Journal of a budding social worker #19 (The 5 stages of grief.)

A super hilarious way of understanding the five stages of grief. The giraffe is super funny can! :D

The following information will be useful for people who want to understand what these 5 stages are about...

Five Stages Of Grief (Dr. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross)

1) Denial and Isolation.
At first, we tend to deny the loss has taken place, and may withdraw from our usual social contacts. This stage may last a few moments, or longer.

2) Anger.
The grieving person may then be furious at the person who inflicted the hurt (even if she's dead), or at the world, for letting it happen. He may be angry with himself for letting the event take place, even if, realistically, nothing could have stopped it.

3) Bargaining.
Now the grieving person may make bargains with God, asking, "If I do this, will you take away the loss?"

4) Depression.
The person feels numb, although anger and sadness may remain underneath.

5) Acceptance.
This is when the anger, sadness and mourning have tapered off. The person simply accepts the reality of the loss.

Not everyone will go through all 5 stages. Some people might go through the stages smoothly. Some, unfortunately, might get stuck in any stage... It's absolutely normal to experience grief, as it is part and parcel of life, isn't it.

Hong Kong Cafe (again) with Social Work mates.

Met Elaine some time ago when she was having lunch near my neighbourhood, and I sort of decided to meet up with her. She said she's going to read this post, oh gosh, what should I write? Hahaha.I asked Tommy along as well, but he couldn't make it. So, Elaine insisted that the handsome and promising young man behind us will represent Tommy's presence.Great choice of food by Elaine! She suggested ordering this pineapple bun (usually called Bo1 Lo2 Bao1) which is a specialty of Hong Kong...and some dumplings, with vegetables and meat filling. Both of them taste great! And we were quite lucky and happy that the restaurant was having some good offers. We had bonus ham and eggs for just 1 dollar!The picture in the centre represents Kelly's main course, arranged specially by Koh Cindy, consisting of half an egg, a piece of toast, 1/4 pineapple bun, 1/2 slice of ham and a missing piece of dumpling, with coriander placed in the middle. :)

I ordered the black pepper chicken spaghetti (picture on the right), which was tried and recommended by Julia, while Elaine chose baked spaghetti with pork (picture on the left). The cheese on the baked spaghetti was awfully sinful but awfully yummy!
Happy Ming En and Elaine.
Weirdos playing with spoons.Triple-flavoured ice kachang- red bean, mango and strawberry. Not forgetting to take some photos before we started eating. Somehow, all of us had different expressions when we were supposed to have the same expression, that is hungry. Alright, perhaps being hungry has a different meaning for each of us.
We miss Tommy so much that we included him in the photo. Can you spot him?

It was drizzling, but we went ahead to stroll along the river. The view was nice. In addition, Kelly and me have somehow decided where we want to take our photos at. And lastly, ended off the day with a slice of cheesecake and some juice.
Looking forward to more future meetups. Meanwhile, take loads of care! :)

P/S: I hadn't used the word "loser" for this many times as I had today. All because of Elaine. Hmm.

Short term goals.

人，活在世上，有时会迷失方向。
要靠家人和朋友的指点，才不至于“迷路”。
而我，有时会打一打自己的脑袋，
然后花一点时间想一想， 自己活在世上的意义所在。
有时，因为“钻牛角尖”，而忘记自己该做的事。

希望我不要再“迷路”了...

就算迷路了也不要紧，

最重要的是，可以照着自己的理想地图前进。

我们终究还是会到自己的目的地。 ：）

I gave a good thought to my short term goals, as in the goals I want to achieve in the next three to five years. I wish to travel more, I wish to practice Social Work, I wish to finish paying my study loan, etc.

Sometimes it's good to remind yourself of your goals in life, than to drift around in your own world hoping that someone will enlighten you. The most dependable person is still yourself, I think. P/S: If all else fails, knocking your own head will be a good option. :)

My Undergraduate Days #60 (Pre-Commencement Madness.)

Hi all! Commencement is coming real soon, and I'm getting all excited. Worrying if the hat (mortar board cap) will fall if I bow too hard, worrying if I might slip and fall on my heels, worrying if I would be so touched that I'm going to cry and my tears are going to make my face look silly. Oh gosh. It is really something that is very important to me, say like a closure of my studies.

Yesterday, I went Computer Area of Central Library to print my Academic Dress collection slip. This will be most probably my LAST time using the school computer. And you might think it's hilarious, but I must say that I miss the smell of Central Library. :(
And I miss the cheap and delicious Western Food in the Engine Canteen. Together with a cup of milk tea... ahh, heaven!
Headed MPSH1 to collect our gowns, and took some pictures with Mr Lion before we left.

P/S: Anyone wants to buy a Mr Lion for me, with my name embroidered on it? It's about 40 bucks and I think it's cute! (You'll have to go all the way to NUS MPSH1 to order it though. They don't have a number which people can call and make orders. Can't believe it.) Thought I would be a little crazy to buy for myself. Sigh, so... any takers? Ming En's second pose with Mr Lion. Looked as if they are a couple. So, I decided to pose in such a way too and...

I ended up looking like a desperate old woman groping Mr Lion. Urgh, wrong placement of hands.
Will miss the cold cold MPSHs where we usually have our examinations... and the nice nice Refreshment Area where I chilled out with many different friends then.

We did something crazy after the collection of our gowns! Stay tuned if you want to know about it! Hahahahaha...

*

Here's some of the photos we took in Central Library.Helping each other to put on the gowns. Happy in our graduation gowns.

To think we had to avoid people from seeing us in gowns... it was super hilarious and fun!!!

