I'm waiting, and i'm still am.

Sunday, March 28, 2010

[[Ode To London.]]

Upon either side of the blue serpent,

Victorian structures stand mighty against glass and metal wonders.

Of very different eras did they arise,

But of similar men do they hold to ponder.

Wet and dreary thus be the weather,

for with it London is a city like no other.

Holding court amongst it's people,

their warmth and grace fills the hearts of the able and feeble.

Strings dug into the grounds,

only to unite with the people commuting around.

Art, History and Literature,

Proliferate among the minds of the mature.

The rich, the poor and the average,

live side by side with remarkable parsimony.

For only with their strong cohesion,

Has London stood against many a century.

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Thursday, March 11, 2010

[[Nostalgia Tour.]]

Since it's the holidays, I figured I'd go for a ride back to my old neighbourhood just for old time's sake. And since most of you already know where I live now (which is quite scary), why not know where I USED to live. I'd have to say that a lot has changed since I've cycled there 4 years ago and all my friends would've probably moved out already. But hey, a hood's a hood and you can't forget your roots.

It was deep inside Parry estate. Or was it called Rosyth? It's just somewhere near Simon Road.

Inside the road was a walk. And avenues and streets.

Parry Primary's field. And it's big. The old Rosyth school was on the far right.

This was the back end of it. Gone are the times of sleeping really late and still being early for class.

I used to wait at the drain for my schoolbus after Rosyth school shifted. sometimes in the drain. haha.

And further down the road was a Japanese cemetery. I kid you not.

I guess that's one good reason to have a bike, to head back and visit places of memories you hold dear. It's quite a feeling to see a road or grass patch and remember all the fun times you had there as a kid. All your friends and the games you played with them, the injuries, the camaraderie, the no holds barred fun.

It's hard to say anything else at this point, I really loved that old neighbourhood and house and just to see it was an indescribable experience.

I'll be back with more posts since I'm so damn free now. Aside from my trip and facil things and work (of which I am still looking for), I'll try to keep the blog updated. :)

So happy holidays (for people in poly and some in jc), talk to you guys soon!

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Tuesday, March 9, 2010

[[OCBC Cycle Singapore 2010]]

It was cold, windy and dark. Amidst the crowd of some 9100 cyclists, there was an obvious air of excitement that lingered throughout the pre-dawn preparation. The sound of bikes' gears and chains rotating, people having general conversation and above all the voice of Rod Monteiro on the PA system. I met up with Joe, Justin Gan and Joel at the bike rental area after my dad dropped me off. Darren said that he was going to be late, but that proved otherwise when the flag off time arrived.

I wouldn't say that we were going to take the lead at the flag off, since we had gathered somewhere in the middle of the entire sea of people. And the flag off wasn't going to be a fast start cos Dr. Balakrishnan had to lead the way for a while. But after about 5 corners Darren and I left Joe, Joel and Justin behind because they were going at a more leisurely pace. And apparently Joel and Justin then left Joe behind because he was going at an even more leisurely pace.

The route was long, but majority of it was flat, and about half of it was in east coast park. So it pretty much looked like this:

It sure seemed a lot longer in ECP that it appears.... strange.

Anyway, there were 3 rest stops that were set up along the way at 10km intervals. Our plan was to draft as much as we could till rest stop 3 where we then could drink up on cold 100plus and set off for the last 10km. but somehow or rather, after we set off from rest stop 3, Darren disappeared from my view, I think it was somewhere along the bridge at nicoll highway passing the golden mile building. I slowed down to check my rear to try and get a visual on him but honestly, in the sea of jerseys its pretty hard, plus I still had to keep an eye on the road. So I pressed on, drafting more people (I targeted the bigger sized ones, cos they blocked more wind). Averaging about 33 to 35 km/h, I crossed the finish line in about 81 mins (minus 3 mins for standing still at the start line). And Darren came in just under 2 mins later. He wasn't that far away after all...

Joel and Justin then arrived, but Joe was no where to be found until he staggered in half an hour after us. I swear it was the funniest thing ever.

All in all I had a great time, and I hope they do hold this event again next year, cos by then I could try to assemble a team to take part. A team that, Ten years ago, was sent to prison for a crime they didn't commit. These men promptly escaped from a maximum-security stockade to the Los Angeles underground. Today, still wanted by the government, they survive as soldiers of fortune. If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find them, maybe you can hire... The A-Team.

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Wednesday, March 3, 2010

[[Exams are over.]]

So the year end papers are over and I guess most of you poly people would be celebrating your asses off, I would too, but I guess the happiness that comes with the end of the exams hasn't hit me yet... weird.

Spawning out complex literature shouldn't be the main thing to do when my papers are over, yet I find myself doing that at night more often than not... Contemplating the future and what I can do to make this holiday more productive than the last, really stirs the mind and a good night's sleep gets hard to come by. I would guess that it's because of the exams stress that's been bringing me down... sigh.

A click, feet firmly on the pedal.

Grip tightening around the bars, without a sound and you're off.

Scenery flies by, purport less, pointless.

Breath after breath, fatigue begins so descend.

Surrealism, Transcendence.

An unearthly feeling till you finally stop.

Everything makes sense now.

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