galvs

Post Melbourne

2010-03-13T08:18:12Z

Heys! :) The plane back to Singapore touched down at about 11:20pm or so... it was about close to midnight when everyone was dismissed and I got reunited with Char. Haha... It was a good trip overall I must say. Despite the responsibilities of charperoning the students and making sure that they're alright, there was time for a little unwinding. It's rather ironic I know, but the most memorable time for me there was totally unplanned and spent alone. But yeah, this is very much in line with the preferences of someone with greater introversion than extraversion... no? (:

Wednesday (fifth day in Melbourne) was the students' third and final day with the University of Melbourne. They went through their last lecture and tutorial and subsequently took their open book exam, before heading to the University House for a farewell party. Concise and comprehensive summary yea! Haha...

We brought them to Melbourne Central Mall for dinner; they were free to roam around for that hour and a half or so. Shaun (an ex-student who's just gotten to Melbourne for his studies not long ago) got to know of my being in Melbourne via Facebook a couple of days back and so we arranged to meet. My colleague, Shaun and myself ended up having dinner at this famous vietnamese noodles (pho) eatery that evening. It was a brief but good time of catching up... glad to know that he's moving on fine.

We gathered the students at the meeting point at about 6:30pm and gave them a briefing on the tram routes to take and how to buy the ticket on the tram, etc. My colleague went on the first tram with about half of them while the other half took another tram with me. Good thing that everyone arrived back at the hostel safe and sound. Haha ok la, it wasn't that hard to begin with... the route was just one long stretch from the city back to where we were staying so it was rather easy to track the route.

The two hourly tram ticket was supposed to last till about 9pm but somehow (I'm still not sure how the system works actually) my ticket showed the expiry to be at 3am the following morning. I wasn't in the mood to do my work on the laptop that evening... and I thought I needed some exercise, so I told my colleague that I would head outside and do some exploring. The intention was just to have some quiet time, some walk around... not to mention that the sky was threatening to pour. The temperature was very cooling... I started walking at a moderate pace and slowly picked up pace... it was till I saw a person jogging on the opposite road that the thought of doing some jogging came. It wasn't till I'd walked quite a distance when I saw someone jogging in front of me that I found myself starting to jog as well. It actually felt good... so I kept on at it and decided to see if I could hit the city central... which I did in the end. Quite an experience walking down the city streets at night! Took a tram back eventually and realised that it's quite a distance! Just checked Google Maps... total distance jogged was about 5km or so.

Thursday was spent travelling long hours on the road... went to the Toolangi State Forest Discovery Centre till afternoon and visited some temperate forests... then we headed to Phillip Island to catch the Penguin Parade in the evening. The last day (Friday) was spent pretty much shopping, first to this outlet called "Something Aussie", then to the Queen Victoria Market... then back to Melbourne Central Mall for lunch before heading to the airport.

This trip has stirred my interest in backpacking somehow... would be great someday to return to Melbourne with Char! :)

Three More Days in Melbourne

2010-03-09T10:07:03Z

I meant to write an entry some time ago but didn't get to... spent quite some time to work out some backlog FriendMark pages instead. Now I have a little time... so I shall try to recap and summarize what's been happening. I'm currently typing this out of a double decker bed (am on the top deck!) at a hostel in St Kilda... Melbourne! Brought a group of students here for a week-long learning journey. Will write a little on that for the later part.

After the cross country, I fell sick; kept on sneezing... had to miss Thursday's lesson and ended up seeing the doctor on the Friday. Was well enough to meet up with the Kakis nonetheless that evening for a get together dinner at Kim's Family Restaurant - the amount of side dishes given to us was quite unbelievable! It filled up two tables! Haha... we proceeded to Old Town after that to chill and played a few rounds of Monopoly Deal in which I won a set. Nice game! :P

Went for lesson on Saturday; Char had marking to do so she came along with me and parked herself somewhere near. We had lunch together... then I returned for lessons again. We journeyed to town for dinner and caught "Dear John" before heading back home. Sunday was Aunty Witwit's day off, so I headed back to my parents' place to take care of mom for the day. Brought her out to the living room to watch some television shows... glad to see that she's able to lift her head up straight initially to watch the shows. :) Had a very late dinner with Char... and that day being the last day of Chinese New Year and Char having the craving for a last yusheng, we went to Cold Storage very last minute and found heavily discounted yusheng ingredients! And so... we ended our day with quite a substantial amount of yusheng in each of our stomachs. :/ Hahaha...

