The iRony of the iPod

I'm on the train with my earphones plugged in typing on my iPod. My new favourite acronym: ASD ; Anti-Social Device.

And I'm not the only one. At least 40% of the people on the train are either plugged into a music player of sorts, or thumbs twiddling away at joysticks or keypads playing their portable console.

This iPod is awesome but it has increased my douchebaggery level by umpteen times.

Aside: an old grandma totally flipped open her techno ringtone phone and show her tech savvy street cred. Word to your grandma.

The iPod is a frikkin portable ultra computer. But it is the no. 1 killer of your social skills and your ability to think in peace.

I want to upload all my movies before my Wednesday duty! Woo!!!

I've got to relearn all my social skills again. It's like relearning to walk with a prosthetic leg. I used to spend boring train journeys thinking and maybe pulling out my phone to give surprise messages to people I haven't talked to in a while. Now I'm playing some bubble game or some other weird app. MY SOCIAL SKILLS ARE DOWN THE TOILET!

Haha, but it will be easier to blog nowadays. Can type what I'm thinking on the go.

Look outside your window once in a while. When you are on a train or at home. The world is beautiful :D so get your head out of the console for a while man...

Learn:
When to use and not to use my iPod

Letters from Macau

Well i guess it is a good thing that i only fell ill after i came back from Macau/China, but then again, i only got a stomach ache after having lunch, so maybe it wasn't china, maybe it was SFI FOOD THAT POISONED ME!!!

in any case, i was too lazy to do any journal entries in the China bits (Zhu Hai and Guang Zhou) but i was writing an email to one of my friends, and it pretty much summed up my Macau trip!

+++

Hi ______,

would have emailed you sooner, but who would have known you'd have to spend so much to get a decent Internet connection in this place >.<

actually had Internet in zhu hai, but wasted all that online doing useless stuff like blog surfing and what not. Haha. Anyway, Macau hasn't been to bad, though it is pretty much a tourist trap, things are either all branded and expensive or have a crazy range of prices, makes souvenir getting very difficult!

+++ end of day one +++

typing this in my iPod before I email this (just playing with my iPod, whee!) anyway, Day 2. It's been a decent day, went to check out the ruins, which had too many people, I prefer places where people don't know about, feels more special that way.

Portuguese egg tarts done properly are GORGEOUS! if they were not so expensive I'd buy a whole box and just sit in my world enjoying them :D

But other than some of the gardens and old ruin sightseeing, spent a good part of the day just enoying the room at the Sofitel, or Ponte 16.

today was COLD (not freezing, but not just chilly either) I like :) perfect scene for Macau, cold night sitting in Senado Square, oooh...nice...

+++end of day 2+++

BRRR! it's getting mighty cold here! Heh, but I love it! I probably wouldn't if I had to live like this for months and months but for this short period it is awesome :)

because it was so cold, when we went to Hac Sa beach this morning; it was roo cold to really enjoy the place... Though, it was not cold enough to stop me from having an ice cream. Lol.

our mornings in Macau are usually activity packed but by lunch. (late lunch, usually @ 2 or 3 pm) we are usually quite pooped, haha, and slowly find our way back to hotel.

however, today i decided to hit the casino with my parents, to see what all the fuss is about. My parents are quite into the slot machines, something about the flashing lights and the small wins must excite them. I found that I would rather play the tables (not that i did, don't have the capital at the moment) better odds and presumably more skill involved, heh.



I only found Jackpot Street on the last night :( Jackpot Street is what i call the street or streets with awesome foodie places and little dinnig areas lining the street. Worse part of it was that I wasn't going to have dinner there, was just getting some additional bites to accompany cup noodles at the hotel :(

Well this concludes my last night in Macau, tomorrow I'm heading to Guang Zhou, hopefully I can do some last minute Christmas shopping!

Oh! And I hope you don't mind if I put this on my blog. Typing the email each night has been a good way of recounting my holiday in Macau :)

Take care!

As sweet (but hopefully not as flaky) as a portugese egg tart, much love from
Jonathan

The Red-and-Black theory of gambling

The Red-and-Black theory of gambling

I like to watch people at the casino and see how they play and strategize what they bet on. I particularly like the tables, where games such as Baccarat, Roulette, Blackjack and Big-Small are played.

One day I want to come to a casino with my friends (a la 'The Hangover'-style) and put my Red-and-Black Theory to the test.

First, find a table that plays games with a 2 to 1 returns. In other words, I play $5 worth of chips, if I win I get $10 ($5 won) usually such odds are indication that the chance of winning are close to 50% hence the returns are relatively small.

The perfect example of this theory (in fact this is where the theory was derived from) is Roulette. It starts like this:

Have a set amount of capital you want to play with (I.e. $100)
Start with $5 on a colour (letsay Black)
if you win, collect your $10, and play $5 again
If you lose, put in $10 on your next bet
If you lose again put in $20 on your next bet
If you lose... $40...
If you lose... $80...
And so on...
If at any point you win instead of losing, go back to $5 and start the cycle over.

Here's the thing, the whole point to this theory of gambling, is to minimise losses. Why do people usually not play this way? Because it is boring as hell, and for each time you win, no matter what you bet for that round (assuming it's $80 because you lost 4 times) you only earn a net win of $5. And so you slowly creep your way up.

But I guess you could tweak this theory if you have a higher capital. If you have more to start with, and are able to keep betting up to save your ass if you lose , then this COULD (not WILL) minimise your losses.

It works for games like Blackjack too, where the focus is no longer on the hand you have each round, but on the wins and losses of each round.

Requirements:
a game where the rate of returns is exactly 1 to 1
a decided sum of capital
a lot of patience

I want to try this out one day, any takers?

Thanksgiven

TURKEY! what is more awesome than having Turkey in December :D

Organised a Birthday Dinner on Saturday for the TJ people, small group, the closer ones. and it was BEAUTIFUL. haha, don't pretty pretty and emo like i had imagined in my head, but awesome like the way we are/were/will be as friends :)

The night before (friday night) went for some BBQ Buffet thing, so had packed on the Beef and the meat like crazy, so woke up Saturday morning knowing i MUST get some exercise or else i sure go back to me phat ways >.<>.<)

Around 1+ we went down to play tennis, and it was awesome fun as always. and then about 3, Eugene Came, haha, he came.


Tennis between Gene and Kenny!

came up to get surprised by.... MARCUS.

heh, the gang was getting here!

Just chilled the afternoon away. at 5.30++ we were still dancing around with no pants, to eugene's IPOD and my speakers, Chinese Songs are awesome when your chinese sucks, haha.

7ish, the girls arrive = pants-on time = time to SUIT UP

This would be a good time to tell you everyone who came.

In order of Appearance:
Kenneth
Eugene
Marcus
Hui Min
Nadiah
Jia Yun
Jane
Gavin
Kerry
Varun
Isaac

Isaac came really late, like 10+ but the rest were here by about 8. so it was dinner time!

I'm real proud of my mom, she never ceases to wow and amaze every time my friends are over. Dinner was gorgeous, with the Lamb Minestrone Soup, the Viet Salad, Mash pumpkin/potato, Broccoli, and who could forget THE TURKEY :D quite surprised that we managed to wipe off the whole turkey, haha, too bad it didn't sit on the table as we watch it disappear.

It felt so right. just talking and eating, laughing, stories. it was picturesque :)

And Great cake, White Choc Macadamia, only pity is that Best Friend couldn't be there.

And as it seems to have become a tradition of sorts, the guys stayed over, haha, but this time not so crazy, no staying up till 4 am. but till 2 am wasn't bad, haha.

Just sent the guys off in fact (okay sent them off then watched South Park and HIMYM before posting, but close enough) feels good :)

Here's a shout out to people who couldn't make it, but we wish you were here:

Sze Sian
Syak
Dim
Raghav
Wendy
Sarah
Olivia
Sean
Bernice

and a whole bunch of other people i'm sorry i didn't invite. we'll think of something next year :)

To a wonderful birthday, i hope my wishes come true :)

the 3 candles:
wish 1 (the whole wish) - I hope i'm always surrounded by awesome friends (such as last night)
wish 2 (The half wish) - I hope to meet a girl with big-
wish 3 (my private wish) - *cannot say, but i'm pretty sure, if the other wishes come true, this will too :D*

I will put the (few) photos i got on FB soon!
Have a good year people!

Today is the Day

I'm blogging this in camp, because it will prolly be the only chance i get to do so if i want to blog about today... well today.

Today is my birthday :) yay

Didn't think much about today at all, afterall, just had a nice evening with Ximin catching up, its not like i have been planning for my birthday to come. in fact, this morning, the converstation at home was like this:

Dad: Morning Jon, happy birthday!
Me: Thanks Dad.
Mom: Morning, Happy Birthdday, you are not coming home for dinner right?
Me: Yup, going out to watch a Musical.
Mom: Okay Ati! tonight no one eating dinner at home!

Apparently, my mom and Mat will be at Aunty Jane's for Mat's Tuition. Dad has some function/dinner to attend, and i will be at W!LD RICE's The Beauty and the Beast with Best Friend. So, not much happening today, haha.

but was happily surprised by a whole slew of wishes from people on Facebook, and a whole bunch of sms-es throughout the day :D

Theresa (from Flashmob) totally surprised me by calling (the only one to do so, haha) to wish me, and people i wouldn't have thought remembered my birthday, dropped me a message to wish me, which was wonderful :)

Next Surprise! BSO, Maurice, called me to come meet him at the cook house. Apparently, Jeremy, the sly devil, got me a birthday tart as a present from the HQ people, and man, i was totally stunned.

I've never been good with Birthdays, Ber should know, hahaha. I can never remember them and i never know what to do to make it special. most of the time, i even forget to wish them, till days later. So when people put in effort to remember mine, i feel kinda bad, but immensely immensely grateful. Thanks everyone!

And for this year, i have so much to be thankful for, all the growth and the changes this year, so much i have learnt. it just has been an awesome year, and i can only hope that my 20th year will be just as rewarding.

Happy Birthday to Me, it may be my birthday, but the 'happy' is thanks to all of you :)

Familiar but new, likethe Kueh Tutu Eraser

Been meaning to recount the things that have been going on in the week, but kept putting it off, let's see what we have got here...

