Today was a day which made me thrilled.
It all started out as a sunny morning when I was bored, resting on the sofa when my neighbours asked me out to play with them. At first, I was rather reluctant as I was rather lazy and wanted to rest for a bit more.
Nonetheless, I joined them. We were all so active in the childhood games like Catching, Hopscotch so on and so forth. After that, we had a small picnic outside the house, along the corridors. (I know it's weird to have one outside when we can have one inside). Everyone wolfed down their food as they wanted to continue playing.
After lunch, we headed down to the playground and continued the endless playing. The game I liked in particular is the Blind Mice where one of us would be blindfolded with a cloth, then the others would have to be on the playground, unable to get off the playground if not it will be considered that one has forfeited from the game. The ''Blind Mice'' will then have to attempt to fish out the other players with the blindfold. Yes, it's dangerous so its always better to take precautions like maybe a ''referee'' to see if any player has dismounted off the playground or if the ''Blind Mice'' is going to fall from the property. There are many varieties of this game, but we sticked to the original one which is this version.
After all these games, we headed back home unwillingly, wanting to play somemore, but our parents were already calling for us to return home as it was rather late and we were exhausted. It was certainly one of my happiest moments in life.
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Tales Runner
Argh! I forgot to do my weekly blog-ing again. Its mainly due to me playing this game I haven't played for about nine months, Tales Runner. Well, you know, after the examination period, everyone has less stress so we can celebrate. That's why I was playing Tales Runner as during the examination our access to computers usually gets restricted.
I logged in, then I went to the lobby. There were many rooms on the waiting list, waiting for people to join them before they start the game. As Possessed Daddy Octopus was my favourite game, I went in to the respective room of the Expert Channel. The objective of the game was to reach the goal while avoiding the lasers if possible that will zap one upon contact. One will then have to press the left and right arrow keys repeatedly to shake off from the zap. The Mommy Octopus will be chasing from the back, while the Daddy Octopus will continue shooting its lasers, trying to hold players back. In addition to the blue lasers, there's also the deadly laser, the red laser. Upon contact, its game over for the player. I got first because I was using Maki, a character which has alot of control, which enables one to manoeuvres through obstacles more easily despite its speed being one of the lowest.
I played a few games with eye breaks of five minutes at intervals of an hour before I went to the park. I went to the Alchemist to see what materials I needed to make my desired Beelzebub set, which is mainly cards collected from the end of each race. Then, I headed to the Shop to see what was in store that I could purchase. After that, I headed to the Non-Playing Character better known as Sunflower Witch. There were 3 minigames that would need 100 TR (the in-game currency) to play once. It was rather expensive but there was an achievement that when we play it 50 times, we would get 10001 TR, which is a profit of 5001 TR. Therefore I continued to play it till I got bored, where I decided to log off.
Monday, October 10, 2011
Examinations :)
Oh gosh! I got so absorbed in revising my work for the upcoming examinations ( actually it's already going on ) that I almost forgot to update my blog. Phew! Lucky I remembered.
As I was saying, examinations do bring a certain amount of stress to me, but I am unlike others, who look at the negative side of it. Treat examination as a monster, one has to know how to evade its powerful move by revising what moves it might come out. One also has to know when to take a break from the never-ending revisions. If not, one might get too exhausted and would be too off-guard, resulting in the examination defeating one. One has to counter its moves efficiently, through patience and determination, the monster will eventually topple to its feet, allowing one to emerge victorious.
Many people treat it as stress; they dread it. However, frankly speaking, although it brings stress, I still like examinations. You would be asking why by now, and these are the reasons; During Examination period, lesser homework is given and there is even a Co-Curricular Activity stand-down, dedicated to those conscientious students (like me) who are determined to strive to excel in academics. So time is more flexible, allowing me to sleep and rest well unlike normal school days where homework is abundant and a day without homework is considered a miracle. Sometimes, the burden of homework can really cause me at some moment in time to feel rather depressed and lazy as I might be burning the midnight oil given the already-exhausted status I was in.
What more, I can also gage how much I have absorbed from all those lessons my teachers were giving. Sometimes, I frown when I do not have high marks on my examination scripts, but I told myself, '' Fret not, now I know I am weak in this particular subject, I should read up more on it.'' Therefore, examinations not only help me gage where I stand as a class whether I am average, above average, or below average, it also gives me motivation to strive harder. As the saying goes, ''Without failure, there is no sweetness in success.'' .I treat examinations like a normal homework, just that there is something like a time attack, where I cannot laze around and also an individual task, where no help can be obtained from anyone. Examination is also a once in a blue moon event where the whole class is completely quiet.
Therefore, I feel that although we might only feel the cons of examinations, we should also be optimistic and look at the benefits it actually gives us. We should not let our minds get overshadowed by the cons, instead let the pros smite the battlefield of pros and cons of examinations. Changing our perspective that examinations is a dreaded moment of life to an assessment that benefits us would definitely not cause us depressions. Okay, I think it is about time I get back to my revision. Remember to stay positive! :)
As I was saying, examinations do bring a certain amount of stress to me, but I am unlike others, who look at the negative side of it. Treat examination as a monster, one has to know how to evade its powerful move by revising what moves it might come out. One also has to know when to take a break from the never-ending revisions. If not, one might get too exhausted and would be too off-guard, resulting in the examination defeating one. One has to counter its moves efficiently, through patience and determination, the monster will eventually topple to its feet, allowing one to emerge victorious.
Many people treat it as stress; they dread it. However, frankly speaking, although it brings stress, I still like examinations. You would be asking why by now, and these are the reasons; During Examination period, lesser homework is given and there is even a Co-Curricular Activity stand-down, dedicated to those conscientious students (like me) who are determined to strive to excel in academics. So time is more flexible, allowing me to sleep and rest well unlike normal school days where homework is abundant and a day without homework is considered a miracle. Sometimes, the burden of homework can really cause me at some moment in time to feel rather depressed and lazy as I might be burning the midnight oil given the already-exhausted status I was in.
