Another Year Has Passed

Derek

Another year older & (hopefully) another year wiser.

They're Worth It (You'll Know Who You Are)

There are times when life gets really irritating/shitty/sickening/depressing/torturous/trying and you don't know what to do but turn to a certain friend (or two) to help get you back on track or just make you laugh the crap away. These are the times when you realise why you call some people your best friends. So I've never actually called anyone my best friend, and I guess the reason is that ONE best friend is not enough. I've always said I don't have a best friend, just a handful of really good ones. The ones that have gone through a bunch of crap with you, or just some that understand your situation when everyone else seems to not have a clue what you're talking about. The ones who are good enough to call family (or sometimes even better than family). The ones who are worth being labelled as your BEST friend.

Someone once asked why after being burnt that I would go walk through the same fire. I told her, that the fire is not always the same. It was one question that opened my eyes a little to the person that she was. That she was cautious enough to warn me that I might be doing something stupid once again, but at the same time, it let me know that she was considerate enough to know what I've been through and thread lightly.

Then the other day when the weight of all the week's crap came crashing down on me at work, she just was her usual self, entertaining me with her witty comments. What touched me most was that at the very end of the day, she sent a msg to ask if I was alright. A simple note of concern, a gesture that might not mean anything to some people, made me feel so much better. Although I didn't go on to tell her what it was that got me down, I still had to just thank her for being her.

Another would be the girl who accidentally became part of the handful. For 2 years in the same class, I was not really close to her due to a language barrier. Funny how time apart, depression, and irritating teachers can bring 2 people closer together. I honestly forgot what actually got us so close, but it was basically the late night/early morning chats on MSN that we got to know more about each other. Somehow chatting with her, I got to know about her problems, and she about mine. The one thing I remembered clearly was the one times I was so pissed off with my sis' boyfriend that I just sat at the computer, tears streaming down my cheeks, telling her what an inconsiderate arse he was. To think my dad always wondered why I was up at ungodly hours on the computer. Up till now, I'm still online at strange hours chatting away with her.

So on that crappy week, I was trying to get her online for a chat, knowing that somehow, she'll be part of the remedy. There was always something funny, or we would find funny, about anything we mentioned in our conversations. We always joked that anyone who looked through our conversation history will think that we were either high on drugs/laughing gas or just insane. However, due to a problem with our schedules and her phone, I just couldn't get to chat with her, leading to all the frustrations being built up within, just waiting to spill out (and it had to happen at work).

Even though I got to chat with her the next day, something just wasn't right. I guess maybe listening to my own head is still the way to go. I still need to blog about everything. To let all the crap out the way I'm comfortable and happy with. Up till now, I obviously haven't had the chance to let it all out, and it shows in my text messages. This time it was to another friend. A guy I always insist was a stalker with a creepy sidekick in school. That was how I noticed him anyway. Every week during school, I would hear some boy calling my name from behind me, and when I turned around, I would see him and the creepy one grinning like 2 idiots. I never understood what they were trying to do but I ended up in the same class with them in Sec. 3. That changed the whole situation as he could just approach me without looking like a stalker from another class. Then one day, he started giving me a weird nick-name, which I thought was some insult, until he told me it's what the gangsters call their leader (LIKE OMG!!!). He's still using the nick-name, and I've got used to it, even though I still find it rather embarrassing when he uses it among people I don't really know.

Anyhoo, we were texting back and forth on saturday and I asked if he would be free to go out for a drink. Something about my insistence made him wonder if I had something to talk to him about. Me being me, I said I didn't have nothing in particular, but now thinking about it, I probably had something to rant about. I guess that someone in pain doesn't really have to listen to anyone else's pain, and just decided to meet up another day.

So one of the things that actually got me down from from another girl who is also in this same handful of people. We met in Primary 5, when her school had to close down and move to mine. It was because I was crap in Chinese, and she was crap in Mathematics that we happen to end up in the same class. I honestly can't remember what happened in Pr. 5, probably it was too traumatic? But I do remember Pr. 6 rather well, and that as a class, there was this bunch of girls that hated her and tried to make her life miserable, and there was the other people who didn't like that bunch of girls. I think my role in Primary school was some sort of protector (maybe that's why I got the gangster nick-name?) and seems like whoever needed some sort of protection or sheltering ended up with me. I guess size does matter when it comes to bullying and being bullied.

