empty

ems concert, and this time, it felt strangely different.
still wasn’t nervous about performing, more preoccupied w the fact i would screw up. hah. the first half saw us giving concert booklets and checking tickets, followed by placing food on the table, getting ready for the interval.

it was only after the concert band played, and i had the chance to sit in the hall and listen to the orchestra, did i mull over some things. i dislike change, i fear it. while i’m sometimes able to brace the unknown, most of the time, i get ripped by it. i hold onto the past, i day dream, but i never take a step forward.

and this time my life seems to be spiraling in the other direction.
the post-concert party saw me having a good time just talking to the other members, or past members whom i’ve never met.

x
it scares me how i’ll never see some of them again. i don’t know how others deal with it, but i just freeze up inside. doesn’t it disturb you, never being able to keep everyone close to you?

and with that, the chapter with ems has come to a close.
it’s not a bittersweet feeling, maybe just the former half.
oh wait, there’s still beer&freddos.

till then, then.

im still alive!!

errr yea. HI.
my life isn’t that interesting at the moment, it’s either school, cca, home, schoolwork or sleep. so yea, i won’t wanna read that. sounds like a typical acad journal. oops?

i’m pretty busy at the moment, here’s what i have on my plate, apart from schoolwork.

1) joined the gym.
have been going for classes about twice a week or so. hopefully i get to swim more.. i just hate the fact i’ve to walk to school in the cold to swim, then run home in the cold to shower. also the water is probably mutated, because after my first swim, i felt itchy all over and had big blotches of mozzie-like bites on my whole body. not very funny when you’re walking home and resisting the urge to scratch like a monkey. worse when you’re naked and you look like you’ve a disease. )=

2) editing articles for a school’s website.
haven’t figured out how the process is like, we’ve just gotten the web up and running, but if you’re interested.. it’s www.melbourneriffraff.com.au i’m in-charge of the category ‘people’, so i edit articles, get the rest in the category to edit them too while i’ll have the last look, and other admin stuff.

3) cell group.
i’ve been more active in ocf, kinda happy i guess, being useful.. plus last night i got to play with their mixer. (= i miss doing the pa in church and for weddings. but with weddings come condescending couples so idk. i’m also going to attend some leadership thingy (ME, leh!) HAHAHAA. -crosses fingers-

4) band.
need to get started on the pieces, i can’t afford to lag behind )=

and that’s about it, other than me worrying about internships, modules to do during holidays, the lack of time and motivation to go out…..

reflection

band:
wow much?

whoever would have thought i’d join a group in melb? sure i wanted to continue my drum lessons and start dance class.. but doing both at the same time isn’t exactly cheap. and i left my drum sticks and silent pad in sg. silly me.

i guess it’s really God’s grace. they needed percussionists, i wanted to be part of a band. now i can strike it off my bucket list. (= the biggest drawback was, i can’t read notes or scores to save my life.

1) can’t side read..
2) band score? never saw that before
3) i remember that 4/4 is.. but the others? what?

ok in a nutshell i was a liability to the percussion section, and to the band. no kidding. hey i don’t even know when to hit the drum. what’s more. the drum has like what, ONE note. oh yea i couldn’t hit the triangle properly either. hey o hey o.

which is weird cos when i told my friends i joined the band they all asked “geez what are you gonna play? the triangle?!” and i’m like “uhh yea..” i guess the funniest part was that i couldn’t even do it properly.

pretty much wanted to quit after the first practice. there was band camp that weekend, didn’t feel like going.. because
1) i’m just gonna suck either way…
2) strangers + me.. er.. hmm.

for the record, i made friends (haha milestone!) during camp and i wrote every single beat on the band score.

helped out for the orchestra’s prac, couldn’t read the scores again. conductor came up to me after prac, i seriously thought he was going to tell me that i really, really sucked (haha i hit everything wrongly you see) but instead he got us to join the orchestra cos they needed percussionists. (okay wow what just happened there did he not hear what i played?)

camp ended. i kinda knew when to hit what and all. fellow percussionist sent me the links for the songs in youtube, photocopied the scores for me, and i went home to beat the shit outta my table. tap tap tap everyday before i started work, and after i got done with work.

turned out well i suppose. (= i no longer needed to count bars and all and i instead listened to the melody and hit the air-bass drum at the right time. band has a nice special place in my life right now. gives me something to look forward to. and it’s also one of the first times i’ve joined something, and not quit.. (commitment issues, tl;dr) i can safely say i’m not bored of band. hooray!

which brings me to…

https://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=10150603265510545&comments

(can’t embed fb vid..)

i guess it’s just the feeling of ‘woah achievement well done char i see you didn’t give up’ that makes me happy.

i left my scores in the cymbal bag and i can’t get it back. i probably should try to though cos i think i left a letter btwn the stacks too. ack. )=

okay off to do my essays now.

camp

what i learnt from camp

x clubs in uni melb aren’t only for the school’s faculty
x engineers in uni melb aren’t all geeks
x the camp is full of talented musicians, i’m probably the least talented of all
x i’m really attracted to people who are musically inclined
x camps in aus are amazing. beds, pillows, hot water, ensuite
x parties have to occur nightly, till early in the morning
x it’s possible to sleep for 4 hrs, prac for one whole day, party the whole night/ late morn, and prac for another 1/2 day.
x naked run
x tops-off dancing
x don’t sleep early or dicks will be drawn on your body
x camp food isn’t cold packets of rice with 1 chicken wing, few pieces of long beans, 1 egg.
breakfast: cereal, toast, eggs, bacon.
morning tea: freshly baked cakes. lunch: build your own sandwich, free flow turkey ham, beef, pork, vege, ministrone soup, pumpkin soup, tomato soup, garden bbq beef burgers.
late tea: more cakes, jelly.
dinner: beef/vege pasta.
dessert: peach tart with ice cream, lemingtons, brownies.
(we are obviously well fed…)
x beers are a must. like, 10 a day. the majority of rubbish came from beer bottles
x sculling 3 times isn’t fun; sculling a jug = puking
x you get to see wild kangaroos
x happy happy fun games
x sexual content makes games more fun
x organising a camp is quite chill, in terms of lodging and rules. you pick any room you want to sleep in, buddies are both male/female.
x no shitty rules about making out, sex, drugs, smoking, exploring. whatever, you’re an adult.
x organisers and comm members don’t act like elites and sit alone. everyone just sits with wherever there’s space

…..in other words, i’m now playing the percussion in the concert band, and the orchestra. mon & weds.

one time… at band camp…