Frentic November

If you come across any PD, CC or Dean these days, do not be surprised to see everyone in short temper, busy or in a hurry. It's been a flurry of activities ever since the end of SA2, and while the lower sec classes go off for their much desired holidays, the rest of us are buried in many areas.

1) Testimonies of Graduating Classes. We use to take 2 months to write and complete, now the deadline has been pushed forward. Writing good testimonials and ensuring no 2 testimonials are alike takes much effort and thought.

2) School Excellence Model. We all need to reflect on our actions. As an institute, we need to do some trimming and adjustments every now and then to make sure we are on the right track.

3) Fund Raising. It's about Innovation and Entreprise, it's about giving students an experience in raising funds, it's about helping students to offset some of their travel costs, it tells people Chinese Orchestra is not merely practice and performance only. Best of all, the hawkers enjoy it, the customers walk away happy.

4) Chinese Orchestra Costume. Blazers are formal, but we need another set. High time to get a new outfit that will last us in many performances and competitions for the next few years.

5) Interviews. Everyone faces an interview sometime in life. It's just how well you have prepared for it. Looking back, you then realised how much you have learnt, or how much further you can go.

6) Le Tour de Chine. Briefings, briefings, briefings. Briefings for overseas trip are anything but short and precise. Coupled with minor hiccups, issues and forgetful brains, the tour is anything but brief.

7) Forward Planning. Plan for your future, for you have a clearer picture in mind. Ad-hoc doesn't always work, especially if it involves hundreds of teenagers. Education is a long, gradual process, but planning for the future has short deadlines.

8) Weddings. It's the holidays. People go overseas, people take a break. Why, people get married at this time of the year too! Not 1, not 2, but 4! You wanna pay to go and eat?

9) Issues. Yes, troubled teens are a handful. Sticky family makes it worst. Start helping a teen? You are gonna be in for a long ride. Take a deep breath before you go on.

10) Budget. Yes, it's good to be prudent and plan how you will manage your finances. How much is Sec 2 gonna spend next year? Will Chinese Orchestra have enough to sustain the quality and quantity of it's members? Plan ahead, for you need to add lots of value.

11) Graduation Night. It's been 4 years. Do you still remember the time when you had your 1st camp? Do you still remember the things you did a year ago? How did you find this year's activities? Well, it will be the best time to recall your best memories.

12) Sarawak. We met a decade ago. We haven't been talking. Now it's high time we meet up again. Not only will we re-affirm the ties we built so many years ago, it will be an eye-opener for many and a good preparation for all.

Now, imagine you have to do 3 to 4 of the above at the same time...

Preparations for Deeparaya Fund Raising

After an impromptu meeting with Wenting, Ariel, Cassandra, Huimin, Jasmine, Michelle, we have tied down some of the stuff to prepare.

1) Mr Siah will be buying fruit plus sweets, some snacks, popcorn and plastic bags to contain the popcorn.
2) All in the meeting will bring lighters to seal the plastic. Cassandra will bring her candles to sell.
3) Jasmine will bring her flat lollipops to sell.
4) All committee members will report outside staff room by 6:45am tomorrow and help to seal the plastic bags for the popcorn and also pack the foodstuff.
5) If the weather is fine, all wares will be brought to the wooden benches near fitness corner for central distribution. Committee members will then divide among themselves to sell the stuff or help to pack the stuff during the Deeparaya concert. If the concert is held in the hall, then committee members will help to sell them in the hall. Only if need be will the section leaders get more help from their section members.
6) Mr Siah will also be bringing his X-Men album for sale, price $15/=.
7) Huimin will relay msg to Tianxin who will inform Yupeng, Weijian & Wee Cheng, Ariel will relay to Mun Kit, Peixian & Shiya. Wenting will relay to Brenda who will relay to Peiqi.

Did I miss out anything?

Presents!

Now, if I were to have a wish list of what I want to get, they would be:
1) Complete set of Generation 1 Transformers Seacons in mint condition with Snaptrap, Tentakil, Nautilator, Skalor, Seawing and Overbite
2) Generation 1 Cyclonus in mint condition
3) X-Men Apocalypse Action Figurine still in box
4) X-Men Mr Sinister still in box
5) X-Men Charles Xavier still in box
6) X-Men Phoenix & Dark Phoenix still in box
7) X-Men Sauron still in box
8) X-Men Gambit still in box
9) X-Men Rogue still in box
10) PC Game Medieval: Total War 2
11) PC Game Warhammer: Storm of Chaos
12) PC Game Neverwinter Nights 2

Successful Fund Raising

As part of our efforts to raise funds for the Chinese Orchestra's trip to Sarawak, Chinese Orchestra members brought cordial drinks, biscuits, chocolates, crackers, soft toys, fishballs, nuggets and sausages.

