Keep Her Trim and On Course...

Hey, back from Malaysia (again)! And boy, was Encounter Jesus III Camp a blessed and annointed one! Bonded very well with my new D.G.: R.A.D.I.C.A.L. (which stands for Rooted And Delightful In Christ's Awesome Love!)!!! The games were fun, the hotel service was shiok, and my friendship circle grew across other D.G.s, across other levels - HEY, even across other churches! Even the theme night was interesting - theme being 'Mismatched', I ended up appearing in an attire that others commented (and that I agreed that) I looked like a Suntec City Security Guard! Boy, it was splendid and beyond my expectations, just like how God is all the time!

Ooo, but I think I'll share about the camp in greater detail another time, y'know why? Well, 'cause today was - The Round Ubin Race 2007!!! This one was a treat indeed! To begin the story, I meet the ACS(I) Canoeing team, along with Mr. See, for the first time in a week or so at the Pasir Ris shore, where all the boats were alined and ready for launching. Apparently, Trident was given to an ACJC pair after a mishap in our team, so we were left to race in RedandWhite. Quite a shocker, but I've had the boat before and I trusted it enough to paddles the seas in.

Mr. Ismail came a few minutes later to assist us in fixing our wave-breakers onto our boats, and Mr. Goh came another few minutes later to brief us on an altered route - apparently the race course had to be done anti-clockwise instead of clockwise as the organizers felt it was best that racers completed Chek Jawa (the eastern coast of Pulau Ubin) first before she reaches her wildest waves in the afternoon winds. By then Mr. See and Mr. Goh were in their gear (they were participating in the open categorey).

Closing towards Race Time, Ting Wei and I gave RedandWhite a spin on the water, approving of her stabability and direction control. At the signal of ligning up between the Starting Buoys, we were positioned along with Joseph and Barnabas (New Tiger) and Victor and Winston (Old Tiger), accompanied by the K1s (Nick Ng, Ryan, etc.). Looking around, I prayed to God that all I wanted in the race was just to have a memoriable good time and fun: even if there's no medal or no glory, all I needed was just fun. At around the end of my prayer, a horn sounded, and within splitseconds every racing canoe gushed out to embrace a race one would never forget to tell his or her grandchildren.

And so begins one of my first journeys out at sea - although it revolves 75 meters on average away from Pulau Ubin, the mere fact that both Ting Wei and I did not attend Picnic Day (a training day when Mr. Goh toured the racers in the team around landmarks to take note of during the race) meant we were rather unexperienced and had a slimmer chance of being able to navigate the waters - being filled with obstacles from as minor as stilt houses and mini-islands to as major as megawaves and patrol boats - , lest being able to get a medal.

To both Ting Wei's and my surprize, the RedandWhite was making a good stand within the first 10 canoes for the first 2 kilometers or so. There was Mr. Goh, paddling alone right in front of us, so fast any non-AC racer would loose morale the momment he zooms past. And there was Mr. See, paddling at our Starboard with a constant acceleration, well enough to get ahead of us by the time we've entered Chek Jawa. The only boat that scared us, though, was the Old Tiger. Victor's a fine chap, but watching Winston paddle ahead of one's boat was concidered a disgrace, even to me.

But by then, we were conciderably within the high dangers of Chek Jawa, and within a few more strokes the RedandWhite encountered a wave as high as our armpits, maybe even higher. And yes, we capsized. Out at sea. But the good news was that we were still within boderline of Chek Jawa, so the water level was slightly less than chest level. But then again, the waves were extremely harsh, and so Ting Wei and I got hold of the boat and stumbled our way towards shore, of which was extremely rocky and extremely dangerous to board a canoe with.

Nevertheless, we quickly found the most suitable spot we could find and did our best to empty water and launch off, missing jagged rocks by hairwidths. Unfortunately, in our hastely attempt to catch up with Old Tiger, we capsized again halfway through Chek Jawa, this time in deep dark waters and with shores mostly blocked out by the 3 storey fences defending the grounds of the Outward Bound Singapore camp. Knowing that the powerful waves would eventually wash us towards land, we held on tighly to the half-sunken boat and our paddles and drifted towards the rocky shores, blinded by the saltiness of the sea and choking under the pounding waves, at one point even shoved underwater by the boat's weight.

At last we reached land, but that was just half the work done. We continuously kicked away from the rocks to avoid scratching the boat or ourselves, and after a couple of minutes or more we found a relatively less rockly place to empty our water and launch back to sea. We knew it was least likely that we'd see the Old Tiger again, so we decided to give up on the medals and take the race slowly. Along our journey, we saw other sad cases of capsized boats along the route; boats in scary positions and even one resembling the sinking of the Titanic.

Soon, we heard a familiar voice in the midths of the overturned boats: It was Barnabas! The New Tiger had capsized, and both the Goh Brothers were strugling their way to shore, trying their best to catch their wondering blades, bailer and water bottles in vain. Having pity on them, and without a momment to loose, we decided to assist them to shore. We made a sharp loop at Port and placed our right leg into their cockpits. While they proceeded to swim by themselves to shore with their belongings, we paddled both our and their boats towards the mst friendly shore we could find.

It was hard controling two rudders with the toes on both my feet, but we eventually all made it to shore. Ting Wei suggested to take a rest on shore too, so we all (struggled against the raging waves that constantly slammed our boats onto the rocky terrain, but eventually) carried our boats onto land and sat for a while to take in the scenery - scenery of what you'd see on Maroon Island, that is. Other victims of the waves of Chek Jawa came to our shore and had a chat with us: Reguardless of school, boat type or age, we were friendly towards each other and talked anthing under the sun accept accept giving the slightest concern of getting the medal(s).

After what we assumed was 5 minutes (of which we purposely tried to drag longer), we decided to launch of, that is until we saw Nick Ng's boat - along with Nick Ng, of course - drifting towards ourshore and requesting for help. We all then decided to take this opportuity to (slack off a little longer and) rescue him. His boat being a K1, which is much more vulnerable to the waves than us K2s, we had to launch him first before we could leave the shore, which gave us even more time to rest close to land.

As we watched Nick paddle off freely again, we decided it was about time we just got over the route and finished it before we continue baking under the sun. Due to the limited shore area that was favourable enough for launching, we agreed that Barnabas and Joseph left first,after which Ting Wei and I would follow closely just in case any of us capsized on our journey through the rest of Ubin. Launching through waves that kept crashing onto you was a struggle indeed, but when we could finally paddle 50 meters away from shore, we wre relieved that we were 'officially' launched and made our way to the watery nightmare ahead of us.




Our promise with each other was well and true: both the New Tiger and the RedandWhite kept trim with each other, time after time we'd be separated as far as 50m due to the waves, but we'd catch up again. Soon enough, we caught up with Nick, who was still struggling to keep steady amongst the waves. Thus understandably, he couldn't keep up with us, and eventually he became a mark floating behind us, until we came to the sudden edge of the island where we had to slam hard at port, of which he dissapeared behind the island. And so the two K2s were alone again.


Unknown minutes passed; eyes hurting from the saltwater and the sun such that our watches were practically a blur. Paddling non-stop without knowing how far you've gone or how far you've got left can make you feel as if you're at the brink of getting mad. Ting Wei suggested we paddled a final time towards shore just to empty out the water we collected from Chek Jawa, of which I originally disagreed to but then realised theat 1) it will help us get over this faster and 2) it will give my mind a rest from the endless and never-changing terrain ahead of me. Either than that momment, no matter how many strokes may pass, the scenery was constant for ages: Pulau Ubin on the left, Johor Baruh on the right, endless mass of water stretching forward, waiting for us to colapse from the confussions of speed and time...

I tell you, we had the greatest joy when we saw the cargo ships: it meant that the turn was just around the corner! And that meant we've completed over half the race!!! Hooray, the turmoil was almost over!!! It was a relieving momment of thought, until we met up with another island.

Originally, this wasn't a problem: common sense would tell you that if you rowed at port, you'd take a shorter route tothe finishing line. However, the momment we saw a couple of T2s rowing starboard and away from the islands, we started to panic. Both of us not having attended Picnic Day, and not being fully briefed on what route we're suppose to take, Ting Wei and I were questioning each other of the possibilities that the minature trench in front of us was not part of the route, of if the plot of land was not actually an island but part of a penisula, which meant that we would be paddling into a gulf or dead-end.

We turned to Joseph and Barnabas, who were both also confused by the route taken by the T2s. There was no other boat surrounding us, and we had no other person to tell us which way to go. But in the end, The New Tiger turned left, and thus we followed suite. When inside the relatively narrow strip of water, the whole scenery somehow became a lot more peaceful: whether it was because there were no longer any big waves to torment us, or that the flora and fauna of Ubin was more close to us, or that we could see yatches anchored along the Ubin coast like floating cottages, you be the judge.

But just when we thought the only tough navigational question was answered, we were proven wrong. The momment we got out of that 'cannal', we saw this:

Now we were really scared. We couldn't tell head or tail where the finishing line was: all we knew was that it was at the same shore we launched from, but finding that shore was gonna be tough. Thank God, we ended up paddling towards an official's boat, which told us which direction to turn to and that if we intended a final sprint, now would be the best time to start.

Both RedandWhite and New Tiger gave ech other a glance; we both knew that if the end was that close, we'd might as well break formation and start acting competitive again. And without a word, both boats made a dash for what we were to assume was the finishing line...

Finally, the Finishing Buoys were defined enough for us to see. The New Tiger was now a few meters behind us, but that didn't matter. As far as we knew, the medals were no longer in possibility our posession. Nevertheless, we just wanted to have fun in the race, so we continued the sprint. Just as we were starting to increase our power for a final burst, guess what we passed by:

That's right! The Old Tiger had apparently capsized just 200 meters away from the Finishing Line!!! As we heard Winston and Victor shouting phrases of dissapointment at us, Ting Wei and I assumed that they could still swim the remaining 200m without drowning, and so we carried on to the finish...

By 100m, we could tell who were the figures that were standing on the shore just ahead of the line: There was Joseph's/Barnabas' and Ting Wei's parents, cheering us on; there was Mr. Ismail, just about to leave to attend to Lucas and Weng Ai, who've just arrived earlier on; and there was Mr. Goh, who began making his way into the water to catch our boat: one appropriate way to signal to us to go full force.

