Dang, yesterday has got to be the best "official" class outing we ever had. Attendence was a pure miracle. Hope everyone had a really good time yea =)

Some amendments to our next outing:

- Screw Swensens. Their mother service charge was at fucking 10% but there wasn't any damn service. After catching my fish and planting my potatoes, they finally served me fish n' chips and for some reason, they expect us to eat with our hands. Wtf maybe they aren't used to it but they're not serving dogs like they do at home. It wouldn't have been so bad if we didn't have any money left to do nuts.

- We should have outings to kallang leisure park instead. Their bowing alley is 10cents more expensive but the place is 100 times better than marina. There's this nice "new-bowling-place" smell and its less crowded. Their machines don't jam and everything's just so smooth yea =) Their arcade also has the gayest games, damn addictive haha.

Other than that, it was great. Had loads of laughs and the girls finally tried their hand at pool, although they were more of taking pics haha xD. And wtf, I didn't know Mac's ice-cream is now at 70 cents.. amazing what melamine can do to thy pocket.

Finally met up with wei jian after he knocked off and us 4 guys had a good dinner and yoguru. The A+ left early though damn x( haha.

I feel great.

Thanks guys =)

End of days

Who'd know 45min of pure, old-fashioned squash is hell. Sweated like a dog.. Almost vomited even damn. Thanks buddy.

End of the year is here and what better way to end it by a reflection session in Novena and Gab's birthday =)

We were asked to pray and reflect upon the year and share it amongst our groups. When I was done, I realised how much I screwed up my year. I shan't screw myself even more by explicitly stating all my nonsense here but the thing is I lost myself, and I didn't realise it till yesterday.

I went through quite a tumultuous time and lost quite a lot. I said things, I was turning into something I'm not. I was losing the vision I had of myself and I found that my confidence stemmed from past friends and events, not fully from within which I thought. I was pursuing things unimportant and made wrong gambles. Comparing myself in the beginning of the year and at the end, I found too many unwanted changes. Maybe they came from the hard year, maybe they came from me losing sight.

I was morphing into a full-time ass from a part-time ass, and I paid the price.

As I said, role-models are very important. I try to be one for my brother (I know some of you are laughing now, ass hah) but the problem is I don't have one for myself. I don't have a template for success, something I can replicate semi-conservatively.

Which was why I lost sight of my actions and words, offending people, myself and God.

So this is it. If I have offended you by my actions, words, whatever, I apologise, it was not intentional.

So now I have found new faith. I will not seek that affirmation of Man, but of a greater glory. I am discovering new confidence and most importantly, humility.

I'm living my life by the + Book of Sirach +

Happy All Souls Day and thanks Teng - the mango cake was fantastic.

xD

"Meanwhile, these three remain - faith, hope and love; and the greatest of these is Love."

Your Dash

Here's a poem that I will never forget. Thanks to a fantastic english teacher =)

-How Do You Live Your Dash-

I read of a man who stood to speak
At the funeral of a friend.
He referred to the dates on her tombstone
From the beginning…to the end.
He noted that first came her date of birth
And spoke the following date with tears,
But said what mattered most of all
Was the dash between those years.

For that dash represents all the time
That she spent alive on earth…
And now only those who loved her
Know what that little line is worth.
For it matters not, how much we own;
The cars…the house…the cash.
What matters is how we live and love
And how we spend our dash.

So think about this long and hard…
Are there things you’d like to change?
For you never know how much time is left
That can still be rearranged.
If we could just slow down enough
To consider what’s true and real,
And always try to understand
The way other people feel.

And be less quick to anger,
And show more appreciation more
And love the people in our lives
Like we’ve never loved before.
If we treat each other with respect,
And more often wear a smile…
Remembering that this special dash
Might only last a while.

So when your eulogy’s being read
With your life’s actions to rehash…
Would you be proud of the things they say
About how you spent your dash?

-Author unknown

Stunned

Britain's got more talent than America can ever dream of.

If you have 2mins to spare, check out this kid's routine. No doubt, he won Britain's Got Talent 2008, and he's only 14. First time I've seen Simon smiling too..

May I present George Sampson.




