Bring It On, Anytime
Some one from my training class told me this yesterday-- Try to take a step back when it comes to classmate relations, cos strained relations are going to hurt when it comes to the simulator training.
Funny that that person's giving me advice to be more neutral and try to make peace with the girl I'm not talking to in class. Cos he's just been 'attacked' by her hostility and himself is feeling the frustration.
He mentioned that we should all sit down as a class and talk it out, and hopefully let her know that she needs an attitude adjustment. Afterall, it's not good to go to the a new working environment and have the colleagues there comment-- "Her face is as if I owe her a million dollars before I even know her."
He can sit and talk with her for all he wants. I was stuck with her and her enormous attitude for 2 months during my attachment. Seriously, if you need someone to "sit down and talk with you over your attitude", you'd rather that adviser is not me.
Reason:
-I can't be bothered to even be there
-You need help and I'm not giving it to you
-Why? Cos if you're at this stage already, it means I've tried. And I don't try too many times.
I'm such a bitch.
It's time to bring on the action.
Hokkaido Trip 北海道/东京 第三天
第一站：札幌大通公园
要注意：气温低不表示室外天气凉。爱美不要命的我穿了靴子、薄夹克，以为可以很‘有型’地走一天。出了酒店走了一小段路才发现，有点失算了。虽然气温低于30度，阳光却是蛮强的。不过为了方便/懒惰/不想浪费时间，还是硬着头皮走了大概20分钟，来到大通公园。
~札幌NHK电视塔~
~大通公园~
~很少看到我穿裙吧~
~可爱！~
北海道冬天有著名的雪祭，夏天则有啤酒节。大通公园的两端都设有露天帐篷让人休息、喝啤酒。的确，炎热的夏天配上冰凉的北海道道产啤酒是一级棒的享受。
~Pictures taken at Oodori Park~
~To be continued~
Back To Basics
Changed my blog layout AGAIN. Got a few comments about my previous one-- the coffee layout. Well, think it's time to go back to basics. No more funny/extra/beautiful features. Just a place to blog about stuff.
End Of Week 2
The first week of Part 2 training just ended LIKE THAT. Nothing too heavy for the brain to digest. In fact, I'm not sure if my mind's totally clear that-- I'm back to the Academy till the end of November.
Just sitting in class everyday and staring at the slides and trying to stay awake.
I suck at that.
I'm more 'operational', not 'educational'.
Hokkaido Trip 北海道/东京 第二天
从曼谷出发，坐了6个多小时的飞机，到了很熟悉的成田国际机场。以前不用排队，只要用“乗務員通路”就能直接入境去拿行李，连护照都不用移民局人员看；现在则需要排队，而且还是蛮长的一条队。不习惯啊~~
出了机场，看到了熟悉的路牌、嗅到了熟悉的空气、听到了熟悉的语言，总之那种感觉就是很“熟悉”。
3000日圆 一张车票 从成田机场到羽田机场
18800日圆 一张机票 从东京羽田机场到北海道新千岁机场
第一次搭国内线航班，机上的所有广播以日语进行，让我觉得：你真的一个人到一个语言半桶水的地方旅行一星期...没问题吧...并没有想太久,就睡着了。睡醒时，飞机已经离降落不远了。往窗外一看，有很绿很绿的田园，真的很令人期待能尽快到达目的地。
下了飞机，拿了行李，上了列车，30分钟后，到札幌中心了！
~札幌车站夜景~
酒店只隔札幌车站一条马路，真的是太方便了。客房比我想象中的要小得多，但却非常干净，让我感觉很舒服。
~清洁的浴室对我来说很重要~
~多功能的马桶盆座：Good but not necessary for me~
把行李放好，稍微整理了一下，是时候去逛逛了。
第一站：酒店旁一家百货公司内的纪伊国屋书店
出发前已经在网上确认过这家店有存货，在我还没忘记之前，先冲到书店去找两本想买的书。找了一下，买到了！
~日本书店里最吸引我的--各行各业的资格鉴定参考书~
第二站：札幌纪伊国屋
采用很新潮设计的三层楼书店，全店已白色系和玻璃为主，少了传统书店所有的沉重及压迫感。很可惜，店内规定不能拍照...
