I've not been here for quite a long time...

Well, right after Chinese Language written paper for the O' Levels, I have been out all week.

After my exam on Monday, I went to VJC with Yi Bin to submit our application forms before going for ACJC's 'An Evening With Friends' concert. This is my second time attending their choir concert, and they are still as good. I especially liked Sons of Jacob.

We met Juniper and Claudia for dinner for the concert and the smoked salmon sandwich I had was really filling. The hour spent in Papermarket with Yi Bin before dinner gave me ideas for my mum's birthday card too. Otherwise, our time at Raffles City before heading over to Esplanade was quite uneventful. Oh, but Juniper nearly got off the train at Raffles Place instead of alighting at City Hall just because we asked her to meet us at Raffles City Shopping centre. Heh.

Tuesday was spent filing all the Chinese Intensive notes, and tidying up my desk. Sad to say, I didn't really start on much homework...

Wednesday on the other hand, was quite a painful day. My mum and I bought new shoes the week before, and I decided to wear my new stilettos since they complement my outfit for that evening. I managed not to trip for the entire day but the walking to VCH from Raffles City with Anna was excruciating for my poor feet. It was good that we went to Raffles City before the concert however, as I got to buy all the materials for my mum's birthday card.

TPJC's 'Plaisir de Chanson' is the first concert I've watched for TPJC choir. They have a really different sound from ACJC. And while ACJC sings more of sacred pieces, TPJC focuses more on folk songs. TP has a brighter tone too - probably due to the Sopranos having such a bright colour. And this is the first time I've seen so many sopranos in one choir. I won't compare both choirs since they sound so different. But I still kind of prefer the songs in ACJC choir (also because they sang The Sons of Jacob). Anna said she likes TP more though, since she doesn't like sacred pieces and finds them more boring. Oh, but the song with all the sounds in the forest...that was awesome! There was this girl in TPJC choir who could imitate the sound of an ape. And a boy who could mimic the cricket sounds!!!

After the guests choirs performed, the choir went on to put on a musical when intermission ended. I wonder when will I ever get the chance to be able to take part in a musical. I don't really think the ABBA medley we did in Musical Evening could be counted.

Thursday morning was then spent on my mum's birthday card. It's finished now, and I really hope my mum will like it! I went to visit Crez choir that afternoon. It's really scary how they are just a week away from their overseas performance and they still have three more songs to learn. I really don't understand the slow progress and they all seemed to be in agony while singing the songs. But I think the worst news was that Mrs Lim chose all the challenging pieces to make up the repertoire. As much as I wish to help them and learn the pieces with them, we do realise that we should make the juniors independent instead. Somehow, the juniors have come to rely on us a lot. I'm not even sure what to do now.

I had dinner with Ms Ong, Ariel, Juniper, Yi Bin, Claudia, Timothy and Ms Ong's other student from Wild Empire on Friday night. We ate at Modesto's. We talked loads about the different choirs. Dessert from Fruit Paradise wasn't really my cup of tea although the rest seemed to love it. Yi Bin also went on to take plenty of candid shots of everyone.

Saturday came and I met Yi Bin to revise on our singing techniques with Ms Ong. It was really a last minute decision and a crash course. I did badly.

Guitar lesson on the next day was alright I guess. I managed to play the entire piece in its tremolo version. But I still can't do the tremolo technique nicely. Well, the teacher said it takes years to master it. Waltz is the next song we have for homework.

I won't be surprised if I fail the auditions actually. Sure, I have lots of CCA points, I have a few leadership positions since my first year in my school. But my singing is not all that outstanding. And to add on, I'm having a sore throat and I can't reach the high notes nicely anymore. My support techniques are weak. I can't kick my diaphragm as fast as last time. The list goes on and on. I guess, I must start doing leg lifts and crunches again? Oh the horror.

The person I've become. What would those I'd previously known say if they see how I am now?

Sometimes, I feel that my childhood had been much shorter than my peers, because of the various events that took place within such a short period of time. I found myself maturing far more quickly that my classmates then. I grew independent. Yet lonely at the same time.

My fifth birthday wish was impossible to come true: I wanted an older brother. At that time, I still didn't have my 'bird and bees' talk and thought that a family could pre-order their children. Well, but of course I got distracted by my first pink bicycle which I got for my birthday instead. How easily children are satisfied.

Maybe it is indeed better for one to be the only child. After all, a sibling would steal your parent's attention and affection. Or parents would make comparisons between the siblings. That would be awful, I agree.

