Snow-balling

I've finally done what I had to do and settled all the stuff that I could, so now I'm feeling better.

I was kind of pissed still today. My parents wanted to visit my grandmother in the morning, but they woke up bloody late. I was supposed to meet Mak for a movie in the afternoon, but I decided to cancel it because I had no idea when I would be done with everything.

Anyway, when I met my grandmother, she was being discharged because she felt that the doctors couldn't help her any more. I didn't do much when I met her. I just held on to her hand for like, 5 minutes. The longest I ever. That was all I could do to show her that I actually cared. And well, I tried my best already... After that, I went down to beach road to get my uniform sewn with the CBRD badge. The badge is something I'm real proud of! It really is cool. But it was bloody troublesome to get it done because my mom wouldn't help me do it (which led to me being pissed off with her as well). Here's a badly taken photo but still, it shows my new CBRD badge. I've passed out from my long 19 week course! Hurray!



After that I went to The Heeran's HMV and had a great time looking at all the CDs and posters. Everything! It felt great that I've finished doing the two things that troubled me a lot last night (I slept at 3 AM, luckily Fish was online for me to tell my troubles to and play Solitaire Showdown with me till I was tired enough to sleep).

Yesterday was actually a very happy day. First of all, I'd like to announce that I've gotten a new car.



Okay, maybe not. Isn't the freaking Cefiro just gorgeous! My goodness, when I got in that car I felt like royalty. It's mine. All mine! Well, actually it was on display at Suntec City. But it will be mine one day! Just wait and see!

I was with Si Hua and Sequeena, my best mates from Secondary School. We had hell lot of fun yesterday but I didn't get a chance to type it down. First we went to Kbox and then we walked around Suntec. Sequeena and I were trying to come up with some surprises, and we kept changing plans, but of course in the end it was still as enjoyable as ever. And we took a hell lot of photos. I think the last time we were this crazy was back in 2003, and that's hell long ago.

We went to Esplanade and then we had a celebration for Si Hua's birthday in the middle of nowhere. Well, it was on these steps at Marina. As a bonus (and it wasn't planned) we got to see the fireworks in full force! We were bloody lucky, and there weren't many people around squeezing for a good view too.



Now is this cool or is this cool? Haha, I think we're all getting more photogenic. Oops. We continued our crazy photo taking spree at all the weird places. If anyone knows, there's kind of a stall at the junction which leads to Suntec and Esplanade. It was closed already and we started taking photos there. There were so many people staring at us. Arh!



I was so bloody happy yesterday. I can't even begin to describe it. We're like childhood friends watching each other grow up. And we have deep chats about almost everything, no holds barred!

It was kind of ruined at night when I was trying to sleep and my brother still had the television on to wrestling and the rage and the noise kept me awake and made my blood boil. I was super pissed and I wanted to go beat him up. Of course, I don't know what came over me, but I wanted a non-violent way out, so I just got out of the house ( at 1 15 AM in the morning ). My mother called me and demanded that I come back immediately; she thought I was running away from home or something when all I wanted to do was cool down. When I came back 5 minutes later we had an all out argument and she asked me why it seems like I'm always angry at the family, when I wasn't. It turned out to become some major serious discussion with angry tonnes which lasted till almost 3 AM. About money, about my siblings, about my grandmother... about every fuck shit that there was. That was bad. But we also cleared up some stuff.

Anyway, I was super troubled, and I'm glad for all the support I've gotten today. Thanks guys.

I'll update more next week. I've got good new songs to recommend and hopefully some celebrity will pull a stunt for me to cover. If not, there's always Britney Spears! I hope I have a slack week ahead and you guys stay safe and Keep Your Cool!

These are Troubled Times

I'm kinda facing a lot of family problems now so I'm in no mood to really update my blog. I guess I'll be fine after this weekend, so hope you guys will be understanding with my lack of updates. Thanks.

JKYH Top 10 (04)

01. Lose Control - Missy Elliot ft Ciara, Fatman Scoop (2)

02. Someday (I Will Understand)- Britney Spears (2)
03. We Believe - Good Charlotte (4)
04. These Boots Are Made For Walking - Jessica Simpson (2)
05. Pa - Edison Chen (+4)
06. Wake Me Up When September Ends - Green Day (-1)
07. Tian Kong - Jolin Tsai (+1)
08. First - Lindsay Lohan (-1)
09. Zhu Lin Shen Chu - Wang Lee Hom (-3)
10. Army Of Lovers - Lee Ryan (NEW)

The Notebook - RVHS II

Extracted from the notebook - 220605

Probably the best thing that has ever happened to me was joining choir. I learnt a lot. I've sudden;y got the chance to know so many people who are passionate about music. The practises were gruelling yet sometimes after the long practices, we'd still find some secluded spot at JEC where there was resonance and start singing there. It was there that I learnt about the quality of a voice and hoarmony. While writing this, images of faces singing fill my mind; memories which have not surfaced in my mind till now.

