Friday, February 25, 2005

Foresight. Surprises.

Foresight is extremely important. I predicted the screwing up of this NTU Invitational Shoot, therefore, as a precaution, I signed up for Monthly Shoot. For the NTU Invitational Shoot, I hit 574, 2 points below my personal best. Kelvin won me with the same score as before, 575. Super consistant. Tomorrow, I will go and get our medals (team silver), and also my tripod. After having a nice training session with it, I will be all prepared for monthly shoot!

Although I do not believe I will be able to break my personal best after just a single training session with a new piece of equipment, I hope I can at least match it. That's damn important.

And in the previous post I displayed my results. Today, I had the confirmation from both subjects. Surprisingly, I achieved an A1 for my second Mathematics test! That just so Ub3r 1337! So now what I am lacking is the result for my English. Here are the updated results:

English: Dunno.
Chinese: A1, 81%
Mathematics: A2, Dunno how many %
Biology: A1, 75%
Physics: A1, 86%
Chemistry: A2, dunno how many %
Integrated Humanities Elective aka Geog: E8, 40% (no change)
Integrated Humanities Core: C6, 50%
Computer Studies: No test!

So my MSG becomes (1+1+1+2+2+7)/6 = 2.33333333333333333333333333, approx. 2.3, which is still damn good. Let's say I get A2 for my English, then it becomes (1+1+1+2+2+2+7)/7 = 2.2857142857142857142857142857143, approx. 2.28, which is also damn good, so lets all hope I get an A for my English!

Thursday, February 24, 2005

Expectations.

After what seemed to be an ever-lasting period of tests, I, along with most of my classmates, emerged from the classroom, alive, surprisingly. So here are the results for the term:

English: Dunno.
Chinese: A1, 81%
Mathematics: C6*, 50%
Biology: A1, 75%
Physics: A1, 86%
Chemistry: A2, dunno how many %
Integrated Humanities Elective aka Geog: E8*, 40%
Integrated Humanities Core: C6, 50%
Computer Studies: No test!
* means unconfirmed, second test result unrevealed.

Counting the known results, including the current Maths and Geog results, my MSG is a grand 3.0! Note - humanities are counted under one subject. As we all can see, I am really screwed, as expected. For Geog, I have a chance of going up to a maximum of C5. For Maths, a maximum of A1. So let's calculate the best MSG I can get:

(1+1+1+1+1+2+5)/7 = 1.71428571428571428571428571, approx. 1.7, which is damn good for the first term in sec three! But it's impossible anyway.

Tomorrow, I will compete in NTU Invitational Shoot. I do not expect anything much from it, at least not when I have not trained for the past three weeks, not counting today and yesterday. Obviously I had to train like hell. I bruised my knuckles, and now they have this perpetually raw, red colour. Damn it hurts. Even when I just put on the glove.

Losing is not a sweet experience for most of us. However, it's inevitable in cases like this. I am going to fall behind my personal best set previously during the SAFRA Invitational Shoot. Do not expect much, for expectations are nothing but imaginations. Two days after NTU Invitational Shoot, however, I aim to rise again, and defeat my personal best of 576 during the Monthly Shoot!

Expectations.

Bullshit.

Sunday, February 20, 2005

Nails.

Slept till 3. Planned to train today but obviously it was too late. So training on Sunday instead. Unless I oversleep again. I woke up so late I acually did nothing much.

I used the computer a bit, then we went out for dinner with my grandmother as usual. Ate dinner at Bali Thai in IMM, then went to buy my mother's new handphone, which was rather cheap. Sony Ericsson phone, so I didn't really support the buy. But anyway we tried the camera and all, and the quality obviously loses to my phone, the Nokia 6670, which incidentally has a 1 megapixel camera.

My father and I went to pick up my sister at Hwa Chong Institution, college side, before returning to IMM. My sister and I went to pick my mother and grandmother up, and I went to buy the better version of Kung Fu Hustle DVD. Luckily it had Cantonese, which sounded much better and more natural. That's out of point. So we loaded the groceries and stuff into the car boot, when a good passer-by came out and said, "Your tyre is flattened," while pointing at the left rear tyre. I was like, "What the?", but when I looked down, the damn thing really was flattened.

