Yoyo-ing

Today was another enjoyable day. I have to say, things have gotten a lot better since my friends have been back in Singapore and are available to hang out.

I woke up kind of late, which was annoying since I had to meet my friend Cat at noon. So, I basically ran out of the house to the train station. She lives in as close to the middle of no where as you can get in Singapore, which is kind of cool, but also kind of annoying. Anyways, we had lunch out around Bishan and then went to her house.

Cat is an amazing yoyo-er. Though she's only been playing for about a year and a half, she's really good. Leagues better than I'll ever be. Anyways, she gave me a new yoyo since I learned all my annoying Foundation One tricks (yay) I think it is very pretty.

She taught me a bunch of new things which are all really cool. I'm not terribly good yet, though. What's strange is that I figured out a "slack trick" relatively quickly- apparently those are pretty difficult. At least now I have something else to do to fill up my time. 

This evening I've been Skyping a friend of mine, Flick. She's fun to talk to. 

So, I'm just trying to enjoy the last bits of summer while I can. 

Also, I'm really looking forward to the Olympics! I think they started yesterday at 9pm... which is like 6am Singapore time. Not certain if I'm going to be waking up for the opening ceremonies. Probably not. 

Exhausting Tuesday

I am so tired. Really need to stop going to bed at 1-2am!

Chinese class today was a mixture of frustrating and enjoyable. It was frustrating because I bought a story book to try and read, and it was really hard. I only understood about 1/3 by myself, which was depressing. At least my reading fluency was decent. The sentences in the book are also really long, which is tiring to read. It was enjoyable because I kind of got off-topic with my teacher and started talking about Chinese culture/food/stories. So, she told me the story of the rabbit that lives in the moon in a mix of Chinese and English (mostly Chinese). There was a whole load of stuff about a woman and her screwing up (reminded me of Pandora and the box), and how she somehow got exiled to the moon by her husband. So then, she befriended a rabbit who pounded medicine for immortality or something. I don't know, I didn't understand all of it >.<

Anyways, the August Moon Festival is coming up. To some people, it means family time and admiring the moon. To me, though.... it means MOON CAKES!

I love moon cakes so much. We thought I was allergic to the bean in them (then realised it's mostly lotus seed paste in them, anyways) so I hadn't eaten them until moving to Singapore last year for a while. Now this year I am fully intending enjoy them. Even though they are super unhealthy...

Much later on in the day, I went to ballet class again. I must say, I think I'm regaining strength. I'm still dealing with being a bit floppy, which is positively devastating after working really hard years ago to gain strength and stuff. At least tonight I was pretty much the best dancer in the room, which is always a self-esteem boost.

So, I've been living in Singapore for over a year. And I have to say, it really does feel like home. It amused me when my mom got turned around today in our local train station- I know it like the back of my hand!

For the heck of it, 8 things I like about Singapore (there are many more):

1. The train station, and how efficient it is.
2. My school.
3. The food. It's so yummy!
4. The tropical plants. NOT the heat.
5. The diverse amount of people I've been able to meet.
6. My apartment building/apartment.
7. Being able to travel to interesting places.
8. Shopping!

Quote of the Day:

"If you can make a girl laugh, you can make her do anything"
Marilyn Monroe

Oh, Monday

I actually did something kind of productive today! So, I'm proud of myself.

After tutoring (again) and realising the girls still don't know their multiplication tables (WHY?), I went to Fort Canning to register for ballet classes. Except there was Ballet Under the Stars on Sunday night and the whole place was closed. Though it was basically a wasted trip, I finally figured out how to get to Fort Canning from Dhoby Ghaut Station. I also learned that eating a bunch of random things and then walking around in the heat was a very, very stupid idea. 

While in Plaza Singapura, I wandered into a really interesting store. It was basically a quirky gift store that had lots of funny/cute items. I bought a lipgloss that apparently is all natural. While I was in there, I saw a sign that said, "To the world you may be one person, but to one person you may be the world". So, that's my quote of the day. 

