Being on an internship has led me to think about my future prospects a lot. Almost everyday I would think about my purpose in life, what I want to do dah dah dah and I actually get emotional just thinking about what I want to do.

I realise I've a lot I want to do.

Not everyone knows about my dreams. In fact, nobody does. Not the whole full account that is and I'm about to tell you guys about it right here right now. So stick around~~

Because I'm graduating in a year's time... it is high time I think about what I want to do in the long run and how I'm going to find a job and stuff.

Here are the steps I have sorta set up for myself: Chronologically. And the last pointer will reveal to you my ultimate dream... haha sounds extremely lofty.


Right after Graduation:

I know I definitely want to work in the media industry.

Definitely something to do with the broadcasting industry.

And when my internship supervisors and colleagues ask me every now and then whether I want to come back to Mediacorp to work.

I say...



A surprising, not yet.

Let me explain myself.

The reason why is,


1) I want to first go overseas to broaden my work experience.

Why overseas?

I have always dreamt of living and working overseas... Maybe it was too much Western pop culture but I would always dream of doing just that. I always thought I'd do that eventually, but somehow along the way while growing up, I kind of thought it impossible because... it is kinda impossible don't you think? Having to live on your own, and survive all on your own financially.

But recently, I'm starting to think.. it is possible. Perhaps exchange gave me a taste of it. But exchange was just the tip of the ice berg. My living expenses were paid for by my parents. And I've always wanted to live abroad and financially support myself.

That in itself is a challenge.

But that's not the main reason why I want to go overseas.

The reason is: I want to absorb and learn the practices of a broadcasting media industry from elsewhere BEFORE, coming back to Singapore.

If I never stepped out of Singapore to have a taste of what's outside of Singapore... I think that would have constricted and limited my perspective of things. Singapore is comfort, and if I stay in Singapore, I think.. I will only be bubbling in anything and everything Singapore..... I want to broaden my own experiences and come back to Singapore with new ideas and ways that I can contribute when I come back.


Which country do I want to work at?

My biggest dream would be to go to London to work. And a bigger dream would be to work at BBC. (if only I could!!)

Why BBC you ask?

I've tasted CNA, and kinda know how things are run. I want to know how things are run elsewhere and that elsewhere needs to be somewhere well-known and established. That to me, is BBC. I want to learn what goes on in such a long-running broadcasting company. What makes it tick? What makes its programmes and news so admirable?

And I want to absorb everything, EVERYTHING like a sponge.

I have to be honest, I don't have BBC at home.... only Mediacorp and THAT is precisely WHY I want to go overseas. I feel like I've been living in this small bubble of Singaporeaness and I really haven't stretched myself beyond that bubble. Someone needs to poke it real hard.

Working and living there for at least a year (or more) would definitely help me stretch my understanding of the broadcasting media industry..

Why London?

Coz it's JUST LIKE Singapore. It's diverse, it's multi-ethnic, and most importantly, it's a city. Like Singapore. I think I can live with that. At the same time, it's culturally different and it is that cultural difference that I want to learn to deal with as well.





2) After a year or 2, I come back to Singapore.


Fear not, I won't migrate or live there forever. Coz I'll definitely come back to Singapore. I hope going overseas would've enriched me with new ideas and practices that I can inject wherever I work.

And I think in the long run, I'll be back in Mediacorp. So that is why... I won't go to Mediacorp straight after graduation? Coz I KNOW I'll be back for sure some day. I have given thought to coming back right after graduation... it is a great place to work at, seeing how my internship went, but I know I need to stretch my horizons before ever returning.

I think that really is important.


Some of you might ask why I even want to come back to Singapore? If I do actually enjoy living overseas, might as well just migrate.

But I am Singaporean through and through... and I will never leave my country. Much of my generation, speak of the nation with bitterness, anger, and jadedness. I never refute these views, because many of them are true. I understand these viewpoints.

Singapore is touted to be a slave-driving economical machine, ready to work its citizens to the core. Right till pension age, when CPF comes to play and is the root to all unhappiness. I even studied all this in my sociology class I took last semester. Upon learning all these things, I did become disappointed in the system: with all its elitism. Coming from a neighbourhood school, I was part of the "undercurrents" in a less-privileged education system. These are just some of the things I can be unhappy about with Singapore. I understood how in so many aspects, certain factions of society are favoured and living in a materialistic world can be frustrating.

However, I will not leave my country on the basis of all this unhappiness.

I don't even blame the government over such things.

Maybe it's because I haven't exactly started living on my own, carved my own career and tried surviving in this dark money making cruel world where money is never enough... For me, despite all these. DESPITE all that I have learnt about my country, I wouldn't give up my pink IC for the world.

I am pretty idealistic, and to be honest I dunno where or how I am borne with this much love for the country that it can actually be uncool (lol I have contemplated this many times. Patriotic? Wtf ew?) But I am proud to be Singaporean and I will never leave it just because. My pasir ris is becoming so damn crowded, I'm getting unhappy. I see my fishing pond disappear (as you can see in one of my instag photos) but I tolerate. One day I might not be able to tolerate anymore,

But I stay because I believe... this word is really overrated "I believe" (nabeh), But I truly believe in staying and making your country a place that YOU want to have.

No country is without problems. Even if I migrate, there will still be problems elsewhere. But I won't run. I stay. And I make sure I do something about it.


