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2nd Blood~

So my new pair of running shoes, the adizero breeze beijing olympics version cost me a mere S$42. Thanks dad for the $80 adidas voucher and the $30 old shoe trade in promotion by adidas, which will last till the end of the month. So those who wanna get adidas running shoes, go get it before September ends! Haha!

F1 Cham Shiong~

We went down with the intention to hear. But we got so much more than that. 4 brave souls and 2 more that endured the ear drum shattering sound waves and the earthquake like vibrations of the passing of each F1 car. It was beyond amazing. It was REVolutions-nary.  

Fernando Alonso

Kimmi Raikkonen

Lewis Hamilton

** The pics were taken with 1/2000s shutter speed with f/2.5 aperture, and I think 1600 ISO. And the cars are still blur.....

The day I spent 6 hours walking~

Went to check out the Singapore Biennale with Kianboon yesterday, and took the opportunity to test fire the lx3 again and learn some photography stuff from Kianboon. Photography is a hobby that when you start picking up, u can't stop. The only thing that can stop you is the lack of financial resources to fund the equipment that would give you visually stimulating pictures that you wouldcrave and keep coming back for. Anywayz, we walked for about 2 hours plus at the South Beach development. If ya want to see everything for the SB, I think you would need an entire day cos there's just so much to see. After having dinner and parting ways cos he had tuition, I went down to the City Hall part of the SB and peeked my way through the exhibits, as the numerous dark rooms used for the exhibits, some of the wierdass exhibits themselves, the spooky corridoors and the lack of life at City Hall just gives you the creeps. Before the SB volunteers could involuntarily lock me inside City Hall cos they were closing, I headed down to where the day was eating the night and just immersed myself into the tranquil states of the brightly lit F1 track with scattered sounds of other lingering tourists and last minute works that are being done to the track. The streets won't stay silent for this long. I guess what I felt standing in the middle of an empty race track is tantamount to what Dr Robert Neville felt standing in the middle of a deserted NY city. Standing amidst the silence of the tracks, you just know that something big is coming. Something either really big, or something really loud. Haha...Here are some of the more interesting photos I took yesterday. Enjoy!

Its been a long time~

The last week of Sch, the hols, and the 3 days tt Sg would be awakened~

Woo hoo!!! Next week's the last week of school before term break, a well needed one after the 1st exhausting half of the sem. Can't wait man...but kns...got 3 quizzes next week.  The school certainly doesn't let us go off easily. Heat transfer, french and Are you ok mental health. Can't wait for the quizzes to be over man. Looks like this term break's gonna be an exciting one with fun filled activities lining up like badminton chalet, Glenn's welcome back dinner, MRO workshops, and the 1 day Singapore Biennial day trip. Not to mention F1. Still trying to think of a way to hear the cars revving at over 19000 rpm. but im sure at tt kinda rotating speed, we can hear it from quite a far distance. Anyway, 5 interesting facts about f1 cars below. Enjoy!

1. An F1 car is made up of 80,000 components, if it were assembled 99.9% correctly; it would still start the race with 80 things wrong!

2. An F1 car can go from 0 to 160 kph AND back to 0 in FOUR seconds!!!!

3. An average F1 driver looses about 4kgs of weight after just one race due to the prolonged exposure to high G forces and temperatures for little over an hour (Yeah that’s right!!!)

4. The amount of aerodynamic downforce produced by the front and rear wings and the car underbody is amazing. Once the car is traveling over 160 kph, an F1 car can generate enough downforce to equal its own weight. That means it could actually hold itself to the CEILING of a tunnel and drive UPSIDE down!

5. When an F1 driver hits the brakes on his car he experiences retardation or deceleration comparable to a regular car driving through a BRICK wall at 300kmph!!!

Photos~

Nothing But the blood~


One can have the greatest talent, but without the right attitude and focus, he can't achieve anything.

"Oh what can wash away my sins, what can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood, nothing but the blood of Jesus."

End of the World? ~

What would you be doing on September 10th? Whatever that you may be doing, it may be the last thing that you may do. For on September 10th, the scientists at CERN (The European Organization for Nuclear Research) would be running a particle beam through the Large Hadron Collider,the world's largest particle accelerator in Geneva, Switzerland. Sparing you the scientific theories and nitty grittys, a mischap in the experiment could lead to a creation of a black hole, and wala, we have one big vacuum cleaner, that would suck the earth of all it's matter. Ok I think I'm exaggerating, but does it matter? But wait! There's more. If they happen to succeed at making the particle run the full 27km circumference of the particle accelerator, they'll be attempting to conduct a high energy particle collision test on the 21st October 2008. 

Its time to start waking up everyday and thanking God that you are still alive, and appreciating all the small little things in life that we overlook everyday. 

Enfin!!~

Finally, after a long gruelling wait, I have finally gotten hall. My distracted and wandering mind during Heat Transfer lecture would aptly decribe my mental and emotional state when I got the news that I've been offered a place in Hall 12 on Wednesday. I couldn't wait to go collect my keys lah. Unfortunately, I had to wait a leetle teeny bit longer because I had to account to people who had helped me or attempted to help me to get hall. Namely Albert, the Hall 2 officer who up a good word for me to SAO and Guojian who had been annoying his Hall 3 sports sec about my case. Once the Hall 12 officer gave the no go to transfer of Hall on Thursday, I moved. So, Hall 12 seems like a nice place to stay. It's pretty near school, and located in the Hall 3 and 16 cluster which makes NTU looks like a nice place to study in. Thankfully, my roommate is Singaporean. Hope to strike a good chord with him in our future times together. 

