Voice Box

Cam Ly - Em Se La Nguoi Ra Di (I'll be the one to go)

2010-04-15T11:12:00.002+08:00

There's no lyrics in the video so I thought I'll just add them...

For the uninitiated just read the text below as you would in English / Hanyu Pinyin... then you will get a decent pronunciation.

Yêu nhau cho nhau từng nụ hôn, nồng ấm ân ái hôm nào
Còn đó bao dấu yêu nhưng đời ai nào ngờ
Trôi như mây bay về tận cuối phương trời nao
Bao đêm Em mơ về ngày mai, thầm ước trọn kiếp bên ngừơi
Ngày xưa Anh nói yêu thật nhiều một mình Em
Vì tim Em trao Anh dâng trọn hết con tim yêu
Mà sao Anh đành gian dối hỡi người !?

Thời gian không thể xóa đi tiếng yêu Anh hôm nào
Quặng tim đau từng cơn khi thấy Anh vui cùng ai
Vì sao Anh không nói là hết yêu Em rồi
Thà đau một lần đau còn hơn mang nhiều cay đắng
Vì sao Anh lại nỡ gian dối tim Em hỡi người !?
Kề vai Em mà tim Anh khắc ghi bóng hình ai
Vì sao Anh lại muốn chọn cả hai con đường ?
Lệ chan hoen bờ mi thì thôi ta đành chia tay vì yêu Anh
Em sẽ là người ra đi...

An extremely popular Vietnamese song...

2010-04-14T21:39:00.001+08:00

Vietnamese Version of Meng Xing Shi Fen (Moment of Awakening) by Minh Tuyet

2010-04-14T21:31:00.003+08:00

Sao Anh Ra Di - Cam Ly (Betrayal Song... I Think)

2010-04-05T22:00:00.003+08:00

Have not posted for a long time... while you may not understand the language, you can watch the video and you will know what is going on...

language can sometimes be really... hmm...

2009-12-10T17:10:00.002+08:00

have not been updating my blog for almost a year or so (i think) but this is so funny it is irresistible not to share. each line below will (usually) be accompanied by some rather crude translation, because it's done by me.

性交

Sexual Intercourse

出自維基百科，自由嘅百科全書

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

跳去: 定向, 搵嘢

老漢推車
Old man pushing a cart. Slow and steady, I'm sure.

性交，又叫造/做愛（Make Love），屌，扑嘢，即係用男人嘅陰莖隊入女人嘅屄入面磨吓磨吓，最後令到男方射精，女方高潮，兩個都可以得到講唔到嘅刺激同埋快感。（"Make Love" 原意係追求，但而家已經普遍解做性交）^{[未記出處或冇根據]}

^{Sexual intercourse, also called making love, is the use of the male's penis, inserted into the female's vagina and "rub-rub", leading to ejaculation on the male's side and orgasm for the female, with both parties experiencing an indescribable sense of thrill and excitement. "Making love" used to mean "courtship" but has now been commonly known as sexual intercourse.}

話造愛係動物界裏面人類獨有嘅性交過程，係因為佢除咗通過性器官嘅互相接觸，令到男方嘅精子同女方卵子相遇結合嚟繁殖後代之外，亦可以透過做愛嚟維繫男女間喺靈慾上嘅親密關係，比單純性交嘅層次更深入，更講求心靈接觸嘅層面，因此先至俾人叫造「愛」。不過呢兩個字已經俾人普遍應用，就算男女之間有性無愛，只求一刻快感，呢個身體接觸嘅過程都被通稱做「造愛」。^{[未記出處或冇根據]}

^{Speaking of sexual intercourse, it is a unique event occurring in homo sapiens within the animal kingdom. This is because, apart from the physical contact between sexual organs, which leads to the interaction between sperm and ovary (and hence the creation of the next generation), it is also seen as a method by which a couple may deploy for a higher purpose: the satisfying of spiritual desires. This is much more deeper than pure sex, as it involves a blend between the spiritual emotions between two people - that is why it is once called making love. Nowadays, however, these two words are commonly understood and used in situations where love might not exist and sex is purely for the seeking of excitement.}

因為人類造愛除咗要嚟傳宗接代之外重可以獲得快感，所以歷史一路落嚟，喺造愛嘅過程裏面都加入咗唔少心思，同埋發展出好多唔同嘅體位，希望可以畀雙方更多嘅刺激，能夠得到更多快感。至於做愛嘅體位可謂千奇百怪，香港人除咗稱佢為「玩花式」之外，重將呢啲體位配上繪形繪聲嘅名，好似：

Apart from the fact that making love results in the creation of the next generation, it also offers excitement. As such, throughout history, the entire process of sexual intercourse has included many devoted efforts and, at the same time, many different positions have been developed in order to provide to both parties more excitement and pleasure. As far as sexual positions are concerned, they are a myriad lot. Not only do Hong Kongers call these positions "wan hua shi" (flowery styles), they assign specific names to each position, such as the following:

打樁機：即係男方壓喺女方上面嘅抽插動作 (man on top, woman below)
老漢推車：即男跪喺後面，女向前趴嘅推動動作 (man behind, woman front)
觀音坐蓮花：即係女方坐喺男方上面，由女方做主導嘅動作 (woman sit on man and take "initiative")
半邊燒鵝髀：即係互相交叉腳抽插 (scissoring)
６９式：即係非性器官接觸，而係互相用口啜性器官，即係口交（呢個係象形字演化出嚟嘅名）(69 position, blowjob for woman and inserting for man)

有時，如果冇機會性交，可以自慰嚟解決性欲。

sometimes, if there is no opportunity for sexual intercourse and there is a need to satisfy one's desires, the alternative is to masturbate.

to be frank the translated version totally sucks... if you can read chinese characters, it will be good to read the passage "as is."

source: wikipedia

http://zh-yue.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%80%A7%E4%BA%A4

my very own newton food center case

2009-03-25T11:26:00.002+08:00

went to a coffee shop near my mom's office to have breakfast today. as i was reeling from a weak stomach due to an overdose of booze last night, i opted not to have roti prata.

instead i chose the prawn mee stall. damn pathetic coffee shop... only prata, prawn mee and drinks. shit... i remembered eating the mee before but it's total crap. now after today, i will condemn the place altogether.

i chose the cheapest thing to eat, which was the $4 prawn mee. i ordered mine without tau gey or condiments. still a bit sleepy, i went back to my table.

then came the mee... its portion was super pathetic. 3 - 4 half prawns, some slices of meat, mee, and soup. fuck... although i was still weak and tired, my brain wasn't. and the bill came up to be $5.

ok let me clarify something first. i did not state i wanted $5 mee, but because the cheapest was only $4 and by standard practice stallowners would go for the lowest price if customers did not state their preference. this stallowner must be trying to pull a fast one on me, maybe cos he thought i was drowsy and can cheat me. i returned to the stall and asked why i was given a $5 one instead of $4, you know what the uncle said?

"eh you never say what price what, normally if customer don't say i will give $5"

what the fucking shit! if customer never say, it means they want the cheapest! then he grumble grumble about some shit, but i didn't care and wanted my $4 mee. the auntie was pretty ok in obliging and scolded the uncle for always doing this crap. oh... i see... so you practice ripping off customers. good for you, because they will be one-off customers who will not bother to patronize your place again.

so that's it for you... never underestimate someone's ability to think properly just because he looks tired...

the mysterious case of david hartono widjaja

2009-03-09T21:14:00.002+08:00

seriously, the benefit of being a student is that you have some free time on hand to write and post stuff, such as the one below:

http://blueodyssey.multiply.com/journal/item/580/Another_one.

this blog belongs to my friend's dk, who has been actively following the story of david and chan. now, to add to the mystery, another EEE graduate was found hanging in his room. apparently, with all 3 belonging to the same faculty, stories and conspiracy theories are bound to surface...

this is going to be interesting. if scandalous material do find themselves in the limelight after several rounds of investigation, it would qualify as one of the most memorable stories of 2009...

and we're not barely touching the end of Q1! goodness!

misgivings, stereotypes and prejudices

2009-02-10T23:26:00.003+08:00

i have always been careful not to pass any form of value judgment before i acquire a reasonable amount of information about any subject matter, mainly because i do not wish to make a biased statement without accurate facts.

a basic principle of mine, but by no means a simple task to execute. to put it concisely, people are affected by the situations and environments in which they reside and thus, are predisposed in forming perceptions about a particular issue or person with a mix of experience, inadequate information and biases. when confronted with an event that contains elements of uncertainty, people quickly conjure views that may or may not represent the event in its unbiased entirety. such views might be positive statements but they are more likely to be normative statements veiled with a shroud of deception, masking their true forms and causing them to appear positive prima facie.

that said, i make conscious attempts not to commit such logical fallacies as much as i can. having encountered and experienced the said fallacies first-hand, it is only equitable to give the issue or person due consideration (even to the extend of the benefit of doubt) when making assessments of any kind.

while advice and suggestions are usually given in good faith, it would be wise to ascertain the hypotheses and conjectures which constitute part of the kind words with material facts that are best obtained first-hand or through meticulous research, for such speculations, more often than not, attempt to sway and align one's thoughts with another.

an irritating score and more.

2009-02-04T13:25:00.002+08:00

highest viewership in 15 years of local serial drama history...

vcds and dvds released into stores...

a pack load of controversies and discussions...

a short, 3-minute scene to tie up the biggest loose end...

if you have no idea what i'm talking about, either you don't watch tv, or are encased in a cage without access to any information, or simply living outside of singapore.

ok, ok... it's little nyonya... an overhyped topic that is already on my nerves, especially when i hear the theme song or see any of the characters on-screen, endorsing a product... mind you, the songs and commercials are over-played on every sort of conceivable media vehicle!

let's not talk about the drama itself, because there are people more qualified to talk about it. i myself rarely caught a few episodes of it, so it's pretty biased to place any form of value judgment on it. let's talk about each of my peeves, listed at the beginning of this post, one-by-one.

1) highest viewership in 15 years of local serial drama history

ok, clap-clap... after so many serial drama screw-ups and meaningless "part 2s" there finally is a reason people rush back home to watch tv again. lately, there were some other serials, such as perfect cut, that essentially "made the cut." in an article published in the evening papers, it was noted that serials which turned out popular were in fact written by third-party film production companies that mediacorp, "the biggest broadcasting station in singapore" (big f deal man), outsourced to. there were a few legitimate reasons as to why these serials were successful. one of them was that the scriptwriters were not under as much pressure to complete the serial (at least in terms of time) and hence were more able to craft a more coherent script with better lines and a fullier content.

i'm not sure if little nyonya was written by "outsourced companies." nevertheless, if the scriptwriters at mediacorp were truly competent, viewership would often appear as headlines in the newspapers because the writers are capable of churning out stories that were reasonably newsworthy (in the positive sense). thus, we won't be hearing things like "highest in 15 years" but would see more of headlines such as "highest in 12 / 13 / 14 years" (etc). this is a sign of competent scripts.

2) vcds and dvds released into stores...

standard marketing ploy, no comment. anticipating a sizeable market from the positive reactions, releasing the drama in local vcd / dvd stores is a logical tactic that makes business sense. period.

3) a pack load of controversies and discussions...

what happened to yueniang and chen xi? why was it like this / that? it's not logical that [event] should happen during that era? crazed, raped joanne produced a shinier performance than main cast? new actor dai the reason why star awards was postponed? WTF man! not that i care, but there has to be something better to write about rather than these packload of BS... how about more old men dying from viagra overdose in geylang, inconsiderate singaporeans, purely random, but coincidental lottery numbers during the new year period? gossip about female stars taking a sunbath with rich ang moh fiance with butt or boobs exposed?

4) a short, 3-minute scene to tie up the biggest loose end...

a sign of incompetent scriptwriting and a reactive rather than proactive response to the demands of the audience, the scriptwriters decided to film a short scene that served to explain the ending and give the audience a proper reply as to what happened. of course, they could include the ending as a bonus feature in the vcd / dvd and say to consumers: hey, it includes the ending, buy the disc! not exactly unique, but with youtube and the endless video editing software that one can get from the net, the ending will soon be up on youtube, myspace, google videos and what-not. if the scriptwriters are truly understanding of the audience, they should be writing a full script from the start.

in any case, the audience now remembers the serial as "one that never completely address the relationship between the male and female leads, but had to have an extra scene at a slot on sunday just before the evening news" in addition to the draggy final episode with feature-adjusted, ballooning felicia.

yeah, and they now even have olivia as a special guest for yoga lin's concert. maybe she'll sing that infamous song again, who knows? no money for guessing the correct outcome!

and here's the more...

watched the wedding with my friends last week. i wasn't particularly interested in looking at the love affair of a couple on-screen, but heck...

the story was apparently written by zhou chong qing, a fan of fann, and frankly, the script was so-so only. i don't really find the lines funny, only managed a few, soft chuckles. probably i have too high a standard about comedies? and that goes for cartoons as they are funny only because of the cute factor and nothing else - which i do not classify as funny.

i rather look at cute girls than cute animated figures.

did i just waste $10? yup, i did... but i did not know much about the film beforehand, so i can't really say anything much about it.

the movie was simply filled with product placements at every conceivable opportunity. new moon abalone and bird's nest... pokka drinks... mitsubishi aircons (not sure if have, but heck)... if this is the "insurance" that local film producers are buying in case the movie was a flop, it begs the question if the "insurers" (i.e. new moon, pokka etc) think that the placements would be effective in the sense that it would facilitate brand recall, foster brand awareness, and translate into tangible product sales - it remains to be seen. however, the endorsements do go to covering part of the cost, as well as covering part of the producers' asses if the movie was really a flop.

sidenote: for all the past local films that were made, only 3 made a profit - and that is about 30% of all the local films produced. i'm not sure if that is the expected proportion of profitable films... but i guess it does serve as a benchmark for local producers to really buy some "insurance" because the endorsing companies are likely to pay in order for their products to appear on-screen - this would contribute to part of the revenue for the film.

bottom-line: radio deejays should stick to what they do best i.e. radio broadcasting. if you have a likeable face and personality, you can go hosting. but scriptwriting... i hope not. better to keep your admiration to yourself, if you get my drift.

post JKT 09 thots

2009-01-21T23:29:00.002+08:00

it might not make sense to have an entry on afterthoughts immediately after a post on the very first day of the trip, but well, here goes.

1) this trip has made me very relaxed and rejuvenated, ready to take on new things. talking to my relatives had been of great help to maintain a positive mindset.

2) an eye-opener it has been. a land so seemingly unstructured and dominated with no rules, yet every inch a possibility for riches.

3) a potential place to migrate to? or least venture into. need some research and ideas.

4) more appreciative of things back here, and less complacent.

5) the girls are very cantik.

haha!!

Jakarta 2009 - Day 1 (Arrival)

2009-01-21T22:51:00.013+08:00

A somewhat rushed, but well-executed trip to Jakarta in January 2009...

Arrival - 170109 approx 1530 hrs
Soekarno-Hatta Int'l Airport Arrival Hall
Reminiscent of older shopping malls in Singapore - does not appear to be an int'l airport, but it is.

Very retro-style...Always good to see something familiar from home... There were more, but I did not take the pictures. Some that came to mind were DBS, OCBC... and Home-Fix, a DIY retailer.

And of course, what used to be familiar but is no longer. What is not so familiar about this thing that once was, was the price - at least half the price of that in a typical Singapore fast food outlet.

Some things never change, such as a government's perpetual liking for money.

DIY roast suckling pig

2009-01-16T19:12:00.005+08:00

my aunt dropped by sg a few days back to attend a seminar, brought along a pitch fork and half-done suckling pig. roasted it for 2 hours and the results:

color and taste were excellent, though some parts were harder to roast i.e. the feet etc. anyway it was good fun.

kena buang big time

2009-01-16T19:08:00.002+08:00

2 pix of my mom's altis being buang by a lorry this afternoon ard 1 - 2pm... estimated repair days = 3, repair amount = 1.2k

wa lau! i better also take note and not anyhow move out of a lot. better also to not aim for one shot swee swee into carpark slot just for egoistic purposes.

abstinence!

2009-01-15T11:19:00.002+08:00

ever since the last "liquor treatment" in august 08 and the subsequent "punishment" (aka vomiting) i have (or rather, my stomach) now an adverse reaction to the hennessey family of cognacs, notably XO and VSOP.

i experienced something similar when i was in primary 3, when i had some raw oysters on a sunday evening. it was my first time with raw food, so probably it wasn't that fresh, or that i should have downed some hot stuff (such as soup) before eating those oysters - i don't know. then, on monday morning i had pork rib noodles. around 11:00am i started visiting the WC really frequently and at the same time, i felt nauseous but did not vomit (not until much later, anyway).

evening came, and it got worse. the toilet bowl almost became part of me, and it did not help that i had tuition in that same evening. gosh, it was a new tutor too! goodness, i went to the toilet after a while and if i remember correctly, i vomitted in the tutor's house too (into the toilet bowl of course) and was asked to lie on the bed until the end of the session. jeez, after that i did not go to that tutor anymore - for reasons i still don't know.

anyway, almost a year on from that fateful morning and that even more fateful bowl of noodles, i shunned away from pork rib noodles because i could not stand the taste, and that it reminded me of my vomit. although after that, i'm back to eating that (the noodles, not the vomit!) and it still counts as one of my favorite breakfast.

so the same goes for XO and VSOP... last night i had to entertain a couple of my grandfather's friends and they are notable for being able to drink - a lot. not beer, but liquor - preferably without ice / water added, but always with so as to minimize the impact of drinking pure liquor.

i had mine with ice, and it did not agree well with my stomach; only had a single cup and it was enough. anyway liquor and spirits are always wasted on me as i will frequent the toilet after downing a few of them. i am likely to be sober still (it takes quite a fair bit to get me drunk) but the good stuff just goes down the drain as piss.

luckily, i did not vomit. nor did i drank so much that i have a hangover today... phew.

gotta go. lots of work to do... but never the "real" work.

2 meetups in 2 days with 2 friends each.

2009-01-09T23:04:00.000+08:00

i just came back from the second.

it was a trip down to vivocity with 2 friends, with the purpose of buying new year clothes. i had a budget and the kind of stuff i wanted in mind, however, it was a tad beyond my means. not that i could not afford it, but buying the ones i wanted would limit the number of pieces i could really buy. moreover, the designs were not to my liking... i think i can get nicer looking ones at better prices elsewhere.

took the trip as a way to relax. frankly, i have a lot of things in mind, and the old issue that i had since graduation is still there. as a light sleeper, it is a blessing if i could reach dreamland within half an hour - i usually take about 2 to do so, after a lot of turns and sleeping positions.

i woke up at 3 am in the morning and did not fall asleep again until 5. that said, i only slept at 1 before i was awakened again. i need to stop thinking so much before i sleep, and try to have less random stuff occupying my thoughts all the time.

i would buy the stuff i need next week.

back to the first. it was yesterday - my friend had an off day and we decided to meet up. being in the service industry, it is common to only have 1 off day per week, and almost 99% it is going to be on a weekday. while this friend of mine is in charge of training, and logically, would usually be conducted during off-peak / dedicated sessions, the live action occurs during the other times. i suppose that's where training gets practical, and supervision a necessity.

had coffee at raffles city while we waited for another friend to arrive. of course, there was the usual catching up, as well as new, spicy stuff. i found myself giving out a lot of suggestions yesterday, because it was a topic that i am quite interested in, and it just so happened that i was in a good position to talk about it.

to sum it up, it pretty much repeats some of the stuff i had, or might have, said before. the ones who truly deserve do not get it, while the ones who don't get it (the "it" here are good things). and when the latter does, they don't usually treasure.

the above paragraph speaks a lot about some stuff that i personally went through. not that i'm complaining, but i just thought that sometimes, it just doesn't happen. what i hope is that the things that "just don't happen" are not many in number, or it can get really depressing. it might not be so bad if no one asks about it, but when they do - you force yourself to look normal, and you make a short statement about things still being ok and bearable, but that hardly says anything about what you actually feel. going on to explain things makes things feel even worse, until the point you just stop explaining, knowing that people won't understand anyway.

anyway, i used to think about a certain possibility, and i had in mind what i was going to do and say. surprisingly, i wasn't really affected much by it. i guess it's because i'm still very removed from the entire affair altogether and, although i really do think that it can happen, it might just take a little more time. moreoever, i don't feel ready yet, at least in certain aspects.

i wonder how i would feel if it comes to materialize. would i curse myself for procrastinating? would i feel relieved, because i do not have to think about it again? would i even go on to feel and share the joy that comes out of it?

there i go again.

stop thinking and speculating. just do what you can, and what you have to. many things are just not up to you - look forward and hope for better things to come.

hope. yeah... that's right.

01.01.2009

2009-01-01T01:54:00.002+08:00

first entry of 2009...

while i wait for my hair to dry and, being slightly alert after a shower, time to get some blogging done.

watched yes man just now - the plot was predictable, but i laughed more than i did in other comedies. it probably was one of the funnier ones i watched recently - or perhaps i was just in a better mood.

the plot's twist aside, it was more of the message behind the lines. start accepting stuff. say yes - but with some thought. i think the more important thing to note was accepting stuff. while i would not go so far as to say that i am so stubborn that i am totally not open to new ideas, comments and criticism (which definitely isn't me, as people i know can attest to), i would say it might be worthwhile to start moving beyond my comfort zone sometimes. that's what.

after the movie, i felt invigorated. or rather, during the movie, i already did. it was in the cinema that i set some targets for myself to aim at - not necessarily resolutions that i must attain. a weird place to have your new year targets made, i agree, though it was the right moment that mattered. and it was.

so with new-found confidence, i embark 2009 with a new spirit and attitude... and that should translate into some positive thinking that could just make the difference. as i write, i remembered something that my friend said to me a long time ago, but it was always off my mind. that advice worked before, and i'm sure it'll work again.

don't be so nua!

yup, that's right. i better keep that advice in mind more often.

some entertainment...

2008-12-30T14:21:00.002+08:00

with the advent of youtube, it is now possible for people of diverse talents to have a platform to showcase their specialties. my visits to youtube has always been frequent, and the content that i look at largely revolves around music videos, comedy, and the like. came across this video recently and thought it might be worthwhile to share. watch it, and see my comments as well.

the following "singers" appear in the video in the order shown and the imitation of each discussed.

stef sun - very good as a opening.
karen mok - same as above.
selina ren - hmmm... not really. not yet. see below.
ella - haha! great!
faye wong - totally has the bochup tone. excellent!
coco - omg. great too.
cai qin - vintage. i think it resembles. not a fan of cai qin's.
xu ru yun - great work.
singer - also quite good.
stef (again) - good.
selina (again) - a little better than the first part.
ah mei - no-no... my only problem with this video. lacks the explosive factor.
karen (again) - great.
selina (again) - uh... ok i guess.
mixed - see how she changes the imitation with ease!

overall: you can find another vid that contains 3 extra cartoon characters. i feel the shin-chan and doraemon imitations are great. not sure about the final cartoon girl.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQNAc0pACuc&feature=related

嫁鸡随鸡，嫁狗随狗。

2008-12-17T22:46:00.003+08:00

乍看之下，似乎带着些许的贬意。

有些人甚至会对这一句在当下时代的可实性提出合理的质疑。

我们大可不去理会此句是否真的已不切实际，但我们方可将它解剖一番，欣赏它文化的一面。

男大当婚，女大当嫁。所要弄清楚的一件事就是这一句话是用在女生身上的。

这一句话，说尽了古时代女子彻底无奈的处境。对方是否豪门贵族，或是平民百姓，都不得由女方。其实，说穿了，男女双方的终身大事都不由自主。父母通常会做的，是尽量为自己的儿女找个门当户对的。政治婚姻也未尝不是不可能的。

但为何要用上鸡和狗等家畜呢？以我浅薄的才学，这问题是我绝不能回答的。但是，科技是万能的：Google 一番，不只可以找到这一句话的典故，也可查到一些有趣的资料，如下：

嫁鸡随鸡，嫁狗随狗

释义
封建礼教认为，女子出嫁后，不论丈夫好坏，都要永远跟从。

来源
宋 · 欧阳修《代鸠妇言》：“人言嫁鸡逐鸡飞，安知嫁鸠被鸠逐。”

宋 · 赵汝鐩《古别离》诗：“嫁狗逐狗鸡逐鸡，耿耿不寐展转思。”

悲剧女性自我安慰的一种心理疗法。

男性贿赂女性的一种手段。

婚姻对女人来讲是一个圈套，不后悔的女人不多。因此，当洞房的花烛熄灭之际，也是女士苦不堪言之时。读过书的女士常常挺身而出挣扎，没受过教育的女士则如受内伤。嫁鸡随鸡，嫁狗随狗，嫁给猴子满山走成了弱女子自我疗伤的良方。

嫁鸡随鸡，嫁狗随狗，也是男人耍赖的手段之一。女人多是水性杨花，见异思迁，对男人抱有童话般的幻想，一旦看穿了男人的西洋景谁肯安份？于是，用此道安慰那些不甘心的女子，会培养她们无私奉献的精神。

嫁鸡随鸡，嫁狗随狗，成全了不少家庭，因此，骗婚的男人对这一条古训最为佩服。

天下没有十全十美的事，世上的婚姻也卵是如此，一个女士，若是没有此种境界，气歪了鼻子活该。

嫁鸡随鸡，嫁狗随狗，也是女士们懒得离婚的借口之一，天下乌鸦一般黑，哪个男人是好东西？逃出这个圈套，跳入另一个陷阱，于其自个儿折腾自己，还不如双眼一闭死了心。

事实上有些男人连鸡狗都不如。

***

女人真是水性杨花，见异思迁的吗？这一点就不必多争论了，因为用一句话来描写一群人是不公平的一件事。不过，我在某刊物上也看见了这一段话：

The production of the next generation lies with the female. Therefore, it is only logical that she is selective in her choice of a mate.

有一点粗俗，但也不是毫无道理。

有一点是不可否认的，就是男人和女人是不同的。昨天从某电台的广播中，听到了 “女生似乎较敢于表达自己的情绪，喜欢就是喜欢，而且会说出来。男生就比较害羞了，不管你如何问他，他就是不会承认。如果男生较肯表达自己的情绪，世界是不是会好多了呢？”

所以，要等女方开口，也不是不可能。但是，等男方开口还是较常的事。也许男生是放不下自己的身段，把被拒绝吧！这也是一件没办法的事。。。无论男女，都回顾及自己的面子，可能男人比较在乎吧。。。

爱情来临时，我是否也该效仿广播主持人所说的话呢? 届时，再说吧！

PS. This is actually a very old post which was not published successfully because of a power shortage (I think) and was, luckily, saved as a draft. Saw it while going through my posts today and decided to complete it. However, I forgot what I wanted to say originally and so sought another way to finish this post. Still, I guarantee that the original content was interesting stuff - as my posts always are...

title not available.

2008-12-17T21:22:00.004+08:00

there's no title because this post is written to contain various stuff of very distinct natures.

stuff 1
a few days ago, i signed up for a gmail account for misc. purposes. i already have 3 existing email accounts: hotmail, yahoo and webmail (school's) but it just doesn't seem enough.

ok, gmail has more space, but i don't really need that. it is seemingly better in terms of interface, but i didn't play with it much to know if that's really the case. but the most interesting thing is that it allows directing mail that's sent to your other accounts be directed to your gmail's. this is very handy especially when you have multiple email accounts, but you don't really want to check all of them every time, and that gmail is the one you often use.

i'm very tempted to change my main account to gmail, but thinking that i have to do all that importing and stuff makes the effort unwarranted... fyi, i'm actually very poor at all the tech stuff. only good at MS office. hardware, gadgets, etc... not my forte.

then, i recalled that, a few months back, i was using this program that allows me to add all my available email accounts into it, and it would automatically run when windows starts and checks all the accounts for new mail. i used the program for a while (like less than an hour) and ditched it because 1) it doesn't check webmail, which in fact is really my main email account and 2) the interface, while simple, is lacking in aesthetics. it simply tells you if you have new mail, and does nothing else. it seemed to not work for my hotmail account, and if you want to send / receive / read emails, you have to open your browser and go to your account.

wtf is that for? it's really stupid because while this program helps in notifying you about new emails, it does crap when you want to retrieve right on the spot. sometimes the mails are just junk. i don't want to check and realize that i've received some ads that tells me a secret crush is waiting for me, or that a miracle pill is on the way to strengthen my manhood.

so i looked up another program today and found one which works wonders, except that it doesn't check webmail. ok, maybe it can, but i don't understand the jargon well enough to know how it works. although i took computing at 'A' levels, it was pretty balls (in terms of my results) and the content wasn't that... advanced (for lack of a better word) to let you know much about computing.

sidetrack: when i was deciding which subjects i should take at 'A's, i looked at computing - and took it because i thought it's just going to be point-point, click-click, use MS office etc... nonsense. i did programming for most of the time and i sucked real hard. you really have to think at the level of the computer, which, for 99% of the time, is pretty stupid. i thought i'll flunk the thing, but perhaps the theory part helped a little. even the theory was damn dry - it was about more programming, albeit in a non-computer way. it discusses on the possible code you could write to solve a problem, which is most of the time maths and logic based.

some examples of these problems include writing programs that allow you to play blackjack, tic-tac-toe (i wrote one that works, my only accomplishment during my JC computing days) etc. apart from these problems, there was file manipulation, managing lists of data, etc, etc... super dry stuff. all in a DOS environment. kaoz!!

anyway, back to the issue. if you want to use the program that i'm using now, go to:

http://www.poppeeper.com/

and download it. heck the tech stuff, just add your accounts and give it your passwords. then set the frequency to auto-check your accounts. voila.

stuff 2
many weird dreams lately. last night i dreamt that i was in thailand, where i've never went before but i planned to.

it started at the pier, when i was waiting, with two other friends, a friend to arrive. apparently she was late, and she never came. so one of my friends decided to go ahead without her (wth?!) and as i only had cash and thus no card to pay for the ticket, the one who suggested to go ahead flashed her gold card and slot it into the machine. we chose the "full day, all sights" package for 100sgd. then we went into a dimsum restaurant to have a meal before setting off. we were contemplating if the "full day, all sights" included the dimsum meal. but before we knew it, we were off to thailand.

it seemed like thailand was a "theme park." entry was via crossing a small sea on a wooden plank, with hands as oars. wtf?! (on hindsight, it seemed plausible because it was only last week that protesters left the airports, so entry into thailand by sea was feasible. hmmm... current affairs in dreams??!!) the sea water was murky and supposedly deep, and i have no idea, nor wish to know, what was in those waters. we "oarred" as fast as we could and got to the pier, which looked like a kelong.

i started off by going to the "river" tourist spot. it was a real river, murky, and this time it was better - i was on a sampan. however, the sampan just seemed to be a few wooden sticks bound together by string, and that seemed really shitty especially when i saw the river to be filled with crocodiles. i steered my sampan to a floating shop, and talked to the shopkeeper. apparently, the sampan is meant to be flimsy, and if anyone drops into the river, crocodiles will attack. no shit. you die in a theme park. and the shopkeeper said it in a matter-of-factly way, like people are supposed to fall and get killed by crocodiles. what theme park is this?

i saw this big group of guys on a "boys' day out." approx 10+ of them around 20 years of age. they were clinging to some flimsy structure built on the river, and were hoping to stay away from the crocodiles. these boys were dressed in the usual manner guys dress in orchard road - t-shirt with jeans / berms and sneakers. they should be tourists too.

i asked them if they could lend me a hand as i was trying to steer my flimsy sampan, which was on the verge of breaking, to the flimsy structure (i guess this is what you call out from the kettle into the frying pan). then, my sampan broke apart and oh my, i thought i was going to die. i swam like crazy. luckily, one of the guys reached out and pulled me "ashore."

as i paused to catch my breath, i looked to my right and saw a former schoolmate waving to me. she was walking down this path that seemed to float on the river. said something about going to jump. i saw her walk to the end of the path, which was the edge of a waterfall, and jumped. jumped into a big quarry pool with dinosaurs bathing in it, and the background was totally foresty and primitive. oh my, what was i dreaming?!

then i decided to go back to my room for a rest. i went to the main building, but the doors were locked. i tried a door which led me to a gym and passing that, i went into the gym instructors' canteen. i was hungry, and i wanted food, even if it wasn't really for me - i suppose guests should be dining in a proper restaurant. the instructors all looked at me as if i'm some weirdo, and they were from this gym company that runs safra gyms. energyOne or something like that... and the food was all vegetarian. worse still, it appeared in the form akin to that of canteen 1 in BMTC. shit! messy, all thrown into metal containers, served by uncles and aunties with masks.

then i woke up.

had a few other funny dreams as well, but forgot. anyway... i think i wrote something long again.