What more, I can also gage how much I have absorbed from all those lessons my teachers were giving. Sometimes, I frown when I do not have high marks on my examination scripts, but I told myself, '' Fret not, now I know I am weak in this particular subject, I should read up more on it.'' Therefore, examinations not only help me gage where I stand as a class whether I am average, above average, or below average, it also gives me motivation to strive harder. As the saying goes, ''Without failure, there is no sweetness in success.'' .I treat examinations like a normal homework, just that there is something like a time attack, where I cannot laze around and also an individual task, where no help can be obtained from anyone. Examination is also a once in a blue moon event where the whole class is completely quiet.
Therefore, I feel that although we might only feel the cons of examinations, we should also be optimistic and look at the benefits it actually gives us. We should not let our minds get overshadowed by the cons, instead let the pros smite the battlefield of pros and cons of examinations. Changing our perspective that examinations is a dreaded moment of life to an assessment that benefits us would definitely not cause us depressions. Okay, I think it is about time I get back to my revision. Remember to stay positive! :)
Sunday, October 2, 2011
CIP at Woodlands Waterfront
28th September was not another boring day like any other day. It was when the whole of the Secondary Ones had a CIP-event at Woodlands Waterfront where we were supposed to go there and pick up litter.
It all started out as a bright day. I assembled at the quadrangle with my fellow classmates, although I was quite certain that the assembly area was supposed to be at the parade square, but oh well, since the organiser, Mrs Lee Ai Hoon was already at the quadrangle so I guessed they could have change the assembly area. Seeing that it was almost time for everyone to gather, she used a loudspeaker to announce to those Secondary Ones who were still in their classrooms to quicken up and assemble. When it was 3pm, attendance was taken. Shockingly, there were still students, even from my class, still streaming in. It was quite obvious from their perspiration that they were playing Basketball at the Basketball Court and forgot all about the time.
Due to the latecomers from my class, my class was not amongst the first to depart for Woodlands Waterfront. Well, looking at the bright side, at least we can follow the class in front, without the need to know the directions to Woodlands Waterfront. We were told to walk in twos and to close up the gaps, so that we can reach the destination faster. Soon, the rule was getting more loose and loose. There were humongous spaces in between each other and no one saw the need to close up the gaps, resulting in the formation in which we walked chaotic. My partner was Wai Weng. To keep boredom at bay, I decided to play a word game with my partner. It was a 20-minutes walk to Woodlands Waterfront.
Upon reaching our destination, the already exhausted us were nonetheless exhilarated. We took a class photograph before we set off to our base camp. I failed to see the point in taking a class photograph, but it did not affect me much anyway. My form teacher, Mr Poh, gave a few students, including me a black plastic bag, to store all those litters that we picked up. We were also given each a pair of gloves to equip due to hygiene practice. We were given a rather big area to scavenge for the litter. Wai Weng was the only guy who was loyally sticking with me to share the bag that I had till he joined some female classmates playing with a plastic container lid which they found on the ground as litter, treating it as a Frisbee.
I knew that the purpose of this event was to pick up litter, not to play around, therefore I did not join those people playing Frisbee but stayed headstrong on the concerning issue of littering. There were some strange-looking objects that I found strewn all over the area, while some of the items are strange to be found in such an area, like a small golf ball. I found it weird that the litter I found most was these cable-wires. They were not even fastened. Like who in the right mind would bother to throw so many of these cable-wires? Nonetheless, I still picked those up and threw into the garbage bag. What was more appealing to me was that some female classmates were having a whale of a time, taking photographs of themselves jumping up and down. So picking litter became playing Frisbee and taking photographs, well, that was certainly a ''marvellous'' job done by some of my classmates.
Time should stop proving that it can fly. In no time, it was already time for us to head back to school. Well, I was certain that the job we were supposed to do here was not really complete, but teachers were rallying us back, I had no choice but to succumb to ''fate''. We were given a five minute break where we were allowed to go toilet to empty our bladder, buy drinks to quench our thirst or we could even play on the equipment at the Woodlands Waterfront. We then headed back to school.
On the way back, I suggested with my partner maybe we could sing some songs to forget about the tiredness of our legs. But this idea was negative, far too negative. Some of my classmates heard my suggestion and started singing those cheers that we sang during Secondary 1 Orientation Camp. You know, once they start, it's hard to ever put an end to it. They threw their hands up and jumped like there was no tomorrow, singing like they had never sung before. Luckily our form teacher was at the back while we were far ahead of them, or else we would have gotten scolded severely. Well, I decided to drop out of the bunch of crazy friends, as I did not want to join them acting like hooligans. We were wearing our PE attire, part of our school uniform. Not really an awesome idea to act like one. Some passer-bys were giving us shocked expressions as they watched my friends act insanely in dismay. I tried to stop my friends, but they ignored me. I was as guilty as sin because I was the one who initiated this scene. They even chased each other and tweaked some of the cheer lyrics, making it sound a little offending.
We reached school after what seemed like an eternity. We headed to our classrooms where Mr Poh accounts for everyone's presence before dismissing us. Many of us were tired, while some still quite active, shouting across the classroom to communicate with each other. Everyone, including the teachers all agreed that the walking was more tiring than picking up litter. After everyone was present, we were dismissed. We dragged our feet, like there was a tonne worth of weight on our legs, moving small steps by small steps.
Although this event has met its purpose of raising awareness of the concerning issue of litter, and also providing the Secondary Ones some CIP hours, I felt that there was still room for improvement for this event. What if it rains halfway when we are picking for litter? Do we run back? Or do we wait till the rain stops under a shelter? I feel that all these details should be included in the briefing for this CIP event, to make it more organized and less chaotic should the unexpected occurs. Maybe, the teachers should also participate in the picking of litter instead of sitting under the sheltered area, to increase the closeness between the teachers and the students and meanwhile keep a closer eye to the students, restricting their area for going astray from purpose, allowing students to stay on task. The school could also charter buses to transport students to and fro, because the event is so short that more time was spent on walking there than doing the actual task. Alternatively, the school can also schedule a date where there would be more time for the event. Nonetheless, this event can be considered a successful one; I hope there would be more of such meaningful events, enriching students of more knowledge.
It all started out as a bright day. I assembled at the quadrangle with my fellow classmates, although I was quite certain that the assembly area was supposed to be at the parade square, but oh well, since the organiser, Mrs Lee Ai Hoon was already at the quadrangle so I guessed they could have change the assembly area. Seeing that it was almost time for everyone to gather, she used a loudspeaker to announce to those Secondary Ones who were still in their classrooms to quicken up and assemble. When it was 3pm, attendance was taken. Shockingly, there were still students, even from my class, still streaming in. It was quite obvious from their perspiration that they were playing Basketball at the Basketball Court and forgot all about the time.
Due to the latecomers from my class, my class was not amongst the first to depart for Woodlands Waterfront. Well, looking at the bright side, at least we can follow the class in front, without the need to know the directions to Woodlands Waterfront. We were told to walk in twos and to close up the gaps, so that we can reach the destination faster. Soon, the rule was getting more loose and loose. There were humongous spaces in between each other and no one saw the need to close up the gaps, resulting in the formation in which we walked chaotic. My partner was Wai Weng. To keep boredom at bay, I decided to play a word game with my partner. It was a 20-minutes walk to Woodlands Waterfront.
Upon reaching our destination, the already exhausted us were nonetheless exhilarated. We took a class photograph before we set off to our base camp. I failed to see the point in taking a class photograph, but it did not affect me much anyway. My form teacher, Mr Poh, gave a few students, including me a black plastic bag, to store all those litters that we picked up. We were also given each a pair of gloves to equip due to hygiene practice. We were given a rather big area to scavenge for the litter. Wai Weng was the only guy who was loyally sticking with me to share the bag that I had till he joined some female classmates playing with a plastic container lid which they found on the ground as litter, treating it as a Frisbee.
I knew that the purpose of this event was to pick up litter, not to play around, therefore I did not join those people playing Frisbee but stayed headstrong on the concerning issue of littering. There were some strange-looking objects that I found strewn all over the area, while some of the items are strange to be found in such an area, like a small golf ball. I found it weird that the litter I found most was these cable-wires. They were not even fastened. Like who in the right mind would bother to throw so many of these cable-wires? Nonetheless, I still picked those up and threw into the garbage bag. What was more appealing to me was that some female classmates were having a whale of a time, taking photographs of themselves jumping up and down. So picking litter became playing Frisbee and taking photographs, well, that was certainly a ''marvellous'' job done by some of my classmates.
Time should stop proving that it can fly. In no time, it was already time for us to head back to school. Well, I was certain that the job we were supposed to do here was not really complete, but teachers were rallying us back, I had no choice but to succumb to ''fate''. We were given a five minute break where we were allowed to go toilet to empty our bladder, buy drinks to quench our thirst or we could even play on the equipment at the Woodlands Waterfront. We then headed back to school.
On the way back, I suggested with my partner maybe we could sing some songs to forget about the tiredness of our legs. But this idea was negative, far too negative. Some of my classmates heard my suggestion and started singing those cheers that we sang during Secondary 1 Orientation Camp. You know, once they start, it's hard to ever put an end to it. They threw their hands up and jumped like there was no tomorrow, singing like they had never sung before. Luckily our form teacher was at the back while we were far ahead of them, or else we would have gotten scolded severely. Well, I decided to drop out of the bunch of crazy friends, as I did not want to join them acting like hooligans. We were wearing our PE attire, part of our school uniform. Not really an awesome idea to act like one. Some passer-bys were giving us shocked expressions as they watched my friends act insanely in dismay. I tried to stop my friends, but they ignored me. I was as guilty as sin because I was the one who initiated this scene. They even chased each other and tweaked some of the cheer lyrics, making it sound a little offending.
We reached school after what seemed like an eternity. We headed to our classrooms where Mr Poh accounts for everyone's presence before dismissing us. Many of us were tired, while some still quite active, shouting across the classroom to communicate with each other. Everyone, including the teachers all agreed that the walking was more tiring than picking up litter. After everyone was present, we were dismissed. We dragged our feet, like there was a tonne worth of weight on our legs, moving small steps by small steps.
Although this event has met its purpose of raising awareness of the concerning issue of litter, and also providing the Secondary Ones some CIP hours, I felt that there was still room for improvement for this event. What if it rains halfway when we are picking for litter? Do we run back? Or do we wait till the rain stops under a shelter? I feel that all these details should be included in the briefing for this CIP event, to make it more organized and less chaotic should the unexpected occurs. Maybe, the teachers should also participate in the picking of litter instead of sitting under the sheltered area, to increase the closeness between the teachers and the students and meanwhile keep a closer eye to the students, restricting their area for going astray from purpose, allowing students to stay on task. The school could also charter buses to transport students to and fro, because the event is so short that more time was spent on walking there than doing the actual task. Alternatively, the school can also schedule a date where there would be more time for the event. Nonetheless, this event can be considered a successful one; I hope there would be more of such meaningful events, enriching students of more knowledge.
Sunday, September 25, 2011
First Online Multi-player Game I Played
Many people experiences first-times, including me...
Exhilarated was the most appropriate word to describe my feelings when I first tried to download this online game client, Puzzle Pirates, to experience what the virtual world was like back then, when I was 8. It was certainly very confusing to me because I had never had the experience of doing this sort of administrative stuff where I needed to register to play and also download the client. It took me awhile before I got the hang of it. I waited awhile for the client to finish downloading before I launched the game.
There were many servers to choose from and I randomly picked one since I did not know which server was more beneficial for me. I created a character and soon I got into the game. Mesmerized by the graphics, I continued the tutorials given upon my character's creation. The tutorials were brief but very clear. I went for a pillage out in the seas with some other players and that was when I found that the game was very educational for me because I could not only interact with other players, strengthening bonds between one another, I could also do the duty puzzles, where I would have to squeeze my brain juices to play the puzzles. There was even a duty roster after every league, indicating to players the progress of their puzzles, be it Booched, Poor, Fine, Good, Excellent or Incredible.
There were many other things to do in the game and I soon found myself actively engaged in them. What I liked most of the game was that they would remind players to take a break should we be playing the game too long, because sometimes players are just so obsessed with the task at hand in the game that they forgot to go for an eye break.
Unfortunately, homework caught up with me and occupied most of my schedule, causing me to lose interest in the game after some time due to the tiredness I received after finishing all my homework; I had to sleep to rejuvenate myself, resulting in myself not being able to go online and do the mind-stretching puzzles and more. This first online multi-player game I played netted me alot of knowledge on sea-related stuff along with teamwork skills.
