3rD
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
I am running short on time here. Will need to retire to bed in a few minutes time. So i'll just chunk down what appears to be perhaps the mosty unique and memorable year end and new year's day of my life so far.
DAY1
Yesterday, we all woke up, joel, mark, ben, xavier, yichen and I, to play badminton as usual. The courts hadn't been pre-booked, so we only occupied one court and alternated. after our usual teo hours were up, the usual routine still followed, with lunch up on the schedule at the food court in Parkway Parade. The plan was to get home and come back out with fresh clothes to watch a movie, Anime, titled Vexille, and then do some stuff to the end of the old year that was 2007. We did just that, and met up on the train looking for Yichen in one of the carriages.
Our way there took me to a hurried lookout for a few books i wanted to buy, small compact ones that i could bring around on my days to and from MJC. So i picked up The Undercover Economist, something my dad had recommended me to read, The curious incident of the dog in the nighttime, which seemed a hit to many when it came out, and lastly, For one more day, by the celebrated Mitch Albom.
We then hurried off for the movie, and all of its short one hour plus screen time was enjoyable. There were some flaws, but it was nonetheless worth the $7.50. We then headed for dinner at the same western restaurant that we went for the previous time, watching I am Legend with the usual suspects plus Jake, and sans the twins, still overseas.
The food was still good, and i left optimistic. I can't remember what happened next, between the hours that passed, but we eventually winded up at the starbucks at The Cathay. Dang my time is up. nevermind. I'll continue. Since i have never been to a coffee joint before, i just got what joel got. turned out it was too sugary, but i shouldn't be complaining.
In any case, we were now faced with a dilemma on what to do next, what with the taxi fare hikes that could very well decapitate an arm and a leg with ease. So we took a ride home on the MRT, intending to spend the twelvth hour in a Mcdonalds. Alas, luckily we left early, for it was 11:45 by the time we reached Bedok Interchange. A decision had to be made, and joel and i already missed our last bus. Yichen's bus came, and he boarded it, leaving the five of us, and eventually we came to a ridiculous idea, to sleep over the new year at Mark's and Ben's house.
Eventually the idea morphed into each of us, me and joel, going to one of our friends house to ease the burden on the family. So i went with the twins, and their home was lit to a fraction by the time we arrived. Their mom was in her PJs and kept hounding us to go to bed, which we eventually did at 2 or so. Mark and Ben were still adamant on catching up on stuff on the internet though, having been more or less out of it for a month.
I slept on a removeable part of the sofa outside, and it was actually quite decently comfortable. I think it was the unfamiliarity, then, because i got off very few hours of sleep. Its like camp, where you never manage to sleep the first night, and by the second night, your body is too fatigued to stay up any longer. I didn't wait to see if the theory worked here, anyway. As i lay awake, i finally got my mind to think about the end of the beginning, the closure of my secondary school years and the friends, no matter how close, that i might eventually forget. It wasn't sad though, more of a form of closure for me, knowing that all good things must come to an end. The next day i was awake by six, and tried to sleep for a while longer, only in vain.
DAY2-
If i knew how much cycling we'd do, i still wouldn't have joined the navy.Much of the entire experience was like a hotel, where my family would be in different rooms and we would not mind each other till the next morning. Seriously, it brought back many memories of holidays. we met at the Mcdonalds nearby, where Joel and Xavier had their brief breakfast. We then headed our own ways, planning to meet each other at prearranged times and locations. I got home and quickly got ready, left the house and went to pick up the twins while Joel picked up Xavier. Waiting for Yichen, we soon set off for completing the cycling network we previously tried some time ago.
Mission sucess, and the entire journey was extremely enjoyable, thanks in part to the great weather, which drizzled a little, providing cloud cover to relieve the scorching days, while not putting a damper on our spirits. About spirits, i must say, the crescendo of the day was when we explored the Old Changi Hospital, a dilapidated colonial building used prior and during WW2. I explored it once before, As a peer leader, and in the night, the place was pitch dark and really frightening if you were there alone. Obviously, about 100 of us were there and it was anything but.
Going in the day, it was less frightening than it was intriguing. We ventured upward the hill slowly, pausing to admire the ruined nature, before the road stopped at the main complex. One might have thought it was a branch facility, but that was only because its exterior facade was a mere two stories. Exploring the place was highly akin to the Half Life 2 game, especially the hospital stage. Well, the overall dilapidation was more or less what one always sees in HL2.
In my rush to complete this, i must quickly wrap up, so what happened next was an early dinner at a Subway chain in Changi Village, quite enjoyable and different from usual meals indeed. We cycled home to a light drizzle, and as i type this i still feel really happy i did this today, for when i woke up at six in the morining, the fatigue had me going into a heck-cares mode. I had a sudden urge to take the day easy, but i'm glad i did otherwise.
For all the members of the so-called Th1rd Degree, What appears to be our "last" day out was seriously fun. I hope you enjoyed it as much as i did, and I sincerely hope that come late January or so, our work for O Levels will pay off. Till then, keep a look out for the next session of Badminton!
GOODNIGHT!=D
posted by joseph at 7:45 PM