Saturday- Flashmobbing is the best! met so many new people, and had a great time. not 100% sure if i want to do a Take 2, but it may go just to see everyone again :D

our 'performance' at the esplanade concourse was hilarious, and awesome to those who saw it, but sad to say, all our photos/videos had to be deleted by the esplanade security... sigh. BUT! whoever is up there ^ is fair and kind! for then we all performed a second round, for a guy..... who was proposing to his fiance. Very nice, completely spoiled the market for all us guys out there, but very sweet nonetheless.

Sunday - finally i'm back to canoe polo! a little terrible that i wasn't careful, and made this girl panic during our eskimo bow rescue >.< but other than that, it was satisfying to be back in the water :)

Monday - and now back to gym! yes yes, haven't been going for quite a while, need to get back into the flow of exercising again!

Tuesday - Picnic girl: Episode 2! hahaha. it was sorta like a picnic! and though it was a short 2 hours, and you have exams the next day, it was fun just sitting around, talking and having fun like we always do. Happy Birthday :)

Wednesday - and so begins my long period out of camp. but yesterday was only a half day, today full, friday Hari Raya, and the next 2 weeks MAATT, followed by a week long holiday!

took a half day yesterday to have lunch with Xiao Bao, Zenia! i've met the 4 baos before for lunch and stuff, but this would be the first time i met just zenia alone, but i only realised this after we met, heh. So lunch at Bugis (all sorts of eateries there!) and then we spent hours at the National Library walking around and exploring, and just talking bout almost everything. It was great getting to know zenia, like a chance to really get to know her personally :)

For some strange reason, we both had no plans whatsoever for the rest of the day, and so we spent THE REST OF THE DAY together, walking around checking out the sights and sounds around town. it was like being on holiday in our own country! another interesting place to note is the old supreme court building, right now there is a Singapore Design Exhibition till the 30th of Nov, and it is awesomely fascinating!

Very Fresh experience with zenia yesterday, lets do this again soon aye!

Now- Today will be a wonderful (extended) family day with faimly at The Mind Cafe, it has always been fun, and i'm sure today will not be any different!

This year has been good to me, so much to be thankful for!

I Blog like a girl

I blog like a girl. realised this in camp when browsing my blog.

the way i blog is much like a fire-and-forget missile. put up my post, and never read it again. haha. not true, i may read it months and months later, but most of the time, it just sits in my archive, not to be stirred.

Is there a 'guy' way to blog?

"like a pornographic M18 teen dream, of bitches smothered in margarine. Ha! ha! ha! pkoow! pkoow" - Brett, a.k.a. Rhymenocerous, FOTC

Driving today was Baaad. terrible safety, never check blind spot and all that shat. how am i gonna pass my TP?!?!?!

I'm tired, should prolly go to bed at 10 sharp, which i should be doing, but haven't for the week. okay. Route March tomorrow. Tired!

Janda Baik Baik Baik

Tuesday is here! which means i came back from my weekend holiday to malaysia just yesterday!

3 days of quality time with the family in the hills of Janda Baik! if you do get a chance do check out the place, it is beautiful, with lovely crisp air, and great clear rivers. it was nice spending the weekend there, just resting, playing Mahjong and Cluedo with the family, talking, and sleeping and taking a break from the hustle-bustle of life.

I guess me and Mat must be growing up, because i think we have become a lot more civilised with each other. Maybe because we have things in common now, and we have more things to talk about. Taking it slow works well for my family, and the time spent by the river, or walking around the gardens was soothing for my family.

long car rides give me lots of time to think about things, and clear my head on some stuff :)

The FOOD! Grrreat! damn! i ate a lot... too much at every meal >.< now have gained weight D: sadness... must find away to lose it all, especially with Macau coming up and with Christmas round the corner! oh no! But Malaysian food is so much better (less hygiene = better taste) and a lot cheaper than in S'pore, haha, or maybe because mom knew all the hotspots to check out. still, good food! yumm.... xP

Well now back to the routine of Army, not that routine, afterall, i did go for Hip Hop Dance Lesson with Yeong Chyun after camp today, was fun! let's do this again soon :)

am i glad i can take breaks like this, its restorative for the soul! Love my family, and can't wait to go Macau in Dec!

You know that i could Use Somebody

2 tracks in my head as i go around today!

1) Use Somebody - We are Kings

Someone like you and all you know and how you speak
Countless lovers under cover of the street
You know that I could use somebody
You know that I could use somebody
Someone like you

Croon! oh croon, good to walk to, and just play in my head :)

2) You're So Beautiful - Flight of the Conchords

You're so beuatiful;
Like a Tree
or ceramics or something
You're so beautiful;
like a high class prostitute
You're so beautiful!
You could be a part.... time... model....
spend part of your time modeling,
and part of your Timmmmmme.
Next to MEEEEEEEEEEE
...
...
and the rest of your time at your normal job


My title was almost "you're so beautiful; Like a Tree" because its a nice line!

Today was GOOOT! so good that i replaced the D with a T. 3 planned meetings and 2 happy coincidences!

Half days at camp are great when you make use of it!

Planned Person #1: like Traveling to Tampines to meet Piggy!

Planned Person#2: but stopping by Kembangan to see Chiaps for a bit!

Happy Coincidence #1: At Kembangan met Vanessa, the Guitar Senior, and chatted our way to Tanah Merah.

After talking with Piggy and friend for a while, went for lunch, before going in the direction of Novena

Planned Person #3: SamBran has found a study place at TTS Hosp, and chatted over forgetfully unpaid Brownie and Ice Cream! haha!

Happy Coincidence #2: On the way home, bumped into Sendy as we got out of the train! and always a great pleasure to speak to!

Things just fell into place today :) everything went right, and tonight i'm gonna get some sleep, and travel out to Malaysia Tomorrow! woo~ Malaysia Holiday weekend :D Family time FTW.

Gonna go pack! see you on tuesday!

A Family that Games together

Too bad Dad couldn't join us today, as we concluded another awesome trip to The Mind Cafe! this time we went to the prinsep St. one, near Dhoby Ghaut. and instead of Dad, we were joined by Heng Hwee, who is a silent killer when it comes to games, haha.

The long games are fun, the more you invest into a game, the more rewards you get out of it. Though it was fun to have those short games where you can just go crazy! Slap-a-gory is still on my mind! haha!

Can't wait for the next time i get to do this :D i usually spend my off days on it, so maybe Jan we can go again? its good to spend quality time such as this with the family, especially when i'm out almost every day of the week. Family is important and must find ways to connect.

Good week ahead! and to end it all off, going on a Malaysia trip this weekend!

Anyone wants to come to my house to bake cookies for Christmas? Mom has started her Fruit Cake Spree, maybe i should sneek in some baking time too!

Saturday Duty

I don't like saturday duties.

it makes me so tired! and then i go home and Sunday and sleep. then its monday >.<

Dammit. its Monday. oh well, get on with the week.

Got the weekend to look forward to! plus i've got off on wednesday and friday! whee!

WEEEEEEEEEEK (its been a long week)

ITS BEEN A LONG WEEK. and its not even over yet >.<

but it has been a GOOOOOOOD WEEEEEEEK (thats a good long week :D)

Picnic Monday was fabulous, and oh-so-right! - I Love have such a spontaneous Best Friend :] totally awesome randomness and Beard Papa and weird looks as i carry a real picnic basket on the bus. haha. PICNIC FTW!

House Visit Tuesday, was very little house visit, a lot on getting to know Melee, and all round awesome. Stories have been spilled, but in all confidence, and hopefully evenn after Melee ORD's we'll keep in close contact. Friends such as these are definitely worth having :)

RP BP (Regimental Police Basketball Players) TIRING! but fun to get out and play games again, itching since i didn't get a chance to play canoe polo on Sun. i'm still learning how to be a good team sports player, but for now it'll suffice!

Thursday Duty till friday, I'll prolly be shagged out on friday, following which there will be Duty on Saturday TOO! but i'll be home on Sunday to celebrate Botak/Ah Boy's Birthday! he'll be 3-years-old now! haha, little bugger :D

But damn, this week seems just WAAAAY tooo long. damn tired already >.< how to survive to the weekend? HOW?

Flow Charts

Because everything is so much clearer in a flowchart!

Legged Out

Boy am i pooped! that's my favourite way of saying i'm tired at the moment. its so much nicer to say 'Boy! i'm pooped!" than 'Wah Damn Shag' or the plain 'i'm tired'

Anywhoo, came home from another brilliant day of Canoe Polo. i really have no 'Court-Sense' whatsoever >.< makes it tough for me to play team sports. but here's the conundrum.

Don't have a 'Court-Sense' --> Bad at Team Sports --> Play less or even don't play team sports

instead i've got to change this! and break from this spiral!

Keep trying to play and learn (might step on a few toes!) --> get better --> play more team sports!

haha, let's hope my Canoe Polo will help with this :D

I've spent many an hour on foot in the past few days.

I went on my own little adventure on Saturday. my only objectives were 1) Go check out the courses at the Jap Association. 2) Check out some Dance classes.

855 Bus - travelled to Jap Assn, missed a stop, took a bus back

ClubBus - took the Assn Bus to Orchard Road, and decided to walk!

Orchard Road Walk - walked down orchard road, taking in all the people and roadshows and miscellaneous things going on

Emerald Hill Walk - here's where my adventure begins! at somerset station, decided to turn off and check out the Alley with Acid Bar, and other old fashion housing. Ended up walking Emerald Hill, and green eyeing with jealousy, all the expats that have rented the gorgeous old fashion housing at Emerald hill. i want friends there, haha.

Newton Walk - got obscenely lost, and while trying to find my bearings, walked all the way to Newton MRT Station.

MRT- oh wait, nope - WALK - to Orchard Road again! and this time walk on the opposite side of the road, to check out the WiiResort Roadshow :D, they got Singapore National Bowler to play the public in Wii Bowling. i don't think he did very well, but enough to win i guess.

