PKU Ju Xing 2006-2007 - Preliminary Round 1
A great deal of things to report. First of all, our drama item has made it to the next round, sharing a second place to be one of the 3 teams to advance. In addition, surprisingly, I was co-named best actor alongside the lead from the winning item. I have to say… I didn’t think I did really well, but I guess it has brought much joy and to the team as well as faculty.
But I have to say I was emotionally very disturbed when I returned to my off-stage seat after our play was over, to find one of my classmates crying. I t turned out that her friend had lost her father in the very same manner as how my character died: killed by brutal force in the act of righteousness (apprehending pickpockets). It somehow gave me a new view of my character.
Nevertheless, it has been an enjoyable time with the cast of the Chinese faculty , being friends and laughing our heads off time and time again, learning how to act better. All these wouldn’t have been possible if they had never given me the chance, nor would it have culminated into such a satisfying item without the devotion of all the other co-actors. To add… I guess I have found some kind of fame as a drama star within the faculty. It’s good… but I don’t really know how to handle all this, and what comes next after all this? It’s all really just a little glamour that would fade away…
Nan%hua Secondary’s visit
Nan%hua Secondary’s principal and chinese teachers sat in during my modern linguistics class today. Interestingly, 2 of the teachers were alumni of Beida, and one of them was the very senior who showed me around Beida back during the LEP immersion in 2002.
Time flies….
Mid-term Linguistics Exams
Simply put, I screwed it up. I managed a pass with 65, but it was more than a tad below my expectations and class average. I have to admit I was in a bit of a trauma when I got my paper back, and I had to let the disappointment settle a bit before I started a long thread of thought.
Firstly, I could have easily thought: the teacher’s biased against guys. (FYI, this professor does have such a reputation, which is why out of 38 guys in the faculty, only 3 picked his class. )
Second, I could have lamented on the fact that I read the questions wrongly and that I could have scored higher if I picked the other question. Which would have voided me much blame.
But no, I didn’t think like that. Because at the end of the day, I realised that all along I was mugging. And what do I mean by mugging? It means I’ve been trying to stuff everything into my brain via hardcore memory work without true understanding of the subject. I’ve been treating the exam as an obstacle, and I was merely doing face work to deal with it.
What does it mean for me to be in Beida, to be in University? Is it really about the grades? No, screw the grades. My purpose was to gain wisdom, knowledge andmore. Grades are a formality through which I am entitled to remain in this school and continue my learning. And have I really been learning? Unfortunately no. I’ve put time into academics, but I’m afraid this time has been wasted due to my contempt of the subject as well as my inefficiency.
So, this lack lustre result has served 2 very good purposes: One, it alerted me that I was either doing the wrong things, or I was doing the right things the wrong way, or I was doing everything with a wrong mentality. And early beats never. Two, it showed me what worthy friends I have in the form of Ding Ziling, Li Rui and Zhou Yuan, who have all provided much encouragement.
Now… screw the grades, and get my passion kicking in for my learning journey.
Last but not least….
I woke up in the early morning for my faculty badminton training when I realised that it was colder than usual. Darker too… I looked out of the window and saw this thick fog. Woah… I thought.
And until I read Straits times online a few minutes ago, I had no clue that Beijing as well as large parts of Chinaa has been hit by a polluted fog, causing delays of flights and more. In fact, a public warning was issued in Beijing for residents to stay indoors… woah. And I had zero clue.
Shows that I’m really segregated from the rest of the World, all cooped up in this tiny little imperial garden in the north-western part of the city.
Anyway, here’s the article from ST.
BEIJING - Heavy fog enveloped Beijing and much of north China on Monday, forcing the closure of highways, delaying flights across an area as large as Britain and lifting the pollution index in the capital to one level below hazardous.
Since the fog started late on Sunday, police had shut down parts of six highways near Beijing and a ring road on the outskirts of the city, Xinhua news agency said.
‘City roads were also affected by fog, with police called out repeatedly to deal with congestion and accidents,’ it added. The fog was made worse by pollutants in Beijing, where coal-fired heating systems compound construction dust and exhaust from millions of automobiles in the winter months.
The pollution index read ‘poor’ in Beijing, with ‘particulate matter’ to blame. The next level up is ‘hazardous’ and the local environment bureau advised citizens to stay indoors if possible.
The semi-official China News Service said the fog had hit an area of 218,000 sq km, spanning seven provinces in the country’s north and east.
Dozens of flights had been delayed, mostly those to and from cities in the coastal province of Shandong, where there had also been some flight cancellations, staff at the region’s main airports said by telephone.
Visibility in parts of the provinces of Liaoning, Shandong and Jiangsu had been a mere 200m, delaying more than 40 flights in Liaoning’s capital city Shenyang, Xinhua said.
‘Heavy fog will continue to blanket northern and north-eastern China on Tuesday, impacting local transport systems,’ Xinhua said.
But the fog was expected to ease in Beijing and in the nearby port of Tianjin, which has closed sections of eight highways but maintained normal airport operations, on Monday evening when a cold front and strong winds are forecast to arrive. — REUTERS
