Days getting boring

I've been feeling really bored these few days, doing the same things over and over again. Working has become so routine that I do not feel excitement in it anymore, don't really look forward to it as much as before. I sometimes even dread it. It's still about over 2 months to enlistment.

I visited my friend Wilson, who booked out for the first time yesterday. He enlisted on Jan 12 and is now in Whiskey company, which he says is one of the slackest company in Tekong. He looked quite the same, but somehow acted and spoke differently. Perhaps 2 weeks in the army has really influenced him a little. We went to his terrace at Yishun, where he hosted lunch and dinner for us. We played mahjong in between, for almost 4 hours. His relatives were also there, and everyone especially his parents were very friendly. My NS experience will definitely be different from his, since I'd be in the Navy, spending most of my time in the water than on land.

I went shopping today at Robinsons and Heeren with my parents, bought a pair of Ashworth jeans and Ripcurl flip-flops. My shopping list still has a pair of sneakers, a watch and a shirt, I want get all of them before CNY. I've already planned a shopping trip tomorrow evening with my friends, probably going to Orchard Rd again.

I'm also starting to get frustrated with Comfort Driving School. When I first signed up, the customer service officer (CSO) told me I could get a license by April. Then when I told the instructors I'm enlisting in mid-April, they were pessimistic about my chances. My FTT was actually on Feb 23, but I was lucky to grab a 26 Jan slot, and fortunately passed it. I'll go down to the Kovan centre to speak to them. I don't want to waste hundreds of dollars on the driving course.

Work & first driving lesson

I had my first driving lesson last Sunday, it was at night and raining too. It's really cool to drive, especially a manual-gear car. I had lots of problems changing the gear smoothly, I hope I'll improve quickly during the next few lessons as driving classes are expensive! It's $67 during peak hours for 100 mins, sheeesh. Hopefully I won't spend over $2000 to learn driving. Driving schools in Singapore are really making huge money, my cousins in Malaysia spent only RM1500 to learn driving, more than half the price schools charge over here.

Work is becoming quite boring, probably cause I've to do the same things everyday. I worked from 8am-4pm everyday last week, and this week its 3pm-11pm. By the time I reach home, it'd be past midnight already. Besides, I need to change quickly after closing so that I won't miss the last train home. You'd think that working in the hotel line is fun, exciting and easy. However, reality is on the contrary. The full-time staff there have to work during weekends and public holidays, junior staff get about 10 days of annual leave only, while the most senior get 19 days. Even though they get 2 off days a week, they need to hit the 44 work-hours a week by working 9-10 hours a day. It's really exhausting. I don't know how much they earn though, it's a secret every worker keeps. By using economics, I'd suppose they earn more than 9-5 job workers as extra pay is given to compensate weekend/public holiday leisure time forgone, plus the long working hours. If not, why would people even consider working in this line?

After I started working, I begin to treasure off days and weekends, much more than during my school days. Now, I'm so looking forward to Chinese New Year, all the nice food and of course, red packets! It's still one month away though, and after CNY, the thought of my A level results will start to fill my mind everyday.

Fun trip to Genting

From left: Cindy, Vivien, me, Vincent, Wilson, Weilong
I'll post up more pictures when I get them.

The 3D2N trip to Genting ended so quickly. It was really fun and memorable, it is really a different experience to go on a trip with friends than with family. The travel and accommodation cost only $86, really cheap as compared to around $150 during peak period.

We took a 7am bus from Lavender and reached Genting at around 130pm, the ride was a smooth one. We stayed at the First World Hotel as it was the cheapest, no point spending more money on a better hotel as we spend little time in the room. The first night, Wilson almost lost his $300 spectacles. We shopped around after having dinner at Kenny Rogers when he found out his spectacles was lost. He went back to the restaurant to look for it, and even searched through the main rubbish bin for it with a pair of gloves. In the end, it was on his bed. On other occassions, he almost forgot to take his room key and almost lost his specs again, haha.

We went to the theme park on the 2nd day. It was great to go during off-peak period as the queues were much shorter. By early afternoon, we'd already tried all the thrill rides like the Cockscrew, Cyclone and the Spaceshot. We tried archery and watched Curse of the Golden Flower in the evening. The movie really portrayed the Chinese royal family's magnificent lifestyle. Chow Yun Fat acted the Emperor's role very well. At night, we gathered in a room and played cards. The night ended with Wilson making a huge l_v_ confession about someone. :D We went to bed at 3am that night.

The 3rd day was short. We had brunch at a dining outlet at First World Plaza. Then we played this shooting game while Vivien and Cindy went shopping. The bus left at 230pm and we reached Singapore at around 9pm. The trip was really fun, and I got to know 2 more friends in Vivien and Cindy, and also got to know more about Wilson, Vincent and Weilong. I look forward to the next overseas trip with friends, probably after the guys have completed NS.