100th post and going.

2008-12-02T00:05:00.002+08:00

i knew that i had about 90+ posts already in this blog, and voila, this is already the 100th.

ok it's not a super big deal since my friends who blog, blog v v often... 100th is sthg they can get like within a year or so... me? this blog's bday was in the later half of 2006.

well, there were some deleted posts, some drafts, so if they were really still there, i wld hv hit 100... but nvm.

as i alr said, i only blog on things which r of significant interest to me. or rite now, when i juz thot of writing abt sthg. tis feeling usualli comes late at nite when ppl r likely zzz, too tired to chat on msn, and the stuff i wanna surf alr's been surfed.

on the sun tt juz passed went to my fren's place for MJ... only 3 of us so sar-kar (literally, not the other meaning). in the end, bo lai... n nobody gt all 4 animals so no one needed to treat anybody. went changi v for dinner... chatted... then sent both home.

expect to be designated "ahmad" for several more occassions to come...

only a few hrs ago went to holiday inn @ orchard for a 1-for-1 buffet dinner. since my fren's bday is today we gave him a treat. the food was ok, it was a gd place to relax n sit for 3 hrs... food wise ok la mai hiam. no complimentary parking wtf 8+ for 4 hr parking!

am talking to a fren who was in my jap2 class as i am writing tis. mayb its a banking n finance spec tradition to send resumes early, but i thot its qt gd in tt she can start building momentum to send the stuff. i dun think there r many positions which wld wait so long for her (likely to start in early may since tt's when exams all end) but perhaps some mgmt trainee positions shld b ok since they start looking for ppl ard tt time. mayb earlier, dunno. tt is if companies r taking their headcount freeze out of the freezer.

gd luck.

anyway... i dun hv much to write tis time. it's juz a short recount of wat happened tis past 2 days.

女人是。。。

2008-11-17T22:17:00.002+08:00

女人是。。。

。。。爱美的。

没有丑女人，只有懒女人。

显示自己爱美的方式有很多，能让自己更美的产品更多。否则，百货商场所售卖的主要物品就不会是化妆品，衣饰，包包，高跟鞋。。。说到这里，女人也是。。。

。。。购物高手。

没有任何的大减价能逃过她们的耳目。一件件堆积如山的衣服，已将整个衣橱塞得满满的，但是。。。总会有位子，塞进多一件衣服，多一套连衣裙吧。有了这一件，两个月内别再买了。。。（哪里可能。。。）

。。。爱听甜言蜜语的。

女人天生爱听甜言蜜语，大多和她们的基因有关。原始时代的男人，为了得到女人的注意，在献上礼物时，不忘加上一两句赞美的话，让女人听了之后觉得甜甜的。几千年的进化也改不了这最基本的事实。

。。。坚强的。

但适当的时候，会让男人牵着走。

。。。容易吃醋的。

但她们可能不立刻把自己不悦的心情说出，或表露在脸上。实为极可怕之行为也。

。。。心软的。

但这不是她们的弱点，而是一种本能。切记，不可凭这一点蹂躏她们的感情！（后果自负。。。）

最后，女人是。。。

。。。爱男人的。

所幸的是，女人也是男人所爱的。

试问，有哪个真心诚意的男人，不深爱着自己心仪的女人，不心疼着自己身旁的女人呢？

a blurred, but real, memory.

2008-11-11T10:36:00.006+08:00

Was watching "band of brothers" on youtube for the past few days. I have the entire miniseries on vcd at home, but somehow, I can't really find it in the mess that is my house... Gotta just settle with substandard quality videos streamed online.

Well, it's not really that substandard but... no matter.

This series comprises a total of 10 episodes, each addressing a specific location / major event from one of the veteran's perspective. You should give it a shot if you haven't watch it already.

It's hard not to be reminded of the days when I underwent training at Paya Lebar Airbase (PLAB), and that is almost 5 years ago. There were some memorable moments, but most of the time, it sucked big time... Of course, it does build up a little resilience and strengthen your will... That's what NS does to people, and I dare say that even the ones who hate it to the core would have taken something beneficial out of there, and would find it useful later in life.

The scenes in this series are largely focused on battles between the US military and the German Nazis. All that fighting and gunfire do serve to generate some of the stuff which I've learnt (but definitely forgotten) at PLAB, and that means the times when I went for live firing exercises.

My vocation, as conventionally thought, wasn't supposed to be tough - it was, after all, a security guard if you like, providing some security to the places I was supposed to guard, give a few directions to visitors, organize some events. Hardly worth mentioning, but the things that must happen before I can officially do such stuff (i.e. I need to be "properly trained") are the ones worth a little time talking about.

The various weapons I have "live fired" are:

M16S1: I was one the few who fired this old but trusty weapon, way before they introduced the SAR21. I have had the chance to touch the latter at a later time during my NS days, but that's not really the point. No marksman.

M203: Is it an "O" or a "0" (zero)? No idea. Three shots for this I think. Fires a grenade from a launcher affixed to the M16S1 and is designed to deal damage by blasts. Variants include a smoke grenade designed to provide cover - fired that as well. Shots landed where they supposed to be.

LAW: I have no idea what this acronym stands for, but it's a weapon designed to fight against light-armored vehicles. The real thing is a once-fired-then-throw kind of thing, and that has more power than the one I fired from (which was for training, so it can be reused over and over. though, you might have already guessed, lacking in power). Shot hit the target with a resounding "clank."

GPMG: Don't mess with this m*****f*****! Fired about 50 - 75 rounds of it in bursts (3-round shots). Designed for suppressive fire on oncoming threats - very effective. It might not be geared to exactly hitting targets, but if you are charging at an enemy position that is fortified with this kick-ass weapon, you better find a place to seek cover... Has range. Also, the place at which we fired this weapon was overlooking the Tuas 2nd Link - but we didn't fire in that direction, of course - and so, nice view.

I went for two other live firing exercises with the M16S1.

Section Live Firing: Conducted somewhere behind NIE, in the thick jungles (that's why you can hear gunshots sometimes, if you have studied in NTU before). It was pretty ok because we were lined up horizontally, and moved in a straight line towards the target. You just move straight on - no left, right, or diagonal turns. I did pretty ok in this.

*When I walked out of the jungle and saw NIE, I was totally exhuberant - civilization! I would be coming here in 2 years time (it was 2003 then) and now, I have my degree!

Platoon Live Firing: This one is really tough, and not only physically.

Before any live firing there is definitely a period of training for us to be familiarized with the drills and things we were supposed to do. The only type of field available for training in PLAB was this stretch of grass that was pretty flat and while it was still tough, it was only so because the training was repititive, and with good reason.

The day before the actual exercise, I think we had much more rest than we ever expected. The instructors were more lenient than they ever used to be, and they did address us in a much friendlier way. We just have to do what we were told and nothing else - and be clear-minded while doing it. Each and every one of us, with or without a faith, was muttering a prayer to the greater powers up there - simply because there was a possibility that one of us might get injured or even killed tomorrow. See below as to how this possibility might turn reality.

I went to sleep that night thinking of little else but to get as much rest as I could.

The day came.

The entire company started with a mock drill to get used to the terrain. Since it was only a drill, blanks were used. Thus, you can still fire them but you won't fire any projectiles. Only a flash appears from the muzzle, but if someone stands really close, he can get hurt.

I sure won't want to charge up that hill again. It was inclined at 45 - 60 degrees, and the sun was merciless. It was a pretty short charge but considering the slope, the weather, and the possibility of dying, nobody is taking any chances to screw it up. At the top of the hill stood several targets resembling enemy hostiles, which we would "attack" once we made our way to the peak.

Shortly after everyone completed the drill, it was the real thing.

We were the first to go since we were Platoon 1 - not sure if that was a good or bad thing, but getting it over and done with was more important. Loaded our weapons with real ammunition this time and checked safety to ensure that no round gets misfired whilst on the way to the hill.

We trekked along a path until we reached an area with some trees and undergrowth. There, we lay prone for a moment whilst waiting for the command. What we were supposed to do once we were told to charge was to run to the foot of the hill and get into position, then fire away.

The formation itself looked something like this:

T T T

S S S

T = Target, S = Section

Within each section (7 men) were 3 groups, lined up in the following manner:

12345G1
123G2 1G3

Everyone fires while waiting for a command. When this command is heard, G1 and G3 cease firing and G2 moves DIAGONNALLY to take the 1 o' clock of G1.

1234511G2
12345G1
1234511G3

G1 and G2 continue their fire while G3 stays low and prepares to move to the 11 o' clock of G1. When it finally moves (diagonnally across G1), it looks something like this:

111G3 11G2
11111 G1

Then G1 moves forward. Cycle repeats.

G1 had it the easiest, while G2 and G3 must be constantly alert and fearing for their lives - you don't want a cockhead firing from the G1 position while you are crossing his line of fire! I was in G3, so I felt the fear, too.

Furthermore, we had a team of GPMG gunners firing live rounds over our heads; no doubt it was a good distance between our not-so-infallable helmets and the path of the rounds, but you want to be really sure those gunners are not swinging the weapon around. Which of course, they weren't - but the thought that these gunners were supposed to be firing at the enemy positions (and that is where you are heading!!) in a real uphill charge means that you can be struck by friendly fire.

Luckily, we reached the top of the hill safe and sound. We "attacked" the targets and then moved down the hill, feeling not just exhilarated but also thankful that we were alive.

It's hard to imagine the terror if you do not participate in this kind of exercise, but there isn't really a need to experience it. Well, some guys would have already done this, particularly those in infantry units. In any case, I won't be doing this again in my entire life, so there.

Oh, it wasn't just about getting shot - you don't want to be blur and shoot somebody else, too.

PS The procedure for group movement might be wrong (since I have forgotten about it) but the diagonnal cross is correct. It was five minutes of my life that was largely blurry and hectic and crazy, but well, I made it through.

here's a surefire way to piss me off.

2008-11-05T15:09:00.002+08:00

i'm a pretty amicable person, but at the end of the day, there're things that i don't like.

and here is one thing you can do if you want to really, really piss me off.

i'm not advocating that you do this, but just because i do not show my emotions (especially anger and rage) very often doesn't mean i don't have them.

please do not look me up only because you are bored (for any reason). this is something i find to be extremely distasteful, as it gives one the impression that you are "chosen" to "entertain" someone.

i'm ok if it happens once in awhile, though i do not recall myself looking a friend up to go out just because i'm bored. if i get an occasional message from a friend who wants to have coffee because there's nothing much to do, i'm ok with it.

so what does this mean? you can sort of repackage the "bored" word to something else to at least attempt to give the idea that you are not looking for me to satisfy your emotional state. a "i'm bored" message once every few months is fine, but not once every few days.

but, in any case, if i've identified you to be someone who has already used the "i'm bored" tactic to solicit attention, any future attempts to repackage it would be futile. this is because this post is free for all to see, and thus the ineffectiveness of the repackaging. you cannot hope to reverse your way out of this.

ask yourself if you like to be treated this way. please. spare a thought for others, if you do not wish to have any for yourself.

and if you've been identified as one such person, you can jolly well forget about enthusiastic responses or future meetups. i'm not that good at entertaining people who feel perpetually bored.

what a damn, insulting feeling this is. so bloody condescending and patronizing.

it pays to do your research.

2008-10-31T12:28:00.002+08:00

before attending any interview, it's routine for me to look up companies and do a little background search on them on their official website.

what is not so routine is checking up companies before applying for them, simply because i usually apply to "big-name" companies.

from that incident onwards, i'm going to do so... here's a recount.

i was browsing through several job websites e.g. jobstreet, jobscentral etc when i came across this company several times. the name is called "dreamworks advertising pte ltd" and is in no way related to dreamworks animation. it was a catchy name though and, after seeing it several times, it kind of prompted me to click on the job ad.

job scope, responsibilities and qualifications seemed ok - nothing out of the ordinary. checked up the address too - mosque street, a short walk away from chinatown mrt, to which i have a straight bus (~20 minutes, half hour max with waiting time). apart from the fact that it was near my house, it was also proximate to many other places of leisure. that meant that i could chill off really, really nearby.

after typing in the name of the company in google, i found a website with that company's name. so far so good - nothing to be alarmed about. i decided to read through the stuff they do and gradually clicked on "contact us." that was when the surprise came.

the address was somewhere in europe! WTF... ok, so maybe this company didn't have a website. pretty rare these days, but i do know of certain companies without one... so i browsed through a few more pages.

the only results that contained this company's name were job postings... ok, not really an issue... then, i stumbled upon a couple of forums talking about this company. apparently, this company shared an office with a few others. well, nothing to be alarmed about - yet. the issue came when some of the posts in these forums gave some information about this company - and the many others sharing the same office - and that was when i felt so damn cheated.

apparently this company was engaged in direct / door-to-door sales. that wasn't a problem, but their hiring tactics were somewhat unethical. examples as follows:

1) everybody goes through round 1, so that means you will get to round 2 anyway. it's supposed to make you feel exclusive when you make it pass the first round (since that means you outshone some candidates) but it's not when everybody goes to round 2.

2) relevant questions, such as company profile, core business, career advancement etc would not be answered. if they are, the answers are likely to be smokescreens and vague.

3) anyone can apply. that includes GCE holders to university graduates. i'm not against those with lower qualifications, but it would just signal to me that the job is for "any mother's son."

4) and several other pieces of information that portray a negative light on this fishy company.

of course, there are certain posts that suggest going down anyway to see if you are really keeping your options open. mentions of a few training programs that enhance your salesmanship skills, interpersonal skills etc and one of the forum's guests actually talked about going down there for a week to attend the training programs, which he / she found to be quite useful. of course, he / she left after a week because the programs had ended.

and another post talked about joining this company to "embark on a track to success, the unconventional way." well, it is possible that an employee of that company posted this (which was my gut feel) or it could very well be someone who's really suited for this kind of job. well, not me, definitely.

i decided to pull out of the interview. i did not even bother to notify them - i don't want to talk to a bunch of cheats.

as expected, they called me twice when it was time for my interview. i did not pick it up. what the two calls did, however, was to wake me up. damn.

random again.

2008-10-20T23:10:00.002+08:00

it's not my usual style to write random stuff... but it was another thought-filling bus ride home.

i am seriously questioning myself. is it really what i want?

i think it must be due to the length of time - it simply means that it is better this way.

i recall the stuff i told my friend the other day. it definitely is time to evaluate how willing i am to risk things, and right now, the answer is very clear.

i am not going to risk it... so gotta move on.

most likely, i am the only one who understands what this post is for... if you are smart enough, you could probably guess too...

random.

2008-10-19T23:09:00.002+08:00

ever since i started my training regime back in early august, i have been somewhat hesitant to shove large amounts of food down my throat.

ok, maybe "training regime" is a bit overrated... it isn't a regime because it isn't really that tough as one might think it is, but a "training schedule" would paint a more consistent picture.

the schedule started out with weekly runs - the once-per-week, 6-round non-stop type. adds up to 2.4 km nicely.

then it progressed (obviously) to either progressively longer distances (for endurance) or the same distance in progressively lesser timings (for speed). so far, so good.

i started my first run because i felt that i just had to. with the prospect of remedial training if i don't clear my annual ippt, i was motivated to at least fight for a pass.

the first run sucked. sure, i passed - on a girl's timing. i reckoned it to be around 15+ and that is way way too long for the time needed to score a pass on a guy's timing.

fyi, the timing is 12:20 and it is not that hard with a bit of training.

i remembered that my legs gave up on me the entire week after that first run. either i didn't do my warm-up / cool-down properly, or just simply because my leg muscles were totally screwed. the last time i passed my 2.4km was in 2003. yeah, 5 long years.

and add the usual - slacking, feasting - you know the result.

it wasn't mandatory to pass my ippt whilst i was studying full-time, and that meant chucking the training out of the window.

now, i have no choice but to get down to it. luckily, after a few runs, my legs got used to it and i don't get tired that fast. so, it meant i could run a little faster, a little longer.

now that i have a schedule which i more or less stuck to (i run on alternate days since beginning of october) i am pretty guilt-stricken when i go back to late night suppers and heavy meals. right now, i only have brunch and as far as possible, an early dinner with limited carbo intake. an early dinner gives two benefits - it takes away the hunger pang from having only eaten one meal so far, and lets me sleep a little easier without the burping.

if i have to take dinner beyond a certain time (usually 8+) i eat even lesser, simply because my stomach seems to contract and can allow no further food.

so you ask, have i lost weight? yup, a little - and a healthy loss at that. i can feel the schedule working not only just for my runs, but also for my chin-ups. so far, i can do 5 - one short. you have no idea how encouraging that is - being able to do 5 after so many years.

ippt due in less than 2 weeks. i hope i can make it through - the remedial training hours are far too long for a citizen who has too much to do on his hands.

talk about balancing career and personal life. balls. you know where the personal life goes if you are a Singaporean male and you don't clear your ippt.

yup - remedial training.

flamboyancy and functionality.

2008-09-27T17:39:00.003+08:00

met up with a good friend of mine last night and did the usual - chatting over coffee (or tea?) and a little munching.

the topic drifted to blogs. we both have our own blogs, though mine - in her opinion - is rather filled with day-to-day events.

i don't really remember blogging often about daily events. i probably do, once in a while, if the stuff is worth writing about. most of the time, i touch on issues which are not really the everyday type, but you can expect some... spite between the lines. the online medium is the channel for my complaints, and i don't complain very often in real life.

in any case, since both of us are tuition teachers (albeit for different levels) it was quite natural that we moved to the subject on how we tutor our students. i'm not going to talk much about the methods, because this isn't really the time.

then we started comparing our language competencies. at this stage, it doesn't really matter not because we have passed the necessary exams, but we already have a reasonable command of the language to get us through our daily lives and work requirements. there was this comment that my posts were written in a style and level that do not reflect accurately my competency in the english language - and i have a reason for this.

the days of writing compositions and argumentative essays are long over. the only kind of things i write in university are largely fact-based, objective and neutral reports that pertain to a particular issue at hand. therefore, it is imperative that my report be easily understood and conveys what the words used are supposed to - no second guessing. yes, you can say it's a very thesis-style of writing.

so i have in fact substituted flamboyancy with functionality. not that i cannot write the former - i do have some flowery passages and language of my own, and that kind of stuff is more apparent in my essays in secondary school and JC. it is just that i am not required, nor have the necessary platform, to write in extremely expressive and "flowery" sentences.

perhaps i should write one of such these days in my blog, but i don't really have a topic yet. furthermore, i don't think i'll write any of such - it no longer is a true representation of my abilities since there's spellcheck and what-nots; they seem to elevate a person's standard of writing, but in actual fact is nothing more than a smokescreen and fraudulent portrayal of one's command of the language.

i might write one during tuition, but...

yeah, i'm just lazy.

goondo dickheads series eps. 2

2008-09-17T22:05:00.002+08:00

here comes episode 2. however, i think this series is inappropriately named - it should be called pet peeves series. but most of the time my pet peeves have to do with goondo dickheads, so... i admit the relationship is rather forced.

today's goondo dickheads... no, it should be pet peeves... center around the favorite topic of many singaporeans: public transport.

public transport does not, in my opinion, include taxis. this is because they are nothing more than paid chauffeurs engaged by time-pressed people who have the necessary economic power to purchase their services but are largely still susceptible to jams and the phenomenon where "taxis are always around when you don't need them, but always not around when you need them the most."

we have heard of calls for raising the service standards and bus / train frequencies in the press. furthermore, with the spike in oil and thus, petrol prices (perhaps a little more "help" from COE), the authorities have been asking citizens to switch to public transport in order to help them cut down on the costs of living amidst rising inflation and a slowing economy.

i have no problem with rising inflation, but i have my doubts about a slowing economy. that is, if you look at it from a very broad perspective, singapore seems to be still doing ok - with the financial crises plaguing so many renowned financial institutions stealing the limelight in the headlines and all - moderate, steady GDP growth, with a rise in jobs available. wait - you ain't seen it all.

i was drafting a post on reading behind the numbers and statistics a few months back, but apparently the connection went bonkers on me and my draft was gone. i wasn't exactly excited to go back and complete it, but the main ideas would be reiterated here.

the latest figures show that there is a rise in the number of vacancies available in the private sector, but another report stated that an approximate 100 people are fighting for 87 jobs. that's right - a rise in jobs, but just not enough to go around. i'm pretty sure i'm in the 13 who happen to not receive part of the pie. so, i'm still frictionally unemployed (if you have no idea what this is, it simply means that i'm still unemployed, but i'm still looking for a job, so i form part of the "natural rate of unemployment." that's really "encouraging" because it means that my skill set is still relevant and i have not become depressed yet. i'm part of a statistic).

in any case, i should get back to the main topic before i drift to the pacific ocean. so what does the government's call for switching to public transport mean? from the corporations' point of view, it's more profits. from the consumers' - and therefore mine - it means congestion.

i would not even begin to say how congested it can get, because i think you know it pretty well. it's still endurable if you are traveling for short distances, need only a straight bus / change only once - the time waiting and the congestion, if any, are still bearable. however, it does not make any sense when frequencies are supposedly increased, then you still have to fight your way into a carriage, and realize that the time you need to travel to a place by MRT takes the same time if you take a straight bus - WTF is that?!

switching to public transport does have its benefits - you save on petrol, it's reliable, *quite* comfortable, and green (that's the buzzword). however, these benefits go poof! when you are stuck like canned sardines. then you have idiots shoving their large asses into the train and a lingering "aroma" in the trains - luckily for me, i am tall enough to tower above the others and hence, have the opportunity of getting some fresh air at the top. yes, the air up there is better. sometimes, there'll be air-con blowing in your face, too.

and when these benefits dissipate into the air like smoke, you contemplate if switching is a smart choice after all. i'm sure i'm speaking for many in the trains who do not yet own a car but would get one immediately once they have the means to do so... never mind the high petrol prices and steep COE. i'm getting a car and escaping from this BS the minute i can.

so it seems, it has come full circle. people switch to public transport, current users switch to private. i suppose the authorities have already taken this into account, and i speculate that their assumption is that, at the end of the day, the net change in public transport users would be positive - that is, there is more people switching to public than people switching to private.

i for one, is going to switch to private at first available opportunity. but i do not know much about cars, though i have a friend who does. at present, i'm thinking of a second-hand manual transmission - i just have not much idea how it costs, what i should be looking out for, and how i should go about acquiring one. the resale value is not exactly my top priority.

and now you ask, what's the goondo dickhead thing about this post? there isn't much actually, i merely thought that we are simply values in a numbers game - at least to the corporations and authorities - who excel, as usual, in calculation. i suppose the corporations would, like, estimate how many people there are at a given time at a given station, and decide how frequent the trains should come in order to maximize revenue. the whole process ought to be pretty complicated, with stats and linear programming and what-not.

which isn't really my concern... i'm still a user of public transport until the day comes when i don't really have to. that day, i get to choose if i want to take it.

no wonder many singaporeans aspire to having their own transport... it not only is a sign of success and accomplishment (prestige perhaps), but also signals the fact that they don't have to endure so much of that public transport BS.

goondo dickheads series eps. 1

2008-09-11T14:56:00.004+08:00

ok, this is a hate post. or rather, a series of it.

each episode in this series talks about one of my pet peeves. although i regard myself to be a pretty amicable person and tolerant of many things, i do have a list of things i hate that people do. and the good news (because each post will make the world a better place?) is that i will be blogging about these peeves.

today i will talk about one of them. human traffic impediments.

and these impediments are of course, people. the following examples illustrate how these people go about committing this pet peeve of mine.

you are walking down a cramped and crowded street / aisle / corridor / any type of walkway. the reasons for it being cramped and crowded can be many and are not listed here. you may or may not be in a hurry, but you will like to get past this crowd asap.

there may be merchandise / shops along this particular walkway and people are stopping by to browse through. ok, fine... there's no problem with that. the problem arises when you are so immersed with the merchandise that you start to forget that thisisaverycrampedwalkway and other people need to pass through, and you happen to choose such a strategic position that you are positioned in the middle of the walkway. it's worse when you have another person who's also browsing the stuff and taking up the side of the walkway.

well, so what's the big deal, you say. there's still space to walk through. yeah, there sure is, enough to let a cat stroll through. how bad is that? it wouldn't have been a problem if you are conscious that other people will like to pass through as well, but well, you don't. you're so immersed and so in-your-own-world that you forget other people exist. you need an impatient grunt of an "excuse-me" to wake up your idea. that's just great... than you scowl and roll eyes at the person who just needed your "kind" excuse and make a dumb comment.

alright, suppose now you are not in a hurry and so does the one in front of you. it's understandable if you are carrying a lot of stuff, pushing a trolley / baby cart, or slightly slower. that's ok. but please, be conscious (and courteous) to keep to the side. why do you have to make everybody slow down and pissed just because of your situation? people should exist not to trouble one another, but this world - there's just so many goondos around.

another example occurs frequently on escalators. there is an unspoken rule that you should keep to the left if you are not in a hurry, and keep the right side free for people who are in a rush. if you really want to stand on the right side, at least be kind enough (oh my, we even have to BEG these kind of people and endure their stupid nonsense) to make sure there's a free space between you and the immediate person behind you, who is so kind enough to be standing on the LEFT. give people a chance to move forward! again, the world's having too many goondos.

to quote a friend of mine (you know who you are) - and it goes something like this - there's only two things that's infinite: the universe and stupidity. yes, the latter especially - it is destructive enough to engulf the entire universe.

now, here comes both the good and bad news. let's start with the bad, since everybody likes it in that order. so here goes.

let's face it. you probably are one of those goondos who did these kinds of goondo-ish things before. or, even worse, you are still doing them now, just that you are not conscious of it. that's great, and perhaps i shall enlighten you, that you are in other people's eyes a goondo. that's a fascinating revelation, don't you think!

you are ignorant of what is happening around you, you do not give a shit about the environment, and you are just plain conscious only of your existence. that's cool, because you can do whatever you want, and nobody will say - they will just think - that you are downright a pure goondo. nobody's gonna point out to you that you are one, and you're lucky - because you can't really take the truth that you are actually dumb.

the good news? well, i've said it in my opening paragraph that this world is going to be a better place, only because you have read this post and are lucky enough to know that i will tell you how to stop behaving like a goondo. that's gonna add some points to you, and the better thing is, you don't have to pay or thank me for it. reducing this world by one goondo day by day is the most gratifying thing for me.

be alert of what is happening around you! be considerate. be conscious. know the unspoken rules. don't do unto others what you don't want others to do to you. are all these very hard things to do?

start practicing these stuff by telling yourself: i'm a goondo, i did all these stuff that used to piss people off, i'm not going to do them again. then follow the advice as laid out in the previous paragraph. TADA! don't you feel good now that you are making the world a better place than it was yesterday! well done!

just yesterday, i was on my way to my students' place at woodlands. in order to get there, i must change trains at jurong east station. people who need to change there know how ass-sucking it is to change trains at 6pm. that's the time when you actually have to squeeze in the train and fight to get into the slot.

fight is perhaps overrated. you need to move fast, that's what it is. however, i was already in that carriage and it was pretty packed - like 95% packed, so the remaining 5% is reserved for some breathing space between each passenger. if you take that and divide by 50 (average number of people in the carriage) you don't have much room for yourself.

now, the train door was about to close when someone - in fact, three of them - decided to maximize the use of the carriage's remaining space. so they decided to take that 5% for themselves and SHOVED their way into that carriage.

shoved is underrated. trampled is good.

whoa, thanks for helping SMRT to maximize the available space. you are not shareholders of that company, i hope. i certainly hope it is not because of your fortes - which is widely known in the world - that you can calculate at the speed of light the amount of space available and that you judge that there's sufficient space for you to get in. and just because singaporeans are *largely* polite people, they decide not to make a noise when you shoved your way in. thanks for "giving me a push" in the process.

i don't know if that's the way you did things in your hometown / country, but please, some things are best left at home. you are not culturally sensitive. heck, this is not even related to culture... this is basic courtesy. can't you wait for the next train or at least, politely ask to be excused. or perhaps you don't, because you speak a form of english that nobody really understands.

yeah, this is the result of an influx of foreign talent. today, we are talking about townships. what about tomorrow? of course, i'm not discounting the fact that singapore was once an immigrant country, but please... know your basic manners. i wonder if you are even properly educated - i suppose you did receive formal education (judging from your attire), which in your country is a bloody lucky thing to get, but apparently you fail terribly in the etiquette section.

goondo dickhead.

