24 November 2005 Australia Workers Heritage Centre I spent my time here taking pictures and riding on horses. It was interesting to read and see about the lives of the early Australians and how they actually survived without the introduction of electricity until mid-1900s and current technological advancement. Sum Palms Motel I arrived at room 26 with a rude shock. Two guys sleeping on this queen size bed. Why does Will & Grace come into my mind at this really odd moment. There is a bathtub. Great! I watched American Music Awards 2005 as opposed to going for a night out at a strip club with my other camp mates after dinner. The thought of stuffing and boy do I mean stuffing money, into the breast of women before they strip according to how much you stuff them with didn't really entice me. Breakfast next morning [25 November] was fantastic. Bacon, sausage, scrambled eggs, sunny-side up, cereals... I was stuffed. The day was fantastic to begin with. Probably because I was going home today. I watched Jerry Springer. A lame show where women fought and hurled vulgarities at each other. A lame show with no content at all. My Shopping Spree ...part one My first bargain deal was back at the Heritage Centre where we had dinner. As the queue for dinner was long I decided to do some shopping. I am quite proud to say that I am quite good at getting good bargains. Me:" Earlier, there was this Chinese lady who mentioned something about getting two t-shirts and a free boomerang " Caucasian Cashier:" I will give this [boomerang that Kok Fai wanted to buy for 7 aussie dollars] for free" Me:" Thanks" [I happily paid for the items and went straight to find the Chinese lady who coined out this promotional deal.] Me [in my best Chinese]:"I heard you speaking about your promotion earlier. I couldn't find you so I went ahead to make my purchase. I would like to have your free boomerang though as I was quite drawn towards your promotion." Chinese Lady [gleaming from ear to ear]:"Okay, here's your boomerang but don't tell anyone that you got it after buying your shirts"...I left with a wicked grin ....part two Bought a shirt and bermudas for myself. Bought a rusty blouse for my sister. Bought two boxes of chocolates for my uncles. Bought some gifts for my friends. Bought everything within 5 hours. ----My time spent at Australia has indeed been well-spent. I have realised certain things and accepted the fact that some things ain't going to change. ---- ---All in good faith---
The day I finally left camp. The journey out of camp was stuffy and tormenting as our dear driver conveniently switched off the air-condition. The ride out of camp was though unbearable but yet my spirits were surprisingly high. Perhaps, the only reason I could think of would be due to the fact that I am finally leaving this dump and also going back home soon.
Deep down, I guess it was the fact that I would no longer need to bathe with a group of other men or sleep on any back-torturing safari bed that really brightened up my day.
Our first stop for a breather was at a small town in Rockhampton. I bought pastry and orange juice from a local bakery. Their Beef with cheese was quite scrumptious.
---- I am feeling hungry already just from the thought of it---
Cooberie Park
In a manner of speech, it was a group of soldiers going gaga over some hopping wallabies. Wallabies are marsupial, which look 
almost like Kangaroos.
That's me with a wallaby. This shot took an awfully long time to be captured. Coaxing this wallaby to take this shot especially with it's head up was the equivalent of trying to coax my younger niece to eat her food.
Yes, I somewhat went gaga over these wallabies. However, that moment was a transitory one.
The brown bag on the floor was food for the animals which according to some people tasted like hardened raisins. The irony of the soldiers. 
A willing Koala that had no problems with being thrust in the limelight. Gamely, I obliged it's attention-seeking nature.
If I remembered correctly, this Koala had just peed on it's trainer prior to this shot. The naughty antics of a Koala.
Lunch was splendid and it was hosted by a University at Rockhampton. I ate to my heart's content. Unfortunately, I failed in my attempt to make a nice and yummy hot chocolate that was comparable to that of Swensen's.
I had the worst experience from my unit yesterday. Worst experience ever. If there is any consolation, I am proud to say that I am an operationally ready soldier.
Monday, 28 November 2005, 6.00pm
Platoon Sergeant: "Albert, can you go back to camp tomorrow by 8am. I need you as an SA [system administrator] for another exercise that the unit is supporting."
Me: "eh...[still recovering from my initial shock]...[still wondering whether I was dreaming or not]...okay...[Sh*t I said to myself, shouldn't have rescheduled my dental appointment to Wednesday]
Monday, 28 November 2005, 6.10pm
I logged out from my computer and began what I would never forget as the fastest packing of my bag for book in. Hastily, I ironed all my uniforms, folded three of them into smart No. 4, packed my boots, sandals, slippers and other essential items into my duffel and waited for my uncle to fetch me to camp later that night.
Monday, 28 November 2005, 9.30pm
Reached camp. Spent one hour unpacking.