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*this is the part where everything goes slow-motion and the only sound made is that of a heartbeat*

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craSHeeeeeeeeee!!! (Sry, dunno what sound hold-water ['breaks' in canoeing terms] makes...)

The momment we crossed the line, we quickly started to back-paddle to quickly get the boat to halt (lest we colide into the sandy shore once again. Good thing Mr. Goh was there to catch our boat (phew). We alighted from our boat and carried it onto a safe area on the beach before rushing back to help RedandWhite out.

After a few more minutes of rst, we brought our boat to a washing point and rinsed off the saltiness from the hull (and from ourselves) before carrying it onto one of the trucks that would bring it back to MacRitchie. We then helped other rowers who were finishing up and had a chat with them when there was nothing left to do. Nick Ng was complaining about how he lost so badly, and Eugene was commenting on how the 'rescue' boats were more of a hinderance than a help.

Within half an hour, most of the team was alread back on land, so we started having our lunch that was provided by the race committee. Gathered at a small plot of grass, we shared our different experiences on how many times we capsized sunk. While I was listening to the conversatin, Joseph's dad came over to me and asked if I was Raemiguel. I said yes, and he explained that Joseph told him that I rescued him and his brother, and thanked me for my help. When Ting Wei came into the scene and asked for his credit, both brothers claimed that they heard Ting Wei say that we need not help them, sending the three of them into a candid quarrel.

Wow, I thought to myself, we rescued others. I thanked the Lord for the opportunity in a short prayer before returning to the discussion at lunch. It was around that time when Mr. See, who had just finished complaining that he sacrificed the race to rescue our K1s that fell along the way, announced that he wanted 4 representaties to stay back for the prize presentation, while the rest of the team would board the trucks and goto MacRitchie to help put the boats back into their sheds.

He ended up picking Joseph, Barnabas, Ting Wei and me: The three others because they had parents already there to send them home on the spot, me because I just agreed to it. Basically, all we had to do was represent our school at the presentation and collect medals on behalf of any team member who wasn't present.

So after we finished our lunch and comfirmed that our full strength has finsihed the race, the four of us watched as the trucks proceeded inland. While waiting for the rest of the schools to settle into the area and for the stage to set up for the ceremony, we were all chatting about random stuff to pass the hot and endless time.

Finally, the presentation begain, and we all eagerly waited for which people to play as. Due to the extremely hot mid-day sun, all the participants were staying under the shelters surrounding the stage, which were at least 10 meters apart from each other. So you could imageing the humour we saw when we watched participants scrambling through this distinctly big and empty space and collecting their prize, many a times staying a few seconds longer for a photo shot just to stay in the shade the stage was also under, before running back to the shade lest they get fried.

We were happy when we heard that Mr. Goh won the 'K1 Open Mens' Categorey, and clapped wildly as we saw him skipping acroos the baked earth to recieve the medal. But once the announcer arrived at the 'K2 Senior Mens' Event, we had an interest to hear if we made it, even though we had great doubts for such.

And schocked as we were, Ting Wei and I were announced 3rd in our event!!! Apparently, we were the boat after Lucas' and Weng Ai's, of which was after an NJC pair. Ting Wei and I went up to the stage speechless but nevertheless joyful, followed later by Jo and Barney, who were acting as Weng Ai and Lucas (we were giggling when we saw this).

After the whole presentation, we all parted our own ways; except for Ting Wei 'cause his parents offerd to drop me off at the MRT station. I then called my mom to tell her the good news, of which we both praised God for, and so she told me to call a cab home.

As the kind uncle (who allowed me to board his taxi in my filthy and salty state) drove me back to Upper Bukit Timah, I started to reflect on what happened today. I mean, I paddled 22 km worth of seawater, survived a couple of capsizings, rescued a fellow pair, endured an hour of insanity and beaten Old Tiger using RedandWhite! I've definitely had an ADVENTURE, and I've surely had FUN!!! God certainly answered my prayer, and more - He gave me the bronze even whne I didn't pray for it!!!

MY GOD IS AN AWESOME GOD!!!

Well, that sums it up for now. 1 Corinthians 15:57! God bless y'all!!!

Red - Actual Route of Race
Blue - Route Taken by RedandWhite

New Mate Onboard, C'ptain...

Ah, finally (haha) my first Canoeing training in a month! And rather splendid, indeed!

Starts off with me arriving rather early at the Chin-up Bars near the Paddle Lodge. Mr. See was sitting comfortably at the mouth of the pathway, and when I walked closed enough he quickly asked what the 'meeting' yesterday was all about. I explained to him the 'messed-up' Boardroom story from the way I heard it, and his mouth slowly dropped as I went on about the messy details mentioned. Apparently the jaw-dropping was more because he thought I was reffering to Dr. Ong's Boardroom, of which people would obviously get the slaughter if it was meesed up with 'tables overturned' and 'football marks on the walls'.

I then asked him when the Round Ubin Race was taking place, of which he said 2nd of December. I then asked about what the schedule would be like, and he depicted a full-day event, which he added is only 'full-day' because the judges would have to wait for the very last boat to cross the Finishing Line before they could actually start distributing the awards.

