Best I Ever Had (Errr.... Not Really)

In two weeks time, it will all be over.. Reversal of roles once again where I'll be back being the student...

What a holiday it has been for me so far... Started off slacking and turning mad doing nothing for the first three weeks.. Then, Singapore Poly came knocking on my door (not literally) and off I went to work at that institution for the next four weeks.. That experience totally re-define the meaning of the word 'boring'... Took one of the day off during that period and started calling 50 over schools.. That's when everything changed for the better... Got several replies back and after a few meetings and negotiations, landed the current job that I'm undertaking now...

I would be lying through my teeth if I said that the experience gained has been the best so far in my life but nevertheless, it's an experience and an opportunity which I felt blessed and grateful for...

In a fortnight, there will be no more markings. Instead, it will be replaced by 17 weeks of mugging.. No more chasing after students for their homework as it is my turn to be the 'prey', constantly being haunted by the never-ending deadlines... However, I shall not fret but instead, I will try and enjoy my final year of being a student as I know I might never get to experience this kind of life ever again...

Time for a Break...

Just finish a whole load of marking and I think I'll take a good break for the day... What better way to do it then heading down to JB.. Yeah!! Going there for supper later with my two friends, Jeremy and Luther... Jeremy is driving there so I can leave my baby behind.. Never really like the idea of riding to Malaysia... Hmmm.. Must plan to eat what later... Just hope that I won't be zombified for tomorrow's classes...

After tuition just now, went to Jurong Point to exchange for some Malaysian Ringgit.. Freaking hell!!! The exchange rate is damn bad lah.. If only this supper thing is not last minute, I would have taken the time to head down to Golden Mile where they offer good exchange rates man......

Working world aside, it's bidding for modules time... Except for this time, I don't need to bid for any of my Geog modules as all of them are pre-allocated already.. Sianz... I love bidding.... Got thrill man!!! Looks like I only need to bid for my two breadth modules... Oh yeah, one more thing, I've plan my next semester timetable.. If everything goes well and if the two bozzos (Irfan and Jib) do not spoil this plan, I will only have lessons on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday... WOOHOOO!!!! Super duper long weekend... Hahahaa... Can use the four non-schooling days to go to KL where I'm thinking of doing research on for my Honours Thesis... So excited.. Can't wait to start school again...

Alrite peeps, that's enough ramblings for today.. Check out this music video.. 'Blurry' by Puddle of Mudd...

BURP!!!

Slurping up the brain... YUMMY!!!

So this is how the kids' brains look like!!! Hehe...

Good food!!! Typical of being a Singaporean... For those close friends of mine, they know that I will always order one dish whenever I'm out eating... Nasi goreng ikan masin with extra cili padi!!! (Fried rice with salted fish plus extra chilli padi!!) POWER!!! Up-to-date, the places which offer the best serving are; all Sakura restaurants as well as a stall in Simpang Bedok...

However, we are so used to eating 'normal' and 'safe' food.. For me, I just love to try anything which is edible and quirky... Life is short, we should try everything at least once.... What 'weird' and 'strange' food have been devoured by me?? Let me see....

To start off, I've tried burgers which are made up of deer, rabbit and ostrich meat before... The last time I had a road trip with my friends to Malaysia, I ordered all three at the last pit stop along the second link... Can't blame me for being greedy man... It's not everyday that I have the opportunity to sink my teeth in these meats...

Other than that, mutton brain and tongue soup.. Yummy!!! The best part is the look on my sisters' faces when I stuff the goat's brain in my mouth.. PRICELESS!!! It tastes like the som-som in sop tulang lah (Bone marrow).... You should try it people...

Ok, the most 'wackiest' I've ever eaten are fried insects.. To be exact, fried crickets, fried bamboo worms and .... Hmmm.. I don't know what the last one is called.. The latter doesn't taste nice and when you bite it, you can feel liquid, I think the blood, oozing in your mouth.. Hahaha... The fried crickets taste like fried baby squids really while the bamboo worms are quite similar to soggy fries.... One tip: Dip these stuffs in chilli sauce... AWESOME!!!!

I know, I know most of you are probably thinking that I'm out of my mind... But I think that food are mere social constructions... It's all in the mind.. If you are socialized to feel disgusted at the sight of these food, then you'll think that people like me are out of our minds... Go on!! Try all the 'quirky' food which you can lay your hands on... When you want to put them in your mouth, imagine you are eating your favourite food.. Nasi goreng ikan masin is a good one to start off with.. Hehehe!!!!

Dehydration

My cousin, Siti, together with my cute little sister, Hidahyah...

My another cousin, Hafiz, probably looking in disbelief at how good I sound.. Lol..

There you have it.. A star is born!!! Singapore Idol producers might be cursing their luck for kicking me out so early!! Hehehe...

Been quite a hot and humid day these past few days.... Every tiny bits of water in my body seem to eagerly try and find their way out of my body.... Though I've been drinking 2 or even 3 times more water nowadays, the throat seem to be dry rather all so easily...

Apart from me being dehydrated, my bike seem to use up more petrol than it normally does.. I don't know why but the number of times I frequented the petrol kiosks in a week seem to have increased.. This despite me not travelling much..

While travelling down the AYE yesterday, my bike suddenly stop.. YIKES!!!! Luckily I managed to bring my bike to the shoulder and fortunately, there was still some reserved petrol left in the tank.. If not I would have to push my bike to the nearest kiosk which I think is about 5km away!!!

Now back to my body being dehydrated... I had an awesome and super Sunday... Went karaoke with my little sis and my other cousins... Great family time!! Was singing too much that my voice was forever relishing to be lubricated... Each of us got one free drink each.. Despite being thirsty (I can assure you that one free drink is not enough when you sing for 3 hours), we don't want to order a second drink as it costs $5.50... Imagine a can of coke for that price!! What a rip off!!!

Aside from that, it's been a terrific weekend.. Back to work tomorrow... Sianz!!!! Five more freaking days to another weekend... Sighz!! Anyway, above are some shots taken during the karaoke session... Enjoyz!!!

(Un)Masking The 'Me'

Masks... Do not believe anyone who denies that he/she has never wore a mask ever... At all times, we all wear mask(s).. While new mask(s) are being put on each time, older ones are being shed as well.. Just what the hell am I talking about??

Recently, as you all have guessed, some of my 'brilliant' students have managed to make their way to this space in cyber... I do feel a tad uncomfortable initially.. Some aspects of my private life and my inner thoughts could be read from here... But heck... Blogs are after all paradoxical spaces whereby the public and private spheres not only clash, but merge and fused as well... After all, this space was created with the knowledge that it will be available for the 'public' to view...

Besides that, I always believe that you could never make a complete judgement of a person... Why?? Well, like I've said earlier on, we all wear mask(s) at all times.. So how could anyone judge you totally if the 'real' face was never revealed??

However at the same time, there are 'holes' in these masks... Through these 'holes', depending on their size, are where your 'true' personalit(ies) would permeate... I wear different mask(s) when I'm at school, at the hawker centre where I 'lepak' or even at home... If you want to make any judgement of me, well, with great pleasure, please proceed on... But I can assure you that it'll never be complete...

Also, if you are still reeling from the shock of the different personas I undertake in different places and at different times, it's about the right hour now for you to wake up... We are no longer living in the 70's and 80's, where in the American and Anglo-Saxon context, people live with the classical image of having 'clean' and wholesome families living in tiny neat rows of houses in green suburbia, or in local context, where teachers are 'angels' and students are obedient geeks.... Stop wishing and hoping that you are living in an urban utopia... On this earth, never was, is and will there be a society filled with 'Saints'...