Tuesday, 29 November 2005, 6.30am
Breakfast at the cookhouse. I missed my own scrambled eggs and toast. I want my cup of fresh milk!
Tuesday, 29 November 2005, 7.30am
Leslie booked in. Great! Someone to accompany me. Henry joined us too! We waited in bunk for the office to be opened while I lamented over the fact that I have yet to watch Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Arrgh!!!
Tuesday, 29 November, 8.50am
Carried our stores and left for Pasir Lebang Camp.
Tuesday, 29 November, 5.00pm
Reached home. Phew!
---Irony of Life---
9th November 2005. I guess one great thing about this exercise would be that it made me think about the people around my lives who have made an impact on my life and the people whom I can really call friends because of the things that they do for me especially when I am down and out. packing crates was another screwed up affair. I am only about 54kg. That's really scrawny for a guy my height. I am therefore resolved to gaining weight and hitting the gym soon. Note the word soon. Imagine two guys of that weight carrying crates which weighed twice our combined weight. My back hurt like it never hurt before. I pressed on. Why was it a screwed up affair. Well, air freight crates was supposed to be packed on the third day of packing. However, the management suddenly changed their minds again and decided otherwise. Not knowing, a group of us went for our bathe and then proceeded to the canteen where I spent money at the canteen for the very first time after 14 long days of abstinence and then went to sleep. Amazed? Don't be. I just did not had time to walk 200 metres to the canteen and plant myself there unlike... the specialists. Furthermore, I slept for less than 4 hours two nights ago, 1 hour the last night plus it was already confirmed that packing would end early tonight. Who would not proceed to bed? Anyway, I got a +2 meaning that on one of the Fridays, I would be booking out at 7pm instead of 5pm but that's okay I think. But, I was damn pissed off that I kept to myself for one whole day. I had to. I didn't want to do stupid things out of mere anger. 24th November 2005. Left camp. Finally. ---end of part one---
One day after I finally turned 19, I flew off to Australia as the main body for Exercise Wallaby. For the next 16 days, I would be spending my time there as a system administrator. However, anyone in the right frame of mind would definitely know that I would have to do more than what I am expected to do.
Rockhampton town is a small town with very few places for entertainment. There is only one major shopping mall, one major cinema and the list goes on. Late night entertainment would be strip club not clubs but club.
Anyway, I arrived stunned and appalled by the living conditions there. Temperatures escalated to 30 over degrees Celsius in the morning but hovered around 13 to 15 degrees Celsius at night. Yet I simply loved the night.
We slept
in tents grudgingly set up by the Australians and slept on safari beds.
The picture on your right would be the kind of bed I slept on. The bed with all that mess thrown on belongs to my fellow camp mate, Jeremy. He is one messy person. I came back from my 7 days out field only to be welcomed by his soiled and dirty clothes thrown all over my duffel bag. Such an inconsiderate person. I think I helped him arrange things 6 times.
Perhaps that is what you get when you sleep beside a neat freak. I hate things to be out of place. I like some kind of neatness when it comes to my stuff simply because it makes finding things a lot more easier.
My first bath was quite an experience. I couldn't take any pictures due to sensitivity issues. The toilet cubicles were great. They came with doors and toilet paper. The sink for washing came with taps. That was no issue. However, when it came to showering, I had to bring a pail to the tap which states cold and hot water but there never was hot water in the first place, and fill the pail up then transfer the icy cold water into a water bag before hoisting it up and over a bar and finally tying it to a hook. Being a clean freak, I took 3 pails of water and that was considered a little too much already. Every night, it was a bunch of naked men showering with each other, taking turns to hoist their water bags up and down to bath and refill their water. The sight was unfathomable. Of course there were exception to this rule. Some people, particularly the bengs would just plant themselves under the tap and scrub themselves while cursing and hurling vulgarities at each other, which I am guessing could most probably due to the cold water.
I went out field from the 15 of November and only returned back to camp on the 21st. I had a hell of an experience there. My line of work in the army will see me dealing with commanders, particularly captains, majors, colonels and so on. This exercise has opened my eyes and taught me the true essence of what chain of command really is. More than half the time I spent out field, these commanders hardly did any form of planning. They simply sat down and argued over minute details like standardising the projectors, aligning the projector screen, tidying up the cables etc. There were more bothered by the aesthetics rather than the main objective of the exercise. All of them inside were trying to please every whim and cry of the person in-charge, Dy COA [Chief of Armour] What a pathetic excuse for an overseas large-scale or biggest exercise as what the Straits Times reported.
