Pass my FTT

YEAH! WOOHOO! I finally passed my Final Theory Test. I am so happy because the questions were tricky. Yup. after much practices, i am extremely relieved that the burden had been lifted. I can now do my driving practical without having to worry about taking any more theory tests. So praise the Lord! And I wouldwant to thank the people who prayed for me. That's all. (-:

Open Water Diving Trip (18th to 20th Sep)

I just came back from my Open Water Diving trip (-:

I am so excited! It was indeed a scarily fun experience. We went for 2 pool sessions. On the first pool session, I was struggling because in the presence of a regulator, I tend to breath through my nose underwater. Hence I ended up surfacing most of the time.

The trip to Pulau Aur was long. We took 7 hours to reach there. On Saturday, we had 3 dives. These dives were indeed a fun time. I watched various marine creatures swam across the seabed. It was indeed a different experience to be 18m deep.

The last day arrived! How great to know that. Anyway I am so pleased to know that. I thank God for everything as He had kept me safe throughout the entire trip. This was especially so when I took off my goggles underwater. I was a little panicky. Thankfully my instructor was patient with me. So I am truly blessed.

I am finally an open water certified diver (-:

Mizuno Wave Run 2009

Yes I just ran another 10 miles today for Mizuno Wave Run 2009. This run was really bad. When they sounded the horn to start the race, I was still queuing up to hand over my baggage for safekeeping. Hence, I started my race around 20 minutes later. The run was bad because at the start, we were breathing a lot of smog from the vehicles. There were many traffic lights too. I remembered how I kept stopping when the traffic lights turned red. The only good run was at the Seletar reservoir when the air was rather fresh. However the moment was ruined when cyclists started rushing pass us. I was also angry because I had not much water to drink. So in the end, I was running most of the time without water. Thankfully I trained for it. When the race ended, I saw the timing featured at the finishing line. It read 2 hr and 15 minutes. This was definitely not my exact timing. So I minus off 20 minutes, which was not that disappointing. If I were to run 10km an hour, I should take 1hrs 42 minutes to run 16km. However, it was great to know that I took 1hr 55 minutes. Well, this would be my second last run for the year. My final run would none other be the Standard Chartered Marathon.

The Living Legacy 2009 - The Dead sea scrolls & the ancient world

Today I went with my church friends to the Dead Sea Scrolls Exhibition. It was indeed an enriching experience as I got to see many different artifacts. The Dead sea scrolls are writings based on various Jewish writings. Among these writings, only a handful of the scrolls depicts the Old Testaments of the Holy Bible. They were mostly shown in bits and pieces in this exhibition.

The curator mentioned that the scrolls were pieced back based on the handwritings . In order to further confirmed the authenticity of the scrolls, DNA analysis were carried out. This is because the dead sea scrolls were written on sheeps', goats' and antelopes' skin and each animals had a unique set of DNA. In order to identify the disintegrated words on the scrolls, Infra-Red technology was used.

Interestingly, the Old Testament written on the Dead Sea scrolls matches the Old Testament shown in the Bible today. The only book of the Old Testament that wasn't found in the Dead Sea Scrolls was the Book of Esther. Indeed I am truly impressed that despite such a long span of over 3000 years, the Word of God could still be wonderfully preserved and meticulously translated into the words in the modern Bible. Praise the Lord!

Isaiah 55: 10-11 - "For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it."

Yeah! I passed my BTT

YES!!! I passed my Driving Basic Theory Test! YEAH!!! I remembered how I had 3 practices before passing my Basic Theory Evaluation. Then taking another 3 practices and subsequently my actual test. I actually intended to pass this stage in a month but due to the difficulty in finding booking slots, I had to wait for a month before taking the test today. I spent quite a lot of money though..Nonetheless, I passed the test! Thank God! (-:

SAFRA Shears Bridge Run and Army Half Marathon 2009

Yup. I just ran 21km (Half Marathon). Well many months ago, I signed up for the SAFRA Shears Bridge Run. I wanted to use this race as a gauge to prepare for the Standard Chartered Full Marathon this December.

I always thought running 21km was a breeze. I remembered how I could run 10km and still feel alright. I assumed that if I could run 10km in an hour, I will take 2 hours and 6 minutes to run 21km. I was dead wrong!

