Protected: There’s no point anymore… June 28, 2009
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Incredulity June 28, 2009
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It’s like you did something bad for once and it will stain your life forever. All the goodness in your life is erased and forgotten just in the blink of an eye. You do not even get the chance to bat an eyelid and there, you are condemned and thrown into the gutters. And, what’s the worse thing? The so called negativity might just be choosing not to voice out and raise any grievances… It’s almost equivalent to nothing?
I don’t understand what a huge fuss this can cause. Can’t one choose to keep to oneself at times? well, if the things said can snowball into something bigger or cause any unhappiness, it is my choice to stomach it and take everything in. What’s with the questions and incredulity? Just leave it at that will you? Forcing two ends to meet just doesn’t work because for one, characters are not magnetic poles. Opposites do not attract!
It is ridiculous how one’s mind works but everyone is in his/herself a different individual and you can’t just expect everyone to lap up your instructions and work as you deem fit. For one, humans are not robots. We are not programmed to carry out specific instructions without understanding and explanations. Why can’t people ever recognise that? There are some people who set out to change and modify their partners to be this perfect model they have in their minds but think about it, you might manage to change him/her now but is this forever?
The place is in a sorry state.
- PH
So, I guess that’s it? May 15, 2009
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Walking up the stage and accepting the scroll, everything seems to be over at that instant. But somehow, it doesn’t really feel like it and I can’t help but ask: “So, that’s it?” The last official day of being a Ngee Ann Student and an FMS student. There, face it.
3 years full of “sleep deprivation” (Ms Kwan, 2009), rushing out projects, putting the 100 plus presentation slides, bundling ourselves in the ‘FMS arctic region’ also known as the radio daws and trying to be one with the big clock, working on the newspaper and churning out stories like a threadmill on clockwork, having consultations one after another in the nice, cozy rooms at level 7, trugging up the hill to the FMS block to meet the 5pm datelines and having to wait ever-so-patiently for the lifts to bring us up, and all the sleepovers, (nope, not partying sleepovers, nope, no pillow fights, nope, no snacking, ok, actually a little…) which is coincidentally all at Jurong and Clementi (oh and once at Sengkang), to finish the website, the articles and the presentation slides… And, that’s that. It’s done and accounted for.
From being someone who came out of a rather ‘stick-in-the-mud’ education system, it’s almost like metamorphosis in these 3 years. From doing normal, albeit boring, presentations with cue cards, presentations these 3 years morphed into “Harry Potter with an Indian accent” and video support. Cue cards, memorised scripts, nah… doesn’t work, as i’ve been told.
So, that ends the 3 years?
Oh, integral in these 3 years – the CCA, which strings everything together. The rehearsals day after day, the planning behind, the meetings in the clubhouse (where we pass the phelgm… )and everything and everyone. Without this, it would be safe to say that the going would be tough.
So, to PSF, to my fellow friends and lecturers, a curtsey!
- PH
When everything happens for a reason… May 6, 2009
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I sat there sipping my Starbucks Mocha Frapp (yes, a staple in my cafe menu) and heard conversations droning on around me. Some were really intelligent, which never fail to turn my head, wanting to know which incredible genius that comment came from while some are the mundane matters revolving around us. And, there it feels as if everything happens for a reason, if not two.
Have you ever wondered why we get to meet each other now and not later or before? Well, If we meet earlier, things might change and eventually we will go our separate ways. If we meet later, who do we get to help us along the obstacles of life and go through the laughter and fun?
What about the choices we make? The places we go to? The failures we encountered? The fun we had? They are there for a reason. Bringing it back to coffee, if we don’t drink there, we never know being a Barista does involve getting down and dirty. And, if we decide not to stop by for coffee, we wouldn’t get the chance to catch up on each other’s lives.
To me, coffee is a drug that calms and soothes the senses. And, a frapp is not your normal coffee, it is a blend. Now, think about it this way, everything starts off as a coffee bean, and when you add water, it expands and the smell whiffs out. Then, you shake it, stir it and throw it in the blender. That is the end result of what started. So, if we said ‘No’ to something, what will the result be?
If it’s a yes?
-PH
When the East meets West May 3, 2009
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Food is something we consume, and to put it simply, it is something that fills us and gives us the energy to carry on with our daily activities. But, food can also take on a meaning outside of just something edible. Food chronicles someone’s journey and opens up a brand new story in its own.
Singapore used to be a fishing village and the early days see chinese immigrants filing across the oceans to the shore. They set up homes, build up the trade and commerce in the country and contributed to a wide variety of businesses. Among these, eateries and hawkers are the most prevalent. (Think Chinatown street stalls!) Yes, with the influx of chinese settlers in the country, chinese cuisine has also sprouted. Dishes like the Hokkien noodles, chicken rice, chinese dessert soups and delicacies soon begin to find their way into the hearts of Singaporeans.
Now, a few decades later, yes, we still have our local fare of chicken rice, dim sum and boiled herbal soups but the proliferation of tourists from all over the world has shaped Singapore into a metropolitan city, littered with iconic western cafes and restaurants. When we say “go western”, it’s Fish & Chips, Pork ribs, pasta and the likes of that.
So, which do you like better? A kopi freshly brewed from your uncle in white singlet or by the barista in the Starbucks all over the country? Hong Kong dim sum and mee pok dry or a plate of Chicken chop with Linguine from Cafe Cartel? Your choice!
