So I’ll take this opportunity to say thank you for doing your weekly blogs so conscientiously, (though I know you’re compelled to because your grades are dependant on it, I still appreciate the effort).

The thing about the Storytelling module is that it seems like a less serious cousin to Scriptwriting. The truth is that compared to Storytelling, I feel like I’m doing alot more ‘teaching’ in Scriptwriting classes. Perhaps it’s because the topics seem so concrete. Students in year one always tell me how different it is when they get to year two. Scriptwriting unlike what they imagine, is very ‘technical’ and dry as compared to the fun and games in Storytelling.

However, I love teaching Storytelling mainly because the students are more enthusiastic. I think it’s a year one thing. Somehow, the students seem to enjoy themselves and to me, that is very important. While I do expect students to pay attention, it’s a bonus if they seem to be having fun.

One word of advice, eventually, you’re going to be so used to staring at the laptop that you’d eventually forget to make eye contact with the lecturers. Try not to let this happen but it usually does in year two. For some reason, it’s unnerving when I don’t get eye contact from students. Despite their assurance that they’re listening, I never quite feel assured.

I think for me, I assess a person’s sincerity based on his eye contact with me. Perhaps it stems from my perception that lack of eye contact somehow equates lack of respect. When I don’t get eye contact from people, it makes me feel like they don’t have the time for me and rather be doing something else than listen or talk to me.

Once I tried this experiment during a script consultation session with several students – as they related their stories, I continue looking at my laptop screen and nodded occasionally. One of the students eventually asked, “Ms Phuah, I’m not sure if you’re listening or understand my story plot because you look very busy staring at your screen.” I looked at him and said, “Now you know how I feel when I teach you!” In actual fact, I was reading his synopsis.

I hope you never underestimate the importance of eye contact when spoken to!

I wonder why is it that the world is moving so quickly. I’m certain the speed has been increasing bit by bit till it has reached a state of emergency. My best friend tells there is no more sense of satisfaction nor achievement because you never seem to complete all that is assigned. The bosses, the system just keeps piling it on.

I know that there must be something incredibly wrong with our society when people can’t seem to switch off from work. I wish I could find time to swim, cycle, stroll, chat, read the papers during the weekends. However, I find myself feeling incredibly guilty if I don’t do a bit of work on my off day. Most days, either a Saturday or a Sunday is spent on work, either marking or preparing for the lessons in the week ahead.

I tell my friends that no boss will ever say “Oh, you’re working too hard, do less…” It’s always “Can you squeeze in a bit of time to work on this and that etc..” Doesn’t anyone realise that we only have 24 hours in a day? The rate at which work piles up, even if we had 72 hours a day, it’d never be enough.

Whenever I read about people killing themselves over what they think is ‘underachievement’, either having done badly at school or not being able to cope with work stress. I feel really helpless. I feel that the most important thing in life is to enjoy it and be happy doing what you do. We seem to be making a living BUT not living.

For me, when work gets the better of me, I remind myself, ‘No one is irreplaceable.” When I’m on my death bed, I doubt if I’ll think about the many proposals I didn’t complete or the presentations I never gave or the promotions I never got.

And if I’m still employed just before I die, the organisation I’m working  for,  is most likely to just send a wreath to my family and sooner or later, I’ll eventually be a distant memory of a person who once worked there! Regardless of how hard I had worked or how much I had sacrifice for work, it all comes to naught when I breathe my last.

No, I’m certain on my death bed, I’m likely to think about the fun I had with my friends, family, the happy memories of my childhood and the wonderful things my loved ones had done. I’ll die in peace knowing that I made time for the most important people in my life.

Below is a write up I found aptly describes what is currently happening to our society. It makes you stop and think if perhaps, faster isn’t always better.

The paradox of our time in history is that:

We have taller buildings, but shorter tempers; wider freeways, but narrower viewpoints; we spend more, but have less; we buy more but enjoy it less.

We have bigger houses and smaller families; more conveniences, but less time;

We have more degrees, but less sense; more knowledge, but less judgement; more experts, but more problems; more medicine, but less wellness.

We drink too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry too quickly, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom.

We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often. We’ve learned how to make a living, but not a life; We’ve added years to life, not life to years.

We’ve been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet the new neighbor. We’ve conquered outer space, but not inner space; We’ve done larger things, but not better things.

We’ve cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul; we’ve split the atom, but not our prejudice. We write more, but learn less; we plan more, but accomplish less.