Till now, I am still grateful that I knew about this game, sadly, I forgot my password to that 5-year-old account so I had to create a new pirate, revisiting the game is another wonderful experience.
Exhilarated was the most appropriate word to describe my feelings when I first tried to download this online game client, Puzzle Pirates, to experience what the virtual world was like back then, when I was 8. It was certainly very confusing to me because I had never had the experience of doing this sort of administrative stuff where I needed to register to play and also download the client. It took me awhile before I got the hang of it. I waited awhile for the client to finish downloading before I launched the game.
There were many servers to choose from and I randomly picked one since I did not know which server was more beneficial for me. I created a character and soon I got into the game. Mesmerized by the graphics, I continued the tutorials given upon my character's creation. The tutorials were brief but very clear. I went for a pillage out in the seas with some other players and that was when I found that the game was very educational for me because I could not only interact with other players, strengthening bonds between one another, I could also do the duty puzzles, where I would have to squeeze my brain juices to play the puzzles. There was even a duty roster after every league, indicating to players the progress of their puzzles, be it Booched, Poor, Fine, Good, Excellent or Incredible.
There were many other things to do in the game and I soon found myself actively engaged in them. What I liked most of the game was that they would remind players to take a break should we be playing the game too long, because sometimes players are just so obsessed with the task at hand in the game that they forgot to go for an eye break.
Unfortunately, homework caught up with me and occupied most of my schedule, causing me to lose interest in the game after some time due to the tiredness I received after finishing all my homework; I had to sleep to rejuvenate myself, resulting in myself not being able to go online and do the mind-stretching puzzles and more. This first online multi-player game I played netted me alot of knowledge on sea-related stuff along with teamwork skills.
Till now, I am still grateful that I knew about this game, sadly, I forgot my password to that 5-year-old account so I had to create a new pirate, revisiting the game is another wonderful experience.
Saturday, September 17, 2011
English Difficulties
Everyone has difficulties in life, and I am no exception. Everyone has subjects that they are weak in, and I am no exception either. English has always been the subject I have detested the most, because there are many different components that make up the score on the report book; many of them are not easy to score, let alone ace them.
Oral has always been the most dreaded subject for me in the English component, because there is three components in Oral, which are the Reading, Picture Discussion, and Conversation. Reading has never been a trouble to me in Primary school but in Secondary school, words get tougher, with some never-seen-before words. Of course, Phonics will definitely play a big role in pronouncing these weird-looking words, but as my English teacher said, ''English is not remembering this formula and applying it that's it, but English has alot of exceptions.'' So how far can Phonics help me to pronounce words? Not much. Picture discussion is another trouble. Sometimes, words pop up to me immediately when I look at the picture, but problem is that I cannot ascertain that the words are applicable for that situation as pictured in the paper. As I do not want to take the risk of using words wrongly, I tend to use simple words which can hardly net any good scores. Next, is Conversation. Singlish, is commonly used in teens' life, therefore it is common to be spoken out. I always will have to stammer when I am about to speak the Singlish word, in an attempt to try to find an appropriate synonym to replace the Singlish word. I could also easily stray off-topic when I am too indulged in talking. Therefore I do not score well in Oral.
Summary is another obstacle blocking me from getting good scores. I noticed that I cannot get the correct 15 points despite many attempts and I always add in irrelevant points which eat up my words, causing me to have very limited words. Shortening sentences has also become a problem for me as sometimes I take away the important point in the midst of shortening the sentence. My most drastic problem is to use my own words. As my vocabulary is not very broad, I tend to repeat some of the words and use words wrongly, causing me to lose the meaning in the sentence which ultimately causes me to lose a point for content. I have made several attempts to try to use many words which were not that simple, but my score does not rise, which is saddening to me. The other problem is my tenses. As I am thinking of plotting my sentences while writing in both summary and composition, I tend to make mistakes in my tenses carelessly, causing me to lose precious marks too.
Overcoming these difficulties will no doubt be hard, but when there is a will there is a way !
Oral has always been the most dreaded subject for me in the English component, because there is three components in Oral, which are the Reading, Picture Discussion, and Conversation. Reading has never been a trouble to me in Primary school but in Secondary school, words get tougher, with some never-seen-before words. Of course, Phonics will definitely play a big role in pronouncing these weird-looking words, but as my English teacher said, ''English is not remembering this formula and applying it that's it, but English has alot of exceptions.'' So how far can Phonics help me to pronounce words? Not much. Picture discussion is another trouble. Sometimes, words pop up to me immediately when I look at the picture, but problem is that I cannot ascertain that the words are applicable for that situation as pictured in the paper. As I do not want to take the risk of using words wrongly, I tend to use simple words which can hardly net any good scores. Next, is Conversation. Singlish, is commonly used in teens' life, therefore it is common to be spoken out. I always will have to stammer when I am about to speak the Singlish word, in an attempt to try to find an appropriate synonym to replace the Singlish word. I could also easily stray off-topic when I am too indulged in talking. Therefore I do not score well in Oral.
Summary is another obstacle blocking me from getting good scores. I noticed that I cannot get the correct 15 points despite many attempts and I always add in irrelevant points which eat up my words, causing me to have very limited words. Shortening sentences has also become a problem for me as sometimes I take away the important point in the midst of shortening the sentence. My most drastic problem is to use my own words. As my vocabulary is not very broad, I tend to repeat some of the words and use words wrongly, causing me to lose the meaning in the sentence which ultimately causes me to lose a point for content. I have made several attempts to try to use many words which were not that simple, but my score does not rise, which is saddening to me. The other problem is my tenses. As I am thinking of plotting my sentences while writing in both summary and composition, I tend to make mistakes in my tenses carelessly, causing me to lose precious marks too.
Overcoming these difficulties will no doubt be hard, but when there is a will there is a way !
Mother Tongue Brew
First sight on the title, one might question what is the meaning of 'brew', I was no exception when I was informed there was a Mother Tongue Brew on 15th September. My curiosity carried me further as I googled on the word 'Brew', but to no avail, I still could not figure out the meaning of 'brew'. Disappointed, I had to give up. As the event was getting nearer, my curiosity was also getting greater.
