Perhaps the one and only danger of having gone for a trip so early during this vacation is that every day following that is not filled with activity is conspicuously uninspiring. Being around people constantly also means any dirth of company accentuates the hours that pass. While talking to Guo Nian in church today, we both realize that it hasn't even been that long since school ended (it's the tenth day since the 20th), and already it seems life has moved on indefinitely. That's not a bad thing, but it means that, as we finish doing stuff we want to, it leaves us with less things to fill our days with.

That wasn't the case today though. Something must be said about the joys of simply having lunch at a familiar restaurant, followed by drinks at a familiar cafe that is reassuringly, for a lack of a more accurate word, familiar. There really isn't any need for expensive trips to a club, bar or some other watering hole for DRINKS drinks, or any other fancy arrangement to have a wonderfully leisurely time. That was what I thought about having lunch at the Manhattan Fish Market this afternoon, followed by frappes at Starbucks. I think what makes this 2-step routine something I really enjoy is that it is something I can expect, and expect to have a good time chatting at as well. A positively relaxing Sunday afternoon out, and the 2 and a half hours were the most leisurely ones I've had in a long time, and no less enjoyable than the exhiliration and excitement of constant activity over the past 10 days.

English, otherwise known as Q300 in the UCAS universe, is the course for which decisions have come out the earliest. It takes up 3 of my 5 UCAS application spaces, and I've received one conditional offer and 2 rather unfortunate unsuccessful replies. My fingers are now crossed for the the 2 Politics courses that make up the rest of my application. And after that, on to the PSC scholarship application, again. Each day when I get some form of scholarship open house letter in the mail I'm reminded that there really isn't any other one I'm gunning for other that that. 

Just as I did for SAT 1, I don't think I'll be doing much in preparation for SAT 2 next Saturday. I do, however, recognize that it is significantly more difficult, and for that reason, I've been looking through some samples of the 3 subjects I'll be taking. I realize Literature, Chemistry and Mathematics (2, not 1, since I'm told 1 is redundant, I do hope I made the right choice) are truly the only subject tests I'm capable of taking. World History and Chinese were the others I toyed with, but after looking at their samples, I'm glad I didn't pick them after all. 

It probably seems rather sad for me to be devoting so much blog space to stuff that is academic related, considering we're meant to be in a period of anything but. Rightfully so, and thus I shall refrain from talking too much about those things until the days immediately leading up to January 6th. So now, let's find something else to blog about. 

I find myself at a bit of a loss, considering I usually find inspiration for my posts during my day's activities. Hence, when my day is devoid of activity, I don't usually blog. Which may partially explain why it is I started out my post talking about the stuff above. This strange void notwithstanding, I shall push ahead with trying to complete a post that is at least something I can come back to read in the future. 

Usually, 2 trips during any one stretch of time is the maximum. Having travelled to Bintan twice and Phuket thrice in the past 24 months, it would be hard to imagine going anywhere else after the Philippines trip in 2 weeks' time. Yet I face the prospect of being able to, if things work out, travel again, twice. The first is more tentative, which is a simple trip up North to KL with Deon, Yew Jin and Javier which the former mentioned earlier this month when we were still in school. The second is a third trip to Bintan, this time with the musketeers. It'd be really great to be able to spend more time abroad with friends, but everything is kind of up in the air right now, especially since I'm still trying to piece together the rest of the Philippines trip with the rest of my classmates. Apart from our flights and accommodation, everything else is kind of nebulous. Quite unfortunately, one or more of us has been or will be away in between school ending and us departing (Bintan, Cambodia, Bangkok in succession involving different individuals from our traveling party), so we have not had the chance to really discuss anything. After Melodie's securing of our international flights, John Chris has done a spectacular job putting together our domestic transits, though we really should try to confirm what exactly we'd be doing both in the city and on the island. 

