NUSS Bridge

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" Our greatest glory is not never falling, but in rising everytime we fall " Confucius

Ah... I had to use that quote to put xl out of the misery... He kept the quote there for more than 2 weeks already..:) So here I am blogging on an event that happened 3 weeks ago:X lol, here goes, the day b4 NUSS, the friday 3 weeks ago was my recovery day from class chalet. So, met xl at Buona Vista MRT to find our way to NUSS. Got jacked by the bus directory, got off the stop that says Kent Ridge Hall but was in the end miles away from our destination. After some navigating, finally found the Kent Ridge Guild Hall.

Hmm...RJC sent the most teams there, a total of 6, while most schools sent only 1 or 2, cept for HC who sent 4 i think. So the tournament started and by the first match against HC team D, had to call director 2wice due to a lack of cards. lol, did quite well for that match, 25-3 was it, couldn't remember. Well...as the tournament proceeds, it became quite apparent that the teams playing in the 2 groups are of differnt calibre. lolz...and we are stuck in the group with all the strong teams and only 2 from each group can proceed to the finals. gosh... in the end, we were ousted by our very own clubmates, RJC team B, i think. Yeah....so I left the place at 11.30pm trying to find my way back to the east. Found out that I missed the last bus and thus took taxi home. A whooping 20 bucks flew out of the window. lol.

The next day, we had to go back to the same place to play in the consolation cup. We were doing quite well at first, overrunning most of the teams in the way and staying at the top of the table throughout the tournament till we played HC team A again in the 2nd last match. Me and xl were sitting out already by then coz we played the first 2 matches. We lost quite badly to HC and that caused us the top-table position. THe J2s our teammates, put up a good show against HC team C in the last match to make up for the error, scoring the 1 and only 25-0 victory in the whole tournament. However, it was still not enough as HC team A went to score another victory in their last match to take the consolation cup. Nevertheless, *looks above at the quote.

On the other hand, 2 RJ teams and 2 CJ teams made it into the finals. The RJ teams ended up 3rd and 4th, but the fight for 2nd was close, RJ team B could have almost snatched 2nd position from one of the CJ teams. But well, it was an overall good showing for RJ at the NUSS, coz we were regarded as "runners-up" from behind b4 this year tournament. lol, we will be back next year, our aim thenn would be the champion.

As a final note, have to say a big thank you to my partner xl who came up with out partnership agreement. It wasn't easy, i tell u, "rojak singapore-style precision" ain't exactly water-tight, but yes, it improved our bidding a lot. Also, would like to highlight the amazing journey we took from contract bridge noobs, to a established pair in the club(and perhaps SCBA) in 6 months. Still remember smoking through the selection test with bong providing answers, mastering SAYC from the book photcopied from bong, being trashed at the first outing to SCBA, switching to precision 1 1/2 months b4 NUSS and the self-sustained outings to SCBA... Amazing expereince... Wonderful as well... So thank you partner(typ) :)"

I'm glad i took up bridge....


"There is suffering in life, and there are defeats. No one can avoid them. But it's better to lose some of the battles in the struggle for your dreams than to be defeated without ever even knowing what you're fighting for."

quoted from Xunqi's blog...wonder if he remembers


"It's easier to forgive someone for being wrong than being right."

famous quote from Harry Potter- Order of Phoenix i think


"I just wanted to stay with you
I just wanted to feel your breath of grace
I didn't know what to do
I couldn't say anything
When consciousness returned
Everything had been washed away
by the tide of time, even you

But the scars of memory never fade away
I can't stop loving you
Stop my tears
Stop my loving
Kill my memories"
[Silent Jealousy, X-Japan]

X-Japan!!!!!

Fireworks festival

"woot..fireworks festival....yan1 huo3 de4 ji4 jie2... though i have some inherent bias against the singers of the song. haha, but i'll still support good music and this song just happen to not be classifed under noise. So, self-explanatory, went to watch fireworks at esplanade bridge yest, taking note that it was near midnight.

Fireworks are short-lived, yet beautiful. They live, for the purpose that in that few seconds where they are the brightest in the sky, they capture the attention of 20 000 ppl with their dazzling and spectacular display. Afterwhich, they fade into eternal oblivion, never to be seen again. To freeze time at the point where the fireworks are the most beautiful would be nice, but then it wouldn't be beautiful anymore, would it?"

Watching fireworks at midnight has got a romantic feel to it, but too bad u can't feel too romantic watching it with at least a thousand other ppl...


