Coming of Age

"We thought this would be a suitable gift for your coming of age" A bicycle.

It was like waking up from a dream. He reeled me in, like a dog running into a glass screen. Was it wrong of me to believe he was going to give me a car? Regardless, the bicycle was what I wanted. I could imagine it now...

Firing start - BANG! And it's off

And the crowd roars - GO PINK RIDER

And who's that .....

VROOM VROOM!!!

Ok, my initial thoughts on this........ Why do I look like SUCH A DORK? Those other cyclists look so spiffy with their bikes?

Firstly, I can almost see a pink streak at the speed for one of them is going, and all i get is wind pushing be backwards. Yes, you heard me, i was being pushed back.

Secondly, my helmet is 5 sizes too small, thus it just sits on top of my head. Oh gosh, talk about a bowl haircut....

Thirdly, my backpack was a huge weight on my shoulders. It was so much heavy as it were embarrassingly HUGE. As a man who is officially 18, why am i mistaken as a dorky international school boy?

*Sigh* My Tour de France dream is now over. But there are upsides to this story. Being the man that I have become in the past 18 years of my life, I built the bike..... (Note: 95% assembled by factory)

If it weren't for my trusty workmanship, the bike would still be in it's box.....Ok, there were some mishaps... I did recieve counsel from the instructions booklet. And i forgot to tighten the steering before I rode to work today...

It was 9am, and I was riding, happily to work. "Weeeeee!" *ring ring* "Entering Turbo Mode: Vroom vroom!"
There were no witnesses to testify i did any of the above.......

It was exhilarating. Going at 5 km/h, i was living on the life on the edge. As my ride tore up the streets, i found elbow was nudging my rib. At first, i thought it was because i had entered a slipstream and I was naturally reducing air resistance, as do all professional cyclists do.

On further observation, I found my steering was aligned slightly to the left. I pushed it back into place. "The bike mustn't have been capable of handling such speeds I endure everyday. But it's ok, I’ll slow down"

It got worse, and when i had reached halfway, i was forced to walk my bike to work. As i walked, many cyclists whizzed past me (Looking way cooler than i did). Some turned their heads at my direction: *smiles and waves* "Flat tire....that was close...."

It's not like I can tell them: "Funny thing, i got this bike the other day, and i didn't screw in the steering tight enough.......by the way, it's my first time"

I guess today was a clear reflection of how manly I am. Building a bike, using the instructions on a last resort basis (or after 10 mins.....ok, 2 mins), going at high speeds in a school zone, refusing to ask for help, nor acknowledging my own failure at any of these. All i can say to this..

*grunts*

The Five Temptresses

One man's dream is another man's nightmare...

Yesterday, i was working a normal Saturday dayshift at TZ NB, and 5 girls came up to me. "Seven dollars please" one of them said. Typical high school girls going to take photos, nothing wrong with that.

"Can you make it Ten dollars?"
"Sure. That's another three dollars"
"Can't you just give us ten dollars? The other guy last time did it for us?"

Surely the integrity of TZ staff was better than this. Or is it?...

"OK, so you want me to put ten on your card?". She nods, with puppy dog eyes. "Can you pass me your card?"

I am a man. What am i to do when there are five girls, giving me all their attention, asking me to do something "everyone does" SO EASILY. So as a TZ employee, providing A+ customer service i did it.

I picked up a pen and wrote 10 on her card, not knowing my small act of defiance would lead to a three hour battle.

Regardless, i resisted temptaion, despite how persistent they were. I pity any of their boyfriends, because they were viscious with the whip. They were pretty tactful in the way they approached/hunted their prey. The way they asked for free games, for my number, for plush toys.
There was no end to their demands, none of which i satisfied. Why would i give them free toys? Why would i give them my number? So they can badger me about how i OWE them toys?
Please....Do i look that desperate?

