2 weeks into work

So it's 2 weeks since my contribution to the "employed" statistics in the Singapore workforce commenced.

And to mark the occasion, P&G offered to provide a body composition analysis - ok they didn't. There was this machine in my workplace and so I decided to use it. Here are my key statistics:
Weight: 53kg
Height: 160.9cm
BMI: 20.5
% Body Fat: 9%
Shall measure monthly to keep track of my general health. I can already feel some "weakness" creeping into my body after 2 weeks of "office life".

I think entering the workforce off-cycle (because REP is a 4.5 year programme) gave me some rude awakening that there are indeed so many people out there.
Was attending a new hire training and well... the participants primarily consisted of experienced hires - some even nearing 10 years into the workforce!

And then there's this feeling of becoming a minority, especially when you are working in the APAC HQ of an MNC. Everywhere I turn is someone else who you wouldn't speak Singlish with.

And then there's this feeling of having to adult. You've got to start to watch your actions, what you say and what you do even more. People have less time, and less incentive to learn more about you. And in a world where first impressions matter, I've got to cut down on my joking around - at least until some basic fundamentals have been established. 

And then there's this feeling of becoming a student again. It's so exciting to learn new things and try to implement/execute them. But now, your actions have real impact beyond grades. In addition, more importantly, how can I maintain this insatiable want to learn?  

And then there's this feeling of being in your parents' shoes. You get to finally be able to empathize with them. All these while we have been observing them as a student without life's responsibilities (or at least a bulk of it). Now, we are like them.

And then suddenly you realised your life actually just begun. It's like playing World of Warcraft, and your student years were similar to just leveling up to the maximum level (I think it's lvl 120 now). Only when you reach the maximum level, you can access the end-game content; and that's when players usually say that the real game of WoW would have finally started. So likewise, it's like, bam.. life actually begins now. The daily balancing act begins now, between work, personal life and family life. Between your dreams, your friends and the bread/bacon sitting at home.

Well... glhf (good luck have fun) to me, and all of you readers and anyone else starting their work life (:

My Flight Back from the US

I wrote this post on my flight back.. and due to some extreme red tape, it finally get to see the light of the internet tonight:

So here I am, in a twist of fate, enjoying the Business class life on my SFO-Incheon (Korea) leg in a SQ15 Boeing 777-300ER back home. I initially requested to switch my middle seat to an aisle seat (I feel my lengthy legs need some more room than an Economy could provide), but the request couldn’t be met as the plane was at maximum capacity – or in Economy terms. You can piece the rest of the puzzle. There was so much to take in, and I thought this is a feeling that many of us would have felt – and it’ll only become more frequent as time goes by. First, let’s just list some key features: 1) omg such a huge ass seat. 2) the table is huge, it’s even bigger than most tables in the lecture halls back in UCB 3) there’re so many places to stash your belongings 4) the legendary Business class service (they know my name :O) 5) last but not least, just this general feeling of swag. I’m sure many of you would be able to relate to this: you’ve been used to a certain life, and suddenly, by a stroke of sheer luck, you are whisked away into this land of privilege. To top it all, all your pre conceived notions about the “elite” or “rich behavior” come flooding your brain, you wonder how you should act, you wonder what you should be doing, you wonder whether what you should do to not make a fool of yourself (I spent a good 5 minutes trying to ease the table out of its hiding spot because it was like a behemoth trapped in a small cave), you wonder what do the air stewards think of you, you wonder and you wonder and you wonder. Then again, it’s a really nice feeling, this feeling of privilege, because after all, I’m an Economical person.

3 course meal? Fresh prawns? Steak? Omfg (well due to health reasons they only made it Medium-Well done. I prefer my steak Medium-Rare but it’s fine) And champagne. I thought I was dreaming – what did I do to deserve this luxury?

So I just watched Fast and Furious 7, and I must say it was an amazing movie. Yea, there were some plot holes, some inconsistencies, and the heroes always win. However, the action scenes were great, the story was well paced, and there was this overall theme about family which I thought was really great. And at the last part, the tribute to Paul Walker just made me board the feels train. I don’t know him personally, nor am I such a great fan of Fast 7, but what I really liked was the camaraderie between the actors (and the team in Fast 7). I guess that makes us human, this friendship that keeps us together. And when I see a group that has so much synergy, you just can’t help but feel great on the inside – and jealous too.

And now I’m listening to a playlist of the National Day songs of Singapore, arranged by, surprise surprise, SIA. I heard that this might be Kit Chan’s last NDP ): Our original Home singer won’t be around for the future NDP, and I hope the newer generation of singers don’t defile the original NDP songs. Just stick to the classics please? Listening to these songs can really invoke the patriotism in you. Just read Sumiko Tan’s (Omg it just hit me that I’ve not read her columns for a year! I used to diligently read her columns every weekend in the Sunday Times) rumination on how the intangibles are the ones that keep you “Singaporean”. I have to agree though – I seriously can’t wait to meet my parents, my relatives and my friends. And here’s a shout out to the friends who have stuck with me for so long – I’m talking about my primary school friends.

I was browsing the menu for the inflight catering service, and I saw that most of the items were pretty Western inspired. In fact, in retrospect, the very surprise that I had when I saw steak as a menu item, was a surprise in itself. I talked about this to some guy before, about how in Singapore, we still look at Western “culture” or “things” as more superior and exquisite. While the Singapore Girl still wears the traditional SIA kebaya – which I really admire, the air steward wears ironed out Western jacket and tie. This does not apply to just the air steward, but to the general business scene in Singapore. We’ve been taught that to look “professional” is to wear “long sleeve shirt with tie”, and if you want to look even better “add a jacket (which we all know is pretty stupid in Singapore)”, and these are, I think, very Western views. Of course, to pander to the Western clientele, we should dress the way that impress them. But is there any room that can accomplish both? The Singapore Girl’s kebaya is an example. It’s so elegantly done, it’s colorful, it’s uniquely “Un-Western” (although ironically it’s designed by a Westerner I think, have to double check), yet I doubt anyone can say it’s any less professional. I’ve grown up in such a culture long enough that I can’t think of any new designs that will be more Singapore yet not throwing away a “professional” image. I think I just like my polo shirt and jeans.

Sadly I won’t be able to enjoy this luxury on my final leg, unless I get incredibly lucky – I think I just spent all my karma points on this flight. Well I won’t mind if the seat beside me is empty. But this Business class business has got me thinking – one thing about first living as a regular man on the street before being able to get bumped up to a “higher tier” is that you get to appreciate all these finer things much more. You compare between what you used to have, and what you have now, and you go “oh my god, there’s so much out there”. But then again, does this mean I was any less privileged when I was flying Economic all the while? You can have this Business class, but it does not take away the fact that I’m here on this flight alone. And assuming that I get the money to keep flying Business class, will I end up taking this for granted? It reminds me of this story that was circulating around the internet for some time: *Let us celebrate this moment, a brand new day awaits - oops* In a classroom, each kid was given a paper ball and they have to toss the paper ball into a bin that was placed right at the front below the chalkboard. Naturally those at the back saw their position and complained of unfairness; but those at the front are unable to see their luxury of having the bin nearer to them. Well it’s meritocratic – whoever lands the ball in the bin gets rewarded, but how can you judge what is based on merit? A child who has to help his parents to earn money may be as smart as another child who has the privilege of his 3 meals taken care of, but because he has less time to study he’s already worse off compared to the latter. Meritocracy is definitely a good social equalizer, but there is opportunity to improve on the system. So now that I was given the taste of being in luxury, is this luxury something that is an unfair advantage? (Rambling detector turns on) Well, the Business class is also a way for SIA to rake in higher profit. I’m not sure exactly how much more SIA earns from a Business class compared to a group of Economy class (technically 1 Business class seat is about 2 Economy class seat), but having a plane full of Business class will earn SIA more than a plane of Economy class – or maybe there’s a golden ratio that statisticians in SIA has figured out.

The air stewards/stewardesses are really well trained. I’ve heard of the grueling training and selection that each staff has to undergo before they can actually step foot on the plane. In addition to the impeccable service (they were so polite I find it uncomfortable,  I’m just not used to it), whenever they walk past your seat their eyes do a quick scan and will remove any trash that is within reach automatically.

End of story: I would love my friends to experience this luxury once in a while. But remember to stay humble in person. It’s definitely a good tale (and bragging rights), and definitely good advertisement for SIA Business Class. And if you are wondering, I am not paid by SIA. Just keep this in mind if I do get successful in the future.

The curious incident of me, my landlady and the kitchen

I've been wanting to blog about this. Some of you might know the full story, some might only know partially - the fact that I can only cook from 8pm to 10pm everyday, but that's only the outcome and not the full story. In fact, there's a great takeaway from this exchange, and I would like to share with you.
Warning, it's pretty long.

First, let's set the environment. This is her kitchen, taken from the doorway. 

It's a pretty nice kitchen. And it has a fire stove! :D

It's a decent kitchen, with a well stocked cabinet of crockery and utensils, although her array of knives is a dismay to a Chinese xD - who needs all the paring knives, steak knives etc.

Background: Me and Shutao got an internship in Pfizer in Andover and there weren't any student hostels or apartments to rent out. In fact, this was the only room that was available in Airbnb in Andover - which is near enough to our workplace. Any further we would have to rent a car, hence being poor students we are, we didn't have much of a choice. So prior to leaving Berkeley for Andover, there was some communication between us and the landlady. She laid down some house rules, and the most relevant ones are:

Quiet Hours between 10 pm to 6 pm.  No kitchen use, no shower, or w/d use during these hours 

Room comes with light use of the kitchen and w/d.  Kitchen use is very light--you will have storage space in the frig and shelf and can use the utensils/ cookware in the kitchen.  But pretty much just light meals, cooking and complete cleanup.  Good practice to label your soaps and food.  

You supply all your own food and perishables, which include all soaps (dish, laundry) and paper goods (paper towels, napkins, toilet paper). 

Everything seems fine. Ok, we understand we have to supply our perishables - we can't be "living off" her dishwashing soap for 2 months. Ok, quiet hours are as such, we will not cook or shower after 10pm. And yep, light use of kitchen... we won't do like deep frying or cook stuff that will cause lots of fumes.

So for the first week, we cooked very basic Chinese food like stir-fried chicken and chinese cabbage with plain rice. We cooked both breakfast and dinner. Our landlady would finish her breakfast at around 7am and we'll cook from 7am - 7.30am and have breakfast before leaving for work. Nothing too fancy (anyway there isn't much "chinese" ingredients here, and initially Shutao seemed to have some 'restrictions' in food - he only liked some types of vegetables / meat and hence I was trying to accommodate. (Don't get me wrong, I'm alright with it, I'm just trying to see what he likes - and we do have some foods that we like in common - and also get to know him better. But this is out of scope of this article). 

And suddenly, we got this email (only the relevant text is shown):

Secondly, I am very discouraged about your kitchen use.  As I have explained several times you are to have only very light use of the kitchen.  Typically this means that you are in/out quickly--mostly using the kitchen for storage (refrigerator or shelf) and then quick meals.  I have explained this several times but still it seems that you have not respected this limitation.  Please, it is very important that you limit your use to my kitchen.  You have access to the kitchen but not heavy use.  

As I explained in the April 26 email, (threaded below) your room comes with" light use of the kitchen and w/d.  Kitchen use is very light--you will have storage space in the frig and shelf and can use the utensils/ cookware in the kitchen.  But pretty much just light meals, cooking and complete cleanup.  Good practice to label your soaps and food. "  I also explained this the day you moved in and several times in the past week.   Still, it is not evident that you understand what this means.  

It is considered a privilege to use the kitchen.  It is called kitchen privileges.  Full, unrestricted, unlimited use of a kitchen does not come with your room.  I know you would really want it to,and you are really working hard to have full and unrestricted access,  but it clearly does not.  Should you need full use, please feel free to seek accommodations elsewhere that better suit your needs.  I have absolutely no problem with this should you decide that you really need to have full kitchen use.  I would never want you to be unhappy here because my place does not suit your needs so please feel free to find other accommodations where you can use a kitchen fully and without restrictions.

But in the meantime, please respect the kitchen limitations that come with the house. 

We were like... wuttt? What did we do? We had been only using the kitchen when it was free - no one was currently using the kitchen. And since our landlady would usually cook and have dinner with her son every night (unless they evidently went out), we would wait until they are done before we used the kitchen. And even when we are at the kitchen, there were one or two occasions where we cooked side-by-side our housemates, and we constantly ensured that they weren't feeling obstructed. The key point was to ensure she was done and she has washed up and LEFT the kitchen before we would step inside. She would sometimes walk back in, but we already knew she had her meal.

And then 2 weeks later, this bombshell came:

Unfortunately it has not appeared that you have heeded the limited kitchen rule of the house, despite the multiple communications we have exchanged regarding kitchen privileges.   You have disregarded my notice and continue avail yourself to full, unrestricted, unlimited use of the kitchen--despite my clearly tell you that this was not part of your accommodations.   You still have the practice of waiting until no one is in the kitchen then immediately  and fully occupying it for extended lengths of time.  You have not changed your use of the kitchen at all unfortunately and as a result will have further restrictions on your privilege

Starting today, you are not to have access to  the kitchen at any time except between the hours of 8pm and 10pm.  Outside those hours and your access is only to enter/exit to retrieve or bring in food that you have stored there.  As far as you are concerned, the kitchen is primarily for storage of your food.  You can take the hours between 8pm and 10pm for food preparation.  Additionally, during the hours of 8pm-10pm others may or may not be using the kitchen so please be prepared to not not have full use of the kitchen as you may have to share it with others during that time.  Restrict your space and plan for others to be able to use it along side you at this time.

If your needs exceed this kitchen use, I am more than supportive of you finding other accommodations.  Please keep me posted about this.  In the meantime, I will ask once again that you respect the kitchen privilege I have stated above  and not disregard it.  

If you continue to disregard the limited use of the kitchen, the next step will be total kitchen privleges being taken away and you will not be allowed in at all.  All food and meals will have to be taken off the premises altogether.  

Please let me know if you have any questions or need clarification. 

And I totally couldn't take it. But I thought, there might be some misunderstanding or miscommunication. So I clarified:

I have some clarifications to make. Can you further explain on how we "fully occupy it" and "for extended lengths of time"?

