Monday 13 February 2012

So, What's Up?

Here I am, 31, and already a legend… oh wait… that’s Sue’s line. Here I am reporting LIVE from the staff room of SM Sains Sultan Mahmud a.k.a. SESMA… They’ve WiFi~! Hahah~

I still have like three observation sessions to go, but that’s the easy part. The ROS (school orientation programme) report is halfway done. I just need to interview the three Senior Assistants, and some teachers to finish it. Still, I know I have to edit the thing again since the report I wrote (still writing the thing now, actually) is so grammatically incorrect…

Anyway, I managed to see some of the form one students TOV essays, and they were hilarious~ Young students think differently than us… haha~ Speaking about form one, today, my friend from IPG KB and I will organise an English Camp. It’s just one hour, so it’s not really a camp. We’re going to play The Hot Seat with them. May this afternoon be blessed so that everything goes well… heheh~

Monday 6 February 2012

We Are the Riot


I know how insane we are
The folly splitting us apart
I can’t dodge any longer
Our words are express bullets
Smashing our skulls empty

I wonder how long we’ve held
This fury, the last peace
Was years ago, I’m a stranger
In the world we’ve made together
As the quake turns stronger

We are the riot

I was east
You were west
I wanted this
You wanted that
I said ‘oh, yes’
You said ‘please~’
I asked you to shut up
You asked me to speak loud

I craved to get away
You liked us to just stay
I tried to be even better
You said I was a dreamer
I said ‘we’re done!’
You said ‘you won’t leave me alone!’
I’ve lived your life
You’ve lived your own life

I’m sick of your words
You’re sick of my silence

Maybe this won’t be
Because the future is none
Maybe this is the end
Because the beginning’s gone
Maybe this is not us
Because together, we are alone

We’re our own riot
Mind-made wars
Heart-felt mars
Skin-deep scars

Saturday 4 February 2012

Traveller's Lighthouse


It’s been a long time since I last did a photomanipulation. This one, I think, is the best that I’ve ever created [now the mind thinks on how good it will be if I give the best on my studies too… touché…] in my whole life, for both design/idea and execution [I’ve just praised myself. After this, people will cringe at that slightly abhorrent act~].
The muse for this manipulation is the song ‘Just a Kiss’ by Lady Antebellum. More musing on this creation on my deviantArt
Just a shot in the dark that you just might be the one I’ve been waiting for my whole life…

Wednesday 1 February 2012

“Irasshaimase!” Said Term Three!!!

This March marks a new section in my almost-14-years-of-education life, and boy, how different this term is compared with the last two. Of course, the major difference is that this year, I’ll be starting my life in the INTEC Campus of UiTM Shah Alam.
As for the courses in term three… I think I’ll be spending lots of time in my campus. When I was in IPG Gaya, there were some courses that were swapped with this term’s courses. All those courses were co-curricular subjects, so basically that means I need to take three co-curricular subjects in one term… if my prediction is correct, that is. If it does, let’s hope I will not faint from exhaustion. Anyway, here’s the list of the conformed courses...
TSL451: Field Experience – This I will start next week, and I can’t wait. This course requires us to go to our given school and observe our mentors during the T&L sessions, among other things. We also get the chance to involve ourselves with the school activities.
TSL483: Applied Phonetics and Phonology – I guess an advanced study of phonetics in English? Just when you think that learning [æ], [ə], or [ʊ] is hard enough, you are now told that the letter R has more than one sound. Lucky we won’t learn ƿ or þ, both of which [Wynn and Thorn] are not IPA symbols, but two letters used in Old English. We don’t have History of English though. That will be gory fun.
TSL570: Literature and Media – Perhaps, media here don’t just refer to books, but TV, films, and music too. If I’m not mistaken, we need to do a project for this… video project! Ooohhh… I love literature!
BEL422: Report Writing – Seriously? Anyway, people said this course will teach us on how to write different reports for different types of instances. Really? I thought we only have one way to write report… the way is THAT way we learnt during our school years… primary school years.
BJP401: Japanese Language I – My dream is fulfilled! The seniors said that Japanese is only taught in the Main campus, but I hope this will not be a problem!!! I really, really want to take it~! Japanese is one of the seven languages offered for our Foreign Language course.
HBU111: Kesatria Negara – This is an obligated course for Co-curriculum I. I need to march then? So, I hope my experience in the marching team for Waja house during Gaya’s Division Games for two consecutive years will help me.
Other than the courses, the seniors told me the rooms in UiTM are equipped with air-conditioners. I can now practically see myself prone to flu and other kinds of cold-related diseases in the near future…

