____T.H.E. .P.A.S.S.

01:45
Sunday, July 31, 2005

____Yet Another Bash Gone Bad

Last Friday night was my Hall Bash. It was supposed to be a night of fun and enjoyment. But I didn't expect to see so many ugly sides of human nature on a single night. On the other hand, I do not see myself as part of the clubbing scene so maybe what I saw was part of the norm of clubbing. And if that is so, it sucks.

Hall One pageant preview started off slowly for the people who do not frequent clubs, myself included. The pageant preview was pretty much predictable with some of the contestants looking really gorgeous. But the initial excitment died almost as soon as it started. After the pageant preview, as the bulk of Hall One was ushered upstairs to the (miserably small) dance floor of Coco Latte , I could see the most familiar bulk of Disney non-clubbers sitting down and either looking really subdued or trying as best to look as though we were having fun. Pathetic.

I sat down along with the rest and it was really boring. In fact, it was so boring that it became funny to me. Crazy ideas then started popping into my head and as I thought about these ideas, I couldn't help but snigger to myself. The glum faces looked so comical. And if the glum faces were comical, the faces of those trying to look cool would have had me folded up on the ground, clutching my stomache and asthmatic with laughter - if not for the fact that I was desperately thinking of ways to get out of the stupid situation.

Soon, enough was enough. I decided that if somebody had to do something, that somebody would have to be me. The row of glum and act cool people sitting down was getting longer and longer. I looked to my immediate left, sitted there was Jingying, followed by Angeline, Andrea and surprisingly, Jyen. My immediate right was Junjie, his girlfriend, and the list goes on to the likes of Yating, Tomio, Justin, Junwei, Baka, Chris and Jocelyn. I needed no furthur self-equivocation - I had to carry out my plan no matter how stupid it may sound.

"You are not going to sit here the whole night are you?!" I half-yelled to Junjie. He looked amused by my question. I thought I remembered him shaking his head, then nodding his head and then looking even more quizzical than ever. I wasted no time in explaining. I just asked him to pass my question down and further down the row.

I looked at Jingying on my left again and contemplated as to whether I should ask her such a crazy question. But I took action as soon as I contemplated, because if my plan was to succeed, I had to carry it out whole-heartedly.

"You are not going to sit here the whole night are you?" I repeated my question into Jingying's ear. She too, gave me and amused look. I felt relieved as I was so afraid that she might have just dismissed my question with a "what are you up to?!" look.

Soon there was commotion amongst us and when the question reached Justin, he stood up and "challenged" me to stand up. I gamely took on the challenge and was chiding the rest to stand up with us. In a while, all of us were at the dance floor, making funny body jerks, and trying to jerk in tune with the music. The non-dancers may look funny, but the thing is to have a good time (or at least, a better time than just sitting on the sofa).

I succeeded in my plan and was really glad, but the night did not end in a happy note. I said earlier in my opening paragraph I witnessed some of the ugly scenes of clubbing and shall briefly tell about them.

As an ex-PTI, I am pretty much against smoking if one is in search for a healthy lifestyle. Smoking because of an addiction is bad enough. Second-hand smoking is even worse but sometimes things cannot be helped especially in places like clubs. Unfortunately, social smoking is totally ridiculous. Non-smokers probably know the bad effects as smoking and social-smokers are non-smokers to start with. Which makes things really incredulous because since you already know that smoking is bad, plus the fact that you are not bounded by addiction, then why smoke? Ridiculous, ain't it?

Next up, would be the stupid drinking games. Challenging each other to either drink, or do something stupid. Really dumb to think about it. Often the girls get challenged and the next thing would probably the girls getting really drunk. Also ridiculous, because, getting drunk means being vulnerable. Why do something to make yourself vulnerable and reliant on others?

Then there was this fight then went about towards the end of the night. Shan't go into the details of the quarrel as I wasn't really on hand to witness what actually happened. But the thing with quarrels almost always boil down to another petty squabble.

Even afterwards when we went for supper there were people gossipping about things that may not be true in the first place. And by spreading rumours, tendency is that parties involved get their reputations destroyed. But what was worse for me is that I was there with the rest who were gossipping about people who are also my friends - I did not know whether to agree with the people around or to stand up for those who weren't. Maybe I could have done better than just keeping quiet but hell, I was too tired to think of another brilliant plan.

