oh my gosh...i juz came back from a very rare exciting day...cuz it's the school of rock!hurhur..all the party begins that very afternoon at 1pm...met a guy from 25/05 and I had no qualms about criticizing that vp who views things purely from an admin point of view.to hell with such an ass who doesn't give a damn about student welfare

and i think i should have come earlier as there are now more than 1000 ppl at the open plaza and Serene(my CHC friend) and her fren had to battle their way through the thick crowd..haha seems like my propaganda have worked..half of 35 not withstanding,there's also some good frens,finn and lp..of course all the eternal loop fans,outnumbered by 3-1 fans 3 to 1 put on a spirited fight and yelled..i don't think i should comment whether they screwed their performance or not,but at least most of the non 3-1 fans voted for us,that's why eternal loop is the audience's choice.at the dying minutes when audiobreakout and 3-1 battles for that coveted prize,i decided to 'cast my vote' to 3-1 and they got rewarded for their showmanship.hahaha!i want their album!

but what pissed me off,ironically isn't the small quantity of people who came,but something after Loop had performed.I was talking to Serene and her friend beside the pretzel and lemonade booth(aunty anne's i think) and i saw Miss S.I mean,I don't believe it,but i think she just ignored my propaganda..but some Cedarians are that dao.I know some whould criticize me for this,but i just saw her whizz past.no wonder Clarence didn't taunt me about sourgraping for nothing.(a disclaimer though:don't confuse Miss S with the ex LJB one.I don't call the ex LJB one Miss S.juz plain old Serene.ask my CHC friends if you don't believe it.and the Rafflesians in AJC would know nothing much about the real Miss S.some would criticize my apparent no taste in incurring a larger opportunity cost).and be forewarned about someone who looks very much like miss S.makes me appreciate Pooh more...ooh

whatever that was after I finished my brandied cherry-rum and raisin sundae,complete with chocolate fudge and raisins,a teetotaler's nightmare that i bought from haagen daaze-why such a name cuz they are the best around.the phenolic taste of the brandied cherry,the strong rum taste in the raisins and the chocolate fudge really made me felt even more bittersweet after i finished my last drip.only Ben and Jerry's Cherry Garcia comes close

dinner was at Straits Kitchen,Grand Hyatt.definitely brilliant local delights that warrants a walk through the busy Orchard area from Meritus to Hyatt.I just hope my prom nite next year would be at either place..whatever the case,the place was kinda fully booked,so the staff told the 4 of us that we've to finish by 2015.i don't usually extend dinner to more than 1.5h,so that suits me fine given we arrived at 1835bleah i don't usually start a buffet without soup,but seeing that i can't find any,i decided to attack the chinese cze char section..or jian is quite good,mum say fried rice also good..whatever the case had a great time raiding the peranakan food corner,complete with the spices..downside?i filled myself to the brim.so no time 4 laksa or rojak.or pancakes for that matter

in the Hyatt,you get a hell lot of de creme de la creme clientele.believe it or not,Rafflesians(RJC,RI,RGS),the principal of RJC.this person needs no introduction(check back to one of my Oct 2004 posts 4 details).half way through my meal,i checked the table that was sandwiched between the chicken rice corner and the indian open kitchen and there you have it

and he was right behind me while i was trying in vain to get some malt candy on my chopsticks.it's nearing the home stretch of my meal so i guess i did the logical thing to do:strike up a conversation.due to the sensitive nature of some parts of the conversation,especially where the taupok is concerned(memories flood back) i decided not to post the whole dialogue.my memory would have been too small for that encounter

there ends an awesome day...and much more to follow.especially the mayor debate series

a typical bbq:wings required.potato and corn needed too.lots of soft drinks and satay
something atypical:no wings,juz a few piece of chicken cutlets,lots of fishballs,hashbrowns,nuggets and honey.and wait...some special for the guest of honour.

now my hair's tastier than any normal smoked salmon in the supermarket.yawn...so before i exit,here's a recipe for some of the most stylish steak you'll ever eat,especially from a bbq grill