Finally, after 1 long week of work, I've completed my Flight Mechanics CA assignment. So much for just 15% of my final grade. But I have to say that through this assignment I have learnt so much more, and am still very approving of putting more weightage for grades on assignments than exams because the learning value is just so much higher. Ultimately, we are preparing ourselves for the industry, where we would need to learn to use the tools given to us to solve problems, to identify problems, to provide the solution. 

Finally, I've signed up as a member of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. I was considering to sign up for it while I was in the States, but just didn't gave it enough thought to do so. Anyway, I guess the reason why I signed up as a member was because of the vast amount of educational resources they have on their site, and discounts you can get if you want to buy books by the AIAA which would justify the annual 20USD member fee.

Finally, my eyes are gettin better. In no less than a week, I'll be having perfect vision again(both inward and outward). I'm gonna miss my weekly dates with my opthomolgist, who will definitely miss me considering I pay her 45 bucks for 5 minutes of her time. 

Mannerism~

Driving on the roads in Singapore just makes me disappointed and frustrated. Although we are an affluent country and are relatively well developed, we lack the basic courtesy and manners that people of affluence should have. Drivers signal late and they don't give way to others. They also attempt to "cut" into filter lanes that have long queues. More often than not, when they want to change lane, they would do it with such speed and suddenness that the car driver whois in the lane just behind them might get a cardiac arrest even if they don't have a history of cardiovascular disease.

I was on the train the other day, and was preparing to exit at the next mrt station. As I was standing somewhere in the centre of the train compartment, I gestured my way to the train doors. When the doors opened, this SINGAPORE AUNTIE standing at the back of me gave me a nudge on my back, sidestepped me and cut me before I could even put a foot forward to get out of the train. (She can go play for Singapore Sevens liao)

I think we need to learn from the Japanese, who do not push and sidestep people deliberately in the trains and train stations just because they are in a hurry. I think we need to learn from the Americans, who do not horn and flash at drivers who are slow on the overtaking lane, but overtake take them on the non overtaking lane, or just be patient with the driver. The point is, if u want someone to show courtesy to you, you must show courtesy to them. If everyone acts considerately, no one will act inconsiderately.

Check out the vids on Singaporen Aunties at Youtube and have a ball of a laugh.

1st Blood~

So, I just couldn't resist the affinity I had with this particular camera. Unfortunately or fortunately, its another Panasonic Lumix. Considering that the 1st lumix I bought was an initial disappointment, you would think that the chances of me getting another lumix was highy unlikely. But NO. I have no regrets with this camera, at least for now. When I was looking for a digital camera, I couldn't really find anything that excites me. I was looking for something that has some manual controls for some creativity input, and something compact and small and not having to lug around like a big bulky SLR. I stumbled upon this baby and the rest was history. I love that rustic and old school design that the camera has, and not to mention the loads of functions that this baby packs. I'm not really a photography enthusiast, but I'll definitely learn how to use this baby proply. Even if I don't, I'm assured it takes a helluva picture.

School's finally catching up on me, with work piling up. Application for Industrial Attachment has opened, and I'm still kinda contemplating which company should I apply to. Went to see the opthamologist again today, and she said that the spots on my cornea haven't exactly gone away, so I guess I'll have to stay off contacts for another convenient week of Cheers Doubles tournament. Crap. I need to spend more time to study, less time slacking, less time staring into space and stoning. Maybe that's causing my vision to blur. When u stone, u can only see a stone's throw away.... (no need to laugh).

Of Happiness and Health~

"Happiness is created by oneself, and one must constantly seek his own happiness, to be happy." In one's pursuit of happiness, I think it is important that we do not take away happiness from people. But achieve happiness through the system and by taking advantage of the system. Gain happiness through the happiness of others, and share the happiness so that other people will be happy.

Things seem to be blurry these days, in literal terms. Ever since my left eye kena soreness last Tuesday, my vision has kinda deteriorated. Seen a doctor, and according to her it might be due to a sinus infection, other symptoms include headache, flu, and pressure in the nasal region. I kinda had tt for 2 weeks, didn't noe it would have turned out so bad. Anyway, gonna see an opthamologist this Saturday to clear things up. Hopefully its nothing serious. To make matters slightly worse, I realised i was using expired contact lens solution just this week. Hopefully tt didn't cause anything. Seriously, I'm having qualms about wearing contact lenses now, and will probably wear it only when necessary like when playing sports. After all, I've only a pair of eyes.

Objects Of Desire~

1st Week in NTU~

Despite the fact that I have 3 lesser core courses than my peers which they hate me for, it has not been the best start to the new academic year since coming back from the States. With Hall issues still pertinent at the back of my mind, and the lack of a comfortable environment to study and rest in, I am starting to wonder how I would be able survive the start of the semester. I just hope that an email from SAO would pop into my mailbox rather soon. Moreover, the recent lethargy doesn't really help much in getting focused and ready for work. At least there's the National day weekend to act as an additional buffer and hopefully the "rest" can help to rejuvenate the tired mind and soul.

