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hiyoshi
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Name: hiyoshi
Location: anywhere!!, Malaysia
Birthday: 4/19/1986
Gender: Male
Interests: listening to music, reading
Expertise: dressing up nicely (hey, i take pride in what i do!)
Occupation: Student
Message: message me
Member Since:
3/25/2004
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| I've finally decided to open up my doors to more people. In accordance with my new-found courage, I will now be residing here.
Thanks for all the memories xanga!
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| I was mildly surprised when I clicked the "New Weblog Entry" link just now. Xanga has a new layout for its entry page! And look at that, it also has a statistics box where it tells you the number of words you've typed! Gee...Has it been that long since my last post? Or am I really losing out on the times? Oh well ~
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I was having an absurdly late lunch today (at five o' clock in the afternoon!) all by myself when suddenly, images of my previous school's dining hall conjured themselves up. It is weird indeed that thoughts of my dining hall should come to mind whilst having a late lunch, but that's what happened.
The dining hall wasn't pretty or anything. Well, I mean, it didn't have any fancy wall sculptures or dangling chandaliers or the likes. All it had was just some sullen looking walls with cracked paint and a number of rather dusty celing fans. In fact, it was just a normal building spacious enough to fit in all the 700 plus students at one seating. Of course, there was the kitchen at one end, and the stage where the teachers would eat (if they ever came) at the other end.
But the architecture of the dining hall itself is hardly of interest to anyone, particularly me. Or am I wrong? Are any of the bloggers here curious about the shape and dimensions of my dining hall? Maybe I can write up on that someday in the not-so-near future. In the meantime, let me relate to you several tales concerning the happenings in The Dining Hall :)
When I was in Form 4, the arrangement of the tables were in a such a way that the boys faced the girls. Being a 'sekolah agama', naturally, the students looked upon each mealtime as a chance to scout for other cute students. At least that's what I thought; not to say that I myself scouted for other cute students. I was much too engrossed in conversation with my friends during mealtimes. It's true! Of course, from time to time, the person sitting next to me would nudge me in the shoulder and point to some girl facing us on the other side of the dining hall. And then he would start to go "Comelnya, tengoklah tu!". Put in that situation, I had no other choice other than to look at whoever it was that my friend was pointing to, so that he would stop drooling into my tray.
Another thing which I remember distinctly about the dining hall is the food served. There'd be days where the dishes were simply delicious (by boarding school standards, I must mention). Anyone here from boarding school remember the 'nasi ayam' and chicken curry? There'd also be days where I'd rather be shipped off to Somalia to be with the poverty-stricken children rather than touch whatever it is that had been laden onto my tray. Once, it was so bad that I swear to you the vegetables must have been boiled with the very insectiside they (the vegetables) had been treated to.
An incident which remains clear in my mind is the "Laksa Turnover". One night, the students were served with laksa for supper. It wasn't the first time, and it definetly wasn't the last. However, on that particular night, the 'orang dewan makan' had somehow managed to turn the normally decent dish into something more menacing. They made the kuah to taste like it had come straight from the sea! In other words - it was terribly salty, to the extent of being inedible. As a show of protest, a group of Form 5 students (my batch) stood up, nodded their heads in silent agreement, and simply turned over their bowls of laksa on the tables. And then they left. Just like that. The poor laksa was left to drip onto the floor. Needless to say, there was an uproar amongst the 'orang dewan makan'. In fact, there was one big fight between them and the students that very night. The ODM shouted curses from below (one even brandished a stick threateningly) and the students, flocking at the balconies of their respective floors, replied back in the kind of language that your mother wouldn't approve of. If I remember correctly, even a slipper was flung from the second floor of the hostel towards the rioting ODM. Whether it actually hit anybody, I cannot recall.
I miss my dining hall. The memories, the atmospehere, the company of friends while eating....they're all something to be cherished. And now that I have to buy my own meals, even the poisoned veggies start to look good *sigh*
On a totally different note, can anybody explain my sudden infatuation for The Beatles? It's really puzzling.
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| Here's the continuation to my birthday post *wink*
How have I changed in the past twenty years? Physically speaking, I've grown quite a substantial amount (don't we all do?). I've grown taller, become slightly darker, and maybe even added an inch or two to my waist. But those are normal changes. Changes that we all undergo, and sometimes try to reverse; especially when it comes to the tummy region.
But really, it's not physical changes that matter; rather, emotional and mental changes. Therefore, the real question which should be asked here is "How have I grown up mentally in my twenty years of existence?".
Again, the answer would be 'quite a substantial amount'.
Me at a few months old. Back then, I had the uncanny ability of sleeping in the middle of my meal.
When I was small, I used to have this idea that all people were nice and that bad people only existed in fairy tales (think Huff and Puff Wolf). Good people being good, would help those who were in need, care about each other and always wear a smile on their faces. Good people would never think of doing harm to others, oh no. But with time and exposure to the world around me, I soon came to realise that bad people do exist and that more often that, these bad people are the ones who I've always held them as being good.