200g or so hunk of ribeye,striploin or tenderloin(prefably organic.if you can't get French imported ones,go to Cold Storage Bukit Timah or Jelita or Paragon Marketplace,Raffles City or Tanglin Mall for the better Australian beef.those gourmet shops in Bukit Timah also stock great beef)

marinade

it's odd,but there's just 1 ingredient.XO(what we usually call cognac).pour so that everything's covered in the special stuff.marinate in the fridge for 4-9 hours(4 for a hint,9 if you want something assertive),flipping the meat every hour.half way through,jab the meat with a sharp knife and pour some more XO.if it is to be brought to somewhere else to barbecue,wrap it in foil right after the fortification.otherwise put back to fridge

baste

melt some butter,enough to last you the whole bbq-ing process.whip in thoroughly the same brand of XO,a bit of sugar that has been flavoured with the XO(to do so,pour a suitable amount of XO such that it flavours the sugar and makes it moist.flavour again just before starting to put in butter).(note that i prefer a French butter bought from Carrefour.if not any European butter should do the trick)

grilling

a good fire is essential.normal firewood would suffice in all but the most stylish versions,where oak chips would be better.build a fire in the normal way,and when it's quite hot,add more coals.the pyre would be quite hot.careful and put the meat on the grill when the embers are red hot and at it's peak.

cooking

flip the meat every 1-2 mins for medium and 3-4 mins for well done(not so stylish),basting the meat with the butter liberally(be careful of the virulent smoke) and flip for 5-10 times either side.for the last time,baste as per normal,when you flip,add some XO so that it sizzles.turn again,repeat the trick,dish up and serve with potatoes,hashbrowns or just straight

Don't try this at home!

warm a bit of brandy,pour on the steak with the juices,light up and put on a metal plate

here's an unusually hectic wednesday

morning

maths o:duffer cocked and blacked out on seeing the paper.didn't even complete 1/3 of the paper

afternoon:mariott hotel visit.here's the 5 most burning ambitions i want to achieve in my life,according to rank

1)lawyer(enough said about this job)
2)auditor/accountant(i love my numbers so much,i'd wanna end up affixing my name to PWC)
3)politician(PAP Grassroots or revamped opposition taking Parliament by storm.choose)
4)hotelier(surprisingly i might think of starting from the lower end of the industry,but once you do well success is immense)
5)journalist(i need to write well from now on)

evening

victoria concert hall.because of a few kakis there,i've decided to come for their concert.unusual on all counts because i've to pay upfront instead of getting a ticket ready for ushers to check.and victoria has an old style cinema feel...no use sitting on the stalls becuase you get a view similar to the higher circles of esplanade.the hall looks as if we are sucked into a timewarp of the 1960s with all the romanesque pillars...so their repertoire as always...

Russlan n Ludmilla Overture-Mikhail Glinka
anything russian?no.sounds more like a march

Invictus-Philip Starke
stays true to what was claimed.definitely uprising

Sorcery Suite Opus 112-James Barnes
I thought he doesn't read Harty Potter?nvm,cuz the characterisation is quite good,except for Snape's part

Time to Take Back the Knights-Stephen Milillo
RJ did the ghost of medieval knights reference which was lacking in there but amply compensated with a more harder percussion

break
moved out from the stall seats for the circles.this time,getting a stall seat isn't really the best seat as you dun get to get a great view of the stage

Stage Band-basically that was an edit of the Emperor in New Clothes.you know what i mean.something to wake ppl up before the more serious stuff

Magic Overture-Thomas Doss
i missed the second part when i went to eat because i was so famished.from the first part,it's generally ok and well held on by the guy student conductor

Phantom of the Opera-Andrew Lloyd Webber
every band loves this piece.it's slower by half a beat and the main fave part was sorely lagging until nearly the end

NSB Millenium
Part 1 of the Beethoven and Strauss remixes.it looked as if both composers were drowned in techno and they dunno how to swim out of this mess

Dancin Megahits
another remix.but this one's slightly better,though my preference is for more traditional symphonies

very unusual because they played the school song at the end.it's highly unusual actually

encore-forgot piece

oh ya where's shortie!?jerk though misses me alot

I'm back after such an exciting day

Morning:be yourself day.in true AJC fashion they make a mockery out of the Be Yourself definition,because the whole class are required to wear according to a certain theme decided by the class leaders...the poor decision making mechanism meant that I ended up as a punk for the day.and a stylish one at that,because of the painted hair.other than that the karaoke which i got cut-off half way by dwayne became the focal point

Afternoon:PJC is quite ulu,and going there for a debate workshop is definitely tiring.esp when I've to clean out my 6 colours of my hair to just 1.only the ACJC ppl are there.the proud Rafflesians and co are all gone...

haiz I'm so tired now...adios

An Evening With Friends--well...not actually so

part 2 of concerts as ac choir go on stage.by all means i'd have loved it if not for the fact that they have a lot of baltic stuff.seems like whitacre rights have been the sole monopoly of VJChoir,and Malcolm of 28/05 had tipped me off earlier that their conductor wasn't mr kwei.all the more you should check out its worth...silly

AC Choir

Diffusa est Gratia,Jacobus Gallus-short and sweet.coincidentally they will visit his old office at Olomouc in November.but never trust them to get me a Sigma shirt.i won't accept it...juz jk

River Qing Jiang,Leong Yoon Pin-sounds like a symphony...i dunno which,but the middle loud part is flanked by the two soft tones

Sunset,LYP-commissioned by CCA branch.they got Indian,Malay ,Chinese and english lyrics,all rojak together.instrumental reminiscence aside,it sounded like every part was abruptly stopped before each new movement

Kastie Tadia,arr Steven Stammetz-Latvian sad tune which sounded so poignant,no need to learn Latvian.but u need french anyway

PokPok Alimpako-very childish,very funny and the end ended up in laughter,so much so court protocol was broken by LOL

AC Alumnia

before i start i observed something unusual.they bring in a book each...

O magnum Mysterium,Willy Byrd-quite cosmo in its days...it's traditional church music at its best

Benedictus Dominus,Carl Nielsen-first try and another good church tune,lest we are reminded of AC's Methodist heritage

The Beatitudes,Damijan Mocnik-oddly i thought it would be in slovenian.but it's english and another of my fave tunes.of course this being a Methodist institution,we believe in having the Bible quoted all the time

I Will,John Lennon and Paul McCartney-if it's merely a choral accapella remix of the song,allow me to point out the male solo tenor that's highly unusual,unlike last week's performance

Polska and Fugue in F Minor,Jaakko Mantyjarvi-they have a penchant for Finns too...and it doesn't sound like a nokia ringtone as claimed...oof

As You Are-smooth and harmonically rich,as said in the programme.

Sagastipean-i think i snored through it..but at least it could be a lullaby

AC combined choir(i particularly like the D which was intended to look like something which came out of Iceland)

Salmo 150(Psalms 150),Ermani Aguiar-rapid,but there's some samba fused inside 4 u.who says church hymns are serious

Lux Aeterna,Edward Elgar-it's more traditional...which's better.it all boils down to how the songs are composed

Toccata Para Coro,Jesus Pinzon-exciting and nonsensical.i believe it's more of a deejaying class

Suite de Lorca,Einojuhani Rautavaara-a finn remixing Lorca?funny...but at least he didn't turn that into finnish...but i could only catch the following words:cordoba,aeee,malaguena(historically important place in spain/Ivan Ramiro,screech,death in spanish).stylish though even though i'd rather be at seville,valencia or madrid.gonna give cordoba a try next time,or maybe salamanca and toledo

Song for Athene,John Tavener-very slow,very stylish and very quiet.love it too.due in part that it's a funeral song it has a sombre dark feeling

Rondo Lapponico-last piece of regulation time...geez i kinda couldn't concentrate maybe becoz i sneaked out but trust ac choir to do well in voice control.at least there's an encore...and we didn't realise it was the VP who's calling the shots...something like Mrs Woo or the heck

AJC's double header

oh gosh here's part one of my back to back concerts series

seating on an unfamiliar Circle 2 setting i ended up seeing alot of J2s there...though i couldn't see who the performers are...reception was lukewarm anyway and i smiled through the narrow leg room...that's something only stall seats provide.morale of this episode:never leave ticket buying to the last minute or you've to make do with crappy seats

if that is so it wasn't the 165 mins i expected...