We’ve learned to rush, but not to wait; we have higher incomes, but, lower morals.

We build more computers to hold more information to produce more copies than ever, but have less communication.

We’ve become long on quantity, but short on quality.

These are the days of two incomes, but more divorce; of fancier houses, but broken homes.

These are the days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throw away morality, one night stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill. Where are we heading….?

If we die tomorrow, the company that we are working for could easily replace us in a matter of days.  But the family we left behind will feel the loss for the rest of their lives.
And come to think of it, we pour ourselves more into work than to our family an unwise investment indeed.

So what is the morale of the story????
Don’t work too hard… and you know what’s the full word of family?

FAMILY = (F)ATHER (A)ND (M)OTHER, (I) (L)OVE (Y)OU

As I got older, it was just too cumbersome to lug around tapes and the bulky Walkman. I thought a book was a smarter alternative for long rides home. Gone was the need to fiddle with batteries and switching the tape to side B etc. Yes, my imitation walkman was THAT primitive. Besides, dropping a book in a crowded bus didn’t impact it as much as it did a Walkman. And if I got a seat and didn’t want to read, all I had to do was tuck the book away to dream or snooze. These non music rides went on for almost two decades until I received an ipod Nano as a freebie after signing up for some saving plan.

Suddenly, there’s music to accompany me to work and home again. I have to say that the music does make my long journey a lot easier to bear. And sometimes, I actually replay a track over and over because the music simply matches my mood for the day. This is a feature that didn’t exist with my cheap Walkman imitation.

However, I did feel a tad bit guilty. I became one of the many public transport commuters who is just too wrapped up bopping to the music to notice people around them. I recalled that on one of my rides, I didn’t offer a seat to a pregnant lady because I was too engrossed conjuring images in my head to a song that was playing on my Nano. By the time I realized her standing there, it was her stop and she alighted. It bothered me enough to put away the Nano for the rest of the trip.

The thing about music is that it affects you whether you realize it or not. Take for example, would you feel the way you do for certain movie scenes if NOT for the music score or songs? Would you feel the heroine’s pain as she loses the man she loves? Would you feel a sense of satisfaction when the hero finally stands up to the bully?

Inspiring music lifts you. Sometimes heart felt lyrics and soppy tunes, help you reflect or comfort you when you’re down. For this very reason, song dedication radio programmes are always very popular. There’s no better way to tell someone how you feel than through music or a song.

So I’ve decided to let the music play on but now I have the luxury of blasting it really loud when I drive. My current favourite is ‘Pricetag’ by Jessie James. Great melody and meaningful lyrics. As they always say, ‘Ka ching’ is what makes the world go around!

Truth be told, I have always hated crowds. It’s not the germs that I fear but the claustrophobic feeling I get when I’m swamped from all sides by strangers. Someone told me my dislike of crowds is just an age thing. Maybe so but it must mean that I was born old because for as long as I remember, I have always avoided areas which are reputed to be crowd pullers, like the plague. I NEVER ever visit Chinatown the period before the Lunar New Year, Orchard during the Christmas light up, Serangoon Road on Sundays, Countdown Singapore, etc.

I used to take the public transport 5 days a week and I didn’t relish having to learn to share my personal space. In between contemplating the public transport and driving my own car,  I kept trying to convince myself not to get a car by thinking of all the money I could save from ERP charges, parking, road tax etc. Unfortunately, I felt angry most of the time before and after work. Angry with the stress of the crowded trains, the noise and eventually I told myself that these feelings of frustration and anger was not a good way to live life. I finally caved in and bought a second hand car! I felt terribly guilty after that. I thought myself a wimp for letting the distance get to me.

However, on those VERY long bus and train rides home,  I often wish  I could shove morons who push me just to beat me to the metal pole strategically located just 2 centimetres from my grasp. These inconsiderate commuters then proceed to lean against the pole for the rest of the journey, leaving the rest of us trying to find some free metal space to hang on to. Doesn’t help that SMRT has now included poles that split 3 ways, all you get are another 2 morons leaning on the remaining poles. Sometimes I wonder if like pole dancers, they would move their asses (preferably away from the poles) if I shoved some money down their pants.

To cure me from my daily dose of overcrowding, I make it a point to just enjoy the peace and quiet of my home as often as I can. Nothing makes me feel calmer than watching leaves rustle in the wind, hear birds chirping and the occasional laughter of children playing. Of course, if the sound of waves is thrown in, I could die then and there, a very happy person. It’s no wonder why doctors encourage highly stressed people to take time off to unwind at a seaside resort or at a rustic nature spot. There’s something about being surrounded by nature that lifts one’s spirit and evokes peace within. Unfortunately, Singapore, like many urban cities, is slowly utilising these pockets of nature to build even bigger and unnecessary malls.

