Just Another Day In School

Today I cut boon's hair at some GSR at SOB. No seriously. LOL octogon. I cut my hair the night before to practice which explains why my hair looks alot like a hamster's backide. A roborovski hamster's backside. A cute roborovski hamster's backide. Not say tots abit the guinea pig. Dz and Sil bought me a real pair of styling scissors and a damn act toni&guy tool pouch to act abit daves gans. It was damn funny cuz the cleaner auntie was giving us wierd looks. Don't worry auntie, we cut over newspaper. The pictures speak for themselves, and I think boons liked the cut and weims won't beat me up. Not say abit the act vidals sasses today. Who's next? Not Steve please.

Tired

Tired. Totally tired. It's only Monday and it feels more like a... Well actually it does feel like a Monday. Then again these days, all the days feel like a Monday. A Monday with friends though haha.

I'm pretty proud of my progress so far. I'm considering switching to the business school and that's the only thing that's keeping me going. It's madness some days. Even my MPW Prof asked me not to work too hard. That's a sign you need to slow down.

But hell no I'm not slowing down. This term I realise alot of my pals are also working alot harder. I think we realise it's time we kick some ass. It's alot easier studying when your friends are also studying hard with you. It's not just studying though this term. There's tons of applications and internship applications to complete. Weims would say xian googolplex. Chloe would say nyargh.

I need some rest. Already a few of my pals have told me I look a little tired this term. By the end of the week, "tired" is an understatement. But we still go on anyways.

I don't remember working this hard ever. I think I've broke my own record this term. Even the A levels weren't that tiring. It's not so much stress though. It's just alot of hard work. Oh well, whatever it is, carpe diem, sieze the day!

LOOKING FORWARD ALREADY

http://www.burj-al-arab.com/


tim says:
i've seen it
tim says:
it's rather excellent
tim says:
is that the official site or what
Ian says:
not in real life right
tim says:
yeah
Ian says:
yeah it is
tim says:
no lah siao
tim says:
they put gold leaf in the soup
Ian says:
haha ok
tim says:
as garnish
tim says:
eh next time when we're both in the money
tim says:
we go there with our wives and play golf ok
tim says:
plenty of other cool shit to do there too
tim says:
we can eat gold leaf
Ian says:
remind me abt the burj ok in case i forget
tim says:
intriguing
tim says:
remind you like in 20 years or soon for your blog purposes?
Ian says:
like in 6 years
Ian says:
oh wait we won't be married that soon right
Ian says:
ok 10 max
Ian says:
i'm already looking forward
Ian says:
though they might not serve the gold leaf thing anymore
tim says:
i'm sure they have other good food
Ian says:
haha ok
Ian says:
we better bring some gold just in case they dont have it anymore
Ian says:
we can just use a cheese grater for some sprinkles

HAPPY DZARSDAY!

Happy birthday Dzarrin! Yest was a fun day cuz the fteebsers threw a surprise birthday for Dz. Asilah did a great job of planning it for him. It was a great way to end the week. Even ky, wy and Mike was there. Was actually tired octogon after FT in the morning, lunch with poh.lee.dels and libsish till 9pm. Lunch was at Thai Express with poh.lee.dels. Laugh cube. square maybe. Almost pentagon seriously. Then somore dels was carrying her tots endangered species kind laptop. During marketing class this week, our damn funny loveit Korean prof Seh Wongs mentioned some milk advertisment. And then Adel just had to call it cow juice. Seh Wongs was damn amused and started using cow juice the whole way after that. Laugh until puke and die seriously. LOL googleplex. Cut Dz's hair again this week. I gave him a cool tail. I still don't know how to use the hairstyling clips he got me though. Today was muggsing with Huss in the morning then Boons later. I just realised I had LJ's and Macs for lunch and dinner. Shit. Not say abit the trans fats. I'm very grateful to be able to hangout with my pals every day. Even if its happy muggsfest '07. Love my pals. And Seh Wongs. They make a stressful term alot more bearable. The last couple of weeks have been so busy and tiring. I'm just grateful for every one of my pals.

pay it forward

I tell you, I am going to go nuts soon. Today is my free day but I spent the entire day in the library with Jasmine wrapping up my Financial Accounting homework and reading my marketing text. On top of work, I have tons of applications to fill out. Going to cough blood and die soon.

