Something I came across while on facebook. So true that it's bizzare! A short but precise history of our primary school days.. :)

If you were born in the 80's in Singapore, you would remember most if not all of the following:

- You grew up watching MASK, Transformers, Mickey Mouse, Ninja turtles, Carebears, Robocop, My Little Pony and Smurfs.(I'd sure did!)

- You owned a Nintendo game boy and Super Mario is one of your favourite games.

- You grew up brushing your teeth with a mug in Primary school during recess time. You would squat by a drain with all your classmates beside you, and brush your teeth with a coloured mug. (hahaaa, my mug was yellow ;p)

- You paid 40 cents for cartons of Chocolate or Strawberry milk every week in class. (i remember the milk thingy, maybe that is because they think we dont have enuff calcium)

- Everyone's wallet used to be the velcro type (the 'in' thing those days eh.. i had a couple of those too)

- It was cool to have pagers in primary school

- Envelopes were given to us to donate to Sharity Elephant every Children's Day.

- You've probably read Young Generation magazine.You know who's Vinny the little vampire and Acai the constable.

- You know what PETS are and the hidden animals in all the text pages. You hated penmanship. (Finding hidden animals were my fav thing to do while in Eng lessons)

- You were there when they first introduced the MRT here. You went for the first ride with your parents and you would kneel on the seat to see the scenery.

- You bought tidbits called beebee and mamee, that had a different sticker in it every time. (who says so, I like my pink-dolphin calcium!)

- You carried a lunch box to school but either threw away the food or brought it back home again (so true.. oopsie).

- You watched TV2 (also known as Channel 10) cartoons because Channel 5 never had enough cartoons for you.

- Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, The Three Investigators, Famous Five and Secret Seven were probably the thickest story books you thought you would ever read (Yeah i remember reading hardy boys and the three investigators).

- Catching and pepsi-cola was the IN thing, and twist was the magic word.

- Your English workbooks were made of some damn poor quality paper that was smooth and yellow.

- You came to school 15 mins before the bell every morning just so you could copy someone's homework (ABSOLUTELY TRUE!!!!).

- Waterbottles were slung around your neck and a must everywhere you went.

- Science was fun with the Balsam and the Angsana being the most important plants of our lives, guppies and swordtail being the most important fishes (I remember the good o' science lessons where we had to look for angsana seeds).

- Who can forget Ahmad, Bala, Sumei and John, immortalized in our minds from school textbooks.

- We conducted experiments of our own to get badges for being a Young Zoologist/Botanist etc. (I was a young Zoologist and Orthonologist ok!!)

- Every Children's day and National day you either got pins or pens with 'Happy Children's Day 1993' or useless plastic files with 'Happy National Day 1994'.

- You wore BM2000, BATA, or Pallas shoes (I wore BM2000 and Bata in primary school. My outing shoes were bubble gummas).

- Your form teacher taught you Maths, Science and English (i think they still do it nowadays).

- You went to school in slippers and a raincoat when it rained, and you find a dry spot in the school to sit down, dry your feet, and wear your dry and warm socks and shoes (I never did cos i took the schoolbus).

- There would be spelling tests and mental sums to do almost everyday (you hated them)(yup, i sure hated it.. lol).

- Your friends considered you lucky and rich if your parents gave you $2 or more for pocket mone everyday (hmm, i think i only had $1.00 in primary school).

- Class monitors and prefects loved to say, "You talk somemore, I write your name ah!".. (hahaa, no offence to class monitors)

- You got booked for muddy shoes in class.

- There were at least 40 people in one class.

- You brought every single book to school, even though there was a timetable.

- There was a pro-yo/bumblebee, digimon/tamagotchi craze at some point in time.


Nostalgic aint it?
I can safely say i've gone through 99.9999% of that. It's so true that it is unbelievable! Bizzare stuff indeed.. Maybe i should go dig up my tamagotchi and digimons. I remember i used to have a limited edition one, it's glow in the dark ok. And my proyo is prolly rusting off somewhere..

Haahaa.