Dhoby Ghaut Walk - walked to SMU, to check out Studio Wu, a possible place to go instead of O school, nearer home too! (and straight bus 65)

by this time, its 5 pm, and time to join Family for dinner at Jurong East!

City Hall Walk - through SMU, to Raffles City, to take MRT from City Hall

MRT City Hall to Jurong East - meet family for Dinner and FINALLY GET TO SIT DOWN! haha, it was fun walking around town!

then to compensate for upper body, my hands are pooped from rowing so much. we played with nets today! and it totally changes the dynamic, played first to 5, but tied at 4:4, too tired to continue, haha, hopefully Esther and June come agian next week! Time to pull ZT and Milks to go!

now i'm just gonna bum on my com till 10 pm, and go sleep :) my weekends are no longer boring, i'm getting my ass out and moving!

Epicsode I: The Umpire Strikes Beck

Yes! that's right, that's one of the ways to spend and off day!

played tennis and swam with kenneth today, and totally made use of the Hot Sun, Weather Forecast: Thuderstorm MY ASS! hahaha

if e-stalker is reading this, do tag! you know who you are!

But yes, it was a fun day today, got to do an activity, watch TV, and swim in awesome! haha

I'm slightly sunburnt and i'm tired, best feeling ever!

Me Myself, and my thunder

hmm... people seeing this post before i officially post it will wonder why i posted with a title and no contents, haha, MY MISTAKE! accidentally pressed enter, didn't think it would just post my post like that >.<

I had a good day today! afterall, it was my off day, and i always have to ensure i make it good :) woke up to the smell of rain, which kinda ruined my plans to go swimming, i like the rain, so i don't blame it! but it all cleared up soon, which allowed me to take a dip and do a few laps.

came home and thought about how to spend my day, and decided that it would be a day dedicated to myself, no need to rely on others to make it work, but just learn to spend some quality time with good ol' me :D so first off, i went to Queensway shopping center to look for my sleeveless hoodie!

2 things came out awesome from this

1) i got myself a nice sleeveless hoodie and a short sleeve hoodie all for only $55! i will definitely be going back to look for more clothes soon.

2) i met Amelia! haha, she is such a doll :) Amelia was in the 29th Council along with Nick and Yin Wei, and i was so stunned to see her at Queensway shopping center, especially since she stays in loyang (Changi), and especially especially because she looked so cute! hahaha

so walked around with her, met her friend Jinn (i think that's how its spelt, but it my mind its spelt Djinn, haha like Genie XD), but left them to go get my hoodies, and split up with them at bout 2+

next stop! TJC! travelled from Redhill to Bedok, one of the few time i go to bedok instead of Tanah Merah, cuz i wanted to grab a bite before going to school. And when i did reach school, didn't spend very long there, as Mr Hsi wanted to go Katong too! Off to HobbySg we go, and i want to lease my hands of Sorin Markov at a pretty price of $30! haha, meanwhile, watched Mr Hsi draft, and got my self some Unhinged packs to draft with Mat tmr! ++ Magic fix for the day DONE ++

Mr Hsi sends me home, which leaves the only thing i REALLY wanted to do for the day. and that was to watch (500) days of Summer. I've been thinking/talking/obsessing over the movie for so long that i would have hated myself for not watching it just because i couldn't find a date. i still wish i had someone to watch it with, but it was good as is :)

I get it. the movie was just... right. it sat just so well with me. my word after watching is 'Just' haha wierd word. but it was just so right! i can't explain it. but it seems to put away all my fears and concerns and obsessions for the moment. it is the right time to watch it, and i left the theatre and went all the way home with such a smile on my face. to whoever was so inspired to do this movie, thank you.

Zooey Deschanel is awesome. crush. haha

next on my movie list i must get down to watching that Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and Juno... yes i know i'm horribly backdated, but i really want to watch that :)

if there's anything i've learnt is that i've got to find who i am, my own interests and my own personality, that is how i'll need to live life, not leeching of others anymore.

today was a good day.

i've been hearing this song in my head the whole day:

" your voice, was the soundtrack of my summer,
and unlike any other
you'll always be my thunder"

haha, silly (500) of Summer.
AWESOME.

2 duties and an Off

Just finished a slew of alternate duties! that means Monday was in camp, came back on Tuesday, to go back to camp on wed and return thurs. but its all good, cuz i know when i return on friday, i'll get all the rest i need since i took off on Friday! WOO! OFF FTW!

haha, though without Jeremy in the office this week it has been.... quite the rocky week. some days no regulars, i don't get anything done, but towards the end of this week, have had to clear up alot of shit that i caused... sigh... its all part of the learning process, i know, but still is tough to go through it. if you wanna know, will tell you all about it if we meet up, not good to post all over the WWW with the whole security matters and such.

I'm gonna sleep at a good time tonight, then can conserve energy for tomorrow! haha, even though i haven't got much planned, i still intend to have a good off tomorrow! the only worry is being called back to camp >.< hopefully not.

I forget that even if things are not the way i want them to be, it takes patience and efort to turn any situation better. and most of the time i'm just being short sighted, i must learn to give thanks for the things i have currently :) Thanks!

Duty makes my head throb

When i resolved to be quiet with my thoughts more often, i'd never thought it'd get so noisy up there. even when its just my thoughts, i'm not very coherent! that's not good >.<

made a wasted trip to BBDC, because i thought i had driving lesson but apparently not. but on my trip home, my head was buzzing away with things i have to do/check/attend to, and for some strange reason i feel a little unsettled, like i want to burst out and settle everything, haha.

Whatever it is, i've got to get some of it off my mind!

8.5 days of leave left
6 will be used for Family Macau Trip in Dec
1 for 16th Oct, i deserve a break
half for 24th Nov :) i won't forget this year!
half for 29th Dec to go for driving

and a whole bunch of off to spend! woo!

then there's the matter of 16th. i want to find someone to watch 500 days of Summer with! its kind of a bummer that i haven't been able to find anyone yet >.< all of them having exams of some sort... shucks... demoralising. but i shan't give up yet!

got a whole slew of duties next week but at least i've got Deepavali duty to get a day of off! woo!

-bleh-
-bleh-bleh-bleh-

why? why aren't i satisfied! must be thankful for wht i've got!

Skype on Ubuntu

Hello people who visit my blog!

if you happen to have Skype, add me on Skype: Jonathan Heng, Singapore or 'folioglitz'. after a whole day of fiddling with my Ubuntu (hopefully i haven't corrupted anything)

+++

screw that... just had my first test call with Dad, and looks like the Mic Problem still is there. now i have to go get an external mike or something to get it working. but we will get there! Very soon can have Webchat with my friends!!!

haha. other than that, i think today was kinda unproductive. Didn't do anything to particular interest. basically woke late, fiddled with my MTG Decks, and getting Skype on my Ubuntu system (much much more troublesome, but still UBUNTU RULES!)

I've been thinking about what i can do on my own... some personal hobby so that i can do in my own free time... any suggestions?

Mythic Rare

WTF!!!! only raghav will understand this next sentence:

I've got 2 Kalitas the Blood Ghet... and...

a SORIN MARKOV FOIL!!!!! WTF WTF WTF!

maybe i'll sell it... the price is like $40+ at the moment i think! better sell before its too late!

Calling in Sick

Hi ya'll! finally got down to changing my blog skin. no more stupid "BAKEDPOTATOE has not logged in for 90 days" crap anymore. the reason i've got the time to do this is cuz i'm at home, sick. stupid Haze finally got to me... grrr....

oh well, at lease it give me some time off from work to rest and recuperate, and think about/plan what i'm gonna do with the rest of this year.

I've finally got my Corporal Rank! woo! (}} or (>> haha that is sort what the rank looks like look for me and i'll show you! woo. that means higher pay next month... AND BACKPAY! for Aug and Sept! feels like enlisting early was all worth while ;)

because of that, there's 2 things coming up at the end of the year. 1) MAATT, basically the Spec Course which allows me to become a 3SG! only problem? its in Dec, which means i won't get to go on holiday with family... sadness... 2) Ex Odyssey, this bomb is totally screwing up my plans. >.<>.< argh... will just have to see how the plans go and maybe do a short trip somewhere. afterall, it is all about the family, not so much the place.

Despite the inclement weather (i don't know why, but 'inclement' is one of the buzz words for Army, 'please take care of your health, and watch out for inclement weather', like huh? what does 'inclement' even mean anyway?) i've been spending quite a good week so far. Duty makes the week fly by. Tuesday had Driving lesson, and yesterday evening met Ber for Dinner. and even though i got 2 days MC i'm not gonna waste it. got Movie with Varun tonight, and not sure about tomorrow, but shall take things as they come.

oh well, better go get some rest, oh and take my medicine, i'm awfully forgetful when it comes to such things... oh well.. toodloo!

Treasure Hunting

My Blog skin is totally screwed up! but am too lazy to do it now, so will get down to it... soon... haha.

I have a tendency to only blog when i'm happy or in a good mood. that's good! cuz it makes sure my posts are filled with joy and good feeling, but sad when i don't recount everything i do :(

Today was such a fulfilling day out! started in the morning by meeting Varun at Vivo, where he participated in some Singapore Treasure Hunt thing, where i helped out by finding 2 of the Chosen People, but too bad he didn't manage to win $10,000 haha.

Had to leave before it ended, cuz i had an appointment with Uncle Sebastian. woo, i love getting my hair cut! i look better, and i like the hairwash, haha, feels good! and helps me relax :D Since i was all the way in Serangoon Gardens, decided to check in on Kerry and see if she was at home ( i always do this when i'm in the area, but usually she's not home) and lo and behold! The Great Kerry was home! she was going to church, and i was going to the MTG prerelease party, so we had lunch together, and talked and talked.