44sec. Classic.
Damn I love dancing =)

The Last Lecture

Randy Pausch is one awesome dude.

If you don't know, he was an IT professor at Carnegie Mellon University. In his book, the Last Lecture, he talks about relevent lessons he has learnt in the past 47 years and what he hopes to impart to others before he dies from pancreatic cancer.

He inspired me.

The biggest lesson I took from him was the "brick wall". Brick walls are there, not to stop you, but to prevent those who don't want it bad enough. I've been banging my head against this wall the entire year and I think it's time to stop. I've got to start climbing, even if others are already halfway up.

Randy is just so sincere and touching. I know he'll make a fantastic father should he have lived. I wish I had a role model like him. Role models are extremely important in life, find a good one and you're set. Like Andy Van Dam was to him, he was to teens like me.

The last few chapters of the book really did it for me. I started choking up... even had a nose bleed haha wtf. The way he described his love for his children, he's desire to be there to see them experience the world was honestly too much for me to handle at one shot. Needed hell lot of kleenex. Wtf, I know I'll regret admiting this here, but if you don't feel anything after reading that book, you should just go eat grass. You ain't human.

I had an honest talk with my mum on my ambitions and goals. I'm aiming towards law/economics and commerce/finance. I'm also gunning for Melbourne U, looks good from what I've read.

This is ****ing gonna be the biggest ****ing wall in my life. I can choose to start banging the wall, hoping that the wall breaks before my head, OR I can start climbing. I think I'll start climbing. Indeed, there are loads of "head-fakes" (indirect lessons) to be learnt in JC, I finally see that you master the subjects, not for the subject itself, but for the skills you gain from them.

This is gonna be one tough climb, but I've got one foot up already. Chinese, here I come.

40% talk, 60% listening

I believe charisma is making others feel charismatic. It involves listening and understanding another. You may not have to talk much, but you can still radiate enough charisma to charm even an apple pie. However, you can yak all day long and ruminate your philosophies to any idiot and not get a single nickel from him. It's the highest form of communication and so far, I have been blessed to be in the company of a few charismatics, very few. They are a rare breed.

Somehow, their behaviour, their cool and confidence rubs off on you. There are different kinds of charisma, some are composed and can always hold their wits about them anywhere, others are just plain exuberance, the moment they're there, their presence is felt, electrifying everyone with their boldness and assertiveness. But they have one thing in common. They make you feel special like no other can.

That's why I hate getting preached to. No offence, I respect your opinions on issues but sometimes, if you haven't noticed, preaching tends to push the other onto the other side of the fence even if he held the same views as you in the first place. It's good to have strong opinions but sometimes, you have to be steady and listen to understand instead of going all in, guns ablazing.

Sometimes, just nodding your head in agreement means the world to the other, even if you don't agree at all. Instead of shaking your head and saying "I disagree with your point", how about trying "Hey that's a great point you're making there, I understand what you're on about, although it could be just that..." Saying it the right way makes you a hell lot more charismatic. Pushing your opinions in the other guy's face may push him too far. He'll end up being more defensive.

Stop being all self-righteous for once alright. The world doesn't revolve around you or me. I don't need you to tell me what to think although I don't mind listening to what you think and discussing what we think, 'cause you're a good friend, and maybe, if there's truth in what you say, why not. There's a difference. Please, start being more charismatic, listen, understand, don't ooze anti-charisma, it's not worth it. =)

Something to ponder?

Mr Cook told us something very serious today - it regards our job attachments, which could mean a added advantage for a seat in that uni course you want.

I have decided that medicine is out for me. I just can't bear the thought of cutting/stabbing/stitching up anyone, you'd won't want me as your surgeon, you'd probably end up with my scalpel lodged up your nose or something when I'm through. Besides, I've got other aspirations. I like economics, I like the thought of business and finance. It's a world that intrigues me. Look at the current financial crises that we are facing. What went wrong exactly? Who the hell do we blame for this mess? Stuff like that is what interests me, not how the inductive effect affects organic molecules or whatever shit they are teaching kids these days.

That's my calling, I know, but I don't know how to approach it with my parents..