Attended the Education Conference that my school organised on Monday and Tuesday. Everything that was touched upon on the keynote addresses on authentic and collaborative learning struck chords within me. It made me feel really privileged to be able to have gone through such processes back then when I was wearing the uniform ten plus years ago, collaborating over the internet with students from all over the world to create meaningful resources for others. I was compelled to send an email to the current organisers of ThinkQuest, the competition which took me places (digitally, geographically, socially), to see if things could be done to bring back the culture of cross continental collaboration (which has been lost these days)... hopefully I'll get a reply one day!

Attended a Youth Seminar and Workshop series organised by National Youth Council and Students Care Services on Wednesday... I was really inspired by the sharing of two youth workers working with CARE, an agency that does on-campus activities with students. It rekindled that part of me that really wants to work more closely with youths... but somehow I find myself asking if I really can make the cut. I confess that my introversion usually takes the upperhand; it makes it hard for me to know others, to connect, to share, let alone share heart to heart and rebuke if necessary. But it's something that I really want to do on the other hand. I wonder which will come first - my introversion gets adjusted accordingly... or the wanting dying out?

Accompanied my younger sis, Dori, to hospital for her quarterly bone marrow test and checkup. She has been on steady remission since going on the new trial drug for her leukemia... the latest report is good. Thank God! :) Her friend came along as well... and we moved on to have a late lunch after everything's settled. It was there while eating when I received a phone call from my deputy principal. He said that there had been an emergency and the colleague who was to go for the Melbourne trip couldn't make it last minute... and based on suitability, I had been called forth to join in the trip to charperone the group of students. Actually till now (halfway through the trip) I still can't quite figure out what he meant by suitability... anyways.

And so that's why I'm where I am right now here in Melbourne. Friday was the release of the 'A' Level results. The school did well and a half day was declared (I knew from my colleague that another half day was declared today?!). Really thankful that Char had a short day that day - we had lunch together before heading back for my packing. Then we were off to the airport...

The flight was about 7 hours long or so; we arrived at the Melbourne airport at about 8 plus in the morning. We travelled straight away to the west of Melbourne to Apollo Bay, visited the Twelve Apostles and eventually stayed at a hostel in Port Campbell for the night. The next day on Sunday, we went on more geographical sightings such as the London Bridge (which I liked best so far!), the Tower Hill and the Wind Farm. It was only Sunday evening when we arrived back in Melbourne.

Melbourne has been experiencing a season of drought all this while... and what happened was that over this particular weekend, there was this superstorm of sort... and it rained hail as well. It was only when we arrived that I heard that many parts of Melbourne had experienced quite a bad bout of flooding over the weekend... and we missed every bit of it! Over the next few days it rained here and there... but most of the time we were either inside buildings in the midst of program or we were already done for the day. Not bad orh!

The students started their programme with the University of Melbourne on Monday. There's this time on Wednesday and Friday when they are allowed to roam the Melbourne Central mall... and on Wednesday they are to get back to the hostel from there themselves. Which meant the need for a little recce-ing... Monday I did it on foot. It was quite a walk to the city centre and back to the university actually... but it was good opporunity for a little exercise. Speaking of which, I actually promised myself not to gain any weight over this trip... so far so good! Today (Tuesday), I learnt to take the tram back to the hostel from the mall. Tomorrow evening should turn out fine *crossing fingers*.

I had the opportunity to know and chat with some of the students along the way... but I must say that somehow that 'fire' in me has simmered down quite a bit. I remember that I would take every opportunity to communicate, even if it meant stepping out of my comfort zones to chat and connect. I find myself asking if I really have anything to offer... like, would it have mattered? Is it necessary? From time to time (I know I'm starting to sound melancholic... don't worry I'm absolutely fine and sober hahaha) I really do wonder, that even though I wanted to do what I did, how much of that actually mattered and helped the other party?

I think I found the answer in part while visiting the ANZAC Memorial Shrine today... carved on a slab a part of scripture from the book of John:

It read to me: Do so anyways.

Mmm. (: Okay... time to wrap up this entry. Apologies that it's kind of long; I want to make it a point to jot down what's been happening each day so when I do get the time to reread my entries I'll be able to jog my memory faster. In any case, my memory really has been failing... sometimes when I tried to remember what I did the past couple of days I would end up with a blank in my mind. :( So yes, I'll try my best to jot things down more regularly!

Ran, Sweated, Got Sick, Got Tired

2010-02-24T23:56:12Z

The school's cross country came and went yesterday morning... as an obese boy in the past in secondary school and junior college, I would favour being on medical excuse or probably walking and enjoying the scenery along the way... quite amazing that I was actually looking forward to running these days! Haha... it wasn't a good run though - I think I over exerted and over estimated myself for the first half of the journey... that resulted in a rather dreadful and trudging second half. Finished the route nonetheless... and was rather surprised to take the fifth position in the staff race when I did remember seeing so many others in front of me! Nonetheless, nonetheless. More weight loss to come this year... haha.

I thought I could have a quiet afternoon by myself... something cropped up which required my attention. Already started sneezing soon after the run (don't know why?!?!), but the afternoon's event kind of aggravated it. And for the first time in a long while, I got angry with someone and actually raised my voice over the phone a number of times... a very rare occurrence indeed... but I did. I just couldn't understand how someone can think so illogically and not spare a thought for other people's efforts and feelings. Thankfully, what was needed to be done was done that afternoon.

Took some supplements for the impending flu but it didn't really seem to be helping... I've taken another dosage as of now and also downed two tablets of paracetemol. No intention of seeing the doctor for now... so hopefully things will get better today! I should eat an apple today! Haha...

We had a mini Chinese New Year Yusheng tossing celebration with my two levels of boarders yesterday night after their study sessions. Glad that most of them were able to make it. But yeah... I don't really know how to put it. Even though their numbers make up a class, they really don't have much opportunities (and reasons for the matter) to really interact with one another, especially so across the different academic levels (we have sec 3s, sec 4s and JC1s together). So now I'm still struggling whether to put seeing them bonding together more as an expectation and target, or simply let nature takes its course... it's funny, but somehow I know that I would be setting myself up for disappointments along the way if I choose the earlier. Or perhaps miracles would happen and things happen for them to have to get together somehow? Sigh... anyone has any take on this? And the interesting thing is some other floors don't seem to have that issue at all...

Visitations

2010-02-23T03:50:56Z

First off, thank you Alex for the Vday cookies and Matt for the fridge magnets from Vietnam... 有心了。 (: Haha I just realised both belong to that of my kaki pals as well! So this week I've actually got two pairs of Alex and Matt who came by the apartment. :P

It'd been a busy weekend; some of the guys from The Mustard Seeds (a youth cellgroup which I led from 2002-2007) came over for a visit on Saturday. I knew them since they were in Primary 6 / Secondary 1... now some of them are in National Service, some just starting, and some finishing their last year in their Polytechnics and Junior Colleges. Even though we seldom meet anymore, this bunch of guys remain a very special bunch because of all the shared memories through my growing Christian years (you can check the archives and you'll know what I mean... (:). God has used this bunch greatly in teaching me what it means to care... and to love unconditionally. As I look back and seriously ponder upon the years passed, I'm beginning to see that I've taken much more (the experiences and the learning points) than what I thought I gave (the time and the stepping out), or rather, what God enabled me to give.

