr Seah gave an example of his ipod being the best thing in life. But essentially, he was trying to say that it is the feelings he get when he listens to the ipod which makes the ipod the best things in the world.

It is the intangible, invisible things that gives objects or actions or activities their values.

It is then that we realise, maybe it is true tht things in life, best or not are never free.

So the feeling of listening to an ipod is free, but in monetary terms, you had to pay for it. Getting good grades mean your payment in terms of time.

Hmm.... Anyway, dashed this off my head before I forget. We have to hand up the outline on Wed, I think.

I am glad I sort of answered those questions on my own and reached the answer by myself. =)

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Sunday, May 21, 2006 | 2:24 AM

Swing Girls!!

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| 12:43 AM

Yep, the plants didnt survive the transplant. 1 out of the 3 stalks remained and already it looks as if it is just barely holding up.

Been wondering... How did I manage to survive more 1 and a half years of JC without my old friends. It is like walking down a path so quickly, determined to reach the finishing line and get over with it, then you dont notice the scenery, or remember landmarks lest you get lost, or turn back to check if anyone gets left behind, or to chat with your friends about anything under the sun, just like the old times.

Then I realise, it isnt so. Maybe it really isnt just so.

That in spite of not getting to travel with my old pals down our paths we have chosen for our lives, them being separate as they are, somehow, postcards from each other magically appears, and reminds me of the old times we have, and showing snapshots of the lives they are having.

It is true pictures never tell the full stories. I dont know about yj's touch rug trainings, about the tries she made, or how is jas holding up against the horrible bunch of project mates she has, or how is vk and her jap lessons, or christie and leen and liyan and everyone else...

So, it is like, everything is enough, yet not enough. But hey, I am satisfied.

And I rather miraculously manage to find myself a great bunch of friends here too. Somehow, I look up during my journey and discover all these people with me.

I have always wondered, how hard it is, to find, someone whose has similar interests to you, or that instant bond with a fellow friend? Looking probabilties, I cant really decide. There are so many complex personalities, characteristics, how can it be that you find someone in your class of say 20+, who will like, say sushi? Or taking pictures? Or like basketball? Or someone who was in band or something? What more someone who fits all of the above? Or someone who thinks a lot, or is cynical, or sacarstic, or is mature.. Qualities that may not essentially be yours, but chracteristics, that you can relate to.

Is this why the more overlaps and similarities, the greater the bond?

I guess I may never know enough to answer that. Oh well. Whatever it is, I am thankful already.

I lifted my head up from staring at the dusty, parched road, and see a motely crew of traveeling mates, discover myself clutching a stack of postcards in my hand, and then, a rainbow in the sky.

Life is good enough man.

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Monday, May 15, 2006 | 8:10 AM

I cant find these flowers anymore.

I think they didnt survive the transplant to another pot.

I didnt even hear their whispers of goodbye.

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| 7:57 AM

Popped online for a spot of update cox I am bored with studying for math.

Mum's colleague bought her Cadbury chocolates from Autsralia! Caremel centred chocolates!! Goodness~~ If it had been dark chocs I would gladly give up my ability to do 30 situps in a minute and snack on it every single day of my life. Bwahaha~

Something is scaring me. My limbs are breaking out in rashes or something. Even a slight brush of cloth against my skin is enough to make the area feel itchy. Oh man, what freak shit is that?! I wanna go to school to take that test! I dun wana stay at home and itch!! Ahhhh!!!

And mk is a brave girl today!!! I wasnt scared of taking the bus home! Okay, I cheated and grabbed the most corner seat in the bus and promptly fell asleep. More about this irrational fear of mine when I feel like it next time. Thank god I didnt oversleep. God knows where I will end up. Oh. Actually I do. I will go one round, past NY again and reach Toa Payoh Interchange. I did that before.

I am feeling stifled. I wana run. Away. From.
The boring tasteless fruits Routine has to offer.
Simply because I have tasted the fruits of Adventure.

But. Responsibity would not let me go.

Neil Gaiman is the man. 1916 rocks. And Marvel redeemed itself from Comics Loser-ville.

