Race the night
on my way home today, the taxi uncle asked if i am Malay. a bit on the random side, but then again, understandable, thanks to my fresh tan acquired from the past 3 days of outfield activities. it could also be due to the fact that i wasn’t responding to my 2 other friends rather hilarious racist conversation. i was really tired plus i am almost always grumpy on long bumpy taxi rides.
the Adidas Sundown Marathon race is finally here, after i registered myself since early February. the race will flag off tomorrow night at 11.59pm and i am really looking forward to the 42.195km run. i haven’t had the chance to train as much as i would have loved to but i am still pretty confident of completing the distance tomorrow, unless a really nasty injury knocks me out in the middle of the run. i really do enjoy the feeling of being drenched in sweat after a hard run nowadays, the feeling is seriously damn shiokk.
June will be a good month :)
The stolen roll (part I)
i shot a secret roll at India, with my family’s old Yashica compact camera.
these girls collect all kinds of random items in their baskets. our unwanted water bottles, cow dungs, strings and whatever not. they will then balance the basket of items on their head as they walk away. the boys seem to lead a more carefree life. they know where our training grounds are exactly, and will appear every single day to ask for biscuits.
one of the most amazing scenes i came across at India was this. a family herding about 50 camels to another location for greener pastures, presumably. all their luggages were on the camels while the entire family of men, women, and kids just kept walking and walking.
part II is a more exciting series on vehicles and stuff. i will have to lock the post up since i am pretty sure some of the pictures cannot be posted openly. ask me for password!
Life in HQ
May is going to be a relatively busy month for me. the combat company i am attached to is on 4NTM standby duty, which stands for 4 hours notice to move out once we are activated. as such, we have all been busy preparing our vehicles, putting our equipments in place and stuff. the biggest problem i face is communication with my driver.
i just don’t get him sometimes, or rather, lets say, most of the time. he is always in his own world and is probably the most incredibly stubborn person i have ever met. i don’t know, but sometimes his behaviour really makes me suspect he is mildly autistic. even though i am already pretty used to his working style, he still never fails to push me to my limits every now and then. owell.
come May, i will have served NS for 11 months! time flies man, i will be a 1 year soldier soon, half way through National Service and counting now to ORD, ever patiently.
i have some random pictures to share, of my bunk and the people i live, eat, and shit with. really precious images k, cause cameras are usually not allowed in camp.
our 8 men bunk.
i admit i am the messiest guy in the bunk, messy but not dirty k.
also the bubble tea addict, bubble tea makes me happy. battalion’s top 42 runners get a can of 100 plus each, courtesy of Commanding Officer. i came in 39th that day, yeahh, i know, damn cheapskate.
damn typical relac scene in bunk.
we will be bidding farewell to these camouflage uniforms. next week, we will all don the new pixelised camouflage uniforms, i swear they are damn fucking ugly.
people always comment i look nothing like the guy in the picture.
my buddy. his character is something like the quirky retro guy pasted on his cupboard.
and sadly, maybe gay.
one of the reasons why we all look forward to May. Raymond is in the background, he is the one with the legendary tattooed dick. AHA, insider joke. kidding k. i don’t think his dick is really tattooed.
i found a puppy loitering at our block the other day. it was sooooooooo damn small and cute!
we couldn’t find his mum, so had to take him in for the night.
vick was nice enough to adopt and bring him home the next day :)
end with a group picture of HQ S4 branch :))
Cheap thrill
its battalion’s CO’s (Commanding Officer) evening. they got the SAF’s Music and Drama Club to come in to do their dance and songs and stuff. not to forget really lame and cheap-thrill games like cross dressing. i am not suppose to be in the mess room now, using the internet when everyone is suppose to be at the hall. you see, you can do anything, but just don’t get caught, like the rats. we caught two healthy rats on the first night of action. the cage that i bet on got one of the rats, so i get 6 apple shooters the next time the boys head to zouk. i can either drink them myself or arrow someone else to drink them.
i love cheap thrills.