I am so in a mad scramble to get my internships in order this summer. Summer is 3 months away, and already there is a rush to get my internships in order. Merril Lynch didn't fall through, but I'm still pretty optimistic about the rest. I used to work at Tangs and they had a partnership program with Citibank, so I'm glad Priscilla can refer me to the Citibank people. I am also hoping to work at Oglivy this summer because it's one of the top advertising agencies in the world. I hope I can get to work with Boons during the hols. The strings are being pulled and I can feel the strain.

Pulling strings is never a nice thing. But I guess I never worry about asking for favours because I would do the same for my friends. After referring Angsish to Tangs she got a place as an intern there. I am also trying to make some arrangements for Steph so she can work at the Marriott hotel. It feels good being in a position where you can help friends. Of course, that being said, we have to separate sincere friends from the freeloaders. The friends who only like to talk about freebies, business and opportunities. That's a sad thought.

The best way of dealing with the opportunities in life, is to share the good things with people who you trust most, and maybe one day they will share their opportunities with you even if you don't ask for them. It's about the karma. So be a good friend, pay it forward, and one day, it might just come back to you.

Shit

It's 2am now and I was supposed to be sleeping an hour ago. I have to wake up for school at 6.30am tmrw. Shit. Today I had eccons lesson and after school I went to the Toni & Guy academy at Bugis to meet Kenneth. Kenneth needed some shots for his portfolio so he cut my hair and asked me to take some shots and do his hair show for him. At first I didn't like the cut but its alot fresher and easier to style.

We took the photos at some places near Arab Street. It was damn cool because they body painted hugeass tattoos across my body and they gave it a dirty look with some chalk on my face and body. I was just wearing a pair of low rise jeans so the look was very simple. Grungy gangster. The shots were really nice cuz the photogs were good. It was abit fashion and it was all backalley, stairways and act editorial. I was actually really tired because I had school earlier but I think I forced the look and the photos turned out fine. I leaned against the wall of some run down shophouse and got some lizard shit on me. Yucks. Tyra says always be professional. HAHA. kidding la pls.

Friday is when we are supposed to go to the actual arthouse venue and practise walking down the runway. They converted the old parliament house into a long T shaped runway with rows of seats along the side. Will be cool. Abit paises but I guess aiyah better do this shite now or never.

The only thing I'm thinking in my head. Is shit, I need to read my intro to eccons and FA in between if I'm going to keep up with work this week. What a nerdpiece seriously. Shit. Will post the photos soon.

I Will Succeed

My grandma has been down with arthritis lately. Some weeks, we don't get to even see her because she's in pain and she doesn't join us for Sunday lunch. She stays with us sometimes and goes back to my Aunt's place on the weekends.

I worry for her because she's pretty old now. Not long ago she used to drive us to the old Marina Square and take us for steamboat and arcade games at Magic Land. Other weeks, she'll take us for the Pizza Hut buffet at Jelita. Just today we went to Cedele for lunch, and I'll bet she's the only Grandma who eats their burgers.

Seeing her in pain is a painful thing to bear. There are times I wish I could take it away. But there is only so much we can help with. When I grow up, I will earn as much as I can so that I can afford the best healthcare for my family. It's our responsibility to look after our loved ones.

Sometimes she nags. I'll sit and listen while eating dinner. But although I don't like it, I know why she does. She cares. And she wants to talk to someone. My grandfather passed away a long time ago when she was younger, so she has always had to face many personal challenges alone. More often than not, we are busy, and so are her children, so there really isn't very many people she can hang out with.