Nevertheless, I'm not saying that we are in a world consisting of an urban dystopia either.. All that I'm saying is that, this is 'reality'.. People are never their 'true' self because as social animals, we depend tremendously on these masks for us to continue living another day in society...

So, go ahead.. Hope you do enjoy reading this humble blog of mine... But remember, as much as we love to un-mask other people, we are, simultaneously, masking (and unmasking) ourselves too... Peaceful vibes....

Amazed...

Another job lobang.... Yeah!! Should I take up the offer?? Hmm.. If I accept this, that will mean I'll be juggling with 4 jobs now... Crazy man... But I think it should be oklah... It really amazes me sometimes that I am able to juggle so many jobs and at the same time having my own free time as well...

Just what job is this?? Well, I'm being asked to prepare the answer key for the new Geography ten-year series for 'N' and 'O' level... Sounds interesting huh?? Yet to discuss with the publishing company.. Think, I'll probably talk to the person-in-charge tomorrow and hopefully by then, I would be able to make a decision on whether I should take up this offer or not...

Need the cash man.. Need to save up... Though the Europe Graduation Trip is not confirmed, I'm not taking any chances.. Besides, I really want to go for a good and long graduation trip before I plunged into the working world... If not Europe, I'm thinking of maybe South Africa... Sounds good rite?? Haha...

On a different note, I love this song man.. 'Amazed' by Lonestar... It might be a tad old but never once did I grow sick and tired of this song.. Enjoy it dudez!!!

Ritualistic Nationalism

It's been awhile since I've written something very intellectual... I think for today, I'm going to write on something which has been bothering me for quite a long time... The timing is also quite perfect as we are fast approaching our 41st 'brithday' as a nation...

Have you ever thought of yourself as being a patriotic and nationalistic citizen?? To be honest, I seldom do... It amazes me at times when I see people carrying out certain actions and proclaiming that they are being nationalistic... Being a Singaporean is just another identity which I possessed alongside being a Malay, a Muslim, a man, a son, a brother, a Chelsea fan, etc.... Thus, I don't think it's really necessary for me to flaunt that identity and 'show' it to others that I am a Singaporean.. What made me raised this issue?? Hmm.. Let me see where to start with??

Let's start with the singing of the national anthem... I didn't get it how by singing the national anthem loud makes a person a patriotic Singaporean.. So I didn't get it when my school implement this scoring system where a teacher will give scores to each level, depending on how loud they sing each morning... To instill a sense of identity, in this case, a national identity, one needs to know and understand why is it so special for one to be holding such an identity... By forcing people to sing out loud and threatening them with detentions won't instill any sense of identity at all.. The students might just end up singing loud just for the sake of it.. It's just pure ritualistic... Come to think of it, this is practically the same as praying.. People tend to lose the meaning and sacredness of praying as they are being forced to do so.. As a result, just by completing the 'rituals' 5 times a day, some might consider themselves as being a good Muslim... I disagree with that totally...

Another example of ritualistic nationalism is the hanging of flags.. Every year, I would open up my mail box and surely, a national flag is being send to my house... This is so call to encourage my family to hang the flag and hence show the rest of the nation our fervent patriotism... Bull shit man.. Just by hanging a piece of cloth outside my house does not make me a better Singaporean.. I might just hang it there but if I am to treat it just like any other piece of rag, that doesn't make me a 'model' Singaporean..

I'm not trying to say that there is no need for us to portray a sense of loyalty to the nation.. I am glad to be living in this small tiny red dot.. However, for a person to really appreciate his or her identity, one should never be forced.. Instead, there are many other ways, big or small, which one could display this sense of identity...

Alright enough with the intellectual rambling... I just can't wait for 9th of August to come.. Hahaha.. Got a ticket to watch the parade... Yahoo!!!! Trust me, I'm there more so to watch the show and not to display to others how 'Singaporean' I am...

Censorship please..