After coming home and writing FanFiction (yay, nerding out time), I cooked dinner. I don't cook very often and I swear every time I do it's a bit of a production. Luckily, tonight was easy and all I did was stir fry zucchini, pepper, tofu and garlic, then put it over pasta. It was quite healthy and very colorful!

So I've been doing AP Euro work for quite a while, and actually got a fair amount of it done. Once I start working on something, I can do it for hours at a time if it's interesting.

I also wrote a rather ranty blog post on my opinion of society, stupid people on the internet, and general issues. It probably doesn't make a lot of sense, but I'm sure I sound more sane than Joanna of Castile....

There Won't Be Change

I've been doing AP Euro work for at least the past hour. I have to say, once I start working I can do something for easily an hour without getting bored. For whatever reason I really do love history.  The Spanish Inquisition and the Reconstruction of France are so much more interesting to me than modern day problems. 

Regarding modern-day problems, is it just me or are most of the things in the news completely stupid? Generally, the issues start out as being completely valid. The economy is a problem. The education system is a problem (in America, note most of this is about the American media/society). But the media somehow makes these real issues insignificant by publishing boatloads of other rubbish. Humans love gossip. We'd rather worry ourselves in the make-believe worlds of celebrities than deal with problems staring us straight in the face.

 For example, teen pregnancy is a huge problem in the United States. The news covers it occasionally, when they are looking for something to do. Yet, other media like Teen Mom and I don't know what else makes the issue seem minor. Some girls even want to get pregnant so they can be on TV. That's an actual issue that has somehow gotten even worse in a way even though awareness is up.

Even global economic problems and general misery somehow get shoved aside by incredibly small political "scandals" on a regular basis.

Some people may say that we live in a more informed era, and that's true. There are ways to find actual information and form one's opinions. Yet, most people don't do that. They take things based on face value and run with it. Basically, there are way too many people who don't know what they are talking about and start spurting out random things without any factual basis. People wonder why there is so much hate on the internet. Well, it's because too few people are checking their facts and have nothing to back their arguments with, so they go for personal insults.

Okay, not really on the last bit. There are other reasons for hatred, many that have been around forever. If there was historically racism and  prejudice against religion, why do we think we can change this? Right, because like practically all generations before us, we think we can change things.

There are things ingrained in human nature that will never change. People always want to go back to what they are comfortable with. People hate because they are ignorant and scared. People hate because their parents told them to hate. People don't want to face the truth and will live in la-la-land for as long as they can. These things won't change.


Even though I've said what I think, I know I'm not right. I haven't lived enough and haven't experienced enough to form opinions that are entirely my own.

... next post will be a "what I did today" post.

Sorry for the rant.

Ballet Under the Stars

Good afternoon!

I meant to blog yesterday about Ballet Under the Stars, but when I got home I was just too tired. Basically, Ballet Under the Stars is a performance by the Singapore Dance Theatre at Fort Canning. The stage is outside and everyone sits on the green. My mom and I got there kind of late, so there wasn't any really good seats left. Something I have learned for next year is to not sit right by the central walkway thing- people don't like sitting during the performance and walk around, which is very annoying. There were four pieces performed. Excerpts of Paquita, a modern piece, a contemporary ballet piece, and an African thing. They were all very good but I didn't like the modern piece. It reminded me a bit of football practice! The costume was basically a huge baggy t-shirt so I think that's why that's what I thought of.

In terms of tech, I don't think the stage crew had a lot to do. There was not a main curtain, and the upstage traveller thing was only used once. Sound was okay but not surrond because it was a green. Lighting got better as the production went on. There were a few really ugly transitions in Paquita, and the modern-ballet piece was weirdly lit. If the dancers are all in black, it's silly to have a super-dark stage. It was really hard to see them!

I haven't been up to much lately. I took a practice SAT online yesterday, and it was really boring. Starting to wonder if the SAT isn't as much of a reasoning test as a "how bored can you get before you bubble random things" test. Taking the actual SAT is going to be so miserable.



Quote of the Day:


If I had a single flower for every time I think about you, I could walk forever in my garden. ~Claudia Ghandi

Words

To sum up today in a few words: Diablo, Nick, AP Euro, Books, College

Diablo 3: I'm not too bad at this point in the game, which continuously surprises me. I've figured out what works for me and even started using the Auction House, which is basically where people sell the equipment they found and don't want. It's all in game-money, so I never spend a dime of money that I actually care about in-game. Unfortunately I'm a girl, so naturally I feel the need to be constantly upgrading my equipment and then dying in blue. 

Nick: I've been chatting with him a lot lately. It's hard to believe that we've only been apart for less than two weeks. For whatever reason, it feels like a lot longer than that. 

AP Euro: Since I've realised that it's July 20th, I've started actually working on my AP Euro. Which to be frank isn't the most interesting topic in the world even though I love history. The novel is better than the textbook, and the textbook is better than the endless packets. While I understand the necessity of review questions, I think this many are excessive. 

Books: Today I went to Kinokuniya, which is one of the best book stores I've ever been to. After getting lost in the Japanese section for a while, I managed to pick up two Chinese story books and one Chinese fashion/beauty magazine. The story books are technically short chapter books for young readers, which makes me feel like an idiot considering I can barely understand them. Then, the magazine is completely impossible. The format is really different from Western magazines, mostly because it is read from right to left. Then, some of the text is vertical and also read from the right to left. In addition, the font is super tiny. So I won't be understanding my magazine any time soon, but at least there are pretty pictures so it wasn't a total waste of S$7. Unfortunately today I also got an SAT book. To be honest, I'm not as afraid as many of my peers about the SAT. I'm going to score what I'm going to score, and there's no real changing of that. I can prepare a lot of course, but ultimately I know I'm not going to get a perfect score. It's just not realistic for me as a student. However, I do want to score high enough to get into a good college. It may just not be Brown or Yale or whatever. 

College: Today there seems to have been a lot of talk about me going off to college, getting into college, and what college I'm going to pick. I know other kids are having these discussions too, but it really doesn't make sense to me. First of all, I've got another year before I even apply to college. This is SAT year. While practically all my friends are applying this year, I instead have to work for a good GPA. Therefore, getting into college really doesn't seem like an issue to me. "Do your best and see what happens" is kind of my motto for this upcoming year. It's not "Panic like you're a senior about college, stress out, and make a fuss". In terms of what college I'm going to pick: Northeast USA, Midwest, Japan (unlikely), UK (unlikely), Canada (slightly more likely that the UK and Japan). There. That's all I feel like I need to do at the moment. Perhaps I have a false sense of security- personally I just think I am being realistic!

Quote of the Day: "Can I be the only hope for you? Because you're the only hope for me." - My Chemical Romance, "The Only Hope for Me is You"

Singapore Dance Theatre Class at Fort Canning

I actually did something interesting today!


This "morning" (Around 11:55 am) I got up to discover that my room was practically 29 degrees. This would be due to my stupid aircon not working. Unfortunately, that meant a fair amount of this day was spent out of my room as it was too darn hot to stay in there for very long. I had my Chinese lesson as usual, which is nice. I'm moving through the workbook really fast, so I have lots and lots of new words to remember. I'd say I remember 1/3 of them right away and then have to study. That being said, there's always a few words that I can't remember if my life depends on it.

Chinese class was followed by a nap in my very warm room. Then I had dinner and put on a leotard and tights for the first time in WAY too long.

Finding the class at Fort Canning park wasn't very easy, as the taxi driver clearly had no idea where he was going. The studio had no aircon and instead had a bunch of fans, which meant everyone was sweating by tendus. I had a good time, though I'm really out of shape. I didn't lose my flexibility though, which means I could get my legs really high. On the other hand, it also meant that I couldn't necessarily move fast enough to make the tempo, which is kind of silly. At the end of the day, I was a bit better than average in the class. Sort of depressing, really.

