Went for VJC's 25th Anniversary celebration dinner last night. Honestly, if it wasn't for the fact that there were extra tickets, I wouldn't have gone. I can't say I really share a strong affinity with VJ haha. Probably cuz the 2 years I spent there were really fleeting, plus half of those 2 years was spent mugging my guts out because I spent the first half of my time there slacking away.

Sure, I had good times too. All those mass dances, random half-days, hysterical screaming at school competitions, and even remedials haha. But in my mind, those were really a shallow kind of happiness? Like even though I was having fun, I remembered feeling quite empty inside. I guess VJ gave me the impression that everything and everyone was really a facade, as compared to what I experienced in Dunman High. Haha oh man I sound really bitter.

I think I really grew up quite a bit in VJ. And, if not for my time in VJ, there wouldn't be a WWF today. So really, the friends I made were the best thing that happened during those 2 years :)

Oh, the Malaysian director Yasmin Ahmad just passed away last night. What an immense loss to the creative world. She was the director behind the family ads in Singapore (eg. the one about the girl being raised by a single father), and a few movies about inter-racial relationships including my favourite "Sepet", about this Malay girl who falls in love with a Chinese boy.

Sigh, I doubt anyone else can pull the audience's heartstrings as well as her.

If the children don't grow up
Our bodies get bigger but our hearts get torn up
We're just a million little gods causing rainstorms
Turning every good thing to rust

Kids are good at diversionary tactics, especially when they know they're going to get scolded.

Me: (with every intention of scolding her) Tara, come here!!
Tara, 6 years old: I love you Adelyne! *gives me a big hug*
Me: Awww, I love you too :D

And all scolding goes out the window. Then I realize I've been tricked.

I didn't know that when parents ask whether their kids were naughty, I'm not supposed to tell them the truth. According to my boss, no parent wants to hear people say their kid was naughty. Instead, I'm supposed to say the child was "active". Ah, welcome to the real world. But if I were a parent, I'd want to know that my child was a brat so I can do something about it. Oh well.

I think in the service industry, when it comes to dealing with people, you can't have set rules on what to do, instead you have to learn from your mistakes. There isn't a script that you can apply to every situation, cuz different people react differently to the same situation. With more time and experience, you learn to read body language and to predict how a person will respond, and from there you learn to say the right things. Till now, I still make stupid mistakes and sometimes say the wrong things to guests, which is quite embarrassing and frustrating especially when you disappoint or, even worse, annoy them. But then again, it's quite rewarding when guests smile and thank you, or when they recognise and greet you even when you're off-duty :)

School's starting soon! And it's my second-last chance to bid for modules, not that I'm gonna miss it haha.

To end off, here's another one of those kid moments:

(We were having a painting contest to see who can draw the nicest lion.)
Me: My lion is yellow!
Tara: (her lion is brown colour) Mine is an Indian lion!

I saw tail lights last night in a dream about my old life.
Everybody leaves, so why, why wouldn't you?

"So much suffering, and we keep getting out of bed in the morning."
"Don't we."
"For some reason."
"We get hungry. We have to pee."

- Andre Dubus, "Dancing After Hours"

Dancing in the dark 'til the tune ends
We're dancing in the dark and it soon ends
We're waltzing in the wonder of why we're here
Time hurries by, we're here and we're gone

Taboo - kids style.

(the word is "bull")

Me: It's an animal, something like a cow. A male cow.

Honey, age 6: Cowboy?

Me: (don't know whether to laugh or cry) Errr no.

Always remember the pact that we made

Too young to die but old isn't great

Alas, nothing interesting has been happening in my life. Well, apart from random movie outings (I think I watched like 3 movies last week), and a significant amount of Guitar Hero hahah. On the work front, Saturday was crazy. Manning the towel stand is harder than it sounds! Not when you're facing a severe towel shortage, and you have to go back and forth from the pool to the laundry room pushing/pulling/maneuvering towering trolleys of towels, while entertaining wet guests who are non-too-pleased about being told they have to wait for their towels. Seriously, a 5-star hotel which doesn't have enough towels doesn't project a very good image. I think it's mostly due to lack of manpower and the fact that we only have 1 cargo lift to handle laundry/housecleaning/room service/flower deliveries.

I think the more I stay at home, the more I binge on nonsense. At least when I go to work I get to exercise by carrying piles of towels, running/screaming after runaway children, paddling rounds in a kayak, etc.

Anyway this is a video of a Malaysian singer called Zee Avi, singing this song in mixed Malay/English. It's quite funny.

Let's go to sleep with clearer heads

And hearts too big to fit our beds

And maybe we won't feel so alone

Before we turn to stone

You know the world is truly globalized when you meet a blond, blue-eyed German boy who was born and raised in India, knows Abacus, and speaks English with an Indian accent. Hahaha it's hilarious, and I never fail to be amused whenever he speaks.

Unfortunately work is still super tiring, but it's getting better gradually. And sometimes it's good to be so exhausted that you KO immediately once you're home. I have nothing else to do anyway. Sheesh, how sad. But the desire to strangle misbehaving kids is still there though haha. I'm kidding.

I realize all I can really talk about is work. Is that a good or bad thing? Then again, if you slap on sunblock every morning, go kayaking, take tram rides, and play board games everyday, is that considered work?

But well, nothing else interesting has been happening in my life. Oh yeah, my bro bought Krispy Kreme donuts from KL! Haha my eyes lighted up immediately when I saw them in the morning :D And for some reason, I really miss New York City :( Random shit.

K I'm falling asleep as I type. I take back what I said. Work is still super tiring. Period.

Take all your reasons and take them away
To the middle of nowhere, and on your way home

On one hand, I really wanna work cuz I need the money. On the other hand, I'm glad whenever I'm not called up for work cuz it's really tiring. Barely 3 days at work, and I feel like I've been working for an entire month. Plus I need a whole day just to recover, so I'm grateful I don't have to work everyday.

Although it might seem like anyone can take care of kids, I really feel like I've learnt alot. This job really teaches you to build up your patience, sometimes stretching it to breaking point. And it's not only just patience with misbehaving kids (or when 3 of them start talking to you all at the same time), it's with their parents too. You really need to learn to smile in the face of fire, especially when you know the other party is being really unreasonable and stupid. At least with kids, they'll listen to you after you explain nicely to them. These adults won't budge till they get their way.

Some Singaporeans need to understand that just because they've paid for the service, it doesn't give them the right to command people to cater to their every whim and fancy, sometimes at the expense of others. At the end of the day, these people may have been able to get what they want, but all they've really succeeded in doing is make a fool of themselves among both staff and the other kids alike. I've never seen such ugly and selfish behaviour in my life, and unfortunately, I suspect there's more to come. Argh.

Therefore I conclude I don't have enough patience to survive the service industry haha. It also makes me better appreciate other service staff when I go out, and I try to be nicer to them haha.

Anyway I think it's true that kids are a reflection of their parents. Besides the really ugly behaviour I've seen, there are the really nice ones on the other end of the spectrum. Them and their parents. There was this 8 year old girl with the biggest heart I've seen, and who's far more mature for her age. She's the kind who will offer help to someone older than her, and who's even willing to give up her spot in a queue to another kid she just met. If I ever have a kid in the future, I really hope he/she will turn out to be like her haha.

I try to imagine a careless life
A scenic world where the sunsets are all
Breathtaking