 Yes, after our previous conversation, we decided to wait till the kitchen is unoccupied before we use it. We are usually the last one to use, and hence we felt that we would not be obstructing the usage of anyone else. In the morning we are the last to have breakfast / leave the house and at night we are the last one to have dinner. We thought we would not

 It is unfortunate that you have the impression we are "fully occupying" the kitchen. The only reason I could think of is while we are preparing food we do have a couple of bowls and plates of pre-cut ingredients, and that might take up some of the table space. And we have the habit of only washing up after we are done with eating our meal. So this could probably give the impression that we are obstructing the use of the kitchen to others. In fact that is far from the truth - anyone can use the kitchen while we are still in there. We will accommodate his/her needs accordingly i.e. clearing up some table space or stove space.

In fact, there were some instances where we shared the use of the kitchen with Nick, and he doesn't mind.

We feel that we have not disregarded the limited use of the kitchen. We would like to know what exactly about our actions and behavior that made you think this way about us, and we can change that.

(Glenn and Nick are the other tenants)

And then the learning moment arrived:

Hi Kevin and Shutao and thanks for your quick response.

By way of explanation, "Waiting to use the kitchen" is not considered to be light use of the kitchen while in there.  And while I appreciate that you "wait", this is not the issue.  You were doing the 'wait strategy' prior to our last conversation. This did not change your use of the kitchen at all.  

The issue is rather --You still continued to expect to use it fully and for as long as you wanted while in there.   Apparently figuring that if you were in there you had a right to do what you wanted for as long as you wanted just as long as you waited to do so.  This did not change. The point being is that you did not change the use of the kitchen.  Nothing has changed.  And while you think you do not take up a great deal of space and time, you do and you need to recognize this message.   Waiting to use it the moment someone steps out is not the issue.  It is what you do once you are in there that is in question.  And as such, further restrictions are to be made.  

The truth is that if you were indeed using the kitchen for light use- as you should be---you would not have to wait    You would have access pretty much anytime,  like every other houseguest who understands and respects the light use, including the current two houseguests Glenn and Nick.   Glenn and Nick come in/out anytime, knowing how to cooperatively use the privilege.  You have not demonstrated that you do this so thus the restricted hours have been set.  And they will continue to do this regardless of who is in the kitchen at the time as that is how light use of kitchen works.  

But for you we have to set a different course because of your insistence of continuing full and complete access.   The fact is you did not change your habits at all despite my email from May, which was an reiteration of prior communications spanning back to pre move in.   And the issue is that you perceive your use and within the limitation and it is not.  So the best way for you to cooperatively continue is to have further restrictions and that is 8pm-10pm only and with the caveat that this is shared use during this time, such as you have in the past with other houseguests.   And you may access the kitchen outside those two hours if you need to retrieve food from storage or eat an already prepared meal.   

To further clarify, this does not mean come into the kitchen for those two hours and stake it out and use it fully.  It means that it is still a quick meal preparation time when you are in/out quickly.  Please organize yourself accordingly.   My suggestion to you is to use this time in the kitchen to prepare a larger quantity of food so that you can store in refrigerator and  access  the prepared food outside the 8pm-10pm window  for subsequent meals and/or to get take out meals from local restaurants supermarkets that are already prepared .   This falls under best practices and is what most houseguests do who use the kitchen for food preparation.    I think if you find a way to cut back on your food preparation time (and space) you should be just fine.  You just gotta figure out how to reorganize yourselves so that you need to spend less time and space in the kitchen.  Logically,  if you could do this then  , you would not have a problem with this restriction.  Indeed the 2 hour window  would be considered above and beyond your privilege. 

Please email me with any further clarification you may need.  I appreciate this dialog, truly and I do want to reiterate that I think very highly of both of you.  You are really great guys but I have to restrict your use even further as I cannot nor can be expected to accommodate your current demands on the kitchen.  The restrictions stands.  8-10pm only.  Outside that time  is for quick access to the room. 

Then something clicked. There was a grave misunderstanding. Why would we want to "disregard" her? There're better things to do, and this Andover place is so rural, I wouldn't want to get kicked out of the house (well, this would probably lead to another discussion about the legality of the Airbnb contract). So I tried to communicate with her:

I think I understand the situation now.

There's some cultural ​dissonance which led to this.

 First, it seems that you define "light cooking" as a meal that's prepared and consumed in probably 30 minutes or less, with only 2 or 3 ingredients. For us, our meals consist of a little more ingredients, and we do some light frying and cooking of rice - which itself takes 20 minutes. We prepare our meals in around 20-30 minutes, and then spend about 15 minutes to consume them and another 10-15 minutes to wash/clean everything up. There's some disconnect between what we define as "meals" and how to prepare them. To us, 20-30 minutes of food preparation is pretty fast and "light", but of course we are in your home so we should change expectations accordingly.

 Second, we do not feel that we are imposing on anyone with our presence. Even with all our "pots and pans and bowls" laid out on the table, we would gladly shift them away if anyone needs the table. We are happy to accommodate anyone to cook with the stove/prepare their meals right beside us while we are also cooking.

I think you do not share a similar opinion. We wouldn't want to disregard you - we understand it's ultimately your house, but it's because we have two different perspectives on the same thing that has led to this. From what I gather, you feel uncomfortable when we are in the kitchen and you see so many bowls/plates laid out or that half the stove is being used.

 Hence, can I clarify. Let's say we want to have porridge for breakfast. Is it then possible if we prepare the porridge the night before, then in the morning we would just take it out and microwave it and consume it?

 I am not trying to put you in a bad light, I think it's just simply two different cultures. We, as foreigners, should be more forthcoming in trying to understand how you view things. I appreciate you are willing to engage in this dialogue.

And that email was sent since Jun 12, and it wasn't mentioned or brought up again. She probably didn't know how to answer, or just forgot to answer, but whatever. 

I think I pretty much explained myself in the email excerpts. Just think as a Chinese perspective; when you cook, you will first prepare all the ingredients, such as cutting vegetables, marinating the meat, beating the eggs, and also cooking the rice separately. So if you look at the kitchen, we pretty much occupy the entire table top on the stove side. I would say that's "normal". But that's only when we think we are alone. The moment someone else needs to use some of the table top - we would always ask if the person wants to cook - we will shift our stuff. Hence we never thought we were a burden.
But I think that's where we thought wrong. Firstly, the definition of light cooking is already different. I anticipated that, and I didn't want to clarify with the landlady as I didn't want to restrict myself too much. I will be shooting myself in the foot if I suggested explicit "rules" on what defines "light cooking". But I didn't expect it to be this serious.
To give you an idea on what Nick and Glenn cooked for dinner: they either cooked pasta, or made sandwiches. And they regularly cooked extra and ate pre-cooked food for dinner (so they cooked one big batch and then heat up for subsequent dinners). So that's what she meant by "light kitchen use". To me, that's simply sad. If that's the definition of normal American meals, I pity them. 

