I haven't touched my blog for months.


( What's up now? )

First: Happy National Day! Singapore has turned 46. How time flies~ It's another year again. I was in NZ during the last National Day.

Haven't been updating for ages again. Have been caught up with work these days. (Yes, work is still hectic as usual) But to be honest, I am still procrastinating a lot.

I am so glad that we got a sorta long weekend for National Day. Can't deny that these are one of the nice privileges you get as a teacher here.

So what has been going on these few months?
( It's a BIG update... )

今日も最高の笑顔で一緒に頑張ろうな。

"Today, let's work hard together with our best smiles!"

Recently, I really like this simple daily quote from G. It's a simple action, but easily forgotten. Without smiling, it's hard to get on life, isn't it?

It's been a month since the earthquake-tsunami disaster in Japan. News about the situation in Japan is getting lesser. It's always like this somehow. A disaster happens in a country, gets reported like wildfire initially, and after some time the news die down, people think that the situation is okay, end of story. In actual fact, it takes time and resources for an affected country to rebuild itself. People may never get over their loss of their loved ones.

Currently, Japan is still far from recovery. Just recently, the nuclear rating of Fukushima incident has increased to 7, which makes it on par with the Chernobyl incident. The country is still experiencing aftershocks until now. Their export trade has went down a lot due to nuclear contamination issues.

But, Japan, we know you are strong and you can overcome this difficult period!

"Unity is Strength"
Camp @ Yishun Safra

We had a school camp at Yishun Safra last Saturday. It was successful. All the kids had lots of fun and I'm sure it was a memorable day for them. The instructors were awesome. Of course, not forgetting the teachers and volunteers who worked hard for the camp too. But man, we were exhausted after the whole thing!

GACKT-san's SHOW YOUR HEART project has successfully gathered around 1.6 USD million to date (the power of G)! The SYH team had managed to get 60 tonnes of supplies to a few disaster sites. :)

And of course there were many people (from all over the world) who helped in their own ways. At this time, it is really important to help each other.

日本がんばって！！！

Hope all of our efforts have reached Japan as well.

For those who are interested to help and haven't done so:

www.redcross.org.sg/Japan-Disaster-2011.phtml

OR

www.mercyrelief.org/web/Common/homepage.aspx

OR

www.jas.org.sg/index_en.html


:)

We have a one-week school break starting today. I still have to head to school today and tomorrow, to clear up admin work though. But I definitely feel more relaxed. It shows how just 4-5 hours of teaching a day can be so draining.

Anyhow, my mum bought Lianhe Wanbao just now and showed it to me. There was lots of news on the Japan earthquake-tsunami-nuclear crisis. I flipped to the entertainment section and spotted this:

( Didn't expect it initially... )

And found two local options for donating.

Either via

Mercy Relief
You can send cash personally or cheque to Mercy Relief''s office at:
Blk 160 Lorong 1 Toa Payoh
#01-1568 Singapore 310160
Please indicate ''Japan Quake and Tsunami Relief'' at the back of your cheque.

Or

Groupon
Groupon has set a "deal" page for donations. Join and you can donate $5, $10, or $25. All donations will be given to the Singapore Red Cross.

There are various organizations that are working on relief and recovery in Japan. They are currently accepting donations.

See information here


GACKT-san is also starting a fund-raising project. This is his 2nd project, I think. (the first one named "Save the Dears") He's been active on his blog these few days. And even started a twitter account.

Latest: Been keeping a close watch on the news. The current biggest issue is still the nuclear plants at Fukushima. I seriously hope it won't lead to a major radioactive leak. :(

The health consequences can be seriously dire.

Ah, I just realized I might have missed the NZ donation drive carried out by Massey. -_-

Just after the earthquake at Christchurch, a massive one of 8.9 magnitude hit Japan just yesterday.

( Heartbreaking news... )

So, it's already been three weeks since I started working at the school. I guess it's a small accomplishment!

Working as a teacher is like studying in school. You teach during curriculum time, lesson planning is like your homework, other times you might be busy with something else, rinse, repeat. There is much paperwork that comes with this job. Currently, I am still trying to manage class behavior. Experienced some class drama this week. But at that moment, it's as if my students had become my children. I do not hate them for being awfully mischievous. I had been naughty before, after all. :P

Looking back into the past, I did hate it when a teacher scolded or punished me. I couldn't fully understand my teacher's intentions. Of course, there were times I cried. Looking at my students was like looking at the old me. I appreciate my teachers better now. Teaching is really not easy. Seriously, it is exhausting to scold/admonish/tell off students everyday.

To be honest, I am not sure how long I can last but I will try my best. Weekends have become a vital time for resting and recharging!

Work, aside. I do have a plan in mind but will I be able to put it into action, with this already hectic schedule?

A random Quote from Think Exist:
“Don't wait until everything is just right. It will never be perfect. There will always be challenges, obstacles and less than perfect conditions. So what. Get started now. With each step you take, you will grow stronger and stronger, more and more skilled, more and more self-confident and more and more successful.”

-Mark Victor Hansen

Maybe I should.