That's me and my Platoon Commander. I call him toot toot. He always love to cheer people up. He understands the kind of torment and sh*t I have to do when I was outfield. He really brightened up my day. He is a very nice person and takes great care of his men. In fact, he always likes to talk to me...
three years ago,
our eyes met - for the first time.
three years ago,
we did stupid things - we were of an age where stupid things were acceptable
we were still scrambling to find what we really wanted.
three years ago - that seemed like eons ago to me...
three years later,
we stumbled across each other - through a portal where like-minded people spend their endless hours
searching for a personal satisfaction, however momentary it is.
three slices of Hawaiian,
one can of soya bean,
a mind etched with memories of the past - of three years ago.
perhaps all you wanted was to have a taste of me - for you to toy around and have fun for a while
perhaps I was just a substitute for someone you really missed - someone you met before during the last three years.
perhaps that someone gave in to every whim and needs you wanted.
perhaps that someone quarreled less with you than me.
perhaps that someone understood you better.
perhaps you were just tired of me - you want something new - new to experiment and than toss one side.
perhaps that's why, you didn't bother to put in effort in us.
you said: 'when I am with you I feel that we are more than friends, but other than that, I feel that we are just only friends as you don't know me well at all'
I wanted to say: 'when I am with you I feel that I am trying to hard to try to understand you; when I am apart from you, and I read your messages to me, I wonder do you really mean what you say in your messages... friends do not say such things to each other...'
Fourth November Two Thousand and Five
Twelve Thirty in the Morning
you finally said what you have been holding back in your heart for all this while...
you said 'sorry for the false hopes'
you said 'I am still thinking of my ex'
you apologised - but you do not believe in apologies.
Brewerkz.
went there with my friends later that day at night.
I drank my first beer - the first beer which you wanted me to drink with you...
thought I would cry and moan and sulk - thought wrong.
nothing could flow out from my eyes - absolute nothing.
reminiscing about the times we spent together - however short and taxing it was... none flowed through my mind.
deep down, I guessed I had long already given up hope - hope in you and I being in one sentence.
guessed I was just playing along - playing along with you in this game of pretence and bluff.
too bad for me - I lost - lost in this game of bluff...
will I ever want to hear from you again - someone asked me - maybe
do I still think of you - someone probed - for what...move on man...am getting a life...
will you ask me out to hang out, watch a movie and stuff like that - doubt so - think you are afraid of giving me the wrong impression again...
maybe this short fling with me has taught you to appreciate people better - I don't need to know
maybe this short fling with me has made you realise how much more you need to do to win back your ex - that's a good sign
maybe this short fling with me has made you realise the mistake you made three years ago - I ain't going to probe
maybe this short fling with me has made you want to fight for your ex back - best of luck...think you may need it...
if this short fling with me made you any one of the above, i think that the time spent with you was indeed well spent - after all...
two weeks of solitude...
some people have already started missing me already...irony of things...perhaps it could be due my nineteen on eighth...
maybe...just maybe...ain't going to happen...[I don't want false hopes]...
The sharing below is adapted from Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren - Day 37: Sharing Your Life Message. Divide it into 4 parts 2. Your Life Message includes your life lessons 3. Your life Message includes sharing your godly passions. 4. Your Life Message includes the Good News. The eternal salvation of a single soul is more important than anything else you will ever achieve in life. Start asking these questions: 1. What has God taught me from my 2. What have I learned from my family, my church, my relationships, my small group and my critics. 3. Who does God want me to share my personal story with? ---travel the road less traveled--- ---till later---
1 Peter 3: 15b - 16 says
"Be ready at all times to answer anyone who asks you to explain the hope you have in you, but do it with gentleness and respect."
God has given you a life Message to share.
God wants to speak to the world through you.
Your Life Message has four parts to it:
1. Your testimony
2. Your life lessons
3. Your Godly passions
4. The Good News.
What does your Life Message include?
1. Your Life Message includes your testimony.
Sakae sushi at changi airport... I went there for lunch with my maternal family members. We ate quite a lot of sushi, tempura and other stuff. The bill came up to $281.00 for 15 people. It was considered much more affordable than the previous time we ate at Fook Yuan (hope I got the restaurant name right) at Raffles City Shopping Centre for a Tim Sum buffet where the bill amounted to nearly $500.00 (gasps!!!)
Later, we took the sky train to Terminal 1 for ice-cream at Swensens. I ate the Chocolate Freckles Cookie (I think).
Instead of a birthday cake, which everyone forgot about, including my mum, we sang the birthday song to one of the Happy Birthday topless 5 ice-cream. It was a rather comical sight as the entire restaurant was looking at me. Nevertheless, I had quite a lot of fun...
Booking in AGAIN!!! Thankfully my boss ain't going to be around tomorrow as he will be flying off to Australia for Exercise Wallaby...
till tomorrow...