Minions

What we perceive to be minions are the adorable (to some, not so adorable) yellow pill-shaped beings. They have become absolutely popular. Their faces have been plastered all over advertisements, banners, shirts, badges, cups, bags and many more. They even have their own movie. Before I chase away those yellow minion haters, what I really want to talk about today is the minions of the world. Minions as in slaves bounded and ordered around by a leader.

The first image of minions that appear in my head come in tie and blazer. These dark blue clothed specimens have become like brainless creatures that listen to commands of an authority. Not many of them act on their own or act with persistence and such dedication as before.They follow orders and seem to not know how to function when on the job. I cannot fathom how these humans who have brains of their own only know how to listen to the advisers watching over them. What I experienced seeing was a disappointment.

Let us say there is student ,1 minion(M) and 1 advisor(A).

A gives some eye signals to M, asking it to go to the student.

M walks over.

M: Please close your books.

The student responds slowly to the annoying hindrance who barely shows any persistence.

M looks at A.

M looks at the student.

M looks at A.

A: Take the book.

M(to the student): Give me the book.

M looks at A.

M does not know what to do with the book.

M looks at student.

M looks at A and just stands there looking like an absolute idiot.

M looks at A.

A: Keep the book and return later.

M nods and she wants to leave but A gives her signals to take another few students' books.

At least now, she knows what to bloody do.

How pathetic can these minions be! Why are they minions in their own group of workers? Why don't they know what they are supposed to do? Have they not gone through training or graduated to earn that title? It is a shame that they are put out there to organize others when they cannot even arrange their own person. This is not meant to be a post filled with hatred and complaints but a post signifying my disgust for the mindless bodies of minions of society has become.

We have become sheep that move when people ask us to. We have forgotten how to push ourselves and the people around us and thrive for improvement. We have lost the motivation or reason of what we do everyday. We need to question our reasons of taking us the responsibilities we have. We need to ask ourselves whether we still want to be in that place. Do we still wants to be unmindful beings and heedlessly carry out our daily activities. We need to think hard and not neglect anything we do.

Rarely do we find men who willing engage in hard, solid thinking. There is an almost universal quest for easy answers and half-baked solutions. Nothing pains some people more than having to think.

-Martin Luther King, Jr.

Librarian Annual High Tea

Dressed in gorgeous, stylish and dazzling outfits, both male and female librarians looked fit for a runway. These models were lined up in our noisy school canteen ready for their debut at the Swiss Garden Hotel. From body con dresses to basics with a dash of spice, everyone looked chic. The girls dolled up nicely and the guys looking suave(you could say they were close enough). We all patiently awaited our transportation to the hotel as we chatted away with our friends. Not forgetting the many photos and selfies taken then as well as throughout the day. Sadly, our transport for late. When we managed to get onto the bus, all 50+ of us clambered on and got on our way. We hilariously had to stop by the road and let the some get onto the other bus.

When we reached the hotel, we got off and made our way to Flavours Restaurant. We got to our seat , put down our things and started our marvellous experience. For one, I started on the Asian corner. They served plain porridge, cream of mushroom soup, fried spiced chicken, prawn, garlic rice and the noodle corner. The middle of the restaurant was a salad bar, cendol station and seafood corner. I tried oyster for the first time. I did not exactly become a fan of it. Outside the restaurant were the small stalls which were part of the buffet. Closest to the entrance of the restaurant was the roasted lamb. Might I say that it was scrumptious! We had in with rosemary sauce and mint sauce.

Next, was the Chinese cuisine. I had a variety of what they were serving. The scallop they served was memorable. The popiah with duck was enjoyable too. Moving on was the Thailand cuisine if I was not mistaken. There was pandan roasted chicken and durian rolls. I absolutely loved them both. The durian roll is something I would recommend for any durian lover. Even non-durian lovers should give them a try if you do not hate the taste of durian. Lastly was the Malaysian food, there was murtabak, roti canai, beef satay, chicken satay and naan bread. All the sauces served too of course.

Last but not least is the dessert corner! My favourite part of a meal. They had a good array of Malay kuih, French pastries and some typical desserts including fruits. I tried the kuih serimuka, ondeh, red velvet cake, carrot cake, pineapple crumble tart, mochi and the traditional longan coconut water.
The food was delightful for the amount of money we paid. We took many photos and I got some nice shots on my camera. We managed to go up to the swimming pool of Swiss Garden Hotel and snap some photos including our group photo. It was a splendid 6 hours spent with my friends waiting, eating and digitally recording the moments in history together. I shall miss spending a few hours of one day every year stuffing our tummies till our hearts' content.

SPM 2006

Q: The writer describes the main character as a very determined person. (character)

    Write about:

        - Some instances that show the character’s determination

        - How the determination affects his / her family

A:

After reading the novel step by wicked step by Anne Fine, I find that the character Colin is a very determined person. Here are some reasons how Colin show his determination and how it affects his / her family.

First and foremost, Colin’s biological father left him when he was merely a few weeks old. His mother then remarries with a man name Jack. Thus, Jack became his stepfather when Colin was only 8 months old. They did many things together. Jack would walk Colin to school or even go to the park with him during the evenings. Sadly, good things don’t last long. Colin’s mother had some marital problems with Jack since he refuses to get a proper job. This caused Colin’s mum to leave Jack without saying goodbye and without Colin being aware of it. Colin also lost his concentration and will to do well in school and many of hid quarrels with his mum started because of this.

This has cause Colin to hate his mum for doing so and hated his new school. Colin misses his stepfather very much and he was determined to see him again. He even remembers how long it has been since he last saw his stepfather. “Five years, 8 months and seven days.” Colin was so determined that he takes the time to write a letter to Jack, sadly he did not get a reply. “I wrote a letter…There was no answer.” He misses him so, that even though he does not know how to skate he still goes to the skating ring to listen to Jack’s favourite song – “The Bluebird of Happiness”. That is because the skating rink would play the song repeatedly. “Every forty five minutes,” Colin corrects Claudia in the novel. Colin only hums the song; he had made a vow not to sing it unless Jack returns. “I’m saving the words till I find him.”

Colin is determined that Jack would come and find him one day, that he still keeps the boots with the tobacco tin in it, as it reminded him of Jack. Sadly, his unaware mum had thrown it away. Colin’s determined to grow up fast and save enough money to allow him to have the ability to find his stepfather one day. “As soon as I’m tall enough, I’m off.” He even does three paper rounds to save more money. “I even do three paper rounds.”

Although, we could clearly see that Colin is very determined to find his stepfather, his determination had affected his relationship with his mother. It started when Colin’s mother had left in a sudden and kept their whereabouts as a secret.

There was also a few times where Colin and his mother argued as Colin did not understood why his mother can’t get along with Jack. As in Colin’s eyes Jack is an amazing father figure that takes care of him. However, in reality Jack and Colin’s mother have marital issues as he does not want to go out and look for a proper job to sustain the families finance. “You only saw his good side,” said Colin’s mother in the novel during the argument.

When they moved to a new place, Colin started suffering from a lack of a father figure. He misses his stepfather so much that even though years have passed Colin still talks to him although he is not around. Colin also started saving up money just to try to find his stepfather in the future. His mum is unaware as she is so caught up with her own problems that she does not see his suffering.

In conclusion, we can see that Colin was a very determined person because he persevered in his decision to keep his stepfather in his heart and even took up part time jobs to save up for his journey to look for his father. This decision affected his relationship with his mother negatively and they have tiffs over it.

Q : How a character changed...

Q : How a character changed due to certain event that have taken place in his/her life.

A:
      After reading the novel Step by Wicked Step by Anne Fine, I find that Colin has changed due to a certain event that has taken place in his life. The story is about these five children that find Richard Harwick's story. They read it then take turns to share their own stories about how they deal with their dysfunctional families. Colin's story reveals that he has changed drastically ever since his mother moved him away from his stepfather.

     Colin has changed into a very unhappy and lonely boy. Colin had to join a new school when his mother moved out of their home with him. He is becomes a new kid in his class. He has to go through unpleasant experiences. He gets ignored in school as the students had their own set of friends. He finds it hard to fit in. "Nobody bothered with me" The other students only sniggered when Colin did not understand what they were doing. His mother had also neglected him. She was busy with her job at the canteen and her household chores. She had no time to listen to his problems.

  Secondly, Colin becomes a dreamy boy which causes him to have less focus in class. Thus he does badly in school. He misses his dad very much. He ends up thinking very deeply about his dad during class. Every night, he would take the tobacco tin out of the toe of his boot and put it under his pillow. Colin would hum their favourite song and stay awake for hours talking to his dad. He would pretend that his dad was there. "I'd pretend that he was there with me. And I could talk to him, just like before."

   Lastly, Colin becomes resourceful after his mother's separated his stepfather and him. It has been 5 years, 8 months and 7 days since he was separated from his dad. He secretly writes his dad's name and his old address on the forms at school.  "I always secretly sneak his name and our old address on all the forms that Mum's filled in for school..." He tries to save money. He even does three paper rounds to earn money to search for his dad when he is older. “I even do three paper rounds.” 

   In conclusion, at first Colin responded negatively to the changes in his life. He was sad, dreamy in school and moody. Finally he decided to do something worthy to search for his dad like doing paper rounds and saving every penny he gets. His love and longing for his dad motivated him to become optimistic, resourceful and patient in his mission : search for his dad.

Annual General Meeting

AGM. This year was my 5th AGM. Time sure has flown by.In 2011, I became a librarian with Rachel Wong, Ming Yen, Jia Yinn, Ching Wei, Zhi Ying, Ghee Shaun and many others. We sang "Here In My Home" for our official appointment of being a librarian. We have been with the librarian board for so many years. From our first one day camp to our last one that we organized this year, many memories have been made.

Today we have finally stepped down from our posts and passed on the committee to our juniors. We hope that they will uphold the discipline and ethnic of librarians. At 12.30pm, we gathered at the library. Juniors were all lined up outside in their ties and tags awaiting to be seated in the library. Row and rows of empty chair awaited the arrival of their behinds. The AGM began with a few announcement and some words from our teacher advisor, Puan Monica. The best librarian, best shift and librarians with the most merits were awarded with their prizes. Then, each form 5(except for two shy ones) starting with Ching Wei took turns and gave a small speech. We only hope that the juniors will absorb our words of wisdom and put them to good use.

Next, the form 4s presented us with tokens of gratitude. We all got a drawing of ourselves in a specially decorated wooden frame and an envelope with dear messages from them. We continued with the dissolving of the old AJK board and the announcement of the new one. The form 5s stepped down one by one according to their departments. It was a heart warming sight of hugs and heirlooms passed down from one department head to a new one. The event moved on with the presentation made by the form 5s and the video by the form 4s in memory of the retiring librarians.

After that was celebratory meal. Cupcakes of three different flavours, drinks and a poppy seed cake was served. All handmade by the talented juniors of ours. After a miniature photo taking session, we ended the session and grabbed lunch. By the time we came back, our last mandatory shift of the year was over! It was a happy day and we were finally relieved of the responsibilities of being a librarian. Today is the day that marks the end of our years of slavery and work but not the end of our friendships.

Q : Compare two characters

Based on the novel "Step by Wicked Step", written by Anne Fine, there are many different character. The novel is about 5 children that share their stories about how they handle their broken families after reading Richard Harwick's story. I am going to compare and contrast Richard and Colin. There are clear similarities and differences which can be observed throughout the story.

Firstly, Richard and Colin both love their dads. They both missed their fathers. Richard at times misses his father and sits by his father's grave. "Sometimes I sit beside my father's grave and I run my fingers over the letters of his name..." However, Richard's father died while Colin's mother brought Colin and moved away without the stepfather's knowledge. Richard had lost his father forever and he wanted to tell his father so many things. "...stamp to wake him up and tell him all the things that had gone wrong since he was taken from us." Meanwhile, Colin was still searching for his stepfather. He is very determined to find him. Colin remembered the exact date his father left. "Five years, eight months and seven days."

Secondly, they similarly are ignored by their mothers. They both did not get any attention from their mothers. Colin's mother is unaware of how he day dreams in school. Richard's mother did not show any form of care towards Richard. Both of them did not feel their mothers' love. The two boys differ in the ways their mother had neglected them. In Richard's case, his mother did not defend him when Reverend Coldstone treated him badly. This shows his mother does not pay attention to her child Richard. She do not defend Richard when Reverend Coldstone sends him to boarding school.  "All that my mother did was lower her eyes, or look away..." Richard feels she has become a traitor. "...I believe she is a traitor to my father's memory." In Colin's case, his mother is unaware how much he missed his stepfather because she is too busy working at the canteen and doing household chores.

Lastly, Richard and Colin believe that running away is a solution. Both of them decided that running away will make things work. In contrast, Richard ran away from home with the hope that he would make life more pleasant for everyone. "Mother, I think, would find life more pleasant without my dark looks and scowling face..." "Mr. Coldstone would greet my disappearance with pleasure." "As for Charlotte, she would, I am sure, learn to live without me..." Colin has plans to run away to find his stepfather. He has saved up every penny. He even does three paper rounds. "I keep practically every penny that comes my way. I even do three paper rounds." In the end, Richard realizes that running away does not solve any problems. He goes home to find everyone is dead through Charlotte's letter that was left for him. "...send this letter to our old home, to tell you why you return to cold, cold silence." Colin is still waiting for the time he is old enough to run away. "As soon as I'm tall enough, I'm off."

As a conclusion, the two characters suffered much pain and sorrow. These two boys do not received enough love for boys their age. No one cares about them or how they felt. No one is there to hear their thought out and advise them. This could have changed Richard's life differently if his mother had done so and provided attention, love and care. Sadly they did not, while Colin has not, realised that running away does not solve problems. In fact, running away can affect the people around you and burden them in many ways just like in Richard's story. Acting out of impulse like Richard has damaged his family. We need to think wisely before making a serious decision in life.

Music is life

I have always been fascinated with music. It amazes me that music can take a person out of their ordinary life and place them in a world of their own imagination. It amazes me that people have collaborated over time to create this beautiful form of expression. For me, it is precisely the thrill and excitement of being taken on a musical journey .

I remember my first experience with music was my mother playing her CDs filled with love songs on the radio in our hall. I remember specifically listening to the romantic melodies that have made me into such a romantic today. Ever since that initial impression became solidified in my imagination many years ago, music has became a form of release for me. Even if I am having the most stressful day of my life I can turn to music and all my problems dissipate.

I started singing when I was 7. It was the first time I faced my stage fright head on. I loved singing and I just wanted to show the world how good I could be. I remember getting consolation awards throughout my years in primary school. The singing competitions they had every year were a highlight for me. I was amazed by the winners, the school choir and many pop singers that reigned supreme on radio channels.

With each year my love for music grows. Every new journey I discover through a new song always leaves me feeling such deep emotion. When I make music with the instrument I was born with, I feel a deep connection to the form of creation. When I began singing in choir, I loved it straight away. The melodies were not impressive at first but if I held on long enough, that would change. I knew I did not have great listening and a strong voice at the start but after 5 years of solid training with Harmonix Youth Choir, I have become much better.

 I have had times when I've sat down to study and could not get my mind in the right place. I would play the music that I loved. The different genres had so many different purposes. Music could calm and to sleep. I could drift away into sleep with music, it felt as though awaking to a dark sky just like in a dream. Sometime I wonder if I could have been a Musician in a previous lifetime, or conducting a symphony. Music is truly the most beautiful form of creation I have found to date and it will stick with me all my life.