Let's face it. I love my class. 09S07A has been fantastic all the way so far. There's small cliques here and there - The Pimp Order, the Cedars (Shihua is also a Cedar), the Passive Muggers... and stuff like that, but everyone is cool with each other, and everyone interacts with each other, so it's all good.
But! There is always a but. A happy fairy tale classroom setting is not to be. Much like 4C had Hoang The The Gia, or 4I had Ryan Chan back in the old days of RI, 09S07A does have its black sheep as well. And its startlingly obvious who it is. (For those who do not know, please kindly fill up the form for entry into the Passive Muggers group. In fact, I think even they know as well.)
In a nice cosy class conversation we had on the fateful night of Thursday 28th February 2008, the class was BEMOANING (GP vocabulary word hint hint) the presence of this person and were discussing about her eccentricities. Not to come as a surprise, I was definitely one of the most active speakers back there. And not to come as a surprise either, a lot of expletives came out as a result of the many attempted descriptions of the person.
There comes a time when one has to be tactful:
1) Such as when you are noticing you are the only one laughing at the Econs teacher's attempted "jokes" and everyone is sitting there stone-faced, it is better if you stop, look around you, and come to the conclusion that you should stop laughing rather than make yourself stand out from the crowd even further than you already are (not in a good way, most definitely).
2) Being the only person in class to laugh at her own quote of John Steward Mill isn't exactly the coolest thing in the world as well, so maybe she would have been better off not adding on to the embarrassment by laughing like as if she was the only person in class.
3) Touching/ruffling/patting/hugging/coming into contact with random people in the class is not really welcomed by said random people, and should MOST DEFINITELY NOT BE REPEATED AGAIN. This is obviously the one section which I feel the strongest about, as accentuated by the caps, and for various reasons my classmates know about. *shudders*
In any case, we must look at the other point of view as well. As a classmate pointed out, one of the reasons why our class gets along well with her is because of a common hatred, a common enemy, a common view of her. In this way, it unites the class against her, which, even though it seems funny, actually does make sense.
In conclusion, I still feel totally freaked out by her. People say stuff like "You're damn mean" or "Time will help you get used to her". I don't think I'm being mean. Even if I'm mean, I'm happy to announce that at least I'm no hypocrite. I'm simply expressing what everyone feels deep down inside, be it the Pimp Order or the Passive Muggers. I'm a type of person who shows what he feels, be it happiness, sadness, anger, or confusion. In this case, I am most definitely feeling disgust. Also, the reality is that it's been two months and a whole span of 9 weeks. If I can't get used to her in a timeframe of 9 weeks, I can't really see how long it would take for me to get used to her, if I would at all.
I'm sorry if I offended anyone with this post, but it's just how I feel.
This is not intended for flaming, but its more of an output for the venting of this feeling of disgust which I have.
Unfortunately, if I am asked whether I hate her or not, my answer would still be:
"Ya la."
ivan fed the world.
Today, as I walked towards the field after school, I half-expected to see it bustling with activity, with CCA trainings, with people running around the track, with people sitting at the spectator gallery resting from some tough PT.
What did I see?
I saw nothing.
Metaphorically speaking of course. But then it was really empty, with the exception of maybe one or two people doing some extra training or kicking a ball around, in comparison to the usual fully-utilised track and field. CCA trainings, which I expected to be held at around after-school times, were not held. And then I remembered.
Today is Valentine's Day.
Today is the special day in which we celebrate love, and we see flowers, chocolates, soft toys, and many other gifts and presents being exchanged throughout the entire day. Hugs are of course a part of the package, as I see people hugging here and there throughout the course of this day. Why the sudden change?
Back in RI, Valentine's Day was just 14th February, yet another monotonous day of school, and as someone mentioned on his MSN nick: "14th February used to just be a person's birthday." We said, "Hey! Happy Valentine's Day!" But we knew that we never really put any effort into making the day a big occasion, or burn our pockets to provide some sweet delights for others' tongues.
Is it girl culture influencing the school? Peer pressure is indeed a strong tool. With guys buying stuff for girls here and there, and girls preparing stuff for guys and other girls here and there, we are all of course pressured to do something for the other people, and give people something which we have never really given before. For me, this day is nothing special. I'm not really proud to say this, but I never did prepare anything for anyone for this day (even though peer pressure did tell me I should), and so of course I never did expect to get anything. Thanks to the people who did give me some snacks, which was really useful during Geography class.
But the fact remains. Everyone has an important occasion which they do not celebrate, be it their birthday or Christmas. For me, it is Valentine's Day.
Why people decide to designate this day as Valentine's Day, I do not know.
Why people bother to work so hard to prepare for this day, I do not know.
What I do know, however, is that the introduction of girls in our lives, which affected the majority of the male population in the school, is a very very strong tool.
ivan fed the world.