Shawn Ong Shujian

2010-12-31T23:30:00.000-08:00

New Year's Eve, hanged out with my close friend back in poly. She changed pretty much, became as busy as ever with her work. And, then it totally went down all the way. I brought her to Lasalle, and wanted to play her some songs on the piano.

I ended up being chased out. Yes, it was my fault for bringing an outsider in, but whaddafuck! You don't allow a Lasalle student into the practice room? I mean, the drinking and smoking whatever fuck in Block G may be done by the Foundation student, may not be..though I feel that it's the Foundation students at fault, because for once, I don't fucking believe that the seniors from Level One onwards would be that fucking lame and stupid to do such fucked up things.

Okay, done with all the spouting and angst. Imma count my blessings, a much more meaningful way to end 2010 instead of getting all worked up with such lame stuff.

Thank You Lord for pulling me through this very long year, thanks for gifting me a macbook, gifting me a distinction for my Grade 8 exams, enabling me to win the Student Award of the Year for my music school Cristofori, and thank You for blessing me, my family, relatives, friends throughout this entire year. And, the list goes on and on..

Thank You, may You guide all of them with Your everliving presence and Your Almighty strength.

Happy New Year! :) God bless, and may we be powered for the better with His love, joy and victory. :))

Every blessing He pour out that I don't turn into praise,

turns into pride.

2010-12-27T00:54:00.000-08:00

She just left Singapore 54 minutes ago. And, we met up just last week. So much things have changed; she got more mature and look much better. Now, she's off to Berklee to pursue her music career, under scholarship.

There are a lot of things that I admire about her. Her way of dealing stuffs, her level of self-discipline, her way of managing her time..and, the list goes on and on. I've always been looking up to her ever since she was in Lasalle. From her improvising skills, to her level of humility. She's like a perfect role model for me. :)

Well, here goes..Renee. May God bless you with his boundless mercy and everlasting grace. May He strengthen you whenever you're down and out. And, may you have a smooth flight to Boston.

God bless! :) xx

2010-12-11T22:40:00.000-08:00

One more month, and 2nd semester will be starting. How time flies! Looks like I gotta hurry up and touch up on a couple of my pieces for sem 2, especially Kapustin's Etude No. 7 - Intermezzo. One hella difficult jazz etude piece, but niceeeee. :)

Just rewatched Passion of Christ last night. Oh God, that is one movie that never fail to well-up tears in my eyes. Super touching, especially after listening to a new song "We Are the Reason" by Avalon. Super touching!

After watching the movie and listening to the song, I come to realise that I've always wanted and requested for something every Christmas since young. But, I failed to realise how blessed I am, to be born on the same date as Him, Jesus Christ. Listening attentively to the lyrics of the song "We Are the Reason", I realised what's the use of all the Christmas gifts, when He was the greatest gift that I could ever have. No other gifts or presents can ever replace His ever-living presence. He gave all He could give, to show us the reason to live. Thus, we were the reason that He suffered and died, for our sins.

For God so loved the world so much that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believe in Him may not die but have eternal life.

[John 3:16]

All because of love, Lord, all because of love. You suffered all for us, all for our sins. Thank you, for being the greatest gift of our lives. We were the reason, Lord, that You gave your life. And, may all glory be Yours.

2010-11-21T23:17:00.000-08:00

I miss you, Vahlerie!

2010-11-21T23:05:00.000-08:00

Exams were officially over on tuesday! No more of stress over exams and shits, here comes holidays! :))

Thinking back, there were quite a few crazy times. One of those prominent ones was when I stayed up the whole damn night without a single sleep, to finish chionging for my classical history exam. I swear I will never ever try that again, even though it was quite orgasmic the next day. Haas! Orgasmic! First side-effect kicked in with nausea, when I'm on my way to sch! And then, all the rest started kicking in one after another.

You know that there's something wrong, when you wake up and find yourself sleeping under a grand piano in one of e pract rms, and the only thing you could remember was that you entered the pract rm. And, you know things ain't going your way, when you find your vision blurry and "moving in all directions" even though you are just walking straight ahead.

Generally, all my exams were passable, except that I'm quite doubtful about scoring high for quite a couple of modules. Well, looking on the upside, I've managed to score 70% for one of my theoretical exams. :)

Ha! Screw you, exams!

'cos it's officially over!

Super crazy I was, to play 4-5 hrs straight of Left4dead at a lanshop near my sch! Haha, it was soo crazy that me and my bud oliver didn't even notice the time passing by. I was like.. "um, can we stop now? I think I'm kinda sick of sitting here for 5 hrs!" Haha, it was fun though! One hell of a damn nice way to chill and relax straight after my last exam!

One and a half month of holidays ahead! A good time to take a break, but not a good time when you've got a number of things to finish up within that short period of time.

Get my driving license.
Start teaching part-time; start to pay for your own billings.
Do catchup and prep for sem 2.

These three pointers are a MUST to finish up before my winter vacation comes to an end. Oh, and of course, time will be taken out to catchup with my friends and special ones. Heh! :)

2010-11-19T00:18:00.000-08:00

2010-10-02T22:57:00.000-07:00

BMT Graduation at the Floating Platform was awesome! Oh God, after watching the video coverage in the news, I feel so honoured to be there this morning to personally witness it. Everything was excellent, from the military band to the marching of the newly-trained soldiers. Some 3,078 soldiers from 13 companies! The digits are enough to explain everything else, haas! Waking up as early as 5.30am to pick up my bro's gf along with the whole family, tiresome but enjoyable! :)

Spent an hour today or so today, rearranging a piece for my poly friend Wanxin. She remembered that I promised her to teach her the piece First Love by Utada Hikaru, and I've made her wait all these while. wooopsidaisiesss! Well, I guess I will need to start giving her private classes after this semester. Heh, it's gonna be a sweet time teaching and catching up with her! :)

By far, in the whole of my entire life, I've never saved anybody's life. But, I just did yesterday and hell, it felt great! It was lightspeed, everything happened within a blink of an eye! Up till now, I'm still feeling grateful that I pulled her back in time. I can't imagine what would have happened, if I didn't see her crossing the road right there in front of me. It was rather amusing how she reacted with a shocked face before thanking me. Praise the Lord for blessing me, in order to be a blessing to you, aye. :)

Morning service tmr at 9am, meeting up with my new friends again! Then, I will be bringing them to the eateries nearby my sch for lunch! Gotta finish up my revisions(writing of notes, reading-up of theory notes), practising of aural, and practising of pieces. And, if time permits, a late afternoon swim will be sweet! :) Exciting day ahead tmr! :))

When Darkness comes, always remember He is always there by our side.

He will lead and guide us towards the Light.

Fear not, have faith!

2010-10-01T21:35:00.000-07:00

Here's an update once in awhile, a short one.

This monday's aural/theory class was the very first time in quite awhile, in which I get to exit the classroom without any sense of guilt, sadness or worry. It was the very first time I'm pleased with my progress in class. Well, things are going up and up until later this week.

My progress regarding my main study were wayyy too slow, and I felt that I might not even make it in time for the recital in mid-November. And, then I started missing you, and everything..all over again. Well, at least, I get to have a breather over the wkend with my brother having his Pass-out Parade which officially signifies him graduating and finishing BMT. At the Marina Bay Floating Platform! Gonna be a grand moment! :)

44 days to mid-yr exams and recitals. 44 days to make a difference, and bank in the distinctions. Smile, I'm gonna make it through! :))

2010-09-26T18:16:00.000-07:00

Somehow, a part of me is still missing you. A part of me is rueing those untaken and missed chances. And, that part of me is the heart of mine. But, no, it will not affect me! :)

Full steam ahead! It's make-or-break time! It's either now, or never! I'd a great morning service today, even though I was quite affected for being sleepless for majority of last night. I've made quite a few new friends, had this nice clique of friends. Some of em were familiar faces as it's been a couple of weeks since I last knew em, the others were new faces. And, yes! Jenny recognised me! Haas, that 26 yrs old who looks like 16 yrs old! How interesting.

I've just finished 30 laps of swims. Heh! It was super shiok, though I am still feeling a little woozy writing this blog post of mine. Oh heck. My bro's gf will be coming over to watch F1 later tonight. 7.30pm, excited! Vettel, Webber, Alonso, Hamilton, Button..for the championship! :D

Everything's gonna be awesome! Have faith in Him, Him and only Him! :)

2010-09-25T10:48:00.000-07:00

Enjoy His presence! :))

So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded.

You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.

[Hebrews 10:35-36]

Less than 2 months to my end-of-semester/mid-year exams and recitals! Enough of distractions, full steam ahead, and I will shine under Your guidance. For You have gifted me such talent, I will therefore bring honour to Your name. Setbacks after setbacks, it's alright, for I know You will always be there; giving me strength and faith! :)

2010-09-09T23:05:00.000-07:00

FTT on the 30th October, 11:45am.

Having scrapped past my BTT a month back with 46/50, I guess more time will be spent on reading and preping for the more-difficult Final Theory Test. After passing my FTT, PTL will be on the way. And then, vrrooom, I will be officially on the roads! :)

Weekly workouts in the gym and the pool will be starting sooooon enough, if everything goes smoothly. Thanks to my bro's gf Yeoh Yuan! Then, if my sch workload permits, I will be packing my schedule further with part-time teaching.

woohoo! LG = Life's Good! :))

2010-09-07T22:31:00.000-07:00

Okay, this might sound a little holy. Nevertheless, I will still say it.

You gifted me with much blessings. You gave me this talent; which I discovered at the age of 2-3. You gave me such great family, relatives and friends. You gave me faith and hope, and raised me up whenever I was down and out. You answered my prayers whenever I cried out for mercy.

Heavenly Father, thank you for everything you've given me; be it the faults or the blessings. With Your guidance and strength, I will shine and it will be in Your light!

Amen. :)

The God I know, Righteous and Holy.
The God I know, Faithful and true.
The God I know, My tower of refuge.
Hearts are healed, Christ revealed.
The God I know, Light of the City.
The God I know, Strengthens the weak.
The God I know, Your heart beats within me.
As You are, so are we.

The church He knows, Righteous and Holy.
The church He knows, Is faithful and true.
The church He knows, A tower of refuge.
Hearts are healed, Christ revealed.
The church He knows, Light of this city.
The church He knows, Strengthens the weak.
The church He knows, Is strong and mighty.
As He is, so are we.

2010-09-06T00:55:00.000-07:00

Today's morning service

It was rather funny when I introduced me and my music career. There were plenty of "woahs" from all my fellow churchgoers. Yeap, you can say that I am honoured to be studying in an arts school and pursuing my passion in music. But, I am just an ordinary person with extraordinary dreams. :)

There was a guest speaker for the service today, and he talked about the chapter Ruth. It was rather interesting and inspiring, after today's service. The guest speaker cross-referenced the chapter Ruth to our everyday life. We, especially being a S'porean, have the tendency to complain and whine over trivial stuffs. Yes, that's what a typical S'porean do. But then, if you've read the chapter Ruth, you'd understand why Ruth ended up marrying Boaz. And, why that happened even though Ruth was of a lower status(the fact that she's a widow) and wasn't as rich and wealthy as Boaz.

Then, the guest speaker said; "In relationships, people tend to cross-out someone whenever his/her faults were learnt. But, have you ever thought about loving someone for his/her faults?"