It is one of the reasons why I want to carve a future in the media industry.




3) My ultimate dream is to ensure that my future job.. whatever it is, allows me to pursue social causes and beliefs.


That. Is my ultimate dream and working in the media industry I believe, will inevitably help me achieve that.

I read this article a friend shared on Facebook a month ago: "4 Tips To Help Millennials Find Meaningful Work". You can read it here.

It talks about how young people these days are labelled as lazy and restless and apathetic, but the fact is unlike other generations, money-making is not the top priority... young people nowadays are making sure that the work that they do has a PURPOSE to it.

The article mentions: "they aren’t motivated by money. Rather, they’re driven to make the world more compassionate, innovative, and sustainable."

That to me, is very true.

I realise, what I want to do eventually, must have a purpose. I want to make sure that what I do is aligned with what I set out to achieve. For me, simply raising awareness about causes that I strongly believe in is good enough.

Now, working in the media industry allows me to do just that.

The media is powerful. And what better way to leverage its power than doing GOOD with that power?? I always think celebrities and what not have so much power to raise awareness about issues and causes that they believe in. But so little of them do that and I think that's just plain wasted. Maybe bureaucracy doesn't allow that or maybe there is just no airtime for that. Don't even talk about President Star Charity or whatever, that one not counted haha.

Which explains why my internship is so meaningful because the programme that I'm attached to raises issues and awareness about what's happening on this little red dot. I feel a sense of purpose when I do my job?? Like I'm doing SOMETHING and that, my friend, is gratifying.

Be it poverty, migrant worker or whatever unhappy issues in Singapore, to simply address these issues and try to gain traction and awareness makes my job fulfilling.

I want to make Singapore, THE Singapore that I want to see and have. By working in the media industry helps me to DO something.

It is idealistic, but that is my dream.

Before I can do that, I need to enrich myself and gain as much awareness of the world as I can, which explains my entire journey upon graduation to reach that dream.


I don't know how I'm gonna get there, don't know how I'm gonna land myself a ticket to London, don't know where life will take me to reach there, all I know is, this is what I want to do and I sure as hell wanna make sure I get there.

My blog description of myself says that I have loadsa ambitions and aspirations to achieve. This is what I'm talking about.

Very lofty dreams some would say, I really dunno how I'm gonna get there. But as long as you're willing to stick around with me and watch me go, I'll chronicle as much on this blog till I get to my end goal. Definitely a bumpeh ride, but I'm sure this is what I want to do. Don't know how to get there, but I will get there.

p/s POLL IT!

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After 3-4 weeks of filming, scripting and directing....

My fellow intern turned good buddy, Melanie, and I have FINALLY FINISHED OUR EPISODE!!!!!!!! :'D

It's gonna air TONIGHT (Wednesday) at 9pm on Channel 5. I'm so freakin excited coz we're really so proud of the work that we did. So freakin proud.

All the encouraging feedback from our bosses and colleagues made it even more..... GODLY LOL.

But seriously, no doubt tiring, I had so much fun doing this episode. SO Much fun. I got to do so many things and become friends with so many people. Melanie and I even made friends with our profiles heh.

He is the main profile of our show and his journey truly is an incredible one. Ex-convict turned Lawyer. In prison for 10 years and now, fighting for the law. How incredible is that story huh? Of COURSE we had to do it.

The mini-series of On the Red Dot is called "It Takes A Village", which we feature the many helping hands that helped an individual get back on his feet. So there were topics that featured people who had depression, autism, diabetes, or battled with visual impairment.

Melanie and I were given the topic on "Ex-convicts". So we had to visit people who helped an ex-con back on his feet and reintegrate into society.

At the beginning, when we were given the topic "Ex-cons", Melanie and I were like, what? Isn't that a freakin difficult topic to do wth? And they wanna give it to us newbies?


In the end.... I can't believe how much fun we had and how much joy and pride we have for this episode.

I was SO afraid we wouldn't do Darren, our profile, justice. Coz it really is such a touching and brilliant story.. but we pulled it off in the end. I really gotta say we were really lucky. Best cameramen, best video editors, best EVERYTHING and EVERYONE to work with. Almost nothing went wrong throughout the process. We were so damn lucky. So bloody thankful I feel.. ugh so emotional.


And I'm so thankful for having freakin supportive friends who didn't mind acting as ahbengs and gangsters for the show :')

Here are some behind the scenes pictures.


Preparing for gang fight at Mediacorp carpark



CHARGEEEEE
Yes can you believe it, Deyong is using an umbrella to fight. But that was the actual weapon used during the fight in 1993 so we had no choice but to follow accordingly.



 BASH UP.


Omfg, you cannot understand how HILARIOUS this reenactment shoot was.

I cried buckets from laughing I swear. It was too freakin funny, knowing that they're your friends and they're TRYING to act gangster and damn fail all. I think the only one who passed was Yiming. Seasoned actor, long hair all, FIT for the gangster role. Argh, it was too hilarious this shoot.

And even during editing, I never FAILED to laugh coz their faces... really cannot pass I swear. Too funny. But they made it to the screens.

My bosses loved the reenactments. Even Cheryl Fox loved it. That one is the ultimate pass hahahah.


Also, here are some behind-the-scenes pictures with our profiles while filming,




They seriously are the nicest people to work with. So cooperative with us and... quite hilarious to work with.

We filmed Darren for 4 full days, and inevitably, I think both Melanie and I have become friends with these people? Sadly, we have to maintain a "professional" relationship?

Journalists and profiles apparently can't be friends. Sometimes, it's quite sad lah coz on the last day of our shoot with him, it felt like we were meeting a friend for the last time and almost exploiting him of his story. A lot of dilemmas being a journalist.

I dunno if I can even blog about my thoughts about such things in fact. Bureaucracy sigh.

But, I think it's still fine maintaining an amicable relationship with our profiles.. I mean it's only human that we become friends with them?!?! To be able to immerse in their stories and understand THEM, we have to KNOW them and can't help but feel personally involved in their lives during filming.


And, I must say, the extent of our cordial relationship with our profiles is such that we can tell our profile that he will appear on National TV....



WITH A CHILLI FLAKE IN HIS TEETH HAHAHAHAHAHHAHA.

It was so hilarious when we saw his chilli flake up close.

But as a viewer, you'd probably not be able to spot it. It's after hours of viewing the same video over and over again. Freakin hilarious. But he didn't mind lah when we sent this to him hahahah.

Ahhh... it was really such a fun shoot. I'd do it all over again.

True enough, they've given me another episode to do all on my own without Melanie :'( I really thought we worked damn well together. There were times when I was very stubborn with cameramen, and without her I wouldn't have been able to appease them. Moreover, I feel at ease with someone with me. I always felt happy and less stressed with her around. Laughing on shoot and in the van after shoots.... it was so fun!!!!!! I can't believe the 4 weeks passed so fast. I still remembered how we were discussing whether we should have Darren as our profile. Good times~

That's us hehehehehe!


More pressure to deliver on my own now. But I'm gonna take a rest first before I go full steam ahead with my next episode. Now... I'm basking in joy and happiness with this episode that's gonna come out TONIGHT!!!!!! Ahhhh!!!! Soak it all in : )

Catch it guys!! If you can't, there's an encore at 10:30pm on CNA and there's always xinmsn to catchup lol lol.

I'm replying according to the questions posed on the retro tagboard. Btw ah you guys, PUT YOUR NAME OTHERWISE I WON'T REPLY ANYMORE.

Even if it's fake, like Stacy or Eduardo hahaha. Those names came up at the top of my head.

Let's roll~


1) Am I a WKW Ambassador? 

Hell yeah I am. You guessed that right.

Hahah kidding how I wish I was knighted and bestowed the honour of being an ambassador with my bloody beautiful face slapped on the pages of your textbook ; )

But can I just haolian and tell you guys I'm on the pages of this year's ntu wkwsci prospects book? HAHAHAHA.


2) Employment 

Alright drama queen, this one, I think even seniors in my batch and beyond are still struggling to figure out where they want to work in the future. So for you to worry about it in Year 1... I would say... it's a bit early and premature.

But I understand it's a legitimate concern and quite forward thinking of you to consider that.

Like the previous person who asked me the same question, you need to know what you want to do.

For WKW, there are 5 concentration tracks to do and in order of popularity:

1) Public Relations (PR) 
2) Advertising 
3) Journalism 
4) Broadcast 
5) Communication Research 

If you still don't know which track you'd like to do, Year 1 is the best time to have a feel of the ground because you will be taking every basic module there is for each track. Maybe not so for PR and advert, but you sorta get a feel of what you'd like to do.

Once you sorta know what you like, over the years, I really mean over the course of your 4 years in wkwsci, you'll hear advice from friends, teachers on the different industries out there and eventually you'll get there.

You will have a compulsory Professional Internship (PI) to go for in Year 3 and by then you'll sorta figure out if the job you're doing during internship is up your alley. And some people realise it isn't during PI. And that's ok, at least you're still in school, you have time to consider what is it that you want to do in life.

If none of these tracks interest you, darling, you might in fact be in the wrong school. But I doubt lah, since all of y'all must have chosen the school based on interest and passion in communications somewhere somehow.

I can't give a broad overview of each track and its employment prospects because a) I don't belong to each and every track, b) I will die explaining every single track.

I'm in Broadcast + Journ so if you want a taste of what it's like, my blog has quite a few posts on my current internship life and stuff : )

My advice: Since you've quite a fair bit of time before school term begins in August, go read up on magazines, newspapers, whatever and find out what piques your interest. What is it you wanna do in the future? So that you have a clearer picture and idea of the track you want to pursue in wkwsci

You don't have to be super absolute and clear about the track because I entered wkwsci not having an absolute idea about which track I wanted to do. But for some reason, I didn't panic. I just went with the flow~

The general feeling I get from most of you is that you guys are thinking a taddd too far ahead. Have faith, trust yourself that you'll find your calling eventually. You have 4 years to think about it, and you need a taste of communications before you can settle for something. So, keep searching.


3) Seniors 

Are they friendly? Or are they shit? Heyyyy you're talking to one right now! Yes, we are very friendly, very approachable people.

In fact one of my biggest upsets during Year 1 was that I was too afraid of seniors? Coz they're SENIORS? It's like when I was Secondary 1, I looked up to the Secondary 4 students in my school with AWE and AMAZEMENT. But when you eventually reach Sec 4 yourself, you're like WHATEV. You don't actually feel that UP there.

Right??? It's the same concept lah.