When it isn't traveling, there are 2 other things we occupy ourselves with. The first is going out right here in festive Singapore, and the days surrounding Prom have afforded us that opportunity already. Now that that's over, I echo Paul's blog post enquiring as to what we are to do next. I'll be meeting Deon, Yew Jin and Sean for lunch in town tomorrow, probably the last time we'll be seeing the latter for the rest of the year. I'm just glad to be having a little change of scenery after spending a day at home. 

Which brings me to the second thing we occupy our time with, the home turf. I mentioned to Clarence that I wholly agreed with his personal message that emphatically announced his boredom. Prom albums are still popping up regularly on the hour, though I think after posting the pictures Ronald sent me from our Bintan trip, I'm thoroughly and utterly Facebook-ed out for the time being. The downside about having been so utterly adamant about not watching a single episode of the numerous TV shows I follow is that it's hard to start again, mainly 'cos it takes too much time and effort to get those episodes aired so long ago. And the stuff that is shown on cable isn't really the same, unless it's watching episodes not in the order I left them or completely new shows that I haven't even considered yet. So the last, and probably the most popular, thing to do is to lose oneself in the world of video games. More precisely, PC games that require little more than a working mouse and keyboard, an overworked processor and graphics card, a programme of your choice obtained from either a disc, online or a friend, and hours on end not moving from a static position. The choices are endless, though there are obviously those with unrivaled popularity. Anyone who knows me will know that I'm not a gamer by any definition of that term. That's not to say it is completely unfamiliar territory, though that becomes more of the truth every day I don't play. Back when I was 10-12, I played my days away on the computer with the rest of them, but unlike most others, when I stopped for the PSLE, I never started again, just like how I stopped playing tennis and the piano and never began again. That was how it was for the next few years, since I never had any real time to play (any of those 3 things mentioned actually), considering how totally I immersed myself in my new teenage life that afforded me very little free time. The people I hung around with were equally occupied, and while some may have still gamed regularly, I was never prodded in that direction. Not until '06 that is, that year in which I had nothing to worry about, a lot of time after I finished my debate tenure, and new friends who did in fact prod me in that direction. And so I found myself pointed down a path of PC gaming for those few months, playing many nights away over servers from home or at friends' places (strangely never once at a LAN shop; in fact, I can't remember the last time I actually stepped foot into one of those). I'm not sure if I got any good at it, but I would like to think that all those hours spent weren't for nothing. But I haven't played for 2 years, and when I got the opportunity to try again just now, I was amused at how quickly I had forgotten most things. We'll see if I get a chance to play regularly again; it really depends on those aforementioned friends. I quite honestly find no fun in playing alone or online with people I don't know, and who are probably miles better than me and have been playing more often than I even turn my desktop computer on. 

Here's looking forward to more entertaining days ahead which would hopefully precipitate blog posts of similar value. 

Prom began before we arrived at the Fullerton Hotel and ended long after we left that same building. It was 20 hours of unadulterated fun, punctuated by 4 hours of sleep which could not be done without. 

After choosing to go with an all-black ensemble for the evening (I realise I should have traded ties with Xin Quan some time during the night, since we were both wearing matching coloured shirts and skinny ties, me in black, him in the most fluorescent orange imaginable), I headed over to Joash's place to drop my barang since we were planning to spend our post-prom hours there. I took a lift with Chun Wui, Elliot and Patrick in the former's car, and that was an adventure all to itself, in the loosest sense of the word. We realized that we wouldn't be able to enthrall anyone with a tale of being stuck in traffic in the CBD, the most exciting bit being using the prohibited bus lane for half a minute. Nevertheless, we arrived at the doorstep of the Fullerton Hotel just in time to join the last batch going into the ballroom. Our class was seated at tables 12, 13 and 14 (I can't remember which one I was at), and the table I was at had me, Patrick, Joash, Elliot, Lex, Gerald, Chun Wui, Mong Nicholas and Jim. For memory's sake, I shall go through the courses. A shrimp samosa served on a bed of lightly-dressed greens and accompanying cold prawns, followed by cream of scallop flavoured with the essence of truffle, fillet of cod served with a mixed vegetable raviolli and asparagus sprouts, finished off with a chocolate and banana tart accompanied with caramelized strawberries and mango syrup. These are by no means the official menu descriptions, just what I remember of the food which I took bites of in between performances, videos and photos. 