PS. there's no need to understand what goondo means, the-guy-who-shoved-me, no sir. you only need to understand the meaning of dickhead. which is pretty appropriate because you have a part of your body which isn't supposed to be at where it should be.

and when you start substituting your brains with your balls - good luck.

[no title]

2008-09-07T15:05:00.002+08:00

after weeks of neglect, and thanks to DK for reminding me that i still have a blog, here i am, ready to blog.

as you may have realized, most of my posts are pretty long, perhaps yawn-inducing, because i don't really talk about very random things. some of these things include stuff such as:

"i'm tired. going to sleep."

"what a shitty day. fuck."

one-liners and so on... you get the idea.

whenever i post, it usually contains stuff that i deem to have *some* interest - not to anyone in particular, just myself. it would often concern a recent issue in which i have several perspectives of my own to share. the issue could range from anything to everything - there's no "fixed" interest for me.

the point of blogging is to write something of interest and of sufficient value. that said, i would hardly blog for the sake of blogging, and i do know that people actually read my blog (as they reflect to me personally).

on top of that, there isn't anything major in my life right now that warrants a blog - i don't usually pen achievements or challenging situations, simply because i don't feel the need to. furthermore, life is pretty ok now except that it could do better with a job - that's my key gripe for this post, if you ask me.

plus, whenever i post, i would include it in my msn to state that there's a new post. saves the trouble of having to check all the time for updates.

and since blogger does not send notification emails to my friend list to tell them of a new post, which i know that multiply does, i thought that this is a subtle, non-intrusive way of telling people. the overt, bash-your-way through method of telling people is blasting.

anyone who has at least one email account knows of blasting. yeah - really irritating... a waste of bytes. blasted emails go into my deleted / junk folders anyway.

especially when you get blast / junk emails about the following:

1) there's a secret admirer in your neighborhood!
2) suffering from dysfunctional sex? click to get the latest drug!
3) you have won $100,000!
4) FWD: FWD: FWD: RE: RE: RE: RE: read this... touching.
5) FWD: FWD: FWD: RE: RE: RE: RE: Microsoft is giving out cash for beta-testers!

especially items 4 and 5. what kind of nonsense is circulating over the internet? bullshit!

for (4): the email usually ends with, "send this to as many people as you can! you must forward this email immediately to be blessed! if you send to 4 people, you will experience 1 blessing today, to 8 people, 2 blessings..." blah blah. *really*... i didn't know forwarding such emails will ensure me a blessing. the things people believe... or click... jeez.

for (5): the origin of this email is suspect. it dates back to 2005 or even earlier (WTF)? and people actually still forward it today and think they will get a fat cheque from Microsoft for beta-testing Windows XP???!!! it's VISTA already, dudes!

you know, all these kinds of emails just get more and more people to perpetuate false-truths and create junk emails, jamming up inboxes, devouring bandwidths and creating a whole world of BS.

i don't even know what to say anymore.

...

2008-08-14T22:20:00.002+08:00

holidays are further extended!

and that's a bad thing...

sucks big time.

at least it means that i can look forward to accepting that dream offer, which i hope will be given to me.

the date draws nearer... anticipation...

and my sleepless nights have not been haunting me for some time. i guess i found the trick to it.

works 100% of the time.

staying optimistic...

2008-07-27T22:54:00.002+08:00

i admit that i'm a pretty optimistic person, but life has its ups and downs.

some major things to think about... and when you think enough of them, it turns to anxiety, stress and frankly, some sleepless nights.

my definition of sleepless nights is when i don't fall asleep until 2 hrs from the time i hit the bed, and during that time, my brain is usually in a flurry of activity.

i know, everything's gonna turn out great... well there's just some things that will haunt you no matter what.

and when one goes down, another comes to take its place... neverending spiral!

self-motivation and encouragement can only go so far. some positive words from friends will definitely help and go a really, really long way.

at least 3 major things... don't even get me started.

what i do know is that some things work better with luck, but not just relying on luck...

foresee a few more strands of white hair. cutting them away, sadly, doesn't remove the worrying stuff.

p.s. thinking of may help more. so far it's been working. oh well.

updates...

2008-07-22T22:35:00.003+08:00

haven't really been updating my blog for a couple of weeks.

only this morning had i been attending my very own convocation - it wasn't really something that i looked forward to, but because it was a once-in-a-lifetime thing, i guess its something you gotta go thru...

it was about 2 hours in all... and i waited till the very last 15 min before i went up to collect my stuff. the whole thing was quite formal, though it was quite long and...

dun think i wanna talk abt it now when i'm too zzz.

another time.

好久没听到的好声音。。。

2008-07-09T22:52:00.003+08:00

最近，不知何故，又积极地寻找一把许久未听到的好声音。

可能是因为在电视节目上观看到此人，让我想起了他所唱过的歌。

大家如果听到此人的歌，在看到此人在电视上滑稽的表演，必定想到：

这人臃肿的样貌，似乎与他歌手的身份起不了对比，做不了挂钩。

其实，并不是他的身份，而是他所擅长的歌曲的曲类。

如果没有记错，应该是自红孩儿单飞后，自己闯出一片属于自己的风格与音乐世界。

此人乃张克帆。

从小就已经听过他的歌曲，大多是情歌。只因当时年纪小，未尝过爱情的酸与甜，苦与乐，所以歌曲倒是会哼一两句，其中的意义就不太能了解。

今时不同往日，岁月的磨练，是能彻彻底底改变一个人的世界观。

姑且不说这一人的世界观是如何，因为这不是我想说的话题。

若要问是何时开始真正去品味他的歌，应该是2005的下半年。

歌曲似乎预言了一件事，那时候也是个非常时期。细节就不说了，相信认识我较深的人会知道我在说的事。

有一首歌，完全地诠释了我当时的感受。现在细细品味，字字句句，吻合到了极点。

这首歌，就是〈〈结局〉〉。

从头到尾，没有一句话不反映了我的心情，我的内心话。

如今听起来，倒不是一首不好听的歌。Youtube却找不到这首歌的MV。也罢。。。

应该不只我一人对这首歌有着那么深切的感受吧。。。细节可能不同，但。。。

结局还是一样的。

textbook answers.

2008-06-17T21:42:00.002+08:00

recently, on a sunny island there were two incidents of interest.

the thread of commonality running through these two incidents is that the authorities concerned have their key responsibilities related to security.

granted, one of the incidents pertained more to security than the other. the other incident, in this case, was more rooted in health and safety issues.

the first incident depicted the unsuccessful attempts by convicts to escape, literally, from trial. there was some assault on the security officers, and they almost got away - though they did not.

reminiscent of an incident that happened last year and caused a major ripple amongst the citizens, government and the region in general.

the second incident saw the deaths of two youngsters, the flames of their lives snuffed out by a sudden cardiovascular failure. this is not the first time servicemen lost their lives during training. this is something that happens in our time, as it did in our fathers'.

we have had servicemen dying from POW training and rappelling already. the half-marathon and plane crash incidents cannot be exactly classified as training and so they are not included here.

the bigger issue here is not simply if the medical professionals should carry out more sophisticated tests during the medical checkup. it is also not an issue of knowing what the training schedule is going to be like.

effectively, to know the training schedule, asking around people who have went through it would be very much qualified to relate their personal experiences and comments about it. most things do not change - there will still be physical training and tests, marksmanship, field survival, route marches... the lot.

how would knowing the schedule prepare the prospective enlistee? it is not as if the training objectives, procedures and what-not would be readily apparent to the layman (considering that he has yet to step into the system), nor would they be even to people who have finished the said training and passed out.

it is not as if there would be numerical figures for each training program that states how much pressure it would have on the cardiovascular system, how much energy it is expected to use, how much risk it would entail - these are not just "too medical" for any of the trainees, but i would expect only people who are medically-trained to be able to understand the implications of such figures.

the bigger issue here, then, is to consider the possibility that such cardiovascular failures may not be just a military issue - recall that sometime in june last year, a RJC student collapsed after a marathon, again attributable to the said heart failure. not sure if it belongs to the same family of failures though - am not doctor.

that is, the problem would be to investigate if the population at large is susceptible to this attack - which i believe it is - and the possible remedies and preemptive measures that are adequate for circumventing the occurrence of such attacks in the future.

in any case, the point of this entry is not to talk about the details of the incidents, or what kind of solutions may be suggested for consideration.

the point of the affair is that the population at large received somewhat textbook answers as replies to the occurrence of these two incidents.

for the first incident, it was:

"i've come to this place very often, and hence, i'm very familiar with the security procedures here. it shouldn't have happened. but now that it should, we should ask ourselves what we could do about it."

when i heard this reply, it was... what the...?

sorry dude, i don't think you need a first class honors person to say the same thing.

the second incident:

"we didn't find anything wrong with the safety and training procedures. however, this incident is a good time to alert both commanders and servicemen to the potential risks. medical procedures are better than it used to be, and training standards have not been relaxed, though our servicemen are less rugged than previous batches."

same comments apply. no first class honors needed.

my personal take on these two issues:

1) well, the question of what can be done has already been posed and it is also possible that what can be done has already been done / still being done. because these two incidents are linked to national and homeland security, it is reasonable that certain aspects cannot be revealed to the public on the basis that security may be compromised. that said, what has to be done - the internal audits and reviews - should have been progressing for a while for now.

2) well, we sure need the audits and reviews to be in place. however, by what standards or benchmarks are we basing these processes upon? are there internationally-recognized systems and standards that can be adhered to, and modified to suit local context? and if the standards are modified, is it possible to raise the standards to ensure a higher level of safety?

for example, we have the blood-alcohol concentration of 80mg of alcohol / 100ml of blood legal limit for drivers. is it possible to raise the standard here - in this case, to raise the limit by reducing the BAC to a lower figure, say 70mg? i'm just stating this as an example. i guess the 80mg mark is the standard which, when exceeded, would cause the driver to have unsatisfactory control and judgment with the vehicle.

3) though the replies do not make any difference to what has occurred, they must still be said. i guess that's what the general public is like - they are always dissatisfied with the explanations put forth by the authorities when something goes wrong. but these words still has to be said, regardless... that's politics for you.

at the end of the day, people vote with their hearts, not their minds. this statement i read somewhere in comment for the presidential race in the US.

that's pretty reasonable - can anyone attach a quantitative value to say, early return for troops? affordable healthcare? income distribution in favor of the poor / middle-class? economic reforms? reparation and reinforcement of bilateral ties? introduction of foreign policies that aim at long-term reduction of instability and civil strife in volatile regions?

its not as if one can have a value for each proposed change (that one can believe in) , sum them up (doing the same for all candidates) and arrive at two or more figures. then, compare, and see which is higher. then vote for the one with the higher score.

don't think that works!

almost...

2008-06-09T20:46:00.002+08:00

usually, over the weekends, i would stay over at my grandparents' place. for two good reasons.

1) it is generally more comfortable than my own home.

2) having said that, it means i'm under no restriction or curfew - well, i'm not facing any limits anyway, but the comfort factor is often the key in deciding where to stay over the weekend.

staying over is free - except for certain situations, where i have to help my grandfather out with some manual labor. the helping part is kind of the rent i pay, though i willingly oblige.

these manual labor usually include tasks out in the garden. considering that my grandfather is well over 80, it is no surprise that i'm asked to help out. now, some facts about him:

though 80, he drives like he's 18. this translates to (somewhat) reckless changing of lanes, jamming the brakes, and weaving in and out of heavy traffic.

he still has black hair. i have no idea how he manages that.

his temper is still fiery, though somewhat subsided compared to when i was young.

nevertheless, i was asked to climb on a ladder and help remove some dead leafs and twigs that were clogging a large "canvas roof" which is directly under the largest tree in the garden - our mango tree. the mangoes are generally sour... perhaps the weather and soil conditions do not allow for sweet mangoes. the tree is there "for display."

and so i climbed up the ladder, which is chained to one of the canvas' metal poles. the poles, all four of them, are L-shaped. the ladder is chained to one of the poles via a metal ring chain wound around the pole and one of the rungs. this would mean that it is secure, but not safe for climbing.

how could i miss that? my brain only told me that it was secure, and then it assumed that it was safe for me to climb. i climbed to a height of about 1.5m, and adding my height to it, my head reached about 3.3m.

frankly speaking, falling from 1.5m is no big deal. however, as i was clearing the dead vegetation halfway, the ladder "slipped" and i was hanging mid-air, holding tight to one of the metal poles that formed the roof's structure. for that split second, there was no fear of falling at all. no fear of anything at all.

what's the reason? i couldn't figure it out at all.

balls of steel?

i climbed to a nearby trunk of that mango tree and slowly got down. when my maid asked me if there was anything that happened to me, i replied, "only mosquito bites."

hmmm.

that's just a reminder to get me to pay attention to such tasks in the future.

PS. hmmm... i wonder how it's going right now. nah... just very random.

hotpot culture @ marina square - 050608

2008-06-06T12:39:00.002+08:00

i don't know if you have been there before, but just my personal comments here.

perhaps, first, i should let you read what my friend, who went with me, wrote. it was very critical and rather humorous, the way the service and whole experience was depicted.

the link here... you can read it now, or later.

http://blueodyssey.multiply.com/journal/item/429/Something_to_take_note...

my purpose yesterday was to take some time to have a little celebration - first, for my own results and second, my graduation - finally. of course, i went there with a happier-than-usual mood, and that meant that i was more tolerant of substandard service. not that it was wrong to voice out your displeasure about service that sucks... there was the 10% service charge, so you have all the rights to complain if the service does not meet your expectations.

the hotpot's ingredients were basically no different from what you would get in a normal steamboat buffet like the ones at beach road / liang seah street area. however, the additional perk was a free flow of a la carte dishes... not really a perk considering that you paid for it fair and square.

the whole dining process was acceptable. the broth - or, MSG cube in hot water, as i called it - was, in accordance with what DK (the blogger for the link provided above) has said, thirst-inducing. i suspected that they used knorr brand soup cubes (or maggi, i have no idea because i only had knorr soup cubes in my own steamboat at home before). but i have no objections against such ready-made broths.

the most interesting thing of the whole lunch affair was perhaps the fact that the table besides us sat a lady who was completely dissatisfied with what has happened. my guess was that they ordered things that did not came - worse if the item was ordered twice and / or specific instructions were given to the service staff over there and they took no heed.

well, these two things happened to us.

item ordered twice - yeah, the shiitake mushroom affair. it's still, in both DK's judgment and mine, growing in japan.

specific instructions - no heed to it. this would have been acceptable if it was the hectic lunch hour, but no-no if it was around 1 plus, when the only customers were students like us, or people taking a leisurely lunch. though now, i'm not entitled to call myself a student.

i'm less critical of the part about the service staff asking us if we could converse in mandarin. that is perfectly fine with me, though personally, if i was a service staff, i would converse with the customer first in english, then if the situation requires another language / dialect, i would gladly oblige. that includes even my very broken hokkien.

i'm more concerned about service staff receiving little / no / inappropriate training in serving customers. granted, the language part was excusable - though, in singapore, it is reasonably expected that service staff at least be able to speak conversational - not competent - english. as any sensible service organization would know, the official language in singapore is english. given this fact, it would not be tolerable from the average customer's point of view to have service staff who cannot take orders / ask in english.

anyway, the lady that was previously mentioned did not make a big hoo-haa, but did proceed to reprimand the service leader about the poor service. of course, no obscenities or vulgarities were exchanged, but it was a tense moment. the service leader then got another round from our table.

key reasons were:

1) ordered item did not arrive - please tell the customer if it was out of stock, or in the midst of preparation, and some time is needed. and by preparation, it means that it was already in the kitchen, undergoing washing / cutting. thawing is not acceptable. and so does things like still growing in some other country / on the plane / lying in the warehouse.

2) insufficient chocolate for the fondue - no comments for this.

3) waiting too long for item(s) to arrive - suppose you are willing to wait a maximum of 10 minutes for your food to arrive. anything beyond that you start to feel irritated, agitated and cranky. it is a signal that nobody cares about you at all.

so the classic line yesterday was:

"I don't want to see the 10% service charge on my bill later."

which, of course, despite the service leader's attempt to pacify us with ice-cream, materialized. that was about a total of $6 savings for the three of us. and many apologies, too.

we did pay for our GST, of course. however, we didn't get to see the manager, whom we suspect instructed the service leader not to summon just because a customer wishes to see the manager. we went even a little abroad to speculate that the manager was busy playing solitaire, msn-ing or surfing *certain* sites... but that was just a little mischief on our part.

i was slightly displeased with the service, but it was mitigated by my "graduated - already" mood. NOT "graduating lor" mood. big difference.

well, that's what happened. am sure not to patronize that place again... the visit would be my "one night stand" with the outlet.

this is it.

2008-06-06T10:54:00.001+08:00

Tan Shi Cong, BBus (Hons)

that's right, after 3 *seemingly* long years.

leona lewis - better in time + another entry

2008-05-28T23:13:00.002+08:00

oops... apparently the link to the video didn't work as expected. so here, check out the actual hyperlink instead:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=VrNoDUblAtE

it should be the one with the best audio and video quality.

thanks to MF for pointing this out over dinner today.

this song is ideal both as a pleasurable piece of music to listen to, and is sure to rake up in people bittersweet memories of a love once possessed yet lost. it does talk about some recovery from all that heartbreaking moments but it's frankly more on the pain.

in any case, whether you be one 1) seeking love, 2) recovering from a shattered relationship, 3) blessedly in a blissful union or 4) not in any of the above, this song is a must-listen.

met up with my primary school friend today for indiana jones 4 and dinner over at cathay / PS. yup, primary school friend... that's some long long history.

i always thought it's nice for somebody to still remember you after so many years, when so many things have happened and so many people have come and go.

over dinner, it was the usual - there was some catching up on the times since graduating from primary school (12 years to talk about!) and of course, what each one of us is doing currently / planning to do in the near future.

yeah, i learned that my memory is actually quite good - was able to recall many of the things that happened, even if they happened back in primary school. somehow my memory's geared to remember everything that was done, was said, was heard... no this does not apply to my studies.

that might work hand-in-hand with my own horoscope. yup, it's that horoscope that does not forget an attack, an insult... and then, when it is least expected, a retaliatory attack is unleashed. but i don't really like to dig up old stuff, or old wounds... just not my taste or style of doing things.

yup, that's the one... two pincers and a tail. usually not eaten. lives in deserts... ok, enough clues.

having said thus, the evening was pretty enjoyable. the movie kicked it off to a good start - i strongly recommend watching indiana jones 4 even if you have not watched a single film from that series; it is worth your money, though you may not be able to link some of the references made to previous indiana movies. but it does not affect much.

about the money part - don't claim anything from me because the movie's great. not that i would entertain you anyway.

i couldn't finish the pork ribs that i ordered even though i was super hungry... the size of it filled me up instantly (at least half of my appetite).

still, it was fun.

well, i'm knocking out soon. ja.

何谓成功?

2008-05-24T21:23:00.002+08:00

何谓成功?

首先, 我们可从以下几个出发点来探讨这个名词的所谓定义.

一) 当我们谈成功二字时, 我们谈的是哪方面的成功? 学业? 事业? 净资产? 家庭? 个人 /人生等方面的成功?
二) 是否需以某种标准来衡量一个人可否称得上是成功的呢?
三) 最后,说的是短期的, 还是长期的成功?

第一点

若谈的是个人 / 人生方面的成功, 这总会与学业, 事业和家庭脱不了干系. 毕竟, 如果谈到个人 / 人生之时, 这两者是较为笼统的. 当我们判断一个人是否成功之时, 经常会涉及到那一人的学业, 事业与家庭. 若是单单只从学业, 事业与家庭这三个(相对之下)较有特定规范的领域决定一个人是否成功, 我们就必须设下某种衡量的标准. 这也是第二点所要探讨的.

第二点

虽然我并没有做出正式的研究与考察, 逻辑会告诉我们, 每一个人对成功的定义是不同的.基于这一点, 社会对成功的定义也是不同的. 话虽如此, 社会大至上会设下一种似是而无的标准. 为何如此?

原因就在于社会里的每一个人都对成功持着不同的定义. 若以学业为例, 那么以下极可能是不同人口中所谓成功的定义:

学业上的成功可以是...

- 每一科考取一定的分数;
- 大专毕业时,考取某个荣誉学位;
- 履历表上, 考取学士, 硕士或博士等学位;
- 在班级内, 考获某一个排名;
- 等等.

如果对成功不能有一个共同的定义 / 标准, 那我们该何从下手来决定如何衡量一个人是否成功呢? 我们是否该采取社会所订下的标准呢? 我们必须记得, 社会能提供的只是一个模糊的概念. 这并不能帮我们达到我们要追求的目的.

切记! 社会的观点不一定就是正确的观点 (我们都知道, 提高人民的消费能刺激经济, 但我们在大量消费时, 是否隐约助长一种社会风气 - 无谓的物质追求和浪费呢?). 有时候, 人是很主观的 - 基于这一点, 我们就不能使用社会所提供的观点作为我们的标准. 我们所需的是一个客观的观点; 况且, 加上其它的因素, 如文化, 思想等, 我们不可能达到一个国际认可的标准, 因为个个社会所发展的程度与信仰是截然不同的.

即使能设下某种标准, 我们是否能准确无误地衡量呢? 在某所大学学府所考取的文凭是否与其他学府的成对比呢? 校方是否愿意提供每一位莘莘学子的排名呢? 须了解的是, 在这个大量提倡透明度和透明化的时代里, 某些方面还不是彻底的透明的.

第三点

最后, 要说的是短期 / 长期的成功. 我们都听过 "小时了了, 大未必佳" 这一句话. 意思浅浅, 今天的成功并不代表明日一个人的成功. 可以知道的是, 我们须以今天的成功, 作为我们迈向下一个成功里程碑的基础. 我们所该看的是长远的成功, 因为旁人不会一直以一样的所谓标准及眼光来判断一个人的成功. 简单的来说, 一个理性的人不会单单以一个人在学校或前一份工作的表现来决定成功的. 他们所要看的, 是长年累月赫赫的战绩!

结论

综上所述, 成功是没有一定的定义的. 固执的强辩只会让人贻笑大方, 并显出自己的幼稚及愚蠢. 还有一点必须提到的是, 当事人也会有自己成功的定义和标准, 这两者也不是永恒不变的. 它们会随着时间的过去, 不同的人生阶段, 与及当事人所向往的目标而改变.

我们活在世上的目的虽然不免是为了别人而活, 但我们必须在看似杂乱无章, 匆匆的生命中, 找回一片属于自己的东西, 一片自己专属的天空 - 而这一片天空, 就是最当初我们本身最想做的事情, 最想到达的终点. 我相信这就是一个人存在的真正意义: 让自己的生命有自己独特的价值.

hahahahaha

2008-05-23T22:19:00.003+08:00

yup, that's the reaction i made from looking at what my teachers wrote about me back in pri / sec / jc. and, of cos, those grades. oh my.

just for laughs, think i'll post them up. alignment sucks.

pri sch

year semester class position conduct teacher's comment
1 1 3 / 34 A neat in work / has done well / keep it up
1 2 5 / 31 B has done well / keep it up
2 1 - not shown - good vocal person / neat and consistent in work
2 2 13 / 35 A neat and consistent in work / quick in grasping concepts
3 1 - not shown - good hardworking / must read more books to improve english
3 2 18 / 38 good has done quite well / keep working hard
4 1 - not shown - good cheerful and active pupil
4 2 - not shown - good performed well in exam / keep up the good work
5 1 10 / 35 fair capable of better results / active imagination / must learn to work well in a group
5 2 14 / 35 fair expresses himself well / has keen sense of humor / quite
individualistic at times / should try to participate more in
class discussions
6 1 14 / 26 v. good polite and well-behaved / definitely has potential to do better
/ continue to strive for better results
6 2 8 / 26 v. good aim for A* at psle / well-mannered and pleasant

note: in p6, the class position was based on ranking within students taking HCL only. did not incl. whole class. looking at the results i got in p6 and converting them into the 300 mark standard (for psle), i got more or less the same as my actual psle mark. hmmm.

yeah, learn to work well in a group and stop being individualistic (p5). participate more, huh... humorous. pleasant... well-mannered and polite. that sounds like me 12 years down the road... like now! good conduct some more.

sec sch

year semester class position conduct teacher's comment
1 1 29 / 40 v. good achieved creditable grades in eng and sci / keep up the good
work
1 2 33 / 40 fairly good capable of producing better results if less talkative and
playful in class

ok, here i need to break for a moment. see the drastic drop in class position and performance? my mom, at that time, actually threatened to change my school. to gan eng seng sec (lucky, never go there). yeah... and the drop in conduct. see attached comment. the reason was that in my first year at MSHS, i had 4 different form teachers... that's right. 4. and the last one was smoky. hot and pretty... lol.

i was one of her pets then. so-called, as there was often a group of boys (me incl) hanging around with her... oh my. i still remembered her. driving her daddy's merz to sch on a sat morn clad in a white polo tee and blue denim skirt. i think most of the guys in the class became wolves overnight. and so did many others in the school... they must be cursing us at being such lucky bastards.

2 1 34 / 36 v. good (none)
2 2 33 / 36 good displays right attitude towards studies / applies himself well

now, that made no sense at all! since i had the right attitude, you're telling me that i advanced only ONE position? and to think that, i actually can fail my maths in my streaming year and ACTUALLY get a-maths in sec 3? WTF?!

3 1 13 / 30 v. good (none)
3 2 14 / 30 v. good quiet and honest student / shown some improvement in final
exam / still, room for improvement

yeah, honest because i found a cashcard in the toilet and returned it to my form teacher. should have kept it.

and, did better because after streaming, the composition of the class was tended towards the worse. and in sec 3, i failed all my subjects except languages - not too shabby eh! and still, position no. 14. how could that be?

4 1 15 / 31 (none) (none)
4 2 (none) (none) (none)

testimonials... another time. and so are the grades for jc.

every year from sec 1 - 3 inclusive, my grades were so spectacular that my form teachers invited my parents to school just so that they could show my parents my achievements. and, along that, they would ask the following questions:

1) does your son study at home?

2) do you supervise your son when he is studying?

to which my mom would reply:

1) yes

2) yes

somehow, this combination of answers made my teachers puzzled. if it was a different combination, what would they have said? note that it is only because the answer to q1 was yes that's why q2 was like that. and q3 was:

3) then why did your son perform thus?

to which my mom would reply (after meeting my teacher in sec 1, she kinda rehearsed it and prepared it as the standard textbook answer):

oh, we stay very far away from sch... that's why, when he's home, he's too tired to study (then when did i ever study?) and we're not very highly educated, so we don't really know what he studies in sch (then where's the so-called supervision)?

talk about conflicting statements. but this answer did answer q3 v well... dun u think??

lol.

苏慧伦 - 被动

2008-05-22T11:31:00.001+08:00

is quite an old song, but nice to listen to nevertheless.

however, i just can't seem to take tarcy seriously... most likely it's because of the lemon tree song.

first interview

2008-05-20T18:59:00.002+08:00

first interview today. a quick summary...

location: tanjong pagar

position: marketing & sales executive

interview result: offer

status: unconfirmed

after action review: "if it's too good to be true, it usually is."

learning points:

1) know the company well: do thy research.

2) check the resume you sent to that company: if you are like me and mass-produce your cover letters / resumes with some cut-and-paste, not much to look out for. be prepared to answer questions about your letter /resume.

3) have some definitive areas which you know you are interested in. even in marketing, there are many different components of it. be specific - branding? A&P? services marketing? retail?

4) the job outlines as advertised in the media is never detailed nor specific. asking intelligent questions like the following may help:

where is the company going?
how is it going to get there?
what time frame is it looking at?
what business model is it adopting?
what sets the company apart in terms of its product / service offerings to its customers?
how does my role contribute to the objectives set out by the company?

of course, this list is not exhaustive. remember, as much as the company is looking out for prospective employees from the pool of candidates, you are also looking out for prospective employers from the pool of candidate companies.

not only are you marketing yourself, companies are also marketing themselves, attempting to attract the best.

5) estimate your market value: my current approach is to look at the minimum salary offered to employed persons with calibre similar to yours; data from kelly services should suffice. then, assign a monetary value to areas in which you are different from other candidates (i.e. your points of differentiation) and add these values to the minimum salary, thereby arriving at a final figure.

there's no textbook answer to this. perhaps an easier way is to determine if you are closer to the minimum / maximum salary figures, the mid-point, or anywhere else. somewhere along the continuum is where you stand; having a rough gauge creates a mental cut-off point for job offers not meeting your expectations (this works on the assumption that you are evaluating jobs on a salary basis).

if the company is open to negotiations, you may attempt to negotiate your salary towards your desired level. during the negotiations, highlight the reasons why you deserve a higher salary: the points of differentiation should be helpful here.

6) bring a pen!

frankly, i'm writing these points as i experienced them during my interview today. whether it's true or not, i've no idea...

but these shouldn't be taken "as is!" don't get me for misrepresentation.

which reminds me, i was recalling what i learnt in business law during the interview... about contracts, offer and acceptance...

well... accept? i was asked this question. apparently, the interviewer wanted to get an answer out of me.

what did i reply?

"i have the answer in my mind."

so what's that answer? no prizes for guessing it right.

many happenings...

2008-05-14T22:12:00.002+08:00

in a little less than two weeks we have two natural disasters that ravaged the lives of many.

heaven bless the souls of those who perished in these unfortunate incidents, and bless even more so the ones who lived on to witness the harsh reality of their loved ones' passing.

yes, i'm talking about myanmar and sichuan, china.

the common thing running between these two countries, apart from the fact that they were hit by nature's wrath, was their rejection of foreign aid personnel into their borders.

i'm not so concerned about china because i have faith in their abilities to deal with a public health hazard. the very least is that they have a dedicated armed forces devoted to the rescue and liberation of victims.

with president wen's personal visit to the site, this comes as a morale booster - both to the victims and rescue personnel. it has also been reported that he was adamant that the victims be evacuated quickly and safely; supposedly, he barked orders at military personnel to save the victims at all cost, reasoning that:

"it's the people who's feeding you - you see how it gets done!"

comparing this to the military government over at myanmar - the junta reportedly kept foreign rescue teams away, siphoned the better foreign aid for themselves, imprint the commanders' insignia on the aid boxes as a form of propaganda, and make no efforts to conceal the fact that they are going to bias the votes in favor of Than Shwe in the upcoming elections, whether the votes are for or against him.

bastards.

a natural disaster does not culminate with ravaged landscapes or corpses. the true aftermath of disasters of such magnitude is the public health hazard that threatens the lives of those lucky to be alive.

take myanmar for example: with death tolls on the rise and corpses floating around, these are conditions favorable for the propagation of disease. furthermore, with all that water, water-related diseases are bound to start crawling their way into the cramped refugee camps and quarters. malaria and diarrhea, i'm afraid, are beginning to inflict themselves on the burmese.

let's hope that these two asian neighbours get over their woes soon, and begin the long and painstaking process of rebuilding homes, rebuilding lives.

oops, i almost forgot the US. prayers for them, too.

and, this sounds really cliche, but for those who perished - the only hope is that the process was instantaneous and hence, painless (or at least kept to a minimum).

technically, there's no difference because the result is the same: they're gone.

if it only helps to lessen the pain suffered by the living, a difference frame of reference might just help.

tonight, i shall sleep with my heart keeping a vigil for the victims of nature's rage.

a gathering of many hellos and farewells.

