The Initial Strike 3!

The Initial

Topaz Fiesta!

Yesterday night, i had the privillage to be able to witness the magnificently executed party that the Topazians' had organised. Indeed it was a night to remember. Distancing itself from the used venues of Saad Square and the Foyer, the Topazian held their beautifully prepared gathering at the tennis court. Pet families were reunited, orphans were taken in. The first performance was by a group of girls. Exactly what their performance was all about still remains a mystery to me. But after close analysing and interviewing numerous spectators that were present there, the Initial has concluded that it was some sort of Topazian cheer that was suppose to ignite the spirit of Topaz in all of them. Unfortunately, it only sparked confusion. If only they had cheered during the basketball match... Garnet would have won that day.

Next up was the request show. A first-year named Yong Jie requested a song that was presented by a few other Topazian first-year. Among them was the infamous Snoopy and the CP director Amir. Clearly all the singers had a good time. In fact, the Initial believes that the spectators too had a great time. Clearly distorted noise and lousy choreography didn't bother them. Amir stole the show again during the airing of the infamous YMCA song. Witnesses commented that he was the most 'gay' (gay being happy. What were you thinking?!) of the lot that night.

The Topaz Jamboree ended with smiles, laughs and white flour. All in all, a job well done Topazians. May your further endeavours be as successful as your House Party last night.


CP Has Been Decided!

After slaving day and night on the tables of numerous venues, the theme and storyline of the CP has finally been decided! The Initial's sources has revealed that the ************** (Censored By CP HICOM) has been approved by the teachers. That means we can all be expecting the appearance of many familiar characters such as ******************. HICOM members are particularly pleased and grateful to the teacher's decision and would like to express their utmost gratitude to all of them involved. The HICOM would never have made it this far if it weren't for the guidance, wisdom and support. The HICOM, with the big decision made, would now like to urge all first-years (regardless of whether you agree to the story or not) to give their full support the HICOM to make this CP a success that we'll remember. All eyes are upon us now First-Years, and trust me, none of them are gonna blink any time soon.

Until the Initial's next beginning, may you be cleansed by the purity of a handful of flour.

PS: The sewing department needs you!

The Intial #2

The Initial

Juniors of Garnet rejoice! By passing the Garnet ritual of soap water cleansing, you are all now official Garneters. Including yours truly. To read more about the Garnet house party, please refer to nighteyes’ article.

Now, on to current affairs. The Initial has gained exclusive information that the Cultural Performance theme and storyline has been rejected by Puan Rogayah and Puan Kat. The original idea of a movie theme has been rejected because of the movie’s lack of originality. An in-depth Initial investigation has shown that the two teacher advisors were also not really in to the movie because of the introduction of familiar movie characters such as Darth Vader, Shrek, Agent Smith, Hang Tuah (PGL), etc. Perhaps they think it may come as a shock to some parents. It is also said that the movie was also rejected because of its lack of moral values. However, The Initial’s sources who have actually read the script have opposed the statement. According to our sources, the beta version of the script contains numerous scenes with morale values so obvious that it would be possible for a deaf person to identify them in the performance. The CP’s HICOM is currently preparing a ‘morale values’ filled counter-proposal in hopes of getting the green light from the teachers. It is rumoured that the teachers have insisted in adopting the Radio Station Programme theme that was unanimously voted out by the First-Years’ during their second CP meeting. It is also rumoured that there is an emergency back-up storyline that the HICOM members have planned should the movie theme be rejected again. None of the HICOM members were available to give comment on the rumoured back-up storyline. The Initial will bring you more CP news as the events unfold.

On a more charitable note, The Initial has received request from the CP HICOM to promote the sewing department. It seems that this particular department is in the dire situation of being understaffed. The targeted number of volunteer sewers for the department is 16 people. The number that signed up however is a measly 0. Sad isn’t it? So sign up first-years’! Contribute to your batch. Show off your exceptional sewing skills to your friends. Don’t have sewing skills? Sign up and learn! Cease the chance of being able to say ‘ If it weren’t for me, they would have been naked’ on CP night. So what are you waiting for? The form on the notice board has been awaiting your name for a week already.

Till the Initial’s next beginning, may you have a nice time sewing for the CP sewing department.