Seeing how intense the day may be, I admitted my situation: that is, as much as I was definitely free on 2nd December and was upmost willing to give the tides of the Straits of Johor a good tackle, I would be indeed arriving back to Singapore from KL, Malaysia on 1st December after a 5-day Encounter Jesus Camp.

Understanding clearly what this would lead to, Mr. See explained to me that there was certainly no worries on getting a place and a boat in the registration and at the venue respectively, and so the only concern I should be having would be if I was physically and mentally prepared for a sudden island-span current-tackling harshful-navigating race once my body get's intuned to a relaxing-hotel mood for 5 trainingless days in KL.

I suggested I did more push-ups and sit-ups, but he rebutted saying that it'll take as much as running to keep as much fitness as possible, something dependably hard to find applicable in an outskirts-of-KL hotel. He then said he'll ask Mr. Goh for advice to see if I'd be in good condition to race, at which I nodded in agreement and proceeded to do my chin-ups.

Ghah, just like many others I've lost a bit of strength after not training for a month. My chin-up max. number has drastically dropped, and I'm not in a determined state to believe in God that I can work my way back up to tiptop shape within a month or so! Fellow Christians, please pray for me! :)

At the usual timing the lot of us were given the order to launch, of which I along with a small group had to stay with Mr. See and Mr. Goh to see which boats we'd be using today. At the end o the line, I was permitted any K2 Tiger. Partnering Ting Wei.

Hey, cool!, I thought to myself. Another new partner to try! Let's see what he's got.

We both got our stuff and went to the Upper Sheds, where we took down the Old Tiger and re-configured her to suit our needs before heading out to the pontoon to launch for a rather easy programme to start us back to the training mood. On the water, I was thankful to God that all I could remember about paddling racing-style came back rather smoothly after 250 meters or so out at bay. Steering was more or less auomatic, and my feet knew what to do if I encountered obstacle-situations in the water, especially rescuing capsized boats!

After doing a few laps and beating a few K1s along the way (not much glory for a K2 to beat K1s, but it was nevertheless a good cheap-thrill to start the season :P), I was rather impressed with how syncronized Ting Wei and I were in strokes! Well, Ting Wei would need to work a bit more on timing, and I'd need to work a little more on direction-keeping, but I must say we were rather well-opperated!

After training, Mr. Goh also told me in person that he felt we were very good on the water. Ah, another possible new chapter in my Canoeing life, eh God? Let's see how this one goes...

Once the boats were packed up, we got our shoes on and went running. Ooo, running! A long time since I ran! (a week and a half, but hey!) And where else to run but at the Dam Wall! Haha, the puns were ringing along as we jogged our way to the venue. You could hear phrases like;

"Hey, where're we running today?"
"At the Dam Wall!"
"Dam it! Dam the Dam Wall!"

And we'll all be laughing at the puns we could make up. Once at the Dam Wall, we ran a few laps on the Dam. I came in 4th place! Just behind Neil, Sheng Yi, Ray and Lucas, and just a head of Ting Wei. Once done, we went down the Wall to do a Warmdown and Debrief before eing dismissed.

Decided to rinse before leaving MacRitchie, since I was really stenched with sweat. Rather cooling, but wasn't really worth the towel. Once at home, I rested in bed with satisfaction on how training went today for an hour or more before getting up to eat lunch, after which dad called home to tell me he has left a little assignment beside the computer.

I checked and found a new Samsung printer box ready for unpacking and assembling! Hey, there's more stuff to do! Yay, activities! Haha, at least I wouldn't be bored for the next half an hour or so. Reading the manuals and diagrams, I fixed the cords and wires and cartridges respectively and downloaded the software into the main house computer.

Once everything was assembled, I congradulated myself by not wasting the activation of the house computer, simply by watching a bit of Rowan Atkinson on YouTube. (Come to think of it, a better reward would have been to play Rise of Nations. Darn...)

Ah well, nothing much left to report, just that after dinner when my parents came home, my dad gave a good inspection of the printer and approved of it's standards (Yay, dad!) and also had a chat with mom over what I'd want to do when I reach pre-/post-/University. Apparently, my parents want me to take the Air Force course when I go for National Service, but I still want to go to the Navy. Hmm, wonder how this'll turn out. :S

Well, before I sign off, might as well be faithful of a friend's request, 'ay? Enjoy;

1. Time of starting This?
10.17 pm

2. Were you named after anyone?
Both parents, really. Rae came from the first half of my dad's name, and Miguel came from the fact that it started with an 'M' like my mom's name.

3. Do you wish on stars?
Absoultely not! I trust in the Lord my Heavenly Dad for whatever a want and need and get! Let me hear an 'Amen', p'ple!

4. When did you last cry?
About a couple of months ago, when I was told by my parents that if I couldn't manage my time properly I would be stopped from joining Believers. Apparently, though, I was soon prompted by the Spirit to move on to D.A.R.E., so it doesn't make much difference anyway. But as much as I'm enjoying D.A.R.E., I really miss the people back at Prinsep. I tell you, I have never met such friendly people since the time I visited Japan! But I know very well that if God wants me to move on, it's because He has something better in store! I just pray that I won't miss Prinsep too badly in the proccess...