Somehow, the wish to have an older sibling has disappeared. But just sometimes, a small part of me wishes that my mum would be happier. I realise it's almost impossible to be happy with the job she has. That aside, I sometimes wished she has more friends to support her. She has given up so much for me. How great an unconditional love is - especially a mother's.


A chapter of my life has come to a small ending - I will need to focus on my major examinations now. My last choir performance was Speech day. Even though we sped up, we did well I guess. My beloved juniors prepared so much for our batch that I was too surprised and touched to say much in person.

I will miss choir so much. I wonder how it will be not to practise or perform for the months ahead. Some say they live to eat. Well, I live to perform. One of the times I feel the happiest would be when I'm preparing tirelessly for an upcoming performance and another would be when I finally get out there onstage and show what I'd worked so hard for, and to be under the limelight, receiving every one's encouragement. I really do love performing. Not being able to perform makes me feel helpless and stifled. I wonder what my future career would be. Of course, my dream is to be an artiste, or a performer. But it's kind of difficult. Plus, this country's entertainment industry is really small. There isn't even much of a market to start with.

I feel helpless.

We are still masters of our fate.
We are still captains of our souls.
-Winston Churchill

Warning: Kpop mentioned in post.

I feel a little guilty for neglecting to update this blog as frequently as I used to. Homework, assignments, projects, mock examinations and timed trials are taking their toll on me though.

The Singapore Entertainment Awards event was fun.

I was browsing through the shops in Raffles City shopping mall before meeting Rosi for dinner. Somehow or rather, I managed to get mistaken for a tourist again. A girl near my age spoke to me in Korean and English. I was in Papermarket and there was this container full of cute pencils, and I automatically held one up and debated whether I should buy it as a gift or for myself. Suddenly the girl popped up on my right and immediately took another pencil of a similar design and stated, "Pencil." and smiled widely at me. I honestly did not know how I should react and just smiled and nodded at her. That action alone seemed to get her even more excited and after I placed back a sharpener I have been holding onto the shelf, she picked it up and stated, "Pencil sharpener!". I then wondered if she was a tourist. In the end she started to speak to me in Korean. Once she realise I didn't understand a single bit of the one-sided dialogue though, she walked back to her group of friends in one corner of the shop with a disappointed look. Throughout the whole scene, I could not think of anything to say at all. It was just too surprising.

When I went into That CD Shop, one sales assistant could not stop recommending albums for me to buy. It was really amusing. I made it clear to her the first time she asked that I was only browsing through and do not intend to buy anything from the shop. But she did not give up and continued suggesting CDs to me and after a while she decided to pester a few tourists instead. I felt a little bad for the lady beside me who was ignored by the girl the whole time. She wasn't a tourist. Then again, does it really matter if the customer is a local?

I found people glancing at me in the shopping mall too. Maybe the sight of a girl shopping alone seemed odd to them. Or maybe it was because I was just walking around the whole mall. Seeing Winny at the entrance while waiting for Rosi at six in the evening was surprising - I didn't expect to see anyone familiar.

Dinner with Rosi and Yitong at Shokudo was really good. My plate of cold noodles were tasty albeit a tad too filling. We then met Sarah, Jia Wen and her family afterwards. Our group walked a the way to the Marina Floating Platform. We nearly went in the wrong direction if not for the large crowd walking to the venue - they were also going for the event.

We managed to find our seats without too much difficulty and had a mini photo snapping session of each other. Everyone went wild when SHINee made their entrance. In fact, I realised that a good half of the audience were Shawols. The girl sitting in front of me had a SHINee light stick.

All the artistes performed well although 小鬼's voice sounded a little hoarse - I suspect he was sick. When SHINee performed, the crowd went absolutely wild. Everyone either stood on their seats or rushed forward to the barricades. And the screaming was a huge indication of the number of Shawols present. Even the emcees were surprised.

Of course, SHINee didn't disappoint and pulled off a great stage performance. However, once they left the stage, people started to leave, even though the singer, Eason Chen, was still performing on stage after SHINee. It was a little awkward and I felt a little sorry for the poor singer on stage even though I never really knew how to appreciate his songs. Sometimes, fans can be insensitive unknowingly.

I met my mum after the event and unfortunately, we could not catch the last train home. We had no choice but to try for a taxi which took ages to come because everyone was queuing up for taxis too.

These days school life has been pretty exhausting. I can't wait to step down because it's getting more difficult to manage all three leadership positions in one go, with my studies included. Hopefully, I will be able to focus more on my academics when I let go two of my leadership positions. I am getting a little worried about choir though - the seniors are not doing as well as they should. I'm just praying that they will be able to guide the juniors when the time comes.

