rest of your life

westlife

yes this is an update of my life.

enjoying the next few minutes with something from the good old 90s. came across a playlist on AMPed featuring these guys. do you recognise them?

duh.. even the title of this post has the band's name. no matter the mood, listening to them is really nice. peaceful, smooth, therapeutic. shall introduce some of their lovely songs soon. until next time then, cheers.

good old mix

there are two parts to this song.. here is the second.. go listen to the first to see more of those good old mix of rap and pop.

CA

yes this is an update of my life.

stressed as usual. here to chill as usual. i realised why i am feeling the real pinch this semester. comparatively, this semester brought me the most stressful and tiring recess week so far and i have probably deduced why this is so. the reason.. the various CA submissions.

past few semesters do have projects and assignments for submission but most were due in later weeks. this semester is different.. many of the projects and assignments are due around the time when i have to take my midterm exams. gosh.. this is such a turn off. cannot wait to reach week 7. not only will the midterm papers be over, i would have then done with many CAs. until next time then, cheers.

demotivated

yes this is an update of my life.

gosh i am so in need to forcing myself here to chill. well, the funny thing is i have yet to really revise but i am really stressed just at the thought of the undone things. yeah.. recess week. it is something that sounds nice but not at all nice.. beside the fact that there are no classes. still.. just look at those assignments and projects to do within this short time. on top of them, i have to revise for the upcoming three midterm papers.

sigh.. the workload is heading up the exponential curve. sad.. even in my blog post, a place to relax, i am referencing to mathematical shit. ohh wells.. at this point in time i am really in need of motivation. not motivation to stay positive but to get my ass to do work. 

don't get me wrong. i am more of an optimist. i know things will happen how they are suppose to be. nonetheless, i am just ranting and complaining about the stress i have now.. not being super helpless and negative. just wishing i can be motivated to work hard soon.

of course, there will be times to really relax and take a breather. finding the balance though. until next time then, cheers.

time machine

reserved seating

i am not sure if i have talked about this particular issue before. maybe just in conversations with friends and family members. well, anyhow i am going to talk about this here. before i go on, let me make one thing clear. i value people.. regardless of race, religion, gender and age. that being said, let’s move on.

this particular seat or movement or whatever you called it has hit Singapore for years now. go back a decade or so ago, this probably have not existed. this, i’m referring to all this time, is the reserved seat. you see in on buses and trains these days. they even have stickers pasted brightly to “remind” people to think about of those people who are more in need of seats. while i believe this is rather positive in terms of reminding the people to be thoughtful, this has bring about a ripple effect on the seats on the public transport generally.

be it the seats are labelled as reserved or not people would always have the expectation of seats are for the elderly, pregnant ladies, the injured/handicapped. so much so, i heard a lady near me recently commenting to her colleague that “all youngsters shouldn’t seat down”. i swear those were her exact words. then it hit me. everyone pays the same fair. everyone has the right to seat down. to me, giving a seat to one who needs it more is a social obligation and is a rather noble act in public. however, seats, reserved or not, are not the right to some and privilege to others. seats are first-come-first serve.

yes, i am happy to give up my seat and also to see others doing so. but i am just pretty disturbed by what that middle-aged lady mentioned that day. her words are not unique. we witness such a notion daily. if you don’t believe me, observe carefully the next time on a crowded train. observe what happens when someone who needs a seat walks in. observed everyone glancing around in silence and some glaring at the youngest/healthiest commuter who is sitting down, as though expecting him/her to give up the seat.. regardless if the seat is reserved or not. just observe.

at the end of the day, i would like to say that seats are more of a privilege than a right. everyone pays the fare. giving up one’s seat is a social obligation. yes, it is always nicer to see acts of kindness now and then as well.

chasing answers

roasted pork

yes this is an update of my life.

so by right today supposed to have two lectures.. one super early in the morning and the other late afternoon or evening. turned out i didn't turn up for either.. lol. i missed the morning one due to laziness. did not sleep well last night. went to bed at 2am but tossed and turned for god knows how long before entering into dreamland. still.. disrupted sleep so i decided since i did not clock my usual 7 hours of sleep.. i gave the lecture a miss.

however, i missed the other lecture with legit reason. went on a field trip to Joo Chiat. this is suppose to be part of the individual assignment for my Singapore Studies module. at first i thought this was going to be some lame boring shit. while some parts of the trial the module tutors told us to explore were lame and boring, there were places where i find rather interesting. exploring the streets which i would not visit on usual days allowed me to learn something here and there, seeing places and infrastructures that are really really rare. spoke with some of the residents and getting to know the history of the place can be surprisingly interesting.

i don't usually put sunblock unless i am going for a swim. so i ended up being a roasted pork now. damn sun was so damn hot this afternoon. there were grey clouds at times but i guess it was good that the weather wasn't a wet one or the trip to Joo Chiat would be wasted.

so yeah.. good mini break from the mundane books and papers. until next time then, cheers.

trickling

yes this is an update of my life.

fun is over for a moment now. been great enjoying the first few days of chinese new year. then there was valentine's day as well. now work kicks back in. reality check. this is week 6. the deadlines and midterms are looming over me. i can feel the stressing trickling into my system.. stimulating my adrenaline. me in one picture now..

until next time then, cheers.

i'm close behind

old but gold..