Wet, Wet, Wet

The Memoirs of Nighteyes
~
Through the eyes of yet another one of Nicholas Pang's Junior Cronies

Tonight was the dinner party for the house of Garnet, where after about a week of sending letters back and forth to unknown pet bros and sisters, we would be 'repaid' for our efforts (or lack of) with a warm celebration to welcome us into the family. After spending the evening doing slave labour, all us Garnet juniors gathered at the Japanese Garden, waiting anxiously to be let into the Saad Square where our loving pet brothers and sisters waited for us, all with (evil) smiles on their faces. Surprisingly, even those who couldn't identify their designated brothers and sisters were let off easy (or so we thought). All we had to do was give up and wait until we were claimed, which we all were eventually. No sign of eggs, flour or anything else we had been threatened to be punished with. And with food, long (boring) speeches and performances on queue, not to mention the fact that we were graciously convinced by the MC that we were going to be let off easy, seeing that the seniors were 'merciful', we put our fears of being punished behind us and settled down for dinner with out pet families.

As far as the performances went, the night had its ups and downs. With vocal performances from well-known seniors Abby and Bad, and even more singing from a band of juniors, the night seemed to be all about singing. Undoubtedly the sexy duo of Punitha and Farah stole the show with their screeh- er... I mean singing (They performed Kelly Clarkson's 'Behind These Hazel Eyes'. You could say that they were as good as the original singer if you had earplugs on) But the seniors understood that the performances weren't merely about talent, but they were also about spirit. And so they cheered the two girls on (hopefully the duo won't get overexcited over their new fanbase and plan an early comeback). And even after that performance, we still had... more singing, this time without backing music as the juniors emulated an audition session for American Idol, with Noreen, Punithaa and me (complete with a fake British accent in a desperate attempt to emulate Simon Cowell) as judges. Determined not to let the two girls get away with all the fans, Azmi eagerly displayed his (lack of) singing and dancing abilities, once again with the audience cheering him on. It makes me feel sorry for the other singers who were actually quite good- the fact that they weren't pathetic garnered them less sympathy and thus less love and support from the crowd.

The only performance that did NOT involve singing came from a group of dancers, led by our very own Qin (who was also dancing during the Senior Batch Anniversary) to a Hindustan beat. Despite not being able to change clothes in the blink of an eye like Hindustan people do so often on TV, they were convincing enough, and we loved them nonetheless.

And with the last performance behind us, we were led on to the photography session, were all us naive juniors gathered outside the walkaway on the right side of Saad Square, posing and showing as much teeth in our smiles as humanly possible. It was to the sound of 'CHEEEESE' that we recieved our 'rewards' from above (the second floor).

The reward came in the form of pails of detergent water. Lots of it.

So the seniors weren't that merciful after all. But frankly said, after what the Diamond juniors had to go through, we didn't feel so bad. At least, being doused in detergent water saves us from having to do any actual washing. Those 'clever' juniors who managed to evade the water were given an even better reward- a free trip into the fountain in the center of Saad Square. So we all got wet, one way or another.

In the end, it got me thinking of everything. Samurai, limboing into the Great Hall for the Garnet House initiation, dousing us with pails of detergent water, making us write love notes to people we barely knew, getting involved with all of these wacky traditions only make us feel more and more like we belong here, and if I'm not mistaken, you people have got loads more in store for us. (what's this about trees and birthdays?)

To be honest, I can't wait. Bring it on.

every weekend is a winding road

First, a warm holler to our two fledgling intrepid journalists who will, hopefully, in due time, be well acquainted with Pn Rog's office - welcome on board Rommel and Nighteyes, both of Garnet fame. They're funny, that's a certainty - we only take people who have lost the ability to laugh at their own jokes.

Weekend update...Rommel, you know not of the trials and tribulations of attempting to endure a weekend here. I stayed, and wished I hadn't. With the laundry snowballing and the quality of DH food experiencing sudden quality fluctuations, it's a miracle any of us survived the weekend alive.

Beneath our noses, the KYUEM Open Chess Tournament was held with minimal fanfare...the only sign of activity in the Great Hall a Sapphire fundraising booth. Top finisher in college was Epy, beating 4 out of 6 people on the way to a joint 5th place finish. Considering he was battling a legion of NATIONAL players, that's a pretty credible finish...(cue - digitalized round of applause)

The number of Harry Potter books in college is escalating to a frenzy, with ONE chalet I visited last night having 3 copies. Seberang chalets, by the way, have MALFUNCTIONING windows - and with a gleaming laptop rumoured to be present there, it isn't long before tears, and allegations, flow freely again. The warden, if you're reading this...

DEVELOPMENT: Seberang is expanding! A ludicrous living arrangement is shaping up - One Seberang chalet (L07) is located in the MIDDLE of the girls' Diamond ring. Thus, that chalet's residents will have to gain access via the BACK of the male Seberang chalets proper, while the other girls in that ring try to avert the gaze of the upcoming wolves in their midst. That chalet is currently unoccupied, while, presumably, the school authorities jinx it will all measures of hexes and counterhexes to prevent the female voice from penetrating its windows.

Veritas (Senior) has authenticated Rommel's report, having spoken to the hapless pet bro himself who is resorting to animal torture. The lizard has been spotted feeding on the Musollah field. This year Topaz is hanging out letters on a Topaz Mail Line while Garnet has a Pin Board. MARA and Petronas - and probably most other sponsors - are not running their pet family systems this year, turning JPA juniors' rooms into beelines, due to the insane amounts of chocolates, Maggi, and milo that must be clogging up every inch of floor space.

And letters. Oh, the amount of IELTS practise JPA students have in store...

Which reminds me...I've got a letter to write. And a growing python to feed.

The Initial Initial

The Initial,
Through the eyes of a First-Year
For the First Time
Welcome to the first ever posting of the Initial, a column on Veritas online, solely dedicated to the juniors’ perspective. For all of those who don’t have the pleasure of meeting me in the flesh, I am RoMmeL, the online incarnation of a newly recruited veritas member. I am sure Nicholas would do the honours in unveiling my anonymity. Nyway, enough of these silly introductions. Let’s get to business.

The Pet Sis N Pet Bro activity has reached its peak. With deadlines approaching, First-Years’ are fast becoming restless and are resorting to all sorts of underhanded tactics to uncover the true identities of their pet family. Techniques involved range from bribery (Chocolate Milk & Candy Bars Nyone?) to ‘excavation’ (The Initial has acquired exclusive information pertaining to a certain senior who goes by the name N.P who has assisted at least one First-Year in attaining the identities of their pet family members). The most intriguing of events related to the PET phenomenon is the appearance of a ‘Pet’ Lizard addressed to a certain Goh Kheng Ghek (hope there’s no spelling mistake). After interviewing the sender, the Initial has found out that the sender has done this to punish the pet sis, Kheng Ghek who has not yet replied two of her pet sis’s letters. The Initial strongly advises Kheng Ghek to respond immediately and appropriately. Who knows what these seniors would do next. For all those RSPCA supporters, Kheng Ghek’s Pet Sis released the lizard later that night. No animal life was lost in the making of this drama.

On to a more cheerful note, today marks the First-Years’ first escape from the still exotic KYUEM environment. First-Years’ can be seen happily whisking away in Audis, Protons, BMWs, & Mercedes’. A number of them, especially the boys have been sighted carrying bags of dirty laundry accumulated throughout the week. A pretty thoughtful gift for their moms at home. Mothers…, I wonder what we would smell like without them.

Well, I guess that’s all for this first edition of The Initial. Hope all you First-Years’ would enjoy reading it. And to all you super seniors/ super-super seniors/ super-super-super seniors, and etc., we the Junior Batch of 2005, would like to thank you all for coming up with all the various traditions and shenanigans which have both enriched and tormented our lives so much. We salute you!

Until the Initial’s next beginning, may your pet sis and pet bro be so kind as to present you a pet reptile in a Tupperware.

Dedicated to Diamond

First house party out of the way...Diamond inducted its juniors in style. Friday night, 8pm, juniors await their punishment at Jap Garden, while the seniors had closed...door? meetings in the Foyer. A stage setup where the security guard sits...then they were brought in, to raucous name calling, one by one, a la Harry Potter's Sorting Hat. Everyone did a little courtsy of sorts...cute.

A fantastic night ensued - all met up with their pet families, SOME with the wrong ones. The seniors were given strict instructions, under pain of death, to accept any "illegitimate kids" who owned up as their own. REALLY hilarious scenes of 2 pet parents and 6 kids mushroomed, no thanks to bad letter writing habits.

Then...the food, standard issue dining hall fare...then the junior performances. As befits tradition, the junior boys INVARIABLY ripped off Malaysian Idol, while the girls danced their way through the annals of time, from the 60's Dancing Queen to the Linkin Park of the new millennium. Glad to see ALL girls were not afraid in parading their stuff...we boys have but the purest of intentions.

Seniors...video, tearjerker, the Muaz-es and Taj-s of Bangsawan reminding what kinda seniors we'll have to be. Then the assassination ceremony. With as little fuss as possible, the juniors were blindfolded (judging by the way they could still stare squarely into each others' faces as they gabbled on nervously, you'd imagine the blindfolds weren't working), led gently (in most cases) by their leering pet parents off to the Orde Cosmos...and seated in a circle. Samurai-esque.

THEN the Scream. Nabila (host for the night) told them (cue: ominous music) SOME juniors had found the wrong pet families...and therefore, as Diamond focused on teamwork, all were to be punished together. A dizzying spectacle of water and flour followed, all seniors tucking in happily at the Feast. Juniors, of course, in true KYUEM fashion, retaliated by hugging their favourite seniors.

THEN the diamond cheer, then the inevitable milling around to say teary goodbyes to newfound family, then the promises to stick together for better or worse...We'll see, Diamonders.

But then again...Diamonders this year are a very unique breed, artistically able and gung-ho about everything, and we seniors promise we'll give you a unique dose of Tender Love and Care...

...we owe it to our seniors.

SENIOR BATCH ANNIVERSARY

Live, hot and eagerly anticipated from the shelves of the Student Council office came the Senior Batch Anniversary...but trust me, seniors stole the show for about as long as it takes to cut a cake. Otherwise, the juniors have SERIOUSLY, TRULY earned our respect.

The batch anniversary is our batch's "trademark new" activites...most batches DO celebrate their anniversaries...but this time...a unique twist ensued. Juniors had a thirty-minute performance lined up for Seniors...and Amir and Farah Syaz, wherever you are, hats off to the two of you for keeping us in stitches, ROTFL, for much longer than that.

We seniors crowded the front stage - with spanking new brown-ish curtains, if I may point out for the benefit of graduated batches - of the GH (still Great Hall, not Graham Hanson) and sang ourselves our birthday song...it was a raucous affair, everyone was enthusing over "batch spirit"...curiously, the scene poignantly reminded me of last year's post-CP lovefest.

THEN we had our...complimentary dinner from the dining hall. The beautiful thing was that it was organized WITHOUT a budget. Next year, if all goes well, Puan Rog promises 2K in the kitty, so breath easy, prospective junior SCs.

Sidebar: This batch is just OOZING with prospective SCs. This is the first batch to FIGHT for the mike during induction; this is the first where Mr Zaidi had to step in to ORDER them to contemplate giving up during Samurai; and this is the first batch where post-Samurai complaints are few and far between. Seems everyone survived it without any scratches...and the quality of the speakers are just pheonomenal.

Of course, this college is not founded on the strength of quality speakers, and some of us can seriously write. Juniors wondering where to sign up for the local chapter of the National Cynics Association, make your enquiries here.

Sidebar over.

Now the main course...the juniors.

Amir, looking good in a jazzy outfit, and Farah Syaz, stunningly attired in black (they ARE a fantastic impression, at least in personality, of Joey and Furbz...oops. sorry, Abby, I mean...one of many TKC secrets that will emerge in due time with her juniors here) hosted the event, with a...refreshing...a capella performance by up-and-coming funnyman Seth and Friend. (Sorry Friend. will check what your name is and publish an apology live)

Then...Anak Gembala. The ROTFL WTIMY (with tears in my eyes) high point. A dance, Chua Zie Yang stole the show with his expert manipulation of the Malay womenfolk, while the dances were...shockingly tip-of-the-tongue familiar. After we were done laughing Amir gleefully told us they were all sourced from Batu's morning exercise routines...hilarious.

Next, the shampoo ad. Hosted by Hamzah and Co, we bled tears of hilarity. The two hosts' spot-on, semi-blur delivery, coupled with the many spots of quality acting...their B.U.S.U.K shampoo could, at once, fend would-be rapists off, attract women, kill mosquitoes, and best of all...grow hair. The scene of Seth rising from the toilet bowl with his new mane of hair sticking out of his...uh...rectal zone...is destined to become one of the enduring KYUEM memories.

Next, the joke-cum-intellectual-advise session...then the Coooool Kids/Effeminate Male Petronas Ad Parody, helmed by Noreen, Natasia, Hannah and Punithaa (FINALLY some people whose names I all remember) and three of the most menacing looking guys in the batch as the softies...VERY good.

Lastly...they sang us Kau Ilhamku...and vouched with their lives we were their "ilham"...to applause...then ended with the whole batch on stage with a stirring rendition of their Induction song, "Warisan."

A love song, by the way, but in the heat of the moment, all is secondary to the stark realisation that dawned upon me.

If this is what these kids have planned in 2 days, their CP will be extradionaire. Marvoloso. Fantabulous.

Juniors, you have earned your spurs.

Welfare Trip to the Apartments

The apartments are an anomaly in KYUEM - too far from anywhere, any student who lives there generally only returns to sleep. We paid a surprise spotcheck to the apartments, to ascertain there were no students building a nuclear reactor there, and emerged with a few pertinent issues.

FIRST - there is NO proper route there. Students either traverse the mini-football field at the end of the girls' chalets, in the process incurring the wrath of every single female inhabitant on the way, OR they take the main road detour and spend at least 30 minutes on the road every day.

SECOND - living conditions are atrocious. Garnet apartment dwellers report the "unsightly stench of cockroaches" scurrying round - one bedroom has BOTH a door with a semi-faulty knob and a wardrobe with a lock that insistently fails to lock. Thus, they have no place to store their vital items, making us wonder when would-be thieves would stumble on this gold mine.

THIRD - the kids there are just TOO far off homebase. They do not present themselves at taklims, are left out of many house activities at night, and don't even have a PROPER meeting place. One student has to stay in his room, all alone, at night, thus he has moved to the next-door apartment. The fact that staying in his room alone gives him the chills speaks of the desolation of the apartments.

Oh, and by the way, the floors have an inch-thick layer of dust, with more to come, without proper cleaning equipment.

Hizami and I left disturbed, and wondering...what they would do one day when it begins raining at 8.15am, right before class.

God bless their poor souls and commend their fortitude.

Live and Kicking - Clubs and Sports

One of the more remarkable changes in Induction Week - it is a seven day week. No more do they get Sunday to recuperate from Samurai-itis - but then, no more does Samurai seem to hurt them. A random survey conducted among juniors indicated Samurai has not left an indelible mark on their muscles. Well, let's hope the female swimming test last night did. The pool was floodlit, it was like a football match without the yells of drunken fans, and we hear a Natasha has the potential to outswim our reigning female college champion.

Juniors, enjoy your 5 seconds of fame online. You guys are a cool batch and my only wish is that I ACTUALLY could remember your names. Therefore you'll be seeing a lot of "Junior-in-that-cool-black-shirt" and "Junior-with-the-black-rimmed-specs" from this amnesiac of an editor.

SUNDAY: After a morning spent in pleasant contemplation of the many ways to not miss one's parents, the day began at 2pm, with the Clubs and Societies promotional blitz in the MPH. This is a first for KYUEM (on the dubious terms of my memory) with all clubs getting a booth (a glamorous name for a table) and free creative rein.

Notable standouts: Veritas. (Snigger.) With absolutely no thought beforehand on The Plan, we recreated the stupendous mess cum food wrappers cum stewing bowls of unfinished Maggi cum laptop scene that occurs 2 days before publication deadline. AND unfurled it on a carpet. We ended up chatting to a gang of girls, sitting on the carpet, inducing them to join English Lit with packets of instant coffee.

Music Club dragged all their equipment to the site, with impromptu live performances - Scrabble Club, ditto. Chinese Cultural Club were pretty innovative, getting students of all blood groups and shoe sizes to write their names in calligraphy on big red good-luck paper. Model UN and the Delta Rho Sorority (graduating seniors, watch this space for more) took the middle of the MPH with their almost exclusively female presenters.

4pm, break, 5pm, sports clubs. Silat Cekak and Taekwondo did a presentation - many clubs broadcast snappy videos of their sporting activities. The Lifesavers did a demo in the pool, juniors of both sexes welcomed, MC Dann and Bob as Baywatch stars and Joey as highly convincing victim.

6pm, it was all over, and this Induction seriously was inclusive - most seniors feel a part of their juniors' lives now. Kudos to the SC for this smart move.

Well done, Samurais.

...and with Samurai, the juniors are now officially juniors with KYUEM credentials. This year, Fez, Hann, Ren and Ala were seen around, with swirling rumours that a Tasha and a Payau were operating incognito amidst the milling juniors.

SIMILARITIES: The yell-scream tradition was adhered to - everyone received a vile dosage of it before their Samurai. For the uninitiated, it involves getting eager students (for THIS batch, a WEE bit too eager)'s hands to dart in the air as they survey how many students were top of their academic, sporting, etc. fields and THEN scream mercilessly at them for being arrogant. Good tradition, that - KYUEM is the great leveller, where straight As and hard work are not curios.

Samurai - same story. Same set of movements, same ending, induction week group spearheaded by Anwar passed on the mantle of Samurai to the group led by a Dickson Low. Now that's a honour, junior, being featured in Veritas Online, so sleep tight.

DIFFERENCES: The great Firdaus gave Aaron a run for his money, mixing his characteristic menacing tones with some intimidating whispers. New costume, darker and more Dark Side-ish.

A notable change - the SC members are world class practitioners of the ancient art of torture. They let them go on and on, then Mr Zaidi steps in to - uncharacteristically - tell them "You can quit. This is not important. Watch your bodies." The ever irreverent P.E. even mentioned "This is not going to affect your A-Level results", unconsciously, perhaps, revealing a glimmer of the nature of our batch.

Samurai dragged itself out pretty well, with juniors being pushed to the brink before Nic-O stepped in to yell timings. Seniors reported the cheering wasn't as raucous as ours - perhaps related to the more punishing Induction Week schedule.

Dining hall cliques are already forming - this batch seems intent to make fast friends fast. A remarkably English-speaking batch, with a larger proportion of day-school kids, the nature of the college is yet to be ascertained, but change will be inevitable.

Anecdote: Ibrahim, Mara medic, Topaz, during Key Values: stepped up to the podium and told all his first priority was to "get into Cambridge"...idealists shall inherit the world...then sent everyone into stitches with his declaration that he would "get married during his housemanship" and then "go to the Royal College of Surgeons to do surgery research.

Ibrahim, if you're reading this, hats off to you. KYUEM is where you dare to dream. Maybe because you can ACTUALLY see the stars in the night sky here, midst Malaysia's verdant jungle.

a week's tears

One week later, many new voices are being heard. Many new voices are, in fact, STRIVING to make themselves heard.

THURSDAY:

FRIDAY: Morning session Artistic Appreciation - four songs this time around, a Sudirman tune, "Hero" of Mariah Carey fame, and the two staples, R.Kelly's "The World's Greatest" and "Standing In The Eyes Of The World", the Ella reworking. This year was sensational - reports are a junior fled the hall to cry halfway through "Hero". For a change, Nathaniel and Iman, representing the Literature class, delivered the talk this time, focusing on the innate meanings within the tune.

Afternoon session - who WILL forget assembly? Tutorial group presented a strange quandary - juniors roaming the school grounds searching for their new tutors, conveniently forgetting that all activities ARE based at the GH, then branch out to their new locations. Assembly...was an MC Dann/Sapphire affair...Dann memorably calling upon the "second most religious person in Sapphire" to lead the prayers before famously declaring that "the most religious person is unavailable because he's busy emceeing". Roars of laughter by the appreciative juniors.

Night session - Jauhari Window (yes, grimacing seniors, the schedule has been lengthened by one day, and many items have been moved from their traditional slots) NO offence to anyone, but the juniors didn't exactly look like they were telling each other their deepest and darkest secrets...most juniors surveyed were perfectly happy with faci intervention (known in some quarters as blatant flirting.)

The evaluation session, attended by a certain Lopes, quashed any such fears. Upon request a Daniel Hazman and buddy, and another set of girls, all came out, voice seemingly breaking, to declare they had found a true understanding friend...the girl even alleged her partner was "egoistic" before she Jauhari-ed her.

Pejai delivered a fabulous analogy on how our eyelids are the closest to our eyes - BUT we can't see them unless we look into a mirror. That's what friends are for - friends allow ourselves to look into ourselves deeper and examine our strengths and weaknesses.

