Entry #77

The one where we baked a Cake together, and you plucked my hair!

Went over to Charmaine's house in the afternoon. Kinda cute that both Charmaine & I are having backaches from Dragonboat training, but hers was so much worse than mine. At least for mine, I can still walk normally, while she might as well have transformed into a pregnant lady or 70+ year old granny... hehe (she's so gonna kill me).

Since we had nothing to do & that packet of Hershey's cocoa powder was going to expire soon, we decided to bake a cake. This is the 1st time I'm baking a cake - my virgin experience... hehe. Baking a cake can actually be quite fun, from sifting the cocoa powder, to mixing in the water, cooking oil & eggs, to finally putting the batter into the oven for baking (150 degrees for 40 minutes)... IT CAN REALLY BE A WHOLE NEW EXPERIENCE~!!!

After the cake is done, the whole family crowded around & each sampled the lovely chocolate cake, but it was abit too dry... think we left it in the oven for too long.

Our efforts together... (Great picture taken by Auntie)

Nothing better to do, she started plucking my facial hair with her make-up "pliers"... Painful but 'shiok'!

The Exam Results are Out~!

We've Finally Graduated... Shiok!

"Scandalous Boys Outing (SBO) '09"
Our cock'ness & laughing drove the crowd out of Billy Bombers...

The NTU examination results have been released last night...

But I was abit too afraid to check it out on the night of release. That has always been my fear since entering the university. I will always mentally prepare myself one day after the results have been released, before I log onto [Studentlink] & click on the Post-Examination Information: Examination Results. And especially since this was the last semester for me & the grades will most literally decide my fate after my university-life, the stakes were higher than before!

Going for my Dragonboat '06 batch's outing tonight (organized by the "Prince", suggested by Uncle Tan) & hearing all the people that were graduating after this June race discuss about their FYP grades & overall GPA, when I haven't checked out my results was quite disturbing~ haha.

So, in the end, after the batch outing, I returned home, took a refreshing shower & sat in front of my laptop... log onto the NTU Studentlink & went on to checking out my examination results...

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"Outstanding hostel fees... Please pay your outstanding fees at the Office of Finance, Student Service Centre, Level 3. Blah, blah, blah..."

-_-"' diaoz... What an anti-climax! But luckily a small round-about to solve this problem, was to view my results through the "Degree Audit", which showed the results as well, with the Cumulative GPA! haha... a glitch in the system?

Anyway, I FINALLY COMPLETED MY DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF ENGINEERING (MATERIALS ENGINEERING)~!!! I'VE FINALLY GRADUATED FROM NTU~!!! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! I'M NOW A GRADUATE FROM MSE, NTU... HAHA

I really must thank my FYP professor, Asst. Prof. Alex Yan Qingyu, too. He gave me a nice B+ although I really can't say I did very well for his FYP, because I didn't managed to produce the ideal end results in the end. But nonetheless, he still gave me such a high grade. I really am grateful to him, he is like my saviour in the whole of my Year 4... Thanks Sir.

"This is my FYP professor, the Best Professor ever! Alex Yan Qingyu..."

Happyily 7th Month~ Keep It Up...

I'm twenty-four, she's twenty-one... We're 7th month~!

When 'Love' is already in your hands, it depends on how you hold on to it...

19th May (our monthiversary) has passed by... so goes our 7 months of being-together'ness. We are going to keep on going strong & sweet! (I'm getting goosebumps for being so mushy...)

Well, we didn't celebrate much this time round, mainly due to our schedules. Charmaine has her attachment during the day, while yours truly here has training in the evening... so it can be quite hard to plan our time together, except for me occasionally joining her for lunch @ Tanjong Pagar.