Her life hasn't been easy, and watching her grow old, I hope we have done our best to make her comfortable and happy. I wish I were working, and be able to afford a better doctor for her. I remember when I was younger, she told me in Cantonese, "You need to study hard, and if you do, one day you'll be able to live in a big house." What she doesn't know is that I don't need a big house. I just want to see my loved ones taken care of and happy. I guess it's a personal promise to her and myself to be successful. This is my one personal goal. I will succeed.

Not tired. Damn tired.

It's only the first week of school but somehow it feels like week 12 already. I've had only 9 classes so far, but already I'm feeling worn out. In between school work, internship applications, transfer applications and more, there hasn't been much time for rest.

I forsee some good classes this term, but I'm really trying my best to keep the energy up. As you know, class participation accounts for a good 20% of the grade, so I find myself trying my best to pay attention at all times. It's definately not an easy term. Financial accounting, introduction to eccons, finishing touch, lmanagement of people at work and marketing.

In simple terms, it means I'm dead tired. This term is crunchtime for me because I'm considering transferring to the school of business. Which essentially means I have to go all out to do well. I just hope I can keep up my grades this term, and hopefully have something to show for it at the end of the day. Sigh. Not tired. Damn tired.

Not Always . Some other things always.

I don't know what made me dial the number. But I did. It was was wierd because part of me didn't want to. But just hearing your voice made me happy. And I hope you felt the same. Alot of time and anger has passed. We even missed my favourite holiday of the year. I don't really care what happened. I am just glad that maybe now things can go back to where they once were. I pretend I am strong, but I am not always. Friends always.

One Last Look at 2006

green is the new black

Aaron does NOT look like that normally

ok Weims looks like that normally

The Blog

There was this article about the future of blogging. They predicted it would die out by this year. But that's just bullshit. I think they don't realise that blogging is more than just a fad. It's really an extension of the diary. It's not quite the same, definately not as personal, but in many ways its some sort of random expression of thought.

It sounds crappy and mainstream, but shit, I'm a blogger. It's an outlet to record thoughts in my head, and maybe add in pictures at the same time.

I find life so amazing. A collection of memories and snapshots that keep adding up into a great story, and I find that a blog is a great way to remember things. Sometimes it's the simple things in life we forget, supper with friends, dinner with family, funny things that happen in school. And I think a blog is a way of documenting all these things.

Sometimes it's easy to take what we have for granted. We sometimes get down and think "life sucks". But when we take time to write about our lives and evaluate it, it's easy to see why life is actually beautiful. I sometimes look through old posts and photos and am instantly reminded how lucky I am. It really makes me appreciate all the little things in my life alot more, and it reminds me of the people I love.

The blog is not a fad. It's here to stay.

When I Graduate I May Just Die

Today I had a finishing touch class. I had class at 8.30am, and although I set my alarm for 6.45am, I only got out of bed at 7.45. Do not ask me how I managed to dress formal and still make it on time for class. I literally flew.

I guess in a way I've been gearing up for this class. Finishing Touch is all about etiquette. It's all about being polished and getting ready for the working world. Our Prof is this smiley nice guy called Clement Ong. He made us poke a straw through a potato today. One thing I don't understand is why we do finishing touch class so late in school. If we had learnt these skills from our first year, they could have been put to better use. It's like after drafting resumes, cover letters and applying for internships for so long, only now then they give us a class on it. It's a little redundant.

However, I can't speak for everyone. I think alot of my best friends haven't had much time to piece together a proper resume or really map out their career plans. I don't blame them though. Between school, friends, family and CCA, there really isn't much time left for anything. One thing they're doing right though, is being on track to finishing school at SMU. And that's the most important thing.

This year I realise a new resolution on the horizon. And that's balance. Last term I did well balancing work, family and friends. But this term I need to do well. Which means I have to be more focused. There is no way I will compromise my time with friends, so this means my studying time has to be 100% focused.

