it’s my first official day at work! it’s not very difficult to get used to, because there’s a bit of continuity from my past work. research projects, assessments etc. i’ll need time to get used to the lousy traffic. and the 9 to 6 rigid hours….

i’m really tired now from all the walking today. i walked from one faculty to another, back and forth, here and there, everywhere! had to travel to clarke quay to get my pass too. and to the estate office to settle the season parking. the extensive walking in the hot weather, up and down multiples steps and slopes is really annoying.

i can foresee dark and tough days ahead already. as soon as i stepped into my office, my 2 friends told me that they’ll be leaving in july. i have to cover for them. and i’m losing two friends! oh no. that’s quite sad. i really hope things will go smooth for me.

i made a special trip down to the embassy yesterday and was told that i can’t enter because they need everyone to wear shorts/skirts/dresses longer than knee length. $#^G%^%F@^#^(B. I checked the website at least 3 times and it was not written anywhere. WTF. i was really pissed off. i am still pissed off. they say they respect everyone’s religion and beliefs, and yet they force everyone to do what they do and dress the way they dress. this is NOT respect. i really hate them.

but i think i’ve not had enough fun! i’m officially starting work next week, but my calender for the rest of the days is already packed. with other work. sighs. i want a long break!

h is going to shanghai sometime in june with his friends and i think i’ll be wondering what he’s doing all the time. i’ll be stuck at work. i know he is eagerly waiting for the trip. to be honest, i’m envious and jealous at the same time haha. just to a certain degree. envious cos i’ve been talking about going overseas with my friends but it has never happened. jealous cos i want to share trip memories with h haha. nevertheless, i hope he’ll enjoy the trip. i partially ‘sponsored’ him as his birthday present cos it’s what he wants.

alright time to rest!

i have finally, finally, submitted my thesis for examination! i feel happy, excited, yet worried and sad though. sad that i have to start work soon, sad that i’m leaving my friends and a comfortable place, worried that i’ve screwed up for the thesis, yet happy and excited to move on to the next stage.

i don’t have the time to indulge in play though. my study at the hospital continues, and i have to pick up a lot of things even before i start work in 2 weeks’ time. and then there’s a lot of paperwork to settle, from immigrations stuff to personal banking stuff. endless!

i really really wish for a good break!!!

this time round, it’s with my mum and my sis as well. this weekend. i can’t wait!

my supervisor came back with positive feedback on my thesis, and i’m really glad. i’ve scanned through his comments and i will edit tomorrow. i’m tired now because i’ve been marking since 9 am this morning. nevertheless, i’m happy to receive the nice comments. he said he’s decided who the external marker should be too. i’m worried, yet excited, because it’s a person i do admire.

i’m done with marking anyway. this means that i’ve finished my duties as a tutor for good. i’ll probably be changing to a part-time candidature in 2 weeks’ time, which means that the scholarship would be terminated and i wouldn’t have to serve any more duties. honestly speaking, i know i’ll miss my grad school life. i will miss my friends, miss my boss, miss the grad room, miss the duties even. it’s time to move on to the next stage. maybe one fine day i’ll be able to do a phd and go back to my old way of life.

alright. my eyes desperately need a break now.

At this rate, i doubt i will be able to go to imh tomorrow. not that i have a scheduled appointment at the moment, but i thought i should just turn up to ‘show face’. my supervisor agreed with me that it’s probably best to stop things there altogether… i will drop the boss an email soon… once i receive feedback about the thesis, so that i can edit and send him a copy and show him what i’ve done over the past few months.

now it’s back to marking.

i’ve just started marking the final papers… i’ve heard a lot of complaints from other people about how they hate marking, but i personally think that it’s really not that bad. it’s only terrible when you have been really busy and you get assigned another urgent task. anyway, i will get it done soon.

i have a few more days before i go for the medical examination and change my student status to part-time. and i have about 1 month before i start work proper. honestly, i’m feeling quite sad about leaving the programme. i’ve learned a lot and i’ve met great people, whom i’ll miss dearly. unfortunately, in the academic/research field, most people will end up being halfway around the globe in the foreseeable future, and there is a very great possibility that i’ll never see them again. i hope we’ll stay in contact though. best wishes to everyone in the programme!

anyway the royal wedding took place yesterday, and i watched a little segment of it live on tv as my mum was fixated on the tv when i got home. i think weddings are sweet. i wish them a blissful marriage ahead!

okays i probably should head to school to mark now.

i’ve finally submitted the first draft of the thesis to my supervisor. i’m not done with the references, summary, abstract etc etc…. just the main body. i need his opinions on which segments to lengthen and focus on, and which segments should be reduced. gotta wait for at least a week before he’ll get back, cos he’s busy with marking at the meantime.

i already feel much relieved, now that the first draft is out. i do foresee a lot of editing, but i still feel good. so lately i’ve been busy with other personal stuff that i’ve always wanted to do, but kept delaying because of the thesis. for one, i finally backed up my ipod! found a software that would allow me to transfer songs out of the ipod and into my comp. that’s a freaking big relief! i always wonder what will happen if my 3-4 year old ipod dies on me, because it will bury hundreds and thousands of songs with it. lately i’ve been eager to ‘clean up’ my ipod because i’m starting work soon, and i desperately need some music at my desk. i’ve heard that the lab is a quiet place where you can really hear a pin drop. sighs.

i’ve also found another trading platform that i want to use. will set things up asap before i start work and get really busy.

oh and i’ve met sg again at wala! its been quite a while. she’s still singing there. i met her ytd and after her performance we went to coffee bean for a quick catch up. i promised to bring some of my uni friends there in the coming weeks. i think they’ll like the place. i always love music

btw i’ve broken my dad’s sudoku high score again! by 2 points! shiok!

i’ve been surfing property websites lately and i just noticed that my old place is now on sale! what a coincidence… i’m looking for a new place and the old one is on sale. at 950k! i think my parents sold it a few years back at 600+k only. what a big waste!

it’s a really small place but i do have some memories of that place and the time i spent there… i guess it’s fated for me to see photos of it once more.