my school building

Flipping through the New Paper today, my glance fell upon this small article with the heading "From school building to boutique hotel".... not usually the kind of news that will attract me... until I saw the words 'Pearl's Hill Primary School'.

That's where I came from.

Now, from a run-down school building, it is going to be converted into a boutique business hotel by the end of this year!

I still remember the school compound vividly.... a 12-storey building (apparently not many primary schools are this high).... the staircases, the lifts and the lift uncles, the dental clinic and the book store on the 1.5th level.

I remember the canteen, the different food stalls, some of the aunties' faces. My favourite fried rice and sunny side up as well as the wanton noodles. All for less than $1. I remember the benches, and some of those which always have bird shit on them.

The pond which looks mouldy all the time. The field, the monkey bar where my bro broke his arm, the basketball court where we run our 1.6km, the park where we always go during our art lessons... the angsana and casuarina trees.

so so so many memories.

now the classrooms will be turned into hotel rooms and bathrooms. The canteen will become the lobby. The garden may be a balcony. The basketball court into a swimming pool?

maybe i should gather my primary school friends and book ourselves a room there when it's done. =)

link to article on cna :
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporebusinessnews/view/261136/1/.html

Tick tock tick tock tick tock.....

It's as if there's a time bomb inside my body. clicking, clicking away.
and it started ticking when Mr goh asked me the same question again
(No, it's not THE question), but rather, he asked if I'd like to do postgraduate some time in the near future. together. overseas. australia most probably.

i'd love to...but...

there's always but.

there are a thousand and one things on my mind which tells me this is not the right time...but but but....

I wish i have the ability and capability to keep my sight firmly on the destination, instead of worrying how I'm going to make it there.

if only life's that simple.

if only i can say i want to do that and pop! solutions appear! pop! money appears! pop! accomodation overseas settled! pop! everything else here is taken care of! pop! pop! pop!

I can sense mr goh is really keen to take another degree, especially if accenture doesn't continue their contract with him after 6 months. and his mother is also constantly asking him if he wants to go overseas .... i'm selfishly hoping that him going away won't happen.

I told him to work for another year at least. I told him that he hasn't experienced enough working lifestyle to fully know what course he wants to take. I told him he's not ready to go back to sch. I told him all that and more, hoping it'd diminish his thoughts. but i didn't tell him how i'd miss him when he's gone. yah, paranoid gf. not exactly all that supporting huh?

conflict.

life gets pretty complicated when you're not living it alone. i'd go ahead with what i want to do in the past, but what i want to do will affect others now. sigh. Can someone make life simpler?!?!

i also have my plans... I have plans to maybe go for my postgraduate after working 2 years, or maybe i won't and i'd join another firm. or maybe... just maybe...

Ironically, for someone like me who loves to plan, i don't really stick to them, especially when i cannot even imagine the outcome. There are so many possibilities! c'mon! it's like the adventure storybooks u read while u were young... To continue the adventure, choose Event A, or choose Event B and each will lead to a different outcome. I always play cheat and peeped at the outcome before choosing the event.

what is the outcome i want to see now?

the clock is ticking...

so long..farewell

Well, this is it. The last day of school for me. Today marks the end of 3 years of education at NTU. Scary. Was thinking a lot about the past today. Somehow, when you reach a junction in your life, you tend to stop, look around and wonder what brought you this far.

So, I was thinking about end of exams. I had the privilege of ending my exam agony early while other people are still mugging for theirs. But I didn't enjoy this privilege. felt lost. Felt empty somehow...could it be that I'm immuned to exams that I can't feel anything for it any more? I recalled those times in st nicks where exams were taken in class. We have to arrange the tables and chairs in exam seating arrangements. Sit according to index numbers. And that will be the battlefield for us the next few days. And hey! There were all those "good luck" notes we wrote for everyone else. I'm just too lazy to do that nowadays... (but thank you shiyun for writing!) There was a sense of belonging then I guess. And oh, did I mention the after exam treats we girls give ourselves? Movies! Food glorious food! Still remembered we watched xin dong at J8 and the ring (oh, lovely ring) at lido. Celebration after exams with the sweeties spells F U N.

Then came JC... Spent most of my JC life slacking and zao-ing school. Late for several occasions and caught by the fierce woman…I forgot her name. had to slide/crawl under the gate in my grey uniform (whether late for sch or zao school or both). Could have blended with the road and kenna run over by vehicles. Still, it was fun. Exams were not so fun though. Sitting among fellow NJCians in the hall. Strange thing about me is... I always have a minute or so during the exam to take a good look around me. Observe the looks on people and marvel at the speed which they write. (no wonder i never have enough time to finish) Celebrations after exams included venezia at sixth avenue. Yummy.

But today was different. Can't wait for everyone to finish exams together.

My tuition girl was very stressed over her exams too... spent 2.5 hrs with her today. She told me her dad actually told her that it is okay for her to quit sch now without even finishing her N levels and start work at the factory (which I think the dad owns or something). I was appalled! Instead of encouraging her... He actually told her to give up.

Then I thought about my parents. They never really pressurize me to study very hard and get top grades. They just let me be. Although my mum did tell me once that if I cannot cope, she wouldn't mind if I quit school. I think I scolded her "siao". Heh.

I'm glad I made it.

Hello, corporate world.