Its awesome talking to Kerry, she's such a good conversationalist, that i'm sure we could talk for hours, if only time permitted! haven't seen her since Rag'n'Flag, and even though its only been a short 1.5 months, it feels much longer, maybe since so much has happened in the past month(s). Hopefully, can do up a TASC gathering again once schedules free up (HAR HAR - schedules never free up! lol) or at least try, and touch base again, because we make awesome friends :)

Off to Suntec, where i got to indulge in another thing i haven't done in a while, play some Magic! haha, i'm not as hardcore where i follow every card, but its nice to go play a prerelease once in a while, check out new cards, and play a few games! brought back 7 boosters worth, but not sure how i'm gonna deal with them now that my collection is expanding again. hmmm... maybe with 3 blocks, i can go into standard! but we'll see.

hmmm... my deck was quite bad, but i made do. lost all my games so that was kinda sad >.< Hey raghav! i'll go get my webcam (or use my parent's one) and let's throw down a few! heh, our Online Magic might finally work XD

So a good day, and to top it all off, i've got Kayaking with ZT and Varun Tmr! so its all good, i'm set for a good weekend :D

now... to figure out how i gained so much wait in 2 days :'(

Shot and wounded

I really should get to updating huh? haha, but the laziness bug has bitten again and i'm lazy to get it done! haha.

recently had a slew of late nights. Thursday was at Kevin's place with guys from the unit to play a bit of Texas Hold'em. i'm still a little conflicted as to how i feel about that night. well, i lost $50, it should have stopped at $30, but the inner gambler made me play on and lose more money >.<>.<

The game itself was awesomely fun. i really got a taste of how to play, and i'm itching to play more! but i don't want to play with money, its just waay to expensive, and i don't think i could take it >.< and i learnt a lot from that night. like how easily influenced i am, what kind of player i am, and just a whole bunch. yet on the other side of the coin, i think i really let my parents and myself down. my lack of control when influenced by peers is quite unnerving, i've got to work on a greater sense of Who i am.

Then next day awoke at 5+ in the morning because i had to rush to camp early. Friday was Familiarisation shoot! had IMT on wednesday, so met up with many of The Worst A-Tech Batch at SOA, ATT 26! haha, we may be the worse in pong cai's eyes, but i do belive my batch is freaking awesome. and it was great hanging out with everyone again on Friday.

the range itself was quite annoying, twice my detail had to fall out due to the rain, and it wasted a lot of time, and i do believe that is why i'm with the sniffles today. The night shoot wasn't very long, but after waiting for arms to be cleared, i only left camp past midnight, which kinda suck balls...

i think i shoot slightly better with an M16 compared to a SAR21, so maybe i might get that Marksman Badge afterall! but till then, will just have to wait for the next live range to come by.

ATT 26 guys were funny as hell. some of the people i really miss are Milks, and Bai. damn we could sit around and talk all sorts of random crap (BEEF) for hours. and that is precisely what we did yesterday. There are plans for a gathering on 3 Oct!

i'm supposed to have Kayaking today, but Jessica is sick, and anyway it rained this morning so it would have been cancelled anyway. now i have to find a way to make use of this long weekend, lest i waste it.

i need to think about why i keep finding things to do. what really makes me happy. because if not i might just be filling up my time to escape from myself. there are a lot of fundamental questions i have not been able to answer, and i need to sit myself down and figure out who the hell i am, and what i want out of my life. sadness, so DIFFICULT!

Its all in the Mind

Woah! what a day! off well spent i must say! Yes, it burns my off very early in the month (i just earned it in on Sept 1st!) But after all that was done today, it was worth it!

Started of with a morning at East Coast Park. First had breakfast at Changi Village, too bad its ramadan, so many of the shops are closed, but still a decent breakfast. Then East Coast Park for a bit of biking!

GkuGku, and Heng Woon was with My family (MomDad, Mat and I) but the main bit of biking was with the family. i think we made it quite far, past Tanah Merah i believe, about 10km from the end? the but was a little sore, and after yesterday's run, the upper thighs are kinda tight, but good fun, and talking as we rode was a good chance to make plans and discuss stuff.

Back home for a quick shower, and out for Lunch at The Mind Cafe! I think games are the one thing that my family has in common. i'm kinda sick of the same old movie or meal with the family, so decided to spice things up a little with a trip to The Mind Cafe, for a good game fix!

The games were absolutely awesome. The family is a great bunch to play games with, and 4 people is the perfect number of players for alot of the games.

played a good mix of fast games and one nice long one, a train game, haha forgot the name... still, it was good bonding, and we can make plans to go there again for another family outing next time!

After spending a good 4 hrs there, we went to meet Godma and Aunty Aileen at the Balestier indian restaurant place. we've been before, but this is Mom's first time. Dinner was good, slightly better than the last time actually. but everytime i come, i get overstuffed >.< gah, this does not bode well for our weight watcher...

i think there's something about the conversations with Godma, but it somehow turns to me and how 'hardworking' i am, or rather, am not >.< Mom would build her frustrations about how light and frivolous i seem to be, while i try to defend that i've got to be optimistic and hopeful. its a usual struggle. i know what MomDad says is so that i'm not too naive, and am able to handle hardship, but on my end, i can't help but feel that they are being unduly worried.

I understand. i need to change, i need to learn to be more disciplined and train up my cautiousness. Easier said than done, but at least i need to set myself working in the right direction

I intend to work on it while i'm in NS. its the perfect place to learn. Jeremy is what i need to be more like. I need to have more cautiousness, more discipline, and more patient. but i should balance it with my current strengths as well.

I'm worried about my studies still... i don't know if i'll be able to perform the best marks the moment i get into the study system again, but its an effort i will have to make.

gah, i'm not good with this. CANNOT GIVE UP! will work it through. must start today (internal battle being fought, every sentence written is slightly more forceful then what i hear in my head)

haha, schizo! but yes. put my mind to it. its done wonders for my exercise, and hope it will spill over to affect my whole life positively!

Today was a good day! if only all my off days could be like this :D (note: Matthew couldn't handle it though, too much done today, he's quite burnt from all the activities! haha)

I hate running :)

as i said in my previous post, i had no chance/mood/energy to do gym or go LIVE run the whole of last week. even today, Monday, Live run was eaten by cleaning arms and then duty rest.

since i'm in no shape to go gym, and didn't bring the stuff anyways (due to duty), i decided to go BBDC to go for the silly Theory Lesson, where i sit around for about 2 hours listening to some silly guy talking about somewhat insipid things. but i guess its all part of the 'education'. i wouldn't really mind if it didn't cost 18-FREAKING-DOLLARS!!! yes yes, a silly lecture which is a complete waste of my time costs $18, and if i miss it, that's $18 washed down the drain. Today i wasted $30 :(

why 30? the bus that ferries me down the hill was super late today, so i decided to rush down by Cab to BBDC. i reached, rushed straight up, to see the door closed with the sign "No Entry, this lesson has been going on for more than 10 mins" i look at the clock "6:25", what time did the lesson start? 6:15 :'(

WTF! i wasted not only the booking, but also the cab fare.sigh... oh well, i took a gamble with the time, because i know i'm cutting it close, and this time i got burnt >.<

so i went home with much frustration, and on the way back, was talking to ZT on the phone. we were talking about the many things we are doing and planning to do in the next few months, and all was good an exciting. what really stung was when he said he run 10km every sunday, and is consistantly shaving off his timing. i hadn't run for more than a week, and here he is, the Zai runner getting faster.

normally i wouldn't care. but i guess something clicked, and with the added frustration from my driving crap, i decided to do a Magdalene (hahaha, that sound so wrong) i decided to go run to relieve my stress.

i hate to admit it but it works >.< went off for a run... but i shan't disclose the details yet! not until i finally achieve my mission! hahaha. i call it Project End of the Rainbow. things always seem to have a heigtened sense of importance when you attach a name to it :) so... i hope to have a successful mission soon! then i'll blog about it again.

the thing that struck me was, when i came back home, the thought popped in my head 'i hate running' then i smiled :) so that's my thought for the day!

Rebel with a Cause

another sunday duty! gah! well at least i've cleared my weekend for this month! now only 2 more duties to go! one late in the month, but one is giving me a headache, hard to find a good day to do it >.<

I'm quite peeved with my duty tho. 3 duties within 8 days! 2 sundays and a tuesday, which makes for an alternate duty on the first sunday :( because of that, and cohesion on friday (tho i must say was awesome fun) i haven't done ANY live run nor any gym for more than a week. that's not good >.<

well, i could have gone gym on fri, but i had made prior plans, this time with good ol' friend Jackie! he jio me to go Clubbing with him on Friday night with his pals, and i guess you could say i was ready for a change of pace, so i went to see what this clubbing thing is all about!

We went to Rebel at about 10+, almost 11 pm. when we got in, it was thunderous music and fog machines galore. met Jackie and his date, Jeramy, Mark and his date, Stephanie, Jon Lee, KC x 2, Anson, and i can't recall who else.

I have a personal policy, or maybe a better word would be principle, that i will not drink alcohol outside of the house. mainly because i want to stay in control, but also to prove that i don't need alcohol to have a good time.

More details you can just ask me in person. but what i did learn is this. alcohol really does 'relax' you and make you think less, but at the cost of losing control at times. i'm glad i went, cuz i was 'quite entertained', had a new experience, and made a good new friend :P overall i would say it was a good experience, but its not something i would do too often. once a month is too much! haha.

went home at about 2am, thinking about the night for quite a long time. hmmm... i wonder what i would do the next time?

ITS BEEN EATEN!

WHY! Blogger just ate up my last 2 posts on my blog!!! first the blogger layout doesn't want to work, now they eat my posts >.< am angry with blogger. but have no choice but to stick to this, since everything is here...

So! have you seen the new design? is it better? not so 'chicken scribbly' and small fonted right? do tag and post your comments!

more posts shall come soon. lets hope blogger stops eating up my posts!!!

Hola Hola! its Council Day

Just came home from Council Day, i'm quite happy with how it went! managed to talk to Steph, Claire, Edmund, and catch up with some of the new councillors, while making friends with some of the new councillors.

I realise that i may not be as good a conversationalist as i think i am. many a time i struggle to keep conversations running, especially when i struggle to balance the convo with 'a little bit of you, and a little bit of me'. but it takes practice i guess, and my whole life is filled with conversations to practice with :)

More importantly, i managed to get the contacts of the people i really want to stay in contact with! Steph for one, cuz we used to talk quite a bit before she got elected, but then, she became president, and mabye its part inferiority, and part she's busy with herstuff and people, then i approached her a lot less. but now is a good chance to start talking again! Claire too, was a pity i didnt get to know her as well when she was still around, but now through the wonders of email i shall make the effort to!

also got to know my grandjunior! Sherin! she's nice and enthusiastic, and i'm sure it would be fun to chat with her!