Playing guitar for Sing Eng this Friday at the church's Nation Prayer Watch. During the woship practice on Tuesday, she said something in the special prayer session we had to prepare ourselves mentally and spiritually before practice that struck me quite abit. She said, "I hope that all of us are here, not because we can be here, but because we want to be here." Its been a while since I've started serving in the worship ministry. Besides the instance where I made the first move to get into the worship ministry, which was more of a "want to be" than a "can be" (I learnt most of my guitar on the job) , I never thought about "wanting to serve". In fact, with the lack of musicians in church the mindset of "can make it", especially for adhoc sessions like the prayer watch is a mindset which I have. This forced me to really think whether I really wanted to be there, really wanted to serve God and spend time with him rather than just doing someone a favour or filling in just to ensure the band is complete. Regardless, I thank him for giving me the skill and the time to be able to serve in this ministry. And it won't be a "can make it", and "want to make it" although sometimes the want may be more unconscious than the can.

Need to train man....School training is at a stand still even though school has started because of the inability to secure courts. With Cheers doubles looming in September and the selection for the 14th Asean Uni Games coming up, it is important to try to be at one's best. Because only then will he be able to answer to himself, and be accountable for his actions.

Anywayz, school is rather slack on the 1st week,but it will definitely gain speed in the weeks to come and I will have to prepare myself for yet another exciting semester, after which I will be taking another sem off from Pulau NTU, at a place yet to be decided, but will go where God calls me to go, and where I can go....

Problem with Passion In Everything~

The problem with having passion in everything leaves you with passion in nothing. The problem with having passion in everything leaves you good at nothing. The problem with having passion in everything leaves you time for nothing.

Hence, when one is young, discover. But when one grows old, be a master. For the jack of all trades is a master of none. And that would be the greatest regret of my life.

Amazing~

This.....is what I call honouring your wedding vows...."...till death do us part...."

Injustice~

There is so much injustice in this world, that one can either choose to fade away and not let the troubles of this world be upon him, or stand up and fight against injustice, an action which might cause further injustice to beset upon him. So what exactly is justice? It is the quality of being just; righteousness, equitableness or moral rightness and the moral principle determining just conduct. It is the shining light that protects the innocent and pierces the heart of darkness. It is the ability to stand tall and firm in the waves of chaos and unlawfulness. It is the moment when one stands before God, and be judged for all the moral and religious unrighteousness that he has commmited in this world. Where there is injustice, there shall be justice, as justice will always prevail.

God give me strength

The Vagabond~

"The best option for you is legal squatting. You probably can get a hall place in September or October..or maybe December...." So this is the story of my hall life. Because of being too trusting in people and making wrong decisions, I have been from earning my right to staying in hall, to shifting to an alien hall, to not having any hall at all. Luckily for me, I have XP, the ex-roomie who readily offered to share his single room with me next semester. Thanks dude, it really means alot to me. Perhaps there is a reason for me to wander from place to place. Perhaps God is telling me that I should not stay hall. But I want to and I have to because of IVP training, which probably is more important than IVP trainings in the past years because of the fierce competition that we would be facing to retain the IVP title for the 3rd year. There's also Asean University Games this year, which I hope I will be able to make the team and train hard for. Nevertheless, everything happens for a reason which I hope I will be able to come to terms with.

World Record~

I had my first haircut in Singapore which the hairdresser took 10 mins to cut after 6 months. I thought about my hair in the states and how I have managed to achieve to keep it the longest ever in my entire life. This picture shows you the record for longest hair Hamon ever had. WOW.

Singfest~

Well well, the "biggest" music festival is dawning upon us, with the "biggest" names in the music industry like Travis, Jason Mraz, Simple Plan, Stacie Orrico and Alicia Keys coming down to perform at the humble Fort Canning Park, it would definitely attract the "biggest" crowds, and oh did I mention the "biggest" price tag? Ok so amongst the aforementioned artistes that are performing, there is another handful of artistes that I have never heard of. So, with the hefty price tag of S$150 and S$200 (presale) for a Saturday and Sunday day pass respectively and S$300 for a 2 day weekend pass, I wonder how many people could actually afford the exorbitant price tags placed on these tickets. I know I can't. I have S$300 in my bank account, but I just don't see myself paying that amount for 20 hours a day of "entertainment" by artistes that I don't know of, and considering the fact that in the all star line up list of artistes I am only a fan of Jason Mraz, One Republic and Simple Plan, it just makes even more sense for me not to pay an average of S$100 to see these artistes perform on different days.

Kudos to the organizers for bringing in the bignames and putting Singapore somehere on the map for performing venues for big artistes. But boo to them for not allowing music fans to have a choice to pay for what they want to watch like how Mosaic Music festival does it. Biggest Music festival in Singapore? Biggest Boohoo to music fans who find the pricetag on this one just too much to bear.

This Blog Is not Dead..yet~

Finally back after 6 months in Sunny Singapore. Finally back after 3 weeks of holidaying. Finally writing a post after a very long needed break and the lack of motivation to. Unpacking kinda sucks. The things just adds to the already so many things I have at home. Time to do some spring cleaning and donate some of the overflowing items to the Salvation Army. I'm not used to my house. I kinda liked that everything is within a step or 2 in the little apartment in Seattle. I drank Winter Melon tea, ate choke and Oh Lua yesterday night. I played on the rusty strings of my takamine guitar first thing when I woke up in the morning. They so need to be changed, and I guess the ones on my electric as well. I so need to get a Taylor. I went out to say hi to Troy. I looked out the window to see the koi in the pond. I will feed them tonight. The black chevrolet is parked outside the house. I will drive it tonight. I fixed the Boeing 787 model that I bought, its now soaring on my table. My room's in a mess. I thought I unpacked everything, but it seems I unpacked nothing. Dammit. It's such a drag. Feeling kinda shack. But ultimately it feels good to be back.

