Now I finally understand how people can neglect their blog for months from being too busy.
Life has been very good, except for some minor complaints (like failing my final military driving practical test, or the TP in civilian terms, twice in the past two weeks).
Friends have been making my life great.
For months there has never been a weekend without your company. Special thanks to Ackerley and Fiona, who have been a constant source of support during difficult times, a support only impeded by such unfortunate things as H1N1 and the limits of telecommunication.
On weekdays, as well, I have been lucky to have people around with whom I can connect, and I see that not everyone has such a privilege. Everyone complains about having to stay in but there are upsides too, like how we get to spend more time with each other, laughing and talking over music and games (electronic or board games), in meatspace. In contrast, home can seem like a lonelier place, in which any communication can only be done over the phone or online (but most of the time, online).
It's a special feeling seeing friends from the military willing to draw out precious bookout time to interact in the civilian space, even if once in a while. 05/08 met up at Waraku Marina Square yesterday, and catching up and laughing at/being depressed by/being terribly envious of/being happy you don't have to suffer like other people was great fun. 13 people was a lot (who cares about triskaidekaphobia) despite all the lack of commitment from people when asked before the date, and I hope that people can commit in the future too.
Japanese Speech Contest today was fantastic. I remember the Open category champion from previous years, and I'm happy that she finally clinched the top prize. Her speech was outstanding and she deserved every bit of her title. Attending the finals today makes me feel like joining the contest again next year... Coincidentally the Tertiary category champion talked about procrastination, on which I submitted a script last year but was rejected. Her handling was more suitable for the speech contest, I think, because it was more interactive and light-hearted, and less factual than mine.
Cycling this Saturday with chuida! :)
Life has been very good, except for some minor complaints (like failing my final military driving practical test, or the TP in civilian terms, twice in the past two weeks).
Friends have been making my life great.
For months there has never been a weekend without your company. Special thanks to Ackerley and Fiona, who have been a constant source of support during difficult times, a support only impeded by such unfortunate things as H1N1 and the limits of telecommunication.
On weekdays, as well, I have been lucky to have people around with whom I can connect, and I see that not everyone has such a privilege. Everyone complains about having to stay in but there are upsides too, like how we get to spend more time with each other, laughing and talking over music and games (electronic or board games), in meatspace. In contrast, home can seem like a lonelier place, in which any communication can only be done over the phone or online (but most of the time, online).
It's a special feeling seeing friends from the military willing to draw out precious bookout time to interact in the civilian space, even if once in a while. 05/08 met up at Waraku Marina Square yesterday, and catching up and laughing at/being depressed by/being terribly envious of/being happy you don't have to suffer like other people was great fun. 13 people was a lot (who cares about triskaidekaphobia) despite all the lack of commitment from people when asked before the date, and I hope that people can commit in the future too.
Japanese Speech Contest today was fantastic. I remember the Open category champion from previous years, and I'm happy that she finally clinched the top prize. Her speech was outstanding and she deserved every bit of her title. Attending the finals today makes me feel like joining the contest again next year... Coincidentally the Tertiary category champion talked about procrastination, on which I submitted a script last year but was rejected. Her handling was more suitable for the speech contest, I think, because it was more interactive and light-hearted, and less factual than mine.
Cycling this Saturday with chuida! :)
Crashing rjco concert yesterday night from backstage made me realise that there's nothing like actually putting on a long-sleeve shirt and black tie and performing with alumni. Being part of the action during the preparation, changing into concert attire, smoothing out troublesome parts last-minute, carrying your instruments here and there and finally being on stage together with the rest of the pack are the only ways to feel genuinely part of rjco again. And it gives you a legitimate reason for you to give out chocolates, which grants you the license to approach people you want to approach without any special reason (haha).
Luckily for me playing cards saved me from the awkwardness of sitting at one corner while the rest indulge in pre-concert euphoria. At the same time, it was nostalgic seeing Andrew and Aaron playing bridge again, just like they were doing every practice since I was in Sec 1.