And speaking of photos, Prom was, for all intents and purposes, the place where photo-crazy people die and go to heaven. I excused myself from my seat just before the first course to say hi to Daryl and Melodie, then paid 2 visits to the adjacent table where my classmates from '06 were conveniently seated. Of all the photos of the night, 3 in particular are my favourite, though I won't post all of them here since they can be viewed on Facebook. 

1. During a rather somber performance of Rihanna's Umbrella, the class of 4.11'06 decided to take a photo at the steps directly facing the stage, and as all things to do with this group of people, it was a noisy affair, and I think we managed to embarrass ourselves and distract everyone from the performance at the same time. Hilarious. 

2. Clarence, Xinquan and I were attempting to ready ourselves for a photo with Elendrus when he decides to take a self-portrait, capturing our rather unprepared expressions. The story of all our times together. 

3. I rushed in just in time to join Elendrus, Yew Jin, Ronald and Xin Quan for a photo of the original 5 who sat at the front of the class back in the day. My choice pick for all profile picture purposes. 

The programme officially ended slightly before 11, but the real photo-taking began only after. There were innumerable permutations, and I managed to get a photo with the class of 6.9'02 from JS, probably the largest collection of JS kids from the same class still in the same year. I'm looking forward to see that picture soon. 

In the midst of all this, we managed to get the class together to celebrate Chun Wui's birthday. 

As the crowd in the ballroom thinned, I decided to head over to Arena where the semi-official after party was being held. After making plans with Joash to join the rest of the sleepover gang later in the morning, I left with Deon, Tricia and Jia Qiang in a cab to Clarke Quay, and in no time we were in the club surrounded by people we knew, sharing a copious amount of alcohol from one table. The rest of the night there was alternately time spent on the dance floor with people from every part of the Year 6 corridor, paying a visit to folks at Clinic, and helping deal with a minor alcohol crisis in the middle of the night. I left just before 3, shortly after the last batch of people (Sam and Paul included) had just arrived, because I feared that staying there any longer would mean my contact lenses permanently adhesing themselves to my retinas. Back at Joash's place, those of us still sober played a few hands of bridge till people started leaving at 5-6, and the rest of us fell asleep. Waking up at 10, Justin, Alvin, Gerald and I had brunch courtesy of Joash's mum (the beehoon was oddly familiar, I think I had it the last time I was at the house, or at some other class gathering involving potlucked food). While the rest were upstairs in front of the computer, I chatted with Gerald about the 2 years past and the days ahead before I left at noon, agreeing that we should make plans soon, both pre- and post-philippines. 

The sheer breadth of stuff we talked about would afford me a myriad of topics to blog about. But out of that hour or so, what I think was most significant was the fact that, as I pointed out, we have to make the effort if we are to stay in touch after after this. Gerald has a gut feeling that we won't. i truly hope he's not right, as I could not imagine not keeping in contact with these people whom I've invariably spent almost every day with over the past 2 years. 

Facebook is a brilliant portal. I can easily update myself about my friends' here- and thereabouts with a few mouseclicks. It would appear that Mong's prom video is underway from the photos of my classmates in school and in school uniform 4 days after our last official day. Plus there has been no breather in between photo updates (or blog posts for that matter) of party after gathering after getaway. Truly, we are in that season of the year, and for myself and many of my friends, that indescribable space after those grueling school days. And watch out for the innumerable albums detailing prom. 

No event would best capture the essence of all this than Prom. Not just any prom, but the ACIB Class of 2008 Prom. And it being the eve of Prom, I shall espouse some stuff I got to thinking about while out running prom errands this afternoon. 