At that point of time, I felt rather disturbed as I digested that particular sentence.

I could list out an entire list of your faults, from being quite rebellious to being not-quite-motivated to study, but I believe that there's a goodness in you. The goodness that is hiding beyond that facade of yours. Honestly, I used to think that "smarties", "hardworkings" and "perfects" are the only favourable ones, and that changed ever since I knew you.

Movies with sis

Went to watch The Liar's Game with my sister at Tampines. It was a nice movie, pretty funny at times. There was this particular theme song which was played over a few scenes throughout the entire movie, which pretty much reminded me of you performing at the Esplanade. It was those moments of my life.

Faber Drive - When I'm With You

I've just downloaded almost 2 albums by Faber Drive; "Seven Second Surgery" and "Can't Keep A Secret". I had my itunes on, and it was playing through all the newly downloaded Faber Drive songs. Then, I came across this song; When I'm With You. Paralysed with familiarity, there I was; sent right down the memory lane.

I remembered that you've once uploaded this in fb. Somehow, whenever I listen to this song now, I'd cletch my fists and tear.

Those moments we shared; bitter and sweet.

Time and time again, I've not given my utmost appreciation.

Those little moments with you that I've slipped past, those seconds with you that I've missed out on.

I miss you.

♥

2010-09-05T12:34:00.000-07:00

Just reached home after the morning service, will be updating a little more later today. Today's gonna be a fully-packed day, movie with my sister and dinner with my family. Then, my brother will be back to his NS life.

Today's service was awesomely awesome! Pastor Amos invited me upstage to introduce myself to the fellow churchgoers. It was my first time to the church's english service. Waking up at 7am is a rather wholesome chore, but to wake up for a church service is a total different thing. :)

More about the fantastic service will be updated later. Movie with my sister sooooon.

2010-08-29T21:50:00.000-07:00

I went for church service with my aunt this morning. She went to the adult session whilst I went to the youth session. It was awesome even though I couldn't understand parts of the chim chinese language spoken throughout the whole service. Dayeem! The last time I attended such long chinese lecture-like sessions was like what..2-3 years back? All the way back to my secondary school days? Aye aye, that pretty much explained how often I converse in chinese ever since I graduated from high school.

Nevertheless, the service was meaningful and I've learnt quite a few things! :)
In fact, throughout the service today, I've learnt something rather important. And, yet the thing that amused me most, was that the something I've learnt was in a spiritual book which I've started reading over the past week named "A New Earth - Awakening to Your Life's Purpose". That previous post of mine regarding "Passion of Christ" might be a coincidence. But, what, a 2nd coincidence? Within a couple of weeks? Woah! That's definitely something!

Here's a little summary of what I've learnt from today's service.

Have you ever thought about this; "who am I?" You might say that you are a student, studying in (whatever) school. But, no, that's what you are doing. Leave out everything else, be it your school, your riches, or whatever regarding identification, and ask yourself "who am I?"

Yes, you might find this question a little silly and dumb. But, think about this, if you don't even know who you are and don't even know yourself well..what makes you think that you are able to know others well? You gotta know your partner well enough in order to be together with him/her, no? Likewise, if you don't even know and understand yourself well enough, what makes you think that you are capable of knowing your partner well? Thus, what makes you think that the relationship between you and your partner will last, even without knowing yourself well enough in the first place?

People all over the world are busy with their own stuffs daily; from business works to housekeepings. So busy they are, that people tend to lose their consciousness and eventually don't even know who they are. The recent news regarding the Hongkong tourists killed by the sacked Phillipine policeman. That news alone explains everything.

So, now, try asking yourself this question.."Who am I?" No worries, if you have trouble answering that. Take some time out alone, reach deep inside you and understand yourself.
The pastor then added: God has always been separating things out for us and giving us time alone, it is just the matter of how you use those precious moments.

Productive day!(:

imissyou.

2010-08-28T23:11:00.000-07:00

Here's a little update.

School's been good, putting more efforts into practices and rehearsals. I've just went to sch for some choir rehearsals with my buds; Oliver and Paulina, today. Haas! It was rather fun especially with that usual nonsense dude Oliver. All those jokes and fooling-arounds. Haas, it would be awkward if I were to find such buddy un-laughable.

Big topic of this week: I was sooooo freakinggg close to losing my wedding ring finger.
Busy I was, cutting vegs for my mom. chop,chop,chop! And, there goes the tip of my finger. Hell, I swear that was by far the bloodiest thing I have ever seen in my whole entire life. Good gracious, thank God that my nervous system was pretty responsive to that.

Almost 3 weeks now, and I am still keeping that faith. Those prayers for you, will eventually come true! Truth be told, those bittersweet memories are still at the back of my head. I have no plans of discarding them just yettttt, for they are those timelines in my mind that brings me back down the memory lane. All the bitter and sweetie little ones, just matter too much to me. Events and happenings fade away over time, memories don't.

I will be meeting my aunt for morning church service tmr! My 2nd time to her church, but I'm still excited!(:
I could still remember my 1st time to her church. It was quite some time back, when I was quite involved in City Harvest Church. Ohh~CHC! I would definitely want to go back there one day. For those who know me well, I am not born a Christian and CHC was the place where I found Christ. Those cellgroups members of mine; Jermaine, Jessie, Jasmine, Evagelynn, Mikki, etc, were just tooooo fantastic not to be missed! Ohhhh..good old timesssss. ((:

When the stage is bare tonight, there's no one else.

Just You and me.

2010-08-21T23:33:00.000-07:00

Weekend ahead, and the 4th week of my 2nd yr in Lasalle. about 3-4 more weeks to recitals/exams. I was quite heavily criticised about my playing by Mr. Frank during one of my classes. My piece Intermezzo; Op. 118, No. 2 by Brahms, was heavily criticised, from my pedaling to my wrong rubato techniques, etc.

This was what Mr. Frank told me, in front of the whole class; "If you are going to play this for the recitals, I am sorry but I will fail you right away". Damn, how depressing can that be! Especially that I have been practicing that romantic piece ever since my summer vacation. And, it was double depressing, when I was given back my results for last year's results. Oh well, I guess I will need to put in more efforts to buck up.

Mmmmhhhhhmmmmmm.......

Schooling, daily and hours-long practices, daily revisions, part-time teaching, at-least-once-a-week gym workouts. Anything and everything else, are LEFT-OUT!

That pretty much sums up everything. More time spent into my practices, lesser time spent on distractions.

Absence makes the heart grows fonder.

2010-08-15T23:37:00.000-07:00

My brother left for his 6-day field camp this afternoon. My 2nd farewell. This time round, there were no tears. I am gradually getting used to being alone in my room; being more independent, getting my priorities right, doing the right things at the right time, etc.
Even though, my brother was still sick this afternoon, I could see that my brother was brimming with confidence as compared to our first farewell. In fact, I am pretty sure he will overcome the 6-day gruelling field camp, especially with all those letters of motivation from our mom, his girlfriend and me. (:

With all the recent happenings, I would like to thank a couple of my besties who have got me through, especially one person. Thanks constance, thanks for sparing me a couple of hours even though it was nearing midnight ytd!

"We are all imperfect, but by His grace, we are a little different, shining His light, mm."

Does that ring the bell? Haha! Thanks, mm? Imma moving on.. (:

I believe that whenever one loses something, as long as he keeps the faith, he will gain something in return. The world is round; whatever comes around, goes around.

"If you have faith when you pray, you will be given whatever you ask for"

[Matthew 21:22]

Ever since I have resumed my school in Lasalle, I feel that I am closer to some of my good friends, where there are some chemistry and bonding; people like Oliver, Jo, and quite surprisingly Janet. Like what my bestie constance have always told me; "Thank God for blessing me, in order to be a blessing to you". (:

Like what I have said in my previous blog post; "With His strength, I will be better and stronger!"
Things are getting better for me. In fact, I am already feeling the thumbs up! Today is one hell of a good day for me! I had fun grocery shopping with my family and went home to practice for 2 hours straight, followed by 3 hours straight of composing a new piece. My praises to Him, for all the blessings He gave me; especially that special talent He gifted me. Without that talent, I wouldn't have came so far and I wouldn't have composed such a nice sorrowful piece. I am simply in love .. in love with Him! ((:

I had a goooood day! I hope you did, too! *thumbs up

I will still be praying for you. Every morning. Every night.

2010-08-13T23:21:00.000-07:00

My brother's back, on thursday! :) But, sick! :(
Oh well, he will be going back for field camp on sunday afternoon. A couple more days, before he sees the motivation letter that I have written for him, prior to the gruelling field camp.

2 weeks of my semester one are officially over, 4-5 more weeks for recitals and exams. Time to pull up my socks and gear up! I am and will make a bigger splash this time round! Minimum time will be spent for unnecessary stuffs like facebook, twitter, blog(though I will take some time out for blogging at least once a week).

Ganbatte!

With one voice, we will sing His praises.

2010-08-12T09:50:00.000-07:00

Some things are just too obvious, not to be true. After 2 days of rather sleepless nights, I finally managed to grab a fruitful beauty sleep.

I was at my all-time low over the last few days, due to some happenings. In the previous night, My twitter wrote: "Oh God, I need Your strength. Things are just getting bad to worse." I finished my reading the Matthew chapter and had my little prayer before knocking off. Yesterday, I was doing my theory assignments in C303 practice room with Paulina practicing her piece. Jasmin came into the room. About 10mins later, Jasmin asked if I have watched "Passion of Christ". I had no idea what that is, so I joined and watched. Little did I know, that "Passion of Christ" is a movie back in 2005. However, it was my first time hearing and watching a movie called "Passion of Christ".

Merely halfway through the movie, I was thinking to myself. "Isn't this what I've read last night in the chapter of Matthew?"

Later, last night, I was watching the last couple of chapters of "Passion of Christ". I couldn't pretty much swallow certain parts such as the crucification process. As I was about to finish watching the movie, I saw that a close friend of mine had me back in facebook. Then, something struck me.

"Wasn't that what I prayed in my little prayer last night? That prayer of repentance?"

Well, things might not be back to normal, just yet. But, have faith, for He works wonders and He will always be there for us. Some things are just too obvious, not to be true. Here I am, an hour into the awaken world, I am blogging this not for the sake of telling parts and parcels of my life, but for He works wonders in my life.

He is my strength. From strength to strength, I will be better and stronger!

2010-08-11T21:23:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, I just wonder if I can turn back time, how many things can I change. For the better, or for the worse.

Recently, there were quite a few happenings and I am on the verge of losing someone close to me, or rather, I had already lost her. Moments of angst, moments of madness. And, thus resulting in meaningless and silly things being done. Now, all I could do is to hope and pray. A repent prayer.

So. I guess these 3 months will be gone just like this; within a blink of an eye.

2010-08-08T22:51:00.000-07:00

Gonna be yet another short blog post. I went for my usual sunday morning workout at the yck stadium with my parents. Usual, but unusual.

I was on the verge of collasping numerous times when I was on my way to the market for breakfast. In fact, I had to stop and sit down for about 4-5 times on the way there. My ears were both feeling numb and cold, and my mind was just concentrating onto the pavement in front of my footsteps. A blanked out mind with a subconscious body. A pale face, with half-opened eyes. Hell, it was one walk of my life that I would never want to repeat. ><

I couldn't remember the number of times I have prayed whilst I was on the way to the market. They seemed countless as I dragged my feet across the pavements with my mind wholly focused onto my prayers. Well, those prayers helped me through and I was well eventually. Pretty much thanks to His strength and the warm soya that triggered the conscious side of me.