Gonna catch them all
i just helped my camp bought 10 rat traps. those metal cage kind whereby you hang a bait in there, then wait for things to happen. i must have looked stupid walking through the neighbourhood with 10 rat traps. people looked at me as though they haven’t actually seen a rat trap before. well, some of the students probably really haven’t, but i am sure they could at least identify those as rat traps. the daughter of the boss was pretty pretty, and nice. she told me i can consider using dried cuttlefish as bait. the trick is to burn the cuttlefish first, to intensify and saturate the ‘aroma’ of the cuttlefish. if i fail to catch a rat after a couple of days, i should lay the base of the trap with a piece of cardboard. rats nowadays are smart enough to analyse the terrain and not enter a rat trap despite the seduction of the bait. we had such a good chat, she was happy enough to give me a 10% discount. which is equivalent to buying 9 and getting 1 free, not bad at all. hopefully they manage to catch some rats with the trap.
:S
the battalion is going for its first full troop exercise. oh man, not counting India, i haven’t been outfield since my Tekong field camp! its been a good 8 months since i last chiong sua~ hope i don’t get lost out there since my topo skills still ain’t quite there yet. other than being the vehicle commander, i am also the photographer again, yay. not too bad being a Armour soldier, i get to load all these up my vehicle, such a blessing (: bet Hafiz will be so jealous. (must remember to add in 2 cans of rambutan/pineapple and longan)
Reminder
march is drawing to an end, which means a quarter of the year has passed silently. following up, there will be Good Friday and Labour Day to look forward to. then, the grand occasion of being a 1 year soldier come 12 June. people who have been through National Service always advise me not to count the days. it has the effect of making time go by slower, or so they say. but this school of thought seriously doesn’t quite applies on me. the more i look at the calendar and plan ahead, the more i realise time is passing really fast.
no doubt, i look forward to ORD, to finishing an important phase of my life. but i am also worried about not emerging the better person i set myself out to be before i enlisted. i am scared, of time passing too fast, too subconsciously.
1 year 2 months to ORD. who says its a lot of time? not for me, i got a lot on my agenda.
Taj Mahal
Taj Mahal was incredible. i was there for an hour, running around like a crazy hyper-active kid with his camera. its a pity that over the years, pollution has caused the white marble monument to take on a yellowish tint. nevertheless, the Taj is majestic and beautiful. it wasn’t easy to photograph the Taj. it was really crowded when i was there and there were lots of exposure decisions to make :S but i am really glad to have been there, bonus being the sunset! the next day, we went to Agra Fort. from Agra Fort, the Taj was there in the distance, basked in the glory of early sunrise. really a scene to behold, i only wish i had more time there. owell, perhaps i will visit the Taj again next time.
Incredible India!
i am all packed and ready to go. frankly speaking, i am feeling pretty neutural about the whole trip. neither am i terribly excited nor worried about stuff like food, accomdation and the training. i just can’t wait to see Taj Mahal, Agra Fort and experience the railway of Delhi!
YSS photographers
its been almost 2 years since i joined the YSS photography group. beyond photography, there are so many others things i learned from this bunch of guys. thank you for all the guidance, advice and love. cheers to our friendship!
First Marathon
| Dear Jia Jie Tok |
| Thank you. You have registered for Adidas Sundown Marathon 2009 successfully. The Confirmation Slip below is for your reference. Please kindly print it out for your race pack collection.
|
ADIDAS SUNDOWN MARATHON 2009
|
|||||||||||||||
OHH PLEASE
WAHLAUEH, I AM SERIOUSLY GRUMPY ENOUGH AND I GOT TO LOSE ALL THE BRILLIANT STUFF THAT I JUST TYPED AT HOLY 3AM.
THEY ALWAYS PROMPT ME IF I ACCIDENTALLY HIT ON ANYTHING THAT NAVIGATES ME FROM THE ADD-NEW-POST PAGE. THEY ALWAYS USED TO AUTO SAVE A DRAFT PRETTY EFFECTIVELY. WHAT HAPPENED THIS TIME??
FUCK IT AND GIVE ME A BREAK MAN.
