All in All : 2012

Last year, I've left you with this. Apparently, none of the above was chosen. 

And....another year ends. It's indeed different, sometimes frightening on how the world operates....after so many years hiding in schools. The world is big, but never too much.

I'm a lazy person, so to be frank...I don't like spending my first day of the year reporting for National Service. =.='', but it's been a wonderful experience.

Kompeni Bravo, Kem PLKN Titian Bintangor, S9 K1

And some outings outside the camp. 

Then....came the tide of horror... 

chill....it's just SPM

Now...let me tell you what's scary: 

college

and presentations

and activities

and classmates who are so-freaking smart and competitive.

and some readings and research

 P/S: another record broken for sleeping only half an hour just to finish the assignment

and the lecturers

and having your face projected in front of the whole damn class!

All of 'em pretty much freaked me out. 

But still, there're some not-so-freaked-out-times:

Annual Dinner, CFAB/ICAEW

18 years old and still drinking ice lemon tea.

watching How I Met Your Mother S8 in class

plentiful of insights via conferences. 

seee? I told ya'....you don;t need a jacket to stand out from the rest. 

Trip to Penang with friends. 

Also, not forgetting secondary school friends:

Together with 2 school's smartest, teacher, and another 2 capable people

Sunway Pyramid

and, I'm sad to say....somehow, we grow to be more mature....or not....

KL Urban Trekking with Ruthresh, who is now at Kolej Matrikulasi Pahang

KL day trip

Sunway Pyramid

Kek Leong's birthday

Kah Yan's birthday

and of course, the guy from Australia, Dylan.

Thanks, Shu Weng for joining us.

and...hope to see Zhen Xiang and Jia Jie next year.

Finally some personal moments

scribbling

Bye, grandma. miss you. 

and food. (with Kwan Hau) 

From Ryan Higa's YTF:

Yesterday's dreams, Today's accomplishment, forever legacy

and this is an egg, and you can expect more from it. 

PLKN : An insider's guide

Program Latihan Khidmat Negara (PLKN), also known as National Service (NS) was being implemented in the year 2004, whose target are on those who have finished their Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM). The Ministry of Defense has invested about RM 8200 on every person selected for this program. In line with current Prime Minister Najib's 1Malaysia aspiration, the main objective of NS is to strengthen the bond of unity among races, besides building a healthy and strong character (physically and mentally) among the campers. 

Many tend to ask me how was NS, and normally, I wouldn't give much clarification when I replied "It was OK". Sorry for disappointing anyone of you. I really meant not to. Of course there were exciting and interesting stuffs, however there some pretty monotonous moments. If you were planning for a vacation to get closer with Mother Nature, need not to as NS provides the same experience (at least similar) of leaving in a remote area, while getting an allowance of RM 450.

There are several aspects that you may be concerned with :

1) Food 

The food is relatively ok. Edible, I would say. There are 6 meals a day, which comprises of either chicken or fish between lunch and dinner. Many tend to skip the Fish-meal, as they claim the fish is not well cooked, not fresh. So, there're many who prefer cup noodles. Imagine having cup noodles everyday, which burns a hole in your (or parents) pocket and at the same time, ruins your health. If you're part of the community, don't be astonished when you found yourself having a bunch of grey hair after the camp. You knew that cup noodles are unhealthy, but you just won't eat the fish and wash the dishes, and minimizing the risk of getting choked by a fish bone. Despite all those negative sayings, the Chicken-meals are normally well prepared and well received by the campers, like Kurma Ayam, Ayam Goreng, Ayam dgn lemak and Ayam Kicap. The best part of having fried chicken is it is normally served with Nasi Minyak (the rice that you have for Chicken Rice). 

2) Hygiene

The major concern is the cleanliness of the campers' food trays and cups. Some are not well washed, which leaves a weird smell after some time, and gives an disgusting oily touch. On the other hand, some are well soaped, but not well rinsed, which is also as worse as the first. For the cups, some would just drink from a cup and put it back on the tray. 

The toilet beside the Medic, is a total nightmare. On the toilet bowls there are broken ones, clogged ones, and all of them are covered with yellow urinal stains. That's what boys toilets are, of course. Maybe the girls' may turn out better. However, the dorm toilets are fairly clean, which there are duty-rosters. 

Spitting all over. That's the least I could tolerate. People who spit on the road or anywhere, besides the toilet bowl, basins and drains are complete idiots. The first (and last) time the campers have to roll over the marching field, my shirt was stained by a bloody spit of green phlegm. 

3) Lodging and Dorms

Every one has a blanket, a pillow, a bed and a locker. The campers are delivered to dorms based on the companies. Like ours, Dorm 1 and 2 are for the Alpha Company members, followed on by 3 and 4 for Bravo and so on. There is about 30 people in each dorm. 

