Holy Light Church Family Camp (Awana Genting) 2008 - Day 1

Edits will be imperative. More pics/videos as well as minor corrections (if any) to be included in later versions. For now, make do with whats available.

From,
The Editor.

****************************************************************

...I didn't "practice" cam-whoring shots previously for nothing. Since my brain's a bit (or very) drained after excessive dream-walking and prolonged exposure to high content of carbon monoxide, I'll let the pics do most of the talking. Oh, and by the way, don't actually hope for me to post ALL the pics I took throughout the camp, as the grand total is approximately 220+ pictures, in 3 days, with most of it on the 2nd day.

In the bus, on the way to Awana

Warming up.




At a stop in Yong Peng....




Ivan eyes a salesgirl. hmm..



Oh man, should I or should I not talk her up? arrrgghh.




C'mon...the bus will leave any second now, its either now or never...

....how it ends is up to your imagination. and back on the bus....

Awww. look at Ju Chin. so adorable =P




Hoody homies



Awana Genting

Then we reached Awana, where the church members checked in.

On the Sky Train

Then dad, myself, Mr. Gordon and Mrs Winnie decided to hitch a ride on the sky train to the "main", "original" Genting.

This is one of the vids of the ride up.

Yet another 2 more video. Around midway through the ride up. And nearing the main Genting, respectively.

In "Main" Genting

There, we went to the theme park and saw merry-go-rounds, those high-speed roller coaster rides which my camphone can't really snap with even 1/2 decent accuracy. Hence the omission. Anyway, I saw this....

People trying to be Legolas.

however......















Huh? How does THIS thing work?
lady on the left says: "like THIS"

Anyway, before taking the sky train back to Awana, I, with my big curious mouth, blurted out "Lets get some Baskin Robbins!" and there goes 35-odd RM. Theres this "31% discount every 31st of any month" and it so happened that the 1st day of camp IS the 31st of May. Such blessing xD. At least, the container's rather big, and the ice cream's real solid cream. Not the cheap watery stuff which is common place in a number of places in JB. Heres a pic of the ice cream, for those who haven't seen how. 2 boxes were bought. 1 for me and dad, the other for Mr and Mrs Ho (Gordon, Winnie)

Something like this.

picture not according to scale, unless stated otherwise. -.-

Before hopping on the skytrain back, I came across this.....

The possessed dog.
You gotta love the eyes.

And on the shuttle bus back to Awana, this is the best shot I could get of the burial place of the late Tan Sri Lim Goh Tong, founder of the Genting Group.

The building in the background. Thats the burial place.
In a moving bus, its hard to take a clear shot. sigh.


Back in Awana

Reached Awana, then had dinner straight away as it was already time. Took several candid pics during this period, but I'll just show one. Not much to see anyway.


Miss Rachel Tan and Jaslyn (right) goes fruity with watermelons.
Cher Wei (on the left) was just so "natural"



Meet Jasmine Gan. The 30 13 year old auntie. Leetle sister of Jaslyn Gan.

After dinner, 1st worship session and sermon by Dr. David Gunaratnam were carried out. (The only pics I have of him giving sermons are rather blurred. So, none on that. At the moment, anyway). Well, and it also happened that the 31st was the birthday of one of the lady members (mother of Zhen Yang, to be seen later below) of the church camp.

Happy Birthday, ma'am.

Then the 200+ members who attended the church camp were assigned to various groups which were given names of none other than....superheroes. Iron man, Ice Man, Incredible man, Bionic Man, Invincible man, Super man and...Ultra man. I was assigned into Ice man, the group where all the cool people are. *ahem* Followed by some activities and stuff. After it ended, some of us decided to mingle around for a while and me, being the unofficial annoying quick-draw charlatan photographer, snapped this.

Holy Light Church's very own Women's World (arm)Wrestling Federation showdown



Valerie's "enchanting spell" blurs out my camshot -.-

Zhen Yang (left) just couldn't "bear" to look at Val's waving hands.

