24th Sept 2008 (by JJ)
JJ's Bday
Low profile. Secretive. Enigmatic. Such epithets are often thrown my way.
And I love it.
However, choosing to live life in that fashion, as well as choosing to develop such a character, can make
life difficult. You become a person that is difficult to read. People find you aloof, distant, and maybe
even cold. Few people want close friends like that.
According to the world, 24th September should be an important day on my calendar. It is after all the day that I first entered this world. However, it isn't.
Birthdays are typically awkward situations where people whom I don't know that well go out of their way to wish me a happy birthday. And why wouldn't they? Mainstream society expects them to do so. But I find it extremely odd, after all I barely know you.
The start of my twenty-second year on this world didn't seem any different. It seemed like any other pedantic day. Then the anomaly occurred. A friend asked me out for a birthday treat. Meeting place -
Burger King. Wow, I sarcastically thought to myself, what a great place for a birthday celebration.
So off I went to the nearby Burger King, and my friend proceeded to bring me on a tour of Evanston's restaurants as we searched for a decent restaurant for a reasonable price at this late hour. Unfortunately, we couldn't find one and had to buy takeaway from Joy Yees. We then proceeded to ISRC to eat our packed dinners.
As I walked into one of ISRC's many suites, a horde of voices screamed "SURPRISE!"
Unknown to me, a large number of my NUSAF friend's had planned a birthday surprise for me.
It had been more than 10 years since I had a birthday party, much less a birthday surprise. One year in Northwestern has brought me a horde of new friends. I think it is great that the Singapore society makes it a point to plan elaborate birthday celebrations. It can be difficult for people to live so far away from home for such an extended period of time. Such activities go a long way to help people settle in and feel
at home in Evanston. So keep it up exec!