I've been swimming a lot lately, including yesterday and today. The weather is somewhat "uncanny" these few days. Normally, I would expect much more rain during the month of December but its been so hot lately and the sun is shining brightly almost everyday. It did rain at night though, that which gave me a good night's sleep. Now my skin is reddish-brown and I had to spread a lot of sunblock on myself today to avoid getting redder.


I have a kinokuniya membership card and 50 dollars worth of Kinokuniya vouchers thanks to my aunt's wonderful Christmas present. I should be appreciative of her kindness and return the favours next time when I have enough money. I want to master Japanese but its getting harder as I learn new verbs, nouns, adjectives and worse of all, the grammar phrases and structure which at times can be very complex. I guess learning any language is not easy.


私は日本語がお上手になりたい。


This will be my last post or second last post of the year. Oh dear, it's already 30th December 2008. New Hopes & Aspirations for the New Year 2009. The coming year is an opportunity for us to see what wonders God can do in our lives. Present each day to him, and let him guide you and fill you with His love.

Today, me and my cousins had a great time at Sentosa! I haven't been there for over a year! There are renovations in many parts of the island but some of the attractions are still present. I can't wait for the new Resort World to be launched in 2010.


Anyway, my father sent 7 of us into the island. We went to the beach first to play. We found a nice shady spot under a palm tree to lay out the picnic mat and put down our belongings. Then, me and my other cousin went swimming in the sea at Tanjong Beach. We played in the turquoise water and threw seaweed and sand at each other. Then, we swam to the southern most island of Sentosa from Tanjong Beach ... The life guard told us that we were not to do so when we reached the other island. That was probably because there were people canoeing around that area but we took that for granted.


After that, we played volleyball and Frisbee at the beach. I brought a pink bucket and spade along and despite rude comments about those items, we ended up building (and destroying) sandcastles.


Then we had lunch at the Koufu FoodCourt where I had some ramen and crispy chicken and iced milo and why am I remembering such trivial stuff. Anyway, we went to take the Sentosa Luge after that. I had a 50% discount on the ticket with my Sentosa Pass. The Skyride and the luge was really fun! But we had to queue up so long just to go for one luge ride .... not to mention, under the sweltering heat of today's sun.


After that, we went to butterfly park and I touched a common tree nymph and it rested on my fingers. We saw many exotic butterflies and creatures and other stuff. I bought a butterfly bookmark as a memento too ... The park hasn't changed that much since I last went there about a year ago.


We sat a crowded Sentosa express back to harborfront and later went to Plaza Singapore to catch a movie called Bedtime Stories. It was fun and enjoyable but not impactful enough for me to remember it clearly. I still feel that Bolt and Yes Man! were better.


I am fairly sunburnt now. I went swimming yesterday already with my friend and more swimming today under the sun has turned my skin red. I'm fine with it because I want to enjoy this precious time I have before I choose my new educational institution next year.


God, Love, humility, prayer and communication solve all problems!

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JESUS!

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!
عيد ميلاد مجيد! Весела Коледа!
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
圣诞快乐！聖誕快樂！
Sretan Božić!
Veselé vánoce!
Glædelig jul!
Vrolijk kerstfeest!
Maligayang Pasko!
Hyvää joulua!
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
Καλά Χριστούγεννα!
חג מולד שמח
क्रिसमस की शुभकामनाएँ!
Selamat Hari Natal!
メリークリスマス！
즐거운 성탄절 되세요!
Priecīgus Ziemassvētkus!
Merry Christmas!
God jul!
Feliz Natal!
Crăciun fericit!
С Рождеством!
Срећан Божић!
Veselé Vianoce!
Vesel božič!
Feliz Navidad!
З Різдвом!
Giáng sinh Vui vẻ!

And a happy new year ...

Christmas is a time to see the world through the eyes of love. It's a time to remember that the world is made up of people like us and to see them for who they are inside. All have problems like we do, but all are special, no matter who they are or where they come from.

Today is Christmas Eve. The year has passed by so quickly. I'm not going to reflect on what has happened this year yet. Mum's friends and my aunt are coming to have a Christmas steamboat dinner at our house tonight.


There are new songs in audition sea. I don't know what to post here now. I'm looking forward to my trip to Sentosa this Saturday. Life is changing and advancing ever so quickly. Sometimes its scary how time passes so fast as we get through life.


Christmas is the season of love because God is the God of love. Minnasan, Merri Kurisumasu Ifu. Christmas Day wa, O tanoshimi ni shite imasu! Ja mata ne!

I've been blogging quite a lot recently. I went out with my cousin today. I was treated to lunch by my aunt and uncle and the lunch was delectable but expensive. Then we went to Kinokuniya and I finally bought my Japanese-English bible! The actual price was about 122 dollars but due to God's help, we managed to borrow a Kinokuniya discount card and I got 20% of the 122 dollar bible. So I ended paying 98 dollars only! My cousin benefited from it too as she was buying another book. Thank God!


We went to Lot One after that and I read my new Japanese bible and my guidebook for quite some time. Then we went to watch "Yes Man" at the cinema and it was a great and funny show. I love the antics. The show was somewhat meaningful but the ending was somewhat abrupt and salacious. However, I feel that Bruce Almighty was more hilarious then this movie.


My sore throat is slightly better but now my nose is like a dripping, clogged pipe. I hate that feeling and I pray that it will go away. There's a silver lining in everything that happens, and in every person too. Challenge yourself with finding it and you'll start to see life in a better light.

I went out with my aunt today. We had a Japanese lunch at Marina Square, after which I bought presents for my parents and cousin for Christmas. Then, we went to watch the musical "Another Crazy Christmas" and it was really fun and entertaining. The vocals, music and atmosphere was thrilling and exhilarating. I think we both enjoyed the 2 hour long show. I liked the part when the actress sang parts of carols with their names from A to Z.


Then I watched some Bruce Almighty at my aunt's place before going for dinner at grandma's house. It was a meaningful day today. I had to use a new pair of contacts because the old one is getting too thin and might tear soon. I couldn't tell the difference between the left eye lens and right eye lens, but since both of my eyes have nearly the same degree, I couldn't feel any difference. I'm having a sore throat right now but its getting better and so is my shoulder! Praise God!


True success can only be achieved in partnership with God.

Today was a really hectic but fun day for me. I went to see the doctor early in the morning due to matters concerning my right shoulder and clavicle. It's much better now and the ache or strain is reduced significantly. He still sent me to take an X ray and the results were normal. I know that God will heal me in time to come but I'm impatient and I really want it to heal quickly...


The hectic part of today was mostly in the morning where I was smsing and calling my friends to come for the Christmas party in the afternoon while walking to and fro from my home to the polyclinic and to the other family clinic. I think I walked more than 4km in total this morning.


Only one friend managed to come though because the rest were either busy, saved or were too lazy to come. But that's okay because I know I've impacted them somehow.


We had fun at the party. We played some games around the place. We sang songs. We exchanged gifts. We ate and ate and drank and now I have a slight sore throat because of all the barbecued stuff. It was a great time of chatting and fellowship. I thank God for such friends beside me.


Time to sleep. It's late. A contented man is one who enjoys the scenery along the detour.

I just returned home from camp today. I believe all of us had a great encounter with God and we are ready to be radical for him! After hearing the testimonies shared, and experiencing the wonderful presence of God during worship, I really want to get into a more intimate relationship with him. I want God to guide me in each step of my life and to help me make the right decisions.


The games during camp were excellent and each game taught us a lesson. We learnt to respect our leaders, not to fall into temptation, to realise our strengths and weaknesses, to coordinate effectively and uphold one another, and to obey the Word of God and put it into good use. We learnt to bring a friend and connect a friend, to see a need and meet a need and to see a potential and develop that potential.


I realised during this camp that I have to really be sincere in my time along with God and to do my best to seek him and communicate with him. I have to make radical decisions in the near and far future. I need to pray over this matter because I really need God's security. I need to look forward and just go.


I'm also thankful to my Youth Pastor Gary for leading us throughout these 2 years and seeing explosive growth in the youth ministry to about 800 people in both districts. I believe that in 2009, this figure will exceed a 1000. I really need to care and connect with those who have yet to experience God's love and press on in prayer for them.


Never hesitate to trust the unknown future to a great God. We never know what's going to happen tomorrow. But with God, all things are possible!

Tomorrow morning will be the start of Church Camp. I hope to be changed for the better for the next 4 days. I pray that there will be good weather, great growth in the ministry, God's intervention throughout the 4 days of camp and also a safe, fruitful trip to our campsite.

Ashita no asa wa "Church Camp" no hajimari desu. Watashi no negai wa, tsugi no 4 nichi ni, mainnichi o tanoshimi, mainnichi ni atarashii no mono o manabimasu. Sono Camp wa, Watashitachi to Kami ishouni wa anzen ni shinakereba naranai.

Put your hand into God's, trust him to lead you, and you will never be disappointed.

今日、私はシンガポール芸術美術館に行った.

私は日本の芸術祭ショーケースのために行った.

Raishuu no Getsuyoubi wa "Radekeru" kanpu no hi.

次の月曜日ラディカルキャンプです！
O tanoshimi ni shite imasu! 楽しみにしてんだよ！내가 기대하고 있어요!

Today was fun. I went out with friends to watch a movie at Orchard Cathay Cine leisure. We watched Bolt, which is a show about a dog who acts for a TV series featuring him and a girl, where they go about rescuing people and carrying out missions. Then the dog got lost and went on a long journey of "self discovery" along with a sleek (slick) cat and an ambitious hamster. And blah blah. It was very nice and touching movie, along with the hilarious scenes, I give this movie 5 stars.


We went to Takashimaya again and I bought another Japanese guidebook. I'm making good progress in my learning. I have to eat dinner soon. You can only make one success of yourself, but you can help make many successes by inspiring and encouraging others.

I went swimming in the morning.
I went to town later, to takashimaya again.
I went to Kinokuniya again.
I ate Omelette with Rice. It was delectable.
We walked around orchard road and the shopping malls there.
Then, I watched a movie (Four Christmases) with my friend. It was a short but nice movie.
I was happy but quite exhausted when I reached home.

私は午前中に泳ぎに行った。
私の町に、再び高島屋に行った。
私は紀伊国屋に再度行った。
私はライス長官とのオムレツを食べた。それおいしいされた。
私たちの周りを歩いてオーチャードロードのショッピングモールがある。
それから、私は私の友達と一緒に映画（ 4つのクリスマス）を見守った。
これは短いが、いい映画だった。
私はとても幸せだった家庭に達したときに疲れきっている。

Not the perfect translation. I hope it's right. Let's brighten the day (or night) with the sunshine of thanks! おかげでその日の日差しと（または夜）を明るくする！

It's already Thursday. Time flies. A lot of things happened tonight, mostly due to text messaging on my mobile. I haven't text messaged this much in a long time. I need to help someone, I need to get the attention of busy peers, I need to learn more Japanese.


I went out on tuesday to meet my friend. We had a nice chat at the Coffee Hub at Takashimaya. I browsed at Japanese guidebooks. We talked about our lives. I chatted about the trip to Korea and gave him some souvenirs from my family tour there...


I have to organise my holiday time wisely. What a joke it may seems! No it's not. I really think I need to. I'm addicted to manga and anime, I have not tried going without watching or reading them daily when I'm in Singapore. I get carried away online sometimes and end up spending so much time doing unessential things.