The first thing that cannot be overstated is the significance of Prom. I know that it is nowhere as huge here as it is in some other places, but I do hope it'll be all that it can be, seeing as it is the last time before Jan 6th. As I've mentioned before, people plan their year around Prom. I'm not one of those though, despite having gone ahead and bought the stuff I'm gonna wear half a year ago. That has proven to be both a relief and a mistake. A relief because, after the trip, I do not have enough time to cobble together everything that I already have thanks to some early shopping. A mistake because it limited my ability to buy anything new or make any large changes. Recently, I've adopted a picture of the 8 players at this year's Shanghai Tennis Masters Cup as my desktop wallpaper, and I've been trying to decide between replicating either Roger Federer or Jo Wilfred Tsonga. The difference is merely in shirt colour, the former white and the latter black, both with black skinny ties and the ubiquitous blazer-pant ensemble. 

The second, and apparently last, point that I shall attempt to talk about coherently is the inter-schoolmate dynamic. Being friends with someone because you share the same school, and more importantly the same class (or classes, though this has not happened to me, and subject classes count only for those in the very very non-intact), co-curricular activity or some other collective that requires spending extended periods of time together (more often than not in familiar spaces on a regular basis) is very different, at least for a person of my ilk, than, say, being friends with someone from the extra-academic realm (we talked about our "other" lives outside this common setting one of the evenings at Wah Chee when Mel mentioned that she couldn't imagine any of us in any other context other than school). No matter how far-reaching our lives beyond school stretch (and the range of this is pretty large and extreme I realize), the person one becomes is directly correlated to the people one spends the most time with in this context, by sheer quantity of time and degree of contact. I think each year in each school will have a unique mix, but in my experience that has been wider than most (but only by a year), there is something additionally interesting about the mix here at ACIB '08. This stems from 3 things. First, the nature of the programme is entirely different from anything offered in the local context. Second, the cohort is far smaller, and therefore far more connected. Third, the inflow of people from outside the system during the last 2 years impacted the dynamic more than it would have if everyone came in from different backgrounds, and yet impacted it less precisely because so many of us shared a similar background. 

One thing that has been on my chest for a while and which I'm reminded of on an eerily constant basis is the secretive nature of the human condition. Trust me personally when I say that everyone has secrets. I bear testament to the sheer depth to which secrets can go and can remain undiscovered. The reason I'm talking about this now is because, like I mentioned, Prom is the last time we'll be meeting communally. It is more than likely that if these things aren't talked about now, they will remain secrets or gossip fodder amongst those who know (a very select collection of people, which is larger than I had first imagined but exactly those I had thought would be in the know) in the immediate term or amongst the wider community during reunions and such. On so many levels, we meander in between (as adriel would have said) the weight of things left unsaid. 

What this post lacks in coherence I make up for by the degree to which I'm revealing my thoughts publicly. Those who reads this will either nod in knowing acknowledgment or try to put names and faces to allusions I've made. I'm under no illusion that I know even a fraction of what goes on, but the stuff I do know is the stuff that matters. Information revealed and kept is the key that keeps the balance of all things related to the inter-person dynamic. 

First, my applications to read English at University and King's College London have been unsuccessful. So, having dealt with that dower note, let's recap 4/11'06 in Bintan, 22-25 Nov'08. 

Update: I've received a conditional offer from Durham University to read English, requiring 38 points and a 7 in HL English. Not so dower anymore =)

If you need immediate indication of how the trip went, I think the MSN personal messages of my classmates sum it up nicely. Ron states that "it's such a perfect day", while Xin Quan puts it simply as "being happy" and asks what many of us have at the back of our heads, "whats next". I think it's safe to say that it has been a thoroughly enjoyable trip that marks the beginning of the next few weeks of similar nature.

Throughout the day, I sometimes encounter things that trigger a train of thought that becomes the centrepiece of that evening's blog post. Needless to say, I was met with many of those moments over the past 4 days. 

Quite honestly, the whole exam experience seems but a distant memory now that I have just been through one of the highlights of my year. Despite having actively attempted to purge my mind of the academic phantasmagoria during my night out drinking with my classmates, there is nothing that compares with literally leaving the country and just losing oneself in something of a completely different nature. Deliberately not using the mobile phone adds to the sense of being dislocated in a good way. To that end, this trip has been thoroughly successful. 

