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All the uncertainties are over.
My class of honours is confirmed. A 2nd Upper class of honours. No more needless battles. No more half-hearted attempts. No more.
A job. A job that I think I can excel in. A job that pays me so well that I can really enjoy a yuppies' life. A job that I am looking forward to.
At peace. I know what I want and I have the plans in place. Everything seems to just fit. I have no need for a ranting space anymore. That space which some has used to judge me as emo and weak(even). But, instead of declaring the death of this blog, I shall attempt to give it a rebirth- 'Reflections'.
Now, I am just going to enjoy the remaining days of my holiday before I start work and begin my transition to a yuppies' life! Yes, i'm going to be a YUPPIE, not a rat(like some of you are saying, lol).
ps. that doesn't mean I won't use this space to rant anymore. :p
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Thursday, May 22, 2008
CHAMPIONS
WE WON! WE WON!!! WE WON!!!!! LOL!!! We did the DOUBLE! We are the Champions of England and Europe!!! OMG, I CAN'T BELIEVE IT! LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL!
Words don't do justice to the feelings felt. Euphoria. Tears streaming down my cheeks when Edwin saved the penalty from Anelka. Despair, acute painful despair struck when Ronaldo, our best player for the season missed his penalty. Thoughts of 'Its just not meant to be' seeped into the mind. Then up stepped John Terry, the captain of Chelsea, the leader, the one epitomizing Chelsea(which i think is crap, anyway, lol) and he slipped and MISSED!!! AND omg, what a miss! what a slip! Instantly, every man u fans' hearts were filled with hope again. Sorry, we can't sympathize with you. We just wanted you to miss and you did! Lalalala.
Tears of joys. Our third Champions league trophy in history! 9 years since that magical Champions league final in 1999. We thought nothing can beat or even rival that win. That win which we won by scoring 2 goals in 3 mins of extra time, that goal which brought us Sir Alex first Champions league trophy!! Yes! Yes! Yes! 3 European Champions League win and 17 league titles!! We are on our way to becoming the most successful team in England!
Glory Glory Man United! Glory Glory Man United! and the Reds go marching on!!!!
Monday, May 19, 2008
25.
25. Mid 20s. A quarter century old.
I can no longer claim to be in my early 20s. 25 seems to be the start of another chapter in life. Similiar to 18, where national service beckons and 21, where university life begins. Looking back at the chapter that just closed, I managed a faint smile of satisfaction. It was a rollercoaster ride (however abused this term is)-
Familial wise- my dad's cancer(recovered le) and bike accident took the cake. My close uncle's death and my female cousin's marital problems added on to the anguish felt. Importantly, the ripples did not cause me to break down but actually toughen me up(especially with two of the events happening in the midst of my exams, it was really a test of how I would react in times of adversity-ok, andrew, will cut down on the melodramatic effect. haha)
Friends wise- Knowing Hong, Meiling, Zheyuan and Heyi was the best thing that happened in my varsity life. The trio's graduation a year ago and the inevitable separation from Hong in terms of modules taking has rendered my honours year less exciting than the previous three years. Perhaps, that softened the impact of my graduation and leaving this santuary of school. Of course, other friends such as Nabilla, Fatma, Wanrong, Peishan, Min Li and Yixian also added on to life in the rather protective environment of school. I can go on naming the friends that contributed in their own way to this chapter of my life but this ain't exactly a thank you speech blog entry. :p
School wise- I didn't get my first class honours. A 2nd Upper(baring a major disaster) is still a scant consolation. But oh well, nonetheless, the decision to major in political science instead of history was the hardest decision ever in my academic life. For history was what I have always deemed as my first love, my forte. Yet, political science had all the glam to it. LOL, of cos I aint that himbo. A combination of factors, good professors taking the exposure modules, the allures of international relations and current affairs lured me in. Along the way, I had my fingers burned here n there by different profs. Sometimes, I do think that I don't deserve the grade that some of my profs awarded me. Not a true reflection of my brillance and hard work. :p But overall, I am just thankful for the brillance of my profs who was able to open up my mind sufficiently and expose me to so much knowledge that I realize what I know is so little. This is not the end though, for I will definitely return to school(probably not nus) for my masters.
Personal growth wise- A sprinkling of ccas in nus, mentorship with mcys feedback unit, internships with mindef nexus and people's association-woodlands CO has allowed my CV to be presentable. The testimonials and the generous assistance rendered by my mentor who is willing to be my referee in my job applications allows me to 'sell' myself to my prospective employers. More importantly is not the CV or even the 'selling', but that added perspective which these experiences has imbued me with. I had a lot of good mentors too who was willing to guide me- an undergraduate who's obviously booksmart but not really 'street-smart'(IN THE PAST, not now), who's patient with me and who's willing to go beyond their duty to actually share life lessons with me. Mr Toh, Mr Ho, Victor(don't know whether you will read this blog entry :p) and Ms Sherlene Tan, it has really been a blessing to be able to learn from all of you. Thanks. :)
Relationships/Emotions wise- I was a boy. Besides the occasional, harmless crushes, I had one of my worst fall into that emotional abyss. But, somehow, through that experience, I dare say, I am no longer a boy but a man. LOL, at 25, I don't think anyone will begrudge me for saying that. Yes, age does not represent emotional maturity but the ardous process of finding yourself after you lost it sure brought about emotional growth.
So, a brief recap of that last chapter of life which is closing(with the release of results at the end of may and graduation ceremony in july), I look forward to the opening of the next chapter in life which I have loosely demacarte into the period of 25-30 and given the nice name of-the YUPPIES life. woooooo...lol.
Plans- I have made so many plans for the future that it seems that I am not leaving much room to surprises (yes, Clausewitz, I am not disagreeing with your centrality of the element of chance which can override everything). In this rather uncertain times, I feel at peace actually. I have plan A, plan B, contingency plans, etc, etc. I never thought I am such a planner. :p More or less, I am going to be a civil/public servant who may be going for a masters either during this chapter or in the beginning of my next chapter in life. Trying my best to get a job related to international relations is the job scope of my preferred career and I may still try for MFA in the foreseeable future(especially if I don't get a job which I deemed to be challenging and engaging enough to build my career on).
Personal growth- I have made up my mind to learn malay. Will start learning 1 or 2 months into my working life. As for the fourth language, the allure and practicality of spanish still dominates, but I may instead choose to learn a regional language should proficiency in it be required for my job. For now, the desire to be multi-lingual dominates my future plans.
Yuppies life- I want my car. (Will get my car sooner than later, probably in the very near future, if everything goes well). My friends are already planning overseas trips, 1 to Thailand in October, another to Taiwan in February, but nothing is confirmed of course...one thing is for sure though, before this chapter closes, I will make my pilgrimage to the holy place- OLD TRAFFORD!! LOL! Once, I start earning money, I will have the ability to indulge in plays/musicals/concerts! yay! I'm starting to sound like a spendthrift already, but I have decided to really enjoy life in the first year of working and saving up for the future after the first year. :)
I am going to be a YUPPIE soon!
I can no longer claim to be in my early 20s. 25 seems to be the start of another chapter in life. Similiar to 18, where national service beckons and 21, where university life begins. Looking back at the chapter that just closed, I managed a faint smile of satisfaction. It was a rollercoaster ride (however abused this term is)-
Familial wise- my dad's cancer(recovered le) and bike accident took the cake. My close uncle's death and my female cousin's marital problems added on to the anguish felt. Importantly, the ripples did not cause me to break down but actually toughen me up(especially with two of the events happening in the midst of my exams, it was really a test of how I would react in times of adversity-ok, andrew, will cut down on the melodramatic effect. haha)
Friends wise- Knowing Hong, Meiling, Zheyuan and Heyi was the best thing that happened in my varsity life. The trio's graduation a year ago and the inevitable separation from Hong in terms of modules taking has rendered my honours year less exciting than the previous three years. Perhaps, that softened the impact of my graduation and leaving this santuary of school. Of course, other friends such as Nabilla, Fatma, Wanrong, Peishan, Min Li and Yixian also added on to life in the rather protective environment of school. I can go on naming the friends that contributed in their own way to this chapter of my life but this ain't exactly a thank you speech blog entry. :p
School wise- I didn't get my first class honours. A 2nd Upper(baring a major disaster) is still a scant consolation. But oh well, nonetheless, the decision to major in political science instead of history was the hardest decision ever in my academic life. For history was what I have always deemed as my first love, my forte. Yet, political science had all the glam to it. LOL, of cos I aint that himbo. A combination of factors, good professors taking the exposure modules, the allures of international relations and current affairs lured me in. Along the way, I had my fingers burned here n there by different profs. Sometimes, I do think that I don't deserve the grade that some of my profs awarded me. Not a true reflection of my brillance and hard work. :p But overall, I am just thankful for the brillance of my profs who was able to open up my mind sufficiently and expose me to so much knowledge that I realize what I know is so little. This is not the end though, for I will definitely return to school(probably not nus) for my masters.