- PH
The thief – time May 2, 2009
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3 years ago, I am still wondering where I should go after my ‘O’ levels results. JC with most of my friends or a polytechnic education, in some far-flung place (well, clementi to be precise). And, a month later, I made the decision to go ahead, alone. People ask why I would go ahead without my friends but I guess to me, I did not think that much and just plunged into it. The thought of starting anew without so much as a familiar face is definitely daunting, no doubt but since I chose it, I accepted it wholeheartedly.
Now, 3 years later, graduation ceremony is just a mere 2 weeks away. The entire journey just seems like a bullet train forging ahead without its passengers aboard. How did time ever steal pass us ever so stealthily? And, adulthood creeping up on us, something resembling a silent killer?
Sometimes I ask myself this question: “Am I ready to grow up?” I am not responsible enough, not sensitive enough, not street-smart enough, not independent enough, and the list continues… I am not prepared to handle what’s ahead of me.
- PH
“Attraction comes in a package.. or is it?” March 31, 2009
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During a luncheon, Jack described a scenario of his dating experience. He went out with a 45-year old woman and while they were having their lunch in this picture-perfect restaurant with top-tier service standards (and yes, just a fairytale setting if you can summon that bit of imagination…), all he did was stare.
Now, you must think that she is a babe (the smoky eyes, pouty lips, curvy figure and legs that seemed to go on forever). Alas, the reality of a 45- year old mature woman (or rather auntie), who could not afford to be botox-ed sinks in – Wrinkles, sunken cheeks, dark eye circles and too-heavy make up for a simple sit-in lunch.
“I was staring at her wrinkles all this while,” said Jack, blatantly.
Even he admitted that men are sometimes the most superficial of the lot. And, well, who can blame them? Many people and articles and those self-proclaimed new-ageist who go for what’s inside and all.. but, think about it this way, what is the first touch-point to attraction?
And, yes, you got it. It’s the first impression! It is complete bollocks to say that looks don’t matter because in this ‘cold-cash-hard-world’ reality we live in, a hot bod splashed across a magazine sells! Look at the bachelors and whatever avant-garde swimsuit modelling on magazines like Cleo, 8Days and Seventeen… they sell like hot cakes!
Welcome to the real world~
So, at this point of time, for those of you who are going for job interviews, first dates and what nots… remember, first impression does matter (even though that doesn’t mean a pretty face will score you a job, the mechanism behind that is all too important as well.)
According to a HR manager, “dress smart, not slutty”. And, I can’t agree any better. So, do away with those plunging necklines, well, unless you are applying for a job near a certain red-light district in Singapore. And, I am not even referring to the durain store Singaporeans seem to love for no apparent reason.
- PH
Prickly March 26, 2009
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The feeling of being on needles and the sweaty palms (not literally) is just horrible. Now, I know why people say the wait is always the hardest.
Let’s put it that way. The wait refers to a delayed action until a particular time or well, when something happens that garners a reaction.
And, with the wait comes a whole slew of different emotions.
- PH
Run Away March 2, 2009
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People just love to run, ain’t that so? From Standard Chartered Marathon to JPMorgan to CityChase and now this Newton Active Run. Now, when can these people ever stop running?
There is so much more to life than running. Well, for instance, look at the surroundings, the lush greenery, the energy radiating off from all corners of the Earth.
Escaping is not a solution. But, who am I to say?
Go on, run!
- PH
‘Human-Recession’ December 8, 2008
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The world is undergoing an economic downturn. You flip through the newspapers everyday and some company will announce the cutting down of staff, the falling stock prices, getting through the economic crisis and just everything that’s got to do with belt-tightening.
Yet, does that also mean people cut down on our “necessities” and and scrimp on human’s basic behavioral methods? It does seems like what people are doing. Now, this is not referring to monetary terms and financial resolves but simple everyday menial stuff we take for granted and abuse its very existence.
Service standards of fastfood joints fall below average. Is it because “Going the extra mile” doesn’t work anymore? Since there is no carrot for those who do now.. no bonuses or pay increments. A packet of ‘tar-tar’ sauce costs 20cents now, when it used to be free. Tables are left uncleared even after multiple attempts at getting the attention of a service staff. And, the list just goes on…
Situations of rude commuters in MRT stations escalate. Gone were the “Sorrys and thank yous and excuse mes”. Now, it’s a place where people hold their horses and keep to themselves. Standing on both sides of the escalators and refusing to budge. (Seeing as how old ladies and pregnant women trying to make their way forth but nobody wants to move… it’s just horrible). That’s not all. Commuters trying to wedge their bodies into whatever little space in the cabin during peak hours is the bane of humans’ existence in the contemporary world. Gone were the social graces and protocol taught to us when we were young. Is this because of the recession too?
Slick advertisements and creative direction does not seem to be there anymore. Now, what we have are cheesy taglines and spins that don’t really make sense. A particular advertisement for a drink serves the audience with an onslaught of ‘old-school’, non-existence lines, which were more of a cornball than anything. well, it might be their way of attracting attention, which in a way they succeded but give us the award-winning creative director anytime!
However, one thing we do not scrimp at: cautionary measure. That’s probably the trademark of the locals.
A fellow friend said this at the marathon, “You will only know if it’s a local if they run with baskets and bottles… because they want to fill their bottles with free 100 plus…” Is that the striking difference? Well, it makes things even worse when the friend is not a local.
dear-o-dear, let the recession stop and people hold tight on their “necessities”.
-PH