After the grocery run on the day immediately following the exams (I speak of it as if it's been forever, though in actuality, it hasn't even been a week since), I found myself lying around stoning in front of the television more than hyping myself up for the trip. I think that short 24 hours between exam frenzy and indulgence was space that was required to transition, and by the time I arrived at the ferry terminal, I was more than ready to jump right into it. 

Being oddly early, I saw none of my classmates, but rather a whole other group of my year mates who were going to Bintan as well, but to Club Med instead. There was this brief complication involving ticketing, and having my name called over the intercom was an interesting experience. The early ferry that brought Ronald, Sean and I to Bintan was far more crowded than the later one bringing the other 10 (Yew Jin, Elendrus, Xin Quan, Clarence, Chang Yun, Guang Yi, Daniel, Justin, Ryan and Ronny). Probably from merely sleeping a handful of hours the previous night after tagging Melodie's photos from Angelshare, I was dead to the world for the 45 minute trip, listening to Kanye West's 808s and Heartbreak, my music of choice for this trip.

The other group arrived about 2 hours after we did to find the three of us beginning the first of many games of Munchkins, and I teamed up with Xin Quan in our first joint endeavor to win. Mercifully, the two villas (C 50/51) did not take long to be ready, and we settled down fairly quickly. The leisure centre would be one of two locations where we spent most of our time, the other being the beach. Our first visit there was for soccer and ping pong, though it wasn't particularly long 'cos we had to be back at the villa to cook dinner. The details of each meal I will leave to your imagination. 

We eventually decided on the villa room arrangements, with me, Yew Jin, Ronald and Sean in the large bedroom and Elendrus and Chang Yun in the other, with the other 7 in the other villa. 

At the prospect of a night in just playing Mahjong (this was after a rather hilarious round of Taboo where my team of me, Yew Jin, Clarence, Justin and Elendrus basically whitewashed Xin Quan, Daniel, Ryan, Ronald and Sean), some of them went to check out the in-resort club, Silk, to see if they were broadcasting that night's soccer matches. It was, and Elendrus drove back to pick me up to join Clarence, Chang Yun, Xin Quan at the club for some food (oddly cheaper than the crazy expensive food sold in the other joints throughout the resort), and we left early since the soccer match we wanted to watch was not being aired. This was also after we were treated to a dose of loud techno-electronica followed by a live act that tried to redo Billboard tracks in a loud pseudo-rock style to little success. 

Day 2 was spent at the beach with soccer and volleyball, followed by a dip in the sea before it began pouring and I headed back earlier than the rest. Dinner was the Indonesian buffet spread which left quite a bit to be desired. We decided to head to the beach at night, but it was way to dark to even think of doing anything, so it was off to Silk again, this time for drinks. Nothing spectacular, but cheaper than some of the places I've been to back home. Insert an hour of pool in between dinner and Silk, 'cos the exact time eludes me. I was horrible when paired with Elendrus, but much better when paired with Ronald. Something must be said about instinct. When one overthinks shots it can be disastrous. 

Day 3 was spent at the leisure centre, and I joined the second group for Laser Quest because of space constraints. My eventual score of 362 stands head and shoulders above the other next score, and contributes more than half to the green team's (me, Yew Jin and Sean). Plus I managed to dodge being shot once by one opponent and fulfilled my one goal of obliterating Elendrus' score by getting 160 of those 362 points off of him. 

Clarence and I played ping pong for the first time in about 2 years, then we renewed our old doubles rivalry involving Yew Jin and Xin Quan that ended abruptly when we were buggy-ed back to the villa to get ready for dinner out. The French buffet spread was miles better than the previous night. 