Naturally, I do get to rant all I want on my blog and have the right to subject the readers to endless blabbing. This post summarizes all the cooped-up stuff that should have been vent a long time ago. Afterall, I get to be testy once in a while.

While the folks are counting down to their return to Singapore, I dare not even think what life would be back in Singapore. Given the current situations and the proposed plans, there is a very high chance (in my most honest opinion) that I would be shifting foot to much greener pastures elsewhere. Sharing a room with a family member is all natural, but sharing a room with a complete stranger, if I may put it, is completely unreasonable and unethical. This is comparable to residing with your boyfriend before marriage which is something the folks is strictly against. Symbiosis is occuring right under their noses yet censorship and curbing the freedom of the mouth is in place. I'm perfectly fine with the idea of symbiosis, of organisms living off each other for the sake of survival, just that I dont see how this is different to the proposed situation. Of course, if we were to rewind and reverse the roles and I am the one that was living with my boyfriend, I would probably get one tight slap across the right cheek from my dad to "wake up my idea" before being succumbed to tongue-wagging and hearing endless disapprovals and strong objections from the folks. Why then is it okay that the boy's girlfriend comes to stay and be an integral part of the family when clearly, she hasnt even been certified and lawfully wedded! Clearly, a case of biasness.

It all boils down to the asian context of carrying on the family line eh. Afterall, crude as it may sound, I'm short of having the reproductive organ that dangles. The argument would then lead on to saying that being in a foreign land, they're all a person's got. Gosh seriouslyyyyy.. being friendly and nice to your neighbour and allowing your neighbour to be an integral part of your personal life is two totally different matters. I've worked out the math. Even if we were to get a 5-room HDB flat, comprising of 3 bedrooms, and the folks get one, the brother gets one and you're smart enough to work out the rest. Hence in all cases, I'll get you know what I mean. Since conflict management is not something that I'm naturally good at, and I can argue until the cows come home, I'll definitely wont be able to out-talk or out-convince the folks, so in this particular case, I reckon staying as far away as possible would reduce conflict and thus be most ideal. I'm praying really hard that I would be awarded the scholarship at the end of the year and work my butt off to attain the gold-standard of education before being financially-abled to afford renting a unit. If I dont, I shudder to think what would happen 1 year down the track.

Although this may point to me being testy, but the contents of this post is based on the simple principles that I have been brought up with. Even though I may accept her as a potential member of the family, as long as the paper is not signed and vows are not exchanged, it's unethical and morally incorrect for members of the opposite sex in love with each other to be living together under the same roof.

If only toast here taste as good as YaKun's. I wish I could have a hearty YaKun breakfast. Can someone be so kind to fly a set over?

I crave not only for YaKun's but also for Ghim Moh's chicken rice.. yummmmmmm.. why didnt i have more chicken rice back then. Okay maybe I did, I was practically having chicken rice every day. But still, such yummilicious food I will never get sick of.

Even if i dont get to taste ghim moh's chicken rice, I will settle for something at FoodJunction. I really wont mind....



Ok! No more cravings, I shall start on the LitReview. :)

No more procrastination! Uh-huh..

Had a fabulous time catching up with the girls and guys over the weekend. I thank God for a wonderful cell group, for the people whom walked with me through tough times, for the long emails and monthly updates. Like fallen autumn leaves, I am renewed again when I'm soaking in the love of God alongside the wonderful cell. :)

I prayed:

Dear God,

Today, I need the promise of Your strength. Allow me to see good in the lives of people today. So many find fault, criticize and major on the minors of life. Help me to see the potential you see in others. And speaking of potential, allow me to see my own unique potential for making a positive difference in my world.

I have looked ahead at my near future and what I see will take tremendous strength and a commitment I am not sure I possess. I am feeling the temptation to compromise on some of my convictions and lower the standards I know must be held high. Teach me to recognize your voice in my hurried, everyday world.