Personal growth wise- A sprinkling of ccas in nus, mentorship with mcys feedback unit, internships with mindef nexus and people's association-woodlands CO has allowed my CV to be presentable. The testimonials and the generous assistance rendered by my mentor who is willing to be my referee in my job applications allows me to 'sell' myself to my prospective employers. More importantly is not the CV or even the 'selling', but that added perspective which these experiences has imbued me with. I had a lot of good mentors too who was willing to guide me- an undergraduate who's obviously booksmart but not really 'street-smart'(IN THE PAST, not now), who's patient with me and who's willing to go beyond their duty to actually share life lessons with me. Mr Toh, Mr Ho, Victor(don't know whether you will read this blog entry :p) and Ms Sherlene Tan, it has really been a blessing to be able to learn from all of you. Thanks. :)
Relationships/Emotions wise- I was a boy. Besides the occasional, harmless crushes, I had one of my worst fall into that emotional abyss. But, somehow, through that experience, I dare say, I am no longer a boy but a man. LOL, at 25, I don't think anyone will begrudge me for saying that. Yes, age does not represent emotional maturity but the ardous process of finding yourself after you lost it sure brought about emotional growth.
So, a brief recap of that last chapter of life which is closing(with the release of results at the end of may and graduation ceremony in july), I look forward to the opening of the next chapter in life which I have loosely demacarte into the period of 25-30 and given the nice name of-the YUPPIES life. woooooo...lol.
Plans- I have made so many plans for the future that it seems that I am not leaving much room to surprises (yes, Clausewitz, I am not disagreeing with your centrality of the element of chance which can override everything). In this rather uncertain times, I feel at peace actually. I have plan A, plan B, contingency plans, etc, etc. I never thought I am such a planner. :p More or less, I am going to be a civil/public servant who may be going for a masters either during this chapter or in the beginning of my next chapter in life. Trying my best to get a job related to international relations is the job scope of my preferred career and I may still try for MFA in the foreseeable future(especially if I don't get a job which I deemed to be challenging and engaging enough to build my career on).
Personal growth- I have made up my mind to learn malay. Will start learning 1 or 2 months into my working life. As for the fourth language, the allure and practicality of spanish still dominates, but I may instead choose to learn a regional language should proficiency in it be required for my job. For now, the desire to be multi-lingual dominates my future plans.
Yuppies life- I want my car. (Will get my car sooner than later, probably in the very near future, if everything goes well). My friends are already planning overseas trips, 1 to Thailand in October, another to Taiwan in February, but nothing is confirmed of course...one thing is for sure though, before this chapter closes, I will make my pilgrimage to the holy place- OLD TRAFFORD!! LOL! Once, I start earning money, I will have the ability to indulge in plays/musicals/concerts! yay! I'm starting to sound like a spendthrift already, but I have decided to really enjoy life in the first year of working and saving up for the future after the first year. :)
I am going to be a YUPPIE soon!
Sunday, May 11, 2008
gems of wisdom
I realized I have to post these words of wisdom from my dearest and favorite prof ever and imprint it onto my blog for eternity. Courtesy of Meiling's blog(as my favorite prof only sent this e-mail to the students taking his module-which I took in yr 3)-
Dear students
As most of you will be switching gears from study desks and library hideouts to corporate responsibilities and civil service appointments, I feel it necessary to share this nugget of revelation with you concerning globalization and the pending demands of the borderless workplace in Singapore. It also ties in with the NTUC Chief’s comments on May Day.
The occasion was the launch of a new Asia-Europe Foundation publication ‘EU- Looking through the Eyes of Asia’ on 18 April. A panel discussion was held and the speakers included an important editor from Reuters, a representative from NUS’ EU Studies programme, and the chair of the European Chamber of Commerce of Singapore who turned out to be a German national overseeing a particular European MNC’s operations throughout East Asia. I posed a question about whether the EU’s image deficit could have been usefully addressed by picking lessons from Bollywood’s soft power; the export of Japanese Anime and K-pop; Chinese cultural soft power in music and dramas etc.; and the hiring of more Asian journalists in Reuters’ Asia operations. Both the Reuters representative and the EU Studies academic responded positively to say that yes there were lessons to be shared between the two regions on building constructive images. The Chair of the European Chamber of Commerce, seized the opportunity to draw attention to the fact that Singaporean graduates were becoming more uncompetitive when it comes to hiring for senior management in European MNCs expanding into Asia because of two reasons. First, Singaporeans were losing their drive and hunger for experience, and innovation. Second, Singaporean workers were becoming inadequate bridges into the Chinese corporate world: Singaporeans spoke ‘kitchen Mandarin’ and shied away from aggressively networking through Guanxi. Instead mainland Chinese professionals were willing to learn and better themselves, and were striving to improve their English proficiency.
As a Singaporean, I was hurt by his dire depiction. As an appraiser of knowledge striving to be objective, as far as it is reasonably possible, I believe lessons can be drawn on the challenges and pitfalls of globalization. On the positive side, one does not need to resort to defensive nationalism to respond to the European mercantile elite. I hope this revelation of an elite view will spur all of you on to reverse this image. ‘Singapore Inc’ as a world leader in skills and proficiency still remains to be consolidated. I hope that the intangible skills you have picked up at NUS will inspire you to become larger human beings and knowledge analysts than merely being a possessor of an Honours degree. Furthermore, the potential of globalization to help or damage the fortunes of a ‘weak state’ depends so much on the initiative of human endeavour.
I hope that the next time I meet all of you, you will have found your watermark in your diverse career paths.
Very best wishes for a great start to the working world,
ALAN CHONG
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Thanks, Prof. Your words struck a chord in the minds and hearts of us who were privileged to be taught by you. I will always remember your words of advice which you shared selflessly on issues that you taught and precious life lessons. You are one of the main reasons why I will never regret making political science my major.
The time to leave the sanctuary of school is near. Its time to embark on an enriching career and make a mark on society. The sky is the limit! and...of cos, a yuppies' life awaits. :p
Dear students
As most of you will be switching gears from study desks and library hideouts to corporate responsibilities and civil service appointments, I feel it necessary to share this nugget of revelation with you concerning globalization and the pending demands of the borderless workplace in Singapore. It also ties in with the NTUC Chief’s comments on May Day.
The occasion was the launch of a new Asia-Europe Foundation publication ‘EU- Looking through the Eyes of Asia’ on 18 April. A panel discussion was held and the speakers included an important editor from Reuters, a representative from NUS’ EU Studies programme, and the chair of the European Chamber of Commerce of Singapore who turned out to be a German national overseeing a particular European MNC’s operations throughout East Asia. I posed a question about whether the EU’s image deficit could have been usefully addressed by picking lessons from Bollywood’s soft power; the export of Japanese Anime and K-pop; Chinese cultural soft power in music and dramas etc.; and the hiring of more Asian journalists in Reuters’ Asia operations. Both the Reuters representative and the EU Studies academic responded positively to say that yes there were lessons to be shared between the two regions on building constructive images. The Chair of the European Chamber of Commerce, seized the opportunity to draw attention to the fact that Singaporean graduates were becoming more uncompetitive when it comes to hiring for senior management in European MNCs expanding into Asia because of two reasons. First, Singaporeans were losing their drive and hunger for experience, and innovation. Second, Singaporean workers were becoming inadequate bridges into the Chinese corporate world: Singaporeans spoke ‘kitchen Mandarin’ and shied away from aggressively networking through Guanxi. Instead mainland Chinese professionals were willing to learn and better themselves, and were striving to improve their English proficiency.
As a Singaporean, I was hurt by his dire depiction. As an appraiser of knowledge striving to be objective, as far as it is reasonably possible, I believe lessons can be drawn on the challenges and pitfalls of globalization. On the positive side, one does not need to resort to defensive nationalism to respond to the European mercantile elite. I hope this revelation of an elite view will spur all of you on to reverse this image. ‘Singapore Inc’ as a world leader in skills and proficiency still remains to be consolidated. I hope that the intangible skills you have picked up at NUS will inspire you to become larger human beings and knowledge analysts than merely being a possessor of an Honours degree. Furthermore, the potential of globalization to help or damage the fortunes of a ‘weak state’ depends so much on the initiative of human endeavour.
I hope that the next time I meet all of you, you will have found your watermark in your diverse career paths.
Very best wishes for a great start to the working world,
ALAN CHONG
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Thanks, Prof. Your words struck a chord in the minds and hearts of us who were privileged to be taught by you. I will always remember your words of advice which you shared selflessly on issues that you taught and precious life lessons. You are one of the main reasons why I will never regret making political science my major.
The time to leave the sanctuary of school is near. Its time to embark on an enriching career and make a mark on society. The sky is the limit! and...of cos, a yuppies' life awaits. :p
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