National Pride

One thing I still don't get is when I greet somebody walks past me in the hallways with a 'Hey' and they reply 'How's it going?'

Like... am I actually supposed to reply to that? Sometimes I just don't say anything and we both continue on, but I feel kinda bad like I ignored his question. Then when I actually do reply something like 'Oh I'm good. Going for lunch now' or something there are also 2 possible outcomes. One being that the guy turns around and we have a small conversation and block up the passageway for a few minutes, and the other being that he/she just continues walking down without replying, or with a minor affirmation at most, leaving me feeling rather embarrassed for opening myself up for no reason.

I watched the first live soccer match since I came here last night and it was gratifying to know that Man U fans are every bit as obnoxious no matter which country they come from. The reaction of the Koreans when their countryman scored was quite a sight to behold though.

I walked into the computer lab the other evening and I saw a multi-national group gathered around a computer screen and they were laughing uncontrollably at some video. The people in the group included Malaysians, Indians, HKs, Koreans, Japs, Chinamen, Aussies, Pinoys and Americans. Curious as to what could attract the attention and tickle the funny bones of so many races I walked over to the computer screen and to my immense surprise I saw them going through a playlist of 'Gao Xiao Xing Dong' episodes with subtitles.

I have never before felt so proud to be a Singaporean. Apparently everyone back home hates him now for some scandal, but go back and watch Gao Xiao Xing Dong and remember what he did for the country's comedy scene.

When The Cold Wind Blows

Earlier this week when I was walking to school this line suddenly hit me, along with that tune. I stopped in my tracks and wondered 'wait where did that come from' before I remembered it was an army song. The second thing that hit me was 'wait again how does it go?' and to my immense satisfaction I COULD NOT REMEMBER. Til today I've still no idea how that song goes, and I'm really thankful for it. A small part at the back of my mind seems to remember it starts off by waking up in the morning, but the minute I say those 5 words another song starts playing in my head and the train of thought ends there.

So I've been here a month already and... I'm content. Not happy, the friends here can't really compare to the ones I've left behind and I met my dad for dinner because he happened to be here for the weekend and as he drove off there was a small pang and I felt all alone for a short while. Some times at night the bed feels too much like the one in camp, because of this weird Australian lack of faith in bolsters. (I've searched all over and not a single Australian shop sells bolsters. Very odd)

I guess apart from people what I really miss is the food. It's quite a simple common thing but I really do miss the Singaporean food. There are substitutes of all kinds due to the large number of Asians in Sydney, but somehow the same dishes don't really taste the same here as they do back home. Perhaps I'm being overly sentimental, which is (supposedly) not a good thing.

Autumn is coming soon. Seasons actually mean something here apart from game release dates, although I'll never get tired of the weather here.