new year. warning: super long post.

came back from the chalet thursday, feeling tired but satisfied… Its almost the end of 2005, with just 1 day to the new year. Time to do something I do every year, which is to look back at this year. Dunno why I keep doing it, but wells, I just want to. Haha. Talk more about these few days at the end…

2005!!!

Jan was quite interesting. People were all trying to settle into the new school, with the school suddenly how many times bigger. Had a fund raising concert for the tsunami victims, a super rushed concert, done in 2 weeks, but still a good one, and meaningful.

Ah ha. The 2nd year for piano ensemble, and we had auditions, wonderful that we attracted like 50++ people to come and audit, and accepted 30plus, although a lot dropped out after that, which was not my concern… Have to say that I am pleased the way things were going for PE, with funding and the likes all coming in.

Hehheh. My birthday. Got a monkey lalala.

Haha, March concert with vocale. And the grad ceremony!!! With the RJ people all getting awards, whoa… glad that I was there, when will I go again?

But the stupid common tests. Hehheh. I shocked quite a few people when my physics dropped 4 grades, have to say I was rather surprised myself. This was the time I was still deliberating whether to drop physics and go on with 3 subs, and miraculously I didn’t, and maybe I should be thankful. Not that physics got easier, nor would it actually help me from now on, nor did I enjoy it more. But I got through it, and maybe I should be glad I didn’t drop it…

The J1 MEP concert, was the first time in how long that I did AV again, and with a more high tech system than what I worked with (ie 4 stage lights with no colour and just on/off buttons haha).

30th: the first PE concert held by the J1s, solely by themselves. (I cant find the videotape now, dunno where I left it. Scream!) I’m glad that there are at least talented committed people.

May saw the first ever PE public concert. The stress and all those work pressure building up to that day, for those who met me that night could have seen how relieved and glad I was once it was over. Was rather touched by the effort the newly elected J1 comm put in for this concert as well (though sometimes I do wonder how many people is their comm made up off…) and the members! Wonderful members we had, who colour coded their costumes (recall the 2 red shirts), learnt a super hard piece in 2 weeks, and just for being our members. Even though sometimes had to scream (or maybe just nag fiercely) for things to get done, and things were NEVER done on time, yar was glad for them…

Oh I failed napfa too. Haha.

I remember doing compo at weird hours in the morning, and like finishing my 3rd compo at 6 am just for a compo workshop at 3 pm. The mad rushes, but it actually turned out to be my best compo. Hmm…

Jazz concert, another AV experience, where I finally merged with the LT 2 system hahaha. Wonderful lightings that night, and a wonderful jazz club as well. Well done!

Hmm my LTCL accompaniment and the chamber concert happened on the same day… LT first. Got my distinction, practicing everyday really helps!!! Then the rush back to school to do AV again haha wonderful! But what I remembered was that the week it all happened, it was wonderfully stressful, and I was almost falling sick. It was like Jazz concert on a Tuesday night, GP common test the next afternoon, and LTCL and chamber concert the day after. Haha. Wonderful things I do to myself.

June saw the first ever collaboration of our PE with VJPE. What a competition. And taking part in it as well wa haha first time playing 8 hands it was actually quite disastrous, and the only way we masked it was because it didn’t sound that nice either. And organizing the comp whoa am just glad it is over. Really hope to see it again next year…

But the June common tests were wonderful. I got my 4 As!!! Er wrong time actually, cos after that I dropped, but who cares. (Actually, I don’t really care about my grades, if u didn’t know that already. Sure, I’d like them to be good, would be disappointed if I failed, but hey its nothing much.) But the amount of hype and the stupid comments made by others just because I scored such a grade, made me wish that I hadn’t done well. I suppose this is something that happens only to people who are so concerned with their grades. Hey I would have gladly given them the grades if it could make them happy. I’d be happier too! I never got a chance to enjoy my 4 A’s, but heck. Its over.

July… the 2 accompaniments that I did. I’d remember the first one as a super challenging one, with the exam more like a piano exam than a clarinet exam. I’d remember the 2nd one (which was 2 days apart) as a complete waste of time, underpaid, and mistreated, what with having to tolerate some people. Ergh.