I followed the alumni down to backstage and listened from the xianyue pieces onwards. The alumni's 《童年的回忆》 was, although repetitive, a nice and nostalgic piece. Followed the alumni to the back of the concert hall to listen to Pirates of the Carribean, the finale piece. The majesty of the piece, which I'm sure the orchestra tried to bring out, was perhaps lost due to the acoustics at the very back of the hall, where we were. Bing Liang's obviously spontaneous speech was quite funny at that point in time. It was quite fun sitting with Ackerley, Fiona, Yujing et al clapping and cheering at all the relevant moments, which were aplenty.
We made a quick exit to the holding room that was LT6. Contrary to what is the general case in RJ LTs, it was unbearably hot, but packs of audience members who somehow found their way up stayed for some time anyway to say hi and give chocolates and hug and whatever their friends and juniors.
Our post-concert plans were to tour the school and point out to each other the significant places to us during our school days. Unfortunately, our plans were aborted abruptly by security guards who flashed their torchlights in our direction in the pitch-dark stadium steps. There, we (me ackerley fiona kenny siyun elizabeth) had been singing Chinese songs and talking random topics (like the existence of ghosts, reincarnation) for the past hour. When the guards came, as I long expected but Ackerley and Fiona refused to believe, Ackerley and I looked at each other and both said, "Unceremonious". Be assured it was very much so.
Then the next half an hour was spent seeking refuge from the guards—in the female toilet. We were waiting for the girls to shower and change. It was my first visit into the female toilet in at least ten years. I refused to use the cubicles; I just felt wrong somehow. After a decision-making process which took a long time as usual outside the school gate on where to proceed, we walked over to crash Ackerley's house (his parents hadn't granted prior permission).
The five hours since we (six of us minus Elizabeth) reached at 1 am were spent on cards and talking. In retrospect, I can't believe I stayed up until 6 am. In the middle of the night, I started being really paranoid and scared easily, such that the slightest movement, sound or contact meant a very scary scream, which would in turn scare everyone else. I think I screamed at least three times this morning, for various reasons.
As for our conversation, the ideal boyfriend/girlfriend topic seems to be coming up rather often. While generally, the more people we have the more fun it becomes, it was difficult to be personal in the presence of too many people (for me, more than one counts as too many). Although I do trust specific individuals, I've never learnt to trust a group of people collectively, no matter how close the group of people may be. This is probably because I've never belonged to a specific clique in the past.
After Ackerley left to book in (it's a Sunday morning, but as our OCTs know, the army knows no weekends) we slept in for about four hours. We woke up at 10 am for another round of conversation until noon. It's amazing to think that after talking for so long, we never ran out of things to talk about. The power of talking in a group with the right people.
Lunch with Fiona at the Coffee Bean. It was nice knowing about her attitudes and ambitions. At the same time, talking about free will and determinism made me learn that post-sleepover isn't the best time to be philosophical. My thinking was so deadened already. But with my limited brain resources it was fun nonetheless. It's been quite a while since I last discussed philosophy, with the people in my KI class more than half a year ago.
8Q sam on Free Museum Day. Most of my time was on @ Home Abroad, and whatever I saw was rather interesting. There was a German film with the same guy portraying all the different roles, and his acting of the individual characters was stitched onto the scene. There were similarly crazy and arty stuff there, and it's weird to know that there are Singaporeans actually daring enough to do all this for a living. Unfortunately I only had less than an hour, so I could only visit a small part of their collection.
Luckily for me playing cards saved me from the awkwardness of sitting at one corner while the rest indulge in pre-concert euphoria. At the same time, it was nostalgic seeing Andrew and Aaron playing bridge again, just like they were doing every practice since I was in Sec 1.
I followed the alumni down to backstage and listened from the xianyue pieces onwards. The alumni's 《童年的回忆》 was, although repetitive, a nice and nostalgic piece. Followed the alumni to the back of the concert hall to listen to Pirates of the Carribean, the finale piece. The majesty of the piece, which I'm sure the orchestra tried to bring out, was perhaps lost due to the acoustics at the very back of the hall, where we were. Bing Liang's obviously spontaneous speech was quite funny at that point in time. It was quite fun sitting with Ackerley, Fiona, Yujing et al clapping and cheering at all the relevant moments, which were aplenty.
We made a quick exit to the holding room that was LT6. Contrary to what is the general case in RJ LTs, it was unbearably hot, but packs of audience members who somehow found their way up stayed for some time anyway to say hi and give chocolates and hug and whatever their friends and juniors.
Our post-concert plans were to tour the school and point out to each other the significant places to us during our school days. Unfortunately, our plans were aborted abruptly by security guards who flashed their torchlights in our direction in the pitch-dark stadium steps. There, we (me ackerley fiona kenny siyun elizabeth) had been singing Chinese songs and talking random topics (like the existence of ghosts, reincarnation) for the past hour. When the guards came, as I long expected but Ackerley and Fiona refused to believe, Ackerley and I looked at each other and both said, "Unceremonious". Be assured it was very much so.
Then the next half an hour was spent seeking refuge from the guards—in the female toilet. We were waiting for the girls to shower and change. It was my first visit into the female toilet in at least ten years. I refused to use the cubicles; I just felt wrong somehow. After a decision-making process which took a long time as usual outside the school gate on where to proceed, we walked over to crash Ackerley's house (his parents hadn't granted prior permission).
The five hours since we (six of us minus Elizabeth) reached at 1 am were spent on cards and talking. In retrospect, I can't believe I stayed up until 6 am. In the middle of the night, I started being really paranoid and scared easily, such that the slightest movement, sound or contact meant a very scary scream, which would in turn scare everyone else. I think I screamed at least three times this morning, for various reasons.
As for our conversation, the ideal boyfriend/girlfriend topic seems to be coming up rather often. While generally, the more people we have the more fun it becomes, it was difficult to be personal in the presence of too many people (for me, more than one counts as too many). Although I do trust specific individuals, I've never learnt to trust a group of people collectively, no matter how close the group of people may be. This is probably because I've never belonged to a specific clique in the past.
After Ackerley left to book in (it's a Sunday morning, but as our OCTs know, the army knows no weekends) we slept in for about four hours. We woke up at 10 am for another round of conversation until noon. It's amazing to think that after talking for so long, we never ran out of things to talk about. The power of talking in a group with the right people.
Lunch with Fiona at the Coffee Bean. It was nice knowing about her attitudes and ambitions. At the same time, talking about free will and determinism made me learn that post-sleepover isn't the best time to be philosophical. My thinking was so deadened already. But with my limited brain resources it was fun nonetheless. It's been quite a while since I last discussed philosophy, with the people in my KI class more than half a year ago.
8Q sam on Free Museum Day. Most of my time was on @ Home Abroad, and whatever I saw was rather interesting. There was a German film with the same guy portraying all the different roles, and his acting of the individual characters was stitched onto the scene. There were similarly crazy and arty stuff there, and it's weird to know that there are Singaporeans actually daring enough to do all this for a living. Unfortunately I only had less than an hour, so I could only visit a small part of their collection.
好难过。也许，时间会冲淡一切。
感觉上，已经有好久好久没有见到日语同学了，想再找个时间一起出去吃饭、聊天什么的。但
其实，下个星期应该也是感觉上来得长，因为我将会忙着适应三巴旺军营中的生活。我将会
上个星期军中的活动不方便透露太多，只能说我很庆幸有朋友陪我一起度过了这一个星期的
星期二是汶川大地震一周年，唤起了对去年筹备莱初华乐团公演的回忆。当时，我们忙得连大地震的新闻都搞不清楚，唯有公演过后才真正地了解到地
星期五晚上，到滨海堤坝观赏新加坡艺术节的开幕演出《太阳神赫利奥斯II》。当巨型螳螂花车在观众区盘旋时我觉得有点无聊，但
表演结束后到滨海堤坝的周围逛了一下，发现到它是个举行聚会不错的地方，因为有辽阔的景色，可以看到新加坡
下个星期依旧是漫长的一周，有新环境等着我去适应，除了等待、也有随时被拒绝的可能。真
其实，下个星期应该也是感觉上来得长，因为我将会忙着适应三巴旺军营中的生活。我将会
上个星期军中的活动不方便透露太多，只能说我很庆幸有朋友陪我一起度过了这一个星期的
星期二是汶川大地震一周年，唤起了对去年筹备莱初华乐团公演的回忆。当时，我们忙得连大地震的新闻都搞不清楚，唯有公演过后才真正地了解到地
星期五晚上，到滨海堤坝观赏新加坡艺术节的开幕演出《太阳神赫利奥斯II》。当巨型螳螂花车在观众区盘旋时我觉得有点无聊，但
表演结束后到滨海堤坝的周围逛了一下，发现到它是个举行聚会不错的地方，因为有辽阔的景色，可以看到新加坡
下个星期依旧是漫长的一周，有新环境等着我去适应，除了等待、也有随时被拒绝的可能。真
It's been a year (:(:
Friday. After reading and hearing about some things that happened on Wednesday, I decided to visit RJCO prac in the morning to see if the scary mental picture I painted of prac was true. I am thankful that things appeared rather peaceful. Thanks to Klaxton who, after practice, helped interpret everything which I couldn't immediately see for me.
