i know that as far as results are concerned, we only need them for this year.

i know that getting good results isn't everything. people aren't going to remember you for how well you did in school; they remember you for the fun times you gave them, for the warmth you showed them when they were in need, and how you were there with them when they were going through hell-ish camps.

i know that although good results are required if i want to go to any course i want to, that does not mean that if i do not have straight As, i'm condemned to being a failure my whole life.

i also know that in the grand scheme of things, results don't really matter; you aren't going to your grave with the epitaph saying "here lies a straight As" student etc. (for the record, it's probably going to say something like "here lies a beloved father/son/brother/etc"




having said all that, it feels pretty darn good to do well academically.
even if it's only for one test. =)

...and i'd almost forgotten what it felt like to succeed.

Through It All

You are forever in my life
You see me through the seasons
Cover me with Your hand
And lead me in Your righteousness

And I look to You
And I wait on You

I'll sing to You Lord
A hymn of love
For Your faithfulness to me
I'm carried in everlasting arms
You'll never let me go
Through it all

Hallelujah
Hallelujah

reasons why there'll never be a Batman in Singapore

was watching The Batman on Youtube today when this question came to mind. here are some answers i thought of:

1. it's too damn hot (really want to wear black clothes on your whole body. plus that cape, hot until you sweat everywhere, even in your underpants outside)
2. singapore police force too efficient.
3. singapore has the death penalty. any clowns or idiots who go around committing serious offences would be hanged, forcing Batman out of business
4. too few high-rise buildings (you really want to chase your enemy on top of hdb flat. or you want to swing from hdb block to block?)
5. parking the Batmobile would be a little conspicuous.
6. if he ever flew the Batwing, the RSAF would shoot it down the first time round.
7. if he ever drove the Bat-submarine (or what it's called), it'd be shot down by the singapore navy. not to mention he can only park it at either punggol marina or tanah merah jetty. not exactly easy to get to it eh?
8. singapore is a small country. it wouldn't be too hard to narrow searches to deduce one's identity. what's more, singapore's multi-racial too, so if Batman were an ang moh, it'd be pretty easy to find out who he is.
9. many villains would be out of business in the first place. here are a few examples:
a. mr. freeze wouldn't survive in singapore for a day, much less threaten to freeze the whole country over.
b. there are plenty of people who love and feed stray cats, so catwoman wouldn't have to go around kicking some cat abuser's butt.
c. singaporeans love the environment. what with clean and green week and whatnot, poison ivy wouldn't have to use evil means to force people to save the environment. hell, there're litter bins everywhere! (actually she's more of a plant activist, but what the heck)
10. all of Batman's equipment would have to be imported, since his alter ego probably wouldn't be able to set up a factory to build his gizmos without the government taking notice.
11. the government wouldn't allow it (because having a vigilante go around helping people would imply that the police force sucks. also, this would imply that singapore has lots of social problems, and this wouldn't give off a good image of the government now would it?)
12. Batman's just a fictional character anyway.

Here I Am To Worship

Light of the world
You stepped down into darkness
Opened my eyes let me see
Beauty that made this heart adore You
Hope of a life spent with You

Here I am to worship
Here I am to bow down
Here I am to say that You're my God
You're altogether lovely
Altogether worthy
Altogether wonderful to me

King of all days
Oh so highly exalted
Glorious in heaven above
Humbly You came to the earth
You created
All for love's sake became poor

I'll never know how much it cost
To see my sin upon that cross

my centennial post! and what better occasion to blog about than valentine's day?

strictly speaking, it was more like friendship day (considering i have no gf, which is probably a good thing at this stage), and revealing ourselves to our mortals!

i tell you, God works wonders. only about a month ago, i saw this batman figure i really wanted, but it cost sth like $24.90, and when i wanted to buy it, my mum told me to use my own money. so i prayed that day, "Lord, give me that toy, but i don't want to pay for it. i want You to give it to me. in Jesus' name, amen."

in less than a month, i'm currently holding it in my hand (well not really, or i wouldn't be able to type). i'm telling you, God supplies me with not only my needs, but my wants as well! thank you Jesus.

and also thank you everyone in s7b who gave me something! (claire for the toothbrush :S, lydia for brownie, jess for the egg, which i cracked and had to throw away =(, see wah for cake, val for biscuit, sam for rice cracker, li ru for sweets, angeline for marshmallow) and i didn't get u all anything! oh well, guess girls are always more thoughtful...