Day 4 was more ping pong 'cos Yew Jin and I gave bodyboarding a miss before checking out, more joint Munchkins with Xin Quan, and then back to the ferry point where we got to sit at the upper deck with the glorified couches known as Premiere seats. Xin Quan, Clarence and I managed to slip into a cab unnoticed by the long queue that had formed and were soon on our way back, before we met (with Daniel) again at Chomp Chomp, Serangoon Gardens for dinner. Clarence and I walked out to Yio Chu Kang road before he turned left and I right to head back home, having had the chance to chat about the year past and discovering that he shared my philosophy of living with no regret, at least when applied to the IB context. It was a good end to this brilliant trip.

So, about those Thoughts that would have otherwise been the focus of this blog post had it not been for the trip itself. 

1. There is something almost necessary about white sand and clear blue water that just signals that a holiday has started. I think it's a personal thing, since the best memories I have of being overseas have somehow been marked by this perfect setting that I cannot find back home. 

2. I have never had the chance to see a constellation of stars, and while waiting for the buggy to ferry the rest to the beach on Night 2, Ron asked me to look up and for a moment, I was just so taken in by the vast array of stars on so clear a night. Breathtaking. 

3. I saw the sun set over the horizon on the ferry back, literally a sphere of red disappearing beyond a mass of land and water. 

4. Unlike the photo-crazy people I've been around for the past 2 years, my classmates of '06 find no need to document our escapades to such an extent, and it doesn't make it any less memorable. 2 trips this has been repeated, and I do hope we do this again some time. 

To echo Alice Walker, I would like to thank you all for coming.

In my post on Tumblr about the journey I've had in school, I mentioned in no uncertain terms that I'm not the same person I was back in 2006. 

Nowhere is that more evident then in the way I used to write my posts on this blog. 

Occasionally that side of me emerges, especially when I feel so compelled to recount even the most mundane details of my on-goings. 

I realize that this aspect of my blogging habits arises from how I felt when I realized that, after my trip to the states in 2004 for the OM World Finals, I had not bothered to pen down any of the memories I had brought back with me. A pity, since now I find myself struggling to remember how it felt like to have been there and done that. 

So the very next trip I took abroad (church camp 2005), I made sure to put in writing the entire trip, as I have done with every subsequent one. 

Doubtlessly, the way with which I've written my posts has changed almost unrecognizably, but that is probably because the last 2 trips with my class were dramatically different in their tone. It wasn't just for leisure, there was something je ne sais qua about them. I think I managed to capture a little bit of that in those posts. 

Tomorrow, I return, in a number of ways, to the position I was back in 06. I'll be around the same people, in the same location, for the same duration of time, in all likelihood doing the same things. 

Yet I have a feeling that it will not resemble my experience back then even in the slightest. That has quite a bit to do with how I've changed ever since I entered the IB course (I may seem to be attributing far too much of my personality to this course which I've just finished and am very glad to be finished with, so my use of this term is really with reference to the entire experience, largely in the context of the course, over the past 2 years). 

One thing I can pinpoint which will be different during this trip is the fact that I plan to have an extended period of unbridled, non-productive, windinmyhairsandinmytoes activity, something I've not had the chance to indulge in for the longest time.

I search for the word to express what it is like to have my life to live, at least till the 8th of January. As short as that time is, I have no intention of letting the 22 months (or whatever permutation a possible scholarship affords me) mar the next few weeks, during which I truly do not have a care in the world (ideally, though I still have my SAT IIs, applying for the PSC scholarship which should finish immediately after I get my results on the 6th of January and, very hopefully, university offers).

While out last night, Melodie mentioned that on the night before our results are released, we should just go out and distract ourselves utterly. I agree wholeheartedly, for if I stay at home I will only play out in my mind the best and worst case scenarios, and how I might have changed something or other during the 3 weeks of exams that I sat for. It's out of my hands now, and I'm ever thankful for that.

Even as we entered the hall to take our paper, there was palpable anticipation at the prospect of it all ending in 2 hours. Normally I go through the routine of placing my examination implements at various positions on and under my desk and whisper a calming prayer. This time, however, I just sat there for a moment with a strangely tranquil smile, thinking about how far I've come in this, and whispered a completely different sort of prayer.

