Season 7, Episode 10: Swimming above assignments

" So let the children remember the sun,
Let them dance, let them soar, for their lives have begun.
Let the children engender the rain,
As the river runs through fields,
Forever subsiding their pain, prayer. " - Celine Dion, Prayer (special tribute)

At the beginning of this semester, i remembered posting on my Facebook wall that i have positive feeling for this semester. A comment followed, welcoming me to the semester of mother-of-all assignments. Sitting down, typing this 10th episode, 13th week of the semester, i find the comment true. Deadlines are drives, but if all comes crashing onto the same time, or almost the same time, i have to remind myself of the date, day and yes, time. In case i missed out. In case i forgot. Either way, i needed to remind myself of the pending tasks. And trying to be optimistic during these times as a student is always a challenge. Perhaps, another drive is what lies ahead- the study week, dubbed the pre-4-month semester break. Of course, there's the final exam, but that's another story.

I am still swimming across the ocean of assignments. I'm blogging here because we all need time-out, right? Even with the heavy piles of work, remember, it is necessary to take care of yourself. And in my definition of taking care of myself is to have meals at meal times, movies at movie time, play at play times and study at study times. Plus, it's Friday night. Balance.

It has been past half the month of Ramadan. To be honest, i have grown a deeper understanding of Ramadan, thanks to my Cultural Anthropology assignment. In fact, one of the days, i had 'sahur' with my friends, as early as 1am, and fast until 7.30pm. One of the things i enjoy most of Ramadan is the moment of breaking fast together. You, your friends, your family around the table, food in front of you, and waiting patiently for the prayer. It reminds me of the Chinese reunion dinner. Then there is the bazaar. If you are to visit one, my suggestion is to set a budget, and if discipline cannot control you, i suggest you to leave only the amount you prepared to spend at the bazaar in your wallet and leave the remaining somewhere else. The urge to splurge is thrilling, looking at the colourful kuihs, variety of rice, chicken, murtabak, satay, roti john, and the list goes on and on. I'm looking forward to Hari Raya already!

Three down, three to go.

Planning ahead, the 4 months break is a long time. Any idea or recommendation of things to do? I have some in mind but i need to prioritize and make sure i use the time to the fullest. It will be my final official semester break in my uni life. After this, there will be no more long break. I'm planning to visit Siam Reap, Cambodia- a planning still at its earliest stage. Anyway, traveling is one of the listed things to do, probably somewhere on the top. So, you'll see me where i see you.

Enough of breathing time, wc11 continues to swim, in any style as long as it reaches the destination.

Season 7, Episode 9: So SEDEX...

"There will be no fade out, this is not the end.
I'm down now, but i'll be standing tall again.
Times are hard but, i was built tough.
I'm gonna show you all what i'm made of..." - Haven't Seen The Last of Me, Cher, Burlesque.

After weeks of working together, preparing, rushing and practicing, the moment of truth arrived. Our project prototype was tested and evaluated. Three rounds. First, it was by the supervisor. Then, the pre-SEDEX examiners. And finally, it qualified to be showcased at the SEDEX exhibition in my uni and evaluated by another set of judges. It was a journey well taken by the team. Meet AVIAxii.

So, what is it actually? What is AVIAxii? Explaining to you would not be my last, and definitely not my first. AVIAxii comes from two words- AVIA from aviation and xii the number 12, symbolizing our team's goal to fly high and our team number in the project course known as the Engineering Team Project, ETP. Our project involves the knowledge of rack and pinion, and the understanding to electromagnetism, or electromagnetic induction specifically. The device invented is an add-on to your shoes whereby as you walk, it charges the battery.

As you walk, the rack moves the pinion, which in turn moves the gear fixed with a magnet. The magnetic field cuts the metal plates fixed at the bottom, causing magnetic flux and induces emf. This project is inspired by the use in torchlight.

We were grouped randomly. The team comprises of another PE mate, and each from EE, ME, CE and CV. I set the goal of the project really high- a gold medalist in the exhibition. So, being qualified to the SEDEX was one step closer to realizing the goal. It was being optimistic and believing in the prototype, and pray for good examiners, that i believed got us through to the exhibition.

After our pre-SEDEX evaluation with the poster and prototype.

Our prototype, undressed.

On the day of the exhibition, i somehow felt our team project wasn't as fascinating as others or as big as those nearby my booth, and i began to question my team's fate. Whether it was gold worthy. Perhaps, i have been seeing it almost more than 5 weeks that i look to it as something usual. Anyway, i still hoped.