thank you jiayi and mabel for the presents! and to think i spent less than u guys... but i guess amount doesnt really matter. hey, i gave them 3 presents each! (counting the tissue box as well lol)

next up, cross country! since i chose checkpoint 2, there were no casualties lah. was paired with this girl called xiaona, she's a chinese student, and i had to spend like 2 hours conversing with her in chinese only. considering i haven't used it actively for more than a year, i must admit i myself was pretty surprised at how much mandarin i could speak. (canto doesn't count) then we saw lots of people walking this year....or has it been like that every year? maybe i didn't notice or sth. oh and tengara was my teacher-in-charge at my checkpoint. talk about twist of fate. and she was saying sth like "...cherr" to me, cos that's what i always do to her in class: call her "cher" :P

after cross country the casualties started to pile up lol. there were at least 2 guys who had heat exhaustion, and countless cases of bruises, scratches which involved bleeding, not to mention to usual sprains and strains (there's a diff u know). the students should really watch themselves you know, always getting injured after the run. don't so pia lah! slower by 1 or 2 mins will die meh. lame.

went for dinner after everything with some classmates, and we had lots of fun talking nonsense. then went home with carl and tai hao, reached home at like 9.30 omg.

happy v day/friendship day/fire drill day/cross country day everyone!

and thank you Jesus, for loving me so much, You went on the cross to die for me. You're the lover of my soul.

...of uncle daniel, the 156 bus uncle

was taking 156 with tai hao to bishan to buy presents for his angel and mortal, when the bishan gay/ 156 paedophile/ bishan gay /uncle daniel boarded the bus, along bukit timah road (near adam road.)

presently, there was a group of 4 chinese high sec 1/2s (they're so puny it's hard to tell) sitting in the last row. tai hao and i were sitting around 2-3 seats in front of them.

once uncle daniel (i shall use this name rather than the other derogatory ones) boarded, one of the boys shouted (yest, shouted), "it's the bishan gay! it's the bishan gay!" for around 5-6 times non-stop. then, quick as a flash, he whipped out his camera phone and turned it to cam mode. saying "excuse me" quickly as he almost ran past us, he aimed the device at uncle daniel. the latter, obviously being a seasoned pro, immediately flashed his trademark smile at the boy, petrifying him so much he scurried back to his seat almost as quickly as he ran past us previously.

this incident obviously stirred uncle daniel's attention. from then on, he never stopped looking to the last few rows (i didn't know if he tried to stare at me, just dao). then when we reached the stop near SJI, a horde of people boarded, obscuring his vision. but he must have been delighted to have been the first one the people who just boarded saw, for he was sitting at the seat facing sideways.

when we finally arrived at bishan interchange, many of us alighted, including uncle daniel.

***

my dear chinese high boys (i'm from anglican/dunman high now), what is so fascinating about uncle daniel? don't you think you are being very mean to him?

let's walk a mile in his shoes. suppose everyday, you wake up eeeaaaarllly in the morning just to make sure you don't miss the boys when they take the bus to school. at his age, he shouldn't be doing it at all! he should be at home, sleeping, taking care of his grandchildren and whatnot. and yet, early in the morning, he is already hard at work. can't you just let him have a good start to the day?

you know, after you all start going to school, he has to spend like 5 hours doing nothing you know, just to wait for you stupid little boys to come out. so why don't you all just take the bus home straight away at 1.30pm when you're dismissed to cut short his misery?

and think about it. you think it's so easy to go around, dressed like that? his bag must be full of equipment, like spying devices, phone interceptors etc. and why do you think he wears such outdated specs! they are definitely spy cameras! you think it's so easy to lug all this stupid stuff around, just to spy on you all? you boys wouldn't last a day! and you think it's so easy to produce that image he gives off? you need not only experience, but the correct skills you know. even if you're having a bad day, you must give a megawatt smile! if not people will suspect that you actually might be human! and the angle where he places his specs? it has to be at the exact position to give off that look you know. most of you all would just fail outright.

and you think you see him all the time? you should see his schedule! he has to make sure he's there at the bus stop when you boys are dismissed you know, and not only does he have to do chinese high, but RI and SJI as well! (throw in CJC, NY, SCGS if you want too) you think it's so easy to be there on time, and try to spy on more than 300 kids? (i'm assuming 50 students take 156 per sch) you try it lah! you don't even know what's the interval between buses. and there he is, rain or shine, making sure he gets onto as many bus rides as possible. and don't you think for one moment that he doesn't miss those people he failed to spy on!

some more, say he takes 10 bus rides a day. if we take normal adult fare (approx 60 cents), that's like $6 a day! can you imagine yourself spending $6 a day on your job? you don't have to, cos you have your parents to pay for your transportation! he doesn't have! spare a thought for him lah, give up your seat to him. it's very tiring, you know, getting on so many 156 buses in a day!

as if his work is not stressful and tiring enough, he has to endure so much stick and nasty comments from you. don't you think you're being very mean? you wouldn't even survive one day in his job. if he were to be awarded CIP hours for doing what he does, they'd have to measure it in years, or maybe even decades. hell, he's probably been in this line of work since even before you were born.

so, the moral of the story is, respect your elders. give uncle daniel some respect. next time, instead of behaving like a total, complete idiot when he's around, try to be nice to him, and if possible, give him some snacks (he is human after all), or maybe a bit of spare change. who knows, one day, you might be the next 156 bus uncle.

i don't understand believers who don't want God's blessings.

