The future does not seem rosy for Mother Earth and her inhabitants. An article in yesterday's New Paper reported that if something is not done about global warming, we may end up like the boiled frogs (if you place a frog in lukewarm water and slowly turn up the heat, it will die before it realizes the danger it is in). There are also more grim reports about melting ice bergs, wild weather etc. And has anyone noticed the weather in Singapore swinging from cold to hot, cold then hot? It's not just the climate changes. Bird flu has once again reared its ugly head and it's threatening to unleash a global pandemic. If that happens, "it may mean the end of humanity" should the situation gets out of control, our Geography teacher told us today.
I'm not blogging to paint a depressing picture of our future, but to talk about a sudden paradign shift I experienced with regard to the above. I used to worry about whether I'd live to see the planet's climate go haywire and watch people around me die of the intense heat or cold. I don't think I can stand watching seaside communities swallowed up by rising sea levels. Nor watch all the lovely flora shrivel up. One day, I realized I should just stop worrying. Not to say I don't care anymore, but if we really are heading towards a havoc-wrecking global climate, it won't do to worry myself insane. So instead of feeling so overwhelmed, I've decided to live my life to the fullest.
As M1 puts it, you have 1 life, so live it. I've always liked children, so I think I want to join the UNICEF or on a more local level, MILK. One of my positive character traits is that I can make people laugh or smile so that'll come in useful. Job-wise, I want to be a journalist and witness history in the making. Why not start a family too? I'm also building up my social circle and can get along with boys and girls alike. To round up these dreams, I'm interested in being a Member of Parliament (or at least an NMP).
With regard to materialism, I'm just going to have to suppress it. Here are some of my eyecandies: Photoshop CS2, Samsung MP3, designer clothes......Expensive items that I can only dream about. Yet, should I acquire, say, an Ipod Nano, how the hell I am going to enjoy it when the climate turns its wrath on us? Is it going to save me in any way? It's okay to get a little bit of excess stuff but not too much. Anyway, if who you are is what you have and what you have is lost, then WHO ARE YOU?
In the end, should I get boiled or frozen under a wild climate, I want to look back, smile and say, "I've lived well."
And I will always think of you as the sun*
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
Chew on the following, people:
"Children today are tyrants. They contradict their parents, gobble their food, and tyrannize their teachers. " Who said that?
a) Irate member of public b) An education minister c) Simon Cowell d)Socrates e)Isaac Newton
. . . . . . . . . . give up? . . . . . . . . Answer: d) Socrates, the famous philosopher who lived from 470BC to 399BC.
Conclusion: No generation of kids are angelic; they came under fire even over 2000 years ago:) A pretty good response to insensitive adults who keep lambasting us youths.
And I will always think of you as the sun*
Monday, January 15, 2007
Even though lessons have already began, life as a JC1 student is still rather relaxed. A typical school day begans with me waking up at 6.25am (instead of 6am during my Crescent days) and being whisked off to school by car to NYJC after breakfast. I usually reach school at 7.20am. Lessons began at 8am but we haven't learnt anything heavy yet so it's usually the teacher letting us try 'introductory' assignments or talking about the subject syllabus. In between, there are breaks which can be as loooong as 3hrs. To pass time, I'd hang around the Drum (the school library, no idea why it's so called) reading Empress Orchid which is pretty intriguing. School ends between 1pm and 2pm. Because we've been doing mainly light lessons, there is no homework issued so I can indulge in my hobbies when I get back.
Stress-free life huh? It is such a far cry from the Dark Days of 2006. I remember the Sec 4s being left out of certain fun activities such as Ronin's concert because we had to do some mock exam instead in preparation for the 'O' Levels. The juniors also began their holidays earlier than we did and could excercise their right to flock to cinemas to watch drool-worthy movies. On the other hand, we the Sec 4s were up to our ears in books, cramming information into our brains in spite of the information overload. Sweat, blood, tears...you name it, we've shed it.
I heard the current Sec 4s are having it a little worse than we did. Apparently, they have to stay back till 5,45pm on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays! That, plus the usual packed timetable and increasingly common mock exams. Sheesh. Well, all I can say is: Study hard and smart NOW and then you will truly be able to enjoy your holidays without any regrets.
******* Speaking of the holidays, did I tell you all what a super-duper productive December holiday I had last year? Productive in terms of enjoymaent and knowledge gained that is.
The Wans' enriching Europe trip
I read about 6 books(excluding the ones I reread)
A sharp spike in number of Bleach episodes watched
Learnt how to cook potato patties
Went out with squadmates twice
Improved manga drawing skills
Blogged more
THE BEST EVER: Downloaded a Paint Shop Pro 11 trial (thanks Mum!) and discovered how to use it on my own. I can do some pretty good digital art pieces now.
******
To quote Tigger, TTFN, tata for now!
And I will always think of you as the sun*
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
It's 1 week into the new year and I've had a taste of JC life. So the time has come to pop in at my blog to post the many newsworthy stuff garnered over the past few days:)
Oh sheesh oh sheesh, how the heck do I begin? I mean, it's my first time being in a junior college and there's truckloads to ramble on and on about. There's the building itself (nice architecture and GREAT canteen), new friends (quirky handful), Orientation( a BLAST), sseniors (lame ppl)...Enough beating about the bush, I'll first talk about Orientation.
