stocktaking

I'd been saying to people all the way from even the beginning of the past sem that i'd be prepared to see my cap drop significantly, since i predicted (all too correctly, might i add) that this sem right back from Carolina be a tough one.

Well, as they say, it's one thing to say such things, but another to actually see it for yourself.

Yup so my prediction came true, and this sem's results have been my worst ever - as a result i now am precariously situated a hair's breadth clear of slipping to second lower range.

But even as i did take in the full extent of the results and what they could possibly mean, i somehow felt that, even as i definitely fully deserved the grades i've gotten this time round, this was also the Lord's way of preparing me for the upcoming year - that in the midst of honors and possible thesis-writing and substantial commitments on the CF side - the only thing i can really bank upon is His presence beside me at all times, and it is upon the Lord alone that i can draw my strength to get through what is shaping up to be the most challenging (academic) year i'll have by far... Going out with a bang, so to speak...

At the same time, when i looked at the individual grades i received, actually there's a lot to be thankful for. Such as that my 15% D+ for one hist test got somehow evened out as the sem went on so that i managed to squeeze by with a B- overall, and the unexpectedly high grade for another hist class, undoubtedly buoyed by having a great project group to work with (and incidentally, i saw my prof for that class at holland v right after checking results)...

Oh, and my posting of grades here is definitely not for any purpose of self-promotion (there's little to promote in any case as far as they are concerned heh) but rather for people to note and remind me wherever necessary next year if i start to get obsessed with the magical number four again, to snap me back into reality, stop looking at grades and cap per se, and really to go back to God whatever happens, and especially what degree i graduate with in the first place...

And take this whatever way you want to, but don't you find it just a tad ironic that the same day that results come out we receive this email in our inbox?

Dear All,

The Counselling Centre will be closed for a staff retreat on Monday, 28 May 2007.

In the event of a life threatening emergency, please call Lifeline NUS: 6516 7777.

We apologise for any inconvenience caused.

Regards,
Counselling Centre
University Health, Wellness and Counselling Centre

packing room and random birds - a (largely) photographic essay

Well the date of moving house isn't getting any further (eh actually it is - just found out that the house will only be ready for moving in on the second week of June - but this is just to create a sense of panic in me) which means that it's about time i started packing my room. Here first is a quick snapshot (or rather a series of quick snapshots) of how my room looks like at present [and yes i know this is super boliao but well moving house is such a rare event (well, except for me though hmm...) and is therefore worth documenting...]





Well suffice to say my room's currently a big mess - and all this will have to be cleared out within the next couple of weeks (ok not all of it, like half of the furniture came with the house), so needless to say i've a big task ahead of me - and...

But no one's gonna do it if i don't, so the other day i decided that i must get started with packing - and i did - i went downstairs, found one empty box, and brought it up to my room. Well, and that was it for the day...

And the next day, i figured i had to do something more. Yup. So this is the result of that new resolve:


Three files worth of old school work... Yay... That's like 0.05 % down, 99.95% more to go...

Recently have been seeing quite a few birds around, and since one of the random things that i happen to be relatively familiar with is local bird identification, thought it would be good to document this as well... So for a start we have the following:

Yellow-vented Bulbul (Pycnonotus goiavier) outside my window

White-throated Kingfisher (Halcyon smyrnensis) at Pasir Ris Park

Um, just two disclaimers in conclusion: 1) I'm a terrible wildlife photographer, i'll admit that. 2) These are both common species so it's not as though these pics signify some groundbreaking development in local birdwatching circles...

20160 minutes

Was just thinking that in the span of the past above mentioned period of time there's been a 180 degree turn in what i had intended for the upcoming year ministry wise. On the night of Sunday 6 May 2007 i don't actually recall what i was doing but i'm pretty sure it didn't involve any preoccupations with what the (academic) year ahead would bring. Yup for all intents and purposes, two weeks ago my last two sems at nus in terms of CF commitment at least would revolve solely around the informal, providing whatever insights and help a CF member with three years of CF experience (and a gem of a semester away on exchange) could as a (love the term, btw) supportive senior whenever such insights were called for. The more i thought of it, the more i relished the idea.