I'm gonna be Year 4 next year, but I don't feel like "I AM SO HIGH & MIGHTY YOU SUCKAS LOSERS"> Ok lah, occasionally when we are Year 2/3s, we'll peep at the Year 1s and complain how noisy they are/ why they have so much energy lol. I think the complaints go as far as that and not beyond that.

So yes, seniors are very very very friendly. My seniors were extremely extremely friendly to me during Year 1 and they are very willing to impart knowledge about anything about the school. Especially during Orientation Camp, they will have nothing better to do so they will come and talk to you. So you must reciprocate and talk back AND LEECH OFF THEM ABOUT ANYTHING YOU WANT TO KNOW OK.

They won't judge you.

My advice: Talk to them like a normal person. I found it quite hard also initially, but they're really just this bunch of older people who know a tad more about the school than you do. Hahahha.


4) Modules 

Same as point number 2, I cannot give you tips about which modules you should/should not take because I don't know specifically which track you want to go for.

If you say "Broadcast" modules, maybe I can give you a better idea of which modules to take and stuff.

I'm not an expert in all the modules, so if you ask me "Advert" or "PR", I have no valuable input for those modules.

Furthermore, as wkw students, we have to take a lot of electives, not just wkw mods. Electives are modules from different schools like Science or Humanities and Arts. I don't know what excites you either so I can't say for sure what are the yes and no modules.

For example, I did well in Singapore's Foreign Policy. But are you interested in Political Science? Probably not. I did shit for Astronomy. But you might be interested in the galaxy and milky way, so what I want and what you want is vastly different~

My advice: Go with your interest. If something interests you, naturally you'll take it up.

My second advice: ASK, ASK, ASK. Ask friends and seniors who have taken certain modules before. If they think it's scorable, they will tell you.

But like I said, what they like and what you like is different. Sometimes they think it could be shit, but if you're willed to take it up, then GO FOR IT!


5) Bidding for modules 

I was so afraid about this part when I was a freshie. Coz I couldn't understand the complicated way of getting your modules. I was from JC like many others, just FEED ME haha. Yes, you've to plan your own timetables my friends. I got the shock of my life when I realised that in Year 1 hahahah.

We don't "bid" for modules like NUS where you're given a set of credits and the highest bidder gets the best fish in the house. But in NTU we do this system called "STARS" where fastest fingers get their modules. Which means you gotta click fastest and at the right time to get your mods.

When the start time is at say 1pm, you'll see people preparing to click a send button and it gets so tense at 12:59pm lol.

For tips, I have to admit I'm not the best "STARS" wars fighter. But I can tell you what to be careful of and simple to-do stuff:

- Make sure your internet is fast and connected so when you start clicking, it doesn't jam and shit
- PLAN YOUR TIMETABLES PROPERLY FIRST then press send.
- Apparently, overloading the modules is the way to go. Which means even if you don't really want to take that module, you just take it just in case, so that at least you're not left with nothing. Then drop them later. In my opinion, that is quite lame. I never do that.
- Refresh, refresh, refresh your page. You might get lucky when a slot suddenly appears.
- Camp at your computer and refresh more if you want to get a slot.

Honestly, I'm a very lazy "STARS" wars fighter, I really can't give a shit about fighting. I think it's too lame.

But of coz I panic lah when I don't get a module I want hahaha. But for some strange divine reason, I always think, somehow you'll get it eventually. It's just how SWEE SWEE you want your timetable to be coz on some days you can plan a whole day FREE of school so you don't need to go to school on those days. How. Awesome eh?

I've had a 3-day school week before. That I say, IS THE LIFE> Hahaha.

Don't worry too much if you get ABSOLUTELY NOTHING on your first try. That happened to me, and I survived lah. Not doomsday.

So guys, as you can tell, I was wayyyy more unprepared than the most and whole lot of you. Go with the flow! Really.


6) Jeraldine Phneah 

Like I said, I've nothing to say about her.

I don't even know her personally and she's a batch above mine. I really feel there's nothing much to talk about her lah. She's living her own life, we're living our own lives. I don't really know if she's ostracised, but I think she still has friends, not so jialat.

My only concern is.... Her surname is really a hard nut to crack. My friends and I just do not know how to pronounce her name. Is it silent p-h or is it FUR-NIA?

Lame stuff like that is the only thing I can talk about for her case.

So Case Closed.

[edit: Jeraldine is doing fine now. Quite well in fact. So it doesn't mean that you can't pick yourself up when you fall sometimes]


General questions about NTU I've replied in my tagboard : )

Hahahah, didn't mean to make fun of you lah "anotherfreshie" but I had to put that as my title for the post.

Afterall, we really are hacking into the "bloodspot" ; )

Ok, since there has been a high demand from so many incoming freshies for a blog post on my fabulous, most awesome school in NTU, WKWSCI, I shall do up this post just for y'all k. Keep the requests coming, I'm more than happy to entertain and will reply whenever I can.

To set everything into context, I am currently a Year 3 student, in my second semester doing an internship at Mediacorp. I only have a year left at wkwsci, so when I see you freshies in school, I will be the oldest of oldest seniors of the school. Lao kok.

And let me tell ya, I can't believe how fast time flies. My freakin god man. I feel like the 3 years in NTU have flown by in a blink of an eye. I wouldn't say I still feel like a freshie, because throughout these 3 years I've experienced too much for my mental state to remain that fresh. And for you, choosing this school, I really don't think you'll regret it.