I have been busy for the past few days.

Every year, I look forward to November/December choir practices as we are usually preparing for a concert and we get to have rehearsals almost daily. I really wish we could be like what Mrs Lim said about those Swedish schools - they have 'singing schools' where great emphasis is placed on singing instead of academics. Ah, the joy of singing everyday in a choir.

I felt really proud of my juniors after hearing them improve the week before the concert. It was good that Laura, Melanie and Jia Ying came back to help us. The techniques they introduced to us reminded me so much of Mr Albert Tay. Somehow, I still think all the techniques taught by him are the most effective for me. Ah, my Secondary One days, when we had Ms Jennifer Tham and Mr Tay.

Being so proud of my cute, lovable juniors (Hahaha), somehow this just makes me feel old. Especially the thought of leaving them next April. I will miss them all so much!
I'm a little worried for my section though. What Juniper said is true: the bulk of our section's voices come from the Sec3s. Meaning to say that the rest must put a teensy bit more effort to train their voices more so that they can coach the new people next year. The rest of the sections improved by leaps and bounds this holiday however. The Alto two section now sounds really strong and expressive. The Soprano two section can pretty much survive without Yi Bin or Claudia now. Alto One still needs to be more strong when coming in but they have improved nevertheless!

This time I bought candy canes and chocolates for the choir to thank them for working so hard for this performance. The section leaders all bought something for their own sections - except Soprano One..Hahaha. Well, that's okay. I managed to get gummies from Winny. Maybe what Zi Yu said is right, I keep bullying her. Well, I don't think I'm a bully...But I do pester her a lot. But she is such a nice person!! :D I'm so sorry for always disturbing you online, Winny! Hope she reads this.

I managed to apply make-up for myself for the performance fairly well. The eyeshadow has never been a problem but lipstick and blusher are the tougher ones to tackle. Anyway, I helped a few of the others to apply the eyeshadow. But dear Winny just refused to have a single layer of cosmetics on her face. Therefore, IF we ever have a concert before I step down, my main mission will be to make sure everyone has a decent amount of makeup. That clever girl managed to wash off the blusher. Tsk.

Our Saturday's performance went well. We sounded awesome. I think. Personally, I think we look better in the purple lycra shirt and black pants when compared to us wearing the gowns. Oh, Ying Ting only returned her gown last week, when SYF was right in the first half of the year. We were all really surprised to see her return with the gown.

My mum bought me a penguin plushie on Saturday. It's turning into a little tradition: Her buying soft toys each time I perform. I don't mind it at all. This penguin is really plump - well, fat. But it's just so cute! After the concert, mum and I went to the Niwa Sushi shop at Tampines MRT Station to eat some sushis. Those were delicious!

Sunday was indeed a busy day. Since I woke up pretty late, I had to rush through my practising for my guitar lesson. Considering the fact that I had rehearsals the whole week for choir and reached home late and didn't practise at all till an hour before lesson, I think I did pretty well. I relied solely on sight-reading this time and the only thing the teacher remarked on was that I need to try to minimise any non-guitar sounds while playing. Oh, and that I must not turn my wrist like what I did when I was asked to play the A Minor scale.

Right after lesson, I went to change into a skirt since I can't wear shorts to Espanade. I was the first to reach City Hall. After the rest came we set off for the KBox branch at Marina Square with Cynthia leading the way. My first time at a Karaoke lounge made me feel a little apprehensive when I stepped in. All of us had lots of fun though. Ms Ong and Claudia joined us a while later.

Since the concert started at 7.30pm, except for Cynthia, all of us rushed over to Espanade minutes before. Since Zhuo Min, her mum, Juniper and I were the only ones who bought the $35 tickets, we had to separate from the rest who bought the $20 tickets. When Juniper and I got to the Circle seats, we were a mere three minutes from the start of the concert.

SYC and Friends concert was awesome! The SYC Ensemble Singers sounded really good. Every section is really strong and the balance was good. We got to see Ms Tham and Mr Tay sing too! There was this guy who is singing in Baritone or Bass - he's just so expressive that it's so outstanding! All the soloists were really remarkable too! I especially like the Cantate Domino by Vaclovas Augustinas and the Light Mass part after the Intermission. Benedictus sounded beautiful :D
Juniper and I shouted "You rock, Jollin" or something along that line afterwards. I think Jollin heard it since we were sitting almost directly over the stage.

After the concert, I met Ee Faye and a few of the Sec1s who attended the concert too on my way to the station. They found the songs long. Well, I'm not sure...I was just blown away by the beauty of the songs that it didn't really matter to me how long there were. While passing by New York New York restuarant, I saw Yi Bin and Claudia. I didn't join them for supper though - since it was kind of late. Since I only had breakfast the whole day, I had a cup of yogurt and seaweed crackers upon reaching home. I was just so tired...

Today was the 6/9 gathering. I was really worried when Juniper initially said that we were going to meet Ms Ong today. But since my activities didn't clash with each other in the end, I got to go for today's gathering. Not many people actually went. We just loitered around at Changi Airport's Terminal Two and ate at the McDonald's there. After which all of us could not agree on a place to proceed to. Some wanted to go bowling, some wanted to play pool. In the end we just went to Kai Ho's house. Everyone just played cards or Wii. I didn't get the chance to watch them play Guitar Hero since I had to go home for dinner. Which is kind of a pity since my school's Wii games don't seem to include Guitar Hero.

Walking to Tanah Merah station from Kai Ho's house would not have been possible without Priscilla. I would've most probably gotten lost somewhere and Michael said he has a poor sense of direction. Indeed because we almost went off in the wrong direction at some road if not for Priscilla asking us to cross it. Anyway, somehow I just don't know how to talk to my ex-classmates as easily as how I talk to my choir people or my present classmates. Maybe it's because I used to be so shy and timid. And to think that people from Crescent will most probably not use those two words to describe me now. Ah well.

I managed to change my ear studs today! It was incredibly difficult at first and I was wondering if I will have the same ear studs for the rest of my life and die with them. But I got them changed in the end!! But my right earlobe hurts now. I don't know why. DD:

Guitar lesson on Sunday wasn't exactly good since I didn't practise. We are doing Christmas carols now.

Choir has been alright I suppose. The French school exchange was really fun albeit it being far too short. We had only one and a half hour to mingle with each other. There were not many chances to speak to each other too since we had to utilise that short period of time to the maximum by singing.

When I entered the school, I wondered if we were still in Singapore. It was my first time in an international school and the campus looked really different from our usual school compound. The students also didn't have uniforms and you could see them walking about. When we got there in was already mid-afternoon so most of them were heading home. It really seemed like a school scene from those European shows.

Everyone took quite a while to settle down in the auditorium. Partly because we couldn't understand their conductor initially. Well, at least I was confused. She calls the sections by different terms and I wasn't used to sitting in once whole big block, I guess.

I stood in the first row, in between two girls from the French school. The girl on my right was Julia ( I think that was her name ) and the one on my left was Ariane. When Julia told me Ariane could speak Mandarin I was actually kind of surprised since I didn't really expect to find Asians in the school. Ariane told me that she has been in the school since she was five and her mum is a Taiwanese. After Ariane knew I can speak Mandarin, she started speaking in Mandarin to me and I think she is more fluent in the language that I am if I were to be frank.

Although they did not seem familiar with the combined pieces at all I was struck by how earnest they were in their singing. Julia told me that they only learnt the first few pages of Why We Sing and sang 大海啊！故乡 using the syllable 'la'. They also performed two Swedish pieces for us afterwards and during our turn, we performed around half of our December concert repertoire.

It didn't really matter whether their standard is as good as us, or worse than us. In my opinion, their enthusiasm and willingness to learn had already won me over from the start. I really like Julia too, she was really friendly.

At the end we gave each of them our choir badges and a bouquet of flowers to the French conductor. Let's hope we will get to have a combined performance with them soon!

By the way, the journey from the florist near my house to Redhill was a little awkward for me. It wasn't the first time I was carrying a bouquet while taking the public transport. The first was with my mum. We were going to visit Aunt Rachel at some hospital after the birth of her daughter. So my mum and I got this bouquet of teddy bears for Aunt Rachel. And for the duration of the journey there, I had plenty of stares. Yesterday was the same too, just that it was a bouquet of lilies instead. A lady asked me about it on the way too. She spoke to me in Mandarin; I guessed she was a Chinese/Taiwanese tourist since she didn't appear local and she had a luggage with her.

Wow! Who gave you those lilies? Your boyfriend is so sweet/romantic!
Nonono, I'm giving these flowers to someone else. They are not for
me.
How much is it?
Around $55 for a bouquet this size.
Ohh...Still, so sweet of him to give you lilies. They smell great!

My arm went numb from cradling the lilies on the train. The florist told me that I must not crush the lilies and must cradle it gently. Somewhat like how parents carry babies I think?

Dinner at Yoshinoya went well. Lots of people couldn't make it unfortunately. Our group of nine went to Bishan Library (I didn't know there was a library there) after eating. I nearly walked into a glass panel there. It has been proven repeatedly that I should not have too many glass panels at home if I were to shift. Otherwise, I think I will have plenty of chances to walk into them.