The 31st turnup wasn't too good, but its too be expected with the girls just starting out in Uni and most of hte guys busy with army. story of our lives huh? haha, but still, had a good time with all the people there. the food wasn't too bad, i would say the $20 was well spent.

I'm sure the photos will be on facebook soon (the girls are good like that) and you can go check it for yourself. for the meantime, my blogger has reverted to normal! lets hope it stays that way, so i can post photos in the future!

by the way! you've now seen the new blog design! what do you think? drop a message in the tagbox!

My routine is hard to follow

Ahh! i'm getting lazy to update again! Not that nothing's been going on, because there have! but i'm just too lazy >.< emails too, haven't really gotten down to them but i did send mails to people overseas on wed, just to say hi, must make it more routine.

never thought i'd succumb to the whole routine thing. oh well, it is good though, certain routines are good for me, like gym and remembering to stay in contact, but there's still some spontaneity left in this body! haha.

I'm gonna change my blog template soon, getting a little tired of the design. hopefully can find something funky like the current template to match this one. hell, i think i'm gonna go look for a design after this!

Just a mention of Thursday, went to some gaming place in orchard to check out the games with David, clerk from my office (more about him some other time). It was awesome-o fun! 'Race to the Galaxies' was kinda hard to get, and i think even now i don't quite get it, but 'Dominion' was crazy fun! if i can, will try to buy a set before i go Uni, then can have late night games with friends :D

Haha, i might turn out to be like gavin, carrying Supe Fun games and organising play groups to test them out :D

Tonight i've got Council Day and Tmr have duty, so now i'm off to find a new blog template! ciao!

Life Rocks, then you get on a 20 hour plane journey

Its Sunday already? i just pooped my pants at this realisation. have had a crazy weekend, such that i didn't realise it started, nor realising that tmr i need to go back to camp.

ahh! i wish my stupid blogger would just work properly, then i can properly upload my photos so that my silly blog doesn't just look like a texty POC. oh well... will have to settle for you to check it out on Facebook then!

I didn't sleep at all on Fri night. met ZT and Marcus at Simpang, Varun at Tanah Merah, and Kai Jie at Changi. all before 10ishpm. then we camped at the Coffee Bean at Terminal 3 (yes we know the flight was at T1, but there got no nice place to chillax) and waited for the rest of the gang to join us. Eugene joined us at about 11+, so did Balaji. then the last few were Kenneth and Gavin, at about midnight.

I can't say it turned out as expected, because i didn't expect so many guys to turn up, and i didn't think it would be so nice to just sit around and play cards. but that is what we did till 3 am the next morning. Did you know that the Sky train closes at 2.30 a.m.? and after that, there is a shuttle bus that brings you between Terminals! the whole tribe got onto the shuttle, and it put us in a real 'i-want-to-travel' mood. it was like being overseas, early morning, jump onto a shuttle bus to take us god knows where.

sending Raghav off was awesome. my goal for the entire thing was to make raghav cry. Sure, he may not have done so in front of us, but he did. he's just a big softie at heart. its times such as those, when you realise that the friends made really were awesome, and we can count on each other, even as we go on our own ways :)

Its great having friends :)

Virgin Off

I just enjoyed myself a very rewarding half day of Off! :D

there's a certain super tremendousness in the freedom to choose when you want to take your hard earned off, and because i'm the type who wants to maximise the use of his off, i make sure i make plans and have a fulfilling day :)

i met raghav opposite TJC for lunch, and we went around school talking to teachers, saying hi to some juniors, and just swimming in the awesomeness which was our school. sure, the people may change, but as long as you have 1 or 2 people to go back and visit teachers with, it's super tremendous! and the nostalgia sweeps back.

i find out a lot of things when i talk to raghav. someone needs a slap... but am i going to be the one to deal it? hmmm.... but i've started thinking about it, and maybe i should...

Just came home from watching Invisible Children at Sinema Old School. Kimberly Chia is cute, hur. wasn't a bad film, but not my type >.< kinda wish i caught Carrot Cake Confessions instead, but oh well, had Driving Lesson. I've got to keep my eye out for good films! that and plays, but films cheaper lah. haha

okay, goodnight! tomorrow's another day out!

all you need is the time, the place, and the right people

what a wonderful wendnesday i've had! sure, the TACS course was super boring. but i must say! with the EFO and the evening spent with Kenny and ZT, it was just awesome! and i'm topping it all off with half day tmr! :D

something i need to learn. don't plan so hard! just arrange the place, and let the awesomeness ensue. if it is the right bunch of people, no amount of work will make it more awesome, and no lack of work will make it less awesome. so just go with the flow! its less stressful that way :)

The Weekend blue

My blogger is so messed up! the page is completely image-less save for the text box to type my post! sheesh... blogger don't like me anymore, can't even post pictures or anything like that... sigh...

haha. its saturday again! and "the Great Singapore Queue" i was so looking forward to, i'm now doubting whether i'm gonna go. Thing is, varun's supposed to join me, but he's stuck on a mission, so no show for him. Kenny hasn't replied, and i'm a little lazy to go, will tell you my final decision soon...

The weekend doesn't feel right. was building up to have a great weekend but somehow, it feels like things aren't going to plan!

maybe things will get better once i leave the house. No matter what, i'll be joining Mat at the Toys and Comics Convention at Suntec, hopefully after, i will go for the flash mob. that means, i'm not gonna prepare anything special >.< doesn't feel right without anyone else to show off to... haha

Tmrs another headache. not really sure what i want to do... I've got driving lesson at Bukit Batok DC at 12.20. which pretty much throws off ALL of my plans. Like morning cycling and the afternoon with the R&Gad-ers. I'm happy to go driving tho. i just wish i could attend the other stuff as well!

maybe it was a good thing i typed this out. gave me a chance to think! i might have a plan for tmr... heh.heh.heh.

okay, i'm off to prepare to go out! see you soon!

Not the brightest bulb in the lot

Thursday! Dim came back on wed, but we could only meet her on thursday. I was so looking forward to meeting her and whoever else again. expected to have some crazy retarded fun, and needless to say, they did not disappoint!

There's a certain comfort zone hanging out with TJ people :) had a great evening talking to Nad, and playing "the Pyramid Game" with the gang till late night. ION is a place to go to feel poor. people don't go there with wallets, they go with Cheque-books! Even dinner was exorbitant, and we were eating food-court fare! haha. but its all about the people!

Simple joys like these are what makes it all worthwhile :)

its not what you see, but how you see it

Happy National Day! HOT National day, but happy nonetheless! spent the day at home with family. expected to feel the usual uselessness of not getting out, but it was quite nice today!

It started with the Parade i believe. Somehow, being in army could have changed my perspective of the celebrations, a better understanding (and knowing what ammunition was drawn for what purpose XD). I think this year's NDP celebrations were well done! not too campy, but not too boring either. it was nice, especially the music, the medley of Singapore National Day songs.

I want to say something about this year's song What Do You See. when i first heard it, must say i agreed with the popular consensus that it seemed too slow, and very tired. but this is Electrico! they wouldn't let us down like that! and true enough, the live version was soo much better. something i could really rock to if i were part of the audience. So someone, POST IT ONLINE then i can listen to it again :D

Shall keep my National Day post short and simple, just like how i enjoyed my national day. Now to watch some Singapore Idol! (yes the whole Singapore-spirit thing is spilling over to idol too, haha) byee!

It makes Harold and Kumar seem like Finding Nemo

Still filled with awesome! Despite reaching home late and not sleeping much, i've still been quite energetic today! getting lots done, and meeting many people :)

Woke up early to check out NUS' Rag and Flag day. once upon a time, it was a performance to thank people for contributing to the community chest, but now its become a crazy competition for Hall pride and faculty kudos. i'm such a crasher! haha. not even coming to NUS in 2 years time, so i'm quite the odd ball to go down today. but at the same time, its not about me, it was about the people i went down to support! the Raggers, and basically any NUS people i know involved in today's festivities!

The performances were great! Jane and Sze Sian were awesome as usual. but i'm really stunned at the work and effort (and prolly money) that the Hall's put into their Rag item. the Faculties are good, and the sicerity is definitely there. but the Halls just go Up, Above, and BEYOND with their display of Dancers and Floats. haha, i wouldn't expect Jane and Sian to be doing anything less that performing for the best of them :) the one that made me totally giggle with joy was Kerry! looks like all those years of Mass Dance has paid off :D she was awesome too! I must admit that i wasn't expecting much, but damn! Kerry can coordinate! haha. the Law faculty performance was good! and i'm very impressed!

Got quite the bad sunburn at the event tho, the sun was just beating down the whole day. such a nive change of climate the moment we got to Vivo! Had plans to meet the guys to do lunch then catch The Hangover. and that is precisely what we did!

Lunch at Marche was a good chance to catch up with Marc and Marcus and some of the guys i haven't seen for a while. the Marche at Vivo isnt too bad. as expected it cost quite the hefty price, but i would say it was worth it, considering i'm no longer the crazy guy who wants to stuff his face with everything (okay, less... but its still an improvement!) Then off to take up Marcus' offer of treating us to Haagen Dazs! The Fondue set is kinda expensive considering the serving size... but i guess we wouldn't be going for it unless we had the vouchers...

The Movie WAS EPIC. people told me that The Hangover was funny as hell, but i was not prepared for the awesome that was about to ensue. the show was absolutely crazy! not on drugs crazy like H&K, but more of the 'holy-crap!-that-is-unreal!-but-could-totally-happen-if-i-got-wasted' and the crazy China guy was insane! Heather Graham is Hot stuffs and i wouldn't mind marrying her :) and Alan is one insane retard (pronounces ret-ard not re-tard) I'm glad i caught this movie with this bunch of guys. it was just hilarious as hell, and would not have had the same insane effect if it were with anyone else.

all in all, i'm feeling super high from today! that's why i've been able to sustain so many blog posts. Its been awesome, and i'll update more soon!