Lao Zhou still hasn't changed much, with his 罚五百块s and creative nicknames for many people. I didn't get to catch his nagging on attendance, but I'm pretty sure he still harps on it. It was nice seeing my juniors again properly after so long (and Sunday doesn't really count). On the other hand, while half the faces there (the J2s) were familiar, I almost didn't know any of the J1s beside Jun Sean and Patrick. This is despite the fact that I came from RICO, and many of the J1 guys should have come from there as well. I guess I never maintained close ties with my juniors back in RICO. That's why I always wonder how J5s like Zongjin still find it meaningful to join RJCO events, like watch them during their SYF rehearsal at SCH last Sunday. I think I won't find a purpose in visiting RJCO after the J2s graduate from RJCO, which is very soon.
Sigh I can't believe that it's been already a year since the last CO season. Somehow the scenes of CO practice together—silently observing the orchestra from my disheng corner, talking a bit more with Siyun during pracs when I got moved to beside her, self-pracs alone during free blocks in a half-lit CO room and so on—remain so fresh. Although I think I practiced hard and had a lot of fun with my friends, there were still some things that I wish I could be transported back in time to do.
Walking towards J8 with Qianwen and Lanya was enjoyable and reminded me of our tie-sourcing and concert-organising adventures last year. Even though it's been almost a year since we properly talked, on my end I felt very comfortable talking to them. I wish we'll somehow have J2/J3 CO gatherings, and across a wider range of sections, in the future.
To current members of RJCO, good job everyone! I enjoyed listening to you on Sunday and Friday, and I thought your coordination was very good. All the best for Wednesday! :D
Karaoke at CASH Studio in the afternoon with warren jon desmond ben xinyu celene jacq. I missed the previous one we had because I was in Japan. Karaoke continues to be at once uncomfortable and enjoyable, as it has always been to me. I feel guilty mutilating the songs I love so much (《恋爱频率》 and 《被风吹过的夏天》 especially) and continue to be self-conscious about my pitching and harmony. The gender ratio wasn't even so 对唱 wasn't as fun. I think the best part about karaoke is the 对唱 songs. Instead of a simple one-man or two-man show, there's the added dimension of coordination and harmony which makes things more interesting.
But it was interesting being exposed to new songs, English, Chinese or Japanese, or discovering the lyrics to familiar songs which are interesting and meaningful, but which you might miss while listening to an audio recording (水能载舟 也能煮粥 喂饱了生命). I like My Grandfather's Clock (written all the way back in 1876); the melody's nice and the lyrics are meaningful.
My Japanese repertoire remains restricted... I only sang the Doraemon song (an! an! an! tottemo daisuki: doraemon); the other Japanese ones I selected turned out not to be the song I wanted. I wish CASH Studio would find some way to integrate the Japanese and English/Chinese systems so that we can intersperse songs of all languages. I was almost dying while we were using the Japanese system, and Jon was also suffering while we were singing Chinese songs all the way.
Jacq left after karaoke and we had dinner at Waraku at the Heeren. Dinner was evidently a better place to catch up than the noisy karaoke box, just that Celene was the only girl left and poor she had to sit through agonising army talk again. And I don't get why they serve their stuff in such big bowls because customers will eventually see what's in the bowl anyway and so won't be impressed by the size of the bowl. In fact, the portion just looks smaller in comparison with the big bowl. But the creamy soba, which I tried, turned out to be very filling for the soba portion served, which wasn't very much.
Lao Zhou still hasn't changed much, with his 罚五百块s and creative nicknames for many people. I didn't get to catch his nagging on attendance, but I'm pretty sure he still harps on it. It was nice seeing my juniors again properly after so long (and Sunday doesn't really count). On the other hand, while half the faces there (the J2s) were familiar, I almost didn't know any of the J1s beside Jun Sean and Patrick. This is despite the fact that I came from RICO, and many of the J1 guys should have come from there as well. I guess I never maintained close ties with my juniors back in RICO. That's why I always wonder how J5s like Zongjin still find it meaningful to join RJCO events, like watch them during their SYF rehearsal at SCH last Sunday. I think I won't find a purpose in visiting RJCO after the J2s graduate from RJCO, which is very soon.
Sigh I can't believe that it's been already a year since the last CO season. Somehow the scenes of CO practice together—silently observing the orchestra from my disheng corner, talking a bit more with Siyun during pracs when I got moved to beside her, self-pracs alone during free blocks in a half-lit CO room and so on—remain so fresh. Although I think I practiced hard and had a lot of fun with my friends, there were still some things that I wish I could be transported back in time to do.
Walking towards J8 with Qianwen and Lanya was enjoyable and reminded me of our tie-sourcing and concert-organising adventures last year. Even though it's been almost a year since we properly talked, on my end I felt very comfortable talking to them. I wish we'll somehow have J2/J3 CO gatherings, and across a wider range of sections, in the future.
To current members of RJCO, good job everyone! I enjoyed listening to you on Sunday and Friday, and I thought your coordination was very good. All the best for Wednesday! :D
□
Karaoke at CASH Studio in the afternoon with warren jon desmond ben xinyu celene jacq. I missed the previous one we had because I was in Japan. Karaoke continues to be at once uncomfortable and enjoyable, as it has always been to me. I feel guilty mutilating the songs I love so much (《恋爱频率》 and 《被风吹过的夏天》 especially) and continue to be self-conscious about my pitching and harmony. The gender ratio wasn't even so 对唱 wasn't as fun. I think the best part about karaoke is the 对唱 songs. Instead of a simple one-man or two-man show, there's the added dimension of coordination and harmony which makes things more interesting.
But it was interesting being exposed to new songs, English, Chinese or Japanese, or discovering the lyrics to familiar songs which are interesting and meaningful, but which you might miss while listening to an audio recording (水能载舟 也能煮粥 喂饱了生命). I like My Grandfather's Clock (written all the way back in 1876); the melody's nice and the lyrics are meaningful.
My Japanese repertoire remains restricted... I only sang the Doraemon song (an! an! an! tottemo daisuki: doraemon); the other Japanese ones I selected turned out not to be the song I wanted. I wish CASH Studio would find some way to integrate the Japanese and English/Chinese systems so that we can intersperse songs of all languages. I was almost dying while we were using the Japanese system, and Jon was also suffering while we were singing Chinese songs all the way.
Jacq left after karaoke and we had dinner at Waraku at the Heeren. Dinner was evidently a better place to catch up than the noisy karaoke box, just that Celene was the only girl left and poor she had to sit through agonising army talk again. And I don't get why they serve their stuff in such big bowls because customers will eventually see what's in the bowl anyway and so won't be impressed by the size of the bowl. In fact, the portion just looks smaller in comparison with the big bowl. But the creamy soba, which I tried, turned out to be very filling for the soba portion served, which wasn't very much.
[16:19:17] Guan Xinyu: Hi
[16:19:35] Guan Xinyu: You know a way of restraining yourself from going onto Facebook too much?
[16:19:47] Guan Xinyu: Change your user language to Dutch
[16:19:35] Guan Xinyu: You know a way of restraining yourself from going onto Facebook too much?
[16:19:47] Guan Xinyu: Change your user language to Dutch
If you want something you've never had, you must do something you've never done.
From one of the two authors of the Students' Sketchpad:
http://ebget.blogspot.com/2009/04/youve-a
http://ebget.blogspot.com/2009/04/youve-a
Why do I run away instead?
Profile
![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif)
goh_wz- Wei Zhong
- ClaimID: Goh Wei Zhong
About me
I'm Wei Zhong, a Singaporean eighteen-year-old serving National Service as a signaller supporting the headquarters of Singapore Guards. Currently on a stay-in Class 4 driving course at Kaki Bukit Camp lasting until 30 June. [more »]
Links
Syndicate
