Fizz, boom, bang. What a letdown

College prom didn't really wow me. In fact, it seemed to me that these people had not seen each other for a century and were ultra-busy snapping photos with acquaintences. Even the 9-course dinner didn't seem too tantalising to them anymore. Yes, the venue was huge enough to fit in approximately 150 tables, but what's the use if everyone's all over the place except at their tables? The programme was boring, the MC was boring, the food was boring, the atmosphere just didn't seem to fit everyone in. Sorry, but not everyone's a camera whore, me included. I, instead, decided to plant my arse obediently on my chair and feasted my eyes on the guys, since I didn't intend to touch the food. Thank god I didn't spend a bomb on my stuff, or else I would have silently pinched myself. And the worst part was the post-prom party. No, I didn't attend it, for the simple fact that no one told me about it. Hello, even if I wasn't with the 'in' crowd, the entire college should be notified about this post-prom shity programme. Thinking about it, I'm even more pissed than I was two nights back. I'd rather be at home than to delve into the complexities of this bimbotic event.

7 hours to Grad Night

It's about 7 hours to Graduation Night, and I just completed my shopping 2 hours ago. Yes, I made a mad dash for my neighbourhood cosmetics store to get some last-minute supplies. How convenient. Plus I'm trying to cut cost (I'm basically broke)by borrowing my Mum's accessories. Man, that woman's something. She's basically my make-up cum clothing cum shoe consultant. Kudos to my Superwoman.

I'm basically opting for something really basic and simple, because I don't intend to hang out with those fashion whores nor do I wish to be the centre-piece today. It's just plainly for the sake of being together with the friends I've made over these 2 years and cherishing this congregation.

FusSball drives me nuts

It's an über heart-breaking day... (P.S: This entire entry's about me moaning about soccer so if you aren't exactly a fan then you shall be spared.) The Bavarians lost to Aachen!!! Argh! I had this ominous feeling early in the morning, and I just knew this would hit them just before Christmas. Perhaps they had all been naughty boys this year.

Poldi's finally back on the field (yay!), but his single goal can't salvage the damage done by Aachen. And who the hell set Rensing loose to guard the goal? That's the maddest decision any manager can make. Bring King Kahn BACK!!! Looks like silverware's lost its affinity with Bayern. I'm going to cry.

Raining and running

I was opening, and closing, and opening the windows again and again yesterday. If I kept them closed, I'd probably have suffocated and turned purple in the face. If I'd kept them open, I'd be surfing like those dudes on Baywatch. Yes, the torrential rain was coming down so hard, I put off the idea of paying the Adidas outlet at Raffles City a visit. I succumb to the elements easily, I guess. Couldn't help but throw on my running shoes and hit the tarmac this morning, but it wasn't easy running on the slippery ground with all my shelled friends (a.k.a snails) all over the place. Yikes, especially when you take an exceptionally huge step and "Crunch". Yikes.

My sister made a huge joke out of this whole raining thing. "Jie, it's raining because Rain's coming!" Sure, whatever.

Gurlies' chalet!

Four girls + 3D-2N Chalet + TV + alcohol = a whole lot of madness

Boy, I just brought Math to a whole new level. None of my past chalet experiences can ever be on par with this one, I believe. It isn't just about being with your closey friends for a couple of days; it was of compromising, concern, madness, and a whole lot more of madness. I have a whole lot of respect for them, as well as our friendship, and hopefully, this is going to go far. Three cheers to a decade of company and fun.

Mentionable mentions:

Jane's moment of madness. Yes Jane, we've got the evidence, and you can't run. Muahahahahahaha...

The greatest sin of all: Ice-cream. Perhaps that wasn't the greatest. Spending 20 bucks on Ben and Jerry's would be, plus pigging out at 2 am.

BBQ time! I bet you guys out there wouldn't expect us gurlies to start our own fire! But hey, we booked our own pits, started our own fires, prepared our own food, cooked them all nice and edible and cleaned up! Plus we did all the above within 2 hours! Challengers please step up!

Mahjong madness! Yes, 4 gurlies with a mahjong set are ol' so lethal! And yes, I lost my chips AGAIN.

Alcohol. What can we say?!

Cute guys! Okay, I admit I was boy-watching.

Noisy neighbours. To our dear neighbours just next door, I apologize if we had too much noise to make on our side. We can't help it if 1. We're playing mahjong and I'm screaming my head off because someone else just won or if 2. we're watching Jacky Wu's variety shows. Besides, YOU were the ones playing mahjong at 12 midnight with your kids yelling their heads off in the background!

Pele vs. 'conservation'

I just saw it coming when Eighth Wonder's IR proposal was rejected and when Genting's Aquarium-themed entertainment park was accepted. Look, we're living in a realistic world; No matter how may people are starving to death or how many animal species are being shaved off the existence list, we're still hungry for the money. It's a huge shame, I guess, that the idea of a huge tank with a whale shark stranded in it is applauded and the Pele academy was put down. So now we know why 1. the whale shark is endangered and 2. Singapore's sports industry will never take off in another 100,000 years' time.

I was silently rooting for the Pele academy. It would definitely bring sporting talents in from all over the world in anticipation to this major project by one of soccer's legends and, hopefully, we would just stop emphasizing scholastic achievements and go ga-ga over sports. That, I foresaw, wasn't going to happen. Thus in Doha, I didn't see the need for a 6-8 gold yardstick. Where's the need for this make-or-break attempt to make our local sports scene sound so rosy when it's all a facade?

Oh, and speaking of animal conservation. Perhaps we're just too curious over certain things, such as a live whale shark and an aquarium full of traumatized sea creatures in full view. Wow, I grimaced. Yes, I'm a detractor of such 'efforts to conserve wildlife'. So shall we carry on with the conservation efforts?

