I wasn't too keen on making the mopping up of the product of Bingo's bout of diarrhoea be the highlight of the first day of the new year, and the weather was accomodating enough and i had time enough to cycle down to ecp (um ok actually i've like almost all of my supposed initial ht readings left to do) and then explore part of the new eastern S'pore park connector thingy that has recently opened up - went up to Changi Village and back again just to have a look see...
The interesting thing for me is that this new connector runs parallel to my old usual cycling route, which is basically along the road hugging the perimeter fence of Changi Airport. While on the one hand this new route is much safer (where one runs far less a risk of kena langga by a speeding car), better lit and even has strategically-located shelters every km or so; it somehow strikes me as too sanitized in a way, perhaps making things too easy - it feels like one has accomplished something when using the old route and successfully making one's way to Changi Village and back, but now any average cyclist could make the journey as long as he/she has enough patience + energy to do so. And i guess that's why i've my reservations about the new route - there are too many people traveling between ecp and Changi Village now (granted it was new year's day today) - the fan of solitude that i am now has one less quiet place to retreat to... But i guess this also opens up safer possibilities for future night cycling expeditions so it's not all bad...
And while we're talking about cycling - today i encountered far too many people who are practically strolling hand-in-hand on the cycling path, making cyclists like me swerve constantly from side to side. How inconsiderate - i'd half a mind to stop and scold them there and then but ah i guess that wouldn't be very nice - for now i settle for giving annoyed glares, which of course doesn't really work cos my annoyed glares don't get seen by them since when i give them either their back is to me or my back is to them... However, i draw the line when it comes to little children on training bikes who happily work way across the bike lanes blissfully unaware of the annoyed cyclists trying to avoid banging into them. Of course, it's not really their fault, they are children after all (that doesn't mean i've had a change of heart and like children now) but their parents ought to do more... To make me a bit more satisfied however i try to screech my brakes as loudly as possible whenever one of these annoying children cross my path, so as to alert their parents and hopefully milk at least a slight chide of their children from them - eh dunno if that's mean, but boy does it feel good to do that :)
Showing posts with label exercise. Show all posts
Showing posts with label exercise. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 02, 2008
Thursday, December 27, 2007
happy (hectic) holidays
Well the holidays this time have not exactly been the most relaxing of moments for me as there have been a lot of things going on over the past month or so - allow me to randomly recall and recap...
AnnTIC this time round was a bit of a change from previous ones i've been to - with stuff like exco time and all that, plus the fact that i came a day late and was rather disoriented at first. Thankfully the message of the theme talks especially was something that i hold rather close to my heart, and so those at least really rang a bell with me. I guess i'm the sort who may not be complacent in terms of knowledge, but rather complacent in terms of action, if you catch my drift; so the message was definitely a timely and relevant one. Glad to have gotten to know quite a few new people too. And if time, inspiration, and creative energy permits, i'll get cracking on that song sooner or later. One regret though is that i never managed to get down to playing any games at all, after having looked so forward to that initially...
Have also had to get started on prep for ht, and to that end i felt like i had accomplished so much when i went down to school on at least three separate occasions for consultation and book-borrowing. That however has proven to be the more-than-easy part. The actual reading of all of these resources is another matter altogether, and i've barely begun with anything where that is concerned. Can't seem to get out of the lazy, holiday mood and get down to actual work (schoolwork of this nature during holiday time is a rather alien concept to me). Hmm, but come to think of it, there's a big load of stuff to read. So think i shall have to find my way back to school and do my research there - at least the environment there is somewhat more conducive (i hope).
Christmas this year was the first in three years i've spent here - there was MEET camp two years ago and then was at my cousin's place in MD last year. Nothing special though - went for the Christmas Eve midnight service, first time in donkey years that i've been for the service at SAC. And i never realized that having the right family connections could secure one a reserved seat in the front row (all the better to fall asleep in front of the preacher in). So i was seated right in front of the lectern, and in the middle of methinks Joy to the World i looked down and lo and behold i spotted a little gray mouse peeking its head out from its base (and let me clarify, it was a little cute gray mouse, kinda like the kind people keep as pets, not a vile gigantic brown rat). Yup so that was the highlight of my Christmas i guess. Fun, eh?
I was admittedly rather anxious about this past sem's results, particularly because i've been straddling the fine line between classes of hons. And well, after this sem, basically nothing has changed, which i'm thankful for, that at least things have more or less maintained rather than regressed. What intrigued me a bit was the specific grades for some of the classes - i trust our dear friend Mr Bell Curve had a rather heady role to play in that one...
Yesterday was floorball time - something that i've missed over the past one and a half years or so - was good - finally got some exercise this month (and coming right after all the Christmas pigging-out, the timing could not have been any better). And as proof of the exercise i now have the expected body aches and orh cehs (sp?) on both knees, the latter thanks to my unintended expertise at sliding all over the floor while lunging for the ball. Ah well, it was fun, so all these are worth it.
Parents are away now at some clergy retreat thingy (it's supposed to be a family retreat, but almost all the children who go are like primary school age and under, and the last thing i want to do is to babysit annoying children), so i've had to do my part in bringing Bingo down to answer nature's call - i must say, it's hardly the most fun thing in the world to scoop up his waste matter from under him and pop it into the bin. Ah heck, it's only for two days... On a related note, it's sad to see how he's aged exponentially ever since we moved over here (he's 14 btw) - now he hobbles about as if he had just gotten neutered, and can't pee the usual male dog way of lifting one leg anymore (cos think he'd lose his balance), and constantly slips on our marble floor, and has to prop himself on his snout before lying down or else risk bashing his head on the floor. Poor thing.
AnnTIC this time round was a bit of a change from previous ones i've been to - with stuff like exco time and all that, plus the fact that i came a day late and was rather disoriented at first. Thankfully the message of the theme talks especially was something that i hold rather close to my heart, and so those at least really rang a bell with me. I guess i'm the sort who may not be complacent in terms of knowledge, but rather complacent in terms of action, if you catch my drift; so the message was definitely a timely and relevant one. Glad to have gotten to know quite a few new people too. And if time, inspiration, and creative energy permits, i'll get cracking on that song sooner or later. One regret though is that i never managed to get down to playing any games at all, after having looked so forward to that initially...
Have also had to get started on prep for ht, and to that end i felt like i had accomplished so much when i went down to school on at least three separate occasions for consultation and book-borrowing. That however has proven to be the more-than-easy part. The actual reading of all of these resources is another matter altogether, and i've barely begun with anything where that is concerned. Can't seem to get out of the lazy, holiday mood and get down to actual work (schoolwork of this nature during holiday time is a rather alien concept to me). Hmm, but come to think of it, there's a big load of stuff to read. So think i shall have to find my way back to school and do my research there - at least the environment there is somewhat more conducive (i hope).
Christmas this year was the first in three years i've spent here - there was MEET camp two years ago and then was at my cousin's place in MD last year. Nothing special though - went for the Christmas Eve midnight service, first time in donkey years that i've been for the service at SAC. And i never realized that having the right family connections could secure one a reserved seat in the front row (all the better to fall asleep in front of the preacher in). So i was seated right in front of the lectern, and in the middle of methinks Joy to the World i looked down and lo and behold i spotted a little gray mouse peeking its head out from its base (and let me clarify, it was a little cute gray mouse, kinda like the kind people keep as pets, not a vile gigantic brown rat). Yup so that was the highlight of my Christmas i guess. Fun, eh?
I was admittedly rather anxious about this past sem's results, particularly because i've been straddling the fine line between classes of hons. And well, after this sem, basically nothing has changed, which i'm thankful for, that at least things have more or less maintained rather than regressed. What intrigued me a bit was the specific grades for some of the classes - i trust our dear friend Mr Bell Curve had a rather heady role to play in that one...
Yesterday was floorball time - something that i've missed over the past one and a half years or so - was good - finally got some exercise this month (and coming right after all the Christmas pigging-out, the timing could not have been any better). And as proof of the exercise i now have the expected body aches and orh cehs (sp?) on both knees, the latter thanks to my unintended expertise at sliding all over the floor while lunging for the ball. Ah well, it was fun, so all these are worth it.
