End of CTs

Capricious Elation, part gossamer, part cloying, tantalises... and departs...
The paper is pristine.

There is no sweeping sense of euphoria that takes me by the throat and steadfastly, refuses to let go. There is no overwhelming relief at the deluge of papers finishing at last. There is only a hollow where all these would have been, should have been... Mayhaps all these years of mugging is sapping my verve for celebration and transforming me into a jaded, weary individual...

Bio was bad, as all Common Tests go, for me at least. On the bright side, it wasn't on the Chemistry magnitude of bad. So I should be able to pass =P! Had lunch at J8 foodcourt with some of the S03Q-ers, winded up snacking on potato puffs and choc bars as usual. Took several neoprints at a nearby outlet; I don't really have a penchant for them cus I find its a waste of money. You can photo-whore all you like on digi-cam, and best of all, its free. Then again, once in a while should be fine; not my money anyway :). Went to watch Superman Returns with Shu Yi and Ching Ting. Guess it was a decent movie, but not really memorable or exciting for that matter. The sparse action scenes were spaced out too far apart and my attention was wandering by the last 20 minutes of it. Was supposed to go bowling at Marina Bay with them and the rest but was kinda worn out from it all and broke too, so I bid them farewell and left for home.

The mess that was Math

Q: Why can't Florence differentiate?

A: 'Cus she's in the INTEGRATED programme!

HAHAHA... -_-

It rankles when he tries to play the Good Dad and most of the
time, he doesn't...

Filiae Muggers Aevi

The school motto becomes me...

Chemistry Paper

NOT Chem-is-try...

BUT Chem-is-DIE!!!

Nuff's said...

Econs Commons

I swear my illegible hieroglyphics, as Halsall (my sec 4 english teacher) dubs them, will kill the marker, if anything else...