When the event itself came, the Secondary 1 and 2 were all gathered outside Indoor Sports Hall, waiting to enter. Upon entering, we were then asked to sit according to our classes. We had a short briefing before we were dismissed back to our classrooms for our events. At that point of time, I was still doubtful of the purpose of this event.
My class and I returned to our classroom and were surprised to see that the instructor was already waiting for us. With a sense of urgency, everyone scrambled back to their seats hastily so as to not keep the instructor waiting. The instructor then briefed us on how to play Congkak, a traditional game. It was a 2-player game and my partner was Wai Weng. As we two had played that game on Club Penguin, just that the game was called Mancala, we proceeded without watching the demonstration. After a friendly match, I emerged victorious.
It was then time for bean art. It was a chinese culture. I did not know of such culture, I guess I should be more aware of my culture I believe. As time was limited, the instructor did a very brief introduction and told us how to produce the beautiful artwork. The instructor then said we had to think of a design to decorate on our paper plate. She said if one has no idea, one could use one of her templates, cut and paste. Given my independence, I told myself not to rely on her templates and think up of a design myself. The Mickey Mouse design on my pencil case was smiling at me as I stared at it thinking of a design, it then struck me that I could use it as my design. I took my pencil, drew the face of Mickey Mouse. I used my own glue and glued the beans and rice onto the paper plate. Within minutes, my artwork was done but it looked terrible. I did not blame myself for such awful artwork as I knew my art skills were not that magnificent. We were then dismissed from school and that marked the end of the event.
Till now, I still do not know the meaning of 'Mother Tongue Brew' although I can identify the purpose of the event; to raise awareness of cultures of other races among Riversidians. I feel that this event is meaningful as it brings people from different races together to experience cultures together.
When the event itself came, the Secondary 1 and 2 were all gathered outside Indoor Sports Hall, waiting to enter. Upon entering, we were then asked to sit according to our classes. We had a short briefing before we were dismissed back to our classrooms for our events. At that point of time, I was still doubtful of the purpose of this event.
My class and I returned to our classroom and were surprised to see that the instructor was already waiting for us. With a sense of urgency, everyone scrambled back to their seats hastily so as to not keep the instructor waiting. The instructor then briefed us on how to play Congkak, a traditional game. It was a 2-player game and my partner was Wai Weng. As we two had played that game on Club Penguin, just that the game was called Mancala, we proceeded without watching the demonstration. After a friendly match, I emerged victorious.
It was then time for bean art. It was a chinese culture. I did not know of such culture, I guess I should be more aware of my culture I believe. As time was limited, the instructor did a very brief introduction and told us how to produce the beautiful artwork. The instructor then said we had to think of a design to decorate on our paper plate. She said if one has no idea, one could use one of her templates, cut and paste. Given my independence, I told myself not to rely on her templates and think up of a design myself. The Mickey Mouse design on my pencil case was smiling at me as I stared at it thinking of a design, it then struck me that I could use it as my design. I took my pencil, drew the face of Mickey Mouse. I used my own glue and glued the beans and rice onto the paper plate. Within minutes, my artwork was done but it looked terrible. I did not blame myself for such awful artwork as I knew my art skills were not that magnificent. We were then dismissed from school and that marked the end of the event.
Till now, I still do not know the meaning of 'Mother Tongue Brew' although I can identify the purpose of the event; to raise awareness of cultures of other races among Riversidians. I feel that this event is meaningful as it brings people from different races together to experience cultures together.
Teachers' Day / Aces Day celebration
As the title suggests, 1st of September was Teachers' Day / Aces Day celebration. Riversidians, including me, were all assembled in the Parade Square. I was exhilarated as celebrations only occur occasionally in Riverside, so there was the need to appreciate the precious celebrations.
The day kicked off with the Aces Day component, where the RS Dance was utilized. It was a RS Dance competition; a competition between classes. We were to perform the RS Dance as naturally as we could, and the judges, amongst them was the principal, would decide the winner of each level. Nervousness was the only word that could describe my feelings. The competition started with the Graduating Classes starting first. Meanwhile, messages were passed down telling my classmates to perform the best of our abilities. Time flew past in a blink of an eye and soon, it was time for Secondary 1 to show our grace in dancing. I put in effort to dance as it has been a while since I did the RS Dance; some steps were still not vividly etched into my memory.
After the marvellous performance by the Riversidians, we headed to the Hall where the next component was waiting for us. It was prize presentation for the teachers, there were a few awards and the teachers were all very elated to walk up the stage and receive the prize. What stumped me was that my class and I did not know that we could participate in the voting. If we did, some of our favourite teachers would have had a higher chance of winning a prize.
Finally, after the side course, it was the dessert that was whipped up for us. It was the long-awaited moment ! I guessed you guessed it, it was the prize presentation for the winners of the RS Dance competition. When the emcees was about to announce the winners, the response was huge, with some people screaming, and alot of people doing drumrolls. Our team spirit paid off when we unexpectedly heard ''1/5!'' My class was totally taken aback as we did not expect to win. The class winners of other levels were announced shortly after declaring our class victorious. Our class then went back to class, distributed the prize - which was a medal, and everyone was then dismissed from school.
I feel that our class spirit has since bonded incredibly after this event, I wish there would be more of such meaningful events in the near future.
The day kicked off with the Aces Day component, where the RS Dance was utilized. It was a RS Dance competition; a competition between classes. We were to perform the RS Dance as naturally as we could, and the judges, amongst them was the principal, would decide the winner of each level. Nervousness was the only word that could describe my feelings. The competition started with the Graduating Classes starting first. Meanwhile, messages were passed down telling my classmates to perform the best of our abilities. Time flew past in a blink of an eye and soon, it was time for Secondary 1 to show our grace in dancing. I put in effort to dance as it has been a while since I did the RS Dance; some steps were still not vividly etched into my memory.
After the marvellous performance by the Riversidians, we headed to the Hall where the next component was waiting for us. It was prize presentation for the teachers, there were a few awards and the teachers were all very elated to walk up the stage and receive the prize. What stumped me was that my class and I did not know that we could participate in the voting. If we did, some of our favourite teachers would have had a higher chance of winning a prize.