So, that's about it to Hall One Bash cum Pageant Preview. But to me, it's a preview to the ugly sides of the beautiful people around.

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01:40
Thursday, July 28, 2005

____Do Not Destroy, Thanks

Back from the fortnight layoff. Like many times when I kept from blogging, events are happening around all the time, sparking lots of thoughts and feelings that cannot be chronologically related in my entries without much thought and careful planning.

So, I am back today feeling good after achieving that elusive IPPT gold. And also, I'm to announce that I'm officially 22 now. Which makes my IPPT gold seem even more "just in time" than ever. I did unexpectedly well this time round, shaving 0.2 seconds off my shuttle run timing, as well as capping a 250 cm broad jump. But what amazed me was how I almost effortlessly glided my way to a 9 min 23 sec 2.4 km timing. A record that even the current batch of PTIs in Khatib would have been proud of. I couldn't believe how arrogant some of the PTIs were. I bet I gave them pretty much of a shock when I shook the 2IC's hand and then bantered along with Lim Han Song. That should have kept them in their place as afterall I'm their senior by more than a couple of batches.

School has started and I think I made a pretty good start by doing my math tutorial as well as trying to keep up with the lectures. But more importantly, it is for me to keep up the standard and achieve where I want to be towards the end of the semester.

Freshman Orientation Camp was a hit as much as it was an exhausting event. Being a programmer subcommer, time spent with the new batch of freshies was minimal which is really a regret. But well, I have the whole year to make up for lost time. And Wilson, I'm trying.. Haha..

I really have to comment on people who have a tendency to use baby language. It irks me. At first, while conversing with people whom you hardly know over MSN, tendency is that I will tolerate such behavior especially if the opposite party is some innocent, act cute girl. However, it gets really irritating when these people start using baby language to converse real life. I could give them a smack in their face and do an Alf Inge Haaland (when he hacked Roy Keane down and taunted him by hinting that Keane was faking an injury).

I tend to ignore such people after a while but it still gets on my nerves even if they are not actually conversing with me. Yes, it does get on my nerves. Some people have told me that "Hey, they are not talking to you what, why let such things bother you?". Now think about the old stain of what-so-ever in the middle of your bedsheet. It is an old stain, and the bedsheet is clean but it does irk you now and then, doesn't it? And when these stains get really unsightly, it irks so much that you'd think it's time for you to get a new bedsheet. It's pretty much the same for giggly-act-cute-prancy-baby-talking-girls. Get back to the cradle and suck on the tu-tu if you want to baby talk, don't waste my time. Seriously.

My cousin commented that I'm a pretty no-nonsense guy. And although I find it amusing, I also realise it's a very apt description. This trait was probably instilled into me during my NPCC days as well as NS time. National Service has done me a service contrary to popular belief that NS is a waste of time. It is a matter of perspective. If you are willing to observe and grow, there is actually much to learn in the army. Thing like man-handling, time-management, emotion-control, team-spirit and so much more. I reiterate - it is all about choosing to learn. And I would like to think that NS has made many people like me a more sensible person now. Most of the PTIs I see now hope to do well in whatever they do now (and they actually put in the effort).

For those who like to baby-speak and suck their tu-tus, I have this idea that originated from none other than yours truly.

If you want to be a useless good for nothing, so be it. You don't have to do anything constructive in this world, but please please PLEASE, do NOT do anything DESTRUCTIVE...

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00:03
Friday, July 15, 2005

____Too bad, So sad, Better luck next time

After all the training, the interval, 4 km runs, gym, swims, all I need was not to disappoint myself. Which I did.

I knew going back to Khatib will make me some sort of a celebrity, afterall being part of the AHM team once, people like the 2IC will be singing praises about me. And of course, Lim Han Song - the PTI who seen me through BMT, then reuniting at Bedok FCC, before seeing me ORD. Like a guardian angel. What I did not realise that Chen Chun has been out of training. Have got lots of respect for this particular person who seems to excel in almost everything he sets out to do. He was one of the fastest of my batch clocking an amazing 8 min 26 sec for his personal 2.4 best, but like I said, "He WAS." I could only manage a personal best of 8 min 56 sec.

As usual, the 4 static stations are a total breeze, Shuttle Run - 9.4 sec, Sit Ups - 40, SBJ - 243 cm, Chin Up - 12. Breeze.

Then came the horror result of the day, 2.4 km run. I clocked 9 min 47 sec. Not the best timings, not enough for a gold award, not enough for my 400 bucks.

