gunGbound@temasekIV and SGB

First off...condolences to JLow who recently lost his dad to a heart attack....though i'm not that close to Jlow...but i feel gravely sorry for what has happened to him...i pray his family will be able to take the blow and that they will remember that one day they will see his dad again in heaven :)

Well i'm finally back from gunGbound@temasekIV camp and in a word - very tired....so many things to blog about and so little time...I think I will flash back to the Sharity Gift Box of 29th and 30th of December, then follow on to a recap of the camp...nice and organized...yes :P

SGB: 29th November
As usual there was the introductory video that made Mr Alex Wong 'want to cry', but make us want to fall alsleep coz we've watched it tons of times...lol just joking...Anyway, there was the new video on how to address the public...and we secretly gawked at the boy in the video who was stiff....mechanic(eyes wide open)...and whose lines were seriously scripted. ('Sorry Madam, i cannot provide an answer to your query, please call the sharity hotline at 1800- SHARITY, or at 1800 7427489")

Anyway Ding and Xunliang were there...and that day we arrived at 730 though the thing started at 830...big waste of time...but it was fun catching up with all the Sec2s and Sec3s....

All my SGB years have been spent slogging in the warehouse and making delivery visits...so this year's posting to a Wish Tree was a pleasant surprise. Unfortunately...Xunliang was left behind....while Ding and I were posted to Allston Hotel (think air-con). Arriving there, the hosts were seriously well prepared and ready to receive us and teach us how to perform duties....surprised at their on-ness...:P

At the wish tree, we get people to take wishes of the elderly/children and fulfill them, eg. childern wanting a watch...and a kind person takes the wish, buys the watch and returns it to the wish tree for delivery....a personal touch to Sharity Gift Box. Most of the people who came were the hotel staff...and i think we must have stayed there for like...hmmmm 6 hours??? Entertainment came in the form of occasional blackjack (and the hotel people always saw us slacking when they came...pai seh), chatting with hotel staff...or simply greeting everyone who came into the hotel with a smile....which landed me with a stiff face at the end :)

Then there was the scottish guy who was from BB, who treated us as tourist attractions and took photos of us with the christmas trees. There was the card trick guy who did tricks on me...to the annoyance of his wife :)....and the guy who went in and out of the hotel at least 8 times...well it was interesting. Most were foreigners so we didn't get a huge response. But at least we got to eat in the staff cafe :)


SGB: 30 Nov 2005
After the previous day..hoped to be posted to somewhere nearer home....maybe Jurong Point or something.....and i had wanted to go with sam chan so we tried to rig the sign in chart to put our names together...unfortunately...everything went wrong.

Posted with my senior who i didn't know very well....and posted at (of all places) Marine Parade!!! i found at that 196 takes horribly long to come (are you reading this SBS?). NTUC at marine parade central...unwillingly...we both dragged out the big box...and put it outside NTUC, sat at the benches and braced ourselves for a long long long 9 hours. Fortunately, there was company in the form of both my partner Justin and the public....by the end of the day....justin and I were established friends ...they say that tough experiences are bonding experiences...and 9 hours outside an NTUC...with only a bench to rest on...is pretty bad.

We took half hour shifts...walking around..collecting money...advertising SGB....for 9 hours!!!!!!!! that simplifies my blog post alot...just remember...9 hours!!!!! it was bad! Anyway...at least my dad drove me home at around 9 pm....

The public were mostly open to the SGB...and we must have collected at least 20 dollars worth of ten cent coins...everyone used us as a way to dump their spare change from NTUC...the box was located next to an ATM...and while people were shifting through their big notes..they took out coins and dumped them in. In the end...it was the older generation and the parents who responded most generously...while the youth and younger folks were more 'stingy'.

haha we splurged our remaining 20 dollar allowance on sushi!

well it was a meaningful experience....seeing how the public responded to SGB...and realising that many are unaware of it...and that publicity is indeed important...unfortunately couldn't participate in the delivery aspect...so missed out on the most meaningful part...hopefully next year :) kk i'll post abt CAmp temasek in another post....or this will be toooooo long :)