Finally, after the side course, it was the dessert that was whipped up for us. It was the long-awaited moment ! I guessed you guessed it, it was the prize presentation for the winners of the RS Dance competition. When the emcees was about to announce the winners, the response was huge, with some people screaming, and alot of people doing drumrolls. Our team spirit paid off when we unexpectedly heard ''1/5!'' My class was totally taken aback as we did not expect to win. The class winners of other levels were announced shortly after declaring our class victorious. Our class then went back to class, distributed the prize - which was a medal, and everyone was then dismissed from school.
I feel that our class spirit has since bonded incredibly after this event, I wish there would be more of such meaningful events in the near future.
Monday, August 29, 2011
Camp FORGE
Nervousness was the only word to describe my feelings about the upcoming camp. The camp, Camp FORGE, was a one-day camp. My mates and I were briefed on what to bring and what not to, and the seniors emphasized that when we reach there, we must put on our best behavior- that is not to fool around.
The day soon arrived in a blink of an eye. Everyone reported punctually in the appropriate attire, which was a good thing as there would not be trouble. The seniors did an attire check on everyone before we departed for our destination. Excitement won the battle with Nervousness at that point of time.
Upon arrival, we were directed to the waiting room where we waited for the other groups to arrive. Strangely, my group was the only group from the Sea district, the other schools were from the Land district. The teacher-in-charge then explained to us that we missed the camp with the Sea district, because that time, we had Common Test.
Once all participants arrived, we were then divided into two groups, the Bravo group and the Alpha group. My group and I were in the Alpha group. After that, we placed our bags at a room and it was locked before we headed back to the assembly area where we took our pledge that Safety would be our first priority. They then proceeded to have a briefing with us. They said that if one felt giddy, or did not wish to do the stations, they could tell the facilitators there and they will be forfeited from that activity.
Alpha team's first station was the Flying Fox. They showed a demonstration of how the harness should be worn. To add some excitement into the activity, the facilitators added an extra section, that is when one is gliding down the rope, attempt to aim a ball into the bucket, they even mystified us by saying that if one successfully got the ball into the bucket, they would receive a prize, but they refused to reveal what the prize was. I was still my happy self until the moment I climbed the staircase up to the departure point. The staircase was no doubt scary, the steps were small and there was no support should we fall, so we had to be really careful. On the way up, the facilitators yelled at us to get up faster. I felt pressurized and meanwhile a tinge of anger along with some dissatisfaction. I admit I am afraid of heights, but can't the facilitators be more kind and allow us to climb up at our own pace? Soon, I got to the departure area. I could feel my heart beating faster and faster as the facilitators told us to sit closer to the edge. I held my harness and just closed my eyes. What was funny was that the facilitator said 'Good bye' and kicked me gently, but amazingly, I was still sitting there stiffly. He told me to lean forward. I leant forward unwillingly and this time, his kick was harder and it did send me down, the first few seconds, I could not feel my legs, thoughts of death did pass through my mind but they were banished when I opened my eyes and see that I was still alive and kicking. Then I realised the bucket was ahead of me by a bit, I immediately threw the ball but missed. Well, now I see the difficulty of the bucket, if only the bucket was placed abit further from the departing area, the facilitators would have to provide more prizes. I went back to the assembly area and watched as more people take on the activity. I saw some people forfeiting from the activity, maybe they were afraid of heights more than I was, but I could guarantee that the experience up there was worth it. I personally think the facilitators should revamp the bonus section into one that involves teamwork, as that was what all camps' motives were. Perhaps they could have implemented a point-accumulative Bulls-eye system, where the team with the most score wins something.
Rock Climbing was the next activity the Alpha team was assigned to. I did this section once when I was Primary 5, that time I did not know how and why I fell, so I was more determined to try to climb higher. When it was my turn, I realised the difficulty was increased, with the bits of coloured rocks further from each other. The instructor instructing me to scale up the Rock Wall advised me strategically, I really appreciated that. He also told me that I was using too much of my arm strength instead of the strength of my legs. The problem with me was that I could not channel the strength of my legs, so I scaled the Rock Wall with my arm strength. I did scale up higher than what the previous try when I was Primary 5. The strength of my arms were soon worn out that I could not continue on and so I had to disengage from the wall.
It was then lunchtime and the Alpha team had their lunch first. The food choice was very limited. Some of the add-on food were spicy, decreasing the choice of add-on food for people who do not like to eat spicy food, which included me. I was the last to take the food in the Alpha team and was the first to wolf down the food. I wanted a second round of serving, but it would be weird if I was to take just plain rice, so I decided to be contented with the fact that the provided food for us and not to take more rice to save those awkwardness should someone questions me why I was only eating plain rice.
The Alpha team then proceeded to the Paintball Shooting, It was saddening when we were told that the government enforced a rule that says that only people ages 14 and above can play against each other. Since we were only 13, we could only shoot bottles. We were provided 30 Paint-balls each and were to target the bottles that were standing on the support. I did try to aim, but the facilitators there told us to fire the shots quickly, although I did not understand why we should be quick since the command given was 'Own Time Own Target', meaning that we hit our own targets while taking our own time. Nonetheless, I promptly shot my remaining shots and I managed to hit a bottle down. I was not really satisfied with my performance. Out of 30 shots, only 1 was accurate- disappointing to me. Personally I felt that this activity should not be in the schedule for Secondary 1 cadets, since it was boring. Perhaps they could come up with another exciting activity to override this activity.
The last activity for the day for Alpha team to engage in was the Archery. Well, when we reached there, the Bravo team was in the midst of getting started. So the Alpha team was to wait at one corner. We chit-chatted with students of different schools to get to know each other. When it was time for the Alpha team to take on the activity, we were all very enthusiastic. When it was my turn, I could do all the steps correctly, but the thing was that I could not aim properly. Amazingly after I shot all the arrows that was provided, all the arrows I shot was on the board, well one of them was on someone else's board. So I did not have to go and collect my arrows, since the facilitators there said that they would take the arrows on the board while the ''archers'' would have to take those that landed on the floor and I had all the arrows shot on the board. We were then gathered, once everyone was present, we were then dismissed school by school.
