A Last Post For 2006

I know this might appear last minute. But nevertheless i shall continue as i am racing against time. Caroling for this year was fun but exhausting, greatly attributed to my slip disc. But i shall not dampen everyone's mood by rambling on to that.

My Carol Schedule this year:

2 Dec - VC @ SAFRA Mt Faber

12-13 Dec - VJ @ Marina Square

15 Dec - VC @ Biopolis

17 Dec - VJ @ The Pines

21 Dec - VC @ Toh Chai Concert

22 Dec - VJ @ Ritz Carlton

23 Dec - VC @ Hyatt

25 Dec - VJ @ Raffles

Really enjoyed the singing alot. I was allowed to conduct a few sessions in total, and i must really thank debbie and martin for giving me the chance. Its the simplicity and joy in conducting, not so much how well i conducted. okays.. so much for illustrating memories. Let some pictures do the talking. The picture on the left is self explanatory, and on the right is a year 3 photo, i.e. recent photo at Raffles after the reunion session on 25 th. Oh thanks for the pics gabriel!

Happy New Year To One And All! :) Year 2007 is so wonderful, its my ORD :)

4th Nov. 308 days left. Its ticking...

The Power Of Imagination

More often that not when in our own personal imagination, we dream of something wonderful. We dream of achieving freedom, wealth, and other paradise-like goals. But many of us are often stuck in this reality. While we are indulging in our fantasizing, we fail to realise that by doing so, we are not the least helping ourselves to inch towards these coveted dreams. Why? Because no practical thinking was done, what we did were the intangibles. A couple of people live in this category, i.e. self-delusion, and to a little extent, self-deceit. They are usually under-achievers.

But yet there is yet another group of people who occasionally fantasize about their ideal aspirations, but what sets them apart is that in their fantasies, they inserted a small segment, which is a link back to the present. In what they are dreaming, they remind themselves that they are working towards this goal, and constantly offer themselves encouragement through such imaginative aid. This bunch of people are wiser and more likely to succeed.

Then there is this small group of people who are very pragmatic and conservative. i would say they wouldn't have too ambitious dreams. They might have idyllic goals, but definitely something within their reach. These people seldom waste time indulging in the nobility of their goals, they get down into serious work, inching slowly, yet ever so steadily towards their destination. This people would also succeed, but not in a very ground-breaking, impressive manner.

I guess all of us somewhat belong into one of these categories. There is never a distinct boundary btw these 3 traits. It is a graded measurement. We may have shades here and there. But ultimately, we should all aim towards the second one, imaginative aid.

"Harnessing The Mental Perk Provided by Our Imaginations To Empower Our Physical Actions"

An Enchanting Year of Unknown Freedom

Well, though the year hasn't really ended, i thought i should just make a review early. This post is inspired by the post on simin's blog, where i commented on my all year round army life.. bleah..

Year of 2006: An Enchanting Year of Unknown Freedom. Why unknown? Army i would say. Neither did i know what life in NS would be, what would i face, and how would i cope. But all these uncertainty had ceased as i progressed towards the fourth quarter of the year. Now the condition has stabilised. But for the benefit of the majority of the months in this year, the Unknown shall remain :)

Probably some philosophy before i go on? How does one feel when one sails in unchartered waters, tread on unknown grounds? How confident are we facing the vicissitudes of life when we ourselves arent exactly sure what will emerge? Have you ever felt that the future isnt in your grip? Well, thats what i felt when i just enlisted in Jan. No thoughts about the gruelling 2 years and the impatience to ORD right in the beginning of the year, partly due to the fact that it was not pleasant knowing it? So i just felt my life was to be dictated. To be instructed, and i fear to say the least, be governed. BMT gave me a new dimension to life, i mean through the inception of Army life. No comments abt the intrigues of it, but yeah a significant alteration of my lifestyle and habits. So it was a forced change then. "Things are always sweeter in retrospect" (really?) So i would say, a welcome change. Tough training it was, especially in Ninja coy, but nevertheless one great soldier :)

That took away almost a quarter of my year, with CNY segmenting my BMT. I went to sispec bslc. Another change. Ok lets not talk abt the army aspect. My life changed too... It was a different form of training, a more specialised training. More respect. And i begun to accept the tougher training over time. 12 weeks i spent there. But however, it was in sispec where i injured my back, slipping the disc. In medical terms, Prolapsed Intevertebral Disc (PID), Lumbar disc herniation or whatever other terms. Well, told ya the army aspect of it was different. Training in sispec was different in nature as compared to BMT. My new found endurance through BMT was immediately and yet cruelly put to test in sispec, i triumph, but paid a heavy price. So that was all i had of sispec, in brevity.

Then i proceeded to Signal Institute for my 2nd part of 3SG course. Course started in June. Yet another totally different experience there. Knowledge intensive i would say. We learnt alot on signal communications and yup it reminded me much about physics. Imagine learning dc and ac currents all over again? Thats my first lecture. I reported my prolonged condtition of sciatica (sharp pain radiating from the butt all the way through the back of my thighs to ankle) to the MO, where he was quick to refer me to Alexandra Hospital. I took a X-ray, and subsequently MRI. Diagnosis confirmed slipdisc at L4L5 and L5S1. Ah, the news was so shattering. But gradually i lived with it. My course ended in 16 of Aug, and i was posted to 2 sig bn.

Stay was about 1.5 months. A great comaraderie there. An active unit. Caring individuals, especially the PC, OC, PS, CSM. They were always there to help when i needed. At this point of time i am writing this post they have just returned from an overseas exercise in Australia. Although my stint there in 2 sig bn was short, it was definitely enriching. The timeline now stays at Oct.

I was posted to OSC, my present camp. CAnt tell u much on this camp and what i do, but its a different role that i play here. I'm a project clerk. This environment brought me closer to the sch environment and definitely a civilian life. It'll be a permanent camp which i will remain in till i ORD Nov 2007. I am looking forward to make my journey here a pleasant, and hopefully memorable one.

So, enchanting? It seemed that everything i mentioned was abt army? i scrolled up upon finishing the above paragraph and was shocked myself. Well, actually, sadly, and unfortunately, that is my life. no, that was my life. I am looking for a change in lifestyle and a shift in focus. And i'm glad it has been changing. I hope exactly one year later when i write the yearly review it would never be about army again.

So, next year's title: An enchanting year of unadulterated inner freedom! :)

PS: To all my dearest friends, Life Is A Gift. If you are not enjoying it, there is something wrong. Do not take it offensively. I know some of you may be hard up in the army or uni now. But if u would be patient in allowing me to continue, it might help you.

