Sunday, October 09, 2005
the tongue wags and wags
met j the other day and had a nice long chat. its nice to think about old school days and all the crazy (certifiably insane) things we used to get up to way back when. navigating the mists of time is always an enjoyable hobby, although it is a tad self-absorbed and terribly excluding, since you tend to get so wrapped up in the whole talky-talky thing with your old friends that you forget the existence of minor details such as confused not-so-old friends, dinner, prior engagements, and the known universe.
its interesting to see what your old friends are up to. the mep class has abandoned music in general except for m, whos in ny pursuing a bachelors in music now. c didn't pass her a's and is now in a private university getting a business diploma. n's in the us studying to be a stockbroker. l's in ntu doing arts & design, one in SBS, another in business, and yet another doing accounting. g is in the uk doing law together with o, and a is going to australia to study vet science. e is on the nus scholarship, majoring in english. d is in smu business. one couldn't ask for a more varied bunch of people. it's the same story for my sec4 class. compare them with 74, most of whom are currently in school with me or in ntu tcm.
slight segue into sappy monologue: i think this is what's really great about mgs. or secondary school in general as opposed to the stratified combination system in jc--obviously i can't speak for any other secondary schools-- you have all these people with different aims and priorities coming from all sorts of family backgrounds slacking, mugging, playing, or just sleeping through school. somehow mgs manages to stamp its character on all these different personalities to some extent (you can always recognise a fellow mgs girl) and imbue a sense of belonging to a great tradition. of course you could say it's not only peculiar to mgs girls-- look at the rafflesian OBA running parliament now-- but still, i feel a singularly-illogical protectiveness of mgs girls, even though i do know the cliches concerning them tend to be true. and every time i hear
of an ex-mgs girl (a surprising number are modestly-successful doctors in public hospitals, or businesswomen) doing well i give a little cheer. i visit mgs with my friends during open house and eat at hock seng's filthy drinks stall. (there's still a thick coat of grime on the bottom of his plastic cups, and he wears the same shirts he wore when i graduated. some things never change.) maybe i'm one of the nostalgic ones, but i think mgs gave me a lot. more than i can ever hope to return. it made me into a better person (not great, not good, just better) and gave me a chance to succeed when no-one else in their right mind would.
aha. long segue there. anyway. it's time to cut my hair. anyone know a cheap and good hairdresser? i'm tired of being overcharged at t&g when my hair still looks like a made-in-pakistan wig.
+ fictions&fires
12:16 PM
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plangere, latin: to strike, or to lament.
in the depth of winter i finally learned that there was in me an invincible summer.
--albert camus
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to be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best night and day to make you like everybody else means to fight the hardest battle any human being can fight and never stop fighting.
-- ee cummings
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