2010-08-06T23:05:00.000-07:00

Here's a short blog post, as I will be having Basic Theory Test(BTT) early tmr morning. God bless me tmr!(:

The first week of my 2nd year in Lasalle, and hell it was very packed. A very big difference between my Foundation year and Level 1. More expectations are set in Level 1. I will need to perform once at least about 2-3 weeks, and the piece must be mastered and memorised. That alone pretty much explains all the stress in school, but I somehow like it. In fact, I am planning to work part-time as a piano teacher. I had some intros from my personal piano teacher, but I am still considering it as my future workload might be too much for me to take.

2010-07-31T01:24:00.000-07:00

My last week of vacation before I start my 2nd year in Lasalle. Thank God! I finally cleared and tidied up my desk early this week. Haas, it took me a couple of hours to arrange everything back in place.

Everything, to be rearranged, dumped onto the floor.

I had my 2nd baking session on Monday. Truth be told, my 1st baking session was much better than my 2nd. Thus, i shall not upload any photos of my 2nd baking session. Inaccurate amount of ingredients = Out-of-sorts food(but, it is edible though) Haa!

I went to send my brother off for National Service in Pulau Tekong yesterday. Damn National Service, seriously! I was fine initially, until my brother had to leave. For some reason, my eyes started to tear.

My brother is always someone I look up to, especially during my childhood days. We were brought up together, since young. We spent so much time together that, despite having a twin sister of mine, there are still people who think that we are too alike not to be considered twins. Since young, he taught me everything, from those good things to those evil things and to those naughty things. Be it good or bad, my brother would definitely teach me. He had lots of ex-girlfriends, and finally settled with his current girlfriend for almost 5+ years now. He taught me "methods" of rebelling our parents. During our teenage years, there were times when we had big tiffs and quarrels. Truthfully, there was once we got into a fight and ended up throwing chairs. Thankfully, my mom heard and stopped us in time. Nevertheless, he is always my idol; that someone whom I will always look up to.

With one less person to call "eh". One less person to talk to, whenever I like. That bed of his is always empty whenever I turn around and look across my bedside table. It definitely felt awkward, all alone in a room and with one less person to turn to. In fact, last night being my 1st night sleeping alone, I dreamt of my brother. And, that was just the first night. *Sighs. Oh well, 2 dreadful weeks; will be gone before I know it, I hope.

Being a lover of mothernature, I have taken a few pictures on my way back from Tekong.

2010-07-23T23:40:00.000-07:00

Cinderella

She spins and she sways to whatever song plays,
Without a care in the world.
And I'm sittin' here wearin' the weight of the world on my shoulders.
It's been a long day and there's still work to do,
She's pulling at me saying "Dad I need you!
There's a ball at the castle and I've been invited and I
need to practice my dancin'"
"Oh please, daddy, please!"

So I will dance with Cinderella
While she is here in my arms
'Cause I know something the prince never knew
Oh I will dance with Cinderella
I don't wanna miss even one song,
Cuz all too soon the clock will strike midnight
And she'll be gone

She says he's a nice guy and I'd be impressed
She wants to know if I'd approve of a dress
She says "Dad, the prom is just one week away,
And I need to practice my dancin'"
"Oh please, daddy, please!"

So I will dance with Cinderella
While she is here in my arms
'Cause I know something the prince never knew
Ohh-oh ohh-oh, I will dance with Cinderella
I don't wanna miss even one song,
Cuz all too soon the clock will strike midnight
And she'll be gone
She will be gone.

Well, she came home today
With a ring on her hand
Just glowin' and tellin' us all they had planned
She says "Dad, the wedding's due six months away
And I need to practice my dancin'"
"Oh please, daddy please!"

So I will dance with Cinderella
While she is here in my arms
'Cause I know something the prince never knew
Ohh-oh ohh-oh, I will dance with Cinderella
I don't wanna miss even one song,
(even one song)
Cuz all too soon the clock will strike midnight
And she'll be gone

This song has been played on repeat in my itunes for the past few days now. It is also the song that I have been listening to, both first thing in the morning and last thing at night. Yet, I am still not bored of it. De facto, I am far from being bored of this song. (:

This song named "Cinderella" was composed by Steven Curtis Chapman, and was dedicated to her deceased adopted daughter named Maria Sue Chapman. Maria was killed in a car accident involving her elder brother. That's not all, the sad thing is that it happened just hours before the engagement of Emily Chapman(oldest daughter of Steven), and it was less than 10 days ago when Maria celebrated her 5th birthday. Thus, it explains the emotional lyrics in this beautiful song.

From my own reflective ways, I find that this song "Cinderella" teaches the importance of treasuring your loved ones. Cherish and appreciate em very single day, and every single moment of your life. Before they are gone. Thus, part of the lyrics says; "I don't wanna miss even one song, Cuz all too soon the clock will strike midnight. And she'll be gone"

Oh God! Forgive me, for all the sins I have done. From those moments I have lost control of my angst, to those moments I have lost faith. Today, I had a big tiff with my parents especially my mom, and there are certain things that I shouldn't have spouted out of angst.

"More than anything else, put God's work first and do what He wants. Then the other things will be yours as well" [Matthew 6:33]

Some things seem impossible and tough to change, but I believe, with and by faith, I can change things around. Oh Lord, I need Your strength to push me through! To start things off, I will accompany my parents for grocery shopping at 6am, the wee hours of the morning. Lesser sleep time, but more time spent with my parents.

2010-07-23T00:02:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, in life, when things are gone, they will be gone forever. Thus, it is always important to appreciate and cherish everybody around you, from your loved ones to your friends(especially those good ones).

After reading my good friend Constance's recent post in her blog, I am going to blog a little about it too. First of all, I would like to thank God for gifting me such a good friend in Constance. It has been almost a year plus now since we first knew each other through my sec 1 buddy Kenneth. It was a video uploaded in facebook by Kenneth featuring Constance playing Yiruma's "River Flows in You" on the piano, which caught my eye. I can still remember those comments I gave Constance; "try transposing the keys from A Major to D Major and then to C Major" Hahah! Yes, Constance, you are right. It is nice to trace back the video link featuring you in it.

http://www.facebook.com/shawn.ongshujian?ref=profile#!/video/video.php?v=61265211834&subj=636470468

My comment at that time was "it's River Flows In You. try transposing it from A maj-D maj-C maj. try some figurations luh and transpositions." Ahaha! Looking back at it, I find it rather amusing that I used the word "transpose" instead of the word "modulate". "Transposing" applies when you want to change the key of the entire piece.(For eg: A Major -> D Major) "Modulating" applies only when you want to progress the original piece's key to another key.(For eg: A Major -> D Major -> C Major)

That video sure does bring back some memories, don't you agree, Constance? I could and would never be able to imagine myself without good friends like you, Constance. Thanks a million(if a million is enough, though)! Remember to have faith alrightty! Here's my favourite quote: "Have faith, for faith is all you need!" May God bless you in every day, always! ((:

Ps: It was on the 13th of march '09 that I first knew you. cheers!

2010-07-22T00:11:00.000-07:00

Had my first baking session today! Hoo! It wasn't that bad, in fact my family loved my baked cookies. (:

5 Eggs + 150g sugar = whipped!Adding of chocolate chips!

Hah! There goes a few pictures of my very first baking session! It is kinda messed up and unglam esp those chocolate chips. But, it tasted awesomee! Don't judge the book by its cover! :P

More cookies requested by my dad. Hoho! He definitely enjoyed those cookies. More baking sessions, perhaps tmr? :))

2010-07-17T00:23:00.000-07:00

Blogging at such wee hours means i have something troubling my mind, and i had to somehow voice it out.

Clicking on my handphone's calendar. Back and back it goes.

June..May..April.

2010..2009..2008.

Just then, memories start to overwhelm my whole mind. I left Nanyang Polytechnic for Lasalle in early 2009, and it has been more than a year. I graduated from my high school in late November in 2007, many of my friends have moved on with their lives and studies. Whilst many studied in Polytechnics, some smarties studied in JCs.

Within a blink of an eye, 3 years have just gone by. Just like that, and the 4th year is creeping up. It's pretty much a walk down the memory lane of mine. Those sweet times i had, be it with my friends, family, girlfriend. And, those sad and depressing times i had, after a broke-up, losing faith totally, had a big tiff with my friends, family members.

Tell me, if 2 years is all i have left, what should i do? And, what will i be like 2 years later? Where will i end up at?

2010-07-12T22:22:00.000-07:00

YAY!! Spain is the European and World Champions! Finally! All e faith i had in Spain since the first groupstage match in which they lost 1-0 to Switzerland! All of it paid off!! :DDD

Not gonna blog much today, need more sleep after staying up till 5.30am this morning to catch the closing ceremony. Plus, office work resumes at 10am which means 8am alarm bells for me. Things have changed quite a lot recently. Those things that made my day, and those things that kept lingering in my head.

Somehow..somewhat..somewhere, there is this ounce of faith left in there. That small little faith that made it all uncountable on the whole. It was that small little faith that made everything just a little more special, a little more unique, and a little more lovely. It lingers on deep there in that heartwell aimlessly with no sense of direction. But. Somehow..somewhat..somewhere, it will shine one fine day. Just a little more special, a little more unique, and a little more lovely way. And. All it takes will be a simple three delicate words.

2010-07-11T21:43:00.000-07:00

About 5 more hours to the 2010 Fifa World Cup Final! How time flies, next week will be my last week of office work. Plus another half a month, my 2nd year in Lasalle will officially start. Before i come to know it, it will be the end of the year and i will be halfway through my 2nd year.

Time will never wait on you. And i have got about half a month left to gear up for my 2nd year. Chiong ah!! :)

2010-07-09T22:54:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, i find it quite surprising just how some of my female friends clique in so well with me. For some of em, it was sooo well, that we could talk for days and wouldn't get bored of the never-ending topics. How awesomely awesome!:D

There is this very good female friend of mine named Constance Lee. I knew her quite coincidently when my sec 1 buddy Kenneth Lee posted a piano video featuring her playing "River Flows in You" by Yiruma. Yeap, it's really important to cherish and appreciate what God gave me. Especially such buddies and good friends like Constance Lee. I could and would never be able to imagine if i didn't knew such niceee friends.

Hoo!:)

Hey there, constance, if you happen to drop by my blog and see this..the next time i travel overseas, i will always and definitely remember to buy you something! Much thanks!:))

2010-07-09T00:31:00.000-07:00

11 staggering hours of work! That's well enough to sum up my whole day; shagged with fatigue. More rest and practices will be coming along, especially with no work tmr.(:

Today's been a good day! I was praised at work by my supervisor Eric and did a rather good job with my given assignments. I was given a break tmr, even though i didn't finish up all my assignments given today. I guess my supervisor might be afraid that i'd finish up my assignments ahead of schedule again, something which i did a couple of days back and thus had a half-day work yesterday.

3 days of break for me to have more rest and take more time out for practices. Yes! I must make full use of my breaks especially with the vacation ending in a couple of wks.

PRACTICE! PRACTICE! PRACTICE!

