My Kiasu Teenage Life in Singapore (10 page)

Monday 20 April

Dear Mei Yee

Hi! I'm so happy to go back to school. But I've got a lot of catching up to do. Mrs Simons is so kind! I told her I don't understand Maths 'coz I missed that chapter so she said she'll teach me when I stay back on Friday.

After school, Jen Nee and I went to Toa Payoh Library then ate McD. We read about Van Gogh and admired the beautiful, wonderful paintings.

Lingling wants to give me tea because I'm supposed to wash away my chicken pox poison. Another of my classmates got chicken pox: Elaine. One after another!!

I asked Alisa if she has started studying for mid-year exams and she said no but her roommate said she started last month. So I guess she pretends to be lazy so that we'll be too. So Jen Nee and I have decided to study intensively and pretend that we're not.

Love, Pei Yi

Wednesday 22 April

Dear Mei Yee

I should be doing my work and studying now but I want to talk to you.

Tomorrow is the Swimming Carnival so we're going to Toa Payoh Swimming Pool in the afternoon. Don't have to sleep so early—it's now 1.20 am and Jen Nee's in my room. She's always reading Physics or Chem while I'm reading History or Lit. Lit is interesting. We're doing a bit of
Merchant of Venice
now. It's nice 'coz when I first read it, I don't understand it AT ALL but after the teacher explains, I do understand it. BUT during the exam, I'm dead. Mid year!!! 4 May!!! I know yours is over.

Jen Nee got a conduct form for making noise after 11 pm. The assistant manager, whom everyone HATES, has something against her, and tries to catch Jen Nee at every opportunity! She even accused her of talking when she wasn't. I also had to fill out a form explaining why I was talking after 11 pm but I didn't get a conduct form. After three conduct forms, we have to do some hostel chore in public, like picking up all the rubbish in the field.

In Jen Nee's class, there are some girls who're VERY good in English. There's this girl, Germaine, who's not only good in English, but also VERY rich and proud. You know, that kind of Engish-speaking-brought-up-in-an-English-like-family-and-shows-off-big-words girl.

PS Just remembered, Jen Nee told me that a girl asked Alisa whether she has studied Art History and Alisa said she hasn't even TOUCHED it but actually Jen Nee has seen her bringing Art History books to prep twice. Oh dear, EXAMS, EXAMS, EXAMS!!! Every time a big exam comes and I'm supposed to be studying I'll have a craving to do something like read storybooks. I don't like appearing studious to ASEAN scholars but I don't mind appearing studious to my classmates. Sigh.

Better say bye.

Love, Pei Yi

Dear Mei Yee

Hi! I received your letter when I came back from the Swimming Carnival. We all received a certificate for going to the Carnival—it's part of the Singapore culture to collect as many certificates as possible. It's now prep time and I'm sleepy.

These are things I was supposed to do today:

1  Prepare Van Gogh essay and study 'bout Impressionism

2  Prepare many, many History essays

3  Prepare Lit essays, memorize poems

4  Paint sweets for AEP but I've lost my sweets

5  Do Physics homework

6  STUDY

This is what I actually did:

1  Woke up at 8.30 am, read newspapers

2  Went to Coronation and bought S$30 worth of food and developed photos

3  Jen Nee had Chem extra class today but she overslept so we spent 40 minutes assembling a sweetshop cut out from the back of a box of Koko Crunch

4  Went to eat chicken rice for lunch

5  Walked around Crown Centre. I was looking for a nice birthday card for Betty but couldn't find one special enough. Bought a green one-piece dress at a shop that was having sales—all clothes only S$10 each. Actually it was for Betty's birthday but I like it so much I've decided to keep it for myself.

6  Jen Nee and I went to the Swimming Carnival—we were late and got booked. This is the third time I've been booked! I'll be going to Detention Class soon.

At the Swimming Carnival, I sat beside Alisa and found out that she's very pretentious. Jen Nee realized it too. It's very hard to explain. For example, at Swimming Carnival or Sports Day, she pretends to be so enthusiastic and spirited and loyal to our house and she cheers and cheers. No, that's not it. But she's just very pretentious. I can't explain it!! It's her tactic to become popular. Sometimes I understand what people are trying to do even if they don't tell me.

Love, Pei Yi

Sunday 26 April
(Morning)

Dear Mei Yee

Hi. It's now 12.30 am on Sunday. Yesterday we were at the library reading about Van Gogh from morning to 4 pm. When we came back from the library, Alisa asked us where we'd been. Then she said we're so hardworking, blah, blah, blah. Aargh. I feel so
geram
'coz I've tons to tell you but there's too much to write and I have to do my work.

Love, Pei Yi

Monday 27 April

Last night, Jen Nee and I fee asleep on my bed at 3.40 am. I woke up at noon and watched
Growing Pains
and
Beverly Hills 90210.
What shows do you watch now?