Bronze Medal

Started to feel a nagging sense of anxiety as we gathered at the piste to fence one of the SJC teams. Me, Noelle and Charmaine (the motley crew save for Noelle) was RJ's response to the challenge of U-17 teams. I was the first up and got 3-0, before losing 5-3. Not exactly a brilliant start but it was much better than what I had expected. David's strategy (attempt several simultannis before doing a feint, jump back and attack) worked MIRACLES on the SJC team. The cheering and support of the other SJC team (composed of Kimberly, Sivi, Charmaine and Kai Lin) must have helped a great deal too. Points were mostly lost by me and Charmaine, but thankfully the gap wasn't too large and Noelle saved the day by catching up 36-40 to 38-45! Still, it was a fairly good try considering me and Charmaine have 4 months and 2 months of experience respectively and they had approximately 3 years.
Which meant that we were now to fence RGS. If we beat them, the stakes were 1st and 2nd placing. If we lost, we would be fencing for 3rd and 4th. While we were resting, we enquired as to how the other teams did; both foil teams were eliminated :(. Had a brooding sense of disquiet with a tinge of hopelessness before fencing Nellicia, the RGS anchorwoman. Think it was because I saw her fence at Indivs and her standard was a cut above the rest. Got trashed 5-0...my lack of confidence must have really gotten to me :(. I could have scored several points if I wasn't so hesitant. The RGS fencers were also less willing to engage in a simultanni than the SJC ones so I had to rely a lot more on my poor distancing. Then again, hindsight is ever perfect. Charmaine did excellently beacuse of her impeccable timing and gungho-ness and gave us a lead which I eventually lost :( (36-40) and Noelle, despite her fervent attempts, failed to salvage. We lost to RGS 42-25. Strands of guilt twined around me and my mind teemed with if-onlys. I guess I have to be content with the notion that in a parallel universe somewhere out there, we beat RGS and won either silver or gold =).
Sat at the bench area with Charmaine brooding about my errors which could have cost us the match. The sweetdough with extra sugar that Charmaine (SJC) made did make me feel slightly better though. Food therapy :)! It's so heartening to see people that you aren't close to or barely know cheering away for you. A BIG thank you goes out to the SJC girls (and Alvin and Terence too) for everything they have done for us! No thank you for sabre guys, its your duty... :P
After a 10 minutes break, headed to the piste to fence for 3rd and 4th. Me and Charmaine made a little pact to fight our best and win bronze and not let Noelle down. With the men's sabre team lending us their voices and David's advice and the will to WHACK someone :P, we actually reached some of the point caps and it was a breeze for Noelle to score 5 points to hit 45! Was in a somewhat delirious euphoric mood follwing that. David told us that there were only 3 teams for men's sabre and we were complaining that they would get a prize no matter the outcome. But bronze was later withdrawn, so they would have to fight for a medal. Reuben had a swift victory with a score of 5-3. Darren, Faii did pretty good too at the start, winning their bouts. Faii got 2 yellow card for crossing his legs and conceded a point to the opponent. Despite a brave fight put up by Darren, he succumbed to Xavier's (national foilist) lightning quick attacks. So they were down 30+ to 40 and the anchormans were to fence each other. Reub tried his utmost to catch up but they alas lost to PRC 32-45.
Chilled out for a bit at the bench area and spoke to David and Juliana about how we did. Seems that we all did rather nice today; guess sparring and footwork drills, boring as they may be, have paid off =). If only (yes that phrase again), it was a repeat of my indiv performance... Cleaned and polished my rusty blade and ended up spilling lots of oil on it. Watched the 2 women's epee teams fencing; on one piste they were getting trounced, on the other, victory was a cinch. After the women's epee semis, me and Charmaine photo-whored, taking random dramatic pictures (there's one with David in it!). I especially like the one with the SIA umbrella and the 3 sabres though. Went to Macs to get some Fish dippers, returning in time for the tense women's epee finals. It was a close call and Ruth sealed the win with 2 rapid points to garner a 45-43 victory. And so Balpreet, Sophie and Ruth achieved gold for 3 sucessive years...
Stayed till 5 plus with Charmaine and collected our trophies (bright and shiny!). Apparently they mispelled women's sabre indiv as women's SABRA. What a malfunction... Decided to give our extra trophy (they have 4, in case there's a reserve), to David our wonderfully supportive coach! Didn't see the point in giving it to the school, after all they throw away the trophies, according to Balpreet, every few years or so. Left for home, with a spring in my gait (the elation persists). Think I won't be able to focus on Econs now...shucks... =(

Back to the good ole days..

Played bball for the first time in ...weeks? Might not be a long time for some, but considering I use to bball almost everyday in Sec 4, its been eons. Pretty much lost my touch at shooting and dribbling (not that I was ever great at it anyway). Miraculously 50% of the shots manage to get in...I attribute it to slack blocking. Mayhaps I should hit the courts more often instead of jogging out there but its tough when most people seemed to have moved to other pastures... And with a boink, basketball slowly bounces out of my life...

Fencing Training yet again!

