Cold Days in Melbourne

I knew it was going to be cold in Melbourne, but not THIS cold. Heh, stepped off the plane to a frosty 4 degree C temperature. It's like standing with an Air-con at full blast on you.

For one thing, the cold is making me real lethargic and sleepy. The sun sets at like 5.30pm and only rises at 8, thus encouraging me to sleep longer. ;P Haven't really done much besides eating and sleeping. There are just so many eating places, serving so many different kinds of food that it's a pity that there are not many Singaporeans here since Austalians prefer to stay home at night.

Should be going to see the countryside soon, hopefully can get some nice pics to keep. Still looking for presents to bring back to S'pore, really dun know what to get for you guys. ;p
Sigh, feeling a bit homesick for S'pore. Maybe it's the fact that my friends are all there, and people still ask me why I don't want to study overseas.

Gaming and Drinking

Whew, finally some time to sit down and blog. ;P

Just recently bought this new mulitplayer game called Guild Wars. Been playing it like several hours a day for the past few days, kinda addicted to it already. Basically it just involves creating a character and then traveling through a vast virtual world which after several days I'm still not even a third of the way through.

Had a farewell dinner for my ex-CO on Friday night and AS USUAL, some people keep asking me to drink since it's my last function as part of the Squadron. Had to bottoms up half a wine glass of pure vodka, as well had about 2 more glasses of red wine. It was nice seeing everyone again after one week of staying home, as well as getting to show my pink I/C to the NSFs. ;P

After the dinner, I was already feeling a bit tipsy, but then eveyone wanted to go for a part two. So being the "socialble" person I am, I tagged along. Went to some pub in Clarke Quay and sat inside for nearly 3 1/2 hours, drinking shots, cocktails, etc.... Surprisingly, the more I drank, the less nauseous I became. Heh, maybe I just need to warm up beforehand. It was also interesting to see how some people act when they're high on alcohol. Lesson of the day, dun drink a Waterfall in one shot if you know you're gonna feel sick after that. ;p My only grouse was that the music was too loud, such that we had to lean over and shout to make ourselves heard. Hope I'm not getting addicted to alcohol too.

Will be flying off to Australia today for 3 weeks of "fun and games". Actually I think it's gonna be kind of boring since Melbourne isn't exactly a very interesting place. I won't be back till 17 July, and I'll try to remember to buy souvenirs back. ;P

Week of Slacking

Sigh, who would have thought it would be possible to be work-sick. It feels kinda weird not needing to report to camp anymore,as well as the loss of a monthly allowance. Somehow I still miss Tengah terribly ( ok maybe that's exaggerating a bit) and more importantly, the people in it. Met another ex-NSF from Tengah today at the driving centre, and talking to him brought back so many memories from my eleven months there. He did tell me that this feeling would soon pass, but hey, I'm quite a sentimental person.

Feeling real bored at home, and as you know, the idle mind is the devil's workshop. I can't stop thinking of what the future holds, how would uni be like, what job will I be doing, will I ever find That Special One that everyone supposedly has. Sigh, I can't believe I'm still having infatuations at this age. ( Not saying that I had any before though.)

Hanging Out

Thanks for taking time this afternoon to hang out with me. I had a great time ( even tough we were just sitting down and talking).

Sometimes just sitting down and talking can be really therapeutic and all. Though there are some problems which I can't share, I'm glad that you actually came and talked to me. Heh, still can't imagine you being a journalist or correspondent. ;P

All the best wherever you go.

ORD LO!!!

The day that I've been waiting for the past 2 years and 4 months has finally arrived. Got back my pink I/C today after such a long time feeling like I would never get it back.

However once I got back my pink I/C, I didn't feel as elated as I thought I would be. After recent events of the past week, as well as a realisation that another phase of my life is about to start, I now wonder what the future will hold. Will I achieve what has been my ambition? Or will life end as cruelly as what has happened recently?

Philosiphical questions aside, when I look back at these 2 yrs 4 months, I can only wonder in awe how gracious God has been to me. From redoing my BMT to Tri-service and service term in OCS, to Aerodrome/Par course in AFS and onto Tengah, I can only sum it all up in that God has been so gracious to see me through it all safely. There have been there ups and downs, the feelings of despair and elation, but looking back, I have to thank God for being with me even when I've been faithless.

Do I have any regrets from these 2 yrs 4 months? Only that I have always fallen short of being a witness for God to those people around me. Something that I will have to answer for when my time comes.

Today we bid farewell to Yu Kang Fei, Officer, classmate, friend. God's ways are mysterious to us and our timing is not God's timing. I may never know why he was taken to heaven so young, and with so much more to give to the people of the world, but what I do know is that now he is truly happy.

At the funeral today, as I stood tearing, first at the window of his house and later at the back of the hall, I could not help but look at his father. Words cannot describe the emotion I was feeling, but one cannot help but weep for his parents. To see the death of your child is one of the worst things that can happen to a person. And as his father sat at the front row, wiping the tears from his eyes, my heart went out to them. Oh for the day when there will be no more tears for everyone. No more funerals, no more sadness. As Kang Fei's brother stood speaking of his memories of Fei, I could only imagine that in another dimension, he could have been speaking at Fei's wedding.

And as his body left the house for one last time, a little voice within me said, "He's not leaving home, he's coming home."
Amen, and Hallelujah.
I
In memory of Yu Kang Fei, 1983 - 2005
Your brother in Christ,
in this life and the next
Nicholas Chen
Class of 2SA3 2002