[Another weekend]
I have to tahan one more week of in-camp training. But it does not make me less active in other things.

I still do the weekly stuff like attend meetings and events.



For the first time yesterday I was in the heart of the dragonboat action at Kallang River. I didn't know that it was so cool to be rowing a dragonboat flanked with beautiful waterfront condominiums and huge bridges above.



The breeze comes and goes and the sun's rays are just in your face. But the heat is compensated by the magnificent view. The one thing that you have to do before you start the actual rowing is to bring the boat into the water. In Bedok Reservoir, our boats are already in the water - the things one usually takes for granted.

Instead of appreciating what one has, one starts to complain. I do that sometimes. I am Singaporean. I love to complain about things. Now they call it feedback - it sounds nicer lah.

After having being doused with salt water during training in the river, I took a quick shower and headed on to a close door Young PAP retreat for Aljunied GRC and Hougang SMC. Was involved in the ice-breaker portion so my role was to make the group interact with the rest.



In the later part of the afternoon, I went down for the National Day Parade's first combined rehearsal. I met several friends there who were my superiors during my active NS days. Throughout the rehearsals there were many cue runs. Artistes who were no present were demarketed by placards.



Some hilarious ones were the simulations of MPs, Cabinet Ministers and our Prime Minister. There were placards that read 'first MP', 'last MP' and so on. However, the simulation of PM and President's motorcade was close to the actual - a black mercedes and traffic police scooters with flashing red lights.



I remember during the preview last year the stand-ins even did the PAP wave thing - the imitation stuff you only get to see during rehearsals.

The President's armchair (similar to the one that he uses at the Istana for official functions), which always appears at the actual parade, was not present for the rehearsal yesterday. However, his human stand-in, a plump nondescript Indian man dressed in a red shirt, was there.

Kudos to the girl with long black hair who played Kit Chan. She was good with her emotive expressions during the singing of the NDP song.