when the stars go out

monkey

here wishing you all a Happy Lunar New Year in advance. may the year of the monkey bring about great luck and joy to you and your loved ones.

your principles

have you ever asked yourself questions about yourself? you know those kind of random thought-provoking questions you come up with moments before you sleep at night or in your showers or when you are staring blankly out into space? yeah i will be answering of of such questions i had. of course i have come up with the answer and hence i am sharing, in case some of you might need some light on such a similar question.

so the question is.. how do you know how much have you grown? or have your thinking matured/improved over the last few years? well, to me these questions can be answered just my judging on the principles you have. not saying what i mentioned here is the right way.. but come on this is my personal blog, they are my thoughts haha… i don’t post politically right answers. i post answers from my own heart and mind. 

okay, moving along then. your principles. the principles here can be seen as many things. for the sake of simplicity, let’s just say that these principles are like standards. they demarcate your threshold before you go “nope that’s it, that’s the line”. this applies to anything you experience. let’s see how many i can list off my head..

1) under what circumstances you will not forgive a friend/person for the rest of your life?

2) to you, what are the qualities of person you look out for to deem the person as your friend?

3) hanging out with friends, hanging out with your family, working, me time.. how do you prioritise all these? what are the exceptions?

well, those are the bigger questions i guess. i mean those aren’t exactly your own personal laws.. just guidelines so that you keep track what the hell you are doing in various aspects of life. i think the main point is to have a direction and goal and of course, knowing the limit. having these doesn’t mean you are being strict on yourself. rather, it is more of not letting anything or anyone pull you too off your course. 

if you ask me to list mine here, i am sorry to have to disappoint you. for personally, i think such thoughts and guidelines are too personal to share in an open blog. yes, of course when the time comes, now and then i would mentioned a few. close friends and family members would know a few. for these guidelines sort of signal how to piss a person off or how to be a person’s companion and what not. i guess these things don’t always come when forced. i mean if i were to ask you to list everything you have, you can’t. situations and what nots happening daily will throw one into deep thoughts and realisation.. then that is where such personal guidelines might arise.

so yeah, back to the main point then. i believe that the more guidelines you have the more you are growing.. because this would mean you are in control of your life.

checkpoint

yes this is an update of my life.

i've been getting signals. signals to tell me to take a breather these few days. take a breather.. taking my mind of school work and relax. yes i will. i am currently not too far away behind in terms of academics i guess. i can afford to relax a little. during this period of time, apart from enjoying the upcoming CNY, i will take time to ponder over random things and coming to conclusions.. well, hopefully, to most of them.

actually i have doing some over the last few weeks as well. some of which i have started typing out and what not whenever i update on my life. also, some others which i typed out in a file and yet to post them here. nonetheless, i guess this period of time will be more for such things. on top of these, i guess it is a good time to check oneself.

yeah 2016 has just began and it is barely a quarter through but checking oneself means seeing past the last month. what have i achieved? what do i want to achieve in the near future? am i on the path i hope and want to be on? what is my motivation? where will i be going? these questions will just go on and on and on.. point is these are checkpoints to monitor myself i guess.

you see, i think having a purpose is really important. so long i know exactly what i want and how i am going to try to reach my destination, things will flow. many things actually arise from the purpose. motivation. discipline. improvement. achievement. all these are the few things that be driven by a purpose.

okay.. too philosophical but yeah you get the idea. until next time then, cheers.

old jam

an acoustic version of a famous old song. enjoy.

not teachers

yes this is an update of my life.

been busy with catching up school work until i nearly forgot something that is more important than studying. my health. got a slight shock yesterday when my bad headache hit and i was feeling a little warmer than usual. too warm for comfort. throughout the remaining of the day i kept spamming water despite having to make way more trips to the toilet to pee. didn't do anything productive but slept and rest a lot. but you know what? not guilty. probably because if i really fall sick, the guilt of not taking care of my health will be so much greater than wasting a day away without revision.

so back to today. i have lots of work to catch up and CNY is round the corner. guess the calendar and my body highlighted my need to take a slight breather for now. at least until after the first few days of CNY. shall not stress too much over undone work or what not.

however, the main thing i wanted to highlight today isn't exactly those. i want to talk about my lecturers. like the title of this post mentioned, they are not teachers.. so expect a hell lot of difference. i think ever since coming to college, a lecturer is defined as one who is also a teacher. what's the difference? well.. a lot.

a lecturer teach for the sake of teaching most of the time. he/she will just ramble through all the information at a speed he/she deem fitting regardless of the students' struggles to catch every piece. a lecturer will find his/her voice loud enough if he/she can hear himself/herself. he/she will murmur or what.. whether the students can hear it doesn't concern him/her. a lecturer doesn't monitor your progress very closely. he/she doesn't care if you fail to pass an assignment or what not.. for at the end of the day, most of them would just teach, mark papers, give you a grade.

well, obviously a teacher is way more than a lecturer. a teacher cares for your progress. a teacher ensures no student is left behind. a teacher bugs you for your own good. ohh man.. i am starting to appreciate the teachers who have taught me even more. but for now.. i think that is just life in college.

no point regretting or what not. i just thought of all these again recently. as i progress more as an undergraduate i see more lecturers than teachers who are teaching my modules. students are thrown to college to struggle and emerge victorious at the end of 3 or 4 years. along the way, we can only hope we meet more teachers than lecturers. until next time then, cheers.