Stella Chai: High School Graduate.

As I type this I'm back in my hometown of Penang (again)! If you can believe it, I was in 5 cities over a duration of 20 days so I hope you can understand why I haven't had any time to tend to my blog. I feel so bad T___T

After all the city-hopping, it feels good to be in a familiar place again! It also feels strange to realize that this is no longer my holiday home, but a permanent one from now on *wistful*

But  I've a whole stack of overdue posts! Which I will be publishing as frequently as I can from now on. So let's all just imagine it's still November when we read this shall we!

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November 24th, 2010. I officially received the sheet of paper certifying that I've graduated from high school. The last day I'll ever wear a blue and white school uniform. The last time I'll ever walk through the main entrance of school.

12 years that seemed to drag on forever are now, unbelievably, over. The day we've all been waiting for came and went. Except... now we wish it hadn't. Where did all the years go?

I'm finding it so hard to believe that after these December holidays, none of us are going back to this school again. Ever. We'll all be going our separate ways to different places. All grown up, we're moving on. *sniffles*

I'm going to miss so many people so much, even ones where our friendship started out on the wrong foot or I'd just only met last year. So many wonderful people chose me to be a part of their good times and I'll never forget any of it. I'm so grateful for all you <3

We start our journey in 1999! I'm the pasty-faced skinny one sitting right in the middle D: 3 seats to my left in a red CNY dress is a girl who, unbeknownst to us, would become one of my best friends 11 years later! 

Primary 1, 2000. I'm the second standing one from the left in the third row. Still with the boy haircut T_T And the monitor cheekily oggling the teacher would become Prom King in the year 2010.

Primary 2, 2001. I have no idea why I didn't buy the school photo this year, I think I look quite cute, no? I'm the girl sitting next to the teacher (gazing off into the distance) and I was Monitress that year. Is it weird that I think this hair is very cute and may be considering getting a bob now thanks to this photo? o.O In this pic you can really see how tiny everybody was!! :D

Primary 3, 2002. I somehow still remember this as a really good year. I guess in time the bitter experiences fade, leaving the good ones in sharper clarity. I'm standing 5th from the right, with the horribly misguided curtain-parted fringe and finally hair over my shoulders! The year I met Sharlyn and all the members of Tradition (Ya Wen, Shar, Manda and I) are in this photo!

Primary 4, 2003. I don't remember much about this year. Except that I looked horrible in the class photo (thus I will not point myself out xD) and cheated with Ya Wen (Monitress, smartest in the class, went on to become a Bruneian scholar) in an exam. To this day, I still don't know why we did it. It's not like being 1st and 2nd in the class, we needed to cheat. Anyway, that was the first (okay, second if you count Primary 1) and last time! Ok ok I think I've said too much please school, don't refuse me my O Level results!!! *wails*

Primary 5, 2004. I'm sitting far left, was monitress (head girl) for about half a year? It was a crappy year, we all have 'em and we all get through them just fine. Perseverance!

Primary 6, 2005. PSR exam year! I definitely remember this as being a kick-ass year. Most memorable classroom moment? Probably "blue butt" :D:D

Secondary 1, 2006. A whole new class that took some getting used to. I'm 3rd from the right in the seated row. Wow that was not a pretty year T__T Thanks a lot puberty.

Secondary 2, 2007. I'm standing 5th from the left. The first time I straightened my hair, just a few days before this photo was taken. I don't remember much about Form 2 except that I became good friends with Jesnie cause we sat next to each other and used to talk all day long. And omg! Was this the year Joshua wrote that really hilarious composition about the hidden "pieces of body" in the wall"?! LOL! T'was funny :D

Secondary 3, 2008. I'm standing 5th from the right. This was PMB year, and thank God/Buddha/my late ancestors/whoever it was for my beyond-my-wildest-dreams results!

Secondary 4, 2009. I'm standing 6th from the right! In the 2nd row, 6th from the right in the 3rd row is Callistus, my seatmate who never arrived in school on time even a day in the whole year, always wrote punishment lines and mistook masquerade for masturbate (and actually wrote it down in his English notebook) in a spelling test. LOL!! Also became really good friends with Maweeyah and Jia Wee halfway through the year! Looking back, Form 4 was a fantastic year, even if I did let my grades slip a bit.