Happy Birthday to me!
yay, all wish me Happy 21st!
sadly, i will be spending the entire day at range, firing live rounds in hope of marksmanship ($200 man). seriously the damn entire day, since there will be both day and night shoot.
i had a simple yet heartwarming dinner with my family 2 weeks ago. the food was really great, all thanks to my Mum and i had such a good time with all the love surrounding me. photos of that night to follow up soon! a big thank you to my uncles and aunts for the lovely watch!
i always say birthdays are just like any other days. after all, my family never had the culture of celebrating birthdays with parties and cakes. nevertheless, 21st is no doubt an important milestone in anyone’s life. there will be no more excuses for many things in life as turning adult signifies maturity and responsibility. i will always remember how teachers used to say, “i treat you guys as adults, therefore…” after today, i am an adult.
previously, i was writing this list of achievements, such as, learned to play the guitar, travelled alone and stuff. you know, this grand blog entry that i had in mind for my birthday. then i decided to keep things simple and say things of most importance.
i wouldn’t be who i am if not for my parents. my dad and my mum have always been the most supportive and trusting parents. i love them sooo much for everything. thank you for educating me and bringing me up to be who i am today, my mum especially. i will try my best to be a better son as i enter adulthood.
okay. i need to go, people are calling me a hogger. remember to message me! it will be very much appreciated on a boring day at range.
Aww
reality strikes again after going on leave for 12 days. 2009, i need to discipline some of my in-camp habits a bit. issues like spending unnecessary money at the canteen and track mess, not to mention the extra calories intake. and activities after last parade, to make sure i maximise my personal time from 6.30pm to 10.30pm. i will also love to shit more, literally. i just don’t shit and detox enough when i am in camp.
2008
HAPPY 2009!
i am enjoying my long leave and its seriously damn shiok to not have to book in and have the freedom to do whatever i feel like doing. its also quite shiok to not have to exercise at all, goes to show that, given a choice, i will definitely prefer to just nua my body mass and become fat. in fact, i am becoming fatter already. i don’t know whats wrong, but my body is extremely sensitive to my diet and the amount of exercise i do nowadays, with my tummy ballooning at my slightest act of indulgence. anyway, 4 more days of heaven before i book in again and proceed to get 2009 over and done with! can’t wait for Chinese New Year, India, my 1 year soldier mark, then Australia!
i think 2008 has been a really important year for me. the first half of the year feels like a damn long time ago ever since i enlisted on 12 June. but to think back, i think the first half of the year had been pretty eventful.
1. Liked Sin Ee.
2. Watched Dream Theater LIVE
3. Won the Fujitsu PR pitch with Legato Communications, and did generally well for my last semester
4. Graduated from Ngee Ann Polytechnic with a Diploma in Mass Communication
5. Went back to work at Mileage Communications as an Account Executive (really learned PR the hard way then)
6. Planned a trip to backpack Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam, but came home muchhhhhhhhh earlier
7. Shot a lot more film pictures
In the great name of National Service, i…
1. Shaved botak for the first time
2. Stayed at Tekong with Ninja Company, Platoon 4, Section 2
3. Threw a live grenade
4. Fired live rounds with my then brand new SAR 21
5. Went outfield
6. POP-ed
7. Got posted to Armour Camp at Sungei Gudong
8. Learned to drive the Bronco
9. Lost weight, became a little fitter and got Silver for IPPT
2008 has been a busy year and a year of new experiences. i miss my days as a student yet will never forget my love-hate relationship with Mass Comm. i also had this huge crush on Sinee. she really represents my epitome of sunshine, happiness and love with her wide smile and ever present victory hand sign. she is now happily attached and i hope life is great for her too :)
work wise, its depressing to think back about the horrible experience i had with the Graf Von Faber-Castell account that made me learned about the industry the hard way. i still thank Mileage for the 9 months of accumulated PR experience, for trusting me to serve clients and handle accounts. however, i believe i will prefer to do marketing next time. its really no easy feat in an agency, juggling the client, the media and the bosses all at the same time, multiply by the number of accounts you hold.
as much as i wish i don’t ever have to serve National Service, there is no doubt i learned and experienced so much over the past 6 months. i made many new friends and am really happy to have met some of them. we are almost 7 months into NS. hope 2009 will be a smooth sailing year for all of us and before we know, we will all be in our ORD mood as we count down to June 2010.
its been a relatively good year for the family as well. my mum is doing great, sis is going to get her degree, bro just finished his ‘O’s and dad is doing fine at work as well. the kids are lovely and everyone has been extremely generous with all the love and concern. special thanks to Dajiu for sending me home every Friday when i book out, despite all the inconveniences due to his new work location. i will always remember your love.
last but not least, i want to say a big thank you to my mum. ever since i enlisted, she has been the most supportive. i never have to worry about stuff like washing my dirty uniforms and packing my stuff to book in. she just goes all out to make sure i enjoy a proper rest when i am at home and i have indeed never learned to appreciate home so much before. thank you mum, I LOVE YOU!
the whole of 2009 will be spent serving NS, but i still have a whole list of resolutions.
