The Day Boon Turned 21

The past week has been pretty awesome. Tiring (as you can see from the eyebags in my photos below) but thoroughly satisfying. There were also a couple of firsts: it was the first time I've had training two days in a row, and it was my first experience at The Mind Café in Boat Quay.

I managed to make it to the race team after the crazy 500m time trial two weeks ago. Last Saturday, we had our first additional training at Bedok Resevoir. Being the noob that I am (compared to the rest of my teammates who have more experience than me), I was under constant scrutiny by Lele (our coach). It wasn't a bad thing though, cos she corrected many of my mistakes. Yes even after 6 months, I still have some problems with my rowing technique. Ah well. To err is to be human; I'm not a robot after all. The following day, training resumed at our usual Kallang spot. Altogether, the two days were quite tiring, but I found it immensely satisfying. Maybe I'm just a masochist. Heh.

My first time at The Mind Café was an eye-opener. Granted, I was never much of a board-games person. I'd rather be sitting in front of my computer YouTubing, or out and about town. But the Café changed my whole perspective on the board-gaming culture. I always thought of board-games as the last resort in the list of entertainment choices, especially so when you're stuck at home with unwanted company (eg. the times when you meet relatives whom you only encounter during special occasions). But I was wrong. The ambiance of the place was very cosy, and the high ceiling lit up the whole space, enough to make claustrophobes feel at ease. The main draw of the place was of course the huge selection of board games, ranging from the universally-known ("Monopoly", "Game of Life", "Cluedo"), to the obscure ("Compatibility", "Sabotage"). Basically, any conceivable board game you want, you can get.

Anyway, I was there for a reason, and that was to celebrate Boon's 21st Birthday! His mum had kindly booked a table for 10 and I was one of the "honorable invitees" to the party. We drank, ate and played "Compatibility" as well as "Sabotage" (games which I've never heard of before until I saw them that day). Basically it was good, fun bonding. Sadly I had to leave early due to training, but I had a lot of fun nonetheless.

I think the café could very well become my new favourite hangout. Hmmm.

Some photos from the little get-together:


(Clockwise from top left) Meifeng & me, Boon & me, Jiapei & Meifeng, (group shot) Jiapei, Meifeng, Me, Boon, Erwyn, Ker Min

Phuket this Saturday! =)