A Song for Mama

hey ma,

its me again. been blogging so you can read the updates about my american adventure over there. its been pretty exciting. the colfax area where my hostel was at was, as u had read, really quite dodgy but i do take all the necessary precautions to stay away from trouble, so you dont need to worry kie?

the last few days have been tremendous fun for me, its nice to get back into city life after so long in camp so i really appreciated the walking around and the ppl i met. its great to have company sometimes and then its great to be alone. its amazing how stimulating your mind can be when you're faced with a foreign land and a destination you have never recognised. the sights are pretty magnificent and denver's got quite alot to offer in culture arts sports and city-dwelling. its sposed to be the best state in america to be in right now. streets are clean and safe in the city. alot of homeless ppl on the outskirts tho and it gets dodgy at night. apart from that i've been walking ard alot, taking the bus once in a while and later on linda(andy's mom) wants to bring me to see some other things too(she says i've got to go to the denver natural history museum)!

very grateful to andy's parents for spending so much time and helping me with so much. they're really friendly and nice too and wesley(andy's dad whose an investment banker) is quite knowledgable in asian economics so there's really quite alot to talk about.

i've been reading alot of business magazines in my free time or in general i really read alot initially because there wasnt anything to do but soon it became more of a habit to read into business and i borrow mags from friends or buy them(like the economist and forbes) whose prices are pretty reasonable and they constitute pretty compelling reads. i've been tempted to find out more about mutual funds and unit trusts here and maybe even placing some money here because i'm eligible to now that i've gotten my social security card. anyway just checking things out lah. i read that the japanese funds have grown by leaps and bounds the last few months. was a pity i didnt get into that before i left even though i wanted to.

apart from that life's still a dream to be here and everyday is a adventure for me. i'm keeping my hair long. havent cut it since i left, i dunno if i've gained any weight, havent weighed myself at all. i'm losing alot of clothes - its really easy to survive with a coupla days wear, laundry is easy and i wear boxers so they last me a coupla days each time. the lifestyle here's pretty different from back home but i think it wasnt too hard adapting to it, though i miss the food alot back home. quite exciting about what i'm gonna do when i get back to singapore  and what i'll work as tho. been thinking about it alot but i havent really decided yet.

the upcoming trip down the east coast after the next month is also another exciting prospect. been slowly planning it. seems like joe has decided he's gonna tag along with whatever plans i'm gonna have so i'll be doing all the planning.  so there's alot of excitement still fanning inside of me about the plans ahead.

honestly i think its how you'dwanna spend you time here. i know of staff in the camp who wish they werent around or really lost interest in the job liaoz. and i would think that not everyone if given the chance to be in my shoes would live the life i've spent here the way i did. i chose to spend it with enthusiasm and positivity every single day and even when i go home i will hopefully do the same with my life. its been working for me so far and even at times when i'm down, when i miss home or when i feel lonely i dont let it get to me. i just keep reminding myself that i do not want to regret not doing anything while i'm here thats all.

there have been alot of inspirational moments, speeches, poems, stories and tales that have moved me in my time here. each time i listen and i think and i ponder and then i continuously ask what i want of my life that i currently lead.  i hope to impart all that (or at least watever i remember) to all of u at home and see if it makes a difference in your lives.
 
i hope to share all that i have experienced through my blogs, notes, msges, mail and other forms of communication  so as to help broaden the horizens in which we live. i trully am grateful for this opportunity to be here and you people back home for making all this possible and with that i thank you with all my heart.

missing all of you at home and loving you all always,

yong