2010-07-08T03:29:00.000-07:00

Half-day work saved my day! I finished my assignments in advance, so much that my colleague Eric said that i'm so far the fastest person to do call-backs. Hoo, soo happyyy!(: Gonna go back to work tmr with a new batch of assignments to kill! Killlllll.. ((:

God gave me this fantastic life, with so much blessings. Yes, there are plenty of imperfections, flaws and faults that He put in me. Upset, angry, disappointed, aggrieved..you name it..

But..

Why would one look at the negative sides of life when God has given him all the wonderful blessings in his life?!
Why would one think so much, thus bother about how people think about him or even worry about the others laughing and taunting at him?!
Why would one even have doubt himself when he has always been telling the others to have faith?!

Through Him, i will edge out among others. And, with faith, i will accept all faults He gave me and count on my blessings.

Quoted from my previous post; "Your blood redeems my imperfection".

2010-07-07T01:48:00.000-07:00

It's been 4 days at work, going for my 5th later today. everything is fine so far, except that i have been falling sick these few days with flu and non-stop sneezing. Urgh!=x

I'm gonna post a song by City Harvest Church named "Above All Else". It's along the left sidebar of my blog already; under "Delicate Serenade". (:

(verse 1)
No eye has see
No ear has heard
Unfailing love
Far beyond words

(pre chorus)
The cross I see
Your blood redeems
My imperfection
Your hands divine
Come shape this heart of mine

(chorus)
Here I stand, thirsting for You
Here I am, surrender to You
Let my life be Your clay
Mould me in Your way
Here I stand, desperate for You
Here I am, a vessel for You
Let me life sing Your praise
Bring honour to Your name

(verse 2)
Beauty unfolds
Joy overflows
Your grace begins
This treasure within

(bridge)
Above all else
Above all else
We exalt You
We exalt (You)

I was taking mrt back home after work today, whilst listening to this song. I was so touched, and just at that moment, i was thinking back and realising how fortunate i was. Just last year, my brother was at the verge of losing his life. Well, what i could remember was that i was hell worried when he was sent to hospital with literally his whole body trembling from lack of breath. This had never happened to me before, and i was so worried at that point of time that i had never thought that i could even squeeze out an image in my mind, of me mourning the passing on of my brother.

Thank God for saving my brother's life and healing him whenever he's down and sick! Amen.((:

2010-07-01T21:12:00.000-07:00

1st day at work, not the best day at work at all. I felt uncomfortable the whole day at work, was actually looking forward to end of work for e first time! Urgh, continuous flu and sneezing cranked me up the whole day. Hell! It's never a good idea to start your 1st day at work when you're busy sneezing the whole damn day! Pfft.

However, i'm not gonna look at the negative side much.((:

I finished my assignments earlier today, knocked off at about 5.30pm; half an hour earlier! Plus, i'm looking forward to getting my pay which will be at about 500-600 bucks next month! Oh! And adding onto that, i was at the other office today and was kinda unsure about the new environment. Yet, there's this young lady who kept checking on my progress. It was like she will come by once every half hour to an hour, despite her being busy with her own stuffs. Very nice and sweet of her!:D

I can't wait for the confirmation of my relief teaching back in my high school! It's gonna be soo much exciting esp that i'm gonna teach music theory back there, and it will definitely be an opportunity for me to inspire my juniors! :D

God bless me, and I shall be well soon!:)

2010-06-30T01:48:00.000-07:00

My office work is back, 1st-16th July!
My friend constance stepped down as she had another job which has clashing working hours, thus i had to take it up for her. Thanks xiaobao!:DD

I have just applied for Lasalle scholarship this afternoon. Hell, i didn't know Lasalle could be that quiet and eerie during the vacations. Not even a single soul in the practice rooms! Mm. I didn't score very well for my first year in Lasalle, was quite disappointed when i received my results a few wks back. But, heck, i went ahead for the scholarship application. It won't kill to try, who knows if i will get it. Let's pray hard!(:

New collection up for my friend's blogshop! The 3rd collection!
http://grass-patch.livejournal.com/
Oh! Speaking of her, Wah Yi Xin, i shall specially thank you here in my blog for helping me edit my scholarship essay. My english isn't up to your calibre. Oh, and i don't know what i should do to repay that! Perhaps, a treat or further publicise your blogshop? You tell me!((:

p/s: thank God, my stomach cramp was healed! it was crazyyy!!

2010-06-28T10:41:00.000-07:00

More updates are up for my friends' blogshop! :)

More collections up tmr at 8pm:
http://grass-patch.livejournal.com/
Ribbon & Pearl Collection now has new additions! Check it out at our website now!
http://cookiiee-dough.blogspot.com/

2010-06-27T12:13:00.000-07:00

I was in the midst of writing my 500-words essay for Lasalle scholarship. I was finding for my previous ABRSM certificates, and as i flipped through the folder containing all my certificates, it was like a walk down the memory lane.

Looking across my ABRSM Grade 1 certificate, there was this certificate i had when i was in primary 3 called "Flying Pages". It reminded me of the times i used to had with my mom, searching frantically for books to read in the library. I used to love reading books; all kinds of books, having once read 28 books in the June holidays when i was primary 2.

Then, i remembered how much fun i'd in my kindergarden; Fairfield Methodist Church Kindergarden, to be precise. I remembered the very moment that i almost couldn't make it through to my primary education. Born a little slower than the others(including my siblings), i was intially quite left-out as people thought that i was a mentally-retard child. I was dumped(or rather "ditched", if that sounds less harsh) by my very first piano teacher. I will never forget her last words before dumping me. "I don't wish to teach you anymore. You're too lousy to learn piano and play it well." Well, i'm not quite sure if that's the exact words she told me about 10 years back when i was a mere 8 years old kid, but i'm very certain that was what she wanted to voice out.

At first sight, whoever knows about my childhood would say things like "Oh, that sucks man!" or "What!? That's your childhood?!" Yes, it's definitely very pitiful how things don't work out for me ever since i was a kid. But, then, thinking about it, i'm very glad and grateful for the people who carried and pushed me on whenever i was faced with a setback. Going from strengths to strengths, i'm pleased that i've came this far! :)

Hoo, that was sure quite a lot of recollection! Now, back to my essay! May God bless me for the scholarship application, amen!:D

p/s: the song in my blog has been changed to "Somewhere In Time" played by my idol pianist Maksim Mrvica. Good music makes one cry!:DD

2010-06-26T22:28:00.000-07:00

Just reached home! I'm not gonna blog much, have to wake up in the wee hours tmr to join my parents and brother for workout at the stadium.

As usual, I visited my grandparents over e wkends. played with my niece for most of the time. she's smart, cute and very fun to play with. haha! she reminds me of my childhood days. all the fun and playful times i'd with my siblings! oh, and of course, those naughty times when we fought and quarrelled. I had so much fun playing with my niece today, made her laughed and smiled for most of the time. I'm very grateful to have such a nice niece, and it feels good to be able to relieve her boredom esp when she has no one else to play with. (:

Oh yess, bought two Ben&Jerry tubs today!! Chocolate Fudge Brownie for my brother and Chunky Monkey for myself! lovesss.

i used to seek solace.
in your arms.
not anymore.

2010-06-25T00:15:00.000-07:00

When the clock strike midnight, it will be the first year anniversary of Michael Jackson's death. In remembrance of the "King of Pop" and to commemorate his death, i've changed my blog's mouse cursor to a red glove. (:

It's been some time since i last listened to my itunes playlist titled "Celine Dion". And, the very first song has already touched me. It's called "I'm Your Angel". Thus, i've uploaded it in my blog here on the left panel under "Delicate Serenade". ((:

No Mountains too high, for you to climb
All you have to do is have some climbing faith, oh yeah
No rivers too wide, for you to make it across
All you have to do is believe it when you pray

And then you will see, the morning will come
And everyday will be bright as the sun
All of your fears cast them on me
I just want you to see...

I'll be your cloud up in the sky
I'll be your shoulder when you cry
I'll hear your voices when you call me
I am your angel
And when all hope is gone, I'm here
No matter how far you are, I'm near
It makes no difference who you are
I am your angel
I'm your angel

I saw the teardrops, and I heard you cry
All you need is time, seek me and you shall find
You have everything and you're still lonely
It doesn't have to be this way, let me show you a better day

And then you will see, the morning will come
And all of your days will be bright as the sun
So all of your fears, just cast them on me
How can I make you see...

I'll be your cloud up in the sky
I'll be your shoulder when you cry
I'll hear your voices when you call me
I am your angel
And when all hope is gone, I'm here
No matter how far you are, I'm near
It makes no difference who you are
I am your angel
I'm your angel

And when it's time to face the storm
I'll be right by your side
Grace will keep up safe and warm
And I know we will survive

And when it seems as if your end is drawing near
Don't you dare give up the fight
Just put your trust beyond the sky...

I'll be your cloud up in the sky
I'll be your shoulder when you cry
I'll hear your voices when you call me
I am your angel
And when all hope is gone, I'm here
No matter how far you are, I'm near
It makes no difference who you are
I am your angel
I'm your angel
(2x)

The very first paragraph is enough to touch me. All you need is faith, and everything will be delivered before you. Very niceee song!:DD

2010-06-24T02:05:00.000-07:00

I ain't gonna talk much about my practices in this post. My practices are progressing well, gonna master the Flight of the Bumblebee piece quite soon. For now, i'm gradually increasing the speed of the piece. Super fun!:)

Almost 3 weeks have gone by ever since World Cup started, hell i'm depriving of sleep due to the midnight matches. But, since it's a once-every-4-years event, i'd say it's quite worth it! With the likes of Brazil, Argentina, Holland, England already booked their places in the knockout stages, i can't wait to sacrifice my sleep for the World Cup. Also, i'd say South Korea is one of the surprise packages who also booked their place in the knockout stages! This World Cup 2010 is seriously packed with lots of surprises. France was among the first few countries being knocked out of the World Cup. With only one point out of the possible nine in the groupstage, France had underperformed very badly under the heavily-criticised coach Raymond Domenech. I'd say Raymond Domenech should've been sacked after France's dismal performance in the Euro '08 in which they've scored only a goal throughout the whole tournament. I can't see how France is going to win World Cup with so much of instability among the whole squad. Fancy looking at Raymond Domenech not including star players lke Sami Nasri, Benzema, and not even including Theirry Henry into the line-up for all 3 groupstage matches, i'm not surprised at all that France was knocked out of the World Cup.

France, being one of the powerhouses, got knocked out of World Cup. The next powerhouse to be knocked out would be Italy. With old and aging players like Fabio Cannavaro, Pirlo, Gattuso in the squad, i'm doubting Italy will be good enough to get through the groupstages. Need not say winning the World Cup.

Alright, enough of the World Cup for now. Here's two blogshops done by two of my schoolmates; 1st: Eva, 2nd: Yixin, do check it out!
Sales at Cheap and Affordable prices!((:

http://cookiiee-dough.blogspot.com/
http://grass-patch.livejournal.com/

i guess.
i'm gonna.
prolong.
that faith.
i had.
in you.