Big Mistake 1 - Waiting for Chen Chun to catch up with me. The reason was probably because of previous experiences where all along running with good runners, I have gotten too used to running behind people. I am not used to leading the pack, and very inexperienced in setting the pace of the run. I MUST correct this habit if I want to improve my timing

Big Mistake 2 - Refusal to step out of my comfort zone. I was enjoying the run, and totally at ease with the pace I was setting. I lacked drive to push and do well. I was ENJOYING the cool air. A total failure in this aspect.

Big Mistake 3 - Complacency and over-confidence. Even after seeing the poor timings of the 2nd, 3rd and particularly the 5th lap, I did not urge myself to push harder and gasp for air because I felt that I could still meet the timing. In fact, I felt quite ok physiologically after the run. I should have used my fast twitch muscles to kill off the last 100m. I didn't.

A poor day to sum up. So disappointed. So in need of motivation.

Will try again on the first day of school. Impossible is nothing.

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14:44
Sunday, July 10, 2005

____Yes or No?

I'll start this post by commenting that Rio Ferdinand is an utter disgrace to the footballing fratenity. Being a Manchester United supporter for almost 10 years, hardly have I seen a player from the club who repays kindness, tolerance and absolute trust with a greedy demand for an over-the-top weekly wage of 120 thousand pounds. Even Liverpool's influential skipper could only command a 100 thousand pound per week wage. Rio Ferdinand, in my opinion, isn't amongst the top 3 performers for the club over the past 2 seasons, he should repay Fergie's faith by signing the already over-decent contract that is offered to him.

Moving on, blog entries I've read recently tend to bore and lack ideas. (I'd probably get lotsa stick for that particular comment because people write blogs for different reasons.) On the other hand, the good ones I've been recommended tend to be those that belong to the society's non-conformists. "Non-conformist" is quite a harsh and bold term but with my limited vocabulary, I can't think of a more suitable term in this context. They are the people who dare to be different, question the taken-for-granteds and provide radical ideas that could solve the problems faced by many today. Which is the reason for their blogs to tend to be read-worthy.

It is great to witness that more of us are stepping forward and voicing out. I remember once when I was waiting for my bus at Tampines Interchange after long day in camp together with campmate, Weng. There was this couple who were chasing after this bus that was already moving off the queuing line. The bus driver spotted the couple and kindly halted the bus, but as the bus was 1 full lane off the kerb, the couple had to run some distance on the road itself to reach their bus. The reckless girl was about to dash out when I saw this incoming bus, I proceeded to literally voice out to stop her - which fortunately she heeded to the warning. Should she step out onto the road, the possibilities of outcomes would be limitless because nobody else reacted to the situation, but I was grateful for what I did. Not a very big way of stepping forward, but it was stepping forward nonetheless.

What I am trying to say is that the advantages of voicing out are plentiful such that it is quite time consuming to categorize all of them.

However, it is dangerous to say that everyone should become non-conformists. Non-conformists are at times full of themselves and if someone else, is just like any other - an egoistic bastard, what would become of the society? Imagine the amount of chaos that it would bring - too many "outstanding people" would make a mess out of situations.

Take for example the blogs of "non-conformists". These blogs often come with negativities such as bringing forth a tinge of egoism of the writer as well as arguments that are extreme in nature. Sometimes, expletives are excessively used too. The quality of the blog thus becomes compromised when comments posted by annoyed readers are hardly constructive and the writers proceed to defend themselves painfully - the site becomes a place for blasting and personal attacks.

"You are a filthy whore!"
"I dun give a damn to what you ppl say. I'm just being myself!"

Above are just some of the less vulgar comments I've read. A Canadian teacher during my time in ZHSS once preached that if one couldn't help but include profanities in his/her writing, that person probably didn't have any substance to begin with. Not entirely correct, but it holds some truth. Afterall, if ideas could be conveyed without parties getting annoyed, that would probably be top level convincing.

On hingsight, while it is important that people step forward and acknowledge the fact that "hey, there is a problem, if somebody has to deal with it, then that somebody will have to be me.", there must also be a balance of the traditional thinkers as well as the innovative ones. Balance - many aspects of today's world depends much on it. Balancing occurs in work and play, friends and spouse, speed and endurance, power and control. "Find a balance" is a simple conclusive statement but a difficult process. It is like the gunshot signalling the start of a gruelling 21 km race - 1 command would result in the outcome of many tired runners.