1. Be a good soldier, which means not getting into trouble with stuff like confinements and extra duties
2. Learn to develop black and white film myself
3. Play better guitar, we got 5 guitars in our bunk, everyone is learning to play
4. Challenge myself physically and mentally by participating in marathons, the first being Adidas Sundown
5. Learn more about DSLR photography and the mystery of photoshop
6. Read more books, write more stuff
7. *important* Save more money *important*
8. Achieve Gold for IPPT
okay, i think thats enough.
BRING IT ON, 2009.
Nabehhhh
i got a $20 fine for jaywalking yesterday, for crossing the road between Peninsula Shopping Centre and Peninsula Plaza. damn 贱 leh, to ambush pedestrians there. every right thinking mother son will jaywalk at that damn one-way traffic one leh.
wahlaueh, damn 贱 leh.
Chee-ki 2008
i have always thought of being a ‘combat photographer’ while serving National Service. i have always wanted and dreamed of making photography my job for this 2 years, creating images while out in the field, documenting events and personalities with meaningful shots and stuff. Robert Capa, the legendary war photographer said, “if your pictures aren’t good enough, you’re not close enough.” Robert Capa documented WWII by swimming ashore Omaha Beach with the Allied forces on D-Day for the Battle of Normandy. he took over a hundred shots of the event, only to have the darkroom technician ruin most of the images due to a careless mistake while processing the rolls. in the end, only 11 images were salvaged and they are fondly referred as the “Magnificent Eleven” today.
back at Tekong, one of the first things i ever did was to express my interest to be a ‘combat photographer’ for the SAF. such a posting definitely existed before, since William, a friend i got to know from my Yishun photo club served NS as a photographer. but that was donkey years ago and apparently there is no more such posting now. to cut the story short, i volunteered myself to be the battalion’s photographer and managed to seek approval to bring my own camera into camp. this is really a privilege considering how the army is always paranoid about image capturing devices.
i will love to bring Rachel or Sherry in but its really stupid to even think about it because shooting film for such purposes really makes no sense at all. therefore i bought my first DSLR yesterday. its a Nikon D60 camera with 18-55mm VR and 50-200mm VR DX lens. its a really small and relatively basic DSLR, but i believe it will serve my purpose well. at the end of the day, its going to be a chiong-sua camera.
frankly speaking, there is a lot to learn and get used to all over again. having used SLRs like Rachel and Sherry all along, the D60 feels like a toy in my hands. i was never afraid to be a little more rough with Rachel but D60 really yea, feels like a toy. i am having a headache from looking at the user manual and learning all the digital stuff. but then again, i think its time to move ahead with the digital era as well.
but of course, it doesn’t mean that i will stop shooting film. i remember my first SLR, the Nikon F-401X, then, i couldn’t even manage a proper exposure. later, i got shit from my Mum for buying Rachel because its film again, and no one shoots film anymore and its not practical to shoot film at all. but today, i learned most of my stuff from film and believe it has been great fun shooting film!
2008 has been a great photo year and i learned a lot. shot new stuff like weddings, portraitures and black and white film. some of my favourite pictures for 2008. hope 2009 will be a fruitful year as well :)
chee-ki wise, my resolutions for 2009 will be to…
1. do a good job for the battalion and hopefully contribute some meaningful documents.
2. learn as much about my Nikon D60 as possible.
3. learn photoshop.
4. perhaps process my own black and white rolls at home.
Where is the love?
i have really been looking forward to Christmas for the longest time. not that i got a hot date on Christmas eve, or a turkey feast awaiting me. neither am i expecting Santa to drop me something. but i thought Christmas signifies the start of a series of events which will catalyse the passing of time. also, the conclusion of yet another year which feels almost surreal to reflect upon.