This picture would have qualified me for a contract with Pampers.
I used to think that friends were nice to have and even nicer to hold on to. I even had the idea that I would grow up with all my primary school friends, enter secondary school together, dive into the same course at university and open up our own company after we had graduated. Nowadays, I find it hard to add new friends to the sparse collection which I already own. And the friends which I already have, they're slowly drifting away to lead their own lives.
Even from a young age, I already had trouble smiling for the camera.
Another Utopian belief that I had as a kid was that all people would be nice to you when you are nice to them. Generally, that motion still holds true, once the word "all" is omitted. Along my journey in life, I've come to know about - and in a few cases, even came in contact with - people who are just plain mean. You can be as nice as you want to them, but in the end, don't expect to receive the same kind of treatment.
There. Proof that real boys do cry.
Up until now, all the mental growing up I've done seems to be on the depressing side, doesn't it? Well, let's take a break from all the depression and look at some positive notes which I've picked up along the way in my life.
I've learned that the people who care most for you, are your family members. You can laugh, you can share stories, you can pick fights with them...and at the end of the day, they'll still be there for you.
My sister. Back when she was still adorable. Now she's horrible still adorable.
I've learned that it doesn't matter how many friends you have. What counts more is the value of their friendship. Good friends are those whom I can have meaningful discussions with, share a joke or two, and most of all, turn to them in times of need. They're the closest to being family.
I can't believe that I once had an angular face. Where is it now?
I've learned that whatever it is, I'm the one responsible for my own life and that I have to call the shots. Decisions are mine to make (with the advice of family and friends) and what I will turn out to be later in this life, depends on the decisions that I make now. And though I've made silly decisions in the past (still do and most probably will continue to), I'm slowly learning from these mistakes in hopes that it'll make me a better person.
Me, today.
So there you have it. Things which I've learned in the past twenty years :)
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| Well, it looks like the birthday wishes are rolling early this year *wink*
Birthday entries in blogs are somewhat infectious. It's true. The first time around, you think "A birthday entry sounds like fun". The second time, you 'accidentally' write an entry on your birthday without remembering at all that it's your birthday in the first place. By the third time, you start thinking. "Oh, what the heck. Let this be an annual ritual which I will duly perform without fail year in, year out".
So there you have it. The reason why I'm writing this birthday entry.
A lot of birthday messages which I received last night (thanks to all!) reminded me that I was finally twenty. Yes, the big 2-0. Therefore, I was no longer considered as being one with the young. I was now officialy 'old'. Hoho...does that mean that I now have to behave like a twenty year-old? How does a twenty year-old behave anyway? Is it any similar to, say, the behaviour of a 17 year old? And while we're at it, who actually determines the guidelines on how someone should behave according to his age? Very puzzling indeed.
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A friend and I had a small conversation about birthdays a few days back.
Me: So, it's going to be my birthday soon
Friend: Yes, I remember. No need for you to drop hints
Me: I wasn't dropping hints, silly. Though you would be better off trying to figure out what to give me as a present this year.
Friend: Did I ever give you presents in the past? No, right? I'm not gonna start now.
Me: Fine...Have it your way then (long sigh). I'm another year older. That's quite a feat.
Friend: You staying alive for so long with that sarcasm of yours is a feat. In the past, higher civilisations would have had you tied up in a sack and dropped into a river to sink.
Me: Look who's talking.
Friend: Hey, what's up with all this brooding about being a year older? I thought you were the one who constantly goes "aku tetap umur 7 tahun".
Me: Yeah, well....
Friend: So, you're backing out of that ideology now, is it?
Me: No, that's not it! It's just that....
Friend: Come on. Admit it. YOU FEEL OLD, don't you?
Me: I'd be dead before I feel old, you witch.
Friend: See, you're already beaming with oldness. You're getting grumpy too.
Me: Okay, okay. The truth is, I've started thinking about what's to become of my life. I'll be twenty in a few days time, and yet, people still say I'm like a small kid.
Friend: Who's fault is that then? Look, It doesn't matter what age you are. The most important thing is that you do the right things, make people comfortable when they're around you and above all, be a good Muslim. There are loads of people out there who are like 30 or 40 years old, yet they're worse off in character compared to school children.
Me: I know that.
Friend: So, what are you worried about?
Me: I'm worried that people might think I'm not exactly acting my age.
Friend: You think too much. Give me half your brain so that you'll stop flooding your mind with unneccessary thoughts.
Me: I'd be willing to give more than half.
Friend: Hey, enough of that okay? Just concentrate on the future birthday wishes you'll be getting and how to respond to them. Knowing your status of celebrity, I'd say that you'll be getting quite a number of messages *wink*
Me: I'm no celebrity! And I won't be getting that many wishes anyway.
Friend: HAH! You bet.
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Not exactly the kind of material you'd expect from a twenty year old.
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