Vesuvius by Frank Ticheli-AC had a more shrill version.we all used more percussion

LOTR-skip

Phanton of the Opera-the Principal's favourite...seemed more jazzy than RJ's one

Hidamari by Murashita Kouzou-i remember one of the J-pop songs but i dun noe the name.quite a fast good one

Omens of Love-some 8 yr old boi-boi composed it...funny sial...but at least it's a light hearted un-trou-normand for the heavy stuff ahead

Pirates of the Carribbean-compared to the RJ version it has quite more gusto

CO

Shan Chun de Jie Mu (village festival,according to a very crude interpretation)-joyous,village fare which preludes the more grander stuffJiang Jun Ling-they play it at operas alot of the time.classic that needs nil introduction whatsoever unless you lived in a well.very nice and strong

Lan Hua Hua's diary(even more vague term)-tragic?not quite,but more feminine and softer.kudos for the erhu soloist

Qin,terra,cotta(even more bastardized interpretation)-1st part magnificent,2nd part chilling,3rd part very sad...muz haf been too hawkish

Double Bill

legends of the condor heroes theme(i dunno which one.better say it in chinese,which is she diao ying xiong zhuan)-tvb drama serials and i'm stumped.good effort though

long de chuan ren-double play,double the fun.i particularly like the hippie hairstyle of the CO conductor though i hate ending a concert without encores

Symphony of Voices-gala premiere

you know what...i spent $54 just for a VJC Choir concert(the most ex on the house plus Rachie's gift),so obviously i enjoyed the show very much although weighed down by the mounting mountain of homework and that Miss S saga,not forgetting all the debt i'm getting embooiled in after this concert.yeah that's the price for sitting on the VIP box,but if you can afford it why not


so guys...i met Yong Guan(RQ's fren) and WiNi(where she looked more stylish without specs) and i dunno who the heck are those...well nice meeting up with those kakis although they all buy $21 tix.ouch i'm broke and i think WiNi's goin 2 tease me about what happened in no time...haha

the Emcees though..are quite a dry witty sort.instead of some announcement via the PA System,they showed up and announced stuff...which includes switching raucous students into silent mode..haha


of course my beloved Rachie(to all those thinking about the Miss S saga...she isn't my stead actually.she's my gd fren) did perform,and she's a stunner...although i could easily stun ppl with my super fancy hairstyle yesterday...and true to a choral performance of classic proportions there's 2 changes of performing costumes quite like the Emmys or other award shows...so let's get a lowdown on the repertoire like all those posts of a similar pattern in the past 2 months


Whitacre's Super Starters(in the glam lookin gowns for the ladies and slick suits for the men)


Leonardo dreams of his flying machine-i couldn't feel the Latin dance hymns,as it seems more like a renaissance piece played acapella on the Medici palace,but the sheer brilliance means i don't care if it's really what the programme has described,so as long i love it


Lux Aurumque-literally Golden Light.not my usual Nerazzurri or Rossoneri lingua,but Latin.when you hear that it's most likely angels galore,and it's really seems like we're going from Florence to The Eternal City,shows how good they are at Musica Sacra


I Thank You God for Most this Amazing day-truthfully i can't catch the lyrics.But it more than pays for it with great arrangement...and another Sacre Musique dat shows how good VJ Choir are


She Weeps Over RaHOON-okok...it's a girls world here.quite a sad piece and ok...so sad only girls could dechiper it.soft,lush and ironic


With a Lily in Your Hand-compared to the next piece it's more fluctuating,though it sounded more like an instrumental piece


Go Lovely Rose-cheerful ballad,surprisingly given the apparent sadness claimed by the programme


Kala Kalla-year ones showtime.guys go sad girls go happy.blow hot and cold.interesting though because of its disparateness unlike the rest which seems smoother.reputably a wedding piece


Cloudburst-very high intristic value.unusual amounts of percussion,even a metal sheet.the best goes to the last part,where the rainy imagination is really reinforced by the thunder from the sheet and the rain sound from the performers...even the audience made noise,this actually meant the finger flicking


Interval:i gingerly asked WiNi to take a pic with me.she was pleasantly surprised but still agreed and I sheepishly asked some passerby to take a pic for me before the next part.it's an absolute flop becuz I was caught staring into space!haha!and WiNi looks like she's posing with a statue...hahahaha...then it's over and the great VJ Choir changes into a hebrew theme


The Ethnic Pottpurri(sic)


Tumbalalaika-i don't know hebrew,so i'll try to give as unbiased as possible.that's quite a sad loud piece


Yerushalayim Shel Zahav-I can't speak Hebrew for nuts,let alone read that.this mostly meant something about Jerusalem.soft,quiet and poignant


Uri Tsafon-middle of the road.another ballad


(VJChoir changes backstage while their ex-seniors show up with an Indonesian theme)


first piece was nice accapella,second piece was a bit sleepy,third was quite ok...i was caught napping(they're back)


Zhu Li Guan-J2s swansong.they could recreate part of Beijing Opera with only their voices.no way will AC surpass any of them


Mu ge,Mei Li de Cao Yuan-mongol themed.similar sounding though


Lu Dao Xiao Ye Qu-okay lor...but that kinda reminds me of Miss S


Deng Li Jun mdeley(Nan Hai Gu Niang+Qian Yan Wan Yu+Wo Zhi Zai Hu Ni)-nice smooth megamix...transition is really silky.the second song remains my fave and i wonder if chinese songs sound best on choirs


Zui Hou de Yuan Wu Qu-the drum distracted me.but quite a slightly sad note to end the day...of course being half a Prussian I could appreciate the millitary tone


Encore 1-Pamugun-surprisingly it was filipino.the only thing forced out of my mouth was...I thought birds have descended literally on the Esplanade roof.this snagged the Gold with Honours in SYF


Encore 2-ex VJChoir members join current ones on stage.their anthem so i won't delve into it


met the VIPs for a few moments.that includes a MP and the principal..and it's a record for coming home late on a normal school day,but 4h with the grandest people in the world for a concert negates the opportunity costs

finally after 7 days of intensive tekaning by trainers the ACJC invitationals prelim rounds are over...though my gang lost to NY(who stuffed J2s inside,esp that 3rd speaker with bridging minds) and RJ(they didn't bring Chere out and still managed to thrash the rest,with a few reserves sloshed in) our guys put up a good fight

and somehow i got the rare chance to catch up with debate ppl n insider talk,something which i dun get to do in aj.kinda find out my contact list in AC is now inflated to include the AC speakers from last yr's RMUN(which i ended up breaking protocol by whining out a fake laugh when i talked to them...heez),and more debate insiders...and the indian dude with the moustache was in fact the no 1 debater in nationals...looks can be extremely deceiving.one thing though...he didn't show up debating

of course lest you think RJ debaters are a whole bunch of atas shitters like AC...i talked to one of the RJ debaters on the train back home and i really was thankful i'm a Raffles sympathiser...not with those guai lan kias from Buona Vista...maybe becoz i once aimed for Raffles and i'm proud even to say dat i couldn't make it...sure they can be bitchy or sucker on the debate arena but they really are your ordinary plain james and janes outside the arena...if AJCians are as good(i mean team work) i think they will win even AC...whatever it was talking from buona vista to tampines(where my new fren lived) and then it's back home...whee

yay it's finally over...and though the guys didn't gel up in time,they did their best,and the nxt round may be a gr8 video 4 us guys

p.s:Bridging Minds is the de facto National team B

ok it's 5 days being grilled intensively for debate and as always i'm so shacked I can't type alot more...

but at least there's something that warmed my heart...

I tried to call Pooh tonight,then a few minutes later,this happened

P:(sms)erm...why did you call me?
J:(...)
P:yeah got stuff to do...call your over(sic) frens??
J:(...)
P:Haha cheer up!
J:u too

thx Pooh for cheering me up...haha! =)

my birthday is damn sian diao...but whatever I juz got grilled by Ramesh and Cherie,for 6 h flat.life of a debater is like this...put in your all juz to get nothing much where obvious achievements are concerned yet would be useful in the long run.just persist and It'll be ok...

signing off

A Tempo XVI

the second show of this year is RJC's A Tempo XVI,and of course my mum's used to my concert going routines.no sign of those headline-busters though

here's Concert Tip No 2:never show up late.the earlier the better.but there's a limit.45 minutes at most.gives you ample time to mill around and still saunter into the venue 10 mins before concert startsok...i'm very likely going to sound like some editor from Wine and Dine,so i'll try.of course i saw a whole gang of your kakis,or ex ones i mean.so the list include(in order of appearance) Yuan Ru(too bad she appealed back to IJC),the innova guy who appealed into HCl thru band,Samz,another Innova girl who's now in NYJC(apparently she knows about the rumour about Juliana and me),Ms Ng,my juniors from CCHSM who i miss alot,my CHC fren and Shortie(with her kakis as well) and a whole lot of AJC ppl

since i wasn't down for any council briefing,as a rich dude with money to burn,spending a night at the Esplanade is the ultimate decadence.so how,let's check out the repertoire.