I am happy to say that we have raised some cash, with plucking/percussion section selling the most as they have the widest variety of stuff to sell. Since tomorrow is Deeparaya celebrations, it will be another good opportunity for the members to peddle their wares during the concert.

Breakthroughs!

I managed some breakthroughs on Wednesday night. Somehow, both me and my mum were thinking of eating Japanese food for dinner! Well, we had agedashi toufu (fried toufu with special sauce), teriyaki chicken ramen, sake chawanmushi (juz chawanmushi), yasai tempura (vegetable tempura), tamago shushi (egg sushi) and salmon sashimi (raw sliced salmon).

The breakthrough was actually getting my mum to eat raw salmon. At home, she is so used to eating steamed salmon, believing wasabi is too spicy and raw salmon makes her sick. Well, I cannot blame her totally as she was brought up eating fried and steamed fish, so raw food, especially seafood, was never a choice for her. Well, I was glad I treated her to salmon sashimi last night as she could finally appreciate the smoothness of salmon sashimi. Although she only took 3 half slices, it was already a breakthrough. She also took well to the ramen, toufu and sushi, but enjoyed the yasai tempura the most. And she was not so afraid of wasabi after tasting it. Most importantly, after listening to my explaination of Japanese cusine, my mum felt that Japanese food is relatively healthier as it is not too oily nor too heavy in taste.

So I believe the biggest highlight is having changed my mum's perception that Japanese food are all cold and raw. Now that she has tried food that suits her taste, I am sure she will agree more readily when I suggest eating Japanese food in future. People, it is indeed hard to change adults' perception of things, especially when there is a generation gap. If we do make the effort to explain and show them what they find acceptable, we can manage small steps in communication. At least we will be able to reduce their bad feelings towards things we appreciate. Would you ever let your parents try something which you like but not acceptable by your parents?

What would you be?

Teacher - challenging students, demanding parents, ever-changing education scene

Doctor - Very long house calls, variety of patients and relations, short demand everywhere

Lawyer - Very long working hours, endless workload

Accoutant/Auditor - Unearthly long working hours during peak seasons

Finance - Stressful, challenging

Retail/Customer Service - demanding customers, unattractive pay & career path

Food - Long working hours, physically tiring

Frankly speaking, youths nowadays do not really know what they want. They take up whatever lands on their laps after half-hearted attempts. What choices would they have left?

What feels good?

Lying on a patch of grass on a hill to look at stars with your loved one- romantic

Driving a car with windows unwind at night - kewl

Swimming in the midst of corals and fish - exhilarating

Occasionally cooking dishes for your loved one - bliss

Walking down the streets of Paris/London in the evening looking at old shops - refreshing

Sipping hot tea with a book in hand and watching people walk by - enjoyment

Spending a few days in a sea resort in the Mediterranean - luxurious enjoyment

Having a spa session together with loved one - blissful relaxation

Getting a present you have always wanted but never expected - pleasant surprise

Seeing students do well and loving the language/Having students thanking you for what you did for them - rewarding

What about you?

What kind of animals do you like?

Golden Eagle - sharp vision, magnificent looking, nice plumage (grandeur)

Vulture - sharp vision, adaptability?

Snowy Owl - sharp vision, silent flight, nice plumage (before Harry Potter movies were screened) (wisdom)

Sparrowhawk - good vision, good aero-dynamic flight, nice plumage

Raven/Crow - good memory/intelligence, adaptibility, mysterious (omen/intelligence)

I have always liked raptors (birds of prey) because of their nice plumage and wing shape. Soaring raptors is an embodiment of freedom for me.

Octopus - highly intelligent, colour changer, shape changer, devoted parent, highly flexible as it can squeeze through any gaps the size of its iron beak. (adaptibility)

Cuttlefish - colour changer, can hover forward/backwards/stop

Squid - suspected high intelligence, deep sea mystery

Mollucs are pretty unqiue and special, though some might say alien.

Wolf - social, good team spirit, excellent long distance runner, nice colouring (tenacity)

Tarantula - survivor from prehistoric times with primitive anatomy

Long Day

Before Flag Raising: Settle the vendors for Financial Literacy Program for Sec 3

Just After Flag Raising: Announce that Chinese Orchestra is having practice this Thursday. Go around distributing data cables for laptops and ensuring that all Sec 3 classes are well equipped.

After Flag Raising: Meet students going for China trip.

Early Morning: Prepare some work for Sec 4s to revise for their Nov MT Paper. Do additional write-up for Eagles Award nominee. Do end of year work review with adjunct teacher. Invigilate form class doing Maths Paper.