How I miss the smell of Central Library now... :'(

Great Teacher Onizuka.

Watched the whole series of Great Teacher Onizuka. Almost every episode got me into tears. It was a little too idealistic, but don't we all dream to have inspiring and truthful teachers?

The lyrics of "Poison" are actually quite inspiring. A simple task of being truthful to ourselves and our loved ones... can we actually do it?

I won’t be manipulated by lies and empty words
I’ll never turn away from what is in my heart
Even in this world where we can never say what’s in our hearts
I will never hide my dreams and I’ll live my own life
Even in this world where we can never really live out slightest dreams
I will keep on going, I will keep on doing my thing
Yeah, I want to stand beside you and I want to live free
And together we will never be afraid again
Even in this world where we can never say what’s in our hearts
I will never hide my dreams and I’ll live my own life
But sometimes a man’s got to turn around and face his fears
And sometimes a man’s got to take a stand and fight.

I've got some nice quotes to share too.

+Do you always have to know your future? Do you always need to have a guarantee before you do anything? Where’s the fun in that?

+Humans should cherish life more, don’t you think? There’s no such thing as rehearsal for life.

-Teacher, what should I do?!
+Do whatever you want! You should be you!

-Mr. Onizuka, why did you come to this school?
+What? Well… you see…Because I want to be a teacher!

+The only person who can make miracles happen in your life is you!

This reminds me of the good old uniform days and the nice teachers who have inspired me in one way or another. :)

Lastly, some screenshots I took:

I super love the following two poses of Onizuka... Too idealistic as it might be, this drama reflected how different most teachers are in reality, no?

Dinner with Corinne and Yingyan.

Short meetup with Corinne and Yingyan, two of my Advanced Placement classmates. The days when we go all ganjiong about our case presentation were so memorable, haha.It was quite embarrassing but fun to pose in those 70s or 80s pose- putting hands on our hips!

Thanks for the encouragement and support, girls! Enjoy your last year in NUS, and all the best!

Worming around at Vivo.

Yes. I went to Vivo again, this time round, with Joan to catch up a little. It turned out that we discussed about a lot of things, even though there were only two of us. Really sorry that I kept postponing the meeting time as I needed to run some errands. (And Joan said she could sleep longer... -_-)Felt like cancelling the meeting, but luckily I came out. Chilling out at the open space at Vivo is really nice. :)

Some photos Joan took of me.
And I was inspired to take some artistic shots of my good old Neckermann at the harbour.
Joan's one of the few friends who's willing to pose all sorts of monkey poses with me. Anyway, thanks for the truthful and insightful sharing today!
I still think that it's important to make an effort to meet up with my friends occasionally. It'll be terrible to just not date your friends, hoping that they'll date you when you're always rejecting their dates for some reason. No personal attack here, but there are in fact such people around.

And I really really appreciate people who took the initiative to date me or helped me out with regards to organising of gatherings. Big thanks to Corinne, but big boo to those who always expect me to do all the sai gang.

Always have this thought that going out with only one friend might be awkward. But will try to adjust this thinking from today onwards!

We had dinner at Pastamania.
Great day out! :)

Where are you going?

Most people fail in life because they major in minor things. -Anthony Robbins.

Have a vision that will propel, compel and push us on.

Luck is the intersection of preparation and opportunity.

If you believe you can, you can!

Our behaviour governs our actions and our actions determine our results.

Look forward not backward!

*

1) Change your beliefs.

2) Start to study in a smart way- study with others?

3) Change the way you see your studies... enjoy studying.

4) Think positively.

Our attitude not our aptitude determines our altitude.

Your attitude will determine where you go.

5) Be committed to your studies.

6) Take care of yourself.

-Abstracted from the quotes I collected during my JC times to propel myself in the stressful times. At bad times like this, you must really hang on in there and just try and try. Support from friends and family is very important, but belief in self or the correct attitude is the most important essence of all. ;)

Bad food.

Had a short meetup with Yujie and Zhumei at a Japanese place. The sashimi was great, but somehow the blissful feeling was not present. Maybe this signifies something. :/

The scallops are nice. Other than that, I think Sakae Sushi is (still) more worth my money.

Anyway, today's real bad. I almost ate a rotten meat bun. I had experiences drinking sour milk, and sour orange juice. My goodness... rotten meat bun... *shivers in fear*

This piece of shit.

I won't give it a damn if you die and go straight to hell, you know. Sometimes I wonder why didn't you break your legs or hands. Come on, how kind do you expect me to be when you're so rude and insensible? Get out of my life.

Wobbly worm.

Today's a terribly hot day. I was being silly by wearing jeans okay, but I wore them for a reason. Terribly hot and sweaty times always tempt me to wear mini-skirts, but I guess some people do not take people who wear mini-skirts seriously. So, it's better to be safe than sorry. Despite all the heat and unhappiness, I was happy to see most people happy with my visit. Was not a wasted trip afterall.

Anyway, met up with Julia and went to disturb Sharon at work. :) Sharon looks really cool when she works. Think would be nice to see other friends at work or let my friends see how I work, but I don't think it's possible. But yes, the main point is, Sharon is cool. (She's the first person who rejects my postcard too. How ungrateful. Sob.)

Nice night scene which Julia insisted to take a photo of.
Sharon's super belated but super adorable mini birthday present. Sharon loves him a lot.And last thing, hopefully a tour group of Julia's harem will be organised soon, hahaha. And I will have the only right to stand beside Julia. The rest shall stand behind me and greet me upon seeing me. (Note: An insider's joke, unless you read Julia's blog religiously.)

Queen's quote of the month: Courting death by wearing court shoes.