Vaguely reminiscent…

And I’m supposed to be sleeping but I can’t bring myself to sleep yet. Somehow. Weird lei. And I need to wake up at 5+ to do readings for tmr’s ICL if I wanna have breakfast with hall buddies @ 8 and to follow other hall buddies to Careers Fair @ 10 and meet law buddies for lunch @ 12. Sich is the life of a student. It didn’t help that I marginally understood today’s lessons on Hemingway’s “The Sun Also Rises” (there was something about how society dealt or deals with inadequacies if different ways or something) and IRS (we went through a cheem treatise on EU and EC law and their interaction with international conventions and how EU states have to grapple with both domestic obligations with international conventions and how the community can completely trump that). And I’m bloody sleepy. It seems that I will need 2 cups of teh peng to survive tmr’s ICL.

Anyway, Amplitude 09/10 was yesterday and I had a ball! It was soo fun – my last Amplitude so I was actually pretty sad – been in Amplitude since Year 1 lei. But I wanna form an Alumni acca group thingy so we can join them next year to perform at Amplitude or at PhoenixFest! Wheeee. We did Enya’s “May It Be”, Emmy Rossum’s “Slow Me Down” and “Sing Me to Heaven” which were all well received whee It does show that numbers do not really matter as long as you do it slow, steady and very well! I’m gonna miss choir loads when I leave hall and embark on a mind-numbing legal career. Argh. ><

Anyway, true to my fashion of trying to spice things up, with the help of C, I came up with a script that was intentionally cheesy to the max!

Once upon a time, as all stories begin, there lived a group of students who chose to live in a land of books, labs and assignments. these students would always be stuck in a book or to their laptops, oblivious to everything. One day however, these students became tired of living their lives this way and all alone. With this in mind, they began a rousing prayer.

<<Enya – May it be>>

Then lo and behold as if by magic, many found another with whom they could share their lives with. They’d spend hours reminiscing and sharing deep philosophical thoughts – like why plastic bags flew in a circular motion on a windy day, as if blown by some unknown force which understood beauty in simplicity. Some however began to doubt: Was this the right person? Things are moving way to quickly – Slow me down please?

<<Emmy Rossum – Slow Me Down>>

Once however each one of them knew that this was right and that feelings were mutual, they kept on with their promises and married that very girl or boy that they met that fateful day – when they stumbled upon their shoes or when a book fell on their feet or when by some freaky chance, they got to sit next to each other in a module that had assigned seating. At one of their weddings where each of them vowed to live with each other through sickness and in health till death did them apart, they sang a tune to each other that further sealed this sacred bond between them. This is that very song.

<<Sing Me to Heaven>>

And yes you guessed it. My favorite line has to be about the plastic bags flying – it just somehow always intrigued me when I was a child. Till now still actually. Haha.

And so I’ll miss you Choir! We have one more thing coming up – PhoenixFest and then it’s adieu till long. Argh. I don’t want to go to work. Okay – SLEEP.

Et alors, ce fin arrive finalement. And what a wait it has been. What a year it has been. What a whirlwind of a rollercoaster it has been.

Well, I’m done with the dreaded five-letter word – e-x-a-m-s – but technically, I don’t really want to think that it’s completely over. I’m still waiting for my law buddies and my hall comrades to finish theirs and it will be party-party-party from then on. Which would come in about 6 days!

Well, one of the things that kept me sane while preparing for my last 2 papers – Corporate Insolvency Law (which is an utter killer I tell you) and Law & Sociology of the Family was this game – Restaurant City. A friend of mine gave me the link on MSN whilst I was panicking for my Maritime Law paper and I’ve never looked back since. And for once (TODAY!) I got a perfect rating of 50.0/50.0!!!

Well, a short brief of what has been written in the annals of my 3rd year in NUS. And it’s a long list yes.