I will answer all of your most feared things about the school and some of the thoughts (very similar thoughts in fact) I had when I first stepped into my school.




This was how I looked when I first entered wkw, freshmen and all. Even all these people here, wow they've grown so much. In a good way as well for all of us.

And seeing this, you must be asking:


1) Do people in WKWSCI dress very fashionably?

The answer is, a RESOUNDING YES.

As you can see from the above picture, it might not be obvious to you but we have "Theme weeks" in school, and on these days, we get to dress up according to themes. If It's not blatantly obvious in the above picture, ok actually it isn't obvious, the theme was floral. AND YOU CAN TELL I WAS FULL ON FLORAL HAHAHA.

But yes, people are fashionable even on normal days.

I definitely was not fashionable when I got into wkw. C'mon! Fresh out of JC, lookin like a turd with no sense of fashion style in my extremely fashionable green/blue/idunnowhatshade of green TPJC uniform, I can't blame myself for having zero fashion sense hahahaha.

Of course I wondered if people would judge me based on what I wore at wkw.

But for some reason, I thought I still dressed ok lah. So I never really thought much about it. But, but..

Yes, people in school will judge you. But hey, that's the fun of it. Becoz knowing that you'll get judged, inevitably you start to think about what your fashion sense is. You shouldn't blend into the crowd, but somehow, use this chance to find yourself and what it is you like to wear. That's the incredible part.

Advice: Just dress presentably and I think that will do you fine.

Don't worry, there will always be other retards in school too who will do retarded things with you when fashion fails.


Like this retard over here
HAHAHA.
He's gorgeous lah, and I, some step ahlian. Woah, I can't believe I used "STEP", I've never used that word, bless me! But yes, I look like a step ah lian and there will always be someone who will step with you on steps (literally in the picture!)

- This was Uniform week btw, I didn't want anyone to identify which school I was from so I combined secondary and jc uniform all in one. Smart eh.

Anyway, Theme weeks are Year 1 fun. After that, people like me don't have that much fun anymore hahahah, so live it up while you're a freshie!


Speaking about judgmental, the second question that would come to mind would be...



2) Are people BIATACHYCHY?

Sad to say, yes, WKWSCI can be... I'm not even going to lie, but yes it can be quite a bitchy place.

I think especially so when you first enter wkw because as a freshie, EVERYONE is trying to impress EVERYONE else in school. This is the first time when everyone in your level will start to form social circles and pick friends, so naturally you will feel judgmental attitudes from your peers. Simply because all of you are choosing your friends in wkw. So everyone will be putting on a show in Year 1.

"I am so totally into indie omg do you know who this band is?"
"No"
"What? Oh, you're so uncool. *L TO YOUR FACE*"

Just coming up with a non-existent scenario hahahah


But That is natural.

My advice: Keep cool keep calm, be yourself even when it is hard to be yourself at times when you need to appear like a social butterfly.

For me, I remained as myself. I never changed or tried to be someone else.

An example that proved how true I stayed to myself was when I admitted to everyone in my Orientation Group that I did not have Facebook.

I got incredulous stares and remember someone verbally said "Huh?! how can she not have Facebook?". I felt singled out and OUT OF THIS WORLD. But I also felt, special. Hahaha. Ok lah, that's in retrospect but at that point of time, I felt like "oh no now people are gonna think I'm weird". But in the end, I felt confident enough to not feel shit about myself just coz I didn't have Facebook then. Yes, at the age of 19 I didn't have Facebook, it's your turn to judge me now hahaha.

I got Facebook in the end lah, coz wkw what, what to do. Cannot survive without it ya know.

But as a freshie, I guess you'd want advice on how to try to fit in with everyone else, and if that's the case,

My second advice would be: At least try to stay interested in people during conversations. React to them, and participate when an opportunity arises.

It's people to people connection lah. It is important to have people connection. And you will learn that when you enter wkw.

With that, there will be your first opportunity to practise your people-to-people skills. Brings me to the third question:


3) How are wkw freshmen camps like???

I was once a freshie and a gl so my views can be both very credible, yet at the same time bias hahahaha. But I have to say, everyone.. seriously everyone, thinks our camp is

AWESOME.

I haven't heard a word of shit about it. (or maybe nobody dares to say it hahaha)

But it's truck loads of fun. No sexual games are played at all unlike other camps. Just pure fun and it's very very special too. I dare say your Year 2 seniors will give in their ALL to present to you a very fun orientation camp.

Up till today, there are people in my batch who still hang out with people whom they first met in their OGs (orientation groups). So yes, lifelong friendships last even after Orientation camp.

For me? Nehhh I mix everywhere. I used to think I didn't have a social group... so out of place.... so lonely.... but soon I realised, the whole school was THE social group. You don't need a fixed one and ultimately, Wkw is a small school so everyone knows EVERYONE.

That is why maybe wkw can be a bitchy school coz the social circle is so small, so one thing you do, the WHOLE SCHOOL will know. No place to hide.

But all's cool. If you're an ok person, everyone will treat you ok. So ALL IS OK : )


My first outing with my freshmen OG mates.