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Thursday, May 11, 2006 | 10:00 PM

I hate this weather. It is as if Mother Nature is undergoing some crazy mood swings, laughing madly at one moment, and crying buckets the next, maybe over some lousy hunk planet called Mars.

Of course, it is more likely that these crap are due to the effects of global warming. No thanks to the build up of carbon dioxide in at the atmosphere. And under the Kyoto protocol, carbon dioxide emmision has been labelled as a commodity and yes, it now subjected to all those economic theories of demand and supply.

Yay! Countries can now trade and sell "carbon credits"! Check out today's papers to find out more about how the whole thing works. It is kinda interesting actually, but I am in no position to comment of its effectiveness. Imperfect knowledge is such a pain in the behind.

Following my mental release for some issues more than 2 weeks ago, I have been a walking bag of optimism and delusion. Okay, I give that I am being intentionally blase about it, but yeah, it did felt like wearing an armour of self delusion and ignorance sometimes. But hey, I have not been getting mood swings. Aint that trade off worth it? *faux joy*

But actually it is worth noting something. It is like, we live out our lives everyday, and because it is such a routine, we tend to develop certain responses to certain situations. Like whenever we have class tests, for eg, maybe over time, I become accustomed to studying for it just a day in advance. So it is like conditioned response. But it may very well be this test which makes a teacher blow up over it because it could have been simple had I studied well for it. But in the past, maybe the teacher didnt so I assumed that the teacher wouldnt.

Or like, I have been teasing this person over something, and the person entertains, okay, patronises me by looking amused or entertained. So because this person has this positive reaction for the n times I do this, can I assume that I can keep doing it?

What determines all this is perhaps the sensitivity required and the self awareness possessed?

Perhaps if you do realise what you do may be a little provoking, maybe self awareness is what you need because it will save you from the person blowing up in your face when you realise that there is an occasion for such social obligations? Or like not repeating the same inside joke like for 3 consecutive days in a row?

Maybe that is why I am such a paronoid freak.

My point is, maybe we cant live everyday like yesterday. Then life isnt a 3 dimensional road anymore. It becomes a 4th dimensional roundabout.

Like you know when you play some really old fashioned games like Mario, you travel to the right side of the screen but magically appears on the left into a new map? Yeah, it is something like that, you get transported back to the point you were in. You just keep living the life you did for the past few weeks. Cox everyone is saying the asme joke, doing the same thing (homework) The boring routine life of a student thing I guess.

But isnt it tiring to consistently live life expecting all events happening to you as life changing events? Dont you get a sense of paranoia fearing that something you do or say but have a profound impact on others?

Acually I read somewhere that there are many parallel universes of ours. And that in those universes, only one action changes, ceteris paribus. For example, aty this point in time, with every other thing, and I mean every other thing in the sense that, the weather, oil prices, share prices, GE 2006 results, what every one is doing except for me being the same, in some other universe parallel to this, I could have suddenly choose to stand up and stretch. And simultaneously, another me could have just walked to the window and looked out. Or do something else.

So assuming that this is true, this will all subsequently set off chain reactions in th9se universes. Which means, probably, if we ever can prove that such unviverses exist, and if we ever can observe them, we wil finally be able to find out hw profound our actions have on others.

Like me discovering one day that me eating the last ice cream in the fridge leading to my spectacular failure for the physics SPA.

Right.

But well, since everyone is not that paranoid, so we just generally live our lives as we do, and as we have been doing. And because of our long lifespan, that one little insult you make to someone is relatively unimportant to the millions he is still going to recieve in the rest of the lifetime right?

I would love to wrap up by saying what we need is balance in our lives and that most of us are able to distinguish if our actions and words are capable of such stuff but usually, no one can. The only way to find out is after we have done it and observe what happens. Like how that person went into depression and onto a bingeing spree after we commented casually that his handwrting is a little messy that day coz we were the 10th to say so and he reached his limit.

But actually, I believe while one single event does have much effect, everything adds up. That the person didnt blow up because you tease him on a bad day. But because you have been teasing him on his bad days for the past 3 times.

That I failed my exams not because I didnt study the night before. But because I didnt do my tutorial for that topic, didnt listen to the lecturer for the topic and compounded with the fact that last minute revision meant I didnt absorb like 80% of the topic, I failed the test.