I don't know if I have something for performing. It certainly was one of the biggest performance (at Raffles Hotel no less) that I have been a part of. Till now, it occurred to me that I probably should have gotten some photos of the time that I was performing with all those cool people.

Anyway, one memory which stands out is one of which my senior Ziyang, who was older than me by a year, helped me put on my tie just before the concert. It's hard to describe the feeling but it was sort of like someone older and someone that I respected taking notice of me. I don't exactly know how to describe the feeling. He was such an inspiration musically and as a person. He was shorter than most and that usually drew him a lot of flak but his personality managed to make everything esle insignificant. I was honoured when he asked me to teach him a bit of piano. If I'm not wrong, he's an organ student and even after my years in RV, I'd notice his musical achievements on the examination result slip in Cristofori. I'm proud of him for being my senior too. Also at that point of time I remembered him trying to play our singing parts on the keyboard during sectionals but they sort of chided him to step aside and let me play because I was more ableto do it.

They were the people who gave me motivation to push my sight reading skills to the limit, even to the extent of drawing out a keyboard on a blank piece of paper to practise during my MRT ride home. I guess I was at my peak back then as compared to now. Of late I look at grade 3 scores and I'm stunned. Disgusting shite.

Besides the seniors, there were the juniors who were much more experienced that me because they joined 6 months before I did. I suppose that was the first time I got respect from people younger than me and I got along very well with them.

I remembered that there was once it was the day before the audition for the chamber choir and Sher and Derek tried their best to coach me. It was a pretty last minute effort and considering the fact that I was still a newbie at all the singing stuff, I got pretty nervous singing in front of both of them. It took a lot of coaxing and patience on their side before I opened my mouth to sing and by the end of the entire session, I only learnt a bit of singing using the diaphragm.

I don't suppose I'm very good at singing now but I've improved a lot since then. Joining the choir made me try singing out loud at homne and gave me the chance to discover what I've got in terms of singing. Of course, some of the skills came handy when doing presentations in the future as well as when I was MC for SSS's official opening.

I think it's about time to close this topic which took like 3-4 sittings to write. If I get inspired I'd probably write more, but for now, this is pretty much the end.

I've raked up more memories than I cared to remember.

An 8 to 5 Job... But It Ain't Mine!

First of all, I'd like to congratulate my pal Sidney (as if I haven't already) on getting a job as COPA. There were vigorous rounds of selection and interview for this important job, mind you. Thus, he now has the opportunity to book out everyday and live a civilian life while at the same time, serving the army. Now how cool is that?

*Envious*

But being the good friend that I am, and since it's a piece of news that you can't stop smiling over (okay, and the happiness was rather infectious), it deserves to be celebrated. Bring on the champagne!



Haha! Today I met up with Sidney at Causeway Point after he dismounted from duty. We had lunch at the foodcourt; he had fish fillet and I had black pepper chicken chop. Before that, my mother and I had breakfast at home. I ate two slices of delicious mango cheescake. I just couldn't help myself! We chatted over his new job and all the welfare and advantages that came along with it. He couldn't stop talking about it and I couldn't stop entertaining the endless possiblities of being able to go home after work and watching TV, surfing the net or working out everyday.

The freedom! Man.

Next we went to the VCD rental place and chose a movie to rent. I couldn't decide on anything because I had nothing in mind. He actually wanted to watch 28 Days Left(?), a movie about zombies, while I was thinking of something a bit more light hearted and a bit less adrenaline inducing! In the end we settled for Bruce Almighty. It costs 3 dollars to rent that thing (Right, I'll pay for the next time), and we took a 5-minute walk to his house.

Hmm, his house is quite nice. Unlike mine which is full of warm colours and furniture, his place is more... cool. I entertained myself with today's Life! and he did his stuff before putting the VCD in the DVD player. The thing refused to work. He tried a few times while I took a look at the arowana. Anyway, in the end we figured the VCD was faulty but we went up to his brother's room to try it out again. I don't know what was wrong with the laptop, so we went to his room to try using his computer and it took quite some time to start up. I got to take a look at some Britney stuff.