there's a medieval theme for this A tempo,esp when i saw the promo posters on the day i crashed so the start goes like this

Huntingtower
that's a ballad,they say.but i think i find the insistent bass note emanating more like a opera.but anyhow that fairly exploded with rhythm with a few high points in between.apparently it seemed haunted to the person who wrote the programme,but not me.i find it more like a tragedy

Time to take back the Knights (The Chosen)
a contrasting piece that is quite boppy,and not another medieval ball theme.whereas the last piece was very solemn,this seemed more like the appetizer

Funiculi-Funicula Rhapsody
funny name.but nothing funny by all means.more cute than funny.winds around your eardrums in a brilliant rhapsody.quite cool

With Heart and Voice
inspired by an old spanish hymn,as they said.so how,they literally played this out with their heart and soul and letting the instruments do the talking

Pirates of the Carribean
cameo by the Raffles Winds(aka the Rafflesian Alumni band).
need i say more?quite a rousing piece that is conferred a brass cloak by the orchestra

St Florian's Choral
the composer wasn't popular at first,but this great choral piece retains its 18th century charm,updated with more grace.

Finale from Symphony no 5
whereas ACJC made it sombre,RJC made it sounded more optimistic

Celtic Folk Song Suite
the celtic elements are sorely lacking,but it more than compensated with the grace only brass can give.the middle one was more light,presumably to herald the next song that's just as heavy as the first

Evergreen 70s
you know what,the percussion men look funky in that one,obviously one to dance to,literallyand they are so forthcoming with encores they performed 2,one conducted by a student conductor and one by the in house Japanese counductor,and with the addition of unusual stuff like piano and electric bass,they aren't going to be toppled off their best band award soon

Oh yeah Ee jean (or simply Jean) saw me before she retired backstage.there rounded off a great night

Muse-ACJC's band concert

so guys i've braved little verbal ammo to go to ACJC's concert yesterday.that's called enjoying the high life,to AJCians still reeling from orientation2 tribal funka..whee funky altjira brings back memories of saturday night fever in ibiza or MoS,but esplanade reminds me of prague or vienna

not that purists don't care,but then they let late comers in...funny man...esplanade never like this before one

so ACJC,being masters of arts like Raffles,served up this 12 course menu.wait...2 each from ACS I and BR band and something intriguing.here's the order.it's as if a classy degustation menu at el Bulli,and sometimes such extended concerts may be a bully to one's ears...if they are quite impatient

Surprise piece-I forgot what's the name already
played at the expense of All Pleasant Things by James Barnes,which was to be played after the interval.but anyhow it seemed like those rousing appetizers or tapas that you start before a meal,light and satisfying

Finale from Symphony no 5-dmitri shostakovich(the programme spelt it out the french way,like my email,dimitri.but i prefer the russian.oof enough nonsense)
it gets very heavy this time.the emcee said about this last part being a protest by the composer of the supposed manipulation by the soviets.happy parts at the front and this sombre piece at the back.pretty much like the soup course or the suckling pig

Music for Prague-featuring interlude and toccata and chorale--karel husa
interesting start with percussion only.bells sounds made from xylophone that really make this piece live up to prague's name as city of 100 spires.then all the war sounds that has something akin with the city in an emergency.that's the next best thing before the main courses.must have been a palate cleanser...i wish i can go Hradcany next year...but my gang are going Olomouc.argh!haha!

variations on a korean folk song-john barnes chance
actually that was arirang,performed in 5 styles.pretty much like those degustation menus of a particular food,where the food was cooked 5 styles and then served in small portions as a sampler.in this case i'd find that there's a traditional version,a double tempo version,and 3 other versions which i dun remember except for the 4th which is also quite fast and the fifth which has some teasing interplay

INTERVAL

I met the principal,who had been sitting 2 rows in front with the board of governors and the big brass.so naturally it went on to compliments and about the delay of the 1 intake policy.