Yet, I'm in the midst of finding mine.

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00:11
Friday, July 08, 2005

____Defending by Brains, Attacking by Heart

The last post left me with brains drained and I haven't come up with a post for a while. I've been training hard for IPPT and my back acted up again today. Amongst many things, the IPPT is one of the goals I had in mind for this holidays. Although I can't say I can bring my fitness levels up to the point where I was before, I will try to achieve a gold award nonetheless. The holidays are almost over and looking back, I still find that I have many things I have not done yet. Will be looking to finish all these within the next week.

Once the holidays end, it would mean a new season of football will start and that I will once again fulfill my bid to perform even better academically. However hard life is going to be then, football will still be a major role with the IBG then later IHG during December. I will be looking forward to see how Manchester United and AC Milan perform in the new season. (The following paragraphs will be really technical. Probably only the football enthusiasts will understand what I'm trying to say)

Both of these teams that I support haven't achieved anything in the last season but their performances have been largely different. Manchester United started slow but progressed strongly through the mid-season. Their style of play doesn't excite me anymore. Rarely do I go "oh yes, this is it!!" when I watch Man Utd play now. When I think of the time when their midfield consisted of Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Roy Keane and David Beckham, I would say the Man Utd now is on the decline. Sad.

Which is why I would prefer to focus my attention on AC Milan. They have got a wonderful team, and even after losing the Champions League final to Liverpool, I still have sleepless nights thinking of how efficient their style of play is. The defence of Milan is impressive, save for their tendency to collapse big time. Some may argue that it is an ageing defence and Maldini and gang are too slow for players like Cristiano Ronaldo and Arjen Robben, I wouldn't agree more. But I have noticed that the back four sit deep in their own half. This makes up for their pace by limiting the space for through passes to be played behind them. All the defence have to do is intercept balls and make intelligent clearances upfield to launch a counter attack.

Milan's midfield consists of 3 defensive players and 1 attacking midfielder. Gattuso and Seedorf provide the strong anchor in front of the slow defence to stop potential attacks even before they become a reality. These are the 2 who does most of the tackling and winning the balls by snapping at the opponents' heels, making sure that the defence hold firm.

Pirlo, the defensive attacking midfielder, picks up the loose balls and passes the ball to Kaka/sprays a long through ball to the strikers/lauch a counter attack down the flanks using Cafu and Maldini. Pirlo has such a sweet and cultured right foot to aid him in his quest, he hardly misplaces a long pass, not to mention a short one. And when I come to the last midfielder, Kaka, one would know that I have time and again been amazed by his level of play. He is the main man in making this formation a successful one. Be it running at the defence, making defence splitting passes, or bringing wingbacks Cafu and Maldini into play, he is a master in all aspects of the attacking game - no one in the world comes close to imitating the directness of his style.

Leading the attack are proven strikers Shevchenko and Crespo. They are strikers that can finish off half chances that come their way. In addition, they possess pace and adequate ball control to latch on to through balls by Kaka and Pirlo, and stick the real chances into the back of the net.

With Dida in goal, Milan have arguably the best first XI in Europe. Milan adopt a defensive stance throughout the 90 minutes of the game and only attack when they feel that they have a chance to punish their opponents. It is because they have such a reliable defence and extremely potent attack, they are the only team that makes me believe that possession doesn't necessarily win games - every counter attack almost always seem to result in a goal. However, this doesn't mean that Milan cannot keep possession. On the contrary, they are great possession keepers too, especially when they are a goal up and nearing the end of the match - they excel in the "shut out" cattenaccio too.

Milan is not a team without flaws, it is just that the players complement each other so well that I cannot help but salivate whenever I see them at their imperious best. In the future, they have to keep buying players that have the potential to suit this playing style. Micheal Owen is a pacy finisher that comes to mind and quick attacking wing backs like Ashley Cole can fit well into this system.

I'm quite a fan of this system and I find that it works well with Hall One's defensive tradition. Time and again when I urge the team to attack, I am disappointed by replies that we're a defensive team. This comes as a great solution to our problems but we also need to find the suitable players. Do hope we perform well in the next Inter Hall Games.

In the meantime, one can be sure that I will still preach the system of "defending by brains, attacking by heart".

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____T.A.G.B.O.A.R.D

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