Had Derrick instead of David for fencing training today..nice, friendly decent-looking guy but didn't recieve many comments on what I was doing right or wrong during team bout. Did some footwork drills as always for warming up and realised I need to WASH and AIR my fencing apparel. The stench of sweat was nigh unbearable. Fenced team style to get the hang of it before the real deal on Sunday. Derrick arranged us according to our rankings for U-17s and so it was that me, Lester and Faii were in one team while Reub, Charmaine and Darren were in another. Of all the 3 bouts, the one with Reub went the worse..dind't manage to get a single point off him. Beat Darren because of a 2 point handicap and a little dose of luck. Beat Charmaine too but conceded too many points beacuse of attacking into her guard and poor distancing :(. The 5 point lead was thus closed to 2 point one. Our team lost in the final, decisive battle between Lester and Reub by a couple of points. On the bright side, I don't take so long to suit up any more though I keep on taking stuff that isn't mine (by accident!) :P.
Soon after, the SJC ( Saint Joseph's Convent btw, not Serangoon JC) sabreurs came and we were to fence teams with them. It was Reub, Lester, me, Kai Ling and Sivi in one team and Darren, Faii, Charmaine, Charmaine (the one I fenced for U-17s and got whooped by) and Kimberly. The first team to win 8 bouts would win. I was to fence Kimberly and was initially rather worried as she had 3 years of experience whereas I had less than 6 months. Luckily, she wasn't as tough as Charmaine and I somehow manage to scrape a 5 - 8 (still lost :P). I hope I will be able to sustain or better this performance during U-17 teams. If the gap is too big, Noelle won't be able to save her team despite her prowess. At the mention of Noelle's name, the SJC sabreurs seemed a little intimidated...
Anyway, back to the team event. Charmaine whooped Lester 8 - 6 (girls have a 4 point handicap cus guys are supposed to be twice as fast) and Reub ripped the RJ Charmaine 8- 3. Sivi, who happens to be a left hander, beat Faii 6 -8. Those were the more memorable bouts and to sum it up, we were both even at 3 wins each when Derrick decided to have a make or break last bout due to a lack of time. Despite his recurring ankle injury, Lester manage to clinch a narrow victory agaisnt Faii (maybe the cheering and hooting helped too :p!). Charmaine gave us some of her delicious home-made cookies which we shared with the rest. In reciprocation, we treated them to 2 packets of ice lemon tea.
Before Reub and Darren left, Darren gave me a wooden keychain with the lyrics of Zombie on it as thanks for coming to his party (so sweet ain't it =) ). He cleverly put it in the fencing context - "In your head, in your head they are fighting..." Bade goodbye to them and waited for Pok to finish filling up his form before leaving the place while explaining how teams worked to Jin Han. Met Darren and Reub at the amphi lift landing and reminded Darren that there wasn't any point leaving his equipment in the lockers as he would have to retrieve it on Sunday. Walked through RI with them, discussing about the team bout and parted ways again at the overhead bridge. Yes, the trip didn't seem so long cus you're INTERESTING people =P Been a fairly pleasant day so far methinks...

PS. Don't need to be so anal about mistaken identity la Reub. We know you're good =P !

PW outing

Left home at about 10+ for Far East Plaza, where we supposed to interview shopkeepers on their views on the graffitti wall. Dear Susie, who had never been to Far East till today, actually went to Far East Shopping Center... -_-. But we managed to lead him to our destination and eventually headed to KFC for a short lunch cum discussion on having Zocards to raise publicity and draw youths to parks. Went to Far East basement and Susie did a long 40 second pan of the wall. Amelia was pointing out 2 outlines that her friends did of themselves and the barely visible remnants of words that her class spray painted in 2005. Noted with some surprise that the wall was largely remarkably free of vulgarities and expletives. And they complain about the uncouth youth... We walked from shop to shop, trying to persuade people of different age groups to give their opinion on the wall. Everyone I asked declined; so much for putting on my charms of pulchritude :P.
Here is a list of our interviewees: 1. Poser-ish Youth Shopkeeper
2. Middle Age Woman Shopkeeper
3. Far East Management Woman
4. Elderly Chinese Male Cleaner
5. Strip Dancer Ang Moh
Quite pleased with the differing range of comments that were offered and especially happy to find that most people (guess who?) felt that the wall was tastefully done, injecting vibrancy to Far East and improving business of shopkeepers. I see our PW grade rising several notches :). Many thanks to all the people who have taken up their time to give us their views and thoughts on the issue. =)!
We went to paint Far East red after that, admiring glitzy bags and tacky earrings, even Susie seemed interested! Amelia (thanks a mil!) helped me to painlessly remove my too big ear stud, something which I had been telling myself constantly to perform but never actually got around to doing it because of the recurring pain. Bought a bottle of alcohol (nope not for drinking) from 77th Street and a red garish bejewelled pair of studs, which I wore immediatly. At about 2, we parted and went our separate ways to mug...all except me that is. Needed to take the numbness out of my mind, so browsed the Far East and Marriot shops for random clothes and trinkets. Decided that I was too broke and had other more pressing things to do at approximately 3, so returned home.

