= Baz Luhrman : (Everybody's free to wear) Sunscreen =

This is a damn old song that I came across. Heard it back in the nineties, that's a decade ago. It used to be considered a bullshit of a song by me..but now..reflecting on the lyrics..* or rather..just a speech with music in the background* it's really cool. Enjoy!

--Baz Lurhman : (Everybody's free to wear) Sunscreen----

Ladies and Gentlemen of the class of ’97 
If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it. The long term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering  experience…I will dispense this advice now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth; oh nevermind; you will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they have faded. But trust me, in 20 years you’ll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can’t grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked….You’re not as fat as you imagined. 

Don’t worry about the future; or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubblegum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind; the kind that blindside you at 4pm on some idle Tuesday. 

Do one thing everyday that scares you. 

Sing. 

Don’t be reckless with other people’s hearts, don’t put up with people who are reckless with yours. 

Floss. 

Don’t waste your time on jealousy; sometimes you’re ahead, sometimes you’re behind…the race is long, and in the end, it’s only with yourself. 

Remember the compliments you receive, forget the insults; if you succeed in doing this, tell me how. 

Keep your old love letters, throw away your old bank statements. 

Stretch. 

Don’t feel guilty if you don’t know what you want to do with your life…the most interesting people I know didn’t know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives, some of the most interesting 40 year olds I know still don’t. 

Get plenty of calcium. Be kind to your knees, you’ll miss them when they’re gone. 

Maybe you’ll marry, maybe you won’t, maybe you’ll have children,maybe you won’t, maybe you’ll divorce at 40, maybe you’ll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary…what ever you do, don’t congratulate yourself too much or berate yourself either – your choices are half chance, so are everybody else’s. 

Enjoy your body, use it every way you can…don’t be afraid of it, or what other people think of it, it’s the greatest instrument you’ll ever own.. 

Dance…even if you have nowhere to do it but in your own living room. 

Read the directions, even if you don’t follow them. 

Do NOT read beauty magazines, they will only make you feel ugly. 

Get to know your parents, you never know when they’ll be gone for good. 

Be nice to your siblings; they are the best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the future. 

Understand that friends come and go,but for the precious few you should hold on. 

Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography and lifestyle because the older you get, the more you need the people you 
knew when you were young. 

Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard; live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft. 

Travel. 

Accept certain inalienable truths, prices will rise, politicians will philander, you too will get old, and when you do you’ll fantasize that when you were young prices were reasonable, politicians were noble and children respected their elders. 

Respect your elders. 

Don’t expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund, maybe you have a wealthy spouse; but you never know when either one might run out. 

Don’t mess too much with your hair, or by the time you're 40, it will look 85. 

Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it’s worth. 

But trust me on the sunscreen…

= An old chapter: Oh Seven =

Summoning the will from deep within my inner being; I sit, in the dark, before my trusty little laptop. Shielded from the chilly ventilations in the room by my red jacket, with the strong glare of the screen's bright wrath reflecting off my bespectacled visage; I finally write...

A.D Twenty-oh-seven is now a past, a chapter in the book we call our life story. Now the untiring motions of time through space whisks us into this relative unknown that is Zero-Eight. We can't foresee what lies in wait for us. We can't even be offered a glimpse of the person that we will turn out to be or the kind of people that we will encounter. Lest, a quality of humankind prevails and will be the torch that shines our way ahead : Hope. Optimism shall be the light that enables sight, the armor that protects us from the harsh environment and the sword that we pierce this never-ending darkness ahead.

With that, it cues for my personal nuggets of optimism for the year ahead. 

First of all , my physical well-being. Oh-seven was a relatively healthy year sans a few bad injuries to my limbs. Hopefully, the year ahead will present me with a better grip on things ( read: friction so that I stop falling ). Fitness has been crappier than ever, I'm getting well-fed and I'm getting lazier with my energy-burning routines. So here's to a generally fitter me, and hopefully work those extras that's becoming more and more of a burden.