On a side note, i genuinely thought they were good people and I look forward to seeing them another day

5 Years From ...NOW

People tell me of their dreams, and we're they're heading in life after school/uni. And i think to myself, Can life really be that easy? If it were, i would have dropped out of uni and own my own little cake store Patisserie Tsuruya, and make a little fortune. But that is obviously not the case.

Earlier this week, i was telling my dad confidently, "I'm going to quit Timezone by February next year". The next day, i get told i got the Asst Man. job, and i can accept, ONLY if i intend to work fulltime for at least a year.

My story so far - I've dropped out from Pharmacy, with the intention that i'll begin my studies in Chiropractics in Feb '09. In the meantime, i've been working ~30 hours a week at Timezone, and even applied for Assistant Manager. With the grace of God, i've been offered a contract by Timezone to take up this position. However, there are a few conditions.

If i want to take the perks such as increased weekend pay, sick leave, 38 hours a week, i will be required to work with Timezone for at least a year. Wait.......i only want to work for at max, another 6 months, and they want to squeeze out another 6months on top of that...

So this is where i stand, on the crossroads with two options, both with its pros and cons

1. I take up the position as Asst Man. at TZ, get more hours, more money, looks good on my resume
But by doing so, i forego my ministrial commitments, have less leisure time to socialise, receive more stress, and be forced to wait yet another year before starting my Chiropractics degree...

2. I refuse the position as Asst. Man at TZ, have more time to do things i want (like go on msn for once?), be able to attend to various ministries, have less stress on my shoulders and be able to start Chiropractics with people younger than myself
The downside however is that some new guy will be transferred from somewhere to be manager, to order us around. On top of that, i will have less resources financially.

Thinking of my future, the second option is highly recommended
TZ Asst Man. salary: $42k p/a Chiro Graduate Pay: ~$55k p/a
Asst. Man. title adds no bargaining power to my resume as a graduate chiropractitioner
If i were to stop work entirely, as i plan to in Feb, i believe God will provide (excuse the cliche)

I've decided that i can no longer be the half-hearted fool i was in the last semester. Trying to share my love to TZ and Pharmacy, and to a lesser extent, Labelle, other friends and the ministries i was involved in. No. That's not good enough. I shall be comitted to Chiropractics, and church activities ONLY. If that's not clear enough:

Chiropractics + Church activities = Richard

OR

Chiropractics + Church activities + Girlfriend = Richard
Chiropractics + Church activities = R i c h a r d - G i r l f r i e n d Chiropractics + Church activities = c h a -(g) -(l) -(f) -(i) -(e) -(n)

When the answer is rearranged: G N C HE FAIL

So logically, i'm not supposed to get a gf until after Chiro, a 5 year course...i'll be like 24. But then again, being a Chiro has it's perks...

*Approaches girls*
"Hi there, i'm Richard.....Dr Richard Chew"
*Richard leaves with an entourage of women*

Life On The Other Side

I received a letter in the mail today. Bachelor of Pharmacy - withdrawn early...

This must be the second week without uni; without homework, without lectures, without friends... As a drop-out, my life consists of sleeping in, eat, work. An endless cycle, and for what? For money? To feel i've contributed to society? To wake up to another day of work?

No, nothing of such obscurity. It's to build a foundation for my abounding future.

Sounds like a typical drop-out rambling on about his pipedream. "I see myself as a famous singer hitting the Top 10 hits within the next 2 years".

My bad for playing the drama queen, in the previous post especially. I was exploring different horizons in writing techniques. An Emo style was quite suitable for the subject at matter.
My apologies.

But truth is, i'm not depressed one bit. I do miss my friends in pharmacy, but i can't see myself dealing drugs for the rest of my life. This was my decision, and my path has been redirected to chiropractics - living to find a cure without drugs.

Although it is not everything in my life, i've been spending a lot of my time working at Timezone Northbridge. And i took a step further to challenge one of my superiors by applying for the position Assistant Manager. Oh gosh, he won't like that. It'll be pretty cold when he takes me home....