Late Morning: Edit China List. Walk-about for Sec 3 program. Babysit Sec 2 class while doing paper work for China trip. Sort out stacks of paper on my desk. Making rounds to ensure Financial Literacy Program still runs smoothly. Brief meeting with Deans and VP for program for last days of school.

Afternoon: Disassemble visualisers with help from IT reps of sec 3 classes. Meet vendor for next year's camp. Buy and eat lunch at 4:30pm. Check emails.

Evening: Pack up and adjourn to Lecture Room for Late Night Study duty. Eat dinner at 6:45pm. Mark some work. End Late Night Study duty. Go home.

Night: Browse TV drama serial, refresh Kingdom of Heaven. Blog and then sleep to prepare for next day.

Bad Haze, Bad Mood, Bad News

As if the raising pollution index is not enough, we are getting news of students suffering from flu en masse, meaning in big numbers. Are we facing the feared flu pandemic, or could it be a coincidence? Well, given the poor hygiene habits our people, espcially students have, I am not surprised. One can easily see quite a number of teenagers spitting in public. Call me black-hearted, but I do wish to see them suffer from flu. This is because by spitting in public, you are allowing germs from your phelgm to be exposed to more people, thus helping to spread any virus around.

6th Oct was Mid Autumn Festival (MAF), or more commonly known as Lantern or Mooncake Festival. It was supposed to be a time of reunions and happiness for ancient Chinese, and it is still one for those people who celebrate it. 7th Oct is HCJC's MAF celebrations, all because of the repeated 7th lunar month this year. HCJC's MAF celebrations has always been a well-known event among tertiary instituitions. It is usually a time of gathering for Hwa Chongnians from all batches and also for Hwa Chongnians and their friends from other schools. Whether in the plaza, the left or right wings, the canteen, the new block, one can find youths of all ages coming together to celebrate the occasion, regardless of school, race or religion. I do find the scale of the celebrations to be comparable to HCJC's Lunar New Year celebrations. The sheer atmosphere and scale of the celebrations would have been reason enough for anyone new to HCJC culture to want to be a part of it.

Although I wanted very much to go for it and see all the stalls peddling stuff and wushu performances, the lighting ceremony and join in the 8 mass dances, my heart was not with the celebrations. Firstly, most of my friends were quite caught up in their activities, so I did not want to go there without the company I was with. Secondly, I was helping to guide a wayward teenager and resolving disciplinary issues on Sat and Sun night, so going for MAF was certainly out of the question.

So in the end, MAF is just another day which could be good, but things did not turn out the way I hoped it would. Until I see the teenager making improvements, I know I cannot rest.

Saturday Chill Out

I currently sipping a cup of English Breakfast Tea in Pacific Coffee Company in 1 Raffles Link, eating a piping hot chicken pie. It is the ideal type of lifestyle that I wish to lead, but I guess in Singapore, such pace of life is only possible on weekends when you do not have a huge mountain of workload weighing on your mind.

It is pretty theraputic to be sitting in a cafe sipping a cuppa and reading a magazine or a book, occasionally observing the people walking by. But this is even better if you have ideal company doing that together with you. Well, it all depends on the state of mind, whether you want to be alone enjoying a slow pace afternoon or some company to chat with.

Everything sounds so tranquil and peaceful, if only this scenario is perpetually the case.

Redemption

I was going ard the sec 4 classes on a random check for attire and haircut. Some of the classes were visibly amused and enjoying the whole experience of being picked by me. Apparently, the experience of being picked far exceeds the social studies paper that they were attempting at that moment. Sadly, this cohort of students have not grown up, and are still clowning around despite nearing the O levels.

So might say this is their way of releasing stress. Sleeping while attempting Prepartory Exam? Playing catching during Prepartory Exam? I think the students haven't really learnt from their performance at Prelims how badly they have fared. If they had plough through all the papers seriously every day, I would be most happy to organise a inter-class soccer match among the Sec 4 classes. But the truth is, some students in some classes are more focused than others, despite efforts from all teachers.

The only consolation I had today was that 2 students from my form class came to me after school for not completing a letter writing assignment I gave them quite some time back. Although they were being punished to stay back and complete, I was pretty happy that they earnestly came to ask how to complete the assignment. Unlike the other 3 who chose to skip the punishment, I spent half an hour coaching the 2 students and they completed the assignment.

I eagerly look forward to Monday, when I am so tempted to unleash my tempest...

Wake Up, you fool!

If the other party promises you eternal love and thows you aside the moment something else comes up, what does that say about him/her? You are not worth it.

If the other party perpetually switches between hot & cold with you, what does that mean? You are an idiot to continue wasting your time and soul.

If the other party is not affected by how you feel, what does that say about the whole thing? You are living in a dream of your own, feeding your fantasy with fear, sadness, bitterness and false hopes.

