Hey guys, it's been quite a while since i last saw u all, so this blog comes in handy to keep it touch!
It's been quite a struggle this semester in NIE, trying to buck up my grades...Any "C"s and i might just be put on "no pay" in my 3rd year. So im trying my very best right now to maintain grades. You bet im thankful there isn't Mandarin exams.
Also, i've been having to go to the Police Station pretty often after i got cheated by this guy whom i lent $5k to. Damn naive of me, he told me how his mom was dying and all, and i believed him, hook line sinker everything. Asked Roddy for advice, and after that i went to the cops. Very surprisingly they actually bothered quite a bit, and helped call the guy, who's agreed to pay me back in installments. So thank God for that.
That kinda depleted my resources, so i've been trying to make a few bucks giving mental magic courses to insurance agents (no kidding, selling them something is really tough).
i met a girl in China during a tour there...wait that sounds wrong. A girl i met in the same tour group to China. Her name's kaiting, and well you SAJC boys know her! She's a great friend, really supportive. We complement each other, and i love her.
My passion for cycling really stemmed from an escapist attitude; it helped me run from my problems, albeit temporarily. That's why i gave up my commitment to the national squad a few months back. Now however, i miss the rain, wind and sense of liberation... So now i ride for myself, and not for anything of this world.
i think of my life when i was 16, and i remember how it was for glory and self-gratification that i did most things. i don't think seeking satisfaction is necessarily wrong, but glory and all that, they just don't lead anywhere. Life now is alot more meaningful, helping people and loving others. im convicted not to get involved in the rat race (though money sure is a real issue currently).
i'm smitten by photography, and it's really helped me appreciate the beauty in things around me. It was kinda expensive to start out with, but the rewards and memories more than justify the money.
Here's a lil gallery of photos i took while in Thailand this year:
http://peter.myhome.nie.edu.sg/thailand%20gallery/
Fairfield, especially 33rd, and you guys, are always at the back of my mind. i dont talk to you all as often as i'd like to, and perhaps it's always been that im a private person. i suppose we all are, in some way or another, but opening up to each other does reap its benefits. 1996-99 was one of the richer, more fulfilling part of my life, and it wasn't possible without you guys (even if it meant rubbing shoulders with u all). Iron sharpens iron, and well, we help each other grow.
Hope to see you during this Christmas period...till then,
Carpe Diem
pee