Seagate Overture-james swearingen
performed by ACSI band.of course when you're going to sleep,here's something to rouse you.haha i bet that's true.and it's just halfway through!might have been an opening act for the main course

Vesuvius-frank ticheli
performed by ACSI band.the tragic circumstances of the eruption of vesuvius in the 1st century is very well shown with the big bass drum tones that permeate the song most of the time.a sense of emergency is also there in the form of higher pitches.the eruption part towards the end is especially interesting.i can't think of something more garang,like chili con carne

Yorkshire Ballad-james barnesperformed by ACS BR band.ballads have been known to be quite soft and feminine,presumably about love.if this was a beef well cooked and rare,the acs band endowed on it yorkshire pudding...in other words,a masculinity that emanates from an all guy ensemble

El Cordobes-geert felin
performed by ACS BR band.bullfights are very masculine,and a hispanic touch was added by the castenets(sic) that is audible during the middle.a sharply contrasting course to complement the softer one preceding it

Slava!-leonard bernstein
an exciting piece which showcased the operas that this particular composer had composed(i supposed so).carnival atmosphere climaxes with the band yelling the same word that gives the song its name.happy by all means.in fact it's near the end of the main courses,now for the heavyweights

Phantom of the Opera-andy lloyd webber arranged by johan de meij
longest piece.and world famous as well.it gets a makeover of brass with the nifty hands of the acjc band.whereupon the opera type atmosphere was prevalent in its original version,the band gave it a particularly joyful atmosphere,and is resplendent with all the ups and downs of the whole opera,encased within 20 mins

The Little Mermaid-joy bacook
essentially dessert.under the sea...so would the audience go...

The End-i thought i'd only be the only AJC guy there.then i saw 3 seniors,who were pleasantly-unpleasantly surprised by my prescence.got out with a very nice feeling in my heart

next up:
RJC Concert on 11 April.I got a stall seat this time.juz hope i'd be second time lucky with mr hodge seating more than 15 rows away

and update:
15/05:ACJC String Ensemble night-most likely i won't be going unless something happens
17/05:VJC Choir nite.because of Rachie i'm going.and maybe my dearie as well.but then...can you say a white lie about cca?
22/05:confirmed my school one.joseph chin is not joseph chin if he doesn't get the most expensive tickets
23/05:ACJC Choir nite.a back to back one may make my mummy scowl.but i dunno.i say i got fren in all top 5 jc,plus ijc,acjc sajc tpjc nyjc...and of course ajc as well.no excuse not allowing me to go since my fren invited me
08/04:VJC Band nite.good since you can cook up some funny excuse on friday and say i'm now at orchard road.wait...i think i've a talk by rohan gunaratna.so a taxi trip there seems more likely

that's all for now

juz came back from lecture crashin...yay!!it's my first time haha!

with the abolition of the PAE...aka 1st 3 mths usin ur prelim result...there's many changes.some good.some bad.too bad with this new policy there'll be no more lecture crashin or AWOL without gettin caught.so today is the second last day.in fact they are letting their guard down instead..

crashin:illegally attending lessons of other schools.very prevalent in most J1 ppl.nerds excluded

every place has it's way of dealin with such people.some juz dun care.some pursue until the dude was humiliated.today was my first time(and last time) doing crashin practical.somehow there's an art to crashin

target:Raffles

heard from frens it's super easy to crash.so how?morning.the side gate was open.just sneak in before 8.30.since alot of my fren go fly kite...u can't loiter around anyhow.in the canteen none cared.never mind that my big boss was at home and bungled up my plans.teachers dun seem 2 see who was crashin

here were a few tips when crashin
1:it's not u can come in and then crash lecture as you like one.the first thing one must do is get an insider in the college to arrange 4 lectures to crash.can be J1 or J2.just make sure u have a good day where there's many lectures.and of course he/she must know that you're coming.or u can forget about crashin
2:in case of trouble,hiding in toilet is the best.since RJ has so many toilets,i've decided to put the cleanest toilet in one of the floor as base camp.escape in case of trouble.lock up cubicle pretend shit.i won't mind revealing where i hid.the 7th floor
3:only stupid fools crash tutorials.what do i do when idle?no library.since it's right above staff room...it may arouse suspicion.best place?still canteen
4:wear their badge or tshirt.buy from the bookshop.would arouse less suspicion than without any of these.anyway u can have them as a souvenir after mission accomplished
5:touchwood.if u're caught,juz say u're here to appeal.lame trick not to be tried unless desperate