The Trip Thus Far~

We began our journey on that faithful day, where goodbyes were said and parting messages were exchanged. The date was June 12^th 2008. And so the 3 of us took the 1^st step towards a 16 day adventure of the US and Canada. We took an overnight flight into Toronto Canada, transiting at Las Vegas where prominent street lamps and neon lights greeted us in the sky, and slot machines in the terminal. We met Auntie Ping and her family at Toronto. Auntie Ping was my nanny (maid) from the time when I was born till when I was 2. It was a very weird but heartwarming experience for me and I bet for her as well as this weird reunification brought much lost time and connections together. She and her husband went to a great measure to bring us around Toronto and make sure we enjoyed ourselves in this short one day stay. We visited the CN tower, apparently or rather REALLY the tallest building in the world, saw the magnificent bohemian architecture of Parliament, walked around Eaton Center, Harbourfront Center and drove past Chinatown, the University of Toronto and York University. The next day, they took us to the Niagara falls, where e experienced the ferry boat of our lives. Dubbed the Maid of the Mist, we managed to get close enough to the falls to experience the power of the falling water, which without raincoats we would be drenched from head to toe. Because of the lack of time planned in Niagara Falls, we couldn’t really walk the streets of the little town which bear resemblances of the touristy ones in Los Angeles or Las Vegas. When it was time to say goodbye, I could sense the sadness and tears of Auntie Ping which echoes in my heart because of that special and intimate connection we have with each other, as we do not know when we will see each other again, considering that we only saw each other after 21 years. As the bus slowly inched out of the terminal and as we wave and caught the last glimpse of Auntie Ping, Uncle Jojo and Eric, I am forced to think of our biggest challenge of the trip, crossing the border back into the United States.

We were told that we might face a problem when entering the US because our student visa has expired, but we know that by immigration laws we are able to enter the US under the Visa Waiver Program, a program which Singapore maybe because of its close ties with the US, entitles its citizens the privilege of touring and holidaying in the US without having to obtain a visa. All thanks be to God, we managed to clear customs smoothly and safely unlike one of our fellow passengers in the bus, who was detained by the customs for God knows what reason. Hence, we crossed over into Buffalo, NY, to catch yet another overnight ride (bus) to Boston. These overnight bus rides although they provide a cheap and time saving alternative to accommodations and traveling during the day respectively, drains one’s energy and strength with much efficiency. It was evident that all of us were tired despite it only being the 1^st 3 days of the trip, but we persevered and pulled through.

The date was June 15^th. We arrived in Boston at midday and checked into Hostelling International in Boston Fenway. The sight of a room with beds and shower proved to be a boost to our morale and energy. We freshened up ourselves quickly before heading out to visit the famous universities of MIT and Harvard. At night, we headed to Boston’s chinawtown where we had Taiwan cuisine “family style” (zhi char). We ordred Kang kong, Sweet and sour pork chops and ma poh toufu. It was a sumptuous meal that reminded me of food in Singapore and the great dishes that await our return. The next day, we took a 3 hour drive to the little and humble town of Waterbury, Vermont , where Ben & Jerry’s originated. We visited the factory where most of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream are made and managed to catch a glimpse of their ice cream making process through the factory tour.Of course, the girls were ecstatic and it proved to be a fun filled day of ice cream, memorabilia and not to mention, the horrendous roads in Boston. People say its difficult to drive in Boston because the drivers are not so polite as compared to drivers in the North West. I say it is difficult to drive in Boston because the roads are just ridiculously confusing, and it stupefies first time drivers like me which in turn leads to “rushing to work” Bostoners being impatient and impolite. In the evening, we visited Boston University and our knowledge and memories of the place is limited to the photos we took as there wasn’t really much to see so late in the day. After which, we visited Fenway Park, the home of the Boston Redsox baseball team, and the oldest baseball park and the most expensive place to play baseball in the United States. For dinner, we went to Legal Seafoods, apparently a must try for the “best Boston experience” as mentioned in the HI brochure. The food and service were pretty good but the price I would say was slightly exorbitant.

The next day, we checked out of the hostel early in the morning and just walked around downtown Boston, before catching the 1 pm bus to NY City. Till then…

MIA,

I will be. For how long, I dunno....

In 2.5 hours,

The agony will be vanquished, the shackles from freedom will be broken, and I will be free......

Now's not the best time.....

to study for 2 exams, when there are more pressing issues at hand such as the shifting out of the apartment, soaking in the last drop of seattle rain, basking in the magnificent UW architecture for a final time, worrying about summer trip and the unecessary necessary admin, and the emotional effects of saying goodbye to a city that I have called home for 6 months. Seattle isn't the most attractive place to be in the States. It is not as exciting as Los Angeles, as sinful as Las Vegas, as bustling as New York, as pristine as Washington DC, as sunny as Orlando or as intellectual as Boston. The streets aren't as clean, and the number of homeless people roaming the streets of downtown and chinatown just makes visiting these places a little apprehending at times. The weather is terribly gloomy especially for a time like summer, where we are still experiencing unbelievably low temperatures of 10 degrees celsius. Coupled with the rain, Seattlites must be pretty patient people. As a matter of fact, they are when it comes to traffic. Drivers are polite and pedestrians are king of the roads. Buses can stop for 5 minutes for bus drivers to aid a wheelchair bound passenger get snug into his seat without impatient remarks from fellow passengers or drivers waiting behind the buses.