Nancy lent me a copy of
All Stars
mag. They used to have
NKOTB
in every issue; now it's
Beverly Hills 90210
—a show about
hiau
girls and guys where all they care about is BGR and popularity stuff. That show is so so so popular with everyone! Jason Priestley and Luke Perry are the main idols. The way
All Stars
write about them makes my blood boil: “Luke may be a big celebrity now but deep down inside, he's still the same”, “You girls out there who are gaga over Luke Perry, do not be heart-broken that he has a girlfriend, you can still do things like read these facts we have about him.” Then they ask you to daydream that you and Luke are in certain situations: you're on the beach, all the girls are crazy about him but he only has eyes for you … Then they have pages and pages of stupid articles about Luke and Jason and pictures of them, some hugging Shannon Doherty (of
Beverly Hills).
I bet some fanatical fans will be so envious. Then there's this interview where girls can ask questions about Jeremy Miller (Ben of
Growing Pains).
This is what
All Stars
says: “You loving fans out there can be pleased to know that when the girls asked the question ‘Do you have a girlfriend', he proclaimed that he is still handsomely single …” Aargh. Aargh. Aargh again. I think it's all so silly. I can just imagine all those adoring fans buying the mag and reading and reading then staring at the posters and going so crazy!
All Stars
always tells you just a little bit of info so you'll buy more issues. And they make a BIG DEAL out of Luke drinking a drink or doing something mundane. So Stupid. OK, OK, I shouldn't get all worked up about all this. It doesn't concern me, of course.

I finished my essay on Van Gogh. Yeah! Four pages.

Studying in Singapore makes me think that life is not so meaningful if all you do is study, study and get good results. I mean, so what if someone is so clever?

And yesterday, I was bothered 'coz people here are so selfish about their studies. I can't stand it when people pretend they're lazy and not working. I mean, what's wrong with being hardworking.

Alisa has this thing about beauty. She only eats fruits for recess, she never eats during dinner. She just eats a little veg and a few spoonfuls of rice! It's terrible. Yesterday, she jogged round the track ten times. She tells people she eats A LOT but actually, Nancy says she never eats.

It's now 12.10 am. Oh no, I forgot to bathe today!

Love, Pei Yi

Tuesday 28 April

Dear Mei Yee

Hi! Hi! Hi! AEP exam was OK. There were some questions I couldn't answer. Imagine, just seconds before the exam, I skimmed through that page which had the answers but I didn't pay any attention to the name of that person (whom I thought unimportant) and it came up!

I wish I was in Science class 'coz for Chem, they're learning all these complicated things. I've all sorts of questions like HCl is ionic or covalent bonding, draw SO2 bonding etc, which Jen Nee can't answer. If I ask my teacher, she'll say it's out of the syllabus. Anyway, I can't explain what I'm saying. It's just that I feel if I was in the Science class, I could do better than them. Once they were talking about a Physics question and although they're in Science class, I don't think they're cleverer. It's just that my syllabus is less and simpler. And furthermore the subjects I find difficult are Arts subjects, not Science subjects.

Oh ya, Gaik Teong gave us an IQ question that he can't solve. Alisa, Jen Nee and I tried to do it. They couldn't, but I could!! I was so happy 'coz I thought and thought. I hope I don't sound like I'm boasting. Love, Pei Yi

Mei Yee, Hi! Today I didn't study. After AEP, I played badminton with Jen Nee then sang
Miss Saigon
with her. Prep (read Chem and came up with thousands of questions) then did the IQ question. Now I'm writing to you. Do you think it's a waste, me not going to Science class? Well, actually it's not that I want to learn Physics and Chem that much, but I just want to get good marks for subjects that people don't. No, no, no. Maybe I won't even get good marks. Never mind. I'm writing rubbish so I'd better say bye.

Pei Yi

Thursday 30 April

Dearest Mei Yee

Just came back from school. Received your letter.

This whole week Jen Nee and I woke up so late that we've been reaching school a minute before the bell rings or during assembly. Luckily, we haven't been booked yet. Yesterday after prep, Jen Nee asked me to tell Gaik Teong I can do the IQ question 'coz he can't do it. So funny.

This Sat is my heart checkup. I asked my dad NOT to come but he wants to 'coz he's so anxious to know. Betty (who's tall) says she also has some heart problem (it occurs in too thin or tall people) but it's not harmful to health. I just don't know what I'm going to be next time, whether I'll have a bright future or not.

I'll end now as I've exams coming. BYE.

Love, Pei Yi

PS Tell me about training camp. Who showed good leadership qualities, who likes who etc?

Saturday 2 May

Dear Mei Yee

Hi! This morning my dad came and we took a taxi to Tan Tock Seng Hospital. The doctor was VERY nice and friendly. She listened to my heart. I had an x-ray and ECG. She said my heart has a clicking sound (an extra sound) but there's no back-flow so there's nothing to worry 'bout. She said everyone is built differently. Anyway, I still have to do an echogram to confirm everything. I was SO happy there's nothing wrong with my heart.

Love, Pei Yi

Tuesday 4 May

Dear Mei Yee

I read
Teenage
today. This month, the four girls in the makeover looked WORSE after the makeover! One of Johnny Depp's fans sent him her pubic hair!! And there was an article 'bout girls chasing guys. The guys say they'd be very flattered—boosting their egos, as usual. There are so many good and funny Singaporean writers. I always laugh when I read their articles.

Love Pei Yi

Tuesday 12 May

Hi Mei Yee!

History exam today. We had to write four essays in two hours. As I've sort of memorized some and we knew which essays to prepare that might come out, it was quite easy. I was so silly. The exam was supposed to end at 9.40 am but for some reason I thought it was supposed to end at 9.20 am! So at 9 am I began writing so fast that my hand was SO tense and my writing was quite untidy. I finished at 9.15 am then only realized my mistake!

The guys are so crazy over the badminton Thomas Cup matches. Matt went to watch TV after prep and then he came and told me about it. He was so excited 'bout Malaysia winning. Actually I didn't know what he was talking about 'coz I don't watch sports. The RI Maths standard is really very high. The guys (like Gaik Teong, Matt, Cheng Hoe) are really great at Maths. Yesterday I had this log question which I spent a lot of time on and couldn't do so I asked Gaik Teong: