Responsibilty

It happened quite some time ago, just about a week before the Project Finals. My group (Tzehou, Jiajie and Daniel) and I went to a tuition centre to introduce our project about Peranakan as part of our resource package (Cat 7) . The tuition centre were located at the top floor of Causeway Point and it was our second time there.

We were called in to the office where I think the lady we met in there was the in-charge of the tuition centre. She showed us our email to the tuition centre with several highlighted points in it. The time the email was received was at Monday 12am++. I was rather appalled by the fact since I thought that the email was sent days ago. (that day was Tuesday)The in-charge seemed very displeased at the fact that we showed no consideration to the tuition centre at all. She lamented that we should sent the email 3 days earlier. Tze Hou was apologetic since he was the one who sent the email. Whoever, the in-charge carried on by saying that Tze Hou's mother has contacted the tuition centre and requested for a slot in the schedule. At this point of the conversation, the whole group was utterly shocked as it was not known to anyone of us. (including Tze Hou) It seemed that Tze Hou's mother has act without informing him. In the end we get a lecture from her about our irresponsibility and other faults such as sending an email without leaving the contact number.

I felt that we should really be thoroughly ashamed of ourselves as both of the in-charge's sons were from Hwa Chong and we agreed that this should not be how students from a prestigious school should behave. We have learnt several lessons through this minor setback and I realized that sometimes we learnt more outside the school itself. Responsibility proved to be an extremely important attribute in co-operation with people of different walks of life. It is certainly something we cannot live without in our life.

Random-ness

I have really neglected this seemingly sleepy blog of mine. Its always like this. Its hard to have one life but two blogs. Sometimes you just simply don't feel like writing on 1 blog if you have 2 blogs... Its weird. If I got the time, I will figure out someday. Now lets get on to my real topic today. Hehheh. Its kinda strange in my recent blog posts that my posts seem to lack a very important quality that blogs should have. And that is the "just-in-the-day" events and feelings. Most posts would be a reflection of a story-telling of what happen that day but mine was rather different. It seemed to either lag a while or simply just random thoughts and feelings evoked by certain chains of events. Its liked a chemical reaction. Blah + Bleh + TIME --> Blog post!

I don't know about readers of this blog. But I certainly feel that there is no consistent style of writing here and it just seem to change in a very rapid pace. The style (not sure if the 'style' I am talking about here is the same 'style' Miss Lim talks about in narrative lessons) varys according to the mood I am in on that day. It could be reflective, humorous (rare) or simply events' show-and-tell. See, I am digressing here. If you are very confused here, read the next blog post which will most likely happen today. That is my main topic. But digression is inevitable today in "My Blah-Blog". I seem to be in a very twitchy mood. Nevermind that. It is kinda personal and if I go into that, it will be another big big digression.

:)

Laptop's keyboard are really easy to type. While thinking about how to start on the main topic, I managed to type 2 paragraghs in like WOW! a few minutes. (or what it feels like) Now that I really *screwed* this blog post up, I decided to just put a stop to it and start on the task, which is to blog a post, to liven up this blog.

Win-Win

Its another one of my family's post-dinner talk and my father shared with us one story which I thought was rather meaningful and was very related to Hwa Chong's philosophy "win-win". The story starts with a young man asking a wise old man what is the difference between hell and heaven. The wise old man said, "Hell and Heaven both have unlimited delicacies. But there is one peculiar rule in Hell and Heaven - diners must use a four feet fork to eat. Spirits who went to Heaven survive. On the other hand, the spirits who went to Hell died." *Its illogical as spirits can't die...*

The young man was curious and asked for a reason. The wise old said, "Spirits who went to Hell cannot use the four feet forks. The forks were too long. However, the spirits who went to Heaven did not use the forks to feed themselves. They use the forks to feed others and others feed them with their fork." I thought this story was rather interesting. Astonishing, my father told me its an economic anecdote. Its purpose is to tell the entrepreneurs that feedbacks are very important. I interpreted the story my own way and thought that its about win-win situation.

I personally feel that helping each other out is extremely important in modern hectic lifestyle. If we ever think of doing everything ourselves without anybody's help, regardless its family, friends or colleagues, I think our life will be a very stressful one. Needing someone's help does not mean showing weaknesses on your part. When I was in primary school, I used to refuse help on some unimportant stuff. I did not know the reason why but now, I think maybe I thought that but asking for assistance in some minor stuff,I am showing that I am incapable.