Anyway, she sent me a message at work, asking if I was free for a chat but I told her I had to work till late. Even then, she called me after I was done to talk and I knew something really bad happened. She told me about a problem she had at home and after talking to her, it got me really sad. It's not like I didn't think that her situation couldn't happen to her. It wasn't because of what she thought of as the problem in her life. It was the fact that she could think of killing herself just because of someone else, or the thought of losing that someone. Maybe it's because I feel that I can't lose her in my life just yet that it affected me so much? Or maybe it was just that she actually thought of such a stupid thing to do just to end her misery? Is ending your life because of someone else's stupidity worth it? I'm partly glad I got to talk to her, but the sadness and pain she's going through is heartbreaking to me. It's probably why they say that you cannot counsel people who you are related or close to. It's not that you can't help the person with the situation. I think it's more that the situation the person is in might affect you more than you think.

But going through this whole situation, blogging in the middle of the night just to get it all out even though I've to work in 6 hours, it's all worth it. These people are worth the all the pain that can come with life because they definitely bring the joy into my life.

Another Year Has Passed

Caroline M. West

Another year older & (hopefully) another year wiser.

Why Do Good People Die Young?

In light of all the recent deaths around the world, Amy asked the question why the good people die young. As we all know, the biggest headliner when it comes to deaths this whole month is Michael Jackson. It's a bit hard not to realise that it seems like the grim reaper is doing the annual audit and taking stock - 3 plane crashes with almost all on board dying, all the celebrities that have passed on, the deaths in the riots & bombings. It seems like every year, there's a certain time that there seems to be a few mass deaths. Do note that it's about the 7th month of the Lunar calendar. Ok... so maybe that's grasping at straws. But back to Amy's question:

Why the good ones die young?

She had asked this as we were talking about Michael Jackson and Princess Diana, and the reason why so many people mourn their deaths. Other than the fact that they were both celebrities, the outreach they had was actually because they were charitable people, using their celebrity status to help the needy. So because of what we were saying prior to her question, my answer was that maybe we all had a certain amount "good points" to chalk up. Once we got to our required amount of points, it was time to leave the earth. But this is saying that the people died in accidents or through sudden health-related issues, not through some other people's hands.

But actually the email I got from here says it all:

A Dog's Purpose
(from the heart of a 6-year-old boy)
as Told by a Veterinarian.

Being a veterinarian, I had been called to examine a ten-year-oldIrish Wolfhound named Belker. The dog's owners, Ron, his wife Lisa, and their little boy Shane, were all very attached to Belker, and they were hoping for a miracle.

I examined Belker and found he was dying of cancer. I told the family we couldn't do anything for Belker, and offered to perform the euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home.

As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought it would be good for six-year-old Shane to observe the procedure. They felt as though Shane might learn something from the experience.

The next day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat as Belker's family surrounded him. Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the last time, that I wondered if he understood what was going on. Within a few minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away.

The little boy seemed to accept Belker's transition without any difficulty or confusion. We sat together for a while after Belker's death, wondering aloud about the sad fact that animal lives are shorter than human lives.

Shane, who had been listening quietly, piped up and said,

''I know why.''

Startled, we all turned to him. What came out of his mouth next stunned me. I'd never heard a more comforting explanation. It has changed the way I try and live.

He said,''People are born so that they can learn how to live a good life -- like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right?'' The Six-year-old continued,''Well, dogs already know how to do that, so they don't have to stay as long.''


* * *

Dogs are born knowing how to:

Live simply.

Love generously.

Care deeply.

Speak kindly.

So if learning the 4 points above means that you've achieved what you're put on this world for and that your time in this world is complete, then maybe that's why people feel that the good die young. The people who achieve this would be seen as 'good' in the eyes of others, and since they leave this world so suddenly (basically not expecting you to die of old age), people tend to think that their lives were cut short.

Well.. some sort of point system if you ask me.

It's The End Of The World!!

Be afraid... be very afraid....

"Of what?" you might ask.

Well.. be afraid of today if you believe the things being sent around in emails and of people's predictions the natural phenomenon will have on the world.

The first was the email about a tsunami hitting a few countries, and asking everyone to stay away from beaches. Well other than this email being very vague about the exact locations that will be "badly hit" by the tsunami, it does include a predicted location of the earthquakes. Now if the earthquake locations are true, and the tsunami is supposedly starting from that area, it will be one giant tsunami to hit all the way to Australia and India. Even with the unpredictability of water, if it does affect all the places listed, that tsunami would be big enough to wash the whole of Singapore. So soap up and get your life jackets on just in case.

Next would be the effect that the solar eclipse will have on the world today as predicted by the astrologer.