When it ended, it was as good as I had envisioned it to be. A good paper to end what most of us felt was a block of exams which we could negotiate well enough. High fives and handshakes, promises to make plans to go out, and I was off to lunch.

Though Gerald was on the bus with us to town, the 6 of us who ended up at the Indonesian Ayam Penyet joint in Lucky Plaza were myself, Patrick, Patrick, Lex, Mong and Elliot. A trip to the tailor who has made a sizable proportion of my classmates' suits for prom later, we left and met again in the evening at Angelshare, Dempsey Hill. I arrived later, and was told by the waiter that my 10 classmates who were there (Gen Huong, Melodie, Nicholas, Elliot, Cheryl, Patrick, Lex, Chun Wui, Mong, Darren) had jumped for the free flow, 40+perpax, and so I thought, why not? I have a feeling that this September-November offer which some of them had tried during our last trip there after the Prelims was the sole reason we visited again instead of going somewhere else. There was another group of our schoolmates there, including Sam, though they left fairly early, after which Patrick joined my class.

With little doubt, I think we're the class that spends most of our time in watering holes. Last night was no different, but as a whole, we drank more than we've ever. Probably to the house's dismay, the collective 518.10 we spent was in all likelihood a mere fraction of the actual value of the stuff we ordered, going by the regular menu prices. It was the quickest and most effective way to forget all the stuff that we studied and is now, for all intents and purposes, irrelevant.

It was a congratulatory time, and we left knowing that we had all shared in the same experience. To Mong's place, then back to the northeast with Patrick and Cheryl.

Still recovering slightly from last night, I awoke early this morning to meet Ronald, Yew Jin, Daniel and Justin to get the necessary groceries for our trip tomorrow. My estimated budget was over by less than 20, and we then had lunch at Han's before dividing the stuff to bring tomorrow. 4 days should be enough to really immerse myself in the revelry of both the season, and this altogether different season of my life.

Ideally, I would have liked to have written a post yesterday about the importance of fingertip knowledge and the wonders of HL-SL divides, both with reference to Economics. 

Not to downplay the sheer necessity of the former and the interesting aspects of the latter, I have decided instead to capitalize on this the eve of my last day of IB with a few thoughts about the experience of these exams and how, in every sense of the word, it has been unique. 

I began this escapade with a wholly new mindset which, I believe, was an amalgamation of all the best points of my various approaches to each exam thus far. I think it is safe to say that it has turned out to be a both an indisputably challenging journey and a rather fulfilling one, at least for all but one paper I've taken. 

For the vast majority of us, I think we can safely say that we've worked ourselves above and beyond. Truly, I have no regrets. Come what may on January 6th, it'll be what I've worked for. 

As I put pen to paper for the last two hours come tomorrow morning, I shall strive to focus all that I have left on 3 Economics Data Response Questions. I could not under any circumstances fathom doing this again. 

To say it's been draining will be just like saying Warren Buffett's personal wealth is pocket change. 

By not staying back after the paper today, I realize that last night truly was the last time I've spent a considerable amount of time in school, studying no less. Like I said before, a quiet school at night will probably be my most lasting memory I have of the place.

So buying a little time of non-academic work before I open my books for the final evening, allow me to direct my thoughts to those who've accompanied me on this experience. 

To my tutors, who have gone to great lengths to make sure I didn't allow myself to submit mere above average work and discovering the distinct advantages of the IB course. That I've been able to talk as a student, aide, friend and fellow academic has been a privilege. 

To my year mates who have shown as much grit and spark as the best of them, who have shared in the innumerable hours in the library, the benches, and wherever else afforded us light and surface to immerse ourselves in our books, and who have challenged and heightened my awareness of both the usefulness and value of knowledge, in all senses of that word. I do hope I've done the same and have helped as best as I've attempted over the course of this year. 