Raffles Hall Orientation (AOGL of Jack Sparrow with the most fun OG I’ve ever handled)
Unplugged (Random dinner performance, Halloween, Valentine’s Day, Phoenix Fest)
Choir (Random performances, Amplitude)
RH Drama (5 Things I Hate About You)
NUS Stage (Back2Back)
RH Dinner & Dance (Headache of massive proportions but with the best company of friends and a great team = the biggest and most fun DnD Raffles has ever seen!)
Perth, Melbourne, Canberra, Sydney (Where I got my camera and cash stolen when I was in the toilet – *&^$) 
Emoness (I better stop doing this in front of everyone next sem onwards)
Crazy days + Crazy nights with crazy friends (Awesome fun)
Awesome Malaysian Trip with Law + Hall Friends
Discovery of Korean Pop music via Wondergirls’ Nobody
Crazy research papers + Insane take home exams
Crazy fun and insane stress @ law firm internships (which I still cannot fathom the reasons why I even applied for internships)
Long long long eye-opening and soul-searching conversations in my room with friends (in 3A-406)
<3

And so another semester has passed and thus, another year in Uni is about to end. Once again, all our paths will split again for about 2-3 months where we’ll be doing other things to keep ourselves busy to try and not think of each other too much and to keep in contact via phone and msn. I’ll miss my friends in law and hall. Like loads. Loads. Loads. But everyone’s gonna have their bit of fun so it all works out well. I should be off to Europe for a month while B’s off to Australia. S and X will be off to Redang and myself, W, S, X, D and M will be off to Genting the weeks leading up to the start of school again.

However, as year 4 looms closer, I can no longer deny that the working world is beckoning closer and closer with every passing day. I make it sound like a monster that’s out to eat me with every step I take but I have faith that it is not one. At least not as vicious sounding or vicious looking. I cannot deny that I am afraid. Because I am. I am afraid of what comes next after graduation. What happens if I land in a shitty law firm with a shitty boss whose ass I have to lick 24/7? What happens if I land in a workplace full of conniving and astute people, perfectly in tune with the politics of the office which may be rampant and insidious? I do think about these things before I lay to sleep in my bed in my room at times and it frightens me but if I’ve learnt anything from my internships, hopefully it’s the knowledge that my future mentors will be understanding and more than willing to impart their knowledge and skills to me.

I must also admit this – the future scares me shitless. What happens when I move back home from hall after 4 years in Raffles? I don’t have my own bed. I don’t have my own room. I seriously hate sleeping in the living room. This however is great ammo for me to argue to rent a place with a bunch of friends but it will still be difficult for them understand the convenience and economics of it all. But I hope they understand. I really hope they do. Especially now. I need the space to do things that I want and need to. I am an adult.

As uncertain as the future is, at least I know I have a few things right now.

1. Friends
2. Family
3. Fun
4. <3

Thank you all.

Happy birthday April babies! It’s the sucky exam period again but here’s a happy happy birthday to all you out there… We are a special batch! =)

Haha… I’m so not supposed to be blogging lol. Supposed to finish revising Equity but I think that this entry’s so overdue… Lol.

Well my birthday happened again! And it was such a nice birthday with such great company! Stuff that transpired…

1) Dinner by Shaun, Xian, Chevy @ Shaun’s on the 39th floor. And this was after a sucky IPPT. Thanks you guys… Love you all loads. =) It’s amazing how close we’ve become this semester… Viva the original Mugging Club!

2) Pizza and Cake @ Shu Shan’s room in 3A. This was loads of fun too… . Before that, I had my stupid Assessed Negotiations at Raffles Place and then a nerve-racking 2nd audition for NUS Stage. Damn busy day. Haha… but it was so much fun! Thanks to all those who came and surprised me with the lovely lovely cake… No smashing of cake slices on people’s faces! Lemme try recall who was there.

Thanks: Shu Shan, Wei Bin, Edison, Kavan, Jia Cheng, Xian, Chevy, Shaun, Cali, Jon, Jerome, Linda, Chao Qun, Clement, Mel, Shinney, Sook Hwa, Peck Ling, Zhou Jing, Jasvind, Z Junyi, H Junyi, Moses, Ushan, Gant, JJ, Jon K, Hu Xiang!!! =)

3) Spent my actual birthday with family members at home… =) It’s just such peace staying at home with the family. No worries and unadded stress. Love you all loads too! Thanks for everything my always-loved, caring and always supportive family: Mom, Dad, Sis and my 3 Brothers. Though I’m rarely at home due to school/hall stuff, it’s just so comforting to just hear your voices over the phone even if it’s just to ask how things are going. Love.

4) You know who you are. Thanks for EVERYTHING. =)

5) And thanks to everyone who wished me happy birthday!!! =) Sorry I’ve not been able to reply to some of you yet – will do so real soon! Thanks for the wishes!!!