2010-06-18T02:22:00.000-07:00

World Cup 2010! I've been into some of the matches that i'm starting to lose sleeps and practices. Nevertheless, it's an event held once every 4 years so i guess it will be worth it to a certain extent.=)
So far, i feel the favourites are still the powerhouses Germany, Argentina, Brazil, Holland, Spain and England. However, after watching most of their first group matches, i'd say Germany, Argentina, Brazil and Holland didn't let my hopes down. England's first match was fine except for that outrageous blunder by Robert Green. The worse let-down out of all the powerhouses would be Spain. Having going through their qualification groupstages with straight wins, i'd high hopes in Spain winning comfortably over an unconvinced Switzerland. After weeks of anticipation and watching the whole match, i was rather shocked and surprised at how they succumbed to an outfit in Switzerland especially when they've got a team full of star players in Casillas, Puyol, Sergio Ramos, Xavi, Iniesta, Fabregas, Torres, David Villa; just naming a few. I hope England and Spain will really get their butts kicking for their second group matches!

Recently, i'm into two songs by City Harvest Church(aka: CHC); "Above All Else" and "God of my Forever". Despite all the recent criticism about CHC, i'd still no doubt agree that their worship songs jare super nice and awesome. After a little search in youtube about the song "God of my Forever", i came across this comment by LizardAndPretzelRawk:

"I believe, in the power of your name."

"I believe, in the promise of faith."

"I believe, in the love of God."

"Jesus, my saviour."

"I believe, I believe."

I've always believed, and still believe, that every journey in life is created by Him. Born on the same date as Him with a lovely twin sister. Grew up with luxurious environment. Discovered piano at 2-3yrs old. Started learning piano at 5yrs old. Had his own piano ever since. Survived near-death scares. My blessings are simply too much to be countable! The first one: being born on the same date as Him..with a lovely twin sister of mine; that is more than enough.

Yes, i do have my own flaws and weaknesses which i've been exposed to countless sarcastic jokes and teases. But still, i was created by Him with those flaws and weaknesses. He wanted me to learn, learn to be strong and faithful. To have faith, undying faith in everything i do. Thus, if you know me well enough, you should be able to know that my fav word is always "faith". Do note that "faith" has the same number of letters with "trust". Be it in a relationship, friendship, kinship, one must always trust and have faith in another to make it a long-lasting one. Without either of em, one will never be able to live life to the fullest. They will be whining and complaining about the undesired things given to em. Yet, they didn't realise that all was actually given to em for they need to learn the lessons behind every obstacles. So, simply said; why don't you stop all the quarrels, all the complains, all the fights, all the unhappiness right now. Isn't it much better to have 60 secs of happiness or 60 secs of unhappiness? Every 1 min of unhappiness is equivalent to losing 60 secs of happiness.

Thus, i always had "faith" quotes such as "Faith is all you need!" and "that undying faith, is your greatest power". Even the bible says so:

"What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them"

[Mark 11:24]

All you need is faith, have faith and all will be delivered before you! *smiles(:

2010-06-17T01:43:00.000-07:00

It's past one month since i've last finished my first year exams. That was e last time i saw most of my pals. Summer holidays. 3 months of holidays. 3 dreadful months. I've lost contacts with most of my friends, both international and local friends. Yet, i've made quite a few new friends in Valerie and Belle.(:

One plus month of my holis are gone. mm, i'd say i'm not quite pleased with my progress, ought to be doing and practicing more. More and more of em! Looking on the upside, i'm close to mastering the piece Flight of the Bumblebee, the only thing left to do is speed it up.(:

Recently, i read one of my friend's blog post. The title wrote "LOVE". "LOVE"; a simple 4-letter word yet so seductive. it's been some time since i last heard anything about love and relationships. well, truth be told, when it comes to these stuffs, i'd tend to digress a little and ignore it. Call me shy, timid, or whatever you say. Unless i know that it will truly work out altogether between both of us, i'll try to keep a distance away from relationships. Through personal experiences, i know it will always be hard for me to escape once i'm down the love trap. Add onto that, i'm a musician who no matter what will need to express emotions in his playing. I'm not quite sure who told me this, but this quote is very meaningful and true;

"Once you are able to control your emotions, you can control anything in this world"

Speaking of relationships, i can't be any less pleased and grateful for having my black-white girlfriend. She never fails to provide me with love, music and ever-lasting passion!:DD

2010-06-06T23:54:00.000-07:00

Thank God! I've finally finished perfing back in my high sch!Truth be told, it wasn't really something i've expected. well, i'm speaking more on the negative side.

Firstly, it wasn't really planned well. The performers themselves had to do the labour works ourselves such as setting up stuffs(eg: pushing and carrying the piano to the performance space). That, i'm fine with that. Then, there are last-minute conflicts between participants(one wants to use their own sound system and another wants to use theirs). It was crappy!
Then, secondly, i was asked to perform as an introduction/prelude whereas i'll be playing my own music whilst the people entered the hall. I'm fine with it, as long as i get to play music for the others to appreciate. But, then, the most pissed off thing they did was to stop me when i was playing the climax of a piece. That teacher said "Hey, the VIP is here. You've to stop!". I was quite shocked initially. It was totally not planned! Plus, that simply shows that most people in Singapore don't appreciate music at all. trying thinking of a famous pianist/guitarist/violinist/etc from Singapore.. ..

Worse, i didn't have a goodnight sleep the night before because i was looking forward and anticipating the whole event soo muchh. Well, look at the positive, i'm grateful that i managed to get through the day. Due to the lack of sleep, by the time my 2nd perf came, i was totally shagged that i was overwhelmed by dizziness and nausea. But, thank God, i managed to get through the day.(: Thank you for the opportunity you gave me to perf back in my high sch, glad to meet up with my high sch teachers!((:
So much of the 3 hours of sleep i'd that night, i guess i won't be holding myself back for longer beauty sleeps for the next couple of days. thus, it will be some time before my long practices kick in again.

2010-06-04T00:43:00.000-07:00

Today was a good day!(((((:
Went to get my sibelius program and have a short rehearsal back in my high sch for this sat's performance, ohh..i simply can't wait for it esp that i'll be the first perfmer that night. woohoo!

Today's hit was my sibelius program!!:DDD
Hell, it costs a bomb at $760! Thank god, i'm a student, or i'll be paying up to $895. well, the good thing is that the sibelius is the most updated version and i won't need to travel all e way to bedok just to use my friend's sibelius to compose.

look at that pricetag!

2 thick books(reference book and handbook) plus 1 handout and 1 cd.
that explains the weight of that box.

behind the books were all the guidelines for the toolbars, etc etc.

after all? $760 is damnnn worth it!

SHIOKNESSSS!!

Ohhhhh....now, i can't wait to put my hand onto the Sibelius.=DD

Thank God for the gift, thank you sooo much!

2010-06-02T22:58:00.000-07:00

Am gonna blog a little today. watched a dvd over the summer holidays called Band of Brothers, a show about World War II. Upon finishing watching all 10 episodes, i can't agree any further about how touching and meaningful the show is. It simply shows soldiers fighting for their lives and how much they cherish and appreciate each other even when they can't be assured of their own lives. It's quite an old show dating back to around 2001, but i'll still highly recommend this show to my friends. I believe it's a show which will not only touch you, but inspire and change you.(:

*
Gory, gory, what a hell of a way to die. [x3]

He ain't gonna jump no more.

Risers wrapped around his neck, connectors cracked his dome.

Suspension lines were tied in knots, around his skinny bones.

The canopy became the shroud he hurdled to the ground.

He ain't gonna jump no more.

Gory, gory, what a hell of a way to die. [x3]

He ain't gonna jump no more.

His blood went spurting high, his comrades they were heard to say, 'A hell of a way to die'.

He laid there rolling 'round in the welter of his gore.

He ain't gonna jump no more.

Gory, gory, what a hell of a way to die. [x3]

He ain't gonna jump no more.

/pray that my bro will get well real sooooon.. it's been almost a week!:(

2010-06-02T00:57:00.000-07:00

It's almost a month since my holis started after my last paper in May. Hell, i still feel that there are stuffs not yet fulfilled or done.

Need more practice.
Need to go take up driving tests.
Need to do and help more in my family, not helping enough.

"More than anything else, put God's work first and do what he wants. Then the other things will be yours as well" [Matthew 6:33]

"What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them" [Mark 11:24]

Meaningful quotes! Upon reflection, i feel that both quotes share quite the same bottom-line. One has to appreciate what he has got in his hands and be grateful for that, and he will be rewarded with better things. Without any grace in one, he will never be able to succeed. Most importantly, one has to have faith himself and be grateful. Applying that, i'd say that i'm already starting to count my blessings; from being specially born on the same date as jesus, to being born in such luxurious environment. And, barely halfway through the countings, i know that the blessings i've got are wayyyy beyond the horizons of my mind. Let's say, even if i wasn't soo blessed with soo much blessings, those blessings don't make much difference anyway. What's the worth of those blessings without that faith deep down in your heart.

Put aside those flaws and weaknesses.

That undying faith, is your greatest power!

2010-05-25T00:07:00.000-07:00

Today was a good day! Woke up late at around 9.30am, initially wanted to wake up at around 8plus. Nevetheless, i started my practices at 11+ and it went on till 5+ in the evening. woah! It was an awesome feeling, it's been quite some time since i've last practiced that long and with so much concentration. I covered plenty of pieces from Flight of the Bumblebee to Brahms Rhapsody in G Minor, also went through Hanon technical studies. Oh! Hanon exercise #47 was the most challenging part, i could only reach the speed of 112 per crotchet count; couldn't touch the topmost speed of 120 per crotchet count.
I will be spending another day at home tmr for practices, gotta put in more efforts and jiayou! Upcoming performance back in my high school in 12 days! woohoo, gonna be a blast performing in front of my ex-teachers and juniors. it feels so great to be able to inspire the future generations into the music career! ohhhh... :))))

[can't wait for end of this wk!]

i'm planning to apply for job at the Astons stall opposite my sch, if there's still no news about subway.
janet's gig coming up this friday at my sch's 15mins cafe, another awesome gig and time to catch up a little with her.(:
another piano lesson coming up on fri with my piano teacher. she's gonna see a big improvement this wk. cheers!

*signing out here.. time to sleep. nights to all! smiles.(((((:

2010-05-23T02:46:00.000-07:00

Weekend kicked off. As usual, I went to visit my granny on saturdays. I'd a fun time playing with my niece. She's super cute and funny, her way of pronouncing "shushu"(uncle in chinese) already had me laughing. At a tender age of 2-3+, she already know how to turn on the self-timer and take photos with the iphone. How smart!(:
Gonna stay late tonight to watch Champions League Final match at 2:45am between Bayern Munich and Inter Milan. Oh yes! Speaking of Munich, I'd like to wish xiaobao a safe trip to Munich! I believe you should be in the midst of your flight there by now. God bless constance aye! I'll be waiting for you to be online, msn!:))

The much faith, I need.

Obstacles and doubts, to overcome.

Huffed and puffed, I have.

Lest you didn't know, I've already given my utmost.

2010-05-18T23:07:00.000-07:00

Holy God! It's been a year and a week since I've last touched my blog. Phew, looks like I've finally decided to do something about it.(:

p/s: the scoresheet links aren't reliable at the moment. it will be updated asap!

Since it's been a long time since I've updated my blog, here are some updates about me.

Quitted Nanyang Polytechnic, I've been enrolled into Lasalle College of the Arts. I will be going into my 2nd year this coming August.
Made plenty of cool and good friends in Lasalle, putting emphasize on peeps like Joanna(aka: jo/tuyul), Oliver(aka: oli/oli-t/tuyul), Jourdan(aka: rambutan), Janette(aka: janet/net/nettie), Chin Ee(aka: evelyn/baboom), Christopher(aka: chris/nair).
I've been exposed to quite a few performances since I've joined Lasalle; Lost Fou[dation] (a production done by all the foundation/first-year students), two gigs in Yello Jello Retrobar in Clarke Quay (assignment given to all music foundation/first-year students).
Furthermore, I've also been exposing myself to public performances like the musicale held in Junction 8, by my music school Cristofori. One upcoming performance will be held on 5th June in my secondary school/high school. I'll be looking forward to that particular performance, especially that it's been almost 3 years since I've last went back there. Adding to that, it will be super awesome if I get to inspire the juniors back in my high school. It will be a dream come true for me.(look at the left panel under "aspires")
Nothing much have changed. I am still passionate towards music, and that will never change. Currently, with competitions and ABRSM Diploma in mind, I'm learning quite a few difficult pieces; from Brahms to Rimsky-Korsakov.
Lastly, I'm still and will forever be grateful for the DISTINCTION that I've achieve for my ABRSM Grade 8 exam. Thank God!(:

Along with my daily practices, I'm also currently waiting for my job application. Until I've got a job, I'll go on budget for my meals. Over the holidays, I'm probably going to buy a couple of tops and change my looks a little here and there.(:
For the first time, without any help or assistance, I've cooked my first meal all by myself. My lunch isn't very appetising but was quite proud of myself because it tasted really good. So good that my brother finished off the rest of the noodles in the wok.((:

Cheers to my first self-cooked meal!:) I'm going to work for my dad in his company early tmr morning, will update again another time. Take care and God bless!:))

Once again - p/s: the scoresheet links aren't reliable at the moment. it will be updated asap!

2009-05-11T22:47:00.000-07:00

My post today will be mostly about a particular library book that i've read a few months back. I had noted down some important pointers and would love to share it in here.(: The book is called The Self Factor by author Duncan Coppock. One of the chapter in the book caught my attention when i first browsed through the content page. The topic of that chapter says "Staying OUT of your comfort zone".(:

Everyone has their own comfort zones. Be it good or bad, everybody will have to step out of the comfort zones one day. The reaction cycle which revolves unconsciously in your own comfort zones consists of three parts..Attitude, Expression and Experience.

Attitude: The beliefs, feelings and personal perceptions about certain things.
Expression: The actions and the way you react(hence cycle called 'reaction cycle') to the things.
Experience: The results of the first two parts; Attitude and Expression.

This unconscious cycle will keep on and on until you add in the aspects of consciousness to change it from a Reaction into a Creation cycle. It may seem easy just by moving the 'C' to the front of the other word, but you'll have to go through 4 thorough aspects of the conscious cycle..Self-acceptance, Awareness, Intention, Learning.

Self-acceptance is oftenly misunderstood as accepting yourself. But it is more of understanding yourself than just plainly accepting yourself because if you understand yourself well, you will have no problem accepting yourself.
In buddhism, there's a saying that right hand represents Awareness while left hand represents Compassion. Awareness is the acknowledging of your personal obstacles that will have to be overcomed when you transform the reaction cycle to a creation cycle. Hence, understanding yourself is the most important thing. However, understanding WITHOUT action..and..action WITHOUT acceptance are no-no in the creation cycle.
Next is the Intention is the formulating and energizing of personal choices. The most commonly used question "So, what is your intention?" which is linked to the last aspect.

The last aspect for the conscious cycle is Learning. Learning is the ability used to develop new skills. If you formulate and energize your choices well in the previous part, you will definitely have minimum problem in developing new skills because you will be soo determined and inspired to change away from the unconsicous reaction cycle by then.

Ever heard of the word 'Enpowerment'?..know its definitions? Most people treat the word 'Enpowerment' as a jargon, thus it's been de-valued. From the dictionary, the word 'Enpowerment' means..'to authorize/to enable'. But, it has more meanings behind. When you are stepping out of your comfort zones, you'll require enpowerment. It distinguishes between "being enpowered" and "what you choose to do"..or simply explained as.."what you WANT to do/how you WILL do it" and "what you CHOOSE to do". You may be wondering what's the difference between em. There's hell lots of difference between "what you want to do/how you will do it" and "what you choose to do". "what you want to do/how you will do it" will be questioned in this way "what and how will you do to step out of your comfort zones" but "what you choose to do" will be questioned in a complete different way.."what would i like to do next".

Enpowerment is made up of 3Rs; Resources, Responsibility and Respect.

Resources: The time, things and skills needed during the enpowering process.

Responsibility: The ownership and accountability of your own enpowering actions.

Respect: The right attitude and mentality required towards your enpowerment.

To summarise, in empowerment..the 'ought to' and 'should' must be changed to 'want to' and 'fulfils'. It must be 'i want to do it/it fulfils my dream' instead of 'i ought to do this/i should be doing this'.

Lastly, to successfully step out of your own comfort zones..you have to get the A.N.S.W.E.R.S.

Aim: Clarify the vision, whether it is possible or not.

Now: To acknowledge the current reality and your current position, so you will know where you are going to start from.

Stance: The continuous strengthening in the sense of knowing that the vision is possible. The need of reflections in the overall progress.

Wanting: Strengthening of your ultimate desire for your goal.

Energy: The required amount of energy needed to stay on and persevere.

Resources: Have the appropriate and sufficient resources such as the skills and time needed.

Strategy: Clarify the ways and methods of how you are going to do it. Also, have reassurance about whether the actions will be worthwhile for the available energy and resources.

In my previous post, i talked about the masterpiece Victory by Maksim. Here's the vid, not the original version though..the remix version. But, it's pretty cool and nice too.=D

Enjoy.(:

2009-05-10T00:31:00.000-07:00

One month of my holidays will be up soon..my life had been literally hours of pianoings every day. My progress is going pretty fine but can be alot better. Mastered quite a few pieces for the past few weeks, for example the masterpiece Victory by Maksim.(:

Now, i'm in e progress of a duet between vocal singings and piano.((: I went to rp on friday and had alittle duet with xueting. Song of the day: "Because You Loved Me" by Celine Dion!!=D It was quite good for our first practice, super funny too.hahas.

Hmms..will be improvising and editting it soon.

Happy Mommy Day!!=)

2009-05-05T21:30:00.000-07:00

Went for bible study with jermaine before ytd despite being unwell. i saw xuejun and seriously, i'm not surprised at all that she's high. well..sisters do share the same genes, right xueting?frrieedd riccee~haha.(:
Then, i went to visit my granny..saw my relatives watching the stars award ceremony. super-duper cool that my fav Maksim's pieces like Cubana and Revolutionary Etude in C Minor were used in it.

With the swine flu going on, it is obviously not the best timing to be down sick especially with flu and sore throat.tsk. However, i still persevere on with my pianoing and recorded 2 improvised piano pieces.

It originated as a j-pop song by Yuna Ito.

Then, it was changed to a chinese song called 想念你的歌.(:

It is composed by Yiruma.

Improvised with alittle tranpositions: A major to D major to C major.(:

I'm pleased that my piano vids inspired my friends like Stacie..here's two more vids for ya!!=D

I went back to Piano Ensemble today for some guidances about my compositions. I found out that only 8 people were enrolled into the course that i'm studying in Lasalle, super shocking..giving the number of talented musicians going for the audition.damn.o.o

2009-04-26T19:32:00.000-07:00

For all those times you stood by me..

For all the truth that you made me see..

For all the joy you brought to my life..

For all the wrong that you made right..

For every dream you made come true..

For all the love i found in you..

I'll be forever thankful baby.

You're the one who held me up, never let me fall.

You're the one who saw me through through it all.

You were my strength when i was weak..

You were my voice when i couldn't speak..

You were my eyes when i couldn't see..

You saw the best there was in me.

Lifted me up when i couldn't reach..

You gave me faith because you believed.

I'm everything i am because you loved me.

You gave me wings and made me fly..

You touched my hand and i could touch the sky..

I lost my faith and you gave it back to me..

You said no star was out of reach..

You stood by me and i stood tall.

I had your love and i had it all.

I'm grateful for each day you gave me..

Maybe i don't know that much, but i know this much is true.

I was blessed because i was loved by you.

You were my strength when i was weak..
You were my voice when i couldn't speak..
You were my eyes when i couldn't see..
You saw the best there was in me.
Lifted me up when i couldn't reach..
You gave me faith because you believed.
I'm everything i am because you loved me.

You were always there for me..

The tender wind that carried me..

A light in the dark shining your love into my life..

You've been my inspiration, through the lies you were the truth..

My world is a better place because of you.

You were my strength when i was weak..
You were my voice when i couldn't speak..
You were my eyes when i couldn't see..
You saw the best there was in me.
Lifted me up when i couldn't reach..
You gave me faith because you believed.
I'm everything i am because you loved me.

2009-04-22T23:34:00.000-07:00

Went to rp ytd, had bible study with jermaine..with jessie blogging her two sentences.haha. The bible study went pretty smooth, quite interesting. Initially planned to have music theory lessons arranged for em but they were tired after a long day of studying perhaps..so, i ended up performing random pieces at the lib for em..managed to compose a soothing piece on the spot.(:
Hmms..here's a recording of a masterpiece, the first ever Maksim piece i learnt.

Hahaas, i find that some people do literally jump up when frightened.=p

Jessie, i'll be considering posting my soothing composition here in my next post..dependent on my inspirations but most of e time will be soothing and slow pieces because that's my genre.=DD

2009-04-21T00:44:00.000-07:00

Today started out pretty cool but weird as my poly friends were already in their respective classes..and i'm still in bed.
Haha, sounds cool ehh??..4 months of additional holidays.((: However, i'm not gonna slack much as i know that there are alot more rooms for improvements. My target: 8-9 hours of practice per day.=D My progress, today for the first day, was encouraging as i've spent 5 plus hours pianoing..10am+ to 3pm+.(: If not for my weary eyes, it could've been longer. Furthermore, I also have to read up more about music, for example..compositions etc.
After those long hours of practising, quite a few thoughts overwhelmed my mind.

Gonna work hard and strive to be the top student in my new college. Not to be one of the best but the best, there's no room for 2nd.(:
Thought of performing in primary and secondary schools, pursuing my 3 childhood dreams all at one go.hahs.
Thank God for blessing me with this talent ever since i'm in kindergarden..so, i may want to perform in those homes for the unfortunate, needy and elderly. God bless.(:

2009-04-17T21:33:00.000-07:00

Well..indeed, my 4am-muggings in the past did managed to get me through today's audition..but not after. Last night was by far my worse attempt for counting sheeps, i'm not sure if i did even sleep. So fatigued was i that i almost collapse and fell while closing a door.D: Thus, this will be a super short one with summarised details of my Nafa audition..ask me up for further details.