Leaving Fort Canning at night was highly complicated. Parts of the park are blocked off due to construction, which means getting down the hill was confusing. It's also not well-lit in some areas, and my mom was scared she'd fall down the hill. Eventually we did find our way out, though it sure did take a while.

Now I am very, very sore.

Quote of the Day:  "I'm only human, after all" - "Human" by The Parlotones

Indoor Days

Unsurprisingly, I've had another boring day indoors doing virtually nothing. As I was up the previous night until about 2am chatting with Nick, I was dead tired today.

This morning I actually finished Diablo 3 on Normal Mode, and I'm kind of proud of myself. Except I beat it with Nick and died at the very last second while defeating the final boss, which was kind of a fail. Oh well. I would have been very sad if I had been playing by myself and that happened.

 Since it was Monday I had to tutor, which wasn't that bad I suppose. The girls still don't know their basic multiplication tables and it's really annoying. That and apparently their addition facts aren't so good either. It was a very draining two hours.

I also did some AP Euro work today, which really wasn't that bad but was kind of annoying. What I dislike about AP Euro is that it's really being taught out of one book. It seems like a rather limited view into a subject in which there are many points of view, and no "right" one in my opinion. After all, what one author thinks is a triumph others think is a total disaster. The one book also has a lot of explicit material in it that isn't required, but still makes me a bit uncomfortable. It's odd to think such things would be written about. History is not kind to some individuals at all!

Knitting and New Shoes

I haven't really been up to anything of interest lately. Yesterday I bought some really pretty yarn and have been knitting ever since. The big craft/house/everything store here is called Spotlight , and it was really fun to look around. I've probably put 8 hours or so into this project, which is sad because it's so simple. It's actually a Christmas present (yes, I know it's July), but I figured that I wouldn't get it done closer to the holidays so I might as well get it done as soon as possible.


 I was actually supposed to go to ballet class last night, but I was really exhausted and decided to skip it. I think I'm going on Tuesday night, though. I really hate going to new studios to dance. I'm taking an adult intermediate class at the Singapore Dance Theatre, which will be interesting. They really don't know what to do with me here in terms of level- I'm good enough by Singapore standards to be pre-professional. However, internationally I'm just a decent student. It's quite confusing, because studios either want to re-train me completely or put me in their accelerated programs! Adult classes are a happy medium for now until I figure out how much I want to dance this approaching school year.


Apparently my days are so dull that going out and buying new shoes is extremely exciting. I actually just got back from doing so- they are really lovely date heels. I have no idea when I'm going to wear these things, but that's okay. Look! Pictures!

(When did I get so vain?!)

Next week I'm hoping to meet up with a couple of friends in addition to tutoring, Chinese lessons, and general boredom. I can't believe it's almost midway through July- have to do my AP Euro!

Minor MRT Adventure

I like the MRT system here in Singapore. It's much more modern and clean than Boston or New York City's. While I do take the train quite frequently, I've only been on the bus a handful of times. Today I took both the train and a bus to get to my friend Krutika's house, which was turned out to be kind of complicated. 

First of all, I had to go switch to the Circle Line to get to her house. Which shouldn't have been difficult, except I missed my train and had to wait around for a while. Then I made it to her station and missed the bus to her house. After playing Tetris for about 10 minutes, another bus came. Except I forgot you have to enter at the front of the bus and entered through the middle. So, I had to hop off, run to the front and tap my card before the doors closed and the bus took a sharp turn. Thankfully I didn't fall on anyone and got a seat in the back. Now, she told me there were 4 bus stops to her house. I guess I got on at a different stop than her, because it only took me 3 stops. Which was very confusing... I need to take the bus more. 

I had a good time at Krutika's house. I had lunch there, which was nice as I haven't had Indian food in years. I'm kind of afraid of it, because I've gotten quite sick off of it before in the States. I do think I am allergic to lentils or something. 