Some lockers may be spoiled, and it must be reported to the Dorm Leader, in order to save yourself from false accusations.  Of course there are cases when somebody loses his/her locker key, and there is a necessity to hit open the locker door, or you could "stab" the lock with your hairpin.

The cleanliness and tidiness of the dorms and toilets are credited or otherwise, being projected on the LCD screen and getting extra physical training (PT). 

4) Activities

In the morning there will be morning PT, and class in the morning till noon. Then, You may continue class or there will be some activities which normally ends at 1630 (afternoon tea). Next, there would be Riadah (playing time). While the Muslims attend their Maghrib prayers, Non-Muslims will have lots of free time. The campers would play UNO, chess, have group discussions, play guitars, sleep, read etc. 

Some outdoor activities would include the marching, Flying Fox, Repelling, navigating via compass, Colt M-16 shooting training, kayak-ing, rafting, creative sports and the grand finale : Wirajaya. 

I will explain more about these activities in the future. Meanwhile...

5) Discipline 

In the camp, we are dealing with people from various backgrounds. Nevertheless, they are a community in a smaller scale, meaning there are good and bad ones. But, for the sake of their companies, which struggle to be the champion, some may behave appropriately. Some had exhibited great transformation in themselves to be a better person. And I really salute them. 

Lurking in the dark, staying away from the eyes of the trainers, there are campers who smoke, while smoking is strictly prohibited. There's a case that a camper who is diabetic still attend NS, just to sell cigarettes. And I tell you, he really made himself a fortune. With a cost RM10 (contains a dozen), you get to sell ONE cigarette for RM 4,     2 for RM 7    and     3 for RM 10. 

There is the disciplinary department that handles nasty cases, ranging from theft to fights. We have a Navy and a Corporal who deals with nasty people. Nothing to fear. The Navy (PO Faizul) is great in silat, while Corp. Imran is a Karate master who has won 3 golds in representing Malaysia in several matches held in Adelaide, Australia. Furthermore, Corp. Imran is under the the special force unit (UTK) ad has earned a badge for killing 20 people. So, it's quite peaceful in here. 

I'll update you guys soon....when I'm in the mood. Ta-ta

 

PLKN Memories : Titian Bintangor • photo by Lee Kar Hing

Photo courtesy of Lee Kar Hing. Pictures taken and uploaded without permission. Don't sue me.

Scenery of Kem PLKN Titian Bintangor

Achieving new heights

Napping while you have the chance.

Some cute, cool moments.

The blues that kept us united.

A team. A family.

Some naughty moments.

A hawk in the making.

Cool gangs around.

During a talk.

Lee Kar Hing...the strong and bold.

Some discussions.

Some sleepy and happy moments.

PLKN : Miss me ?

OK, this time I'm really back. No change in mass, height or any charm (if you think I have any). Just the vast difference in me is still...I'm bald and got tanned. You might be curious how could I be here, instead of being released from camp during the actual date, which is 17 Mar 2012. Well, I will be attending college on 16/3/12, which therefore granted with an early release, with a minimum of  60 days in camp.

I will put up some interesting stuffs, if I feel like to. 

It's been really great getting to know various sorts of people. Listening to talks and doing activities. So, it's been a heavy moment to leave the camp before the others. 

To those whom I forgot to bid farewell, and are reading this : I'm sorry. I wish the best of all to you guys. 

Signatures to be cherished and treasured.

(I know the hawk looks kinda weird and stop asking me what is it. (yes, it was meant to be a hawk))

Wat lex,

       wat peace

CNY 2012 : Getting Warmed Up

After reading Lawrence Lessig's "Remix" (I give up on this book temporarily), I think I've made a mistake on this blog, which are the labels. Through the context, I realized that the labels or tags help readers to find what they are searching for. So, in this case, on what I've done, that categorizing my posts into some general labels is as good as nothing in easing readers to get what they want. Furthermore developing confusion and is a waste of time. Although,  just a few (maybe none) of you guys are reading this, but who cares. From this post onward, I'll label the posts with relevant and specific tags.

Ok. Some CNY happenings...basically, nothing. I arrived home on the 19th, and have around 1 week of holiday before I pay a visit back to hell..ermm...PLKN. Days on cleaning and mopping appear to be tougher than the days in PLKN, but alas, there's no place like home. Since then, this year's CNY mood seems to be slighter simple. CNY is a special occasion to all Chinese, and may the year of the Dragon fill our lives with joy, health and wealth.

Ooohh...it does get a little awkward and weird after 19 days not interacting with my parents. I can't communicate well anymore. This is bad.

By the way, I'm botak now, so I kinda look like a kid having cancer being treated with chemo.

Huat ar!!!

Light up the tradition. 

Some fireworks. 

A shadow: Darkness in yourself yet surrounded by light.