Nico's turn. He spoke at great length on how his friend had backstabbed him, withdrawing money from the ATM card Nico had entrusted him with - then, voice cracking, between tears, exhorted the juniors to "stay together as a batch, don't backstab." Pejai gave him a tearjerker hug, and Mr Zaidi wrapped up the night with the apt observation that "this college teaches you how to display and express your emotions."

Fine words.

SAMURAI update VERY soon. Seniors who have the (mis)fortune of being away on that fateful date, watch this space.

I promise I will charge my camera batteries. I promise I will remind someone to remind me to charge them.

two days and counting

Juniors went through their first session last night with the SC. All house taklims (originally a meeting of all Muslims in a house, conducted at 11pm every night, but for pretty obvious reasons, it has now evolved into a house solidarity activity) were conducted - for some reason that escapes me, males only. No female taklims have been conducted yet. Smell a rat. Word has it their taklims only start next week.

Diamond house taklim was a testament to the sheer number of males who turned up this semester. A quick inspection of the Induction package reveals they have sturdy hard plastic files now, pink, of course. And they ALL have huge nametags, with cute little KYUEMs all over the string. Most mesmerising, of course, are their superbly cool KYUEM notebooks, with pictures of KYUEM all over.

Many will be pleased to know the Senior Batch Anniversary is now thinly disguised as a junior meets senior activity. To be held in the Great Hall next Wednesday, it already claims pole position in the list of impending college activities, with...a half hour junior performance occupying centre stage.

Can you beat that? Juniors entertain seniors on OUR batch anniversary...which, by the way, is NOT our batch anniversary (it was today). Now that's ragging.

Oh, and by the way...juniors start class one day late. The simple explanation, and in this case actually on the mark, is that the induction week programme has been lengthened by a day. For what, we are yet to fathom.

it's been a long ride, baby.

Welcome back to college, seniors. Revel in your new role, start walking around college with a little more grace and finesse, we're role models now, we set the trends let's make more than just a splash in college history.

Back to college: Scenes of carnage. Of free refreshments for students and parents. This year was a tad more organized, a welcome change when they did a real briefing for everyone before the meaty stuff began. Registration, kids milling around, trying desperately to find their first friend, to get their first smile, to hear their first familiar local patois...suddenly all the memories warm my heart and I let my heart go out to them.

Surprises - There's a nanotech engineer, a couple of biology teachers, but apart from that, no major surprises. Well, we have our first JPA accountants, economists and actuaries in ages - leaving the grand sum of 7 Medics. Calling this batch Medic deprived is an understatement. The 113 biologists have been slashed to roughly 43 at last count.

And still counting. 199 juniors expected, 150 showed up.

And still wondering where have all the girls gone. 110 guys have showed up. Simple maths will tell you we will experience a huge female shortfall if (and we do not encourage it) everyone decides to couple up.

Maybe they should send less engineers and more lawyers to this college.

Maybe I should stop making stereotypical statements.

Maybe I should just go greet some new juniors.

Oh, I forgot, they're being screamed at in the great hall now, for only filling up half the designated number of seats when Puan Rog arrived, clockwork, on time, at 9.15pm. The remaining half never ran so fast before in their lives from their chalets.

Infrastructure updates, seniors and concerned superseniors: The wireless has been totally remodelled during the holidays. Information hot from the Bursars' office indicate they have finalised their stabilising of the network. No downtime is expected in the near future.

TWO issues of Veritas have rolled off the presses in the meagre time span of 3 weeks. One goodbye edition, in chic black, for our seniors as a farewell present, one welcome edition, the Dummies' Guide to KYUEM, in sleek yellow.

The first round of English students will be departing their classes, hopefully never to return again, after the first IELTS exams on 3 August. Three weeks to be exact. More Task Twos, anyone?

Many students, reading the notice board this morning, had the fright of their lives - their MABECS personal statement workshops scheduled for this morning. Commenced by a certain Nicholas Pang, who is still sore about having to churn out a PS in 3 hours at 6am today, 22 seniors, all Oxbridge applicants, were grilled on their hopes dreams and aspirations. Let's hope they're still Oxbridge applicants after that torrential time.

Good luck seniors. May the Interviewer be with you.