August was fun!!! Singing with vocale and EBC was wonderful, although it was somewhat heartbreaking to see how things went for the whole concert altogether, what with lack of good planning and such… so many things have changed since I had left chs, and dunno whether that’s good or bad…

And arranging a song in 3hrs, practicing it and performing it in 1 week was just a superbly self-satisfactory experience. IE the audience obviously weren’t listening. Haha.

And the compo concert!!! As Audrey was saying, many people had my name as their performer. Haha. Like performing 4 works that night (including mine) on the piano, IN the piano, and erhu. Haha. And having people change their score on that day itself, hmm it’s a wonderful experience. At least I proved I could do it hahaha.

September was largely taken up by prelims which was… Nvm better not say anything. But since September onwards it was a mad rush rush rush rush rush and mug mug mug mug mug for the A levels, and I’m the mad one who has the following schedule:

22nd Nov End of A’s
25th Nov FTCL
28th Nov Erhu exam
9th Dec Erhu exam
10th Dec competition

Hahaha. I seriously overwork myself… but then again I always do that. But then about the A’s, full of highs and lows. I would say, one super low point was before and after the physics paper 1&2 (that makes it 2 low points.) expectedly, since my physics was nothing to be confident about, but I still got through it, barely. Another low point, would say it’s the lowest, wasn’t a written paper. It was actually my most confident paper, the music prac. Till now I still dunno how I managed to feel so stressed about it, having a nervous breakdown in front of everyone right before I went in. The things that floated into my head while I was sobbing, I cant remember who said what. But I did hear people saying that this wasn’t my first exam, I had been through worse like LRs, and LTs, what’s an A level prac to me? But my teacher was wonderful, she took me down for a chat, told me these things happen even to the most professional of players. I went in red-eyed, teary, but still managed to play. I was totally lost in the music, dunno how my Beethoven sounded at all (probably didn’t screw up the semiquaver runs as bad as prelims.) I remember wanting to cry through chopin. And I totally exhausted myself through khachaturian. But then its over, and for the afternoon erhu one it wasn’t that bad either. I would say I survived.

And oh, the high points? The maths papers. Definitely. Even though not all went that smoothly, but hheyz its maths. Bound to make a different.

The most tiring day wld be the last day, where I woke at 2.30 haha to mug music, and then had music followed by maths S, which was frustrating ─ if only I had 1 more minute ─ but then hheyz its over!

Then all those outside exams, cant say I breezed through them. Injured my right hand quite badly the day before the FTCL, couldn’t really practice on it. Til now, its still not okay, but im not playing piano that much now. Dunno how I survived the exam. The examiner just had to shake my right hand that hard after the exam it was a wonder I didn’t scream. Haha. Dinner was wonderful that night =)

Erhu exams, ahh im damn shocked when my teacher called and told me my results. Haha.

Competition, same results as two years back, but I am satisfied with myself this time. Haha I was impressive, but just careless. 2 more years, will I take part?

And I totally screwed my right hand after the competition, after making the khachaturian such a vigorous job. I couldn’t write properly, cant even play. Oh wells. Wonderful things I do… and I still took it too fast. But I got through it PERFECT! That’s khachaturian for you.

And then suddenly it was all over, and I was so relieved, now im happily enjoying myself, while everyone else (ok not everyone) is working, but I was saying, I go into NS 2 weeks later because I had stuff on for 2 more weeks after the As were over. Yea.

Had a wonderful Christmas, and a wonderful chalet stay with my family. Not to mention also a 4-2 class gathering, though only 7 people came… new year tmr, what will I be doing?

Have to be thankful for this year, for everyone who helped me get through it one way or another.. without friends, and other important and special people around I wouldn’t have been here, so carefree, typing this out. We all want things to last, but some things cant. Others, we pray, and we hope it does. Thank you =)

Am going out again, not for countdown though. Have to come home early today. It’s a festive season, and I find I do have reasons to cheer.

Happy New Year.

ch