Month: July 2007

I cut my finger on tuesday…was closing the metal toolbox cover when I accidentally let go of it and it slammed down and brushed through my other (right) hand index finger. ouch. lots of blood, thereafter the lousy cheapskate plaster from the first aid box. then somehow after handing over of shift, we had orders from above to clean drains…yes, drains. underpaid (free) labour. thanks to dengue. luckily for my finger I went to shred paper instead. and because of that, we worked for 12 hours that day. not the first time. absolutely inhumane. I wonder what kind of life they (cause themselves to) lead.

good thing was that the kind doctor at outram polyclinic granted me 2 days MC to escape and catch up on my much need sleep accumulation.

luckily they finally got a contractor to clear the drains this weekend.
so much for an audit.
Is getting best that important? Of course it is, it sounds nice mah. But do you sacrifice your face with your character? It’s the same as outward beauty versus inward beauty.
Something I learnt so far: If I become a boss/manager somewhere in future, I will never run my company like that.

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Kids nowadays, and I mean primary school kids, are indeed in a different generation from us. When we were in primary school, since when does any of us own handphones? And youtube didn’t exist. Looking at my younger cousins, they know search for (and not so healthy) (but yet funny) videos online (which I’d rate NC13 due to the vulgarities involved). And they know how to download, compress and transfer to their mobile phones and send to one another through bluetooth. they can even memorise certain racist jokes in the video. amazing. yet frightening. what would become of OUR children?

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Recently in the past few months, I’ve been shopping and exploring certain areas of town…such as Far East, Pacific Plaza, Wisma, Heeren, Bugis Junction, Bugis Village, Marina Square etc. Been to some shops/places which I’ve never ventured before, and got to know some interesting shops. of course I don’t have the money to buy everything. and also, I’ve been more conscious of my own fashion sense (which I realise, suck to a certain extent in the past).

The GST offset came in timely, though came along the GST increase. GSS is over but some places are still having sales. they never end, it’s just a marketing gimmick. sometimes when shopping, you look at something you like but you think about it for very long and take a long time to decide whether to part with your money. then you decide to come another day to take a look at it, but sometimes, it’s gone, or it’s not as cheap anymore, then you regret. Or sometimes, you are too lazy to come again and you regret not buying at that point of time. lol.

I think I missed out a lot in my teenage days…the hanging out with friends, watching movies, bumming around, wearing youthful clothes etc. Guessed I was too absorbed with whatever I was doing, and was not treasuring my friends enough.

But now I know, and I’m catching up, I hope.

It’s kinda sad to walk around town alone, and then you see everyone else walking with their bunch of friends and/or boy/girlfriends. It’s even sadder when the group of friends you used to walk around town with, doesn’t do so with you anymore. Sometimes, it’s not about the shopping, but about your friends.

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I think I mentioned this before, I hate it when too many people ask me too many favours regarding computer stuff. It’s not that I’m not being helpful, but it gets quite tiring and irritating to answer every single favour that people ask.

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He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep, to gain that which he cannot lose.

Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.

In life, we have different sources of friends – from secondary school, from college or polytechnic or university, from army unit, from church, or even online friends. With so many different groups of friends, we tend to be closer to some than to the others.

There are some type of friends whom we say hi and then bye. Acquaintances, they say. People whom we just recognise by face…people whom we just pass by often in school or at work.

There are also some pretty good friends whom we knew quite well in school, cos they are our classmates, or our CCA-mates, or something like that. We get along pretty well with them through the 2-4 years we spend together through classes, activities, camps and more. (Speaking about camps, I always believe that camps are the best way to bond a group of people together quickly.) However, after we leave the school, we go our separate ways, and we seldom see them again. That’s the sad part.

Then, there are friends whom we call them our best-est friends. Our clique/gang whom we regularly (and still constantly) hang out with, watch movies, play lan, play pool, eat, drink, party, and do all kinds of things together. We remember and celebrate one another’s birthdays and we celebrate festivals like christmas and new year together. These are the friends whom we treasure most, and we always hope that the friendships last. There are some people, whom do not belong to any clique particularly, and often feel left out. However, there are also some of us, who are enjoying ourselves in one.

Also, more often than not, there is also a friend, or friend(s) whom we call our buddies. They may or may not be of the same gender, but generally, we share a part of our lives with them. These are friends whom are hardest to find. This is the person whom you don’t mind sharing your life’s ups and downs to him/her, a person whom you regularly call, chat, sms and keep touch with each other’s lives, constantly updating each other about what happened during the day. This is also one of the friends whom we treasure the most. Sometimes, in different stages of life, a different person performs this role. For example, in secondary school, your buddy may be your seat-mate, i.e. the person sitting next to you. In army, your buddy is your bed-buddy or section-mate. In work, your buddy is your peer mentor. Whichever the case, I believe that having a buddy is important to keep each other’s lives going.

Of course, at the end of the day, there is also a friend of the opposite gender, whom we decide spend the rest of our lives with.

Sometimes, there are also friends whom we wish that they fit into one of the above categories, but they fail to do so or fail to meet our expectations. Then we stop keeping in contact with them that often. These are the most disappointing.

So, what kind of friends do you have? And what kind of friend are you?

Just some random thoughts.

Note: The original article was published in The Straits Times on 27 June 2007. The words in bold are what (I think) it should have been.

THESE men, the pilots and the logistics ground crew, are not nicknamed the “Osprey Warriors” for nothing.

Like the hawk which has claws that clutch firmly onto squirming fish, the Osprey Warriors have kept their talons tightly closed over the Best Fighter Squadron award for the second year running.

This is the 11th time that 140 Squadron, which flies the advanced F16 fighter jets, has won this award – a new record.

Asked about the squadron’s formula for success, commanding officer Vincent Leong said the “strong bonds” in both the Ops Flight and Logs Flight forged among the unit’s men were key.

“I’d like to say it’s increased since I joined,” said Lieutenant-Colonel Leong, 40, who has led the squadron for about two years.
He strives to keep the organisational hierarchy “very shallow”; his cellphone is on 24/7 so his men can call him any time and for anything.
“With the closeness we’ve fostered, things get done in a more efficient manner,” he said.

Their camaraderie was evident when The Straits Times visited the unit at Tengah Airbase on Monday.
The pilots and technicians eschew rank when addressing each other, preferring to use each other’s first name, nickname or flying call-sign.
They were overheard teasing one another, and practical jokes among them are common.
The men switch quickly to “serious business” mode when it comes to training, maintenance and operations.

In the run-up to Exercise Hotshot, the Republic of Singapore Air Force’s annual competition that pits squadrons against one another, the Ospreys put in “extra hours and effort to ensure that the planes were in tip-top condition”, Lt-Col Leong said. The full-time National Servicemen (NSFs) in the logistics flight, along with the regulars and pilots, helped to maintain the jets, making sure the planes are sparkling clean and fit for flight. They even came back on Saturdays and work 10-12 hours each day to prepare for the final showdown.

The result?
They performed with “distinction” during the contest, said Mindef. 140 Squadron won the Best Logistics Flight, and now, Best Fighter Squadron.