Toodles Mothafuckaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaas!

Yello Jello Fello

Friday was immensely enjoyable, as i got to see Yee Chuin, Woon Yee, Eugene and Lester, a mini-TASC gathering! Hui Min had Hall stuff to attend to, and Kerry had RAG! more about that in another (the next) post!

so dinner at a spanish restaurant, was good, with nicely done ox tail, and other dishes. it was quite simply seasoned, with garlic and olive oil being the main stars, but it was good, and had a fun time chatting it up with chuin, wy and gene (lester came later).

then we moved on to 'dessert' at Yello Jello. okay, so it wasn't really dessert, since we all went to a pub to drink. i'm glad that my choice to not have alcohol is not very awkward with them, like they find it weird, but they understand, much like another 'funny habit' of a someone i know. but its of course different, different sort of choices made. anyway. the highlight of the night had to be the Yello Jello house band, The Yellow TinTins (i can't really rmb the name >.<). we stayed for 2 segments (they had a long break in between the 2) the first was mainly requests by the floor. and i don't think they were at it for very long, prolly just warming up. the 2nd part was when things got hyper! cuz eugene pulled Chuin up to dance, and i and woon yee joined in. eventually even lester joined in, and we were rocking along to the likes of Mamma Mia, and other awesome tunes. it was just great and lotsa fun, so much that we didn't really wanna leave (but must catch last train/bus lah XD)

Bars are great places to watch people! and see the kind of antics that people get up to. Amongst the nights interests were Hot Girls (obviously), SPG (Sarong Party Girls), Cougars, and just general drinkers (mainly Ang Mohs). its no point trying to talk in such a bar though, you'd just end up getting a sore throat, haha, but its nice if you really get into the music!

Hopefully we can do this again sometime! i'll pass on the alcohol, but i'm in on the awesome :D

Normal and Routine can be good too

I've said i'm going to do gym, and wednesday was my first shot at it. and though Wed and Thurs were not the 'spectacular spectacular' kind of days i usually plan for, it was good, and made me realise i don't have to keep doing big grand things, just running chores can be good too!

Wednesday was gym, and i think i can get used to doing something like that. it wasn't too strenuous, maybe because i'm in a conditioning period for the moment, but it wasn't too troublesome either. its in town, so it sorta feels like when i was going for rehearsals at TOPH, and i could always choose to have dinner at the club, or go home instead. So i've just got to get my lazy ass down for gym, and stop finding excuses to shirk it off! haha.

Thursday i had little planned, but i had the craving for Chicken Soup! so i was prepared to go and get all the necessary to prepare the Soup. since i was down at Tiong Bahru Plaza anyway, i planned to get Dad's Birthday gift while i'm at it! too many years i didn't know what to get Dad (actually... i still don't) and so i just go without, or forget. but this year, i wanted to make the effort. especially since im no longer sponging (as much) off him, with my NS pay and all, so i should make the effort to give back too :) what i got for him shall be a surprise! will tell you what he got and his reaction after i give it to him!

In the end, the Chicken soup didn't materialise till much later. In fact, i only just got it done, and now its sitting in the thermal pot happily cooking away! hopefully tomorrow morning i will wake to a great hearty chicken soup (for the soul!)

Sinema Showoff

Monday Wednesdays and Friday are supposed to be Gym days, unless i make other plans. last monday i had duty, so no gym for me >.< so instead i looked forward to Tuesday night where i was going to check out Sinema Showoff!

Sinema Showoff is a platform for local filmmakers to showcase their work, as well as an editing studio for them to start off their film-making career. Also, it showcases Asian films in its very own theatre, to create a asian cinema culture of sorts, haha.

its a really quaint place atop Mt. Sophia (had to climb ALOT of stairs!), but it was worth the climb. got a chance to talk to some of the people there (one guy was an ammo tech, and used to work for Kwong Nam at SOA!) and they're really nice, and the cinema was quite cool too!

I'm quite the Cheapo, so the first one i went for was the National Day Special, 3 shorts, Free-Of-Charge, the shorts (short films) that night weren't anything great, but the potential was there, so i'm sure there are times when the audiences get a nice surprise from an aspiring filmmaker. However, after going once, i'm tempted to go for a proper full length film, like Invisible Children, or the likes of the The Insomniac. Maybe i'll catch one more, afterall, tickets are $8 which is the cost of a movie ticket anyway! so maybe i'll do that!

You should totally check it out! the website's at http://www.sinema.sg/oldschool/ If you're interested, drop me a message, and we can go catch a show together!

If there is more than one idea, say it in a another sentence.

My uncle used to write for the newspaper, and he taught me that if there is more than one idea, you should either split it into another sentence, or, since newspapers are one sentence per paragraph, split the idea into another paragraph.

so in my effort to keep my posts more bite-sized (and less tiring to write and recount everything since the last post) i'll try to keep things short and to the point, even if i end up posting more than once a day!

Sunday Sunday Sunday Success!

well in spite of my post yesterday, today turned out great! and to think, all it took was a little planning on our part to get things to fall into place! so after lulling around the house pretty much the whole day, i decided that we got to get the family out of the house, and do so we did!

morning had driving plans though, so popped down to BBDC for my first ever driving lesson! and it was good, very good! its a lot more things to pay attention to than i expected, but what surprised me was how natural it was to follow and pick up driving! sure, a lot of things are still foreign, but maybe all those years of being in Dad's car did not got to waste. even without reading the book, it was quite easy to follow the tutor's instructions, and before i knew it, i was sitting in the car, driving rounds around the circuit! so exciting! haha.

Mom was great, waited for me for the whole of 100 mins, cuz we had plans for the afternoon! we swung by home to pick Dad and Mat up, and went down to the club to start Gymming as a family. I was quite reluctant to go, cuz i don't really like gym and didn't really want to start. but like most of my PT endeavors, when i resign myself to fate, i try to make the best of it, so consulted Joseph (the trainer there) on a workout set, and have got myself a plan to go down 3 times a week (mostly on Mon Wed and Fri) and get my workout lifestyle started. i guess i've sorta gotten into the momentum of things, and i want my weight to keep going down. it feels good to be complimented, and feels good to achieve things that i couldn't before.

I'm hoping there will be spill over effects too (splash damage!) and maybe my new determination to excel in my physical fitness will also lead to my determination to do better in school and academics. haha, its a hope :D

after gym, we had lunch as a family at LerkThai, not too bad, got quite stuffed actually (danger!) haha. it was kinda wierd going out as a family. i felt most of my time was being annoyed at Mat (that's normal) but i guess i was too conscious about how we were interacting. once i learnt to relax, things just flowed, and turned out well.

following which we visited a museum i NEVER knew existed. the Singapore Philantelic Museum (Wha-?) yes, that was my exact expression as well! but apparently its the Stamp Museum, and its located just perpendicular to Armenian Street (Peranakan Museum and the Substation) the thing that caught my eye was the Comics and Superheroes section i saw in an events website. anyway by the time we reached the museum it was 5pm, so we spent about an hour there, and happily went on our way home.

its reminiscent of last time. i remember MomDad use to bring me and mat around all sorts of places, from children festivals to Museum exhibits, me and my bro are quite the youth culture vulture in that aspect, and i'm glad they did. only because of such, we were able to appreciate the museum today (the comics and superheroes helped too XP) but mainly it was the joy of spending time as a family, which ironically enough we don't do enough of at home.

Another thing that has gotten me excited, is the events website i discovered: TimeOut.com. its a good site with listings of interesting things to do! from the research i was doing last night, i've got plans for future family outings, as well as things that i want to check out on my own.

i.e.

WaterWorks at the Singapore Science Center. Ah boy is down with fever this weekend, so no chance there. but hopefully we can organise a trip soon, invite the extended family, and go and basically play water at WaterWorks, while hopefully teaching the kiddies some science. if that's good, maybe Wild Wild Wet might be our next destination!

Sinema Showoff! that's something i wanna explore on my own. its a place screening local film clips as well as asian theatre. the full length features are normal movie prices ($8 and $10) but there are free shows, and i'm intending to catch the National Day Special ones, maybe this tues? so if there are any takers, sms me!

lots of things listed on the page, and i can't wait to pore through them, and maybe attend a few events? i realise i'm not the sort which go for regular sessions, i like exploring new things, and hopefully meeting new people while i'm at it. the only worry is not to become the jack of all trades, master of none. or to such a rolling stone that gathers no moss. a balance i have to learn to strike. but for now, i'm still young! can go and do all the exploring i want :)

So yes, i would say that i have had a good sunday! time to catch some Shut Eye, and get rest for work tmr. tmr night's my first Sentry Duty for next month! woo... haha. better charge my Music Player. yes yes. goodnight ya'll. more excapades to come!

Think of something to do!

Its good to spend time at home. but it feels like when i'm at home, i'm not really doing much. anyone have ideas on how to spend time with the family fruitfully?

I'm one for blogging when something interesting happens, for the sake of personal record, usually i don't blog out of boredom. but i will this time. haha. i got frustrated at my Magic cards, so now it is lying a huge mess on the floor. with no way to sort them nicely so that i can access them later. i don't really like poring over the many many cards i've got, its too messy, then i'll put off keeping it properly, then later i will just put them in one giant heap, and dump it in the Box, ignoring it till i want to make another deck. this is a bad habit of mine >.<

Also! i'm sick of 3 colour decks!!! argh. quickly Zendikar! come out so that i can play around with mono and duo colours again! M10 just doesn't quite cut it. too... vanilla, not synergistic or flavourful enough for my taste.

Anyhoo. haven't really got much done since the last post. Fri was dinner at the club, contemplating when to start my gym regime. i feel kinda bad about this week. haven't been following a strict diet/exercise routine. lazy to do the strength training at home each day, and i even though i attended all runs last week (wed was cancelled) i can't help but feel it isn't enough (also because my timing dipped) maybe its a bit of complacency on the successful clearing of my IPPT, maybe that's just an excuse for my laziness, haha.

well, at least i got one thing done today! i've passed my FTT, so now all that is left is to attend the silly tutorial things (some compulsory lecture i believe) and to start driving lessons! speaking of which, i made a hasty booking for tomorrow! so i'll be officially starting my driving lessons come tomorrow :) that is good!

i'm off to find something to do! i know if i sit in front of my com, hours will fly by and i won't get anything done! so till i think of something, goodbye!

Things are building UP

Hello everybody! it really feels like quite a long time since i last updated, let's check... hmm... last thursday... well lots of things have been happening, but i guess i have been too tired/busy to update. but no worries! now is the time to do recollections!

reason i didn't post anything over the weekend was largely attributed to Duty on Saturday. Its a lot more tiresome, not tiring mind you, got alot of sleep that weekend, haha, and lots of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince reading done :D but still, it was a hassle being in camp for the weekend, and even though Saturday just flew past, i realise in hindsight that it just ate up my weekend.

Sunday was spent out the whole day. from R&Gad PPP at Rachel's (too many acronyms! Rosen&Guildern are Dead Post-Production Party!) then dinner with Godma. i thought i wasn't that tired from Duty, but i guess irregular sleeping hours does take its toll on the body, so by Sunday night, i was utterly shagged out, but satisfied.

I was actually expecting Dim back on monday! (speaking of which, need to pop away and send an email...*POP*...*POP* and we're back!) yes, i'm going to regulate my life a little, and try and make myself be more diligent with certain things! like tuesdays will be email-day. prolly wednesdays will be facebook day, and if i don't bother to post as often, i'll try to make thursday my blogging day. its good to keep updating snippets of life, it gives something to look back on when my life progresses :)

okay! tuesday was an excellently spontaneous decision to meet up with raghav and play MTG into the night, which i did! and ended up reaching home at 1+ a.m. in the morning, which though i bet MomDad weren't too pleased with, i think they know that i'm old enough to know how to take care of myself, my parents are awesome like that :D

Oh yes! Tuesday was a landmark day in my NS life! for the first time ever, i passed my IPPT! woo~ woo~ yea~ :D this opens up so many opportunities for me! can finally promote to CPL and 3SG, and can earn some damned respect for my self! that's one thing in the office. even though its not a very nice generalisation, the rank does say a bit about how experienced the soldier is, so i'm gonna earn respect deserving of my rank, and my my mark on the ongoings in GSAB :)

Then duty on wednesday was last duty for the month, and last prowling for me. next month its sentry, at a much reduced rate of 3 duties a month. hopefully that will give me more time to dedicate to driving lessons and gym. though i've passed my IPPT, i cannot be complacent (like i have in the past 3 days >.<) and must strive to get better, and maybe get a silver badge for myself :)

then just came back tonight, and went out for the movie UP. to be frank, today wasn't a very good day. my last duty was fine, but i was quite careless with things, forgetting this and being an all round klutz. then today, after duty rest, went back to office to find a troubled Jeremy, who obviously had not had a good morning, with the flood of work coming in, since almost all the key people were not around on wednesday, so their backlogged work flooded in on thursday morning. felt guilty for not being around to help him, and worse was that even when i was around, i didn't know how to assist to my best ability.

But all my worries seemed to be pushed away by the end of the day, and it ended perfectly with the screening of UP, which i caught with Mat. Disney has got their winning magic back. For so long we were under the torture of boring, lifeless CGI shows like Cars, or Barnyard, or the likes of those shows. but Disney-Pixar knows their stuff, and blessed us withe Toy Story, Finding Nemo, Wall-E and now UP. i loved it. it was touching, and had great story, and great character. anyone who has the chance please watch it with people you love. family, girlfriend, best friends, whatever. just go with people who are special and important to you, because i know you will love it. My favourite scene had to be the first part, no words, just music, and the life story. it was a minor part to set the stage for the later plot, but it kinda painted the life i wished to lead, if you have no idea what i am talking about, go watch the movie, then buy the DVD, and watch it over and over again. Carl and Ellie - <3 forever :)

I'm happy now. warmed up by a great movie, and i shall take this feeling to sleep with me, so that i can savour it hopefully in my dreams as well. well then, goodnight, and till my next post!

If you're pooping sunshine, sooner or later your ass is gonna hurt

my blogger is super messed up. as i write my post, its a teeny tiny box at the bottom left corner of the screen. SIGH, things not working out today.

Just came home from sending syak off. and i just finished an email to her too. i'm missing her real bad now, and i think it still isn't that apparent yet. it takes some time to sink in. I'm a little emo, a little dispaired, yet surprisingly calm at the whole state of things. It isn't remotely near futtype (look at Eugene's blog for uncensored version of the same sound) because i don't think i'll ever (allow myself to) decend into that.

I don't want to discuss it so openly, till i figure out what i'm gonna do with this new information. Oh, right, haven't explained what happened. After sending syak off and sitting around with the girls talking about Uni, we went off, and i sat in Terminal 3, talking to Kenneth over the phone, just talking about each other, and about our friends. I couldn't begin to understand why things just aren't going the way i've planned them to be, and why does it feel like i'm left behind, when everyone else is finding a way to deal with their life.

Life doesn't suck. Not for me. but i think most others would beg to differ. and maybe therein lies the difference. that i'm too happy, that i don't understand the 'pain' of my friends around me.

Its so ironic. i'm the normal guy in a room of wierd people. That makes ME the wierd one.

So as i struggle to find a new place, to play with my PS2 platform. i'll just have to take a break from those playing the Wii. But it hard.

sigh. what to do. find a new way of life. (said with much melancholy)

Go Go Power Players!

I guess now is a good a time as ever to talk about production. and boy, did it surprise me, in more ways than one, and i guess that is the beauty of the stage :)

PRE

To those who have heard me complain, this is nothing new, to those visiting my blog expecting some emo lovey lovey thing about the production, i might as well just come out and say that: "I didn't enjoy the days leading up to the play"

Why? because the honeymoon period was over, because it was taking up so much of my time, that i wanted to instead spend with the TJ people. Many a time, i felt so alone during rehearsal, simply because everyone seemed to know everyone else, and i felt like the only orange slice in the apple pie.

biggest reason of all, and i think it still strikes a sour chord, was the way our rehearsals were run. i shall leave it at that, no point brooding over a sour point.

THEN

then, the week of production came, and i was taking half day off everyday and going down to TOPH for rehearsal. even in the days leading up i didn't wuite feel it, but i think things rapidly changed Thursaday night.

Alot of realisations came at once. First of it, i remember, was when Sali said "Acting is a very clique-y thing, sometimes not all actors are not given a chance to shine". and i realised that it was true, and i didn't have to keep fighting the thought in my head anymore, hearing it from another, just seemed to make it all clear. sure it isn't the best of things to hear, but it was the truth, and it is something that i could finally come to terms with.

I stopped fighting, and gave in to the whole performance. had fun on stage and went crazy with the guys. Wang was best, we got connection yo, and even in the group i felt was hard to click with, i managed to find a comfort spot that made things awesome.

The growth didn't stop there, the love grew and the appreciation doubled, tripled, quin(tessance)tupled, with each Run. Each night i saw primary school friends i haven't seen in ages, and some surprise guests like Oli and Ryan. It made me regret a little that i didn't invite anyone to come watch, and that was a lesson in itself.

I iz hearts the life of theatre. i don't always have to be comfortable or like the process, but the rewards are definitely there. I'm so glad that I was brought into it again :)

POST

and now, i facebook tonight and i see the influx of R&Gad Withdrawal Syndrome (R&GADWS). I'm not surprised, because that is the kind of people we are, but what i am surprised is that i'm feeling it too. It wasn't that long ago, i went about spouting "Oh! i can't wait for the production to end! get back to my normal life" and now i find myself finally completed the run, and feeling R&GADWS too.

It could have been the notes, and it could have been the climax of our last night. In any case, it was a great run, and it was my honour to be part of it.

Credits:
This silly boy would like to thank the following people
Cheng & Isaac for bothering to get this whole thing done
The cast, for bringing life to the stage, our act, and to my mundane life
the production crew, for always letting me in on the backstage action (i like it there)
Wang, for loving power rangers

but most of all

Salima Nadira, for being the reason i dabbled into this whole thing, sure, it may not seem like much, but i think you helped me more than a few times in the course of this production, whether you realised it or not :)

It never really is goodbye, is it?
i always hope its see you later :D

Missing everyone - Jon

post production recollection

Another short one, since its uber late night, and i've got to get up early for NS tmr. I'm enjoying much to the surprise of many, and actually a little to myself. Anyway, just finished Rosencrantz & Guildernestern are Dead (felt it deserved its title spelt in full) It's finally over. after all those months of labouriously rehearsing, and putting up with certain characters, i've made it through.

But i'm not as relieved as i thought i would be. in fact, i might surprise myself, and actually miss this production. Its the people i do believe, and when everything came together, it was sheer awesomeness.

will need to elaborate on this soon :) but till then, it is time for this Tradgedian to go nightie-night :D

Intermission production post

Just finished the best run of R&Gad to date. SUPER TIRED. been back and forth this entire week, and couldnt wait for this show to finish its run, and finally, tomorrow will be the last show! woo!

OMG! I can't believe oli and ryan were at the show. I WAS COMPLETELY STUNNED! haha, but it was awesome! good to know that there were people i know watching, really gives a second wind, a burst of energy! but i was also quite embarassed to let them see me perform... heh, shall ask them what they thought of it soon!

The rehearsals were bleh, but now that we're finally performing, i'm really getting into it, which is absolutely awesome! who knows, maybe my sourpuss will fade, and i'll go back to doing this again soon :D

alright, more another time, i'm just so tired, and watching my colourful nails type is disturbing me a bit... haha, goodnight :) last run tomorrow!