第三站: 札幌车站内的旅客咨询中心
这里有北海道各地区的地图，且分日英中韩版。怕输/贪免费/怕迷路的心态，促使我抓了一大叠得旅游册子，打算晚上回酒店房间慢慢研究，计划下来4天的北海道行程。
第四站：札幌中心--拉面共和国
在札幌中心一家百货公司内，由10家不同的拉面餐馆为号召，让食客可以选择尝试北海道不同地区的拉面口味。
~我在北海道的第一餐；ごちそう様でした！~
吃饱了，该回去冲凉看电视了。（如果让我妈听到我大老远来到日本却还是只顾着看电视，她应该会疯掉吧。）
Photo time:
从房间看出去，札幌车站旁的美丽一览无遗
每粒电池都另外包过。
到日本后买的第一样‘奢侈品’。
Bitching In Progress
When I met up with XF on Friday, I talked to her about this one person that just got on my nerves during the attachment period.
Let me bring your attention back to a post I wrote in June. It's about this girl that I'm paired with for this attachment period. Yesh, I finally can't be bothered to even talk to her anymore towards the end of the attachment.
The first major 'buay song' point came when I was given control at one position, and she another. I had to coordinate with her and stuff like that. Long story short, when something went out of control for her, she'll blame it on me.
Yah. Never her fault, it's always others'.
Then one day in July, she said something to me that just pushed herself into the hole. She actually said that she wants to go to a place that's NOT 71% Chinese.
Helloooo?? Did I hear you correctly?
IMO, no matter how close you THINK you are to a person, especially a colleague you've known for only a few months, there's simply some things that you CANNOT say. Racial issues is one such thing.
If you're coming to work everyday and putting on a black face, not greet people when you see them, don't participate in conversations with others, then don't blame the people there for being too Chinese.
You can always just ask-- "Hey, what joke are you guys talking about?"
And you don't even try.
I can be quite a bitch, as admitted time and time again. Guess XF was part-applauding, part-laughing when she heard what mean stuff I've done since that racial statement was made.
It's all very simple-- I don't help people dig holes and push them in, it'll just dirty my hands and ruin my nails. I'll let YOU dig your own hole, and when it's ready, I'll wait for the time to come when you jump into the hole yourself. THEN, I get someone else to cover the hole while I watch by the side with a nice cold drink.
Yah, I'm a bitch. So what.
Hokkaido Trip 北海道/东京 第一天
晚上8点40分的航班--从新加坡出发，在曼谷转机，凌晨时分再飞往东京成田国际机场。
等待的时候真的很难熬，硬邦邦的铁制（管他的，总之是那种很硬很冷很不舒服的椅子就对了）椅子怎么坐都别扭...
一边等登机的时间到,一边看书解闷。
很有趣的书名--不去会死。
终于开始登机手续了。
Day Out In Town
今天中午约了XF，在乌节一带吃饭。
人很多，太多了。尤其是那些还在穿学校制服阶段的小瓜们，实在是...没话说。
吃完饭，看了一部电影--《不能说的.秘密》。很久没有进戏院看华语片了，因为感觉上这几年值得让我花钱买票的戏不多。今天这部，比我想象中要来得好。
校园里清纯甜美的初恋，总是会让观众联想到自己的校园时光或是初恋的难忘。
看完电影，到了纪伊国屋书店去‘寻找’一本我‘虎视眈眈’很久的书。大概从六月开始吧，我就一直在等它的新货上架。终于，让我等到了。
之前买不到它的时候，我买了另一本同作者的书。也许那是更好的安排吧，因为那时候买的，其实是这作者的第一本著作。把第一辑先读完，再期待第二辑，也是一种不错的感觉。
人很多时候，都不能随心所欲，得到每一件想要的事物；太过执著，只会让自己辛苦。换个角度，往另一个选择看，何尝不是一种小小的冒险？
直路或许很快就能到达终点，但岔路途中的风景，说不定是意想不到的世外桃源。
Tagboard
UPDATES: MY TAGBOARD IS BACK UP. NO MORE CLICKING AND BEING TRANSFERRED TO ANOTHER PAGE TO LEAVE A MSG OR JUST TO GOSSIP! (ALTHOUGH I'LL LOVE THE ESPRESSO COUNTS...)