Secondary 5, 2010. Standing in the 3rd row, 2nd from the right between Maria and Jia Yee! This was definitely a year that flew by much faster than I wanted it to.

Every single person part of a class that made my last two years of school so unforgettable.

And that's that. My time in St. Andrew's School came to an end, that chapter is officially closed. All those times I wished for time to go faster, for me to graduate quicker, don't I regret all that now?

It's been a wacky 12 years. I have learnt so many things, life lessons and easy lessons the hard way. Friendships made and lost, puppy love carelessly ventured, words uttered and secrets whispered, moments and memories treasured.

All wrapped up into what from now on will be known as: my high school experience. And I wouldn't trade it for the world. <3

These holidays feel nothing like the usual holidays. Because I know that after December is over, I'm not packing my bags and flying back to Brunei. Penang is my home now.

I guess in simple terms, I feel lonely. I don't know anybody in this country and I have zero friends here. There's nobody I can call up and say "hey let's go watch a movie this weekend!" or "wanna have lunch together tomorrow?" or "kuai tien pei me go kaikai!" or "let's have a sleepover and watch movies/gossip/bake all night long!!!" :( 

Anyway, beginning January 10th, 2011, I will gain a new title. That of "INTI College student". 

I really hope I meet some nice people at Orientation Day on the 5th who would like to pei me go shopping and let me go to their house for sleepovers and annoy them with the ridiculous nonsense I say and do and camwhore endlessly with me and chat with me till the wee hours of the morning and make me laugh so hard till I get laugh lines and wanna stop but can't. 

Or else I'll be carrying around this empty feeling for a long time. Why did I have to make such great friends only to be forced to let them go before I'm ready? I've said it before and I'll say it again. Growing up sucks.

A year of new experiences and unchartered territory awaits. We hold on to memories and move on. I'm a big girl now, I can handle it. I think.

This is... no time for looking back. No matter how much I want to. I deserve more than shadows from my past. I deserve something good, something here, and now. Something real. Am no longer referring to anything school-related, I hereby request a Virtual Tradition pls.

Goodbye Brunei.

I can't believe I'm a high school graduate.

The flimsy pieces of paper that certify I've completed my secondary education and that it's time to move on to bigger and better things.

I can't believe I attended my own senior prom, and that the best night of my life to date is over. The photos, however, will last a lifetime.

Hair: Ebelle Salon, Kiulap. Makeup: Self. Nails: Self. Dress: Treats, KL. Earrings: Sister's. Lenses: Freshlook Illuminate. Shoes (not pictured): Summit, The Mall. Chioness: God My makeup skills. LOL!! Ok ok I kid.

Yay, I've always wanted a "wearing what" caption ala fashion mags! *thick skin*

(Things have been sooooo hectic you-can't-even-imagine, I wish I had time to blog about all of the above but sadly I don't. I promise I will when I find the time though! Meanwhile, if you're my Facebook friend, there's always Jia Yee's Prom 2010 album.)


Above all, I can't believe right now that I'm having so much fun, I have to excuse myself and leave the party so abruptly. I'm Cinderelly and the clock has struck 12.

Ok my metaphor is becoming a bit warped, lol.

I really wish I didn't have to. I'm going to miss you so much, Brunei. The past 15 years have been amazing and all the people I love and places I went that I now have to leave behind, I will hold so dear and never ever forget. Please don't forget to remember me.

If you're coming to the airport tomorrow (I love you in advance!), it's 8 am, latest. Bring tissues and cameras. I can guarantee you I will be crying and I will try my best to make you cry too.

I guess this is it. Until we meet again...

Oh! I wonder when I'll get to get behind the wheel of a car hehe.

Freedom, freeeeedom.

(Backdated November 19, 2010)

'O' LEVELS ARE  OVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Toss the confetti, blow the noise makers, scream at the top of your lungs... and crank up that old George Michael song! Can you believe it?! Cause I can't!!