After lunch we tried to see Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter (which I did not want to see, I like my history unadulterated). However, we ended up watching The Amazing Spider-Man because she didn't have an ID card and ALVH is a 16+ movie. I found it pretty funny that they wouldn't let her in because I'm younger than her and Krutika certainly looks at least 16. 

It was nice hanging out with Krutika today. She might come over to my house next week so we can make pizza for lunch together. I think we're going to film it- if we do, I'll post the video here if she lets me!

In other things I've been up to, I've been studying Chinese a bit every day. I've also been playing a fair amount of Diablo. I'm proud to say I'm not completely addicted like some people I know back in the States (and here in Singapore). I quite like being a Wizard, I think she's pretty cool. And she's level 28. Which isn't high at all. Nor is her damage output. At least I made her jacket blue so she's nice and pretty when she kills things....

Haven't done a Quote of the Day in a while....

Sometimes, when one person is missing, the whole world seems depopulated.  ~Lamartine

Summertime

I have been so lazy these last couple of days, it's not even funny.

At least yesterday I tutored two girls in math. One going into 8th grade, and one going into 5th. I must say, they were shockingly bad at their multiplication tables. It was taking both of them about forever and a day to figure out what 6x8 and other basic equations equalled! What are schools teaching these days, anyways? 

The girls, our mothers, and I all went to Marche afterwards, which was nice. I was smart enough to get a desert to share that I really wanted... a strawberry crepe! Strawberries are currently my favorite food, I think. They are so cute. And also very expensive here >.< 

I miss strawberry picking. In the States, I used to go strawberry picking at this farm thing every year. They were always delicious. When I was younger, I think I just sat in the strawberry patch eating.

Today I have Chinese lessons, which are going to be interesting. I got through "Chinese for Foreigners" (okay, not really called that) pretty quickly because it was so easy, so now I get a new book. For some reason, I'm kind of hoping for like a 3rd grade textbook or something rather than more lists of vocabulary. 

On another tangent, I've just realised I've lived in Singapore for about a year and I've never gone swimming in my own pool. I'm sure I've mentioned this before, but it's getting kind of pathetic at this point. Another thing I used to do when I lived in the States was go swimming almost every day. Here there's really no appeal for me to go. It's hot all the time, so I guess I don't associate heat with swimming anymore. And also, I don't like the chlorine mussing my hair. 

Summer is going by very quickly and very slowly at the same time. I can't decide if I'm looking forward to school starting, or just enjoying being lazy and reading about crazy Middle Ages people. 

Time

Summer is a really strange time of year. It's hot like the rest of the year, which makes it feel insignificant. Other students are still walking around in uniform, which makes me feel lazy. People are away and can't hang out with me, which makes me feel lonely.

Time works differently, too. It's easy to waste an hour or so to Diablo 3 (which is very addicting and lots of fun), but impossible to focus on AP Euro work or SAT prep. Movies feel like only seconds long while airplane rides seem like eternity. I wish I could understand why everything is so strange, but it's probably best I don't.

Today I went to the Singapore Flower Show, which was nice overall. It was not the most exciting thing on the planet by any stretch of the imagination, but there were some nice exhibits.  I bought a pretty plant there, though. Apparently it's really hard to take care of, which is going to be a disaster. I'm pretty good at killing plants (or keeping them an inch from death) so, this is going to be a little adventure. When I was younger, I loved nature and taking care of things. Now, I'm proud of myself for remembering to water the thing every now and again.

 Honestly, I don't really get why some people enjoy plants so much. It's not that I don't appreciate how pretty they are or anything- I just don't understand the need to pour money, time and convention centre space into flowers. That being said, I love lolita, anime and manga, which I'm sure some people don't understand. In that, I guess it's a two-way street. 

I've had a lovely week overall with Nick, but he's leaving for the USA tomorrow. Deepti left today and Marianna's been there for over a month... it's kind of lonely around here. At least in this day and age there's lots of modes of communication- otherwise I think I would lose my mind.



"Think of me, think of me fondly when we've said goodbye" ~ "Think of Me", Phantom of the Opera