I went to watch the movie Disney's A Christmas Carol last weekend with my mum. The three ghosts that visited Scrooge at midnight seemed scarier than the ones I saw in previous versions of the same story. The last version I watched was the English version, I think. And it wasn't an animation so there was a limit to how dramatic the ghosts appeared. There wasn't the journey to outer space in the old version I guess. But the animation was as heartwarming as all earlier versions. After all, the main plot is still the same, carrying along the lesson to be learnt by Scrooge. Charles Dickens' stories are good.

Should I go for the carolling even though Yibin won't be with me? D:

This year's birthday has been a great one.

My mum celebrated my birthday with me a day before as it falls on a choir practice day. We went to Plaza Singapura and walked around the place. The first place we shopped at was Cotton On. The branch there was almost twice and a half times bigger than the one in Tampines Mall. More clothes were available too. I bought two skirts and my mum bought a sweater for herself.

Next we went to the upper levels and went pass this baby spa outlet. They wrap this float thing around the baby's neck and let the baby dangle precariously in a circular tub that is at least one metre deep. My mum was really intrigued by the whole process and just stood at the window staring into the shop. I don't really fancy being dunked into the deep water with just a float loosely taped around my neck if I were the baby however. It just isn't my idea of fun.

I do love showering and bathing though. The longest bath I took was near two hours. When I was that baby's age, I was playing with toy ships in my own shallow tub of water at home. It was those tubs that were also used for soaking clothes which are meant to be hand washed. Actually you can just create a tub at home and soak your toddler in some hot water. Funny how people actually spend so much money on their children even when they can just do it on their own. Then again, maybe when I become a mother in the future, I may just do the same.

Dinner was at some Japanese cuisine outlet. I had curry omu rice. It was delicious. Then again, an omu rice lover like me will like the dish as long as there is omelette in it. My mum and I later shared a pretzel from Auntie Anne's. I didn't really fancy the oily taste though.

We later watched the Korean movie, My Girlfriend is an Agent. It's a really hilarious romantic comedy. I could hardly keep from laughing.

The following day, I went to school for choir practice and was greeted by many wonderful presents and cards from my great friends. Maybe it's because I now have a Facebook account, but I also received many birthday greetings. Oh, and Yibin, I will try to reduce the number of posts spent on Kpop. =]

Sungmin has just recently gotten a kitten, Hyaku. And the kitten is most probably a Siamese, one of my most favourite cat breeds. I think Russian Blues, Siamese, Japanese Bobtails and Ragdolls are really pretty cats. Ah well, I don't think I can ever care for a pet till I can get rid of my zoophobia. I wouldn't have the time to be truly responsible for one either. And there will be added expenses to worry about, plus the problem of fleas, rabies and other health problems.

It's late, therefore I will post about my class gathering later.

A portion of the sole of my left foot has been hurting for the past few days.

Unlike most people who only have one flat foot, I have two instead. Sometimes I wonder if I should seriously consider the option of undergoing surgery. If I do intend to have that, now isthe time to do it, since it's holidays and I won't be able to walk for some time with a surgery on both feet. But I'm kind of afraid and arches don't help at all.

Maybe it's true that as one ages, the things one desires will change drastically. This will be my wish list for this year. I don't think anyone will buy me the CDs though...since it's not easy to get them here. But if you are serious in buying them for me, you can order them from Evangeline's friend, Eileena. Just ask Evan :D
And I think most will just forget my birthday. It was really ironic last year, the most of the people I expected to give me presents or wish me a 'happy birthday' didn't and those I least expected to did so for me. And this wish list is more for taking up a space in my post, rather than to coerce people into buying them for me since most won't.

This Birthday...

CD Albums/OSTs (if you want to buy them for me...)

1. You're Beautiful OST (A.N.JELL) - around SGD$20
2. Brown Eyed Girls Repackage Album (Sign)

Stuff

1. A grey/olive/chocolate pageboy cap
2. Cash!!!
3. Accessories (bracelets/bangles/hair clips/hairbands/ear studs/rings)*
4. Soft toy**

I'm quite surprised and happy with the new committee positions.
I was really happy that others think that I can be a good and capable leader.
A heartfelt 'thank you' to everyone who has congratulated me. I will definitely work harder and prove that I am a responsible person and help the rest of the committee.

To the new members of our committee, each of you were chosen with great consideration by the old committee. Welcome to the group and don't forget to work hard~ /(^^)/
May all of us work together as a great team!