When I first received that last email, I was ranting:
1. She says she has been hosting for over a decade. I bet she has only hosted Americans, especially Americans who eat pre-cooked dinner or sandwiches as dinner - well this town is so far flung why would anyone else come here anyway.
2. Isn't she even interested in why we do things this way? Why would she immediately think of us wanting to "disregard her?" She's a professor teaching psychological science and she can't think? Like seriously. 
3. Hell, I wanted to share some of our food with her, but I think she's someone who's probably scared of Ebola or something. She likes "healthy", she's always cooking "healthy". I think she's allergic to all other oil other than olive oil. I was really impressed with her son, her son was exposed to other religions in school - one day he was talking about Buddhism and Judaism and I told him abit about Buddhism and he was so open about it. But now her son would only be "stuck" eating her food - that's so pitiful.
4. I have always been cleaning up the kitchen after my use. And I swear I always leave it cleaner than I "get" it. She doesn't seem to clean her kitchen that much too; like I could see obvious oil spots or random food pieces that dropped onto the stove. She probably doesn't notice such stuff.
5. She probably doesn't know what it's like to "share the kitchen". Well it's her kitchen anyway so she's the boss right? At least tell us explicitly when you want to use it and how long it is. Prior to that bombshell, we dare not ask her when she would be done with the kitchen - and she probably knows that we were waiting for her. There were 2 occasions where we waited till 9pm and then gave up waiting and went to nearby McDonald's to eat.
6. Sorry Ma'am, I'm not as rich as you. A regular dinner in this rich man area (someone told us Andover is a rich man place) would easily set us back by more than $10 per person - how to afford?????
7. And why haven't you replied me? Got stumped by me right? 

Obviously none of those reached her ears. These were just knee-jerk reactions and were mainly emotional. She has her reasons too, and I felt it boiled down to cultural differences - how do you define meals.

We did try to find for other areas, but as expected, this location is still the best. So we just decide to make do with it. Snacking before 8pm if we were hungry. And we sometimes cooked extra so that we could simply reheat the leftover portion for the next day's breakfast. If not, we would have buns (we went to Chinese grocer - sometimes our boss brings us to a Chinese grocer, I can't describe how great he is) or oats with milk. 

The adaptation has been going well. 8pm to 10pm for us to cook, wash up and subsequently shower (remember 10pm is silent hours) We would just cook like normal, since she has "given us" the "timeslot". Lunch on weekends is either snacks, or we would head to a nearby restaurant for a self-treat. Well, all seems well and I'm fine with this arrangement - at least for the time being.

This only makes me want to go back home sooner - so that I can start cooking whatever I want again. 

Well, this incident might only be an isolated incident. Obviously she does not represent all or most Americans, neither do my house mates. Nonetheless, it's a reminder that, not everyone might be as "open-minded" as me. They have their own pre-conceived notion that they will stick to. I have to also constantly remind myself to stay open-minded, and think of people positively. Most people won't have ill intentions, and if you are able to dig out the root cause, sometimes it's all a matter of perspective. If you just apply your own way of thinking, it may portray people in a negative light, unfairly.

Yup. Definitely one of my longest post, but thanks to the long emails. Thanks for the read!

This is the Closest to Drunk, that I've ever been

And I don't wanna do anything now..

And all I could do was to sleep in
And all I could feel was to vomit
When sooner or later I woke up
I just realised it's 5 freaking pm

Hope you got the song reference (:
But yea, this is such a fantastic experience I shall blog about it while waiting for dinner (or whatever food that my stomach can take) in 30 minutes.

No worries, I have tons of biofuel in my body in terms of alcohols, this should provide me with lots of energy hehe.

So shame the culprits I shall:
Yuan Ming, Thanh, Jia Rong, Yanling, Theodore, Sey Chee, Leon

But yep, it was a whole hell of fun. Like pure fun. And Sey Chee gets special honourable mention for being so funny and cute (and she just drinks when told to do so without much resistant lol-worthy)
And knowing that you are in a bunch of friends you feel ok to just drink. And I have nothing on in the morning, so hell yea!

But I wasn't entirely drunk though, just having that disoriented feeling. I could walk back to my room unassisted, but Yuan Ming was kindly around in case anything happens. (And of course that random 5am message on the REP whatsapp group, idk but I just saw the first group that I knew Yuan Ming was in and hence I just posted in there)

But it was the aftermath that hit. I think because I wasn't that drunk I did not vomit last night (or this early morning - We stayed till around 4.30am and I slept at 5am) So after lunch (yep I had lunch), my stomach suddenly felt damn weird, and like vomiting. So while trying to have conversations with friends my stomach was feeling like shit. And I don't want to vomit because vomiting is such a terrible and horrendous experience (link to Bangkok trip when I got food poisoning). End up, enough was enough, I just went back to sleep.

So now I am going for dinner.. shall choose my food wisely. No dairy, and no food that's harsh on the stomach. There must be still alcohol in there, waiting to vomit.

But still, I had fun. And this is a good experience.

Reflections 2 weeks late

*Cue nice music*

Yes Sean, yes Joan ... This is certainly due. And I shall dive straight into it - and this time with little or no organisation. Anything that comes into my mind will be placed without significant rearrangements.

Here are some things that I picked up:

1. The word "big" just grew bigger when you travel from Singapore to US
2. There's just so much land everywhere you go
3. And animals too. Mooo. Mehhhh... *insert deer sound*
4. Air is significantly drier, and weather is cooler - but still bearable and in fact it's like permanent air-conditioning -> this means my feet is constantly wet (I have "sweaty palms and feet" in cold weather)
5. Everyone here is good in something, and when they are good, they are really good. Puts me into shame -> what am I doing with my life?
6. There's really so many cultures and other people in the world. The world is like FKING huge?
7. It's one thing to know, understand and read about; and another to experience it in full blast in your face
8. There are many Koreans in International House as well, we can probably fight with the Korean contingent
9. The system here supports alot of recycling, but somehow, paradoxically, some people do not bear the "recycling" or "save the earth" mentality. It's like you have recycle bins, we do drop in the food into compost bins and plastic bottles into the recycling bin for plastics, but we do not cut down on the initial consumption... It's like we have NEWater but we still waste water nonetheless
10. I like this campus because it makes people walk, and walk alot. It's like walking from Hall 11 to Can A everytime -> not too far, but not that near.
11. There is an epic fitness culture here, almost everyone is doing something related to health/fitness I think one can easily catch the fitness bug. It's all about making the decision to get out of the room, through the cool/cold air, into the sports facilities, and sweating it out and getting into shape. The sports facilities are almost always crowded with people. They might not be 80-90% occupied, but at least 40-50% full at ALL times - including off peak periods like mornings and mid day.
12. Making friends is 'easy', but actually creating a bonded relationship - that requires some effort. I think one can be easily "overwhelmed" with the number of "friends" you can have.
13. A term is coined: socialising saturation point / friendship saturation point
14. There are 2 ways to spend this time in CA, US:
• Do different things with the same people to deepen the relationship
• Do different things with different people to expand your circle
15. There's really so much thing to do and so little time.. which leads to
16. This quote: You can do anything, but you can't do everything.
17. Now I have to find things that lie in the "I want" & "I can" quadrant. Joining the established clubs just mean one thing: selection. And that's tough.
18. Now distance is calculated in hours, rather than just minutes.
19. Relatively laggy internet -> boo ):
20. More 花草树木 ;)
21. Simply more experiences lie ahead. Make a choice, and work with it. Grass is always greener on the other side, but be thankful that you have the opportunity to be where you are at the moment.
22. I like wearing caps + hoodies -> Gonna have a new style yo~ wassup~
23. And finally, more self actualisation. Who am I?