Mind games

Looking whacked, elegant drinking, and slightly hysterical laughter.




4 dun-ghus'es (dungus) each in a world of their own.

see what my hand's doing

Thats all for the major highlights of day 1. Tune in later for more pics for day 2. Adieu. And, take my word for it, day 2 will have pics that'll crack you up. Granted.








Since $$$ isn't involved, theres, uhm, nothing to guarantee back, should you be disappointed.

Time to shoot.

Just got a new phone.


A camphone, to be specific.


To be even more specific, the Sony Ericsson K800i (I know, its a pretty old model, but heck, its still solid), and decided to do some test runs.
And since there are hardly any test subjects to be thrown into the firing line, that just leaves me with, well, me.

"I spy with my eyes"

Deep in thought

THE stare


World weary soul

The Supernatural.

All above pics taken (and modded) using that phone. All in all, a pretty solid cam phone, which will be used extensively (I hope) in my upcoming trip to Genting. Which will be.....tomorrow.






Gnite chumps. Hope holidays aren't being too bittersweet to you. See you in a few days.







Hopefully.

Russian Roulette

In spite of the most recent outcome, which football enthusiasts worldwide should know, I constantly reiterate my stand that penalty shootouts is probably the most cruel way to decide a cup final. Not just for the spotkick takers and the keepers involved, but also for the fans watching the match live, with gritting teeth, hyper-stimulated adrenaline as well as a heart-stopping aura enveloping all fans of their teams involved, knowing that the tides could change...

UEFA Champions League Final Season 2007-08
Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow, Russia

A game of 2 English teams playing a UEFA Champions League final on Russian soil. A 1st for England. For Chelsea, its their 1st appearance in a European Cup final, for Man Utd, they're gunning for their 3rd European title in their whole history. Man Utd want to paint the Red Square even redder while Chelsea, look to turn it to the "Blue" Square.


The game started with an imperious display from Man Utd, convincingly dominating possession as well as chances, making Chelsea looking sub-standard in the early exchanges of the game. And eventually, something had to come out of it.

A pinpoint cross from Wes Brown (with his weaker foot, no less) floats perfectly for the unmarked Cristiano Ronaldo who assuredly heads it past a helpless Petr Cech.

After this, United continue to dominate play with 2 more should-have-been-a-goal opportunities spurned. But after this, United would live to regret that, for as I have dreaded, Chelsea revitalized and started pinning United in their own half, instead. From the later parts of the 1st half, all the way right till extra-time. And with a (double) stroke of luck, a double deflection proviced Frank Lampard with the perfect opportunity at the right time with the right dose of luck.


Bang. 1-1. And thats the way it stayed till the end of regulation time, and subsequently, extra time and finally the dreaded penalty shootout. And lots of mm-close chances that, if all went in, the score might have been 4-4.
Can't find the pics for those. Argh.


And towards the end of extra time (for the uninitiated, its an additional 1/2 hour, after 90 minutes of "normal" time played). Didier Drogba, thought to be the player Chelsea are pinning their hopes on scoring the crucial, pivotal goal to lift them the cup, does this instead.

Drogba (4th from left) slaps Man Utd defender Nemanja Vidic (pic unavailable, sadly) and gets the red card. The walk of shame out of the Luzhniki Stadium, in what might be his last game in Blue.





Then, the penalty shootout. Nerves of steel aren't enough. They need nerves of unbreakable titanium. In a penalty shootout where luck and fortune plays an equally important role as is composure and courage under duress, the tides CAN change.





And it did.

Tevez and Ballack both scored the 1st spot kicks for their respective teams, followed by Carrick and Belletti. And then.....