"Mumbai astrologer Raj Kumar Sharma predicted "some sort of attack by (Kashmiri separatists) Jaish-e-Mohammad or Al-Qaeda on Indian soil" and a devastating natural disaster in Southeast Asia.
An Indian political leader could be killed, he said, and tension between the West and Iran is likely to increase, escalating into possible US military action after September 9, when fiery Saturn moves from Leo into Virgo.
"The last 200 years, whenever Saturn has gone into Virgo there has been either a world war or a mini world war," he told AFP."

Honestly, I think what he said just gave the separatists/terrorists an idea of what to do today.

So what are we in for today?

Since he said the attack will be on Indian soil, and it's Iran that's going to be dealing with tension, I don't think we're in for a mini-war on our end. But the devastating natural disaster? Could he have received the email too? Is he referring to the tsunami? If so, like I said before, remember your life jackets today!

Another Year Has Passed

Kuka a.k.a Sudha

Another year older & (hopefully) another year wiser.

Night Festival 2009

We went the year before, and so we decided to have a look again this year. Time again for the museum doors to open till late for the Night Festival to showcase more artistic talents. Adi and I managed to get our shifts on the 2nd day of the festival with enough time to visit some of our friends at the Bras Basah outlet before heading to catch the night's opening number.

Just as they were starting up the 3rd performance, the sky decided to bless the event with a downpour that had the crew scrambling to save their equipment, while everyone was told to seek shelter. Enter lightning, and things started to get a little bit disappointing until we started getting interesting shots in the rain. Then Adi's ears perked up as she heard fireworks going off, and I thought she was going mad until we realised that it was the display for the National Day Parade rehearsal. Probably would have been nice to catch that on the camera, but then standing at the bottom of tall buildings just don't help when you need a good view. Getting rather bored with nothing to do, we joined the crowd to check out what was on offer at the stalls set up for the event.

Hardy Amies Meets Adi Hamir

Once the rain started to ease up, we decided it was better to seek shelter at one of the museums rather than wait for some of Adi's friends having nothing much to look at. Spotting the giant, blue spring across the road, we were sucked in by it's mesmerizing glow, with Adi even walking right into its core.

Once we got Adi out of that loop, another glowing art installation caught our attention. This time it was this boxy, tree-like sculpture that had lighting activated by the sounds around it.

It started showing signs of another heavy downpour and we thought it best if we got ourselves into the National Museum before we really got soaked, but still stopped for one last photo opportunity before entering into our shelter for the next hour.

First thing we saw once we got in (other than the crowd) was a tower of tanks all painted in a light shade of pink, with flower and heart motifs. Well it was something to do with love and war, but me being me, I wasn't one to stand there and really read into every art piece. I just rather move about and try to get pictures of things I find interesting in someway... or maybe have someone make it more strange?

Sometimes I Don't Understand Her?

Wish I Had My Fisheye Here.

The next thing we came upon was fun. A camera (or maybe a few) were focussed on the floor of the museum, and the images picked up were displayed on the wall. Not everyone actually understood where the camera was. While some couldn't be bothered, others just failed trying to get a shot of themselves not realising that all the person with the camera saw on the projected image was the top of their heads. Thank goodness my model wasn't too stupid. :p

Can You Spot Adi?

I'm Like A Bird....

Other than a few more things that caught my attention as we walked through the museum, the wait to get into the rooms that held more insight into the country's past was just too long as we were supposed to meet with Adi's friends (Martina & sis) any time soon. So a few more shots around the museum and we were heading back to SMU.

And I Thought Mom Had A Large Glass Collection

Adi's Signature Happy Pose.

I See You ...

Finally meeting up with Martina & her sister, we decided to head to the Singapore Arts Museum since we had more than an hour to waste before the final act was to start. Well there was some interesting things there, but photography wasn't allowed in most places. Boooo!

For Sale? Not Worth It?

Enjoying The Scratch...

Fast forward through milkshakes and catching a good location to watch the final act, we were treated to the final act about 20 minutes later than scheduled. After standing in the crowd watching the performers strapping themselves into position, the lights went out and someone started singing.

Drummer & Hero

Once the singing stopped and everyone behind us began clapping, we waited for the performers in front of us to start their act but it seems something happened to the singer, and one of the drummers started getting himself freed from his contraption and ran to help his friend. Oh well... isn't that just lovely?

The announcement then came through to say that the performance will continue with just the 3 on the wheel. I guess they didn't want to waste the effort of setting all the pyrotechnics up.

What a night.