I was utterly disappointed when I found out that the main organizer of this camp did not issue papers for us to write our reflection. This meant no suggestions would be received. I felt guilty for not writing a reflection as I did not contribute to next year Secondary 1's Camp FORGE. No suggestions meant that the organizers will think that the event was fun enough to keep the participants fully engaged, as it ran quite smoothly and that next year will have almost the same events in the same order. Nonetheless, this camp benefited me alot as I was able to conquer my fear of height and also given the chance to try to strive for better results than previous. In conclusion, this camp was a meaningful event but there are rooms for improvement.
The day soon arrived in a blink of an eye. Everyone reported punctually in the appropriate attire, which was a good thing as there would not be trouble. The seniors did an attire check on everyone before we departed for our destination. Excitement won the battle with Nervousness at that point of time.
Upon arrival, we were directed to the waiting room where we waited for the other groups to arrive. Strangely, my group was the only group from the Sea district, the other schools were from the Land district. The teacher-in-charge then explained to us that we missed the camp with the Sea district, because that time, we had Common Test.
Once all participants arrived, we were then divided into two groups, the Bravo group and the Alpha group. My group and I were in the Alpha group. After that, we placed our bags at a room and it was locked before we headed back to the assembly area where we took our pledge that Safety would be our first priority. They then proceeded to have a briefing with us. They said that if one felt giddy, or did not wish to do the stations, they could tell the facilitators there and they will be forfeited from that activity.
Alpha team's first station was the Flying Fox. They showed a demonstration of how the harness should be worn. To add some excitement into the activity, the facilitators added an extra section, that is when one is gliding down the rope, attempt to aim a ball into the bucket, they even mystified us by saying that if one successfully got the ball into the bucket, they would receive a prize, but they refused to reveal what the prize was. I was still my happy self until the moment I climbed the staircase up to the departure point. The staircase was no doubt scary, the steps were small and there was no support should we fall, so we had to be really careful. On the way up, the facilitators yelled at us to get up faster. I felt pressurized and meanwhile a tinge of anger along with some dissatisfaction. I admit I am afraid of heights, but can't the facilitators be more kind and allow us to climb up at our own pace? Soon, I got to the departure area. I could feel my heart beating faster and faster as the facilitators told us to sit closer to the edge. I held my harness and just closed my eyes. What was funny was that the facilitator said 'Good bye' and kicked me gently, but amazingly, I was still sitting there stiffly. He told me to lean forward. I leant forward unwillingly and this time, his kick was harder and it did send me down, the first few seconds, I could not feel my legs, thoughts of death did pass through my mind but they were banished when I opened my eyes and see that I was still alive and kicking. Then I realised the bucket was ahead of me by a bit, I immediately threw the ball but missed. Well, now I see the difficulty of the bucket, if only the bucket was placed abit further from the departing area, the facilitators would have to provide more prizes. I went back to the assembly area and watched as more people take on the activity. I saw some people forfeiting from the activity, maybe they were afraid of heights more than I was, but I could guarantee that the experience up there was worth it. I personally think the facilitators should revamp the bonus section into one that involves teamwork, as that was what all camps' motives were. Perhaps they could have implemented a point-accumulative Bulls-eye system, where the team with the most score wins something.
Rock Climbing was the next activity the Alpha team was assigned to. I did this section once when I was Primary 5, that time I did not know how and why I fell, so I was more determined to try to climb higher. When it was my turn, I realised the difficulty was increased, with the bits of coloured rocks further from each other. The instructor instructing me to scale up the Rock Wall advised me strategically, I really appreciated that. He also told me that I was using too much of my arm strength instead of the strength of my legs. The problem with me was that I could not channel the strength of my legs, so I scaled the Rock Wall with my arm strength. I did scale up higher than what the previous try when I was Primary 5. The strength of my arms were soon worn out that I could not continue on and so I had to disengage from the wall.
It was then lunchtime and the Alpha team had their lunch first. The food choice was very limited. Some of the add-on food were spicy, decreasing the choice of add-on food for people who do not like to eat spicy food, which included me. I was the last to take the food in the Alpha team and was the first to wolf down the food. I wanted a second round of serving, but it would be weird if I was to take just plain rice, so I decided to be contented with the fact that the provided food for us and not to take more rice to save those awkwardness should someone questions me why I was only eating plain rice.
The Alpha team then proceeded to the Paintball Shooting, It was saddening when we were told that the government enforced a rule that says that only people ages 14 and above can play against each other. Since we were only 13, we could only shoot bottles. We were provided 30 Paint-balls each and were to target the bottles that were standing on the support. I did try to aim, but the facilitators there told us to fire the shots quickly, although I did not understand why we should be quick since the command given was 'Own Time Own Target', meaning that we hit our own targets while taking our own time. Nonetheless, I promptly shot my remaining shots and I managed to hit a bottle down. I was not really satisfied with my performance. Out of 30 shots, only 1 was accurate- disappointing to me. Personally I felt that this activity should not be in the schedule for Secondary 1 cadets, since it was boring. Perhaps they could come up with another exciting activity to override this activity.
The last activity for the day for Alpha team to engage in was the Archery. Well, when we reached there, the Bravo team was in the midst of getting started. So the Alpha team was to wait at one corner. We chit-chatted with students of different schools to get to know each other. When it was time for the Alpha team to take on the activity, we were all very enthusiastic. When it was my turn, I could do all the steps correctly, but the thing was that I could not aim properly. Amazingly after I shot all the arrows that was provided, all the arrows I shot was on the board, well one of them was on someone else's board. So I did not have to go and collect my arrows, since the facilitators there said that they would take the arrows on the board while the ''archers'' would have to take those that landed on the floor and I had all the arrows shot on the board. We were then gathered, once everyone was present, we were then dismissed school by school.
I was utterly disappointed when I found out that the main organizer of this camp did not issue papers for us to write our reflection. This meant no suggestions would be received. I felt guilty for not writing a reflection as I did not contribute to next year Secondary 1's Camp FORGE. No suggestions meant that the organizers will think that the event was fun enough to keep the participants fully engaged, as it ran quite smoothly and that next year will have almost the same events in the same order. Nonetheless, this camp benefited me alot as I was able to conquer my fear of height and also given the chance to try to strive for better results than previous. In conclusion, this camp was a meaningful event but there are rooms for improvement.
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Happy yet not so
At first, when my mother agreed to buy me a new monitor, I was jumping for joy...
It all began when my 5-year old monitor began to blank itself out after I switched on my computer for awhile. I tried restarting the monitor by pressing the monitor switch button twice - first to switch off and second to switch on, everything was well for a few seconds before it turned blank again. I tried blowing the monitor, thinking it was because my monitor was overheated. I even tried wiping the plugs connecting to the monitor, thinking it was because the contact was ''sabotaged'' by the dust.
Soon, violence got into me, I slammed the back of the monitor, well, in most cases, my slamming always fixed technical problems, but not for this case though. After a while, I switched on my computer, it miraculously worked! But it did not last long. The second time I switched on my computer, the same thing happened. It continued like an endless cycle but soon it was put to a stop when my parents noticed the problem and had the intention of rectifying the problem. The solution? Well, of course that was to buy a new monitor for me, with one, all problems will be solved and there would be no more of me slamming the monitor; that was simply great.
So, my monitor was replaced. It was no doubt a joyous thing for me. Then, I realized it was the monitor was wider than my previous, much wider. You might be thinking, isn't a wider screen better? Well, frankly speaking, I prefer smaller screens as that would mean smaller resolutions, bigger pictures, but pixels are less focused. Although it is possible to change the resolution, to cover the whole screen, the pictures formed by the pixels will be stretched, making it less focused- looks ugly.
Therefore, the new gift I had, did not really appeased me. Looking at the bright side, at least I do not have to continue slamming my monitor, blowing my monitor as if I am someone with mental illness blowing a monitor, and also do not have to go the tedious alternative of switching off my computer to wipe the plugs connecting to my monitor. In conclusion, I feel that the advantages of having a new monitor overshadow the disadvantages. I guess optimism is really powerful, if not for it, I would have been drowned in grumpiness by the human conqueror, Greed. Besides I am also contented that my parents had decided to do something about the problem with the monitor. Finally, I like to thank my parents for purchasing a new product for me - I hereby express my gratitude. Thank you!
It all began when my 5-year old monitor began to blank itself out after I switched on my computer for awhile. I tried restarting the monitor by pressing the monitor switch button twice - first to switch off and second to switch on, everything was well for a few seconds before it turned blank again. I tried blowing the monitor, thinking it was because my monitor was overheated. I even tried wiping the plugs connecting to the monitor, thinking it was because the contact was ''sabotaged'' by the dust.
Soon, violence got into me, I slammed the back of the monitor, well, in most cases, my slamming always fixed technical problems, but not for this case though. After a while, I switched on my computer, it miraculously worked! But it did not last long. The second time I switched on my computer, the same thing happened. It continued like an endless cycle but soon it was put to a stop when my parents noticed the problem and had the intention of rectifying the problem. The solution? Well, of course that was to buy a new monitor for me, with one, all problems will be solved and there would be no more of me slamming the monitor; that was simply great.
So, my monitor was replaced. It was no doubt a joyous thing for me. Then, I realized it was the monitor was wider than my previous, much wider. You might be thinking, isn't a wider screen better? Well, frankly speaking, I prefer smaller screens as that would mean smaller resolutions, bigger pictures, but pixels are less focused. Although it is possible to change the resolution, to cover the whole screen, the pictures formed by the pixels will be stretched, making it less focused- looks ugly.
Therefore, the new gift I had, did not really appeased me. Looking at the bright side, at least I do not have to continue slamming my monitor, blowing my monitor as if I am someone with mental illness blowing a monitor, and also do not have to go the tedious alternative of switching off my computer to wipe the plugs connecting to my monitor. In conclusion, I feel that the advantages of having a new monitor overshadow the disadvantages. I guess optimism is really powerful, if not for it, I would have been drowned in grumpiness by the human conqueror, Greed. Besides I am also contented that my parents had decided to do something about the problem with the monitor. Finally, I like to thank my parents for purchasing a new product for me - I hereby express my gratitude. Thank you!
Friday, August 12, 2011
Individual Marksmanship Training
It was an exciting but tiring day yesterday. At 1145h yesterday, the National Cadet Corps cadets, who included me, were dismissed from their classes. I rushed to the male toilet to change into my uniform and then reported to the Parade Square
The venue was at Nee Soon Camp and the bus got us there in no time. We were directed to the briefing room for briefing on how to handle the SAR21 rifle, and also the steps to take after each command is given. I had many doubts before the briefing but all were clarified after the end of the briefing.
After the briefing, it was time to take the test! I was pretty nervous because of the fact that I had never used a military weapon before. We had to lie down on the platform and aim. The rifle did not use real bullets, but lasers to detect where the shots were made. At first, I did not believe that the rifle was using lasers as I could not see the lasers when I shot, but later it struck me that due to the frequency of the lasers, it could not be seen.
The first four shots were to test out the rifle. I had some trouble with the rifle at first but fortunately there were friendly staff around to help me fix the problem. After the four shots, it was the most anticipated moment-the moment that would decide our grades; Fail, Pass or Marksman.
To get Marksman, one will need to get 2 out of 3 groupings. To pass, one will need 1 out of 3 groupings. Each grouping consists of 4 shots; the system will draw a circle around all 4 shots and take the diameter. A successful grouping will be one whose diameter is 24cm or below. For Fig.12, one needs 6 out of 8 shots on the figure for Marksmanship and 4 out of 8 for a pass.
As I was nervous, I did not aim properly for the first grouping, but luckily I managed to pull myself together and succeeded to get my shots as close as I could, having a diameter of 16.8cm. When I saw my results, I was jumping for joy as I did not have any confidence that I would pass, but amazingly, I did. Then for Fig.12, I got a pass yet again, the happiness I had could not be described with words. Although I could not get Marksman, I was still contented with myself for obtaining a pass.
After everyone had finished their test, we were then dismissed by the staff there. We took the bus back to school and were then dismissed home from there. I had enjoyed myself a lot during IMT, it was a fruitful experience. I wish there will be more of such activities for me to engage in, as I can get exposed to more activities.
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