If you’ve been to one major city in the world, you’ve been to them all. From Seoul to Tokyo to New York to Bangkok, they are all similar in many aspects, air-conditioned hyper malls filled with plenty of pretty things and many aimless people. Bored city folks have little to do except hang out at crowded shopping malls to eat or shop. Maybe it’s the heat, as in the case of Singapore when air-conditioned malls provide the perfect venue for families to bond over weekly shopping trips and escape the humidity. Need a bite, there’s always a cafe within the next 50m, need to take a leak, there’s always a wet and often smelly loo on each floor.

Sometimes I think maybe it’s just that we’ve become so used to artificial creature comforts like the A/C, the wireless internet connection, the sleek and light laptop that can fit conveniently in our branded bags that we just don’t see the point of connecting with nature. Why go in search of nature when some I.T. whiz kid has already found a way to bring nature right to our doorstep. Build an indoor garden, throw some ‘natural’ light on an artificial indoor waterfall, playback recorded sounds of birds chirping, add the rustic decor and voilà, man made nature!

Personally I prefer to stay away from the madding crowd. I think nature was never meant to be re-created. Each imperfect pebble, each unknown creature, each ambiguous sound, each trail is meant to be discovered but maybe not understood. The next time the pressures of modern living gets to you, forget that trip to the mall to buy that expensive gadget or bag to de-stress. I recommend a quiet stroll in a park (better with a loved one) that would cost you next to nothing. The benefits you reap from that walk would far outweigh that useless purchase.

PS: I do acknowledge that crowded places are useful for one activity though, PEOPLE WATCH!

Frankly I rather just call than send an email. Or I’d rather mark on paper than track changes online. I definitely prefer speaking to a person than listening to an automated voice service. I often feel that we’ve all become shells through which electronic manufacturers use to promote their products.

My colleague, Mr Leslie Tan whom I always need to run to, to refresh my memory on how to revise my blog, jests that I’m old. I have to agree with him, I’m getting too old to always have to keep up with technology.

I don’t envy people with the latest gadgets but  people with time to REALLY enjoy their lives. Those who believe that once the clock strikes 6pm on a Friday, it’s THEIR time, unaccountable to anything related to work UNTIL the next Monday morning, 8.30am (or even earlier for some poor souls).

I miss those days when updates on work were not given on an hourly basis. When outings were not be marred by the beeping of an sms or call. We seem to neglect our loved ones to address concerns of people whose problems we’re already fixing during the regular work day. Sure we could ignore the calls, the sms BUT frankly, at the back of our minds, is the unconscious note to remember to check the message or return a call etc.

These days, when everyone is proud to show off their latest gadgets that can do this and that, I wonder, “Hey, can’t a paper street directory show you the way, or can’t a diary record your appointments or can’t a small address book keep your phone contacts, etc…. “

Secretly, I’d be pleased if the world could stop relying so heavily on technology. We seem unable to function without touching a screen or depressing a button. With our I-Macs, I-Phones, I-Pads, I-Pods, technology seems to have made us I-diots.

However, now that I’m familiar with Storytelling, I decided that I should start writing again. Hence, it’s been almost exactly a year since I last wrote in this blog.

Personally, I enjoy reading students’ blogs because it’s is a great way to get to know them. Through their written submissions, I get to know their opinions, their perspective of life, people in their lives, etc. Reading someone’s blog seems like the least intrusive way to get to know someone.

Then again, I cannot help but wonder why some people love blogging, tweeting and whatever else it is that people are using to publicly broadcast EVERY minute detail of their life to friends and strangers. There are bits of one’s life that I feel must remain private. It is what makes one special to someone else, a bit like sharing a secret with someone. It’s that  delightful split second of a moment when you exchange glances with someone and smile knowingly, proud that the rest of the world is oblivious.

So my take on blogging – blog away but be sure to keep some part of you in the dark so that only the most special people in your lives will see the light.

School of Film & Media Studies

Diploma in Film, Sound and Video

Ngee Ann Polytechnic, Singapore

WEEKLY EXERCISES:

Kindly refer to my pages to find out more about what you have to do for the weekly Exercise Submissions. Please remember to post your notes weekly too.