Some idiot has misquoted the Bible and said stuff like "prosperity is evil", "as Christians, we have to suffer", and said stuff like that which have confused a lot of believers into thinking that having the zoe life, the resurrection life, only starts when you die. it doesn't. it starts now.

God wants all of us (i'm talking about believers only) to be healthy, wealthy, successful in life, so as to give Him a good testimony. but He doesn't want our effort, He wants His fingerprints to be shown.

that said, i'm not saying we don't have a proper occupation. i'm just saying that He doesn't want us to think, "i've worked 12 hours overtime this week. i deserve more." He wants us to think, "i'm going to be successful not because i work my butt off, but because Jesus has blessed me."

there's something about grace which totally nullifies our hubris, because my qualification for grace, which is undeserved, unmerited favour, is my disqualification. for grace to be grace, it cannot be earned, or qualified.

and yet, so many believers today believe that "i don't want God's blessings and grace because i don't deserve them." hello? the entire reason grace exists is for people like us! if you have it all together, what the hell do you need grace?

and the people who reject God's blessings because they don't think they deserve it, is like slapping Jesus in the face.

He who went to the cross and made every payment for not only every sin, but also for every blessing to come to us. if we reject the blessings, we're saying, "Jesus, i don't want what you died to give me."

the most confusing point though, is this: if you ordered a set meal in a restaurant which comprises 4 dishes with rice and soup and dessert, and say everything comes. but then the guy forgets your dessert and gives you the bill. wouldn't you demand your dessert come first?

shouldn't it be the same, then, for God's blessings?? Jesus paid for every single blessing, including health, prosperity, favour, success; and yet people are ready to say "we don't believe in having God's blessings," if you demand that even your dessert comes, would you pass up on having the great blessings of God which come absolutely free?

as for me, i'm claiming them all in Jesus' name.

tired

...walked the whole distance for cross country today. that makes it 7.2km i've covered in 2 days.

that's it. i've used up my exercise quota for this month (and possibly the next too.)

still

hide me now
under Your wings
cover me
within Your mighty hand

when the oceans rise and thunders roar
i will soar with You above the storm
Father You are King over the flood
i will be still and know You are God

find rest my soul
in Christ alone
know His power
in quietness and trust

I'm Held By Your Love

I’m held by Your love
Upheld by Your strength
On Your shoulders You bore me
By Your faith I stand

Cherished by You Lord
Treasured in Your sight
So close to Your heart
Held firm in Your hands



Chorus:
So awesome is Your love
So mighty is Your hand
On eagle’s wings You carry me
Your grace shall be my strength

So perfect is Your love
You sacrificed Your Son
Amazing love reached out to me
With joy to You I come



Not by my wisdom
Not by my strength
Gently You guide me
Lead me by hand

Total surrender
Jesus I am Yours
Now and forever
In Christ I now stand

the weather in school these days has been, well, refreshing.

i do remember cold mornings last year, but not cold, windy mornings like this past week. or gale-y lunch breaks and afternoons. even at 3pm it feels cooling (unless you're sweating in the sun. duh)

kinda reminds me of taiwan. of how my school, on top of a hill, always had those mountain breezes the whole day everyday, and it'd be chilly from dawn to dusk. and how, on one particular day, the poor girls in our group who had to wear their own school uniform (for that day) were all trying to huddle together to keep warm because they were wearing their own school skirts. and every time the wind blew they'd all say in their shrilly voices, "so cccoooollllddd!" ha. wear skirt wear so short lah. lucky we boys had pants. =P

and no, i'm not getting emo about taiwan again. i'm just making an observation.

i went to order fried dumpling noodles from the noodle stall at the food court.

i could've sworn, out of the 4 people who ordered bak chor mee before me, at least 2 of them said they didn't want pig liver.

mb, i think you influence singapore more than you know.

...so singapore beat malaysia in the cup (albeit on penalties). hooray!

still, england could take a tip or two from our strikers. at least we don't aim for aeroplanes.

anyway, i wonder if there's going to be any celebration/holiday if we win the cup?

probably not, unless it was the world cup.