Then within the span of the past fourteen equatorial days worth of daylights, sunsets and midnights (and no cups of coffee thank you very much - some tea though, dunno about inches and miles, lots of laughter and a fair dose of strife the situation has changed so dramatically and suddenly all my dreams of a nice, easy and relaxed final year at NUS came to an abrupt halt. Looking back (and it only really hit me just now as i finally got to talk to someone about it) fwah the Lord has definitely shown me that He has other plans from what i would have liked to do, and indeed, this means that the concealed reservation that i held in my heart that my joy at being able to just sit one corner and shake leg next year was not joy at all but rather more of a self-centered glee was indeed a reality...

Yup this is perhaps an incomplete rambling, but well guess the moral of the story is that you never know what the Lord may have in store for you... Ultimately, however, we are to follow His call whatever it is - so keep on praying about it man...

In largely unrelated news, went for some ultimate with the All Saints people who meet every Sun (which reminds me, poor Suns - that rule stinks methinks...) apparently to play. Had a great time - i do miss the (relatively) vibrant ultimate culture back in UNC - i dare say after i've come back that i've been American-trained (though the result isn't much better i must admit =p) but anyways yup basically it was great. Wish we could have more of such thingies - but the (relative) lack of enthusiasm here (or at least in my circles) makes it hard...

while the rain continues to fall...

I was intending to get out of the house for a spot of cycling this afternoon, since i've been finding myself rather free and lounging round the house doing nothing much more than sitting in front of the com, eating and sleeping for the good part of the last couple of days. But then the sudden afternoon downpour has put paid to those plans so here i am back in front of the com again... Meanwhile Bingo sits outside in the hallway after i chased him out of my room and closed the door cos he was affected by the thunder and hence was drooling all over my floor.

Well, since i've not been doing much i've actually not much to say heh. Let's see - what was there? Oh yeah i finally got to eat at Astons yesterday and it was well worth the wait. I can't believe i've stayed so near to this gem of a restaurant for so long and have only been to it now. And how convenient that just as i finally experience for myself what so many people have been raving over that i find myself not more than three weeks away from shifting out of this house...

Anyways i decided to try their much ballyhooed (and very tackily-named) ieatSuper Burger and it more than lived up to its billing. Methinks it can compete with the Sutton's double bacon cheeseburger (the one on my current fb profile pic) back in Chapel Hill for the title of best burger i've ever eaten, although admittedly they're of two separate pedigrees. And how ironic that both these burgers have medical affiliations - the Astons burger being put on the regular menu at the recommendation of a local doctor, and Sutton's being a diner that is fronted by a drug store. Whatever the case, if anyone would try these two burgers for themselves, i'm sure they would not question me anymore as to why i've resolved never to eat McDonald's ever again... Aiyah really so wasted that i'm moving house leh - think even after i move i'll be wanting to spend time in the east. Got ecp, got Astons, got friends - that's three up on what i've at my new place...

I've been sorta figuring out what to do traveling wise, as i really have to get out of S'pore for at least a bit before the new school term starts. Have been keeping the option of following the parents to Japan (cos they've to use their miles as well) but well, they're moving at a similar pace of procrastination as i am (now i know where i got it from) so i can't confirm anything on that side. There's also lots of other possibilities but i'm rather fussy when it comes to choosing a holiday destination which hardly helps matters. This holiday also appears to be lacking in enough big blocks of time available for me to be away for. Ideally, i'd like to be away for at least a week but depending on how things go such an extended period out of S'pore may be impossible in July (which is when's best cos there's probably more options available than say for June). Ah i shall just comfort myself by assuring myself that something will work out...

I do wish that i was more daring when it came to planning holidays - like to go to new places which don't speak English, possibly alone, and for an extended period in time. Have been looking at Greg's awesome Eastern European graduation trip itinerary and wondering if i'd have the guts for something like that next year. Of course a trip of that scale would only be possible next year [since think that graduation is one of those life events that warrants one times tua zhong (sp?) trip like that] - the problem being that the dear folks at you-know-where appear to want all those moving on to nie to be available from mid-June, and even for stuff in May, which leaves me with precious little breathing space in terms of planning a big trip of say a month's duration... There's also matters of finding people (if there's any), funding, carbon emissions etc...

Hmm so that's holiday plans for ya. One more pertinent matter at this point in time of course what to do in the year ahead. Hopefully decision for that will eventuate within the next couple of days...