Yosemite

That's pretty much about it. Time to go for lunch then class ~

Thanks Clara for this wonderful photo.
I pretty much look like this everyday.

Prophase I

So now is the short interim phase before that long phase overseas.
But I got 2 new things, ok.. 3 (including a mouse which I kinda bought on the fly right after exams, with the reason being me being unable to throw a grenade with the broken middle mouse button of my previous mouse, .. but the new mouse only costs $10 so... can pardon me hor? xD)

1. Bought a new Xiaomi Redmi phone.. which isn't red in colour because the red ones were sold out. Needed a relatively budget phone to replace my previous Ace 2 phone which had a black LCD tumour that was growing at the bottom left. Initially it consisted of a short line of dead pixels, but the disease spread and now the spot is practically as big as my thumb.

2. Finally was able to get an internship. And yep, can't say much about what I am doing because... classified (lol, joking), but rather I don't really know what I am doing yet. All I know I would be given a project to do, but what it will be about (and what I have to do) is still unknown.

So yea, life changes so quickly. Everyone is now either overseas, working, or not working. (lol like duh). And I am now thrown into the 8am - 5pm work cycle, and being a worker again.

Now to see if I would be willing to work in such an environment.

Chapter (x + 1)

Tomorrow marks my first day at work as a university undergraduate in an internship.
Excited to see what I can pick up, and also to experience how mundane work can be.
Grateful for the support and help that I have been provided with. Help is given to those who ask.
I have been blessed with this opportunity, better make full, good use of it. However, that being said, if you ask me now, I have no idea what my internship would be. Neither do I know my remuneration, my job scope yada yada. All I know is to turn up at that place, at that time.... and the rest will be history for the next 3 months.

So my chapter at hall 11 is likely to be closed, amid speculations about us shifting into new halls when we return. Even if I do get back to hall 11, the population there of people whom I would be familiar with would probably dwindle to a handful.

It is so interesting and intriguing how we take so long to build a relationship (i.e. with the hall), but a simple, single effort (i.e. simply depositing the key into the letter box) can end it so ever swiftly. Well, to be more specific, the physical relationship and physical closeness.
I would also not meet some of my friends in a year?

Learnt quite a bit in school.

I think after 2 years, I must admit that the "cliques phenomenon" is indisputably inevitable. And it is for the better good as well. Although it might create some drift between members of different clans, it also provides the members some form of support to turn to. Initially I was quite apprehensive about this "clique" thing, and steadfastly proclaim myself as "clique-less"; but then I realised I am into this "clique" thing as well.
But there's nothing to be ashamed of, it is alright to have a clique. But be more aware about others who are so-called-not-in-your-clique. It doesn't mean they are not in your "clique" you treat them as second-class friends. People in your clique might be the first whom you turn to, but these other friends living on the fringes are equally important as well - because you always need a plan B in case your clique collapses.

I have made more friends. And I intend to keep most of them. This time, I have more friends to stay in touch, but still the same 24 hours a day. Looks like I am in need of some time management.


Time to get a new phone. There are indeed so much wisdom in my friends, I cannot fathom how they know such stuff. Looking for the small rice, and had some "fun" scrambling around everywhere getting price quotes. 

And my tablet seems to be screwing up. Some China stuff seem to be working, and others seem to be relishing in bad reputation.

And I probably need to do another thought rumination process. Have to settle my priorities, and what to focus on.

Chinese New Year, a new look

After engaging in my annual war with dust for control over any surfaces in the house (which I gave dust 364 days in advance to prepare), I eventually maintain my defending champion title, but the victory was almost Pyrrhic. Dust quickly penetrated my defenses and made me a living wreck, virtually sick but not technically sick. I have now a running nose and feel like shit even though I don't think I am actually infected.

Nonetheless, whilst in that epic war, the lunar new year songs kept playing and advertisements proclaiming wishes of good fortune kept coming. And the economist in me questioned:

If everyone wished each other for good fortune, such as 恭喜发财, would that in effect mean anything at all? If everyone became rich, that would only result in inflation and no one will benefit from any gain in real income! $10 would probably become the new $1 if everyone wishes came true.

I pursued the idea further. So what wishes are more logical and sustainable to dish out? How would I know if a certain wish would be in effect something that actually helps not only the individual, but also society?
(This also led to a spin-off discussion of how wishes actually show how individualistic we are. We only wish for the person's welfare, but never keeping in mind that of society's. Of course, this argument would not hold if the said person being wished 万事如意 wishes to contribute to society)
And I eventually came to a conclusion, wishes for goods/services/anything that is not "economically defined" scarce will be the best wishes to make in benefit of the society. For instance, health. Health may be argued to be scarce (places to exercise is scarce, healthy food is also scarce), but I think we can somewhat agree that we can be healthy together. If we want to wish 马到成功 or 万事如意, we should add a modifier clause: only if you intend to help society. 

No worries, this argument is flimsy at best. I will still wish you 恭喜发财! (:

Happy Chinese new Year!

Note to self

New Year Resolutions

Note to self: 

1. 30 Cheap And Amazing Date Ideas For Couples

2. Trampoline Park

3. Use less "swear" words

4. Watch my tone: speak in a less condescending tone, sometimes good intentions may be masked by bad publicity

5. End my URECA with a bang!

Shall sticky this post for constant reminder (:

A coded message

If you have been asked to see this, by all means carry on. But if you have no clue whatsover what this message is doing here, then this post is just not for you today (:

ZZZZZ XNTPJ XTUFK PAFWS IVJFV KBJFW AVTSE PDLAG JNHDV THGKB FTTQE

SGSUA JSMHV RJAVA NLBEM VKPLG LCJAU SVBWE BUJEL FXFJW SLTMP FXVTA

KPBWB PCUVL XUCFG INWPI MOOQL OHXKS EUSWF KOTDR WLESX QSMGB LNSLT

USLJF LJDNO BRLHM QBRUS IRDKN RNVUI FHMSW GRFFN TVNBF QRJNB ASAHL

CJBWJ XXOGQ OPNKK ELKLU GRTUC VRQXV NTFKP BIJTW DLQKP HQOCJ DDSOV

LQWGM FAHQV HUOUT MWQNB WUSAQ VOOSE MNWWK XUSNK JHKJI JDKXB XFOQM

BDFCQ XADEB KXSRN SGFRG AVFNT WUWSP SQPIC SESSX OSHPQ DNJHP WEMSP

EQVNN NWEJV NVDNM XDFVW LBUSF PKEWL QWOFE JXCCX MXTXU TTKQJ MNTAI

QUGUH HWHXX HDOOU TUGFX HTQFA PLSLS PLVBU TEFEW HSJXX IKIXB JBXFE

GVWSN QCSJB TAHDT WPMQR EXQWP UIGXO VSSRN REUFL EHEPU HBGTG DIJDW

RJHDH OIUPM CMDMJ CAJPK NJXRH MNVHS XQDUS HWIAL XNLXC NWSMH BHNNO

UQFHG SBTNE RQDWJ IJHND WBSKE FFLUX HTLIR IWSWO GQLJC OQESH EDBSD

WGAME KCFPB XTVBR JCNMD ISOPU TGOHP MTEAQ SWMLG SCTRR GHGAW JKLCE

PGEPV TJUQX CDNLM NLRWF UCKEI DORBG ONGVX UVJCN GETLX VBOCW TOXRL

EMWEI EATJS SDXTP FKPLL EOCCD LSEFM SBKPA CUIWE KHPRW JDRPK KNGPP

RCXFS EUPTX ALXTB XFINI RXOFG WRICK QRTEE BCJSG QSOMW FITIC FTOJS

TLIKQ GBUTR FAGER AAPVH EHOJV OWPQG WRTEP NXSLB OULUC KNJIX HJJHM

ASNKS XVKEW IQUUB CKKAX DUOGB FIBHP BVFMJ CRREW SDPIT TFHBI QIGUN

SNPWA UQUSI XRIJI KJAWK HSUVN LKGMV WUFCT PANRH QTOAA IIMKG KNCUA

CXOWW INBCX LKJEO PCJPC UNJXG ELFRL CEHEC QKLLT TPOPC BPUWR DOCJF

XUPDD TOKUK LTCWG VWATS HLFWA VWUPU IIRTA BDPBD JRSAV MGEQM XNOQS

WRLLJ PARAV TAGVK SBOMT GLFUJ QQQSW TXJPC VPBUN IJRJN STIEQ PQEDN

NVVRS XWDJP IKAKI UXEPX HVVML RPCSE URJTP GINQJ OSUOI WCVRM TUEEB

WHIJS HXGFK KNBTA MACIJ BITJL QRBML XPPXU EKNVH PPRMD RXNNJ UPPCA

WJAFP DLAJT XCBWC RSHSO AUKKX DQQGL AFGXA DPDHM RXOCR UVVUW JLXSN

EULLQ RLJON SHUJS APUNR PRFWL OSPSB JSDIO VMQPA QNUXM RALEQ BEWCK

BBHXX KPXGE XVOBC XAIAF CTHDI TKEUR LHMKN WXIUB BUBJF AMEJD BFVHX

GWMGA ATRTU VDKVO LOCLI FUNPV GUUTI UJJDS MBIEP TDFUW QLGTT WFCDE

HDBSP QPTKS TNIRF JUFAE OWSQT JUKUU JPPUD KRSMD JEUTX JONHA GLRWX

CQHWG XBHNN WVWCO EOIPB LFHUN NQUAA JJAXP HJVCI XBGNS VITUD BDCSR

BCAUT HCIIU IVQCJ FCAUW FWGSM ORBCI HTAXU HOAJT WUDVO BDUKF VHBLV

BUXJO VFFBN OWNSM LAPMQ DMOSK OCKUQ QCNGT XQHKG BPUKX MOTKP GRCGD

UUQUL JBGFI NKMDK PONSC RXCWJ XFQFS BKUWW FWWXR CTJVI IIQAH RIRLL

BETPJ FVUMI CGIPU UDQLF QMSPW LMIMS GEDTE PMOEU STMML BLUAH DRPUN

XQDRK UNNGR MIGLO UEXLQ MKKSJ WKOGS HXUBD KSECJ KOREN IONWS OMBUI

UEWDI GIJGG BTDIK LDPKJ KJFXC WILNN WKAWO SLHMH DNXFL NGJKR UKKFH

OSGLT RVRKB JEGDE QCVNA SGFEA GXDPG JQIDP NEXCI DNTFI DRWNU DVCQL

WWIMH UUXKD EAPGT EORMF AMKQA ODGTV JEKRP SWNTI KMPGS WWFTV NPOKW

WUGBP OJPWE BDBCJ HDAVJ GEUEW RKSJV NPGEW DBKGB NUGMG OHHJR HUFHD

OJFWX GAMHP GVLRK VBFWH SEHKQ KQUBB RVTBI OOBIF KOKAA VLFQW MCMAK

CHSQP FEURI UIGBI TBMXE VFWHW AIUBL SPGDN GRCJR XDROK MVBGN SITJP

DBXOL STHLR PBTBT GOXOT WLOUH NOQQB SFXQC SHXCR BUXGN IJQBB XVECS

NIBMD VRLTG CKLFA WQFAE GOBME FAKHC HRXMD MPVQG XGPHH XBAIQ AGABO

XKMGN DTTCN MOKUP KCLPN ALRGG RNQXT ECQCD VHOGG AGNCI KKIEE SUSXH

STMGG UHGJF HIQWA SFVAU JKJMN DPMHW MAUGM FKROV DPUEW GPMSE XVIAV

KDRXN LMABT LCOOM LMSRX GGXUP DBKAD BDRFS MTEQG OGLME EHXJD VMKBL

FPRII QESXW XKAAH RAJVG NGWSQ WKKSS XOHDC RWATL TXROS MOFMQ XTEOR

QFBOQ KWOCQ TSEII SPHFS MIGQX DIKJP UXKOB FTGQK CCGIG QJKCF TJKPE

HMWMR VAAMD MRLOH XBEUA TWGNV JVKKU GFBCK PTHBG JKOTM PPDWA FINMI

GSTSG FWWBS HBFOE WPTTF OIBBL POAPE GIPQU IXOUW SPPEO ULNSL HVMDX

TLDQN DEKKP SWUQQ QTVTX VWHFM JOJHL QPCEJ FDAMV EBDXP PMTIH KJHCT

RDDKI PPRDA IAMIK LXFCN MFOAV XFBQV MKMNU TPUUT EQIQG VIXGT NOGVC

QQDQX RVIIH PGTLG LVDFS IFJIJ IUICM XEOTU OCOVP TBFDB IPIXI UGVMG

CKACA XCRKG TCWOM VBQNA MPUMJ DKOJW ITVDL IUCXJ JJQAR WKHXD QFFXX

UREDK OINFJ PXVDJ DONSU BWQEK BQEVW QAVPD WJUOD WFBXU UQXTO ORKES

KTSKW TNPIK BSNQG VNJWF HXKIM JDKRG UKTQT BIPMH QEHMW IQJAW BCCEL

FMKMX PCCLF DCWVP LFIKT NFBVE FOJAU BIJKC POUTW ITQUO SCGSU KLUGE

OXVNI QAARL KOKQL MOBSR UPMWS QWWFM QLMSM GJLXA PMTUB PBVBG SUREG

HBIVW RULOO UBGIV HRVEI BXDHW WDCXG COPBL PICKU LQSAM UNADE KPUEP

WXANJ PALTI CGWVD QDRHT SFXXQ UJALF WBGSC LCXHV GEOJU UKCKA UTXQD

RJHWE KOUJI JPNUL WCMAX NRBSO SNLDT VSBKO VGQPC GJCFK QODAF GKIWE

NUHNI OHJNV WAOIF EQWFX MNHRQ RPROT KRPNV LSVFV QIJIF WKALU HNGVB