人生美しいですが、疲れる. いろいろのことが起こった ... けど、私は行き続ける必要がある. God likes to bless and use those who aren't confident in themselves, and who know they need him. He can't help those who don't even desire his help. 神を祝福し、自分に自信を持っていない人は、使用して、彼の必要性を知っている人が好きだ。彼も彼の助け欲望しない人に役立つことはできません。

We just returned from Korea tonight. It was a fun and exciting vacation but tiring nonetheless. I have a right shoulder ache and my lips have peeled. I hope I do get better soon though. I learnt more Japanese than Korean on the trip there because I brought my guidebook and translator, and there were many Japanese brochures there. I want to go to Japan for our next vacation but its much more costly so we have to save up.


The trip to Korea from Singapore took about 6 hours. We boarded Korean Air at night and left for the Incheon International Airport. Our tour group consisted of 36 people, excluding our tour guide who met us in Korea, our tour coordinator and our tour assistant. They were a great help in making the whole tour a success. Their jokes really lifted our spirits and transformed mundane bus rides into meaningful sessions of fun and laughter.


We went to Everland Amusement Park on the first day of our trip, after the plane arrived. We had fun with the rides there, including a water raft ride and a 3D image simulator with physical effects. We had lunch there and then boarded another plane headed for Jeju island (via a domestic flight), where we spent 2 days exploring the area.


We travelled on the "mysterious road", in which the bus moved uphill with the engine off and moved with increasing acceleration as the road got steeper. I don't understand the reason either. We also explored the physical landscape of the area and went to some bear museum and a lot of other attractions in the island. We also learnt about the past traditions of the Jeju islanders in a civilisation museum and in an old village there which is now a tourist hot spot. We were entertained by the tourist guides there too.


We left Jeju on the 3rd day of our stay in Korea and headed towards the coldest part of South Korea, where we would go skiing. the place was called Yongpyong if I'm not wrong. It was the first time I've ever skied and it was great fun but I had difficulty stopping, especially when I launched down from a steep slope. There were regular skiers and snowboarders there and they were excellent in their skiing skills. I really envy them ... well somewhat.


The next day, I saw snow for the first time in my life. The temperature was below 0 degrees at night. My hands were really cold when I was outside skiing. We were really lucky on the 5th day. We saw a wide landscape of coniferous and deciduous trees with leaves covered in snow. It had snowed heavily on the 4th night of our stay, It was still snowing in the morning and the scenery was simply breathtaking for someone like me who has not seen snow in my entire life. Photos were taken. There are so many things I would like to describe and explain but either I can't remember them well or they just slip past my mind after each time I recall them.


We went to Lotte world too before skiing. We took the Sindbad ride and it was thrilling. We sat on the train which circled lotteworld and it was not thrilling ... but the ride was worth it as we had a bird's eye view of the entire theme park. Then, I sat on the viking ship and the going down made my lower abdomen tremble in weakness. We sat on the merry go round next and it was boring but still, just for the experience, I didn't mind.


From day 5 to day 8, we visited various places of interests such as the presidential area in Seoul, Nami Island (Where winter sonata was filmed), some huge park, some huge temple area, the night markets and shopping streets and shopping centres in Seoul and many other places which I can remember briefly but can't express well in words. But I really can't remember all the names and details of the places we visited.


Concerning shopping, we bought many souvenirs. Dad spent a bomb on the Ginseng tea for me and mum. It cost nearly a thousand dollars just for 6 tubs of ginseng. I was shocked at the price. Mum bought some facial stuff. There was complimentary kimchi from the kimchi school we went too. We bought seaweed back. There were tipping and photography costs too.


We also got the opportunity to try on traditional Korean costumes and had our photos taken in them. I will probably upload one or two photos next time because its past 1am now and there's no way dad can upload the 100s of photos taken during our 8 day trip.


I need to sleep soon. Perhaps the most disappointing thing about the trip was the food. We had 2 Chinese meals there and 2 intercontinental breakfast meals, and these were probably the best meals we had there, in my opinion. Korean food does not suit my taste and my family's taste. I do not fancy kimchi at all. We had seaweed soup everyday, and at times with either pork or chicken hot plate or steamboat. The food isn't that bad. The stone pot rice was delicious but not good enough. I can safely say that Singaporean food is at least twice, no three times better than Korean food. I give the food there a 6.5/10, but I'm no judge because "one man's meat is another man's poison."


During one of our dinners, we had seafood. They served live sea urchins, scallops and oysters. No one dared to eat the sea urchin which was moving. Then they bought an octopus out and everyone shrieked. I held the octopus using a stick while the tour assistant took a photograph. The tentacles were still moving (just like a lizard's tail), when they were cut off. It was disgustingly exciting.


Overall, I think this was a great trip. We all enjoyed ourselves tremendously and I made new friends as well. We had to save up for the next trip. We (excluding me) spent a lot on this vacation. I thank God for our save return home and for blessing us throughout this vacation and for providing us with enough money and sustenance to live our lives happily and purposefully.


Every unseen act of love and kindness will be rewarded openly in Heaven.

This will be my last post of the month because I'll be going to Korea later in the evening with my family and aunt. I've learnt much from my Japanese handbook. The Furigana Dictionary is excellent! Church was great yesterday too. I managed to sign up for church camp early too ... I hope we have a great fruitful trip to the land of the morning calm and I pray that God will bless our trip and the people at home who are dear to us.


Ask God to confirm your decisions. He can keep you from mistakes, show you if you're forgetting or overlooking something, turn good ideas into great ones, and give you the assurance you need to proceed in life with full confidence.


神はあなたの質問の意思決定を確認します。彼のミスから、お見せしている場合を忘れたか何かを見下ろす、素晴らしいものに良いアイデアを有効にすると、あなたの生活を維持できるとの全面的な信頼を続行するために必要な保証を与える。请上帝来确认您的决定。他可以让你从错误，告诉你如果你忘记或忽视的东西，把好的想法变成伟大的，并给你保证你需要在生活中进行充分的信心。하나님에게 물어 당신의 결정을 확인합니다. 그는 실수를 통해서 보여 잊은 것 또는 뭔가가 내려다 보이는 경우, 위대한 인물로 좋은 아이디어를 차례, 보관할 수 있고 당신이 인생에서 완전한 자신감을 진행하는 데 필요한 확신을주고있다.


Попросите Бога, чтобы подтвердить ваши решения. Он может держать вас от ошибок, покажет вам, если вы забывая или забывая то, свою очередь, хорошие идеи, в большой, и дать вам гарантию вам нужно действовать в жизнь с полной уверенностью. Demandez à Dieu de confirmer vos décisions. Il peut vous empêcher d'erreurs, de vous montrer si vous êtes oublier ou sur quelque chose, tourner de bonnes idées en grand, et vous donner l'assurance dont vous avez besoin pour procéder à la vie en toute confiance. Demaneu a Déu que la seva decisió. Ell pot mantenir que dels errors, mostren que quan esteu oblidant o amb vistes a alguna cosa, al seu torn les bones idees en grans, i li donarà la garantia que necessita per a procedir a la vida amb plena confiança. Frågar Gud för att bekräfta ditt beslut. Han kan hålla dig från att misstag, visa dig om du glömmer eller över något, slår bra idéer till stora sådana, och ge er om ni behöver gå vidare i livet med fullt förtroende. Ζητήστε από το Θεό να επιβεβαιώσει τις αποφάσεις σας. Μπορεί να σας κρατήσουν από τα λάθη, θα σας δείξει αν είστε ξεχνώντας ή παραβλέποντας κάτι, σειρά καλές ιδέες σε μεγάλες, και να σας δώσω τη διαβεβαίωση πρέπει να προχωρήσετε στη ζωή με πλήρη εμπιστοσύνη. Zeptejte se Boha, aby potvrdil, že Vaše rozhodnutí. Nemůže vás z chyb, ukázat vám, pokud jste se zapomínalo, nebo s výhledem na něco, zase dobré nápady do velikánů, a dá vám jistotu, je třeba postupovat v životě s plnou důvěrou.Pitajte Boga da potvrdite svoje odluke. On može zadržati od greške, prikazati ako ste zaboravljajući ili nešto iznad, pretvoriti dobru ideju u one velike, i dati vam osiguranje koje je potrebno nastaviti u život s punim povjerenjem. Opýtajte sa Boha, aby potvrdil, že Vaše rozhodnutie. Nemôže vás z chýb, ukázať vám, ak ste pamätať, alebo s výhľadom na niečo, zase dobré nápady do velikánov, a dá vám istotu, je potrebné postupovať v živote s plnou dôverou. Питай Бог, за да потвърдите своя решения. Той може да ви пази от грешки, ви покаже, ако сте забравят или да пропусне нещо, обърни добри идеи в голяма, и да ви даде уверение, което трябва да продължи и в живота с пълна увереност.

The translation is inaccurate at times... but its fun to learn languages.

Today was hectic. I travelled to town twice, first to get my "pocket money fund thing", then to give back the signed form to the administrator. I also went to Kinokuniya and purchased 3 Japanese books. I'm learning new phrases everyday ... It's so exciting. But because of all that happened today I'm somewhat exhausted already. I wore contacts for the whole time in town. It was an achievement...


I don't feel like blogging so much. I've been blogging everyday. Yawn. I should nap sometime later. Pirate job in maple is somewhat lousy, especially for those below level 30. Even though the attacks are fast, the damage is so low! I don't feel like training my pirate anymore.


Love is like a pair of contact lenses. It is fragile and delicate but when used correctly, it makes life a lot clearer and easier and more beautiful for people with refractive eye disorders. コンタクトレンズ愛のペアのようなもの。これは不安定であり、繊細が正しく使用されるとき、それは多くの人生をより容易に、より鮮明と屈折眼疾患を持つ人々に美しいです。

I wore contact lenses for the first time today! Took about 20 minutes or so. It was "thrilling". It wasn't painful but once the lenses touched my eyelashes I blinked immediately and the lens could not enter my eye. After much help and coaxing, I finally managed to get both lenses in and out. I successfully went home with contact lenses and took them out before bathing! Yeah! What an achievement ...


It's better to look for a solution than a scapegoat, just like the solution used to disinfect my contact lenses ...

Pirate job was released in maplesea today. It was fun but not as fun as my mage though. I still prefer mages. I chose the potential gunslinger build for my pirate. It was discovered that the pirate could jump and shoot bullets at the same time, though the range is not as good as the assassin. There are so many new quests. The Malaysia gateway's new world Fornax is having a daily 4x exp event and I heard there are new maps to train in for both high and low levels. Well, this is somewhat exciting, because without the newly added "sparks", maple would become a bore.


I went out to causeway point again to eat pizza at pizza hut. Then some lady from UOB called me and asked me to sign up for some weird plan. I spoke Japanese and she was confused. Then I told her that I was below 17 and had no money, after which the conversation soon ended. Then we went to watch Madagascar two (escape to Africa), and it was both hilarious and touching, and at one scene I laughed like a laughing hyena and made heads turn.


I had my first music lesson in 2 weeks. It was okay I guess, no complains this time round and everything went smoothly. No theory too because I just finished that exam 2 weeks ago... It's getting late. Yawn. I should cuddle up in my bed soon. The weather is cold, and my bed is warm. I want to lie there snug and cosy. Some thing's wrong with my computer screen, the display (contrast measure) keeps becoming flickering from bright to dark to bright to dark to ....


Get your name in the book of world records and it will be there only until someone a fraction faster or stronger or smarter comes along. Love and it will last forever. 世界記録の本の中で自分の名前を取得してそこまでほんの一部だけ速くまたは賢く強いかがやって来るされます。愛とは永遠に続くだろう。

I'm happy today! I finally got to have a good swim! I swam 21 laps at the Choa Chu Kang Swimming Complex pool. I haven't been there since primary school. Then I chatted and played with my friend at the wave pool and the slide thing.


I just finished watching Nobuta wo Produce. It's a really moving story that talks about the different experiences we have in life. The plot is often unpredictable and each episode is actually a lesson about life. I like the awkwardness of the characters - one who tries to please everyone to make himself popular, one weird character who does the strangest things (like me), and laughs for no reason, and one extremely introverted girl who thinks the whole world is against her. The trio got together and things sort of worked out between them as they faced trials and triumphs throughout their high school life.


So far I've watched 5 Japanese dramas - Hana Kimi, Itsuka no kimi e, Midnight Sun, Nobuta wo Produce, and Zettai Kareshi (My first Jdrama).


I'm going to Korea next week for 8 days. I wanna go Japan though. I can't understand Korean at all. It seems so much more difficult than Japanese, because the speech and dialogue seems so unfamiliar to me. I don't even know how the Hangul alphabets work.


Well I'm off to find something interesting to do. In heaven, we won't just sit around on clouds and play harps, as some people imagine. Heaven will be full of action, excitement, discovery, learning and best of all, Love.

We went swimming today. But I could only do 4 laps before the rain started to pour. Then we went to eat lunch at anchor point. And the food there was delicious. I ordered my contact lenses today. They were quite costly but not as expensive as my glasses though. They could last me for 6 months, assuming that I used them every month. I've never worn contacts before. I hope I don't screw up when I first put them on.


I wanna sleep. Rainy days are nice days to take a good nap. Yawn. But I really wanted to have more time in the water today. Perhaps some other day then ...


For every grief, God has gladness. For every pain, He has a healing balm. For every sorrow, He has comfort and for every test, He has a triumph.


すべての悲しみは、神を喜ばしている。すべての痛みについては、彼は治癒香油している。すべての悲しみは、彼と快適している, すべてのテストのため、彼は勝利している。
모든 슬픔을 위해, 하나님의 기쁨이다. 모든 고통을 들어, 그는 치유 연고있다. 모든 슬픔 들어, 그는 더욱 편안하고 모든 테스트를 위해, 그는 승리했다.

Me and my friends went to eat at pizza hut at causeway point in woodlands yesterday. We made noise and talked about life and insignificant things that made life meaningful. The waiter charged us wrongly. The waiters were oblivious to my pleas for them to serve me the ice cream. And when they eventually did. it was melted and a total waste of money.


I donated to a non-charitable organisation called 3Bs, knowing well that the money was probably going to be used by them for means which I'm uncertain of. I bought a A cash prepaid card. I used it. I bought 2x exp since yesterday evening. I trained to 85% today. I'm bored so I stopped training and the card will expire soon anyway.


I changed the blog song since yesterday. I love this song.


Life is like a bolster. I like to hug it and use it for special yet explicit means.

終了しました 그것이 종료되었습니다 закончившийся

Yeah the examinations are officially over! I think I did considerably okay for all the papers ... Life suddenly seems so carefree and I really need to find more things to do to make good and fun use of the time I have during these 2 months or so.


We went to watch a movie after the biology paper one. We bought breakfast at Burger King and I ate the delectable croissant sandwich there whereas the rest brought their food into the cinema because there wasn't enough time. I used to dislike eating much food when I was young, but now I'm becoming a glutton. Thankfully, I'm not a fat glutton at all. I don't think I should consider myself a gourmand. I just like eating food.


So anyway, I kept laughing and making weird gestures and noises during the James bond show. Quantum in something ... can't really recall the name of the show either. It was not to my preference so I laughed at awkward moments when the protagonist was trying to escape and I made weird noises when there was shooting and majestic background music. The two sitting beside me were not irritated though. One was stoical while the other was amused greatly.


The show had an abrupt ending. I imitated the sound of the trumpets at the end of the show and relegated those tones to that of a chicken clucking, loudly.


Life is full of surprises. I'm one of them, so are you.

The physics paper one is over. Left with only chemistry and biology paper one! It was relatively easy but tricky. I'm aiming about 36 ~ 39 for the MCQ questions due to some questions subjected to debate. I made a really careless mistake over one question because I unknowingly read "magnetise" as "demagnetise" in question 36. Really careless mistake.


I'm gonna find something to do now then study chemistry later.


Hatred, resentment and vindictiveness sour us on life, but love forgiveness and mercy put the sweetness back in!

Today was a very fun and fruitful day. I played games the whole morning and read manga. Then in the afternoon, I went out with 4 of my friends to eat a buffet lunch at Sakae Sushi. And it was fun spending time together.


We ate a lot of food. In fact, I still feel stuffed right now. One of them kept eating sashimi and chawanmushi. I myself ate several plates of sushi, sashimi and 2 bowls of chawanmushi. We really made good use of this buffet. The buffet timing is from 3pm to 6pm. We stayed form 3pm to about 5.30pm which is roughly 2 and a half hours, eating lunch, chatting about life and studies and speaking Japanese phrases.


We made the waitresses angry a couple of times. We attracted unnecessary attention a good number of times too, most of it due to infantile actions that have not worn off since our childhood days. Adolescence is such an innocently devious period. We keep experiencing change. And yet the some memorable, childish things we still retain within our hearts.


Japanese is so fun. I love debating with my friends over its pronunciation and literal fluency. We found out a way to make the start menu appear in the computer we used to order our food. We ended up playing games on the "ordering computer" in the restaurant. This enticed several puzzled glances from the waiters and waitresses. It made me chuckle, loudly, which is weird.


After stuffing ourselves with food, we took a walk around the shopping centre. For once, they followed me. I don't know the reason too. But anyway, I bought the kiwis mum wanted and the 3rd volume of Rhapsody in Heaven. Finally, the series is completed!


Due to the persistence of my friends, I ended up bringing them to my house. I hate being a host. I made it clear to them already. So anyway, no drinks were served as we were bloated. Most played maple and I played piano with one of them. Then they went home, after I accompanied them to the point where they could take the LRT or MRT home.


I couldn't eat dinner. It was good that granny understood. It's better to be a stuffed chicken, than a stuffed dead chicken. I don't know what I'm getting at. Weird analogy. I pray that my aunt recovers well from her indigestion. I've learnt that its never good to eat too much.