It also reminded me of the Adam Khoo course "Take Flight" in Primary 6. On one of the activities, we were grouped into pairs and were supposed to play Tic-Tac-Toe. Each groups were given two Tic-Tac-Toe template. The winner of all groups is to let both your partner and yourself to win as much as possible. I did what I thought was right and went to cross out every box. My partner which is also my best friend eyed me with suspicion and surprise but I reckoned he trusted me so he did not object to my actions. In the end, we were the only group who won and we surprised the trainers completely with the answer to the "riddle". That's definitely one nice memory! Maybe, I am fated to come Hwa Chong! *Not considering the fact that I have not heard of Hwa Chong when I was P6.*

:)

Change

I came across this quote through another blog which my 2nd brother recommended as an inspiration. I thought it was rather meaningful since I reflected upon myself when I was doing this particular Malay assignment which needed a family photo. It struck upon me how much I have changed in these few years.

Especially during the times in Hwa Chong.

Inevitably, negative changes were bound to occur on this 'vulnerable' period of time when impressions, malevolent or benevolent, were most likely be implanted, perhaps for lifetime, in this teen behind the screen now. I don't deny that I learnt more swear words now. I don't deny that I was expose to more sex-related terms. And I don't deny that I have learnt to manipulated truth now. HOWEVER, that does not certainly mean I have been using my new-founded vocabulary. In fact, I prided myself for being one of the class members who did not use the F word. :D

With puberty at work, maybe I tend to view stuff with a bit more seriousness. I take people's words to heart, I take note how people look at me, I tried to present myself in a cool, neat manner. Constantly struggling to portray myself as a flawless character in other people lives and more important in my own life. Sometimes changes makes you wonder if you are still yourself or you are changing to become your real self. Or perhaps, you are just someone who perpetually trying to change for the sake of changing. Change is the only constant. But the constant seemed to make me inconsistent in my thoughts and emotions.

Its nostalgic as I recalled how innocent and pure I was in my primary school times. Ignorance is bliss. Indeed it is. Looking at my own picture years ago, when I was a lot shorter, much more plump, with hair 1 cm long and face rounder and smaller, I could not help but wish I can experience the life I used to experience back then. Answering questions without thinking and still could be deemed as adorable. Getting scolded by teachers and still could be just as happy the next day. The carefree and innocence of me then was like a balloon floating up to the sky. You cannot get it back. But you still like to watch it drift slowly up to the blue, blue sky. Remembering the times when you once have it in your hands.

We are coming to the end of Term 1 soon and I must say that Term 1 was a very hectic period of time with my competition. If I do not know myself well, I would be saying I am giving excuses... The competitions indeed occupied a large space in my time. Not that I could actually get away with this reason alone. It all boils down to my inability to manage my time well. I got to prioritise and make sure I have adequate practice on every subjects!

I must admit that I have indeed disappoint numerous teachers with my scores this term, especially my inconsistency in my Language Arts. Miss Lim, if you are reading this I must apologise for my inconsistency. However, Miss Roselind Matthews once said to me, "Do not say sorry to me. I am just doing what I should be doing. Learn from your mistakes and get over with it." I still remember that it was the time when I got very low for my history test and Miss Matthews brought up my marks by being a little lenient. From then on, I look upon Miss Matthews in a different light, not because of her help but because of her wisdom that I felt from her. Therefore, I will work harder next term which I believed that my compeitions will end by that time and I would have no more excuses anymore :)

How ironic. Most of the adults would be glad to be a child once again, unburdened by the responsibility of the society. On the other hand, most of the children would want to grow up faster instead, to experience the privileges of freedom. Is that really so? Is that only what we think? I do not know but I would like to believe that some of the adults would rather remained as an adult to enjoy the freedom he/she desire from young. I would also like to believe that some of the children would rather stay as a child, just happy to do only what he is suppose to.

What about me, you ask? Haha, I like myself to be special. From young, I was conditioned to stereotype that all the adults want to be carefree again and all the children want to escape from childhood. Hence, slowly but surely, I wanted to grow up faster. I wanted to be an adult. But, it was not to enjoy the so-called privileges of freedom, it was just to understand why adults wanted to be children and why children wanted to be adults. The carefree of children, the privilege of freedom, they were nothing but illusions. I have come to this age where people can consider us to be boys or gentlemen therefore I can say that I understand part of what it is to be an adult and what it is to be a child. I cannot consider myself to be carefree with the amount of pressure and workload I have. Of course, it cannot be compared to the stress an adult face but nontheless it was a negative force so strong and intangible that it holds you down as time passes. Yet the desire to experience freedom of adults were not quench.

However, I am fine with it. Simply because I feel that what both the adults and children wanted is the same. Privilege of freedom of the adults and being unburden and carefree like the children,is to break free from the chains of the absolute existence, life. In this society, whether you are a child or an adult, you got restrain but the rules of life. Children were bound by rules and regulations to protect us, despite the fact that we may not like the limitations. Adults, similarly, were weighed down by troubles of surviving, not only for themselves but for their families. They have a need to fret over little events that may bring changes to their lives or the lives of their loved ones. Therefore, they felt that its hard to take just a breather, thinking that such a short rest would bring a change to their routinal life, making their world upside-down.