Parents are away now at some clergy retreat thingy (it's supposed to be a family retreat, but almost all the children who go are like primary school age and under, and the last thing i want to do is to babysit annoying children), so i've had to do my part in bringing Bingo down to answer nature's call - i must say, it's hardly the most fun thing in the world to scoop up his waste matter from under him and pop it into the bin. Ah heck, it's only for two days... On a related note, it's sad to see how he's aged exponentially ever since we moved over here (he's 14 btw) - now he hobbles about as if he had just gotten neutered, and can't pee the usual male dog way of lifting one leg anymore (cos think he'd lose his balance), and constantly slips on our marble floor, and has to prop himself on his snout before lying down or else risk bashing his head on the floor. Poor thing.
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
physically un-proficient, mentally even less so...
Can't seem to get away from noisy and therefore distracting people around keeping me from getting real productive work done while in the engin com lab so...
Just got back from ippt - was the first time i've taken it when i failed - i'm not too annoyed that i failed (and anyway, as i've only recently come to realize, being a full-time student precludes having to sign up for rt even though i failed), but it's the way in which i failed which is so frustrating for me.
Managed to finish the four static stations with little trouble (as in just barely cleared all of them save for shuttle run, even though to my slight surprise i almost couldn't to enough sit-ups). So i needed to get a 12:20 to pass and an 11:00 to get $100. I was not too convinced that i could do 11min though it was vaguely possible, but 12:20 was definitely no prob. Or at least so i thought...
Cos of my number tag (091) i was placed in the first detail (i.e. all those whose numbers ended in '1'). And when the clock started, (and only cos think everyone else in my detail was older and therefore didn't need to run faster) i immediately went to the front and hence led the way. Things were good until say the 500 meter mark - btw this was the first time i was running in Maju Camp - and one thing about the route here is that, unlike Bedok, where you've to do 6 laps of the track; here you do three laps of a road route. Now, i actually prefer the road route, cos it feels shorter than the same distance run on the track. The problem was that since i was not familiar with the route, and i was in the lead, there was no one for me to follow - so i happily turned right instead of left (cos they had said follow the yellow line and there was a yellow line turning right as well - the line left was actually broken since it was across the junction and when one is running at such a speed one usually is less-than-observant). I went on in the wrong direction for at least half a minute before turning around and realizing that no one was behind me - i knew i couldn't have been that fast, so it was only then when i realized that i salah. Think whoever was behind me must have been more aware of what was going on and so went the correct way. So i ran across a portion of the parade square to rejoin the actual route - but the whole think took out so much from me both physically and mentally that by the end of it all, i stood no chance... Must have lost methinks at least near a minute owing to my error based on the extra distance alone, and prob more due to an inability to recover from that.
Well, what are the odds that things came together in such a way that i just happened to be the fool leading the way? Thankfully i'm more or less beyond being too worked up about this (though admittedly it's mainly cos there are no adverse consequences to failing). I also can't help but see the irony - running is basically the only prep that i did for ippt (and i did quite a fair bit of that), and in the end it was the very thing that did me in. Heh.
Just got back from ippt - was the first time i've taken it when i failed - i'm not too annoyed that i failed (and anyway, as i've only recently come to realize, being a full-time student precludes having to sign up for rt even though i failed), but it's the way in which i failed which is so frustrating for me.
Managed to finish the four static stations with little trouble (as in just barely cleared all of them save for shuttle run, even though to my slight surprise i almost couldn't to enough sit-ups). So i needed to get a 12:20 to pass and an 11:00 to get $100. I was not too convinced that i could do 11min though it was vaguely possible, but 12:20 was definitely no prob. Or at least so i thought...
Cos of my number tag (091) i was placed in the first detail (i.e. all those whose numbers ended in '1'). And when the clock started, (and only cos think everyone else in my detail was older and therefore didn't need to run faster) i immediately went to the front and hence led the way. Things were good until say the 500 meter mark - btw this was the first time i was running in Maju Camp - and one thing about the route here is that, unlike Bedok, where you've to do 6 laps of the track; here you do three laps of a road route. Now, i actually prefer the road route, cos it feels shorter than the same distance run on the track. The problem was that since i was not familiar with the route, and i was in the lead, there was no one for me to follow - so i happily turned right instead of left (cos they had said follow the yellow line and there was a yellow line turning right as well - the line left was actually broken since it was across the junction and when one is running at such a speed one usually is less-than-observant). I went on in the wrong direction for at least half a minute before turning around and realizing that no one was behind me - i knew i couldn't have been that fast, so it was only then when i realized that i salah. Think whoever was behind me must have been more aware of what was going on and so went the correct way. So i ran across a portion of the parade square to rejoin the actual route - but the whole think took out so much from me both physically and mentally that by the end of it all, i stood no chance... Must have lost methinks at least near a minute owing to my error based on the extra distance alone, and prob more due to an inability to recover from that.
Well, what are the odds that things came together in such a way that i just happened to be the fool leading the way? Thankfully i'm more or less beyond being too worked up about this (though admittedly it's mainly cos there are no adverse consequences to failing). I also can't help but see the irony - running is basically the only prep that i did for ippt (and i did quite a fair bit of that), and in the end it was the very thing that did me in. Heh.
Saturday, October 27, 2007
lifeline
So after dinner today, i went to do a bit of (enforced) star-gazing at the src field in order to better understand the universe - it turned out to be more of moon-gazing as all i did manage to see before scootering off after exactly 30 minutes to do right by my conscience (rather than marking attendance and scramming right away) was the moon as seen through a refractive telescope - well, the detail of the image i saw [plus the fact that today's moon is quite gibbous (read: close to full)] leads me to the conclusion that Chang-E does not exist... Mooncakes schmooncakes...
Then went back to the room and later went for a run again - went by a different, longer route this time and nearly died-ed again - getting there though, hopefully...
After that i plopped myself in front of the laptop and after an hour or so of procrastinating, i finally was in the preliminary stages of beginning my histo paper when i opened my mail and read this:
Hi class
The deadline for the essay has been extended to Wed 31 Oct in the interest of quality. Hard copies of the essays should be in my mailbox by 10 pm.
Fwah and boy did i need that - thankfully now my weekend ahead looks a lot less terok to me now since i've two extra days to do up the essay - Dr H, you rock (and not just because of the extension...)
The downside though is that i've now even less motivation to get any work done tonight - so think i shall call it a night and see how tomorrow goes... Dun want to end up piah-ing till wed evening...
Dinner was like more than 7 hours ago btw, and i couldn't tahan, so now i'm having breakfast - it's the morning after all...
And before i go, there's a new random thingy i'd like to put here: basically it's my pet peeve of the day, cos i always seem to be peeved by something - maybe by the end of it all i can set up a pet peeve shop... heh... (the purpose of this is not to complain, but just to provide some sort of outlet lah - sorry if you're reading this and you happen to be a perpetrator - but bo pian leh...)
Well anyways, one thing that annoys me is people who insist on boarding buses/trains before the people on the buses/trains get off - i had always noticed it on the mrt on the rare occasions i took the train, but now i'm noticing even more of it on the nus buses - i really can't stand it (cos to me it's a symptom of the prevailing impatient and "me first" culture that we seem to have here) - these people just seem to be interested in getting a seat before the rest behind them do, and have no qualms about barging their way through the mass of people who want to alight in order to get one. Now, i normally try to be a nice person, but i must admit, when i am the one getting off the bus and i happen to encounter one or more of these inconsiderate people headed in my direction, i do purposely go out of my way to make it as difficult as possible for them to squeeze past me - isolate them to one corner, brush against them slightly more roughly than is needed, that sort of thing - i dunno how right of me it is to do that (but boy does it feel good to do it), so if it isn't, do let me know...
Then went back to the room and later went for a run again - went by a different, longer route this time and nearly died-ed again - getting there though, hopefully...
After that i plopped myself in front of the laptop and after an hour or so of procrastinating, i finally was in the preliminary stages of beginning my histo paper when i opened my mail and read this:
Hi class
The deadline for the essay has been extended to Wed 31 Oct in the interest of quality. Hard copies of the essays should be in my mailbox by 10 pm.