Either u are not looking it through the right way, or that u are not doing the right thing. The difference btw right and wrong, happy and sad, is just our perception. It is artificial, it is superficial. We must never let them rein in the rationale functionings of our daily lives. We must never let it influence our tangible contributions, our physical expression, and our predisposition.

创富特训 - 艾莫主讲

参加了这次的创富特训使我受益良多. 在财务界的种种领悟当中，我更会正确地料理财务，对待金钱及使用金钱. 它是一个规划的概念，是一个智慧的投资，一个在你正确管理收支差额后产生源源不断的财富循环的一种方法. 艾莫老师是一个著名的国际讲师, 在互动成功学方面非常特出. 他是我生命中的导师, 是我门一生中的卓越楷模.

身在曹营心在汉 - A Drifting Mind

Hong Kong, Guang Zhou Recuperative Trip (3 Nov 06 to 7 Nov 06)

Itenary At A Glance:

3 Nov 06
Ø Flight at 0800 hrs, Changi International Airport.
Ø Arrived at HK International Airport, Cleared Customs around 1200 hrs.
Ø Went for lunch near Jordon, Kowloon.
Ø Proceed for treatment at 王世民医生’s place at Wan Chai at 1500 hrs
Ø Went to QL’s office for a while
Ø Proceed to 白云大厦to settle baggage and accommodation
Ø Met QL at 1900 hrs for shopping.
Ø Back to hotel

4 Nov 06
Ø Left 白云大厦 at 0950 hrs.
Ø Went for 2nd treatment at王世民医生’s place at 1030 hrs.
Ø Went to 红勘 railway station on board train at 1325 hrs.
Ø Arrived at 广州东站 at 1515 hrs, passing by 东莞.
Ø Checked into our hotel, 日航酒店, accompanied by QL and another friend.
Ø Chatted at the Hotel’s Restaurant till 1800 hrs
Ø Buffet dinner at Hotel Landmark Canton
Ø Back to hotel.
Ø Watched a DVD entitled “我爱你”

5 Nov 06
Ø Reveille 0800 hrs
Ø Breakfast at Hotel’s Garden restaurant, 17th storey
Ø Took a cab to fetch QL
Ø Proceed to 良师父’s house at 跑马地.
Ø Chatted and lunched at his place.
Ø Treatment
Ø Left at 1410 hours, proceed to 天河广场 to shop
Ø Left at approximately 1600 hrs towards 北京路 for shopping
Ø Dinner at 福如菜馆.
Ø Went down to 珠江 for a cruise, lasting from 2030 hrs to 2200 hrs.
Ø Back to hotel.

6 Nov 06
Ø Reveille 0900 hrs.
Ø Went to红勘 railway station for breakfast, and to purchase tickets.
Ø Proceed to 良师父’s house at 跑马地.
Ø Chatted and lunched at his place
Ø Treatment
Ø Left at around 1400 hrs towards北京路 for another round of shopping.
Ø Dinner at “真功夫” restaurant at 1830 hrs
Ø Back to hotel 1930 hrs
Ø Watched a DVD entitled “A 计划”.

7 Nov 06
Ø Reveille 0630 hrs, Morning Call.
Ø Breakfast at Hotel’s Garden Restaurant at 17th storey.
Ø Proceed to 良师父’s house at 跑马地 at 0820 hrs
Ø Proceed to广州东站 at 0945 hrs, accompanied by良师父 and wife.
Ø Board the train to红勘 railway station, passing by 深圳 (1055 hrs to 1245 hrs)
Ø Board bus A21 from 红勘 railway station to HK International Airport.
Ø Checked in at 1500 hrs, consumed lunch at Burger King.
Ø Board Flight CX 711 at 1535 hrs. Flight departed 1625 hrs.
Ø Arrived at Changi International Airport at 1955.
Ø Back home 2030 hrs.

Journal:

It was indeed a welcome change for me when I touched down HK. The feeling is just different. When I reached Kowloon, I was taken aback by the hectic, fast paced lifestyle that the locals lived. Streets, roads, alleys were all bustling with activity. Very urbanized, but not losing its traditional local flavour and atmosphere. Rural-Urban integration I guess. As with Singapore, skyscrapers are ubiquitous. The standard of living is very high, much higher than Singapore I would say. Most citizens live in one to 2 room flats, which you may think is very unfortunate. An absolute misconception. Those flats aren’t cheap either. They can cost up to 200k to300k! Equivalent to our 5 room flats! Now about the streets. Colourful neon lights enliven the streets aisle. Shops, restaurants selling a myriad of necessities spring up on both sides of the streets, attracting business. Its really so happening down HK that one would really be missing out a lot in practically a few hours. That was the vivid impression I had on my first visit first day in HK. The phrase “马路如虎口” comes alive in China generally. Cars there have equal rights as pedestrians. There is no such thing as pedestrians have the way. When u cross a road, u’d better look and see carefully. However, if u are the conservative type and always act so cautiously,i.e. you would ensure that a vehicle is at a comfortable distance away before you cross, I can politely tell u that u would not be able to make it to the other side of the road. You have to literally FIGHT for the chance to have the right of way. Drivers there aren’t that courteous to u. Even though there was a red light, I remembered vividly that a motorcyclist sped so close to me, as if reluctant to halt. I had thought he had lost control of his bike. I took a forward leap! Whew.. Can imagine what happened if I stroll? Probably I wouldn’t be writing here….

Food there is cheap, and irresistible. I’d patronized the 云吞面 stall as introduced by my dad’s friend, QL. Wow, not to boast, but its really distinct and mouthwatering. Especially the side dishes like the green leafy 菜心 which are so munchy sweet. You would never ever taste it in Singapore. It is due to the climate over there such that the vegetables grown taste sweet. Customers filled the small little eating house, always reaching saturated equilibrium. There is an unending flow of customers. Waitresses streaming customers in and out, clearing dishes at lightning speeds with their dexterous hands. There isn’t the luxury of enjoying a table all by your self. All customers are mingled together. That’s how popular it is. Well there are other eateries also like the 澳洲牛奶公司 which enjoy the same popularity. The Fish Porridge I’ve eaten at one of the stalls is renowned over 40 odd years with unfaltering reputation. That was also a gratifying experience. Overall, the food there is simply luscious and tempting. Simply heavenly.