The friend I want in TKAM

If I could choose, I would choose Jem. In a realistic manner, since we are both closer in age and same gender, we would get along well. (Stereotype-thinking) The reason why I chose Jem the moment I read the question is because I can empathise with him. This decision is greatly influenced by the trials during the later part of the novel. I was elated like him when I read that Tom Robinson's left arm was crippled. I thought that for once, despite nagging doubts, that Atticus would win the case. Raw shock gripped me when I read the part with 4 guilty together. I blanked out for a sudden. This may seem dramatic, but I did not know whether it was the long hours I spent on the book that made me thought that I read wrongly or I was simply rejecting the words on the book. I couldn't believe that he actually lost though it has to be like this in the novel to fully express the strong discrimination of the Whites to the Negros. I refused to believe it and read the page 217 three times, confirming the truth. I felt nothing but pity and unfairness for Tom Robinson. Just as the book stated, it just ain't right.

At that moment I really felt liked comforting Jem, telling him that he was not the only person feeling that the jury was blinded by prejudice. That was when I felt that Jem was rather similar to me in that aspect. Perhaps I would have wanted to be friends with Scout if she was portrayed as a little bit more matured. However, the purpose of Scout, Jem and Dill being in different ages was to show the different rates and stages of maturation in the three children and I thought that Jem's maturation stage was like mine since I could understand how he felt in the novel better than Dill or Scout. Hence, it would be rather nice to have a friend that feels the same way as you do. That's just what I thought.

My Research on the Mockingbirds.

According to my research on mockingbirds, they lived mostly at residential areas, city parks, farmlands, open country with thickets, and desert brush. They build their nests in dense shrubs and low trees. It is very similar to the setting of TKAM. The Cunninghams farmed to survive. Therefore, the environment in Maycomb, Alabama should be farmlands and open countries with thickets. Similarly, in the movie TKAM, we can see that there are low trees and shrubs could be seen near Atticus' house and where Dill appeared through the gate.

The Mockingbird is also the state bird of Arkansas, Florida, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Texas. As Mississippi is one of the state that was located near Alabama, Mockingbirds should be found in Maycomb.

Plant berry bushes such as holly, mulberries, raspberries, Virginia creeper, blackberries, dogwood, elderberries, hackberry, brambles, pyracantha, cotoneaster, grapes or figs would also be found in Maycomb as they were part of the diet of Mockingbirds and they were able to survive in Maycomb since they were shrubs.

Results of BGFL Quiz

It was pure astonishment to found out that I am naturalistic and intrapersonal. Regardless how many times I do these kind of personality quizzes, it never fails to surprise me. It have never come across my mind that I was naturalistic as I am not one who goes to a park or observes the environment regularly. My family has just got fishes before the new year in hopes to make my family more lively. Though this decision was greatly influence by my father, it does not hide the fact that I cared about the fishes. Perhaps doing this kind of quizzes simply exposed us to the other side of our personality, or rather, the real side of it.

Similarly, I always thought myself to be interpersonal instead of intrapersonal. Most of the time I do not know what I am thinking or how I should articulate my thoughts. Maybe thats why my inability to express made me more intrapersonal then interpersonal. I am not sure when, but it has come to the extend where I am deemed *emo* by my friends. I don't really mind because they would have known me better than I know myself.

My Birthday :)

It wasn't until Liyee messaged me on the bus to wish me Happy Birthday that I remembered that today's the big day. I wanted to reply with a 'Thx!' but my phone spoiled and I couldn't type out an exclamation mark... Anyway, thanks a lot Liyee! I am pretty touched that some of my friends still remembered my birthday. But among them, all were girls. (Majority of my good friends were girls in Primary School, in case you don't know.) What was more touching was that my classmates actually sang me birthday songs in class. Both Chinese and English. Haha. It was so embarrassing . Mr Sim was talking about lockers(?) and then Si Yuan suddenly shouted, "Today is Zhi Yong's birthday!" I was surprised that he knew/remembered. I am not really the type of person who always remember other people's birthday therefore I am really really touched beyond words to describe. I tried to act passive though. Its not like I wanted to laugh or cry in front of Mr Sim.

Back at home, My family and I ate steamboat for dinner. My eldest brother's girlfriend(?) was there too since my eldest brother will be leaving for NS tomorrow. How sad. My celebration also serves as a farewell party for him. :(
Fortunately, he will be coming back soon because of Chinese New Year. The house will be going to be so empty until Saturday. Sister go to Orientation Camp and eldest brother to NS.
I will have a very big bed since he is off to NS. (We shared our bed)

Haiz... Despite the birthday and NS thingy all going on, its a fact that tomorrow there will be a Math test and I will have to mug to pass...