Fwah and boy did i need that - thankfully now my weekend ahead looks a lot less terok to me now since i've two extra days to do up the essay - Dr H, you rock (and not just because of the extension...)
The downside though is that i've now even less motivation to get any work done tonight - so think i shall call it a night and see how tomorrow goes... Dun want to end up piah-ing till wed evening...
Dinner was like more than 7 hours ago btw, and i couldn't tahan, so now i'm having breakfast - it's the morning after all...
And before i go, there's a new random thingy i'd like to put here: basically it's my pet peeve of the day, cos i always seem to be peeved by something - maybe by the end of it all i can set up a pet peeve shop... heh... (the purpose of this is not to complain, but just to provide some sort of outlet lah - sorry if you're reading this and you happen to be a perpetrator - but bo pian leh...)
Well anyways, one thing that annoys me is people who insist on boarding buses/trains before the people on the buses/trains get off - i had always noticed it on the mrt on the rare occasions i took the train, but now i'm noticing even more of it on the nus buses - i really can't stand it (cos to me it's a symptom of the prevailing impatient and "me first" culture that we seem to have here) - these people just seem to be interested in getting a seat before the rest behind them do, and have no qualms about barging their way through the mass of people who want to alight in order to get one. Now, i normally try to be a nice person, but i must admit, when i am the one getting off the bus and i happen to encounter one or more of these inconsiderate people headed in my direction, i do purposely go out of my way to make it as difficult as possible for them to squeeze past me - isolate them to one corner, brush against them slightly more roughly than is needed, that sort of thing - i dunno how right of me it is to do that (but boy does it feel good to do it), so if it isn't, do let me know...
Friday, October 19, 2007
ponderings from pgp
It's been a good three weeks now since i moved (booked?) in to pgp. So far it's not exactly worked out as how i'd expected - in the sense of how the time that would otherwise have been spent traveling to and from school from my house has now been put to use. Of course, what other way would i in theory intend to spend the two extra hours of free time than to do school stuff - i.e. readings, papers, tutorials etc? Instead, the reality so far has been largely one of spending more time sleeping and slacking in my pgp room (read: what i'm doing now) rather than doing exactly the same in my room in the house.
And the prevalent conditions actually favor me slacking off a bit, since my deadlines are relatively far away, and hence the panic syndrome that usually kicks in a couple of days before the papers are due has yet to appear. I'm really trying to reverse this apathy towards work though, so watch this space and hopefully the next time i appear (whenever that will be) at least the first paper will be close to done with.
One good thing that has come out of staying here though is that i've finally managed to find ample opportunities to run, something i maintain is absolutely lacking back at home. No more being confronted by traffic lights every what seems like thirty metres or so; or incessant noxious vehicle fumes; or intriguing bohemian types with remarkable hairstyles, creative body piercings, and eternally puffing on a ciggy.
So to that end since i've moved in i've run more times than i have over the entire holiday and the school term before moving in. Or around there, at least. This is not entirely in the interests of a healthy lifestyle though, as ippt is rearing its annoying ugly head again, and so i'm due for that in less than a month. This time i've really no lofty ambitions whatsoever. If i pass (sans $100), i'll already be happy, since i've been largely inactive for months on end prior to moving in. Hope to continue this after ippt too though. Supplemented by tennis at some point or other and maybe a swim (and on that note, the vegetarian stall lady in the arts canteen has for the past few weeks recognized me as the not-so-Chinese guy who cannot understand half the Mandarin she spouts out to me whenever i go to the stall, and hence will automatically switch to English whenever i appear; but this morning she went about the old routine of speaking to me in Mandarin again, and i was actually wondering if that was cos i've been out of the sun as of late and hence have been getting lighter and so am starting to look more Chinese again).
God's been speaking to me in various ways and more than usual this past week or two, glad for that - though there's quite a bit of stuff that requires some revamping though... However, my brain is incredibly slow when it comes to processing such thought, so hopefully things won't be so bad this time...
Make no mistake about it though - i'm at a loss - it's not an intentional delay, that's for sure.
And the prevalent conditions actually favor me slacking off a bit, since my deadlines are relatively far away, and hence the panic syndrome that usually kicks in a couple of days before the papers are due has yet to appear. I'm really trying to reverse this apathy towards work though, so watch this space and hopefully the next time i appear (whenever that will be) at least the first paper will be close to done with.
One good thing that has come out of staying here though is that i've finally managed to find ample opportunities to run, something i maintain is absolutely lacking back at home. No more being confronted by traffic lights every what seems like thirty metres or so; or incessant noxious vehicle fumes; or intriguing bohemian types with remarkable hairstyles, creative body piercings, and eternally puffing on a ciggy.
So to that end since i've moved in i've run more times than i have over the entire holiday and the school term before moving in. Or around there, at least. This is not entirely in the interests of a healthy lifestyle though, as ippt is rearing its annoying ugly head again, and so i'm due for that in less than a month. This time i've really no lofty ambitions whatsoever. If i pass (sans $100), i'll already be happy, since i've been largely inactive for months on end prior to moving in. Hope to continue this after ippt too though. Supplemented by tennis at some point or other and maybe a swim (and on that note, the vegetarian stall lady in the arts canteen has for the past few weeks recognized me as the not-so-Chinese guy who cannot understand half the Mandarin she spouts out to me whenever i go to the stall, and hence will automatically switch to English whenever i appear; but this morning she went about the old routine of speaking to me in Mandarin again, and i was actually wondering if that was cos i've been out of the sun as of late and hence have been getting lighter and so am starting to look more Chinese again).
God's been speaking to me in various ways and more than usual this past week or two, glad for that - though there's quite a bit of stuff that requires some revamping though... However, my brain is incredibly slow when it comes to processing such thought, so hopefully things won't be so bad this time...
Make no mistake about it though - i'm at a loss - it's not an intentional delay, that's for sure.
Sunday, May 20, 2007
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...
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...
Thursday, May 17, 2007
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 =(...
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 =(...
Monday, May 14, 2007
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...
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...
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...
Saturday, May 12, 2007
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?
Saturday, April 28, 2007
Frayed
Well, so far the latest exam season has gone on pretty smoothly for me actually. Think the many free days available for studying this sem have made things much more flexible for me than any other exam period in nus as far as i can remember. This has been especially timely for me cos this sem, more than any other, i've felt the need to take (very) frequent (but relatively brief) breaks from studying to spend time away from everything but God (um, and also to pee, but that's another story altogether). And better many frequent breaks than one whole prolonged period retreating from civilization like last year methinks... Yup, which explains why i'm just as likely to be found out of my seat than in it if you're looking for me...
And in terms of the exams themselves, well, while initially i was somewhat apprehensive (first exams in this disgustingly rigid exam environment after a year) about getting used to how exam conditions here would be like (at UNC it was a breeze), at the end of the day things have worked out alright thankfully... Um, i do know that my name won't be appearing on any Dean's Lists anytime soon, but i also do know that the rest of the exams will go alright too =)
One regret i've had though, not having much time (or motivation) to exercise, given the fact that for the past two weeks, i've tended to eat two full dinners in a day, one at sixish in school, and the other at tenish at home...
In totally unrelated news, the latest chapter in the ongoing torture that i'm subjected to on an almost daily basis at the hands of tv mobile features reruns of pck, which i had previously mistakenly believed to have wisely been put out of its (and my) misery by mediacrap once and for all. To make matters worse, the reruns are not of the initial seasons (i.e. before the titular character had to go and take BEST English classes at the suggestion of none less than the now sm, this plot development basically killing whatever salvageable bits of the show there ever were), but of the latest season when the show was already at the tail end of its slow death.
Just to prove my point, the middle shelf of this trolley
features all the volumes that the bizzare xerox-crazy girl zapped in just ONE DAY...
The latest wildlife specimen i encountered at engin bridge,
a really big Atlas Moth, though it was dead by the time i took this pic...
The giant spider's still there, btw, if you'd want a look for yourself...