LOL.

blogthings!

disclaimer: i do not believe in such things, but i'm just putting them up for fun.

out of immense boredom.

Your Birthdate: January 2

You may watch someone from afar before you finally decide to make your move. It takes a long time for you to develop an attraction to someone. Generally, you prefer to pick who you love. Anyone who tries to rush you is in for some heartache. Number of True Loves You'll Have: 3 Number of Times You'll Have Your Heart Broken: 4 You are most compatible with people born on the 2nd, 11th, 20th, and 29th of the month.

What Does Your Birth Date Mean For Your Love Life?

rriigghhtt... but maybe the part about people trying to rush me is probably true.

You Are Iceman

You tried to live a normal life, but it just wasn't possible A bit of a slacker, you rather tell jokes than cultivate your powers Powers: turning self and others into ice, making ice weapons, becoming nearly invisible

Which of the X-Men Are You?

it's true! except that my weapons are cold jokes instead. the invisible part.... if i shut up the whole day in school, then maybe.

You Are 14 Years Old

Under 12: You are a kid at heart. You still have an optimistic life view - and you look at the world with awe. 13-19: You are a teenager at heart. You question authority and are still trying to find your place in this world. 20-29: You are a twentysomething at heart. You feel excited about what's to come... love, work, and new experiences. 30-39: You are a thirtysomething at heart. You've had a taste of success and true love, but you want more! 40+: You are a mature adult. You've been through most of the ups and downs of life already. Now you get to sit back and relax.

What Age Do You Act?

funny. i was almost sure my "age" would be less than 10. oh well, guess i'm growing up.

alright, back to mugging econs lolz.

mugalomaniac.blogspot

...taking a break from studying chem. i'm sorry if you're hoping for something for interesting to read, but i'm not having one of those inspired moments right now...

BUT, there is this website you can go to:



brilliant site i have to say, what with tips on gaming, swearing, staying healthy, ALL FOR MUGGERS! this is one site you have to visit.

go muggers!

Jesus My Lord My Life

You take my hand
Lead me to Your side
Your warm embrace
Sets my heart on fire

You are my shelter
God of all wonders
You are the hero of my life

I live for You
Saviour of my life
Your love for me
Is wider than the skies

You are my shelter
God of all wonders
You are the hero of my life

You came for me
Your life for mine
When I couldn’t save myself

You bore my pain
My sins, my shame
Jesus my Lord my life





(i dunno much abt the vid, but this is the only place i could find the song online)

a conversation with a friend today sparked off memories about taiwan. again.

away from the hustle and bustle of school life, where lessons are already in full swing, in no small part due to me taking my a levels this year, taiwan seems like a really good place to escape to, if only mentally.

i think you must realise by now, if you haven't, that taiwan was indeed full of fond memories. maybe my first posts after i came back were a bit emo and all, but to say that it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience wouldn't be too far from the truth.

occasionally, seeing yongchun again, seeing the bus the 20 hcians were on again, seeing the places we went to again, seeing the places those of us in the yongchun group went, if all only in my mind, is enough to bring back the sweetness of the trip.

i suppose no amount of description could truly do the experience justice. like i said before, sometimes it's just better to relive them myself, even if it's to give myself temporary solace and escape from school life and homework.



but, having said that, there are new people to meet this year, new friendships to build on, new angel and mortal to write to, new topics to study for each subject, and above all, a whole new year of wonderful experiences to go through. i believe (not cynically, but sincerely) that a levels will be one of the more memorable occasions this year. or, at least, the end of it would be memorable.

in the meantime, let's just enjoy each day this year brings.

The Sweetest Name Of All

Jesus, You're the sweetest name of all
Jesus, You always hear me when I call
Oh Jesus, You pick me up each time I fall
You're the sweetest, the sweetest name of all

Jesus, how I love to praise Your name
Jesus, You're the first, the last, the same
Oh Jesus, You died and took away my shame
You're the sweetest, the sweetest name of all

Jesus, You're the soon and coming King
Jesus, we need the love that You can bring
Oh Jesus, we lift our voices up and sing
You're the sweetest, the sweetest name of all

alright. first blog entry in 2007!

must say i was rather surprised that so many people knew when my birthday was this year. here are the people i have to thank for making it such a wonderful 18th birthday, even though there was no actual partying and the like.

mum & dad - for the special lunch we had in that really cool restaurant, and bringing me out for a break from doing gp.

liang wei, edmund, kai keat - for trying to come and celebrate with me on the actual day, even though we ended up cancelling the whole thing. thanks anyway, my brudders. :) oh and thank you for the... "card" too!

claire, li ru, ai zhen - for the josh groban cd! omg i was quite shocked that you guys'd bother to actually buy something for me on my birthday. a simple "happy belated birthday" would have been great, but you guys went the extra mile. thank you so much.

TIPpers - for the wonderful day we had on new year's eve! (actually this doesn't really fall under birthday thanks, but since it's only a day apart) you guys even knew it was my birthday! i don't know why, but you guys are one of the very few groups of people i really feel at ease with.

everyone else, who wished me happy birthday, belated or not, via sms or msn, or just a simple "happy birthday", whether from qbc, 06s7b, TIP, or even ex-classmates: Thank you all! your well-wishes made it a really enjoyable birthday. it even made me feel like it was my birthday for 2 straight days! :D






and thank You Jesus, for blessing me with wonderful friends, and for the wonderful year of Your blessings, favour and love ahead.

what i submitted

this is a less emo version of my taiwan trip reflections. heck, i even submitted this one to my teacher-in-charge.

相信对许多同学而言，12月是一个让自己休息以及准备面对下个学年的月份。而我们这80位同学，却在同一个月，在台湾过了一段难忘的日子。

在12月6日，我们的台湾之旅正式开始。前4天的行程让我们到了不少旅游观光景点，包括九份老街，太鲁阁国家公园，七星潭，台湾戏剧馆等地方。而我们到的每一个地方，都使我们能够增广见闻。其中最令我难忘的地方是太鲁阁国家公园，因为在那儿，真的能让我们欣赏大自然的壮观与宏伟。当然，去台湾也不只是为了看风景，而这几天的旅程也让我们更加了解台湾的风土民情。

在第5天，我们终于和台湾的接待同学再次见面，而见面时就犹如重见失散多年的好友，大家都彼此问安，谈起话来更是滔滔不绝，虽然只是没见面3个多月。在欢迎晚宴上，我们的接待同学为我们呈现非常精彩的表演，让大家又再次达到上一回在新加坡送别晚宴时的高潮。

之后，我们就到了各自的学校，开始9天的随班学习浸濡课程，而我和其他3位华中的同学被派到了台北市立永春高级中学。

到了永春，我留意到的第一件事就是学校的楼梯。几乎全所学校都是楼梯，而我也算过，单单要从学校门口走到我的课室，就已经要跨几乎200级的楼梯，可想而知永春的同学每天要走多少级楼梯。幸好他们的上课制不像我们，他们每一班都有固定的课室，所以不必像我们到不同讲堂和课室上课，否则有可能每天都要跨超过1000级的楼梯！

我们在永春上的课，除了随接待同学上他们的课以外，还有自己的特别课程，而上课的内容可说是 “文武双全”，因为我们不只学习台湾的一些特别传统技艺，如捏面人，歌仔戏，水墨画，以及中国绳结等，也上了不一样的体育课，其中包括漆弹射击，合球运动，中国武术。此外，我们也学习了台湾的特殊的地理与历史，甚至参访了台湾的一些古迹，包括十分采风铁路，老街，红毛城等，而到这些地方都让我们对台湾都有了更深一层的认识。上了这么多课，我最喜欢的是中国绳结课，因为我们学会如何用一些简单的绳子绑成美丽的鞭炮，而且还可以用来做装饰品。

在此，值得一提的是台湾学校的饮食文化。永春高中没有食堂，而每天同学吃的午餐只有两个选择，既是从家里把食物带到学校，或在学校订便当吃。学校唯一卖食物的地方是福利社，而卖的也只不过是面包和一些饮料。所以，为了避免自己挨锇，同学们每天都得自备足够的食物。

至于在我们的接待家庭的住宿，这几个晚上的相处，也让我们和接待同学的感情更加友好，而且也让我们认识他们的家庭成员。而他们的热情款待，真的令我们有一种宾至如归的感觉，自己也仿佛变成了这个家庭的一份子。我们的接待同学也很乐意地带我们到不同地方游玩，其中包括西门町，淡水，以及不同的夜市，让我们体验台湾人的夜生活。

很快地，我们也到了这次旅行的尾声。在答谢晚宴上，轮到我们新加坡5所初院呈现不同表演。而在晚宴上，也有很多同学都忙着和新认识的朋友尽量交谈，拍照留念。

到了离开台湾的那一天，在飞机场时，有很多同学都情不自禁地哭了起来，因为我们这一次的交流计划也就在此告一段落。明年，将会是另外一批同学，另外一次的经验，另外一次的回忆。

不知不觉地，就这样过了17天。