Mr. Ferd once commented that, in order to not wallow in meaninglessness, plans must be made for the 3 days immediately following our last paper. In my case, tomorrow's early paper means that Thursday, Friday and Saturday need to be filled. 

As it is, Saturday is well taken care of in Bintan. Friday will probably be pre-trip stuff, and maybe something else at night if plans pop up. Tomorrow night will invariably be spent at some joint as we always do. That leaves the hours immediately after the paper ends. What does one do when all academic effort has been expended, and yet is faced with an entire afternoon of free time? 

I shall leave that question to be answered in my next post, which will offer a different tone altogether I'm sure. 

In 13 hours, not so much IB as I('d have) B(een)

One of the points which we used during our recruitment drive in 2004 for the debate society here at ACI was that, by joining, you would be very well placed to write good essays in the future. 

What it didn't say was how exactly, and up till now, I've never actually found that any of that experience has helped in the essays I've written significantly. 

That all changed today during the last conversation I had with Malcolm, Gerald and Joash as we were preparing for our Economics papers. 

The question posed was about the use of real-life examples, one of 3 pertinent demands of every essay that we write. 

The answers offered were rather typical; stuff from Blink & Dorton, and the cursory mention of the current economic situation, particularly the rise and fall of the value of the US Dollar. 

I had mostly been listening while packing my things getting ready to head home, whence I promptly offered my input into the discussion - Lie. 

In 2004, during my first year in the Debate Excellence Programme, there was this plenary held during our first Debate Association camp, where one of our respected coaches, Mrs. C, handed out a sheet of paper titled "10 Things not to do as Debaters". 

Item number 4 invariably stated, in capital letters no less, "Do Not Lie". 

This was with obvious reference to the common habit of debaters to fabricate examples by pairing a country name with either a statistic or an event of dubious origin. As we gained experience year on year, our ability to dream up supporting evidence increased accordingly. 

Hence, it is fair to say that I, along with my peers, are well versed in the art of finding an example to support the growth of terrorism via the internet, decry the failures of war crimes tribunals, or advocate free trade as the savior of the 3rd world. 

It is with reference to the third that I had in mind when I offered my honest to goodness opinion in our discussion just now. This is for two reasons. 

Firstly, reliance on Blink and Dorton is rather iffy because it was published in 2006. The world has changed epochally since then, and being able to tell me that Chad relied on the export of one commodity for 94% of its export revenue is no more valuable than me telling you that the burgeoning surplus of the Chinese current account by an average of 6.5% year-on-year for the period 2003-2007, which sounds plausible but is utterly untrue. 

Secondly, contrary to a worrying comment about having marks taken away for falsities, examiners are only able to fault you for conceptual errata, not for a mistake in a "real-life" example. That's mainly because there is no viable way to tell if the mistake was genuinely made under exam conditions and the fact got muddled a little, or if it is an outright untruth. 

Of course, the ease with which such evidence pops into our heads is an acquired skill, though not difficult to hone. That being said, the problem of examples in the Economics papers should not require massive research, list-making or any other headaches. Concepts first. 

This afternoon, I arrived at that seminal point in my academic trek - I had exactly a week before I begin my papers. 

I think I'll find a way to enjoy writing during my actual papers, but for now, the preparation part of it all is quite the contrary. 

Each day segues into night, and hours weave into one another in one fluid study-filled mass. Familiar faces, places and pages till I finally write my final sentence and be done with it all. 

I've begun to wonder recently if everyone takes this as seriously as they should. 

Quite honestly, some of the rubbish that goes on is rather appalling. My level has it's bright ones, but littered around these are characters who have sunk so low that I would not have thought it was possible. And I worry for some of my friends who seem to be in too close a radius with these questionable persons for my comfort. I contemplated saying something this morning, but found that my attention could not be held long enough to motivate to do any more than just turn back to my mounds of material. 

Above all, though, I'm glad to have found a fulfilling pattern with the right mix of people. Paul once (no, twice) told me that my classmates feed off each others' academic energies. I wholly agree, and am delighted to share in this atmosphere.

Hello November.