Journey 2007

Journey 07 ended yesterday night at NAFA Theatre. This year we didn't have much time for rehearsals. That explains why my bowings were messy as well as I can't manage a few parts of the repertoire. SIGH. Never felt this helpless before. I even felt like pulling out at the last minute.

Rehearsals were screwed up. But luckily, we managed to pull through the concert. Barber in Seville was never-ever so nicely played. I was like "WOW" after the struck of the last chord.

Harold in Italy was ok. Not as bad as I thought it would. Tchaikovsky's String Serenade was ok. Managed to do Waltz properly. Sun Ke's Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto was good!!

There were alumni who came to watch. Some unexpected faces, and some older alumni were back. It's heart-warming to see alumni giving us their support! Yiting gave me a blue flower!! I LOVE BLUE FLOWERS!! THANK YOU YITING!

After the packing up, we sat at Mr Bean's. The usual thing we always do after concerts. The food is quite nice! HEHE. Left the place at about 115am. Was really very tired. Burnt-out over the whole week's daily rehearsals. My left shoulder and arm is very very tired! Have to put YOKO YOKO. And got a red mark on my shoulder. PAINFUL!

Some photos:

Andeline and I

Me, Gerard, Yiting

Violin I Section

Full Orchestra with Dr Yeo in Viola Solo

Full Orchestra Group Photo

NOW IT'S BACK TO WORK!

BOO HOO

The website I pay to download music is now closed!!! AND I HAVE CREDITS WITH THEM!!!! NOW I CAN'T GET MY MONEY BACK!!!

And I only realised it today!!! IT WAS CLOSED DOWN 3 MONTHS AGO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOBSSSSSSSSSSSS

Flowers for Jiehui on her Birthday

Changes

Hiiiii, it has beeeeeeen so long since I blogged. Ever since school started, I have been kept super busy. Cannot really take it anymore. Everyday go home at 6pm, and I was locked in the staff room last Friday!!! Just feel like crying inside!!

Anyway, so many changes took place in school. Feel like crying!! Now need to draw markers and only got one ream of white plain paper for the whole semester. Why must we be restricted to all these when they are a necessity??? I just don't understand the management. They always decide things without consulting us. And stick a piece of dumb white paper on the wall above the photocopy machine one early morning to "inform" us of the change. I mean, can't they just inform IN ADVANCE during the torturous weekly staff meeting?!?!?!?! ARRRRGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! And now, they want to rearrange the tables in the staff room. I think I'm going to get affected. Anyway, maybe one day when I reached school, I won't find my things there. BECAUSE they will take action before informing.

Was so stressed up over the second observation. In the end, Number 2 wasn't free to come in. So only RO came in. Damn damn stressed. Cos' it's my second chance to prove myself. Luckily, the review was good. I hope Number 2 won't have time to come in in Term 4 and RO can submit this observation for evaluation.

MH is coming home this Friday!! YEAH! Don't know to feel happy or sad. Happy because there will be someone to enjoy food with me. Sad because the house will be noisy and the toilet will smell and more plates to wash. BOO HOO.

Went house hunting for the past few weeks. Most probably the en bloc will be successful. So tiring to go house after house man!! Cos our criteria is so high. Mum wants a good and big kitchen, MK wants a room by himself which means the house must have four bedrooms, rooms must be big enough to put study tables, wardrobes and beds, and for me, another piano. Then the house cannot face east or west, must be accessible, and most importantly must give a good home feeling. SO you say la, how difficult it is?!!??! Then there were a few choices to select from. Eventually, we got the last house we saw. Haha. 145 sq m. Expensive, cos' property prices are so damn high now. Now still undergoing paper work. It'll be done maybe in Nov. Then we'll renovate the house, and move in hopefully by June 08. Hehe. When MH comes back, we can show him the house.

1st Blood Test

There was a free blood test for all staff today. With MUCH effort making time out of my heavy timetable today, 200 cc of my blood was taken out from my left hand. I even signed for extra tests to be done on my blood. Total cost was $188. ZZZZZZ heart pain.

The needle didn't make much pain at all! I was so surprised by the gentleness of the nurse. But my blood flowed so slowly, I sat there for more than 5 min to get 200 cc of blood out. And my left hand was numb throughout cos' the nurse did not loosen the constriction band on my arm.

HMMMM..... even more thoughts has to be put in if I want to donate my blood. My brother always asks me to donate blood, but I fear that HUGE needle. Now with my blood flowing so SLOWLY, how much time will I need to fill that bag of blood?!?! Oh man, I think my whole body will go numbbbbbbbbbbbb.

Back from Beijing

Oh I'm back! The trip was overall - FUN. Of course, there were many times when I was pissed off by my students. The food was not bad, despite most of the meals were vegetable-based. The best of all is I managed to eat my MA LA NIU WA and SHUI ZHU YU.

The hotel stays were memorable - all alone by myself! HEHE. Then some teachers and I went drinking beer and eat meat-sticks and talked. It was a really enjoyable time together. The tour guides were also nice. I managed to have some good chat sessions with them.

Didn't buy much there. Only a HU LU SI (chinese musical instrument that is like a flute blown vertically). A top that I can wear for racial harmony day. A packet of dried MA LA steamboat paste.

I think I don't mind going again next year. Just hope I go with the same company again. ^_^

Trip to Beijing

Tom afternoon, I'll be flying to Beijing. Taking Singapore Airlines there! WOW! I wanna watch movies and listen to music and play games!!! I hope my students DON'T bother me!!! It'll be a 6-hour flight there, reaching there around 11pm. Then we have to take the coach for about 45 min, then perhaps wait another 1 hour to check-in. I just hate the process of checking-in. Then have to unpack, bathe and check on the STUDENTS!!! Then, sleep. I think it'll be around 2:30am already!!! SHUCKS LOH!! And guess what? Have to wake up at 6am again! And they will have breakfast, travel to school in coach for half hour, and hopefully reaching the school by 730am where the school will welcome us with..... Lion Dance perhaps? HAHA!