January, i will be forced into 21 years of existence. i have decided on a simple steamboat dinner with my family instead of a typical full fledged 21st birthday party. actually i will really love to host a kickass 21st birthday party and invite everyone under the sun, but you know, the economy is in recession and a NS boy doesn’t earn very much, so yea. but i really do look forward to the day i host my own party.
a month after Chinese New Year, i will be serving 26 days of National Service at India. as much as i love to travel and stuff, i can’t say i am looking forward to the trip exactly. people who been there before says its really boring and hot plus high chance to laosai all the way. but i get to bring my camera along as i play the role of battalion photographer!! thank god, its like fulfilling my dream of being a combat photographer. as such, i am hunting for the best deal in town for a Nikon D60 DSLR, wish me luck. i seriously can’t wait to quickly buy the camera, get the approval done and start shooting out in the field.
bunch of us attended Ms. Seah’s wedding last weekend, and it seriously made me feel like getting married as well. the couple put in so much effort to do stuff like photo montages, performances and the groom even went into studio to record a song. it was amazing. like Siangloong said, its impossible to imagine us sitting at Ms. Seah’s wedding banquet when we were her students back at Catholic High. firstly, we refuse to believe anyone will actually marry this hot tempered (she is still damnnn hot tempered) woman. secondly, we hated her more than we liked her, so giving her face to attend her wedding was pretty out of the question then.
time flies, its been 4 years since we all graduated from Cat High and all of them JC kids have either ORD-ed already or will be ORD-ing really soon. owell, my time will come.
after all, i am more than 6 months into National Service.
Sick~
i am suffering from a bout of stubborn flu. the first course of antibiotics didn’t quite do the job therefore i am on my second course, and $98 (whyy so expensive?) poorer after 2 visits to the family doctor. doctor also prescribed extra-strong flu medicine which makes me seriously drowsy. i foresee this week to be a drag with typically inefficient schedule, lazy personnels and the anticipation of an upcoming long weekend.
my mum’s scan result went well. the tumour remains stable and everything is so far so good. the case will be kept in view until another follow-up scan 3 months later. god bless, thank you sooo much.
i thought November went by damn fast! i can’t quite believe its going to be December tomorrow. December is so going to be a good month with Hari Raya Haji, Christmas, New Year eve and battalion block leave expected from 24th December to 5th Jan! time again for reflection and the conclusion of yet another year.
however, i don’t know man, whether to be happy or not, the way life progresses. things are just not productive enough. sigh.
I suppose some things don’t change
exactly 3 years ago on 23rd November 2005, i was kinda pissed off that my blog was deemed worthless…
its worth a bit more now…
and i STILL (have) no idea how to shift the stupid thing to the centre.
suck ass.
November Rain
hello people. its been awhile since i wrote something. in the blink of an eye, i have spent 6 weeks in the Armour camp at Sungei Gudong, donning the black beret and my hair grown long enough to warrant the purchase of a Gatsby hair wax. i have completed my Bronco driving course and also just managed to achieve 6 pull-ups so i should be able to pass IPPT the next time i attempt it, like finally. nowadays i spend most of my time in the office, helping out with branch administrative work and occasionally play the role of a sai-kang warrior here and there. i can’t decide whether time flies a not, i have concluded that it depends on the context.
no more chiong sua, no more drawing of arms everyday, no more gruesome route marches, no more excessive sweat, basically no more infantry shit. the best part is the amount of personal time i get to indulge in nowadays. i read, read and read everyday and have music that i love accompany me to sleep every night. yes, life ain’t too bad and i feel myself regaining my true self and personality increasingly, something that Kristy will understand. i know how lucky i am to have my NS life progress in such a manner, it is no doubt a privilege.
the amount of time i get to spend with myself probably accounts for the reflective disposition surrounding me lately. i am thinking about everything under the sun, from the short term to the long term, from the obvious to the abstract, from the people i love to the people who loves me. the burning question is my direction in life after NS. work? study? overseas study? study what? suddenly it feels as though whatever i been through for the past 20 years doesn’t matter much at all. i am starting everything anew. there are tons of considerations but i am sure i will figure them out as time draws nearer.
then, of course, above all, there is the MRI scan my Mum will be going for on Tuesday. there is no way i can describe my emotions with regards to this. but i am confident things will go our way with all the blessings. thanks Sel.
Ah Wei just came back from Perth after 10months of pilot training. Crystal, Grace, Alicia, Yongxin will all be back soon as well :))
how are you doing? drop a comment people!
WAHLAU EH
i just kena-ed the biggest surprise of my NS life. a call to report back to camp at 2200 tonight for Sunday 24 hours guard duty on a freakinggg long weekend that i have been anticipating for the whole of last week.
WHAT THE FUCK!
pissed off.