Trust no one will read this before then, so suffice to say be prepared for a big shock if you're watching idol results tonight. I know on my part that i'm done with watching the show for the season =(...

revolving around raffles

Sat evening i went down to church for a lecture (and i wish they'd give it a different name apart from lecture - the negative connotations that it brings to this nus student are both manifold and unappealing) by the Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan 'no-i-am-not-mr-bean' Williams who so happened to be in our neck of the woods over the weekend. The topic was Christianity: Public Religion & the Common Good. I wasn't expecting much out of the lecture especially since it was obviously intentionally not overtly Christian in nature ("with special reference to Christianity" was how the lecture was billed) and also since my previous experience with the public speaking of archbishops-cum-theologian/academic people has not been an entirely positive one.

But anyways, since it was the Archbishop of Canterbury after all, i did a bit of advertising for the lecture so a handful of thursday people past and present came down - specifically two dinos (Kevin n Eunice) and two year ones (or as they are so upliftingly titled in the states, rising freshmen - Grace Koh and Pheobe).

And the lecture actually went far better than how i'd thought it would - he addressed many pertinent issues that immediately struck a chord with me since he basically focused upon the role of the Christian in society. At the same time however he was careful not to strike any raw nerves with regards to so-called sensitive topics such as the evolution-ID debate and homosexuality when they came up during Q&A time, and also with regards to other religions. Can't fault him on that though...

Less than twelve hours later i found myself back in the same place for service, after which went with the family over to the British Club, where my aunt had organized a Mother's Day family lunch thingy (which my mother could not attend cos of speaking engagements). Incidentally, i just so happened to bump into Jeremy from UNC who had just arrived back less than a week ago - that was really so coincidental - apparently my extended family knows his - which just about further extends the intriguingly large circle of people whom i know and who also know people in my extended family in some way or other...

Anyways it was an appetizer and dessert buffet coupled with a choice of main course. I chose the Sunday Roast Beef with au jus and Yorkshire Pudding - and by the end i felt like one of the five thousand that Jesus fed cos the three slices of beef on my plate had been supplemented from two more plus lots of veggies from my lola who could not eat any more. This coupled with the more-than-ample appetizer and dessert spreads left me really bloated by the end of it...

Some people obviously were a tad overeager at the chocolate fountain...

So what better thing to happen than Steven, my monthly buffet buddy calling me to go for dinner that night. After some delays owing to restaurant closures and Mother's Day mark-ups (and finding myself back at Raffles City for the third separate time in 24 hours) we ended up at Pariss (and what a stupid name btw) at Marina Square. I'm not usually one for eating there cos of the preponderance of seafood that is precisely what makes the buffet as expensive as it is. But well, the price was relatively reasonable and there was enough non-crustacean seafood around for me to eat (though i'm beginning to have issues with eating some kinds of fish because of overfishing of certain stocks - but i couldn't go up to the sashimi and ask it whether it came from sustainable fisheries could i?), along with lots of other food too of course, so i went ahead and proceeded to stuff myself for the second time in the same day. I'm sure all that would have been more than enough to disqualify me from the under-60 club...

Anyways, two successive heavy meals in a single day was enough to strengthen my resolve for a run today - my first in more than a month if i'm not wrong, and hence i really felt like i was troddling along at a snail's pace. Managed to make my usual route though - from Amber Road up round the cable ski lagoon and back - in 48 minutes - which is super slow i know but well it's been a month... Now i'm just wondering where i can run after i move...

partial recall

On this note of my less-than-effective guard dog, here goes a mundane recap of the past week plus or so since exams ended...

Think that everyone had a good time over at night cycling last week. I must say that i was a little intimidated at first as to how to get everyone organized and ready, but things really worked out well in the end by God's grace. Weather was great, fellowship was great, route was reasonable, food was ... erm relatively missing but still ok lah... Overall hope that the tradition will continue cos think it's more than worth it to do so...

Over the weekend i also finally got my hands on it - a little on the expensive side maybe, but worth it especially in the long run methinks... Maybe she's a bit too fat for my liking, ah but i'll get used to it...

Mon was games day - and once again we had great weather. Think i was so un-used to such perpetual sunniness that i had a bit of a headache for the rest of the day - dehydration maybe... But anyways, had a great time playing ultimate and captain's ball - a good way to destress after exams that's for sure.

After arts fg (which i've been missing for quite some time already), it was agm time. Glad that things went far more smoothly than last year's did. I definitely don't recall laughing so much at an agm of any sort before (and many thanks to people like Ade Fam, Debs and Evan for that - and guess what? Their initials spell ADE - incidentally the chief unintentional inducer of amusement - think she must have set some sort of a record for non-exco member whose name appears most often in the agm report...)