Shopping. I’ve been to Jordon, Mong Kok to shop in Hong Kong. It was also another eye catching experience. The term “Shopping Paradise” is an understatement man. Its just divine! One whole long street all selling handphones, cameras, ipods, mp3, mp4s and what nots! You can call it a digital empire. Really cheap as compared to other places! In Guangzhou, I shopped at 天河广场 and 北京路. Also equally superb in its variety and quantity. I would say clothes in Guangzhou are slightly cheaper than in HK. Well, its really very different shopping here in China. There is never an end. You can spend 3 full days walking continuosly and still find more shops to come. 天河广场 alone can keep you preoccupied for one whole day. It’s a very organized gigantic shopping mall. Different levels are for different stuff. So u don’t really have to walk too far away to check on different prices. Business thrive on competition. So u would really have to exercise some prudent bargaining and comparison. But that’s what customers desire for, not? Cheap quality goods. Abundance in store at HK GZ man!

High Standard of Living. Why do I say it? Lets just compare the life of a taxi driver in HK as compared to Singapore. In Singapore, taxi drivers would have to pay for daily rentals and fuel prices. In HK, taxi drivers have to purchase their own taxis. And mind u, they cost a bomb! 3.67 million HK Dollars (700plus thousand SGD) for one taxi! If u had that amount of money in Singapore, how many houses can u get? And yet locals in HK decide to work as a taxi driver and pay back slowly in a decade or two by installments. We see it as a huge risk and liability, but they recognize it as a fact of life. A matter of making a living. How can we compare? Even their flats cost much more than ours! The amount they earn is probably much more in terms of magnitude because their currency is smaller, but think about it, the cost of their goods are also much larger in magnitudes. It is really a hard life there.

Just some hard facts:
In Singapore, taxi charges S$2.50 per ride as initial charge, rising S$0.10 every succession
In Hong King, taxi charges 15 HK Dollars (~3 SGD) per ride as initial charge, rising 1.4 HK Dollars (~0.28 SGD) per succession
In Guangzhou, taxi charges 7 RMB (~1.4 SGD) per ride as initial charge, rising 1 RMB (~0.20 SGD) per succession.

And of course! Treatment. That’s the main reason for my departure to HK and GZ.
To seek treatment for my Prolapsed Intervertebral Discs (PID). At HK, treatment at王世民医生’s place was quite ok I would say. Little improvement. Same at GZ at 良师父’s place. I understand that its not a day or two that I can completely exterminate this annoying injury I sustained over a period of time, so it also warrants a significant healing period. 良师父 has prescribed me medication and instructed me to practice some qigong everyday. I will try my best to follow his orders. Optimism is the most powerful weapon one ought to possess. I guess I must be ready to excel in this psychological warfare. I must never give up. Nil Sine Labore.

This trip has really broadened my realization of the world. There are many things we cannot afford to take for granted. There are a lot of commitments which we ought to devote wholeheartedly. There are much more for us to appreciate. In diversity there is truthful realization of one’s aspirations. I’m not sure if I have gone too far off tangent, but if u do not understand just take it that I’m spouting greek.

I have a strange feeling now. I can’t be pulled back to reality. My body is in Singapore, but my soul is still in China. I didn’t feel foreign at all in HK and China. It was just home to me. But coming back to Singapore, its as if I had a dream, a sweet dream. I hate being awoken.

I want to go home. Can someone tell me where is it?

Teaching < Learning ? Depends on what u teach

It ain't easy for anyone to impart a certain field of knowledge to any other peers around him. Not to mention their mastery. I've realised that to cultivate a good student, it is paramount to bequeath a comprehensive mechanism to him, one which enables him to translate facts to logic, formulae to explanation and most importantly, allows him to retain all these self discovered links. What the student gains eventually is a skill-- the way to fish for the fish. Essentially, these skills are what teachers should strive to impart. Using facts(fish) as an apt illustration of these derivative techniques(how to fish) should be the proper way, instead of using the techniques to sink facts into students. To distant ourselves from rote learning is to acknowledge a shift in focus from the fact to the skill. It is a promotion of our educational standards. Teach less learn more would only be possible under such parameters. In addition it is only through such avenue that knowledge is internalised, accrued and organised into valuable assets of market value.

Life as it Always will be

"When the going gets tough, the tough gets going."

This in itself doesn't symbolises strength, for how many people can really move on? The depressing circumstances we are in already dampened whatever ounce of motivation and courage. For one primary reason, it is because we have clearly lost our definition of failure. We have been confused by our own intangibles--emotions. Failure always packages itself in a somewhat menacing way, thrashing u all the way to the rock bottom, will just giving u a rope to slowly thrust your way up. How slow and tormentous can the process be if we were to relish the every painful moment of failure? It would seem eternity before we really transform into positive and motivated individuals on our way back to accomplishment.

I came across this very useful series of CDs from a professional business consultant. His name is 艾莫. From china. He was a doctor, but later reverted to consultant. He read through a myriad of books on success, and at a young age of 20 plus, he published renowned books. His dogged determination on success inspires the weak mind and enlightens a befuddled individual in a complex world. My point on this is that we all need some form of motivation and guidance. Admittedly, most of us wouldn't have the correct idea as to how we should really go on with life from here. Often embattled by the reality of our doings, many often cite a reason of excuse, and not propose a way ahead. Easier said than done. That is without a doubt. If not i wouldn't be writing this here too. Find your own source of inspiration. Look at the world around u. Look for somthing worthy to strive for. Or just look at ur parents for example. Sometimes when u are just all down, it works if u calm urself down and take a peek at how many people have put in effort to make your life so meaningful for the past years. U r sad now. U are feeling down. Do we really bear to remain like that? We are shaping the world we live in. And definitely the comfort of our peers, family and everyone around us. We cant afford to be too self centred to let our emotions dictate our doings. Indeed, we must be considerate. A life without any semblance of hope and happiness is as good as one without a sense of orientation and responsibility. A person without hopes and aspiration is as good as dead. I in particular like what was mentioned by 艾莫 on aspiration:

有些人在二十岁就已经死了,只不过在八十岁才埋葬

A school is as good as its students. We are just as good as our hopes and aspirations. We cant afford to let ourselves down. Because if we do that, many people around us will be affected. U wont know how many people really look upon u as their pillar of support until u are not physically around. U wont know how many people cherish your presence and appreciate your doings. You wont ever know how your indifference to life would cast dark clouds over the life of others. You cant afford to let yourself fail. Success is a responsility, self admitted failure is a disgrace.

成功是一种责任, 失败是不道德的

In many things we do, we only have that valuable one choice. If we ever lost our chance at it, it would probably be left to regret it. Many of us are reluctant to leave our comfort zone for fear of known unknowns, and certainly unknown unknowns. But, if our aims warrant a need to do so, we must be brave to step out. We must relegate our fear to the secondary tier. We must not be stuck with our past failures. We must not be overwhelmed by emotions. We must not be paranoid of our future.