Of course there are so many ways to rebutt. But right now, I think as hard as it is to be happy all the time, I think dz is right. It is even harder to live up to people's expectations for being happy all the time.

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Saturday, May 06, 2006 | 2:23 AM

CT photo taking was a little crazy, everyone had to do up the button on our collar, and this lady remarked that I was nearly as tall as her.

You mean I am not?! Okay, wait till she sees Jam and yj. Hah, take that! :P

After the actual one, me and Ali whipped out our cameras for a lttle spot of informal photo-taking!

From left: Dor, bee, me, eL and Yv!!

Clockwise from top left: me, eL, Yv, Dor and bee!

A little blurred, (sorry!)

From left, top row first: Eeling, Doreen, Belinda, Bee Hua, Alicia, Mei Kuan, Mrs Chan, Jamie, Yvonne and Jasmine. Da ladies of s6aye!

Then Jam suggested a tallie v.s shortie pose. :D

And Ali suggested that we take photos of the class guys. Some very kindly obliged, and promptly showed their willingness. :P

Okay la, it was by audience request.

From left: Jin Yuan, Weiss, Dezhi, Jin Zheng, Zi Rong, Kelvin, Genial and Peck Hor.

And Mr Seah was walking by when Jam spotted him and called him over.

While part of the class had to attend chem consultation, the econs droppers continued to amuse ourselves. :)

From left: Jasmine, me and Bel!

We tried out eL and Yv's pose on the staircase. :P

Jasmine and Belinda.

I am still trying to master the skill of zi4 pai1. And now I know 2 masters, eL and Van Too. They are scaring me with their accuracy and precision.

With the drama production starting only at 7.30pm, these gals decided to head over to J8 after remaining unswayed by Jam's praise and love declararion for Parkway. And we are only to scout for eating joints, and not to partake in the actual activity till everyone arrived. At least that was to be the plan la. Who can withstand food?!?!

And so we reached J8 and instead of scouting, we went shopping. First. Anyway, we decided on Pastamania in the end with the prospect of 30% student discounts. Whee! At table #2, which sat Peck hor, Dezhi, Jin Zheng, Zi Rong, Ali and me, and having finished our food, we bored people began to play "Zong1 ji2 mi4 ma3" At first, the guys chickened out. Yes, all of them.

Well, that was cox I added quite a little bit of tabasco sauce, and Ali showered, I mean, sprinkled quite a little bit of salt and pepper. Haha :D In the end, we settled for 2 dash of tabasco suace. Aint that tame?

At table #2, the lost-ees.

Peck hor, Ali (lost twice) and JZ!

The lighting in Pastamania does seem pretty good for phototaking yeah?

After that, we went to Swenson's for icecream. Special mention to dz for the treat. Bwahaha. But we paid the GST though. Haha. Reminds me of the days when Choon absorbed the GST. Haha.

Earthquake!!~!!Shared ice cream is great fun. :)

From left, anti CW: Yam, Chocholate Peanut Butterscotch, Thin Mint, Sticky Chewy Chocholate, Lime Sherbet, Mango, Frosted Chocholate Malt and Vanilla!!!

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Friday, May 05, 2006 | 6:07 AM

Taken at somewhere near Kallang. I think. By a marble bench.

Been taking a lot of photos recently. And I mean quite a lot. So beware!

mk's photo self indulgence ahead! *bwahahaha*

Photos for Dragonboat fun race!

Yes I know! The picture on NY website has my eyes closed! And now everyone is reminding me to open my eyes when taking photos! *sob* So to show an unblemished side of me, I am putting this up. =P

I liked the colours on the water.

I know! My eyes! Ah!!!! Anyway, this was taken after the race. Team Hong Tian came in 1st in the heats and third in the semis. Overall, it was fun but tiring. (Or should it be the other way round? ) And definitely, hot!

And my teammates very kindly indulge in my crazy demands. =)

Yay! We could wear sandals and slipppers!

More crazy demands from me.



It was a happy day detached from reality. Maybe if we had rowed far enough, the troubles on land would never catch up, or at least die trying to.

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