Ronaldo, Man Utd's goal scorer earlier in the game, has his spot kick saved by Cech. While Lampard converts Chelsea 3rd spotkick. After Hargreaves, Ashley Cole and Nani convert their spotkicks, Chelsea with a spotkick in hand, and with that spotkick to confirm their victory. Terry walked up to the spot, to take Chelsea's decisive penalty. Man Utd fans all over the world (including me, and possibly some parts of the universe, hmm) gritted their teeth (if any). Clothes cover the mouth. Fervent prayers offered. With hope that some miracle from the heavens will shine on the lump of grass Terry walks on, with some hoping for a rare slip. For if Terry scores, it'll be Chelsea's 1st European Cup in their 1st attempt.



John Terry, the unshakable rock in Chelsea's defence, and who had denied Man Utd in claiming victory earlier in the game, went up, slipped as he took what would've been the decisive penalty, and spot kicks go in to sudden death. Which, ends with United lifting the trophy for only the 3rd time in their history after Anelka misses his spot kick, after Giggs, Man Utd's longest serving player who made his 759th appearance as a substitute in this game, converted his spotkick.

UEFA Champions League Final Season 2007-08
Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow, Russia
Champions of Europe 2007-08: Manchester United.
Man Utd (w) 1 - 1 Chelsea
Man Utd win 6-5 on penalties, after extra time

The Ecstatic

The Dejected

And here it ends. The Moscow twist of fate.




Pictures source: guardian.co.uk

Think-tank.

One of the more uncommon tags which makes you think. Quite a bit.



Would you accept a job twice as good as your current one - twice as much income and twice as fulfilling - given one condition of employment: you can never reveal anything about it to anyone at all?
yeah.

Would you accept twenty-five years of extraordinary happiness if it meant you would die at the end of the period?
no thanks. I'd rather die with a mix of the good, the bad and the ugly.

For a person you loved deeply, would you be willing to move to a distant country knowing there would be very little chance at ever seeing your family again?
If we're like, getting married already, then yeah. otherwise, no.

Would you willingly have one finger removed if it somehow guaranteed immunity from all major diseases?
Depends on which finger. As long as its not the index, the pinky, and/or the thumb. Oh, and yeah. the middle finger too. *smirks* which just leaves me with one finger to...spare.

Your house, containing everything you own, catches fire. After saving your loved ones and pets, you have time to safely make one final dash into the house to save any one thing. What would it be?
my computer.

You are given the power to kill people. They would die a natural death and no one would suspect you. How would you use this power?
Sounds like a Death Note. Kill everyone. And re-enact "I am Legend".

Would you rather be extremely successful professionally, with a fairly ordinary private life - or a very happy private life and only an ordinary professional life?
Happy private life and ordinary pro life.

If you could script the basic plot for your dream tonight, what would the story be?
attain odd powers, enter a realm and basically theres too many things I'd like to experience to mention here. like time control.

Would you be willing to become extremely ugly physically if it meant you would live for 500 years at any physical age you choose?
hell. no.

In front of you are ten pistols. Only one of them is loaded. For one million dollars, would you pick up one, point it to your head and pull the trigger? You get to keep the money regardless of the outcome.
I'll never know if all ten of the pistols are loaded.

Would you be willing to reduce your life expectancy by five years to become extremely attractive?
5 years? No. A lot can be done in 5 years. Job promotion, girlfriend, breakup, bankruptcy, ISA charge, lottery, accidents, Champions League final, being chased by a dog. Uh-uh. Not giving that up.

If you could take a one-month trip to anywhere in the world, and money were not a consideration, where would you go and what would you do?
Switzerland, watch Euro 2008. At least the games played in Switzerland since its co-hosted with Austria. Could do skiing while I'm at it.

Would you be willing to murder an innocent person if it meant ending hunger in the world?
With regards to the killing people question earlier, I guess one more wouldn't hurt (that much), if everyone else's sufferings are alleviated. Of course, its on a voluntary basis. Suicidal people may do so for a noble cause.

Now, tag THREE people:
- The bespectacled cherub
- Raewaesuanlisuanchickenduckbabiputihdutchlady.
- ern wei.



in addition, I'd like to tag naqi too.

TIs' the season to be (very) jolly

Tis' be the wonderful season of exams
and I'm still online. wonderofwonders.

Thick bunches of papers being photocopied, distributed en masse to all the sad, depressed and mentally unstable students (including me, yay.) in each school/learning institute/university/equivalent). Prior to this, several trees being cut down just to supply enough paper to cater to the "needs" of students nationwide (or, almost worldwide? hmm...)
So much for saving the trees.


Anyway. A few congratulatory acknowledgments.



-SSI for getting 1st place in YAA (Young Achievers Award, Regionals) 2008. (pic above)
-SSI (again) for getting 1st place in the regional choir competitions (no pic available at the moment)
-SSI (yet again) for successfully conducting their so-called "SSI League" season 2008.



....ok forget the SSI League.


Moving on. EST was disastrous, to say the least.
At least, disastrous on my teachers high standards. I think.

Essay was about food poisoning. Got poisoned just thinking how to write produce AT LEAST 6-10 elaborations, per point. Puns intentional. Now to put it behind, and I've got BM essay techniques, History crap, Biology facts, chemical equations, physics concepts, additional mathematic formulae and goodness knows what else, to mug, and regurgitate, in the weeks to come.



Au revoir, you lifeless, inanimate audiences of mine (or lack thereof).

The life that was

"Many people will walk in and out of your life,

but only true friends will leave footprints in your heart."

- Anon

As I thought of wrapping things up for the next few months or so, I opened up a save convo window, from one particular Grace Tan. Such flamboyant, no-hold-bars (correct me if this is wrong) conversations, random banters after another. It reminds me of a blissful time when MSN contacts were aplenty, friendships fresh, and topics even fresher.



But alas, due to her increasing number of commitments, the "joy" of Form 4 life, etc. Yes yes I know you're already happily in love with your..ahem... but the company was always welcome and you ARE one of few who could actually brighten up my day anytime. We could talk bout almost anything effortlessly.



But its not only her, other people as well have become much more busy now, and as the day passes, it feels as though the bond between a number of my friends have waned and loosened. And I have been the cause of some of those. Sad thing really, considering the fun times we (meaning me, my pals and all) once had.


I guess, life's becoming pretty autonomous and repetitive with each passing day, and with increasing seniority, comes greater burden, and much higher workload.


Other than Gracie, theres also my lil "sis", Michelle Lim. Green fanatic, wishes to dye her hair green, and blend with the grasses (says me). Small spunky girl. Enjoyed her small-ishness.

Then theres Ern Wei, the tall dude whom I met and talked only for a bit. Though continued talking through MSN and stuff. Had some random fun talks with him too. And has strong and firm views bout something, and sticks to his stand.

I've only the time to mention these few. (even then, sorry for not mentioning much bout you 2, you're worth a lot more than words can describe) These are some of the people who have imprinted footprints in my life one way or another. There are others to. But thats for another time, perhaps. IF there is, another time. For now, studies are basically all I have to keep me occupied. Such joy.





p.s. the people mentioned above are some of the people who aren't residing in the same state as I am. So to those of you who were heartbroken in being omitted, breathe a sigh of relieve. adieu for now.

Just to clear the mosses.

To entertain the newcomer from a land (far farrrr away) in middle peninsular.

You have to type the 1st thing that comes to mind whenever you see these things. and why? You can't think and go back and change your answers.

1. Beer
bottoms up

2. Mcdonalds
fillet o fish

3. Relationships
locked away, stashed and left to collect dust (and mosses)

4. Purple
my specs.

5. Power Rangers
something i went gaga over before

6. Weed
say no to drugs.

7. Steroids
desperate dudes.

8. Cartoons
spongebob squarepants

9. The President.
hypocritical.

10. People to do this quiz
anybody who cares to do it.