It’s indeed my great privilege to have a good friend of mine share his life story here. If you think that life has been unfair, you haven’t seen anything.
From dusk to dawn (Part 1)
Empty cough mixture bottles, plastic bags of marijuana and pills all kept in different dark corners of my room. Like a squirrel who knows where the acorns are hidden, I never lose count of any of the illicit substances that are placed in my room. Like an eager armskote man who takes pride in his rifles in the store, I kept the inventory embedded deeply in my head, never once did it go wrong. Like clockwork, I know when to “score” (a street slang for buying drugs from the dealers) the next batch. I was also careful – I never scored from the same dealer for more than 3 months for fear of being followed by the watchful eyes of the “narcs” (narcotics officers). So there I was, living in my own little sphere of euphoric being, fuelled by chemical substances in my system. The days are filled with unbridled spirit of fun and like all addicts will say, just getting high baby nothing much. Same shit, different day.
Most people will think that all drug addicts are all
begging on the streets and most probably poor
with little or no money. Heroin addicts are one of the
neatest and cleanest people I have met in my life.
They are meticulous in what they do placing emphasis
in their daily appearance. Don’t ask me why but that’s what I knew. I lost my best friend to heroin. From an untidy bum in dressing, he became the neatest dresser I have ever seen. Maybe it’s the paranoia derived from the effect of the drug – the fear of being spotted as a drug user. I never dared to try heroin. It’s expensive and most never quit. Most importantly, I have seen how it had destroyed my friend’s life and that’s another story of its own. Now to continue with my own story……
There are many different kinds of drugs in the market. From prescriptive drugs like Dormicums (a sedative for sleeping) to controlled drugs like Marijuana, Ketamine or Ecstasy, each has its unique “high” and usage for the user. Even controlled drugs are classified into different classes in the eyes of the law here. (http://www.cnb.gov.sg/) From Class A to Class C (a bit like your plane tickets – Economy Class or Business Class?), each different drug gives you a different trip altogether. I have tried most of the things available in the market – prescriptive to illegal. I was really into anti-depressants and marijuana. This is due to my depressive nature, maniac depressive they termed it. I need it for everything and every occasion. Without it, fishing will not be as fun, a movie will not be as enjoyable – well, you get the picture. As you guessed, the tentacles of addiction crept into all aspects of my life. Simply put it this way – I cannot function properly without it, not knowing that I have became a slave to drugs…… (to be continued)
Day 2 (12th May)
We had a sumptuous buffet style breakfast afterwhich we split up into our allocated groups. Some people to highlight in my group “RUBY” are
Gladys, her husband & their 5 weeks old baby!!! Wow. I salute them. It was perfectly legitimate for them to stay home to babysit & for Gladys to recuperate. (A lady is given 3 months of maternity leave after her delivery). But they chose to garang garang & sweat it out with the rest in Melaka than in the comfort of their homes.
Alan (guy in red)
He may be deaf & mute but it didn't stop him from leading
a normal and exciting life. We communicated via handsigns,
writings and gesturing. And it works! Alan is also happily
married with a wonderful lady and a proud father of a
baby boy. He has really inspired me. Hope to write more about him soon.
The various stops in our exploration of Melaka.
Melaka Christ Church:
Built entirely of red bricks that were brought in from Holland, the building was erected by the Dutch and was later converted by the British for Anglican usage. Built since 1753, the church is a fine example of the Dutch's architectural skills. Some interesting points to note are the handmade church pews, the Brass Bible, the "Last Supper" in glazed tiles, the tombstone in Armenian, and of course, the skillfully-made ceiling beams done without any joints. To date, this fiery red building is still very much in use. http://www.thingsasian.com/goto_article/article.2553.html 
St Paul Church: Tourist attraction
Wooden ship: Tourist attraction 
Highest peak of expressway:
We were “challenged by choice” to trek up the highest point of the expressway. Easy for some. Do not forget we have a 5 weeks old baby and a mommy who's recovering..... But truly, “If you really put your heart to it, nothing is impossible”. And Gladys & her hubby epitomized that by leading the way and was the first to troop up the expressway. Woah! We made it! TOGETHER!
Something Shopping Centre (Yikes forgotten the name):
Stopover for lunch. Yummy chicken rice & grabbed a new t-shirt!
