I am officially 25 years old! Not that I am ecstatic over the fact that I am.
Thanks to the many who have wished me a Happy Birthday, you have no idea how much it meant to me. This year’s birthday is a quiet one, I do not really have plans for celebration, yet on this day itself, I felt like I need to get out of home and find myself something to do without feeling too pathetic. My last minute planning did not help at all. My SIM pals are mostly occupied, thus agreeing on a post birthday meet up instead. Alan is in reservist now, hence I felt even more bored and not knowing what I should do to perk up my “special day”. Thankfully, I have my best friend to fall back on. Felt kind of bad because I know I have not been able to spend my birthday with her for quite a while, and when I felt most alone, she was there to accompany me.
Jx and I did not have exciting plans, just a simple dinner at the Subway for some sandwiches, and a movie date. Haha. Yeah, imagine two girls catching a Korean love comedy together. I guess the highlight of the night was when we decided to take some neoprints for remembrance. I almost forgot when was the last time we did that. Both of us felt kind of old trying our hands on new age neoprints. Boy, all that variety of machines nearly drove us nuts, so many fanciful background and decorative functions. We were already perspiring by the end of the whole photo taking and decorating. I guess age is definitely catching up on us. =P The Korean show we caught was titled “Almost Love”. It was really quite funny and entertaining. Even though it was rather predictable, I would say that it was also rather heart warming and sweet. I spent my birthday “countdown” on a cab. Nothing else was worth mentioning, unless you consider endless internet surfing throughout the night as something exciting too.
Woke up in the afternoon and saw quite a number of SMSes on my handphone. I was pleasantly surprised because up till yesterday’s midnight, I had only two birthday greetings through phone. I came to realized that people do remember. Haha. As much as I thought my birthday is just another day, I guess I felt really happy to receive that amount of birthday SMSes. Spent my birthday at home, figuring out the many functions of photoshop, and just trying to keep myself entertained. Had a simple meal with my family and my mum bought me a tiny cake just for formality =) . My parents made me peel my own red eggs, and even asked me to pick out four numbers for them to buy 4D haha. So there you go. That was how I spent my birthday.
I must not forget to thank my RCY gals who planned a birthday get together last week for Jx, Jen and I. Had a great dinner steamboat buffet at Suntec and received a pretty bag from them. In addition, Derrick also lent us his place for another steamboat dinner for my birthday celebration with Michelle. Jolene and Derrick were so sweet, they even gave me a present too. That night at his place ended me all stressed up though, having to learn how to play mahjong and all. Haha.
Many other people to thank for their smses, here they are:
- Chong Thiam! My trusty net friend whom I have not been contacting, thanks pal!
- My cousins Sheena and Nigel for their lovely testimonials.
- Ant Yeo, Lijie, Xan, Ah Ping, Law, Lizhen, Michelle, Jolene, Chikin, Miss Ros and Zhijia for their SMSes
- Ming, Weijie whom I "forced" to wish me over MSN, and Jem, HZ, Shufen and Weifu who "automatically" wished me a happy birthday.
- Dot and Sharon who called me and wished me.
I am going to meet another of my cousin tomorrow for our long awaited KTV session, have not seen her for so long; I cannot wait to see her soon.
I guess the rest of the week will be some more post birthday get togethers with my RCY pals and my SIM friends. Come to think of it, this year’s birthday may not seem so dull after all. =P
Uncategorized | Comments (2)a moment of silence..
I guess we would never be able to understand how short life really is. How there are times we really want to make the most out of it, but were not given the chance to. Sometimes, I feel really frustrated, and helpless as to how growing up means learning to accept the ways of life. There were many times I wished I have done things differently, hoping that maybe the outcomes might be better. Yet realistically, I knew that turning back in time is impossible.
I was definitely saddened by the news that one of my friend had just passed away in a motorbike accident. She was so young, with so much zest in life. Memories of how I met her flashed across my mind at an instant. I suddenly remembered the concern she showered over me when I was a mere 13 year old girl, sobbing over an incident that left me in fright. How I followed her to pluck mangoes from the tree behind our campsite’s kitchen, and pulled out my t-shirt to catch hold of them. She was the one who knew exactly what were available in our campsite that can be used for cooking. Plants like the curry leaves, chilli padis, lime, or even coconut, rambutans and mangoes for our refreshments. She was a great cook, a physically strong girl, a jovial and fun person to be with. I could not imagine how she could have been gone. She was the wonder woman of our department, probably the only one who can lift a stretcher up the ambulance on her own, the one who rides on a scrambler and play a tough game of rugby for our nation. Yet, a twist of fate took her away from us. The same bike she rides on caused her death.
As usual, I did not shed a single tear. Sometimes I hate myself for not being able to display my emotions. I regret not being the sort who keeps constant contact with the people I love, taking for granted that they will definitely be alive and well. I believe that her passing is a wake up call for me. That I should really start appreciating people and cherish them before it is too late. Yes, I know it sounds like cliché, but this incident together with Jonathan’s and Mr. Wong Kiao’s deaths made me open my eyes and start seeing things differently. I am at my quarter life, but I will never know if I ever live to see fruits of my labour. I will also never know which day is the last for me or my loved ones. If I am to continue with my lukewarm kind of attitude towards my friends, I may just live to regret it. I do not want to wait until the passing of an even closer friend before I am finally enlightened. I do not want to wait till it is too late and I do not want to live in regrets. I supposed I still cannot believe the fact that she is gone. I wonder if everyone who cared for her found out that she is no longer around. Do we have to wait till something crops up before we take the effort to keep in touch with a friend?
I am still unsure as to how I will react when I attend her wake. I just hope it is not too late to show her that I do care by paying her my last respects.
Lee Yan Ling, affectionately known as Jane, has left us on the 1st June 2006. She had been a mentor, who guided me through my Red Cross days in the Training Department, a friend who lent me a helping hand when I was down. She was the one whom never failed to brighten up a room with her jokes or whipped up a sumptuous meal with her cooking skills. A combination of tomboyishness with a touch of femininity, she is a gem. A wonderful person gone too soon and she was only 27. Jane, you will be dearly missed by all of us in TD. I hope you are in a better place now.
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