It was awkward, and yeah quite awkward.
But it was ok lah, it's that stage when everyone just got to know each other so ya lah, awkward it was.
Eventually, by Year 2/3, you won't be so awkward with these people anymore. It's hard to keep up with a facade after so many years. People will seeee through you.

That's why take the my earlier advice to be true to yourself when you meet people. Eventually, people will be sick of putting up a front and everyone sees through everyone else. That's when you'll eventually find true friends.

It'll take a while, but you'll get there.


4) Are people damnnn smart? Are they really good at writing?

I got a few of that on my tagboard already.

Yes, there are people who will be very good at writing. Everyone in there is good at writing lah. Since most people who get in there are from the Arts stream, there will be people who have a natural flair for writing.

Yes, they are smart people. I dunno what you define as smart. But ok, they are people who commit excellence to their work. So they will really work hard to make sure their work is good.

It's something I admire about my own school mates.

So, HOW DO YOU BEAT THOSE GOD DAMN PEOPLE?

When you take modules like basic writing in journalism, use that as a stepping stone to find out what YOU'RE GOOD AT. When you write articles, you'll find out what it is that you're good at. For me, I think I was able to catch on good quotes. And knowing what you're good at helps you gain confidence in your writing and from there, you'll improve bit by bit.

Even now, I'm not totally confident in my writing. I still lag behind my peers, but aiya, really, you'll get there slowly.

That's advice for JOURNALISM writing. I'm not even a journ major, but that's the advice I can give.

If you're talking about essay writing during exams, then yes, everyone is good at writing. That one you don't need stylistic writing. Everyone is good at stating facts and points. So, that one, my advice is you just gotta know your shit. Simple as that. Study your mods and study real hard. Becoz there will be others in your cohort who will be one step ahead of you and memorise facts and details you'd never think they'd memorise.

I used to compete with that. I still do. But when it comes to competing down to the wire of remembering minute facts and data, I concede.

For example, there's a mod called Communication History.

I thought I would enjoy it coz it was HISTORY. I studied H2 History in JC and proud to say I scored an A hahaha so I thought hey, this is MY GAME.

Sad to say, it's one of the shittiest modules I've ever done. B-. IN THE FACE.

Coz there was just SIMPLY, TOO MUCH, I say TOO MUCH bloody facts to remember. Narbeh, I GIVE IT TO YOU, those who scored A. The history I learnt in jc was about wars and conflicts, not Karl Marx creating some stupid theory that I never use in real life. Or Immanuel Kant. No.

Philosophy is cool, but Communication History, is NOT cool.

I digress.

So yeah, people are good at exam essays~ To beat them, you really just gotta work harder than everyone else. It is, a rat race.

There will be modules that you'll like and naturally do well also lah, so don't be too frightened by all this competition I talk about. You'll find your groove.

Like for me now, of coz I wanna be good at what I do, but somehow... I think I've kinda just let go already. I still strive to be better, I want my GPA to be better, but some time last semester I took a step back and said this is too much.

I learnt lah. I used to get so tired just thinking about competing with everyone else. So I decided to let go. And go with the flow~

I still work my ass off though (sometimes with zero results hahah), no doubt about that!


Last question,

One of the TOP HIT questions of ALL time.


5) Are there many gays in wkwsci?


The answer is an unequivocal YES YES YES.

And I'm proud to have them in my school.

They make campus life more fun, lively, no doubt more bitchy, but they are also very witty and funny people to be around. And you have all kinds of gays, I'm just stating the stereotypical witty/funny/fun types.

In fact, I made my first gay friend in wkw : )

They will be your greatest asset in school hahhaha so make friends with them : )



As you can see, I've answered these 5 buzzingly important questions. I'm sure there are more but for now these are the only ones I can think of. Any more and my brain will seize to function. Dead beat from back to back filming the past few days. Yes, I worked on both Saturday and Sunday this weekend. Tired, but extremely fulfilling. I even extended my internship recently woohoo!


I answered all the 5 questions with plenty of "yes". I haven't debunked anything yet. So it seems like everything you might have feared might come true.

BUT. Fear not. I say, have patience with yourself, have confidence that whoever you meet and the time you'll have in school will turn out all right. Things may not look bright initially, but take time to know people around you better, know what you're good at. Just go with the flow~ Don't overthink, just have fun! You're a freshie!


Remember to work hard as well. Coz I tell all Year 1s I know to study hard in your first semester. So that you will have a high GPA to start your Uni life with. Hall activities will drain you out so you gotta find the right balance. Making that mistake in Year 1 has caused me much struggle to constantly pull my GPA up. Right now I'm still struggling to get my GPA up. So yes, study hard folks during Year 1.

Have fun + Study hard, I know that is like an oxymoron but you just gotta find your way around it.

AND I WISH YOU BEST OF LUCK ALL YA FRESHIESSSS!!!

I had all those worries as well before I came into wkw, so you're not alone. But look where I am now and I'm still lovin it.

Feel free to leave a note on my terribly old school green+pink tagboard that puts a limit to the number of words you can type. But I will make sure I get back to you.


I end my blog post with some BLAST to the PAST Year 1 photos,
Braces + Long hair and all.



WKWSCI Dnd 2011



Hall Bash
Want to act drinker all. Actually very fail.



A Hall friend I made in Year 1 who has become one of my closest friends ever in Uni.
Guess what? She's just recently completed her 3-year Business studies at NBS. Time flies.



