Retirement

Why do we have so many elderly doing things mostly done by the youth elsewhere? Its really common to see elderly cleaning tables, taking orders in fast food retaurants, mopping floors, and even as security guards. Is it not the time to retire and relax? Do we not have enough social security?

its always thought that retirement is the time when we truly bid goodbye to all the years of hardwork and begin to reap the fruits of our labour over the years. it naturally means staying away from work, and doing things just for leisure. Shouldnt retirement be something we look forward to? why then is the perpetual demand to raise the age of retirement?

Money. They havent earned enough to even make ends meet, much less travelling around and enjoying true retirement. They probably did not have enough CPF deposited. CPF is a fair but cruel scheme. While it encourages one to work hard, those who fail in amassing enough wealth have no chance of enjoying retirement. With the economy going South, getting a job at an old age is already a blessing to many.

New Year

Havent added anything here in half a year. Blogging is very much like doing sports. Its easy to keep the momentum but once you stop for some reasons, it takes so much to get started again. Preparation for A levels and applications for uni/scholarships end of last year took me away from the blog. but tbh, nothing was fun and worth writing about that period.

Now that exams are over and holidays halfway through, i'm very much relaxed and enjoying everyday till NS, which will probably be some enjoyment of a different nature.

I had a 10-day vacation with lixiang and yiming to Hongkong, Macau and Mainland. If i didnt have to rush back for a scholarship interview, i probably would stay longer in China and continue being amazed by the development in the cities i visited.

Many friends are working now. some on internships, others for fun. I just wanna stay home and rest. But it hasnt been restful lately. found a new hobby. catching lobsters at a nearby nature park. While i havent hooked any lobster, im pretty hooked to this evening 'hobby'. they are really witty and agile creatures.

Heres wishing everyone a fulfilling and purposeful 2010.

Year Half

This year is going really fast. i thought last year was fast. haha i think the older we get, the faster time passes. just like how toilet rolls finish faster nearing the end.

Or perhaps its just because theres nothing much to remember by. All that happened, and that i can clearly recall, are things like orientation, cny, council passing down, alot of missing lectures and catching up on studies, taking h3 which is finally, phew, over, and random little things. j2 is probably not the year to have a happening life.

My holidays quite boring i guess. mainly coz hongkong camp was cancelled. nvm. theres still the harmoc concert on the 1st day of sch holi put up by the finest harmonica band in singapore that won the highest honor -- a frigging silver in this years syf. yeah jasonlim! then we will have JTS haha i think ours is one of the last classes to still have JTS. and rachel invited us to her birthday. oh not forgetting the army health checkup which probably will take half a day. im also going to get some sunshine outdoors someday, if i can find ppl.

im working on my csc lunwen these days its so discouraging after you write so much and it reads just like any other essay online.

Dont blame the pigs

My trip to Hongkong was cancelled in view of the fast spreading mexican flu. and from monday everyone would have to bring a thermometer to school. for the past few temp taking ive been using a dummy thermometer coz its spoilt and i didnt see a point in getting a new one coz its just some precautionary formality. haha but its now time to get a working one. the flu is reminding everyone of sars back in 2003. i was watching tv and on the side screen news bulletin was the notice of sch closure with immediate effect. everyone called around in disbelief with considerable excitment. it was around 2 weeks plus of homeschooling which was not a bad idea come to think of it. not that i want the pandemic to aggrevate, but having to stay at home is quite a blessing in disguise. but its quite unfortunate how this is superpositioning itself with recession and if the disease worsens, it could be a mega depression like never before.

About the Council Debate

yesterdays presidential qna saw quite some pertinent discussions and discontents students have on this organisation. i shall not call it council because even the title is now controversial.

some felt that council should be a body that is representative of the students and a voice that challanges the school admin to propel policies for the general welfare of the students. i can understand where these people come from, and personally i agree with that. every year council organises 7 major school events, this is a well known fact by the students and its probably why most would think the council is overly event based, which has blurred its distinction from an event organsing committee. having said that, what most people do not know, however, is the standing role every councillor has. in other words, the council has the capacity to go much further beyond the 7 events every year. but why are the students not seeing the changes? i cant blame it on the school admin because contrary to what most would think, the school admin actually gives council quite a substantial level of support and as long as the case is strong, and the need justified, the school okays it.

well i think the real reason is that everythings going fine in school, and what the students want are things purely unnecessary. ok maybe a little reasonable at times but not absolutely necessary. what the student government does in other countries could be organising protests and strikes, to defend their interest. in the past, hwachong did have a very strong students union that organised strikes. but this is not happening now because things are fine, why should people challange a well established system. so over the year, the council has evolved from defending the students' interests to enhacing them. the catch is to strike the equilibrium btw the school and the students. we do have major events that bring alumni back, and the entire school together. this is actually a great welfare in disguise. personally i would rather have more of such welfare than policies like shaving a few inches off the skirt. another aspect the council covers is the school spirit. its tricky. its sth not guranteed however much you do. imagine cheering without the councillors around.

the council, though not ideal, is an organisation still necessary and deserves some recognition. despite so, council is not a perfect system and it does miscarry from time to time. i agree that council could have done better in many ways but then its always easier said than done. council has limitations, and so does the election process. there is never a perfect system, there only exists a balanced one taking into consideration the logistics and practicality.

things always change, so should our perceptions on them.

Early Planning

Last week was quite mundane, nothing exceptionally worth mentioning. its probably how the rest of the year will be like after passing down. though i need slack weeks to buffer, its boring when free time starts pouring. coz i think i work better under pressure. on the brighter side i can do so much what i havent had the time to do for so long. chilling by the coast, swimming, maybe some fishing, going to camps and stuff.

yeah talking about camp, im going hongkong on a 5 day camp end may. we just had a training session cum meeting in the morning at bukit timah hill. we trekked a big loop and were all so shagged at the end of it.i guess we are just too busy with work so we neglect workout. its so unhealthy. ive people around me hardly exercising outside pe lessons. a famous pe teacher once said, if you are active now, you will be less active next time; if you are less active now, you will be inactive next time. haha yeah its quite the time to check on health. anyw, while trekking we saw quite a lot of stuff. ants of the size of a little finger, lizards of a arms length etc. quite surprised by what the 163m hill can offer.

I hope next week can be a little more fun.

Falling Behind

im really lagging a lot here, and in my school work. since the block test i havent been picking up the momentum to study and catch up. i cant really find a good reason this is happening this way. anyw we just had our second h3 test, something quite sensational. now that all the tests are over, im back to all those fresh from the copier tutorials. and i just registered for the may 2nd sats, it was a spur of the moment decision on the deadline day coz i havent really seriously considered much about going to the US. but i thought i could give it a whack, take first, talk later. haha yeah.

council hasnt been as busy as it was. its elections period which is our ageing sign and a notice for retirement. council has been a journey quite as expected, fulfilling at times, busy and tiring always. shall not go on about council now. maybe after stepping down.

As i see it, most singaporeans are just too busy for any physical qualities of life. i was recently going around tamanjurong to promote a saturaday morning cycling event at ubin. what could have been a healthy and happy family bonding affair was marred by parents having to work and children as little as 10 having tuitions. this cant really be blamed on anyone or any government policies on education or economy (something thats better left unsaid on the internet). i just think people might wanna consider some life sometimes in life.