The POWER of cheering. HCI Version.

I have not really thought much about Hwa Chong's cheers when I first entered Hwa Chong. During the SOO (Secondary One Orientation) I always ignore the "Group ** squeeze!" and the OT (Organizing Team)'s effort to foster the Hwa Chong spirit in us. I even came to the point of disliking the seniors when they forced us to repeat the cheers until we have learnt it, memorised it and until they were satisfied. To be frank, I was throughly disgusted by their actions. I still remembered the time when 2 OTs witnessed us doing a "weak Rock You" and then forced us to repeat it so many times until we were rather late for our break. At that time I was the top 1 introvert guy in my group. (though someone would pass me off as "acting cool" and "emo".) Therefore I wasnt doing the cheer properly at all. However, I was not caught, instead I went for my break with my group and that's it. I didn't understand the reason behind in learning the cheers. I didn't get to feel the real Hwa Chong spirit. I didn't used the chance to expressed my pride of being a Hwa Chong 子弟. But nothing is too late. I still have years to enjoy the bonds and spirit of Hwa Chongians. So now, I am going to share with you all an event that will be significant in my entire Hwa Chong life.

We were a bit early for our B Division match. So we settled down in Clementi Town Secondary School and watched the match that was before our B Div's. It was Hua Yi VS Bukit Panjang. It was a B Div match. That means it would be a nice one. However the real thrill in watching this match was that both teams were rather significant in relation to our B Div. Bukit Panjang was the only team that has won our B Div in this year's West Zone so far. And Hua Yi have just lost to our B Div recently. The first round was a rather plain victory for the Bukit Panjang but the second round was a very tight match. The scores were very close throughout. It could be possible that Hua Yi would win. That would be quite humiliating for our seniors as they won Hua Yi which won Pukit Panjang which won them. In other words, it could mean in some percentage that our B Div won Hua Yi because of luck or Bukit Panjang won our B Div because of luck. (Its rather confusing, isnt it?) My C Div captain, Hong Sen, said that he would jumped off the building if Hua Yi lost. It was rather extreme but he was a confident man. I too believed that Bukit Panjang was too stable and consistent for Hua Yi to win. I also have no doubt that if there is 1 team who could win our incredible B Div, it would not lose that easily. I was correct, in the end, Hua Yi lost.

Soon after, Mr Tok beckoned us to go outside while the B Div were warming up. The first question he asked was, "Why have you come today? To watch the match or to support the seniors?" Honestly, I was surprised. From the start, everybody has been saying, "We are going to see the match." Nobody said, "We are going to support the seniors." From the moment onwards, I kinda changed my purpose of coming here. It's not to watch, it's to support. Mr Tok continued by saying that this match would be extremely important as it was a match that would decide whether the B Div would be able to get champion. With that he entered the indoor sports. When we followed suit, the B Div already started warming up. The standard warming up sequence was personal team warming up, then free spike followed by serving. One could pictured it like an ancient war. My famous senior Zhengjie thundered down a ball with a "bpoom" and we followed up by cheering. The ball was just like the catapult and the cheering were millions of arrows fired. The opponent suffered morale damaged but their notorious Oliver smashed down a nearly-invisible ball that went "BPOOM!" So on and so forth.

The players down there were the catapults and the supporters up here were the archers. It isn't a real blood and flesh battle. It was a battle of morale. Even the best player would have fear deep in their heart when they saw that their strength was on par with the other.

The match started. It was long before it ends.
Clementi scored 1 point. Hwachong scored 2 point. Clementi scored 2. Hwachong scored 1 point. The differences in their scores never exceeded 3. It was a battle of equal strength. But we lost. It was solemn silence during the timeout before the 2nd match. The 2nd match started. The situation is similar. But, they did not have a value we practised. 自强不息。When the scores were nearing the twenties, HCI scores surged and won. For Clementi, it was probably a defeat of underestimating us since our morale seems low. The 3rd match was swift and thrilling enough. HCI took advantage of their sudden defeat and their scores skyrocketed. However, Clementi started to crawl back in pursue of us. And within a short amount of time, the difference of 10 points was reduced to only 3. It served as a tremendous blow for HCI but the supporters did not give up, neither did the players. We believed in our seniors' victory. We yelled our lungs out on every ball that was served till our voice was hoarse and coarse. In the end, we won. In spite of facing such a strong team. In spite of losing the first match. In spite of the sudden increase of scores for Clementi town in the third match. They won. We won. That really showed me the real POWER of cheering.