障碍的亮相往往是机会的诞生，也是即将进步的象征

Success only comes for those who prepared and are ready for it. It is just a continuation of hardwork and undeviated focus on our targets. It is the fruits of our labour.And we must not be afraid of what we are going to achieve. Life is short and we can never get a second chance.Whats done is done. U can never hurt someone and say sorry, expecting him to forget it. Its a totally different matter. History is never catered for rewinds or backtracks. And so u should never allow yourself to.

人生没有彩排的机会, 每一天我们都要以正确上场姿态办好它

May we all remember this. If anyone wants to hear the CDs, feel free to borrow from me.

Cheers.

A changing life

Its been quite a long time since i've blogged... hah as noted by gel too :P OH! and she was the first person to tag! I'm so surprised and elated. haha.. ppl would actually think i'm nuts... so happy over a tagger... lol.. but since like 1yr plus no one yea... so u can understand why now? lol..

Changed? yea my life now is. cant really do much exercise, except those simple monotonous gym exercises that are supposed to train my back muscles. i am saddened to an extent about my privilege to enjoy sports, but nevertheless trying to make up with other stuff i do now.

Life is always full of surprises; pleasant and also unpleasant ones. Unpleasant ones are challenges, while pleasant ones are greater challenges. Unpleasant experiences only signify a transient state of life, where in the hope of humans having a great determination, would be able to surmount these obstacles imposed onto their lives. I believe my condition is also nothing disimilar. Here with my faith to overcome my health problem, i will not let pessimism influence my life in any realm.

A non-ideal sacrifice

Some say health is golden. others say health is wealth. health is youth. Health is everything. In all these circumstances, i just lost everything. To my utmost dismay, the gradual lower back pain and numbness along the back of my leg had turned out to be slipdisc, which back then was totally alien to me. Neither was i knowledgeable enough to discern a possible health issue back then, often attributing it to back pain, muscle fatigue, or other various reasons. Negligience was fatal. It was only 2 months ago when i startd to report sick. The MO made an appointment with an orthopaedic specialist which was a month away. Then i was scheduled for an MRI scan. Then the trauma. 2 layers of slipdisc at L4 L5 and L5 S1. Totally disparaging. I couldnt really recall any traumatic incident that led to my slipdisc, but i thought it was something that accumulated over a period of time. Over exertion? I would think so.

Not that its a terminal illness or some debilitating disease that will paralyse me or keep me bedridden, but serious enough to impact my life. Its non curable actually. Operations aren't 100% successful, and physiotherapies only ameliorate the situation and doesnt guarantee a complete removal of pain. Movements now are somewhat uncomfortable at certain angles. Prolong standing hurts. even certain postures are unpalatable. Thats the fact of my life now. I have often blamed this on NS and its rigorous activites that inadvertently took its toll on me. Sometimes, being too garang, often pushing urself to ur limits, enduring, telling yourself that our minds are stronger than our bodies, aint panacea to survive in tough trainings. Mental endurance must not compromise delicate body conditions. There is a limit that the body can take. And the limit was unknown to me at that period of time. That was exactly the cause of this mishap. As much as i am saddened by my sudden immobility due to my slipdisc, i realised that i couldnt change much of this fact. The only thing now that i could change was being more positive, taking more care of my lower back. Yea it has been a non ideal sacrifice, but i should not sacrifice any more. That's what i think should be the way i must move on.

Maybe not so "NSish"

A change for now. After a hibernation period, i've decided to emerge from my NS shell, and not mumble anything abt army. Yea, i am going thru NS now, but its not gonna be the main show of my life. Probably because i am in signals now, but there must be something larger than army life. i.e. life itself. Ok so much crap to start with, in simple terms it means no more NS episodes, just my life now...

Satisfaction. Lets talk about it. have anyone ever felt long term satisfaction before? or is satisfaction always temporary? I believe that both sensations exists and there are really very different from each other. Long term satisfaction is the less commonly prevalent one, as satisfaction derived is often wiped off almost after a short period of time when our life goes on, and we pay attention to other details in life. Consider a graduate getting a well paid job just after his studies. U ask him, are u happy/satisfied? Definitely he will say yes. Try asking him after 2-3 yrs if he's still working there. Are u happy? Probably he'll say no because he has just got a tiff with his supervisor. That was what i meant. I'm not referring to just the day itself, probably u might say he got a bad hair day, or whatsoever. If u asked him about his stay in the company as of the 2 yrs, he might even give u a negative response. Yep, so satisfaction nv stays for long. As long as the environment changes, ur feelings for the external will change, and there goes ur satisfaction. Less satisfied.
So how about long term satisfaction? can it ever be achieved? since environment changes all the time? The answer is yes. Satisfaction is an emotion, it is something intangible. Something very delicate, something internal. It is subjective to change if uncontrolled or uncared for. Its something innate which u have to carefully attend to. Just like a carefully preserved artifact in a museum or a crucial experiment in a uncontaminated environment. What i am driving to is that, u have to identify with some kind of principle. Why are u satisfied? because u got a job? or becauseu are happy u've got something to do. Its the fundamental thinking and perception of life that determines whether u derive short term or long term satisfaction. U may be those that are just glad to have found a job. Ur expectation may be just to stay employed. Then u feel permanently satisfied as long as u dont get retrenched. However, one shld not mix this with low expectations. Low expectations is a sign of retreat and cowardice. It causes stagnation and makes u permanently satisfiend but also permanently unfulfilled in life. Some people just wish to live an auxerre life. Simplicity is their core value. But that cannot be matched to having a low expectation. That is their desire, their preferrence.
The main gist of assuming a fundamentaly thinking is to align our innate emotions with reality situations. It has nothing to do with expectation/aims, its just an inner state of the mind which allows us to feel the sense of satisfaction. That is exactly the only way to sustain our sense of satisfaction: to manipulate our inner perception, not lowering ourexpectations!

Well, maybe u did understand, or rather u understood partially, or there may be a chance u didnt even managed to read this sentence at all. but anyways, i think many of us are sad or dissatisfied with our lives just for this unnoticeable but yet important reason. So learn to be happy? Yea, we have to literally "learn"!