Seriously sometimes keeping a balance can be overwhelming. But I thank God for my supportive family and friends, and I know somehow I'll be ok. Boons was telling me how she's damn grateful for the porkfriends. So am I. And the Randoms, the Smube Supps Goofsers, the bros and the ishes. They've made every day of school like play.

So the FT class was great. I met TK Terence who has been stopped by the mrt security 9 times for bag check (SERIOUS OK), a nice Clara who is the Eurythmix (Dance) president and Ken, a guy who started his own Youth Entrepeneurship business. Really interesting. I think one thing about SMU, is that it really is different. People are out to make friends, and that's the best part of school. There's no point going to school if you don't meet new friends (and keep your best ones also!). Damit la seriously. I love SMU. When I graduate I may just die.

5,4,3,2,1.... Happy first day of schooool!

Today was my first day of school. I actually don't have lessons today, but I met KY for lunch and I had a project to discuss with Dzarrin.

I bumped into Wenkang while walking to school, which was nice because I haven't seen Wenkang in ages. He still looks the same. After that I went to meet Poon at sobes gants. Bumping into so many friends at the sobes gants was nice after not seeing many of them for one month. The gants are crazy at noon because everyone is rushing to and fro for classes.

Me and Poon went to Sultan Kebabs for lunch. Sults Kebs is the best. I shouldn't have ordered the lamb wrap though. Chicken next time. It was nice to catch up with ky because I haven't seen him for most of the hols because he's been busy in Vietnam.

Bumped into Jaz, Ambrose, Weiyi and Weims at sobes gants and admin block. Its great meeting your friends every day. I love school. I met up with Dzarrin to talk about our project. Hush hush top secret must kill you if I tell kind so that's about all for now. But I hope it comes to fruition. Boons dropped by and we met Phoebes along the way to sobes (again). The fteebsers had class there.

I decided to pay Vincent a visit at Chjimes. Vincent was one of my closest friends from the army. And till this day, I still consider him one of my dearest friends. Vincent was at Shatec before, so now he works at La Cave and Baroque at Chjimes. It was great to see Vincent. Nothing has changed about him. He's still a great conversationalist and a good talker. Vincent is one of those people who are one of a kind. In the army, we used to sit around on the roof of our block and talk about all sorts of things. Our lives, our dreams, and everything else under the sun. We had a unusual friendship. On one hand I was the typical ACS boy, and he was the street smart punk haha. On his motorbike, he took me to ktv pubs and dragged me drinking. Those were good times.

Much has changed though. We're both a little more older now. But I still see the same Vincent I've known along. He still has that determination in his eyes. Vincent is different from many of my friends. Despite his background, he has persevered and made it bigger than most of his peers. After army, I've seen many of my friends who have begun to waste their lives. It's a real pity. But Vincent is a different breed.

I think of Vincent sometimes and I think we're both sides of the same coin. There's alot I see in him that's different, but yet at the core we're very much the same. There's almost an understanding between us that we both must do our best in life to succeed. I never doubt that Vincent will do well in life. He is born to succeed. And that's some sort of instinct that is superhuman.

My first day of school has been great. But tomorrow will be even more fun. I'm having lessons with Jaz, Eric, Gabe and Serene. Die. Confirm laugh until puke kind.

I am lucky. And always grateful. My time at SMU has been the best.

FUCK Melbourne

Delta Goodrem sings "I can see a rainbow, I can see a rainbow too." in her Visit Australia ad. And if you were on drugs, you'd see rainbows too.

I hate Melbourne. Why? Because the people who go to Melbourne never snap out of it when they return. But I don't blame them. I've seen it so many times, Singaporean kids who go there and party their time away, getting wasted on drugs and alcohol and going for rave parties. The sad part is after they return home, they feel like they don't belong anywhere after that. It's not their fault. That's how it is like in Melbourne.

When they have "Study in Australia" fairs, one thing they don't show tell Singaporean parents about is the terrible stories of what goes on in Melbourne. Drugs and alcohol are so easy to get. And it's so easy for people to fall prey to addictions because all their friends are doing it. The sad part is that the local Australians must be laughing at all the rich Asian kids who are suffering from addictions, and that's us. The local kids there have support from their families over there so they are less likely to drink or take drugs. However, the Asian students, who are far away from home, are more likely to go wild because of a lack of supervision.