5. What is your favourite meat?
FISH!!! Yay, fillets!!! Horah, sashimi!!! Bravo, broth-steameds!!!

6. What is your most embarrassing CD on your shelf?
I'm not sure about CDs. But for casset tapes, there's one with a recording of what I sounded like as a young kid. The unthinkable will happen if it fellinto the wrong hands... :O

7. If you were another person, would YOU be friends with you?
Hmm, Mig seems like a nice person. I'm not sure, but he's always a kind person to others, and many a times talking about God's grace. Yeah, I guess we are sort of friends.

8. Are you a daredevil?
Depends, actually. I'd take my chances if it is really important to me that I do something particularly daring.

9. How do you release anger?
Complain to God. I'd just tell Him what's bothering me, ask for better alternatives and then end of saying that no matter what happens, I'm still aware that He's still got my back and is still protecting me. Usually works for me, ;)

10.Where is your second home?
I'm at the state where I'm more or less at the same level with all the societies I'm involved in, so I'm not certain of it now.

11. Do you trust others easily?
First impressions do count, but it's rather easy to raise my respect for a person, along with raising my trust.

12. What was your favourite toy as a child?
My security blanket was a bolster I named Finchy (which still sleeps with me to this day, come to think of it), but the toys I played with most were my building blocks. Loved to build things, then get the mega fan to blow it down and see which structures could resist the winds the best! Yeah, good childhood memories...

13. What class in school do you think is totally useless?
I have absolutely no idea.

14. Do you use sarcasm a lot?
Time after time, I guess. Just to keep a slightly funnier athmosphere, supposedly.

15. Have you ever been in a mosh pit?
Wazzat?

16. What do you look for in a guy/girl?
Christ-centered, bubbly, supportive, very active and whom the love of God has favour with everytime I see her! Ooo, and if she's also genre-flexible and can sing, that'll be beautiful!

17. Would you bungee jump?
I made a vow that if I ever returned to Queenstown, New Zeland during summer, I'd give the jump a try. Wonder if I'll ever fufill the promise in my lifetime at all :p

18. Do you untie your shoes when you take them off?
Nah, too troublesome.

19. What's your favourite ice cream flavour?
Chocolate Chip/Vanila Cream/Caramel

20. What is your favourite colour?
Navy Blue! All hands on deck!

21. What is your least favourite thing?
In my possesion? A particular book that is kept high up in my shelf. I plan to throw it away soon. Maybe rip it apart first. It contains something I'd recomend no one saw or remembered.

But hey, PRAISE be to God that he's set me free to this day, so I can spread the joy of God to those I meet!!!

22. What is your favourite number?
8, the number of new beginnings!

23. What do you miss most right now?
The friends I can really use for company right now. :D

24. What are you listening to right now?
Give to the Lord by Ron Kenoly. Yay, Soul Gospel!!! (Y'know, one thing I'd want to experience in my lifetime is to see an African-American Church chior perform some joyful gospel music! That'll just be so cool!)

25. If you were a crayon, what colour would you be?
Navy Blue! All crayons on deck!

26. Whats the weather like now?
Dark and cloudy, but cooling nough for a comfortable good night's sleep! That's a good reason why I praise the Lord for this apartment: it's positioned in such a way that natural elements make living so comfortable!

27. Last person you talked to on the phone?
Tim, about meeting him tomorrow for a good mornin' round of cycling.

28. The first thing you notice about the opposite sex?
Gentleness. :)

29. Do you like the person who sent you this?
Yeah, I respect him as a good friend greatly. :D My face is just too cold to show it. :(

30. How are you today?
Blessed and loved by God!!!

31. Favourite drink?
Ice Lemon Tea! It's such a favourite, I usually reserve it for special ocasions.

32. Favourite alcoholic drink?
White wine. Sweet-tasting, yet doesn't loose the warm effect wine should have. Cheers.

33. Natural hair colour?
Asian black.

34.Favourite colour?
Navy Blue. It's the second/third time already.

35. Wear contacts?
Nope. Never intend to.

36. Siblings?
An elder and a younger sis!

37.Favourite month?
May! My birthmonth!

38. Favourite food?
Char Kway Teow!!!

39. Last movie you watched?
Can't remember, but the next movie I'd be watching would be Balls of Fury! :P

40. Favourite day of the year?
My birthday!

41. Have you ever been too shy to ask someone out?
I had difficulties trying to invite classmates to my birthday. Comprehendo's?

42. Scary movies or happy endings?
Don't they both usually go together? I'd prefer happy endings, though. :)

43. Summer or winter?
Depends on which country. Some are suited for summer, some for winter, and some so special they're still lively through both!

44. Hugs or kisses?
Hugs for now. I'll reserve the kisses for my love-to-come...

45. Do you want your friends to write back?
Their choice.

46. Who is most likely to respond?
Dunno.

47. Who is least likely to respond?
Dunno.

48. What book/magazine are you reading?
The last book I read? The Bible.

49. What's on your mouse pad?
I don't use a mousepad.

50. What did you watch on TV last night?
Last night, nuthin'. The night before, Boston Legal. (Haha)

51. What's your favourite smell?
Smell of good food! Haha, the typical Singaporean answer...

52. Do you regret ever breaking up with someone?
At this stage, it can only apply to best friends, so yeah I miss a couple of friends I've left behind in my past.