Next, mental health. I don't presume I'm mentally unhealthy but all these late nights, activity filled days and mixed up biological clocks is starting to threaten my psychological constitution. Throw in the mounting pressure (external factors) of finding myself a 'someone' and the latent qualities possessed e.g procrastination, short focus spans; it sure makes for a recipe for disaster sometime soon. With that, I'm wishing for a little more discipline (maybe an external disciplinarian might help) and maybe an event/method that will rejuvenate me. I wish to recover my 'last minute extreme focus' skill that saw me through the past two decades.

Tres, social circles. Oh-seven added many more entries into my contact book. Leaving Army, entering the workforce ( albeit briefly) and finally coming into varsity has opened up a plethora of social networks. New faces entered. Old friends were rediscovered. People who were once-upon-a-time, just a face I can barely put a name to, now become a familiarity. More friendster-like links were invoked and the whole social network pattern just seem to become more and more like a complicated bunch of lines. I'm glad to have taken part in Orientation Camps for it have forged important friendships outside of my discipline circle. Moreover, they have eased the transition from mere outsider to being part of the whole community within the varsity. I must say, at least for me, it is mightily comforting to walk around school and be able to pick out familiar faces (and put a name to them, despite my ailing memory). For Oh-Eight, I'd wished to further strengthen these newly formed bonds. And also, for all those oldies whom I've neglected, I ask for the discipline to make it up to them. 

Oh-Eight marks the Fourteenth year for 6R'98, and some are graduating this coming year already.  Hopefully, we can all finally get together, no cliques, and relive some of the laughable past we share. 

Oh- Eight also marks the final year in the run-up to a decade milestone for RV2I. Probably the only bunch I see ever so often despite the years. Let's promise on a 1 x Good Chalet a'la the old times to celebrate our milestone. 

3/4 Clandestinians, well, so much for being the weakest link in the proposed 'Clandestine Monthly'...but its nonetheless a good idea to hit the roads together some time soon. 

Soccer Buds hailing from TGU/JJC, let's kick some serious ass for good. I know we are able to defeat Team Swiss Cott if we get our act together right.

Odacians, let's Ubin sometime.

FOC comm, especially programmers, we've got to kick up a storm. Let nothing stand in our way, not even the weather. (Well, on hindsight, its ironic to kick up a storm then...)

XV71- let's not restrict ourselves to this small circle... we've got to socialize more.

Dear 'siblings', I think Oh-Seven's passivity kinda vacuumed. Time's tight but should it permit, I'd be glad to 'ban mian' anytime.(Not necessarily must ban mian).

35Alpha-buncha-crapsters, there's much love and bovine-excretion being passed around. Though i think its overly evil, its good entertainment nonetheless... Keep swearing, cursing and ZomgodWTFhaxBBQpwnd and yes .... I think you already know but I'm really Surry I Sux and Lose but please show me some love by, eh , reducing the amount of Hate, Anger, Malice and (I forgot but was it Destruction?) (Sorry, Enigma, Deathbane and Courage.[and later, akhj, hellbliss,etc.] You didn't fit the sentence) /scared./thank.

Oh holy crap, Look at how that wishlist veered me off-course. 

Lastly, Misc. issues. I'll need more wealth control this year so maybe The-powers-that-be can be a little kinder and provide me with a small windfall. I'm not greedy, any amount of gain is still a gain nonetheless. Time can be a little kinder to me by being a little more consistent and not accelerate/decelerate when i'm having fun/going through hell , respectively.

Finally, WORLD PEACE. Because world peace doesn't hurt the economy. And when the economy is stable, my life is less one major unknown that is the rising cost of livings.

Oh-eight, You may only be four days into your infancy but please do not let everything around manifest into a monster.

With that, I end my prose. Be nice. And before I end, let's observe a moment of SILENCE for Achmed.

=Caverns of Time=

2 Months? Now its 2 years.
Dormant but not extinct. Down but not out.
And now this ancient relic resurfaces?
You are not prepared...