This song has been regularly playing in my mind for the past month or so methinks, and today during one of my contemplative walks it hit me - sometimes i feel like i'm living it first-hand. Ok, not all of it, maybe specifically the second verse more than the rest, yup but anyways it hit me all the same. Hope things won't come to the stuff in the chorus though...
And in terms of the exams themselves, well, while initially i was somewhat apprehensive (first exams in this disgustingly rigid exam environment after a year) about getting used to how exam conditions here would be like (at UNC it was a breeze), at the end of the day things have worked out alright thankfully... Um, i do know that my name won't be appearing on any Dean's Lists anytime soon, but i also do know that the rest of the exams will go alright too =)
One regret i've had though, not having much time (or motivation) to exercise, given the fact that for the past two weeks, i've tended to eat two full dinners in a day, one at sixish in school, and the other at tenish at home...
In totally unrelated news, the latest chapter in the ongoing torture that i'm subjected to on an almost daily basis at the hands of tv mobile features reruns of pck, which i had previously mistakenly believed to have wisely been put out of its (and my) misery by mediacrap once and for all. To make matters worse, the reruns are not of the initial seasons (i.e. before the titular character had to go and take BEST English classes at the suggestion of none less than the now sm, this plot development basically killing whatever salvageable bits of the show there ever were), but of the latest season when the show was already at the tail end of its slow death.
Just to prove my point, the middle shelf of this trolleyfeatures all the volumes that the bizzare xerox-crazy girl zapped in just ONE DAY...
The latest wildlife specimen i encountered at engin bridge,a really big Atlas Moth, though it was dead by the time i took this pic...
The giant spider's still there, btw, if you'd want a look for yourself...
This song has been regularly playing in my mind for the past month or so methinks, and today during one of my contemplative walks it hit me - sometimes i feel like i'm living it first-hand. Ok, not all of it, maybe specifically the second verse more than the rest, yup but anyways it hit me all the same. Hope things won't come to the stuff in the chorus though...
Sunday, March 11, 2007
still lost in transition
Today for church i went to SAC again, but this time to check out the later and more contemporary service. The rest of the family went for the earlier service, so i was more or less alone this time. While the service itself went well (it was the church missions Sunday which was nice, felt reminded of MEET), i couldn't help but feel irked to a certain extent, because there i was having to try and get used to yet another church environment (which is the main reason why i'm somewhat reluctant to say i'm really leaving SHC just yet) - after like five or six church moves one tends to get somewhat weary of it... It takes so much to settle down, to get to know people and to find one's place within the whole structure of things; and yup, assuming at the end of the day the Lord wants me to move on to SAC (which i feel is more and more the case), this will mean a grossly long integration process for me i fear...
So you know when people ask me if one feels pressure being a pk, while the answer to a certain extent is yes, at least for me it's relatively easy enough to keep a low enough profile, so in my opinion the far greater problem is getting used to (at least within the Anglican context) having to be shuffled around so very often and the difficulties that arise with each move.
And speaking of moving, i also had my first look at the new house - oops, i mean apartment. Yes after 23 years i no longer will be staying in a house with a garden, and probably not for the forseeable future either. Actually the place itself exceeded my expectations (which were set very low anyways cos i was, and still am, dreading the move away from the east to some funny knoll in the far boondocks of town...), it's bigger than i thought, and after a decent renovation it shouldn't be too bad... That being said i still wish i could stay put...
Was a tad overambitious just now with the run, and was trailing far behind for much of it. Predict aching calf muscles for tomorrow when i wake up... And ate so much for dinner that whatever was burnt has probably already been replaced. Bah.
So you know when people ask me if one feels pressure being a pk, while the answer to a certain extent is yes, at least for me it's relatively easy enough to keep a low enough profile, so in my opinion the far greater problem is getting used to (at least within the Anglican context) having to be shuffled around so very often and the difficulties that arise with each move.
And speaking of moving, i also had my first look at the new house - oops, i mean apartment. Yes after 23 years i no longer will be staying in a house with a garden, and probably not for the forseeable future either. Actually the place itself exceeded my expectations (which were set very low anyways cos i was, and still am, dreading the move away from the east to some funny knoll in the far boondocks of town...), it's bigger than i thought, and after a decent renovation it shouldn't be too bad... That being said i still wish i could stay put...
Was a tad overambitious just now with the run, and was trailing far behind for much of it. Predict aching calf muscles for tomorrow when i wake up... And ate so much for dinner that whatever was burnt has probably already been replaced. Bah.
Sunday, March 04, 2007
lost in transition
Well over the past week or so my father has officially moved church over to SAC from SHC, and accompanying it has been a flurry of activity including a range of farewells from the latter, culminating in a pseudo welcome dinner yesterday and church service today at the former. Really neat that they've planned all these stuffies, yup and i must say i could really feel an atmosphere of agape love all around (i feel it in my fingers, i feel it in my toes...)
Not that this is anything new (for me this is my 5th time moving church and subsequently house, my family has done it a couple of times before i was born too), but i definitely feel that as one gets older one feels the change more. I mean, last time i was still like totally blur cos i didn't know any better, but the move over to SHC and now this one have been harder cos i guess now i've more of a life of my own now than, say when i was in p6. I can honestly say that after so many times, having to uproot oneself and find one's own way into a new church setting still isn't any easier, which is why i'm not really 100% confirmed on making the church move along with the family (nor the house move, for that matter, but that one bo pian one...) so am gonna take these next couple of weeks to try and feel my way around the new church and see how things are. Of course, to complicate matters even more, my family was in this church from 1986-1991, so there's a significant number who do know who i am and hence have approached me to say hi (and given me the expected "last time" remarks like "last time you were so small, now so big already!" or "remember my son/daughter? last time you used to always play/fight with each other!"), even if i myself have little if any clue who many of them are cos i was only like 7ish when i left.
Ah well, have to get used to it i suppose. I'll find it expecially difficult to get used to the fact that my church is no longer to be found next door to my house, which has been a happy reality for like close to eighty percent of my life including the past 12 years. Today my mother woke me up at 7am or so reminding me that we had to leave soon in order to reach church by 8am - that's when this hit me... I've been pampered man...
Rain stop already leh can - need to run...
Not that this is anything new (for me this is my 5th time moving church and subsequently house, my family has done it a couple of times before i was born too), but i definitely feel that as one gets older one feels the change more. I mean, last time i was still like totally blur cos i didn't know any better, but the move over to SHC and now this one have been harder cos i guess now i've more of a life of my own now than, say when i was in p6. I can honestly say that after so many times, having to uproot oneself and find one's own way into a new church setting still isn't any easier, which is why i'm not really 100% confirmed on making the church move along with the family (nor the house move, for that matter, but that one bo pian one...) so am gonna take these next couple of weeks to try and feel my way around the new church and see how things are. Of course, to complicate matters even more, my family was in this church from 1986-1991, so there's a significant number who do know who i am and hence have approached me to say hi (and given me the expected "last time" remarks like "last time you were so small, now so big already!" or "remember my son/daughter? last time you used to always play/fight with each other!"), even if i myself have little if any clue who many of them are cos i was only like 7ish when i left.
Ah well, have to get used to it i suppose. I'll find it expecially difficult to get used to the fact that my church is no longer to be found next door to my house, which has been a happy reality for like close to eighty percent of my life including the past 12 years. Today my mother woke me up at 7am or so reminding me that we had to leave soon in order to reach church by 8am - that's when this hit me... I've been pampered man...
Rain stop already leh can - need to run...
Sunday, February 18, 2007
grounddog day
Well after being reminded of a similar bout of antipathy toward cny that i felt a year ago, i'm more or less convinced that you can count me as the grinch of cny, if there ever were such a thing. Today has really been the most blah of holidays that i've had in a long time. Especially since this cny was on a Sunday again, and looking back at what i wrote about last year's cny experience, it almost seemed as though i was reliving the start of the year of the dog all over again, the only difference being that this year's was more boring.