Besides the generally polite nature of Seattlites, the city of Seattle also has much to offer. With homegrown companies such as Microsoft, Boeing, Amazon, Adobe, and Starbucks just to name a few, the city has a strongly rooted culture. It also has its charms in its neighborhoods such as the arty farty Fremont, and the University district, therein lies the University of Washington. I will definitely miss the times walking to school, when on a good day, the ever elusive cascade Mountains and Mount Rainier to the south will emerge from the clouds and fog, leaving behind a breathtaking scene to remember. There are the cherry blossoms, the ducks and squirrels and migratory birds and the gothic architecture of the University, they too eased the morning blues and dragginess that school brings. I will also miss the IMA, a facility that's in a class of its own and its badminton courts which helped fostered many friendships in my stay here.

But now's not the time for nostalgia too, and given the short amount of time I have left in Seattle which I would spend most of it doing all the sorts of stuff mentioned above, I don't have much time to think about these stuff. Looking ahead, when I leave Seattle, I guess I leave this place with no regrets. I came here with a purpose. A purpose to achieve, a purpose to experience. Within the boundaries of my abilities, these purposes have been fulfilled. This might not be the last time Seattle will see of me though, and it might not be the last time I will see of Seattle....

The Kakis~
A Chemistry professor, a Microsoft computer engineer, an Amazon employee, a computer science graduate student, a Chemistry graduate student, a Badminton entrepreneur, and an aeronautics major exchange student. Thanks for helping me keep in touch with the sport I've played for 15 years now, in a land so far away from home.

Wu fei - Thanks for being one of the 1st few person to play badminton with me at UW.

David - Thanks for just playing badminton with me!

CY - Thanks for restringing my rackets like 5 times and re-gripping them.

Tao - Thanks for the offering me discounts on microsoft software, the tube of birdies and
the ever so tiring singles games!

Kevin - The phiten man, thanks for the lifts to BBC and the testmonies on phiten products...haha

XiaoSong - Thanks for partnering me for doubles for Washington State Open, the lifts home after our sessions, and advice on grad school.

Thanks everyone:)

Nua~

Its the time of the year when u feel so nua, kinda burned out, just waiting for that long holiday to come, for you to recharge and rejuvenate. I wonder how people in the working world can work 5 days a week for the entire year. Exams are coming. Shit. I've been watching more movies and playing more badminton than I should be. I have been studying so much lesser than I should be. In fact, I've slacked off so much this quarter I think I'm gonna get shitty grades. So much for "...even though I'm on exchange, grades are still important cos it will be reflected on my transcript". So its only 7 more days left in Seattle before I head for the East Coast to enjoy the long awaited Summer break. I need to so pull my act together and find some motivation for studying through these 7 days, so that I don't do further damage to whatever damage that has been done throughout the quarter to the grades that doesn't really matter but actually does. Heck. So I need to nua abit more b4 I pull my act together. And crap, its a viscious cycle, procrastination........

Terminology~

Its the time when I start wondering whether I would miss Seattle and its Wastelands, or at least that's what a girl from the other side of the mountains call it. Nostalgia has yet to be in full effect, but it will soon be. Today I was this close to get a decent haircut. It turned out to be slightly less than disastrous, and could have been even worse if I didn't request to the hairdresser to use "special scissors". I realized that I've finally tuned myself to the terminology that the Americans use for haircuts as compared to the terminology Singaporeans use in Singapore where its so easy to get a cheap and good haircut.

"Slope" = "Taper"
"Jian Bao" = "Thinning"
"Comb down" = "Side Bangs"
"Layer" = "Layer"

Dear Professor Lok...

I am a 2^nd year Aerospace Engineering student going onto 3^rd year, and am currently on the Global Immersion Program in University of Washington, Seattle. Just a little background about myself, I am a member of the school’s IVP badminton team, and have represented Singapore Universities in the Asean University games in Hanoi and the World University games in Bangkok. In my freshman year, I was a proud and enthusiastic resident of Hall 2 who participated in many of its activities including representing the Hall in Inter Hall games, member of the Hall’s Jam band and publications committee and team manager of the Hall’s badminton team. In my sophomore year, after the implementation of the new Hall Allocation System, I was allocated a room in Hall 5 under the IVP scheme. I did not participate in any Hall activities because of my plan to go for exchange. In the recently concluded 1^st round of allocation, under the points scheme in which I have 13 points, I did not manage to secure a place in hall. I am writing this email not because I am desperate for a hall place and hope that in my actions I could get a place, but I am writing this email in sadness and in a hope for a better change of the constantly changing hall allocation system.

One might ask why as an IVP player I would apply for hall under the points scheme rather than the sports scheme in which case the sportsman, due to his heavy training schedule which main purpose is to bring glory to the school, would be guaranteed a place in hall? Because I believe that every individual has a choice, a choice to choose which hall he would or would not like to stay in. Personally, I was a product of the random allocation of IVP sportsmen done by a machine which uses algorithms to make decisions. Cold as it seems, the crushing moment of losing all identity that has been forged with the hall I call home for 1 year is even colder. An identity that has been lost forever and the cause even forged disbelief and hate with the new guidelines for the recommendation lists for halls this new academic year.

