A good Monday morning to one and all... (I've actually typed a hell lot of things but because I 'typed too fast' and 'too accurately', my fingers pressed 'Ctrl A + delete' too quickly also! Cannot undo so stop asking if I tried to 'Ctrl Z' cos I did!)

So anyway, my weekend was good. Attended NDP NE Show 3 (Sat) and lazed at home to try and complete the Tomb Raider game (Sun).
Here goes...

Sat: Met up with Azmi and Sherry-Ann at about 3:30pm at Marina Sq. (Luckily I drove... cos it was hell going home after NDP... people mountain people sea). We bought Subway before heading over to the platform. Heidi was super psyched cos it was her first time as an audience on the platform. Her first time on the platform was as a participant for Soka. Most were asking how I got tickets for the show. Well basically, my present company is the Principal partner for this year's NDP which means, we print the Souvenir booklet which is to be inserted into the fun packs. Therefore, the company was given 26 tickets and I was 1 of those who got a hold of 2 tickets for 19 July 2014. I then had a dilemma on who to bring but then decided pretty quickly that I wanted to bring Mama. But then what about Heidi?? I know she would love to attend too cos it is after all the last time NDP was going to be held at the Marina Bay Platform. Next year would be at the Padang and the year after it'll most probably be at the newly opened Sports Hub. So Mama says to bring Heidi la, knowing that the 2 of us would enjoy it more and sing our hearts out etc. And it was indeed fun to bring that girl. We enjoyed ourselves thoroughly. Sang, swung the light sticks, the Singapore flag and took loads of 'wefies'. Hehehe. Again, I have to stress, buying the monopod and the bluetooth remote was the best thing EVER!! It was much easier to take pictures and you don't need to inconvenience people to help take group photos for you! Hahaha. Good invention man! (Up till now, I'm still trying to find out the creator of monopods. If anyone knows, please share). I managed to take pictures that weren't possible to do with our arms. So I'm glad I bought and brought it. 

About this year, not only was Joy performing in the Soka item but Bryce is in NDP too. He's in the Guard of Honour for the Republic of Singapore Navy. So proud of the both of them!

We met up with Joy after the performance and had dinner at Han's before it closed. We were the last to leave. The overall experience was awesome! I haven't attended NDP in quite a while already. And they showcase some really touching stories and surprisingly, Heidi was quite emotional. Hahaha. SHE CRIED!! That silly girl... But in fairness, it was a really good performance by everyone! Except the little hiccup with the new inclusion of the tow truck thingy from the SAF. It came in, wanting to show how it tows tanks out of different terrains but after the whole hooking up and moving off, nothing budged. And the whole thing took quite a while until the cameras had to change view to capture the students so that everyone's attention could be taken away from them! Haha. Good move! Upon reaching home and showering, we crashed.

Sun: LAZED THE WHOLE DAY AT HOME. Hahaha. Mama woke up early to prepare omelette for the bento meals for R4 Youth performing for the YFD 2014 at HQ. Each zone had to prepare 20 sets of food to be delivered to HQ for the Youth. So nice! So while she went out, I re-started my Tomb Raider game. Remember my last post about the game having some glitch after Shipwreck Beach? Because of that, I had to re-play the whole game from the beginning. Tiring, but very rewarding cos I know what to expect already which cut short quite a lot of time. Right now, I'm already past the Shipwreck Beach and in to the Research Station. Approximately 30 percent more! Woohoo.

And that's my weekend. Really enjoyed myself. Being able to attend the NE Show was pretty emotional for me. Let me share a little bit about why I feel so. First of all, I will always feel very proud when a family member becomes a participant of the NDP. It makes the show all the more special cos there is someone to look out for. Secondly, I remember 1 year of the NDP where both Mama and Heidi were participants, and together with Joy and May Jie. That year, I was extremely emotional. Hahaha. I was filled with pride and joy for my family cos not only did they put up a fantastic performance, it was a very touching act cos it was like story telling. Everything gelled so well. And looking back at how much our forefathers suffered, you can't help but feel so proud to be a citizen of Singapore!

All the TDD songs and NDP songs are so meaningful and yes, most people will say that it's all propaganda etc but please lah, tell me that you prefer to stay somewhere else, and seriously, if you're all that unhappy, then move out lor. Migrate somewhere else that you think is better and safer than Singapore. Enjoy paying those high taxes and miss all the spicy food etc. To me, I still hold firm to my roots. Although we've heard so much of the govt this and the govt that, but seriously, take a step back and look at the bigger picture of why things are done in certain ways. I do understand and acknowledge that many of the Singaporeans belong to those who have to 'sit on the fence'cos they don't qualify for certain things like grants, rebates etc. But well, the govt can't please everybody! They really can't. So cut them some slack and see what else you can do with your life to make it better while being here. I'm sure somehow or rather, there must be something out there that is to your benefit. Most importantly, enjoy what there is to enjoy, such as the safety and security of our country, the cleanliness and greenery, the structured laws that protect our people, the convenient transport system etc. I do have many friends from all over the world who would love to move to Singapore as a top choice among other countries in Asia! I'm quite sure that where we are now, many countries have definitely wondered how we were able to do what we did to straighten out our island! And for that, thank you Singapore, thank you to all those who've made a difference to our country, making it what it is today, an ideal place to stay for many citizens and migrants from all over the world. For the minorities who've grudges and nasty words to say about our govt, do it elsewhere and not on social media. But seriously, either you shape up or ship out. No one's stopping you!

For now, cheers!