For the peace and silence was only a brief respite.

Brace yourself for the verbal assault,
taking you on an audible odyssey,
a culmination of the being, letting loose, an onslaught
contained away in the seething depths of my soul.

Embrace....
The Revival.
T O y L E T b O w L . B L o G s p O T . C o M

=Life As A Recruit=

2 months. 2 months hath past... How quick... A blink of an eye...

Rewind to April 8th. All anxiety built up till today is going to be gone...for today is enlistment date. What will I face, where will I go, who will I meet. Questions questions and more questions...time holds all the answers. Ended up somewhere I didn't really expect. Thought I was fated for doom in the much feared 'P'egasus Company but lo' and behold...what luck..'O'rion.
For once, it's the only 'O' on a result paper I've looked forward to. Ended up being in a Company with lots of company... people like Eric, Ali, Kianteck, Marvin, Kiamin, Jianhong, Zhenjia, Gerald...etc. Hence begins my adaptation phase and army life, as Recruit Kan.

Browsing Ahead. The recruit life unfolds. Regimentation, regimentation and more regimentation. No freedom. Physical Activities Daily. Little Rest. To survive, one must follow the rules of the game. Made friends. Got settled in. Adapted. After a 'gruelling' 2 weeks, finally got to smell Singapore Air. Damn it's fresh. Tekong Cough contracted. Fell sick, Feverish. For days, nose was prone to bleeding. As soon as I start 'knocking it down', my nose bleeds. The company line is literally littered with my sweat and blood.
-Field Camp, the first major hurdle-
7 days. Outfield. Only one bath. Cold Rations. Poor Hygiene. 7 days, and counting. However, RAIN, RAIN and more RAIN. 5/7 days of Heavy Rain, leaving us wet and cold. Shoes and socks sogged. Uniforms drenched. Sweat, rainwater and soil stain our uniforms. Trudge on, we must. Out of the 2 dry days, one was a record 32 or 33 degrees. Talk about extreme temperature changes. Outfield was surviveable, however, it was plagued by heat rashes, mosquito bites, insect bites, blisters and foot rot. Not to mention bad cough that woke my basha buddy up. At least got a taste of gunpowder. Fired empty rounds with my Wife. Made us realise that the clean barracks are a heaven we constantly title 'hell'. 'A Heaven we call Hell'.
- Live Range & Grenade -
ADRENALINE RUSH. Real power. Real Danger. Taste of a killer. Loud Sounds. Shockwaves. Nothing but pure adrenaline. Also a taste of war...the effects of weapons...can really be so awe inspiring, it makes people stop in thier tracks and duck.
- SIT(uation) Test-
3 more days of Outfield. 3 days should be nothing. However, running around with SBO and stretcher isn't fun. Medic? Me? Ha... Missions...first day went awry, second day we rallied and did a great show. Reflected my concerns of being in leadership position. Finally, no more outfield...
-24km March, the Last Tough Wall before graduation-
24 km, seriously, isn't very far, however, with a load like that...even 12 km can be a torture. A test of mental strength and physical endurance. As always, Nightfall is when I gather my energy. Draw in the damp, cool night air. Tilt my head back and watch the BEAUTIFUL night sky. Something One can't find in Singapore. There were PLENTY OF STARS. So much more and so much brighter than in Singapore. Screw Light Pollution. SAng Songs. Sang my heart out. Walk on...just keep walking...thinking about Johnny Walker... Last 2 klicks we were on a HIGH. After being reprimanded for not showing enough spirit, we proved ourselves as we totally screamed our heads off and cheered on. The feeling was ... WOW. As the buildings that is the barracks drew closer, our voices rang louder. Newfound energy. I was living on adrenaline again. My knees forgotten the pain. My blisters were non-existent. The load on my shoulders felt so much lighter, I was flying... I swear RedBull could had made a good advertistment with the before/after effects. Marched into the parade square with pride, high-podding our weapons. It was a sight to behold. Euphoria.
-POP ( Passing Out Parade, not as in Faint ) -
Loads of rehearsals. But it was worth it all. Every single bit. Our Company Champion-tagged Drill squad entertained the crowds with our high-octane, neat drills modified with a bit of tangy salsa dance moves. Next, it was our show. Smart marching. Enduring long periods without being able to move. Finally, all that we sweated and bled for in these past 2 months, all the waiting and practising, we are passing out as privates ( though, private big f**k?) The single moment we threw our caps into the sky, time froze. Again, I was powered by nothing but pure adrenaline. The familiar electrifying feeling shooting into my body. Everyone went mad. Havoc, Chaos, Frenzy. But everyone was smiling. However, it also meant that all the friends, will once again, be separated. 2 months of eating the same shit together, 2 months, though short, was a truly bonding period.