“Only returning residents are allowed to be on the recommendation lists for each hall”, and so I have heard. Why is it that this rule is in place? Why does the Hall Allocation system wants to put its foot into every hole it can find? Again, personally it prevents people like me on foreign exchange to be on the recommendation list. One who dislikes his previous hall’s culture is also deterred from applying to other halls, assuming that he does not make the 1^st cut off and has to try to get a spot in the recommendation lists of halls which may appreciate his ability to contribute to the hall. Furthermore, there are others who haven’t stayed in hall previously, but because of a position they chose to undertake, staying in hall seems necessary due to time commitment required to perform their duties. The JCRC has certain roles and responsibilities. Let them fulfill what they have been formed to do.

There are yet another group of people who are valuable to the culture in hall, who have contributed in so many small little ways, but have not received any recognition in their abilities and their hard work. These people are not the leaders of school, they are not the presidents of clubs, nor are they IVP sportsmen who have the option of choosing to apply under the sports scheme. They are the building blocks of NTU’s hall culture, the people who are always there when their leaders need them. They are the people who take up many small appointments to be involved in hall in many different ways, albeit not big and prestigious ways. Because of the new Hall Allocation system, people who take part in many activities are not rewarded due to the fact that campus life points are not accumulative. The system has inadvertently flushed out students working silently behind the scenes and they will eventually fade away from hall, disappointed. If Presidents of school clubs get rewarded in terms of points for their time commitment to the school, I do not see why these students in their small little ways accumulatively should not be rewarded for their time commitment, which may even surpass that of the President of a school club. As the saying goes, “Without good men, there can never be good leaders.” Without these students, the President cannot run his club.

Although Singapore is a small island city state, distance still matters with respect to time spend travelling to school. NTU is inconveniently located in the extreme west side of the island. Hence, students who live on the other side of the island have to take at least 2 hours to travel to school. The weightage of points for distance under the Hall Allocation System is half, with the maximum points being 9, the same as the maximum one could get for campus life involvement. This brings up the issue of whether the weightage for distance is actually a fair one, because it automatically puts Singaporean students at a disadvantage over foreign students. Given that this year’s cut off points for hall is 15, and making a general assumption that the points allocated for distance is 4.5 at an imaginary north south running line that is drawn cutting the island into approximately half, and also assuming that the distribution of NTU students is uniform throughout the island, that automatically makes half of NTU’s student population ineligible for a hall place. Even if they have 9 points for campus life involvement, their maximum number of points that is available to them is still less than 15. Hence, like my friend once said, “This system is ostracizing the locals.” Perhaps a system that is fairer is one where the weightage on activities is higher and that of distance is lower. Moreover, foreign students come here to experience local culture in hall, not their own. We would not want foreign students to crowd out our halls.

There is a rising demand for campus accommodation, and coupled with the fact that freshmen are guaranteed a place in hall for their 1^st year, this rising demand justifies the seemingly impossible cut off point of 15 for the normal person. Moreover, there is a possibility that double sharing rooms may make way for triple sharing ones. Putting three students in one room may solve NTU’s problems of rising demands in campus accommodation, but it will only be short term as there is only this much we can expand with a limited amount of resources. In the long term, more halls could be built, be it inside or near campus to meet this rising demand. Furthermore, the school could build their own off-campus accommodation instead of relying on individual landlords to come forward to provide a more steady supply of off campus accommodation for students who desperately need to stay near the area at a cheaper rate but are unable to secure a place in hall.

Good systems must be in place to ensure that culture develops and flourish. However a system that has a tight control does not develop culture, in fact it will stifle and ruin the present culture. The spreading out of IVP players in hall might ruin sporting culture in a hall, by not giving the players a choice to go to a hall of their choice. As students of NTU, we want to graduate and remember the days of our hall lives, and remember that Hall X was a powerhouse in a certain sport; Hall Y had the best jam band amongst all the halls, and Hall Z……

I believe I echo the voices of many students, students who as you are reading this email, are spending their time making preparations for Freshman Orientation Camp, training for competitions, but at the same time worrying about whether they can get a hall through the recommendation list or the 2^nd round. As much as I think this email will go unnoticed, just like the many cries of the students who did not get hall, I would hope to believe that there can be some compassion in the system, a system that will not destroy hall culture, but one that hall culture can actually thrive and nourish in.

Yours Sincerely,
Hamon Shen

Memorial Weekend~

Because of the long weekend and being Singaporeans who always know how to maximize our resourses, we took the drive east towards the state of Montana, to Yellowstone National Park. It was another one of those super long drive. It took us about 12 hours odd in total to get to West Yellowstone, a small little town outside the National Park itself. We set off on Friday afternoon and reached at around noon today(Saturday). Went to explore some parts of the park in the afternoon till evening, and managed to catch some glimpse of the geysers and volcanic features in the park. Of course, we had to see Old faithful (some world renowned geyser) erupt spectacularly. More spectacular than that I would say, would be the Bison crossing on the road when we were driving out of the park. They weren't exactly crossing the road from one plain to the next, they were using the road to get from one place to another, just like how we use it, causing a massive traffic haul up in process. We were like THIS close to them, cos they were practically walking next to our car. 2 of them stopped and stared blankly into the brightness of the car's headlights before moving on. It was just an amazing moment..haha..Well tomorrow we'll be doing more of Yellowstone, before making use of the entire Monday to drive back to Seattle...so...I'll post pictures soon..

