Yesterday was the first dragonboat training of the semester! With... pool rowing after the usual track activities!

It's been such a long time since we had pool rowing, due to sars making the school shut the pool down. I never knew how much I missed pool rowing... was grinning like an idiot during the sets. My stroke's improved. Can do an forceful full pull, exerting from start to exit with a scarily huge backswash. Ben made us swap sides. The first time in 2 years has he done something like that. I must say that it was very effective for the team, checking all our motions all over again. Coached melvin, then JonathanTan. Melvin's stroke can make it now... all he has to do is apply that in the sea, but haiyo... JonathanTan ahh.... must practice more yah.

Went to try out the full pull stroke with tianhong. I think that I'm about the only powerhouse rower left now that Jintien's gone. Oh yeah, I must teach dylon the power stroke so that he can chiong with me next time.

Waited for the canoeists after db training, because Samantha asked me to get one of their training singlets. Seemed to have some serious meeting going on. Going to Bishan gym with stephen again today. We turned to each other and at the exact same time, went "tomorrow wack which part?". Scary...

Then melvin stayed to wait with me while the rest of the rowers went off. Ivan locked the room so I'm going to have to get the singlet on thursday, and the canoeists continued their tensioned discussion outside. I think they were sorting stuff out about the training regime. It must be have been hard for Samantha, but she seemed to take things pretty well. Then there was more stuff brought up, even mention of a "traitor". That's deeply scary. But I'm glad to hear that they've sorted everything out and all is good now. The team will grow as a whole because of last night's meeting.



Anyway, it's my birthday today. Going to celebrate with a generous amount of training in bishan gym after attachment with Stephen. Mom and Dad got me a sleek blue violin in the morning. Yes... I've always wanted to have some sort of solo instrument to go with my clarinova-rendered orchestrated pieces. The feeling and depth of a flute... or a violin, is not something that can be emulated digitally. Went to play with it after showering, and I snapped one of the strings trying to tune it. Augh... I'll wait a little longer then suprise mom with the news.

I seem to be cursed with disastrous starts recently.

Canoeing = capsized during 1st minute
Violin = snapped string during 1st minute

I must never bungee-jump, or parachute, for such disastrous first tries could prove to be fatal.

Weiheng told me to get "Euro Strings".
Hmm... I wonder if the shop in Bishan has those.