"I miss the singing of song "home" in RI. Though it may be a bit cliched, but still, there is this heart-warming feeling when hundred others sing along with u."

National Day...


童话

童话就是我们遗失的美好...

Fairytales are forever, they never end.....
In everyone's heart, there is always a fairytale. Fairytales act as motivation for us, they provide the driving force for us to press on even when the odds are stacked against us.


我愿变成童话里，
你爱的那个天使，
张开双手变成翅膀守护你。

They make us do crazy things, irrationale things.... but the ultimate truth is without them, we would break down. Fairytales, as its name suggest, would perhaps never be a reality, but that does not stop us from believing in them, working towards them.

是不是我又做错了什么，
你哭着对我说，
童话里都是骗人的，
我不可能是你的王子...

The real world is a far cry from fairytales. More often than not, things turn out the way you do not want them to be. However, what is important would be the strength of your belief, would you hold on to ur fairytale？...


但我相信你给我的誓言，
就像一定会来的春天。
我始终带着你爱的微笑，
一路上寻找我遗失的美好...

For me, I'll hold on to my fairytale at all costs. However, by doing so, there is always a danger- that you may miss out on a fairytale while waiting for the other to happen.

明知道让你离开他的世界不可能会，
我还傻傻等待奇迹出现的那一天

虽然心中的童话已被残酷的事实破灭，但它还是完好无损地保留在我心灵中。

我还是希望，期待，等待着
童话的出现..."


"我从来不会想说，
那种..
如果时光可以倒流的这种话。
因为....
时光如果真的可以倒流，
这一切就不会那么的珍贵....

Mayday just has this ability to cheer you up no matter wat situation you are in. Perhaps its the non-chalance or rather the way their music express their belief that there is good in the world and nothing else matters more than that.

你知道吗，有些事只要你不要太在意，它就真的没那么了不起...
昨天太近，明天太远，现在我了解.... 在等..未来会发生什么事.... 知足后.....就会常乐..."

Quotes from Mayday...


"在游戏还没开始前
翻看了游戏规则
上面写着“你若参加，就必输”
明知如此
却相信自己有超人的力量
改变游戏规则
最终让自己得到胜利...

这..是愚蠢？...还是坚持？

人是自私的
要说“他比我幸福”很容易
要说“我比他幸福”却很难
情侣口中的“我爱你”已成了
“我要你给我幸福”

在玩游戏的当中，
赫然发现自己不是超人
但却不肯接受事实的残酷
还在游戏中徘徊

或许有一天会发现
要赢这游戏
唯一的方法就是知足而放弃
把“我爱你”变成了
“我要你比我更幸福”

可惜的是
人始终是人
而人最大的错
就是不懂得知足...."

A chinese post....obviously worth mentioning... inspired by mayday...


"Within a nightmare and yet relishing every moment of it..... coz the apparent truth- that it is just a figment of imagination is somehow harder to bear...."

This time, the words found me....


"boxjoeofxkvmnz fyseieaavalderry shldsnkdsfn"

The cryptic message.... it nothing much btw... if i told u, u probably go, "wat, tht's it?"


"It all boils down to the split second....

The icy gaze struck like a spear. Loathing. Contempt. Then it was all over... A lost cause....yet deemed worthy enough to fight for...

The warrior stood alone on the battlefield, his sword drawn and ready. With a yell, he charged towards the unknown enemy. Jumping into the air, he swung his sword with full force, making contact with the flesh of the enemy. At the same time, a searing pain registered across his chest but with the icy gaze bearing down, he completed the follow through motion of the sword before he finally realised that it was too late-
the enemy was within him....it was a lost cause....

The icy gaze struck like a spear. Loathing. Contempt. But wait.... was there a glint of a teardrop?.... "

A stash of inspiration...


Zoo

"To a child, the zoo is a living fantasy, as well as a walking nightmare. Just as how a sheep's bleat may shrill and delight him, the lion's roar strikes fear deep in his heart. Even in the safety of the viewing gallery, separated from the animals by a glass wall, he stands in awe.... of the wonderous works of nature.

As the child grows into a teenager, his knowledge increases exponentially and he starts to rationalise. When he visits the zoo again, the animals are no longer masterpieces of nature, but reduced to beasts in captivity providing entertainment for the paying consumer. Though he may have retained the curiousity of childhood, he has lost the respect for nature, or rather, the innocence that made things so simple...."

An innocent trip, yet with sophiscated complications...