Singapore in Seattle~

Firstly the weather has taken a drastic turn for the weekend. We have been hit by 25 degree celsius temperatures which called for the drastic change in fashion sense, and conducting of class?!?! I had one class today out in the open, on the grass. It seems that Seattlites really enjoy the sun, although it gives u sunburn like the one I got from the overexposure of my skin to the sun. Nevertheless, the experience was a "hot" one, and most of the time I don't think the class was paying attention to what Prof Cao was saying, rather just basking in the sun and probably thinking of what to do over the fabulous Seattle Summer weekend.

I on the other hand, had the Washington State Open badminton tournament for the weekend to worry about. I would say that I've done reasonably well for making it into the quarters for mixed doubles and doubles, and semi's for singles. On the other hand, I think I would have achieved a better result if I was in better shape and more used to the high intensity of the 3 day tournament. Playing 7 matches in one day is certainly not my cup of tea. The tournament drew several big players from the region this year, including Piotr Mazur, an ex polish national player and currently the US number 4 ranked player (apparently), ex Taiwanese, Israeli, and Indonesian national players as well. Despite the fact that fatigue has reign in all parts of my body, it was a great experience to play with these people and a great way to make new friends.

Why?

Why do people always ride on good things when they come by even when you promise them goodness in time? Whatever happened to patience, whatever happened to good company? Whatever happened to "I give you my word?" Why are people so opportunistic? Why can't we have more spirit of togetherness? Why does it seem so hard to achieve? Why do people keep sayin hurtful things to each other? Why can't we take jokes as a pinch of salt? Why am I writing this?? haha..oops

Training~

And so, I almost died doing 3 mid term examinations in 1 day, in a span of 4 hours. I even had to run from one exam venue to the other once I'm done with the previous one. By the end of it all, 1 word. SHACK. Anyway its time for some training. As I've mentioned before, I'm playing in the Washington State badminton Open going to be held next weekend. And I happily signed up for 3 events: Men's Singles, Doubles and Mixed doubles. After talking to the organizer, I realized that we might play quite alot of games in 1 day, hence the requirement for some sort of training, if not later play already peng ah. So yesterday I went down to the IMA to do some footwork (make sure I don't get cramp). Wah kau..do abit only shack out already. At least I still got 1 more week to get into some shape. Well, regardless, I'm kinda happy how I still manage to play badminton pretty regularly here, and finding some kakis to play, although not many. So this week, I'll try to sleep more, eat more, and train more.

D-day H-hour minus 9.5

3 midterm exams, 4 hours. Wish me luck

I love Fridays~

Maybe not next Friday, but today was chillaxing. I went downtown with Juanita today, went to exchange my American Eagle T shirts while she went to do some assignment for her course at Seattle Art Museum. I realized that the American Eagle store in downtown has so much more stuff compared to the store at Northgate. After that, Dan came along and we went to try the Clam chowder at Pike's place clam chowder. On the menu, they boasted that they have the nation's best clam chowder, so I tried it despite the hefty price that came along with it. I got to say its the best I've ever eaten though. Rich, creamy and full of fresh clams. After that, we walked around aimlessly for a while before deciding to watch Iron man. The truth is....I AM IRONMAN!..haha..it was an enjoyable movie I would say. We Ta Pau Thai tom for dinner after the movie to Dan's place and just chillaxed there guitaring and chatting till late at night. Today would be the last day of chillaxing. I've got 3 midterm examinations on next Friday, and I dunno how I am going to survive. But I'm sure I will, as i have always done so....

Be Unto Your Name~

We are a moment, You are forever
Lord of the ages, God before time
We are a vapor, You are eternal
Love everlasting, Reigning on high

Holy holy, Lord God Almighty
Worthy is the Lamb who was slain
Highest praises, honor and glory
Be unto your name, be unto your name

We are the broken, you are the healer
Jesus Redeeemer, Mighty to save
You are the love song we'll sing forever
Bowing before you, blessing your name

Don't You Just feel proud to be Singaporean?

Retail and Sports Therapy~

I bought 3 American Eagle shirts which were on sale yesterday, a brand that I'm feeling connected to. A pair of berms from Ross for like 12 bucks, and a new pair of incanal earphones cos my trusty Koss Portapro is on the verge of dying. Spent most of the day out yesterday, taking the GIP video with Juanita then heading to Northgate to do all the shopping, before going to Cheesecake factory with the CH peeps for some atas dinner. Today, spent the late morning watching an exhibition husky volleyball match, and I must say I'm very impressed at the standard of volleyball I'm seeing. After which, headed down to the husky stadium to catch some Spring football action. The sun was shining, and i actually have a tan in 4 months. Not bad. Didn't stay for the entire football match though cos it got a little dreary towards the end, typical of start and stop sports such as american football and baseball. Spent the rest of the day at the IMA studying (or trying to), and played some badminton after that. Did abit of footwork too to try to shape up for the Washington State Open. I managed to find a partner for Men's doubles. He's a chemistry professor whom I've recently been aquainted with, and I must say he's a pretty gd player. Hope we would be able to enjoy some competitive badminton during the tourny!

Have You Found God?

Ooops~

Haven't wrote for quite a while. Haven't found the strength to. Haven't found the motivation to. Lethargy plus a series of emotional bombardments have kept me at bay. I can't really remember what happened in the past week. Everything is being overshadowed. The mind has to be kept clear. It always has to be. It cannot be clouded. It cannot be blinded. Work has started to pile up. Or at least I piled up my own work. I need to pick myself up. I need Kevlar. The bullets will never stop coming. The trial will never end. But life still has to go on. Life in the war zone of a war I'm close to giving up. Life in the shadows, that God will bring me out of.

It is not about the things we do, or the words we say. It is about the things we do to other people, and the words we say to them, that make the difference.

Pierced~

Make me Take me
Break me I am pierced
Make me Take me
Break me I am pierced

Though I am wounded
And unworthy
Though I am selfish and untrue
You are holy You're the healer
You forgave meAnd made me new
You made me new

Oh this love how can it be
That my God would die for me
For my sins His wounds did bleed
Jesus you were pierced for me

The Dalai Lama~

Is such an amusing fellow. He makes people break out into laughter with all his antics and his "cute", according to Juanita, facial expressions. The Dalai Lama came to UW as part of his 5 day Seeds of Compassion tour of Seattle, to receive an honorary degree and to address students of UW. I was fortunate enough to get a ticket to place myself in the Hec Edmunson Pavilion for this historic and once in a lifetime opportunity event. The Dalai Lama basically talked about compassion and peace in the world, with an ultimate vision of demilitarizing the entire world. He then answered questions pertaining to compassion in a controlled Q&A session, and no questions that are related to the situation in Tibet or the upcoming Beijing Olympics are allowed. While the Dalai Lama was speaking inside the pavilion, chinese demonstrators gathered outside in what seemed to be a protest?? They urged people to support the Beijing Olympics and tried to convince that historically, Tibet has always been part of China so cut the chit chat. And then there was this plane circling around the UW campus which had a flag saying "Dalai, Ur smile charms, ur actions harm."

There are many people who revere and respect the Dalai Lama, but there are many who are against him too. Nevertheless, his presence has brought some life and controversy to the people in Seattle, and it was an interesting but rather disappointing experience (cos i wanna hear him talk abt the happenings in China and Tibet).

Friday and Saturday~

Shit. Firstly I forgot to hand in my first HW for my Material Properties class. Dammit. But nvm about that. Joe Satriani came to Seattle to give a guitar workshop at Guitar Centre on Friday. For those who don't know who he is, he's probably one of the best in electric guitar playing in the world at the moment. Thanks to Dan, I managed to get to know about it. We went like 1 hour earlier at 5pm before it started, but there was already a queue that went for about a block when we were there. Thankfully, we managed to squeeze into the pathetically small room to hear him play and give some tips on electric guitar playing, which for about 80% of the time was too cheem, I had no idea what in the world he was talking about. Just practically amazed at the impossibilities one can even imagine.

Today, we woke up early to make our way to the Future of flight musuem and the Everett Boeing Plant for a Boeing tour. It was just simply amazing to see the assembly lines of the 747s, 777s, and 787s. We managed to see the 1st ever 787 being built right at the Everett Assembly plant, which also happens to be the biggest building on earth. When the tour guide mentioned that the building is so big that there are more than a million ceiling lights in it, I almost fainted. Haha...But from an aerospace engineering student point of view, the tour was definitely very educational and informative, showcasing the latest technology in commercial jets.

Despite the very interesting Friday and Saturday experience, I'm coming down with what I would call "first line of defence down". I'm down with a pretty bad sore throat, and hopefully it would not propogate to a fever. I'm doing all I can to prevent this from happening, and with friends like Michelle and Kiet offering herbal tea and medicine, I'm sure I would be able to regain my 1st defence line again. Now after all the fun, I need to get some rest.

Here's a song from Joe Satriani which I find beautiful. Sharing it with all of ya'll out there. Check out the uber nice riff somewhere at around the 2 min marker:)




2 months left to make things right.....

Spring Quarter~

I can safely say that despite taking 5 courses this quarter, I feel that this quarter is going to be more slack than Winter quarter, cos the homeworks for this quarter are much easier than last quarter, and they are shorter too! No more thermodynamics and structural vibrations to worry about. Well that's so far for now, I hope it stays that way. And its still FREAKING cold here lah....cannot take it lah...wah kau..dunno why the weather so freaky. Flowers are blooming already but still can't see the sun. Spring already but still wearing my Northface jacket and hoodie. My berms are growing mouldy and my slippers are protesting to see the streets. I just hope that Spring WEATHER will come round soon. I SOMPA when i get back to Singapore, I won't wear jeans for the rest of the year.

Today will mark the start of training for the upcoming Washington State Open Badminton Tournament. Had the best badminton session since I've been to Seattle, meeting 2 new guys who plays good badminton, one whois from China and the other from Korea. I realised that all the guys who play good badminton are all not locals, and they are mostly PHD students or outsiders. Anyway, played so hard that my shoulders, back and legs are aching like mad now. Maybe its due to the long lay off during spring break. But I will get back into shape or at least some shape before the tourny starts on May 16th. Now I just hope that after a damm shack badminton game, I don't have to put on my jeans and hoodie and shoes to walk back to the apartment...I wanna wear slippers and my sweaty shirt and shorts backk.....

Road Trip Song 2~




Just sublime...

The Colors of Spring~