NS Chapter 6: Nearing POP

"Own time own target carry on" This was the most commonly heard phrase for this week. Yes, we had our live range. At first i thought it was gonna be deafening, especially when i am the firer himself. But it didnt turn out that bad. The recoil wasnt as much as i expected. Day range was quite ok, the targets were quite huge, impossible to miss unless one is a bobo shooter. The only exception was the initial snaptarget in the foxhole position. That target was relatively smaller. Some ppl missed it and fired on the sand instead. Prior to firing, we did zeroing. Zeroing was done with the aid of computers, sensors, which renders so much coonvenience to commanders. I heard manual zeroing is very very tedious.. Have to run up and down to the target board and back. I believe that was how it was done in the olden days! woohoo... technology now is so much better.. We also had night range. But that was rather bad for me. I keep missing. the target cant be seen with clarity. I failed quite terribly for the night shooting... haha but overall i managed to pass... if there was something more unpalatable in range, it would be the picking up of RAI... its not easy to pick them out, especially some are already embedded in the sand... but we would still need to accumulate sufficient RAI before we can leave the site... I remembered the first day of range Lights off was at 0115... and reveille around 0600.. As tired as we were, we had to chiong our day range test....But that day ended pretty soon.. and we were back to company line by lunch... We anticipated the book out :p

yep A levels were out last wed. I am very grateful for my results. or rather little unexpected...

NS Chapter 5: Chionging Syllabus Week

This is a relatively intensive week in BMT. We clear our SOC, our many many lessons of IMT, IPPT, BCCT(like crazy) and also had talks, dialogue, str training. Woohoo... really tired. U could feel the tight schedule when we had to rush for our meals, and also practice drills for POP. THe drill squad ppl were worse. They had arms drill many times. I felt like a dead log every night. Whole body aching. The Asian Aerospace thing resulted in halted sea movement, esp our fastcraft. The book out timing was changed to fri night, Which is the first time so far which we got to book out on fri! yay! but not for me.. I volunteered for guard duty on fri night. It was an uninformed decision, so i cant really blame myself for that. i just told myself to take it positively. Well, afterall i think its a good experience. At least u get to know what are the guards role and how they function. My experience as a guard was just like how i felt when i did guard duty in field camp. Patrolling and patrolling. Except the bmt route is much longer. And we have to carry a shield too.. i felt the burden after sometime... Other than that, it was a peaceful duty, albeit very tiring cos i did not get enough sleep. I told myself to be constantly alert for a turnout. It occured when i was coming back to guard room after completing my shift. I saw the other guards marching on the spot. I knew it was a turnout, and thought i was lucky to escape from that. The CSM was kind, and promised not to disturb as that night as long as we carry out our duties accordingly. my sgt also gave his word that as long as we fall in on time to report for our shifts, he would not do a turnout. Yep, that night wasnt as bad as what my sgt previously warned that he would at least have 2 turnouts. But i was really like zombie the next morning. Nevertheless, i didnt really regret my choice to volunteer as guard. At least i know i wont be chosen for guard duty during block leave unless i screw up my range :)

Another concern is my SOC. I failed to clear all obstacles. The swing trainer and the low rope. I didnt really expect myself to fail the low rope cos i managed to clear it last time round, albeit without my SBO. As for swing trainer, i think its a problem with my technique. I can do like 10 pull ups and i cant clear. My friend is a zero fighter and he clears it easily. haiz... i will not give up man... but i need to find areas to improve first. My IPPT results arent up to my expectations. I want a silver, but in the end i only managed to pass it. SBJ need another 4cm more. I want to retake, but it really depends if my PC allows. I am looking forward to the end of BMT. I still have my range and 24 km graduation march. On the day of POP, i hope to be able to feel the sense of pride and achievement. Ninja Ninja all the way, i like it here i like it here i've found myself a home a home a home sweet home "Bang!!!!"

NS Chapter 4: SIT Test Week

The anticipation of SIT test was already hectic. We had to repack our stuff, and also wash all our clothings in lieu of the upcoming 3D 2N camp. It first commenced with a 12km road march to our campsite. The weather was freaking hot. The heat was unbearable, making the march a torturous one. Upon reaching the campsite, we pitched our bashas again as usual, but now in our own detail level. Ironically, we were able to pitch it quite fast as compared to the field camp, considering the fact that those other detail mates were new to me. We cooperated pretty well i would say. Then afterwhich it was dinner and rest. The SIT test itself was the second day. The scorching sun made our second day very "xiong" It was really like bbqing yourself. I felt thirsty almost every moment. We went to different stations for sit test, each station requiring us to accomplish a mission. We doubled from station to station, and this made us tired very quickly. There were a total of 6 stations. We were glad to be able to finish it around 2 pm. Oh ya, not to forget the 4km fast march before the sit test itself. That was really SHAG!!! My whole body is like aching, especially the blister on my left toe. I told myself to endure and not think of the pain. Yep, subsequently after we completed our 6 stations, we got to rest in the afternoon, albeit spending most of the time cleaning our rifles,lol. The third day of sit test ended up the same way as 2nd day. We had a 2km fast march in the morning instead of 4km. After the end of the SIT test, we took the tunnel back to company! How elated we were! It marked the end of our outfield training! No more living in bashas, shell scrape!! haha..

The rest of the week was bad for me too. The blister i sustained during the SIT test worsened. I went to see the MO and to my subsequent dismay, i was awarded 5 days of excused footwear. Though having the privilege of wearing slippers and admin uniform everytime, i was robbed of my right to attend all training. I missed SOC, Ippt, 16km road march. All these made me felt slightly depressed and guilty. I really wanted to go for these activities. Partly because i want to raise my fitness, and most importantly i want to go through it with my platoon mates. This was one of the occasions in my BMT that i really felt the platoon spirit. I felt proud of them after they marched back to company line at night, completing their 16km march. Also felt a little nostalgic. Bleahz, anyway, i got over it as soon as the weekend arrived. My section mates comforted me. We would still get to do the 24km graduation march together.

I wouldnt forget this particular sat. OC confined us for not doing our area cleaning well. We were all hot headed initially upon hearing that, and more so when we realised that all our plans for sat were disrupted. But somehow we soon got to ease with the reality of staying back on sat. In fact, i personally didnt feel very bad on sat itself. I believe it was because everyone was staying behind too. We cleaned our own stores as well as the company's one. It was really thorough. Then at night, everyone got free time. We were allowed to play soccer and bball. haha... i chose to rest, partly due to my blister too. Anyway, we booked out that sun morning 0700. And also booked in that night. =)

NS Chapter 3: Ninja Field Camp

My 7 days field camp spanned from 4th Feb to 11th Feb. It's quite a unique and memorable experience i would say. Before the start of it, everyone was already mentally prepared for a tough field camp. We were told by our commanders that Ninja field camp would be different from other companies. It was really up to us to feel it and go through the field camp. And so i went....