The Early Exposure


Now, now… how should I say this? It seems in Terengganu, English teachers are really looked up by the community, which was what the principal of Sekolah Sains Sultan Mahmud [SESMA], Pn. Meriam said to me. Unlike the states in the West Coast or Sabah and Sarawak, the public usages of English amongst the east coast communities, especially in Kelantan and Terengganu, are quite rare. English is almost exclusively used in the schools or tourism-related areas. Some students, even those in higher secondary forms, are still grappling to form simple sentences. In other aspect, the Terengganuese accent still dominates the speech, not just in English, but in Malay too. Perhaps, the major inhibitor behind the lack of English speakers in Terengganu is that most people still think that a person who converse in English is actually showing off his language ability. Students just shy away from using the language.
The principal further said that Terengganu needs more English teachers than most of the other states. If you’re a TESL graduate, then there is a big chance that you’ll be able to teach your subject here. English teachers in Terengganu have a large responsibility in producing students who are capable in using English. I can feel that ever since my fellow friend from IPG KB, and I met Pn. Meriam to tell her about our Field Experience [FE] that is to be done there. She really took our FE very seriously; you might think that we are actually there for our practicum. She asked us to create a timetable for our observations with the mentors, the discussions with our mentors and her too, and also to converse in English with the students. So, this is kind of scary. Oh yeah, Pn. Meriam did ask to have our reports too, so that she could try to make some positive changes or improvements on the areas of SESMA’s English teaching that require them.
Anyway, her high expectation towards us is understandable. The tasks of a teacher, any teacher, are big. I think this early exposure is beneficial and I’m looking forward to my two weeks in SESMA. Besides, what’s the use of me being a TESL student if I don’t use my English?

This is THAT time...


…when I look to the wall, and wonder,
“Who died and made me secretary?”
I like it though… hahaha.

Goodbye Heart


Gambar hiasan
Goodbye, an expression that is so simple, yet has so many emotions. There are moments when you find that saying it is easy, and then, there are those times when you don’t even want to think about goodbyes.
Perhaps the hardest of all goodbyes is to see the person you love walks away from you. It doesn’t matter if that person wants it, or because that person is forced to do that. No one wants this ultimate end of a relationship, but still, some bonds are not that strong and severed anyway.
This kind of goodbye will bring out some kind of monsters from every people. There are those who are seemingly tough, but inside, they are really fragile. They wear a new attitude on their sleeves: I don’t need you, I can live without you… but then, they are the ones who want that person back. Then, there are people who blame the other party as the reason for the downfall because they just cannot accept it. Different emotions take turns to reside inside those people… anger, sadness, madness, contradiction.
Saying “goodbye…” is hard, at least sometimes…

Boomerang

There was a time when a person said that he or she wanted to focus on a thing. Being in love was not part of the plan. Time moved on, and then it changed. The person fell in love and has a significant other. So, what’s the moral of this little story?

The moral: you can’t force love… and be careful with what you say. It may found a u-turn and comes back to slap your face, though sometimes in a good way.

Well, the story may happen or may not happen. The thing that I want to say is that in an age when your hormones are at rage, the things you’ve planned will not always stay in the course that you want. At first, you think that love is a waste of time when you’re still studying, but then when you suddenly found a person that you like, then obviously you’ll change. That’s pretty much it. Phone bills go up, more time is spent with that person…

Now, let’s focus on the word ‘suddenly’ there… you always face this person day after day for who knows how long, and then – poof – everything that you feel towards him or her changes: a day before, this person was your friend, but now, it feels different. It takes a long time for you to decide that you actually harbour a feeling that is more than just as a friend. 

Now then, if you really want to be single for a couple of years, do you have to say that you want to find a girl while you’re studying? Go figure…