I showed it to my father, and we were like "Shit!". Therefore, we unloaded all the things from the boot, placed them in the car, sent my grandmother into the building with my sister to take a sit, and tried to recall how to change a tyre. I never saw someone changing a tyre before, and neither has my mother. My mother has the theory while my father had both the theory and experience, 20 years ago. So we took out the tools, my father made me take the spare tyre out, and we looked all the place for the damn jack. Finally, I found it hiding inside a compartment, which was covered by a unscrewable cap. The whole damn thing was camouflaged. So I opened the thing, to find the jack, mounted onto some kind of bracket. We tried to take it out, finally giving up and calling the car selling agent. He told us were aupposed to turn the black knob and so we did. Magically, the damn thing came lose and I took it out.

Next, we, or rather, I, was supposed to jack the car up. But, HOW THE HELL DO I DO THAT? So my father told me, "See the gap here?" while pointing at the gap on the jack, and continued by saying "there's a groove at around that area, this goes there." So I kneeled down, and mounted the jack on the grooves. Then I turned the damn knob using an assortment of tools to jack it up. Before jacking it completely, we, or rather, I, had a hard time unscrewing the bolts. I then jacked the whole car up, took the tyre out, and put the new one in. I lowered the car, tightened the bolts, replaced the cap, kept the tools and jack, and threw the screwed up tyre in boot, and went to wash my entirely black hands.

We realised that there was a small little nail with a diameter not wider than 0.25cm stuck in the tyre. Damn that nail!

Went home to watch Kung Fu Hustle, cut my nails, as in those growing on my fingers, blogged!

Friday, February 18, 2005

Soccer and IHC

IHC is gay. Tested on "the rise of nationalism in Indonesia and Thailand". Like WTF! Study for like 4 hours for that 40 minutes test. WTF! Must remember all those guai lan names like Chulalongkorn, Vajiravudh, Prajadhipok for Thailand, and for Indonesia even worse. Not only that. Must also remember what they did that led to the rise of nationalism. There are like 10 points for Indonesia and for Thailand it is the rule of 2 kings + a prime minister. Happy New Year. F9.

After the test, I slacked, and inhaled a whole lot of aqueous ammonia fumes. We also had fun touching the aqueous sodium hydroxide and trying to wash the soapy feeling off. For training, we ran up 6 levels of steps and down twice. Finished in 1 minute and 45 seconds isit? Then this little sec one had to pull us down so the whole group pump 7. 7 is damn little but I just finished punishing the C Div' captain, did 30 standard pumping with him + ran the damn steps like xiao. After that, we were supposed to be panting like hell, shooting 10 shots. But the timing was wrong, and we could rest while waiting for the previous detail to end. When they ended, we had to pump 10 more to increase our pulse rate. Sadistic. Shot like 65! Wth. No suit, no golve, no shoes, no shooting glasses, and no proper rifle. I could hardly see the target or keep my relationship correct. Simultenously, I was shaking like shit, the cheek piece wasn't high enough and the rear sight was too close my eye.

After "30" more pumping, we went to play soccer. Then it started raining like hell. It was about 5pm. So we decided to wait. We juggled the ball in the shelter, and did lame stuff like volleying at sec 1s and air trapping. When the rain finally stopped, only 6 people were left. We we played 3 on 3. Glenn and I changed into our boots to scare the shit out of the sec 1s. I realised that my Predator Pulse's outsole cannot be used effectively when it is wet, so no banana kick. It just slips off my Roteiro. So we played, and it started to rain, but we continued playing until we were all soaked. The people in the bus probably didn't like seeing us all wet and grassy.

Thursday, February 10, 2005

First Blog Since ???

While chatting with Keef, I suddenly remembered that I haven't blogged for like 1 and a half weeks. With guilt weighing me down, I tried to give myself excuses. They sounded quite reasonable fortunately...