2008-05-02T00:54:00.003+08:00

gatherings are always good times to have some unrestricted and senseless fun.

they also are times where you understand people beyond your usual contact with them.

and today, it was a time of hellos and farewells.

hellos in that it was a great time, with much laughter and recollection of fond memories.

and farewells as we move on to the next phase of our lives, united by common heritage and experience.

farewells are not exactly goodbyes, though they are often said when we say goodbye.

broken into its root words, farewells are just what they are - fare well.

fare well, in future endeavours.

fare well, in life.

and fare well (instead of farewells) to the friends i met up with today, and all whom i know and know me.

had dinner with three of my friends, whom i knew previously as project group mates to people i can really talk all kinds of stuff about. a common tutorial class / group was what brought us together, though i admit we held beyond just mere project partnerships.

i'm sure we'll meet up again one day, when we will then share the latest happenings in our lives. but for now, here goes my fare wells (order does not indicate preference or importance):

jasmine: for the long chats over msn on late weekday nights, thanks for being my confidante in certain matters and teaming up with me for the cerebos competition. every bit of effort and sweat from you is deeply appreciated. though the champion cup was not ours to keep, it sure was memorable and sincere wishes for your career and relationship ahead.

chai ling: for being downright frank and funny, thanks for keeping me ever on an alert state as you perk me up with your well-meant sarcasm. there is nothing i would like to say except to keep your wits with you at all times and stay sharp and focused. i do hope things will turn out perfect at the end of the day but there is no harm in "opening your eyes wide."

erienne: for being an excellent study mate and mixed pot of candies (colorful, vibrant and sweet), thanks for your witty comments and valuable tips on a very interesting topic. great job done in getting my lazy ass off the chair to join the cerebos competition, and a wonderful outcome it was (though not the champions but it's alright). what else can i say? enjoy your trip!

till then.

p.s. it wasn't needed, but it sure came in handy. over the long trip home i made up my mind - first i'll sleep it off, then do what i have to do.

i thought it was going to be a surprise, but it wasn't exactly what i expected. in any case, it wasn't about admiration at all - but it doesn't matter now.

finale.

2008-04-16T16:00:00.002+08:00

yes - finale.

a good-bye to school, perhaps a good-bye to exams as well.

anyway, passing school exams just means that you passed one of life's many tribulations...

i'm pretty bored with studying... and for the fact that i have not been posting anything for quite some time, it's time to get cracking at my blog!

an exam in less than an hour's time... why still typing?! it's those kind of moments when you think you studied much for a test, and you think you knew everything, and you just need to take a break.

it's the moment right now.

off-hand i cannot think of anything to write except to say that everything's been pretty ok for the past few weeks, though exams has caused me to lose some weight (wishful thinking on my part) but so far, no sleepless nights.

why would i have sleepless nights anyway?

i ought to stop here... this entry isn't remotely interesting compared to my previous blogs.

how much does a gal's bag weigh?

2008-04-03T21:13:00.002+08:00

ever wondered what sits inside those fantastic bags that (almost) all gals carry?

and how much does it weigh, on average?

read on...

was flipping through a magazine out of pure boredom when i stumbled upon an article that talked about gals' bags. not backpacks, not haversacks. handbags.

handbags of all types, of all material, of all brands.

and, surprisingly, the average bag weighs 2.8 kg!

how much is that?

1) it weighs roughly the same as a laptop
2) it is the weight of the "wives" many SG guys have. their trusty rifles... the M16s (i still used M16 during my time), when unloaded, weigh around that range. except that the whole thing's weight is distributed throughout, is not exactly my wife, and is totally redundant.

was wondering what are the magical things that go into these wonderful, mysterious items holder. so i decided to think of a list (by no means exhaustive!) of the possible stuff inside there.

some things, first, though:

1) there is no such thing as an unimportant or unnecessary item in the gal's bag. everything is crucial. EVERYTHING!

- comparing to my own green bag (my field pack) which has everything that is unimportant and unnecessary. perhaps the toiletries and accessories packs are marginally important... but why would i open them to use them when i have the stuff i need unpacked, in better condition and in better quality.

2) the 2.8 kg may or not include the weight of the bag inside. yes, the bag as it is, without anything inside. well, not really... maybe just lots and lots and lots of pockets to store stuff.

- my goal is to go to school without a bag or folder. and the pockets i have are on my pants. no where else.

3) the stuff listed below may or not be present when you check a gal's bag (if you are "bestowed" the "privilege") but you can be sure that at some time, it was / is going to be present.

4) the fact that there is a list does not mean that i am sorting them according to priority. remember, EVERYTHING IS IMPORTANT! frankly, i should not even number them because all the items are in position 1.

- for the sake of readability i will number them.

(taking a long deep breath) here goes!

1) make-up kit #1: contains foundation and mirror. for touching up before that hot date.

2) make-up kit #2: contains brushes, lip gloss, mascara and eye-related cosmetics. for livelier eyes and etc. seduction power!

3) handphone: for sms-es, calls, and endless photo-taking.

4) keys: house keys, car keys, keys to a gal's drawers and lockers containing secrets.

5) wallet: cards, cash, coins, receipts and photos.

6) camera: photo-taking anytime, anywhere. made easy with this fantastic gadget.

7) water bottle: hot weather is never a problem with a bottle of hydrogen-hydrogen-oxygen.

8) jacket: keeps out the freeze!

9) book: or reading material, in general. probably has books from the sweet valley series, but now upgraded to novels like PS I love you or shopping-related books. romance stories keep gals's morale up in finding prince charming, while shopping-related novels satisfy a desire to shop but lack the necessary (financial) resources to do so. magazines like her world and vogue keep the gals in touch with the latest fashion, sales, and insights (hah!) into men.

10) tissue #1: the real type. cleans up a mess, wipes the restaurant table and toilet seat clean. wiping mouths after a meal works well too... no wiping of sweat because gals don't really sweat.

11) tissue #2: the special type. keeps the irritaing but always-happening thing away. many variants from heavy to light (not in weight! absorbing power!)

12) mp3 player: something to keep the long train and bus rides bearable. is the first thing to ditch when possessing own car, or have a bf who is driving.

13) perfume: never too good to smell bad.

14) medicine: to keep cramps and dizzy spells away. panadols are like the most miraculous thing on earth!

15) shades: the SG sun is merciless, better to keep eyes protected and at the same time, look way more cooler, classy and glamourous.

16) plasters: for days with high heels on. this comes under medicine by definition though.

17) accessories: what's a gal without her bling-blings?

18) extra pair of shoes: never a good idea to walk around in those 3 or 6-inches. by carrying the high heels prior to the hot date, wear a pair of flat-heeled shoes first. then, switch to power shoes and voila! more elegant!

19) umbrella: why waste money on sunscreen or sunblock where this wonderful thing keeps out the sun and acts as a good weapon against bad guys? the money can be better spent on the next dress! or shoes! or make-up! or hairdo! or manicure / pedicure! or... of course, the next bag!

simply amazing!

and i'm sure i have not listed out everything...

i sure need some training... so that i can carry that all-unimportant field pack of mine which weighs much more than 2.8kg and never for any practical purpose except to tire me and make me wish i was somewhere else.

shall add more items if i can think of them.

friends are welcome to add any ideas!

it doesnt make any sense.

2008-03-12T21:26:00.002+08:00

of why i need to go thru print ads that took up half the pages available in the magazine before i can even reach a column.

gucci, prada, aldo, kerastase, d&g, chanel... etc etc. either bags or clothes. or heels. or fragrances.

the only ad for a guy is a ralph lauren fragrance. and i suppose its a gift for him from her.

good choice of gift, given that men are often endowed with the smell of manliness (to women), or, to me, the putrid stink that's readily available on public transport anytime the sun has risen to signal midday.

oh gosh.

was kinda complaining this to my friend today in class. then, another friend of mine, said that it's going to be what i do in the future... that is, a career in marketing communications.

perhaps, but i'm never really into marcom.

but gals' money has always been pretty easy to earn. that is, if you offer something that tickles their fancy, like the killer heels. or tube. or scarf. or bag.

and, that is, if they choose you among the myraid choices that is already available and competing with yours.

geez.

but the magazine is fun to read in that, apart from the massive number of ads that almost drowned me, i was looking at some of the articles they had in it. the very first that i read was an article on sex.

talked about sex from guys' and gals' perspectives.

then, shortly after, some stuff on men. presumably, something along the line like "how to get that cute guy's attention" or "how to drop hints." etc.

totally hilarious. i didn't know gals think of us like that. it was informative though, just that it's all part of the female psyche.

i didnt think it was actually all true, but more of a fun read than anything else. picked it up when i had to kill time...

and really, lots of it...

am hoping the report writing is going well for the babes rite now...

applying marketing principles

2008-03-06T00:48:00.002+08:00

sometimes, i feel that majoring in marketing is not too bad a choice after all.

well, my first choice has always been finance. however, being the lazy type in year 1 i screwed up my chance to get into it (supposedly that's where the money is - but only back then. now it's was).

and marketing majors are often people who cannot get into finance.

well, i did what i could. appealed... to no effect. but no matter.

majoring in marketing has given me a little insight into doing business. that's right - doing.

not really sure what the other specializations focus on... but here, it's more about customers - the revenue-bringers.

today, the discussion isn't exactly on applying marketing principles to the business world. these material we already have a truckload. and having read so much about these stuff in school, it's time to put a more interesting perspective in it.

had the idea of blogging about this since last week, when i was having this conversation with a friend of mine. for the two of us, there isn't any topic which we restrict ourselves to. however, we cannot escape from talking about the most interesting topic of all.

yup. relationships (again).

now, it isn't exactly credible to hear things about relationships from a... noob. inexperienced in matters of the heart, but often engaged in the process of analyzing and providing suggestions to relationships, i believe i do possess some level of competence. though i'm still working hard to improve it.

so how can one apply marketing principles in this area?

it's intuitively simple. let's consider a person as a product.

just so happens that the salesperson for this "product" is the person himself / herself.

a product possess both tangible and intangible attributes. discussed in the context of a person, tangible things include physical appearance, while intangibles include thought and behavior.

consumers purchase products not for the attributes products have, but for the benefits they derive from these attributes. for some products, these benefits are merely functional. that is, for example, if you buy a pack of (normal) chicken rice, what it provides is the ability to satisfy hunger. functional.

however, if you buy the car you have always wanted, it provides not only the opportunity for you to drive it and "transport" yourself around, but also allows you to derive certain emotional benefits from it. for example, you might feel a sense of joy or pride, for having saved so long for it, and the satisfaction in general are emotional benefits.

people get into relationships for emotional benefits. that is, a person in my view should be marketed with emotional benefits as the main selling point. while talking about selling points, marketers often advocate the use of "unique selling point" for the products they are marketing. that is, what is unique about the product (person)?

these emotional benefits often come from the intangible aspects a person has. thus, we are talking about the attitudes and behaviors a person possesses - and how these attributes can become strong evidence to convince the other half to seriously consider this person and, from being together, receive these emotional benefits.

not that this is 100% accurate. nor do i advocate getting into relationships just to get these benefits. it's just a so-called scientific way of looking at this issue.

well, love isn't something you can quantify or make perfect sense of it... so there.

anyway, back to the question at hand. so you think you have the stuff, and you would like to start marketing yourself. in your mind, you are bound to have certain consumer segment(s) that you would like to market yourself to - your target market. you hope to have as much of these people in your radar as possible.

good for you if the person you are targeting appears on your radar.

good, too, if the person doesn't. here, you can give yourself some explanations as to why this person is not on it.

as marketers, we do not aim to satisfy every consumer in the market. that'll be too costly, and we will have no specific focus. rather, we segment the entire market and identify near-homogeneous subgroups and target them.

some explanations you can use:

1) you are not out to satisfy every person.
2) this person just don't happen to fall into my radar.
3) i did what i could, (2) just didn't happen.

and by taking this view, you can keep yourself going and not dwell too long on a single person. as with diversification and long-term view strategies, you can do yourself a really big favor by eating buffet and lay a long line.

do not be so concerned with short-term fluctuations and come-and-gos. it is for relationships, as it is with life in general.

in the long run, things are going to be ok and would turn out just fine. isn't that already happening in your life? not all aspects of it perhaps, but looking back 10 years ago and compare it to today, are not things getting better?

just something for you to think about.

今晩はマンボの夜、でも。。。

2008-03-06T00:30:00.003+08:00

今晩はマンボの夜、でもしませんでした。

学校の宿題しますから、Zoukへいきました。午後九時半に来ました、でも、十一時に家へ帰りました。

どうして？！

勉強の宿題は、沢山あります。そして、あしたFYPがあります。。。大変ですね。。。

そして、お金が少しあります。。。今月車を習いますから、お金が全然ありません！

今銀行のお金は五百ドルです。。。ああ！！！

Zoukに女の人と女の子はあまり綺麗ではありませんでした。。。

よくないですよ。。。

私の日本語はままですね！

これブロクは私の練習です。。。下手ですね！お願いします！

another milestone.

2008-02-29T10:24:00.002+08:00

in the long, long run for my degree, i have passed another milestone.

was having another fyp meeting with my prof yesterday. as usual, it was thought-provoking and many avenues were suggested for our own exploration at this final stage of the project. the report was largely ok, with some alterations required.

the best news of the day? the next time i meet my prof is when i submit the hard copies of the report. no second drafts, no nothing. just the finalized report.

wow!

that marks the end of an enduring year. last year, around this time, i was trying to juggle 4 cores and an elective. the cores were full of projects that i was really breathing hard for air. apart from that, i was looking around for group mates, topics, and supervisors.

at that time, my heart wasn't exactly in marketing, but finance. not the very complicated types of finance, but something which i, who studied only 1 finance module, could do.

then came the group mates, friends who i looked up and looked me up to collab on fyp. it wasn't an easy decision to make, considering that it is going to be a year long project with plenty of effort, initiative, and commitment. topic was also critical.

supervisors, had some in mind and emailed them to ask what kind of topics they research in.

took about 2 weeks to settle these stuff, next was coming up with a topic.

my prof did not specify what area of research we should do. instead, we should come up with the topics we like, and propose them. i still remember that we only had one-liners i.e. just the topic without any research questions that we would like to answer for each topic. the meeting wasn't exactly smooth so we went off to brainstorm for more.

eventually came up with a topic and defined the scope of study. somehow, our initial topic branched off to a relatively new field, both in academia and industry. that was just shortly before i had my exam.

off to PA. not much of reading up on topic... some search for articles.

shortly after the end of PA, went to search for books related to this field. because it is new, not many books were written about it.

then school started again... year 3.

i remembered looking through a webpage full of sub-topics for that field. was debating which topic to choose... took a pretty long time but was finally settled.

off to the report by having the literature review written. it was submitted and approved... major relief. then it was exams again.

after exams... no surprise as to what i did for hols. more fyp... writing the motivation, research design, survey generation...

and when school started the survey was administered after getting approval from my prof. collected and analyzed the data for months jan and feb, with feb devoted to writing the full report.

and yesterday, after a long meeting, came the good news. and the realization that after a year of sweat, late nights, long days and loss of millions of brain cells, its going to be over!

next meeting, shall be getting the report touched up with the blushers, mascara and eye shadow. haha... just to spice it up and clean it up.

glad its over.

was chatting with a friend on monday, some catching up on each other's lives. the things we talk abt dun usually deviate much from r/s... the all-too-expected, but always full of things to say topic.

mayb i shall have an entry for this next time... not the details but a rather interesting (to me at least) application of the stuff i learnt in school (how is marketing related to r/s??).

ps my eye's been twitching since sunday. both eyes, left of late. if the left eye twitches, is it good or bad? or is it the right eye twitch that is good? i forgot.

well perhaps sthg interesting is going to happen soon... good or bad, dunno...

can determination and dedication overcome the dread?

2008-02-06T00:50:00.000+08:00

have a serious dread for mondays and tuesdays.

I dun dread mondays cos i have no monday blues. since there are no lessons for me on mondays, i can't have the blues and so, can't dread it right?

damn wrong.

mon and tue are the days which i give tuition to my p3 kid.

and it is not the first time i feel the dread and the desire to quit it once and for all.

but having only gone in a month for this new kid, it's far too early to quit.

not when i tip the scales in favor of money.

the reason why i contemplated quitting? it's really hard to keep him focused.

on top of that, it doesn't seem to work when i raise my voice a little. or when i use some sarcasm.

all these, in a bid to keep him concentrating on his work and stop fiddling around.

raising my voice after a long, tired day is extremely easy because i'm really beat and a little pissed. raising my voice really loud is even easier. scolding and perhaps, a shout here and there ought to work.

but patience has always been my friend, and today, it is still my friend.

taking into account that he doesn't really have a complete understanding of his surroundings and the demands imposed on him, i find no reason to shout or raise my voice.

and the fact that threats only work if they come from the father, so far my guess is that with time, i can make my own threats work. but issuing threats is something i very much despise, and is often the very, very last resort (the time for this to happen might be mightily surprising to you).

simply lack the strength to even raise the tone a little. of course, being patient works.

the only form of punishment, if that can even be construed as harsh, is that i took away his privilege of sitting down to do his work or answer my questions.

ok, if you count writing a word over and over again as punishment (so far, i ask for 10 of the same word, eng or chi), i have 2 forms of punishment. but how can this be punishment? i'm not making him stay back after class to write stuff like "I shall do my work properly next time" 100 times. it's decent writing practice!

the reason why i took away his chair was apparent. the floor in the kitchen itself does not provide ample grip on the chair. so you can sit on it and slide about in the kitchen. the thing is, his sitting position is sometimes so bad that i need to hold the chair properly in order to keep him from sliding off the chair.

and he fell today, though no injuries at all. he might have as well hit his head on the glass table when he was picking himself up.

perhaps this is the way to go. for repeated nonsense and bad attitude, i start taking away the privileges.

by no means is it harsh... it's by far the most non-violent way for me. i view shouting as violent already (think hitting with a cane. hey, i'm here as a tuition teacher, not torture master)!

so, standing up includes standing up straight and on two legs. no things like putting one leg on the chair still, or leaning against the chair... etc.

i sure hope the title for this entry will come true.

i even contemplated not having children after marriage! serious!

but as an afterthought... nvm.

putting off the births are ok. but no matter...

this decision i leave to my wife to decide.

of cos la - she's the one slogging 10 months away and i'm just having a wild nite!

muz be fair... muz be.

An insight?

2008-01-30T23:26:00.001+08:00

Had this idea in mind for some days already, just couldn't find the time to write about it.

People sometimes ask themselves the question of why are they studying so hard for. Especially in Singapore, where meritocracy is the order of the day, and organizations (who are recruiting staff for their positions) are often looking for candidates with (in their own words):

"Excellent academic qualifications..."

"A good degree in any discipline..."

"A Second Upper Honors degree or GPA of 4.0..."

"A degree, magna cum laude, from a respectable university..."

Get enough of such emails and you will soon see the amount of emphasis society is placing on academic qualifications. And, sadly, I'm pressing the "Delete" button far too often.

Are qualifications that important, to the extent it precedes anything else? It seems to be, though nowadays organizations factor in other aspects, such as CCAs, communication skills, teamplay...

But academic qualifications remain top in their criteria.

Just to share, I came across an article on the factors that determine if one is going to be successful in life. A study shows very little correlation between a person's IQ (or academic qualifications, I forgot) and whether he is successful later in life (I suppose this is determined by some benchmarks, such as annual income or net worth).

In fact, the top few earners (the so-called successful people by Singapore's yardstick) were seriously lacking in the qualifications that we adamantly pursue.

The study attributed several other factors to determine if a person is successful: in general, a successful person is forward-looking, takes calculated risks, and optimistic (these are internal conditions). External conditions such as the environment, the people you meet, luck - are just some of the "uncontrollable" factors that play just as important a role as the internal conditions.

Now, there are people who are both smart and successful; ample examples abound.

Notwithstanding the robustness of the methodology or generalizability of the results, taking the results prima facie I speculate that some of my friends are studying so hard now is because they are trying to attain as much as possible the "internal conditions" vital to success. At least, these are partially controllable, unlike the external conditions.

At least now, I can partly understand why some of my schoolmates are going the extra mile to get that A.

Nevertheless, the traits of being optimistic and forward-looking are just as internal. These are more easily attainable in that one only needs to change his mindset and attitude. Easier said than done though, it's a major challenge since we are pretty much conditioned that having qualifications is equated to success.

The point of this entry?

Friends who currently have the qualifications: perhaps it is time to look into developing these traits, if you have not already done so. It's much easier since you have the grades already.

Friends who currently do not have the qualifications: just something to boost your confidence. It's easy to lose sight of your uniqueness in this messy sea of competition for grades, but I'm sure you can just develop those traits easily as well.

I fall into the latter category. As for those traits, I'm developing as many of them as possible. It probably won't make me extremely successful as I would like myself to be, but at least I know that having them makes my life and relationship with others more smooth-sailing.

week 3.

2008-01-21T21:52:00.000+08:00

kinda bumped into my sister-pal today, did some major catching up.

updates on personal life aside... the topic shifted to buffeting. or buffet-ying. or buffeying.

i admit. i have no idea what buffeting / buffet-ying / buffeying is about until today. though when i was told the word under that situation, its meaning was clear.

see... i did bring my brain out from my home.

let's stick to using buffeying.

buffeying has nothing to do with eating a buffet except in the very abstract sense. what it means is not so easily conveyed, and i shall not bother to do so.

this word, although appropriate, was a tad far from my liking. personally, i like to call it diversification, hedging. are some very finance terms but i prefer the use of these words.

sometimes, life is like buying lottery. it's pretty straightforward - most decisions you make carries risk (ok, this is my FYP topic but let's skip it). so let's say for the upcoming 4D draw on wednesday you decide to place a bet.

why not place two bets instead?

although you have to fork out an extra buck, it somehow increases the chance that you will strike something. i do not have a PhD in statistics or probability theory (thank goodness!) but the notion is intuitive. the more numbers you buy, the more chances you have in getting a winning number. or numbers.

which is the rationale for the occurrence of buffeying.

i'm not going to go into statistical stuff, but if you're familiar with the concept of expected value - which you do. am not going to say much.

it is not unfair in the sense that insofar, there's still no commitment. and this is something not exclusive to the masculine class.

splitting is the unfair thing.

and speaking of buffets, i'm abstaining from it.

i foresee an endless line of feasting all the way up and including CNY. its gonna hurt my stomach for sure.

it's all very queer.

2008-01-14T23:00:00.001+08:00

a queer dream to begin the day.

and a queer way to end it.

let's start with the queer dream.

it was around 8 plus in the morning, still rolling about in bed. drifted off into slumber, and with that, came the queer dream.

i was in an examination hall (hello, exams are like 3 months away... perhaps it has affected me too much), doing a paper on political science (WTH?) and it wasn't an exam at all because everyone was talking and chatting.

it was held in my primary school hall (heaven knows how many students that place can hold) - very weird, i don't think MOE introduced political science into the primary school syllabus (yet). was chatting with the candidates beside me, and oh my... happening scene.

then i saw her. i wasn't sure if it was her, or her. as in, these were in reality two very different people, but sometimes, i see her in her, and her in her.

very abstract it seemed. now that 10 plus hours have passed, my memory of it has faded. some things still are very clear, though:

i remembered i chased after her when she was leaving, and i spoke to her at - guess what - the door to my house.

who is who? no idea at all. sometimes when i see her on TV, i sort of see her. and when i see her in real life, i'm slightly reminded of her.

totally abstract. however, neither this dream nor this entry is meant to imply anything. it's just something really queer... and the fact that it's a "her" doesn't signify anything. or two "hers" if you like.

i'm prone to weird dreams.

went to teach my 9-year old kid today. what should i use to describe him?

hyperactive sounds like a good word. so does bubbly.

i'm sure if any of my friends see him, they're bound to go "awww..."

however i cannot get him to focus on the task ahead.

is it an unreasonable request? i do think so, on several occasions.

and i'm told by the parents to go really all out on him.

papa wants me to scold.

mama wants me to raise my voice.

i tried the latter, without much effect.

in that case, i'm likely to change my strategy soon. time to throw out the liberal university-style teaching and get conservative... the no-nonsense and authoritative kind of tutor that i used to get when i was young.

but i just can't bring myself to scold - yet. i'm still of the opinion that this is the one that will prepare me for my own kids in the future. in the shorter term, it's more of building up my patience.

something i admit i have really high levels of, but no harm in being even more patient.

pretty much of a dilemma again, but isn't that what life is, always...

better find one of my relatives or friends who are parents to counsel me on this subject.

don't think my parents are of much help since i was none of what my 9-year old kid is... except for the bubbly part. haha... buay hiao pai.

new challenge.

2008-01-09T01:36:00.000+08:00

it wasn't particularly difficult, but challenging.

i'm talking about my new tuition kid.

a 9-year old who pretty much wasn't like what i used to be at all.

i remember when i was 9, i was having tuition with a friend of mine from the same class. the teacher was from a pretty distinguished school in TPY.

smoker aside (no comments). really an asshole.

to what extent? his demands were impossibly high.

homework-wise, i dare not forget to do. he had this tendency to pull my friend's long hair if he didn't do his work or failed to get his stuff right.

he tore my assessment book before and threw it out of the door.

he woke up my friend's brother, who was sick and thus sleeping, and punished him for forgetting to do his work. the punishment was what, i forgot, perhaps it was so horrible it wasn't worth remembering.

and 1.5 years under him.

i did not understand why my friend's mom continued to employ him, despite such violence. me neither.

but under him, my grades skyrocketed. band 1s were pretty common.

but i performed out of fear, not as i wanted to.

today is different.

today, i adopt a liberal, friend-like approach to tutoring my kids. it was horrendous to subject them what i personally went through (and it doesn't just stop at the tutors alone).

not that i had tutors who were all bad. there were some good ones.

though their teaching approach can be more refined and geared towards encouraging self-motivation.

this new kid is a challenge - active, and having rather a tad more of memory lapses. but this one, i'm keeping. for 3 reasons.

1st - it's v near my house.
2nd - it's not v hard (p3 only).
3rd - the most important reason. it exposes me how i should coach my own kid next time.

primary school is the time where kids are not especially geared into focusing on their very own. this one, i expect, shall require more patience and a little bit of coaxing to get things done. i cannot get him to think on his own yet, 9 years old is too young an age.

ppl, if you have the opportunity, give tuition.

good money, flexible. most important, however, you take home the most important bit.

how to coach your own kids next time, be it for school or for life.

that's something to think about, isn't it?

outlook for final semester.

2008-01-07T22:12:00.000+08:00

one word - hectic.

busy does not even come close.

today i had the very rare privilege of taking 2 naps that lasted at least 1.5 hrs each. likely to be the very few that i would have this semester.

a brief look at my timetable for both school and personal activities showed that i'm only likely to have some break time after i submit my fyp report.

apart from school, i have the following:

1 - 3 tuition groups
2 - driving lessons (if i do book then this is another activity for me)
3 - exercise
4 - assorted

the most time-consuming is giving tuition. but given the time-money tradeoff... i'm in favor of the latter.

tml is my first lesson of my final semester. some familiar faces in the class.

but isn't that the case for marketing fac... see here see there no many changes anywhere...

how to live on 1 meal per day

2008-01-04T23:53:00.000+08:00

contrary to what you may be thinking, living off 1 meal per day sure isn't as cheap as you think.

and it sure isn't easy, it's just as bad to suffer as though you are hungry all day.

i'm talking about a gorging session at Melts: The World Cafe today.

located at level 4, Oriental Singapore, this cafe isn't a cafe per se. it's a restaurant serving ala carte and buffet cuisine from several countries - namely Japan, North India, and Thailand.

went with my friends today to this place to eat our hearts out. the quest began at 12 and ended with our ultimate defeat at 1.30, with a simple reason - we gorged ourselves out.

plate after plate of food... and it was even suggested that we keep 50% of our stomach for desserts.

sounds fair enough, since we heard this place is known for its desserts. it does have enough variety to mimic that of a small cake shop.

and it doesn't help that each of us was encouraging one another to go for seconds. or should i say, thirds and fourths. fifths even.

in all, it was a satisfactory eat-out and a more-than-filling session. i overate... must have been due to the past few days which i spent nursing my cold and cough. post-sickness, it was always time to eat.

the bill worked out to be 200+... divided by four, that's 56 for each. the restaurant charges 48+++ per person.

i wasn't really feeling so well on the trip back. only myself to blame... hit the sack as soon as i could and woke up later for the dreaded FYP meeting. but FYP wasn't the focus.

today, FYP stands for Fill Your Plate! or Feed Your Palate!

anyway, the place was posh. so decided to snap some pics and share it online...

Left Shot

Right Shot

Center Shot
(looks like some lift to heaven)

with the amount of eating i had no appetite for anything at all. even on the trip home, TV Mobile just had to show some sitcom where the actor was cooking - of all things! the sight of bak chor mee was a total turn off. i couldn't bear to look at it at all, it was revolting for my stomach.

well, less buffets for me (due to health concerns) and less eat-outs (due to financial concerns).

i'm slightly hungry now, but no food for me. better sleep the hunger away...

oh, if anyone would like more info, they can refer to this page:

http://camemberu.blogspot.com/2007/06/melt-world-cafe-oriental-singapore.html

has clearer and more tantalizing pictures that i would ever bother to upload.

or, if you like, buzz me straight on msn and i shall try to recall the session... the good points, the good food, of course...

push!