of course part of crashin is getting to see ur long lost ex sch frens.many ppl who crash dun haf the luxury of NYGH,HCI/TCHS n Rafflesians(and to a smaller extent ACSI,St Nics,DHS n Crescent...list goes on).so u may haf 2 meet other sch ppl who noe u.of course talkin with them for a while really helped kill time.note that u can also look 4 fren one.u may need to inform them or pay a surprise visitanother thing for first time crashers.check out what's in store.a guided trip is a must.ask ur fren bring u around.in raffles they dun care.so my senior brought me around.they have theatre,sports complex,multi purpose hall,gym n the required track.and they hold their flag raising on some elevated surface.how cool was that

of course the main thing is crashin lectures.do not go arts one unless you're sure u can blend in the surroundings.f maths,computing etc are also no-go zones.big lecture theatres decrease dramatically the chance of you gettin caught.i went for the chem one.bring at least some foolscap cuz u need to take notes and not arouse any more suspicion.and the lecturer has too many cold jokes already.wah piang the chem si beh cheem eh

after crashin.when u have no more,troop out of the door before u get caught and go further and further into safety.don't try to loiter again

and so i heard from my frens that the L1R5 cutoff for arts was 9 without bonus.some said 10.way too controversial already.u may need an appeal form for 10.forget about 11 unless u got sports to stake ur claim.likewise,i heard that they take 1200 and then throw out those who did not reach cut off.some others say the pae batch would be augmented by a few more reinforcements.lastly cchsm ppl get discriminated?well...to a certain extent.i wonder if many cchsm ppl still think raffles is impossible to go one.no body fill rank,no body to look out each other for

Before I end.thanks to these ppl
Hazel--all the logistics n arrangements for lecture crashin.
Mayanne--a few hints on where's the safest place to hide and enter
my senior--for givin me a guided tour round the compound
the CCHSM ppl who went there:Hanzhi,Jean,Jovian,Jin Jing,Linlin,Zhang Yi-taking out some of their time to talk to the crasher

Here's a special Feature from our editorial about all the slang and jargon used in (almost) all the JCs out here...

Exclusive to...

AJC:Non Mich Solum...or Not for myself alone(their sch motto)(how boring is that...they look so boring...so their new jargon look ancient...),siao kia(you know who they mean),ohana and nexus(2 badly underused places)
ACJC:chat(x2)(pronounced chart)...lousy la(wah lau that's really so lousy)
CJC:shing ga them...ga them...wat's done is done...(i dunno wat dialect is this...not hokkien or cantonese...)
PJC:slack ah...why so relax(wait that's pretty common)
HCl:Wake Up Your Idea...sian diao...eh that means boring...(haha that's really sian jit pua)
IJC:tellytubby hill..where my kakis run around during pe lesson(you know what...it really has gd fengshui and literally kai men jian shan liao)
JJC:JJ Spirit(erm dat's freakin lame)
MJC:(clocks in with 3)1:mer-lion and mer-maid...(students call each other these)...2:lai-on's den(their principal's office...hum ji ah)...3:Qool La(Cooler Cool...drank to much Qoo or what)
MI:1:duh!(oh yes!...yeah duh is arbutthen+bored)...2:Our little playground(PE ground actually...wonder iof MI PE tr slack or the ground look like playground)
NYJC:fantabulous(since their english is quite bad...they mishmash and say fantastic and fabulous at the same time)
NJC:1:chap-a-lang(mish mash...pretty succinct)...2:CMI...cannot make it(really clever acronym)
RJC:that's so gay lah...or wimpy(wait gays are wimps?)
SAJC:AICK(dunno wat exclamation)...100% chop stamp...(so long...i think it should have been guarantee 100% chop stamp warranty card)
TJC:1:mugger...bookworm(really used alot time one)...2:not so lucky heights(they go there for PE and are stumped by the stairs..or is it)
VJC:sia...la...unbelievable...(well...thats' really unbelievable...esp when some anglo students of VJ roll their tongue and say xia lan instead)

and so how TPJC,SRJC and YJC...no slang ah...poor thing lo...muz haf been teacher clampdown nag at y'all say proper english...

Universal Use

crash:means illegally attending lesson or lecture of another college...actually taken to mean trespassing...too bad with the abolition of the PAE there's no more of such
pon sch/lesson:run away from lesson halfway through the day or simply not coming at all...also gone after 2006...this is used as a front for crashing lectures,idling around,avoiding any teacher...and even illegal class outings

okok...enough of crapping...O lvl results come out in i dunno how many hrs time...SHOW HAND!

especially updated on 10/10/05