53. Time of finishing?
11.17 pm (Cool, one full hour just to finish a quiz! But hey, I was chatting with my mom inbetween, so that's just cheat.)

Isiah 54:10!!! God bless y'all!!!

"Kallang is the evil twin of MacRitchie..."

We had Time Trials today for training. In other words, we had our timings taken for our events. Like agreed, Hao Qing and I took New Tiger today, which after giving it a spin we found to actually be somewhat better than Old Tiger. (The strapped footrests were especially useful.) Before the Trials, Mr. Goh gave a short revision on how to board a canoe on a pontoon, so as to help prepare us for the conditions in Kallang. Barnacles.

We then paddled to our starting points (either 500m or 1000m, HQ and I being 500) and waited for our wave to start. First were the 1000m events, which took about less than half an hour to finish, before moving on to the 500m events, of which the K2s had to go first. Joon Sin didn't come today (again...), so Kenneth had to paddle Old Tiger with a Sec 1. But jokes aside, this Sec 1 is a very powerful rower, despite his angelic looks. Nevertheless, HQ and I wouldn't know if we're better/worse/at par to the Mosquito today because of JSin's absense. How sad.

Once we did a set of 500m timing (of which the Old Tiger colided into HQing's paddle's path of rotation at around 50m), Mr. Goh told us to do 4 sets of 2k Sprints, of which HQ and I didn't really hear clearly so we did Easy Row until we passed by Davin and Seng Jian's boat, when they shouted across the lanes that it was a "...BURST!...".

At least for the rest of the sets, New Tiger did what she could. Once done, we headed back to the pontoon to pack-up and brought the boat back to the Upper Shed, where Mr. Goh later brought the weighing scale to weigh the boats before we brought them to Kallang. (Yes, there are regulations in competions for boats to be within certain mass ranges so as to make the race more fair.)

Not to elaborate, but when Hao Qing and I placed New Tiger onto the scale, it displayed that she was over 19kg, a kilogram above the maximum weight for K2s! (Yes, boats can be overweight/underweight.) I know the solution for underweight boats is to put sandpackets into the bow and stern to increase the overall mass, but I don't know how they're gonna solve overweight. If only there were slimming sessions for boats...

Later, I went down to lower shed to label my paddle. (Yay! My name's just below Jimmy's signature! [Jimmy's a senior in the club.] Cheap-thrill thoughts, hee hee:P...) While labeling my blade, Yi Pin walked by and suddenly exclaimed in a soft tone, "Raemiguel! Your toe is bleeding like s***! Aren't you gonna wash it?" I looked down, and true enough, my toe was bleeding like - well, till half of my fat toe was red.

Others who heard or noticed stared and gave their random comments, while I just looked back up normally and sighed an, "Oh, I didn't notice." like as if nothing actually happened. Must had been caused by me sliding against a rock, I guess. Whatever it was, God heal my wound! I went to Mr. See to ask for permittion if I could run down to the toilet to wash the wound, of which without looking he permitted.

Down at the washing area of the toilet, a middle-aged man who was washing his shoes from mud noticed me sticking my bloody foot towards the tap and rinsing all the blood off. So he came to me and offered me a plaster. I thankfully accepted it, along with a couple of tissue papers to wipe the wounds clean and dry. While walking back up to the shed, all attended for but slightly limping, I prayed for God to bless that man. God bless him!

After settling paddles, blades, lifejacks and other small details I might have forgoten to mention, the 'B' Division was told to report at MacRitchie at the ussual time on Monday to help in transporting the boats onto the trucks, while most of the 'C' Division was to report at Kallang at 8.15 to wait for the boats to arrive. I wanted to volunteer to help out in the transportation of boats, but Mr. See wanted me to go to Kallang instead and be in charge of the Juniors (aww...).

We were then told of all the horror stories of Kallang and what conditions to expect. Such tales were like that there were some buoys which we had to stay away from, as they may be connected to high-tention cables which if snapped could slash through almost anything in its path ("...even diamonds would shatter..."), and that stepping on barnicles isn't dangerous - it's when you slip on them that you get wounds "far worse than what Raemiguel is having now.", and also on what debries could be floating just underneath the surface, most which are hard enough to chip/scratch/chip and scratch the hull of an unfortunate boat that paddles towards it.

In summary, "Kallang is the evil twin of MacRitchie," as quoted by Mr. See. I'd just have to be more careful when I get there.

Once dismissed, I gave Mr. See my phone number so he could call me once the trucks that would be carrying the boats were nearby the sports centre, and in turn he gave me his number just in case I had any troubles while waiting for them or with attending to the Juniors. After changing up and heading home and reaching home and feeling home, I said the prayer for a verse for the day and ended up at Matthew 1o:32-33, which is;

32"For those who declare publicly that they belong to me, I will do the same before my Father in heaven. 33But if anyone rejects me publicly, I will reject him before my Father in heaven.