Our first day started off with an 8km route march from company line to our first camp site: reclaimed land. I would say that this was the most hated campsite after going through the whole field camp. Its really very muddy and they are lots of insects and small animals. Centipede bites were common. To add to the woes, it rained upon reaching the campsite and we were already wet before pitching our bashas. Pitching of bashas were really a headache to us. The alignment of bashas caused alot of problems. Standardization across the entire platoon wasted quite alot of time. We had 20 minutes to build it, and obviously we didn't beat the timing. They started to tekan us ( oops they call it development) We had totear down our bashas and fall in in FBO (full battle order). These happened repeatedly and it was really draining. Pushups prevail.. I would say the whole afternoon was spent like that. But following the low morale of our platoon, the OC allowed us to cook magie mee using our mess tins for dinner. It sort of lifted our morale by a little as compared to eating the much dreaded combat rations. Night was falling, and pitch darkness soon descended. At night, movement is really slow. We cant really make out our way, and had to use torchlights. however, we are supposed to be tactical too, which means we cant shine our torch light so blatantly. we could only shine it at one instant to look at where we are heading and had to switch it off immediately. Also we had to use the red lens which was black taped to leave just a small square in the middle of the circular red lens. This again is for tactical reason. Our commanders told us they wont want to see Deepavali ( Festival of Lights) meaning that everyone shown their torchlights everywhere. Time seems to fly at night, probably because of the slow movement. We had our first powder bath that night. Its quite an interesting experience. We all fall in in half section level, and started stripping, leaving only our underwears on. Then we started to sprinkle powder everywhere on our body. We helped each other powder our backs. We had to let the commanders check our body after we finished, so we felt the pressure to make sure our body had sufficient powder. I recalled having to do pushups too because some of us didn't pass the inspection,lol. Powder bath can be said to be a relaxing time after a hard day. There was also a procedure called "check clear" during the inspection of our powder bath. When the commander told us to check clear, we had to snap our briefs to witness the smoke caused by the powder in our groin area. Thats to ensure we had powder bath our "private parts". Quite humourous really, cause one blur person in our platoon literally held his rifle and check clear!! Another thing was our Camou. We had to camou on and off repeatedly for failing to execute it to perfection. They wanted to see us helping each other. We had a time frame of one minute to put on our green and black camou. Quite short, but can be done if we helped each other. The feeling of rubbing away our camou and putting it on again is unpalatable, but its part and parcel of training. Used to it i would say, just that camou creams are expensive and ya it is really wasteful... haha.

Our second campsite was at an oil palm plantation. We marched 4km from reclaimed land to oil palm. Upon reaching there, we had IFC training. Fire control movement. There were lectures by commanders. Pitching of bashas again. Similarly disastrous. Its the terrain that makes it difficult to align. Trees werent straight. We had problems again. Oh and i got guard duty on that day. Haiz, i went upfront to refill water bottles without bringing my "wife" along ( rifle lor) I lost my ID tag too.. That culminated to a guard duty. I rmb my guard duty was at 12pm to 2am. That day was basically rainy. We carried lightsticks and patrolled the campsites. Some guard duty personnel did sentry duty. Sentry pp just need to sit down. at the commanders tentage. we rotated our duties so as not to get bored. Yea of course he next day we were very tired after getting insufficient sleep. But throughout the entire field camp i didn't got enough rest. I woke up almost every hour of my sleep. We had to ensure that our rifles were properly secured to us during our sleep so as not to get stunned my commanders. I guess its probably a sub conscious instinct that made me wake up almost every our to check on my rifle. I didn't detest guard duty, instead i regarded it as a unique experience. I thought that would be part and parcel of field camp.

Third day was still at oil palm. Not much recollections on it.4th Day was our technical break. We had FCO movement in section level. Our sec com gave us alot of pressure, keep on scolding and yelling at us, making us feel like idiots. One of my section mates broke into tears... anyway, he did feel better after the whole event. We were all looking forward to our technical break which was on the Fourth day. They promised half a day not to touch us. We would have a time to bath and change into new uniform. But before that, we had to leopard crawl and back crawl in the mud. The commanders said since we would get to bath after that, it doesnt matter if we get dirty now. The rationale for doing these crawling is training us for BIC(Battle Innoculation Course). Haha, whatever.... our green uniform became totally brown. Our SBO was totally immersed in mud. Really Really uncomfortable. Well, the fact that we would get to bath had got us in pretty high spirits. haha, so we actually did the crawling quite willingly... We were very much refreshed after the bath. And the best thing was we had our first meal of fresh rations from the cookhouse. Its really tasty as compared to the combat rations that we had eaten for the past few days. what chicken pontay rice, oriental seafood noodle,glutinous rice,pasta.... etc... all cmi.... really sux... We really appreciate the cookhouse food now after so many days of combat ration. After our lunch, we started our rifle cleaning. Needless to say, our time were burnt cleaning rifles, and our so called technical break came to an end quickly. Dusk arrived swiftly... And life was back to darkness...

On the Fifth day of field camp, we proceeded to our last campsite at permatang,a rubber plantation. We marched 8km there, fortunately only with our SBO. We were greeted by the sea breeze upon reaching there. The strong sea breeze sent tree branches swaying to a large degree, and we were all refreshed by the breeze. Of course we were worried abt pitching our bashas in the strong wind, but to our relief we manage to did it the second time. (after being tekkaned the first time) 17 minutes were all the time we took... lol our best record time :p There was a hill behind us, so it was uphill all the way. From the first instance i saw such terrrain, i could almost immediately visualise the type of punishment they could make us do. And they did. As usual, we went for training in the jungle areas again, with all our immediate assault drills, fire movement to the rear, FCO, arti drills,sniper drills... lol i hate arti drills... its really crazy... running like mad. Its worse if they was a casualty. I rmb i was chosen as casualty during the sniper drill.. They had difficulty carrying me back. Luckily it was only for a short distance when the commander changed it to an arti drill and recovered me. But it was no better too.. it was an arti drill!!! so its sheer sprinting till your lungs burst. That night, it was weird. The RO was that we had to fall in by 0700 the next morning, which was quite unusual because the usual fall in timing was 0630. They claimed that we had nothing much the next day, so they gave us more time to rest. We were elated upon hearing that, but was instantly dismayed and shocked when a turnout occured the next day 0600 hrs. Commanders threw thunderflash everyway, and it continued for some time. blank shots were also fired. It was a simulation for wartime.. I was taken aback, and at the same time at a loss of what to do. We werent briefed on such occasions, but after some time i regained my consciousness and began to wore my helmet and SBO, getting ready to fall in. It was after quite some time that i saw my buddy tearing down my basha that i realised that we had to fall in in full battle order. EVERYTHING. As fast as we could, but still facing the constraint of pitch darkness, we tried to hurry. Many ppl havent packed their items in their field packs yet, and as a result they had some items missing when they fall in that morning. It was just pandemonium. Of course "development" ensued. Carried on for one hour or so.