Then I went cycling with my cousin. It was so fun. We ended up talking about our school lives, anime, maple, and a couple of other things. I think this kind of casual talk is so much more comforting than those high-societal dogma. There was a passage about this in our Higher Chinese exam. Whatever ...


とにかく今日は楽しかったです!


Do you want the key to every heart? Try love.

Yeah! All the written papers are over! Left with all the MCQ paper ones for science next week! Higher Chinese today was okay I guess ... but the comprehension was tough. I copied a lot of stuff from the passage in my answer. The letter and essay was okay though. It's my first time doing an expository essay for Chinese. The essays I memorised did come in useful to some extent. I managed to use 2 Chinese proverbs too.

I shall go play now. Time spent helping others is never time wasted. You may not see the payoff immediately but you will someday. I love Funky Monkey Babys songs. So fun ...

Nishibi To Kageboushi

夕焼けの帰り道
西日と伸びる影法師
今日の自分が
一歩進んだ 明日へと踏み出せる様に

オレンジに染まった帰り道
俺ん家へと続く帰り道
ふと見渡した風景が
いつかの記憶に映っていた
揺れる草花、
傾く太陽内向な三日月
その近くに雲は高く高く

あの日と変わらずカラスが鳴く
今の俺が引きずる影は
ずいぶん大きくなって
変わらぬ景色と無邪気な少年期が
少し恋しくなってる
Time goes on
それでも今が最高の
自分です、と思ってたいから
弱音は夕日と共に沈んでくよ

夕焼けの帰り道
西日と伸びる影法師
今日の自分が
一歩進んだ 明日へと踏み出せる様に

ランドセル背負ってる
子供達を見て何か思い出した
そういえば、あの頃は
今日も明日も行っていた駄菓子屋
それからザリガニ釣りやサバイバル

些細な事が笑いになる
気付けば赤く山が染まる
明日の遊びはWhat You Gonna Do?

いつもの時間になるチャイム
いつもの楽しげなスマイル
思い出して、せかせかしてる
今の自分と照らし合わして
あの頃に帰りたくなるけど
前だけを見よう明日も
山の向こうへ沈んでいく
夕日にありがとう

夕焼けの帰り道
西日と伸びる影法師
今日の自分が
一歩進んだ 明日へと踏み出せる様に

太陽の赤 月の黄色
混ざればオレンジ夕日色
いつもの道を照らしてくれる
今も変わらず見守ってくれる
映っている影が変わっても
繰り返す明日も明後日も
昇っては沈んでまた一年
そのまんま東から西へ

東京八王子17時
そんな愛しい夕方に
市役所通りの橋から見た紅の山
時が待ってくれないのなら 自分で行くさ
ボールを追いかける 子供の様に
さぁ一緒についてきなよ影法師

夕焼けの帰り道
西日と伸びる影法師
今日の自分が
一歩進んだ 明日へと踏み出せる様に

I can finally find time to blog. The music theory exam is over ... Yeah! I totally embarrassed myself in the examination. I forgot to bring my pencil box. I switched bags this morning, so I forgot to put my pencil box into my other bag. I'm so dumb. So I went into the examination room without any writing instruments.


I had to borrow a pencil and an eraser from a little boy. Then he left the exam room early (probably because he was taking a lower grade) and I had to return the stationery to him. Then, I had to borrow another pencil and eraser from some big girl sitting near me. And she finished the paper earlier than me and was like waiting for me to finish the paper so she could take back her pencil and eraser and go home. But I was being careful. I was the 2nd last to leave the exam room. I finished the paper 15 minutes before time was up (the paper was 2 hours), which was very slow because most of the candidates had finished and left the room in 1hour and 30 mins. I feel quite awkward for making the girl wait for me till I finished doing and checking the paper. Nevertheless, I said thanks and left.


I think I did okay for the paper. I'm hoping for a 80+. I memorised so many Italian and French and German terms and only one term came out and it was the easiest term. (Actually it was the first Italian term on the list in grade 1) It was Adagio which = Slow. I hoped I got the definite and indefinite pitch question correct. I think I wrote it correctly. Timpani has definite pitch and bass drum has indefinite pitch. It's 4 marks just for this sentence. I hope I can get a distinction =)


For the O Exams, I'm left with social studies, higher Chinese and all the MCQ paper ones for all 3 sciences. Biology paper 2 was unexpectedly easy. I'm aiming for As for both maths now, after checking my answers online. Physics paper was tough but I hope they moderate the marks. That's all the comments I have =)


I'm gonna rest a bit then start mugging social studies. Time sure flies. It's already November and the year will come to an end soon. And the cycle of life will continue and I will search to add more purpose into my life! No matter how small you are, there's a very big God waitIng to help you who is more than big enough for the job.

The first week of the O exams are over. I'm left with physics, biology, higher chinese and social studies, as well as paper ones for all the sciences, and paper 2 for maths. I guess its a "thaw" period like the one during the cold war.


Your choices, not your chances, determine your destiny.

The exams are next week. I feel that my preparations are going well. But I've been doing so much A maths and Chemistry that I feel that I may have neglected some other subjects. History is doing fine. I just finished memorising most of Stalin. I wrote out his rise essay and gave myself 12.5 marks upon marking it with accordance to my notes. Most of the facts are there except minute details which I might have missed out. I have to finish all of Stalin by today.


Then I shall go on to china, then to Japan, then to Germany, then to Khrushchev then to Gorbachev then to league then to UN then to treaties then to detente and then to WW2 ... So many countries and people to visit...


Here's the Stalin Rise Essay that I did.

Stalin’s Rise/ Power Struggle

1) Stalin built his power base in the Communist Party.