Just like that, the biggest academic hurdle of my life so far is over. A month and a half ago, it seemed so daunting, and I felt like November 19th would never ever come.

Unfortunately for me, I hadn't realized that 'O' Levels are definitely not the only thing I need to worry about this month.

As every single other Form 5 student in Brunei starts to throw their hands up in the air saying AYOOOOO, I have to figure out how I'm going to:

1.) Pack every single item I own (true, a lot of it's going to fall prey to the dreaded black trash bag).

2.) Visit all my favourite places in Brunei (Jerudong Park one last time, all my old houses, Kampung Ayer and the mosques... for the first time mind you -_-)

3.) Survive graduation and prom in one piece (i.e. without crying till my eyes fall out)

4.) Say goodbye to almost all the friends I've ever known.

And 5.) I have to do it all before December 1st.

Wow. That doesn't sound the LEAST bit hard D:

So yeap, that's basically the gist of it. On December 1st, I'll be on a one-way flight to KL. I don't know what else I can say except that instead of feeling free as a bird, I feel so overwhelmed.

Okay enough, I plan to reserve one entire blog post for my whole goodbye Brunei sob-story. Stay tuned, not to be missed. LOL!

Might as well show photos from the last day of school while I'm on the topic of school (and I've something different reserved for my graduation post hehe). It was a pretty emotional day, and I blogged about it a while back.

Out of the 173 pics (yes it was a shutter-happy day!), these are some of my faves! All snapped with Jia Yee's camera and uploaded on her Facebook.

Wanna find out how the world's nerdiest class ever spends its last day together?

Starting with a pic of me trying to act cute *shimmering eyes*

From left to right, my back-of-the-class gang: Aaron Chong, Jia and Maweeyah! ♥

Aaron Chong, me and Mar with a past year exam paper cause we cool like dat B-)

Me and Molly, my best friend and next-door neighbour from primary school.

Proof!! Jia Yee likes to go around examining guys' beards! Hahaha! This is Kelvin, Mr Summertime :D

Me and Munibah, my best friend of so many years I can no longer count ♥

Me and Jesnie, always at the ready to sing Lee Hom songs!

Proof! Jia Yee enjoys doing inappropriate things with people!! xD Here is Vivien getting the "royal treatment".

Nai Ping being a meanie!!

Now that's better :D

Me and Alisa, The Braid Squad!

Me and Lennard taking turns to be jakuns! :D

The Chong Family: from left to right, Jesnie, Aaron Chong and Maria, and Jia Yee on the bottom.

Sze Khai is a womanizer, woman-womanizer~

But his heart belongs to Lilian!! :P

Cawistus!!! The person who had to put up with all my daily grumbling and whining and chattering and abuse and general nonsense for the whole of last year, and did a damn good job of it!

Maria, Susan and I! Gonna miss seeing Susan all the time at Add Maths tuition. For that matter, gonna miss everyone from Add Maths tuition and teacher as well!! :(

Me photo-bombing Josh and Mar's pic! Hehe!

Praveena, my super sweet seatmate for the whole year.

Aaron Chong and Maria reliving their childhood.

WHERE MA GANGSTAS AT?!? 

El Presidente caught on camera acting cute!! :D

And again! Hehehe!

Praveena and Jia Yee, wearing Praveena's extremely long hair!

Mar and Nikki with Josh and Nai Ping airborne, lol!!

*plays romantic music that is not River Flows In You nor techno*

Our lotus flower pose from the Majlis Anugerah Pelajar Cemerlang something something last year! Good times!!

Maweeyah and Aaron Chong sharing a tender moment nomming together, awww.

Our timetable! 4 periods of Maths first thing on Mondays = killer!!

Me and Mrs Manik, my English teacher for the past 5 years and our class teacher! ♥

And there you have it, the Form 5 Science 1 graduating class of 2010! ♥ It's been great :D

*Change of topic*

Also, went to Jerudong Park this evening with Munibah!! For the very last time.

Me and Mun on the carousel. Love this pic cause of the sunset lighting (unedited) and it looks like I just got a V-line Osteotomy (popular Korean jaw surgery)!!

Took a TON of gorgeous photos that I can't wait to post... very soon!