Fencing Training

Went for fencing training in the morn, made a detour on hearing that the hall was locked. We moved from the area outside the PAC to the Indoor Gym which still happens to be frigging hot (in case you're wondering why, its 3 layers of padding), despite the fans on the side of the walls. Wasn't a very interesting training...did distancing, parrying drills as preparation for Sunday's U-17 teams. There are so many things to be ironed out (parrying speed, distancing..yaday ada) that I think only a marginal improvement can be done in time for U-17s. Oscillated from cooling ourselves with the fans, presiding the matches of the guys and sparring with Charmaine. I suppose we need to fence more 15 point bouts to acclimatise to the feeling of fencing for a longer period of time. A pool bout normally ends within 4 to 5 minutes.
Was greatly amused by watching Reuben and Peisen sparring. It was how Peisen's bad habits appeared to rub off Reuben and they both started spinning their blades. And they would mention to the "referee" if the attack was off target or went into the guard, before continuing with their bout. Watched Darren fence Faii before wandering off to watch the foilist teams internal competition. Terence was doing a pretty good job catching up when his time ran out. Upon returning, we discovered that Darren had a perforated bruise on his cheek to sportl; Faii punched him in the mask by mistake -_-. It not even U-17s yet and he has a stubbed toe and a facial bruise...really hope they disappear in time for it.
Went for lunch at KFC with Darren and Reub and were joined by the foilists, Kang Wei, Alvin and Jun Hao (small world ain't it?). As we devoured our food, discussed the various deceptive and devious methods to garner points or win the bout. Whacking the piste to trigger the lights, grabbing the opponent's blade before coutnerattacking, whacking his or her hand with brute force were just some of the methods. After lunch, we parted ways and I met Emerald, Cherie and Wei Wen who had just finished dining at Pastamania (smaller world ain't it). Spoke to Wei Wen about U-17 teams till he got off at Yio Chu Kang. Trained, yes trained, all the way back to Yew Tee and hit the sheets almost as soon as I reached home.

In Retrospect...

Had a long talk with Eug on the disastrous pool bouts and realised that I either probably lacked the spirit to fight for the points or it appeared sporadically and simply wasn't strong enough. The absolute absence of anxiety (which I was a little anxious about) before and even while sparring must have be an indication that I had no expectations of the bout whatsoever. Granted, I did not expect to win any of bouts. Conversely, I did not expect to lose. I didn't expect anything at all. My time on the piste, brief as it was, was so surreal and dreamlike. No strategy, no expectations and no real drive. I'm there because I'm supposed to be fencing. True, I did garner some precious experience but the situation could have gone a lot better in several cases if I had indeed put my heart into it. Think part of me was in some faraway place, only dragging myself to the piste when my time to fence was at hand. As Eug said "You're as good as you want yourself to be..." Not wanting to be anything is not an option. Complete nonchalance is not an option. Fencing, as is any other sport, is about fighting for victory. And even if you do lose, you lose with the knowledge, though not always comforting, that you have done your best. I need to possess the inextinguishable fire to fight on for points no matter how down I might be, no matter how strong they might be. Treat every point as though it is the last. And victory could well be snatched away from the jaws of defeat...

Thanks a million Eug for clearing my thoughts up =)!

U-17 Indivs

Entered Clementi Sports Hall with a strange sense of calm, the dread was oddly absent, something I found rather disquieting. Panicked later when I was having trouble fumbling with my equipment, the wire ended up snaking all over the place and the head clip snapped during one of my bouts. Would like to give my sincerest thanks to all those who helped me with wiring and lending me equipment :).
I lost all my bouts. 5-0, 5-0, 5-1, 5-1, 5-2. Somehow knowing that I was probably the one withe least experience did't make it any sweeter. Bottomed the list as the only fencer from RJ. Noelle didn't come as she was ill. Didn't feel much disappointment at first. Realised people deal with losing in different ways, some cry (the girl who lost 14-15), some throw things (Andre and his sabre mask) and some bury it deep and face it later alone, when they're ready. I guess, I'm not willing to face it yet. Glad that some of the guy sabreurs managed to survive pools and make it to DE.
Watched the bouts of the foilists, sabreurs, epeeists; reckon most did pretty good for a first time. Started to feel a bit depressed for getting RJC at the end of the list. On a lighter note, got to watch some really exciting sabreur matches (Ann is incredibly qiang and yes she topped women's sabre!) and picked up some strategies. And even better news, Ruth topped the female epee event! Choong Wing, unfortunately lost to Bai Rong 6 - 15. :(
Still, I'm inspired to do better for the next competition which would be U-17 teams in a week's time. I'm not sure how much a day of practice can yield but I certainly hope enough to make a marginal difference...

Thoughts: I wish some people could be more tactful or maybe I need to learn to be less sensitive. Comments, even if made in jest, or so I hope, can unknowingly twist the heart... I didn't realise I was wearing a mask right after I shed my sabre mask...Sigh

Lestari's Party

Settled the accounts for FSI indivs and license without any major hitches in the morn. Guess I'm not bad when it comes to $$$ eh :P? Hopefully, RJC can lose its dubious reputation of constantly handing in fees late. Watched the male epeeists fencing, think both Wen Hao and Jia Hua made it to pools. A tad surprising since we've trained for only like 4 months...? Twice a week, no less. Then again, their pools were fairly easy according to Juliana. Watched Bernice and Zhang Fan fencing after that, think they put up a good show despite losing their first bouts. Hurried home at about 4.15 to change and get ready for Lestari's party.
Met Reuben at Lot 1 with his friend, Ryan, a really hilarious fellow btw, while buying socks (for fencing) at Royal Sporting House. Trailed them for a while before meeting Nadiah and Noddy at the LRT station. When we reached the house, we made a beeline for the delectable spread composed of curry puffs, milo jelly, eggs, bee hoon and fish paste cakes. I alternated between stuffing myself and taking paparazzi pictures of Nadiah. Read Matthew's screenplay which reminded me a great deal of Lost in Translation. For those who haven't watch the movie, its about 2 complete strangers finding by serendipity a strong connection between them, and pouring out their souls to each other. Watched The Nun, a horror movie, and winded up laughing at inappropriate moments due to snide comments made by the Ryan, the joker, Matthew, the funny and Reuben, the retarded :P. We unanimously decided that movie logic is incomprehensible to anyone else but the actors; they sequester themselves in enclosed areas, scream, panic and pray when the slasher killer psycho comes for them. Following the movie's ending, we had a bellydancing item performed by Lestari. I noticed everyone's eyes were glued to her and several giggles coming from the guys (I wonder why...) Must be those titillating gyrations and skimpy sequined shift...Or was it the hip-shaking movements and elegant hand flicks? In any case, it was a wow-ing show...I never knew you had it in you to be a stripper Lest! (May she not see this). We cut the chocolate and cream cake (Yum, Yum) with hungry anticipation and devoured the tasty pieces with relish. Up next, another horror movie, this time being Halloween 2. As usual, we were sent into fits of laughter with the trio's mocking comments and occasional interjections from me and Noddy. What to do...horror movie logic is really that twisted...-_- Upon seeing his potential victim fleeing for the lift, the psycho killer, AMBLES, yes ambles, to her, with the languidity of a satisfied cat. At about 10 plus, the movie ended, predictably with the supposed death of Michael Myers (the killer). But according to Lest, there are sequels so I guess not but that's another story. Left for home with Nadiah, Matthew, Noddy, Ryan and Reub... I have a fencing competition tomorrow, hope all goes well...

Pictures here.....!!


Bday Lass! Reub and Noddy lazin'



Need I say more...?

More Fencing Training...