2) Through various portfolios held, he gained invaluable skills, power and experience.
Ø He was the commissar for Nationalities and State Council
Ø He came to virtually control the whole government

3) Membership in the Politburo
Ø Allowed him access to supreme decision making

4) Membership in the Orgburo
Ø Gave him access to power to appoint personnel to implement decisions

5) Being the General Secretary
Ø Allowed him to control flow of information
Ø Set agendas
Ø Make appointments to gain support for winning debates
Ø Gave him control of party mechanism from high to low levels

6) Being a member of all 3 councils in the Communist Party, Stalin had immense power and potential for manipulation

7) Lenin died in 1924
Ø He had rose to power as a leader of the party and led the revolution
Ø There was no automatic successor after his death as leadership was not based on party position
Ø Power vested in party organs, not individuals via the collective principle

Stalin took center stage in Lenin’s funeral
Ø He led the mourning in the forefront
Ø Lied to Trotsky about the funeral date
Ø He was the chief mourner and gave the eulogy
Ø He portrayed himself as Lenin’s keenest follower
Ø He gave the impression that he was the next most important person after Lenin, by leading the procession
Ø Trotsky was discredited for missing the funeral


8) Stalin survived Lenin’s testament with the aid of the Troika
Ø Lenin’s testament contained ideas for the future and opinions about members in the Politburo
Ø Stalin’s career would have been marred by Lenin’s unpleasant comments like
- His intolerable attitude
- His unlimited authority as Party Secretary

Ø Stalin would then be removed by power by Lenin’s testament
Ø Kamenev and Zinoviev helped Stalin as they were afraid of Trotsky claiming power
Ø Stalin’s ability to deliver votes in congress made him a valuable ally against Trotsky
Ø They argued that the testament was groundless
Ø Majority agreed as many criticisms were hurled to them in the testament
Ø Trotsky did not intervene when the testament was not read out
Ø Hence Stalin’s political career was saved and Trotsky lost his chance of claiming power

9) Stalin came out with the cult of Leninism,
Ø Turning respect and affection towards Lenin into a religion
Ø Places of pilgrimage were made
Ø He promoted himself as the one true heir of Lenin
Ø Heresies, which were disagreements with Lenin, were seen as deviations and became a political crime
Ø Heresies were used against Trotsky when he criticized Lenin and the increasing power of the Party Secretary.
Ø Trotsky was discredited as being disloyal to Lenin as he had often made public arguments with Lenin and was an ex-Menshevik.
Ø Stalin was able to portray himself as a true Leninist, showing that Trotsky was disloyal to memories and ideals of Lenin.
Ø With the help of the troika, Stalin easily defeated Trotsky at the 13th Congress in 1924.

10) There was disagreement on the socialist path of development between Stalin’s “socialism in one country” and Trotsky’s “Permanent Revolution”.
Ø Trotsky and the left wanted “permanent revolution” as Russia could not fully develop into a socialist state without revolutions in Europe.
Ø Stalin felt Russia needed to industrialize to develop into socialist state, and this became more popular with the right wing as it seemed to fit in with the New Economic Policy


11)As a result,
Ø Zinoviev and Kamenev had doubts about Stalin’s growing power and questioned his economic policies
Ø Zinoviev and Kamenev forged an alliance with Trotsky
Ø Stalin could communicate his ideas clearly and simply
Ø Trotsky was an intellectual whose ideas would plunge Russia in to constant strife and waging of wars
Ø At the 14th congress, Stalin got the support of the party rank and file, and his views were adopted as the official ideology
Ø Kamenev, Zinoview and Trotsky made a direct appeal to party masses and workers, and tried staging demonstrations in Moscow
Ø This was a fatal error as Stalin accused them of factionalism
Ø He replaced Zinoview and Kamenev’s supporters in the Moscow and Petrograd organization
Ø Trotsky was removed as commissar of war in 1925
Ø Kamenev and Zinoviev were removed from their party positions and the Politburo
Ø Trotsky lost his politburo position in 1926 and was expelled from the party as a traitor
Ø Kamenev and Zinoviev were expelled as traitors in 1927
Ø Trotsky was sent to exile in Alma Ata in 1928 and foreign exile in 1929
Ø He was later assassinated in Mexico in 1940

12)Stalin turned against the right in 1928

Ø He now advocated the use of force against peasants and rapid industrialization, the very same policies the left wanted
Ø Bukharin mounted strong defence of the New Economic Policy but was outvoted by Stalin’s supporters and leftists supporting the anti-NEP line
Ø Bukharin, Rykov and Tomsky were removed from power

13)Stalin emerged as the supreme leader after eliminating both the right and left factions.

Appreciation is a perfect gift for any occasion.

I'm finished with my preparation of history notes. I just have to start memorising soon. Or perhaps I should do an essay or two on the WW2 timeline. I'll do that sometime next week. I've decided to study everything on Stalin, most things about Khrushchev and Gorbachev, all of China since 1919 to 1990 and Japan's aggression and economic recovery. I'm afraid of the Section A questions. Sometimes they tend to be a bit unpredictable. Especially the part 2s.


I'm starting chemistry revision and physics revision. I need to squeeze information into my head. So sad. And I've even resorted to memorising chinese essays and phrases. Omg the nerdiness is making my head spin. I only need to endure this for 4 more weeks. I can do it. Dekiru imasu! Plus there are temptations everywhere. The new Fall Anime Season is out with a whole new bunch of anime series and sequels to my past anime series. The whole is full of addictions ~ I wish studying was an addiction now. And I have 2 emails now. And the daily maths papers made my printer run out of ink.


When faced with a seemingly insurmountable difficulty, close your eyes and picture it as a boulder in your path. Then picture God's hands rolling it out of the way. What's impossible for us is nothing for him.

I can't access my hotmail emails for some unknown reason. I have over 23 unopened emails inside there. This is so troublesome. Anyway I changed my email address to Google Mail. It's less fanciful but its works anyhow. Please divert all mails to HeavenlyRhapsody@gmail.com

Nature declares God's love to us. No time ... have to do a lot of things. 5 more weeks ...