Philosophy class with Josh the retard.



Halloween night at wkw lol.



Another Theme week at wkw - Retro.



My first OCIP experience at Thailand with Hall.
I look like Miss Universe here hor? Spanks.

This was the end of Year 1, and the beginning of my string of OCIP participation at WKW : )

Proud to say I played a part in the pioneer and second WKW OCIP team abroad to Laos. Key moments in wkw.

I have a lot to say about my school lah, but in a nutshell I think I've answered most of the pressing issues every freshie is to face.

Good luck!

Omgosh, it's 2:17am and I think.. I think I'm ACTUALLY getting the jitters for tomorrow's lipsync. Oh my god. Oh wait, I mean TODAY'S lipsync. Nabeh, this is actually scary wow, it's been awhile since I felt this way wow. When was the last time I performed? It's been a while. It feels... funny, like my ass is burning, oh yeah I can feel the butterflies in ma stomach. Oh oh I'm going to puke. Ah, it's just a burp. K see ya later. Peace. Out.

1) I got news about Go-Far to Sweden on Labour Day, Thursday.

The email read:


When I read this at 7.30am in the morning, I couldn't fall back to sleep again!

Coz... I was stressed!!! hahahah. When I first read it, I read it with disappointment because I interpreted it as I wasn't good enough to be selected and is sort of on the "waitlist". I saw the word "Unfortunately" as well, which must have set me off on panic mode and thought, wow I must really fight for my spot in Go-Far now. BRING MY A-GAME ON. I interpreted it that way and was about to come here and blog about having given a fighting chance and really wanting to fight it out to get it LOLLL so dramatic.


The rest of the email went like this:



So I thought through my answers and got started right away with my email. Actually I didn't really think through, I just typed and typed and fired away. When you talk about interest, I think it comes naturally lah. I knew I wouldn't have time the next day on Friday to do it, so Labour Day it was. And I was typing frantically, because at that point of time I was still in panic mode. Like I must really show it to him that I want this. That I take this very seriously. So the first half of my email went like this.


This was 'Panic Mode' Si Hui:


I could smell the desperation in that paragraph HAHAHA.

But, at the same time, I felt damn good after writing that paragraph. Coz I had never expressed my passion so fervently before. I used to wonder why I liked broadcast journ more than print journ.

Someone asked me.. No wait, in fact that somebody was a Straits Times political analyst reporter who asked me "Why do you prefer broadcast to print?" And I remembered going wha-? Tongue-tied, I couldn't answer him. After that he said, "Well, people say that tv reporters prefer tv because they like to be seen on tv." In other words, vainpot lah. And I went "Noooo!" But I couldn't give a proper rebuttal. And I frankly told him I didn't have an answer for that but I know that we. are. NOT. vain. Then he said, "Ok, send me an email about why you think not". I didn't email him but now... Almost a year on, and here I am, so sure of my conviction and typing away in this email that I was to send for a school module.

I think I bring out the best in me in times of desperation HAHAHA.

The rest of the email was just presenting my ideas and the stuff I did in school.

After that apparent "heart attack" in the morning, I'm kind of more relaxed about whether or not I will get in to Go-Far. I have given thought to other things I can do in school, so if this doesn't work out, I've other activities I can do to keep me occupied in my final year at University.

So.. I'll leave it to whatever comes, comes.

Sweden, I can always visit you in the later part of my life. It's just that.. damn, this offer is too good to give up! And I'm only excited to do this.


Movin' On,


2) I got news that I WILL BE IN THE FINALS OF 987FM LIP SYNC COMPETITION!!!!!!!!!!!!


After I submitted this video,




Just one of the many videos I did in hall with my siao friends while we were all freshmen.
With my long hair and braces, I marvel at how much energy I had then.

The prize? A fully paid trip to see Britney live in concert in Las Vegas, and we'll be treated like kings and queens.

So of course, seeing that, I thought, ah, ok, let's just give it a try.

Thing is, I submitted this without knowing that if the video got selected, we'd have to perform LIVE in front of a crowd of people at Orchard Central.

When the person emailed me, asking for my number "just in case", I checked out the link in that email and that was when it dawned on me and saw what I was required to do. I had to perform during the Finals of the competition. What? THERE'S A FINALS??!

I thought I was doomed.

True enough, the person called me and told me I was through to the finals. Long before that, I had thoughts of backing out because, wahlau, I didn't know about this siah. Not expecting this.

But after a while, after a lot and I mean A LOT of coaxing and persuasion from my dear friend Huiquan, who really wanted me to get up there and perform, I relented.

And thought, ah, fine I'll do it. ALL FOR FUN.

The reason why I was so reluctant in the first place was
a) I am lazy
b) I'm not even a Britney fan.
c) When it comes to competitions, of course I wanna win. But I don't want to be competitive and get stressed out.. I JUST WANNA HAVE FUN.
d) I kind of left my 'siao siao' image quite a while back. Hahaha, I found that I have become much more calm and mature (I'm serious) over the years. I grew up. I left that long ago. SO going back to the Year 1 Uni Freshman me was.... a little irksome and ahh.... RETARDED!


But.. I guess, I'm taking myself all a little too seriously.
It's always good to have some fun again.

So, here are the judging criteria for TOMORROW'S performance. YES IT'S TOMORROW WTFFFF I haven't really prepared anything.

