The Valiant Red Falcons

In my last post, I did say, it’ll probably be April by the time I get to post again. And that was in February. More than two and a half months have gone by without me writing anything. Sigh.

Nothing much has changed since the last post. Busy as hell. At one point I was waiting with bated breath for the March hols, and then SUDDENLY it was over. I remember just waking up every morning before the March hols and chanting to myself- I can do it, I can do it, X more days to hols- and then POOF! It was over. Bummer.

Since then, I have been chanting many things when I wake up in the morning. A few weeks ago it was – I can do it, I can do it, X more days to Good Friday. This week onwards, it is the same line, but ending with ‘X more days to Labour Day’.

What is wrong with me?

Just before the Very Good (but short) Friday, I had my hands full with House Mastering. What the hell is that- you ask. Well, remember, when you were in pri/ sec school, and you had this ridiculous whimsical pointless day called “Sports Day”? By some arbitrary deduction of fate, you ’belong’ to a particular House (usually identified by different colours). Do you remember, my friend?

It must have been – through a very carefully executed ‘eenie-meenie-minie-moe’ procedure, no less - that I was somehow selected as the House Master for the Falcon/red house of my school. At first I thought it was funny. Then when it sank in, it was horrifying. Me. Sports. Master. Has the world really gone topsy turvy, I thought.

In the end, no amount of squirming/ begging/ pleading/ crying/ taking students hostage could get me out of it. So I did it.

Then came the endless shopping for red stuff. Noisemakers. Balloons. Hats. Banners. Flags. Masks. Face paints. I was seeing red, literally and figuratively. As much as I initially wanted to do this with a ‘heck-care’ attitude, the bloody irritating Capricorn in me just wouldn’t let it go. I was actually trying hard to win.

Every day for two weeks, I stayed back until 6 or 7 to prepare. Cheer practices. Banner painting. Morale building. Mascot prepping. I was chanting cheers at home, and chanting cheers in class. I was crazy. A cheer practice with my whole house  (a quarter of the school population) a week before the actual event saw me climbing unto a canteen table, loudhailer at mouth, screaming my lungs out, singing, and also boogeying. Yes, on a canteen table. I was stark raving mad. The kids were thoroughly amused (some traumatised that their cikgu has lost it) and they actually wanted to win this damn thing for me.

On the actual day, it was clear to see that the Reds flooded the field with red shirts, red balloons, red faces, red noisemakers. And boy were we loud. Teachers from other houses came to us and conceded defeat. I wish I had photos, but need I explain that I suffered temporary loss of sanity at the cheering competition to care about wielding a mere camera in hand? (But I know the school photography kids did take shots of me screaming my lungs out). *hope it won’t be put up on the school website. Gulp.*

However, despite the gusto, the blood, sweat and tears, all four houses can’t win, can it? The kids were devastated. They thought the whole judging was unfair, conspired, kelong, favouritism, wtf happened- they beat their chests in agony… but well… somehow we still lost, kids, despite making our presence felt, more than any other house. The teachers were perplexed- how could the Reds lose? Well it can if the judges are parent-volunteers whose kids DO NOT come from the red house, I tell them. That’s how.

I’ve been tired, and still am. Now I am counting down the days to the next holiday, Labour Day. Then the exams will start (which mean SLEEP MODE) and then TA-DAAAAAHHH!!!!! It’s the JUNE-FREAKING-HOLIDAYS, Y’ALLL!!!!!

Now, SCREAM IT with me EVVV-RY BODEHHHHH!!!!!

I can do it, I can do it, X more days to June Holidays!
I can do it, I can do it, X more days to June Holidays!  (repeat until the last bell rings)

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