Most of them remain the same as I've known them; the quiet ones still quiet, the crazy ones getting a little bit worse... hahaha. But I'm glad to see how some of them have grown in stature, taking up service roles be it in church or in their respective schools. Jan has taken up what I used to be for them to a group of secondary one boys in youth ministry this year... and as much as I made fun of him that day for having to sacrifice his dance concert to lead his group, my heart's rejoicing... to see how God has been faithful in his life, as with the rest. (:

Alex and Matty (kakis! :)) came by in the evening for a late night dinner; we've been trying to arrange a time for all of us to meet together before Matty flies back to Aussieland some weeks later. Ray & Jac and happily honeymooning in Nipponland still... so we had a small get together first. Didn't expect them to bring so much food... but they did! And all so yummy! Poor stomach... hahahaha. I remembered about the pepsi I placed in the freezer in the afternoon halfway through eating and went to rescue to it... in the end I almost had a volcanic eruption display at the sink! Managed to salvage some amount of drink though.. haha.

Visited Mdm.Tan Liang See, my upper secondary chinese teacher, the next day with some of my classmates from The Chinese High, 4D'98. It's since become a tradition every Chinese New Year to have a little get together at her place... and this would be the 13/14th time already. I arrived on the dot and had the opportunity to chat with her before the rest arrived... basically shared with her how it's been going at work and with Char (she was taught by Mdm. Tan too but in a totally different subject area!)... the rest came and we started to talk about her PhD dissertation on student motivation... quite a nice feeling to be interacting like that. (:

Quite a number of things transpired in the midst of the visitation... and I would say that they have provided a bearing as to the future decisions that would be made in time to come. Exciting days ahead... yet scary. But nevermind... shall take it one step at a time. (:

CNY Dinner @ Aunty Sindy's

2010-02-19T12:04:15Z

Every dish prepared was so yummy!

HCVB West Zone Prize Presentation

2010-02-19T12:03:30Z

Cheers to the team for putting up a good fight!

Journeying Together

2010-02-19T09:06:55Z

I'm currently sitting in a bus full of students attending a prize giving ceremony... Going there to take photos, as I've done so the past two years... but I guess this would probably be the last year I'll be doing so. Then again, I'm just giving myself a chance to slap my face again next year. Haha... but seriously? May very well be the last.... since I've kind of lost touch with the junior batches. Well... we'll know when the time comes I guess! *smiles*

I guess I'm the only quiet being amidst the current cacophony... It's a personal choice in the end to write instead of interact, I realized. :p There is in me this seemingly insatiable desire to relate, yet I find myself inapt in most social situations. I find it amusing at times when people exclaimed in disbelief at my professed introversion... Sometimes it makes me wonder if it's a matter of my own perception?! In any case, I'm learning to be more thankful for each relationship and friendship I've been blessed with. (:

Okay I only got to write that much just now before the bus pulled over at the sports hall. The event's over, and I've parked myself somewhere near Char's school before heading to a family dinner together this evening. Took quite a bit of photos this time round... Don't know why the guys were so on when it came to phototaking this year round? Haha...

I remember (the darnest things sometimes!) the first time I stepped into Hougang Sports Complex in 2007 to catch one of their matches... the yearly prize giving... It's a gift to be able to witness their growth as a team and as individuals for some of them... and I'm glad to have such a piece of memory etched in me this season in life. If I could be one of their teacher ics, I would... but for all it is, I'm glad nonetheless. (:

Oh yes. I met one of my past readers at the sports hall! I was fiddling with my camera when someone asked if I'm me. Was a little startled then she mentioned that she used to read my blog. Think she's one of the teacher ics of another school... Didn't even get her name! Mmm hi if you ever drop by again! (:

In life's journeys, some people are called to walk with one another throughout, whereas some are there to walk us through particular seasons in time, and vice versa. In the midst of the walking, I'm learning still to give nonetheless, as He has, to love nonetheless, just as how He has for us, whether the journeying together is long or short.

Look around you - who are the ones whom you've been journeying along at this point of time? Do not take for granted that they'll be there all the time. Take time to appreciate them for the roads you all have taken together; let them know the kind of difference the journeying together has made to your life.. and who knows what'll happen? ;)

Reviving FriendMark... Reviving the Heart

2010-02-18T10:31:40Z

I'm in the midst of restarting 'Project' FriendMark... concept's the same, but this time round, beyond the celebration of friendship, it's going to be for better causes as well. And it's going to be incorporated into galvs.net. For a sneak peak, check out the FriendMark section. I've put some of the old FriendMarks in place.

It'll take some time before new submissions are accepted... I hope to complete updating the old ones first and work out a good submission system. Taking into consideration family time, work and studies, I do hope I'll be able to have the time to do so.

It's refreshing reading the encouragement notes people write to others... it brought to me a little of that 'warmth' in my heart this morning, something that has been rarely felt these days. The same feeling came again in the afternoon when I had a chat with a colleague regarding a student, who has been putting in efforts in spite of the cards that are dealt against him.

I'm reminded again how God sees each and everyone of us... our sins, our flaws, our achievements, our accolades... stripping them all apart anyways, and loving us for who we are in Him.

How can we ever thank God enough? (: (:

Raymond Tan

2010-02-17T22:53:13Z

(click on FriendMark/s to see enlarged version)

(written in 2010)

It's been probably 7-8 years since I've known Raymond; we attend the same church, but we never got to know each other from there. I could only remember that I recognize him as the one who drives the motorcycle in the young people's ministry back then. We eventually got to know each other through the internet; actually it was a group of us who got to know one another through our blogging... and eventually we call ourselves the kakis. I would say this group grew from strength to strength, and God amazed us, at least me, in the way He blesses these friendships that we have.

I remember being influenced by his zealousness in serving God with the Navigators.. the Navteens in particular. He would share with me from time to time the work God is doing through the ministry in the lives of the youths... which in turn encouraged me to give of my time in youth ministry.

I also remember how he started blogging about this "SJ" along the way... how he finally revealed who she was back then... and how their relationship blossomed. Out of that relationship I saw Raymond giving of his best. He worked hard, stayed very prudent and I would say that every step of his way ever since the start of the relationship was made not just for himself, but always with Jac in mind. It's been a privilege to know this dear couple who went out of their way to help Char and myself in our wedding preparations and decorations... and it's another privilege to be Raymond's bestman at their wedding not long ago. Thanking God for this cherished friendship! (:

The Carbs Shall Be Curbed

2010-02-16T10:17:37Z

I've been on a liberal carb spree the past few days since Friday... I think the worst was the continuous munching on my self made pineapple tarts :/ A few more hours and I'll be on a ferry back to Singapore... The carbs curbing shall begin then again!

Haha.. Quite a lot of people assumed that I've been torturing myself going on this food lifestyle; the fact is that I'm enjoying the things I've been eating. In fact, I think I've eaten more salad the past two months than the amount I've eaten the past two years!

Shall write about this weight management journey soon... Shall enjoy my very last bits of carb indulgence for now! :p

Batam Respite

2010-02-15T01:22:55Z

I'm currently in a ferry on the way to Batam together with Char my wife and Dori my sister! We're heading there for an overnight respite over the lunar new year holidays before work comes in full force in the days ahead... Shall post this if the 3G signal lasts long enough... If not I'll have to do so when I get back tomorrow. ;)

It's been sometime since I've updated... so there's quite a bit to update! To those who're somewhat regular readers, do look forward to more regular updates from now on as I seek to write on a more regular basis! :)

Firstly, the essay which I'd applied a double extension for was finally completed a few days before the final deadline - a close shave indeed! Very very thankful! Haha... For two mornings, I brought my laptop and necessary materials outdoors to work on the essay... And I took another morning to wrap it up. Had to pay quite a bit for couriering though... But am glad nonetheless that it's done! :D Not expecting much on the grade... just hoping that it'll be decent enough. :) Another one's due in March... I'll start right after this holiday period and hope that I won't catch the procrastination bug! Do 'poke' me and ask me how it's coming along if you see me!