Last-minute prom disasters

Ten disastrous things which can take place on Graduation Night:

1. Burn all your hair. Don't ever say "Nonsense, it wouldn't happen to me." I'm just warning you to keep that hair straightener away from your hair. Even the hair dryer could be the culprit. Looking on the brighter side, you could become Prom Queen with that 'new' hairdo, although it isn't very fashinable to go bald this season.

2. Rip your leggings/stockings and NOT know about it. Of course, until that hot guy you've been eying suddenly progresses towards you and whispers so forlornly into your ear, "Miss, I think you've just ripped your stocking." Ouch, and ouch.

3. Get drunk. Perhaps getting drunk's your way of freedom of expression, but swaggering unknowingly towards that hottie and proceeding to regurgitate your dinner onto his starched suit isn't going to score you brownie points.

4. Be a nosey parker. Yes, so the school jock ditched his bimbotic girlfriend for another bimbo. But what concern is that of yours? Remember, there's only the title for Prom Queen, not Gossip Queen. You could just become one of the faces on the 'Wanted' lists of these queen bees.

5. Get spotted walking around town in your prom suit. You could very well become a walking spectacle, especially if you got it all wrong from head to toe. Yes, it's near Christmas, but it doesn't give you reason to strut along Orchard like an enchanted Christmas tree. Instead, get yourself, by hook or by crook, from home to the prom venue in a subtle manner. You can then unleash yourself at the prom.

6. Match purple with green. Or yellow with purple. Even if you failed Art all the way from pre-school to college, you should very well have some basic common sense when it comes to colour combinations. When in doubt, seek professional advice (except those of your great-grandaunts or colour-blind uncles).

7. Turn up in the same outfit as the school belle or someone else. This is probably one of the things millions of girls are trying to avoid. If it's the same outfit as someone ordinary, it isn't so bad. But if the school's queen bee's decked out in the same dress as you're in, may God bless you. To avoid this, NEVER think that 'expensive is good'. Something unique and affordable probably wouldn't turn up at the same venue as yours, because everyone else's probably got something much more expensive and branded. Save your money, save your skin.

8. Zits. Argh, I hope this doesn't happen to me as well. But if you're really that unlucky or you simply were too lazy to wash your face every day, then that's a huge shame. Quick, make a mad dash for the concealer!

9. You got ditched by your date. If your date is making a beeline for the school belle just like the other guys, forget the heartless bastard. You could always survive Prom Night without a guy by your side! Grab your gurlies and hit the cocktail bar or try to chat up the bartender if you're really that desperate.

10. Losing your dress. Triple ouch. If that happens to me, I'd feign illness and give the event a miss. But if you really need to get to prom just to ogle at the school jocks, give your neighbourhood mall a miss. Instead, empty out your mum's wardrobe and start to mix and match. I mean, that's a last resort! Besides, you could find stuff which Mum has neglected for the past decade or two and turn it into a fashion statement at Prom. We're going retro, aren't we?

God, I'm mad to write all these, but after one day of fruitless prom shopping, I was just conjuring all these extreme situations to solve in case I actually need them.

This is not a game

Perhaps some of the things in this world are not destined to change. One of them would probably be my perspective of a durable and healthy friendship. I do not view friendships as changing weather; they're not as dispensable as we think. A friendship is a life-long commitment, just like a marriage, except for the latter's case it's mutual love between two people. In any other case, a friend's as important as a family member.

If a friend of mine were to do me wrong, a mental process of anger, disbelief and eventually forgiveness will take place naturally. But the crucial moment would be the period of forgiveness. It may begin with a storm, followed by a drought, and then sunshine prevails. But did it happen this time? I didn't even see a single sunbeam emerge from the looming clouds. This is the animosity between you and I. Perhaps one day, the winds would arrive and send away this gloom. Or will this gust bring torrential rain instead?

Sad to say, this path's full of mistakes and pitfalls, and it definitely took more than just two hands to clap. In the meantime, status quo probably shall remain. I'm not taking the extra step.

Working, and not working

My unbelievably-short stint at a local supermarket chain has just ended, and I'm breathing a huge sigh of relief. Relief? Yes, I'm relieved, even though I just fried my boss, lost my job and is currently without income to speak of. Trust me, this job is not for ordinary you and me.

It's a highly dangerous job, with hawk-eyed supervisors to dodge, bossy veterans to avoid and, last but not least, the occasional critical customer.

The working hours are simply unearthly. Who in the world stays glued to their counter, put on a 24-7 strained smile and holds their bladder until it's lunchtime? I can't, so I'm simply not staying.

The schedule boards amazed me the most, simply because of its element of surprise. Every day, you get your turn to pace up to the schedule board, run your finger down the list and DAMN- I've got the full shift from morning to midnight. The next moment, all the four and five lettered words emerges from my mouth. I'd rather work in the cemetery. At least midnight shift starts at midnight and ends at daybreak.

The customers- oh, those pesky, troublesome, irritable, impatient hairballs. They're the biggest contribution to my signature on the dotted line. Firstly, as a customer patronizing a supermart, you HAVE to HAVE the BASIC COMMON SENSE to know that the people packing your grocery into bags, smiling at you and asking for payment are NOT machines. They don't work at the rate which Superman does, but at least we're helping you to check out your stuff. So don't act like a 3-year-old toddler and start to moan while waiting for the line. Since you're complaining, you must be either 1. much faster and more accurate than the lousy machines and our brains or 2. you simply have to pee. So why don't you come over to us, pat us on the shoulder and take over the job? YOU bag the groceries, YOU charge yourselves and YOU smile to yourselves and say 'Thank you very much please come again'!

On the other hand, I'm just going to put a portion of the blame on myself for 1. choosing this job and 2. not being resilient enough. I just need a break. Or two. Make it three.