Ah well, whatever it is, i've come to realise that there really is no such thing as healthy food when it comes to cny stuff, save for maybe the mandarin oranges (which i don't really like anyways). Today i was searching the house for something to eat and found lots of stuff, but it all was unhealthy stuff like pineapple tarts, cookies with tons of butter, fatty bak kwa and the like... Yesterday's cny dinner featured a grand total of one healthy dish - a token plate of sliced cucumbers and cherry tomatoes, which i feel was palced there just to assure ourselves that we were eating our veggies. Even the yusheng, which at least without the fish is technically vegetarian, is full of unappetising and sodium-and-sugar-laden preserved thingies which i doubt are very healthy either... But i guess given that this year is the year of the pig (though of course i don't believe in such stuff), perhaps it's only apt that we pig out eh...
Oh and speaking of yusheng, thought that it was pretty funny when my brother, some of my cousins and me, all proudly ACS-educated, were thinking of suitable cheng(2) yu(3) to use when preparing it, just as the waitress does in the restaurant. "wu(3) yan(2) liu(4) se(4)", "luan(4) qi(1) ba(1) zao(1)" and "feng(1) he(2) ri(4) li(4)" were some of what came to mind =p - not bad actually rite, at least the first two can apply in this context rite...
Anyways, i decided to skip visiting in the afternoon today and get some rest, cos already after the first house i was feeling extremely sian and tired. I can't imagine that i once actually looked forward to all the stuff that we'd do during cny. Nowsaday, i'm just glad for the reprieve from school (and btw let me reiterate the fact that the clash of cny with the midterm break sucks big time), even if it means being subject to horrible cny music that relentlessly attacks my eardrums. Oops i digress. Woke up and went with Mark for our fortnightly ecp run, which was great though i'm still quite unfit at least when compared to before i left... Shucks i dunno what i'm gonna do for running (or cycling, for that matter) once i move to my new place, which is somewhere up the slope of a hill in town...
What i'm rather pleased with myself about is the fact that i finally got down to doing some forum posting today - yup that's two overly-long-drawn and confusing posts down, so at least i know i won't get 0 out of 10%. Was just thinking back to the annoying formalities that i encounter on forums and i came up with a perfect new one which i was so tempted to add in just to be a pain, but i decided to refrain - instead of "here's just my two cents' worth," i wanted to say "here's just my ten percent's worth..." But anyways, tomorrow i've to head back to school to catch a video on my laptop that is only accessible on campus. Too bad the lib is closed, so have to find some good secret place with a powerpoint where i can watch it - dang...
Ah well, whatever it is, i've come to realise that there really is no such thing as healthy food when it comes to cny stuff, save for maybe the mandarin oranges (which i don't really like anyways). Today i was searching the house for something to eat and found lots of stuff, but it all was unhealthy stuff like pineapple tarts, cookies with tons of butter, fatty bak kwa and the like... Yesterday's cny dinner featured a grand total of one healthy dish - a token plate of sliced cucumbers and cherry tomatoes, which i feel was palced there just to assure ourselves that we were eating our veggies. Even the yusheng, which at least without the fish is technically vegetarian, is full of unappetising and sodium-and-sugar-laden preserved thingies which i doubt are very healthy either... But i guess given that this year is the year of the pig (though of course i don't believe in such stuff), perhaps it's only apt that we pig out eh...
Oh and speaking of yusheng, thought that it was pretty funny when my brother, some of my cousins and me, all proudly ACS-educated, were thinking of suitable cheng(2) yu(3) to use when preparing it, just as the waitress does in the restaurant. "wu(3) yan(2) liu(4) se(4)", "luan(4) qi(1) ba(1) zao(1)" and "feng(1) he(2) ri(4) li(4)" were some of what came to mind =p - not bad actually rite, at least the first two can apply in this context rite...
Anyways, i decided to skip visiting in the afternoon today and get some rest, cos already after the first house i was feeling extremely sian and tired. I can't imagine that i once actually looked forward to all the stuff that we'd do during cny. Nowsaday, i'm just glad for the reprieve from school (and btw let me reiterate the fact that the clash of cny with the midterm break sucks big time), even if it means being subject to horrible cny music that relentlessly attacks my eardrums. Oops i digress. Woke up and went with Mark for our fortnightly ecp run, which was great though i'm still quite unfit at least when compared to before i left... Shucks i dunno what i'm gonna do for running (or cycling, for that matter) once i move to my new place, which is somewhere up the slope of a hill in town...
What i'm rather pleased with myself about is the fact that i finally got down to doing some forum posting today - yup that's two overly-long-drawn and confusing posts down, so at least i know i won't get 0 out of 10%. Was just thinking back to the annoying formalities that i encounter on forums and i came up with a perfect new one which i was so tempted to add in just to be a pain, but i decided to refrain - instead of "here's just my two cents' worth," i wanted to say "here's just my ten percent's worth..." But anyways, tomorrow i've to head back to school to catch a video on my laptop that is only accessible on campus. Too bad the lib is closed, so have to find some good secret place with a powerpoint where i can watch it - dang...
Friday, February 09, 2007
tiredness and opportunities
Fwah just now's captain's ball/ultimate was uber tiring can - after we were finished i had to go over to the library to get some readings for monday's test zapped, and so i had to get the books from rbr. After i zapped and returned the first book, i put in my next request slip and waited for the next book. After i got it i went over to the photocopying room and put my cashcard in, all ready to zap the necessary pages, when i took a closer look and realized that i had the same book that was in my hands just minutes before - in my saaa-ness (sp?) i had submitted the same rbr request slip for a second time in a row! Diao - well at least at the end of the day i got that settled. Two side notes: 1) after two-and-a-half years at nus i finally realized that there was a monitor located right next to the rbr bookdrop that listed whether your book had successfully been accepted by the machine; and 2) there was a certain nice photocopy room staff that was kind enough to instruct me in some of the ways to make my zapping jobs easier - never knew there was such a thing as a landscape function - always thought that the paper select tray labelled "A4 R" was simply for recycled paper heh...
But anyways, back to the captain's ball/ultimate we had just now - had a great time even if now i'm feeling really without much energy left in me. Haven't played games like that since UNC - where i was so bad in comparison to all the Americans that they sort of gave me face and applauded whenever i made a block or caught the frisbee successfully - so paiseh can. Anyways my 'American training' didn't have much positive impact on my skill level cos my standard was just about the same as ever but in any case the important thing is good fun and fellowship rite...
Was quite cool today cos i had originally planned to get to school by ten am so as to get some work done before class at two. But as i was in the bus i got a text from a friend from esc last sem, he was asking for language help for an essay that he had to write. Well to cut a long story short my original plan to get some work done from ten to two was aborted in favor of spending time suggesting improvements in the essay and also to catch up and talk about lots of stuff. What was particularly cool was that the topic of the essay that he had to write was on Christianity, so he was asking me some questions about that, and when he did ask questions about that i was like "ok if this isn't an opportunity provided by God i also dunno what is..." so by God's grace He gave me the words to say in sharing more about my faith with him - aiyah long story lah, and don't want to say so much as well, but basically i thank God again for this opportunity and all that has come out of it...
This being said however, i'm still sticking to my initiative to take all the work that i've to do more seriously, so along this line as i've mentioned earlier do ask me what i'm up to if you see me around and i appear to be wasting the hours away instead of doing more constructive things...
But anyways, back to the captain's ball/ultimate we had just now - had a great time even if now i'm feeling really without much energy left in me. Haven't played games like that since UNC - where i was so bad in comparison to all the Americans that they sort of gave me face and applauded whenever i made a block or caught the frisbee successfully - so paiseh can. Anyways my 'American training' didn't have much positive impact on my skill level cos my standard was just about the same as ever but in any case the important thing is good fun and fellowship rite...
Was quite cool today cos i had originally planned to get to school by ten am so as to get some work done before class at two. But as i was in the bus i got a text from a friend from esc last sem, he was asking for language help for an essay that he had to write. Well to cut a long story short my original plan to get some work done from ten to two was aborted in favor of spending time suggesting improvements in the essay and also to catch up and talk about lots of stuff. What was particularly cool was that the topic of the essay that he had to write was on Christianity, so he was asking me some questions about that, and when he did ask questions about that i was like "ok if this isn't an opportunity provided by God i also dunno what is..." so by God's grace He gave me the words to say in sharing more about my faith with him - aiyah long story lah, and don't want to say so much as well, but basically i thank God again for this opportunity and all that has come out of it...