Okay, stop kidding me now, I ain't the biggest Britney fan in Singapore, Sidney is! From newspaper cuttings to a few super exclusive catalogues and Britney on the magazine covers of Rolling Stone, Lime and 8 Days, the man has it all! My jaw was literally on the floor when I saw them. The computer took its time to load and I took the chance to get my fingers all over the Britney stuff! He won a Britney competition on MTV Asia some time back and that's how he got a press release (at least that was what I figured it was) of Britney's Britney album.



That came with a Rolling Stone issue with Britney on the cover and also the single of I'm A Slave 4 U and Overprotected. And there were tonnes of posters! Bloody cool stuff.

Did I mention that GHMP was being played from his hi-fi? Do somethin' ya'll!

By some miracle (and after a Hokkien LOTR), Bruce Almighty was able to work on his computer and the movie was quite interesting. It isn't the best thing I've ever watched or anything like that, but it was rather entertaining and as a comedy, it achieved its purpose. The star of the movie being none other than Jim Carey supported by Jennifer Anniston was what made the movie so watchable. We were interrupted by some pop-ups, until we found a way to permanently stop stuff from popping up.

I got to see a lot of his photos too. To top it off, Sidney was real hospitable. I'm sorry I didn't drink the ribena; I'll remember to when I get to go there again! If there is one! I had a lot of fun although we didn't do anything much, just hanging out. It was cool. Happy!

*clink!*



To our friendship!

After all that I went to get my hair cut and bought sweets and hangers for book in.

Well, this is the last entry for this book out, and I'll be back in 4 freaking days. At the request of Nana, here's Ben Moody's Everything Burns - http://s5.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=0SI4NQM8FID7V2F41AUUDAMQBF. A very impressive song; you've got good taste! I had a great, great, great weekend. Okay, another nice thing was that it was long as well. I'm all for off on Mondays!

That's all for this weekend folks. Take care and Keep Your Cool!

SHOCKER: Lee Ryan is back!!!

Oh yeah. Imagine how shocked I was when I was looking at the UK singles chart today, not expecting any surprises as it has been pretty boring of late. James Blunt is still #1 with You're Beautiful. I have a love-hate relationship with that song! At #2 is the ever-gorgeous Mariah Carey, moving up 1 notch with We Belong Together. And the highest debut stomping in the UK chart at #3 is none other than Lee Ryan 's Army of Lovers. I had no idea that he had new material! And to think that I was always at the frontlines of Britpop!

Lee Ryan of Blue with his first solo single! I think I kind of like Lee Ryan as an artist more than I like Blue. He's a person who's bubbling with character and all the powerful ballads were so good because of him. Remember the jaw-dropping long note that he sang in Breathe Easy when it changed key? His instantly recognisable voice and undoubtedly excellent singing prowess will serve him well in his solo career of making good pop songs.

I'm quite excited about his solo effort. Forget Ben Adams (whose debut came in at a floptastic #18). When I saw the title Army of Lovers, I wondered how the song would sound like. After getting stuff from my sources, it is indeed a slice of pop perfection. In fact, it sounds more grown up. A bit more like Will Young than any of Blue's previous singles, it's a classic-sounding love song.



Although it's on the short side (it doesn't even reach 3 minutes), I liked it the moment I heard it. It doesn't have the thrill and suspense of Breathe Easy, (which you can tell is probably one of my fav Blue songs) which climaxes twice and has an astoundingly attention-grabbing change of key. Instead, it's sounds quiet and soothing; listening to it is like one of the small pleasures of life.

Here's what TOTP (Top of The Pops, a Brit mag cum music show) has to say about the single:

Blue were one of those bands you either loved or hated and if you didn't like them, chances are that Lee Ryan was the main reason. Lee was definitely 'the character' of the bunch - the one who went on about sleeping with aliens. The one with the speeding fines who liked a scuffle with the odd photographer or two. But for all his faults, there's no doubt that Lee was the singer. When it came to the key-change-belt-it-out moment, Lee was your man. So it's a bit of a surprise that his first solo effort should be such a bland (in a pleasant way) pop ballady thing where Lee doesn't seem to make much of an effort at all. It's a shame because a few of his trademark warbles would lift this track from three stars to four. Maybe Lee's producer misunderstood him when he said he wanted to "save the wails"?
TOTP Rating: 3/4 stars



