Vulnerability.

The potential of getting stuck without flights to return home pale in the wake of a planned and well executed militant attack in Mumbai where 100s of innocent by-standers were taken hostage and killed.

Meaningless killings occur everyday. It is only when it hits really close to home, like having one fellow countryman, or actually woman killed by terrorist acts that we begin to sit up and feel the loss. An act of desperation that solves no problems but breeds more hatred and potential of finger pointing and more conflicts.

Once again, it's 道高一尺，魔高一丈。

The authorities have underestimated the enemy, then again, they are in the dark...明剑易挡，暗箭难防。 India's equivalent of the 911 incident?

So, should we take up a trust no one and go nowhere philosophy? Hmmm, future overseas trips for students will probably be put on hold, but with I want to go somewhere I guess I will consult my pockets, some common sense and a calculated risks. Heh. . . will probably be grounded more because the pockets say so. -.-

RIP...

Krabi Trip here and gone...

Day 1 and 2- Koh Tao Noi and Talane Village

Woah, can't really believe that the Krabi Trip for sailors has come to an end. This is the first time for me taking a group of students overseas via the plane, and what an experience it was. The conception of the trip was not blessed in its early stages of planning and it nearly got aborted with all the unrest earlier; but with a few phone calls and clarification the risk factor was thought to be minimal as it wasn't Bangkok that we were going to. Protests did break out again in Bangkok and Bangkok's airports were closed while we were there. Phuket International Airport was still running, but with the diversions from BKK the return trip was chaotic with the small airport packed chockful of people. So, in a way unbecoming of civil servants we took a calculated risk and scrapped through with some minor inconveniences.

Days 2 and 3- Talane Village and Krabi

Krabi is really beautiful, think the sailors will not feel much of a kick when they kayak or rock-wall climb again in the waters and adventure centres of Singapore. After getting soaked in rains for more or less 3 days, mosquitoes and really basic accomodation, hiking, climbing, caving, deep water solo, kayaking, snorkelling and hurling one off cliffs, city life and stresses seem much smaller suddenly. Wells, there were the scratches, the bleeding, the fears and tears and swearing and scolding, not to mention myself being almost thrown down a steep entrance into a cave. But there were also laughter of triumph over fears and awe of nature and, oddly, ghost crabs. Haha, yes, this group has an unhealthy obsession over crabs. So obsessive that it became the topic of the day. Never seen and played with crabs before, Singaporean kids lead sad electronically controlled lives.

There were frustrations, miscommunications, disappointments, laziness etc... I was particularly emo (and to think of it, I am already not an adolescent for nearly a decade!) and stressed out as I am still not used to be the main in charge and coordinator. But in retrospect there were also moments of gladness, laughter and fun, and surprise of how adult-like the kiddos can be at times. All's well in the end. Kids will be kids to be fair, and to give it to the sailors they are still matured and stronger in comparison to other groups the vendors were telling us about. And we got home without major incidents. Yes, passports were smudged no thanks to my lack of water-proofing, a boarding pass was dropped while the kid ran around, things can be more organised and tightened, and made world class........ lament lament lament, slime slime slime slime... Maybe it is just me at times, maybe I hear too much and think too much of couch organisers giving out so called constructive criticisms too freely. Wells, we all learn.

Day 4- Krabi

I miss the hot showers back home, and the flush toilets. Well, that is about it. :P
I miss the cliffs and mangroves there. Oh the scenary from Koh Yao Noi... to die for.
I miss the morning call given by the gibbons, and the roosters that freaked the sailors out, I don't know why.
I miss the vendors, they are the really cool and living THE live we dream of but dare not pursue.

Hehe, yes, wanna go back, soon... during the non peak seasons. Then it will feel more like a deserted paradise. Cool.


P.S. Thank you all for the concerned smses with regards to the airport issues.

To complain or not to complain.

During a sailing course I learnt the lesson of complaining and things will get done demonstrated today... perhaps more noises should be made to nudge for things to improve. Of course it got to be constructive noises, sometimes we adapt too well to the surroundings that our tolerance level can be too high for good. Now the tricky part will be to find that hard to find balance point.

P.S. After having to try trapezing a 420, swinging over to the front and capsizing the boat, I really miss the byte. Haha. But 420 can really be fun, despite having a odd partner, I was enjoying more than half of the time, imagine having a really good partner... :)

Oi...

Perspired loads. Feel good.
Muscles aching. Feel bad.

Haha. Should try to train more, can't seem to touch my sparring partner, who is my instructor. Duh... can block and survive good enough la...

Stank up my whole room and van.

Hehe, flat footed me, collapsed arch feeling the ache now...

And why am I a south paw huh? Got to do mirror image for all the training, confusing. :O

Lala... train train... for what? To brawl... to fight legally... to just lose weight... for fun... for the pain?? Hmmm... Ok, ZzzZz time.

Curse of the Methuselah

'Do you want to live forever?'

If memory does not fail me, the poem was copied and pasted somewhere in this blog a couple of years ago. Oh nope, it was posted only just last year in April. Hah, how time seems to fly when it actually is not. Memories are such impressionable beings, if they be it. It popped back to my mind as the question of what life entails continues to nag and haunt. A simple trip to the estate where my grandparents used to live brought back surges of emotions.

News and policies abound about life and death, and recently in the red dot, the buzz's on whether organ donars should and if so how should they be compensated. Then there was the buzz on allowing ethanasia eventually. It doesn't need to take a genius to realise how much hype and controversy this generated. Hippocratic Oath, the dignity to die a respectable death, the cost to keep lives going despite the quality, the imminent end.

Life. Precious. Maybe, maybe not. Or it totally really depends on one's state of mind and other conditions.

'Do you really want to live forever?'