part of my world
Friday, August 25, 2006
Finally. After..
4 years of slaving,
8 semesters of endless report datelines crammed with mad quizes,
52 subject with mania inducing finals,
many great moments,
some totally pointless attachments and lectures,
several great lecturers (whom without them, we will be totally clueless),
a few pain-in-the-ass (yes, i still think i want to shoot him),
and ONE great class..
We have officially graduated!
What initially started off as a hassle (to me) with the convocation being held not in my own campus in KL but in Penang, turned out to be one of the best days ever! The happiest..
You might be wondering why I think it is a hassle. Well, for start we have to travel 4 hours plus to Penang [thanks Elaine who made the trip enjoyable =)]. After that, we had to rush to USM campus for gown collection which was at 4-6pm. We reached Penang at about 4.30pm. To make the adrenaline running, we were lost in the campus itself! It's sooo big! Sorry for the ooh-ahh(s). Coming from a private uni in KL where land is scarce and expensive, this is a big big campus plus it was our first time there. The signboards wasn't helpful because roads were cordoned off due to the convocation. The directions provided by the guards were ermm.. vague. The signs on the building weren't visible from the road.
But anyhow, we managed to find the Perpustakaan Sendut 1 (note that there are 1 and 2 and the beauty is that they are located miles away from each other) and hence the Bilik Jubah. Collected our regalia and catched up with the rest who were already there. Phew!
Then there was this totally pointless rehearsal at 8.30pm. Yeah, they call it rehearsal.
What we thought was that they will seat us accordingly and let us practise going on stage and accepting the scroll but what it turned out to be was a inaudible briefing! We just sat in the crowded hall and can barely hear the guy telling us what to do. To those who didn't bother to attend.. smart!
Anyway, that was Friday.
We have the entire Saturday free. Well it turned out, not exactly..
Initial plan was to bring home the robe and do my studio shoot in KL where it's more familiar and collection of the photos was easier plus I engaged May to paint the face because I am a make-up dunno (that was when I was not tech-savvy enough to think of things like photoshop laa). Hehe. But when I stepped into USM on Friday, I realised it was impossible for me to go up to Penang and returned the robe without a car! The distance between the Bilik Jubah and where I am to collect my transcripts and scroll will crippled me!
While we were dinning near USM on Friday while waiting for the rehearsal to start, we stumbled upon really good packages offered by studios around USM. It's cheaper too! Boy, were we surprised considering the studio is just right opposite USM, one would thought they would hike up the price to slaugther desparate lambs like us. Even with the hike, it's still waaaay much cheaper than KL. So had my studio shoot there on Saturday. Went around Penang for a short while but I was in no mood and tired due to lack of sleep thanks to mamak sessions. I make such a bad traveller!
Then come Sunday!!
Woke up at a graveyard hour.. 5 am! What a hassle! The Vistana entourage consisting of KO, KL and KY wanted to leave at 6.30 am so that we can reach USM and secure the nearest shady parking =P
It was like a mad mad mad house over at USM. Fleets of Barney look-a-likes were scattering around the hallway of the lecture halls where we are supposed to report ourselves. Eager parents all dressed up for the occasion were helping their kids with their robes, fastening the mortar board and trying to figure out how to wear that thing they call 'kalong'.
And there was this 'pesta' going on which I didn't have time to visit. It was akin to what you'll get at your high school's Hari Kantin except that the things sold there are cheaper.
Such a festive feel!
USM certainly made their convocation a helluva fuss.
It's a good feeling.. as if the whole world is celebrating with you.
Too bad we weren't allowed to bring cameras in the hall. It was a very grand. And we got front seats! Teehehe.
Our course was the first to go on stage. Those marshals at the side of the hall were... amazing. They will usher you, ask you to stand, sit and pull you out of the queue if you wear your robe wrongly. They'll be busy adjusting your robe. That's when you feel like a celebrity having people fuss over your costume before going on stage. Heh.
I can't even remember those 2 fleeting seconds I was on stage. All I remember was hearing my name (pronounced correctly..phew!) and I just walk looking out for the markers to stop walking. Haha.
After that, it was pure torment. Boredom.
The course that proceeds after us took up half the hall. So basically, it just went on and on and on... zzzz..
The many ways we kept ourselves awake ranges from looking (and critique-ing) at outfits worned by those going on stage as we have front row seats. Ha. Those saris are so beautiful! When i mention sari, I have to say, Prim beats them all! I forgot to take a picture of her sari =( Now it makes me wanna go buy a sari.. but I have to take care of my excessively buldging abdominal mass first. Oh.. and for goodness sake, green does not, NEVER EVER goes with purple!
We got bored of that after an hour or so, so we amused ourselves next with the music played by the live band. Most of the tunes are like what I told Ee Fern who sat next to me, are music that you'll probably get when you turned on RTM 1 though the traditional gamelan music was really cool. Oh.. and guess what music they play when it was our turn on stage?
..
..
..
..
My Heart Will Go On from Titanic!
We were like what?!?
What's the relevance? *raised eyebrows*
But aih.. since it's like RTM 1 which no one watches, so I guess no one pay attentions too.
Then, we proceed to checking out shoes of those on stage.
Even with all these, there were still so much time to spare.. and I dozed off twice....
Then I resorted to look for my parents in the hall. I have no idea where they were seated as we went in at different entrances. And guess what? I found them! Such boredom!
Admist all the boredom, a thought striked me. We are going to sit together collectively as a class for the very last time. In this convocation. In this very hall. It brought sadness to my heart. I am going to miss them, my fellow comrades.
When the ceremony was announced over by the pro chancellor, we thronged out to the designated meeting place to have our last class picture taken. It was a day where there were so many happy faces.. beaming parents, students glowing with joy, friends smiling. The atmosphere was just simply.. HAPPY!
Happy enough to sun yourself under the scroching hot sun at 12 noon to snap pictures with friends and family. You sweat for this- literally.
The faces were caked with oil and melted foundation. The guys had it worst with their blazer. Must be a sauna!
What was I thinking??
It was worth the hassle!
To see your friends again, to step onto USM ground which we were technically her students, to foster closer ties, and most importantly to celebrate with them what we have faught for together for 4 whole years.
Someone said this over MSN the other day and I just have to put in down.
I'm glad that I was in sedaya, althought I didn't get
all the best notes and best lecturers throughout the 4 years, but I have met
great friends there........we all are very cooperative and we unite as one!
-KL-
It was a happy day for me =)
posted by Charis at 4:11:00 am
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