At 22, he's one of the young singers to look out for. Cementing his position already on the arena of Pop music, and with fantastic live performances to look forward to, I think this guy will be able to stand the test of time. I've got Blue's DVD and the performances inside there really blow my mind. The fact that they sing live is one of the best things that there is to look forward to (unlike my favourite pop princess who mimed every single song in her concert other than Everytime and Shadow). The dancing's good; the theatretics impressive.I can't wait to hear the subsequent singles off his album for I'm sure they'll be gems, with him singing the kind of music style that is, well, him. He's one of those artists that draws me to listen to his works so I'll be waiting in eager anticipation!

Enter http://www.lee-ryan.org/index2.php, the best fanstite of him around and there're a few downloads of his live performances already. Check it out for yourself!

JKYH Top 10 (03)

01. Lose Control - Missy Elliot ft Ciara, Fatman Scoop (+1)

02. Someday (I Will Understand)- Britney Spears (-1)
03. We Believe - Good Charlotte (3)
04. These Boots Are Made For Walking - Jessica Simpson (+5)
05. Wake Me Up When September Ends - Green Day (+1)
06. Zhu Lin Shen Chu - Wang Lee Hom (-1)
07. First - Lindsay Lohan (2)
08. Tian Kong - Jolin Tsai (2)
09. Pa - Edison Chen (NEW)
10. This Is How A Heart Breaks - Rob Thomas (NEW)

The Notebook - RVHS I

Extracted from the notebook - 220605

It's true that there's a lot going through my mind now, just that I haven't gotten the opportunity to sit down, sort them out and most important of all, to scribble them down on paper. It feels so refreshing to be writing again. Maybe writing does in fact give me a kind of indescribable joy and the existent of an audience to read what I write is irrelevant. Okay, that isn't really true because the satisfaction I get from knowing that people bother to read about what goes on in my life and how I write about it. With an audience comes the drive to improve my writing but also forces me to cater my writings to attract the attention of the audience and pique their curiousity.

One of the things that have been going through my head is Xiaxue's blog (http://www.xiaxue.blogspot.com/). I've returned to read after I saw her on the talkshow on TV. I took a lot of last Sunday to read her blog. Not all of it, but still the way she writes and stuff manages to reach out to a lot of Singaporeans. She's a media student from SP now getting 15 000 or so hits a day. In the past I used to think that she thrived on controversy, rude words and probably puttin her face all over the blog. However, no amount of the above can now distract me from the fact that she is a person of substance and her writing is certainly impressive. It is simple, yet engaging and hilarious at times. It is so uniquely unpretentious - damn I'm beginning to sound like I'm promoting her blog, but that's just my way of writing.

It does help of course that we share a common past of being in RV. With it, I can understand some of the angst she was expressing when she mentioned that she might've screwed up her life. She described the life in RV, which had a unique culture of its own. Being the 2nd rank co-ed secondary school in the nation, the school's students had a lot to live up to. It was a school that accepted no mistakes from its pupils and there was something that caused many to come out of its walls rfeeling that their individualism was oppressed and they ended up avoiding entering JC because they were searching for a learning environment which allowed more creativity and less route learning.

I don't know where all these thoughts come from but I've always viewed (as my mother does) that my past in RV was something to move on from, not to be looked back at and essentially a waste of 2 years of my life. Of course, that couldn't be farther away from the truth. My most awkward adolescence was spent in that school, not totally unaccepted but it was a point of time in my life where I had no idea who or what I was going to be. I was 'popular' for being the guy with the most magazines in class, the first to remember the titles, artist and lyrics of new songs ie The Real Slim Shady and the latest on all gossip and news about singers et al. Of course I've not changed completely from there but I suppose I've grown into a more balanced individual and explored other things in life. I always thought at that point of time that I would be growing as a teenager but little did I know that my transformation was still in its infancy. I've learnt and grown so much since then.

Leaving the school left me bruised, down but not out. It didn't leave me with scars that's for sure because I've put it at the back of my mind for so long now that I CAN pretend that it never happened to me. Maybe at that point of time it was difficult for me so I did try hard to forget about it. I could still remember that it was the freaking eve of the new year that I had to stay at home and study for my 'entry examinations' into Sembawang Sec. However, that isn't quite the piont.