Beijing 2008
This is the projected Beijing Olympics 2008 main stadium.
Not exactly my preferred type of stadium design. No comments...
Let's take a look at the National Aquatics Center.
I'd have to say I prefer the Aquatics Center. It feels more... blue-ish.
But don't you think that the designs all tend to be a little too... suffocating? Like they're enclosing the venue too much and what you see is just a chunk of infrastructure. I dunnoe... I'm just being picky on a Friday morning.
Was browsing through Amazon Japan before my trip for information on a couple of books to buy there. Came across this DVD, thought of buying it, but decided not to because of the price.
But as 'fate' would have it, I came across it while shopping for 'souvenirs' in Narita Airport.
This is the tiny, extremely un-eyecatching shop where the DVD, together with many other related aviation videos and goods are on sale.
Finally got down to watching it a couple of days ago. Stage of the documentary was set at Washington Dulles International Airport, where the controllers work with 7 runways.
Woah. Can't helping wondering-- we choose the runway in use based on wind direction. When the wind changes in favour of the other runway, we have to inform a ton of people and commence the change. Here, we only have 2 runways and are already feeling the frustration when we have to change. Wonder how those controllers at Dulles deal with SEVEN...
~Applause~
One statement in the video that left an impression on me-- "These controllers are responsible for more lives in a shift than a surgeon in a lifetime."
We all know what's at stake. We ask for the souls on board every flight in their first contact with us. They're just numbers on a paper strip, UNTIL something bad happens.
Isn't it pathetic/sickening/disgusting/sad that how the general public tend to judge the calamity of an air crash by the number of victims? The higher the number of passengers and crew on board a plane that crashed or had some kind of emergency, the bigger the spot it has in the newspapers.
Humans can be so shallow.
I can't deny I am one too.
Happy Birthday to the nation where I was born, bred, and grew up in.
Going back to the tower for one last night shift later this evening. Will be back to the Academy for my 4-month practical training course next Monday.
No special feelings. I just want to get home after the shift and clean up my room, luggage included.
北海道之旅很快就要开始了，敬请留意！
两年前的我，真的很‘嫩’...
这张，是我到日本受训的第二天，到附近百货公司的底层食阁，点的第一份午餐。看着从前的照片，实在是太多回忆了。
两年了，我一直认为自己成长了不少。 可是，我真的长大了吗？
现在的房间超乱的。行李箱还没完全清干净，因为买太多有的没的回来，尤其是脸部保养品--比新加坡的价格便宜近一半，绝不能漏！
等我把东西收好了，再让你们看看我买了些什么吧~
下个星期就要回到“学校”去了。心情需要一些些调整，生活作息和穿着都得改改...
从日本回来之后，每天都在一片慌乱、悲伤、和释怀中度过。有很多回忆一下子全都涌上，让已经身心疲惫的我小小的不知如何是好。
不过大家现在可以放心-- 我真的没事。生老病死本来就是千百年来所有凡人无法避开的事实，不管你多么不想面对，它还是会来的。
我应该庆幸--来得及回来陪他走完最后一段路，送他去一个新的世界。那里，他一定可以，也会过得很好；每天骑着脚踏车到处走走，傍晚的时候买报纸回家，一边喝着酒，一边翻看新闻。
我告诉自己：我掉眼泪，但我不哭。
断了的琴弦 弹奏着从前
一起走过的路线没有终点
黄昏的光线 照射陈旧的水面
映出那朵玫瑰思念的画面
你走的那天我决定不掉泪
迎风撑着眼帘用力不眨眼请你放心，我会过得很好。
I came back, he left.
He left without waiting for me. In fact, he did not say Goodbye to anyone. He left when no one was watching.
He left on Saturday morning, I was in Hokkaido. I called home that weekend and my mum told me to change my flight and return home early if possible. I asked if it's about him, she said No.
My cousin and brother picked me up from the airport on late Wednesday evening.
There's a little weirdness on the way. Finally, they broke the news to me.
The past 24 hours have been in a state of blurness.
I made it in time for the last night. And the funeral took place this morning.
Part of me is hitting myself for not being around. Part of me is telling the other part of me that-- he'll be happy if he sees that I was away enjoying myself on the long-awaited trip than sitting there and crying.
I just need a little more time.