As mentioned above it was a hydrogen-powered, proton-charged BLAST. But also quite tiring. For one thing, we did quite a lot of cheering which, at the end of the day, left us feeling as though our lungs contained vacuum. For another, we often went home late in the evening and were expected to report to school @ 7.20am. All that inevitably left us feeling worn. Still, the Nanyang Experiencia was quite fun and enjoyable on the whole. Most seniors were outgoing and friendly; some even enthusiastic to a rather alarming degree. Crescent Red Cross ppl would be interested to know that Hasyimah Senior is a member of the NYJC student council. Still as chatty and upbeat as ever, 'Syimah' as she know prefers to be known as, gave the surprised Yours Truly a hug when we met. She and other student council members played a big role in ensuring us JC1s have a smashing time at NYJC by organising games at Sentosa, inter-faction games(my faction Pyro won!) etc. There was even a Disco Night which rocked the school to its foundations.
Being in a new school means that I mingle with a new group of schoolmates, which I took quite some time to adjust to due to an initial culture shock. Don't get me wrong, I get along fine with everyone and no one is ostracising me. Yet, I feel slightly out of the place. This is because most of my peers communicate in Chinese,unlike Crescent, where we ususlly speak English. It's an issue for me because I rarely speak Chinese. Sometimes, I don't dare contribute any input to conversations in Chinese for fear of making ppl laugh. Ah well, I'm more or less used to this know. Besides, being in a Chinese-speaking environment should help pull up my Chinese grades.
After Orientation, we started to attend lectures on the subjects we chose to study. I'm doing Geography, History and Economics at H2 level, and Maths at H1 level. My decision to do both Geog and Hist at H2 level has raised a number of eyebrows and incited a 'siao' response this morning. Yep, it was quite insane of me to attempt H2 for 2 heavy subjects in the name of passion. Oh, I'll just see how it goes. Anyway, lectures have been pretty interesting so far, with each teacher beginning by giving us an introduction to the different subject syllabus. Our Geog teacher linked Geography to Starbucks(because different climates and regions produce different types of Coffee) while our Economics teachers shot us questions like 'Why do bankers earn more than nurses'(the former contributes more revenue).
Right, gotta go to bed soon. There's the CCA Bazaar tomorrow in which the various CCAs showcase what their sport,club or society in order to attract JC1 members. Initially, I wanyed to join Wushu but Mum shot down the idea, saying I would be better off building on my strengths. So I've decided to join Debate and Toastmasters Club which I think will be useful. Though she doesn't want me to take up Wushu, Mum is Okay with me joining a Lion Dance Troop. Stop laughing lah:P Then again, Amanda told me there's this club that offers manga drawing(DROOLS)......
Sheesh. I'll just have to grill the seniors tomorrow.
Good night!
And I will always think of you as the sun*
Monday, January 01, 2007
The curtain may have fell on year 2006 22hrs ago but that does not mean I can't look back and ruminating on whatever happened back then. In fact, I have to make a record of 2006 for I consider it to be a turning point in my growing up.
Sweet sixteen means more to me than being able to watch NC16 movies. I seem to have undergone some sort of maturity growth spurt at 16. Back in my lower secondary days, I was the cute kid who basked in attention. Like I mentioned once in a previous entry, people somehow found me cute. This was a far cry from my time in primary school, where I was a plain Jane. Being the airhead I was, I built up a frivolous and childish image to get more of the attention. Acting cute was part of it too. Operation Cutiepie was succesful but deep down inside, it felt so superficial. People were noticing me all right. For being a sissy.
My maturity level spiked at Sec 4 with the advent of the "O" Levels. The Omnious "O"s were an extremely big deal, so there was no time for childish nonsense. It was even more pressurising for me to do well because I was not very academically-inclined. I needed help. Badly. It dawned on me that I needed to shed the clingy, silly image in order to get the coaching I need. Who's going to pay attention to a giggly kid? No, the time had come to switch to a more serious mode. That bloody mask will have to be disposed off.
So I began approaching teachers for extra help. Something I would get all giggly about to dare to do in lower secondary. From then on, I discovered a new type of attention. Not the oh-so-cute type but a good-you're-responsible, warm one. I could tell they were pleased with me and I like that because I was being admired for the 'right' reasons. In my teachers' eyes, I was a responsible person and they began to entrust me with more difficult tasks. By the time I left Crescent, quite a number of upper secondary teachers knew me for my good attitude.
Perhaps you could say I got caught in an identity crisis and eventually managed to untangle myself. Well, almost. There are times I revert to the old silly self but usually to diffuse some tention in a situation. But I can be serious when the situation calls for it. The bottomline is this: I know that there is a time and place for everything.
The other day, Mum was telling me that people whom others find cute are usually perceived as pansies with little leadership. When I think back to some of the cringe-worthy antics of the past (e.g speaking in a high-pitched voice), I found myself agreeing with her. There is a limit to how sugar-sweet one can be. But then again, if ppl think I'm cute looks-wise, there's not much I can do about it.
In the end, I just want to be me. Soon, I will be entering a new school (Nanyang Junior College) and am determined to make a good impression while not putting on another bloody mask. Garnet of Final Fantasy 9 sums this whole post up best: "Someday I will be Queen(her, not me). But I will always be who I am."
And I will always think of you as the sun*
I'M YING YI
a.k.a Yiggy,YY.28 April:).Crescent Red Cross Cadet.The 4th Silicon electron*.Is a DEVIANT* Gothic Bohemian punk rocker.
Also an ANIMANIAC(anime-fan).Bookworm.Rock music!LORD OF THE RINGS, FINAL FANTASY.more ENERGY than all comets of the universe put2gether.Hardcore Romantic.DARK personality.Black & Pink!