This being said however, i'm still sticking to my initiative to take all the work that i've to do more seriously, so along this line as i've mentioned earlier do ask me what i'm up to if you see me around and i appear to be wasting the hours away instead of doing more constructive things...
Sunday, January 21, 2007
a drop is forecasted...
If the weekend that is about to pass has taught me anything, it is that after coming back, for some reason or other i've lost most interest in doing my readings. Now, this is not to imply that i was super interested in my readings while i was at UNC or even prior to that, but rather that after the different learning environment and style and what not that i enjoyed over there, coming back to what's more or less the same old thing over here has subonsciously gotten to me, such that now when i look at readings i just stare at them with no motivation whatsoever to actually read them.
And this weekend proved the perfect case study of this in effect. My Saturday was spent doing anything but the readings that i was supposed to do for this week - on the computer, watching dvds, playing the guitar, reading more Asterix from my newly-rediscovered collection - you name it, i did it - anything but the readings. Of course, with my semi-resolution to refrain from doing schoolwork on Sunday now seriously in jeopardy, i just decided to do whatever readings i could today instead (which incidentally still turned out to be very little owing to more procrastination on my part)
And this seriously annoys me can - i'm even entertaining the thought of going back to school on Saturdays to do work if i can't concentrate at home. At this rate, coupled with all the other stuff that has been constantly weighing on my mind since i got back (which keeps on developing into bigger and more complicated things), i'm already expecting this sem to go relatively badly for me academically at least, unless over the next few days i can somehow find more interest in my work and have a better grasp of all the distracting stuff that is happening.
(But as usual, i add my usual proviso that i often paint things to be far worse than they actually are, and this case methinks is no exception)
One good thing that i at least managed to do over the weekend is go for a run or two by the beach. While running wise i definitely cannot make it, but at least it's better than sitting idly by all the time... Ah - running by the beach - another thing i'll miss when i move to goodness-knows-where...
Over the course of the past two weeks since i've come back, i've (or rather my hairstyle has) reminded various people whom i've met of Moses (twice); a Korean pop star; a girl (my personal favorite - not); and Junichiro Koizumi. Well, finally got a haircut of some sorts so hopefully that will be the end of it...
And this weekend proved the perfect case study of this in effect. My Saturday was spent doing anything but the readings that i was supposed to do for this week - on the computer, watching dvds, playing the guitar, reading more Asterix from my newly-rediscovered collection - you name it, i did it - anything but the readings. Of course, with my semi-resolution to refrain from doing schoolwork on Sunday now seriously in jeopardy, i just decided to do whatever readings i could today instead (which incidentally still turned out to be very little owing to more procrastination on my part)
And this seriously annoys me can - i'm even entertaining the thought of going back to school on Saturdays to do work if i can't concentrate at home. At this rate, coupled with all the other stuff that has been constantly weighing on my mind since i got back (which keeps on developing into bigger and more complicated things), i'm already expecting this sem to go relatively badly for me academically at least, unless over the next few days i can somehow find more interest in my work and have a better grasp of all the distracting stuff that is happening.
(But as usual, i add my usual proviso that i often paint things to be far worse than they actually are, and this case methinks is no exception)
One good thing that i at least managed to do over the weekend is go for a run or two by the beach. While running wise i definitely cannot make it, but at least it's better than sitting idly by all the time... Ah - running by the beach - another thing i'll miss when i move to goodness-knows-where...
Over the course of the past two weeks since i've come back, i've (or rather my hairstyle has) reminded various people whom i've met of Moses (twice); a Korean pop star; a girl (my personal favorite - not); and Junichiro Koizumi. Well, finally got a haircut of some sorts so hopefully that will be the end of it...
Thursday, January 18, 2007
Lost in translation
I'm starting to question the wisdom in having an extremely top-heavy schedule that sees me on odd weeks having tons of classes on both Mon and Tue, a free day on Wed and only two hours of classes on both Thu and Fri and on even weeks finishing all classes save for my Fri 2-4 by Tue... Already the past two weeks without tutorial slots have already been so tiring for me so am a little skeptical as to whether i'd be able to keep it up once the full load comes in next week. But i guess this is also in part due to the unsettled sleep patterns that i've had since arriving back so hopefully once my sleep schedule settles down things won't be so out of whack for me...
Was glad for some sun today - this is to the best of my recollection the first sunny day that i've experienced here since arriving back. Decided to go for a swim and take advantage of the lack of rain while it lasts. That went well, save for the fact that my hair is so long now that whenever my head comes out of the water my fringe is covering a good portion of my goggles such that i've trouble seeing properly. Good thing that there were not many people in the pool just now or i might have banged into someone else owing to poor visibility...
And btw since everyone's asking and while we're on the topic, YES i intend to cut my hair soon, but i'll probably keep it a little longer than it usually is; and NO, i have not cut it yet owing to me finding not enough time to do so...
Studying in the forum is turning out pretty ok, i must say, the only problem being the occasionally bizarre bazaar noise that annoys me from time to time. Like today i was trying to read my orang utan book when i was continually unsettled by loud "YAAAAAA!!!" shouts coming from the martial arts display below. It was such that for the first time ever i used my earplugs in a venue other than an sbs bus (to escape the vile tv mobile) so as to block out some of that noise. Apart from that minor hiccup, however, think i could get used to hanging over there...
Just got via email the sheet music of both a Japanese and a Korean worship song that i learnt at Urbana - the lyrics (when translated into English) are very meaningful, and the tunes of both are really nice too. Too bad the sheet music does not come with the English translation attached, which makes things difficult cos if i want to introduce the songs anywhere i'd hardly want no one to actually know what they're singing about - that would defeat the whole purpose of singing these in the first place (though i'd say that if one didn't know the words the songs would sound very J/K-pop-ish)...
Was glad for some sun today - this is to the best of my recollection the first sunny day that i've experienced here since arriving back. Decided to go for a swim and take advantage of the lack of rain while it lasts. That went well, save for the fact that my hair is so long now that whenever my head comes out of the water my fringe is covering a good portion of my goggles such that i've trouble seeing properly. Good thing that there were not many people in the pool just now or i might have banged into someone else owing to poor visibility...
And btw since everyone's asking and while we're on the topic, YES i intend to cut my hair soon, but i'll probably keep it a little longer than it usually is; and NO, i have not cut it yet owing to me finding not enough time to do so...
Studying in the forum is turning out pretty ok, i must say, the only problem being the occasionally bizarre bazaar noise that annoys me from time to time. Like today i was trying to read my orang utan book when i was continually unsettled by loud "YAAAAAA!!!" shouts coming from the martial arts display below. It was such that for the first time ever i used my earplugs in a venue other than an sbs bus (to escape the vile tv mobile) so as to block out some of that noise. Apart from that minor hiccup, however, think i could get used to hanging over there...
Just got via email the sheet music of both a Japanese and a Korean worship song that i learnt at Urbana - the lyrics (when translated into English) are very meaningful, and the tunes of both are really nice too. Too bad the sheet music does not come with the English translation attached, which makes things difficult cos if i want to introduce the songs anywhere i'd hardly want no one to actually know what they're singing about - that would defeat the whole purpose of singing these in the first place (though i'd say that if one didn't know the words the songs would sound very J/K-pop-ish)...
Sunday, January 14, 2007
Talking to myself and feeling old...
Yet another rainy day today, and my sentiments semi-echo that of The Carpenters who once sang that "rainy days and Mondays always get me down." Given the current weather trends which are likely to result in another rainy day tomorrow i may just end up double-down as a result of it being both rainy and a Monday... And come to think of it the only rainy days i ever liked were whenever they signalled the cancelling of outdoor pe lessons or army training of some form or other. Think it's pretty ironic how last time i was hoping for rain to keep me out of going outdoors for exercise and now i'm hoping against rain so that i'll be able to go outdoors for exercise - i'm never satisfied, am i...