I have asked my brother to be my partner for lip sync coz everyone else is 1) having exams and ya, everyone is just having exams. Actually my brother is also having exams hahaha but I dragged him to this because???

IT'S HIS BIRTHDAY TOMORROW!!!!!

Exact day and date of the competition... What a perfect way to celebrate eh? ; ) Heehee, I'm the perfect little sista.

Ok, back to judging criteria:

Lip Sync: 40%
Costume: 25%
Showmanship: 25%
Audience: 10%

My bro and I... we're NOT gonna wear any costumes. I can't envision what to wear, I think we'll look ridiculous. So we're just bringing ourselves down. But! I think we do need to choreo some moves. I really hope our brother-sister pairing will interest the judges coz it's SPECIALLLL.

Also, my friends and cousins will be there. And I don't really wanna disappoint them with a bland performance. Not worth their coming down.

So my bro and I really gotta get this down man. We gotta burn up the stage with our moves and lip sync TEH HEH.

I've always lip synced. Even on buses and trains I kid you not. Sometimes I wonder if people looked at me other than the fact that they think I'm chio but also because they think I'm talking to myself. I can't listen to music without mouthing the lyrics out and I can't imagine people not doing that. I HAVE to lip sync coz that's how I groove to the rhythm.

Come to think of it, maybe this IS the competition for me eh? Hahahah.

I'm honestly quite terrified lah, wahlau I have to throw my face in front of people and make sure I don't screw up my mouth. In front of a panel of judges somemore.

And I watched the other contestants' vids, THEY'RE SO GOOOOD!

I'm not a Britney fan, but I'mma gonna have to channel Britney for this one.

Haven't told you the song we're lip syncing to!

It's this one:




Love how Britney flicks her hair.

I know it's not the most well known of Britney songs, and it was our third choice. First was "Lucky" and "Me against the Music" coz they have good storyline and high lip syncing difficulty respectively. But they've been snagged by other contestants so I was looking through Youtube and I went OMG, THIS SONG.

Coz I remembered for GOD KNOWS WHAT REASON, I started singing the chorus of this song in Laos last year December. Oh I know why, coz the villagers were staring at us strangely and I HAD to sing the chorus "I SEE YOU LOOKING AT ME, LIKE I'M SOME KINDA FREAK.... "

Came home to Singapore and searched up the song and started singing it at home. And here I am, gonna lip sync this kickass of a song with my bro tomorrow. Lord, help me. Hahaha. I guess it's all meant to be lah.

My wkwsci senior, Kim, who is a dj on 987FM fb messaged me good luck and she'll see me there tmr with her on stage. She said she's so excited for this event because I'll be up there awww! I told her of my reluctance to be in costume and she said we should AT LEAST bring props. Show the judges at least got some planning lah. And ya lah, true lah, cannot anyhow chapalang go up and shake shake hor.


I expect drag queens and stuff, but I JUST WANNA BE ME. My bro and I just wanna be US!

I saw this lip sync vid of Emma Stone and she simply is THE BEST.




I heard stuff about her before and couldn't understand why people were so in love with her and raving about her.

But after watching this vid... I WAS SOLD. Brilliant. I really like her now. I loved her second song... killer that one. And I was laughing at Jimmy Fallon's moves during his own lip syncs and his reaction when Emma did hers.

Wonderful, these Americans. They can be stupid but when they have fun, they REALLY know how to have fun. And that's freakin awesome.

Hilary sent me a few more lip sync clips of Joseph Gordon Levitt and Stephen Merchant on the same show doing the same shit and they're simply HIL-AR-IOUS. I think that's the beauty of lip sync, you just can never possibly imagine a song to be stripped down and redone by another person who interprets it through their very own version by lip sync.

Alright... My bro and I need all the support tomorrow, or else we'd be goners.


SO GUYSSSS SEE YALL TOMORROW AT ORCHARD CENTRAL 4-6pm ALRIGHT!!!


I reckon we'd only be up onstage at 5pm so you can head down then!!!

It's absolutely crazy, I hope we get consolation prizes heh.

On to other news,


3) I got news that... Cheryl Fox has returned to our programme.

I KNOWWW.... CHERYL FOXXXX. On the Red Dot's original presenter! Back to work after 10 months of maternity leave. And I met her last Monday. I was so excited when I saw her and got to TALK TO HER. In fact, I will be the first one directing her in the episode I'm producing with my friend since she's back!!!! We'll be working with her.

I was so starstruck by her, but at the same time, she has such a down to earth, pleasant personality with no diva airs, that it was easy to speak to her. No nerves whatsoever. She didn't put on much make up either, made her so reallll. And my colleagues say she's nice lah, so.. I'm really excited to work with her!

At the same time, it was sad to have Otelli Edwards leave. After 4 months of heading out to shoot her Piece to Camera (PTCs), we've to see her go~

So my colleague and I took a selfie with her. If you haven't seen it yet, scroll up to my Instagram header above, or here:


Anyway, she gave my colleague and I a gift and note.. so sweet of her!!!! :')

She even said before we all parted, "For someone who doesn't like people, I really enjoyed working with you guys man"
Aww!! Surprising eh, she says she's not a people-person. She's so amicable and friendly! Since the first day till the last.



So yeap, 3 news I've shared with you guys.
Didn't expect all these to happen within a week haha.