*(I rectified the problem thanks to some help. I don't know how it worked but it works now. Now I have 2 email addresses... )

Secondary School Education has ended forever. Yesterday's Paralithurgy and farewell assembly went well. We wrote our thanks, prayers and aspirations on multi-colored stars that were later strung up around the aerial parts of the hall, where will be sitting for our exams in less than a month's time.


Life is gonna be more hectic. My friend told me to look forward to when the exams end. I'm referring to it as the exams to give the other letters of the full name of the exam less emphasis. We have lots of email sent to us daily. Most of them are online assignments. Now have more maths papers to do and I can't finish, 4 papers daily is insane. It will take at least 5 hours to clear all the 4 papers daily at top speed. I also have to do revision for other subjects.


Just saying bye to everyone. I'm be blogging less often. No one reads much about the stuff posted here anyway. Saying bye and thanks to comfort my computer who has always been with me and my previous self who was addicted to this computer.


Thinking only of one's own needs can make someone petty and small-minded. Thinking of others, praying for them, giving to them, and helping them, makes someone great!

Our time spent at school is coming to an end by this Thursday. Thursday will be our last day of school. So sad yet exciting. There's so many things to anticipate in future yet so many things we don't wish to let go of, dwelling in the past.


Today was fun. My history teacher was walking up the stairs today after assembly. I was right behind her. Her left shoe sort of got caught between 2 steps and it fell off. Then she apologised to me in order to avoid further embarrassment, though I didn't think she ought to apologise at all. And my physics teacher was looking down and he was smiling as usual. And she said: "Mr XXX, don't laugh ah, I'm gonna kick your butt."


Then she said something about how a shoe becoming loose and falling off is one of the most embarrassing things that could happen to a woman and several other repetitions and stuff and me and my friends were in an uproar of hysterics and laughter and amusement. And Mr XX couldn't turn his lips upside down but he continued his cheerful disposition as usual. The atmosphere was really uncalled for and everyone in the vicinity had their humour tickled.


School is going to end. I should update and change the class blog design soon. I'm also gonna set up a separate blog where I will post my history 2138 /2158 essays for those in need of them. If you can't seem to find a friend, put down your binoculars and look closer to home.

Oh wow ... I finish all the A Maths papers assigned to us for the next few weeks. Now I'm left with just E maths and physics. I won't do all of them yet. I dunno how to revise ... Should I memorise the textbook or perhaps have someone talk to me about the concepts of each topic in the subject we are discussing on. I realise that having someone to chat with about history helps to keep my facts in mind and also squeeze out new ideas for our part two questions.

I had no time to lengthen the last essay for our history test today. I think I overwrote for the first three essays. The timeline for the third essay was a bit vague. But nevertheless I think I can still pull through the test. I wonder when we will get back all our mock tests. Are the teachers gonna mail us the scripts and then send the answers online? I know they're doing that for English though.

Everyone's not hyped up about F1 in my class. No one said anything about it. But I'm confident that my previous English teacher was there at the race last night. He's a number one F1 fanatic. Since lower secondary, there's been a lot of talk about cars and car races during lessons where we had open discussions. And lots of obscenities too.

I shall find something to entertain myself with now. Faith is the greatest gift you can give people who are having trouble believing in themselves. Actually I think we all believe in ourselves but sometimes we just don't know how to express it. I believe in you as you believe in me!

We got back our results. I did well enough but there's still hectares of space for vast improvement. There were 5 subjects that did not disappoint, 2 that were close to an A, and 2 others that I have to work on desperately. Anyway, I attained 8 points but it would be 2 points better if I scored higher for English, where I attained a B for Breast and Bear and Balls and Bearings and Bolsheviks and Bravery and Bleach and Blue and Britney and Backstreet Boys and Buono! and Beach and Bag and Boo and Brick and Break and I'm going mad.


I downloaded GreeeeN songs a few days ago. At first I thought the songs were boring and monotonous but after seeing their music videos, I got hooked onto their songs. They're second to Yui now on my J-pop music charts! I especially like the lyrics to their hit single Kiseki, which means miracle or Qi Ji, in mandarin. They made me wanna cry and I'm sure they will make others cry too. So touching~


I fell sick yesterday. I had a fever with no distinct diagnosis of what was causing it. But it subsided today and I thank God for helping me feel better. It's getting late and I should get more rest. I shall sleep by 11.


Without the right goals, we will never be truly successful in life, no matter how much money we earn or how great a name we make for ourselves.

I don't have much time to post because I haven't completed my tuition homework and the tutor is coming in about an hour or so. I came back after midnight yesterday. We had our speech and graduation day yesterday afternoon and it lasted till evening. It's quite melancholic to come to the realisation that we are all leaving the school in 2 weeks time. The graduation ceremony went well. Dad and mum read my letter and were touched.


After that, I had to fold my certificates into two because my bag was too small to contain an A4 size envelope, and dad had already gone home because I told him our class was having dinner out. But thankfully the certificates are still in good condition. Our teachers brought us to Seoul Garden to eat. I ate fried rice and some barbecued stuff and drank 3 cups of drinks (ice lemon tea and peach tea) and ate desert and ice cream and cream of mushroom soup and a lot of eggs and fish and I couldn't defecate until just now hence thank God that I'm somewhat intestinally relieved as of this moment.


We thanked our teachers and then me, and 6 of my friends went to Lido to watch Mamma Mia. It was my first time going to a Lido Cineplex and it was huge. It looked like a gargantuan discotheque, except that there were a lot of sofa-like seats. We watched the 9.45pm show which lasted about 2 hours. It was an excellent musical and was so hilariously at some points. Everyone had fun. I took one of the last buses home ... but the night life at orchard was still hustling and bustling away.


Church was great today. Though I couldn't find any of my cell members anywhere today. I heard my cell leader's child was born today. Congratulations! I hope to continue growing in God and trusting him in everything that I do. Kindness and consideration for others never goes out of style! Mata Ne.