My maternal extended family gathered for our annual 'reunion' meal on the eve of lunar new year on Sat - it wasn't very much a celebration this time round... But we all felt that even though we aren't exactly celebrating Chinese new year this year, we should still get together as a family... so that was what we did. What's interesting was that Char and Dori were the main cooks! Char took care of the steamboat ingredients while Dori prepared okonomiyaki and fried sausage rolled in springroll skin, something we both grew to love from our primary school canteen... Which kind of explains why I'd been obese half my childhood... Haha.

Which brings me to the real exciting part! I've been on a rather different eating plan the past month and a half and together with regular exercise I've managed to lose close to 10 kilogrammes so far! Sadly I think I'll be gaining back a few these few days... but yeah, I have the confidence that I'll be able to hit my target this time round, which is to reach my intended Body Mass Index (BMI) of 21. I'll be blogging about this journey soon enough! :)

Exciting days ahead I must say... 2010 began with a rough start for me, but I've come to realize that life goes on... and more importantly, that every circumstance is an opportunity for growth. This year is going to be exciting because there'll probably be more changes still... and I hope I'll be more faithful to keep this place clear of digital cobwebs!!

Pineapple Tarts

2010-02-12T12:02:43Z

The pastry-type base turned out pretty well! (:

Strawberry <3 Cake for Dear

2010-02-12T12:01:57Z

:D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D

Breaking The Silence

2010-01-31T12:00:39Z

The first month of 2010 didn't turn out the way I've hoped it would have been... actually, I didn't have great and high hopes for it, just that I really didn't expect to find myself going through what I've gone through. And even though my circumstances don't exactly qualify to be likened to that of the shadow of the valley of death, I would say that I've been on quite a ride.

I'm beginning to question my current station... I've begun asking a lot of questions of all that I've been doing of late. Somewhere down the line I believe that the line between work and purpose has been blurred somehow... and from time to time I think about those days when I was joyfully serving in both the youth and worship ministries, tough and heart wrenching at times, yet joyful. Something seemed to have died within me ever since I've left those days behind, moving on to what seemed to be a purposeful journey that God has for me, to meet new faces, to venture into new spaces.

I've had many wonderful memories the past two years seeing through a batch of students that's really close to my heart for reasons more than one... and of course, these two years have been special as well as to how God graciously brought Char and I together as a married couple. But from time to time in quiet moments... I'm beginning to see how I'm becoming a piece of jigsaw that just doesn't seem to fit into what's to be a beautiful picture. And in recent weeks this has become more stark, in that I'm not the only one thinking this way.

Haha well... and yea, as of this writing I have an essay that's undone, which I've applied a double extension for. Just last week I've actually contemplated another deferment of my studies... but I've decided not to in the end. If anything, this is one thing that I must finish... and finish well.

And I guess not many know... that my maternal grandpa passed away on the 15th. Apart from this current time that I'm sitting down to write... I realised that I don't even have the proper time to process through my grief, unlike five years ago when my grandma passed away.

I'm genuinely really glad for my dear friend Raymond when he tied the knot with another dear friend Jacqueline just yesterday. It was the first time that I had the honor of being a best man... when he asked me about it several months back I was actually quite surprised and thought that he probably would have many other choices other than me... then I realised how much this friendship meant for him. And as I was writing the best man's speech halfway through the night before the wedding, I welled up a little as I wrote how we met, along with Alex and Matty... how we actually met back then is now a little blurry.. but the process of knowing one another better and staying in touch all these years is something that I never thought I would have... or deserve.

I don't know how I got this 'undeserving' thingie going on in me actually.. but I do know that because of that, I'm learning more and more how to cherish such friendships, especially the one I have with Char.

Remember the part of me which I mentioned had died? I'll be seeking for a revival in that area soon enough... and I've come to be at peace with the fact that changes are but part and parcel of life. And as I look through my archives... I do miss writing the kind of entries I wrote back then.

So... we'll see how it all goes. (:

Time to continue on with the essay!

Ray & Jac Tied The Knot!!

2010-01-30T12:00:59Z

Really glad to see this pair of dear brother and sister tying the knot! Honoured to be the bestman! :D