I've failoed to see that there were many things that came out of being an Rvians, even if it was only for 2 bloody years. Even though I was forcibly removed from the school, it still made me a proud/arrogant bastard to know that I've rubbed shoulders with the best and I had a PSLE score of 255 to get my ass in there. To date, my peers moved on to HCJC or NJC and although I'm 'only' in NYJC, there's never beena moment when I'd feel intimidated when faced with competing against those people in 'A' level results, getting a course which I wanted to get into Uni, or even if it was going up against their entry for SYF with my HO juniors. The hype or name they have built up for themselves do not scare me. To say that I am completely unafraid would have been bullshit but I'm ready to look at any of them straight in the eye and say 'Bring it on.', I don't care if they become the people of 'high society' in the future. All I know for now is that when I'm willing to push myself to the extent that I must get what I want, they don't have that kind of advantage over me and we'd fight for a place in this society on 'equal' footing in spite of all back ground and external influences.

TBC.

Brit baby in September!

Before I start on this entry, I'd like to remind everyone that there was a blonde singer who criticised Britney for wearing too little clothing and talking about her virginity. This singer also said that she would not use a sexy image to sell her records and that her body was a gift from god yadda yadda yadda. She was out to separate herself from the also blonde and talented Britney Spears. Keep this lady in mind...



Britney's baby is due in September! Now, how exciting is that! I really am very interested to see what the combination of genes from Spears and Federline have resulted in. I'm sure the baby will be bloody cute. There's been a rumour that the sequel to Chaotic will show Britney giving birth. I'm not sure if I want that to happen because it's a very intimate moment for her and her family, but if she's going to put it out there, then I'm going to watch it!

Also, Britney & Kevin: Chaotic... The DVD & More will be released officially on the 13th of September. I hope it comes to Singapore at around that time too. In the meantime, I better start saving up for it. Since it's in DVD quality, I don't suppose it'll come cheap. Also, she was seen leaving a recording studio on Wednesday, so she might be up to something. I'm enthusiastically awaiting new material from her.

In addition to all of that Justin Ang of the Perfect 10 slammed Britney on his morning show and I am not happy with that. He and Vernon A are already pissing me off with the utter rubbishy conversations they have every single morning. Anyway, it is fine that he thinks that Britters is going bankrupt and is rushing to release an album to make some money. What is not okay is that he said that Britney doesn't actually do any of the singing and it's pretty much computerised vocals, so she's pretty smart to be recording new stuff while she's preggers because she doesn't have to put any effort into that. Now how can that accusation be true? If you think putting just ANY blonde bimbo out there who can't sing and would willingly take off her clothes would be able to sell 60 million albums in 6 years, then you should wake up your fucking idea. If that were true, every single record company would have some talentless stripper as their best-selling recording artist already. Britney's a megastar, a celebrity, a performer and she started it all with singing the hit song that is ...Baby One More Time. Tell me if anyone else makes as many memorable songs and videos as her.

Proof:


And if you were wondering who was the teenage girl who made the comments about keeping her body sacred and all that stuff, it's none other than Jessica Simpson. Ms American Sweetheart herself who said she won't be stripping for publicity. It is true that I love her new single These Boots Are Made For Walking, a Nancy Sinatra classic I think, but is there any freaking reason to be doing this in her video:



Britney's always been a little seductive and all (don't tell me about the Toxic scene where she was 'naked' with diamonds because that was a body stocking; she lied) but this slutty? Jessica's just overtaken her in that department.

Bitch.

The Island

Today, Mak and I caught the 10 AM showing of The Island!

Anyway, we met at 840 at Woodlands MRT station and luckily, I was on time. And when he gave me a warning call that he was going to come out of his house, I had already left home. We took the train to Junction 8. It was great to meet him again after quite some time. I can't even remember the last movie we watched! I think it was The Incredibles. He looks fitter thanks to his OCS training. Okay, he was fit to begin with.

We wanted to buy the tickets at first but it wasn't open, so we went to Mcdonalds to have Big Breakfast. It was pretty good, probably because I hadn't had it in such a long time. We chatted mostly about army stuff. After that we went up to find that the cinema was still not opened and so we went to Cristofori to look around for awhile. The pianos there are beautiful. But I guess I've to up my skills in it before getting a real good one in the future.

After that we went to catch the movie and we were planning on sharing popcorn and drink but since we had a voucher, it was cheaper and he went out to get another set after we entered the cinema. We caught quite a lot trailers but we didn't see the one for Mindhunters. I saw it last time and it looked pretty scary. We've decided to go catch it on the coming Sunday. Crazy!

