Aloha Oe!!!! whatever.

supposed to be planning next sems modules. still missing one. but i'll blog a bit. i've decided that i'm a night owl. it's midnight now but i'm not really tired yet. maybe it's just the eucalyptus and peppermint air freshener i'm using. heehee.

tonight's st stephen's feast day thingy was ok. not exactly a qualified disaster but kinda close to it.

prepare for lots of complaints.

we were supposed to turn up at 5.30 to practice with uncle james, who didn't show up till 15 minutes later. so didn't practice. he did go thru some stuff with the congregation. anyway, the mass music was kinda weird. cos there was very very very little coordination between choir and uncle james. and the aunties that were in the choir and us were kinda like fighting for air time. someone behind me sounded out of tune (cf the boy with special needs singing at ihm). the offertory was weird too cos uncle james seemed to be wanting to drag the song as long as possible so he kept playing looooonnnngggggg interludes between verses. but that only made a really draggy song sound even more draggy. gloria was bizarre cos every time it came to the verses, uncle james would just quit playing or minimal playing. lamb of god was a disaster i think. choir had no idea about the tune (which was something really complicated that he taught just 10 minutes before mass), and for some reason, he skipped to the 'grant us peace' after just one 'have mercy on us'. communion hymn was sung by a sitting down choir cos we had no idea when he was going to start. he didn't signal or anything. i thought he was playing background music then suddenly he started singing into the mic. so we were all like, "should we stand?" when he was already partway through the song. some of the aunties were still kneeling so...thanksgiving wasn't too bad but uncle james ended up singing his own conclusion to the song cos we had no idea what he was trying to do. recessional started out ok but i think he skipped a verse for some reason (or maybe i was just blur). and that isn't a good thing when the song is supposed to be sung as a whole, not in parts where the verses can be skipped around. (kinda like that "let there be peace on earth" song that just goes on) then at the end, after we thought he had finished, playing the ending and all, he suddenly jumped back to that verse and went through the WHOLE song again. oh well, i've seen worse. oh ya, and fr khoo was his usual boring self. i don't even remember what happened in the homily. there were 5 priests. khoo, lu, paul staes and 2 china priests that popped up out of nowhere to concelebrate. and 13 alter servers. me and marion counted.

moving on, after mass, all went for dinner. well, supposed to be all but i ended up with andrew, elvin and marion, eating ba chor mee with mushrooms at the hawker center. that was ok. no idea where the rest of them went. then came back and hung around. the usual chinese dinner entertainment. the kids were pretty good for their dance. fr paul and the sisters sang a 'sister act' song. there was this hawaiian dancing competition that parents somehow ended up in. haha! mum won.

the choir's piece was just short of a disaster. for one, we were the very last item. and it was after everyone was done with dinner. so we were there squeezed onto that mini stage singing to people's backs. even if we didn't sound that great, it's only common courtesy not to walk out so obviously ya? singaporeans these days are so rude. can't they see that there's a bunch of people on stage that has spent damn long practicing and getting things right JUST FOR THEM? we're not supposed to be background cocktail music. how sad is that? anyway, dawn was forced to cut short our songs. parents say that we should have sung catchier songs. and they had no idea that anyone was playing accompanyment for us. ya well, i guess it was our bad luck to be right after the dance competition. people expect something more fun than a choir performance. maybe if we all dressed in grass skirts and did a hula dance, people would have stayed and watched. sigh. what's over is over lah. what's new anyway? thank god the whole shebang's over. if it means anything, I think we were good. :D it cost a lot not to just walk off that stage. so, well done guys!

anyway, just for the heck of it, for those who don't know, i'll put st stephen's story here. he's the patron saint of my church and the catholic religion's first matyr. quoted from my bible, acts 7:54-60.

"Now when [the chief priests] heard these things they were enraged, and they ground their teeth against [Stephen]. But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God; and he said, "Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing at the right hand of God." But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears and rushed together upon him. Then they cast him out of the city and stoned him; and the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. And as they were stoning Stephen, he prayed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." And he knelt down and cried with a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." And when he had said this, he fell asleep. And Saul was consenting to his death."

moving on. another thing i wanna complain about that's kinda stupid i know and completely unrelated. i'm watching 'project runway', like people probably know already. and according to that advert for that new reality show, (which i'm hoping is wrong) wendy won the thing. what?! how can that bitch win??? ok, i admit, she designs well. but her attitude has much to be desired. today, after watching my favourite austin get booted, it was so nice to see the disgusted looks on kara saun and jay's faces after wendy walked backstage leaving austin marooned on the runway. if you wanna know exactly what i think of wendy, ask me. (in case wendy's lawyers find this blog) all i'll say here is that if and when i find out what's wendy's label, i will boycott it.

on a more sober note. today's the first year anniversary of the tsunami disaster.

Do not stand at my grave and weep

I am not there.

I do not sleep.

I am a thousands winds that blow.

I am the diamond glints on snow.

I am the sunlight on ripened grain.

I am the gentle autumn rain.

When you awaken in the morning's hush,

I am the swift uplifting rush

Of quiet birds in circled flight.

I am the soft stars that shine at night.

Do not stand at my grave and cry.

I am not there.

I did not die.