To imagine that while we're down here on earth saying something like, "Oh, and y'know what? I declared His love for me, an' my love for 'im, infron' of that dude and told him that there ain't no nuthin' that's gonna stop my Pops from heaven from lovin' me, y'know wad' I sayin'? I love 'at God of mine, that Daddy y'all, and I'ma gonna praise Him as long as I'im gonna live!",

Jesus' probably chatting with God over something on the lines of, "Oh, and y'know what? He declared My love for 'im, an' is' love for me, infron' of that dude and told him that there ain't no nuthin' that's gonna stop Me from lovin' 'im, y'know wad' I sayin'? I love 'at boy of mine, that sonny y'all, and I'ma gonna bless 'im as long as he's gonna believe!"

Irony. Yet blessed irony.

Then I went to my mp3 player and played the sermon my Mom wanted me to hear about. The sermon was about Remembering and Rehearsing God's Deliveances. And since this blog was meant to be my Christian journal, I'll just type ou the notes I have:

-Flip to 1 Samuel 4:19-22, and it says;

19His daughter-in-law, the wife of Phinehas, was pregnant and near the time of delivery. When she heard the news that the ark of God had been captured and that her father-in-law and her husband were dead, she went into labor and gave birth, but was overcome by her labor pains. 20As she was dying, the women attending her said, "Don't despair; you have given birth to a son." But she did not respond or pay any attention.

21She named the boy Ichabod*, saying, "The glory has departed from Israel"-because of the capture of the ark of God and the deaths of her father-in-law and her husband. 22She said, "The glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of God has been captured."

*('Ichabod' in Hebrew means 'no glory'.)

-Now go to Romans 13:11-14. It says;

11You must do this, because you know that the time has come for you to wake up from your sleep. For the moment when we will be saved is closer now than it was when we first believed. 12The night is nearly over, day is almost here. Let us stop doing the things that belong to the dark, and let us take up weapons for fighting in the light. 13Let us conduct ourselves properly, as people who live in the light of day - no orgies or drunkenness, not immorality or indecency, no fighting or jealousy. 14But take up the weapons of the Lord Jesus Christ, and stop paying attention to your sinful nature and satisfying its desires.

-Now, there are 7 things which these verses talk about. Here's a list;

1) Alertness
If there is anything that we need today, especially now when it's real close to the EndTimes, it would be alertness. Don't forget, Samson only had his haircut when he was sleeping, and because of that he lost all his God-given strength.

2)Put off with the things of darkness

3)Put on the armour of light

4)Honest heart
One of the best differences between you and the enemy which you can addapt should be that you have an honest heart towards God.

5)No dual living
Don't comprimise and mix your life with things that would only harm it.

6)We need to put on the Lord Jesus
So that we can depend on the Lord Jesus.

7) We need to have priorities for Kingdom Living
The enemy would try to give you many chances to fail. Take none.

-We tend to forget what good things God has done for us. And so when we go through the storms of life, we fail to keep standing. We must stand through the storms (a person who stands through the storms goes forward, not back; thinks about the things which would push him on, not ways on how to retriet.)

-We have our season for Christ!

-Stand where you have favour! Stay where you have favour! Don't leave the favour! No matter how hard things can get! Keep standing!

-It's after the victory where the chaos comes! (When we all remove our armour and go party)

-Phinehas's wife had to go throught so much animosity and pressure ("like a pressure cooker!"). But don't give up! The times will feel like as if there's no exit, no solution, no hope, but just keep clinging on! ('Those who keep praising, will get rain!")

-Don't be influenced by those who feel that things will be hopeless. Save them, for you should, but don't allow them to alter your mindset with God's plans. Don't stop fighting!

-When you stop fighting, you'd feel like as if God has left you completely. You'll be spiritually 'blind'/'deaf'.

-If you think like that, just remind yourself where you are right now. ("I will remember.")

-When you give up, your mouth will freely spread depression. E.g., Phinehas's wife called her son 'No hope' and kept repeating that the Lord had departed from God. People always find it easier to say negative things than to say positive things, as negative things seem more likely and accurate while positive things are supernatural. But remember, God IS supernatural!

-Use the testimonies which God has given to you to push forward.

-The Word of God will give you confidence - try reading it up if you feel of doubt.

-"Your latter shall be greater than your formal!"

-Still, don't be over-confident in your own works - it is God who gives you the victory! Whatever you get from God, concider it as a priveledge!

-If you've got a target, keep at it! Don't put it down or take shortcuts that will make less of it all.

-2 Samuel 23:11-12 shares about Shammah:

11Next to him was Shammah son of Agee the Hararite. When the Philistines banded together at a place where there was a field full of lentils, Israel's troops fled from them. 12But Shammah took his stand in the middle of the field. He defended it and struck the Philistines down, and the LORD brought about a great victory.

-2 Samuel 23:16

16So the three mighty men broke through the Philistine lines, drew water from the well near the gate of Bethlehem and carried it back to David. But he refused to drink it; instead, he poured it out before the LORD.

-2 Corinthians 5:9

9So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it.

-Zechariah 10:1

1Ask the LORD for rain in the springtime; it is the LORD who makes the storm clouds. He gives showers of rain to men, and plants of the field to everyone.

And that's about it for the sermon notes. And if you wanted to see, here's a pic of the wound I recieved earlier on (now a lot more healed than how bloddy it was a few hours ago);

All archived down. Ah, well. God bless y'all!

"Welcome aboard the Old Tiger, Mr. Tan-ner..."

Today starts off with training. And if I haven't recorded it down here yet, Hao Qing and I are still trying to decide which boat we should take for our race: Old or New Tiger. There is a difference between the two boats, if you're asking. (The effects of time can cause a boat to loose its gliding power, and yet increase its stabability.) So since we've tried the New Tiger with both normal and angle seats earlier this week, we gave Old Tiger a spin today.

My vote was on New Tiger when HQing mentioned about th boat being more stable if we stepped harder on the footrests, since New Tiger comes with strapped footrests. (Straps hep to keep your feet firm onto the footrest, preventing them from slipping off during the race.) But then later in the day it changed to Old after finding out that we achived a stable journey by 40 minutes, something which we ussually couldn't do onboard the New Tiger.

Hao Qing second about stabability, but he wanted to test out New Tiger during the time trials tomorrow, just to get an accurate feel of which boat's better to race in. I agreed, and so now it's just a matter of time till we see the results. The rest of the time on the water, besides the main training programme, was 10 minutes of free time (yay!), this time it had to spent on practicing non-racing skills (erm, okay).

Examples of such are like Back Water, Draw Water (Left/Right) and Helicopter [Ooo, that one was fun!]. Hao Qing and I even had a chance to switch sides for a while and see what it was like to paddle from each other's point of view! Being Backman was a little more hard in the sense of effort put outside the boat (pulling your strokes, etc.) but a little more slack for effort put inside the boat (kicking [didn't need to worry about tiller], etc.). Hao Qing also felt a bit odd on my seat, and had some trouble in keeping our direction when doing sprints - after 10 strokes, we'd end up turning towards the left, and I'd end up finding myself shouting to the front, "Starboard! Right! Starboard!" when I saw that we were about to colide into the senior Cs.

After packing up, we were debriefed a bit more on what life would be like in Kallang, and what precautions we should - no, must - must take when we're at the river basin. We were also told that after the time trials tomorrow, we'll be practicing capsize drills and revise on how to do self-rescue. This would definitely be required as once you're capsized out at Kallang, swimming back to shore with your boat may take as much as half an hour, depending on how far out you've paddled (This can sometimes even go as far as the center of Marina Bay)

After debrief, I went back home and got out my Bible. After praying the ussual prayer of asking God to show me a verse which could help me around this time in my life, I flipped and ended up on Isaiah 48:17, which says (in the Sunrise Good News version);

17The holy God of Israel, the Lord who saves you, says: "I am the Lord your God, the one who wants to teach you for your own good and direct you in the way you should go.

I gave thanks through my trust in the Lord, and later fell asleep on my bed.

When I woke up at 3pm later, I went to take my bath, eat lunch and then was about to start on the remaining flashcards I had to complete for Mdm Kavita's homework when I stumbled upon my mp3 player. My Mom has been telling me to listen to the sermons she had downloaded into it, and so I thought just one sermon for the day wouldn't do any harm, if not bless me greatly.

The sermon my mp3 shuffled to was about the Authoroty of the Believer - Knowing the Enemy.

In short, it was about how the devil was no joke. This liar has caused the deaths, infections and mis-blessings of thousands around the world through time, all because these people believed in his lies. But at the same time, with the name of Jesus we can rebuke the devil and stop his plans from diverting us away from God's masterplan for you. In James 4:7, it says:

7So then, submit to God. Resist the devil, and he will run away from you.

So all we have to do is to submit to God and His plans and ways, and the devil will run away from you. Run away from you. If memory serves, the New International Version should say 'flee'. Flee. Not even as dignified as 'step back' or 'pardon himself', but pathetically 'flee'. Scaredy cat. And be proud for God that the devil is a looser. Isaiah 14:16-17 shares that the devil is so pathetic;

16Those who see you stare at you, they ponder your fate: "Is this the man who shook the earth and made kingdoms tremble, 17the man who made the world a desert, who overthrew its cities and would not let his captives go home?"

To think that the momment you glance at whoever is causing all the spiritual chaos you'd be surprised that the thingy could actually do all that with just a simple pack of lies, says that the devil really is pathetic. Imagine a crippled fallen angel on a medium flame, dried up as ragcloth that he can't even scream in the pain and skinny enough to see his insides so clearly till you could accurately point out where his liver is, crawling on a hard and rocky floor trying its best to grip onto your mind and make you feel doubtful in your life with God.

Nothing like what movies portray that thing, really. No horns, no tridents, no strength, no muscles, no magical pwers to transform whatever it wants into whatever it wants it to become. Not even the strength to touch a person with his own hands, if there's anything left of them. Just a useless shrip tring to get as many creations of God into joining him in his punishment as possible.

Don't fall for him, I'll leave you with that. Just when you think you've got it all under cover, you may just fall for his next lie. But at the same time, if the thing's really pestering you lately, it probably means he's afraid 'cause he's aware that God's about to bless you with something very soon, so the very more you should rebuke the thing and tell it to flee away.

After the sermon, I did as many cards as I could with Mdm Kavita's homework - 3 more extracts left to cover.

Better get back to somemore work. Will leave you with this: I've Got A Jar Of Dirt!

May God protect and bless y'all!!!