You claim that the other party completes you, you will miss the good old times. You have given enough chances, and if you keep going on waiting and hoping, nothing is going to change for the better. You are stuck in this mire because you chose to, and you will continue to do so when the whole world moves on, denying all else in existence.

If despite all that you feel you have learnt from me, you cannot recover from this setback that you forged yourself, then you are not worth my concern and efforts.

In short, get a life.

Something's not right...

Well, despite my best attempts, there can still be cases of miscommunications. Miscommunications usually create misunderstandings and rifts among teenagers. But miscommunications not only create misunderstandings and rifts among adults, they are harder to clear, especially if people have formed an impression.

So what if we have emails, MSN, SMS, MMS, 3G? Perceptions and impressions die hard, and when you assume adults will be more sensible and take the initiative to clear misunderstandings, they clam up and widen the gap. Maybe I'm just imagining things...

What would you do?

When I am found blogging too often, it's never because I am too free, only that I have many things in my mind that I want to express out loud, or that I am highly stressed.

Anyway, I went for a course sometime in August and took home some very meaningful words. So I will take this opportunity to share them with those who might find the words useful:

1) What do you pack to pursue a dream and what do you leave behind?

2) What would you attempt if you knew you could not fail?

3) What makes something beautiful?

4) When was the last time you did something for the 1st time?

5) Do you let yesterday use too much of today?

6) If not now, when? If not you, who?

7) What if the rest of your life is the best of your life?

Do mince on the questions above every now and then. At different stages of your life, you will discover new meaning to the same words.

Here is my contributions:

1. What would you do if you know tomorrow is the last day of your life?
a) Get all your family members to be with you.
b) Go out with all your friends and hang out till you die.
c) Just go to East Coast Park and watch the sunrise before you depart from this world.
d) Tell the person you've been admiring that you like him/her for quite some time already.
e) Just stone.

2. What would you do with the person you like very much if you know tomorrow is the last day of your life?
a) Buy up all the flowers in the florist with your savings and give them to him/her.
b) Date him/her and try your very best to be with that person but never revealing your feelings for him/her
c) Chat with the person the whole night through till the end.
d) Give the person a vey tight hug and a big kiss and run back home.

What will I do? Don't tell you...

When was the last time...

As mankind enters the Digital Age, we have create a whole lot of things never imaginable just 1 decade ago. Within a decade, the use of internet has grown widespread. People start talking on ICQ, then MSN, then IRC. With them came webcams and handphones with SMS, MMS, 3G technology, with the intent of bringing people closer together.

Although these technological advances have supposedly brought convenience into our lives, it has also made us more distant, and incapable of effective or quality communication. Just think, if these technologies are so good, why is it that age and culture gap exists between 2 generations? Even if the older generation caught up with technology, does it mean that they have grown closer to their kids? The answer for most is an obvious no. Just ask yourself, when was the last time you shared something you find interesting with your parents? When was the last time you suggested going out shopping with your parents? What does your mum like to eat most? What does your dad want badly for his birthday present?

We are so used to blaming people for not understanding us, but many of us do not realised that we did not put in any effort to know people better. My family only sees each other near dinner time, and the rest of the night will be them reading newspapers and sleeping early, while I stare at the LCD screen doing work or marking.

Whatever the reasons, no matter the difficulties, one must always try to connect to those closest, namely your own family. Then comes friends who genuinely care for you. I shall try my best...

Cher, please give me 1 more mark for me to get the next grade!

As the exam fever peaks, you will see more and more students haunting their teachers for the same reasons, to get 1 or 2 more marks so that they can pass/advance to the next grade/get into an institution of their choice.

If you reflect on this issue, the actions only show that students have the end in mind, but they forgot about the process. I have summed up some of the possible cases that teachers may encounter:

Scenario 1
Student did not prepare well for the paper, hence did badly and needed the score.

Scenario 2
Student performed average, but wanted to have a better grade to explain to their parents/to outdo their peers/to get into a poly/jc course of their choice.

Scenario 3
Student did not understand why someone else who wrote something "similar" could get 3 marks, but he could only get 1 mark.

In any case, had the student paid attention and remembered answering techniques taught by the teachers, they would be able to get the marks, regardless of marker or question paper. The fact that this scenario keeps replaying itself during every test and exam shows that despite teachers best efforts, sometimes students still do not get what the question demands of them, hence always off the point.

The only and best way to break this endless loop would be to fully master answering techniques as there is no need to beg teachers for marks, since you cannot do that to Cambridge markers anyway. Also, if you had fully grasp what your teacher taught you, you would be able to answer any type of question thrown at you.

In short, to students out there, pay attention to how your teachers analyse the questions, apply their techniques well, and you are on your way to becoming a winner already. Best of luck to all students having exams!