Have not done any work at all over this weekend. Not much to do for starters, but ah well i was never in the mood for the little that i did have in any case. Guess while i can still afford to do so it's not too bad. I don't even recall what i did yesterday since it probably amounted to nothing much apart from reading Asterix in Belgium (which i've had with me since primary school but never got around to reading until yesterday) and going to my jc classmate Sze-Li's house in the boondocks of Marsiling for a housewarming kinda thingy, where many an old classmate was wondering who was the long-haired dude who crashed the gathering. Enjoyed myself there for sure though - always like reunions of most varieties - met one of my classmates whom i last saw in December 2001 so that was nice...
In the latest chapter of my housing saga it turns out that the Novena apartment is no longer an option which means we're back to the no-idea-where-to-move-to state of affairs which of course continues to bother me to no end. I must admit, however, that i was relieved and even slightly happy to hear that Novena was out of the picture, although the prospect of having no idea where we are moving to isn't much better i would say...
As is often the case, once i open my mouth, the situation changes drastically - this time after celebrating the Tar Heels being ranked #1, they went ahead to lose to the Hokies - i should just learn to keep my mouth shut - for more reasons than this alone...
Have not done any work at all over this weekend. Not much to do for starters, but ah well i was never in the mood for the little that i did have in any case. Guess while i can still afford to do so it's not too bad. I don't even recall what i did yesterday since it probably amounted to nothing much apart from reading Asterix in Belgium (which i've had with me since primary school but never got around to reading until yesterday) and going to my jc classmate Sze-Li's house in the boondocks of Marsiling for a housewarming kinda thingy, where many an old classmate was wondering who was the long-haired dude who crashed the gathering. Enjoyed myself there for sure though - always like reunions of most varieties - met one of my classmates whom i last saw in December 2001 so that was nice...
In the latest chapter of my housing saga it turns out that the Novena apartment is no longer an option which means we're back to the no-idea-where-to-move-to state of affairs which of course continues to bother me to no end. I must admit, however, that i was relieved and even slightly happy to hear that Novena was out of the picture, although the prospect of having no idea where we are moving to isn't much better i would say...
As is often the case, once i open my mouth, the situation changes drastically - this time after celebrating the Tar Heels being ranked #1, they went ahead to lose to the Hokies - i should just learn to keep my mouth shut - for more reasons than this alone...
Monday, December 04, 2006
Sweet Sunday
A dark and gloomy Sunday afternoon now - forecast calls for perfectly dreary 40-degree showers anytime now. I've actually a term paper to more or less start and finish by this Friday, but already from a few days ago i've felt this peace in my heart (am quite sure it's just peace and not complacency) to just sit back and relax this Sunday, as per what i've always had the conviction to do but have never realized. The speaker at the last IV large group was talking about it somewhat, still working through whatever i remember of her talk through my head, but anyways that served as the final nail in the coffin of my repose today, and hopefully for Sundays to come, as far as possible; since i was thinking about making better use of the Sabbath for a very long time now, instead of losing it in mindless nothingness and work that could be done on other days...
So instead i've decided to use today to do various other thingies like type this, post pics, download music (we've legal song downloading here *whee*) and write farewell notes (hmm sounds a tad morbid). Was actually going to go for a swim today, that has proved to just be the latest of my aborted attempts to do so - i've already pencilled it in to at go at least once before i leave this place - but not sure if anything will come out of that. Maybe i'll go when it's freezing outside, the 85-degree heated pool would be a nice contrast to that...
Yesterday's game was a good experience overall, and an enjoyable one; even if the game itself was rather scrappy and not very electrifying, and i got stuck in the last row of the upper deck (i.e. the nosebleed seats), which afforded a microscopic view of the whole game. 75-63 to us, our lowest-scoring game by far this season. Apparently in the big game on Wednesday (v. the then #1 team, Ohio State - which has been the only home game so far i've not gotten tics to), the Tar Heels put on an electrifying performance to win 98-89, although they were without the #1 freshman in the nation due to a wrist injury (see what a week of bball immersion during Thanksgiving can do to me). And as a result of playing their hearts out in that one, the game i went to was far more subdued - our coach even stood up and tried to rouse the indifferent crowd, he said was only the second time in history he had to do that. Ah well, at least i've at least one more game to go to, and possibly another one just before i leave against my brother's school, so hopefully they'll be far more rested for that one. Add that to hopefully better-located seats (or alternatively, a telescope), and even though our opponent is quite unknown (ever heard of High Point?), maybe that game will be somewhat more thrilling than this one.
It's a looooong way down from here to the action...
So instead i've decided to use today to do various other thingies like type this, post pics, download music (we've legal song downloading here *whee*) and write farewell notes (hmm sounds a tad morbid). Was actually going to go for a swim today, that has proved to just be the latest of my aborted attempts to do so - i've already pencilled it in to at go at least once before i leave this place - but not sure if anything will come out of that. Maybe i'll go when it's freezing outside, the 85-degree heated pool would be a nice contrast to that...
Yesterday's game was a good experience overall, and an enjoyable one; even if the game itself was rather scrappy and not very electrifying, and i got stuck in the last row of the upper deck (i.e. the nosebleed seats), which afforded a microscopic view of the whole game. 75-63 to us, our lowest-scoring game by far this season. Apparently in the big game on Wednesday (v. the then #1 team, Ohio State - which has been the only home game so far i've not gotten tics to), the Tar Heels put on an electrifying performance to win 98-89, although they were without the #1 freshman in the nation due to a wrist injury (see what a week of bball immersion during Thanksgiving can do to me). And as a result of playing their hearts out in that one, the game i went to was far more subdued - our coach even stood up and tried to rouse the indifferent crowd, he said was only the second time in history he had to do that. Ah well, at least i've at least one more game to go to, and possibly another one just before i leave against my brother's school, so hopefully they'll be far more rested for that one. Add that to hopefully better-located seats (or alternatively, a telescope), and even though our opponent is quite unknown (ever heard of High Point?), maybe that game will be somewhat more thrilling than this one.
It's a looooong way down from here to the action...This morning i went for another run, my first in around a month. Needless to say, the weather's gotten a lot colder since then - so today for the first time in my life had to wear sweats to run. Felt needed to run in order to clear my head from a lot of stuff as much as to get some exercise (now my mother also said that i've lost weight btw)... Well basically the month off has done its damage, i was struggling through the second lap, but at least managed to get through it - though after that my knees were aching really badly - guess that's a combination of poor technique, cold weather and getting old heh... Well in any case when i'm back in S'pore wringing out buckets from my shirt into the longkang i know i'll miss running in such pleasant, non-sweat-inducing weather...
I just realized [cos (my recently-downloaded) James Taylor's Carolina In My Mind is playing on my laptop now], almost two years after i chose it, that the color of this font is Carolina Blue - sweet =)
And the 1943 song cannot get out of my mind! Though admittedly that's in part cos i downloaded it too =p...
I just realized [cos (my recently-downloaded) James Taylor's Carolina In My Mind is playing on my laptop now], almost two years after i chose it, that the color of this font is Carolina Blue - sweet =)
And the 1943 song cannot get out of my mind! Though admittedly that's in part cos i downloaded it too =p...
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
A Tricky Treat
It's definitely an understatement for me to say that i'm feeling rather uneasy right now.
A good kind of unease though - unease at seemingly having little, if any schoolwork to get done at this point in time.
Usually monday evenings at this time are marked by my frantic scrambling (ok i paint a way to hardworking picture of myself there but you get my drift) to get work done in the library, where i usually stay till at least past midnight.
But today, i'm happily seated here in my room typing this at my own leisure, and am probably gonna have an early night as well...
Well, the past few days have been a good time of self-reflection for me, in large part i guess thanks to the lesser-than-average amount of work that i had to do over the weekend - was able to spend time meeting with and talking to people, talking to God, being still, that sorta thing - so the past weekend was definitely one of the most refreshing for me so far - and at least in terms of spiritual refreshment far better than the two previous and otherwise refreshing weekends that i spent out of town. Next week promises to be good too methinks, since many others will either be out of town camping near Boone or going for IV Chapter retreat, while i'll not be able to go for either cos i've a choir concert on Friday night at Fayetteville and so i won't be around the hill on Friday afternoon, which is when both trips leave... While i'd really love to go for either trip (definitely more so than having to perform), at least things will be quieter around here over the rest of the weekend while so many people are gone - which i'm sure could go a long way...