Sixth day: After the turnout, we had breakfast, and then started building our shell scrape. The whole day was basically spent digging. The weather was kind initially, pouring sufficiently to loosen the soil for us, but not so when we eventually finished digging. It was raining cats and dogs. We were very glad that we did not sleep in our shell scrape that night. We were relocated to sispec grounds due to the rain. It was already like 12 when we arrived at sispec. One of the highlights of the day was when we got to eat fresh rations from cookhouse for dinner. Guess what? its western food :) It was raining then, and platoon by platoon we gathered in the admin tent for dinner. OC rushed us, cos there were still others who havent eat, and besides we have to relocate quickly. But nevertheless it was an enjoyable meal. We slept at sispec area, preparing for the final day of field camp. Our morale was more or less close to high.

Seventh Day: That morning we had some GST again.. but this time we only aimed to clear our rounds. haha... we ate in a training shed at sispec, then proceed towards BIC grounds. It was drizzling and we were waiting darn long. Apparently most of us dozed off. We camou our face with a letter N representing ninja instead of the usual 3 stripes. It was a long wait before we eagerly set off for leopard crawling and back crawling. haha... it was not that tough as compared to our previous "rehearsals" It was less muddy too, more sand i would say. Anyway, we were in very high spirits after that. It was really like "CHIONG AR!!" Go back company line.. We boarded the tunnel back. A home sweet home man! We henta kaki.. we took a photo with our commanders, wanted to hug them. They threatened us in a humourous way, gave us pushups, but we nv yielded...lol.. but we only managed to hug one of our commanders. Our sec com actually... haha... he wasnt that reluctant afterall, nv run away immediately after phototaking...

So that pretty much completed my journey abt field camp. It was really meaningful and memorable. Learnt about surviving outfield independently. Personal accountability. Taking care of ur friends and ur stores. All these are impt lessons which i gathered. I appreciated other stuff better, for eg the food, the living conditions in bunk, and my home, my family, my personal free time. Its a good experience, and i am proud to say that i survived ninja field camp!

CNY 2006

1 006
Originally uploaded by O c L.

I thought i should just write something abt my CNY this year. Quite different from past years, in the sense that i feel alot different I feel more relaxed, treating it as a well deserved break after a good 3 weeks of in camp training, and also a period of recuperation to prepare for the tough field camp ahead.

Day 1: Visits were made to both my paternal and my maternal side. I went to my paternal side first, then to maternal one. Its just nearby, didnt need to travel lots :) Subsequently, we had various house visitings... all from my maternal side.. Its a tradition that we go from house to house... Yep thats all for the day.

Day 2: A short visit to my paternal side. Then another visit to my grandma's brother place.... haha.. late till 11 plus...

Day 3: Went to danny's house!!! played mahjong, talk cock, and finally ate dinner.Above is the picture of us together on danny's house sofa :)

Day 4: today... morning went to see doctor...sore throat, cough and all those nonsense. Bad day.....

Tmr: book in le.... how to say, will be busy preparing ...haha...

Shall cya the next time, hopefully the following week. There'll be lots to share and tell :p

04S15 SDD Class Photo

Class photo
Originally uploaded by O c L.

The beginning of an end. Part we must, but hope our friendships will last

NS Chapter 2: CNY Break ( first non confinement week)

This is our first long breeak... next book in thurs night 1955 hours :) training this week has been slightly tougher as compared to the previous week... but no prob, since everyone's doing it together. Till this point of time i would say that what my OC says is very true: Mind over body. One's endurance hinges on mental strength. Different ppl have different degrees of endurance. Thats what makes a mentally strong person outstanding. I guess i shld be able to grasp this idea by now. Conquer the tiredness. Using ur brain. Its not easy. Its difficult to put aside the pain or weariness on one's body, cos its directly impacting on u. But its the inner strength which is more powerful, yet entrenched more deeply and elusive. Its really hard to tell urself to be metally strong, unless u are one who's really capable of drawing the inner strength by ur own unique way. Thats what i believe. I'm still in the process of finding the magic formula.. What i call the EAST: Endure and survive technique. Brain playing tricks on u... one's brain can perform miracles.. wonders... its up to us.

SOC: My first lesson was ok.. an eye opener i would say. 11 obstacles and runs both before and after clearing the obstacle. Second lesson. I had problem with the swing trainer, or the monkey bar for laymen language. the bars are thicker, wider spaced apart. I didnt clear that obstacle, i am really disappointed. I believe its my technique. i can do more pull ups than a couple of my section mates, and yet i couldnt clear the obstacle while they can. Many of us had severe blisters on our hands. We persevered. We kept trying despite our blisters, some even had blood. OC told us to be strong. As he said :

Pain is temporary, it reminds u that u are alive

It may sound a little extreme, but its really a phrase said remarkably well. then approaching the end of the lesson OC wanted us to form 3 rows... and clear the obstacles we learnt before. We were reluctant. Cos of the pain and everything. But we did it eventually. the last row to complete was punished by OC... but eventually the whole company volunteered to do with us. Copany spirit. It was a memorable moment. We did 50 pushups in total, in various styles. I liked the spirit. OC was slightly contented from his expression. True enough, when we approached the last activity og the day strength training, OC cut short our last excercise. Delighted as we were, OC explained the rationale. He likes to say: soldiers, u want to do things your own way or my way? do it once, do it well. When u do things my way, u wont like it, understand anot? understand anot? understand anot, understand anot.................... and he keeps making us reply...... yep, i sort of digressed a little, but what i meant was that we shld always have the company spirit. We shld always move like lightning, shout like thunder. train with alot of effort. Show determination. That was what he meant my OUR WAY. That small little gesture by OC sort of lifted our morale my a little. That way the training was already back to back... so it was a huge relief when we were given free time to recuperate after that.woo hoo...