Since we got together after what Ah Boon & I would like to call an "accelerated program", I must say Charmaine & I have had a smooth-sailing journey so far, with one major setback & very few minor setbacks... It is like finding "the One", that other-half who completes you in this world of strangers & 'love wanderers'. I need to say this, because there are many people who get into relationships knowing that they won't last, but keep going at it & end up in cuts & bruises. (You'll be surprised! Actually I was one of them in the past... =P ) There's no right or wrong, after all, it's just trying our best in making the relationship work out. If it doesn't, stay strong & move on. In other cases, people get into relationships for ulterior motives, maybe because the other party seems like such a good catch, a must-have or it seemed like the right thing to do at that point of time. In our case, we've already acknowledged each other as potential life partners... (Omg, I'm getting head over heels in this... still too early to be discussing this)

Anyway, I would like to say we have accepted each other for what we are - we can be ourselves in each other's company. We treat each other with respect even though we sometimes "bully" each other. We trust each other & we like to do things together. We are like long-lost best friends, and we will definitely treasure this "friendship" between us.

While many others take a lifetime in search for their partner, I am truly blessed to have found mine. We only got to know each other for like 2-3 months, but we sorta hit it off very well. And at the end of these 2-3 months, she accepted me & now, we are a happy couple. In any case, getting to become a couple is the easier part of the equation, staying together as a couple - that's the challenge. Just when you thought that you have come to the end of the bend, the road ahead is even longer... Have no doubts that it may be winding & bumpy, it's definitely not gonna be easy. Never take happiness for granted, it's meant to be cherished & maintained.

Actually I'm saying all these partly because one of my close friends has recently gotten attached with a girl. Also through an "accelerated program"... and as I had my doubts & fears in the beginning, I believe he too has these doubts & fears. We have fear that this will be a bubble effect... "Here one second, gone the next". Is she just looking for that piece of floating log to cling onto in that open sea filled with 'lost' and 'despair' & will get onto that rescue boat once it comes by? I had this worries too... My advice: don't let that fear drive you. If it does, it will consume you sooner or later. Let the reason of why you fell in love with her in the first place, drive you. She accepted you, didn't she? She didn't reject you, so it can't be that bad a scenario. Now, it's just a matter of proving to her that she made the right choice. Be that piece of floating log she wants to cling onto for the rest of her life, & bring her to shore. How? Through your words & actions, that's how... From that, she will be able to sense your feelings for her, & it will reinforce, reassure her feelings for you...

It might be mindless ranting to some... but to that friend - Keep it up, place your faith in God. You have already taken the first step to finding your true happiness, so keep going at it. =)

Movies we wanna catch... and soon!

Now for some side-tracking:

Girlfriend, so when are we gonna catch these movies? Haha... There are so many things I wanna do together with you. And your 22nd birthday is just around the corner...

Congrats to CH & Pamela~

Date: A Lovely Saturday, May 09, 2009...

"The Wedding of the Year..."

In conjunction with my Dragonboat Training/Bonding Camp (May 8th to 10th) was the wedding of Chong How and Pamela on May 09, Vesak Day.

Now, Pamela is my girlfriend, Charmaine's elder sister. So when Pam asked for my help in video-recording for the wedding day... I was more than happy to help out, but it's the first time I'm doing this video-recording stuff, so I did warned her that she was 'employing' me at her own risk... But not to worry, I believed that everything turned out fine. In fact I think I did a not-bad job, judging from the response of the family when they went through the video.

This is the first time ever I'm involved (sorta) in the proceedings of an actual wedding - from the fetching of the bride to the tea ceremony at the groom's place to the church wedding to the wedding banquet at the hotel... Normally I'll just be in charge of eating at the wedding banquet... But this time round, I actually learnt how a wedding goes about happening.