Also managed to get a good long run on Sunday morning - the first in many weeks - and the weather was nice and cool too - that was nice - when i get back to S'pore the first run i go for will definitely be a very painful and dehydrating affair when compared to this - here i feel like i could carry on running for hours on end...
One thing that's been on my mind quite a bit is Halloween. It's a really big thingy here (Franklin Street, where my hall is on, closes every Halloween night for festivities - apparently between 50000 to 70000 people from all over the state will descend upon the hill, and Franklin Street in particular, and party the night away) but i'm far from big about it - apart from the more typically matt reason that i'm too lazy to bother to dress up as anything apart from a study abroad student at UNC from S'pore (i.e. as myself), there's also my own reservations that i have regarding the dubious origins and the poor basis (in my opinion) for celebrating such a holiday in the first place - especially with the roots in paganism and all that (this probably an inheritance from my father). Yeah as much as the holiday can be rationalized in such a way that there really is no issue with Christians celebrating it (and don't get me wrong - personally i see no problem in this rationalization), but on a personal level it just doesn't sit well with me... Yeah really appreciate the advice that some of y'all have given me regarding this - one the one hand i feel like i'm making a mountain out of a molehill but on the other, don't think that i can just brush aside the whole issue like that...
Well, whatever it is, one thing is clear to me - whatever candy comes my way this Halloween will definitely be welcome with open mouth...
A good kind of unease though - unease at seemingly having little, if any schoolwork to get done at this point in time.
Usually monday evenings at this time are marked by my frantic scrambling (ok i paint a way to hardworking picture of myself there but you get my drift) to get work done in the library, where i usually stay till at least past midnight.
But today, i'm happily seated here in my room typing this at my own leisure, and am probably gonna have an early night as well...
Well, the past few days have been a good time of self-reflection for me, in large part i guess thanks to the lesser-than-average amount of work that i had to do over the weekend - was able to spend time meeting with and talking to people, talking to God, being still, that sorta thing - so the past weekend was definitely one of the most refreshing for me so far - and at least in terms of spiritual refreshment far better than the two previous and otherwise refreshing weekends that i spent out of town. Next week promises to be good too methinks, since many others will either be out of town camping near Boone or going for IV Chapter retreat, while i'll not be able to go for either cos i've a choir concert on Friday night at Fayetteville and so i won't be around the hill on Friday afternoon, which is when both trips leave... While i'd really love to go for either trip (definitely more so than having to perform), at least things will be quieter around here over the rest of the weekend while so many people are gone - which i'm sure could go a long way...
Also managed to get a good long run on Sunday morning - the first in many weeks - and the weather was nice and cool too - that was nice - when i get back to S'pore the first run i go for will definitely be a very painful and dehydrating affair when compared to this - here i feel like i could carry on running for hours on end...
One thing that's been on my mind quite a bit is Halloween. It's a really big thingy here (Franklin Street, where my hall is on, closes every Halloween night for festivities - apparently between 50000 to 70000 people from all over the state will descend upon the hill, and Franklin Street in particular, and party the night away) but i'm far from big about it - apart from the more typically matt reason that i'm too lazy to bother to dress up as anything apart from a study abroad student at UNC from S'pore (i.e. as myself), there's also my own reservations that i have regarding the dubious origins and the poor basis (in my opinion) for celebrating such a holiday in the first place - especially with the roots in paganism and all that (this probably an inheritance from my father). Yeah as much as the holiday can be rationalized in such a way that there really is no issue with Christians celebrating it (and don't get me wrong - personally i see no problem in this rationalization), but on a personal level it just doesn't sit well with me... Yeah really appreciate the advice that some of y'all have given me regarding this - one the one hand i feel like i'm making a mountain out of a molehill but on the other, don't think that i can just brush aside the whole issue like that...
Well, whatever it is, one thing is clear to me - whatever candy comes my way this Halloween will definitely be welcome with open mouth...
Saturday, October 28, 2006
rumble rumble rumble...
Yeah well this week has gone by just like that *insert sound of snapping fingers here* - it's hard to believe that just a week ago i was on fall break hundreds of miles away and now the first Saturday i've spent on the Hill in like three weeks has nearly arrived...
I've definitely to give thanks for midterms - as in the process of doing them and the results, not the midterms per se - had two over the past week, they were not like done super well, and in fact i don't think that i'll do too well for either of them, but i guess considering my haphazard way of preparing for them i think that they turned out ok... Also have gotten back the results of the two other midterms that i was stressing over in the few days of school left before leaving for Chicago - definitely a very humbling result for one of them - though i didn't read as much of the required readings as i was supposed to, and to an extent methinks was really just winging it, managed to get a good grade; and for the other one, well it was divided into three parts and i got a C- for one of them (my first grade that low in my living memory - well - if you don't count Chinese haha), but got a B and an A for the other two parts so thankfully it was averaged out to a B, which is enough for me... The whole pass/fail thingy also has made me decide to not do the optional paper for the course which would give me extra credit - cos that seriously would take up way too much more time than i'm willing to give...
For choir things are getting somewhat better too - some might know that i've not had the ball of a time that i thought i'd have in choir here so far, but well, to cut a long story short, i'm definitely enjoying it much more now, with the songs continually running through my head, so that's good i suppose. Two grouses that i have though: one of the concerts that we have is on the night of the midterm congressional elections here, and especially as i'm doing a course on intro to American government here - i've gotten quite excited about it and wanted to be in front of the telly to get the latest results live - much like what i did for the eventual anti-climax that was the S'pore general elections this May. The other is that i had to fork out nearly US$100 on a full tux for concert gear, though i suppose should i ever get to attend some swanky function in the future that might come in quite handy...
And this weekend's really good - think that this is the first possible week so far when i may be able to complete all my work before Sunday - so am definitely looking forward to that - with the amount of junk i've been eating here recently, i think i'll try to run and/or swim then - still want to experience the novelty/cheap thrill (depending on how you look at it) of swimming in an indoor heated pool...
Aw shucks am feeling hungry again...
I've definitely to give thanks for midterms - as in the process of doing them and the results, not the midterms per se - had two over the past week, they were not like done super well, and in fact i don't think that i'll do too well for either of them, but i guess considering my haphazard way of preparing for them i think that they turned out ok... Also have gotten back the results of the two other midterms that i was stressing over in the few days of school left before leaving for Chicago - definitely a very humbling result for one of them - though i didn't read as much of the required readings as i was supposed to, and to an extent methinks was really just winging it, managed to get a good grade; and for the other one, well it was divided into three parts and i got a C- for one of them (my first grade that low in my living memory - well - if you don't count Chinese haha), but got a B and an A for the other two parts so thankfully it was averaged out to a B, which is enough for me... The whole pass/fail thingy also has made me decide to not do the optional paper for the course which would give me extra credit - cos that seriously would take up way too much more time than i'm willing to give...
For choir things are getting somewhat better too - some might know that i've not had the ball of a time that i thought i'd have in choir here so far, but well, to cut a long story short, i'm definitely enjoying it much more now, with the songs continually running through my head, so that's good i suppose. Two grouses that i have though: one of the concerts that we have is on the night of the midterm congressional elections here, and especially as i'm doing a course on intro to American government here - i've gotten quite excited about it and wanted to be in front of the telly to get the latest results live - much like what i did for the eventual anti-climax that was the S'pore general elections this May. The other is that i had to fork out nearly US$100 on a full tux for concert gear, though i suppose should i ever get to attend some swanky function in the future that might come in quite handy...
And this weekend's really good - think that this is the first possible week so far when i may be able to complete all my work before Sunday - so am definitely looking forward to that - with the amount of junk i've been eating here recently, i think i'll try to run and/or swim then - still want to experience the novelty/cheap thrill (depending on how you look at it) of swimming in an indoor heated pool...
Aw shucks am feeling hungry again...
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