Wednesday, July 28

Councillor Collaterals 1 - The Selective Process & Councillors vs Teachers

In my first article of Councillor Collaterals, a brief and undetailed collection of articles all about councillors, I intend to explore whether differences are present between the average student and a councillor, and the reason why councillors just cannot rise up to the "rank" of teachers.

The image of the average councillor in school currently is a rather poor one. The gap between what's supposed to be different in a councillor from a normal student is closing nearer and nearer. Why then should some councillors be called "councillors" when they behave as normal everyday students? Tracing back to the time when these councillors were in Secondary One or Two, teachers had selected them often due to their conduct in class and academic performance - a grave mistake due to the fact that seemingly "good" students when younger have the potential to develop into "bad" students as they grow up and get influenced by their compatriots. As a result, "rotten seeds" are often sown into fertile land, hoping to grow but ultimately stunted by their inward self or character ("bad" student councillors going for training and leadership courses find it hard to develop further in being a leader). The rotten seeds remain in the fertile ground, unchanged by the fertilisers that are added to the soil - the reprimands of teachers cause no effect towards this group of student councillors. All us student councillors might have faced a crisis somewhat similar to this - being in a blown-up situation where we are particularly implicated because we are student leaders. Be it bringing food or drinks out of the canteen, improper attire or the act of forgetting to bring books or not doing our homework, we have experienced our share of being "victimised" time and again.

There is talk that it is hoped that student councillors will one day hold the same "rank" as that of teachers in the school. However, I disagree for the simple fact that "councillors are students; teachers are staff". Councillors and teachers already hold different roles in the corporate body known as the school (or so it is commonly viewed on par with the standard of professional organisations). The role of the councillor (student) is to study in school to work for the best for his future; whereas that of the teacher is to impart knowledge to students. Furthermore, the teacher has something we all desire to be high - a salary. How can students compare to this? They are not even working yet! Thus, I emphasise that a councillor can never equal the "rank" of a teacher - yes, to a small, limited extent of influencing the school population healthily, but how effective will this be, anyway?

Find out in my next article of Councillor Collaterals!

Tuesday, July 27

The Blogger Bugger

Well if you've been to my blog recently and often, you would have probably realised there is an ongoing spat among an anonymous person who keeps posting tags inciting hatred to 4A and supporters who revoke his statements. Just keep wondering why that person is so free to tag all these UNKIND statements! As some of my supporters have said, you shouldn't even be VIEWING my blog if you hate 4A! Anyway, I DO haf your IP address (although somewhat "incomplete" and similar to a few others'). Nevertheless, I think that it is currently USELESS as no further information is provided. However, we DO know that you KNOW Soo Jun Jie and also that you KNOW the address of my blog - so watch out there! We're narrowing you down!

Sunday, July 25


Racial.Harmony.Day.04 - That's me putting a smile on my face!

Friday, July 23

500 and MORE HITS!

It's been a great journey that I have not regretted starting on. 500 and more hits to my blog! In around a period of two months, since end of May when I started my blog, I have been greatly encouraged by the largely positive feedback towards it. Many a time I have spent a great deal of effort and time to get the blog's features through because I am not very skilled in HTML or web page editing. However, you guys (and gals) out there have made all this possible by renewing my commitment towards making my virtual home an even better one for all to "visit"! Infinite thanks again... and I'm looking forward to the day when a THOUSAND hits are made possible through referrals, search engines and word of mouth. Have an enjoyable viewing!

Thursday, July 22

Racial Harmony Day - Five Colours in the Air

It was a sea of colours as the students gathered at the courtyard - seemingly from all walks of life but many "cross-dressing" - not in terms of gender but in terms of "inter-racialness". It was one day in the entire year that you could wear "relaxed" uniform to school. One idyllic day. Unfortunately, it was my last in secondary school. Anyway, got many photos taken. There're 60 photos here of my class: http://img21.photobucket.com/albums/v63/4A2004b/Racial%20Harmony%20Day%202004/. You could see many different costumes apart from the common Chinese, Indian and Malay ones. There was the occasional Japanese, Korean, Thai and even Iraqi outfit that was worn. Just imagine that! Came home tired but happy. Lalala!

Wednesday, July 21

A fortnight or so to Singapore's birthday...

Just changed my blog's theme and layout not too long ago... decided to put Singapore's birthday as the theme this time around... till about mid-August when I change it again. The header at the top for this theme is a collage of the National Day Parade, with photos showing the Singapore spirit. I got the photos and the background music from http://www.ndp.org.sg. There's lots of other fun stuff, music and photos there too. Have a look-see if you have the time. Anyway, I hope I don't get copyright-infringed for using the photos at the top. After all, I didn't modify anything, I just arranged them. Feeling quite regretful that I participated in the online ballot for the NDP tickets too late - could have got them fairly easily otherwise. Anyway, it's really the fireworks I'm after - those spectacular displays of light that you can watch over and over again and yet not get bored. But I do have a Fireworks Outing coming up the 1st of August. Till then, happy birthday Singapore, and well wishes to you too who have made the effort to read this far.

Monday, July 19

Busy... as always!

"Term 3 Week 4 already, you better buck up if you haven't already done so!" Yes yes yes, all the gobbledegook of studies - having an average of two to three tests every day during these few weeks - it's truly sickening! The worst thing of all is that there's absolutely no time to revise for so many tests when a SLOWCOACH (slow thinker & absorber/ late bloomer) like me has already no time to complete my homework and tuition work, not including the daily revision of topics studied in school. Yes - you say it all boils down to TIME MANAGEMENT - the two words that are repeated ever so often, becoming hackneyed, ineffective "one ear in, the other out" statements. You know what I mean. Anyway, I currently have A Math tuition on Friday, try my best to attend the A Math remedial in school on Saturdays and have additional A Math tuition occasionally on Sundays. That's excluding the E Math programme in school on Mondays (so tiring - everyone's tired out after school and then we have more Math to do) and Physics remedial on Tuesdays. There are those from other subjects like English and Chemistry, but I don't go for those - yet. So I guess I better don't type too much now - this post's beginning to seem like a short essay. Off to my work - again!

Saturday, July 17

Thought You Knew Everything?

Rubber bands last longer when refrigerated.
Peanuts are one of the ingredients in dynamite.
There are 293 ways to make change for a dollar.
The average person's left hand does 56% of the typing.
A shark is the only fish that can blink with both eyes.
There are more chickens than people in the world.
Two thirds of the world's eggplant is grown in New Jersey.
The longest one syllable word in the English language is "screeched."
On a Canadian two dollar bill, the flag flying over the Parliament building is an American flag.
All of the clocks in the movie "Pulp Fiction" are stuck on 4:20.
No word in the English language rhymes with month, orange, silver, or purple.
"Dreamt" is the only English word that ends in the letters "mt".
All 50 states are listed across the top of the Lincoln Memorial on the back of the $5 bill.
Almonds are a member of the peach family.
Winston Churchill was born in a ladies' room during a dance.
Maine is the only state whose name is just one syllable.
There are only four words in the English language which end in "dous": tremendous, horrendous, stupendous, and hazardous.
Los Angeles' full name is "El Pueblo de Nuestra Senora la Reina de los Angeles de Porciuncula".
A cat has 32 muscles in each ear.
An ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain.
Tigers have striped skin, not just striped fur.
In most advertisements, the time displayed on a watch is 10:10.
Al Capone's business card said he was a used furniture dealer.
The characters Bert and Ernie on Sesame Street were named after Bert the cop and Ernie the taxi driver in Frank Capra's "It's a Wonderful Life."
A dragonfly has a life span of 24 hours.
A goldfish has a memory span of three seconds.
A dime has 118 ridges around the edge.
It's impossible to sneeze with your eyes open. (DON'T try this at home)!
The giant squid has the largest eyes in the world.
In England, the Speaker of the House is not allowed to speak.
The microwave was invented after a researcher walked by radar tube and a chocolate bar melted in his pocket.
Mr. Rogers is an ordained minister.
The average person falls asleep in seven minutes.
There are 336 dimples on a regular golf ball.
"Stewardesses" is the longest word that is typed with only the left hand.

Friday, July 16

Three Cheers for the Blogger Team!

3 cheers for the Blogger team! The post creator layout is now so much more flexible and user-friendly - the fonts and their appearances are so diverse. It's been great hosting my blog on Blogspot.Com! Just wanna thank Photobucket.Com as well for their great free image hosting service... and Bravenet.Com for their web resources, some which are on my site (email form, referral, poll, hit counter, etc.). Not forgetting Hello.Com for their image uploading and hosting software "Hello". In addition, a note of thanks to FlamingText.Com for helping me produce some of the headings you see on my blog. Gosh... I suddenly became so thankful and grateful for everything... what's wrong with me? *goes to psychiatrist* *diagnosed with split personality* *faints*

Thursday, July 15

~Reflections~ Video Competition Documentation

Just decided to share with you all this past reflection on my participation in the 5th School Video Awards. We didn't win anything, but being our first time, it was already an achievement.