Preparations for the actual wedding day started as early as 5 plus that morning. Can you imagine how tired I was, after attending one whole day of training and physical activities the day before during the training camp, and then rushing over from NTU to Serangoon Gardens after the team meeting to stay over for the night, I only had barely a few hours of sleep on the living room couch. I was on high alert cuz I knew I couldn't oversleep for the wedding, so when the alarm went off at 4:30am... I immediately jumped out of the couch & went up to wake Charmaine up. But I ended up snuggling in bed with Charmaine instead, with the handphone alarm going off all the way till 5:30am... hehe =P

Eventually we dragged ourselves out of bed, washed up & got dressed up for the rest of the day. By then the bride's make up artist has already arrived & finished with his job! Fast & efficient, the problem was - it wasn't caught on tape by me, which was supposed to be! First blopper of the day... no more for the rest of the day.

Never mind, time to move on to filming the Pam's 姐妹 preparing the 'sabo' games to "torture" CH & his 兄弟 at the gate later on. They were preparing some super spicy chilli noodles for the groom to eat & decorating the gate with black & white balloons. Inside the balloons were tasks for the groom to accomplish... which some I ended up doing when I wasn't even part of the groom's 兄弟. (dunno why? hahah) What to do? Caught in the middle mah, groom & bride side... both cannot offend. Gonna be needing their support in the future too... haiz~

Oh yeah, I was also in charge of opening the car door for the groom, handing two oranges to him, and welcoming him, wishing him blissful marriage & stuff... In return, I receive a red packet. They call this the "lucky boy". Haha... which seems kinda ironic, especially since I was no longer qualified to be termed as a "boy". "Lucky" - yes, "boy" - not too convincing... =P

Anyway after the groom successfully "infiltrates" into the house, makes his way up to the bride's room & goes down on his knee to propose to the bride & lift up the veil of the bride (all caught on tape by me, by the way =] ), he is ready to fetch the bride from the bride's place back to the groom's place for the tea ceremony. I of course, followed the newly-wed couple to the groom's place to film the tea ceremony. Initially I thought that the tea ceremony was only between the newly-wed couple & the parents, but it turns out all the elders in the family, the uncles & aunties, get to drink the sweet sweet red dates tea as well.

After that, we went to the Church of Saint Francis Xavier for the church wedding. It is a lovely church setting, like those seen in your dreams. Make me want to have a church wedding in the future too with her... In the church I was at my busiest! I had to film the "walking down the aisle", exchange of vows & wedding rings, the lighting of the unison candle, the signing of the marriage certificate & the photo-taking session with the newly-weds after etc.

Following, there was lunch reception at the church premises. Boy, were the guests quick, by the time, i finish helping out & got to the food, there was nothing much left for me & Charmaine. Poor thing, cuz the food was looking so delicious! Man... I hate to miss out on good food~!

After the lunch reception, it was work for me once again back to the bride's place for the second round of tea ceremony, this time round to the bride's side. Finally when that was over, it marks the break until the wedding banquet in the evening. The groom & bride, together with the "team", went ahead to the hotel @ Mandarin Oriental, Singapore. Meanwhile, I had to transfer the video & recharge the battery for video-cam, before I went up to Charmaine's room, turn on the air con & zzzZZZ on her bed... while she was away at the hotel.

Time to wake up from my short nap, prepare & slip into my second attire for the evening. Took auntie & uncle's car to the hotel & got to work, filming shots of the guest arriving... Took a look at the ballroom, looking mighty stunning I must say... Theme was black & white, very nice combination! - something that I might have chosen for my wedding too.

Side note: The evening gown that Charmaine appeared in for that night was beautiful. She had her hair curled & down. She looked like an angel, from the heavens. Instantly took my breath away... Felt like love at first sight all over again.

Cocktail reception was over. The doors open, and the guest start making their way into the ballroom to be seated. A success for this wedding was that almost all the guest arrive on time, so that the dinner could proceed on time as planned. Singaporeans should practice this more often!

Oh yeah, did I forget to mention that I was seated at the VIP table with the family of the bride & groom? What a honour! That explains why I'm slogging away, filming here & there, this & that... =P The food was splendid! Different from most banquets I've attended so far... The door gift was unique as well, those measuring spoons used for cooking, but they were heart-shaped and each one had a special phrase to it, like "A pinch of joy", "A dash of tenderness", "A spoonful of affection" and "A heap of love". Very original, I like it!