Went for fencing training as always, this time I have Charmaine to fence with (Yay!) Sparring with guys is fun but I somehow feel they won't improve as much when they fence with me as I will when I fence with them. Feels as though I'm dragging their progress to my speed :S. Suited up for electric fencing and had quite a shock to find that we were all going to fence Jing Xun, who happens to be a damn pro fencer. All of us ended up scoring 5 -1 with the exception of Charmaine. And he wasn't even fencing to his fullest abilities... There's still a long, long way to go. Seems like I have several issues to work on: distancing, hand extension speed, timing, acceleration blah blah... Just about everything in fact :P. Did scenario drills with Jing Xun, in which he created a situation and I had to react quickly and accordingly. If only the competition scenario will be that simple and straightforward, I might actually be able to survive elimination. Fenced with Charmaine a 10 point bout (pretty much shows our lack of stamina) and won 10-9. Jing Xun was teaching Reub how to preside. Am thankful for Jing Xun's invaluable advice and guidance on how to improve and what to work on, it helps a great deal =)! Realised in a sabre bout that the tides can turn extremely quick. Having a 5 point lead does not guarantee a victory, so complacency CANNOT afford to seep in during a bout. Spectated a bout with David and Jing Xun (JX broke David's sabre blade!!!) Watched David fenced Faii and would have gone next if not for that fact that I had to go for a PW meeting. So I trudged up to the staff room and arrived late by 20 minutes. Luckily, neither the group nor Miss Lim seemed rather upset. Didn't exactly comprehend the proceedings so simply nodded my head and injected several inane comments at appropriate and relevant moments. Miss Lim was a lot last fastidious today, in my opinion, and said our GPP was acceptable! Which means we're gonna have a researching outing next Wed and perhaps do shopping too! PW has never been this fun! Returned home, napped, skated and bballed in that order. Chatted about all things under the sun with Dean, Shane, Rong'en and Jing Yi, with Shane regaling and sending us into peals of laughter with his amusing tales.

Cars...

Pooled in the morn with Eug and got trashed as usual... The games I won were because he shot the black ball and the white ball chose to tag along... Think I should take his well-meaning advice to practise more. Napped for an hour or so then buried myself in Chem notes for 3 hours. Visited Woodlands Library and borrowed 10++ books. (Yes, I am a bookworm if you didn't know by now) Watched CARS alone (it is NOT the trademark of a sad, lonely person) and realised the sound system of Cathay is state-of-the-art. Now if only they could make the volume a bit softer. I think my ears are still ringing from the deafening screech of wheels and cheers. Animation-wise, CARS does make the grade but doesn't raise the bar at all. When there are films like Advent's Children and FF: The Spirits Within, its no wonder why. The concept (hotshot racecar, through the help of newfound friends and an old veteran's mentoring, learns there's more to racing than winning) itself is stale but given a new spin, is ultimately refreshing and takes the viewer for an engaging ride. Noticed halfway that most of the audience was composed of parents and their kids. Felt a little like a fish outta water. But oh wells, I'm still a child at heart who likes it fast :P

Fencing Training...

Went for fencing training in the morn with a frission of apprehension. You see, Mark (the not so nice coach) was taking us, instead of David (our usual coach). Thankfully, we were spared the ordeal of PT as Mark made us practise footwork so that we could gain a little preparation for U-17 Indivs. He gave us a talking-to on how he and David had not sent any J1s for Indivs since 2003 (this year, we have people who break tradition again) because if we win a medal (odds 1'000'000 to 1, for me at least =P), we can't participate in Novices.
Did some free fencing and tried my hand at presiding for the first time. Gave up with the hand signals soon after and just indicated who had the point. After the epeeist were done with electric fencing, the sabreurs took over. Had to go to great trouble to procure a sabre jacket as I, in a moment of sheer brilliance, left mine at home. Denise very kindly lent me hers and thus saved the day! Watched Darren and Reub fence; quite evenly matched the 2 of them. Fenced with all the guys and got a score of 4-10 against each of them. At least there's a measure of consistency there :P. It's so different when you're up on the piste fencing as compared to mindlessly executing drills. The element of unpredictability certainly threw a spanner in the works for the moves I intended to carry out.
In the end, I stopped consciously attempting to carry out feints and parries (they don't ever seem to work :S), and resorted to finding an opening to attack. Think I have to work on my lunges and the speed of hand extension... Also need to work on suiting up QUICKLY and without help from others (Thanks Reuben and Terence for your assistance :) ). Henry (foil coach) got really annoyed when Darren and me held him up due to our delayed bout (score 5 : 1 [guess who.. :) ] ) When I innocently suggested we prolong our bout, "BOOM!" he blew up at us. My fault there...should not have added fuel to the fire.
Went for lunch at Cedele at Raffles City Shopping Center with Darren, Reub and Kalpana. Bought kueh lapis and Chill-o and am therefore broke for the rest for the week. And to think I wanted to watch Cars this week. After our meal, we chatted meanderingly about our scrapes with teachers, primary shcool GEP years and movies. At about 5, we all split up. Kalpie to her dentist for tooth extraction, Darren and Reub to the airport to recieve the UK Lit field trip ppl and me home, to the econs notes :(.

Purchasing Make-up

In lieu with the Great Singapore Sale and armed with 50 bucks my dad gave me to splurge (THANKS DADDY :)! ), I went to Causeway point to check out the stores there. But first, I went to auf and got myself a pretty however not very functional golden handbag. Good for formal events, cocktail parties (like I actually attend any now), prom and concerts I suppose. Left auf for Body Shop and realised that makeup is indeed not cheap... $50 is not enough to procure eyeshadow, lip shine/gloss/glaze/??? and foundation even. So, despite the persuasion on the salesperson's part, I went to Red Earth. Think she was a a tad annoyed at me :S. Prices at Red Earth were marginally cheaper, though still relatively high by my standards (when you have a $30 allowance a week, you'll see what I mean... ) Under the subtle co-ercion of the very helpful sales girl, I chose gold and green eyeshadow (such a lovely combination!), pink blush and dark pink lip glaze. That set me back by $53.7..Ooops..Exceeded budget by $3.7 :P. Had quite a bit of fun dabbling with the makeup, yes, my face being the canvas. Think I'll return for mascara, eyeliner and foundation when I'm in a less impecunious state...

Blog Idiot

Generally uneventful day. Woke up late cus of sleeping at 2 the night before. Am such a pig when it comes to sleeping, had a 2 hour nap later in the day = P. Read some fantasy books then tried to study Maths. Just read through the notes and attempted some questions. Bloody GC outta battery again (NO! Not because I play Tetris or Snake on it). Chatted to Eug later in the evening about random nonsense. Many thanks for patiently helping me with my blog layout. An unsaavy IT-idiot like me would never have figured it out otherwise. And thanks for Bailey's too. I'll get you a bottle when I come of age in say....about 2 years :):):). So here I am blogging and surfing the net aimlessly... Do I hear some people yelling "GOAL". Guess I better go watch 22 men running after a ball (for those who are unable to get the reference, WORLD CUP!!!)..

Darren's 17th Bday!

Met Lestari and her fellow Raffles Players at Tampines Mrt. Felt a strange sense of relief to see them; msut be cus of the ill-timed 1 hour ++ journey and then the 30 minutes wait -_-. Spoke to some of the Raffles Players, namely Genevive, while waiting for bus 292. It seems like they're a really bonded and fun-loving lot. Wish that fencing could be like that too, but I think its hard with the segregation due to the different weapons groups. We reached the house, tucked away our shoes to a hidden corner (so that he wouldn't see them and suspect that something was amiss), then sequestered ourselves in the second floor bedroom, where we armed ourselves with party poppers and signed our names on the banner several of them had made for him. We blew up some heart-shaped balloons too. Reuben burst his and decided to make a racket with his burst balloon.


When it was our cue (just like RP haha!), we descended the flight of stairs in a procession of sorts, with Kalpie carrying the cake. Darren was so stunned; if only I had a picture of his priceless expression to put up here :P. After getting over his initial shock, we gave him our presents in alphabetical order. Next, we attacked the sumptuous spread his aunt had prepared: Pineapple and cheesecake, shepard's pie and tuna and cheese sandwiches (Yum, Yum!). It really brought out the glutton in me; I took 2 to 3 helpings of each dish :P. Following that, I did some random photo-taking (or is it photo-whoring) sessions, with me, Lestari, Genevive and Noddy in (ahem!) compromising positions =). Will post some when I get hold of the pictures. Darren opened up his pressies and took lotsa photos. I thought the one with him in the Indian costume and clogs was especially funny :). Here's a list of the pressies: an LOTR Figure, 2 movie posters, a VCD, a poem, a pair of clogs, an Indian costume, a box of sweets, a waterbottle and best of all, I should think, the warmth and camaradarie that close friends give.