Development: tough training always hailed as development. We did alot of pushups. But we all did it in the light of training, the attitude displayed wasnt totally reluctant, not indifferent. Some of us took it in a positive light. Record breaking man, i remembered we did like 300 to 400 pushups in one particular day. It sounds scary, but good training. U feel great after that. really. sense of achievement. I like a particular quote my OC said:

Pride is inversely proportional to morale

Very true indeed. I believe i will feel it the most during my upcoming field camp which will be tough as what the commanders say. They want to break us down. Its the time where we can see who our true friends are. It will be a good experience in retrospect. No one in his right mind would look forward to tough treatment. But i will try to remain optimistic. After everything, our pride will be high. We will lift up our heads. "Ninja,Ninja all the way... we like it here we like it here we found ourselves a home a home sweet home. "

Happy New Year to one and All. I wish everyone a prosperous and smooth year ahead. Look forward to the new year! :)

NS Chapter 1: Confinement period

woah... 2 weeks has passed by.. Its my 2nd time booking out already, all thanks to hari raya haji. well this 2 weeks of ns has given me a taste of what the next 2 yrs of my life would be, or if not tougher than this. This 2 weeks of adjustment period has introduced me to a totally different environment. A more regimental, disciplined and effective way of life. the ppl there love vulgarities apparently, and use them quite frivolously... as conviniently as a comma or a full stop. Some commanders employ vulgarities in a hilarious way, making it sound comical. But i can assure u that the spouting of vulgarities during serious scoldings are harsh and intimidating. I am in ninja company, dubbed as one of the more "xiong" companies. The sergeants admitted it themselves. My sergeant told me that if we do not hate them, that means that they have failed in their duties. They also said that the best form of welfare is tough training itself. Every new recruit would shudder upon hearing that, especially when they havent get accustomed to life in the army. As compared to the what other companies told their recruits that a happy company is a good company, being in ninja is indefinitely a stark contrast to recruits from other companies. the oc is commando officer. He often quotes: The world is cruel, men are selfish. He doesnt want us to show that this slogan is true. And if we do... the world is cruel will turn true. And it means that hell would be unleashed. He hates ppl dragging their boots. And i mean it. Just because one person dragged his boots, we got the latest book out timing and earliest book in timing. He's a very on the ball commander.... comes for every training... be it strength training or even our route march. We hate his presence, cos its like a country on high alert. Every movement not done well or too slow.. he will be shouting at us, or even punishing us. Its like some big shot clamping down on ur neck. and u are like treading on dangererous grounds every now and then with him around.

We are supposed to have 7 hrs of sleep. Reality is always different. 6 hours at most. Very little time to do personal admin. haiz... need to do laundry, bath and prepare for next day. Really tired, but must get use to it.Thats what the 2 weeks for.... i really dunno what's the full fledged training like.. It'll be after tonight when i book in.........

Cya for now :)

3rd Jan 2006: 2 Days to NS

Orientation 1 started today in vj, not for me of course.. IT was really fun to see year ones entering vj and starting their new life in vj! It is always the same transformation: Puzzled when first come in, to enthralled when learnt of the new vj culture, then to fun when they finally got acclimatised to the environment in vj. At least i have gone through the whole experience, and i have enjoyed it thoroughly, especially in choir. I went to school in the morning, then to calvin's house in the afternoon, with eugene... It was our usual 228 again... ( fifa) 228 was enjoyable...we created our own tournament named "Lautenia Cup" (derived from laut-nya) haha... We all decided to choose teams with equal strengths each. I chose Charlton, eugene chose Boca Juniors, while calvin chose Auxerre.. Oh and sad to say, i was knocked out by Benfica... haha.. oh well, i wasnt that good as eugene and calvin... Eugene managed to beat a 5 Star team Lyon en route to finals... And of course calvin was the only worthy opponent in the finals... so ya.. in the end.. Auxerre vs Boca Juniors.. haha... And it was really an exciting match!! 1-1 was the score after end of second half..the match went to extra time...during the 117th minute, eugene scored the decisive goal.. And yes! Victory is sweet! Boca Juniors won the Lautenia Cup...! :P
lol, sorry to bore u all with the minute details.. It was really a whole afternoon affair, so i thought writing it down is worth it...haha

Evening: Tealight session with Vj choir. Concourse @ VJ. Moment to rmb.2 yrs of singing.. a lifetime of legacy. I was very impressed by Joshua's speech. He critically analysed our problems in a very succinct way.. The clique thing..Let me give u my thoughts on it :) Cliques do exist in the first place because the "frequency" among different ppl are different. From the first day of sch when we start to mix around already, the background of ppl do influence the choice of friends they like to hang out with.. Sec schs for example. However, the lack of willingness to hang around with other schs may largely be due to different interests.. different mentalities, and different habits.. Differences in character and behaviour, makes conditions unfavourable for stronger bonds to be formed among 2 different groups of ppl. hence, the cliques will remain. I personally dont feel that it is wrong to have cliques, for it is ridiculous to demand that we always go out in one very large group.. it is not plausible in all instances. Small groups would be inevitably present. and as i said, these groups would be instinctively be formed by grouping ppl with similar interests, mentality or rather "frequency". The idea of one big united Vj family cannot be discarded or belittled however. It is nevertheless crucial to stand together as one. I remembered in Bremen olympics 2004, august once said that we are the vj choir. And each and everyone of us has the name vj choir. We are all equal, and share a common identity. We are 1 choir.And no man is an island. That was the idea of unity. The idea of sticking together, the idea of putting in our best for the sake of ourselves, and for the brand of vj choir. We cannot afford to see ourselves as individuals, for we are invariably entangled in a tight meshwork-- the vj choir. We sing not for ourselves, but for the choir. By improving our standards, we are consistently adding credits to vj choir. By winning competitions, we earn the honour for the choir. We must be proud of it, for we are the vj choir. All these words may seem long... but unfortunately not all ppl (even yr 3s) have lived by it. I am not blaming anyone here.. but just felt that we could have been better. Well, life is not always the way we desire. I accept it, and with honour. VJ choir to me will always be special.

So ya, yesterday was also a thanksgiving session. It was heartwarming. Seniors hugging juniors. Shaking hands. Well wishes. Yea emotions were written all over our faces. I sincerely thank Mr kwei for his dedication throughout my past 6 yrs in choir. He has been one man with absolute committment and unwavering determination in promoting choral music in Singapore. Thank you Nelson! I also ought to thank the music co and exco 2004-2005 (yr 3s) i mean. They managed the choir very well. I thank gabriel for the patience and encouragement all the time. Thanks for telling me i've improved, but i need to tell u that u have been one great man who have grown and became more professional throughout these 2 years in choir. U too made a great leap in choral singing and i have no doubts abt it :) Thanks for leading the choir. As what shawn said yesterday, the choir would not have been led by anyone better. =)

ok thats all for now.. will be enlisting soon. Cya ppl.. Good luck and have fun.. will post again as soon as possible :)