CIP

"heh....there's CIP todae...yes on a Sunday... therefore i was at bishan at 9 in the morn to eat breakfast at Yakun with vin... after breakfast, we adjourned to the zj's fan club meeting (J8 macs) b4 heading to sch (obviously at tht time coz zj had the CO room key)... Grabbed our instruments and we took the chartered bus down to CC High(Main).. Yeah..the CIP was this mass gathering of 1000+ old folks, 33 homes, for a series of performances and then dinner... Our perfomance item was only 15mins, i think lesser and we were supposed to spend the rest of our time as "free labour" for the organisers. But it was quite fun lar... my first job was to hold scotchtape while vin uses a scissor to cut it 0_0... we were wondering how much would we be paid if we were not "free labour".... hehe.. just realised tht the direct chinese translation of 义工 is "voluntary worker" which is rather ironic.... But once the old folks came, it was much better lar...as in we had proper jobs to do then.....oh did i mention.... they were so concerned for the helpers tht they served us a high-carbo lunch tht is both vegetarian and halal (make further inferences at own risk) arh...my entry is getting disorganised... shall talk bout the sch now... It's huge... yes.. this coming from a RJ guy probably gives u an idea how big the sch is... and it's located out of nowhere....we were like in the bus then suddenly we arrived....with no warning nor signs... My first impression of the main gate= Tiananmen.... The hall is huge.. but no air-con so all of us were cooked together with the 1000 old folks.... The canteen does not look like a canteen until u enter the buildng and there's no toilet... k, our performance was rather sucky coz we had very ppl and the sound was bad... i think being cooked and cooped backstage 1 hr b4 our performance added to the effect... After the performance, it was time for the old folk's dinner and when we saw the food, it was like "omg, why didn't u serve this for lunch?" but well...we could only stare at them eat... After dinner, they all went back in their buses and i thanked the group leader, Johnny i think... nice guy..though a little odd coz it seems tht we had more CIP experience than him.. he was like saying this was the first time he took part in this kind of activity.. After tht, we packed up and left too... CIP is always fun....though u spend most of ur time slacking around... but it's a great bonding activity:)"

First CO CIP project...


"The most touching scene, i think is the one where the girl played a piano solo for the guy in front of the whole LT... The song she played was Canon in D, a variation of it, a cliched and overplayed song, even its variations...

It's nice when someone plays a piece of music just for you, one of the more sincere gifts i would say... becoz it's personal, though the notes may be the same, each and every person plays it differently, and when someone plays something for you, every note tht he/she plays belongs to you... listen to the piano in the background, dun u just wish tht someone would play tht for u? When words fail you, let music do the taking"

Windstruck-ed by My Sassy Girl


2B chalet

"okae...this was like 1 week ago but well... around 10 ppl there for the first night... nothing much on coz bbq was on the 2nd night... winning eleven, soul calibre 3 and even katamari on the PS2, daidee, shawn's ipod and zongjin prectising erhu "early in the morning", macs at 3 am basically sums up the first night. Slept for only 2 hours i think... oh yeah.. there was vodka too ( 40% alcohol) causes a burning sensation from the throat all the way to the stomach... disclaimer: sip...do not gulp (like vin did...lol)
2nd day was my birthday...ahhh and there was CO... so left pasir ris at bout 9.30 to go to bishan... lolz... lunch with xianyue ppl... kwan expounded a lengthy expository on toilets in Japan over the meal table which only helps to reaffirm our faith that the "cleansing" in Japan did her more harm than good...lol... Prac was as usual, nothing out of the ordinary.... After prac, took bus 58 back home while vin and zj went on to the chalet bbq first... Miraculously, i reached the chalet bout the same time as the both of them and by the time we're there, the bbq was about all over with snl trying to finish bbq the little food left... luckily for us, there was quite an amount of cooked but not eaten food which includes the usual sausages and stingrays... in the end, we couldn't finish the food but while we were eating, there was "free show" adjacent to us... according to snl , the ppl on the other side had tried bbq-ing with an aluminium tray... Nothing wrong till they put newspaper beneath to prevent the surface from being burnt... wah...science experiments followed obviously... First lesson: aluminium is a metal...conducts heat readily.... Put paper under an aluminium tray filled with burning charcoal, chances are, the paper will burn even without a spark.... lol..then they wise up and rented a portable bbq ppt, put the burning charcoals in and started fanning like mad- "to create smoke signals" as quoted from snl once again.... Lesson Two: An object with high CG is unstable and topples very easiy...so u knoe wat happen.... tht guy fanned until the whole bbq pit toppled over and the charcoals spilled onto the floor... By the time they got their stuff rite...it was already 9+ when we finished the bbq and apparently, we started the fire 1/2 later than them....
After the bbq, stayed in for the usual games.... through the night, snl was obsessed with a particular soul calibre 3 character and by morning thhe whole chalet agreed tht soul calibre 3 should be given a higher rating, R-21 at least....:X, for disturbing audio features.... hehe, for the second nite i didn't sleep and i woke ppl up for sunrise... wah.. it was already first light when we left the chalet lar...so we pia-ed all the way to the end of the park to watch the sunrise.... view was obstructed slightly by trees and cloud but like i said earlier, nature can only be beautiful...
Does who u watch the sunset with matter? So far, been watching sunrises with guys only...sadly? lol, 但每一次都有它自己独特的感动... I guess it has to do with wat u expect from watching a sunrise... For me, almost everything pales in comparison with the ability to stand and marvel at nature, so everytime i take a step back to look at nature, i feel strangely relaxed and happy in a way... I think its kind of sad when ppl see rainbows and yet remain emotionally aloof... To me..thts like dying in a way....
hmm....the rest are pretty mudane... packed up, go home and then sleep....

2 days later, i was at yet another chalet, this time a family one.... hey... i'm an uncle now... My niece is so cute.... a few months old only i think.... Babies are amazing, i spent like 5-6 hours watching her race across the living room ( chalet was at Aranda) in her walker, numerous ppl trying to babytalk and play with her(myself too) and bear witness to her unpredictable mood swings... ha... if ever one day u forget wat innocence look like, go look in the baby's eyes..."


CO bbq

"Was supposed to be at bedok at 11am to buy stuff for the bbq but i woke up at 10.15.... so was a little late.... but in the end, the chair and vice-chair were the latest lar. Went to Giant supermarket to shop for bbq stuff, then we took 196 to east coast park.

East Coast Park is quite a nice place lar, just that the large number of ships anchored spoilt the view of sea. Played soccer and frisbee there b4 going cycling with vin. ECP is really big. Rented the bike for 2 hours and just barely managed to cover the whole park. There was this Bedok Jetty tht was damn cool.. When u walk/cycle through it, it feels as though u are walking into the sea, then at the end, u can see where the tall buildings in the city as well as the sea stretching all the way to the horizon...

After cycling, thts bout 6pm... went back to the pit to check on their progress. Turns out that they were trying to light fire starters and spent almost 1 box of matchsticks doing so but to no avail. lol, the fire was supposed to be started at 5.30 lor. haiz... the trouble of having a bbq without a scout. After the fire was started, zj, vin and i walked to 7-11 to get butter, ice and grill. zj was commenting on the way back, something like "perfect weather for the bbq.......if it doesn't rain." lol,u can guess wat happened... first it started raining on the far side... it was quite a view, from the beach, u can see the half of the sky filled with dark clouds while the other half was clear and the sea, the half tht was under the dark clouds turned a ominous green while the other half remained blue. The rain looked like mist from afar and shrouded the ships, giving it a mysterious aura. Luckily for us, the rain got closer and closer, seen from the exponientially decreasing visibility, but stopped b4 reaching us. When we thought the worst was over, we turned around to find dark clouds gathering from inland. As it was night, the sky glowed red. When it started raining we got our umbrellas out to shelter the fire and the food, some of us did tht at the expenses of getting drenched oureselves, it quite a sight. The rain did stop in the end and we were able to carry on with our bbq thankfully...

The beach at night was a glorious sight, though a tad too artificial for me. The ships anchored at sea had lamps that looked like ornaments in the night sky. The waves pounded relentlessly on the shores and the occasional lightning lighted up the entire place so tht u can even see the ships and outine of the shore at afar. And most importantly, it was peaceful- no sounds of cars... only nature's voice in the background...

The bbq ended at about 10pm with like 50+ chicken wings, 1 sack of potatoes, a few corns left... lol, the "chicken wing menace" again.... Poor kwan brought 80 of them and had to bring 50 odd of them back... The rest of the stuff, disposable utensils and all were split among ourselves to bring home. Hitched a ride from Xunqi's dad to Kembagan. While waiting for his dad to come, Xunqi was reminiscing his time in RJCO and the need to let go now b4 he goes for NS... It hit me then tht 1 year later, i would most likely be facing the same thing... Would there be nostalgia? Would there be regrets? i can only wonder...."

tht sums it up nicely..... bg is playing spirited away soundtrack- Reprise...