TFXEM HMIVO XXAFI SBCJU AVXMW VWOWE TUTRR METWF LQNHM FPNLC QGUFS

TCRQB TDCMG CWHRM SELUR CCFIT AMKHG ARCHW GFXBE CASGE FRCAN JKHNP

OABFT AWREO GUTOO RNDHF VWXEE ECDBX DGWPI XGNPQ XPBPJ QTWML CCSEP

OGVAS IFBOW JDRHD CORKK GRGAS NJLWW OPEMN BSBPP KNWWW XFLOM XLCWI

WVWGP BCBXU IKULX JDGHJ LFQXR REKBP HDOQD JWDGW UQMWU OULSH LLORJ

AHEGR FMBHB SUBRM NWMSW CFVAQ PDOKD OVSWO JVUQF BGELJ RFJID AJQDE

RQNBQ UCKRV ARNVA BDPDC SKGQE OJUCH XSDRK LIVJS ARLPV LLCUG UVAGM

GFGJC FAHIB JGTCE TJWUL FXMII TOSLQ FFPLB XKKLL EJTKQ QALEM XFSKN

CNOQC CEPQJ IUIXO UJNXD OKOIB OKKQX AIFCW HAQOK VAAFQ CBHHA NPASL

LVBNV QTTTD IOCHH FMTXT PDANW WXHAT JUOKP JEBIT VBLCE TTEOS PVJPT

RSQHA BIXRX ICVSV RGJLG GARAK GTHPB IJEHN FFETW HQVXO XQCAE DHKBX

LHTDD CWAAP SIIEB JWTWC LXNDC NONJQ HEOJX LAJHL XWUII TAJHB GLWRO

MXWKL BLJUX GVRVC WGFMF HOAVI EPDNH THJSD LJMFU KUPOO CUBGS FBQLU

VGGTT SEVUM ICFBO HGMSX RBTSN JJTUM XGVJO RSOQQ KBSOE CNGVV RDPFW

BSOPP LXUVS XSNFS FKUME JBUJO NGUNU FGAPV QRACM PRAQX DKXLN RPKJV

KNJDD AXNOM MCXHB VDFDV WANHX VMIPX JKSAB CMECM XDVAM SGDIU RKOTX

NVPEL NAQPL LRKIU MWPDX KECRE SDUNL SNPES CKUWB XVFBL DDHTJ DMDPM

JJVST IVDAW MUTTE LRBFA EMAQO AMAQU WSIGO WSUJG WNUGV TTTEA SWRUJ

LKOMO AAXAJ SKLQU KKHED SGQXN HTKQI GFQIM VIOMP PQQCI DACTU NVQMU

RDXIL EOROT CQEDA VTVJB LWRCB RJQMF UDSMP HQEDQ PPQGR VTUXA QBBWN

CHHJW GQCSV ETNBH SSBWF HUEJM TIUGX LLWSM MLWGW WGPWU URLUS XBIUW

DUVII TBDVB KLAMI GCTUN OAXVU KXHNQ VFUFI TVBEV VKRSX CHEHB XDLGC

VNRBP STNAN EXLWU QXTIR HUWDK UMTRA SUWTF AOEHH WPWEA MVQPP SLOXR

QLGLJ SRWAF XCAVD MCJOL MVCDD CCJJL BJWKS NEPXR RKHDS HONML GGXKI

OFCAK XERPH DJUGF KHPRL LEAQD KFEBU TWWXO HSMQF BIQBH GWMOU DNOMX

AXVRP AHRBP RSSET TNKHE XLEME JEFGT EFCUK AJJAC UJHTH WIUKO WXKRM

BPKUE NFHDT UFKUP SRMDK KRKJM ANQAX PGCWJ SKMTW QVVFO JOEQC VHGXO

RPVQK CCMNI UHXUT PKMGE LDMNQ ECFSH KDXCX FWHGE FUFGE MLHGE WWLOB

GXETA NTKUN KGRSS VNQEG HPXIA CRFKW TUWBG LEEHD CDXTB SLXUT QJCPO

JSRIL KPVQQ VFNGS FPKPL IJIWU RKCMV BLTRI HJVWG UENCS EUEXT AIPFG

PFCSR OKWGW CWPTM OFJMH ECXEQ CIMCV JGRKF BOKJQ AXERP JVKKB OAWGV

QQOCU LVPPV JFBFM BNUHU AUNUN EDENI HAMDW AEPJA KMVBR UTMML WHDNE

PPEVD MJUNW BHGNU UHSHS VRSNH BPKEV GMCOB RTSHK CWERG MEDGX HRDCT

NRNIW MCQPA GBHCQ FEAGG MLSFK XTTDQ AJCFO OVQSC PLMOV BUNJR RDWAL

AEUBL XAHFK KUOJE CCAFT WVBWH UBHLV KQCIJ UUCGV FAHFW TLOXO HKNSX

TPVLD SHDXQ GFJEM ILIMQ XWPSJ JTQMM XSQMR EPFUK FHKFK IUFKR QPVJO

OPJMR QVWCS CNJHL ATXGR QSDWM XDFWJ WCLDG CODLO PBCCP GEQJU RTCKU

VMGXM KXJLE UIQRP WWLIX BJTBS TTPTA EEXLW JQAEJ AJOAE JTPEG LDUDQ

BKKXU LJRCX RWMJP AMDNB LODBB OAQPV UUSJS JOTHJ ACQWN VROIC LBGAI

PAKXQ JKSKA WNVHQ CDFXM RTUEU BTGSM AAPEP GWVPQ RJIWP DOUIS LJVLU

DTUTG UBPMC NMQPQ KLTIK HNGBR SQMVS NILAH EDBTC BCQHL CEWCP VNRPN

GXPAE WUGPB CPMWX GPMLN AVWGS MDLJC WOKNE PEMDK VOFGA VQSQQ COLWI

RDCQX JOJIP FKFJL OJFNM TOSOU XFKDH KJODX BCTFP VFTKB TPAKX KDTTT

SCTUJ WSOMB MPETT PDUOI LBESI PDRMV PRVLV QLNLO WAPGF DXXVR PKUUN

TNVRC BIECS FOUHB IHHQG FQKEQ CNQJX DGSOS OCEMR RDMIM ADWXF NLRSI

ITCHF CSTHW RACOX GONEL CNEJL JEOQG EGUFQ OSSDX XJNXI DPFNN HSKBK

VNBUT QGCFX CVJBI OVWRU AESUV NEUFP AIOSR LOLXH GRUXC QMURO XCNPJ

TTQBA RNRXQ KBKGI VISTQ RUNCD OUIIO AFKNK CQAFK RQLLS FWHUW GHWDH

JABSO AOAHU VSTOQ ENLRF LTDJB KQEEN WEWBG VNLBL CIAHL FVXPQ GHDRD

XPXSX QFDAU LCKSL OMSPG FMGNN CNSOW AEJPD WVCBF DJJGC MXFWG RESQU

LRDNX DWCBE FWXSJ NUNCO GIHEX VRRFA MDVXS JDIIC SSTTL XCGEP QENEO

POCAD VSSUG DVMDS XARHV EXGFO TBCBP DRMNR UGXKV FJAFK ALIKF CGMUB

QRPNB OEPOH CVVOI SSGWR OGXAF CTKSP TAXMU JHRJC JLPRS WTQLQ OWGHP

EDSHV GQEOI GAFLF VTJUO IJSKT PTUQJ SLJHM AWLGS PMKKC WQRWI VDNCV

XNJTP XBIAG SMGRM RXMWV QSLAV EITDL PXWAD AGGES LPLDB TFOCU WGFWE

CLHPV RQMLJ GGXEG NNLNH TGKOT HFMRE KRTUW MCXMX EFNQP KCBFK IMBIE

IEBGP CEBNW MVMMN CMJDA NMTHS UACLV LRWUG CFETT RHCEH GTBMK EBKMO

LMIBQ VFFLR JDOBN CVJLR UKHLN TSUFI BRTXM WCAMP HOITD RARMU XPATE

HCPPW BCCBK BREFG LMLRI UEGNH UFFBB ABIGP VPOKM DVVEU ULQII MXFAB

TFOFL CBKIL JIQCK TAPGL MEBRH JSVGE WBEXP MWSES XOPJR PXMHJ PCFGV

MISGG TOOUF AGTSI TRUNE UKUIC GCFOM ESLVL LIPBW QADXS KLNFJ GUFBO

TNBVQ FFPXG RBPPN LWFWD CJXWJ NFALH HRLRA LLDVL DNVLR IIVMM ANVDS

IEISG TUOTM LMJGP IPLMP KDDFR PGFGQ QUKHI WQKLG OEPNK GCWKL XAJCF