My muggings for the theory exam paper was worth it afterall..the paper was pretty easy and wasn't much of a problem for me.(:
Waited 1-2hrs plus for my audition performance and interview. My audition and interview was kinda short, most probably because Nafa is a school all about classicals and i performed contemporary pieces..still prefer the contemporary Lasalle.(:

2009-04-17T19:53:00.000-07:00

Waking up at 7am..having my last final mugging..was very busy counting sheeps for the whole night, kept on thinking..thinking, and thinking. Oh wells..hopefully i won't doze off during my 1hr of theory paper later.*rubs eyes* My 4am-muggings in the past should be able to get me through.(:

*Breath in*..fresh morning air.=)So nice.C:

Alrights, back to my muggings.(:

2009-04-16T22:12:00.000-07:00

Today's post will be alittle short as i'll need to wakey early tmr to mug and read up some theory for my Nafa audition tmr.D:

Arranged a piano lessons for my friends today. My first time teaching 4 people at one go..quite tough!! But, i don't mind .. i'm pleased to pass down my music knowledge to those who are interested and are passionate.(:

Having Nafa audition tmr..competing with musicians with standard of Grade 8 and above. Gonna be prepared to be spammed with all sorts of questions after my performance.tsk. Look at the upside of the things, i've got back two of the recommendation forms from my piano teacher and poly mentor which are needed to be handed up for tmr's audition.

Piano Teacher: I have been teaching him for 2 years and he is now pursuing his Grade 8 practical. He is passionate for music as he dedicates most of his free time practising and appreciating piano. He often engrossed in practising piano until there was once he hurt himself. I found him to be highly motivated and having high spirit in learning piano. He loves trying piano pieces and take it as a challenge to perfect his skill continuously. He often tells me that he aspired to be a great musician. I found him to have the qualities to become a good performer. Given proper guidances, he will shine.
Poly Mentor: The student concerned has been very consistent with this interested in music. He has been a good student in Nanyang Polytechnic. However, his interest in music and his choice of music as a career has been made known me. With his interest and fine learning abilities, he would excel in his new chosen career. He has also exhibited his sense of responsibility and self-motivation when he could still do well in Engineering course when this is not his choice of career.

I was super touched after reading those two recommendation forms..especially the one by my piano teacher as it's very true.

If i didn't went around searching for piano pieces, i wouldn't be so inspired after knowing Maksim.
"there was once he hurt himself"..not only once, twice..unconsciously, look at previous post.

Alrights, this much will be enough to be classified under 'alittle short'. God bless me tmr.=]

2009-04-15T23:39:00.000-07:00

Had yet another great day.(: This appetizer for my dinner made my day. Potatoeess..my favs!!

(Slurp .. Slurp) *rubs tummy .. grins*=DD

The second serving was kinda "editted" by me.hah. i was trying to add pepper after finishing frying em, then the tip of the bottle came off and tadah..there goes my doing.x)

Pianoed for hours a few hours today. I was so enthusiastic into my playings that my finger bled, and i wasn't conscious about that. Until i saw blood stains on my piano, then i finally realised that my finger is bleeding. Somehow, somewhat..my finger bled while pianoing and i'm completely unconscious about that, and this is the 2nd time it happened.=x

Haha, Jessie, i think you're quite right..she's hurt!!

2009-04-14T23:57:00.001-07:00

This week started pretty well with two things happening to me.=]]

Today i received my audition results for Lasalle through mail. My mom gave me the letter and said "Congratulations". With immediate effect, i tore the whole letter open and poured everything out.(: My Lasalle audition is a SUCCESS!! It was 5:39pm when i read the mail by Lasalle and i was super-duper-fuper-tuper high man.((:

Lasalle letter

The very first word to introduction:

"Congratulations!"(:

Even though i'm already accepted by Lasalle, i will definitely still go for my Nafa audition. As Nafa and Lasalle are the only well-known and MOE-recognised music colleges in Singapore, it will be great to know where my standard lies. Shan't be complacent and give my utmost for my Nafa audition this friday.=DD

Just recently, I went searching for Maksim songs through the net. Coincidentally, i found a torrent with hell lots of Maksim songs. 3 albums, 44 new songs downloaded..totalling all the Maksim's songs i have to 58!! Brilliant..Awesome, you name it!!(Especially i've been searching for all of em for quite some time already) Those songs will give me an extra inspirational boost while i'm pursuing my music career.=)

My prayers are answered.(: God, thanks alot for giving me this one opportunity.
This is where i kick start my music career. It's all just the tip of an iceberg.(:

2009-04-11T00:51:00.000-07:00

Hahs, my blog is alive..again.(: My lappie was totally infested with the virus Trojan Horse that my thumbdrive was almost useless as it's being affected too..need not say opening windows like internet explorer or msn.-.-

In this blog, there are several vids uploaded.
1) My 2nd public performance.(look at previous post)
2) Home-made piano vids.
3) Maksim vids.

2nd public performance

Part One

Part Two

Pieces are Claudine and Croatian Rhapsody respectively. Videos courtesy of Jasmine Toh(Hwahwa).=D

Next up will be my home-made vids.(:

Croatian Rhapsody by Maksim Mrvica.(:

Improvised Croatian Rhapsody by Ong Shujian.(:

Chant D'Automne by Tchaikovsky.(:

Cubana Cubana by Maksim Mrvica.(:

Cubana is a total craziness.@.@

For those who watched the video Totentanz in my 2nd March post, here's the to be cont'd part.=))

Amazonic by Maksim Mrvica.(:

The piece Amazonic is always one of my favs as it's super challenging and awesome. It's mainly made up of lots of arpeggios(in the beginning), inversed tonic triad chords(in the midst) and finally ending off with fast broken chords after changing to key of F major.

Now, about my piano auditions.. next friday will be my piano audition for Nafa. If my friend predicted correctly, i will be receiving my Lasalle audition results this sunday. *keeping fingers crossed* And, it will determine whether i'll be continuing my studies at poly.tsk.

Ohh, my Grade 7 piano exam results are out too. Even though i managed to merely pass with the score of 106, it's not what i really anticipated..thought that i would be able to get at least a merit for it. =[ Oh well, will have to work even harder for my Grade 8 exam which means higher standards will be expected from me.(:

2009-03-22T22:14:00.000-07:00

My post today will be entirely about my 2nd public performance.=DD

Today's my 2nd public performance at AMKHub.(: The experience was great as i've improved quite alot as compared to my 1st ever public performance which i screwed up alittle. I was also kinda both shocked and surprised when i reached the venue of my performance. When i opened the door of Cristofori Music School, my initial reactions were like.."what the o.o!!" and "oh my goooodness~". There were around 10 of my relatives there..before me, and without informing me. Appreciate em for being soo~ supportive.=))

After my relatives were there at the venue, it's left with Jermaine and Jasmine. Jermaine dialed me up and i'm just at the opposite. I was calling out in the phone and she was looking around randomly..ahahs, so cute luh..like a lost kid finding her mom.haha.

My performance pieces were Claudine and Croatian Rhapsody..both by Maksim.hahs.(:

Claudine and Croatian Rhapsody respectively.

My live performance vids will be posted soon, stay tuned.(:

Before my performance, there's this boy who knows me..and i don't even have a single idea who he is or how he knows me. Until he told me that he's one of the audience when i was assigned to perform in a GIL(Group-interactive Lessons). Hmm..looks like my progress in my dreams are pretty good as he's inspired by GIL performance.((: Awesome that people knows me through my performances. Great to know nice pianists through performances too!!C:

After my performance this afternoon, there's this group of ladies who asked to be photographed with me..felt like a bachelor..and..in front of the whole audience. Quite cool but awkward.=x Then, i was given a rose and a certificate.((:

Received quite alot of compliments about my performance today..my family, relatives, friends, those ladies(hahs). Thanks alott~~..will be looking forward to my next!!(:

Me-Jermaine after my performance.(:

2nd Aunt: Thanks for bringing me up when i'm a small little kid who's always mischievous. If not for you, i wouldn't be striving so hard to pursue my dreams and my music career. I wouldn't have found your organ in your room if i wasn't taken care after by you. Thanks for all your unconditional help and love.
Mom: From the time that i jumped on your bed and treated your bolster as a mic..to..the time when you tricked me by acting dead and leaving me screaming to tears. From the time we would exchange our imaginary coins during dinnertimes..to..those goodnight kisses you never fail to give me when i'm a small little kid. When one loves you despite your shortcomings, you'll not hesitate but to love her even more. You're the one, and always the best. Thanks.

Learn to appreciate..
For my unconditional love for you is and will always be alive.

2009-03-22T00:55:00.000-07:00

Today's post will be quite short, i gotta have sufficient sleep for tmr's piano performance.(:

My preparations for the audition of Lasalle have been pretty good so far. Just finished one of the projects assigned for the audition. Hahs, i've to answer this weird question; "Are waffles really better than pancakes?" They said it's a test for your creativity. *Raise eyebrows and nodes head cheekily*
Evening with a total orange sky is a rare one, and today's evening is one of em. It's just sooo~~ charming.=DD

A super clear rainbow with another faint rainbow on e right.

what a beauty.C:

At e attic's balcony..

..failed to take e full rainbow.tsk.

sky that is half orange and half blue.awesome.=))

Concluding my day.. It's quite surprising that i feel quite relaxed for my performance tmr. No anxiety, or whatsoever. Perhaps, it's because of my performance experiences.(:

2009-03-20T23:56:00.000-07:00

Minutes away before striking 12 midnight. Yet another day passes by and it'll be nearer to my mini-performance.(: Today is my last day of rehearsing my performance pieces with my piano teacher. So far..so good, even though there's some amendments here and there.
Those who are curious about my performance pieces..i'll be performing two pieces by my idol pianist; Maksim Mrvica.=)) One Rhapsody, one Romantic.(hahs, shall leave it in the suspense until after my performance!!)

There's this wonderful piece, again by Maksim(haha), called Cubana Cubana. This masterpiece by Maksim was nearly one of my performance pieces, if not for the speed of the piece and lots of difficult fingerings.

Fast and inspiring ehh?=D

My version is alittle different though. It's much slowerrrr~~

It's added with 6 octaves of glissando(sliding of notes) at the end

Hmm..as the month of March comes to an end, which means more busy.tsktsk.

1) Finish up my preparations for audition of Lasalle.
2) Get ready for audition of Nafa.
3) Freelance piano teachings: Angeline, etc.
4) Preparations for Grade 8 next year.

5) Plannings of performances in schools.
6) Anticipating any further piano performances/competitions.

2009-03-16T23:58:00.000-07:00

2 weeks since i last blogged. hahs.=x Let's blog about my past 2 weeks bah.(:

The week before last was quite a busy one for me as i've my Grade 7 piano exam. The venue of my piano exam is at a music sch called Musikinder Artskool. Initially, it looked more like a kindergarden rather than a music sch due to those small chairs for kids. Quite a cool and tranquil place it is..if not for the peaceful music playing in e background, i bet i'd had been pretty nervous before my exam.=) Wells, especially this song named "You Raised Me Up" by Josh Groban. It brings back memories of my grandpa, missing him.:C
My piano exams went pretty well, quite funny too. There's this moment, i don't know how and why but it happened. After finishing my exam pieces..

Examiner: "Please put your book on the piano"

Me: *Lift up the lid of the upright piano*

Examiner: "Nono~~!! put...that..*points at my book*..on the piano"

Me: "Ohhh..*put back down the piano lid*"

Damn embarrassing luh, my piano teacher was like laughing all the while when i told her about that. She told me this which i find it very true(hahs!!).."你是去那里考试还是去那里搞笑?" It's very obvious that i live up to e nicks that my sec sch friends call me Spongebob and Patrick..me and my kukuness.(:

Hmm, predictions for my Grade 7 piano exam..