One thing i've noticed is that since i've come back, every time after i get a hair cut i see people i hadn't seen since before i left, and people still remark on how my hair has grown so long and therefore i was hard to recognize - at agm was no exception...

There also was pecop, which was a great experience i thought. All the fun that XK and i had preparing for our nonsense songs aside, the whole concept in itself was a refreshing one, and it did work well, by God's grace. Um and i thought i'd be far more verbose over here but somehow nothing comes to mind so i shall leave it at that...

Went to cycle and think some things through the other day - decided to take a route i haven't taken in maybe nine months - up ecp and the airport-hugging road to Changi Village and back. That road in particular, come to think of it, has remained remarkably free of roadkill in the ten or so times i've gone past it (save for a solitary snail at last year's night cycling), and i was just thinking that when what else should i chance upon but a squashed monitor lizard. And in fact, before i had reached Changi Beach Park, i encountered one more squashed monitor lizard and two squashed snakes. - enough to make at least one handbag methinks... Then i was lamenting to myself that i was glad that i didn't see any live snakes, so what should i encounter mere minutes later but a snake slithering away from me as i cycled past. The anti-cherry on the cake was when i was back at ecp and noticed a parrot chick that must have fallen from its nest onto the bike path just in time to swerve to the side to avoid squashing it. I then continued another twenty minutes or so before turning back and thinking of putting it to one side, when who should appear but a less keenly-eyed cyclist who must have run the chick over, since i heard a loud squeak and him breaking suddenly =( I honestly felt guilty for the next ten minutes or so, but odf course i didn't want to go back and see what actually happened to the parrot so i cycled away...

Well, the past few days i ended up at a place i originally had no intention of being at, but at the end of the day i guess i'm glad i did go in the first place, even if i haven't arrived at any decision even now. We'll see how things go lah...

What's up with Federer?

recovery process

Exams are over after a very disjointed period of two weeks. Well, had like 60% of them in the past 36 hours so that about says how disjointed things are... Hmm anyways end of exams = mood for randomness so here goes:

Took this on the way to school one day

- one of those "the heavens are opening" cloud formations...

After my two papers yesterday, i decided to take a breather from studying in school cos i couldn't focus anymore in the snug smc behind area anymore (and that was a matter of 'when' much more so than 'if'). In any case, i was already very much in holiday mood, if you can call it that cos after two papers in a row, that's basically how anyone would feel methinks...

So i randomly (never have i been as much a fan of randomness than this sem) decided to head over to ecp to read my Cold War book in prep for today's paper. Needed a different setting and the fresh (albeit occasionally sea-stinky) air there is a great improvement from the stuffy recycled air of smc (and had just finished Global Environmental Issues paper, of which one thing i learnt was that indoor air is actually less healthy than outside air). And the sound of the lapping waves beats that of the photocopier hands down...

Walked up ecp from Fort Road - never have i seen this stretch completely empty before...

The first two souls i encountered there...

My view...

Yeah so things worked out well - at least while the rain clouds held up. Didn't manage to get in more than one chapter before the drops became more steady and the clouds became darker, after which i retreated to Parkway Coffee Bean where i managed to finish the book (or at least the relevant chapters of it). But anyways, my point is that the beach is a nice place to read a book (not studying per se cos the constant sea breeze would pose a problem to notes). Too bad i realize it all the more only when i'm about to move...

So by the time today arrived i'd already practically become physically impossible of squeezing in even one moment more of productive studying, so i basically just hung until the paper itself. That was good, and the paper at the end of the day didn't turn out too bad... (only thing interesting to note is that this was the third time out of my five exam seasons at nus that i ended my papers in mpsh5 - hate that place, though at least now it's renovated)

Ah so fast they came, and so fast they're over...

Am listening to Norah Jones' latest album on my com now (obtained via free legal downloading, thank you very much) and have arrived at the conclusion that virtually all her songs have the same effect on me, which is to lull me to sleep... Which means there's no need to buy this album since the other two that i have would do just fine...

Up next, Daughtry =)

Primate Aping Politician

Ok i so have more constructive and fulfilling things to do than this but just humor the one who's just finished two papers this day... (And one more to go!)

Look familiar to anyone?

Maybe it's easier to recognize here...

If you recognize who i'm referring to, great - but keep it to yourself... If not, well do continue to live in your blissful ignorant world, you're probably the better for it ;-p