Strengthen me from the inside out. Help me to know you, love you, hear your voice, and follow you. I know that Your strength has stood the tests of time. Your unwavering commitment to love me has been tested by doubt and defiance, and not once has it ever failed to deliver your gentle touch when needed. Your patience has been stretched by disobedience and deception, and it has always been in every corner of my life. No, it is certainly not Your strength that I question; it is mine. I do not want my faults to fail You in the heat of daily battles or when confronting the largest of problems that everyone endures at some time in life. I am turning to You to give me Your strength for today, tomorrow, and forever.

Thank you for your unconditional love. All this I pray, Amen.


He replied:

My dearest child,

You are right to come to Me when you are weary and feel the weight of many concerns because you know I will put your heart to rest. Hear My teachings and take them into your heart, and you will find rest from what troubles you. I am your protection and your strength. I will always help you when the times of trouble come. You can say to yourself, "The Lord all powerful is with me, and He is my defender."

Not only will I be with you, I will give you strength when you are tired and more power than you need when you are weak. when you trust Me, you will become strong again. In fact , you will rise up like a soaring eagle, run without needing to rest, and you will walk without becoming tired.

Finally, be strong in My power. Wear My words like armor, because your struggle isn't with this world but with the unseen forces of evil. Stand your ground using truth as a belt and righteousness as protection for your heart, and wear the good news of peace on your feet for readiness and speed. And don't forget your shield of faith, because with it you can douse the flaming arrows that will be thrown at you. Protect your mind with My promised salvation, and always have your sharp sword of the spirit, which is My Word.

Love, your heavenly Father.

It's been a week eversince the exam ended, I've been trying to get my experiment started and perfecting my staining protocol. I'm finally back online and trying to adjust myself back to the exp mode.

Due to a brief experimental failure yesterday, i've begun to look at other alternatives for you-know-what at you-know-where. Not sure if in vivo still is the thing i would want to commit to for the next four years, i guess in vitro work still holds a special place in my heart. Afterall, that was my very first lab experience not forgetting the wonderful experimental results in the apoptosis laboratory.

Just when everything was not going according to plan, today's exp went well too. Perfecto in fact! An absolutely splendid IHC stain. I must add that the feeling was just great, i cant really use any words to explain it. It is as if i could smell sweet success! Well, complecency wont get me anywhere.. fingers crossed all will go smoothly as planned. :)

When i was younger, i wanted to be a teacher.. to nurture, inspire and to be a part of the lives of the young ones. It has always and will always be a joy to see students whom you've taught before keeping in contact with you. I cant believe those kids whom i'm taught back then are in secondary school now. Time really flies.. but its always comforting to know that i've made an impact on their lives as individuals. As a teacher, i'll get to share my knowledge, expertise and life with the young ones but as a researcher, i'll get to improve the lives of many (worldwide). In both cases, my legacy would live on..

So which one would suit me more? I'm confused.. dont say be a lecturer, i'll get the best of both worlds, since i'll get to nurture, teach and do research at the same time.

That's all from me for now. Looks like i've to pen a time of reflection in my diary. more thinking is to come.

Have a great weekend guys!

Time to reply some tags:

Merf: Yes merf, updated! Wahahaha.....

Juan: Theme song on loop is exactly what I'm doing. Really great song huh? I've been waiting for your mail update for a long time. Now that the exams are over, dont think i have to wait till the cows come home eh.. :)

Sihui: Hey babes, thanks for all the encouragment and support through these tough times. hope the exams went well! time to enjoy your well-deserved break..

I finished the last exam of my university career with a "full-stop" on friday. Was suppose to go for a good meal before doing seven transcardial perfusions. I had a text asking me to head to the physiology tearoom. Lo and behold! I entered and there they were with Jitsu takeaways. Thanks guys! For the wonderful surprises and mini-celebration. Even the boss joined us for lunch..

Anyway, perfusion was performed in record time. 2hours for seven perfusions. we even had time to head to St Clair for cakes-in-a-bag cos there were no tables and they ran out of plastic containers. So it goes, we had cakes-in-a-bag, overlooking the ocean, with an entire gang of seagulls waiting anxiously outside. Again, thanks to the crew for that wonderful spur-of-the-moment decision.

Well, at least i remembered to cryoprotect the brains. Hahaa! We needed sugar, so does the brains.