Getting to Know Us (Part 2)

by Alisraa Aldin & Lee Ting An, Sophomore 2 Cempaka, Class of 2015

Every year without fail, we know that there are some of you out there who dread the return of the green blazers. Who pray that the new probates somehow never come, and that the prefects’ board will end when the Form 5s and Junior 2s leave, so you can live in a haven of long nails, unturned smartcards, and untucked shirts. Sorry to burst your bubble guys, but the new probates of 2013 are now officially installed as prefects; And with our trademark black blazer and tie, we’re prepared to annoy you forever.

Don’t despair though. Anyone who knows us outside duty will tell you that when the blazer comes off, we’re as fun as the rest of you. Sure, we will still ask you to get off the table or to quiet down (please), but we're not as robot-like as we seem. So for the unprivileged few who don’t have the chance to see us (except when we’re asking you to stop running or walk in a single file), here are some things about us we think you should know.

Photo credit : Chin Wye Mun

If Matthias Lim Kai Chuan lived by a motto, it would probably be along the lines of “some things are better left unsaid”. Quiet and short by nature, Matthias uses his otherwise stoic face to express himself - seeing him narrow his eyes into tiny slits when you say something wrong is nothing new for his friends. Perhaps he can’t see us well from down there? Who knows.

When it nears Jasmine Hong Zi Ying’s birthday, don’t even bother buying her something from Roxy, because it’s extremely likely that she has it already. Judging by the amount of Roxy merchandise she has, it's rumored that she owns her very own Roxy factory. T-shirts, sling bags, phone cases, shorts - you name it, and Jasmine will have it. And in five different designs at the least.

There was never a question on what to write about Ow Syen Yee. Syen loves penguins, a lot. Most people say too much. While it is normal to love cute animals, she’s managed to take it to a whole new level of crazy. Her endless ramblings and breathless laughter whenever she see a picture of a penguin has convinced us she will one day grow a pair of flippers and dive into the pool looking for fish. Remember people, penguins and Syen Yee are one.

WARNING: Do NOT attempt to scare our next specimen - Yap Jia Xin, Jean, unless you're going for a blue-black look. She has a burning hatred for horror movies and everything of that genre, I repeat, burning hatred. Though she might not seem like one who is easily frightened, trust us, she is; and if you try to scare her, she WILL bite.

The first thing a person usually notices about Loh Zhun Yew is his feet. Not because they're slender and hairless (they might be, actually - we have no idea) but because that's about the only thing most of us can see. Zhun Yew is tall. Standing straight, he towers over everyone like the awkward giraffe that he is. Thankfully for our aching necks, he slouches enough that we feel comfortable with his unnatural size.

While we’re on the topic of feet and unnatural heights, let’s move on to Alisraa Aldin - Zhun Yew’s polar opposite with both a short figure and extraordinarily tiny feet. At a shoe size that could only be referred to as ‘not quite there yet’, Ally often finds herself having to stuff her shoes with padding. Despite her height, she still manages to fall over everything, which we can conclude is due to her very small base area.

 Photo credit : Chin Wye Mun

Wye Mun had better watch out, because Emma Lim Su Mei is on the way to stealing her motto of small is powerful. At a height that barely surpasses Matthias, Emma is often compared to an atomic bomb. Both are likely to explode into speech, laughter and radiation at the slightest provocation. Unless she’s in the middle of a TV show marathon, there’s never a dull (or quiet) moment around her.

Eventually, you’ll come to know that Zainal Adam bin Zainal Amanshah is definitely the best smelling male on the board. He boasts a large collection of nine bottles of perfume ranging from Hugo Boss to Gucci. Besides dedicating himself to smelling good, Zadam remains unsuccessful in his attempts to crack the parental code that was set on the sports channel on his television. It’s okay Zadam, at least you smell great.

Leong Jo Yi is pretty much a sloth in every aspect. She’s short, or to use her words, ‘compact’. While sloths spend most their lives hanging from a tree, Jo prefers to spend her time on the internet. People can often find Jo Yi in her natural habitat - an illuminated laptop screen situated comfortably in her bedroom. As to why she's so short, we suspect that growing is just too much effort for her to be bothered with.

Without a doubt, Timothy Yang Tze Chung is the established joker of the prefects board. Tino is famous for being the person who accidentally broke a chair in the North Hall during his first day in Cheras in front of Dato' Frieda herself - a historical moment that no one will ever forget. Needless to say, he never fails to lighten up the mood without even trying. 

No one who has seen Nicole Lee Poh Sim in the water harbours any doubt that she was a dolphin reincarnated as a human. Member of the school’s swim team, Nicole swims like a normal person breathes. To be honest, we’re not even that sure if she breathes. Like her dolphin kin, she spends most of her waking hours in the water, blowing bubbles and playing with her other aquatic friends.

Lee Ting An always seems to be full of energy and completely exhausted at the same time. Though we don't exactly know how he manages to portray this, we're attributing this phenomenon to the fact he slouches almost as much as Zhun Yew and yet is always either jumping or moving around, unable to sit still, not unlike a jungle cat on steroids.

Ruhaani Mahadeva, also known by her other names, Muha, Deva, or Nerdiva, and most commonly, Muhadev (pronounced Mu-ha-DEV) has more names than everyone else in the board combined. She's got so many names we can't even remember, and she probably doesn't either. So if ever you need to address her on duty and forget her name (names), just remember that at this point she’ll probably respond to anything.

Photo credit : Chin Wye Mun

With about a thousand friends on facebook, Aila Jane Mohamed Osborne is the boards’ walking, breathing yellow pages. Aila knows everyone you’ll ever need to know, inside and outside school. Needless to say, her fun easy going attitude and massive group of friends and followers can bring the life to any party.

Lost in her own world of Sherlock Holmes, books, video games and YouTube videos, Tiffany Tan Tze Tzeng is always writing. Whether it’s fanfiction or a letter to Santa, Tiffany always has her nose to the pen, or in this case, keyboard. 

When you hear the words “twins” and “bake”, the first thing to cross your mind would be the Jing Twins, famed for their baking expertise. Let’s start with Wie Jing Hui, simply because she’s the older twin. Recognized as the twin-that-always-wears-blue-hairbands, Hui is known for getting the latest news and gossip around school at light speed. 

Known as the twin-that-usually-does-not-wear-blue-hairbands-but-might-just-wear-one-to-confuse-you, Wie Jing Yuan is the younger twin by a few minutes. And while we are tempted to tell you more about her, we’ll just focus on the fact that she does not like chocolate because we think that it’s a very serious matter which requires attention. Yuan does not like chocolate. Read it again and let it sink in. Are you astounded yet?

Now that you know we’re more than the annoying, formerly watermelon coloured blazer clad robots that we seem to be, we hope that you understand us all better. Or at least, refrain from giving us the look of death when we ask for your formal attire. Either way, we hope you realize that beneath the fancy tie and new black blazers we’re not that different from the rest of you. Armed with our trusty demerit books and ready to continue the legacy of our seniors, we’re a fun, cheerful lot, dedicated to ensuring that your smartcard and tie are just right.

Click here to read Getting To Know You Part 1 (the seniors!)