This one's for the J2s, especially my regular LAN buddies I'm sure you know who you are. It might be awfully hypocritical of me to say this, but I think maybe it's time we stopped our little IRC outings - they're beginning to mirror our frequent visits to BTP last year after promos and that's pretty scary. We're no longer in our carefree J1 days, we're a year older now and fast approaching one of the most crucial crossroads in our lives. The effort we put in now will eventually dictate which path we take, and I'm sure nobody wants to end up facing a dead-end, or sinking into a quagmire, you know what I mean.

I don't know about you, but for me it's more than being owned by parents for going home late, or throwing precious money down an endless well, this thing concerns the very priorities we have in life. A-s are barely in six months' time, and although we all know how greatly it's going to affect us, I don't think any of us actually realize how staggeringly pivotal it really is. Especially if we're looking to set a proper stage for us to chase after what we're truly looking for in life. And I'm sure that's not playing DotA for the rest of our days. Dreadful as it might sound, the only way to get a nice happy future in our society is to study hard. And do well for our A-s. I'm sure not everyone's fully satisfied with their recent block test results, so maybe it's time to put those hours to good, constructive use instead of bumming it away uselessly. (Yes this applies for all chronic slackers too. Which includes me.) LAN should be a luxury to be indulged in maybe at most once every month, not twice a week.

For me, I might always seem really happy about going for LAN but after the high of here-and-now there's always this empty feeling, or nagging guilt, like I've just wasted two hours doing absolutely nothing that would actually benefit my life. I'm sure most of you know what I'm talking about. I guess it's high time I stopped being the LAN enthusiast that I am, and focus on the things in life that actually matter to me. Dreams and actions should converge, not ricochet in entirely opposite directions. The days God has given us are too precious to be wiled away. Even if we enjoy each others' company, normal outings will prove to be a better way for us to bond, instead of whacking one another in bloodthirsty trysts (particularly if you're using Stywgyr haha). Or like mass mugging sessions or something, although I know the strings room is actually a horridly unconducive place to do any proper studying. Anyway I know I can't force anyone to stop their LAN-ing ways or anything, but I really hope that in view of our impending A-s, we'd actually start prioritizing the things in our lives before the multitudes of distractions steer us away from what we've been working hard towards in our past 12 years of being in school. After all, regret's always best avoided.

Anyway, for those getting back all their blocks results next week - don't worry too much, be zen about it and just take the whole thing as a practice to do better next time. Maybe it's a good thing not to score so well 'cause it'll spur you into actually taking some action mugging-wise. Also, jiayou for SYF. 13 more days. All the best everyone.

Helen.