Hi all,

This blog will be moving to a new site: www.ganbattenebakainu.blogger.com come 1 Jan 2012.

Thank you for following this blog's growth till now. The next chapter begins... =)

The 6th High Key In-Camp is finally over. And its over with a heavy sigh of relief.

My first and foremost thought goes out to RSM who suffered a horrendous fall and is in ICU. I wonder how he's second operations has gone. I'm keeping him in my heart and my prayers.

Just a few interesting episodes for me:

IPPT

I didn't get to do my IPPT this year. Apparently my window stretched from 16 Nov 2010 to 20 Jan 2012, ie from before my previous ICT and after this one. Felt robbed of another $400. I asked repeated and even called NS.sg to clarify. Apparently no human can change this systemic input. Every staff simply shook his head and said it can't be done. It has irritated me the utmost.

So I paced my friend and helped him achieve his gold. That at least comforted me much.

BRT

Was supposed to lead three teams for a critical part of the entire exercise. Ironically, this is the one part the instructors seemed to have consciously decided to neglect any instruction. For the most part, they simply followed, rather than dispense any advice.

Thrown into an relatively unfamiliar row as BRT commander, which is usually undertaken by SP CSM, who was too busy standing in for someone else. But Daniel certainly have pushed himself and his voice way too hard.

So anyway, I must admit I've made a number of mistakes:
- I must secure my stuff properly
- I must ensure proper markings
- I must have extra markings on myself
- I must have more red cylum sticks
- I must move through more decisively and quickly
- Track over trail over Bash
- High ground over low ground
- Get a water or back pack. The sling bag can be quite a hazard
- Get a side water pouch to contain the sticks

Well, that about wraps up the most memorable parts of the ICT.

Now. Back to civlian life. I'd bet my work email has burst.

I've learned a little bit more about myself this time as well. How much I want to chiong, how garang I want to be, how much I want things to succeed. I still think I can do more, do better.



The scars of yesterday can and must serve as reminders of my determination and rectitude tomorrow. Fight through the pain and come out a better man.

For a brief period of time, I had forgotten how much it hurts, until I met you again.

Let me see you not in my dreams, but on the dance floor with someone else.

I would be sad either way, but with the latter, at least I know you are happy.

I read somewhere that for some people the best time to write is in the morning. So I decided to give this a shot.

Usually when I wake up, my mind is swimming in all sorts of thoughts pulled in from the aftermath of dreams, lingering reminders to remind myself about something I remembered just before I fell asleep, and the repeated run down of my imaginary to-do list (which should be in my head in the first place if only I had jotted it down).

So for me, I reckon it may be a good idea if I do a data/thoughts/idea dump first thing in the morning.

It's been a rather good new year so far. Been learning a lot of things from interacting with a range of people, about the internet, photography, feng shui, ba zi, zi wei, mattress, bed frames and interior designing.

And I think that the people I learned them from are so inspiring, in knowledge they have and the passionate way they speak. Aspiring to be like them is one thing, to become like them is another. I have a long way to go to become a subject-matter expert myself. But I should get there eventually.

A boat docked in a tiny Mexican fishing village.
A tourist complimented the local fishermen on the quality of their
fish and asked
how long it took him to catch them.

"Not very long." they answered in unison.
"Why didn't you stay out longer and catch more?"
The fishermen explained that their small catches were sufficient to
meet their needs and those of their families.

"But what do you do with the rest of your time?"

"We sleep late, fish a little, play with our children,
and take siestas with our wives.
In the evenings, we go into the village to see our friends,
have a few drinks, play the guitar, and sing a few songs.
We have a full life."

The tourist interrupted,
"I have an MBA from Harvard and I can help you!
You should start by fishing longer every day.
You can then sell the extra fish you catch.
With the extra revenue, you can buy a bigger boat."

"And after that?"

asked the fisherman.

"With the extra money the larger boat will bring,
you can buy a second one and a third one
and so on until you have an entire fleet of trawlers..
Instead of selling your fish to a middle man,
you can then negotiate directly with the processing plants
and maybe even open your own plant.

You can then leave this little village and move to Mexico City,
Los Angeles, or even New York City!

From there you can direct your huge new enterprise."


"How long would that take?" asked the fisherman.


"Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years." replied the tourist.


"And after that?" asked the fisherman.



The tourist answered
" Afterward? Well my friend, that's when it gets really interesting, "
answered the tourist, laughing. "When your business gets really BIG,
you can start buying and selling stocks and make Millions of DOLLARS!"


"Millions? Really? And after that?"

asked the fisherman.


"After that you'll be able to retire,
live in a tiny village near the coast,
sleep late, play with your children,
catch a few fish, take a siesta with your wife
and spend your evenings drinking and enjoying with your friends."


"That’s what I am doing now!!”

Replied the fisherman


The moral of this story is:
Know where you're going in life....
you may already be there!!

Merry Christmas everybody!

Santa decided to come by and grant me a sleepless night.

So I came on and looked back into the past entries of my on/off blog. Always a journey of mixed emotions -- nostalgia, joy, hate, sadness, regret, appreciation.

Been another dramatic year, especially with the start of my first job and all the experiences that came along with it. I must say I have learned a lot but I still have a long way to go.

While I am so glad to be back from my overseas adventures, I do miss the friends from abroad. I do wish to see them again and have a nice chat over coffee in the cafes of Graz, or over shisha in the cafes of Bursa, or over Asahi on the streets of Tokyo.

If I had a chance, I'd also like to eat the fisch burgers in Hamburg, drink Guinness in Dublin, listen to bagpipes in Edinburgh and bask in the sun in Palma Mallorca, but for a different reason with different company.

Looking ahead, there are still trips to be made: Trieste, Italy; Vienna, Austria; Berlin, Germany; San Paolo, Brazil; Shanghai, China; Tokyo, Japan.

But the trip I'd like to make most is really here in Singapore. I am reacquainting myself with the country I'm born with. Or perhaps with the new year coming up, it's just another way of saying, I'm starting my life all over again anew, and renewed.

I have never considered myself a "writer," who to me, is a craftsman expert in the art of expressing thought and argument in an cogent and persuasive arrangement of words.

I just hope, its not too late to start trying to be one.

Adam Lambert's If I Had You.

Like this remix.