Heya peeps.. For those of you who regularly read my blog, you might noticed that some of the past postings had been deleted... Wondering why?? Well, well.... It's because my blog has been infiltrated by little 'creatures'... What 'creatures' you might ask?? Hmmm.. How should I descibe them?? The male species are in all white but the female ones are white at the top and red or I think maroon at the bottom.. Hehehehe....

So from now on, this blog wil be rated as PG and is fit for people of all ages to read.. I'm sorry to disappoint all the 'adult' readers but don't worry, you'll still get your normal dosage of 'RA' materials when you hang out with me.. Kekeke.... Cheers!!!

Tired...

Didn't know why but I got tired very easily nowadays... Today was no different.. Finished marking about 42 argumentative essays and I'm already feeling damn tired sia.. 24 more to go.. SHITZZ!!!

After marking so many assignments, I began to ponder about certain things... One of them is that students' handwritings can really make teachers go mad!!! I got very agitated when I could not make out what in the world they are writing.. But then again, my handwriting isn't that legible either.. Hehee... Only now then I realized how much pain and sufferings I had inflicted on all my previous teachers.. Lol...

Other than that, I realized how lucky I am... I ain't going to teach english once I'm going to full time teaching.. Yeah!!! It's such a drag man... Thank you MOE for offering me Social Studies instead...

Oh well, tomorrow looks to be a relatively free day for me since tuition was being pushed forward to yesterday.. Also, my mum is not selling kueh tomorrow... Finally, I could sleep longer and not having to wake up at 530 in the morning... However, the number of things to mark plus other work to prepare for next week make tomorrow a not so free day after all.. DIE DIE!!! Only relief teaching... If full-time teaching how?? SIGHZZZ!!!! BILA MAU KAHWIN???!!! Hehehee....

Gay Hairy Beast

Was bored just now and so I just type the keyword "Mr Fadzly" in Yahoo! Presto!!! I stumbled into one of my students' blog and very soon, I was reading two classes full of blogs... I was busy scanning for my name.. Hahaha..

As I read on and on, I came across various comments about me.. Both good.. and bad... Didn't feel angry about the names they call me.. Some are very hillarious... Some of the girls complained that I gave them too much work unlike their previous relief teacher... I don't care man... But the worst nick I got is "Gay, Hairy Beast"... Ada ke patut they call me that.. Hahaha...

Other than that, I was quite shocked at the kind of stuffs which these 14 year olds are writing.. I think kids nowadays are maturing too fast.. Or should I say that they are just simply too young and green to dwell and talk seriously about certain issues... But then again, age is never an important consideration... Another thing, their command of English is outstanding... Now who says that all the SMS and MSN are destroying the kids' ability to communicate in good English??

Golf platoon 1

From left to right: Ren Hua, Zaw, Steve, Ming Hui,

Eric, Arvin, Zhiwen, Jun Wei, Felix, Yuan Feng and me....

A meet-up with my OCS pals is very rare.. So when one of the guys prompted a gathering, I made sure I'm free to join and meet up with these guys whom I had spend 10 shitty, tough but certainly fun months with...

How time flew by so fast.. Without me knowing, it's been 4 years since we commissioned from OCS... It's great that after all these years, we still keep in touch and have the occassional gathering.. From what I heard, other platoons did not have such practice... Thank god I was posted to platoon 1 back then...

This time round, 11 of the guys, including me, could make it.. We met up at the usual place, Holland Village, on Wednesday night... One thing for sure, whenever we meet up, we always talk about, reminisce and relive those days when we were still cadets.. Never seem to grow tired out of that... Apart from that, we would start to bitch about those whom made our stay in SAFTI a more colourful one....

Managed to come up with a list of a platoon contact list.. Currently the count is 23.. Hopefully, I would be able to trace back the remaining guys' contact so that in the next meet-up more will turn up...

STOLEN (Part II)

FUCK!!! I just realised... My thumb drive was stolen as well.. Now I'm fucking PISSED!!!!