Enter The Island!



I'm giving this movie a 5 star rating (over 5!). 2 for originality of plot, 2 for the action-packed scenes and length of the movie, and the last one for my favourite actor, Ewan Mcgregor. Fab stuff.

Basically the movie is about clones being aware of their existence and the whole movie revolves around that. It makes all the GP essays about the morality of cloning come to life in this humungous blockbuster that's the best thing I've seen all year! Scarlett Johansson and Ewan Mcgregor act as clones who've managed to escape the whole set up. They were ignorant of the outside world and this movie showcases them facing the real world, where life isn't as simple as it seems. The story might be a bit draggy for some, but it leaves nothing unexplained. The plot is made very clear.



The movie can be split into 3 parts. The introduction, the escape and the rescue. All three are entertaining. The surprising part is when you think that the entire movie might end, it continues to plough on till all the clones are free. I had the shivers when I saw the clones freed and roam the open land.

Amazing. Amazing. Amazing.

Outrageously fast paced and stimulating emotionally and intellectually, this is a movie not to be missed. I have a feeling it won't turn out to reap tonnes of money, but the effort put in by the cast and crew to produce this movie should be recognised. The Island for the Oscars! Well, maybe not because I don't know about the old-fogeys' tastes, but as far as I am concerned, this movie ranks as one of my favourites ever! Watch it!

As usual, 2 photos of the leads in the movie. Lookin' good!

Foresight

This has been a pretty busy week, with Exercise Cunning Fox and a lot of chatting with my bunkmates, a lot of story book reading, writing, SMS-ing... I'll be back to update it later!

I'll be kind of busy this weekend; luckily for the OFF on Monday!

Anyway, I'll be meeting Mak for breakfast and then for a movie, before coming back home and maybe visiting my grandmother at hospital. My parents feel that we should be ready anytime as she might not be able to make it. Tonight I'll be celebrating my maternal grandfather's 70th birthday at a restaurant.

Tomorrow I'll be out with Van probably all day (or I'd have to visit my grandmother at the hospital again). It'll be very... meaningful I guess. It's the time before she enters Uni, on another adventure in her life. It's a totally different phase where lots of things change. Well, I'm scared too.

Monday, I'd probably be hanging out with Sidney, or going KBox if I can grab somebody, or stoning at home. I don't want to rot, because I had enough of rotting in camp already! And sleeping too!

Oops, I don't want to be late again, so I guess I better get my ass outta here! Later!

Tata for now!

My last entry is going to be done quite early because I think I'll be going out to do some last minute returning of books, as well as borrowing. I'll have to eat dinner and pack my bag for booking in too.

By the way, I've had a crazy shopping spree on CDs recently. In 2 short weeks, I've gotten Wang Lee Hom's latest album for $20, then Ben C's Debut Project at $10, followed by 5566's Concert VCD, V6 's Concert VCD and Leon Lai's album at a mere 10 freaking bucks. I just topped it off today with Janet's Damita Jo and Kylie's Body Language for $12 in total! That's what the HMV Summer Sale's for baby! I realise that music really is my life and I love every minute of it when I hear a good song, or watch a good video and watch in wonder at the power of a celebrity doing his or her thang on stage. It's just super cool. I'm going to be part of this business, even if it kills me!

I had a very good weekend and I'm already looking forward to next week! A movie with Mak, a trip to Ikea with Van and my grandfather's birthday! On the army front, I think I'll be able to cope with the things I'm faced with for now, and everything is going rather smoothly. The part I like best is working out in the bunk with my bunkmates every night after RO at our own pace. Other than that, we have 3/4 guitars in the bunk already. With Charles and my buddy bringing their new guitars in and our guitar master Bryan and Chia Keat, there'll be a lot of music in the bunk! Singing included! Life there isn't that bad after all.

Sometimes, it even feels more home than home.

No, I can't believe I said that. I take it back. Bring forth my ORD please.

To all you guys, I've gotten a lot of love this week and I want you to know I treasure each and every one of you. Really. To those reading my blog as well, take care and Keep Your Cool! Cya!

Triple Treat

Here I am, once again with a remote control. And that can only mean one thing. K Box!!! Today Zhenhui, Shuming and I had a hell of a time at KBox singing. It was cool this time round, as every other time. I find that for me, it's money well spent although this time I had to pay for Shuming's because I was bloody late. I have no idea why I was as late as I was, luckily I had Zhenhui to be late with me! Haha...