My mum's being a ***** again, as usual. I mean wtf is her problem? She never seems happy with me, always *****ing away in my face. I have my flaws, but at least I'm willing to admit that I have them, unlike you.. Maybe I'm the ass, maybe the reason why you can't stop cursing is 'cause my face looks like my ass or something, but can't you stop for a sec and think of what you're saying?

I'm pretty lucky, it's a miracle for me to have met a great friend so recently. He's from Nepal and the way he tells me of how it's their culture to place family first just makes me feel so envious, in a good way, not the I-bloody-wished-you'd-****ing-die kind of jealous, woah that's just freaky. It's that absolute trust that I want too.

Every family has its own share of nonsense and many out there definitely are facing worse problems than me, so I won't feel like a bastard-child or something, don't worry. I have to learn to take things in my stride with an open mindset. That's my weakness - I sometimes get too caught up in my failings that I lose the big picture. It's important never to lose sight of what truly is important (what the hell that is I have no idea, it just sounds grand doesn't it xD, but that's what they call hope).

Yep, that's me, what doesn't kill you leaves you stronger. I don't know which idiot came up with that corny line but it does makes sense, in a way.

I wanna rule Wall Street one day.

After Promos

I should not be here. What am I doing here. Aren't I supposed to be completing tutorial 9.4?

Very first day and I'm bombarded with my wonderful grades.. what the hell is going on? I've never been like that, never been such a serial failure in my 11 years of school. Wtf,didn't I start out the year filled with the strong belief that this would all be a breeze, that somehow, I would pull though just fine?

I have never felt so helpless in my life. To hell with it, such failures never affected me much before, till now. Perhaps I'm too much of a high achiever, I don't like to fail in my work. Hell, but who does? But it seems the biggest setbacks that ever touched me are those regarding my work performances. Dammit, am I one of those grades-or-nothing losers who based their life on their ability to score? Hell yes I am, and proud of it.

I've been to both ends of the grading spectrum and now I know how it feels like to totally be blessed with the ability of just screwing up everything while others around you are scoring like nobody's business. I don't blame anyone but myself. I'm not being sour grapes or anything, I have no right to do so. Their scores are testament of their hard effort. You reap what you sow.

I'm thankful to have such brilliant, smart people around me. They set the goal for me, they show me that if best isn't enough, then it wasn't your best in the first place.

Yep, I don't stay down for long, I can't afford to, but I just don't know what I'm gonna do about this just yet. Screw it, reading this, I just can't stand the way I'm feeling, this is just so unlike me. Dammit.


Success is when you never stop feeling enthusiastic in the face of failure.

Ramblings

You know, from what I've seen, the best posts are those written when one is feeling down and beaten. Is it just within our nature to revert to a more thoughtful self in times of distress? You don't get brainless junk but posts of real substance.

There are 4 broad personalities. Steady, Contemplative, Inspiring and Dominant. Usually, in most if not all of us, these 4 overlap although certain characteristics show through more. We are our life's experiences. We came into this world as an empty template and will be written on by life itself. So you don't naturally possess certain characteristics, rather, you learnt them somewhere.

Our contemplative side seems to rear its head most when we are in some form of a rut. Perhaps it's something God gave us to solve problems. Our sentient nature allows us to take stock of what's going on and to reason it out. Am I sounding irritatingly philosophical? But there are advantages in being contemplative.

Honestly, I've never thought much about overly contemplative people. Wait, I mean those really whinny type. They focus only on their own problems and nothing else. It's kind of egoistical, guai lan in fact. I find them too sentimental for my liking, I mean like, grow a few balls or something will you?

But serious thinkers are true beauties. Such people are true and genuine. They are not impulsive nor rash. Their thoughts are amazing. I think that's an extremely attractive trait, especially if they don't show it outwardly. Quiet and bashful on the outside, cheeky and thoughtful on the inside =)

After all, we are nothing if not for our minds. Once we stop thinking, that's it.You get Sarah Palin.

Hahaha, talking about her, woah OMG you should see the kind of shit that she is capable of saying. She's just so painfully clueless, it's just so pathetic... I don't know whether I should feel sad for her or the idiots who are voting for her ticket.

Alright it's PW time xS