WHBFN HINHX NNTCM DWEXO AEVJV XMDAG JEVRC NQPXP IOSWX IJWQD BHMEU

JVFSX SKKAB IEBDN JBMCN LVEAP MBHDK NKMHT IEGAP FFJXA AUDJM TGCMS

VISNH MJSPB LQFGJ KULFG UNSEF BRBOA GMETT IRCQE DFMHJ PKROI GBHCI

AIJUD HTSAS LMLKQ QANHG WHQMU SWPKA AKCVO JNSFC NRUAL JMSAC EVKQP

ROEGS QQAAK WCQLB AMSMM PIEHI RAPME GFXUS SQJXO PCEPP LTBSO FRQFG

OGIPM DNKVR EBOXT BQHBD IHKJM XVHKA ODAWL LXBDI XHDBR CSAFF LDRUP

RBFNO EDJRK JVDBU APRJG SHSUL MNNDK CGFOK BCHOO WDRNH WLHHG PMTXG

TLHDU TUPMO TLPJB ONRCL UMUDI FOUSV MPPAA HIURQ UGVHJ AQJTJ HMFUA

EXPNB KKHKU LVHLV XFBND HTWII IFFJP NWJFP TCQCP FWGQJ LFMJU WKVJQ

FSFPU NVABN NBCFU SIBPS NULXH GJRUJ ECBUG GPQIM AQCJQ IOOSG IMNHP

AODGD LMSHI MCEWM KCFPD MCXUI UTHFN GRPQO RFSSX FJGCU KOFVQ XHPPV

XXIQU LVGDA MDTVF WOAHG AOFJK GFTUI MQSRH HJGCL AQUDF QJKJL SGQEE

OEGIQ QJGRM UXFWA LQTAO NAUEM MNSSN EMWVO WVSQV WEUXH EGBGD EKHPK

HTDRO UMQVA XJLCM KPMGF QJGLD WDLLL BHISM NQLDX BLHKU NXIUR GKEQD

VRJII XEURN WWBAX ENUVA DLTTJ BTOUR RCUVK EHBJA WFTRN MCSSH EADME

XUHQU JOMON OHENJ NGRCW FELIP RMQLV SKMDK KHCOJ HSLUD JIDUO FXCIS

KXAAV SSGNN TRBEQ QKWFD UQPVS BTPIU NTPHM WHMQD WDQBK RKUBH TFWKI

SIKJJ DMTUR ERTTR EEVGM VLXEC VMRJG XLPLR KWPPG JEFRK VHEXL LLVGV

LPWXQ AOOJK RGFXT REGCB OFFHA JNHRE VOUPB XGUJB EPRMR PBRAH QWJGK

JDWHO ODTCC AFRTX OFKAO OJNOX QKEMW PHUFG AFRGS ERTHO LODKA UBKAV

WGQVP EPREB UXHIG GQDCL PSHSV BATPL SABES AIJNN AADAU WHJAJ XITTS

LJUIO XGBIS TNNJH TVFHC XKSLU JOGBX XTUWA IBDSJ GVICU VDGKL IUWXP

GRSLE JLBHW TITWH HKKOX JNEKE JHHPN DCGIQ NATJS SPWBO CMORL THIEL

LQKKJ QXMSA XQRXU FKXEB CLROF NTSSA XEEJL IFRXK QGMDH CVOKP JSNCW

TACHL BDULO BJKUL NHJQD IEXCX JDGRE SXKIV TXDTP LHJRB VKDUO BRQSR

QTJIN JSTGG SRDGR BJOBB WSQDQ MESRC UOCLJ SPAEJ BDOTU XOGCG RDFPW

GGBLR GXXQT MUXLJ LOGBQ FFLDG RFPNE OPHSP PDVEA NBHMO UQIGM TXDIC

IDLRH VBOWK NFSJS RNTQE AVALN XMBSV GPKUD JCARR QWCHI KMPPQ HLDDL

NBCWD SQVKF NGROH KJRML AIBXO IONHR BNFXL EHVDI DRLLG UJATI VUFVC

CVVOJ QIFSI AJNQR XJLJE CQUEH VWMER MHFGG SLOCW ATFRB IFHXT FSSFP

JAROL NGDQF OKODA XTEXA DJUGS VIWRU SSDDR QOAUU LBSRI UHMDQ VDBCB

PIVLE VLORC TQFVA OFNIW FHEBG FAAGH UTNIL GOIXU SNRID GPGDQ GNQVV

EVHXB WPEOP TEXFH HCAFM DGQDC ONSDO IPQGC JCKQQ VRQRH ASGQN VOPCF

TXKED GKUQR KEQMP LLOVN GTOTF HNARC DXPMX MMBDI CSSWL IMLSK EPUQB

RJGCS ONFVP FPNEN DLUVU TCUXJ GDMZZ YYYYY

Hint: Solve the bottom first, before you approach the top.

Codegroup:
89           87           75           75           71           45           79           86           81           68           84           45           74           88           85           88           85           45           80           65           86           83           80           44           72           75           69           85           70           44           77           74           70           82           86           44           88           76           63           65           79           43           74           72           71 70           75           43           86           73           80           79           88           43           74           84           63           72           62           42           83           81           67           84           68           42           66           86           66           83           85           END

I would excel if I were to put in a n x (n²+n/2) array, and I heard Fibonacci first didn’t like that number. If that didn’t help you, adding up both the row number and column number won’t give you more chairs than a square of five chairs. Following that, watch out for the same mischievous bunch of students that keep appearing, maybe they will give a clue to this mayhem? But take note –students being in the same school does not mean that all levels of students are exactly the same. Lastly, I really hate numbers. But you know what, the first thing you should do when you are stuck, is to always ask questions… with just one letter? Y?


And when you are done with all those.. here's the last puzzle for you to solve:

AEDHH – NSATA – GUYRP – OOTIP – HYOBY

It will be remarkably easy. However you started, will always be however you end.