Pictures of Me, Pictures of You

Its Sunday night! and i haven't been home all that much to blog, i'll explain everything in a jiff, but boy am i tired... don't think i'll do live run tomorrow, i haven't had proper rest since thursday night... that can't possibly be good for me >.<

Friday was guard duty again! i don't mind it all. the only thing is reeking after each guard duty, but apart from that, i actually get to catch up on sleep, lose some weight, and get to experience my camp better, so what's not to like? haha, there's possibility its all denial, but hey, for the moment it works, and i guess you could say i'm quite garang when it comes to doing duty, so yeah, if i have to do it, might as well enjoy it :)

its a good thing i felt properly rested after guard duty, if not i would not have been able to survive saturday. Rehearsal in the morning as usual, we've finally come to the last week of rehearsals! woo! the play is coming (and GOING) and can finally get this done (and out of the way XD)

Afterwhich, i quickly headed to Serangoon Gardens to get my hair cut! my hair isn't that long, but i guess i wanted to keep it short and neat and easy to manage. and airier too! but mostly is because i'm vain, and i wanted to look nice for saturday night!

What's so special about saturday night? Saturday was Syak's Farewell BBQ, and it was great. it was so nice to see everyone having fun together, and syak getting all emo about going. but it was a time to celebrate, and to come to terms with the fact that we're all going our different ways. different doesn't mean seperate, because after Saturday night, i sincerely believe that we won't be apart for that long, and we will always find reasons and ways to cross paths and talk like we never split :)

Then after syak left, we spent the rest of the night playing games, first murderer/polar bear at the pavillion, then we moved things upstairs to Jane's place, and played things like Taboo and Indian Poker. I didn't know that Jane was so well versed in these funny games, but its awesome that she is! haha, games are best when not everyone knows each other. Speaking of which, i've got to get back down to finishing the game peices for 'The Factory Game' thinggum, haha.

I'm actually in a combi of tiredness, and really melancholic. i miss people already even when they haven't gone. i feel like i'm trapped but certain responsibilities, when i much rather be doing the things that matter to me right now.

I'm gonna go to sleep, and when i wake tomorrow, i wish to be happy. :)

left 4 alive

Just got back from my first ever L4D experience! woo! funstuffs! to think, i was so hesitant on trying it cuz i've never been good/into the whole LAN gaming thing. but still L4D is an awesomely simple yet awesomely fun game which anyone could pick up in 5 mins :D i'm thinking L4D with friends soon!

I have been dying this week so far (yes i know its only tuesday, but i just know that its gonna be a tough week ahead) Monday was rehearsal at TOPH, and rehearsal was terrible :) haha, props was an epic fail, cues were terribly followed, space had totally changed, everything that could go wrong, did go wrong. but yet, i think i enjoyed myself on Monday! rehearsing in the space is so different! some people got stressed by it, but i simply fed of the excitement of it all :)

Today met Nick! he's back from UK, and popped by to say hello! managed to talk a little with him over dinner, but the rest of the night's conversation was made up of "HOLY SHIT!! I'm DYING, I'M DYING!", "Shoot the tongue! THE TONGUE!" "WTH! i didn't even do anything and i died!" and "HOW DO I HEAL?", etc. yes yes, my virgin L4D experience was given to Nick! haha, should give him something special since he's all the way back here :D I like how we can just talk like he never left, it doesn't feel that different. sure the circumstances have changed, but we're still the same kind of friends, its awesome :)

The rest of the week is responsibilities everywhere. Tmr and Fri are Duty days for me, so that leaves me with thursday, which i'm using to hopefully get my FTT evaluation out of the way. hmmm... if i fail i'm going to have a problem... since the damn test can't be refunded. oh well... i think i should be able to pass the FTT eval? if i can, then the test should not be a problem!

went to SRC to pick up my membership card, so that means once production is out of the way, i've got to hardcore my training and pass my damn ippt! i can do it! i know i can! after that, i can focus on driving! and getting that 2 Star Kayaking cert! haha i like how the plans are fitting along nicely :D for now at least.

Picked up a few fliers/brochures/pamphlets at Esplanade, i foresee some shows/events i would like to go for! preferably if the right people are available to go with me :) but that's still far away, most of the interesting ones are in Sept i think, so can brace for those. STOMP is coming to town, maybe can discuss with MomDad if the family can go? its a little on the expensive side... but see how first, that's in Sept too.

I've been so tired this week that i've been falling asleep in the office even when Master Chua and Staff Jason are around, that is not good >.< I better get enough sleep, if not i might just burn out.

well, i'm gonna struggle to stay alive! haha, see you on Thursday, if i don't completely collapse from exhaustion! haha.

1sies, 2sies, 3sies and Moresies

"I find that even though it is easier to meet many people at once, its better to meet one on one to REALLY catch up" - Jonathan Heng

i really agree with what he says :)

haha, okay, so tonight was supposed to Transformers 2 night, and was supposed to meet the guys for Transformers, but before that! lets do recap of Fri-Sat!

Friday was my first duty ever, and i was super lucky to get a very good DOO and DOS, didn't disturb us with any Turnout at all! plus plus! i got detail 2! or fence 2, and its the best detail, since i don't have to prowl 3 times (Fence 1) and i get to skip staff parade! okay, so maybe i don't get the full duty experience since i didn't try staff parade, but i'm sure it'll come soon.

Duty wasn't too bad. found it kinda fun actually, like a stayover in camp. the only part is the walking around with the heavy rifle+LBV, but it kinda makes it feel like its really army, not just the cushy office job everyday. Even managed to get Pizza Hut ordered in :D So had to say my first experience of duty was good. Now i want to try a xiong one, to see how bad it can get. well, i think my wish may already be answered! i've got wednesday duty, and i hear that the DOO is a garang one. so wish me all the best!

Then this morning after clearing everything in camp, went straight down to Bishan/RJC for rehearsal. obviously i was late, but at least i turned up! and its gonna be the same for next fri too! Rehearsal was... normal i guess. was a little emo, but will touch on that later.

by the time i got home, it was 3+ had lunch, so 4ish, bathe, change, use com, suddenly its 5 >.< and i'm supposed to meet the guys at Tampines at 6.30. so instead i say i'll be late, and i took a 30 minute nap. i think maybe i just need to sleep one long sleep, not in spurts like guard duty (though i think i got quite a lot of rest last night, hur)

All the way to Tampines, and turns out, i'm one of the earlier ones (bastards) haha then one thing led to another, then it led to. RAGHAV BOOKED THE WRONG DAY. sorry bro, had to be said. he booked the prev day and didn't realise it, so we were now 5 guys at Tampines with nothing to do. But that's not a problem, put a bunch of guys together, and they can sure talk cock :D and talk cock we did :) though it was kinda reminiscent of that week where my outings were... less than ideal. still couldn't figure it out, till later.

the guys left about quarter to 10? so i was going to head back, when i started talking to raghav, then we sat on the stairs at the station, and just chat. Lots of things, mainly about people, hearing about how we've grown and all, and that's when it felt right. like this is the kind of bonding i was hoping for each time the guys meet up. but it usually ends up as too many people, and the conversation doesn't really go anywhere.

I was emo most of the morning, cuz it felt like even though i was working so hard with these group of people, i didn't click that well with all of them. and when we're in a group, i'm such a clown that people don't take me seriously. but that's because they haven't gotten a chance to talk to me on my own. I think Ms. Nor said it before. you got to let people get to know you for who you are first. and usually when i intro myself to a group, i don't usually let them see my personal side, cuz i put on the 'group face' and try to entertain and bring in as many people as possible.

Its about being an attention seeker. in a group i want everyone (or as many as possible) to look at me, and listen to me, but in a 1 on 1 convo, i already have the attention and focus, so i can talk about what i want naturally, without having to worry much about winning the other's attention.

point is, i realise that i've been trying so hard to organise these big events and include everybody, that it kinda falls through since not everyone is on the same page. I want to meet them to catch up and to hear thier thoughts and stories, but in a group we can't really do that, the dynamic is different.

So a little resolve i'm going to make. instead of forcing these big events, i shall try to meet more often, and in smaller groups, best if 1on1, and REALLY catch up. then save for the really big events later, no need to force something out when there is no occasion. it'll take more time, and i won't be able to meet so many people at one go, but the quality of our meeting would be so much more, and we can really just talk about how each other has been. that'd be awesome :)

July oh July, why are you so packed. August hopefully will be more forgiving. it should be since R&Gad will be over :D And then i'll get down to meeting on close basis more often, and doing my personal responsibilities and goals. yes. yes i will!

I'm le tired. heh. can't really express myself so well when i'm tired. but i'm sure this explains enough. will have the weekend to mull over it :) i'm feeling enlightened

Duty, Honour, Country, Guard Duty!

I better get to sleep soon! tomorrow's my first guard duty! sigh. quite sad that my first month at guard duty has so many problems! haha. its mainly cuz there is production this month, so lots of dates have to be moved around. Whatsmore, i had the misfortune of getting 2 Friday Duties and 1 Sat one out of my 5 duties.

Here's how the Duties work:

weekday
12-hr duties. 2-3 shifts of 2hr prowl and 4hr rest
next morning, duty rest until 12 noon, then join work after lunch

weekend
24-hr duty, 4-5 shifts of 2 hr prowl and 4 hr rest
next morning, duty rest until 12 noon, then join work after lunch.

Now if you notice, in a stay out camp like mine, there are certain days that are worse than others

Friday - sure, its only 12 hours, but sad thing is, there is no duty rest, since the next day is saturday, so no skipping work for you!

Sunday - holy crap yo! its 24 hours!!!

Saturday - now this is the mashuggenna of bad duty days, not only is it 24 hours, but there is no duty rest since it ends on sunday morning! sigh, weekend burnt just like that

Yeah well, even though its kinda sucky to have duties, at least i get to earn off! its not as easy as ZT who gets an off for every weekend duty, but at least its better than no off at all! i'm already planning to spend my July off in August to See Raghav off. hopefully all goes well, and i can claim my off promptly!

they say that the thing about guard duty is that you get bored real fast, so finding a good prowl buddy is good. and its always best to stock up on movies on your player to tide you through the sleepless hours.

I'm a little worried about my energy. haven't done duty before so don't know how tired i'll be after. hopefully not TOO tired, then at least i won't burn out at Rehearsal the next day. yes yes, i'm going straight from camp to duty to rehearsal, and depending what time things end and how dead i am, i'm also catching Transformers 2 tmr with the guys!

Ambitious aren't i? but that sound like the right weekend for me, lots of things to do, let's just hope i don't tire out too much. gotta run on Monday!