Sang more S.H.E. and Jay Chou songs this time round as compared to other times. Also, it seems that there's an endless choice of songs to choose from because the singing list this time was totally different from the previous times! Zhenhui improved a lot that we thought he had been practising at home or something. Shuming was as good as the last time we went. The three of us haven't went out together since a year ago, and this gathering was nothing short of the crazy fun that we always have when we get together.

After K Lunch, we went to eat at Burger King. The queue was bloody long! I ate mushroom swiss double and it tasted great! Anyway, we had tonnes to talk about. Did I mention that the strawberry pie we shared tasted sinfully good too? Haha! We've decided to meet again next month, either on the 6th or the 20th, and we're going to be having a movie marathon at Zhenhui's house! Titles include Constantine, Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen, Butterfly Effect and a Chinese movie. I really can't wait for that time to come. Exciting.

Also, we had a lot of fun taking photos. Aren't cameras such a guilty pleasure...



When there's three people, it always ends up like so. Then, we decided to try to self take the three of us together and that turned out to be quite a challenge.



That caused quite a commotion in BK. Well, maybe not. But we were hell noisy just trying our best to fit the 3 faces in and by luck, we found a good angle and everything just fell into place!



Okay, so the photograph was a bit bright. Shuming has a better versh of it in her phone, and I'll find some way to get her to send it to me. Oh well, it was a super fun day with the two of them around, and I sure am looking forward to our movie marathon!

You guys were great! Thanks for everything!

JKYH Top 10 (02)

01. Someday (I Will Understand)- Britney Spears (2)

02. Lost Control - Missy Elliot ft Ciara, Fatman Scoop (+2)
03. We Believe - Good Charlotte (2)
04. Ye Man You Xi - Jolin Tsai (-2)
05. Zhu Lin Shen Chu - Wang Lee Hom (NEW)
06. When September Ends - Green Day (NEW)
07. First - Lindsay Lohan (+1)
08. Tian Kong - Jolin Tsai (+2)
09. These Boots Are Made For Walking - Jessica Simpson (NEW)
10. Cool - Gwen Stefani (-1)

I have the Golden Ticket!

Britney doesn't rest. Or sit still for a moment. Even if she's preggers!



She attended the premiere of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in a brilliant top that says, "I have the Golden Ticket", which is related to the movie, in case you haven't figured that one out. Attending it with her husband (who wore a recycled jacket) and her younger sister Jamie Lynn (who's looking prettier everyday) she stole the thunder from everybody else and all the cameras (and eyes) were on Britney.

There are always people who can sing or dance better than Britters, but if you're talking about star power, I can't think of anyone who'd overshadow her.

Anyway, besides nursing her unborn baby(ies), she's busy for the release of her TV show Chaotic on DVD. It's rumoured that she's having twins because her tummy is becoming huge. Oh, I'll be grabbing Chaotic because it has the episode where she gets married (the setup is just beautiful, I'll start planning my own wedding), there's the Do Somethin' video which she directed herself, and of course, the full version of the song, Chaotic!

On other news, Britney has also donated $50,000 to Gildas Club Worldwide, a Cancer organization. She's also getting sued by an Indiana songwriter for the song Sometimes.

Aren't people desperate to get money out of her nowadays!

3 Things...

... that pissed me off this week.

1. Yesterday we were supposed to have a run at Bishan Park. When we got there, the sky was full of dark clouds, and it was obvious that it was going to rain. However, there was no CAT 1 status, so it was decided that the run would still be on as usual. During the briefing before the run, there was the rumblings of thunder. The run was still not cancelled.

We were told to put our belongings in the shade. By this time, anyone could tell that it was going to rain for sure. But they insisted on going on with the run, and we begun our warm up. After less than a minute, all the waters from the sky above decided that it was time to make their presence felt. WTF?!

I think it would've been sensible to have cancelled the run a bit earlier so that all of us could've gone home dry and safe, instead of rushing madly to get our stuff and then getting squashed seeking shelter in a bus stop.

Now, I couldn't have been more pissed.

2. A sgt accused me of using eye power when we were rolling the hose... Well, he didn't exactly accuse me because he didn't mention the person's name but he dropped a lot of hints. I told my bunkmates about it and they said that it wasn't meant for me but for someone else. I felt relieved after that but that incident really made my bloody boil. And maybe they were just trying to make me feel better... and they did.