2008-01-02T23:06:00.000+08:00

a dilemma often faced by me while giving tuition is:

please push my kids more.

on one hand, i cannot reject what my employer says. that's the reason i was employed in the first place. to supplement the school's teaching.

on the other hand, i get the reason from my students that they have plenty of work assigned to them by school teachers already. tuition complements, it doesn't supercede.

the balancing scale is easily tipped. at the very worst, my students don't do their tuition homework. which, of course, they can do during tuition, but that defeats the purpose.

i'm not exactly in the position to comment or check if the schoolwork is really that much, or that difficult, as put forth by my students. comparing them to that from university just doesn't make any sense - the comparison isn't even logical to begin with (not apples with apples).

push - easier said than done. easier to agree than to implement.

for those who don't really know, my style to giving tuition has always been liberal. a very university-style kind of tutoring. discussion, interaction and initiative are my basic tenets.

as i've been tutored before by no less than 6 tutors since P3 all the way to J2, i understand what it's like to have a boring lesson. and there's something that can be done to involve students in learning.

you can say: you're just a tutor. why don't you wait for questions, answer them, get your pay. why bother.

it just isn't my style. frankly, if i wait for questions to come, life will be easier - but more boring.

i can't endure boredom!

plus, this method is more effective in that i don't spoonfeed. i encourage feedback and thinking, although for what i teach (maths and english) the most important thing is still practice.

come on, we're dealing with teens, not babies!

i do not mind saying that by this method i have 2 students who were previously on the line for certain subjects. after i taught them they scored no less than 1) topping the class in the subject, 2) if not the top, 2nd position and 3) many personal bests for themselves.

its simple logic. teach well, the kids will like you. they like you, they do well, the parents like you. the parents like you, they refer you.

and referrals are always better in that 1) trust is already a given and 2) negotiating is easier. so, the benefits often extend beyond just getting to keep the student.

and tuition has always been better paying than other part-time jobs. you cna even teach when you do part-time. or full-time, as it will for me 6 months down the road.

might just go into teaching as a career (after my masters, in polys). see how.

alright... that's it.

the start

2008-01-01T22:31:00.000+08:00

everyday is an opportunity for a fresh start.

just that many choose to use the new year as a time where they set targets for themselves and make the change.

2008 came with the usual stuff: fireworks and prata.

and the good thing is, i bade 2007 with a just-about-to-recover cold and on 2008, the very first day, the cold's pretty much gone.

must have been the walking yesterday.

anyway, it's the first entry for 2008. should be more positive too!

of all time, it has to be now.

2007-12-30T23:34:00.000+08:00

that's right, yours truly has fallen sick.

when did it start? friday, i guess. was working under the hot sun, some painting job for my grandfather at his shop. nothing of a big deal really - just some metal strips about 2m each.

apparently, the weather has been such that, if it's sunny - which is a good time to go out - i'm working / on some formal business.

if it's rainy - that's when i don't have something planned.

what a nice coincidence.

the erratic weather, plus perhaps some other reasons which i'm not sure of, has allowed the flu to catch up with me. and it just had to strike when it hurts most: the weekend.

yesterday was the day i was due to receive payment for my tuition assignment @ woodlands. of course, i did not wake up feeling perfect. there were the usual signs: aches, a runny nose, a lumpy throat, a slight throb in the head. but being payday, i wasn't too ready to pass it up and leave it to the next lesson.

when i realized it, i was already on the train to the student's place.

and when i realized it again, i was hitting the bed like a corpse, though shivering.

sun - ha was rather tempted to call off a FYP meeting but decided against it as i wanted to clear some issues as fast as possible, and i wasn't really that sick. true, there's air con where we're meeting, but it doesn't really matter.

until i stayed in there for almost 3 hours and had to take a serious defrosting session outside.

the trip home was horrendous. i actually planned to hit the sack really early tonight. i did - i went to bed at 10.

and woke up at 11.

what's happening?!

must have been my bioclock... no sleeping early!

so now up to listen to songs, chat online, blog...

and hopefully to tire myself enough to make me hit the bed and sleep till late morning. oh, plus my faithful cup, containing a blackcurrant-lemon teabag. i'm hoping the lemon can help keep the cold away, though i suspect it's just the hot drink by itself that is doing the magic.

oh well... not a very nice way to end 2007... but if you look at it, you can say it's my way of having all the bad things happen in 2007. 2008 is meant to be a year where only good things happen.

not just to me, to you too.

the sweat's coming. much much better... and alert.

hey, wasn't i supposed to tire myself? i don't want to be alert!

2 1/2 days to 2008: reviews and resolutions.

2007-12-29T11:26:00.000+08:00

that's right... time to say bye to 2007.

was 2007 any better than 2006? indeed, it was. new faces, new friendships - the usual.

frankly i don't really remember much about things past, as i wrote in one of my previous blog entries. in all, it was a smooth-sailing year, with a fair share of challenges and rewards.

let's put aside the challenges and rewards from school. there were, but not important to me.

the most important thing is i've learnt to adopt an even more liberal outlook on life and gaining the ability to 'let go' many things that i may have held on to in the past. i'm definitely more relaxed (or slack, if you like) and more optimistic than usual. it's not that i'm never relaxed or optimistic... just more.

a critical event of 2007 was my professional attachment. well, it was done in partial fulfillment of my degree (hence academic) but it did not feel that much of a "school" except for the writing of the PA report. most importantly, it set a direction as to where i wanted to go.

i'm definitely staying in marketing, as opposed to wanting to go banks (as some of my friends knew).

another event was rather unexpected. in the first place, i didn't have any intention of joining this competition at all. i did hear some of friends interested in joining - perhaps even "persuaded" to join - but that's about it. as it was with many emails that were sent to my account, i conveniently deleted it.

but i was chatting online with my friend one night when she asked me to join the competition. i'm very surprised - not by her asking me, but the fact that she wanted to join. it somehow changed my perception (no offense) to a more positive one.

well, i'm lucky i did. thanks to this invite, we bagged 2nd runner up in the finals. the prize money and hamper were insignificant, but the experience was the main takeaway. it further strengthened my desire to stay in marketing. specifically, consumer / market research.

something to boost my resume.

as some of you already know, i give part-time tuition. the money's good, time is flexible, and i get to interact with the younger generation. i learn things from them i never could have learnt from my friends, and they provided some insights into things that i would never think of. one of the most memorable was this:

i was explaining a maths question to my student, and he asked me:

"that's how you would do, because you knew how to do it (i.e. had the experience). have you tried looking at it from my perspective?"

the question was asked in chinese, but for the sake of blogging i translated it. the translated version is also more complete.

yes, that's right - "from my perspective." how many times have we looked at things from our perspective, but not from others'? even though it's only a maths question, the issue is: the kid has no experience with such questions. how do we use the very basic principles to deal with the problem? how can we "stand in other people's shoes?" these are questions easy to ask, but not as easy to answer!!

sometimes, we do not need to think too much, as it would only complicate matters. what is most important is grasping the key idea to things, and delimiting the scope of your thought.

i mean, if i were to ask "why" to everything you said, it would never end. probably it will, if you decide to stomp off.

it's just like using wikipedia. on an article there are so many links. so i might start off with something like cars, and eventually move on to something not-so-linked, such as outer space. is it really required to think so much?

no, as i've learnt.

anyway, just some resolutions for 2008:

1) keep up being less "nua" (it works)
2) be more empathetic
3) be more fit

just some that i can think off-hand. well, happy new year!

some updates

2007-12-27T23:28:00.000+08:00

2 blog entries in 1 day. and within 2hrs of each other.

the only main update is that today i went ktv with 2 of my sec sch frens who are also my uni frens, with them being in MAE.

ktv is somewhere i wun go if i'm not well prepared. financially, time-wise and song-wise. there's always the dilemma of thinking what to sing. u start off with a few familiar ones you can think off hand, then u start browsing thru the list... trying to find a familiar singer with a familiar song.

started off with some of hacken lee's songs. canto, all of them, 3 in total. gets the vocals going. if u r familiar with his songs they are of a wide range... low to mid to hi pitch. my voice falls in the low to mid range (the range for the crooner haha) so the songs i chose were pretty much of that range.

went off to my usual... japanese songs, some SHE songs (just to watch the MVs not really up to their pitch), many others...

ended with a malay song, kau ilham ku. very nice song... lyrics wise, it roughly means "you're my inspiration" and blah blah. intro-ed to me by a uni fren who's the musical type. always good recos.

i kinda learnt the song by listening to it often, in fact, even now. i'm not exactly familiar with bahasa, but i have some relatives who r indonesian-chinese. as i get to interact with them often, i can sorta catch they way they speak bahasa.

plus i worked in a company before with many malaysian colleagues... so it adds. also, at my grandparents' place, they have maids all along to help... for ease of communication they usually employ indonesian maids n having stayed there for the entire of sec 1 n my 2 years of NS (cos closer to camp than my hse at TB), my intonation hasnt really been too off (according to a fren).

so i've no problem with the song, which was wat i sang near the end of the session. my frens were pretty... uh hmm. hey, i juz like songs which r nice, and no language limits in nice music!!

it was singable cos it was of the low-mid range. i'm pretty much given up on hi range. i can do the "tremble" at the end of a line but that's abt wat i can do. due to lack of "qi" i cant sing high.

oh well.. heck it..

time to brush up on hacken. not easy to find a singer who u can do pretty well.

jiayou to myself!

some updates that are (not?) really necessary.

2007-12-27T21:40:00.000+08:00

i'm close to broke from the festive partying and outings.

to-do: muz watch wallet closely.

my phone suffers from network lag.

to-do: my msg will either reach u late or not at all. inbound msgs i expect to be the same. calls not affected (neither r bills frm singtel).

my hotmail suffers the same fate as my phone, probably worse. emails i sent may nt reach u. in this case, pls lemme noe so tt i can send u the emails via my sch email acct.

to-do: wait for things to get well.

busy... busy... busy...

to-do: nothing. juz get as much done as possible.

merry xmas!

2007-12-25T22:23:00.000+08:00

juz woke up from my nap.

went clubbing yest at zouk with 2 of my ex-colleagues and their frens. thoroughly enjoyable n fruitful... seems like i still got the clubber spirit in me.

fyi i havent been clubbing for qt a while alreadi. my reason is simple. i dun see the sense in paying 50+ to make myself shag for the whole of nxt dae. but it's xmas so... heckz.

always hv my pay to fall back on. i need a gd rest from all tat fyp BS!

reached home at 5 after supper at hooters. was pretty steamed n the beer didnt help keep mi awake. was qt quiet throughout... actualli i met my grp mates for fyp prior to the clubbing. frm 2plus till 6plus... home at 7plus. dinner n stuff... then went out. brain pretty much dead.

n seriously the countdown sucks. it was like there's this timer on their tv screens. the kind of timer u see (i think) in mrt stations, where they tell the time in HH:MM:SS. wtf? then juz suddenly they pop the merry xmas msg n its like, merry xmas?!

jeez! zouk u can do better la... wth.

anw reached hm at 5. slept... woke up 9 plus talked to my mom for a while, went back to dreamland again. then 12plus wake up wif a throbbing head and lousy appetite... grouchy stomach. lunch n then its down to painting time. my room tt is.

it looks realli refreshing now, with the very light apple green walls and all. but... damn shag. order kfc to eat oso no appetite. so after bathing n dinner, hit the bed again. now up.

my phone kinda went bonkers todae. cos my fren dan called n asked for some tel nos of honda showroom... then i replied him n he say nvr get?? in total msg 3 times i guess something wrong wif network. juz got a msg from JT n the reply was pretty quick so now shld be ok.

n my hotmail... send out oso no receive! wanted to ask my fren to help in my fyp then realized the email didnt reach at all. damn! but well, see wat can be done bah.

hmmmm. wanted to write sthg else, but dun realli feel like.

oh well.

merry xmas n a jolly good year for mi ahead!

PS fellow scorpios - i read for 2008: career will be well, wealth i forgot, r/s those who still single may have chance. actualli they always sae sthg nice for the forecast but its still up to u to seize the opportunities.

writer's block.

2007-12-18T22:26:00.000+08:00

was fiddling ard wif blogger's settings, trying to find sthg to write.

when i didnt update my blog as often, my loyal audience-frens *gently* remind mi.

when i try to update my blog as often as i can, i can't find anything to write.

writer's block.

ideas for my blog usualli come from sparks, from fleeting thots, that cld be condensed into words.

looked ard some of my frens' blogs trying to get some inspiration... sorry guys to disappoint u.

i think most prob i'm tired.

physically, yes. have been helping ard the family biz with serious manual labor. as expected, there was no pay but i didnt mind. and i didnt help for any plan to get paid.

mentally, perhaps. losing brain juice for fyp.

spiritually, i dun think so. given that i'm a free thinker.

emotionally, hmmm? my r/s life has always been a clean slate. in my blog i often talk abt r/s as if i'm some expert... actualli i'm far from one. they r jus some observations.

was chatting online with sh yest. thx sh for the nice comments on my 5As... haha a book, u said. now, we need lotsa material if we wanna write abt r/s, tho its always been ard!

n oso thks for the encouragement. yeah i'm sure things will work out well for u n mi.

k... wat to write abt nxt?

2007... coming to an end. wat have i achieved this year?

i'm not in any mood to write abt achievements, and i dun count academic results as achievements. it's juz mi la.

had a fren who asked mi this Q: "wun u like, after a sem of v hard work n on getting the results, look back on the days when u slogged like hell?"

no.

wat's past is past. sure i worked hard, but when it's over, it's over.

this is sthg i live by. i'm not a "yesterday" or "last time" person.

that said, does it mean i do not think abt the past? i do, but i do not stay long in them.

hmm... i feel the writer's block effect wearing off.

i wonder if the "when it's over, it's over" principle which i live by is a little harsh? perhaps heartless? it somehow means, no second chances!

well, there's only the road ahead. n 2nd chances only mean tt ppl wun treasure wat they r having. so this axiom means reminds me constantly that chances will knock on only once. there's only today to chase after your dreams.

kinda getting philosophical... towards the cynical side...

another axiom is... forgive n forget. hate is a heavy burden to carry.

forgiving is ez... forget? but even as one forgives, there's no guarantee of a full pardon.

ok, better stop this endless spiral of self-questioning... n putting my mood down big time.

things will get better in 2008.

wun they?

The Noobie's 5As to Relationships

2007-12-15T21:17:00.000+08:00

Relationships can be complex, be they the relationships between parent and child, siblings, friends and lovers.

A variety of methods exist to manage these relationships. However, there is no universally agreed set of methods that one ought to follow. As it is often with human relationships, a few principles guide and govern these them, and it is up to one to interpret and apply accordingly to the problems arising from conflicts within relationships.

The aim of this entry is not to cover any of these methods, though the discussion may delve into certain relationship management principles. Though so, I will not be highlighting them explicitly. I leave the interpretation to the reader.

We are all familiar with the series of books, The Complete Idiot's Guide to ______. A simple title that conveys the notion of providing the reader with an introduction and sometimes in-depth content without the assumption that the reader has any pre-existing knowledge on the issue or topic at hand. Hence, the "complete idiot's."

My version of this series is The Noobie's 5As to Relationships. This is likely to be a one-off entry unless I can find more things to write about relationships. The scope of the topic is limited to relationships of the amore sense.

The 5As are:

Acquaintance
Attention
Attraction
Affection
Amore

The definition for each A is as follows:

Acquaintance - everybody starts off as acquaintances that gradually move on the the "friends" stage. Acquaintances are pretty much recognizable, and it is likely that the reader has some acquaintances as well. Notable signs are hi-byes, messages that concern work and formal matters that others, and the person you don't really talk to (or have nothing much to talk about) on MSN.

Attention - Beyond the "friends" stage is the person who catches your attention. It may be due to appearance, behavior, thinking - whatever. Point is, one has so many friends and acquaintances, and the people who provide (to the reader) some form of stimulus would likely attract the reader's attention.

Attraction - The attention and stimuli transform into a "pull" force that is denoted by the attraction stage. One starts thinking how this form of attraction can be imposed on the target; that is, what the person should do to attract the target.

Affection - At this point, conversations, messages and calls become more frequent and with heightened intimacy. Pet names may be given at this point, and concerns move beyond work to levels that are on a very personal basis. For example, showing concern on one's daily life, keeping detailed tracks on it, et cetera.

Amore - This stage occurs when the level of affection from both parties have culminated to the point of explosion. It is as though if the person and the target is not termed a couple, termed lovers, that it becomes unbearable to either side. To relieve themselves of this stigma, they move towards the amore stage.

Frankly, there is no indication as to how each stage would last. However, there are methods available to progress from one stage to the next, just as there are methods to drop back a level (or worse, many levels). So far, my rather limited experience in this area does not tell me the exact approach to determining how each stage would last. Methods-wise, I do have but this is beyond the scope of our discussion.

That would perhaps serve as fodder for my next entry sometime later, probably 2008.

End of entry

PS The idea for this entry came from a discussion with my tuition kids this afternoon, and the thought about the 5As (originally 4, without "Attention") came to me just naturally. This is very much due to the fact that I crap a lot, and generate plenty of BS. But I thought these 5As do make some sense? I invite the reader to share their interpretations of relationships with me.

caught in between...

2007-12-04T22:55:00.000+08:00

went to collect my brand's "hamper" todae... really "big" leh. haha i guess the big one is only for the top team, whereas mine was carry-able in a small bag.

total spoils of war: 6 bottles of chicken essence, 6 bottles of innershine berry juice (great drink yummy!) and 45 gingko tablets.

wa liao... just when i needed the energy and concentration boost the drinks weren't here... now tt exams r over these stuff r juz for entertainment's sake (drink / pop for fun).

anywayz...

when did i have the idea?

probably some random tot, which i'm full of. randomly tot of sthg, randomly wanna do sthg. now i'm caught between buying a PSP or PS3.

PSP - no idea y i wanted to buy. feeling rich (haha)? ok ok shld spend wisely. i can juz get the console, which my bro alr had, but not much motivation to get it. price-wise it shld be ok, haven checked (missed SITEX n supposed to look ard todae but didn't, was at funan).

PS3 - wanted to buy cos of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (MGS4). realli bowled me over. the last time i watched its trailer taken from E3 was about a year ago. recently, went to youtube to check again.

updated trailers, and a vid which showed the gameplay. damn! i wanted a PS3 to play MGS4!

smart marketing... using anchor games to entice players. if we still lived in the era of nintendo entertainment system (pic below. nolstagic isn't it) it'll happen anw (rem NES n super mario?)

well there u go... the old catridge system. my first console ever, used to play it when i was 4 and up to upper pri i guess. played super mario bros (ha who doesn't play SMB if he has a NES). plus, also had a game with some karate character gg ard some ancient chinese place kicking and punching enemies. very irritating game, cant seem to time my attacks well. but hey, i'm looking for it hi n low nw...

some probs wif NES. aft a while, the catridge / catridge reader wld hv some probs. i wld usualli "blow" into the catridge (reader was in system, too risky) and then literally jam the catridge into the system. then, aft a lot of praying, resets and power-off-ons, the game wld then work. tt wil be like 1/2 hr later.

used to have another game called "top gun" ripped from the movie of the same name. crappy game. i followed all instructions and cant seem to land on the cruiser, except for 1 time. then, it shows u a crappy pixelated screeen tt shows yr plane crashing into the sea, n says "game over." total waste of time, lost the mission and in WoW / DoTA lingo, PWNED!

reminds mi of the time i went to cmpb in J2 (2002, long time ago manz) for a pilot screening test. y i was chosen, no idea. eyesight was perfect, height a bit over (at 1.81m squeezing into the cockpit is no joke) and fitness wise, CMI. went for a simulation game, damn complex with many meters and gauges that i dun noe how to read even after instructions were given. note that these instructions were shown only once n u r expected to rem.

so if the wing is tilted to the left, the plane is actually turning rite... when its positioned like this, it means the plane is upside down (doesnt look like its turning rite or upside down to mi). crap.

then came the landing game. 1st time - crash onto runway.

2nd time - perfect landing, on the spot.

3rd time - ran out of fuel at about >50 m in the air. so dammit... so close n yet so far. plane no fuel, drops vertically to ground and explodes on runway (did not show on simulation, juz my way of visualizing).

my fren dan wil probably score well on this pilot screening test, given tt he's qt into planes. tho they be commercial ones, plane meters n gauges, i suppose, dun vary much.

well. better for mi la. better to stay on the ground n look at planes then to waste $1m of taxpayers' money. if there's anything, i'm sure to press eject faster than u can say eject (tt's supposing the eject even works. i dun noe how operational our planes r, altho they sure can fly but dunno if really combat-worthy).

anw, back to the topic.

PSP - buy, but dun realli like staring at such a small screen. plus sounds n graphics not as great even if compared to PS2.

PS3 - damn ex now. if i buy, probably for nothing but juz MGS4. worth it? anw MGS4 shld b out nxt yr Q2.

and surprise - konami (game maker of several famous series, eg MGS, winning 11, castlevania) - is listed on SGX! i rem seeing konami on SGX b4 but not sure if it realli is. so now, confirm. y do they list on SG anyway? beats mi.

now, physically tired. plus weather was super warm in the aftnoon n nw so cooling. always gd for my slp... plus todae i onli planned to take the stuff n go home (cos it was supposed to be big, n so juz bring home first then leave the sorting to later). but it wasnt much, so instead spent the aftnoon wif my grp mate ard the area... walked ard... eat... chatted... more walking ard...

well. another dae of the long hols juz passed. wld nt b working tis hols as qt bz. stick to my tuition wil do.

じゃな。

ps. till then. eh, buy or nt? PSP / PS3? some1 gimme a suggestion!!

updates

2007-12-02T22:46:00.000+08:00

i think i just realized why i can't post youtube videos to my blog... apparently i did not use the google account that you supposedly can switch to i.e. "claim" is the term to use. i tried playing around with the system...

result? i'm not the exact techie. so after some attempts i think i would not bother to claim the account anymore. just too bad that i can't really share my fave videos with my audience.

let's start on this entry proper...

on the very obvious. exams are over. as of tomorrow 6pm, it'll be one week.

why do i remember the time? cos that's the time i left. well not just me. a lot of ppl left, so that means the paper was way easy for many. 5:45pm ppl were impatient and ready to leave, however was stopped by the invigilators and told to stay until 6pm (1hr after commencement) before they can go off.

well, if you count that as well, this is the 2nd paper this sem i left early. first one is really dunno what to crap about, plus got my core paper the day after at 9am. so left to prepare for it; being a case-based exam, it was far too long for my liking. anyway, it's over...

after exams.

meet-ups, feastings. my burgeoning belly, added with extra beer and alcohol.

met with my friend ruu on wed, she brought along her friend from japan. i think she knew this japanese friend whilst she was on her exchange at the beginning of this year. chit-chat over chicken rice at the chicken rice shop @ vivo, took some pictures (reminded me of what my jap1 tutor said in class... japanese like to take photos... i can vouch for that). after sending her off to the ticket booth for the rail to sentosa, went daiso to get a cup. my previous one (also from daiso and at 2 bucks) cracked due to the hot stuff that i kept pouring in.

hmmm... the old cup was in pretty bad shape because i drank a lot of milo... sometimes several cups a night while i burned the time away (supposedly) studying, msn-ing (most of the time)...

new cup was so far ok. acrylic. hope it doesn't crack so soon.

then it was off to giant @ vivo for some junk food. my student intro-ed me to this calbee chip variant that was quite hard to find. you should know of the calbee sour onion, and the calbee hot and spicy. but did you hear of the calbee seaweed before? really nice... should try if you see it on the shelf.

thur. area-cleaning. old notes to the notes box, dust in where it should be (vacuum cleaner). cleared my table and rearranged my desktop to make way for the laptop and some space to put my things. it shouldn't get too messy soon so now it's clean.

fri. fishing at pasir ris fish pond. nolstagic. very wet place, treacherous looking waters (it was night time when i went), smell of the sea (no fresh sea breeze but very canal-ish).

before fishing ate some arnold's chicken. very nice... they have a website and provides delivery. you can have a half spring or full. way better than KFC and super tender. current places at which they retail are Lion City plaza / hotel (not sure) near Paya Lebar MRT and Pasir Ris fish pond. slightly about 7 minutes walk from Pasir Ris MRT. don't worry, you don't smell the pond at where the restaurant is.

caught the smaller of the 2 that was caught that night. it started off with a nibble, a weak tug at my rod. usually that's the sign that small fish are biting your bait. small fish = max goldfish size. the bait may be underwater and the line long but it's very sensitive.

nibble moved on to multiple nibbles. ok i'm not using live prawn but it shouldn't taste bad (to a fish). decided to see if it's really a fish... tested it out and the line was moving. ok usually when a fish eats the bait it will swallow it and off it goes into the stomach. the fish now will likely turn 180 deg around and start pulling the line (that's why it moved). at this time you can "whack" the fish by drawing back your rod and this causes the bait to run through the stomach, the passageway and back to the fish's mouth. thing is, there's a hook, so the bait is unlikely to be pulled out of the fish and instead, the hook will hook on to the side of the fish's mouth.

after that you try to reel it in... of course, with a sharp hook at the side of your mouth and a force pulling you back no one (no fish) will stop and let you reel it in. depending on the fish type and its personality (haha) and whether it's fed (to give it energy to resist) it will put up a fight of varying power. mine was quite noob. damn.

anyway...

sat. helped around with my grandfather's business on some moving of goods and shelves. plus, tuition to my new group at woodlands. was too shag and had to continue the moving on sun, so went back for an early rest.

sun. continued on the moving. shag.

tml. no more moving, but gotta paint the rather old pieces of shelving.

tue. will be meeting my friend to collect our prize from brand's. i wonder how big the hamper is... well caprios enjoy the well-deserved hol break and take some time off to pamper yourselves with the money (although it was probably spent in nov - i.e. spending future money) but keep it and use it...

wed. tuition at woodlands. far.

thur. subject registration in sch and meeting for FYP. oh well do it now, when sem starts slack.

fri. no idea what to do yet. maybe dinner bah.

sat. relax time @ ubin. with 3 of my friends, cycling trip.

sun. too far to consider.

subsequent. not sure. more feasting, meet-ups, tuition, fyp. and with xmas coming... some shopping for clothes. yup. exercise. haha.

ogle ogle

2007-11-24T00:46:00.000+08:00

ogle ogle!

was studying with my jie mei ah chai at one fullerton starbucks today... really sian cos not really studying much + too much to study + too many distractions. yes, many many distractions.

it was a pretty nice place. the weather's a bit hot so decided against sitting outside in the sun, though if the day was more cloudy and the wind more generous i would have sat outside to enjoy the sea (well actually not a lot of sea, plus the construction going on for IR - major eye sore).

the first distraction was a bunch of japanese students, dressed in their sch uni, entering the place. ok, seriously the number of ppl entering and leaving the place was a lot. for good reason, too - first, it has air con. beats the heat anytime.

secondly, its the place along the stretch where u can enter, browse / hang around and leave without buying anything. nope, you cant do that for the japanese restaurant... nor that lebanese cuisine restaurant... nope.

mix of guys and gals. again, it confirms that japanese gals fall into 2 categories - can make it, or cannot make it. as in looks wise. and of cos, who can talk about japanese students without reference to their uniform esp skirts and stockings?

the gals' skirts - real nice! very burberry-ish design. and worn real high up... reminds me of the time in JC where the teachers used to kaopei about the length of skirts... no higher than X inches above the knee. well who the fuck cares. for the sake of looks, who gives a damn (not guys for sure! hahaha).

the guys' uniform and shirts suck. just like our schools' in SG, though they can put on their own belts. most of the belts - and the bags they carry - total crap. hey, its supposed to be japan... harlow, fashion country of asia?!

heck the guys. none whose looks can make it. gals-wise... 1 pretty eyes, 1 pretty face (looks like a mix between jap and caucasian... woo hoo! but very thick thighs... damn). plus a few more with nice hair... and all with makeup. ok, still got the more obedient ones... ie skirt length v standard.

they were in there for quite a while, and, for whatever length of time it was, me and ah chai DID NOT study. why? see below...

1) we were studying jap. the cover of our text is "beginner level japanese for singaporeans 1" and we damn pai seh to show it. i think the jap students were sure laughing inside.

2) some of the gals are too pretty to take my eyes off. well, they were taken off, but taken off the text and put on the gals.

3) in the meantime another distraction came. this time, it was two ladies who wanted to buy some coffee. the place was really crowded and they wanted to get nearer to the counter. so they had to shove their way thru... but it was too crowded and they decided to stride over a chair that was at our table. the first lady is cannot make it. the second one...

pure explosive!

drop-dead gorgeous and stunningly tall. fair, nice hairdo, nice top and to top it all off, dressed in jeans that simply showed off her long, tender legs. that's what i call beautiful. legs... oh my.

and with assets to boot. and she just had to stand that way... i cant even describe it. pure hotness.

and, what's with a loose top if you dun have much stuff to fill it in with? oh well, seriously the babe should just do away with the hot pink top. everybody can see everything!!!

my guess is she's at least 1.75m in height. no surprise if even taller than i am (i'm 1.81m).

whew. i need the north pole to cool me down.

anyway, back to study... chit chatted as usual, topic shifted to transsexuals in thailand. recently, i saw a short newsclip on CNA featuring a transsexual pageant in thailand. jeez if the broadcaster did not mention it was a transsexual pageant i would have seriously mistaken the contestants to be real women. look, u cant deny that they are really hot... and pretty... more woman than a woman!

i mean, u noe they are men deep down (yes, down there) but hey, dun deny that you switch channels the minute u see them. come on, u juz cant rite! and u start wondering... how can a guy be so pretty and perfect - from shoulders to figures to legs... to faces dammit! voices too!

and the irony is they have stuff down there! hello!!

haha the immediate newsclip only served to give a hilarious moment. it was another beauty pageant, for real women this time. i looked at them... and i think its the after effect of the trans pageant... somehow these real women, while gorgeous, were somehow losing in some aspects.

it's not like i take a real fancy to guys. but then... these trans... i can only say they're made in heaven. or, surgically made, but you've gotten got some stuff in you if you wanna become a really hot and beautiful trans.

oh well. i think i read somewhere that some of the most beautiful women in this world are men. an example: marilyn monroe. was on the top list for some beautiful women list. heard "she" was actually male, of cos went under the knife la! hmmm... food for thot? just some extra info.

ok better stop writing and get back to work. this entry's really long!!!

pretty much does it...

2007-11-17T13:10:00.000+08:00

yeap... the toughest week has passed...

forensic paper = CLEAR!
strategic management = CLEAR!

whew... esp strat. mgmt... really killed me with an overflow of information... dun even know where and how to start... luckily the paper was still do-able and altho i reached like 5 min late, i was able to stay composed (i'm sure i had time for a short toilet break too, as i was thinking of bua long long walk to toilet and come back... yes... strolling there and back... to jus show how slack i was...)

luckily i had my friend to "rely" abit on... thks... the discussion sessions online and over phone really worked. at least it was for me, hope it went well for u too!!

i'm qt lucky i guess, cos i really fin my forensic paper realli fast... left aft 1hr... cos i gotta go back to prep for the strategic case... 23 papers with 2 columns each. so roughly tat translates to 40 pages of case. dammit! and given like 4 days b4 exam. think got enuff time meh?!

well its all over... not all, but left 1 paper which i SU-ed.. and another is like dunno how far away. my jap 1 paper, actualli as i conscientiously did my jap hw and revision for the entire sem i wasn't really worried much abt this final paper. but i will try to do as best as i can... getting like A- is enuff for me to slap myself 1 time.

till nxt wk then... while i catch up on slp... my insatiable cravings for online entertainment... perhaps some new clothes? tutoring students... etc...

oh... another song to recco to all... i haven been able to upload youtube vids for some time... i dunno where's the screw up?? blogger?? youtube?? my account?? no idea...

credits to dan who recco-ed me this song. hope u like it...

http://youtube.com/watch?v=tqnIbni-aK0

i'll c if i can fix up the posting of youtube vids to my blog... well... till next blog!!!

retail therapy... it works!

2007-11-10T22:42:00.000+08:00

i can't take it anymore, so i decided to drop by queensway shopping centre for some retail therapy (to use the correct term).

the main reason is i simply can't take another look at the words in the stupid strategic textbook and i'm almost energy-strapped to the max.

basically, i bought all my stuff in the first half of my duration spent there... about 1 hr. the other hr, i just dropped by the shops which i didn't think i would buy anything from. as in, would not buy EVER. i mean, i was just passing by some of them and then, hey, just go in la! maybe got something to buy?

so the second half was spent walking around the entire complex. never mind that i had already bought what i wanted. never mind that i got pretty lost in that place. never mind that i passed the same shop at least 2 times. never mind that i rotated between the first and second floors.

never damn mind!

i think it's just the walking around... is thereupatic.

well... i wanted to buy another pair of shoes, a pair of slippers, a slingbag, one more tee... well.

i dunno. i suppose this is how gals feel when they go shopping? like there's always something else to buy. like even if there's nothing to do, just walking around is ok.

PS i wanted to buy but my resources are out. ha, guess i can earn them from my hols work and tuition.

how to change a baby's clothes... (obviously, this is not the way to do it!)

2007-11-06T22:03:00.000+08:00

some days have passed since the brand's competition, so it's time to get back to school work again... as of last night my sharing folder with jas was updated with some perky photos... these photos show me, as a potentially great husband and father, can change a baby's clothes in public. for each photo, there'll be a short note on what's going on, and what to look out for.

the additional thing is changing the clothes in public. i did the changing in NBS-FAL, which is always packed with students busy at work. plus, it was early afternoon at that time, so the crowd was at its peak. but dun worry, if i can pull it off, anybody also can.

photos courtesy of jas and erienne. my two gorgeous babe-friend group mates and gossip kakis.

no SD card memory was wasted or any plastic baby dolls harmed in this demo. PS: there shld be a video of me doing this. but! i dunno if my grp mates have uploaded it. nvm.

First, take baby out from plastic bag / whatever u use to carry the baby. do not change the baby in the plastic bag! very dark and cannot maneuver as req'd. tho does not apply to plastic doll babies, pls take care of your *real* baby.

have all necessary items on one side when you can reach them easily, so that as baby kicks up a bloody fuss, you know where the pacifier is. and of cos, when u noe where yr stuff is, u r unlikely to put on the baby's fists it's shoes or it's feet the gloves made for warmth. and, pacifier shuts babies up.

baby is naked and ready for change. changing a baby in a public place is really a major piss! as u can see, the person sitting to my right is so frustrated (look at position of both elbows... likely hands are on the head, a sign of frustration!!!) as she dun wanna change the baby in FAL (bad mom! bad example. do not learn).

do not fret. hold the baby by its back. with other hand, have the clothes ready. of cos, some space (the table in front of me) is good. cos later, u might need some space to put the baby when it gets pissy and piss all on you, but u cant dump it away, so gotta put it somewhere.

if clothes are very messy and not properly ironed, use hands to sort the mess out (duh! use legs meh?!)

remember the space i told u to reserve for the baby if u need both hands free? yup, now's an example...

HEY! where's the baby?

oh... in the plastic bag. pls do not do this to a real baby.

oh, btw, as mentioned but juz to say again, no plastic babies harmed during this entire demo process.

THIS IS AN EXAMPLE OF WHAT NOT TO DO. CHANGING BABIES IN A PLASTIC BAG IS NOT VERY DESIRED. PLUS, IT DOESN'T LOOK VERY COOL OR PRO (especially when i said i'll change the clothes in public. so i'll do it openly).

(do not) position baby as shown, face down is for demo purposes only. see, the space u reserved comes in handy! get ready yr barang-barang, then start the changing.

put over the baby's overalls and adjust as required. plus, the head shld always be on a supported position, and of cos not as shown in the demo. who cares, its not the correct way to do it anyway!

make all necessary adjustments... such as sleeves and the collar. then, touch up with buttons and etc. obviously you cannot hold the baby like this cos it will suffocate. speaking of which...

WHERE'S MY GRP MATES???!!!

(oh. both go and take photos of me displaying great acts of fatherly love... ok.. thanks alot babes...)

put on the baby's cap / hat cos it's rather botak and will feel cold esp in aircon room. and pls, not such a position pls! neck will be fractured and baby might be in danger. anyway, put cap on. ideally, same color as overalls so that it looks nice.

lastly, when all is done, take the pacifier and shove it into the baby's mouth. as u can imagine, with my rather *gentle* changing methods the baby, even if it is the deepest sleeper in the world, will wake up crying me deaf. take pacifier and pacify it... if req'd, some milk in the bottle to my right will also do an excellent job.

changing is done! additional bonus to baby: pacifier! look at how loving i am ... and i just did it!!! finished a challenging task in a public place! WOOHOO!

this pic shows my crowning moment.

kudos to the photographers.

"oh, baby... u like daddy? u like how daddy changed clothes for you?"

"u better make sure i win on friday ok, or i'm gonna smack your ass so hard you wished you haven had an ass (just joking baby)!"

baby... cute hor?! kawaii ne!

wait... haven u just been out from mommy for a few months? why does yr tummy look like the 5 months yr mommy was? hey, who the hell... who the hell screwed you... i mean.. i think i never change the clothes properly la.

hai... how my grp mates slogged thru the days to bring to life our concept... well babes... the prize money shld give u a nice decent major relaxing session of spa, jacuzzi, sauna, full body massage, etc... jeez... the eye bags... may they be gone soon!

and now, fast fwd to a meeting room at cerebos. we are now reporting LIVE! on the conversation between two contestants in the competition, debating over several important issues that needed immediate resolve! (scripted!!!)

"eh... the money ah... go where eat? seafood buffet? i want oysters!"

"the leftover sum... can go get the Jimmy Choos i wanted so badly! The rest goes towards my next LV bag..."

"SK-II masks ah... but I wan a Dior fragrance..."

heh heh heh.. after competition all 3 teams damn relaxed... of cos la...

look at the cerebos sign... like a source of light, so bright its shining on the lives of people ard the globe... (wa, i oso think i very sweet-mouthed... free promotion of cerebos...)

3rd place.

2007-11-04T00:23:00.000+08:00

yes, i got 3rd place. wasn't really planning to write anything abt this event, rather inspired by my grp mate for the competition. her blog la.

somehow i believed we shld hv a better position than 3rd... its greed, but so what?

but somehow aft u acknowledge it, its much better...

i think i understand better what framing n reference points r all abt... this stuff's my fyp... damn.

anw, juz add this to my exp and resume lor... what else...

slp real lots n woke up late. then rot ard, aft go marsiling to my new students' place... yes, group tuition... triplets...

more stuff up ahead, with tuition, part-time work (maybe. seriously i think i gg to be so bz i dun hv much time for part-time work) n stuff... i wanna enjoy!

oh well, dun hv anything to write le.

scandalously yours.

PS i love this new signing off. tot of it offhand... qt creative rite... tickles yr imagination n grabs yr attention!! scandals (wah, with an 's'...!!) - with whom? dun worrie, i'm pretty scandal-free... things usually dun happen to mi often.

rite... as if u believe... i tried to be realli credible. doesnt seem to work v well as i heard frm my frens' feedback!!!

like that, how to make it?

2007-10-28T19:03:00.000+08:00

when i went to SAFRA TPY for my IPPT this morning, i was feeling damn shit. apart from a slightly throbbing head, my stomach was complaining big time. damn uncomfortable! and guess what, the 1st station had to be shuttle run... my shoe got prob then i dun feel like running (cant pass + feeling nt so gd too). then the subsequent stations my body was crying out big time...

guess its really time to start working out. this is the last time i can fail my IPPT...

of cos la! drink drink drink... eat... sleep... dun work out... plus all sorts of other unhealthy habits...

like that, how to make it?

kaoz.

happy birthday!!!

2007-10-28T09:20:00.000+08:00

attended another of my friend's 21st yesterday... birthday girl of the day was erienne, my "sister" aka "jie mei"... haha how this came by was a long story... maybe tell another time.

jeez, i shldn't have drank so much. abt 11plus after dunno how many drinks the world's a bit off... my hands and feet kinda went weak... and so i left, as i have IPPT today.

anyway... the ride home on bus was crap... i wasn't really gg to puke or wat, just that i wanna get home earlier. dropped off somewhere along tiong bahru plaza and cant take it anymore. anyway i intended to take a cab, so ya...

finally! got home, changed to my shorts and... hit the bed real hard. woke up during the night feeling shit... turn and toss... but well, its a nice 7 hrs of slp... so woke up ready.

oops, running late. IPPT time. till next post...

look-alike: day 3 and more.

2007-10-24T20:04:00.000+08:00

this particularly interesting sight occurred while i was taking the train back home with my fren last wk...

it was abt 4 plus in the aftnoon n damn, it sure was a groggy time for me. actualli, for any time, it's groggy time... i wun realli hav much energy to post anything up, tho i juz woke up from my fave activity: power naps, n so kinda decided to fill my hungry audience wif juicy bits of my life so far...

yeap, back to the topic. was at boon lay waiting for train when some1 caught my eye. hmmm.. veri familiar wor! however i nvr realli sae anythin... nt until i was on the train n the some1 was sittin across me n my fren... haha my fren started commentin abt this some1 (now known as some1-1) reminding us of another some1 (some1-2), albeit with the following:

1) w/o the long tresses.
2) hmmm... i wld sae... a more careful wardrobe.
3) nice white sneakers!!! which some1-2 wld most likely nvr wear to sch at all.
4) mole. some1-2 doesnt hv this.
5) both some1-1 n some1-2... hv devices tt correct vision. aka, specs.

so far listed r the more prominent features i rem. the thing is, i saw some1-1 in sch again on the monday tt juz passed, and even today aft forensic lect!! jeez... i dun even c ppl i noe so oft everytime in sch! wat's happenin?!

frankly was v tempted to tk out my phone n snap a closeup... cos it wld make realli gd conversation material... was thinkin of doing so while having my little indulgence at s4, but hey, kinda lame and kinda... perv?

haha i wunder wat some1-2 wld react if told of such news.

ok, to other stuff...

a shot at a competition tt was joined rather impromptu, but gt in! for those who dunno, i recently joined the brand's prdt developmt competition org. by our sch's marketing club n cerebos (1 of the component stocks on SGX for the STI.. this terminology shld b correct. am no finance student)... so nw is finalist la... but i aim for top prize... nt jus for the honor but also to add a little spark to a plain CV... n nt to mention cash... n lots of chicken essence! muz kudos to my grp mates who worked v hard, n worked well... much of the success is due to them... for me ah... abit abit la.

sch: finalli fyp stop. kao... tired like hell. if nt for fyp tis sem is damn damn slack. lucky nw lit review fin, survey up n kicking (still testing tho), motivation for proj settled... hope i'm on track n on a good timeline as well...

social stuff: more n more entertaining to do. so far... been to 2 21st bdays, 1 at the beginnin of the year (jas, brand's grp mate, ab214 grp mate. v nice person) n recently, last wk (for ruu, a fren i knew since yr1. did proj together, kinda like my pal... hehe). tis wk, gt another (my v gd 'sister', no doubt suan mi alot but still v nice deep down). nxt wk, is go to a fren (iv) who has same bday as me... so far in sch i noe 2 ppl wif same bday (my other 'sister', also suan mi many times but also nice) as me. to tell the truth i think alot of ppl i noe r scorpios... haha fellow scorpios...

lucky most of my stuff settled le... n tis holz, apart from fyp... time for some xtra bucks... tuition... part-time (mayb) assistant to ex-colleague... n blah blah...

ministerial forum 2007

2007-10-06T22:26:00.000+08:00

yeap... been some time since i updated all with my life (yup, it still sux). a very much lagged update, too.

2 days ago on thurs was the ministerial forum, organized by ntu student's union, n we invited MM to come give a talk... topic was "sg in the 21st century." being the hype that it alr was, i wun b saying much abt wat happened n wat was discussed in the forum. for those wif an interest to look at the media's coverage on tis event, here's 2 links:

http://omy.sg/news/hotnews/200710/20071005_001_mmlee.html
http://www.ntu.edu.sg/CorpComms/NTU+in+the+News/#ministerialforum

ya. for the preparation of the event we assembled at ard 12 (i reached at 1 cos i had lessons n no pt getting a letter of excuse to skip my jap class). looked ard... talked to some frens... then told to wait... and so me n my fren decided to get a munchie from macD... my usual is 1 hamburger and 1 cheeseburger. total is 2.20... beats any other meal from can A cos its fast n the calories wil burn much longer, so i'll feel fuller for a longer time (since i hv to tahan a bit in the forum anw).

then... it came 4 when the police had to conduct a bomb sweep. we then "tuu" until abt 5 ard S4... eating a pathetic dinner (1 lunch box, which had reasonable tasting chicken rice "ketupats" and a scrawny drumstick. ketupat = rice cake or sthg like tat in malay. so the ketupat... u noe la. nb budget until like tat. i paid freakin 6k per acad yr for yr motherf*cking sake!)

then came forum prep time. dry run... tuu here... tuu there... but qt chop chop la. a lady instructed me on how to open the door - yup, i'm opening the door for MM - with a smile. we were supposed to rotate standing at the exit to prevent unauthorized exit or entrance. i.e. u've got some big shot talking, then suddenly this person rush in / wanna go out from the door near the big shot... wa kao cannot rite. but me n my partner stood throughout the entire thing! 3 hrs we predict. forum = 2, pre-forum = 1... station there wif one of MM's bodyguards. i think he stand until v lao jiao liao... like me stand sentry until v lao jiao too... i RP while in NS de. but now buay kan la.

ya then abt to reach the end of forum. actually its qt interesting la. humorous n engaging... then i think the bodyguard also like v happy the thing over. he stand until cannot le i.e. he started pacing up n down throughout like halfway thru the forum. boh bian leh... stand like tis all the time... hard. but the compensation shld b really gd too... so no complains.

then the MC came and wanted to thank MM then this gal from HSS (e lit i think) came to a mic near her and then started asking a question abt the suppression of artistic development in SG due to the censorship system... yadda yadda u can see this article in the links above... wa piang i stood abit far from our *esteemed* prof su i think he's face all chao... cos the question... kaoz. i dun even wanna repeat. WTF question - get yr gay parades out of my face.

lau kwee lau gar lau sai kee
(throw face until diarrhea)

ah piang. hey, tell u ah. i come from SG, learn my english in SG from p1 - j2. but hw come no one say i speak v gd english? (for those who attended the forum, they'll understand tis joke better).

of cos la, look at hw i write my blog, wanna say i speak v gd english also cannot find reason to say.

i am one with the nite.

2007-09-18T01:28:00.000+08:00

i juz got back home frm doing fyp in sch till quite late. late as in 11pm plus... lucky we went off on time to catch the last bus ( i think).

there's one last train at boon lay but i didnt tk. i took 30 to a few stops b4 harborfront... i rem there's a petrol kiosk there, and so there shld b food. my lunch was at 4... my dinner was bought from the 7-11 at the kiosk, juz a choc cream bread and 1 bottle of mango tea.

since there's no bus (actualli there was but i was too lazy to run after it since i'm carrying a bag and eating) i walked home. took me a gd half hr b4 i got home... along the way, i tried to keep steady my pace since i wanted to go back soon. not to mention a bit tired, a bit sleepy... but some interesting sights abound.

at tis time no one is on the streets anymore. so i began to sing as i was walking back home... juz keeps the sleepiness and hunger away. song aft song, my faves all of them, played:

s.h.e - BOOM
s.h.e - superstar
butters' audition - little bunny foo foo
s.h.e - ring ring ring
etc...

the nite breeze is juz so cool... and as i was walking home, i was reminded of the days when i was serving ns. i was walking on route marches late at nite, singing songs to boost morale and occassionally chatting with my course mates to keep the boredom away. now i walk again, albeit with a lighter load and a much lighter heart.

i saw construction that goes on at nite, to keep the roads ready for cars to travel on tml...

i saw ppl working late in coffeeshops to keep hungry stomachs full...

i saw empty cabs trying to get customers on a monday nite / tue morn where ppl wld be sleeping to recover frm the wkend...

i saw...

i think i shld slp soon. juz wanna post an entry to sae how i love the occasional nite walk.

i am one with the nite.

especially when i'm sleeping the nite away... zzz.

i woke up bewildered...

2007-09-15T10:15:00.000+08:00

it's not often that i have eerie dreams. nightmares, perhaps, but eerie dreams... hmmm...

i think i had this dream before, or at least that was the impression i had when i was in the dream. that is, i innately "knew" beforehand some stuff. this is marked in the story by a *. call it deja vu? prophecy? i have no idea.

but here goes:

i found myself in a crowded food court, seated at a table with all my cousins and an old lady. we were told by the old lady to visit one of her grandchildren's stalls, a western food stall. that means we dun have to pay for anything. sounds good eh.

the old lady remain seated at the table while we went off to the stall. we were told to inform the stall owner that we were the grandchildren of this particular old lady. the owner (2 owners in fact, a young guy and a young gal, i think. not a couple though) looked at each other and said, "again?"

they let us into the stall and let us chose whatever we want. i was careful to ask which of the food's ingredients were bought today. only the chicken thighs and drums, the owners replied. * (cos if i really had this dream b4, it meant that some of the ingredients were actually supplied by the old lady, who might have gardening as a hobby. mostly she wld supply vegetables to her "grandchildren" so for western it'll be potatoes, carrots, broccoli etc.)

good... that means i'll avoid the fries and wedges later. you see, the veggies are supplied by the old lady. and the old lady can only supply rotten veggies, with maggots crawling in them. why so black-hearted? its not that... its just that she's already dead for a long time, and the only veggies she can supply are veggies harvested a long long time ago and stored in some place until they rotted to the core, since she wasn't there anymore to make sure that the fresh ones are cooked and the rotten ones thrown away... * i knew the fact that she was long dead. just that i did not tell anybody.

the male owner turned to the female owner. "maybe we should stop deceiving the old lady. we've been living off her a long time already?"

"are you crazy? what about the iPod i wanted to buy? and my car? and the car you've been wanting so badly?"

it turns out that, for being the old lady's "grandchildren", you get compensated really well! and it's not in hell bank notes, its cold hard cash. so that explains why the owners can open a stall (the capital must have came from you know where)...

ok, so all the food was ready and they got to the table. the old lady didnt eat (obviously) while my cousins were munching down every single bit. i only took the chicken and ate it, so as not to appear suspicious. then a waiter came over (food court... waiter?!) and passed me a note. i kept the note in my folder and decided to read it later. apparently, it contained information about the old lady that cannot be "spoken" out.

ok soon after that, we left the food court. the old lady bade us goodbye and went off before us. she "walked" quite fast for someone her age. note that her feet was still touching the ground, but perhaps only to conceal the fact that she was floating. it was six plus in the evening... mind you, there's still sunlight about.

so all of us were walking towards the train station. as i passed the ticket gantry, i took out the piece of paper. my brother was walking beside me (i think he had a lot of fries and wedges... good luck to him...) and i was looking at the piece of paper. i forgot most of the contents, only that (as it appeared on the paper, same color and bolded):

do not disturb from 17:15 to 06:30. it's granny's sleep time.

that explains it. my brother went to someplace for a re-test (nature unknown) and apparently entered somewhere where he shouldn't have gone into. thats where granny was woken up and my brother perceived to be one of her grandchildren who has come to visit her. so as a kind gesture decided not to sleep but instead bring the grandchild out for dinner. brought the grandchild to a place where more of her grandchildren was running the stall. and what happened after that, you know.

hmmm... i remembered 2 other lines in the paper (as it appeared):

the old lady will think that someone is her grandchild if she "feels" something within that someone. then she will appear and treat the someone as her grandchild.

the old lady would have her feet moved so fast it would appear she's walking on the ground. in fact, she's floating just that her feet is close to the ground.

so my hypothesis is that she would appear and acknowledge the "grandchild" based on a "feel." however, i dun think she would harm that someone bah. not unless her secret is known. that perhaps is why the waiter passed me the note instead of speaking it out to me... maybe untimely death wld befall that person? that waiter must have been one of her "grandchild" before... but so is everyone in the food court! i rem they were staring at us real long and real hard... but did not mutter anything.

this dream, i think, was made from 810 am... to 9 plus perhaps? cos i woke up at 10... during 9 plus to 10 i had another eerie dream... but i cldnt make any sense of it at all...

brrr. the morning's cold... is my room cold too?

eerie.

expectations.

2007-08-29T20:55:00.000+08:00

it's another wednesday and so that means forensic science lecture. i was having lunch with 2 of my gal pals and was a little late... not that being early is going to be any helpful cos the subject taught today is DNA... gets pretty dry after a while, and incomprehensible.

the much awaited break came and i woke up from my napping. i was sitting with 1 of my gal pals and then, to pass time, striked up a topic for some small talk. at my personal discretion and out of respect for an individual's privacy, i would not say much about details. but what was interesting was the topic that we were discussing, which was - what else - BGRs.

a point to note is that apparently, young singaporeans who are seeking to get attached are affected, it seems, by a discrepancy in expectation levels. before i go even further, i would like to say i am considering this issue from both a guy's and a gal's perspective, and i hope what i've said here does reflect some reality in both sexes.

reality: gals today are more career-minded. that is a statement of fact. look at globalization and the stress from the education system, where educators brainwashed us with ideas of prioritizing career above all else. that perhaps have delayed the time people are getting attached.

i am not against gals being career-minded - after all, that's what gender equality is all about, right? gals deserve every right to prioritize careers as guys do. perhaps some readers may think i'm displaying some sort of gender discrimination - i am not. a true, unbiased representation of reality is not tantamount to an implied notion of certain affective or cognitive demonstrations.

gals who are career-minded, at the very least, can be assumed to have a certain sense of direction, are motivated, and show some independence. these are all very good. indeed, when one talks about gender equality, let's not forget that gender equality is about a balanced equation. weightage should not be skewed to either side, and no reasonable person should expect others to be of a certain standard if that person isn't already possessing that particular standard.

my concern is - and to which my friend does agree - is that for a career woman to succeed in the seemingly male-dominated world of business and industry, she may be required to display certain male characteristics. by these characteristics i mean dominance, a display and use of power and authority... etc etc. this again is not discriminatory. i agree with the notion that a career woman - or anyone else for that matter - requires such characteristics if she wishes to prove her own capabilities and rise up the corporate ladder.

which, even before qualifying as a career woman, such traits - perhaps emphasized or exaggerated by the academic system or social groups - may have been an obstacle to potential couples. by this i mean that perhaps some career women have raised the bar so high - expectations, in other words - that few if any men can actually even attempt to reach these expectations.

oh sure, you would say, well, if you can't reach it, get outta my sight and i'll just wait until someone who can reach comes along.

in reaction to such a phenomenon it hardly comes as a surprise that SG men have sometimes been labeled less interesting that our caucasian counterparts. i beg to differ. as with any society, there will always be less interesting people around... do not forget that proportions and base rates (statistics) are at work. we can partly attribute the higher appeal exuded from caucasians to glamorous Hollywood, and due to this representativeness heuristic, people began to assume that caucasians are more interesting and become biased in the process.

so then, what's next? SG men began to realize that, unable to match the expectations set by the gals, they turn their attention to the next best alternatives. it's not gender discrimination - it's simply economics at work. indeed, these has perhaps led to the favorable treatment received by gals from our neighboring countries of late. that of course includes the usual bride and the gals from other countries who are more readily accepted by SG men.

are we saying that SG gals should lower their expectations? not necessary. i do know of guy friends who have (impossibly) high standards of their potential gal frens or wives. if you have the bargaining power - this applies to both genders - go ahead. but if you're a normal person, just like me, high standards, just like world records, are broken only that once every blue moon. if we apply the same logic to this issue, that would mean a very long wait for that ideal person to arrive. question: how many are there in this world?

so we realize that some members of both genders commit the same - i would say - fallacy. personally, i admit that i do have ideals (who doesn't) and if i were to consider the ideals realistically, they're just that - ideals! attainability doesn't seem to be high. but in any case, i do know that this issue would not see a perfect resolve any time soon. meanwhile, my only message is to re-evaluate your standards and ask - are these really attainable by a human?

let me just share my ideal and realistic expectations here:

ideal: tall (>1.65), slim, fair, pretty / cute, good figure, independent, love me more than i love her (haha)
realistic: decent looks, figure does not really matter. of good character, some independence preferred.

there... it's realistic, isn't it? many gals would have no problem satisfying that!

i finally remember...

2007-08-28T23:14:00.000+08:00

i finally remembered the bloody password required to log into my blogger account. actually i had no intention of writing anything... just happened to see a friend's whose msn featured a site directing people to visit it... the site... well... it sells...stuff. twinkle-stuff.

apparently i changed my passwords too many times. given that the average person has so many e-accounts to manage, it's no surprise one often has to create many user ids and passwords to log into these accounts. of course, there's the option of using one universal password for all... yeah, heck that security thing. i haven't got the time - nor the space - to remember another piece of information in my already overfilled brain.

what should i write about?

i don't want to write about school cos i'm going there every week, for the past 4 weeks. i have yet to skip any lessons... ok ok i confess, i attended like about an hour of a lecture... then skip... cos it simply is beyond me to stay in a lecture where the lecturer takes a full hour to explain all the possible uses of forecasting in the world. hello prof, i only need to know about sales and demand forecasting! so pray don't tell me about GDP, population, student intake...

of course that isn't the only thing... the prof go thru the lecture like he's going through some textbook... "so children, flip to page 100... you see this formula here... ok so X stands for this, Y for that... you know why you gotta do this? cos the formula has limits..." every single variable in the formula is explained to the minute of details. hey, the good thing is... this prof damn relax... heck care about stuff and set easy questions... some more say in addition to lecture notes (which are obtained from the textbook's CD... lazy asshole!) will print out relevant pages from the book that he thinks is good to boost our understanding... i guess that's not too bad considering that buying textbooks when i'm already out of cash... not a very attractive option.

and heck, i just wrote about school.

personal stuff. ok i'm giving part-time tuition, which is quite challenging. i suppose kids nowadays are much more savvy and open. that's a really far cry from the standard that i went through... the other day i was asked a question on algebraic expansion i.e. (a+b)-sq = a-sq + 2ab + b-sq... you get the idea. so there was a question that required the use of one such expansion. having gone through o levels this question was of course not a problem to me. to my amazement (i'm quite surprised actually) my student asked me:

"ok, so this is how you would do. but how do i know this is the way - did you consider it from my perspective, my level?"

i'm slightly stunned by this statement. positively stunned, i slapped my forehead and said to myself, that's quite true! how 2 people see the same problem greatly differs. i had more experience, so the question is routine - but what about my student who does not have much contact with such questions?

i do not believe in smoking my way through, nor simply reply "hey i'm the teacher, you listen to me." that certainly is not the way to motivate the kid! i don't like to do things the ways parents and teachers did back then: it boils down to, i'm the teacher, don't fucking challenge my authority. no no, i don't believe in this.

so i replied: let me go back and think of an appropriate way to explain this question. which is what i am thinking about now. the easy way of course is to give the explanation as written at the back of the assessment book. what is difficult is to impart the skill of viewing the problem in a broader, unique perspective. and that is often required in maths questions that serve to differentiate students of different caliber.

perhaps i can get the optimal method in my dream... lol.

romantic interest - none as yet.

socializing - the usual i guess... catching up and chatting with friends... an occasional meal together... outings... that's just about what SG has to offer for socializing.

other misc. things (tick when done)
1) find wu zun-lookalike for one of my gal pals
2) earn money for year-end HK trip
3) keeping an eye out for potential targets
4) lose some weight (been downing lots of trash into my tummy lately...)
5) learning to survive on lesser amounts of sleep
6) attend the career talks by banks... i'm really sick of marketing... give me numbers to crunch!
7) stop thinking about booze every now and then
8) watch lesser south park / youtube
9) TRY to update blog more often!

eh... off-hand cant think of wu zun lookalike... ha well there's other criteria given to me... so it ought to be easier...

and wu zun is *supposedly* more realistic... ya... compared to the ideal... yes indeed...

the longest hol is no more...

2007-08-12T23:36:00.000+08:00

that is, no more 3 month long hols anymore...

well, the no more 3 month long hols officially ended when i started yr 2. wasn't really hols per se as i was working. but its part time and pay's gd, so it's still hols to me.

PA is not part time and pay's peanuts (very tempted to write red beans). so even the last 2 wks of the long hols was not really for rest. still had stuff to clean up here n there, loose ends... etc

then sch juz had to start. actualli i blog tis entry cos i juz felt quite sian and juz needed to do sthg b4 my brain gets really fuzzy and then i'll juz knock out on my bed.

been entertaining lots of ppl lately... went buffeting with 3 sec sch frens for a long-promised feast... my HK aunt flew over... then my jc pal gonna fly off to germany for exchange... n then more HK relatives coming over... indon relatives too... then catching up wif frens here n there...

i feel v bloated. the dinner juz now, i actualli ate durian b4 that. wat a damn waste of my stomach space as the durian sucked big time. whitish flesh, no flavor at all WTF! then becos of this i gotta give up my alcohol indulges. damn! with my HK uncle ard alcohol is sure to be avail... from beer to red wine to XO... always free flowing and i'll juz drink cup aft cup...

ps i juz ate durian and had a tweeny pint of otard XO! wonder if wat they say abt durians mixing with alcohol is true...

hope tonite rains so tat i can slp a bit more better.

tml... gotta meet for fyp discussion... and of cos, the beginning of tuts n all the f*cking b.s.

gotta graduate realli soon. life as a student sucks esp after i do PA.

the layman's guide to (not so) lay shopping

2007-07-23T22:34:00.000+08:00

PA is over!!

now i can really devote some time to blogging abt some pointers tat i wld like to share with my dear frens. for those who do not know, my PA was at Unilever, one of the biggest MNCs ard dealing with consumers' daily necessities. google the name, and you shld noe wat i'm talking abt... if not, the following brands may help in some recall...

Dove, Lux, Lipton, Wall's, Skippy, Ben and Jerry's

but enuff of the brands. i didn't slog 10 wks at a MNC to learn nothing. actualli wat i'm abt to post are some tips for groceries shopping in any retail store u go to, supermarket chain or not. yours sincerely shld b able to address some of yr daily shopping with wat marketers are doing to get u to buy their brands.

many ppl think groceries shopping is a mindless affair. not exactly mindless, but u probably do not devote much attention to it, since it's a rather common and low-involvement activity (what's so hard with buying a bottle of shampoo compared to a new phone or laptop, where u'll be actively seeking for lowest possible prices, model comparisons etc). hence the apparent notion of mindless. this aside, hv u ever considered how u might do a better job at a seemingly easy activity - to your utmost advantage??

the following discussion is generally applicable to anywhere or any product which u shop in or for, unless stated otherwise...

foods

generally more perishable and expires faster than non-foods, smart consumers like u r v likely to check the expiry date on the item itself. human nature states that the item that you pick and check is the very first of each variant. ie in supermarkets its common to see, say, Campbell's Cream of Mushroom soup, on a shelf and then each item that follows is the cream of mushroom variant. human nature will also tell u tat, as prdts get picked off the shelf, and supermarket employees will stock back the empty slots.

so wat happens? prdts with earlier expiry dates will be pushed to the back of the shelf. so perhaps u say, wats the big deal? i'm getting the prdt with the latest expiry date, am i not? apparently so. not too big a concern if u plan to finish the prdt immediately or within a short period of time after opening it (incl. if u store in the fridge, but in any case the expiry date is no longer applicable since the food is exposed to air and bacteria already). so giving a gd gauge of finishing the open can in a wk after opening is gd enuff.

but wat abt the smart retailers of today? yes, they can always exchange expired prdts with the manufacturers or distributors they bought it from, but the process takes time and costs manpower and money. do it for enuff prdts, n they suffer consequences on their competitive advantage of offering everyday low prices. they nt stupid de... so, the next time u choose a food product, usually dry / canned foods, do the following:

if ever possible, get the last item rite at the back. the "rule" is tat retailers wld place prdts with earlier expiry dates at the front and later ones at the back. isn't it a big hassle? yes. but fyi, ppl who arrange the products on shelves are sometimes not the supermarket staff themselves. big companies like unilever, nestle, p&g and johnson & johnson employ wat is known as merchandisers, who help with the stocking and arrangement of prdts. heh u think the supermarket chain so nice do bao kar liao (do everything) for the companies ah? dream on...

non-foods (personal care pdts)

longer shelf life, ard 3 years or so. b4 buying, flip open the lid (except for pump containers, which u really cant, but check the expiry date) and sniff. apart from smelling if its acceptable to u, you can better check for expired pdts. i hv smelt one b4, it damn stinks. its foulness is undescribable.

general

as value-seeking consumers tat retailers hv trained us all to be, we r more willing to wait for a sale or promotion to get the prdt tat we like to hv but is nt so essential, or wld like to hv an early purchase to stock the item up and then put off buying it for a few months or so. shifting sales in time, as this is known, is wat we all do, dun we? get 5 tubes of toothpaste at a sale, then we can put off buying it until like say 2 months later, when we expect another sale.

fact is, there's always a sales promo gg on in the supermarket chains every month for a certain brand. for example, if NTUC hosts a promo for brand X (sometimes, 2 promos for X but of different natures eg bundling in wk 1, 50 cents off in wk 4) per month. and while NTUC is doing tat particular promo, say brand X pack size 50s bundle with mug in wk 1, u can be sure tat other chains will not be doing it, at least not in wk 1. u r even less likely to find such promos in Cold Storage where the tgt mkt is caucasians, who (divulge a interesting note here) are not too susceptible to sales promos. tat's y in cold storage, u find classier items and better shopping experiences but this benefit comes thru the price premium u paid for items in yr shopping cart.

in a bid to seek the best possible value, consumers tend to benchmark prices to a certain reference point. for example, if i ask u how much u paid for your bottle of green tea, u can quote me the price. not a problem. thing is, when you bought it at the store, you probably thought of the following: 1) how much you paid for this item in a previous purchase, and 2) how much it should cost (if u hv not bought it before) taking into consideration the price a bottle of green tea should be. this includes green teas of other brands. so lets say Yeo's green tea is $1 (which u bought last time) but you decide to try pokka for novelty. u will then benchmark pokka against Yeo's and see if the pokka price is wat u r willing to pay. but unless u hv a v gd memory, u r unlikely to recall much of the reference points.

u can do slightly better. nxt time, in thursday newpapers, be sure to look out for the items on promo for the chains tat advertise them. this trend began with NTUC and now major chains are following suit. so, prior to any shopping trip u might wanna consult tis piece of mkt intel b4 moving in for the kill.

no supermarket near yr place? only provision shops to boot? no worries... simply refer the prices in the papers, then compare it with the ones in the provision shops. provision shops generally benchmark their prices against that set by NTUC, and will do especially so if NTUC supermarkets are within proximity, but not so proximate until can reach by foot in less than 10 min. its sad to see such provision shops, who are often family-owned and might possibly be the lifeblood of the owner, succumb to such circumstance... but its reality, supermarket chains are the dominant ones now. even the big companies hv to cede some concessions to the retailers, the gatekeepers to consumer markets...

hmmm... so now u tell mi, you're not so brand conscious, price is more impt. true - tats the mentality of consumers today. so u walk to a aisle and pick the cheapest item? not so! the way merchandise is presented has a subtle effect on consumers. lets go thru how it works.

merchandise are placed on shelves. several shelves then form a bay. so, the "horizontal" of each shelf is a shelf, while a "vertical" of shelves is a bay. bays are clearly defined by the fact that each bay is a separate one, and this u can see from the space between each bay. merchandise are arranged, not by the principle "where there's space, just put it". its a non-scientific principle, and pure dumb. merchandise arrangement on a shelf takes into account the following:

shelf measurements (ie length and depth)
product measurements
facings (ie how many of each variant eg Skippy Regular Creamy 500g) can u see on each shelf
past sales data
aesthetic appeal
expected retailer boost in sales from adopting such arrangement
shopper behavior

some factors warrant deeper explanation. first 2 points are self evident. point 3 is interesting. suppose that a variant is very "hot" ie selling well. this fact is derived from past sales data. but the retailer has a mind of its own. some of u may notice that supermarkets are coming up with their own brands, house / private brands as they are called, which boasts quality comparable to major brands, is cheaper and earns the retailer more margin. given such incentives, retailers, u say, will be more tempted to stock more of their own brands. partially true. they will still devote much shelf space to major brands, but in light of stocking their own brands and trying not to show disregard for other brands, will ask u why u shld hv 3 facings instead of 2. this, then, is up to u to explain.

its gd to introduce a term called planogramming now. this is the proposed arrangement of merchandise category captains do for their retailing partners. so eg unilever is category captain for hot beverages and bread spreads, since its Lipton and Skippy brand accounts for a very very substantial mkt share in sg. the category captain will work with the retailer and propose an arrangement, which is supposedly done so for the interest of pt 6. so, category captains need to b very careful in planogramming, taking into acct the above factors, so tat they can deliver the promise of the expected increase in sales.

aesthetic appeal - how "shun yan" to the eye. many ways to do so, just need to know tat usually the way it is done is that a particular brand will hv its variants placed vertically from small size packs to larger sizes at eye-level / reachable shelves. this is where majority of sales come from. this is also part of shopper behavior, and of cos, observation studies hv been done to determine the ways shoppers pick and choose an item off a shelf. so, armed with this knowledge, hopefully u wld be less susceptible to such influence.

so in fact, merchandise arrangement is an art as it is a science. much research goes into marketing decisions... so its not exactly something anybody can do..

thats all i can think of now. any recalls, will post.

hopefully tis info makes u a smarter shopper than u alr are.

benefits of kissing

2007-07-08T23:56:00.000+08:00

was watching 我猜 online, the featured theme for 人不可貌相 was 啵me美眉 (aka "kiss-me" pretty girl). the gals are ok, with certain exceptions (typical and rather expected of how taiwanese perceive and set standards for pretty girls...) but just before the gals are shown the narrator starts off with the (unexpected) benefits of kissing:

1) when a couple exchanges saliva (esp during french kisses) during a passionate kiss the germs in the mixed saliva would reportedly cause a reaction and activate antibodies, which help fight off the germs. with repeated kissing (and saliva mixing) the antibodies will grow stronger and then they will help you fight off future illnesses as well!

ok, mixing saliva may sound disgusting but for those who hv tried, its quite shiok... tongue wars... woo hoo! apparently the antibodies part shld help explain why i've not been very healthy lately... *coughs* and its not (just) the hectic workload from PA...

2) when one prepares for a kiss, the relevant facial muscles / skin tissues will tense up, and blood circulation will become faster. so, this helps to promote skin rejuvenation and give a facial uplift... kinda acts as a deterrent to wrinkles...

ok wrinkles-wise, doesnt really matter to guys cos its a sign of maturity and sexiness (hahaha)... talk abt natural firming and some more, free as well... plus the added benefit of basking in pure sweet love! gals can save some money on firming creams etc by just engaging in kissing... and spend more on clothes... shopping... etc etc...

3) kissing also helps in relieving muscle spasms around the face / throat area. so, apparently, this works well for curing hiccups (apart from the traditional drinking water, suck sugar cube and sudden scare techniques used to treat hiccups) and minor spasms (minor ones only, not some freaking whole body spasm).

hmmm... i dun really suffer from hiccups or spasms... well cant hurt to have kisses right?

all in all, perhaps all tis are "just for fun" bits of info to keep audiences at their seats and sticking to that channel. but, who cares whether they're real or not? i wld like to think the first benefit is real (since it applies the most to me, haha!) but so far, i havent really tried enough times to see whether the antibodies thingy do get stronger. but its quite true tat i havent been to the doctor's for awhile (except to keng MC) and that, though i suffer from minor coughs and fevers now and then, they dun warrant enuff severity for me to go to the doc's.

i rem once i was feeling cold and hot at the same time. fever for sure... 38.4 deg!! wat did i do? ok... i went to bed early but couldnt slp as my head was hurting all the time and i kept dreaming. so, for every hour tat nite, i woke up to tk my temp and drink 枇杷膏... the sweet, honeyish goo tat is so familiar to all... then nxt day woke up at 36+ deg and went sch for 1 presentation and quiz. not bad hor!

yeah... watever it is... year 3 le... shld get a gf for some antibody strengthening... lol hahaha.

chance meetings...

2007-06-21T22:14:00.000+08:00

today went to carrefour plaza sing juz before gg back to office to meet my fellow interns for some housekeeping and admin matters. left the building then went to relac one corner... then saw my fren from NS, my last unit. he saw me, and i went "Bro!"

this "Bro" is our sarge, who i muz say kept alot of shit away from my superior. i think he saved our asses quite many times and mine as well, not burning my precious wkends in the stupid camp. so we, the RPs, really respect him lots... and he's a fren to many ppl in the guardroom which i frankly muz say is not an easy task, given the... "diverse" personalities... (ie cb and lj ppl)

chatted wif him for awhile. got to know that he's still studying, n still in the aviation industry. so, its like, ok... still the same career aspiration, given tat he applied for air steward (he's got the stuff - looks, humor and BUTT! - fellow RPs will noe wat i mean). now he's applying for a new position as a sales exec... career switch tat is...

good luck bro.

so next up, aft i knocked off from work i went to eat fish head steamboat... whoa... beri beri nice! then i was eating halfway when a familiar figure strode down and our eyes caught each other. it was my fren from uni, haven seen her for quite some time le.

cos she deferred sch to concentrate on her insurance career. well, the reasons she gave was tat studying largely depends on her mood - so she wanted to recharge b4 gg back to study - fair enuff, i guess, since insurance does ensure some xtra pocket money even when u're studying. hmmm... tat's someone to look for when i need some safe investments tat give me safe returns... the "kao shan" of my portfolio besides the blardy savings acct and endowment plan... kns pittance returns! PEANUTS!

and the protagonist of the PEANUTS saga gets 3 months! wow thks dude, tis guy does get away wif things... hope u dun get toothbrushed (ie stabbed by some toothbrush sharp end as always featured in the movies) by some dialysis patient in changi villa...

6 wks of internship down!! ha... mixed feelings. cant reveal too much here yet, as i'm still doing PA and not much can be revealed. wat i can say now is the arrows flying ard in office - and i happen to be the target! specifically the sandwiched ham. yes i do make perfect ham cos i hv a flabby body but its kinda out of pt. ha... i learnt tat sucking up to both sides is nt an easy task... so wat can be said, wat cannot be said, muz be real careful... and... truth and honesty DOES pay in tat... well, we'll see if there's any payoffs.

as far as performance is concerned, i'm much on the right track. better gimme my A for PA... ni na bei lim bei tio ar ni juay sai... boh A lim bei kar ngli gan... gan tan la! (感叹）

BnJ outing with my sisters!

2007-06-16T23:49:00.000+08:00

BnJ outing with my two sisters! aka hao jie mei la... looking fwd long time to tis outing le to catch them again n see how they doing in their pa n own personal stuff... haha all v quirky pix! but is aft my careful selection, muz show off their great looks mah! hahaha... told u le will post the best de mah, my sisters!

kiss?? no kiss?? (no kiss!)

haha so happy ya...

there's got to me as well mah! haha y i put my phone there huh... anyway i kinda look tired and having a bad hair time (think is cos put during hair wet wet... then go toilet a few time and try to style but then wash off quite a lot of the gel... so too bad lor. ignore the hair k!) enjoy the pix... may our sisterhood last 4ever!!!

roaming and hiking around

2007-06-16T23:23:00.000+08:00

currently doing the second project for my attachment, so req'd to run ard various stores in sg to collect relevant info. includes running to rather inaccessible and new housing areas. had the chance to go north east yesterday, quite quiet and empty. bare tpt and shopping facilities, but i find the scenery beautiful. so juz to share some pix...

clouds gathering for rain. look - nothing but the skies and the punggol LRT adding to the forefront of this pic. was v windy at tat time and then was waiting for bus to come, so SNAP!

taken slightly to right of first pix. shows a station, then dark clouds to the left and the sun's rays protruding thru the clouds, like some heavenly beams.

punggol interchange - mostly empty flats, i suppose. very bare interchange with v little ppl. storm clouds gathering, my first stop for the day.

stopped at the wrong stop. suppose to alight 1 more stop aft this, riviera LRT station. who the hell takes this anyway? anw, it had begun to drizzle and this lonely van happen to pass by. juz to illustrate the emptiness of the area, roads and flats etc

taken at the "wrong" stop. shows the sky slightly clearing up, tho its still drizzling and gg on to a major downfall soon. cant realli see the rain in this pic, this is one of the few places in sg that has not been ravaged by bulldozers, molested by skyscrapers, harassed by humans - yet.

subsequently went some places in sengkang... not v interesting as they're quite populated. aft some trips there went to buangkok, if i not wrong somewhere near institute of mental health, hougang area.

taken on top of a overhead bridge, showing the badminton and general facilities courts of buangkok crescent estate. such a nice environment and view... northeast side actualli not too bad for living juz tat abit distant from CBD, tpt quite limited unless got car.

taken left of previous pic. this piece of land, perhaps the nxt time i go there (who knows when) might have 2 - 3 blocks of hdbs or condos occupying this plot of space. 6mil in population... well i guess there's not much of a choice. thing is, will our ladies - our future gf and wives - collectively bear till that number, or will immigration policies be relaxed?

leaves much to the imagination... food for some tot...

first project down

2007-06-11T23:05:00.000+08:00

some time ago i was blogging abt my first project at my attachment co unilever, named shopscore. aft 1 wk of intensive data compilation, analysis, report and powerpt slides (yes, at least 10 hrs per day incl. sat and sun) the work finally came to an end.

as usual, b4 the presentation there is some anxiousness as we, tho used to present in sch to fellow classmates, do nt hav much exp dealing with corporate presentation. what's gg to happen? is it gg to be long? wat abt "thinking on your feet?" the Q&A, is it gg to be hard?

the entire presentation took abt 2 hrs, incl the Q&A as and when it occurs. so its nt like, presentation, blah blah blah, ok Q&A, we answer yr Qs. Qs r asked and clarification sought whenever the panel needs to ask, so apart from having to noe the material v well (which sure will b, havin spent so much time wif it) and some quick thinking, the whole thing went smoothly. sure was a great boost to morale!

we were worried in the beginning tat the presentation wun go as well, n tat the findings or data were analyzed wrongly. some mistakes there were, but given tat we were on a pretty tight schedule (prev allocated abt 8 days, excl wkends, to do the analysis) we churned out a pretty gd job. the feeling from the praise is diff from wat u get from sch. sch is like, ok you got an A, you feel ok at least cse work is there. in reality its quite different. there is no grading system so explicitly per se, but it gave me satisfaction more than i ever felt. 2 hrs of standing - n when u only had 5 hrs of disturbed slp last nite and by the end of the whole thing the blood in yr body is juz in your legs - n yr managers say, well done. wat u think? i'm very very satisfied, it spurred me to do even better for the nxt project n presentation.

so there goes 1. we shld b doing another round of presentation to 1 - 2 directors, tho this time the content is gg to b more concise n wif the errors (hopefulli) removed. so then, till the nxt presentation. of cos, there wil be another round of report writing - but its basically to re-edit the report to make it useful of management decision making. so things like accuracy, explicitness and clarity play major roles.

anyway, juz share some pics i took wif my fellow interns today... haha look at our relieved faces!
well done all!!!

me and amanda - both NTU MKG yr 3 (worr 1 more year left le!) interns at unilever, showing the "V" for victory handsign!! mission complete!!

me and shihui, shihui is from NUS MKG also, graduating end of tis year. i act cool... but cant diminish the sunshine from shihui!

"抽烟身体好，喝酒练头脑"

2007-06-02T22:21:00.000+08:00

in other words, the direct translation for this entry's title is: smoking is gd for the body while drinking trains the brain. of cos, it is best in its original language as the translation loses the 押韵 (ya1yun4), you know, the rhythm that you often hear in chinese phrases etc.

this interesting phrase i came by last wednesday, when i went back to office to discuss some project issues with my fellow interns. as there was a meeting going on tat day wif the distributors, sales rep from exec to supervisor levels came to my new office to participate in the meeting.

after the entire thing, it is inevitable tat they have a small get-together, both my office and the distributors' ppl alike. so wat's the best way to socialize in the corporate world?

- going out to eat takes up too much time and who's going to foot the bill even though everyone's all ready to pay but who wants to eat since ppl are tired and wanna go back slp;

- go pub drink. who knows how long it will take for it to end and no pt anyway since they all drive and why risk suspending your license and be smacked with a hefty fine to fund the recent civil servant bonuses;

- stay in office to chit-chat. partly correct only but who wants to really sit in office when there's a nice balcony overlooking town (ok... can only see hotel phoenix, heeren, cineleisure.. not all of it la) and the office's located at the top of the building??

but you ask, sitting on balcony (very large one) can do wat? look at skies? breathe the night air? enjoy the scene? NO!

these things u do wif your lover. when u have working ppl in their 30s - 50s you break out a Salem pack and start distributing ard to your kakis. then, as u pass / offer a light to others, you take a space on the balcony - leaning against the parapet, sitting on the wooden benches - and then, you start the chit chatting. sample conversation below:

"wa liao eh, AMK avenue 10 ee eh budget shop eh huay long zong si parallel import leh! lim bei kee yi dao kia kia kua kua, meng yi eh towkay ai xia hui mai, ee kar wa kong wa lang eh mee kia sibei gwee, an zua tan?"

(wa liao, the budget shop at AMK avenue 10 has so many parallel imports! when i went there and asked the boss if there's any things to order, he told me that our goods are too expensive, how to make money?)

"eh, wa kar ngli gong lar, market arh, si sibei pai. jin pai zou! wa kee gwee kian TPY ee dao eh provision shop hor, ee lang eh towkay long xia si mi, ngli zai ya boh? xiang hor eh, si xia sa bao lipton teh nia, xiang pai eh, bo sia! kio wa lang an zua hit sales target?"

(eh, i tell you, the market is really bad. hard to do nowadays! i went several of TPY's provision shops, and you know wat the bosses order? the best - 3 packs of lipton tea! the worst - never write! tell me how to hit the sales target?)

"jin pai tan la..."

(very hard to earn la...)

etc etc... all in hokkien along wif many colorful varieties of vulgarities common la when they gather to discuss the latest things in the market now. all these, within puffs of smoke. so, as i was waiting to discuss some issues with my manager, i overheard one of the distributor supervisors saying the entry's title!

very interesting! never heard of it before. then on friday when i was out wif my rep the same supervisor called and talked to my rep for a while. then she pass me the earpiece as her supervisor wanna talk to me.

Supervisor (S): "eh... hello?"
Me (SC): "hey, mr. xxx!"
S: "eh, weicong arh..."
SC: "mr. xxx, i'm not weicong la, its shicong."
S: "orh... hey, i tell you ah, tell your rep not to smoke so much la. still so young, bad for body! not like me ah, smoke 30 years already so have the immunity. drinking, also the same. 抽烟身体好，喝酒练头脑!"
SC: "ok ok... i will let her know."
S: "ya ya... you tell her ok! thank you arh!"
SC: "can can! thank you thank you. bye bye."

when i told my rep she went "kns" and $@#%&?! but its true la. i mean, dun try faking to ppl and tell them to quit when you yourself still puffing... then arh, say wat 30 years of smoke build up your body liao! wa lan eh crap la... but talking to him was very funny la...

anyway, as of yesterday my field work for project 1 has ended. so its back to office for data compilation, analysis and presentation. hmmm i love office... aircon... etc etc... though now is not back-breaking (not so physically demanding) but brain-breaking (like doing a marketing project lor...) well see how it goes...

end.

at the request of ms. wendy poh, friend and future [...]* (???)

2007-05-26T23:02:00.000+08:00

wow... realized that i have not been blogging for a really long time... as far as i remember, it goes back to about one and a half months ago since my last entry. that's really long! anyway, was chatting with danny, my sec sch till uni friend and he said "someone long time never blog liao hor" and that someone is yours truly (i.e. me). then, just about a few hours ago, i was having dinner with some of my uni friends and ms. poh *cheekily* asked me why i haven't been updating my entries. so, miss, here you are... enjoy it, though bear with me as i have many things to write.

i have just ended my 2nd week at Unilever, the company that i am attached to for my professional attachment. so that's 10 days, and frankly, though they moved from jalan boon lay (roughly 20 min bus ride from boon lay interchange not counting the wait time, but 20 min for 2 bloody stops!) to somerset, i have not yet the chance to fully appreciate the new office's facilities. why not? fyi, i'm not attached to marketing side totally... it's more of sales. outdoor sales, my dear readers, so that means i'm often out hitting the road. the new office is really nice, but the enjoying... well... gotta leave it to next week or so...

as of now i'm doing a project for my PA company. at the risk of divulging confidential information, i shall be rather prudent with my words from now on and not delve too deeply into the exact details of this project. what i can say, as an introduction, is the brands unilever has and these are not too foreign since they are present in most supermarkets and your common provision shop.

Food - Lipton, Skippy peanut butter, Walls and Ben's and Jerry's (the latter two is more of the ice cream division), Knorr (soup cubes)

Hair / Personal Care (includes body washes, shampoos, deos, conditioners etc) - Dove, Clear, Lux, Sunsilk (previously Organics), Impulse (body spray)...

i guess these brands are not too unfamiliar with my experienced shopper audience. in general, it is a market research project where me and 2 fellow interns don the hat of a research professional performing market studies (data collection, analysis and recommendations / implications) for the client. there is a scheduled presentation on this project, and if i'm not wrong, a report due for this. hoo boy, i tot i could "siam" reports and presentations during PA! but then cannot! so it's just like school, but it's the real thing and you are presenting to industry people. haha good news for my FYP mates... this is a mini-FYP! survey creation and stuff!! looks like this is gg to help lots for the draggy FYP...

for this research project, i am attached to a distributor's rep on field trips to the stores. currently, i am visiting traditional retailers - groceries, provision shops, medical halls, cosmetic shops... etc. for modernized retailers in particular the chain stores like NTUC, Sheng Siong and Prime, that will be left to a latter date.

in the FMCG (fast moving consumer goods) business, things move really fast - by the containers. the reason is readily apparent - in any economic situation the country is currently undergoing (boom, recession or just "normal) your expenditure on certain goods vary with your income, which in turn is (usually) determined by the economic climate. that means, you are more likely to buy a new car during a boom, while cutting expenses on luxuries like travel or entertainment during times of recession. but you do not stop eating, bathing, or washing your hair - that is where FMCG comes in. you may be likely to squeeze a little less shower cream during recessions so that you can prolong the time you buy your next Dove, but it is unlikely that you stop bathing altogether (yucks!)

in FMCG, the issue is not about who can come up with the better product, construct the more effective promotion, or raise brand awareness better than the competitor. it is about distribution to the masses by the containers. so, for example, P&G can come up with the "new and improved" anti-dandruff solution with new packaging and tout its superior benefits over Clear's similar product, but we can come up with the same or almost the same thing as they do, since we have pumped money into R&D. hence, the distributors' job is to secure deals with the retailers - the so-called gatekeepers to consumer markets - to carry more of our products than the competition's.

with the distributor rep, he/she will go around the assigned area (usually has about 150 - 200 outlets in that area of varying sales) and get the shopkeepers or towkays to place orders for our products. hence, the rep engages in trade marketing - the selling and promotion of products to the channel member (the trade). the retailer in turn engages in consumer marketing - the ultimate transferring of title and risk of products to the consumer. so, the distributor and unilever as well must coordinate efforts with the retailers, who are in the best position to reflect current market information to HQ so that further action can be taken.

so, as i've learnt during these 2 weeks (10 days - 4 in office and 6 outfield), the 4Ps of marketing are no doubt important (product, price, place and promotion). however, what the textbooks do not teach is the PEOPLE and PRESENTATION factors. the people factor means interpersonal relationships - when dealing with traditional retailers, who are mostly chinese shopkeepers, trust is the most crucial of all. with trust, orders are placed more easily and of higher sales value; promotion of new products and convincing them to take is easier, and they are more likely to cooperate with the distributor and/or unilever regarding shelving and pricing issues. for presentation, it means the whole package - company image, rep image, etc etc... as you can see these are abstract constructs that are not easily measured, but the role they play is so critical you cannot just simply disregard their existence.

attaching to the rep is also another avenue for learning. there are things that people usually do not know, let even ask, about something so pervasive like buying a shampoo off the shelf. the dynamics and complex integration of factors is truly an eye opener for me. no doubt, running around the assigned areas is physically demanding. however, it exposes you to the retail trade, and how the intricacies form together so that the consumer can get the item when and where it is wanted. tagging along allows for a deeper insight into the mechanics of FMCG retail trade, and no doubt raises the awareness i have of shopping.

as i told some of my friends, my job is to go shopping. not for stuff, but store visits. anyway, i have about 4 more days of visits to go before i go back to office to compile and analyse the data for presentation. in the meantime, if i happen to reach home early and feel less tired (rather difficult though) i shall blog more about the learning points that i have to share with my favorite audience.

haha... a bit long hor... i kinda felt i was writing my PA report already. nevertheless, i apologize for not posting entries as often. sorry people! anyway enjoy the holidays (if you have) or just enjoy life in general. PA keeps my mind off a lot of things, so i'm quite preoccupied with work work work... and of cos, knock off time!

if there's any suggestions or points that you like to say, pls put in a comment!

*btw, ms. poh may be my future... employer! haha!!! watcha thinking, eh? together we shall make the most successful accessory business in SG! (that's if i'm employed... no partner... marketing exec ma si ho -> 也是好... i talking to towkays v often as they complain alot so also time to train and brush up my beng hokkien! KN****B!!! hoo hoo hoo ray!) <- i think i siao le.

Compendium of All Terms: Chim

2007-04-07T00:33:00.000+08:00

Note: The following attempts not to create an exhaustive list of all terms related to "chim"

The Compendium of All Terms: Chim

with notable contributions from all disciplines designed by academics that are not meant to be easily understood by human beings

The term "chim" is a distinctively localized word connoting a similar meaning to "difficult" and "incomprehensible." Often, the audience of the material in question is subjected to various psychological and cognitive trials that usually leaves him/her bewildered and making no sense of the information presented.

The very first of such trials is physical in nature: a well-compiled textbook that incorporates a glossy design that, although uncreative, does not matter since the focus is not on the form, but the substance contained within the cover pages. The thickness ranges from 2 - 6 cm, with a tendency towards the larger figure a preferred choice of the authors.

Flipping over the first few pages of foreword and introductions, the reader is then subjected to a view of myriad and complex paragraphs that do not conform to communication principles; by this, it is meant that the size of the words are read best by image-scanners, such as xerox machines, than human eyes. The puny size suggests that alternative uses may be derived from reading the text within - providing an excuse for "tired eyes" and "cognitive overload," as well as preparing the reader for future short-sightedness which, it is hoped, does not benefit the authors who might be collaborating with optical shops in a joint-venture to receive cash flows from both the sales of such textbooks and vision-correcting spectacles that arise as a complementary need required for the reading of the books.

A sequential flow of material - introduction, theories, formulas, glossary and index - are shown neatly to the reader, but by no means are the content sequential. Apparently, the authors do not take into account the limited processing capabilities of their target audience, who would most likely not venture into the field of academic research and professorship, and are thus guilty of several mistakes that ought to be avoided, but nevertheless was not:

1) Lengthy sentences that serve as sources of confusion, leading to an internal debate within the reader with respect to the intended meaning;
2) Lengthy introductions and unnecessary information, which usually comes from the authors' intention of providing background information or attempting to display a sense of humor best appreciated by fellow academics;
3) Terms which have got to have a better substitute (in other words, comprehensible, no-frills attached technical phrases). This is especially so in economics and psychology textbooks, where the law of diminishing marginal returns set in upon cognitive overload of the reader, which enhances the perceptual biases he/she has of diminishing returns to economies of scale (this sentence is not meant to mean anything)
4) Practice questions that always incorporate numerous assumptions and leaving room for meaningless debate during tutorial sessions and the standard of which would never appear in the final examinations anyway (practice is equivalent to easy... get it?)
5) Incessantly thorough, as though the national spirit of Singaporeans have well invaded the personalities of the authors. This spirit is known loosely as "scare lose." Of course, given the rapid pace of Singapore universities, it has always been a challenge - for students - to understand and apply material to a hopelessly tough paper after a mere 14 weeks of intensive study. Interestingly, the amount of effort taken to go through the material may suggest that the student would actually integrate it into the existing knowledge pool that he/she possesses - research has shown that this does not happen (the speed of which this process of conveniently deleting the material from memory occurs at a seemingly shocking, though to professors only, rate that begins at "Pens down, stop writing" and finishing at no more than 10 seconds after such a phrase is said).

All in all, with such interesting issues for academics to ponder, it is suggested that a new field of research be conducted on all things chim. One can begin from defining the terms that are to be used in this new field; instances from other disciplines, such as the following and their related examples, may be considered:

- Mathematics: Calculus, Vectors, Matrices, Algebra etc
- Physics: Velocity, Newton's Laws, Theory of Relativity
- Computer Science: Algorithmns, Object-Oriented Programming, Java, Windows
- Geography: Physical Environment, Continents, Urbanization

The writer of this entry has suggested that simple terms be used to deal with such a complex field. To fully capture and illustrate the core essence of such an area, he has decided to use the localized word "chim" (and its variants) for the respective purposes (examples of situations which are deemed appropriate for the words are also presented to clarify any doubts, which is a feature currently devoid in textbooks):

- Chim: As intended. When the material presented is difficult for brain processing, using this word can assist in communicating the emotional response of the reader.
Example: A student sees a hardcover, 1000-page theoretical physics textbook. Flipping the pages of endless theorems and formulas, he utters the word "chim" and fellow students nod in agreement.

- Chim-ed: The past tense of chim, it is used whenever something of a chim nature is no longer chim. Note - it must be written as chim-ed, in order not to confuse it with "chimed."
Example: "I just understood that when you add 1 to 1, it gives you 2 - such a previously difficult concept has become chim-ed."

- Chimnify: The actioning of chim, it is used whenever a concept must be phrased rigorously with terms that are not normally used.
Example: "I know probability is just about chance - but the use of terms like cumulative distribution function, analysis of variance and statistical significance only serve to chimnify the entire topic."

- Chimnism: The study of all things chim, this is the newly proposed discipline for academic study.
Example: When the dean proposed to the president that chimnism be included in next year's research budget, he replied, "We are not here to make difficult things easy for our students, so let's just keep the budget restricted to researching for more easy things that we can make difficult for our students."

- Chiminology: Any word or term related to chimnism is part of the chiminology dictionary.
Example: The field of chimnism has not been taken seriously as its chiminology is not deemed challenging enough for students, for it only includes five variants of chim, as stated above.

(i was in lecture yesterday with my friend, and we got so bored we started talking about the topic of chim. so that explains this entry)

hey you're no big deal

2007-03-27T00:52:00.000+08:00

was doing the internal biz perspective of the balanced scorecard when i just had it. i can't think of what to write (the stoning of the writer) and so decide to tk a break from the crapz.

i met my fren aqilah in fal today, haven seen her for quite some time alr! did some catching up and of cos not lacking the griping abt school shit.

i have quite a no. of reports to submit tis wk so why am i still writing this shit?! anw, will make it chop chop.

having gone thru 80% of the sem i realized a couple of things:

1) bsc is a total money-making crap academics come up with so that they can write wat they want in a book and sell it off to managers. its juz like saying, hey, lets sit down and write sthg today. and while we're at it, lets throw in some perspectives to make it sound credible.

2) the conflicting theories - look, if u academics cant agree on which method to use and which definition to use, pls... forget it. i learnt totalyl different and conflicting cost and profit calculation theories for cost accounting and pricing. WTF? cant u at least agree on something... apart from making students' life like hell.

3) the damned academic setting. most ppl juz fall for the study trap. hey dun crap me wif the nonsense abt studying yr brains out... a lot of stuff u study now is gg to be crap anw... ethics my balls... formulas my balls... and since only 5% is gg to be used of wat u r studying now, i guess its the dumb sg kiasuness mentality creeping into a "world-class" education system like NXU. the questions u set... the way u ask abt things... r they truly reflective of the real world? it sure is at times, but dun tell me u r gg to tell yr boss... hey... cos the txtbook say so...

FUCK NTU. DAMN YOUR SYSTEM.

the ppl inside r nice but its juz the system that cocks things up. me given a choice i wun even intro so many modules tat u arent gg to use much anw... no wonder ppl say... if u need some1 who can do and deliver, go for the ntu student... no Qs asked.

i juz wanna graduate.

neglected postings

2007-02-04T21:43:00.000+08:00

hi ppl hv not been posting any interesting stuff of late... this is almost becoming a bi-weekly affair as i'm very much bogged down by school and other social commitments. not to forget that CNY is ard the corner and that means spring cleaning and shopping for clothes.

hmmm... where to begin? i left my last note on some "endings." perhaps now is the time to give some "beginnings" and the stuff that has been happening lately in my life.

firstly, let's NOT talk abt sch anymore. frankly it does not leave me very vexed, juz tat as i go along it becomes a real drag.

work: as i've already told some of my frens, i'm working part time, every tue, at my previous company. THIS is the killer. i'm planning to stop sometime aft CNY as i predict tat is where the shit from sch will really start to choke me. and already it is, so few more weeks from now i'll be having more time for myself and hopefully can spread my workload across my 2 free days... yes... i hav a 3-day week. whoopee!

frens: met up wif my jc classmates last fri, and was quite disappointed as the final turnout, incl. me, was only 3. my jc class size was only 12, with of cos the usual deviants and anti-socials, plus some who are overseas, and then the other 3 who's supposed to come nvr came. reasons: sick, school, work.

one of my good friends is leaving sg for an exchange in NZ. NZ, rite? shld be. met up wif her last thur to keep her updated abt stuff tat's been gg ard and of cos, some personal catching up. had a very interesting conversation and the topic came to focus on me, as to why the first impression ppl hav of me is "beng"... some reasons are as follows:

1) dyed hair (wtf?! lots of ppl do too!)
2) bochup attitude (workable area...)
3) my bracelet = beng?
4) my social circle -> rather diff from the click and thus more beng? (noteworthy pt)

pt 4 hit me the hardest. perhaps it is really true. the social grp u hang out wif reflects to a large extent the personality and character that you are. however, her words showed a radical difference in this view. that is, my personality is actually incongruent with the grp's and usually is the anti-norm of the grp, and hence, i was portrayed as the beng of the grp.

pt 2... yes, i admit tis. i go anywhere wif this "i very sian" look. cld be due to my craving for sleep. cld be the desire to be somewhere else rather than where i am at the pt of time. so i will work on tis. smile more and be more friendly. but i alr very friendly wat! thing is, i'm the chattable and friendly sort of person ONLY when u noe me for some time. eh. so that's the main issue. the luxury is not given to ppl everytime to noe someone at a more than an acquaintance level.

pt 1 and 3... food for thought.

anyway, tis fren of mine is leaving on nxt fri. well... not sure if u noe i hav a blog or if u read it often but hey... juz to add on to wat i said to u last thur... u'll be away for sometime in a foreign place. the road for the nxt 4 months or so maybe hard, maybe easy. most likely a cross of both. let me juz say that u r a great person to begin wif, and hopefully the exchange can mould u into a much resilent and greater person. shall not say too much here, juz that all the best and look fwd to seeing u ard again! will miss ya!!

personal life (crossed btw sch, work, frens etc): am trying to make some sense and order out of the hectic schedule these few weeks. some events tho:

1) i was approached at queenstown mrt station awhile ago to join a church. tis is... the 5th time. 2 personal invites and 3 from strangers. hmmm i got the feeling more will come. thing is, some common things that came from the 3 strangers were the emphasis on natural disasters and so on. not very positive marketing i wld say! it kinda seems that u join a faith out of fear and that u may be delivered, so to speak, if u join a particular religion. i'm not really into debates on faith issues as i believe they are best left to experts in the scholarly area.

2) interesting translation lessons. having not attended chinese lessons since i grad from sec sch in 2000 (i skipped chinese AO cos i had HCL) and now in 2007, attending chinese lessons were kind of... brings back memories. had no difficulty in understanding the lecturer as is from sg, i think. plus the tutorials focus only on 1 main idea at a time. plus the class is quite on, in terms of discussion. so no boring moments. the more challenging part is the understanding of the terms used to sub english words, such as nouns, subjects, verbs, objects, adjectives... etc. plus majority is gals, mostly majors in chinese or minors in translation. then, plus, the usual... another pretty girl in the class! i kinda established my "type" alr... will SU tis module of cos!

3) CNY mood! wif the gatherings and ang baos and feasting and gambling, i'm looking fwd to every CNY as it comes! weighed myself today @ 73k well, of cos, think will gain some later but wif the stress gg to lose them too!

ran out of things to write. but till then, nxt time lor!

...and so it draws to an end.

2007-01-20T21:09:00.000+08:00

yup... have not been blogging for quite some time already... been rather busy / slack (the latter being the more dominant reason) for the past 2 weeks or so.

very much settled down i guess. yesterday i attended the ceremony for the l'oreal brandstorm competition that was held at MOS. l'oreal booked the entire studio for us (well.. they're rich rite) and gave, i suppose, a goodie bag to each participant which is worth 100+ on the retail market. 3 products and 1 comb (which i dun use) and well... i didn't stay for long as i was very tired... and thus for 2007, brandstorm draws to an end.

i've managed to secure a 3 day week... yup... after some add-dropping now i'm taking 4 cores + 1 ge for this upcoming semester. previously i told some friends abt the ge i was taking... intro to public admin... my advice to fellow ntu mates if u ever are considering this ge (code ha101):

if you do not mind the following -
1) a rather boring lecture
2) slide content a ripoff from the text
3) you have to buy a textbook (for 3 au?!) costing abt 30
4) a total disregard by the lecturer on slide presentation i.e. 1 slide all filled with words
5) constant skipping of slides (min 5 at a time)
6) the drag (approx 100 slides per lect)
7) an effortful decryption of the lecturer's speech (i.e. you need to bypass the pronunciation)
8) a passive tutorial session
9) a debate and an individual assignment, with accompanying reports of 2000 words min
9) endless frustration due to the combination of the above factors esp 7 - 9

you can go ahead and spend 13 weeks with the best lecturer i've come across in ntu.

i was really halfway thru on dropping this after i attended the lecture. i mean, public admin is so dry a subject, and reading off the slides is not gg to be very helpful in stimulating interest. well, not that i care about interest, i juz wan to take the ge and clear my damned requirements. the spur came when i attended the tutorial (okie... there was a chick but it wasn't wat i wanted in the course). we were organized into 2 groups and the lecturer simply came in and wrote the topic for discussion. it was "why do we need a government?" i was in the group that required more prompting.

so then, someone started the ball rolling. finally. after, like, 5 minutes of silence and looking at each other, while the other group is busy chatting and discussing away. the group took turns to speak: each gave a reason why do we need a government. now, language nuances aside as that they're asking "why" and not "do we need", the entire discussion was hilarious.

the person who prompted is hereon named P. also there's the active speaker (A) and the knowledgable speaker (K).

P: ok, let's start with me. I think we need a government because (i forgot)
A: yah, blabber blabber.
me: i think we need a govt because the country requires some form of representation that it exists, with proper law and order, in this world and that it may present itself to the international community. (go wow - no la joking only)
P: Actually, why do we need the govt? Why can we juz behave as we are and don't do bad things? Let's say today we don't pay taxes, or have complete disregard for traffic lights (i.e. juz go on red), and we don't care wat the govt says, and it cant do anything abt it! (omg... smart)
A: more blabber
K: (i really salute this guy) (to P) then wat is your definition of right and wrong? (juz wat i was thinking as well... P, you're suggesting that every person comes out from the same moral mould that you come from, which sadly isn't the case and probably, your words of "unwisdom" has gotten the group to wanna either laugh at you or kick your ass) law exists so that each individual are subjected to a fair (debatable though) form of treatment and... (more... but each word made more sense than P)
A: more blabber
P: actually (haha you like a lot of actually... actually i also like actually) why need a govt? you see in other countries they have royal families and they blah blah...
K: they have because its part of their history. but you must remember they do not have so much of authority as they had in the past. they existed simply becos of respect and tradition.
A: (smartest statement of the day) well, in our history, we didn't have royal families ruling us so there wasn't a need to have one in place, but we do have one already that's ruling us.

the tutorial lasted 1 hr. it was like hell... imagine another 12 weeks in the same group. the tut wrapped up aft each group had a rep to say the reasons out (my group - by P)

after the lesson i met my friends in fal. i opened stars and guess wat... the index vacancy for my slot was initially 0, then i saw 1, and saw 2... all coming. might as well make it a 3. i gave that number 3 to the system. and so it draws to an end. i've just checked too... it stayed at 3. maybe ppl dropped. then ppl added it. so have fun, those who've added. and those who've dropped, welcome to the club.

to P: you are displaying an outright naviety towards the topic. the topic is generally a good discussion issue but you are showing your plain ignorance to the situation and context. you've deviated too far from the core issues: that is, why do we need a govt, NOT wat we can do to bring the govt down.

crap, i think everyone's suppressing their laughters. either you're still in the bloody secondary school mindset, or you're in the wrong place, or you're just trying to prove how limited your worldview is. you remind me of a classmate (but not friend) of mine. ppl would wan to slap you with a smile wide across their faces. pls stop being in your comfort zone and say, you're in uni alr rite? start behaving like you're an undergrad! i dunno if you've jus came in or it simply just being your own character, but apart from giving us a good (though silent) laugh it's really time, you know, to stop behaving like the sheltered child your parents have been treating you all along.

no wonder ppl say that undergrads nowadays suck. it's becos of ppl like you who show your stupidity and having no tact watsoever that ppl who are really good gets shadowed by you. but thankfully, as with that previous classmate, i shall not see you again. i feel... revolted by your sheer incompetence.

i mean, i would not mind if you take more time to understand material. i would not mind too if your foundations are not good. what i would mind is that kind of childish attitude you show.

and so, this entry draws to an end. wake up lar, P!

"we're talking about big money here"

2007-01-15T22:22:00.000+08:00

my first taste of "real" marketing today left myself stabbed (injure but not dead) and yet, every moment savoury even till now. took away several priceless learning points from a MNC no less, the all famous comestics and beauty company, L'oreal.

according to the 2 judges, the presentation:

1) was too vague
2) lacking in content
3) actual survey data was not present and instead replaced by personal views and opinion leaders
4) needless repitition of redundant information
5) misc. others

which was all very true and left us basically slightly disappointed but then we know, with this invaluable experience, we can apply them to subsequent assignments and projects in school with a clearer focus in mind. frankly, i think marketing is damn shit. easy to pass, not too difficult to score but hard to succeed (real life). i'm not so concerned about the grades as i juz heard from my fellow group mate for this competition that P&G, my ideal PA org and hopefully future employer, employers 1st class and 2nd uppers to do event mgt tasks... so i suppose u'll see me at orchard road passing out samples of Lux shampoos one day... then u'll noe i have min 2nd upper and i work at P&G as marketing exec to push sales at roadshows.

anyway, it was a great brush with reality. which makes me think how really useful the subjects i am studying now is. well, i feel very lucky i'm still in school. not shrinking from any responsibility, but assured of the fact that the life i am leading now is much more easier, simpler and sheltered from what is going to happen.

so that's abt all... it has been a very heavy and taxing month for all three of us. so wh and neri... u ppl done a real great job and it has not been easy this period. late nights, meetings during a hard-earned hols and vexing times were present, but it didn't deter us. we did wat we could and delivered our 2 cents. so then again, thks for the excellent job done and hope this be an invaluable learning lesson for all.

so let's get back to studies... after all, they're much simpler not juz becos it only means reading and taking exam, but also wif the exp we walked away today.

happy 21st bday!

2007-01-07T01:23:00.000+08:00

juz came back from my fren's bday celeb at downtown east... happy bday jas!!!

hmm it was held at downtown east chalet. bbq and super mini buffet (at the back) all she tk care one. food very nice. clap clap to jas!

anw i was expecting some fellow uni frens (our common frens) to show up but... well... nvm.

in any case i left early... abt 1 hr after i arrived. didnt stay for the cake but took 2 pics wif her to rem the special occasion.

hmmm 21st bday... always a special day for all. no matter where u are or how u are doing then, the 21st bday marks a new beginning of your life. a brand new phase to be exact. i went to one of my ns fren's bday party last yr and the cake was shaped like a key. seemingly it has the significance of opening up something. new opportunities, new doors, new everything.

in sg, the applicable context is:

1) 16 years: no jail (only home) no mentioning of name in press
2) 18 years: jail ok no mentioning of name in press (not sure abt 2nd part) cig ok alcohol ok
3) 21 years: no more minor (so minor contracts act not applicable except for special circumstances) so jail ok name mentioning ok R(A) ok progress package (or equivalent) ok

the above 3 as i rem.

i managed to catch a glimpse of jas bday cake... its shaped "21" and in white. dunno if its cream or white choc (anw i dun like cream so if anyone wanna buy me cake buy either ice cream cake or choc cake or fruit cake or cheese cake no "self-made" cake from WC ok le - however my bday still long from now la)

hmmm... my 21st bday... a year plus ago le. as i get older more responsibilities and more stuff. its quite ok la i'm shedding my old self along the way. perhaps i shld say i've wisened up alot. from the beginning when i was quite "dull" (as opposed to nerdy) to wat i am today... i have many ppl to thank for.

NS: tis is the crucial period. i'm very lucky to be posted to a relaxed place and then got to noe ppl who influenced and changed the direction i was heading in life. of cos it meant tt i had to step out, which i eventually did and feel lucky tt i did so.

13th Aug 2004: A, if u are reading tis, thank you very much. u dunno how much u hv helped me and i am grateful for wat u hv done for me. both mentor and friend to me. i cannot imagine myself w/o yr advice every now and then.

2005/2006 Yr1: mixed. reading of prev entry a summary of 2006 may help. but still, experience.

today + future: more will come.

as i write tis entry, i didnt hv any particular idea or focus in mind. juz writing watever came to me. END.

effective human resource management 101

2007-01-01T13:03:00.000+08:00

something i picked up over december when i worked part-time at my previous co... just sharing with you future managers out there.

what exactly is "effective human resource management" you ask? i'm not a HR major so i cannot really explain here, but i can tell you what i saw and how i felt which had an impact on my personal job performance.

EHRM in my perspective is about a human-based approach to management. you ask again, doesn't this scope of management revolve about managing people? realize that i'm not talking about management of people... but instead using a human-based approach to management of people. that is, cast away the policies and red tape. throw them in the bin. shred them. dump them.

the human-based approach of management is concerned about management via the individual. be individual-oriented. i cannot say that this works for a large group but roughly a number of 5 - 10 should not pose as a problem. given that we are now working as cross-functional teams instead of the typical i'm-from-HR-dept-so-you-who-are-from-marketing-don't-concern-me method, this approach works great (at least for me).

having gave an intro to EHRM, basically the underlying principle is to LISTEN to your subordinates. not HEAR, mind you, a very passive action. LISTEN. SHOW CONCERN. PAY ATTENTION and VIEW THINGS FROM THEIR PERSPECTIVES.

LISTEN: Sometimes employees gripe about things in the company and about customers who pay late, default on payment, show attitude, banks who cock up... etc. Listen to what they have to say and suggest solutions, but of cos take into account their own suggestions too. Remember, you being the manager doesn't make you the expert in everything. realize that. you don't graduate with a business degree and do things your way without taking into account the views of the IT staff, which is the REAL expert here. if i were to use armed forces lingo, you are the officer and your employees the specialists. being the generalist (know a bit here and there, mostly concerned with strategic management and direction) doesn't mean you can just use your rank (although in saf is can la...) and then suppress your subordinates. they are the specialists, people who are specially trained in their areas of expertise. give them due credit for this.

SHOW CONCERN: Please, you are managing humans, not the trashy table you have at home. sometimes i feell even pets get better treatment that humans. When they come in to your office and start pouring out things about their personal lives, please... LISTEN again. and SHOW CONCERN. then, grant them permission or give concesssions on certain requests. if they are sick, tell them to rest at home. if they have something urgent, grant them urgent leave and follow up by asking if everything is alright. talk to them as if they are your own family, your own friends. i believe power distance to be crap. you mean, as a human, albeit in high-power distance countries, you cannot show compassion to a fellow human?

PAY ATTENTION: Some overlapping perhaps with the previous 2 headings. again, listen with attention. this shows that you actually care and respect your employees. this will in turn gain their respect for you. Respect... earned not coerced.

VIEW THINGS FROM THEIR PERSPECTIVES: the old adage, standing in their shoes. an employee-oriented approach. the heading says pretty much for itself.

you can expect some benefits from this:

1) employee respect

2) employee motivation - motivation doesn't always require the use of cash or fat bonuses. some simple words of encouragement, heartfelt concerns... they work great. i read somewhere this very true statement... the only thing humans need more than sex is recognition

3) savings and lower labor turnover - with part 2 comes the part of saving on bonuses. actually i'm not a strong advocate of this, being that i have myself to support and that year-end bonuses ought to be sufficient as proper compensation and ancilliary motivation. if the company is doing well, please hand out 2 - 3 month bonuses. you cannot even begin to fathom how this bonus can spur your employees to strive even harder along with the recognition (verbal) you just given to them. lower labor turnover comes from the usual... if employees are happy, they are less likely to job-hop and thus you really save on classified advertisements, interviews, selection... etc. and dun forget this. customers and suppliers want to talk to ppl they are familiar with. if they like to talk to a sales exec / purchaser X (but disgruntled with a fucked-up boss) and the latter leaves, think! you gotta waste time and money to get another 1, teach the basics again and establish trust from level zero. how is that for you? you sure wont like that! i'm not talking abt zero turnover... just minimizing it.

this basically concludes EHRM 101. hopefully there will be 102, 103... will share whenever possible.

first entry 2007... a recap on 2006

2007-01-01T12:24:00.000+08:00

a very happy new year to you, my audience, and all the best wishes for you this coming year.

2006 frankly has been a very long year of hurdles, challenges, trials and fortunately, rewards that waited at the end of the race. i'm attempting to recount each possible significant event that has ever happened to me in 2006. perhaps i should start from january and go down the months.

jan: a fateful month which now resides in my mind as a blurry image. i've talked of this enough times with my close friends and it's something which i still do think of once in a while, but the associated feelings have gone, leaving only traces of memory. perhaps what was said was right. let them be just memories. haha i vividly remember my god-sis telling me on CNY day 1 to get a gf soon... haha... of cos i never really did tell her what happened exactly a week ago (how's that for a CNY present...) but i just returned a smile. weak smile.

feb - april: i do not remember much of this period. the only things i rem are late nights spent on catching up on studies, persistent memories of the said event in jan and tormenting dreams of lousy results again. i muz say i went to bed basically every night with the number 2.75 in my head (my first yr, first sem gpa) which haunted me. i did not know what would the sem 2 results yield, as i did not have much hope too. juz realli concentrate and not think about other things. which was ok cos the thing, though it was in my mind often, was actually the spur. i can only say it was a mixture of loss, hopes, love, hate. i really cannot say which is more dominant. luckily, the results that came out were good.

may - end july: i was working during this period of time with my friend from sch. it was a very nice place with lots of nice ppl that made life consideraby easier. i was sorting through some papers yesterday and saw actually how many times i OT-ed during that period. of cos that earned me a lot of money which proved useful for my vices in yr 2. i left the place contented and happy that i've made several friends and contacts which would definitely be useful some time later in life. dunno when, but sure it would. good to noe more ppl tt's wat i always think.

august: i signed up for the 07 freshmen orientation program. which was a big step as i usually click delete on such email solicitations. i was interviewed by my econs tutor and had a long chat with her. basically, it revolved around the idea of reaching out to others. there was training of cos, and at the end of the day my group secured 2nd place in the poster design competition. very very rewarding spiritually. of cos, it also meant the increase in contacts again.

august / september: i had the honor and chance to acquaint myselves with the best people i have met around in sch yet. they are my 4 seniors (marketing majors) who invited me on several occasions to outings and a in-hall housewarming party. haha. i love this group of ppl who are juz simply great. Very lucky to know you all and you still are the best. Fun, outgoing, helpful... kudos and thanks very much for what each of you have done for me.

same period as previous + oct: i met this girl. haha. how should i say it... gorgeous. hmmm. but nothing la.

november: exam time. i remember i fucked 2 of my papers. research methods and retail management. but in the end i got a B for both. not too bad really! expecting B- / C+ though. i muz say i am very lucky... thank the gods for this! it muz have been an answer to my prayers and to my "honesty".... read my previous entry. really nothing below B- this time. improvement? probably. lucky? definitely. happy? of cos.

december: went back to working again and now established even more contacts with ex-colleagues (then become colleagues) and made new friends. it was a long and hectic month, plus having to commit to an external competition. very enriching life as i gained an insight into what real marketing is. its not "smoking" through, not just 4Ps and SWOT and simply just that. very in depth. basically gave me an idea into what my future career possibly might be like. anyway. haha. leave it till then.

2006: in summary, ups and downs. very very fortunate to have picked myself up and made new friends and living an enriching life day by day. it wasn't a particularly good year (not talking about a good year for wines) but not too bad either. bonds were strengthened and horizons expanded. not too shabby i thought! i know that no one year is going to be perfect but it really isn't too bad. lets make 2007 a better year for all, including you who is reading this.

thanks to my friends who stood by me when i was down and have to bear with my recounts of a sad event. maybe what they say is true:

smile, and it'll go away. it really did. thanks so much again.

welcome everybody to my 轟趴

2006-12-14T22:54:00.000+08:00

yes... welcome everybody to my 轟趴.

this 轟趴 thing is a youtube video series i have been following these past few weeks. its part of a show called 全民大闷锅, which mainly aims to attack Taiwanese political figures in a humorous way. they have people act as these key persons and then engage in silly debates that are nonsensical in nature and leaves the audience laughing, satirical stuff.

of cos, this being a taiwanese variety show where they speak hokkien 95% of the time, it is not shown in singapore free-to-air channels. instead, i stumbled upon this series and has been laughing every night since.

for my loyal follower(s), i have, if u notice, not been writing my blog for quite some time. this is very much due to my working hours: long and tiring, which leaves me only enough energy to take the train home and sleep (maybe play some games or watch tv) before i crash into my bed.

basically, i'm not going to be talking about watever 趴 here: 蓝，懒... no no no. its more of an update for fellow readers on what has been happening to me lately. if you want to say the 2 words followed by 趴, you must say: " *pass* 给你讲” (say in hokkien… a famous line in the series)

an interesting issue i was chatting with 2 of my colleagues today at work was the topic of children. not whether children are cute, or if they are worth having, etc. the focus is about the problems and difficulties faced by parents and me, being a future parent, was listening to what they hv to say.

being aunties in their mid years, they do have something to share about. frankly, i forgot wat we talked about today, except that they were asking me and my allowance. its not a sensitive topic - i told them how much i got per day, and how me and my mum resolved financial issues. the viewpoints of 2 mothers (mine, and one of the aunties) was distinctly at two extremes.

she was in fact very liberal with money. what was enlightening today was tat parents are more willing to spend on daughters than on sons…. so it’s mum for facials, mum for new hairdo, new pair of heels to go with the gorgeous gown and nice bag for the upcoming prom nite.. with the former, they shower with gifts and money that is used for their personal enjoyment: shopping, grooming and the like. The latter… not as much. WHICH IS OK with me really. i mean, why compare.. i'm not a girl.

however, for boys, it is expected that they be independent and raise money on their own. sure, this is to prepare them for future obligations to wife and family (note: wife before family): the associated expenses. i suppose society still burdens the man with expense issues despite the *seemingly* growing feminism bull and gender equality shit. of cos, this is a general statement and hopefully does not apply to you. (your future husband is just working as hard, so dun treat him like a mobile ATM for your LVee and Pradar and Gucce!)

which boils down to the crucial statement: it is CHEAPER to raise a boy than a girl, and parents give more moeny to daughters than sons. why? the former spends on herself, and the latter on girls. so the idea is: if you have to spend ANYWAY, why not spend it on yourself and not on others.

perhaps this is just the thinking of the previous generation. however, cues were abound: it gave me some idea and tips as to how to raise my children later in life. actually, i wasn't too receptive to the idea of marriage: however, after some time, i decided marriage without kids is not so bad after all. then, 2 weeks back, my friend told me something which goes like this:

the desire of humans to attain immortality is present in every single person: this, being unrealistic, is a prompt for people to get married and have kids. through their offspring, they see in them their own selves - thus, you are "immortal" through your children.

now i'm contemplating that maybe getting married AND having kids isn't so bad after all. and so i have decided... perhaps 2 kids, preferably at least 1 daughter so i can shower my love on her (perhaps plus some money to complete the package too).

hmm.. back to my workplace. it hasn't changed much (no new girls that is. still the same... girls more loyal to the company and less wanting to job-hop i guess??) but the clean and tidy files cabinet i left is now in a total disaster. drastically in need of new files and some proper order! (the files have been reused so many times its time to change them!)

coming to almost 2 weeks at my workplace: very nice and very cool people. i'm personally the social animal around: chit chatting mostly to maintain good relationships with both managers and employees. good right? anyway, i found some girls have become prettier whilst some... (psst... shhh... hush) will be working till the end of this month and then rest for 2 weeks (1+1 extended no school first week self proclaim) with some workout and major slacking before returning to books again. damn!

that should be all... wait. let me save this in word cos my connection got cut and it doesnt seem to be coming back anytime soon till i restart. so ciao, ppl. long entry to read, but juicy nonetheless.