khymer rouge transiting at sillypore, then to down under.

i deliberately used such a long title so as to avoid the hassle of blogging multiple times. looking back on the past few weeks, especially after ORD, my life has been real hectic. like clearing and delegating everything under my portfolio for creative home then zipping to REACH for cambodia trip and catching up with friends and all... and now, i'm back at home - feeling really liberated and light (pun unintended because i definitely gained much pounds from the trip!).

and unlike my blog entry for the previous philippines trip, this entry of mine shall describe more of my self discovery and revelations rather than depicting the day to day experiences. in a nutshell, i much enjoyed this expedition. team dyanmics was much better because there was more bonding and greater diversity with less "cliquishness" and of course, there were my two buds - jc and darren on the trip. we made hell lotsa noise during the expedition and cracking our own insider jokes like "gei jia tang"

on the downside, i was supposedly one of the few that were expected to rise up and lead the team. but, i was kinda subdued and cooped up in my own mental dimension most of the times. so much so that during the appreciation night, i earned the title of Mr. Senti-Emo. act i was like telling joanne and jc... my habitual tendency to dramatise my emotions and then sink in a melancholic and melodramatic emotional rut. it's like my second nature! ironically, for people that have worked with me on an adhoc basis like Creative Home, they don't see the "emo" side of me rather the professional and deliberately blur side of me. and then i rationalise, justifiy and gather that i am the person that needs lots of "me time" the lack thereof - i'll just "drift" away. but i'm glad i got to see and know myself better. i need to and will change for i won't be contented with taking the back seat for the rest of my life, especially after 20 years of doing so. it's high time i take the reins and grasp the steering wheel, it's now or never.

fortunately on the upside yet again, i've really got to improve my relationships with several people. one of which is qianhua. we've came a long way back since philippines last year. from me harbouring a crush on her to revelation night at mt belumut and then to our catching up for the recent camodian expedition. and we concurred, the fact that nothing can work out between both of us in a platonic setting all the more will make us treasure this friendship of ours. though initially it was annoying when people were talking behind our backs but then we started to laugh it away at their attempts to complicate matters that were crystal clear and simple!

also, i will really reminisce the times we (darren, jc, me and lil ben), the project heads, had our late night meetings with aunty joanne at lucky star hotel. during those nights when we crack lame cold jokes to make fun of each other and the daidee sessions... the nights never were lonely with them ha. not forgetting mich, corinna, staff joe and doctor joe... they were the few that i could really connect to and confide in. the conversations that we shared, the advice that they dispensed with and the common experiences we all went through together. i believe they'll come surging back to me in time to come.

i've really learnt and enjoyed myself at Cambodia. let me catch up on some work (japanese test tmr, applications for youth grps and other commitments) on my transit at Singapore, en route to Down Under. then i'll return - rejuvenated with fresh perspectives, settled and upbeat emotions and a greater than ever thirst for success for my many ambitious pursuits in 2008.

c'est la vie - carpe diem!