Pass: Pretty sure.

Merit: Possibility.

Distinction: Depends on my aural marks.(Tsk!!)

Last week was the most busy one. Went to register for both Nafa and Lasalle, 12th of March is a damn tiring day for me; spent a total of 4 hrs plus applying and registering for the auditions.=x

Went out with my whole family yesterday, past by this shop randomly at Thomson Plaza..bought these two postcards. Very motivating and meaningful.=DD

So beautiful..So cool..

First postcard:

Psalm 23:1-6

A Psalm Of David

The Lord Is My Shepherd

I Have Everything I Need

He Lets Me Rest In Green Meadows

He Leads Me Beside Peaceful Streams

He Renews My Strength

He Guides Me Along Right Paths, Bringing Honour To His Name

Even When I Walk Through The Dark Valley Of Death

I Will Not Be Afraid, For You Are Close Beside Me

Your Rod And Your Staff Protect And Comfort Me

You Prepare A Feast For Me In The Presence Of My Enemies

You Welcome Me As A Guest, Anointing My Head With Oil

My Cup Overflows With Blessings

Surely Your Goodness And Unfailing Love Will Pursue Me

All The Days Of My Life And I Will Live In The House

Of Lord Forever

Second postcard:

God's Rainbow

Rainbows Appear After Mighty Storms,

When Things Look Their Very Worse,

Just When The Skies Are Darkest Grey,

Look For The Rainbow First.

The Rainbow Is A Sign Of God's Promise,

That He Will Guide Us Through Any Storm,

That He Will See Us Through All Our

Troubles, No Matter What Their Form .

When You Feel Battered By Life's Storm,

And You Filled With Doubt And Dismay,

Just Remember God's Rainbow Is Coming -

It's Only A Prayer Away.

Reminder: My 2nd public performance: 22nd March, 2.30pm at AMKHub Cristofori Music School(Level 3)

2009-03-02T23:35:00.000-08:00

Hmm, let's start off by sharing this vid with all of ya. You'll know why i chose Maksim Mrvica as my idol pianist after watching this vid, haahs.((:

This masterpiece is called Totentanz improvised by Maksim, originated from Liszt.

Enjoy.=]

Stay tuned for his next vid.(:

A memory came across my mind quite a few times for the past months. And, this time..it came across my mind once again while searching for scoresheets. Went to listen at imeem, and there i was travelling into my childhood days.

Having my nerdy specs on, squatting at one corner of my home and with two earpieces attached, i was curious why my mom like that song so much..so, i went to listen through my discman. Thereafter, i was so obsessed with it that i listened to that song over, and, over..and..over again. In fact, i like that song so much that i totally skipped my dinner listening to it.

Then, i was overwhelmed by another childhood memory. When i was a small little kid, my mom always like to shop at JUST..so, i and my sister would accompany her. Well, at e end of e day, she always complain that it's a hassle to bring me and my sister out with her..but, hahs, we always get to go out with my mom. Wondering why it's a hassle? Read on.(:

After entering JUST shop, me and my sister would run about and chase each other. I'd go running and hiding behide those clothes, so naughty we were that some of the clothes hangers dropped on the floor.(should i use e word "most"? hahs) The best thing is that the auntie who was e shopkeeper ignored and let us continue playing.=D We were so enthu into our playings that we'll only leave the shop until my mom starts to leave the shop. Hahas..then, there goes the dressing-down from my mom.=x

Oh well..what a nice song; 'Lemon Tree', me and my mom's favs!![; Brought back those sweet vivid memories of my childhood. Only if i can turn back and freeze time.. =))

2009-02-28T01:17:00.000-08:00

EXAMS are over!!=DD

wooohoo~~!! Back to my black-white girlfriend. 6th March: Piano Exams.(: 22nd March: Piano Performance.((: gonna be busy during my free time; jamming, giving piano lessons..etc.

Saw this awesome rainbow few days ago, eons ago since i last saw one.

whilst walking home just outside my househah, finally one full rainbow.

Random beautiful pictures of Mothernature!!:]

NOTE: Looking for violinist, percussionist, guitarist!!

Food For Thought

2009-02-14T23:48:00.000-08:00

A long-lost song that is always one of my favorite; Vitamin C's Graduation.=) soothing..meaningful, awesome!! Down my memory lane i went whilst enjoying this song, then recalled one of e rememorable ones; Grad. Nite '07!!(:

Graduation

And so we talked all night about the rest of our lives

Where we're gonna be when we turn 25

I keep thinking times will never change

Keep on thinking things will always be the same

But when we leave this year we won't be coming back

No more hanging out cause we're on a different track

And if you got something that you need to say

You better say it right now cause you don't have another day

Cause we're moving on and we can't slow down

These memories are playing like a film without sound

And I keep thinking of that night in June

I didn't know much of love, but it came too soon

And there was me and you

And then we got real blue

Stay at home talking on the telephone

We would get so excited and we'd get so scared

Laughing at ourselves thinking life's not fair

And this is how it feels

As we go on

We remember

All the times we

Had together

And as our lives change

Come Whatever

We will still be

Friends Forever

So if we get the big jobs

And we make the big money

When we look back now

Will our jokes still be funny?

Will we still remember everything we learned in school?

Still be trying to break every single rule

Will little brainy Bobby be the stockbroker man?

Can Heather find a job that won't interfere with her tan?

I keep, I keep thinking that it's not goodbye

Keep on thinking it's a time to fly

And this is how it feels

As we go on
We remember
All the times we
Had together
And as our lives change
Come Whatever
We will still be
Friends Forever

La, la, la, la

Yeah, yeah, yeah

La, la, la, la

We will still be friends forever

Will we think about tomorrow like we think about now?

Can we survive it out there?

Can we make it somehow?

I guess I thought that this would never end

And suddenly it's like we're women and men

Will the past be a shadow that will follow us 'round?

Will these memories fade when I leave this town

I keep, I keep thinking that it's not goodbye

Keep on thinking it's a time to fly

As we go on

We remember

All the times we

Had together

And as our lives change

Come Whatever

We will still be

Friends Forever

As we go on
We remember
All the times we
Had together
And as our lives change
Come Whatever
We will still be
Friends Forever

As we go on
We remember
All the times we
Had together
And as our lives change
Come Whatever
We will still be
Friends Forever

HAPPY VALENTINE!!=]]

2009-02-10T23:01:00.000-08:00

One of e songs i heard during my 1st church service, the lyrics are soo meaningful.(:

My Life, Your Song

Whose hands are these, holding my trapeze.

When i fly, you carry me.

Whose eyes are these, watching over me.

Eyes of love, that set me free.

Unafraid, what's ahead..you're always there before.

My whole world, your design.

You are always there, just right behind.

My life is your song, to you my heart belongs.

Let all the earthly crowns fade in the shadow of the cross.

My life is your song, i'll sing for you alone.

Nothing in this world can take my away from you.

Our love goes on and on.

Whose arms are these, shelter me from harm.

In the storm, you're my calm.

Whose voice are these, whisper in my ears.

When i'm lost, you're always near.

Unafraid, what's ahead..you're always there before.

My whole world, your design.

You are always there, just right behind.

My life is your song, to you my heart belongs.

Let all the earthly crowns fade in the shadow of the cross.

My life is your song, i'll sing for you alone.

Nothing in this world can take my away from you.

Our love goes on and on.

In all my life, be glorified.

With Christ in me, no longer I.

So take my all consuming fire, the light in me..i'll let it shine!!

My life is your song, to you my heart belongs.

Let all the earthly crowns fade in the shadow of the cross.

My life is your song, i'll sing for you alone.

Nothing in this world can take my away from you.

Our love goes on and on.

Once again, as usual, i'm back into my own world of music. And, of course, my idol pianist; Maksim. Here's one of the first few masterpieces by Maksim that i heard. Tried that out as a piano solo, didn't sound very nice..as i need a flautist solo to be an accompaniment.=)

Amazing glissando(sliding of notes)

Especially e beginning and e end.=D

2009-02-08T23:42:00.000-08:00

haha, if Jermaine sees this.. =x

Not been feeling the best these few days..should say..these few weeks. Gonna visit my suave doctor tmr.. *pray for me* I went to City Harvest Chuch for my 2nd time today. It wasn't as fun as compared to the 1st time, i've been worrying about my sickness all e while.):

Valentine's around the corner... ...

2009-02-07T23:56:00.000-08:00

Heartbroken, sad, disappointed, melancholy..you name it. My dreams being dashed right before my eyes. It's the last thing i'd ever want. Is this what you've planned for me? That's it? May i know what you've planned for me?..for once, please?
Why must there be setbacks then will we learn how to appreciate?? Why must there be some awful and disastrous happenings before we will cherish it and hold it tighter??

For those who've missed out my first ever piano concert, here's the vid. Do rate and comment it if you've an account, enjoy.=)

2009-02-06T17:01:00.000-08:00

I may not know you, and you may not know me.

Complete strangers we can be, but may the utmost blessings go to you.

Close my eyes I will, to pray for you.

Forever and ever, may God bless you.

Smile we will, because it's always great to have you.

-Shujian-

2009-02-03T16:26:00.000-08:00

Deterioration

It's been e 3rd time for the past few days, and this time..it's pretty worse as compared to e previous two.

That intense sensitivity of cold stuffs, i'd a tough time coping with that already. Yet, it came once again when i was having a great 'date' with my black-white-girlfriend. It came real hard, so hard that i had to stop immediately and get some ointments. Add on to that..last night, for e 3rd time, i had an uneasy sleep that there's only 3 hrs of good sleep. Tsk, have to get well soon for my last poly exams. *fingers crossed*

Left.4.Dead. is a pretty cool game.(: Somehow, somewhat..i got interested in that game after watching my friend play. Those crazy zombies.o.o Not bad for my first experience for that game, but hah..i died due to overwhelming of zombies.

2009-02-02T17:28:00.000-08:00

Hmm..gotta blog alittle on last week.

Nothing extraordinary happened, especially on Sunday. So, i'll talk about Saturday.

I went to Choa Chu Kang to meet Jermaine as her mom's colleague is fetching us to church. Well, that's nice of him..thanks, uncle!!=) We went to the coffeeshop opposite the church to have lunch, then there's this woman who suddenly talked to Jermaine in chinese. She said something about PAP and those government stuffs(not good in chinese.=x)..haha, but i sense propaganda.(:
I knew quite a number of people, but can only remember a few of them; Mikki, Sharon, Shawn, Bowen, and..Swee Keng(is it??) There's this girl who's pretty funny..she and her rojak joke.

My first experience in a church was pretty okay, but kinda weird and awkward. When i entered the auditorium, everybody had their hands raised and shouting some kind of language which sounded pretty african to me. After quite a while, it's pretty okay already after Jermaine explained em to me. I also know quite a few nice songs such as 'Elevate' and 'My Life, Your Song'. To conclude, it's quite cool with knowing new friends.:)

I came across this pretty touching video in tagged and would like to share it with all of you. It's so simple and soothing.(: If anybody needs tissues, note it to me. I'll try to DHL over to you, hahas!!=D

(Perhaps, another option for Valentine's)