Fast Forward to Now. As I sit here, typing , recalling and looking silly smiling at myself, my fate awaits. Soon, in fact in a matter of hours, my posting will be revealed. The same anxiety, the same anticipations. The unknown again. Will there be people I know? What will I encounter? The same questions. Time again...will be waiting for me with it's answers. As I now watch my army life unfold.

Army Life is tough, yes, but it had made me a person much more mature. Indeed the ritual of boys turning into men. Makes people realise that they can't take freedom for granted. And this very freedom we could be enjoying as civillians can only come with a price, a sacrifice of many men who safeguard our country. We learn not to take things for granted. Time, friends, loved ones. What little time we've got, we make full use of it. We finally realised how much others have done for us, parents especially. We go through what our fathers and forefathers did ( although now it ain't like before ). Gotten wiser, so much so that my wisdom teeth are out! (for Real!)

=Lying From You=

LYING FROM YOU
LINKIN PARK

When I pretend everything is what I want it to be
I look exactly like what you had always wanted to see
When I pretend to forget about the criminal I am
Stealing second after second just 'cause I know I can
But I can't pretend this is the way it'll stay
I'm just trying to bend the truth
I can't pretend I'm who you want me to be
So I'm lying my way from you


No, no turning back now
I want to be pushed aside
So let me go
No, no turning back now
Let me take back my life
I'd rather be all alone
No turning back now
Anywhere on my own
'Cause I can see
No, no turning back now
The very worst part of you
Is me


I remember what they taught to me
Remember condescending talk of who I ought to be
Remember listening to all of that and this again
So I pretended up a person who was fitting in
And now you think this person really is me and
Trying to bend the truth
The more I push the more I'm pulling away
'Cause I'm
Lying my way from you


No, no turning back now
I want to be pushed aside
So let me go
No, no turning back now
Let me take back my life
I'd rather be all alone
No turning back now
Anywhere on my own
'Cause I can see
No, no turning back now
The very worst part of you
The very worst part of you
Is me


This isn't what I want it to be
I never thought that what I said
Would have you running from me
Like this
This isn't what I want it to be
I never thought that what I said
Would have you running from me
Like this
This isn't what I want it to be
I never thought that what I said
Would have you running from me
Like this
This isn't what I want it to be
I never thought that what I said
Would have you running from me
Like this

You
No turning back now
I want to be pushed aside
So let me go
No, no turning back now
Let me take back my life
I'd rather be all alone
No turning back now
Than anywhere on my own
'Cause I can't see
No, no turning back now
The very worst part of you
The very worst part of you
Is me

___________________________________________
For more info on this song, do proceed to look for me...
Beauty of a shout-out song.

- The Change -

" With great power comes great responsibility "
How true. At least in the case of purchasing power.

How much, things have changed... ever since the break that I've desired... Some quality time for myself to rest, recover and think.
My cough- it still ain't totally subsided yet...but it's always on the mend...more or less the qi flow is getting back. That would require a few more breathing sessions with myself, before i can start jogging to get my physical fitness back.

Things are starting to fall into place now. I'm back on terms with my parents. Reckoned I've elevated myself out of that troubled adolescent phase and onto the young adult era. Finally got some control over my finances with ATM card...even though it's not alot...it's a symbol of my breaking out of that financial grip... and greater freedom.
Of course...all these wouldn't had changed much if I hadn't put myself to consider working. To blatantly show to my parents that I'm trying to find work, going for interview( with a non existent 's'). Guess that changed it. Let them know I've grown up. With luck, at least I've gotten myself a temporary job for a week... For the next 2 weeks...at least my life has a direction.
That pretty much gonna sum up Febuary as well. Work for a week into feb, then class chalet...to spend off that money...Followed by CNY, to get back some money... Then it's 2 or so weeks of oblivion...before the great reckoning, Results Day... the day to finally decide my life... More or less that will herald a good/bad ending and fadeaway till the day I take up arms and enlist.

As Yuhui said on our chance encounter at the market...life is pretty sh*tty for us April Enlistees. You finish your A's, havoc around for the december...then at the blink of an eye, most of the guys you hang out with are gone. Into the army's embrace. Into the working world. To the Armed Forces and the work Force. You drift around, finding yourself *trying* to occupy yourself with a job that's probably far from your ambitions. Trying to be less of a burden, financially stable and look occupied. But deep down, most of us are still empty. There is no soul-filling feeling. From sh*t jobs to mediocre-paying jobs that are better than average. Just trying to get the job done, without much conviction. After that it's the CNY, then with results hanging overhead, affecting our job performances. "Who would really feel like working when the results are about to be released?" True enough. Then there will be the Day of Reckoning itself. Some will smile, others may cry. Some will be stoned into oblivion as they ponder what exactly they can do just next. The following time period till enlistment isn't much good either. For everyone, it's either ' Happy-till-I-can-don't-care-about-the-job-as-I-am-going-army-and/or-uni' mentality or the "Sad-until-nothing-can-be-done-at-all" psychology. What's gonna happen to the work anyways.

Then one will probably realise by now, from 2007 onwards, Varsity terms start from January...interesting. But hold one second..2007...isn't that the year our batch of NSmen finish serving our time? The January Batch can rejoice, for they can finish thier NS and go straight into Uni. But for the April batch, it's 3-4 months balance on hold, and serve-when-you-get-term-breaks as they let you off for university. That is, assuming you are already in there.
So well... life have changed drastically haven't it? A whole major conspiracy written to confuse and mess up the lives of young men.

For now, enjoy what you have (or gonna have). That's what i will do.

-1000 Word-

1000 Words-Final Fantasy X-Koda Kumi

Kimi no kotoba wa
Yume no yasashisa kana?
USO wo zenbu
Oikakushiteru
ZURUI yo ne

Tabidatsu kimi ni
Sameta senaka misete
Kiiteita yo
Hitori tatakau no?
ZURUI yo ne

"Kaettekuru kara"
Oikoshiteyuku kimi no koe
Iji hatte
Tsuyoi FURI
Toki wo modoshite
Sakebeba yokatta?
Ikanai de to namida koboshitara?
Ima wa dekiru
Donna koto mo

Ienakatta
1000 no kotoba wo
Haruka na
Kimi no senaka ni okuru yo
Tsubasa ni kaete

Ienakatta
1000 no kotoba wa
Kizutsuita
kimi no senaka ni yorisoi
dakishimeru

Yume no tsuduki wa
Kimi wo omoinagara
Ano hi no koto
Wasureta furishite
ZURUI yo ne

"Tegami wo kaku kara"
Shisen sorashita kimi no koe
iji hatte
Tsuyoi FURI
Toki wo modoshite
Okoreba yokatta?
Matenai yo to kata wo otoshitara?
Ima wa dekiru
Donna koto mo

Kikoeteru?
1000 no kotoba wo
Mienai
Kimi no senaka ni okuru yo
Tsubasa ni kaete

Kikoeteru?
1000 no kotoba wa
Tsukareta
Kimi no senaka ni yorisoi
Dakishimeru

This is the song playing in my background, albeit the Piano Version. There is the English and Japanese versions. For more information, do consult me, or request directly for it.