Darren is so lucky to have such caring family members and thoughtful friends like Kalpie. I think its wonderful planning surprise parties for people; the tangible expression of delight and surprise unfurling across their faces is such a sight to behold =). Oh, apologies to Darren's aunt for messing up her house with all the party popper remains (I released one next to Reuben's ear) and other fallen food pieces. Had several more group shots and buddy shots taken with some Raffles Players before returning back home via MRT.


PS. HAPPY BIRTHDAY DARREN! THANK YOU FOR BEING SUCH A GOOD FRIEND AND NICE (*I know this word is kinda overused but nvm=P*) SABRE CAPTAIN! ROCK ON AND STAY FUNKY ALWAYS! MAY ALL YOUR WISHES COME TRUE!

FSI Day 2

I went to watch FSI again. This time, it was Lisel, Noelle, Ruth, Sophie, Hui Wen and Juliana fencing. Vacillitated from Level 6 to Level 3, spectating matches of random people and accquaintances. Female sabre, though not as fast as men's (duh!), is still a flash of metal before untrained eyes like mine. Each bout lasted for an average of about 3 minutes... Didn't know David could referee until I saw him in action today. Then again, not too big a surprise there. Left when the results for pools were out, needed to go back and mug (aren't I guai? :P). Everyone save for Juliana made it. Not too bad, I guess, considering this is an international competition. Chilled out at Raffles City shopping center for an hour or so, before heading back to home. And the notes (damn!).

Fencing Singapore International

Being the *wonderful and responsible* treasurer of RJ fencing, I went to to SMU to submit fees for FSI today. And of course, to support my sabre coach, David. Upon turning up, got a quite a shock when David said he didn't know Sun Lu was fencing and strongly discouraged him from participating in it. So lent my hp to David and let him talk Sun Lu out of his folly. Sorta glad Sun Lu was spared the humiliation of screwing up; it would have been his first time fencing electric.
Hung around the premises while waiting for Reub and Darren, who were, predictably late -_-. Shuffled from floor to floor, watching and gawping at the fierceness and lightning speed of Men's sabre (we certainly have a loooonnnngg way to go before we even get near) and getting surprised at the not-so-slow speed of Men's epee. Bantered idly with Andre and company, watched Lisel video Wei wen's match, helped out a clueless Kuwaiti referee who didn't know how to use the vending machine :P and cheered for David sporadically for his matches. The sabre matches were truly heart-stoppingly exciting and I have a newfound admiration for all sabreurs now. Esp for David, seeing how he managed to keep his cool and garner the match point despite the incredibly close one point margin.
Unfortunately, despite the relentless fight put up by all our coaches, they still succumbed and none of them made it into the finals :(. Mark came really close though; he lost 14-15. With everyone out of the running, we, meaning Darren, Reub and me left SMU and went to BK for lunch. Next, we headed to Paradiz for pool. Luck was sadly, not on my side, and I lost the first game on my first turn thanks to the accursed black ball. The final tally was 4 - 3, in the guy's favor. Their pool ain't too bad and I was pretty rusty due to severe lack of practice. To add fuel to the fire, Reub's amusing albeit annoying face-making, pole-dancing antics were more than just a tad distracting. We paid up and visited 7-11, where Reub bought a big gulp. He offered it to me and I was sucking on the straw and pondering over the question why the liquid wasn't going up when I saw Reub's fingers clamped over the straw. Suckered again... -_-... Had a few good laughs over my extreme blurness as we trotted to the MRT and returned to our respective homes.
Last Note: Good Luck to All those taking part in FSI tomorrow! And for those who participated today, excellent job done :)!