Today is NTU’s 50th anniversary, and all lessons ended at 12.30pm the latest. My only lecture for the day ended an hour before that, but I only left school at that time because I was completing my lab report. The problem with having so many people ending school at the same time is that the bus becomes really really crowded. I waited for more than half an hour, and 6 full buses passed by before I managed to squeeze onto the 7th one. By then I was already thinking that I should have walked to the canteen A bus stop or the one outside the school of Communication and Information, since the latter was just one stop down from mine, and even though there are usually more people there, more people get off at the bus stop too (whereas hardly anyone gets off at the one I was at), so I might have been able to get onto an earlier bus.

But then again, maybe missing so many buses wasn’t such a bad thing after all, because I bumped into Winnie and Charmain at the MRT station, and we went for lunch together. If only the school could increase the frequency of the buses at times like these so that us students won’t have to put up with all the waiting. Especially when there are only 2 buses, and 199 serves the NIE route, and has 1 bus stop at canteen A where the other students may go to take the bus out. I think NUS has it a lot better than us when it comes to this. But at least there’s a lot of buses early in the morning to cater to students who have 8.30 lessons, so even though the bus queue is always extremely long, the wait for the bus isn’t so bad, though it doesn’t guarantee that you’ll be in time for your lesson if you don’t arrive at the bus interchange early enough.

I think that’s more than enough talk about buses already…

Look at all my thick textbooks… my Japanese Language textbook looks so thin as compared to the rest! Whenever I flip open one of these books I just feel like sleeping and not reading them. ><
Mini cornetto! We just bought a box of these the other day, and they’re so tiny - way smaller than the original ones. You can just pop the whole cone into your mouth and finish it in one bite. I like ice cream, and one of these tiny cones alone can never satisfy me. XD

It’s wednesday! I like wednesdays because I only have a 1 hour tutorial in the afternoon, and the day is so much more relaxing as compared to my other days, which are rather packed with lessons. Fridays are even better because there’s no school, but that’s going to change from next week onwards when my practical sessions start. :( I’ll really miss having 3 day weekends!

For some reason, this week feels more relaxed than the last, even though I have spelling for Japanese tomorrow, as well as a bio quiz, neither of which I’ve studied for yet. I’m not sure why, but it’s certainly a good thing. Last week was a really tiring and stressful week, and I felt that there was just so much work to be completed. It’s not as though I have fewer tutorials to do this week, so perhaps the more relaxed feeling is due to me getting more used to university life. Used to coming back at 8+pm on most days, and still have enough energy to do a bit of work instead of falling asleep after I have taken my bath and eaten.

University life is so different from JC life. It’s so much more independent, and you have more freedom and control over your own timetable planning as well. The subjects you want to take, the timings of your lessons, etc. But somehow it seems more difficult to get to know people in university. Perhaps it’s because I didn’t go for the orientation camps, nor am I staying in the hostel, where the activities held provide many more opportunities to meet people. Sure, you do meet different people in different classes, but most people tend to stick with friends they already know, usually from the same JC or secondary school, who so happen to be in the same tutorial group. Moreover, there aren’t many opportunities for interaction when you only meet these people during tutorial sessions. I’ve made some friends whom I can get along fine with so far, but sometimes I just wonder if I’ll get to know them as well as the friends I have made in JC and secondary school. It’s much easier to get to know your classmates in JC, because you have all your tutorials together, and even during lectures you sit as a class. And with the different activities organised by the school that the class has to take part in, there’s room for interaction with everyone. But I’m already better off than some other people, because for our core subjects we have to stick to the same tutorial group, where you see more or less the same faces. Unlike some others who have different tutorial groups for each subject they’re taking, because there’s even lesser interaction that way. I just hope that within these 4 years I’ll be able to meet some good friends, and not just hi-bye friends that you won’t bother keeping in touch with after you graduate.

I’m still alive, if anyone is wondering why this hasn’t been updated for a while.

Been busy with school work. It’s tiring when you only end school at 7.30pm 3 days a week, and on 2 out of those 3 days my first lesson starts at 8.30am and 9.30am, so I’m in school for close to 12 hours. Tutorials to do and textbooks to read… I shall show you my thick stack of textbooks one day.

This is what happens when you take 7 subjects a semester and you can only fit in your electives at later time slots. And that one of your electives is a language, because you have to put in more effort in revision to learn the language well. But at least I’m doing Japanese, and it’s easier than something like French (in my opinion) because so far the language structure is quite similar to Chinese, so it’s easier to grasp the concept. But if I can handle all this, I think I can handle whatever lies ahead in the coming semesters, and I should be able to clear all my electives sooner. Not my fault that the School of Biological Science wants us to take 2 electives this semester and 2 the next, unlike other schools who don’t seem to have such a restriction.

I don’t really like Biophysical Chemistry. So many calculations. -.- Which is why I didn’t choose Bioengineering in the first place, despite having considered if I should do that instead. I’d just die in there from the math and physics alone. -.-

Tomorrow’s another long day, and my most packed day of the week, but in about 24 hours my weekend arrives! (No school on friday for me this week.) That’s what I look forward to on Thursdays. Heh.

I know I sound incoherent, but my brain is kind of fried now and I still have to do revision later to prepare for my Japanese lesson tomorrow. Sigh.

Third week into school, and by this time, the NUS people have started school already (with the exception of those lucky few who don’t have school on mondays), and the SMU people will be starting school towards the end of the month. Some of those who are pursuing an overseas education have already left the country, while others will continue to fly off within this month and the next.

In a few hours time Ruo Xi will be leaving to. I messaged her earlier in the day to ask when she was leaving, it it was only until a few hours ago that she replied, saying that she was leaving already. I had a shock upon seeing the message, thinking that she was already at the airport, with her luggage and all that. Tried calling her the first time, only to receive a message saying that the M1 number was not in use anymore. Imagine the shock I was having then! At least I managed to get through the second time, and realised that Ruo Xi messaged everyone early, and she was only going to leave early tomorrow morning. I really wish that I can send her off, or could have at least met her before she left… It just seems to fast. From the time when we last when out just before I started school till now, just before she’s about the leave for the US. Maybe it’s a good thing that I won’t be able to send her off despite wanting to, because I’ll be crying at the airport for sure. And it’s going to be a long time before we’re able to meet face to face again… :’(

When I was in JC, the thought of getting an overseas university education had crossed my mind before. But I guess deep within myself I know that I just can’t bear to leave so many things behind to go overseas, even if it’s just for a few years. There are many things and many people that are so dear to me here, and to be so far away from them all… how would I be able to get used to that? Which is why I admire people for having the courage to go overseas alone for a few years to study. Learning to be truly independent and all that. To see the world from another view.

Take care girl, I’ll miss you!

This is a question from my Introductory Biology tutorial:

Earlier this year (2005), SETI came across some non-random signal from a distant galaxy. The signal was compressed and it took the earth scientists several months to make any sense out of it. To their surprise, it turned out to be the first TV broadcast on earth – the 1936 Berlin Olympics. What conclusions can you drawn from this “search of extra-terrestrial intelligence”?

Can someone tell me what on earth does this have to do with biology?!