Hate me for saying I hate Melbourne. But at least consider the truth for a moment. I know 2 close friends who were ruined because of Melbourne, one of whom passed away there. I know a couple of friends who have done well in Melbourne, but only because they had family support there. Unless you have family in Melbourne, don't ever send your kids there. I must mention that these vices do occur in any other part of the world. But it is certain that Melbourne is famous for its cheap alcohol and easy access to drugs.

For my friends who have come back from Melbourne, you know what I mean. I know what your struggles are like. But if you really care about your loved ones, you're going to have to tell them what Melbourne is really about. I'm not saying that you shouldn't go to Melbourne to study, but if you do, you need to go with your eyes open. And that's something that most people don't do. I must reiterate that Melbourne still has some good schools, but fuck Melbourne all the same.

A Superhuman Year

So here it is. My first post for 2007.

This year, there's only one major resolution. And that's to top the year 2006. Some of my pals have told me that its a very vague resolution, but I don't don't think so. I know what the year 2006 was about. It was about change. It was about spending time with the people I love most. It was about seizing opportunities. It was about doing my best. And it was about being happy. So I hope this year I can outdo myself, and give 2006 a run for its money.

I watched the show "heroes" today with the fteebsers. It's about normal people who find they have super powers due to their genes. I kind of thought about it, and I think we have superhuman people amongst us, it's just that we don't realise it. What I mean by superhuman, is the talents that are God given. It's like how some people are born athletes, musicians and academics, or how some people are born winners in life. These powers don't require lazer beams to telepathic connections, but they are just as powerful in changing lives. I don't think everyone is born a superhero though. But if we do find a special something in us, we've got to make full use of it. And the most special part of being a superhero, is that only we ourselves know if we have it. We just have to look deep in ourselves. We can be told we are special, but it takes a self-realization to truly act on our special gifts to make full use of them.

It sounds crazy to think some of us have a superpower. But some of us really do. I see friends who can maximise their potential to reach their goals. Some are great with people, some are talented in business. These are the superheros amongst us. And their powers range from person to person, and not all of them use it for good means. I'll share with you a secret. It's scary, but I think I have a superpower too. But, I'm not going to tell you what it is. Because if I did, I'd be spoiling the ending for you haha. You'll have to see for yourself. The thing is, I think I only found my superpower this year. I bet it sounds crazy haha, but it really isn't. If we could all find our God-given talent, we could all make superhuman changes in our own special ways. And I have been learning how to use mine.

Growing older really does feel like a bottle of wine. It gets better as it ages. Challenges get tougher, yes. But so does the mind and spirit. It's been a great year, and I hope 2007 will be a super one.

Happy New Year

It's been a great year, and to welcome the new year, I spent the countdown with Bernard, Benny and Eric screaming "happy new year" in the car on the way to buying some booze. We chilled out at my place and played Risk and Scrabble till 3am at my place.

Today the Fteebsers came over for our Christmas/New Year (overdue) party. OMG everytime they come over it's damn nonsense ok. Rubbish square. Maybe even cube. Omg we ate dunnoe how much pizza, chicken wings, laksa, ohlua and chips. I love the fteebsers. Today the turnout was almost the same as the last fteebs party. Dalena, Mark, Lanceish, Boons, Weims, Dzar, Asilah, Mich, Phoebs, Aaron and me. As usual free-flow nonsense kind. We had a NYDC cake for dinner before heading to Alex's place for a movie.

Not shy just gorge kind. Phoebes not say abit the orgase. Boons is going to kill me for this pic.

some of my favourite people

mark starts stoning

WEIMS WTH seriously!!!!!!

tots abusive bf kind cube. not.

Lance got Weims pregs and now Leims is killing off Boons. Not say abit the murder kind.