Anniversary Letter

Dear Blog (Leaf in the Wind),

Today, we celebrate your first birthday, the official one-year anniversary since you popped into existence.

It's been an eventful year, and this entry marks our 59th post. Admittedly, I haven't written as regularly nor frequently as I'd intended. Sometimes, there wasn't any inspiration to write. At other times, there was just so much to write, but little time to do so because work was just too hectic. There were some months when I wrote only one entry (such as Post E-nite in August), and other months when I wrote more often (like February).

Oh, and did I ever mention that I suspect I'm bi-polar? I think it's been rather evident... :)

We've had a variety of posts, both serious and frivolous, ranging from the longest entry on International students, to the shortest Cheap thrill entry. Some entries were peppered with cryptic remarks, while some were more open and honest. Ah, the privellege of free expression :) ... which still needs to be tempered with discretion (my meagre civic responsibility... :) since you're on a public domain where the posts can be viewed by anyone. And I also wouldn't want to be sued for defamation, nor arrested like the 2 Singaporeans who posted racist remarks on their blogs anyway...

Initially, you were set up with the intention of updating my friends and family with what was going on in my life, as well as to provide a space to pen my thoughts and to vent my frustrations. However, you've become more than that. You provide an outlet to exercise my remaining traces of creativity (amidst the bombardment of convoluted scientific reports, which threaten to smother any surviving fragments of creativity :) We've also had several unexpected visitors, and you've become a place where I've been reunited with old friends, as well as a point of interaction with others.

Also not forgetting that you're still recording my gradual descent into madness, thus providing material for some psychologist's future research on insanity, right? (Any budding psychologists around??) Did I also mention that I suspect I'm bi-polar? And paranoid? And that I've got a short-term memory? But I digress... as usual... :)

Since I haven't written a post for New Year, and Chinese New Year is just 2 days away, we can still celebrate the year that's passed, and look forward to the year ahead. Although you can't provide a physical shoulder to cry on, or to hug in joy... I hope that you'll continue to provide a log as I journey through each stage in my life.

I know that most of the posts are limited by my (lack of) literary skills and (lack of) eloquence. However, I also know that my Author writes a more eloquent, honest, and detailed account of my life in His records :)

Like a leaf in the wind, a transient entity at each destination,
which goes where the wind blows, and goes where no one except the wind knows.

To the year ahead, gan bei [Cheers] ! :)

Your author,
Grace

Back in Adelaide

Flew off from Singapore on Saturday night, and arrived safely on Sunday afternoon, straight into Adelaide's summer, and back to more fishy labwork.

Reality hits. You know you're back in Adelaide when...

1) Fellow pedestrians give you a strange look everytime you overtake them on the footpath, and you have to mentally remind yourself to walk more slowly.

2) The water tastes strangely salty (because of the hard water in Adelaide. There's so much minerals in it, you'll probably need to take that into consideration when calculating daily nutritional values).

3) You need to slather a thick layer of lip balm, otherwise your lips crack when you grin (ouch).

4) You step out of the shower and your hair puffs out afro style (and dries really fast too), because of the dry air and hard water.

5) The temperature can be 35 degrees celsius in the afternoon, then 18 degrees at night the very same day.

6) During winter, the temperature hits 15 degrees celsius, and some of your classmates are walking around barefoot in a T-shirt and shorts (while you're wrapped up in long-sleeves or more than two layers of clothing)

7) You walk into the labs, and are immediately hit by the smell of fish guts (the 'unfortunate' raw material in our research projects...)

8) The term 'Chinatown' refers to a short stretch of road with a few shops and restaurants.

9) You can order a plate of 'Singapore noodles' (although the Singaporeans agree that you can't find that dish anywhere in Singapore).

10) You have to wait between half an hour to an hour for a bus (I don't complain about waiting for buses back home anymore).

11) The taxi-fare meter increases by one dollar every half a minute or so (and your heart soon jumps each time the meter jumps).

12) You step into the shopping centres at 6 pm, and the only shops that are open are the supermarkets and cinemas (and the occasional 24 hr McDonalds).

13) You call a doctor to make an appointment, are told that they are fully booked today, and that the next available time would be in the afternoon two days from now (by which time you'd either be much better or dead... )

14) You have to wait two months to get an appointment for a chest X-ray (and hope very hard in the meantime that it's nothing serious).

15) The tiler tells you he'll be coming in on Monday afternoon to fix the kitchen tiles, but only appears on Thursday morning...

But, you also know you're in Adelaide when...

1) You smile at the bus drivers, and they don't give you that skeptical 'what are you up to, crazy issit?! Hurry up and move to the back!' frown that you get back home. The Adelaide bus drivers smile back and greet you, or even initiate the greeting.

2) The elderly folk make friendly casual conversation with you at the bus stop while waiting for the buses to arrive.

3) You are greeted with a big smile and a chirpy "How are you today?" at the cashier counters.

4) In most companies, a typical work day starts at 9am and finishes at 5pm (in contrast to the typical work day of 8.30am to 6.30pm or later in Singapore).

5) You are given a half-hour 'morning tea break', one hour 'lunch break', and another half-hour 'afternoon tea break' everyday at work.

6) You are greeted with an exhuberant "How're you going?" when you walk past a colleague.

7) It's 'peak hour', but you're not shoved into or out of the train, nor jam-packed like sardines when making your way home (unlike taking the MRT during rush hour back home).


Each country has its own different appeal, and there are several areas that each can learn from the other. Adelaide is more relaxed and 'friendly', while Singapore is more 'lively', competitive, and 'happening'.
However, despite having spent 7 years in Australia (nearly 1/3 of my life... goodness...), Singapore still is and always will be home (but no, I don't think I'm a patriotic citizen either... :) Although I shuttle back and forth between both countries, and adapt to the different lifestyles in each, I think most importantly, deep down inside, I remain consistent in who I am, what I believe in, and what I do (while continuing to seek to improve myself).

Consistency in the face of change, and change in the midst of consistency.
I'm still the same yet different, wherever I may be
(which may be a good or bad thing, depending on how you look at it. Haha).

And one thing also seems to remain constant... I still need more sleep... :)

Blink

In the 'blink' of an eye, 2 and a half weeks have flown by.

Aaarrrghhhhhh where did all the time fly to?!?!

It's been an eventful, enjoyable, and unforgettable 'blink' though... Full of precious priceless moments with loved ones, warm friendship, good food, and more sleep (well, more sleep than I get in Adelaide... don't think I've out-slept the eyebags yet, though... :)

A couple of errands more to run, a longer list of friends to meet up with, and only 10 days left before I have to return to Adelaide...

AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH :)

Carpe diem [Seize the day] !

Argh, that sounds sooo cliche ... *bemused smile*