Against the posters in the booth during SEDEX.

Then we had our turn to present to the judges. The presentation was different. It felt different. It was different. Something broke during our demonstration. And i somehow thought the team might not be rewarded any medal after what happened. I didn't put my hopes high by i tried to remain as optimistic as possible, for the team, for myself, until the moment results were announced. Grateful and thrilled, AVIAxii wins the Silver medal.

Team members with the medal.

The Silver medal.

No doubt, the journey AVIAxii has been through, is one i will remember. The experience with the team members was amazing and despite the differences, i believe in the end we managed to pull through a pretty good show that bore us splendid results. Not gold, but a gold winner at heart- it's not a loser man's saying, it's the echo to the truth of what we felt. In fact, from my experience in SEDEX, or ETP on the whole, there are no losers. We have worked and achieved something together, and that lies deeper and far beyond the meaning of producing just a prototype. We learn along the way, of people, of developing a project.

This is not my first and clearly, not the last.

wc11 congratulates to all. Gold. Silver. Bronze. And other ETP groups. Remember, only you know if you really have won.

Season 7, Episode 8: U-bonding in the East

" If you have a ticket to travel Around The World, where will you go?
Malaysia?
'Tak Boleh...' (Cannot)
*scratches head* "

We had a Field Trip for 3 days; but really, the field trip was only over 4 hours. It was the bus ride to the destination, filled with unlimited fun; the amazing stay at a beach side resort along with people i grew to know closer that made this trip memorable. In fact, the field trip was surely an educational one but above everything else, i felt this trip bonded us closer- closer than ever.

It began on Saturday when we were divided into two buses and stayed in that particular group throughout the trip. We traveled south, stopping along the way for toilet breaks and 'makan'. As our lecturer commented, 'you eat at every stop'. It was true because on the bus, we only sat and when we had the chance to stretch our legs, we walked to the shops. Lunch was at McD and the entire group queued for the burgers! Great influx of customers.

In front of the McD!

Part of the group at Genting Sempah after lunch.

Traveled for another 6 hours or so towards Kerteh. Had dinner at Mesra Mall. It was better than some malls in KL. TGV Cinema was there. Bowling. Futsal. Burger King. Starbucks. Secret Recipe. I felt like strolling along the nights in a Western country instead. In short, i was really impressed.

Reached the Residence Resorts. Hurried to put our bags down, headed for welcoming drink at the cafe and discovered what the resort has to offer. Played Monopoly Deal cards until late, and with little 'night' time remaining, a good night's sleep was what we needed.

Woke up the next day as early as 6.30am. Had breakfast and departed to the tour site in Kemaman. Manage to steal some sleep in the bus.

Before we started our tour...

Had a short briefing...

Then a gist of the life of a Petroleum Engineer. Seen here is a choke manifold (no further explanation intended).

As i said, the tour lasted about 4 hours and we were off to lunch, again at Mesra Mall. Went back to the resort for 'free and easy' period. How can you resist the beach?

Of sands and seas!

Played football on the sands...

Taking a 'leap of faith'...

The Great Wall of China meets the Taj Mahal sand's imagination!

Hit the big waves... Sea was rough and clearly not advisable to play in it. On the edge of the waters, that's another story.

The beach time was great, with the right mix of people, the right things to do, the right time and obviously, the right place. I am always one with the seas, and sands, and nothing beats the music it creates.

Taking a chance on Paka, we walked to the nearby town to hunt for dinner. There wasn't much options and so we settled for a restaurant at a corner, opposite the police station.

I realized that the price per meal, or the cost of living, around the place was relatively higher than i expected. With the booming Kerteh nearby, Mesra Mall amongst others, no doubt my dinner plate of fried rice 'Minang' was RM 6.90. However, it was good dinner and as i've stressed again much in this post, good company.

Wore out by the day, i slept early and woke up to witness the sunrise. Alas, it was cloudy and when we could see the Sun, it was already above the horizon. Needless to say, there will be more opportunities for this in the future. Had breakfast and halfheartedly packed our belongings. I clearly didn't want to go back, and i can say much for the rest of us. Lots of stress await us back in uni. Anyhow, our time in the resort was up and we left to travel another 10 hours back.

I have never spent so much time with my coursemates and friends, and to say the least, i now know and remember at least most of their names. And became friends on Facebook. It was indeed more than just looking at metals. It was, to me, a great bonding trip that i'd love to rerun the journey.

wc11 says 'Hello' to a whole new experience.

"Nak pergi (Can go to) America boleh?
Boleh (Can)~~~"