Oh man! I'm foreseeing SUPER boredom when students go for their lessons. Maybe I'll just nap in the lounge. I HOPE THERE IS A LOUNGE FOR US!

Ever since Minkie went to serve the nation, the house is left with 4 members. A nice number to sit round the coffee table for table while enjoying the 7pm drama serials and MH complaining about brown rice. Then MH left for US, leaving 3 members. So I made a point to always be home for dinner. Now I'm going Beijing tomorrow, the house will be cold with 2 members. =( And when July comes, it'll be left with me cos' my parents will be away in Japan and MH won't be back yet. LONELY LONELY ME!

I hope to be able to relax and have fun during the China trip. Then when I'm back, it's hectic cos' next day gotta give out report books and surely got SJAB camp stuff to settle. Then 3rd June will be going Subang Jaya, then to Redang!! WAHAHA! Alrite, I must remember to work too. Time is not enough.

Happy 22nd Birthday Carey!! *Ribit Ribit!*

Letter from Management

*To:*

*Subject:*

Letter from Management to All Employees

*To all Employees: *

*Effective January 2007*

*Dress Code *

1. It is advised that you come to work dressed according to your salary. If we see you wearing Prada shoes and carrying a Gucci bag, we assume you are doing well financially and therefore do not need a pay raise.
2. If you dress poorly, you need to learn to manage your money better, so that you may buy nicer clothes, and therefore you do not need a pay raise.
3. If you dress just right, you are right where you need to be and therefore you do not need a pay raise.

* Sick Days*

We will no longer accept a doctor's certificate as proof of sickness. If you are able to go to the doctor, you are able to come to work.

*Holiday Days*

Each employee will receive 104 personal days a year. They are called Saturday & Sunday.

*Compassionate Leave*

This is no excuse for missing work. There is nothing you can do for dead friends, relatives or co-workers. Every effort should be made to have non-employees attend to the arrangements. In rare cases where employee involvement is necessary, the funeral should be scheduled in the late afternoon. We will be glad to allow you to work through your lunch hour and subsequently leave one hour early.

*Toilet Use*

1. Entirely too much time is being spent in the toilet. There is now a strict three-minute time limit in the cubicles.
2. At the end of three minutes, an alarm will sound, the toilet paper roll will retract, the cubicle door will open, and your picture will be taken.
3. After your second offence, your picture will be posted on the company notice board under the "Chronic Offenders" category.
4. Anyone caught smiling in the picture will be sanctioned under the company's mental health policy.

*Lunch Break*

1. Skinny people get 30 minutes for lunch, as they need to eat more so that they can look healthy.
2. Normal size people get 15 minutes for lunch to get a balanced meal to maintain their average figure.
3. Chubby people get 5 minutes for lunch, because that's all the time needed to drink a Slim-Fast.

Thank you for your loyalty to our company. Remember we are an employer of choice and we are here to provide a positive employment experience. Therefore, all questions, comments, concerns, complaints, frustrations, irritations, aggravations, insinuations, allegations, accusations, contemplations, consternation and input should be directed elsewhere.

* Management*

Overseas to Beijing

3 more days and I'll be in Beijing already. This time is not with my family, but STUDENTS. Yes... they are going for an immersion trip. Good thing about going there is I get to eat "MA LA" food again!!! YUMMY! And I get to go to BIG bookshop to buy books!!!!! YEAH!!! BAD side is the boring part with the kids and no free time to do own stuff. Anyway, I will look forward to coming back, because I'll be going Redang again!! This time is with my parents and auntie and uncle. YEAAAAH!! I'm going to the clear waters and nice beach with fine sand!!!!

Look at what I found on the internet!! A newspaper generator!! So cool!

This is the Nike bag I bought! The borders are lime green, and the bag is dark navy blue in colour. NICE NICE??

The Phantom of The Opera

I must say the opera was SUPER DUPER FANTASTIC!!!!!!! CP, JH and I went to watch the matinee show today at Esplanade and our seats were very good!! Close to the stage and eye-level!! Everything was so perfect!

The stage was very cleverly put up, with many beautiful backdrops, props, curtains and smooth transitions between the scenes. And there were gun shots and some pyrotechnics that blinded my eyes!!

Then there was the beautiful songs and voices from the cast. The price for the ticket was totally worth the show!! You should have seen the chandelier moved up and down, and the Phantom suspended in the middle of the hall. Read: HALL, not STAGE! And in the Phantom's lair, the water was so real-like and the boat moved with perfect ease. The water was done by lotsa smoke from the dry ice. Then there were "electric" candles that were so pretty and they actually "reflected" in the water. I love that scene best!!

After the intermission, Act 2 was the Masquerade and I was totally dazzled by the bright and colourful costumes and lightings!! It was REALLY spectacular!

The show ended with the Phantom performing a "magic" trick! He covered himself with a black cloth and POOF! He disappeared right in front of everybody!! WOW!!! REALLY GREAT SHOW! If you would like the full story, you would have to see the film version because the show ended with Meg holding onto the mask and looking at the audience. I WANNA WATCH IT AGAIN! This is the best musical I've watched!! SPLENDID!! Or as Raoul said when Christine was singing "Think of Me" in Hannibal: BRAVO!!!

I bought the program booklet ($25) and mug ($15) as momento. The mask on the mug appears when hot water is poured in. HAHA! I LOVE IT!