During dinner, I also filmed the newly-weds' march-in. It was a real challenge walking backwards with a video-cam in your hand, all the time trying to focus on the couple. Haha. And the funny thing was while I was recording the groom uncorking the champagne bottle for the champagne pouring, I had a feeling deep down as I watched him trying to pop the cork, that it will fly in my direction & hit me. Guess what, IT REALLY DID HAPPENED~! The cork popped & flew at me! Lucky the force wasn't strong & didn't hit my head, otherwise I would have fainted upon impact. Instead it hit my biceps and thanks to dragonboating, it almost didn't hit at all, although I did "ouch" & it got caught on tape. It was hilarious~! Charmaine watched the video-clip & laughed very hard...

One other thing, the thing that really touched me during the dinner, was the surprise Charmaine specially crafted for the newly-weds, without their knowledge. Even months before the actual wedding, Charmaine has been working along with the money-box (for the red packets), a scrapbook with their dating & wedding photos. It was really nicely done up. Of course I helped out a little with the cover page, & accompanying her numerous times to "Made with Love" @ Plaza Singapura for materials. But that's not all, Charmaine even made up a very lovely & cute video-clip of both the couples' friends & their dog, having them say their good wishes for the newly-weds on video. That really moved me together with her speech on stage congratulating the newly-wed couple... What a blessed boyfriend I am to have such a wonderful girlfriend... hehe.

So as the dinner ended, & the VIP was empty with everyone heading outside the door to shake hands, & thank "whoever" for coming down for wedding banquet, there was really no reason for me to still be at the VIP table, so I grabbed my trusty video-cam & went outside too, to film the leaving of the guests.

After the guests left, all of us went upstairs to the couples' suite to bring back whatever needs to be taken back home. Because the married couple had two free rooms, Charmaine & I got to stay overnight in one room, together with her close friend. But because it was such a last minute thing, I didn't bring any extra clothes like the girls did, and I had to sleep in the hotel's bathrobe with a towel wrapped around my waist. HAHA... it was a totally new experience!

The next morning I woke up, I was too shagged out to attend training anyway, so I just continued sleeping in all the way till one o'clock... hehe.

That's about it for the wedding... As you can see, it has been a long day of events. Thanks for tuning in...

Isn't she stunning? =)

All the best to the Newly-weds, Chong How & Pamela... Always have patience with one another, when two hearts are together, there are no problems too hard or difficult to overcome. Have a Blessed Marriage. All the Best~!

MSE GraduationNight

Wednesday, May 06, 2009:

It's the MSE Graduation Night~!!! - the last gathering of our MSE batch @ York Hotel. Had to skip training to attend this last gathering for our batch - but totally worth it~! It's gonna be quite some time before I get to meet up with my clique & the Lin Clan.

The theme of the night was black/red, & I went to great length to pick out my outfit. However not everyone appeared in accordance to that dress code which was quite a let-down, but the girls of Lin Clans, Anli, Eugenia, Melissa, Caryn ~woohooo~ sure looked stunning in their evening gowns especially Caryn, whom gave me a shock with her new contact lens, hairdo & gown~! You Go Girls!

Just wanna say - We Did It~!!! We survived through 4 years (some 3 years) of university - the exams, projects, presentations, lectures & tutorials, especially FYP and the FYP presentation... We are now officially alumnus~!

"Me surrounded for the first time, by a bunch of pretty girls..."


"My usual clique at school & the Dean of MSE, Prof Freddy Boey"


"A last group photo at Timbre@The Substation"

Some photos at the Graduation dinner:

"The night when Leslie became a star on stage..."

Lastly, just want to say... Thanks to all those who have made my 3 years stay @ MSE, NTU full of fun & laughter! I couldn't have enjoyed it any better... ;)

God Bless you all... Have peace, Cheers!