But I was still pissed. Period.

3. I went to visit my grandmother yesterday. Apparently, I got shot that for not knowing how to speak hokkien by one of my relatives who's my grandma's age whom I've never seen before. It's not as if I don't understand when someone speaks it; I just am not able to be the one speaking it. No one speaks to me in hokkien anyway. So now it's MY FAULT that I can't communicate with my grandmother right? And, my dad said that he had to drag me to visit her. So my grandmother looked kinda pissed. Maybe she was just feeling sick, but I felt terrible.

Oh... fuck it.

Ben C Shi Wen Bin

I just bought his album after singing kbox and playing pool with Daniel today. Anyway, I think Ben C's bloody cool, so now I'm taking a chance and listening to his music. I bought Wang Lee Hom's album yesterday too. That's 30 freaking dollars on CDs already.



I'm pretty impressed with his music, and his voice is fantastic, althought there are a few tracks that still have to grow on me. The lyrics are pretty meaningful as well. I don't regret buying his CD, well, for 10 bucks! He does a lot of composing and production of his tracks. I don't know why he draws me to him, unlike the new batch of male singing 'sensations' Wu Ke Qun and the like.

It took me an hour to make the above blend. I must be pretty bored!

I'm going to book in later as well, and I'm not looking forward to it. On the bright side, there's only IPPT this week and an out camp run. I'm pretty exhausted already, because I have been enjoying my weekend to the max... well, I haven't been sleeping much either. Going back to camp means enjoying 7 sleeping hours again! Yay!

Well, this is the last entry for this book out. Take care and Keep Your Cool!

Platoon Outing at Merchant Court

We had a platoon outing on Saturday night at Merchant Court. I realised that I have been to the place before because I had the chance to stay at the hotel and then went for the breakfast buffet which tasted bloody good.

Anyway, everyone spent a banging 33 dollars each. The food there was pretty good, but given the choice I would've gone to somewhere cheaper! Anyway, it's situated just beside Clarke Quay MRT station so it is easy to find. Had a lot of fun chatting with Sern Hong. His classic comments like, "I think the oyster isn't cooked enough." made the whole thing memorable and entertaining. Of course there was also the papparazzi photos and everything. If given the chance I would've tried to take some photos, but I didn't have as much balls as him. He took photos of everybody, whether they liked it or not!

Anyway, after that a few of us went for a walk around the place. The night life is really happening but it was freaking humid and hot, that I didn't get a chance to observe everything with a clear mind. There were school children cutting across the underpasses, going home from the NDP preview. Also, we managed to spot a Sgt with his gf. Oh! Scandalous stuff.



This is a photo taken by Sern Hong (perm photog) while we were walking through the underpass. It looks very very boybandish. It'll make the cut for an album cover I swear! Everyone was kind of... apprehensive? Oh well. I had a lot of fun walking around and talking to Terence about almost everything. From the things we saw to NYJC. We saw Jayne and a guy. Hmm. On our trip we also managed to pass by the bar which was in ice. I can't remember what the place is called but we'd have to be 21 to get in. And we aren't.



After all the walking, we took the 90 steps of staircase down to the MRT station. Everyone was kind of tired and a bit sweaty after all the walking. This photo was taken at the MRT station. And we took 2 more photos...



Comprising mostly of my sectionmates, except for YC on the far left. Everyone looks bloody tired. It was not a posed photo. They really are - seh.



Yeah. We were all tired that we ended up sitting down when we could. This is a photo of me, Terence, who's wearing my Do Somethin' cap and looking ridiculously good, and our resident IPPT-Gold Guo Fei. Hmm, not a bad photo as well, but I believe both Sern Hong and I need new cameras because the colour quality isn't fantastic. Boo. We took the train and they got out at Orchard, while I went home because I was kind of tired. Oh, and Bryan gave me a listen (on his bro's black Zen Micro) to some other tunes by Hoobastank and I must say... they do sound different! Pity about The Reason. Maybe they could start releasing songs that really sound like they rock.

Was kind of tired after the whole thing. The most enjoyable part wasn't eating the expensive, good food (which by the way, comprised of oysters, clamps... nah, the deserts were the best. Absolutely mouth watering). The best part was just walking around, people-watching and hanging out. There's probably going to be another platoon outing, this time at a chalet. Kind of looking forward to that!