5) And I got lovely lovely belated birthday gifts from my friends this week!!! Awww… You guys shouldn’t have!!! =) Jon, Cali and Shaun, knowing my violent tendencies and my love for Happy Tree Friends got me a Nutty toy that has a bobbing head – It’s that squirrel from EyeCandy!!! Super duper cute lahr haha… And, through some expert covering up, another whole gang got me a tower fan for my room when I started talking about the intense heat nowadays. Thanks to Jia Chen, Wei Bin,  Kavan,  Edison, Shu Shan, Mel, Shinney, Daniel, Linda & JJ!!! All you guys are all so sweet and I feel loved. =)

It’s been a great birthday and a great April thus far. =) As my MSN nick says, Raff Raff is really really “pleasantly surprised and very thankful for the friends he has”. He really is. I love every single one of you!

Up next, is the next hurdle. As always, the exams are looming real near. And once again, the alarm and timer for the exams have been set. Scary. I hate this sem’s modules. Eugh. In any case, jiayou jiayou to everyone! Bonne chance and aja aja fighting!

Stupid essay finally completed after much headaches and sleepless nights. Stupid public law essay. Grrr… Well, at least it’s over and done with. I couldn’t wait to reach the 3500 word mark so that I knew I could stop inputting stuff into the essay and start reducing instead. Luckily by then, I was already finishing up my conclusion.

Sighs. This essay was super damn tiring. Especially since it was right smack in between crazy rehearsal schedules and choir concerts. Rehearsals for Kimi Wa Tomodochi also stretch till pretty late. They’re great fun because I’m practising with close friends but ya, the late hours are really quite tiring. Sighs.

And Equity C’s stupid 24 hour test assignment was ass-irritating.

Well at least everything has ended.

Ended.

End.

Fin.

I am not very coherent am I?

Haha… Those are the lyrics from “Alvin and the Chipmunks” – one of the songs from the movie. Witch Doctor I think. Cool show… I actually liked it. Went in thinking I would be wasting my money but ended up really really liking the show. Haha…

Well, as you might’ve figured out by now, carolling’s finally ended. And what fun it was! Although it was really really tiring both physically / vocally and mentally, I really really enjoyed this year’s carolling a lot more than last year. First of all, I went carolling with 2 groups this year, the Raffles Hall Choir and with the NUS Choir. Really really cool bunch of people I sang with.

Carolling with RH Choir this year was tons of fun! 3 main places this year I think – Jurong East Entertainment Centre, Ngee Ann City and White Sands. It was kinda tough shifting from tenor and bass when they needed it the most but the most fun we had was after carolling itself. We’d binge (okay not really binge – stuff ourselves!) on really nice good food and with excellent company. One was at Swensen’s. Another was at Clementi. Another was at Holland V. Another was to watch Enchanted and then KTV. Another was to watch Alvin and the Chipmunks after a lunch at a Hong Kong Cafe. Another was to have Tang Yuan in the Block 4 kitchenette because it was some winter solstice thingy. And we had to walk back from Holland V all the way back to RH because we missed the last bus and when we played charades till 5am in the kitchenette.

Most importantly however, all the occasions were accompanied with joyous laughter and just mindless banter with good friends. Carolling itself was quite fun too! We tried to not be so uptight and serious on stage but sometimes, we were just too nervous to smile. Haha… But we had tons of fun singing. Well, I did! I’ll miss all the choir ppl. Heck. I kind of miss carolling already haha… But we’ll be working together again for Phoenix Fest/Rhazzmatazz, whichever it is that RH has decided. But I am sure it’s gonna be tons of fun. A zillion thanks to all the people who made it fun: Shu Shan, Wei Bin, Kavan, Daphne, Gant, Jocelyn, Huiyi, Huiyuan, Brian, JJ, Boon Ghee, Swee Yee, June, Melissa, Shinney, Keith, Chao Chao and the many seniors who came by and helped out and sang with us. Hmmm… Have I forgotten someone? Pardon me if I did.

Carolling with NUS Choir was fun too! I’m not really familiar with everyone yet but everyone’s been so warm and welcoming, it’s hard not to fit in. I sang with them at a few places, I think it was at Marina Square, Wisma Atria, AMK Hub, Tanglin Club and at Shangri-la. Shag shag shag. Shangri-la was the toughest I thought because we had so many sessions in a space of about 4 hours. Fun all the way though. Haha… Here’s where the vocals got drilled I think because one of the most challenging yet most beautiful songs was sung at every session: the melodious O Holy Night. Love that song to death but the belting also scored a toll on my vocal chords because I think I would choose to blast the wrong parts loudly. Haha. Usually my fave parts would be the victim. Plus, I was always afraid I would sing “Bm” wrongly during I’ll Be Home For Christmas”. Infernally afraid. Haha…

But I made tons of friends in NUS Choir! Especially among the basses. Heck… All 4 sections actually. Love all of them. They’re such a bunch of fun-loving people who just love singing because they love singing. Gotta love their passion. Phew – I’ve got a lot to catching up to do. On Christmas Eve, after we finished singing at Shangri-la and after a well-deserved dinner at McDonalds (!!!), a few of us spontaneously decided to stop in the underpass between Wheelock place and Lido and started singing some carols which echoed through the tunnel. It was midnight and we wanted to celebrate the Christmas spirit! So random, so fun!

Other than that, the month’s been a month of catching up with dear old friends whom I’ve neglected (sorry!) this past semester. For example, this evening, I just got back from Edison’s ReWinds concert at VCH – great concert. I liked most of the pieces though I only liked parts of Othello. But I loved Global Variations. More examples would be when I met up with Chris for lunch at Holland V’s Thai Express. I also indulged in chocolate heaven with Bjorn at Max Brenner’s. Had supper with Daniel and Shaun over Geylang’s famous beef horfun/seafood horfun and tau huay. Had drinks (well I had a Shirley Temple which is a mocktail but still technically a drink) with Tim, Daniel, Shaun, Kelvin, Farid and the CME ppl after one of our carolling sessions. But I still have tons of people to meet up with. Sighs… So little time before school starts again haha.

Oh and as I mentioned last night, I finished Peculiar Chris, having found it accidentally at the Central Library. Really loved the book – it had moments of awesome insight and made me think. But at times it was a bit too cursory for my taste. Still like the book tons despite its flaws. The author took a very bold step when he chose to publish it and I really admire his courage. And the fact that he was from RJ as well really makes me proud to be a RJ student too. =) Plus the fact that I watched Asian Boys Vol 3 really made me like the book even more. That was a great play. The book on which it was based on? Equally great.

Plus, it reminded me once more why I love books so much. I’m very much a visual person – that’s why I take so long to read a book sometimes. I like to imagine myself being in the author’s or protagonist’s shoes and imagining myself in the story itself. Making it real. I just love immersing myself in a book and smiling or slightly laughing (softly of course) in the train or on the bus when reading a passage that I’m highly amused about. While reading Peculiar Chris, I teared a bit when Samuel died beside Chris in an almost pathetic yet quietly strong way. My sister used to think I was mad to smile out of nowhere at the randomest of times when reading a book. Strangers would sometimes stare as well. But I don’t care. I do as I please as long as I’m doing no harm to anyone else. I think that’s why Giselle attracted me so much in “Enchanted”. She sings. Very well but very randomly at very random times. And she cares not a toot what other people think. I love that. And I love her.

I’m finishing up Neil Gaiman’s “Stardust” by tomorrow and will start on Philip Pullman’s “Northern Lights” as well. Hopefully, I can also finish Captain Bluebear before school starts. Crap. I was so supposed to open up my next sem’s books. Like last week!!! Haha… And I so need to read a Lit classic before school begins because I know I won’t have time to do so once hell breaks loose again. I’ve got Oscar Wilde’s “Woman of No Importance” and Edward Albee’s “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf” staring back at me on my desk under the desk lights. Lol. Officially, I’ve touched them. That’s a start. Above that however, I have “The Law of Trusts and Equitable Remedies” and “Constitutional Law in Malaysia and Singapore” threatening to fall on my head from the shelves. Nagging back at me.

And I still want to read more books. Been meaning to read more. I feel a need to reread Dan Brown’s “The Da Vinci Code” and Gregory Maguire’s “Wicked”. I want to reread “Bridget Jones’ Diary” and the slew of Adrian Mole diaries. And I so want to read the last 2 books in the Harry Potter series. I’ve not even read them! Omg. And I want to get “Mister B.Gone” by horror maestro Clive Barker and the other books by Walter Moers and the subsequent books by Jasper Fforde on Thursday Next after “Something Rotten”. I want to read ‘chick-lit’ too!!! Like the Shopaholic diaries. Heard they are an awesome fun read. I want to read more of Charlotte Brontë and of Dickens. I want to read more of Shakespeare. I really do miss literature so much. Sigh.

The night’s calm once again and my mind’s at ease once more. Some RH friends are having a friendly game of mahjong and laughing once in a while to the sounds of the tiles being arranged. I don’t even hear the crickets belt a symphony which is great. It’s nice to have this feeling. Kind of an after-Christmas calming effect. I like it.