Went to Malaysia for "CNY Celebration" with my relatives. It was more like "CNY Castration". Whoa.. A bit exaggerated. The four hour ride to Kota Tinggi was almost living hell. Who wants to watch Constantine on Friday? Ok. Out of point. Back to the livcar ride. Since the nearest airport was at KL, duh we had to drive. My father drove as usual and my mother, my sister and I just stoned, slept and talked. Mostly sleeping. As most of us might know, Malaysia is an extremely temperature friendly country, giving shockingly high points (degrees Celsius). With an extremely comforting array of concrete, brick and stone (and various other materials) buildings, the temperature is amplified (is it approiate to use this term?) to the maximum temperature potential. So I will stop being sacarstic here. It was damn frickin hot there. Almost shit boiling. Like Nanyang Primary School (new building) as I realised a few years ago and remembered yesterday. For a more detailed explanation or elaboration, please proceed to the next paragraph.

Nanyang Primary School. One of the most sought after primary school. I graduated from this school. Old building. They started using the new campus immediately after my batch of students left. Many of us felt deprived. We contributed quite a lot for that building but we didn't get to use it. But I moved on to The Chinese High School with little reluctance. I always wanted to be in TCHS since I knew my father was working there, which was probably the day I knew anything. TCHS is always decribed as a heaven of the secondary schools, with the largest secondary school campus and all. Back to the NYPS thing. During CNY when I was sec 1, I returned to NYPS, once more proving many of my teachers wrong. Many (or most) of them probably thought I would never make it to TCHS. There is one specific teacher, which I will not name here, who even released his/her (not even the gender should be revealed) thoughts to the world around her. I knew, and I remembered. And I shall continue to. Time passed like a speeding pellet. PSLE had arrived. That was the time I should go against all odds, and bust that "confirmed" prediction.

A little background before I go on to the PSLE stage. I achieved a remarkable (bleh) 220 for my prelims. Results reflect the time spent studying. 220 was not at all desirable. The month before PSLE, my father aided me. I studied like bloody hell, not even looking at the computer. I knew I had to concentrate to get pass this barrier. I did not even think about playing. That month, it was pure studying. I revised everything, even my maths and science, which I always aced easily (not now). PSLE came, and went. As usual, time passed quickly. Results were going to be released. I had no confidence on myself. I dreaded that day more than any day ever. But I had to face the reality. It had to come.

I was mentally prepared for the worst. I sat in class, with my head facing the hard, tiled floor. My ex-form teacher told us that there was a tie between two students for the top position (in class). First was Valerie (now in MGS). Since girls' results were announced first, Valerie's results were quickly publicised. I looked up and saw my ex-form teacher give me a smile. I was like, "Huh? Like that also can smile?". I can bet at that moment everyone who hadn't gotten their results hoped they were the one who tied. My turn came, the teacher started off the sentence with these words (in Chinese) "The second person who tied". So anyway I was shocked. Only could say "Walao!" over and over again. I glanced at the laminated result sheet. English: A; Chinese: A*; Mathematics: A*; Science: A*. Aggregate: 266. At least I confirmed a place in TCHS. At that time I was too happy to remember the specific teacher and her prophecy.

So back to the NYPS thing. Quite an extreme sidetrack there.. When I returned as an ex-student, I realised immediately that NYPS was not at all a place that I desired to study in. The trees were not much taller than 2m and the entire place was built of concrete, having only occasional patches of grass. The hard stone floor and walls radiated heat and reflected the glaring sun light. Even the space between the small track was hard stone, as it was replaced, instead of grass, with a basketball court. Can you imagine how bloody hot it was? TCHS is a total paradise compared that that concrete jungle. How the hell did they live there???

Back to my first point. Malaysia. It was sometime like that. Hardly any greenery. So it was frickin hot. I reached my uncle's house and stoned quite a bit there. Then we went to check in to the hotel. Stoned a bit more. Went back to uncle's house, stone a lot more, went back to hotel. Watched fireworks. Slept...

To be continued...