Choosing our theme:
Over a few days, we struggled over the topic of our documentary. It had to be something thatwas not too mundane but still interesting. Sitting down to brainstorm over a list of topics first, we came up with ideas like pond life, stress and peer pressure. We finally decided on high-tech vegetables - and so our video was titled "High-Tech Veggies in a Modernised Singapore". Our main shooting location was to be at Aerogreen Technology, an aeroponics farm just off Sungei Buloh Nature Reserve.

Planning:
We made a serious mistake of not planning our storyboard properly. Planning for a video is very crucial in making sure that the order of the video is present. We needed to show which sections of the topic we were featuring in the video. For example, in our video, we showed both the advantages and disadvantages of high-tech farming, but it was not obvious enough because even though the audio was there, the presence of words (visual) was not there.

Filming:
Filming requires skill and patience, and we thought that it was something all of us lacked in one way or another. Technically, the filming was OK but it could be made to be more presentable by shooting and experimenting with different angles.

Problems faced:
Our main problem was the lack of time. Everyone's schedule was terribly tight and we started our work only weeks before the submission date. Miscommunication was also a problem among the team. After we finished the video and returned the tripod stand and camera, yet another problem arose: this time it had to do with a broken part of the tripod stand. After numerous discussions with teachers over whether it was our team or not who spoilt the mechanism, the problem was finally settled by using a piece of equipment from the Robotics Kit to repair the mechanism.

Learning Points:
The main thing we have got to learn is to be serious about the video and get it over and done with as soon as possible. This is however sometimes very difficult to accomplish because being students with so many responsibilities to do, it is hard to balance our priorities. That is the problem - responsible students are overly-pressured, whereas those who actually are responsible but adopt a heck-care attitude or do not exhibit it outwardly let other students get taken advantage of. This results in certain students being so free the whole day, while others are struggling with so much work to do. Another learning point would be that we must be more hardworking - not so lazy that even finding out how to use a certain software can kill. By exploring and experimenting with the different features of a particular software - ANYONE can do it - it's whether you want to or not.

Reflections:
Although we did not win any prize, the harrowing experience was enough to let us comprehend what it is like being in a production team making a film in the real world. The going is tough, we've got to get tougher. Well, at least we did try. After all, the only failure is failing to try.

Wednesday, July 14

Healthy soon - I hope...

Tomorrow's my last round of medicine. Came down with flu about a week ago. Felt awful that I always got sick nearing the examinations. Now that there's a hiatus (no major exams for a few weeks, though tests almost every day), I'm getting on the track to good health - again. I hope I don't fall ill for the 'O's. Would be terrible, wouldn't it? All that money, all that effort, all that time - boiling down to a "sickly" you and not being allowed to sit for the most important exam of your life (so far). Anyway, there's been an awful lot of tests - as we expected in Term 3. The average day has 1 to 2 tests. We are expected to do well for these mock tests because we are supposed to be "revising our work 'fervently'". Honestly, me being me, I never had much time to study (not that I study MUCH either) - I count doing homework as a form of revision as well. Yes yes, you will be thinking that if I'm that busy - why the heck would I be sitting here and typing this stupid paragraph out? As if I have the time, right? I should be revising my work, right? RIGHT. But I'm not slacking right here with my darling old computer. I just type out my feelings when I feel like doing so - and thus out comes this entry. I find that it's better letting off some "steam" - residue that I've collected throughout the period of the day.

Monday, July 12

How about this...

How about this... 3 periods of A Math lessons before the school bell rang, followed by another 1½ hours of E Math enrichment, followed by another 1½ hours of A Math self-study in school because I was held up by the rain. All without lunch - just some snacks. I was literally sleeping as I did my self-study pondering over some difficult Definite Integral questions. Fueled by the medication I had taken a few hours ago that made me drowsy and the cold and calm weather that made me feel sleepy, I was drifting in and out of sub-consciousness. Caught in a slight drizzle, I finally walked back home... realising that construction work had rendered one lift on the ground floor to be "stuck" as a worker was unloading heavy pipes. Pressing the button was no use as there was already a lift on the ground floor. Having no other choice, I lugged my heavy bag (and myself) up 4 storeys of stairs and took a lift from the 4th to the 10th floor. Now how about that! Dead beat when I reached home!

Sunday, July 11


4a.Chalet.04 - Yet another excerpt from the recent 4A chalet. The natural effect and blending of this photograph was totally unexpected - this picture was not modified or edited in any way. Vanessa is seen here, with Pui Ser holding the mike and Gillian in the background.

ill.sick.debilitated.diseased.unwell

It's that time of the year again when my body can't rely solely on its immune system to protect it. Just went to the doctor yesterday - at the expense of missing a remedial on A Maths. Common cold. Let's see - I have this whole stack of medicine to complete in about a week - 15 antibiotic pills, 15 pills for my running nose, 15 tablets for my phlegm and a bottle of black medicine for my cough. In addition, 60 folic acid supplement tablets for my anaemic condition - I'm not compelled to take them, but just take them for good health's sake (I won't fall ill if I do not take them). If you don't know me by now - I always tend to fall sick during the exam period (last week I fell sick - in the midst of the EL internal Oral and MT 'O' Level Oral and Listening Comprehension). So there you have it - me falling ill. Hope I get better real soon; more things are happening and I can't cope with a frail, weakened body.

Thursday, July 8

Tired man...

The cold weather and all that's bringing more illnesses around. Unsurprisingly, I'm also one of its victims. Had a flu for around a week already... getting worser as I'm typing this. Hope for it to get better soon - better go see a doctor. Yup and it's the school's pressure driving me NUTS as well. Especially the tons of homework that just never seem to stop PILING up. I'm always dragging each day's homework to the next day... cos' I'm finishing the previous day's homework. Am kinda sick of doing so much English work too, so far at least 2 comprehensions, 3 compositions and a poem in the period of this week alone! I don't find that it helps much other than just refreshing some vocabulary and sapping away my brain juice that I so DESPERATELY need for concentration and absorption in other subjects. Pissed off. Yes, and the Maths programme is starting next Monday for 7 weeks straight - and I'm going to get gastric again - starting at 2pm leaves me 20 minutes to eat? (which at most times I never have the chance to grab more than a few bites because I'm supposed to find teachers to collect the worksheet and have other matters to attend to). Argh! Tired, sick, sickening me! I ALWAYS get sick during exams. Not really because of the pressure because I do NOT study intensively or that much at all... really. But I've realised that that's the trend in the past few years and I'm DEFINITELY not looking forward to being in a sickly state for the upcoming (and I DO mean UPCOMING!!!) 'O' Levels. Gotta' go now - BUSY ME.

Celebrating 400 hits & more... HOT & niwde!

niwdehot.blogspot.com celebrates 400 hits and more to its site in the period of less than 1½ months. An unexpected result of me creating this blog! This is due to widespread publicity online (thanks to all major search engines and other blogs that have referrals to my site). If you don't know by now, if you search for "Edwin Toh" on any major search engine, the first result that will come up is the link to my blog. Another feature of the blog that has been introduced recently is the dual-language translation which allows even people from overseas Chinese-speaking countries (e.g. China) to understand my blog... not that there are many of them in the first place. However, I do NOT have the time to translate every single word. Therefore, I only do it just for fun.庆祝超过400人看到了这个网络!谢谢各位关乎我的网络!经过短短的一个月半,已经有超过400人看见网络了.你只不知道,如果你在任何的major search engine擦了"Edwin Toh"这两搁置,第一个选这就是我的网络!那多好啊!好吧,我不写太多了;没有时间.以后再见!

Monday, July 5

感想

Note: If your browser can't display the following Chinese words or you don't understand it - my apologies - it's not important anyway. Sorry. 你好! 这几个月看了这么多华语词语, 真的觉得好么闷啊! 你也许在想:我为何在这里讲华语呢? 我来告诉你啦...我在训练我的华语! 哈哈! 华文考试已经完毕了我还是这么神经病呢! 哈哈! 其实, 我的华语是很烂的! 啊! 我还是别那么箩说了啦...现在要赶着做功课! 后来再见!

The Novelty of a Blog & Wanderings of the Mind

Have to admit it, it seriously is getting meaningless for many people to blog. It's like an online diary where you get tired out the more you write... the more you write... the more you write. Anyway, I feel quite the same - but that does not mean I'll stop blogging... just less frequently I suppose. Just sat for the MT 'O's (oral and listening comprehension) last week. Oral was terribly intimidating. Imagine sitting down in front of 2 examiners (both seem to be aces in Chinese - which, of course they were) and blurting out a limited range of vocabulary (so limited that even I forgot what "pedestrian crossing" was in Chinese). Terrible results stand before me. I'd be lucky even if I pass. Listening Comprehension was tricky and indirect. But I thought it innovative that the whole listening comprehension was broadcast over Symphony 92.4FM so that it could be perfectly "synchronised" all over Singapore. Well, next up is the internal English Oral Exam sometime this week. Not as scary though (anyway, it's not the REAL thing, so who bothers - not that I don't). One of the latest songs that I've been hearing recently: Nelly Furtado - Forca