My life is not in a complete mess. Apart from my constantly changing sleeping patterns, combined with my shifts to work, and my recent entrance to Timezone politics, i'm increasingly reaching a point of destruction. But this is subsided by light reading of a book and the Word each night. To have a moment of peace after a chaotic day, week - priceless.

Hidden Within the Shadow of New Horizons

Long time no talk from me. Much has happened to me in the past 8 weeks, and it has greatly affected the rest of my life. Small things that happened snowballed into something bigger than i had anticipated. But now everything has changed.

Who knows what i am currently studying? Pharmacy? Well, today, i officially deferred from pharmacy for 6 months, with no intention of continuing to study the course. Yep, you heard me correctly, i am officially a pharmacy drop-out. Ouch, that's harsh on the ears....

My lack of passion to force myself to study for another 3 years opposed my plan to continue pharmacy.

So what to do now?

I don't study anymore, which then allows my time to be spent playing guitar hero, pokemon on DS, chatting on MSN and like many others, sell myself on facebook.

But for what?
To test my ability: staring at an LCD screen for 8 hours straight?
To befriend every known monster called pokemon?
To add as many people as possible just so i can look at the number of friends i have?

All this seems so insignificant now. I don't touch the Wii/DS too often, i hardly go on facebook, and if i'm on MSN, i'm appering offline. I do however spend most of my time now at timezone.

Am i becoming one of the timezone regulars, spending my cash on games to let time fly pass me? Is reality too harsh that i have decided to run to my happy place, with my pokemon?
I used to think the TZ regulars were drones, with no lives. Yes, it is inevitable that i will now join that horde.

If you see an asian man, with scruffy hair, bags on his eyes and the distinct blue TZ shirt, tell him- tell him you care

Momentary Interval

I'm currently in the break, between my two sets of exams. My first three exams: Human Biology Theorey, Chemistry and Pharmaceutics. I think i failed 2 of the three exams, which means supps...

No need for the finer details. The gist of it is i decided to go play basketball, go shopping, and got sidetracked by technology during an all-nighter.

I now have a break, almost a week's worth, to rest - not too much though. i should be studying of course. NOT TRUE. I've been working everyday after exams, and i just spent a solid four hours going through blogs and facebook... Hmm, i think i have finally mastered the art of procrastination... Too bad it takes me NO WHERE in life.

But tomorrow's going to be different. I'm going to wake up, go to work to sign some papers, come back, and then study. Maybe i'll play a few games at TZ......

*points at pile of chemistry lectures*
"I feel like tearing it up, and setting it on fire so i'll never look at it ever again, but i know i'll need it for the supp" - Lex

The Hour Is Near...

It's that time of the year again. Holidays are soooo close, it's as if i could stretch out and grasp it with my hands. But it's untouchable. Like a mirage at taunting me. I know it's real though, even if i can't reach it yet. Because there's something standing between me and paradise...>EXAMS<...

Why are they so frightening? Is it because they count for so much in my unit? Or is it because the guy next to me smells funny?.....Hmmm...i think it's because he keeps glancing over at me <<

Today is officially the first day of my exam, yet i sit here only to dawdle, and ponder on my life thus far. It's been about 3 months since my last log, and to some, i have disappeared from the edge of the Earth. Why is that? Hmm....Maybe it's because nothing interesting has happened. I only went to a few parties, a few camps here and there, got a girlfriend Labelle - ended it, had a fallout with a good friend of mine, starred as Jesus in a musical production - The Choice......but none of which is noteworthy, surely not...

I caught a glimpse of those comforting holidays - "30% OFF SALE" at Myer. If i survive my exams, i shall go on a shopping spree - either to reward my "hard work" up to this year, or to drown my sorrows as i set myself up to repeat my first year in pharmacy.....I hope i'll have friends

-> "Hi, i'm Richard. I failed last year, so i'm repeating 1st year again. Wanna be friends?"