After all the happening trekking in the afternoon in the evening we had a heart to heart talk on “The Differences between Man & Woman”. The speaker - Mrs Julie shared her thoughts about the differences between guys and gals. However in all our differences we have been fashioned to complement one another.
to be continued...
Have you smile today? A SMILE a day keeps the wrinkles away!
Things around us are already so fast paced and stressful. Each of us can learn to relax a little yea. One thing I’m learning is to be less serious. Ok don’t misunderstand me. It’s good to be serious with your work and responsibilities. Just that I have the tendency to be overly serious. Hahahaha.
So here’s the SMILE series. It can come in the form of a picture/joke/basically anything! May it bring a SMILE to you today! Feel free to contribute. Tag me or comment it so I can add yours in.
Here is a masterpiece of my students’ work. It really really brightens up my day! It still makes me laugh! She’s really good yea!!! Background: They were told to draw something which has a thumbprint in it.
I was reading through some of my students’ comments about a lesson which I taught today. One scribbled “You regret for not attending this lesson”. The other wrote that the best thing he learnt from the lesson was “The experience from the speaker who gone through before”
Personally I was very touched. First by the sincerity of the person who wrote the feedback. Secondly I was encouraged that the effort I put in my preparation has translated into meaningful learning for my audience.
After teaching for so long I do get caution that I become complacent. Especially on occasions when I’m physically tired
of jetting from place to place. Furthermore there’s no one to scrutinize me or grade me whatsoever. So who am do I really teach for? My monthly salary?
One thing I learnt from big boss YC… “Be excellent in all you do”
At the end of the day have I given my best? Have I been true to what I believe in? That’s enough.
The weekend was superb. I would remember it for a long long time to come :)
We spent 4 days 3 nigths there in total so I'm going to pen this is a series kind of version.
Night 1 (11th May)
Today is MissFab's birthday so Auau & myself arranged a dinner date with her at Bugis Junction. It seemed a perfect location as it's the best shopping place to our next destination -> Coach Terminal @ Lavender Street.
After dinner MissFab gave us a lift to the terminal. Ah! So sweet right! We travelled into Malaysia via the Tuas checkpoint. I believe that's why we were able to reach our hotel on time. 12am in the morning. Woodlands checkpoint is probably packed with crowds going in.
The hotel we stayed in -> Renaissance Melaka Hotel. Very very good! Their beds are simply SUPERB! Though the aircon was freezing but the moment I got under the sheets it's like this warm thermal blanket. ZZZzzz...
to be continued...
Mothers' Day is coming. My elder sister & I planned to give her a new blender. The older one at home looks set to go into retirement soon : ) The idea of giving a blender was suggested by my sister. Standard gifts that I give my mom are cups, cups & more cups. Oh ya she received an Eeyore soft toy from me before too. To compensate for the time that I'm not home.
Mom has been a model & example in my life. She's kind, patient, gentle & understanding. She never ever says "I love you" but I know she does because she makes the effort to cook whenever she knows I'll be home for dinner.
My love for reading started young where my mom brought me regularly to the library. I can still remember how she would patiently wait alongside me as I bury myself in the mountain of books. And it's all thanks to the good reading habit which my mom built in me that I got A1 for my Literature during O' Levels!!!
Thank you for all that you are mom. You're the best! I love you! 
Is there something you wish to thank your mom for??? Share le!!! Put it in the comments yea!
I've basically stopped exercising since PE (physical education) was no longer a "compulsory" subject for me after junior college. I used to joke that the only form of exercise I did after that was the occasional climb over the bridge. I never see the need to exercise as I've no problem at all with my weight. In the eyes of the people around me I'm "all right", not fat or stuff. That explains my lack of motivation yea.
It's been 7 good years since then and things are beginning to change. And the agent of change is none other than my new colleague -- JW. Another big reason is that as I advance in age..... I'm starting to see the need to take good care of my physical body. Can't take it for granted you know. Well well things just happen to fall into all the right places at the right time.
Some improvement is better than no improvements at all. Hahaha! Though I've not started on the physical body exercises but I've since improved on my diet (More fibre, more protein, less carbohydrates). But I'm pretty sure I'm going pick that up very enough.
http://www.captnj.blogspot.com/ Attached is the link to JW's blog. For the die hard readers out there you're in for a treat!!! Enjoys!