Running 21km was indeed different from running a typical 10km route. You need to hydrate yourself frequently or you will collapse halfway through. I was running well for the first 10km because my stamina and my momentum was well maintained. However after running 14km, I started to slow down.

The last 7km were indeed suffering. Nope. I was maintaining my stamina but my legs were beginning to experience immense cramps. My feet also gave way and blisters appeared. My thighs , having been rubbed against my shorts resulted in abrasion.

As I endured the race, I came across some slogans by the side of the road. I was reminded that pain and suffering separates the men from the boys. Oh well, I continued to motivate myself to push on. As I reached the finish line, I heaved a sign of relief as the race is finally over! I took around 2.5 hrs. It's definitely way worse than the ideal timing of 2.1 hrs but who cares! I finished the race. That's what matters! (-:

Back home, I looked at my finishing medal. I couldn't help but smile. Thank God for safety and strength. I collapsed onto my bed after that.

Last Day at work

Yup. I have left my part time job at NUS Office of Finance. This 3.5 months had indeed been a wonderful experience.

When I first came, I was oblivious about what was happening. When I was taught to check the financial reports, I was really confused. Well, I do admit that I am a slow learner. Hence I took like a week to be familiarised with my jobscope.

During my first month of work, I was in many unpleasant situations. I kept making silly mistakes. E.g: I mistook the currency Pound for Euro. I even got misunderstood for not helping a colleague in carrying the files. On top of that, I was to get over my depression over something that may affect my entire life. So April was a bad month, I should say.

The month of May came. Serene Tay, a temp staff left for school and she was replaced by a new guy. He is none other than Ajay Zachariah George! God is really Good. With him around, life was so much fun. As both of us are of the same faith, we shared about many things. We really talked a lot. And I remembered how we got caught using the internet at work and as a result, we got a big scolding from our manager. However, I was laughing over it.

When Emily's mother fell sick, a replacement was needed and Ajay's friend, Elizabeth arrived. The three of us had really lots of fun in the office. I remembered how the three of us sneaked up to the 4th floor for 'illegal' tea breaks on 10am and 3pm. We sneakily stole food meant for the people taking the courses there. Of course we were smart enough to eat the better one, especially the chocolate ecclair. Yum yum. We were labelled as the 3 rats. Yup. I'm the rat with the white rabbit as a pet. (-;

On the 12th of June, Both Kaelyn and Elizabeh left the post. Kaelyn will be schooling again while Elizabeth's 1 month contract term had expired. We bid each other farewell and celebrated Kaelyn's Birthday, which was on that very day too. The very next week, we got caught by our manager for using the internet upstairs hahahaaa.

Emily returned for a while before she resigned to take care of her cancer-strikened nephew. I felt really sad for her. A new temp staff Arbaiya took over the post. We had a great time discussing about nutrition. I also had silly conversation with her. For example making the sound Tsk Tsk, learning funny malay words, showing her my rabbit pictures and especially 'sapu' ing (malay word for sweep) her invoices for filing.

Last day pictures:

Cakes bought as farewell gifts. (-:

Ajay made an appointment with Betty Cheah, the Secratary for the President of Finance. Her daughter is Ajay's Polytechnic Friend. Well, we went exploring at the area she is in. I also met Joanne's mother, the Secretary of the President of NUS.

~At the entrance~

~The Nexus: The Board of Directors' function room~

~The Vista: Where the Director hold their meetings~

I would like to thank every of my colleague for being there to help me out. I appreciate my lunch buddies who constantly went out with me during lunch. Of course I will remember Sasi who recommended the waffles at the Science Canteen and also in helping me out for my University application. I am really appreciative as I faced many problems during my application for my Tuition Fee Loans and Financial Aid. I also appreciate Jerome who went running with me after work every tuesdays and thursdays. I thank Joanne the 'girrafe' hahaaa, for the proof reading of my essays such that as a result, I manage to write a decent essay and pass well in my Qualifying English Test (a test which I was required to take as I got C5 for my A'level GP). I got fully exempted from all English modules!!!!! And not to forget Liwen who is officially my Senior. She helped me in my CORS. I manage to get my desired Core modules and one of them is a freshman seminar (no need exam! hahhaa). I have many thanks but there's just too much to say. Best wishes to all of them in the near future. Thanks for the lunch treats! (-: